hello and welcome to asia business report. i'm mariko oi. tensions in the middle east have escalated, after iran launched more than three hundred drones and missiles towards israel. almost all the weapons were shot down by israeli, american and allied forces. iran's attacks were in response to a suspected israeli strike on iran's embassy compound in syria at the beginning of the month. this is the first time iran has attacked israel directly, although the two countries have been at loggerheads for years. all this will rattle investors and oil markets — business reporter suranjana tewari is across the story from oui’ newsroom. any indication of what's likely to happen with market

sentiment this morning? australian shares have opened lower on the escalatin- lower on the escalating tensions. oil prices expected to rise at the start of the asia trading day. although a lot of this has been priced in. on friday oil prices were at a six month high. that's because investors really expected that iran would retaliate on that suspected israeli attack at the beginning of the month. traders say any gains will depend on the scale of israel's response. i think will see volatility, i think_ think will see volatility, i think that will be on the framework for that is a word to be some — framework for that is a word to be some sort of counter move by israel_ be some sort of counter move by israel i _ be some sort of counter move by israel i think that would rock it markets very much to the upside _ it markets very much to the upside is _ it markets very much to the upside is far as crude oil in the — upside is far as crude oil in the us— upside is far as crude oil in the us dollar as a safe haven. we see — the us dollar as a safe haven. we see how this all plays with it what — we see how this all plays with it what i— we see how this all plays with it what i do expect the markets to appreciate in value, it just depends— to appreciate in value, it just depends on how significant this

response — depends on how significant this response is going to be. or is it can — response is going to be. or is it can be _ response is going to be. or is it can be any response from israei? _ it can be any response from israel? ,, , , ., ., _, israel? shipping that oil could also be affected. _ israel? shipping that oil could also be affected. around - israel? shipping that oil could also be affected. around a - also be affected. around a fifth of the world consumption of oil goes through that region through the strait of her move. we know that cargo shipping and trade has already been affected by red sea attacks. take a look at this map airlines of the other industry that are likely to be affected. so many flights already diverted from iran and iran's airspace as a result. lots of delays across the board over the weekend. israel airlines do say that operations are returning to normal, they've reopened their airspace. but most foreign carriers have had to delay flights between europe and asia for the regional carriers also cancelling flights to jordan and israel for the lufthansa, one of the few airlines that flies into iran has suspended

all flights until april 18. we will have to see how that pans out for airlines and the passengers that have been affected as well. suran'ana tewari thank i affected as well. suran'ana tewari thank you i affected as well. suran'ana tewari thank you for h affected as well. suranjana tewari thank you for that i tewari thank you for that update for that update. we will be keeping an eye on how the asian markets will reopen this morning. you asian markets will reopen this morning. you germany's chancellor has warned iran against further attacks on israel. events in the middle east have overshadowed the start of his three day trip to china, during which olaf sholz is expected to meet president xijinping. his visit is aimed at addressing complaints from german businesses over chinese trade practices and beijing's support for russia. china is germany's top trading partner. maximilan butek of the industry group, the german chamber of commerce in china said the visit could help diffuse tensions between the countries. this visit is quite a bond, as business not only chinese business not only chinese business but foreign business,

i'm sure how the situation is going to continue as you already mentioned that germany and china have a strong trade relations we hope that she has or can address the most pressing topics to solve these challenges. so that our relations keep stable. the eu is carrying out several investigations into chinese export as well as subsidies for that beijing is not too happy about that. it’s that beijing is not too happy about that.— about that. it's quite understandable. - about that. it's quite i understandable. that's about that. it's quite - understandable. that's what about that. it's quite _ understandable. that's what we from the business side lobby that we have to do everything that we have to do everything that the chinese market remains open for us. currently if you look into the automotive market the chinese market is way more important to keep secure rather than the influence that chinese ev has our european market. we have to find a good balance. speaking of the auto sector, a german company have joint ventures with chinese businesses, don't pay? how is that going? is that still going smoothly or are these trade tensions starting to affect

partnerships?— tensions starting to affect artnershi s? ., partnerships? there are even more partnerships _ partnerships? there are even more partnerships going - partnerships? there are even more partnerships going on l partnerships? there are even l more partnerships going on for the company is continuing to invest because we're not only moving the market here in china for our sales and revenue but also it became more important we're part of the innovation ecosystem. this made possible if we go into partner with the chinese companies to get knowledge from that. we talked about subsidy _ knowledge from that. we talked about subsidy and _ knowledge from that. we talked about subsidy and tech - knowledge from that. we talked about subsidy and tech experts l about subsidy and tech experts what about concerns of a technology transfer as well as intellectual property could at the serious concern for german businesses?— the serious concern for german businesses? they are of concern but less relevant _ businesses? they are of concern but less relevant as _ businesses? they are of concern but less relevant as chinese - but less relevant as chinese companies in some areas are so advanced that it's also that we can be and from them. it's rather more about —— learn from them. government networks, keep operation smooth rather then the ip challenges we're having. now we come to a stage where a lot of chinese companies can actually cooperate with us on a high level. and therefore become rather competition then they copycat as we knew from

they copycat as we knew from the past. we need to find a new way of how we deal with chinese companies in the future. that was maximilian _ companies in the future. that was maximilian butek - companies in the future. that was maximilian butek of - companies in the future. that was maximilian butek of german chamber of commerce in china. as he was talking about chinese electric car makers, nio has urged the us to be more open to competition. william li made the remarks during a rare speech at harvard university, adding that an open market will benefit the industry. he cited tesla's success in china, where us auto—maker has sold close around 1—point—4 million evs over 1.4 million evs over the last three years. american politicans are seeking to restrict china's access to its auto industry, with some calling for tariffs on chinese evs. as india goes into election mode — its economy is very much in focus. incumbent prime minister narendra modi is riding on the plank of massive infrastructure development — roads, highways and metro lines are being built at a pace some say is reminiscent

of china s heyday. the bbc�*s nikhil inamdar sent this report from eastern indian city of kolkata. kolkata, a city of rusty trams and traffic jams. crossing this stretch across the mighty holy river usually takes up to 30 minutes. but a shiny new underwater metro line hasjust come into operation. significantly reducing travel time. so this is india's first underwater metro line and we've just plunged about 100 feet under the river that connects calcutta with the twin cities of howrah. on the other bank, this isjust one example of the ambitious upgrade that many of india's creaky public infrastructure assets are finally getting. a swanky bullet

train is another. it's a showpiece project of prime minister narendra modi. prime minister narendra modi. the upcoming $15 billion high speed rail route will connect india's financial capital, mumbai, with ahmedabad in gujarat. the infrastructure blitz has been a key driver of india's galloping gdp, and projects are getting completed faster than ever. the timelines have shrunk. timelines, which used to be five years, six years, seven years. so i'll come to two years, two and a half years, three years in terms of logistics, if you look at it. india hasjumped 38 places higher. crisscrossing the country to unveil these mega projects has been india's prime minister, narendra modi. his government has spent over

$100 billion every year for the last three years building highways and sea bridges. this infrastructure focus is expected to be rich election dividends for the prime minister. but has it come at the expense of other parts of india's economy? agriculture hasn't done well, and agriculture supports a large part of the population, so the rural incomes suffer because of that. the other area, which is a little weak, is the consumption, private consumption. the household consumption growth is not even half of the overall gdp growth, but overall it's a good story. mr modi will be hoping his infrastructure bet will spur large scale industrial growth and create jobs. a major missing piece in india's growth story. nikhil inamdar, bbc news, kolkata.

before we go shareholders ever prove the nichols in a widely decision for that more than 98% of shareholders voted in favour of shareholders voted in favour of the deal under which the japanese company will pay $55 project for the us steel maker. it brings their position, which is worth nearly $15 billion a step closer to position despite political opposition in the us. as mentioned australian market has started trading slightly lower because of the escalating tension in the middle east. japan's will start trading shortly we will keep an eye on that for you. join us next hour. i will be back at the top of the hour.

hello there, i'm ollie foster. here's what's coming up for you on sports day. it's party time for bayer leverkusen as they clinch their first bundesliga title. the title race has taken a twist in the premier league, arsenal and liverpool losing ground on manchester city. and tsitsipas masters the clay in monte carlo for a third time. hello there. bayer leverkusen are bundesliga champions for the first time in their 120 year history. the 5—0 win over werder bremen to clinch the title was all the sweeter because it came in front of their own fans. they've done it with five games to spare as well in what has been an incredible season,

and they're still unbeaten in all competitions with