:00:00. > :00:00.Those are the latest headlines from BBC World News. Now for the latest
:00:00. > :00:19.financial news with Sally Bundock and World Business Report.
:00:20. > :00:23.Three months after her nomination by the White House, the Senate votes on
:00:24. > :00:26.Janet Yellen's appointment as chair of the most powerful Central Bank in
:00:27. > :00:30.the world. Riding the wave higher - as stocks
:00:31. > :00:32.markets in Asia start the new year, we take a look at whether the record
:00:33. > :00:45.gains of 2013 will continue. Welcome to World Business Report.
:00:46. > :00:48.I'm Sally Bundock. Also in the programme: The professions that are
:00:49. > :00:55.disappearing from our cities. Today, we head to Seville in Spain.
:00:56. > :01:01.Ben Bernanke's decisions have affected the global economy for
:01:02. > :01:05.years. At the end of the month, he will hand over the reins of power.
:01:06. > :01:08.Today, the US Senate is expected to vote and confirm that Janet Yellen
:01:09. > :01:11.will be the next chairperson of the most powerful Central Bank in the
:01:12. > :01:18.world, replacing Bernanke on the 1st of February. A change in leadership
:01:19. > :01:21.is relatively rare. The 67-year-old will become the fourth person to
:01:22. > :01:26.lead the Federal Reserve in the last 35 years, and be the first woman to
:01:27. > :01:36.do so. The changeover comes at a tricky time. Michelle Fleury reports
:01:37. > :01:38.from New York. Inside the boardroom of an important
:01:39. > :01:43.Central Bank. The decision was taken to buy up lots of bonds to revive
:01:44. > :01:49.the US economy and reduce unemployment. Led by Ben Bernanke,
:01:50. > :01:55.the Fed announced it was ready to start withdrawing support. Janet
:01:56. > :02:00.Yellen will have to finish the job. At a recent confirmation hearing,
:02:01. > :02:05.she said the bond purchases helped America's recovery. These purchases
:02:06. > :02:11.made a meaningful contribution to economic growth and recruiting --
:02:12. > :02:20.improving their outlook. She is tough. Obama's decision to nominate
:02:21. > :02:26.accomplished economic academic is an endorsement of that idea. She wants
:02:27. > :02:32.to stimulate the economy. She is concerned about the labour market,
:02:33. > :02:43.people with long-term unemployment, the shrinking labour participation
:02:44. > :02:48.rate, . Opponents have likened the Fed's massive money creation to an
:02:49. > :02:53.addiction that is hard to break. Some people to like the policies if
:02:54. > :02:59.it has pursued. They think the Fed has printed to much money and made
:03:00. > :03:03.it the easy for the President and Congress away without giving the
:03:04. > :03:08.deficit. Some think she is too liberal for the job. The interest
:03:09. > :03:17.rates have helped here. Stock markets have benefited from the year
:03:18. > :03:24.of cheap money. If confirmed, Janet Yellen's Central Bank will have
:03:25. > :03:25.different. Asia and beyond will take close attention as she returns
:03:26. > :03:43.policies to normal levels. The markets will be firmly focused
:03:44. > :03:45.on that date. As Michelle Fleury was just saying, stocks around the
:03:46. > :03:48.continent in particular have benefited massively from the money
:03:49. > :03:53.the US Central Bank has pumped into the global economy in recent years.
:03:54. > :03:59.Let us look at the performance in Asia in 2013. In 2013, Australia's
:04:00. > :04:03.ASX 200 rose 13%. In China, the Shenzhen Composite was up 21%. But
:04:04. > :04:12.the outright winner in the region? Well, that was Japan. Its stock
:04:13. > :04:17.market, the Nikkei, climbed a massive 57% in 2013. That is its
:04:18. > :04:20.biggest annual rise in more than 40 years. The moves were also driven by
:04:21. > :04:23.the government initiatives to boost the nation's economy, encourage
:04:24. > :04:31.economic expansion and weaken the yen. But can the confidence in Japan
:04:32. > :04:40.outstrip other markets in Asia this year? Today, the Nikkei opens for
:04:41. > :04:43.the first time in 2014. Let's get a gauge on how the
:04:44. > :04:52.Japanese market is doing today. Rico Hizon is in our Asia bureau for us
:04:53. > :04:59.now. Happy New Year. How is it going in Japan? That is a lot of tension
:05:00. > :05:07.in the Japanese market and attention on Shinzo Abe. People are seeing
:05:08. > :05:12.higher Shinzo Abe meant the reforms. So far, a disappointing
:05:13. > :05:25.start. The Nick Cave tumbled more than 2%. -- Nikkei. Investors were
:05:26. > :05:30.bullish in the past year after Shinzo Abe implemented eating and
:05:31. > :05:39.fiscal stimulus to jump the weak economy. The third point has to be
:05:40. > :05:42.fired. Structural reform for Abenomics to be successful and for
:05:43. > :05:48.the market gains to be sustained in the 2014. This is a particular year
:05:49. > :05:56.for reforms to be put in place. In April, Japan will raise its
:05:57. > :06:03.consumption tax from 5% to 8%. Nobody knows the impact of that. The
:06:04. > :06:07.increase can stifle growth, anger consumers and derail popular support
:06:08. > :06:12.for Abenomics and Shinzo Abe. We have to wait and see if reforms will
:06:13. > :06:25.be put in place and the impact of the economy and markets. We have
:06:26. > :06:32.weak economic news out of China. We have weaker than expected purchasing
:06:33. > :06:37.manager's index. It is a catalyst for the decline in Asian markets.
:06:38. > :06:45.Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia are in negative territory. Growth
:06:46. > :06:49.declined sharply. This is raising concern about the pace of recovery
:06:50. > :06:54.in the mainland. Traders say the focal point for Asian investors is
:06:55. > :06:57.on Chinese growth and the political situation and how it will pan out
:06:58. > :07:11.this year, rather than worrying about the tapering off of the US
:07:12. > :07:15.bond-buying programme. We often take a look at new
:07:16. > :07:17.developments, new trends and the very latest technologies. But what
:07:18. > :07:20.about the things that are being lost? Well, over the coming week,
:07:21. > :07:23.we'll be looking at some of the professions that are vanishing
:07:24. > :07:26.around the world. Our first stop on the journey is Spain, where the
:07:27. > :07:29.traditional way of sharpening knives is under threat of extinction. The
:07:30. > :07:31.service arrives via motorbike on your doorstep. Sadly, the tuneful
:07:32. > :07:33.whistle of Spain's knife-sharpeners is an increasingly rare sound on
:07:34. > :07:40.Spain's streets. Tom Burridge reports from Andalucian capital of
:07:41. > :07:44.Seville. It is a sound that everyone here
:07:45. > :07:55.knows. And melody that people grew up with in Spain. It means shopping
:07:56. > :07:57.time. Rafael has been sharpening knives in the city of Seville since
:07:58. > :08:28.he was 13. TRANSLATION: He travels around Seville, warning
:08:29. > :08:38.potential customers that he is nearby.
:08:39. > :08:51.Then he sets up. His engine spins a steering wheel. The sharpening
:08:52. > :08:53.starts. Regular customers taking 3 euros per night. The perfect
:08:54. > :09:10.service. -- per knife. Raphael lives in a pot of Seville
:09:11. > :09:16.that tourists do not see. Poverty is right here. Unemployment is high.
:09:17. > :09:27.His wife and son are both out of work.
:09:28. > :09:34.Despite the meagre money he makes, roughly all keeps on working. He
:09:35. > :09:44.says he will keep sharpening knives until he dies.
:09:45. > :10:01.That is it for World Business Report. See you soon.
:10:02. > :10:05.More coastal flooding is expected this morning as strong winds
:10:06. > :10:08.continue to batter the west coast of England and Wales, south-west
:10:09. > :10:10.Scotland and the eastern coast of Northern Ireland. Dozens of flood
:10:11. > :10:12.warnings are in place. The Environment Agency says many areas
:10:13. > :10:13.will remain at