:00:19. > :00:21.China reveals its economy is growing nicely,
:00:22. > :00:29.We tell you what the experts are saying now about
:00:30. > :00:37.Cadbury grapples with a nationwide backlash in New Zealand,
:00:38. > :00:44.as it prepares to move its factory there to Australia.
:00:45. > :00:46.Welcome to World Business Report, I'm Sally Bundock.
:00:47. > :00:50.Also in the programme: Lloyds is poised to set up a European
:00:51. > :01:00.The latest numbers from China show its economy has grown by 6.9%
:01:01. > :01:03.in the first three months of this year.
:01:04. > :01:05.That is better than most were predicting, and slightly ahead
:01:06. > :01:07.of the government's own target of.5% growth.
:01:08. > :01:10.So do we need to be concerned anymore about the state
:01:11. > :01:17.of the world's second-biggest economy?
:01:18. > :01:20.Well, if we take a look at last year, it grew by 6.7%.
:01:21. > :01:22.That was its slowest pace in 26 years.
:01:23. > :01:26.And last month, Premier Li Keqiang said the government was cutting
:01:27. > :01:28.its economic growth target for this year to 6.5%,
:01:29. > :01:31.this as the government tries to get China used to what they call
:01:32. > :01:34.the new normal, ie China growing at a slower pace,
:01:35. > :01:38.and moving to an economy fuelled more by domestic demand and less
:01:39. > :01:48.But the Organisation for Economic Co-operation
:01:49. > :01:51.and Development says China's private and public debt could be a big
:01:52. > :01:54.problem in the future, as it has now exceeded 250% of GDP,
:01:55. > :01:56.and could lead to a destabilising economic crash.
:01:57. > :01:58.And, despite increased lending restrictions,
:01:59. > :02:01.people are still borrowing to invest in the red-hot property market.
:02:02. > :02:04.For example, February's figures show prices for new homes rising by just
:02:05. > :02:08.Our Asia business corresponden Karishma Vaswani joins
:02:09. > :03:00.Nice to see you. Give us your take on how how healthy things. Analysts
:03:01. > :03:04.have been speaking to say it has come above what many people expected
:03:05. > :03:06.at it is really important to point out that while we should always
:03:07. > :03:12.remain sceptical about these official figures from Beijing, it is
:03:13. > :03:19.important to look at the number on the whole as a sign, it seems, as
:03:20. > :03:22.China's growth rate stabilising. The trajectory seems to be stabilising.
:03:23. > :03:27.As you said earlier in your introduction, growth rate last year
:03:28. > :03:31.coming in at the lowest rate in 26 years. But it looks like, if you
:03:32. > :03:36.look closer at the data points which have helped China's economy to grow
:03:37. > :03:40.this time around, it is the same object. It is state investment, it
:03:41. > :03:43.is the property market. So where is that transition that Beijing has
:03:44. > :03:48.continuously talked about over the few years, moving from the old
:03:49. > :03:53.tricks, the old parts of the economy, into a new modern economy?
:03:54. > :03:57.We are not seeing that is the main drivers of growth just yet. But
:03:58. > :04:01.having said that, these kind of shifts do take time, don't they?
:04:02. > :04:04.They are not something that can come into place quickly and many have
:04:05. > :04:08.been really warning about China heading for a hard landing. Very
:04:09. > :04:14.difficult times ahead. Is that still the concern in the background? I
:04:15. > :04:20.think the bigger concern is just how sustainable this growth rate is.
:04:21. > :04:24.Now, if you look at the typical first-quarter figures, they do tend
:04:25. > :04:27.to give you a sense of what is going to have over the next 12 months. But
:04:28. > :04:32.I think, especially according to many of the analysts I have been
:04:33. > :04:36.speaking to, we won't be seeing a 6.9% figure in the quarters ahead.
:04:37. > :04:40.It may come down a bit. Poverty will not continue to grow as much.
:04:41. > :04:45.Because remember, the government is very concerned about how that is an
:04:46. > :04:49.overheating sector -- property will not continue to grow as much. They
:04:50. > :04:53.have put in some measures which will show up in the later part of the
:04:54. > :04:57.year. In terms of the 6.9% figure, we are unlikely to see that in the
:04:58. > :05:02.quarters ahead. What we will see as China's growth rate coming in at
:05:03. > :05:05.around a figure that authorities in Beijing have been broadcasting, and
:05:06. > :05:10.that will continue with the narrative of slowing, gradually
:05:11. > :05:13.slowing Chinese economy. For now, thank you much indeed.
:05:14. > :05:15.There is plenty more analysis of China's growth
:05:16. > :05:19.Just head to our website, or download the BBC News app.
:05:20. > :05:21.Here, you will find both text and video coverage
:05:22. > :05:27.of all of the stories covered on Business throughout the day.
:05:28. > :05:30.In other news: Lloyds Banking Group has decided to set up a base
:05:31. > :05:33.in Germany after the UK leaves the European Union,
:05:34. > :05:36.Several British financial institutions are putting plans
:05:37. > :05:39.in place to protect their EU operations after Brexit.
:05:40. > :05:42.Lloyds is the only major British lender that does not currently
:05:43. > :05:44.have a subsidiary in another European Union country.
:05:45. > :05:46.The bank is believed to have considered both Frankfurt
:05:47. > :05:56.and Amsterdam for its European base, before finally opting for Berlin.
:05:57. > :05:59.United Airlines is changing its policy on giving staff
:06:00. > :06:02.last-minute seats on full flights, after a man was dragged screaming
:06:03. > :06:06.The airline said that, in the future, crew members would be
:06:07. > :06:08.allocated seats at least an hour before departure.
:06:09. > :06:12.It comes after a passenger lost two front teeth and suffered a broken
:06:13. > :06:25.nose when he was forcibly removed from a flight last Sunday.
:06:26. > :06:27.The US commerce secretary, Wilbur Ross, has dismissed warnings
:06:28. > :06:29.over protectionism made by the International Monetary Fund.
:06:30. > :06:31.In an interview with the Financial Times,
:06:32. > :06:34.Mr Ross said that the Trump administration is far more liberal
:06:35. > :06:36.in its stance towards trade compared with Europe,
:06:37. > :06:43.The comments come ahead of the IMF's meeting in Washington
:06:44. > :07:00.The passing of Lent normally signals a time of celebration
:07:01. > :07:03.for the world's chocolate makers, but there has been a nationwide
:07:04. > :07:06.backlash in New Zealand against the decision by chocolate
:07:07. > :07:08.giant Cadbury to move its operations to Australia next year.
:07:09. > :07:12.The company's American owner says it is not profitable enough to keep
:07:13. > :07:15.the factory in the south-east of New Zealand, and hundreds of jobs
:07:16. > :07:32.Mauricio Olmedo-Perez reports from Auckland.
:07:33. > :07:36.The world-famous jaffa race brings out the cheering crowds
:07:37. > :07:41.in their thousands, as Cadbury chocolate balls made just down
:07:42. > :07:43.the road roll down the world's steepest street.
:07:44. > :07:46.But now crowds are protesting against Cadbury, which has made
:07:47. > :07:49.chocolate here since 1930, and become a part of
:07:50. > :07:59.I think it's disgusting, because we're making a profit here.
:08:00. > :08:08.Despite turning a profit, the company that owns Cadbury says
:08:09. > :08:11.the factory isn't sustainable, and more than 360 workers will lose
:08:12. > :08:14.jobs, a major blow for a provincial centre.
:08:15. > :08:23.It's about time our multinationals begin looking after people who have
:08:24. > :08:25.been looking after them for the last 100 years.
:08:26. > :08:39.There are reports of keeping Cadbury World open, but it's a bit
:08:40. > :08:41.silly having it open without the Cadbury behind it.
:08:42. > :08:43.It has over 100,000 visitors per year.
:08:44. > :08:45.It wants to redevelop the tourist attraction.
:08:46. > :08:49.A national campaign has been started to boycott Cadbury products.
:08:50. > :08:59.While one company claims it is not profitable fruit to produce
:09:00. > :09:00.chocolate in New Zealand, just north of Wellington, Whitakers is proving
:09:01. > :09:01.otherwise. It has been making chocolate
:09:02. > :09:04.for more than 120 years, and has become one of
:09:05. > :09:06.the country's success stories. Big multinationals often have
:09:07. > :09:11.strategic views in certain areas, and I think we are just solely
:09:12. > :09:14.focused on quality of product. The family-run business has been
:09:15. > :09:16.growing, using innovative flavours Now, it is taking a careful approach
:09:17. > :09:23.into the Middle East, We don't try to spread
:09:24. > :09:26.ourselves too thinly. We just need to focus
:09:27. > :09:28.on particular areas. When you look at China,
:09:29. > :09:31.in particular, the change in demographic is the biggest
:09:32. > :09:37.opportunity on our horizon. And, with its main competitor's
:09:38. > :09:40.production now leaving New Zealand, the prospects for the southern
:09:41. > :09:49.chocolatier are mouthwatering. Let's look at market is really
:09:50. > :09:52.quickly. An unusual day to day, a bank holiday in many countries
:09:53. > :09:58.around the world because of the Easter long weekend. Japan is open
:09:59. > :10:02.and trading, down 0.5% Khazova very strong yen against the dollar. That
:10:03. > :10:07.figure at the bottom is not correct, so ignore that for now. In many
:10:08. > :10:11.cases, markets are closed. Hong Kong is closed, Shanghai is open and down
:10:12. > :10:16.slightly, despite those growth figures out that we discussed
:10:17. > :10:20.earlier in the programme. Stay with us. We will look at some of the main
:10:21. > :10:38.stories in the news and what the newspapers are saying about Turkey.
:10:39. > :10:41.A specialist squad of police and Prison Service staff has been
:10:42. > :10:45.formed to tackle the use of drones to smuggle contraband,
:10:46. > :10:49.The officers in England and Wales will study how to catch those