hello. this is the business briefing. trouble in the pipeline. crude prices slumped further as virus phase grow. can oil producers do anything to stop the slide? last, the fight for 50—50. will india's women ever get equal access to the boardroom? women ever get equal access to the boardroom ? and women ever get equal access to the boardroom? and on the financial markets, the sell—off resumes as us shares tumble yet again. the dowjones of 3.5% as the coronavirus fears spread and asia follows.

we start with the coronavirus outbreak. it is impact —— its impact has been felt right across the business world and this friday, the nations that produce much of the world's oil are trying to limit the damage to their economies. members of the oil producers group opec and their partners including russia are trying to reach a deal to cut production and prop up deal to cut production and prop up the price of crude. here is why. look at the price of brent crude oil. at the beginning of the year when the first reports of the coronavirus began to emerge, it was over $68 a barrel. it slumped to around $48, a drop of almost one third. the international agency thinks global demand for oil has been falling in the first few months of this year that hasn't happened since the globalfinancial hasn't happened since the global financial crisis more than a decade ago. opec has now slashed its estimates for growth this year by half or 480 million barrels. they have come

up million barrels. they have come up with a plan for a big part in production but producing less oil also means a financial hit for oil nations and they have to persuade russia and other non—opec members to agree. on thursday, one of opec's agree. on thursday, one of opec‘s top officials appealed to the nations to work together. translation: today's meeting comes as covid—i9 is negatively impacting the demand for oil in 2020 especially in the first and second quarters. this shows the fluctuation of the oil market is subject to uncertainties that are too much for anyone part to face alone. therefore, complex challenges require concerted efforts and dialogue. in this regard, our allies are in constant contact with our partners and friends in the republic of china. we have to head of oil and gas analysis at fitch solutions. another emergency meeting trying to work out what we should be doing as far as the price of oil is concerned and

they will be the key meeting of opec today. what do you expect from this meeting? do you think there will be agreement?” think at this point where oil prices are, we are going to see agreement. what is happening now is the most —— main opec body has agreed to a cut. now it is giving the members, more specifically russia, to agree with this cut. where the impact of the coronavirus are already felt in china, we see it is unlikely that truck —— russia will not back this cut. they have already been noises coming out of russia stop questioning how long this will last. duty will be a long phase approach, that they will be a cut this summer that they will be a cut this summerand that they will be a cut this summer and perhaps a review following that? i think that is the prudent move. one opec cut earlier in the year for a key one, they had limited the expectation to just key one. we're probably going to see

that again to the end of o2. thejune that again to the end of o2. the june timeframe, really what thatis the june timeframe, really what that is about is at some point these barrels will have to come back to the market. collectively, opec is holding 6 billion barrels of the market which at some point is going to come back. the timing is going to help them do that in the least painful way in terms of processing. what impact will this have on shale oil production? we have already had reports from exile —— exxon that they have decreased their growth by about 10% and it is the first sign that we are seeing some slowing plans for shell growth. —— shale growth. thank you. let us stay with the

economic impact of the coronavirus because the sell—off on global stock markets really has resumed with more steep losses on wall street. we now report from new york. healthcare systems grapple with how to cope with the virus and financial markets are doing the same. once again, us stocks we re same. once again, us stocks were pummelled and after two days that make, the dowjones finished in the red. the us debt fell to a record low foot ——. not exactly a confidence boost. earlier this week, ——. not exactly a confidence boost. earlierthis week, it was said it would be a temporary shock to the economy but how to temporary? this is the problem further company bosses. nobody knows how bad

things could get. as one investor put it, there is no way to model this. will it be worst—case scenario way to model this. will it be worst—case scenario like china where mass current “— florentines meant economic activity will come to a standstill or would it be something milder? given all of these unknowns, what is the right medicine for the economy? here in the us, the policy response so here in the us, the policy response so far has been an emergency interest rate cut. progress is working on an $8.3 billion aid package. but again, you don't know whether the problem is demand, in other words, people not buying things or supplying as a result of business disruptions then how can you administer the right solution? all of this means expect a lot more volatility. mariko oi is watching developments. certainly as far as share processes are

concerned, it has been brutal. indeed. as you said, every major market in asia are in the red including japan's nikkei which opened about 1.5% lower but now down more than 3%. also hung said insect —— hang seng index down by almost 2%. of course it hurts japanese exporters because it makes them less competitive abroad and it has been hitting exporters‘ shares. in particular, airline shares. in particular, airline shares have been hit the ha rd est shares have been hit the hardest because as we have been reporting, a lot of passengers have been cancelling their flight. have been cancelling their flight. we are definitely seeing that impacts today. thank you for that update. a

real push up points. on sunday, people around the world will celebrate international women‘s day and the theme for this year is each for equal. men and women are being called upon to celebrate the achievements of men and women. there is a long way to go. this woman has been fighting a battle for the past few months for a seat at the board of the company. a $5 billion conglomerate which sells everything from insurance to fertilisers and auto parts and says her uncles and cousins are denying her a seat at the table only because she is a woman. while every branch of the company —— family tree has at least one representative on

the board, our family at least one representative on the board, ourfamily branch has no representation —— representation. this is the only branch that has female heirs and no male heir. so this is clearly gender bias. this fight is possibly the most high set —— hi profile example where women in singin that make senior management positions are few and far between. the climb up few and far between. the climb up the corporate ladder is a struggle for women notjust here in india across the world. waldman sachs recently announced it will not do rps for companies that have all—white all—male boards will stop in fact, here in india as well, regulation mandates that companies have a certain size have at least one woman on the board and that is bringing about some improvements. in 2012, around 5% of board members and select listed

companies were women. that figure has risen for 15% in 2019. industrial giant gold which group has been one of india‘s largest producers of salt, shampoos and hair dyes over the past century. its consumer division has five women on a 14 member board. its chairperson says it is as much a business imperative is a moral one. the deciders, even if they are men and children, using the products, it is normally the woman who is deciding, shopping and buying so deciding, shopping and buying so how can you not have that representation of what royal life is? it is 50—50. that is the immediate goal. 50—50 or a board that is gender equal. the immediate goal. 50—50 or a board that is gender equall news briefing, we will take you through stories making the headlines in the global news media today. the duke and

duchess of suffolk —— sussex have made their first official appearance together in the uk since their announcement to step back as senior working royals. they tend it —— attended an event that honoured. despite stepping back from royal duties, last night it really was a royal welcome for prince harry and meghan with press from all over the world waiting to see the couple alongside crowds braving the rain, hoping to get a glimpse. it is meghan‘s first official

appearance since they decided to step back as senior royals. during the house to honour sick and injured military personnel, they had a warm reception. tonight‘s awards proved to be extra special. you can‘t hear it but that was a yes. presenting an award, there was a note from meghan to the couple‘s new life across the atlantic. it is very nice to be back. afterwards harryjoined former colleagues to speak passionately about the cause was stopped for some, the military community represents a brotherhood of sisterhood that no other organisation can provide and for others, it is a way of life that you never want to leave. for a lot of us, it is both. to be able to serve queen and country is something we are all rightly proud of and it never leaves us. is the couple continue on what is being dubbed their farewell

tour, prince harry isjoining lewis hamilton at silverstone while meghan takes part in international women‘s day. their last engagement is silver members of the royal family is on the —— monday where we will finally see them with members of the royal family working together at this level for the final time. this is the briefing from bbc news. the latest headlines. israel and palestinian authorities have declared a state of emergency in place to head under quarantine because there are seven cases of coronavirus in the city. governments around the world are raising to contain a virus but concerns about the increasing cases have sent international markets falling. the us vice president mike pence has promised to help authorities keep track of the virus. ina authorities keep track of the virus. in a speech intended to reassure americans, the government is doing everything possible to stop its spreading. meanwhile in san francisco,

hundreds of holidaymakers are stranded on a cruise ship and are being prevented at —— prevented from docking. a ceasefire agreed between the russian and turkish president has come into effect in the syrian province of idlib. new measures includejoint syrian province of idlib. new measures include joint patrols and a safety corridor, escalating fighting in recent weeks has raised fears of a direct confrontation between russia and turkey. now it‘s time to look at the stories making the headlines and immediate right across the world. we begin with the telegraph that says new advice for patients with a market of coronavirus is for them to stay at home, rather than seek treatment in hospital amid rising pressure on the nhs. meanwhile, the japan times reports some 290 million stu d e nts reports some 290 million students worldwide are facing weeks at home as italy becomes the greatest country to shut schools due to the deadly new coronavirus. the paper also says the imf is urging an all—out global offensive against the global epidemic.

and sends world stock markets deep into the red. the airline industry is wanting it faces a huge financial hit with more and more businesses sending stuff home. and in the uk guardian, the government could build a tunnel, not a bridge to link northern ireland and scotland. it is supposed to be a cheaper and more whether proof option. finally in the independent, twitter has revealed a new version of tweets named fleets which disappear once they are posted, they cannot be engaged with in public and direct messages was that it comes as users complain that it comes as users complain that tweets are too public and too permanent. hello there, laurence, you have been taking a big look the role of