this is your business briefing. i'm sally bundock. after yea rs of struggle with compensation bills for oil spills, will rising oil prices turn into earnings gold for oil giant bp? and is climbing mount everest on your bucket list? some trekkers are fulfilling their dreams and rebuilding nepal's economy after a devastating earthquake at the same time. and forfinancial and for financial markets, it is all about central bank action. we have had the bank ofjapan meeting about central bank action. we have had the bank of japan meeting today. can see the nikkei up just slightly. the federal reserve releases its data today, then tomorrow it is the bank of england. let's get cracking, a lot to squeeze

the oil giant bp appears to be turning its fortunes around in recent months, and in a few hours, we'll find out if that trend is continuing when the company gives its second quarter earning. the share price has been recovering more or less steadily over the last year and has gained around 16% since the start of march. a large part of that is due to the rise in the oil price. in terms of brent crude, the benchmark has risen from about $66 a barrel a year ago to $78. obviously, that means more money for companies like bp, who are pumping it out of the ground. last week, bp announced it would buy $10.5 billion in shale and natural gas assets in the us. this is bhp's assets. and that's significant because it's the first major investment made by the oil firm since the deepwater horizon accident of 2010. the bill for cleanup and payouts related to that spill in the gulf of mexico is currently at $65 billion.

colin smith, director of oil and gas research at panmure gordonjoins me now. good morning, good to see you. morning. '5 what do you think bp was saying? well, it is looking at 13.596 of earnings for the quarter. i think the real question is whether they actually make that, because they have pretty much missed estimates. i think the first question is are they actually going to make that number? they have preannounce the dividend with the deal that you just announced with bhp and then i think they will be fairly upbeat about what they have delivered. why are they all missing their targets, shell, exxon, why are they? what has been going wrong for them?” shell, exxon, why are they? what has been going wrong for them? i think it is just that the strength of the macro background we have had has not quite translated as strongly into

the second quarter earnings as i think most analysts, including myself, expected. ithink think most analysts, including myself, expected. i think the question is whether the underlying performance that they have talked about really is deliberate because thatis about really is deliberate because that is what people have been looking for and that is what so far, has not shown up in the numbers. looking for and that is what so far, has not shown up in the numbersm bp's data today, we still have some outlay with regard to the gulf of mexico oil spill. i mentioned there that some are saying it is costing around $65 billion to bp. we are getting to the point though we bp will finally draw a line under this, just talk us through the impact on the company. i think first of all, you are right. we are coming to the end of the major outlays, they have taken $70 billion, that has had a huge financial cost and there has

been a change in the way that the hp operates and the portfolio that it has. in terms of cash outflows, yes, we should be seeing a much lower number, maybe $800 million this quarter against 1.6 billion last year. it is beginning to, i think, wash out of the numbers as a major concern and major story, so we are nearly there on that one stock right all right, thank you very much for giving us your predictions. we have not got long to wait. we will see if you are right. when we get bp's numbers, we will let you know what they say. samsung electronics has reported a 0.1% dip in its second quarter net profit from the year before, blaming slower global sales of premium smartphones that dented demand for its flagship galaxy device. let's go to our asia business hub, where shara njit leyl

is following the story. it would seem when it comes to samsung, it is always the chip unit, that unit, that helps to give its earnings boost. absolutely, you said it. the south korean electronic giant posting its lowest quarterly profit in more than a year and as you say, it is due to the sluggish global smartphone market, which has been a huge weight on its earnings. of course, that chip business continues to perform well. 0perating profit for the world's biggest ship in smartphone maker was rising about 13% to just over in smartphone maker was rising about 13% tojust over $2.1; in smartphone maker was rising about 13% to just over $2.1; billion in the second quarter, memory it was its largest contributor to profit is by far, and the growth of huge data

server centres. profits from its mobile business though, that was key, that sank 34% from a year ago, mainly due to lots of stiff competition and of course, samsung is facing challenges from the us china trade war, of course there are the rise of memory chips and those chinese made handsets as well. research in july chinese made handsets as well. research injuly is showing samsung's galaxy nine handset had been overtaken by sales of the apple iphone. thank you. mount everest, the world's tallest mountain, is notorious for its harsh climbing conditions and treacherous weather. climbing to the top can cost as much as $100,000 and you need significant technical mountaineering experience and fitness. but for those unable to climb everest, the trek to base camp is very popular. pamela parker looks at how adventure tourism is changing the economy of mountain villages in the himalayas.

this short runway is the gateway to everest base camp. just about every track that goes to everest base camp sta rts track that goes to everest base camp starts and ends right here. just coming here, the mountain is good for the business and good for the country. —— tourists coming here. we are finally here at everest base

camp and it has taken us eight days to get here. i have to admit i am feeling a little bit woken. it is physically challenging, but that is also why it is so rewarding. anyone who has been on this track will never forget it and that is why the brand everest has built such an economy around at. i read a lot of books and i saw a lot of films of everest, so just getting books and i saw a lot of films of everest, sojust getting he books and i saw a lot of films of everest, so just getting he was a dream of mine stock rights —— so just getting he was a dream of mine. —— so just getting here was a dream of mine. just a few months ago, we started collecting money from the tourists for the development infrastructure. definitely, there are some players in the market that are trying to undercut pricing. the challenge of

some of those agencies is the level of liability and responsibility with their trek is. now let's take a look at other business stories. shares of american express fell more than 2.5% in late trade monday, after the wall streetjournal reported the company raised currency conversion rates for its business clients without notifying them. amex says itwill be conducting a review with an external party in order to determine whether all of its standards are being met. equipment maker caterpillar says it's up its full year forecast after reporting record second—quarter profits. it's an important one for us to watch because caterpillar's results can shed light on how us trade tariffs are affecting american companies. earlier this month, the company, which makes construction and earth—moving equipment, increased its prices to offset rising material costs.

growth in china's manufacturing sector cooled for the second month in a row injuly. chinese officials say the official purchasing managers' index fell more than 51.2% in july. that's down from 51.5% injune. economic data from china is being closely watched because of the trade tensions between china and the us. so let's look at financial markets 110w. so let's look at financial markets now. the bank ofjapan is saying is going to keep rates very low at the moment and monetary policy flexible. isaid moment and monetary policy flexible. i said the bank of england tomorrow at the beginning of this programme, i meant actually thursday of course. that is the bank of england meeting on thursday. some of the rail services

in the north of england that were scrapped in may due to the shakeup of the timetable are back. up to 75% of the trains are up and running again, but angry commuters still faced cancellations and delays, as danny savage reports. just after 7am, and lorna fitzpatrick is waiting in burnley for her daily northern service to leeds. it arrives on time, but lorna says the new timetable means more stops and more passengers. i have this dread every single morning, because i know that the train's probably going to be late and i'm probably not going to get to work on time, as usual. train announcement: again, on behalf of northern, i'd just like to apologise for the... every single aspect of my life revolves around this train and i'm just absolutely sick of it. i'm at the end of my tether.

it's had such a massive impact on my life — my professional and my personal life. and i can't be the only one in this situation. northern says a more gradual reintroduction of its timetable will ensure a more stable and reliable service. but again today, there were delays and cancellations. the mayor of greater manchester says enough is enough. today, i've called on the prime minister to intervene, because passengers in the north can't keep running the daily lottery of turning up at the train station hoping that they will be able to get to work on time. they deserve much better than this. northern blamed a shortage of drivers for the chaos back in may. they say training has now happened. the unions disagree. you're operating services on overtime, that says to me and to our members, and i suspect to our passengers, that you haven't got enough staff in the first place. there were certainly fewer complaints on social media about the trains today, but the passengers we met believe the real test will be in september. that is when full services are

stored and commuters return from their summer holidays. apparently, oui’ their summer holidays. apparently, our trains their summer holidays. apparently, ourtrains in the their summer holidays. apparently, our trains in the uk are the envy of europe. check out that story on bbc online. this is the briefing from bbc news. the latest headlines: president trump says he's ready to meet iran's leaders any time and with no preconditions. there are fresh claims that north korea's building new intercontinental ballistic missiles capable of reaching the us, despite recent rounds of peace talks. politicians in the uk are calling for greater controls of the aid sector, following claims of widespread sexual exploitation and abuse. now it's time to look at the stories that are making the headlines in the media across the world. we begin with the front of the guardian. it has an image, you will

see ina guardian. it has an image, you will see in a moment, of former president of zimbabwe, robert mugabe, voting with his wife and daughter in harare, in the first elections since he was ousted from office last year. in the independent, deals of a government report into sexual assault in the aid sector. we just mentioned that story. mps calling the ongoing abuse and exploitation by aid workers and open secret. and complacency verging on complicity. the financial times has a story on the front page about the chinese response to us efforts to curb american use of chinese technology. foreigners seeking strategic stakes in listed chinese groups could face broad national security reviews, apparently. 0nto the telegraph and story i mention earlier the education secretary damian hinds telling parents children are sent to school unable to speak in sentences.

he says it is a persistent scandal. finally, our website, you can't escape hearing about this tv show this summer, love island, the final was last night, we will talk about the winners and the emerging franchise. if you've recorded it and you've not seen it, i am not going to say switch off, just under volume down. i have james foley with us to talk through some of these stories. —— james foley. we start with the images of robert mugabe, former president of zimbabwe, in power for decades who was sort of removed from