this is worklife from bbc news, with sally bundock and karin giannone. a landmark moment in the trade war as the united states and china prepare to sign a truce. live from london, that's our top story on wednesday the 15th of january. businesses around the world breathe a sigh of relief as phase one of the trade agreement is set to be signed later today. we'll find out what impact it'll have around the globe. also in the programme... amid anti—amazon protests, jeff bezos announces a massive investment in small and medium—sized

businesses in india. and... do you want to set up your own business, but your day—job and family commitments get in the way? we speak to one woman who put everything on the line for her dream. and pedigree pets — do you feed your animals the same quality of food as you eat yourself? we'll speak to one company who thinks man's best friend deserves man's best menu. today, we want to know... how much do you spend on your pets? let us know — just use the hashtag bbcworklife. hello and welcome to worklife. do tell, reveal how much you spend on your pets and you can also send us on your pets and you can also send us your photos, we would love to see them.

it's a landmark day in the trade war that is casting a shadow over the global economy. us president donald trump and the chinese vice premier are to sign a trade deal that might signal the beginning of the end of their bruising battle over the price of everything from soy beans to iphones. since the start of the trade war, the two sides have raised import taxes on $470 billion worth of each other‘s goods ? more than half of what they buy and sell from each other every year. while us and chinese consumers have borne the brunt of this, the two countries account for more than 40% of the world's economy and there's no doubt the trade war has hurt global growth. the so—called "phase one deal" is expected to include a commitment by china to spend an extra $200 billion on american—made goods, while the us will lower some tariffs. however, under the deal, tariffs worth billions of dollars will remain in place. here's us treasury secretary steven mnuchin. these tariffs will stay in place

until there is a phase two. if the president gets to phase too quickly, he will consider releasing tariffs as that part, and if not, there won't be any tariff relief. tim stratford is a trade lawyer at covington & burling's beijng office. he's also a former assistant us trade representative and chairman emeritus of american chamber of commerce in china. welcome to the programme, good of you tojoin us. phase one, how significant is what is happening later today? well, obviously we are greatly relieved that we are having this trade agreement signed, it does represent kind of a truce and we hope it puts the brakes on a downward spiral in the bilateral economic relationship. at the same time, ithink economic relationship. at the same time, i think we have to say it is a fragile truce. we will have questions about how well we will bill be able to implement the provisions in the agreement, we will have questions about all the other issues which, in many ways, with the most important issues that have been

put off for phase two, how likely will it be that we can get agreement on those issues when we have tried so on those issues when we have tried so hard for the last 19 months and haven't been able to close the gap? and there is a third concern, that there are issues that affect the economic relationship related to national security and similar concerns, and they can have a profound impact on our economic relations but they haven't been part of this discussion so far at all. so i think it's a fragile truce and we still have a delicate period we need to navigate over the coming months and perhaps years. some of the problems we have seen for us firms and other western firms in china that will remain despite part of this deal? well, part of the core us government concerns about china have been the way that the state is very, very strongly involved in the markets and china's economic development model includes a lot of state subsidies, picking of national champions and other industrial policies and if you are involved in

the markets, and china's economic development model includes a lot of state subsidies, picking up national champions and you can't withstand that competition over a long period of time, and so china is providing very large subsidies to some of their key industry sectors and that presents a long—term concern and something that i think needs to be addressed. and if we get down to basics and what consumers are experiencing in both countries, what difference will phase one make, given that most tariffs, as steven mnuchin was saying, will remain in place? i think the largest concern at the consumer level was going to be the tariffs that were about to be put in place in december and that have been postponed or cancelled by president reagan because of the imminence ofa president reagan because of the imminence of a phase one agreement —— resident trump. tariffs on lower goods are not going to be put in place and i think largely we have

been able to adjust to many of the ta riffs been able to adjust to many of the tariffs put in place so far, so i think companies have tried to find alternative supplies in some cases but i think, so far, it hasn't been hugely disruptive and i think we have been saved by this phase one agreement to have the next end of terrace which would have been the most disruptive —— the next round of terrace. thank you for your perspective on what is a big day in this us— china trade war. let's take a look at some of the other stories making the news... here in the uk the government's plan to rescue the struggling regional airline flybe has been sharply critcised. the boss of rival airline british airways' parent company has said it's a misuse of public funds. in a letter to the transport secretary, willie walsh pointed out that flybe is part owned by delta, which is one of the world's most profitable airlines and has the cash to keep it going. flybe is thought to own about $130 million in taxes.

us president donald trump has launched a fresh attack on apple, tweeting that the company is refusing to unlock iphones "used by killers, drug dealers and other "violent criminal elements". the comments come after us attorney general accused the tech giant of being unhelpful in an inquiry into a shooting that's being treated as a terrorist act. the us national security agency says it's discovered a vulnerability in microsoft's windows operating system that provides a backdoorfor hackers. both the nsa and microsoft say they had no evidence that the flaw had previously been abused. this is the first time the nsa has publicly ta ken credit for finding a security flaw. the online retail giant amazon says its going to invest a billion says it's going to invest a billion dollars in india to try and help small and medium size companies get online. it comes as the founder jeff bezos visits the country amid an investigation

over claims that it — and one of it's main rivals — are harming small companies in india. sura njana tewari joins us from mumbai. to what extent can he woo india? he is splashing a lot of cash but there area is splashing a lot of cash but there are a lot of people not happy about him being there. that's right, there we re him being there. that's right, there were protests expected across 300 cities in india, from traders of small and medium—sized businesses. they say that amazon is dealing in unfair practices, especially with steep discounts on things like mobile phones and that is really pushing these medium, small and medium—sized businesses, to a point where they can't afford to be in the market any more, their prices just aren't getting the customers that they need. now, the protests haven't been as big as we expected them to be. it was expected 500,000 traders we re be. it was expected 500,000 traders were going to take to the streets. they have been quite small but in

new delhi, where jeff they have been quite small but in new delhi, wherejeff is visiting at the moment, there are protests going on. they have moved to the event where he was speaking this morning, but he was really trying to sympathise with them and that is why he made this announcement that amazon will spend $1 billion to try and bring those small and medium—sized businesses online. interesting story, let's see how the rest of his three—day visit goes, jeff bezos. let's have a look at the markets in asia, the first day of declines for five days. the optimism of phase one, the riding of the wave, has come to an end. the comments we heard from steven mnuchin saying tariffs will remain in place, giving investors the impression the ongoing difficult negotiation process will go way beyond phase one, before things are truly nail down. let's have a look at european markets, trading now for

almost a0 minutes. pretty flat today. we are coming into a busy earnings period, a lot of the big american banks reporting yesterday, some doing better than expected but as you can see, nothing moving significantly in europe. now to the us, where samira hussain has been looking at the growing us appetite for low calorie alcohol. for the first time in 25 years, american wine consumption has dropped. now, that doesn't mean people are drinking less, they are just opting for different beverages. as people are becoming more health conscious, they are drinking alcoholic drinks that have less calories, like spirits and ready to drink cocktails like hard seltzers. in fact, that particular sector has seen sales spike 50%, making the ready to drink a category worth about $8 billion. making the ready to drink category worth about $8 billion. now, given the preference for lower calorie options, it's not surprising to see that americans are also drinking less beer and they have been for the last four years. but all is not lost for the sector.

the sales of craft beers are up more than a% and low or non—alcoholic beer sales have grown by 6.6%. cheers. time now for our daily look at some of the newspaper and website stories which have caught our eye. joining us is stephen welton, founder and ceo of the business growth fund. welcome to you. we are going to start with the founder and chief executive blackrock, the well‘s largest asset manager, making quite a statement saying environmental sustainability is the goal of their investments. it is really important. as the largest investor in the world, they have the ability to move markets not just in world, they have the ability to move markets notjust in the us but around the world. larry fink is well known for making very provocative comments. last year it was about purpose in business and now he is saying business has to think about climate change seriously. and as you say, so important because this company, they've got nearly $7

trillion of investments under management so not only is he an influential guy, there is a lot of money on the move and when he says the climate is the core of our thinking in terms of where the money is going, that makes a difference, doesn't it. it does and then it is where can that capital go? a lot is invested in traditional fossil fuel companies. if we are going to invest in climate change, the point he's making is that business is going to actively have to put capital into that sector and, as investors, they can help that. that is a big shift because in any pension fund in the uk, you have probably either got bp 01’ uk, you have probably either got bp or shell, a core part of any portfolio, the gift that keeps giving in terms of the dividends and the growth in the share price, but they are fossil fuel companies. they are. they are fossil fuel companies. they a re. clearly, they are fossil fuel companies. they are. clearly, they are big dividend payers on the london market but we have to think about a transition and we can't transition to a carbon neutral world tomorrow. what is really important, we have this date, 2050, we don't want to be in 20a9

thinking we've made a good effort but have a long way to go. do you think other big names are going to follow? yes and that is the easy bit. everyone can say this is a good thing, we are going to invest but the hard bit is what does that actually mean? will blackrock and other investors start to support companies that are really committed to climate change? will they start to climate change? will they start to disinvest in more traditional businesses? that has to flow through into the uk so what are we going to do to support climate change practically? many big investment banks all over the world are already thinking about their ethical funds, sustainable funds. let's move on to the story in the times, britain battles to join the giga factory race, a big picture of the tesla factory. what is this about? one of the biggest emitters of carbon are cars, we have to move away from the internal combustion engine to electric cars, we all know that and there are practical issues, how long do you charge it for and how long

will it run for? working backwards from a business standpoint, we need isa from a business standpoint, we need is a country to invest in battery technology because it is the key component of an electric car. the uk is way behind where it needs to be if we are going to be a leader in the industry. it says that many of the industry. it says that many of the global makers like lg and samsung even appear to be planning a factory in the uk at this moment. which is a problem, we need to recognise that as we move away from traditional cars to electric cars, if we don't invest in the uk manufacturing supply chain, we will import everything so we will end up being assemblers of electric cars. there is an opportunity here, the faraday challenge is being run by uk scientists and innovate to identify what we can do to improve battery technology. if you think about the potential for the future, britain technology. if you think about the potentialfor the future, britain is a bit late to create the next google 01’ a bit late to create the next google or facebook but absolutely well—placed to create the next green global champion. let's hope so, we will see. stephen, thank you.

still to come... do you feed your animals the same quality of food as you eat yourself? we'll speak to one company who thinks man's best friend deserves man's best menu. we might even be trying the product ourselves! you're with worklife from bbc news. so we were just talking about investment in the uk, future investment. when it comes to the tech sector, it is already booming 110w. the total amount of money invested in companies grew by aa% in 2019 — over the same period, the us saw investment fall by 20% and china saw a fall of 65%. joining us now is reshma sohoni, the co—founder of the seed fund seed camp, and she is a member of the uk government's digital economy council — which produced this report. that sounds extremely impressive,

comparing us to the us and china, how did we do it? it is positive news, such a banner year. ithink how did we do it? it is positive news, such a banner year. i think it has been 20 years in the making, so as you see the us and china have sort of shrank, capital has to move somewhere and looking at the uk, there is fundamental progress in the last 20 years so it has been quite a flood to some extent. whereabouts in the uk? is this happening in london 01’ the uk? is this happening in london or other big cities? absolutely other places. we talk about the rise of the rest, just like the uk is pa rt of the rest, just like the uk is part of that, other cities in the uk are, manchester, bristol, well beyond london and edinburgh as well. it doesn't seem that all the brexit and certainty we have had in recent yea rs and certainty we have had in recent years and months has put them off. what capital markets tend to do is shrug things of that are not a real policy yet, so i think we will look towards 2020 to see what the actual policy implications are and i think capital markets will decide

according to that. what needs to be done to keep up this momentum? we have already got a steady stream of early—stage funding as well and early—stage funding as well and early—stage companies, early—stage funding as well and ea rly—stage companies, that early—stage funding as well and early—stage companies, that also grew over 20% last so continuing to be an attractive place for capital and for talent, i think talent a tt ra cts and for talent, i think talent attracts capital, so we need to be extremely open. there is a lot of talk around a points—based system is to attract high quality talent to the uk and i think skilling up continues in the uk of the young folks and university graduates and so folks and university graduates and so forth. thank you so much. we appreciate your time. 0nline, there is the bbc micro to page, this is a story about the high—speed two rail project and the harm to wildlife. more detail on

there. you're watching worklife. a reminder of our top story... the us and china are making final preparations to sign a phase one of the landmark trade deal. this is after tensions between the two countries had cast a shadow over the global economy. of course, we will keep track of events in washington today and let you know as soon as the ink is on the piece of paper. let's now get the inside track on a business "tail" that's all about looking after man's best friend. i am of course talking about dogs and in particular, the food we feed them. different dog sells fresh food tailored for your pooch that it delivers to customers doors and it's apparently even edible by humans. we might even have a go. so is this a case of bone appetite or are they barking up the wrong tree? i can't take any more of those, let's just introduce the guest!

with us to discuss is alex thurstan, co—founder of different dog. what inspired you to start this up? different dog is all about changing dogs‘ lives, making them healthier and happier and it was borne out of the fact that dogs that were fed a heavily processed diet when necessarily healthy. my husband was working in the pet food industry about four years ago and he came home one day, we were round the kitchen table, and he was really concerned by what he had seen that day ina concerned by what he had seen that day in a factory that made a lot of dog food and it didn't really sit well with our family values of home—cooked, naturalfood well with our family values of home—cooked, natural food and at the same time, we had just got our puppy, same time, we had just got our puppy, oui’ same time, we had just got our puppy, our working corker micro crumble and i was doing some research on canine health and i was shocked to see the increasing obesity and diabetes and other conditions linked to diet so we thought we would start cooking for crumble as cells. say this is you and your husband, you have three young boys as well, a busy household

and you make it sound easy but i imagine it was quite difficult. and you make it sound easy but i imagine it was quite difficultm was definitely an exciting time. that is the positive spin! the good thing is is the processes we use are exactly the same processes we use to cook for the children and the family asa cook for the children and the family as a whole. do they eat dog food, your children? they do occasionally ask if it is the dog food and i say no but the processes are similar and the food we use in the dog food is all human grade food. 0bviously, canine nutrition is very different to human condition so —— nutrition so we to human condition so —— nutrition so we have a fantastic nutritionist and vet to make sure the 0ptima nutrients are in the food to make the dog thrive. there you have five chefs churning out the food, i'm assuming it is expensive. the great thing about our product is it is very nutrient rich. we have one here. it looks great, it looks like a costco salad, something you might pick up in your lunch hour. —— chris

couscous pick up in your lunch hour. —— chris couscous salad. it is very nutrient rich and applied like this could last four or five days for a small dog. and it is 75p a day for a small dog. and it is 75p a day for a small dog. it starts from 75p a day and what the average dog, it is about the same price as per cup of coffee so the same price as per cup of coffee so giving your dog a hit of good natural food every day which has been linked to increased health, it isa been linked to increased health, it is a small price to pay. we both have dogs, i have a black labrador and so i'd buy bulk dried food, it is easy to store, it doesn't smell, it lasts for a couple of months. i'm assuming that if i have to buy the equivalent for my black labrador, thatis equivalent for my black labrador, that is a lot of food. do you have to store it in a fridge? the great thing about our model is because it isa thing about our model is because it is a subscription model, we deliver it straight to your door at a time that suits you, so we can send it in two—week intervals or four week intervals. it is stored in the

fridge but primarily comes frozen so you have it in the freezer firstly you have it in the freezer firstly you have it in the freezer firstly you have the option of fridge and freezer. have you actually noticed discernible health effects on the dogs that have been eating this compare to an entirely processed diet out of a can or a bag? a huge difference. we constantly get customers saying how much our food has changed their dogs‘ lives and that could be to do with skin and coat improvements, digestive issues, just healthier and happier dog. how do you verify that and monitor these differences? we speak to our customers on a daily basis. we get updates, whenever a customer wrings us updates, whenever a customer wrings us with an issue or concern they have about their dog, we always refer them to our vet first. what is the demand lie? we are asking viewers how much they spend on their pet but the pet market is massive —— what is demand like? when people come to their pets, they really spoil them. there has been a come to their pets, they really spoilthem. there has been a huge increase in the humanisation of our animals, they are no longer seen as just animals, they are part of the

family and everyone wants to include them in the home. did you have turkey lunch on christmas day? we had a fantastic festive feast.|j think all the dogs in the country wa nt to think all the dogs in the country want to stay at your house. alex, thank you very much indeed. we will look at how much you spoil your pets in a moment. first, we will hear about someone who had to pretty much give up everything to run her business. let's hear her story. my advice would be if you wa nt to ta ke story. my advice would be if you want to take the island, you have to burn the boats. i started coconuts organic back in 201a when i was working and trying to do 201a when i was working and trying todoa 201a when i was working and trying to do a full—time job and run a

business. i had a fast—paced career in retail, really long commute and a very demanding, exciting but demanding, job and i quickly realised it just wasn't demanding, job and i quickly realised itjust wasn't possible. if i was going to make a success of this business, i had to be all in. i packed up my house, all the way to the other side of the country to my childhood home of cornwall, i actually moved in with my parents andi actually moved in with my parents and i started a full—time recipe development to create the most creamy, delicious vegan ice cream i could. i couldn't have done that if i had could. i couldn't have done that if ihada could. i couldn't have done that if i had a full—time job. could. i couldn't have done that if i had a full—timejob. i would have been so distracted. when things get hard, knowing that it was my only option, knowing that it is my plan a, there was no plan b, actually it was really motivational for me. so there is another innovator we have made, incredible people who have started businesses, cooking up something really edible and exciting in their kitchens.

at the top of the show, we were asking you, having done an interview with somebody who does fancy food for dogs, how much you spend on your pets. let's have a look at what you had to say. pedigree chum, are you kidding me? ican say. pedigree chum, are you kidding me? i can buy 500 grams of minced beef from the supermarket for £1 50. stephen says... and then we have got harry, who says... the pooch parlour, clothes, adverts. dog walking. doggy daycare. many of you send photos, which is fantastic, have a look at the

hashtag bbcworklife for the pictures today. thank you for watching, we are back the same time tomorrow. good morning. yesterday, we had some strong winds and some heavy rain moving its way across england and wales, some of the strongest gusts of wind were along the south coast. in the needles, 82 mph and in southampton and the mumbles near swa nsea, southampton and the mumbles near swansea, 67—70 mile per hour winds. todayis swansea, 67—70 mile per hour winds. today is still very windy across the south—east of england, with that weather system. still some fairly close isobars in the north of scotland, gusty winds expected throughout the day to day but for most of us, it will be a drier day, some sunny most of us, it will be a drier day, some sunny spells in a few showers around. the most frequent showers will be across scotland and that there will be some snow over the higher ground again. i mentioned

gusty winds throughout the day. one 01’ gusty winds throughout the day. one or two showers dotted around elsewhere but for most, it is dry, the rain clears away from the south—east, plenty of sunshine and temperatures this afternoon getting to around 7—9 celsius. tonight, we continue with no showers and snow showers over the higher ground, quite quiet initially before we start to see this next weather system start to see this next weather syste m m ove start to see this next weather system move its way in for thursday. it isa system move its way in for thursday. it is a developing area of low pressure spreading from the south—west, they isobars getting closer together, another spell of windy weather on the way. this is thursday, the rain moves its way into northern ireland, west wales, south—west england and across scotla nd south—west england and across scotland and the rain really will be heavy at times. it won't reach the forest of england until much later in the day but a strong and gusty winds, gales around this area in particular, up to 60—65 mph —— the fat is doing that. maximum temperatures on thursday 8—11. heavy rain will move eastwards as we go

through the rest of the day along with those strong winds, but eventually it will start to clear away to the east, there is the area of high pressure as it goes northwards. weather systems behind that so that by friday, the main bulk of rain clears away but still quite a bit of cloud and some showers moving their way in for england and away, a bit quieter than scotla nd england and away, a bit quieter than scotland and northern ireland, just the odd shower here. maximum temperatures on friday, coming down, a chilly day, 6—9dc and the cold theme will continue as we continue in the weekend, but with high—pressure developing, it is said to be much more dry and much more settled as we go into the weekend but just watch out for some frosts. bye— bye.

you're watching bbc news at 9 with me annita mcveigh. the headlines... the government is accused of misusing public funds after coming up with a rescue deal to save the regional airline flybe. the duchess of sussex makes her first public appearance since she and prince harry announced they want to step down as senior members of the royal family. children are treated for skin irritation after a passenger plane dumps fuel over the playground of a school before making an emergency landing at los angeles international airport. the high speed rail link hs2, could divide and destroy natural habitats across england, according to a new report by the wildlife trust. the roof of a block of flats in slough lands on the pavement