:00:04. > :00:14.BBC World News. Now for the latest financial news with Sally Bundock
:00:14. > :00:24.
:00:24. > :00:28.It is said to be the biggest jump in property values in the US for
:00:28. > :00:30.seven years, so has the market recovered from the catastrophic
:00:30. > :00:34.collapse of 2008? Growth is stalling in South Africa
:00:34. > :00:43.and pay disputes with unions raises fears of a repeat of last years
:00:43. > :00:48.mining violence. Welcome to World Business Report.
:00:48. > :00:58.I'm Sally Bundock. Also, we will tell you which is the happiest
:00:58. > :00:58.
:00:58. > :02:06.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 67 seconds
:02:06. > :02:10.Some of the nine people that it on it, only one is getting that
:02:10. > :02:15.the eight the eight are looking for copies.
:02:15. > :02:20.This is not unique to Brooklyn. The same story is repeating itself
:02:20. > :02:25.throughout the US. With the number of homes for sale at record lows,
:02:25. > :02:34.that is driving prices higher. In the past year, home prices in
:02:34. > :02:37.Atlanta, Georgia, have shot up by 16%. San Francisco, 19%. 23% in
:02:37. > :02:45.Phoenix, Arizona, once the centre of the housing market bust. But the
:02:45. > :02:52.market al market altogether, creating a
:02:52. > :03:02.the turn bubble at this point and wall looking that's -- at this as
:03:02. > :03:03.
:03:03. > :03:08.seen an extreme situation now but it will rebate going forward.
:03:08. > :03:18.drop going forward. America appears to be rebuilding one floor at a
:03:18. > :03:19.
:03:19. > :03:21.time. world's ha
:03:21. > :03:24.world's happiest nation according to the Organisation for Economic
:03:24. > :03:29.Co-operation and Development. This income, jo
:03:29. > :03:39.income, jobs, housing and health. Sharanjit Leyl is at our Asia
:03:39. > :03:53.
:03:53. > :04:00.getting top spot. -- business hub. Along with the things you mentioned,
:04:00. > :04:05.it is also the focus of the Asian economy. We saw some other
:04:05. > :04:12.countries on the list, the likes of Sweden, Canada, Switzerland and
:04:12. > :04:18.the survey countries on criteria that you
:04:18. > :04:27.mentioned, income, health, safety and housing. M
:04:27. > :04:35.Australia's 23 million people are aged between 15-64. And they hold a
:04:35. > :04:38.paid job. That is above the average. Life expectancy also higher, almost
:04:38. > :04:47.82 years. And the economy has posted more than two decades of
:04:47. > :04:55.straight growth due to demand for its natural resources. It has also
:04:55. > :04:58.managed to avoid the global recession. Essentially, the
:04:58. > :05:02.economic strength is reflected in the Australian dollar, which is
:05:02. > :05:06.currently trading close to 30-year highs. But there is a real but
:05:06. > :05:13.because the government is starting to see a lot of challenges to
:05:13. > :05:18.Australia's growth. The mining boom there is tapering off somewhat. And
:05:18. > :05:22.there is a little bit of an unemployment problem as it is
:05:22. > :05:25.rising. The Labour government in Australia is now trying to move the
:05:25. > :05:28.economy away from its dependence on economy away from its dependence on
:05:28. > :05:32.mining and is trying to focus on sectors such as construction and
:05:32. > :05:37.manufacturing. They have many other challengers, including a widening
:05:37. > :05:46.income gap. The top 20% of the population and six times more than
:05:46. > :05:51.the bottom 20%. So, it is not all rosy. That is always the case. Very
:05:51. > :06:00.interesting. Thank you. It has topped that index for three years
:06:00. > :06:07.in a row. Moving on to a multi- billion dollar business. Bubble tea
:06:07. > :06:13.is very popular. But the industry has been hit with a recall.
:06:13. > :06:22.Singapore has look -- blacklisted some types after an asset was found
:06:22. > :06:32.in some of duc Afternoon tea with a twist.
:06:32. > :06:32.
:06:32. > :06:37.everybody's cup of tea. This kind of he has taken off in Asia. This
:06:37. > :06:42.store in Singapore's central business district sells 700 cups
:06:42. > :06:48.every week. With two other shops in the country, the company makes more
:06:48. > :06:52.than $800,000 every year. It goes well with the drinks that they have,
:06:52. > :07:00.it complements it very well. It's a good afternoon treat because it is
:07:00. > :07:07.cold and refreshing. The tea is not just a simple thing. You can find
:07:07. > :07:13.it across Asia and even in thing. What is the fuss about? This
:07:13. > :07:19.is what is on offer. A green, jasmine tea. A hazelnut tea. And
:07:19. > :07:29.this is the most popular. A milk tea with black curls. They are made
:07:29. > :07:34.out of tapioca. You can see them in the bottom. -- pearls. They are
:07:34. > :07:44.soft, sweet and Chile. That is apparently what makes these drinks
:07:44. > :07:45.
:07:45. > :07:50.so popular. -- chewy. That is also what makes them the most concern.
:07:50. > :07:53.Several of the products have been banned, many of them tapioca balls.
:07:53. > :08:00.But the operation manager is not worried because he says the company
:08:00. > :08:10.does not use any of the blacklisted Pollux. The Czechs put in place to
:08:10. > :08:11.
:08:11. > :08:21.buy both Taiwan and our suppliers are getting stricter. -- checks. I
:08:21. > :08:25.this firm at least, the bubble teak bubble is not about to burst.
:08:25. > :08:32.There is growing concern about the state of the South African economy.
:08:32. > :08:35.Figures due out today are expected quarter. Perhaps the biggest
:08:35. > :08:40.concern is the mining industry because if you include associated
:08:40. > :08:46.activities it accounts for about 20% of the South African economy.
:08:46. > :08:55.Very significant indeed. But global demand for gold, Puttnam and cull
:08:55. > :08:59.has been sluggish. -- pattern. And miners are demanding big pay
:08:59. > :09:05.increases. One union last week made the headlines and called for a 60%
:09:05. > :09:11.pay rise for its members. The nation is also facing a power
:09:11. > :09:15.shortage and there could be blackouts over the winter. South
:09:15. > :09:19.Africa is coming into winter now in the coming months. We were hoping
:09:19. > :09:22.to speak to a leading economist based in Johannesburg. Apparently
:09:22. > :09:29.we can speak to him. Michael Keenan is a Currency Strategist from ABSA
:09:30. > :09:36.Capital and he joins me now from our Johannesburg studio. It is
:09:36. > :09:40.lovely to see you. Starting with the situation as far as growth is
:09:40. > :09:45.concerned. The general scenario in South Africa. From your point of
:09:45. > :09:54.view, what other reasons for the store in growth? Good morning.
:09:54. > :09:58.Unfortunately, South Africa has globally. We are a big exporter of
:09:58. > :10:05.commodities. With slowing growth, coming now particularly out of
:10:05. > :10:10.China and Europe, those our main trading partner regions, we have
:10:10. > :10:19.seen the slowing in export and consumption. People have been
:10:19. > :10:25.unemployment is still relatively high. We are still struggling to
:10:25. > :10:31.spending aggressively in South Africa. And that traditionally has
:10:31. > :10:34.been a strong driver of South infrastructure spending, that is
:10:34. > :10:41.still taking place in the background. That has also slowed
:10:41. > :10:45.down somewhat. For the most part, things are happening in the back
:10:45. > :10:51.infrastruc infrastructure. That also is
:10:51. > :10:57.trimming back on growth. We are expecting growth to come in at
:10:57. > :11:02.about 2.5%, well below the growth to alleviate some of those
:11:02. > :11:07.unemployment pressures. We need growth in excess of six this -- 6%
:11:07. > :11:11.on a consistent basis. Just briefly, tell us about the mining industry.
:11:11. > :11:15.Because that is a real concern for most people. And from the outside
:11:15. > :11:20.point of view, that is what all economists and analysts are saying
:11:20. > :11:27.outside of South Africa is a big worry. Absolutely. We can see it in
:11:28. > :11:32.weakened dramatically in the past year. That is a result of the
:11:32. > :11:42.strike activity that is hitting the headlines. We had a bad spell last
:11:42. > :11:44.
:11:44. > :11:48.year. But it has come back again. There is a lot of Labour tension
:11:48. > :11:55.and that is denting things like productivity levels and the current
:11:55. > :12:00.deficit, which is a huge structural flaw inside South Africa.