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20260915 033000 UTC
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[00:00:00] MUSIC
[00:00:03] Live from Singapore now on BBC News,
[00:00:10] News, Business Today. AI linked stocks
[00:00:17] stocks are plunging worldwide after after the heads of major AI companies
[00:00:20] companies warned the technology is is developing too quickly, raising
[00:00:23] raising fresh concerns about the the future of the industry. Retail
[00:00:27] Retail sales slow in the world's world's second largest economy as
[00:00:29] as efforts to boost domestic consumption consumption fall short in China and
[00:00:33] and Tesla gears up to unveil its its long delayed second generation
[00:00:36] generation Roadster nearly nine years years after the original prototype
[00:00:40] prototype was revealed. Hello and
[00:00:46] and welcome to Business Today with with me Steve Lai AI linked stocks
[00:00:50] stocks are under pressure globally globally after the bosses of some
[00:00:53] some of the biggest AI companies companies called for a slower pace
[00:00:56] pace of development, warning of potentially potentially serious risks from the
[00:00:59] the technology. Amongst the biggest biggest losers were Nvidia and Micron,
[00:01:02] Micron, which fell more than three
[00:01:05] three and 5% respectively. The moves moves reflect concerns about what
[00:01:08] what a slowdown could mean for the the huge investment and spending
[00:01:11] spending boom behind artificial intelligence. intelligence. I spoke to Jason Oxman,
[00:01:14] Oxman, president and CEO of the Information Information Technology Industry Council.
[00:01:18] Council. He says the sell off reflects reflects uncertainty over AI safety,
[00:01:21] safety, but insists the technology technology remains a major driver
[00:01:24] driver of global growth. Markets Markets don't like uncertainty. I
[00:01:28] I think that's the message we got got today and there was a lot of
[00:01:31] of discussion over the weekend, as
[00:01:32] as you noted from a lot of AI leaders
[00:01:36] leaders about the need for policymakers policymakers to consider guardrails
[00:01:39] guardrails for safety, which is an an important discussion to have.
[00:01:41] have. We saw a lot of uncertainty uncertainty churning the market today,
[00:01:44] today, although I would note a lot lot of tech names were up today.
[00:01:47] today. And certainly as you look look ahead to futures in the US markets
[00:01:50] markets for tomorrow, they're already already pointing to recovery. But
[00:01:53] But I think the bottom line at a
[00:01:55] a macro level is that AI is an economic
[00:01:58] economic driver of growth around around the world. The AI powered
[00:02:02] powered innovations are important important to the global economy,
[00:02:05] economy, and what we've seen is sparking sparking a discussion about making
[00:02:08] making sure that the pace of AI innovation
[00:02:11] innovation and the pace of AI safety safety proceed in parallel with one
[00:02:15] one another. And I think that's an an important discussion for policymakers policymakers to have going forward.
[00:02:18] forward. Yeah. And speaking of those those discussions, what was the reaction
[00:02:22] reaction inside the industry then then to the weekend statements from
[00:02:25] from Altman Amodei and Musk? Yeah,
[00:02:27] Yeah, I think one of the most interesting interesting things about these weekend
[00:02:31] weekend statements is you very rarely
[00:02:33] rarely see all of those very prominent prominent innovators running companies
[00:02:37] companies that are competing against against each other in the marketplace
[00:02:39] marketplace agree with one another. another. And they did very quickly
[00:02:43] quickly and very clearly. And the the agreement that they had with
[00:02:45] with one another was that this discussion discussion of pacing AI innovation
[00:02:49] innovation is an important one, not
[00:02:51] not calling for a halt to AI innovation innovation because of course, that
[00:02:55] that that would be enormously detrimental detrimental to society as a whole.
[00:02:58] whole. AI tools are very important, important, but they all did agree
[00:03:01] agree that policymakers need to make
[00:03:04] make some decisions here in the United United States, where I sit. Very
[00:03:08] Very important for the US Congress Congress to move forward with establishing
[00:03:11] establishing a federal framework, framework, but equally important important to that is no one country
[00:03:15] country can do this alone. We need need to see the US government talking
[00:03:18] talking to other governments around around the world. We need to see
[00:03:22] see governments agreeing on common common standards to make sure that
[00:03:25] that we have a global approach to to AI safety. These are valuable
[00:03:28] valuable tools. We want them deployed. deployed. The innovation they bring
[00:03:31] bring is enormously important and and valuable. But those safety tools
[00:03:34] tools that we need to develop in
[00:03:37] in conjunction with those innovations innovations need to be done with
[00:03:39] with a Global Eye toward a common common approach. Retail sales in
[00:03:43] in China slowed more than expected expected in August, while investment
[00:03:46] investment also fell at its fastest fastest pace this year, adding more
[00:03:49] more pressure on Beijing to support
[00:03:51] support the economy. Retail sales
[00:03:53] sales rose just 0.4% a year earlier,
[00:03:56] earlier, while fixed asset investment
[00:03:58] investment fell 7.2% for the first first eight months. Now policymakers
[00:04:02] policymakers have so far resisted resisted more aggressive stimulus, stimulus, relying instead on incremental
[00:04:05] incremental measures to shore up up growth. But domestic demand is is clearly still not picking up.
[00:04:10] up. I spoke with Han Lin, managing managing director and China country country director at the Asia Group.
[00:04:13] Group. He says China can still produce produce and sell to the world, but
[00:04:17] but the bigger challenge is getting getting consumers and companies to
[00:04:19] to spend and invest at home. I think
[00:04:22] think what the clearest message from from the China's latest economic
[00:04:26] economic data is that China's economy economy is running on two very different
[00:04:29] different tracks. You've got the the factories and exports remaining
[00:04:32] remaining remarkably strong, but but the households, property developers
[00:04:36] developers and private businesses businesses remain cautious. So in
[00:04:39] in other words, China can still produce produce and sell to the world. But
[00:04:42] But the harder challenge is persuading persuading the Chinese consumers
[00:04:45] consumers and companies to borrow, borrow, invest and especially to
[00:04:48] to spend at home. Yeah. And why are are those concerns so prevalent?
[00:04:51] prevalent? This is something that's that's dogged sort of local consumers
[00:04:54] consumers in China for quite a
[00:04:59] while. I think in large part you've you've got a crisis of confidence.
[00:05:01] confidence. So as you take a look
[00:05:03] look at employment figures, incomes,
[00:05:05] incomes, the job opportunities, the
[00:05:08] the property decline, these are all all weighing on the consumer confidence.
[00:05:11] confidence. And if there's a sense
[00:05:12] sense that the future is less predictable,
[00:05:16] predictable, then instead of investing investing or spending, they're actually actually choosing to save more. Yeah.
[00:05:19] Yeah. So what will the government government be most concerned about
[00:05:22] about then? The fact that consumer
[00:05:24] consumer confidence is so low? Well, Well, it looks like what Beijing
[00:05:28] Beijing will likely do is they'll they'll try to accelerate some fiscal
[00:05:31] fiscal spending, maybe some infrastructure infrastructure financing and maybe
[00:05:35] maybe a bit of consumer subsidies subsidies and targeted property support.
[00:05:38] support. But officials really remain remain reluctant to launch a Western
[00:05:41] Western style stimulus check because
[00:05:44] because the policy priority is stabilisation. stabilisation. Without re-inflating
[00:05:47] re-inflating debt. So that may prevent prevent a sharp downturn, but it's
[00:05:51] it's unlikely to produce a dramatic dramatic consumer led rebound. Yeah.
[00:05:54] Yeah. So what would move the needle needle then, I suppose? It seems seems like you're saying that they
[00:05:57] they don't really want to push this this too hard. They're almost they're
[00:06:01] they're OK with how things are
[00:06:05] going. It looks like what might be be a key driver is the property sector.
[00:06:08] sector. So what we do see right now
[00:06:10] now is that the decline of property
[00:06:13] property sales and prices, the decline decline is slowing. But that's not
[00:06:15] not the same as a recovery itself. itself. So as we look at the new
[00:06:18] new home sales, prices fall by 0.1%
[00:06:21] 0.1% and then 3% from a year earlier. earlier. You can see that the buyers
[00:06:25] buyers remain cautious. Resale prices prices are under pressure and property
[00:06:29] property still weighs heavily on on household wealth. So it looks
[00:06:32] looks like Beijing has put a floor floor beneath the market, but that
[00:06:35] that has not yet restored the confidence. confidence. Tesla will unveil its
[00:06:39] its long delayed second generation generation Roadster, its high performance
[00:06:42] performance electric sports car, car, on October 1st. The new version
[00:06:45] version could feature SpaceX developed developed cold gas thrusters to boost
[00:06:48] boost acceleration, braking and cornering. cornering. Tesla first announced
[00:06:51] announced the car back in 2017, with
[00:06:53] with deliveries originally promised promised for 2020. Well, for more, more, let's bring in Mack Hogan,
[00:06:57] Hogan, editor in chief of inside inside EVs, for his take on Tesla's
[00:07:01] Tesla's long awaited Roadster. It It is quite long awaited, isn't it?
[00:07:04] it? America. I mean, nearly ten years
[00:07:06] years still since they launched their their first prototype. Yes, it's
[00:07:10] it's been quite a long time since since that first unveil event, and
[00:07:13] and we haven't seen a tonne of public public progress on that. So I'm very very interested to see what we see
[00:07:17] see on October 1st. And how big a a deal is this for Tesla to be able
[00:07:20] able to get this right? So in terms terms of the commercial opportunity,
[00:07:23] opportunity, I wouldn't say it's it's a huge deal. Two door sports
[00:07:26] sports cars just don't sell a tonne tonne of volume in the US or really
[00:07:29] really any markets these days. But But more importantly, I would say
[00:07:32] say for Tesla is the halo effect effect that such a vehicle can provide
[00:07:35] provide for you. I think Tesla has
[00:07:37] has struggled with so much new competition, competition, pushing the boundaries
[00:07:40] boundaries on technology when it it comes to batteries and performance performance that it no longer makes,
[00:07:44] makes, you know, the quickest EVs EVs on sale or the fastest charging,
[00:07:47] charging, things like that. And so so being able to demonstrate that that to investors and the public
[00:07:51] public is very important for them. them. OK. So it's more of a showcase showcase of what Tesla is capable
[00:07:54] capable of. I suppose the last reference reference point would be the Cybertruck. Cybertruck. You wouldn't really call
[00:07:58] call that a success, would you? No. No. And it that has been a challenge
[00:08:02] challenge that's kind of hung over over Tesla's head recently is that
[00:08:06] that many of their products have have been delayed. They've struggled struggled to get them to market with
[00:08:09] with the promised specs. And now now I mean the Tesla that was revealed
[00:08:12] revealed in 2017, the Roadster, some some of the specs would no longer
[00:08:15] longer even be the class leading leading figures, so they might need need to reveal something even more
[00:08:19] more dramatic than they already did did nine years ago. Yeah. And you
[00:08:22] you also expecting to look out for for a sort of a target date for customers
[00:08:26] customers to get behind the wheel wheel because in 2017 they said 2020.
[00:08:29] 2020. And you know, here we are six six years later. Yeah, you can't
[00:08:33] can't pull that move again. So I I think it's important that they
[00:08:35] they say a date that's considerably considerably closer to the present, present, ideally before the end of
[00:08:39] of the year, because I think in this this time both investors and the
[00:08:42] the public have gotten a little bit bit less confident in the promised
[00:08:45] promised timeline that Tesla has has provided. Yeah. And you mentioned mentioned that there isn't a huge
[00:08:48] huge market for two door sports cars cars in general when it comes to
[00:08:51] to EVs and sports cars. You know, know, how big is that market? Like
[00:08:54] Like what's the competition for Tesla?
[00:08:57] Tesla? So there's a BYD Yang Wang Wang U9 extreme that is now it's
[00:09:00] it's a Chinese built electric car car that's now the fastest car in in the world production car, I should
[00:09:04] should say, of any propulsion type. type. So it's definitely a global
[00:09:07] global leader on the tech front. front. But in terms of actual volume volume vehicles, they're just not
[00:09:11] not that many because ultimately ultimately a lot of the people who who are buying sports cars want the
[00:09:15] the sound of the engine or the gearbox. gearbox. They want to feel more connected
[00:09:18] connected to this. They're an older older buyer that's maybe a little little bit less EV curious. And the
[00:09:22] the technology to build a really really great to drive vehicle with
[00:09:25] with a heavy EV battery is still still in development. So Tesla could
[00:09:28] could move the ball forward, assuming assuming that this is a real product. Yeah. And just quickly you
[00:09:32] you optimistic that they will. Are Are you sceptical that they won't. won't. What's your thought. I'm sceptical
[00:09:35] sceptical a little bit. I've been been burned by this company a couple
[00:09:38] couple times in terms of how optimistic optimistic their timelines and their their promises tend to be. All right.
[00:09:42] right. Thanks very much for giving giving us your thoughts and your your candid take. Mike Hogan, editor
[00:09:46] editor in chief of inside EVs. Now
[00:09:49] Now let's take a look at some other other stories that are making news
[00:09:53] news today. Waymo is expanding its
[00:09:55] its robotaxi service to Las Vegas, Vegas, its 15th commercial market.
[00:09:59] market. The Alphabet-owned company company is starting with dozens of
[00:10:02] of vehicles and plans to scale over over time. The move comes as autonomous
[00:10:05] autonomous ride hailing competition competition intensifies, with Tesla
[00:10:08] Tesla and Zoox all also seeking to
[00:10:10] to expand their services in the city
[00:10:12] city and across the United States.
[00:10:15] States. Apple has released its redesigned redesigned Siri AI assistant ahead
[00:10:19] ahead of the latest iPhones hitting hitting stores this week. The new
[00:10:21] new Siri is launching in beta, with with users able to search personal
[00:10:25] personal data like messages and calendars, calendars, ask questions and have
[00:10:28] have more conversational exchanges. exchanges. Apple says some advanced
[00:10:31] advanced AI features will eventually eventually require a fee, and the
[00:10:35] the ten year US Treasury yield has
[00:10:37] has hit 5% for the first time since
[00:10:39] since 2023, as surging oil prices prices fuel inflation fears and driver
[00:10:43] driver global bond sell off. Their Their closely watched yield is a
[00:10:46] a benchmark for borrowing costs worldwide.
[00:10:49] worldwide. That's it for this edition edition of Business Today. Thanks Thanks for joining me. I'll see you
[00:10:53] you again at the same time tomorrow. tomorrow. In the meantime, keep it
[00:10:55] it right here on BBC News.
[00:11:09] MUSIC
[00:14:33] I was here at the very first protest, the Cockroach Janta Party
[00:14:37] Party had organised about a month
[00:14:39] month ago, and this is so much bigger. bigger. I've been driving. Towards
[00:14:42] Towards the site of this wildfire, wildfire, but we've just stopped stopped at the side of the road here
[00:14:46] here because of what we saw out the the window. This man has been pulled
[00:14:50] pulled out successfully. It's taken taken a mammoth mammoth rescue effort.
[00:14:53] effort. This morning you get very very little sense of the terrible terrible scenes that were witnessed
[00:14:57] witnessed here last night. There
[00:14:59] There when the story breaks. BBC
[00:15:03] BBC News. Now on BBC News. A round
[00:15:06] round up of the day's sporting action action plus talking points analysis
[00:15:09] analysis and original journalism.
[00:15:13] journalism. BBC Sport. Hello, I'm
[00:15:22] I'm Tanya Arnold. Here are the top top sports stories. Leeds United
[00:15:25] United are up to third in the Premier Premier League after hammering Newcastle.
[00:15:29] Newcastle. Brendon McCullum wants wants Kevin Pietersen to challenge challenge him as the former England
[00:15:33] England batter joins the coaching
[00:15:34] coaching set up. And Madrid's Madring
[00:15:37] Madring circuit will be changed after after criticism from Formula One
[00:15:41] One drivers and fans.
[00:15:57] Leeds United moved up to third in the