:00:05. > :00:15.government and Nato targets in Afghanistan. Now for the latest
:00:15. > :00:19.
:00:19. > :00:25.Hello and a warm welcome. You're with World Business Report. I'm
:00:25. > :00:28.Sally Bundock. The headlines: Making an impact. Whoever wins the
:00:28. > :00:36.election business wants a President that can tackle pressing economic
:00:36. > :00:41.problems. Transport shutdown in another round of austerity. I Rico
:00:41. > :00:46.Hizon in Singapore, Japan's Suzuki will shut down its car business in
:00:46. > :00:55.the US and file for bankruptcy, blaming the strong yen and weak
:00:55. > :01:00.demand for small cars. -- I in Rico Hizon. -- I'm Rico Hizon. Good to
:01:00. > :01:03.have you with us. By this time tomorrow we should have a good idea
:01:03. > :01:07.of who will be President of the United States for the next four
:01:07. > :01:11.years. It's been one of the closest election races in recent history,
:01:11. > :01:15.while that's generated interest in the election, for business and
:01:15. > :01:20.investors it is a source of concern. The US has pressing financial and
:01:20. > :01:28.economic problems and the business world wants clarity on how they
:01:28. > :01:32.On Wall Street today there is just one question... Who will run
:01:32. > :01:38.America and its ailing economy for the next four years? The answer
:01:38. > :01:42.could be just hours away. Yet while Americans go to the polls business
:01:42. > :01:48.is already looking beyond the election. For months firms have put
:01:48. > :01:53.off investing and delayed hiring new staff. They're waiting for
:01:53. > :02:01.clarity on what their next leader will bring. Top of the to-do list
:02:01. > :02:06.is tackling the fiscal Cliff, the tide rises and spending cuts could
:02:06. > :02:11.push America back into recession. The unemployment rate is and seven
:02:11. > :02:17.point nine% as well so jobs is a concern. Republicans accuse
:02:17. > :02:25.President Obama of stifling growth through tougher regulations. --
:02:25. > :02:30.rate is at 7.9 %. With so much on the to-do list, where should the
:02:30. > :02:37.new President's start? Traders and say the priority is restoring
:02:37. > :02:41.confidence in the economy. -- new Presidents. Once we have clarity we
:02:41. > :02:47.will see investment. In the US theatre we have seen strengthening
:02:47. > :02:53.in the housing market, stronger user demand overall. For consumers
:02:53. > :02:56.higher optimism than we have seen since the financial crisis. But for
:02:56. > :03:02.businesses like this green energy firm they are less worried about
:03:02. > :03:06.who takes the top job, and more worried about the ability to push
:03:06. > :03:12.through tough decisions. I assume the Senate will be deadlocked for
:03:12. > :03:17.the next four years. Neither of them will get much done. I am not
:03:17. > :03:22.expecting a lot of help. Here on Wall Street it appears the markets
:03:22. > :03:26.have already factored in a victory for President Obama. But none the
:03:26. > :03:30.less the real impact will come from Congress. Unless there's a
:03:30. > :03:36.significant change in the make-up of the House of the Senate, the new
:03:36. > :03:40.President's powers will be limited, and so as Americans vote for their
:03:40. > :03:49.next President businesses hoping they deliver one with the power to
:03:49. > :03:54.get things done. Now let's go to news of disruption and protest in
:03:54. > :03:59.Athens. The main unions have started a 40 eggs hour strike. It
:03:59. > :04:03.means public transport will be shut down, including taxis and ferries.
:04:03. > :04:09.-- a 48 hour strike. There could be issues with health care and shops
:04:09. > :04:14.are going to remain closed. Unions say the latest austerity measures
:04:14. > :04:18.are destructive to society and they impoverish their members. To put
:04:18. > :04:24.this in perspective I'm joined by an economist at the stockbrokers
:04:24. > :04:28.meant partners. Tomorrow this vote is key, they need to get it through
:04:28. > :04:34.to get the next bunch of aid from international lenders. Will they
:04:34. > :04:39.get it? It is critical they do and it's very important that the
:04:40. > :04:43.European elites, who are pushing this plan as part of the current
:04:43. > :04:48.bargaining to keep the eurozone system moving, get your anonymity
:04:48. > :04:53.from the Greeks. But Greek politicians understand that they
:04:53. > :04:57.are now effectively in control of this situation. If Greece was to
:04:57. > :05:02.break down that could be the straw that breaks the current consensus
:05:02. > :05:06.that is keeping this rally in the European markets going. So that's
:05:06. > :05:11.why Greek politicians are playing this very difficult game. That said
:05:11. > :05:15.we do thing tomorrow they probably will vote in favour. One of the
:05:15. > :05:22.major parties has already said that they will simply step aside Antonov
:05:22. > :05:29.folk, that makes it slightly easier. -- aside and not to vote. They will
:05:29. > :05:33.be defections -- and not vote. They will then have to discuss the
:05:33. > :05:37.restructuring of their dead and more financial aid in the future.
:05:37. > :05:42.It doesn't mean the story will be finished. -- or their debts. At
:05:42. > :05:51.some point over the next few months we will see more debate about what
:05:51. > :05:55.more does Greece need. -- or their debt -- their debt. The debt
:05:55. > :06:00.situation is getting worse and they will need more money some time soon.
:06:00. > :06:07.In terms of restructuring the debt, will that be agreed upon? For the
:06:07. > :06:10.lenders, it is another bitter pill to swallow. It is very difficult.
:06:10. > :06:16.After the restructuring they had at the start of this year the only
:06:16. > :06:20.people to be restructured who are left are the sovereign bodies
:06:20. > :06:24.themselves, the IMF, but particularly the ECB. If that
:06:24. > :06:28.happened that a negative signal to send two German voters, which is
:06:28. > :06:33.one of the critical things. They will do anything to avoid any kind
:06:33. > :06:37.of move that might be seen as Europe taking losses, encase it
:06:37. > :06:42.sends the wrong political message. It is all part of the same game,
:06:42. > :06:47.nothing has changed. Bill, thank you for joining us. Of course we
:06:47. > :06:51.will keep a close eye on how the day progresses there, today and
:06:51. > :06:56.tomorrow, a 48 hour strike, no doubt it will have a big impact in
:06:56. > :07:00.Greece. Now yesterday we were talking to you about Toyota, today
:07:00. > :07:05.it is Suzuki, they are shutting down their US business, which is
:07:05. > :07:12.losing money and has big debts. We can go to Rico Hizon in Singapore.
:07:12. > :07:17.Tell us more about Suzuki. It is indeed a big disappointment. You
:07:17. > :07:24.Japane Japanese manufacturers, closing
:07:24. > :07:28.down its car business and filing for bankruptcy in the US. The
:07:28. > :07:32.culprit... The strong yen against the US dollar and weak demand for
:07:32. > :07:36.its small cars in the American market. Let's look at the numbers.
:07:36. > :07:41.They only sold about 26,000 vehicles in America last year and
:07:41. > :07:46.that is just a fraction compared to its Japanese rivals, Toyota, Nissan
:07:46. > :07:51.and Honda. But Suzuki is not totally finished in America and is
:07:51. > :07:56.not totally turning its back, it will continue selling motorcycles,
:07:56. > :08:00.all-terrain vehicles and marine products such as outboard motors,
:08:00. > :08:06.and officials say they will read director their resources where the
:08:06. > :08:13.prospects for profitability are much higher. The Japanese firm has
:08:13. > :08:18.focused their attention on emerging markets, like India, where they are
:08:18. > :08:22.the biggest auto maker. Thank you for joining us. Other Business News
:08:22. > :08:26.and Apple might be changing the computer chips it uses in their
:08:26. > :08:30.personal computers and laptops. At the moment they use Intel
:08:30. > :08:35.processors but according to Bloomberg it is looking to switch
:08:35. > :08:41.to the chip technology they use in iPhones and iPads. They could also
:08:41. > :08:45.run PCs, but any move is still years away. Apple's share of the
:08:45. > :08:50.market for tablets fell to 50 % in the third quarter compared to 60 %
:08:51. > :08:56.last year. According to a report apple shifted 14 million devices
:08:56. > :09:06.during the July to September quarter. -- Apple. Samsung's market
:09:06. > :09:09.
:09:09. > :09:14.share more than doubled. A News Corporation report says they will
:09:14. > :09:22.release their figures today. They have confirmed their plans to
:09:22. > :09:27.separate their to publicly traded companies. -- two. Markets today,
:09:27. > :09:32.very nervous ahead of the US election. And what's unfolding in
:09:32. > :09:36.Greece. One of the big stories that came as a surprise to some, in
:09:36. > :09:40.Australia the central bank kept the cost of borrowing on hold, boosting
:09:40. > :09:44.the Aussie dollar, it went up to a three-week high, this is the US