this is business briefing. i'm david eades. a vital boost for growth or a ruinous handout to big business and the rich? president trump edges towards the biggest shake—up of us taxes in three decades. plus — untapped potential. could helping more women into work transform the world economy? we report from the global entrepreneurship summit in hyderabad. and on the markets, an outbreak of caution from asia! this is following the big surge from the dowel, as people wait for trump's tax plans to be approved, or do they hang on a balance? just repeat. absolute euphoria. a big christmas present is what donald trump is calling them. the dow soared past 2a,000 points for the first time. we start in washington, dc,

where later today the us senate plans to vote on the biggest reform of the tax system in more than three decades. if last—minute disagreements can be overcome, it would be the first major mission accomplished for president trump, who put cutting taxes and boosting the us economy at the centre of his election campaign. so what do we know about it? firstly, it will be very expensive, costing around $1.5 trillion for the government to pay out over the next decade. some of that would be offset by higher economic growth, but most would be added to the us national debt, which already stands at $20 trillion. that is what is still bothering some in the senate. as for who would benefit, the big winners would be us firms,

which would see the corporation tax rate slashed from 35% to around 20%. the white house claims the average american household would also be better off by between $4,000 and $9,000 a year. some critics, though, say the plan really does favour the wealthy. 0thers dispute the idea that a handout to firms will trickle down to the wider economy. not including the banks, us companies are already sitting on some $1.9 trillion cash pile. and some have said they'd use tax cuts to give more money to shareholders. let's get more on this story. professor alan auerbach runs the center for tax policy and public finance at the university of california, berkley. thanks very much forjoining us. starting with these key questions. is it going to pass on friday? starting with these key questions. is it going to pass on friday7m might. there were a couple of

surprising developments on thursday. 0ne parliamentary decision in the senate, ruling out the nasa that they wanted, a mechanism they wanted to use, to satisfy the deficit —— ruling out the system they wanted. the other is a committee on taxation, a non— congressional staff, indicating most of the $1.5 trillion would be made up by reve nu es trillion would be made up by revenues from extra growth and would therefore be added to the national debt. as that goes through, can he see the argument donald trump puts forward as being a solid one? that this will create the opportunities for companies to reinvest, to create morejobs? that for companies to reinvest, to create more jobs? that of course will generate more tax revenue for the government. i think he is right about the direction. the much lower

corporate tax rate would increase investment in the us, by us and foreign companies, and to some extent that would benefit us workers. the dispute isn't really about whether it would happen, it's about whether it would happen, it's about how much of it would happen. 0ften about how much of it would happen. often there are these projections that it would lead to enormous gain 01’ revenue recouped , that it would lead to enormous gain or revenue recouped, which i think is unlikely stock white some major companies already say most of that benefit will go to our shareholders. that of course would distort the whole purpose of the reforms. it depends on what you think the purpose of the reforms is. there are many purposes and undoubtedly one purposeis many purposes and undoubtedly one purpose is to increase productivity and investment in the us. but there are strong political motivations and the people who support the

republican party, not only through their vote but through their donations, would like to see reductions in taxes on high income people. some of that may be to promote business, but some of that may be more in a matter of self—interest. white a very good point. thank you very much for joining us. —— a very good point. let's talk about tesla boss elon musk now. this was him back in march promising to solve the energy crisis in south australia, which has been hit by serious power cuts. the solution — the world's biggest lithium ion battery. it's just been switched on now. rico hizon in singapore is following the story for us. power up! it's a big battery. power up! it's a big batterym power up! it's a big battery. it is huge. i promise that has been fulfilled by elon musk. it was done in record time. he vowed to build the battery within 100

in record time. he vowed to build the battery within100 days and tesla finished in about 60 days. this 100 megawatts lithium ion battery was officially activated today and has begun dispensing power in south australia. it can power up up in south australia. it can power up up to 30,000 homes for one hour on its own, but will more likely be used to support and stabilise assisting energy supplies. elon musk says it is three times more powerful than the world's next battery. it all than the world's next battery. it a ll started than the world's next battery. it all started over a twitter exchange when an australian software entrepreneur asked elon musk if you are serious about helping south australia, after it suffered a statewide blackout. he was challenged and he said if it wasn't built within 100 days south australia would receive it for free. that's the power of twitter. a lot on stocks and shares. the bbc stock rising in your neck of the woods? absolutely! last night we won we

best news programme at the 22nd asian television awards. so it is dedicated to everyone in london, making the programme possible. never in doubt, of course. good to see you. let's go to hyderabad in southern india which has been hosting the global entrepreneurship summit this week. businesswoman ivanka trump, daughter of the us president, was there as a special guest. she said closing the workplace gender gap around the world could boost economic growth, by unleashing the vast untapped potential of women. in india itself, barely more than a quarter of women are in formal employment. devina gupta reports. 35—year—old naveena is a software engineer and loves her job. but, a few years ago, she was ready to join 19 million women living in india who are educated, but choose not to work. previously i said that the thought

of quitting thejob... like, because of this hectic traffic. according to one study, just 27% of women in india are in formal employment. the main reason is a lack of adequate infrastructure to commute to and from work. for naveena, and many other women working in hyderabad, this small start—up has become something of a lifeline. the private bus service cuts down naveena's travel time by half. according to a world economic forum report, it will take two century —— centuries to bridge the equality gap between men and women in the workplace. india is taking this issue very seriously. one issue discussed was the pressure to raise a family. something the delegates agreed

is common in emerging economies. few child—care options and a higher crime rate, also deters women from pursuing their careers. this afghan entrepreneur says one solution is to provide tailored funding and support to women looking to found start—ups. once the woman has started to make money, with the respect for the tradition and the culture, then they have the power. and engaging such a large chunk of the population into the workforce can only mean good things for business. now let's brief you some other business stories. uk labour party leaderjeremy corbyn has hit back at investment bank morgan stanley, telling the company it's right to regard him as a threat. he called bankers "speculators and gamblers" who crashed the economy in 2008.

in a report earlier this week, morgan stanley warned that the risks of an incoming labour government could be "as significant as brexit". amazon has launched a version of its successful voice based digital assistant alexa, aimed at business. office workers will be able to use the firm's echo smart speakers to set up meetings with colleagues, book conference rooms and other basic tasks. some have raised concerns over privacy in meetings where sensitive information is being discussed. and now, what's trending in the business news this morning? from the wall streetjournal, the senate banking committee is scheduled to vote tuesday on jerome powell's nomination by president trump to be the next head of the us federal reserve and from bloomberg, women are starting more new businesses, but struggling for financing. a report by the federal reserve which says female run firms

are are likely to get business loans or have good credit scores, the tech news site wired carries a sobering report. ‘two melting glaciers could decide the fate of our coastlines'. research in the antarctic suggests the loss of key glaciers could mean sea levels rise 11 feet by the end of the century, flooding all the world's major coastal cities. and don't forget, let's us know what you are spotting online. use the hashtag bbc—the—briefing. that's it for business briefing this hour. but before we go, a quick look at the markets. asian shares, as we've been saying, the nikkei is down. the hang seng is also down, perhaps surprising following the surge we saw in the dowjones, which went up over 211,000 points. all over expectation that donald trump's tax

reform bill was about to go through. a big corporate tax reduction. but one 01’ a big corporate tax reduction. but one or two hesitations. asia not quite as buoyant about that, as perhaps the americans have been so far. it may well be all over by the end of the day, as the vote is likely in the hours ahead. that's the business meeting. stay with us on the bbc. much more to come. one of the so—called chennai six who was released from an indian prison on monday has spoken of his relief at regaining his freedom after four years. nick dunn was among six britons acquitted of weapons charges by an indian court. he's been speaking to the bbc‘s sanjoy majumder. taking an innocent man's freedom away is the worst crime, i believe, that can be committed.

former paratrooper nick dunn has just been released from an indian prison, one of six britons arrested four years ago and charged with smuggling weapons. you've got to do a proper investigation. you've got to know that person is guilty. this wasn't like that. it was, "we don't care — you're guilty." he has now traded his cramped, squalid prison cell for a plush hotel room. his sister lisa has come out to india to take him back home, and he just can't wait. it has been a long, desperate wait forjustice inside this chennai prison. nick and his mates were working as security guards on an american anti—piracy ship seized off the indian coast. the police accused them of illegally carrying the weapons and ammunition on board. on monday, an indian court threw out all the charges. i was out training. one of the guys shouted us over, and i could hear it in his voice,

it was excitement. and he went, "full acquittal". and i — stopped in my tracks, and it was like someone just slapped us. ‘cause it was a shock, you know, and it was an amazing feeling. while they were in prison waiting to learn their fate, the men's families led a massive campaign back home to press for their release, petitioning the government, including the prime minister. his nightmare finally over, it is now time to go home. sanjoy majumder, bbc news, chennai. you're watching the briefing. 0ur headlines: pope francis, who is holding mass in bangladesh, has thanked the country

for its humanitarian response to muslim refugees fleeing myanmar. naval vessels from new zealand begin patrolling the ross sea in antarctica, the largest area ever to be granted special protection. prince harry and his new fiancee meghan markle are to take part in theirfirst official engagements together. the us senate has delayed voting on a republican tax bill as some senators aim to address the large increase of the federal budget deficit. now it is time look at the stories that are making the headlines in media across the world. we begin with the irish times, and a warning from the democratic unionist party to uk prime minister theresa may that any concessions over brexit which affect northern ireland's