surpassing pre—covid levels according to government data. china's markets have also just reopened for the first time in more than a week. they are trading higher. we also saw the country's central bank keeping a key interest rate on hold over the weekend. jameel ahmad, a chief analyst at online trading brokerage, gtc, gave me his sense of the data. pretty much what we've seen is since the chinese economy did reopen following what was pretty much close to three years of lockdowns, we have seen underwhelming data. this data regarding the increased tourism spending, yes, it looks like it is hitting the right path as we enter into 2024, but it is just one set of data so far and we need to see more to start getting more optimism about the chinese economy getting back onto the road once again. when it comes to the central bank decision — not so much of a surprise. everybody in the central bank world and the investor

community is really waiting for the fed, which is of course the us central bank, to really put its cards on the table when it is going to cut interest rates in 202a. we've already seen that that's moved from march to may, and now expectations are starting to edge towardsjune. why is it important for emerging markets, including china? one — chinese yuan areas of depreciation, we could have some capital out flows. at the same point, investing in capital outflows is so important that's when the emerging markets like china are really going to sit on their hands up until we have got some real clarity on when the fed is going to change policy. but my lifelong obsession of the nikkei 225 flirting with its all—time high. what is happening there? the economy fell into recession according to the latest data. is this alljust about the weak currency? pretty much. we've known for a long time that when it comes to economic fortunes that correlation when it comes to stock markets and the indices, in this case, the japanese nikkei, that correlation really is not so strong or significant right now, as what traditional economics will stand for. i think what we're seeing is — one, the nikkei is catching up

to the global equity market rally that started all the way into november, which is the best month for three years for global stocks. of course, the s&p 500 and the dowjones earlier in 2024 had hit record highs. but we've always known and that is one form of traditional economic that we do still see, is the correlation — if the japanese yen is weak, and has weakened all the way from 130 to 150, the dollar yuan, the us djy, in 2024, that's a boost for the japanese stock market because of its exports and the impacts on companies. that has really propelled the nikkei up towards its higher level in pretty much 34 years. we still need to see where the bank ofjapan sits as well, and that would also have implications on the stock market. what are you expecting from the fed? because there's a lot of speculation on when the rate cut might come? at this stage, with the fed, we're seeing the minutes expected wednesday this week. pretty much investors are going to be stuck in the mud because we already know that the fed will be looking at more recent data than the most recent policy meeting. i do think that investors very

much are looking towardsjune at the earliest for a us interest rate cut. that is a big push back from where we were just six weeks ago, when we thought that it would be march. we've already shifted back to may. i do think that the economic data is very strong, if you look at the ppi and the inflation and so forth, we're looking atjune as the earliest, of course, subject to change depending on the data. in other news, china has agreed to lift a long—standing ban on imports of spanish beef. it has been in place since the year 2000, when beijing banned beef imports from all countries in the european union, after the emergence of mad cow disease. the announcement came after talks in spain between the two countries�* foreign ministers, and spain's foreign minister says lifting the embargo is good news for spanish farmers, who have recently joined other eu farmers in protesting what they say are burdensome regulations, high costs and cheap imports. meanwhile, thousands of indian farmers demanding higher prices for their crops, have paused a march to india's capital of new delhi while their unions hold talks

with government ministers. they're pressing the government to set a minimum price to food produce following similar protests in 2021. the farmers were about 200 kilometres away from the indian capital when they clashed with security forces last week. let's turn now to the aviation sector, because singapore has just announced that it will require all flights departing the city—state to use sustainable aviation fuel from 2026. this is part of a global effort to achieve net zero emissions by 2050, but it is a race against time to produce enough sustainable fuel to meet growing demands. ahead of the singapore air show, my colleague, monica miller, takes a look at how it's made — from the fryer to the refinery. this cooking oil may seem like it has already served its purpose, but for the aviation industry, its liquid gold, as it looks for ways to cut its carbon footprint. the fleet in malaysia is constantly growing —

we're at about 100 vehicles at the moment. every month, we constantly deploy more vehicles. fathopes energy collects recycle cooking oil fathopes energy collects recycled cooking oil from fast—food chains like mcdonald's and kfc, as well as food production plants in kuala lumpur and singapore. the company gathers between 5—11 tonnes of used oil per month. the energy portfolio of the future is going to be extremely diversified and extremely indigenous. by some estimates, airplane engines account for 3.5% of global warming. but by 2050, this sector has set its sights on being net zero — or as the british government calls it, jet zero. one way to get there is by using sustainable aviation fuel, which is made up of vegetable oils and animal fats, rather than fossil fuels. but right now, it makes up less than 1% of the aviation fuel supply. the industry is going to need almost 500 tonnes to meet its decarbonisation goal. to get there, it's a lot

of chips in the fryer. finnish company neste — the world's largest producer of saf — recently built a $1.8 billion refinery here in south—east asia. but here's the challenge — sustainable aviation fuel is 3—5 times more expensive than traditionaljet fuel. it's not easy for airlines to just switch to more costly sustainable aviation fuel, if their competitors are not required to do the same. and that's why regulatory actions to set minimum requirements for sustainable aviation fuel use in the airports is critical in creating that demand. industry experts also warn this alternative fuel isn't a silver bullet. until we have alternative modes of propulsion, such as hydrogen, for instance, we are stuck with having to have a fuel. and here, the beauty is with sustainable aviation fuels is that they are made entirely from renewable inputs.

so we completely replace the source of the fuel when we use saf, but we cannot totally eliminate the emissions because it's still a combustion engine. the aviation industry was built on finding ways to defy gravity, but without concrete mandates to boost investment from governments, a jet zero operation could face substantial headwinds. monica miller, bbc news. if you want to know more about sustainable aviation fuel, do check out the bbc�*s podcast, the climate question. we will also be bringing you live coverage from the singapore air show when it begins on tuesday, so stay tuned. staying with airlines, over the weekend, china's comac airliner, the narrow—body c—1909, made its first trip outside chinese territory, staging a flyby at the singapore air show. the plane is only certified within china at the moment

and it made its debut flying domestically for china eastern last year. meanwhile, australia's flagship carrier, qantas, is also due to report its latest financial results later this week. ellis taylor, at flight data service company, cirium, told me what lies ahead for the aviation industry and leading manufacturers like boeing and airbus. both airbus and boeing and their suppliers are really backed up from the covid pandemic. they haven't been able to get out as many aircraft as they wanted. and we have to understand that a few years ago, everybody thought that this was going to be a slow recovery for the aviation industry. and instead, it's been a very fast one and it's been sustained and it's now growing above where it was prior to the pandemic. so that's really going to put a lot of pressure on airbus and boeing to get jets out the door. and it puts a lot of pressure on airlines as well to try to source older aircraft where they can in the market and that's getting few and far between.

in terms of alternatives, there aren't that many. but we've been hearing a lot more about china's comac. what is your take on that? do you think that some of the carriers might go to the chinese plane maker? i think it will be a while and they'll want to see the c—919 build—up which has to be comparable to airbus and boeing types. there are two or three of them in service just in china. then don't have any overseas there. given the c—919 will be at the singapore air show, they're trying to get it out there that this is a jet that will one day fly in different parts of the world outside of china. in the last hour, thailand announced its economy grew by 1.9% in the final three months of 2023 - 1.9% in the final three months of 2023 — slightly lower than what economists had expected. weak exports weighed on growth, adding pressure on the country's central bank to cut interest rates. before we go, let's quickly show you how japan's nikkei is doing. i was hoping it would hit that record

high — the magic number 389.5 — but currently flat to lower. we'll continue to monitor that for you for tomorrow. that's it for you for tomorrow. that's it for the show. thanks for watching. voice-over: bbc news bringing you different stories _ from across the uk. every step is going in the right direction.— every step is going in the right direction. even when i lived here, _ right direction. even when i lived here, i— right direction. even when i lived here, i never- right direction. even when i lived here, i never turned l right direction. even when i | lived here, i never turned to the mountains for something to do, you know? ithis the mountains for something to do, you know? i this area the mountains for something to do, you know? ithis area has so much to offer. it's more than just so much to offer. it's more thanjust a so much to offer. it's more than just a landscape so much to offer. it's more thanjust a landscape — so much to offer. it's more than just a landscape — to some, it's a lifeline. it's massive to get people outdoors. whether people have gone through the same difficulties... ., , ., difficulties... over a period of 20 years. _ difficulties... over a period of 20 years, rob _ difficulties... over a period of 20 years, rob havelockl of 20 years, rob havelock battled his addictions that destroyed his life.-

battled his addictions that destroyed his life. drugs and alcohol, isolation. _ destroyed his life. drugs and alcohol, isolation. i- destroyed his life. drugs and alcohol, isolation. iwas- destroyed his life. drugs and alcohol, isolation. i was a i alcohol, isolation. i was a very lonely person. i was broken. i'd withered all my friendships with loved ones. all my relationships had gone downhill. �* . , all my relationships had gone downhill. �* ., , ., downhill. after many solo walks, downhill. after many solo walks. he's _ downhill. after many solo walks, he's now- downhill. after many solo walks, he's now created l downhill. after many solo - walks, he's now created sober snowdomia, a walking group for people who've been through similar challenges. i thought this should _ similar challenges. i thought this should be _ similar challenges. i thought this should be made - similar challenges. i thoughtl this should be made available similar challenges. i thought i this should be made available - this should be made available — it's obviously available to anyone if they choose to do it — but organised walks promoting and inviting other people suffering from addiction or in recovery, or even family members of people struggling. voice-over: for more - stories from across the uk, head to the bbc news website.

voice-over: bbc news bringing you different stories _ from across the uk. a morning on the mersey. today's lesson — rowing. 0k, off you go! teamwork is the obvious big one, but they learn respect — respect for their crewmates, respect for the teachers and coaches here. and also, we are very keen on the fact that they should learn respect for nature and wildlife. the local high school is perfectly placed, standing on the bank of the river mercy. now, shall we change over? so if you two want to stop... richard co—founded the charity that makes this possible. one of the by—products of what we did was we wanted to smash this elitist image

of the sport, and bring it back to the grassroots, and to show the world that you don't have to be an uxbridge graduate to take part in a truly wonderful sport. i love doing rowing, like, it's quite a fun sport, cos i'm only used to doing basketball — so doing rowing is a big change for me. but you know, it is really fun to do. together, together! i'd love to do it more in the future, like, . i really enjoy it now. so would be great to do it l at some point in the future, yeah. so you're glad you had this opportunity? yeah, absolutely. for more stories from across the uk, head to the bbc news website. hello, and welcome to sportsday. i'm hugh ferris. here's what's coming up on the programme: a margin of defeat to question the method — england are beaten by india by 434 runs in rajkot.

rasmus' run continues — the danish striker scores again, as manchester united win in the premier league. and jannik sinner stretches his unbeaten start to the year to 15. he's the rotterdam 0pen champion. hello there, and welcome along to sportsday. it's fair to say england's approach to test cricket has been nothing short of entertaining. high octane at the best of times. but, in rajkot, their swashbuckling attitude backfired, beaten heavily by india in the 3rd test, losing by 434 runs to go 2—1 down in the five—match series. day 4 started with yashasvi jaiswal matching the record for 12 sixes in a test innings. he ended unbeaten on 214

as india declared their second inning on 430—4. that set england a total of 557, which they never even got close to. bowled out for 122 to lose by a margin that, for england, is their largest in terms of runs since 1934 — and india's biggest win that way in their history. it's a very good feeling to win a game like that, and especially with such a young team. you know, two debutants and not a lot of test matches amongst the playing xi as well. so, a lot of credit to these young boys who have come in and shown a lot of character. it looks like they actually belong here and they want to stay here as well. india's huge win has given rise to more questions about england's approach to test cricket. about england's approach to test cricket. but not from within the camp itself. captain ben stokes is remaining optimistic, insisting the team knows what they have to do

to get back in the series and that it wouldn't be helpful to dwell too long on what went