>> the european central bank will not be hurrying into buying assets to stimulate the eurozone. we have an x server interview with one of the bank's key decision-makers. >> we are not going to rush to a decision. striker become the latest u.s. company facing itself in britain to reduce taxes? a $16 bid could be in the cards. be in16 billion bid could the cards. and protest returns to the streets of ferguson, misery. a grand jury decides not to

charge a police officer in the killing of an unarmed teenager. we will be live on the ground in ferguson. ♪ >> welcome to "countdown." it is 6:00 here in london on this tuesday morning. not going to rush. that is the message from one of the key figures as the european central bank speaking exclusively to bloomberg. he says the ecb will look at all the options to try to stimulate europe's economies by buying new assets. he told francine lacqua that asset purchases would be up for discussion at the banks december meeting. >> we are ready to do more if needed. we will be watching the situation extremely carefully. we have been discussing it and there is unanimous agreement in the council that there will be

situations where we would have to do more. >> the market interpretation is now you feel more comfortable doing more than you did weeks ago. is that fair? i think we do remain dependent on the data. we have to watch the economy wey carefully and understand are not going to rush to a new decision without knowing whether what we have decided works. we have to look at the data around us and we have to discuss all the possible options. in particular when it comes to buying new assets. inwill make the decision december. >> what about pltro's? how much does that come into your thinking? convinced it will be extremely helpful for bonds to be in a position to lend again to the real economy. of interest for

them to materialize in december. i expect it to be more substantial. >> how much of the tranches there? will you wait for the number to come in? >> we will have the discussion in december. andill look at the numbers what we have been able to achieve on the market, which just started a couple of days ago. andill have that discussion if it is not in december, it will be later. we are not committing to any particular timeline. >> the executive board member of the european central bank speaking to francine lacqua. there will be much more from that interview throughout this morning. do stay tuned for that.

there have been protests on the streets of ferguson, missouri, a name that has become familiar since a police officer shot an unarmed teenager in august two there has been a fresh outbreak of violence after the decision that the officer darren wilson would not be charged in connection with the killing of michael brown. the grand jury did not find sufficient evidence to indict wilson. in the teenager's family said they are profoundly disappointed that the killer of a child will not -- of our child will not face the consequences of his actions. president obama is appealing for calm. situation in missouri speaks to further challenges that we still face as a nation. the fact is, into many parts of , there exists the police and people of color. >> tony is live on the ground in

ferguson. what did you see today? >> this is definitely worst night of protesting since protesting began in august. several businesses have been looted. several businesses have been burned, some beyond recognition. police have been out in force using tear gas. we have also heard reports of gunfire in some of the neighborhoods that were the epicenter of protests back in august. they are out again after the announcement by the grand jury. >> has the appeal for calm from president obama seemingly fallen on deaf ears? >> even while the president was speaking, the unrest had already begun. i do not believe that a lot of the folks who are on the street were listening to president obama. the speech after the lot of peoplea

took to the streets and that is where vandalism happened. a couple of police cars were already burning. >> let's read the reaction of michael brown's family. >> michael brown's mother was actually here after the grand jury decision was announced. she broke down into tears and was quite distraught. in their statement, they have said that they are calling for peace. they want this process to go forward and they do not want people vandalizing and looting. right now, people have a lot of emotions and folks are out in the streets, doing a lot of damage to this small city on the outskirts of st. louis. >> could the family of michael brown appeal the decision? options are a bit limited. there is still a federal investigation going on that is ongoing and they could also pursue several legal actions,

but in terms of a grand jury, that is a bit of a final decision. the prosecutor told bloomberg news that he will not bring special charges against the grand jury decides not to indict . >> elsewhere in the u.s., i am hearing the protests are largely peaceful. >> yes. there have been massive demonstrations in places like new york, washington, d.c., oakland. mostly, they have been peaceful. people marching and, in some cases, blocking traffic no reports of vandalism or anything like that. we have seen more peaceful protests in other parts of the country. >> we will speak to you later. thanks for joining us. tony speaking to us live from ferguson in missouri. breaking from the dutch financial services route iag. it is cutting jobs over a three-year period.

a provision in the third quarter of 320 million euros. it is to invest 200 million euros to further simplify and automate its i.t. system. it has taken the next step, it says, in its digital banking evolution. but it is cutting jobs over a period to peir -- the tune of 1700 and it will take this provision of 320 million euros. dutch financial services group ing. stryker may be making a comeback bid for smith and nephew. across to our international correspondent, hans nichols. good morning. are we talking about tax inversions once again here? >> it looks like it. stryker is based in kalamazoo,

michigan. they are considering it as an inversion to get that lower tax rate. a bidr is considering according to people familiar with the matter. last may, they were also considering. later, the ceo said they were in preliminary stages. but they did it and that triggered the six-month cooling-off period. that ends later this week. we saw the stock jump some 10%. in excuse me -- excuse me, the smith and nephew stock jumped 10% and settled back down around 5%. this was yesterday afternoon. in addition to the inversion issue, what do you do to structure the deal to make it slide by u.s. regulations? there are also antitrust concerns. these are both medical device makers. they would have to get past that hurdle as well. both companies have declined to

comment read they have not had those conversations yet because they are not allowed under the rules. in other medical device, isrmaceutical news, bayer considering selling its medical device unit for diabetes detection potentially to private equity. al gow could the stryker de ahead if president obama is endeavoring to prevent the loopholes? thet comes down to financing. when we saw the collapse of the abbvieand shire deal, was doing that with earnings they had overseas. what the obama administration did is they prevented some of the means for making these, for doing these inversions. they did not outlaw inversions, per se. after the midterm congressional elections, the political climate

may have shifted in the states so some of these u.s.-based companies may be feeling more confident testing the waters and pushing the limits of the letter of the law when the spirit of the law is obama and jack lew articulate.o they could take it a step further. they could get antitrust approval. they are clearly considering it and we will see how it goes from here. >> hans nichols, bloomberg international correspondent in berlin. miners.lso watching the a merger with rio tinto could be in the cards. alas month, bloomberg news broke that it had abandoned the bid for real. the deal would create a miner worth about $160 billion. stay with bloomberg peter jim rogers will be joining "countdown." and you can join the conversation on twitter.

let us know what you think of the show. tell us the stories you want to hear more about. a busy day today. on "countdown," the dollar could get a boost. my next guest says we should look to black friday sales to gauge the u.s. consumer confidence. strategy atad of fx canadian imperial bank of commerce. he is back in two minutes. stay with us. ♪

>> live pictures for you from ferguson, missouri. protests have kicked off after a grand jury decided not to charge a police officer for the killing of unarmed teenager michael brown. time for today's company news. ker examining a bid for smith and nephew. that is according to people familiar with the matter. they could structure the transaction as a tax in version to move its business address to the u.k., where smith and nephew is based. smith and nephew say it is aware of the interest but could decide against the bid. bayer is exploring the sale of its diabetes device business according to people familiar with the matter. bayer is working with credit suisse on the potential sale that could be worth as much as 2 billion euros. it is part of their strategy to

shed peripheral units to concentrate on its more lucrative life sciences business. honda is facing a $35 billion fine from u.s. authorities after tohas admitted failing report claims of injury or death to car safety regulators. honda is claiming inadvertent data entry or computer programming areas. it is already under scrutiny in the u.s. for failing to report airbag-related deaths japan's central bank government says he is committed to achieving its 2% inflation target. he restated his commitment to that target in a speech today. let's get more on this. imperial bank of commerce's head of excess -- head of fx strategy. committed to achieve it.

will japan achieve it? an immenseit will be challenge. this is the reason why we have seen the boj advance the policy after the meeting at the end of october. such underlines the challenge the japanese are seeing. we are seeing parallels with 1995. the economy has slowed down and the consumption tax is being pushed down to the middle distance. that will reduce some of the inflationary influences we would otherwise expect to achieve. da will corona -- kuro have to continue to work incredibly hard. that will lead the markets to anticipating an incredibly cheap yen. >> how cheap? >> we need to be careful as to how far we extrapolate. we have come a considerable distance since the last meeting. i think we will go further. once you get towards this monetary threshold, that is

potentially counterproductive. there are issues regarding importers. >> one member of the to it -- alluded to it. >> and we have to be mindful of the consumer. unless we start to see wages going up, real income is going down and that will hold that consumption. that is maybe suggesting that the arrow will perhaps -- >> we highlighted when the boj last bought dollars, 1998. 1.25 seemed to be the level. is there a level where the boj would consider entering the market and buying dollars? >> i think it is unlikely at this stage. if we were to get to 125, we could perhaps have another debate. magnitudeto that

relatively quickly, we start to amplify those concerned about the importer, the consumer. othering japan versus countries, that is the interesting point. acknowledgingly that the weakening of the yen is only up to a point. competitive issues continue to be raised with south korea and china. i think that adds to the potential problems of expecting a cheaper yen. >> china, some saying that the move was part of a trade post-boj decision. do you think it was linked to that cutting of interest rates? >> we can always make a case for some kind of conspiracy theory. , itou take it at face value is happening more aggressive

than perhaps the policy makers would like. in their context, you could argue that slight easing is a way to alleviate some of those stresses. there are ongoing issues regarding competitiveness. i think that is going to be an ongoing issue. as we know from the g-20, the handshake between the leadership of china and japan, you can always make the case that there are issues at play. if you look from the chinese perspective, i think they are trying to alleviate that and manage the growth corridor. >> jeremy stretch, back to you in a second. the canadian bank of commerce head of fx strategy. more after the break. stay with us. ♪

>> live pictures from ferguson, missouri. protests have kicked off after a grand jury decided not to charge a police officer for the killing of unarmed teenager michael brown. welcome back to "countdown." jeremy stretch is here. we have talked boj, china. let's talk the ecb. everything is on the cards. they keep telling us that. will they need to actually use out right qe and buying sovereign bonds? >> the ecb have previously

argued that if you have something in reserve, that would preclude it needing to be used in the ecb would prefer not to buy sovereign bonds. we are still talking about this disinflation or deflation and tendencies. we talked about the ecb wanting to expand their balance sheets. you can argue whether they can actually get it to those levels. surely, by the process they have alone, unless you have massive takers, that seems somewhat inconceivable that they could get to that 3 trillion target. is going to be the tipping point. that will be the ecb holding out and hoping the economic environment will alleviate some of these stresses. >> growth is creeping down. how low can it go and how quickly? like the yen story, we have to be careful to extrapolate. maybe markets are getting bearish about the eurozone's

2014, but not overly so. we need to be careful how far we extrapolate the move lower. we could see a move down towards the 1.20 threshold, maybe the extreme around 1.18. anything beyond that is looking a little stretched. we are seeing signs that the impact of a low euro and the easing of financial conditions will have some impact. that perhaps act as sort of a break. >> what about sterling? results of the election on friday, speculators were very bullish on the pound in july. how things have changed. >> indeed. is that a trend now or cannot be reversed -- or can that be reversed? >> i think it can be reversed.

it will probably need to extrapolate the political dynamics in this structure. of course, we get the noise and it reduces -- you normally see weakness in the u.s. dollar. i think it may be the case that markets become a little bit too complacent. dynamicshe underlying in the u.k. are still relatively good. we have seen some of the froth taken out of the markets over the summer. hawks andere are two the market could be turning around in terms of rate expectations. >> and is it the fed first or the bank of england first? where are we on this debate? bethe bank of england would first. of february and that is looking increasingly questionable at this point. that market expectation could turn around relatively quickly. 2015, ily early in think that is still a condition for the u.s. dollar.

in order to see that, we need to see employment growth continuing. >> good to see you. jeremy stretch, head of fx strategy. stay with us on "countdown." ♪

>> welcome back. i am mark barton barton. let's take a look at your fx check the yen is rebounding today against the dollar, rising from a seven-year low. we had a speech from the boj governor and he says the economy is on track to achieving policymakers' 2% inflation gold. that is the goal for around the beginning of the next financial year. he says the core consumer price gains are more likely to reach 2% in or around the fiscal year starting next april. and efforts to and japan's

deflation are progressing. we also had minutes of the boj meeting. the boj expanded its already-unprecedented monetary easing program. one board member said a further drop in the yen would spark concern with adverse effects on smaller firms. some said additional bond buying would heighten the risk that such a move would exceed its financing's fiscal deficit. that meeting produced a bigger split then the following meeting, which just showed an 8 to 1 split. eight members pro monetary easing and one against. these are the bloomberg top headlines that are being -- top headlines. protests on the streets of misery -- missouri. a grand jury did not find evidence to indict darren wilson

for killing michael brown in august after the decision, president obama appealed for calm. >> first and foremost, we are a built on the rule of law. we have to accept that this decision was the grand jury's to make. there are americans who agree with it and there are americans who are deeply disappointed, even angry. it is an understandable reaction. in they decision-maker european central bank says there is no rush to add more stimulus to the eurozone economies. openys all the options are to next month's policy meeting. he says the low productivity remains a concern in europe. that main concern would be we cannot design and implement the reforms to support

productivity in europe. productivity is lagging. , this drives a wedge between the living per capita and is a threat for future well-being. >> the former prime minister of portugal is being held without bail in a tax fraud investigation. she is one of four people detained. according to portugal's prosecutor general, he was prime minister from 2005-2011. london used to be top of the pile as the world's financial center. but new york has taken the crown, according to a new survey. set on london's

gn as the world's leading financial hub. istain's bustling capital now favored by fewer than 40% of those in the industry. that is according to kinetic partners, who quizzed 300 finance professionals. london's image has been battered by the libor and fx rigging scandals and questions over britain's future in the eu are casting a shadow over the capital. nearly 60% backing the big apple. in asia, hong kong remains the leading financial center. but shanghai is catching up fast. topondents expect the city take the regional crown in 2019. >> now to rapid growth and the price of property in some parts of the u.k.

signs of a bubble and signed the market is cooling. zoopla and kingfisher have results today. here to discuss what we have in store is caroline hyde. are we less euphoric about the u.k. housing market in recent weeks? >> we certainly are. what a heady summer that we had. look at the statistics, it blows my mind, the fact that we had 60% year on year growth for house prices in london. just about half of that in the u.k. in recent months, we have started to see the brakes come on a bit. halifax saying we saw a decline in prices of .4% in october. 1.7% in december. there seem to be a growing number of indicators that are saying we are cooling. the seasonal slowdown is upon us. in terms ofcks

mortgages, the prospective higher interest rates that keep getting pushed back that many are worried about. and you have the actual prices versus your earnings, ready tough. -- pretty tough. i spoke to jefferies yesterday and the analyst is saying it is more of a wait and see around christmas and the elections next year, you tend to see a selloff ahead of elections. >> what does this mean for the likes of zoopla and kingfisher? >> kingfisher is europe's largest home improvement retailer. very prominent in the u.k. and france. in the u.k., many feel that it is looking pretty good. again, that coming from jefferies. they seem to think that the safe foruse prices are the foreseeable future. two thirds of us want to own our own home. , france is going

to be more of a worry for kingfisher. there slowing is going to hurt their element. bepla is going to interesting. they sold shares back in the summer. this is the website that owns rhyme location -- prime location. you can search what properties you want to buy or rent, perhaps on schools or how short your commute might be. sales do improve, but what we want to hear about is how many people are using the website. visits ramped up by a third in august. people the coming addicted. probably people who just bought their house want to see how much it has gone up, but will the advertisers keep on increasing? and how many people are using

their mobile to do this? >> a new entrance into the marketplace. agents have lost their rag about all of this. zoopla comethey let in and charge them money to advertise their own stock on these websites. six state agents have actually said they will set up a rival. it will be agents mutual. the website will be called onthemarket.com. you can still put your house on it if you are an estate agent, but you can only advertise on one other. basically, you can be on onthemarket.com or zoopla. how much is this going to be a worry? it actually has slightly less active users. it is better in london but not quite as strong in the rest of the u.k.

out?they lose at the moment, agents regional only has 400 officers on their books. was an estate agent, i want to be on zoopla. >> what were you addicted to when you are house buying? >> i was addicted to my move. i got a bit exhausted seeing the new houses every five seconds. back inoes cut down -- the day, you never knew what a house will look like apart from the picture on the outside. now you get to search the best .ne is looking at the picture the lack of focus is quite phenomenal. >> caroline hyde. a big day for zoopla and kingfisher today. the yen rising from a near

seven-year low against the dollar. let's chat more about this with bloomberg's bondman, who is in hong kong. the currency is feeling the corona effect today -- kuroda effect today, isn't it? >> good morning. the japanesehat economy is on track to hitting that 2% inflation rate. he is expecting that it will happen in or around the first half of the 2015 fiscal year, or next april, essentially. we have to look at the minutes from the october 31 boj meeting. the halloween shocker when the central bank announced it would be expanding asset purchases by ¥80 trillion a year. what were they thinking? turned out it was a close vote, the closest yet in six years. 5-4. a majority of those members wanted to keep using it until that 2% inflation goal is stabilized.

the inflation level right now may stay for some time. it has a lot to do with the oil prices still being so low. keep in mind that this meeting happened before japan released those latest figures showing that it contracted for two consecutive quarters. as you mentioned, the yen really rebounding from that seven-year low. 117.93. the yen rose against all of its 16 major peers. >> how are the broader markets in asia faring today? >> we saw quite the big day yesterday just after the pboc announced they would be cutting those interest rates. right now, chinese shares in hong kong slipped by about .5% after surging the most in a year yesterday after the interest rates came down. the shanghai composite up one

7%int .5% right now -- 1.2 right now. the hang seng fluctuating between gains and losses. we expect trade figures to come out tomorrow. >> the time in london is 6:42. you can join the conversation on twitter. let us know what you are thinking about. story you want to hear more about. busy day today, of course. interesting data in germany yesterday. it is all about japan today. the yen strengthening. @markbartontv is my twitter handle. coming up, our next guest says despite the geopolitical , i amop and the currency joined by jim rogers. ♪

>> pictures from you -- pictures for you from ferguson, missouri. they decided not to a charge a police officer for the killing of unarmed teenager michael brown. after the decision, president obama appealed for calm. central banks are in focus after china joined others across the world in loosening monetary policy. what does it mean for the global picture? joining us is jim rogers.

good morning to you. thank you for joining us today on "countdown." you have just become a director of a russian company and a dependent director. the fifth-best-performing stock on the micex in 2014, up by 53%. fertilizerggest maker. what enticed you to this company? >> you have done your homework. >> i looked it up. >> i am bullish on russia. russia is one of the markets where i am. everybody hates russia. i like to find something that is hated. for 46 years, i was bearish on russia. 6 went there in 19 86 -- 198 but things are changing in the kremlin. >> what is changing in the kremlin? >> the attitude used to be just take the money away from them, do not put them in jail,

whatever it is. bankrupt them if we do not like you. that has changed. someone there realized you cannot treat foreign capital that way. the days of communism and the kgb are over. they started doing things differently. i started investing in russia. i found this company. iambic lashawn agriculture. i amble a shot on these guys. they are really smart people. >> if you are an investor watching "countdown" today, how should we best expose ourselves taking into consideration that the ruble is near record lows? >> well done. you have been watching bloomberg. good job. first of all, this company has a high yield. they are one of the dominant players in fertilizer. there are many reasons why i am keen on this company. you asked what else -- i hesitate because i am in the land of lenin, stalin.

i have been buying shares of the moscow stock exchange. in my view, it is a good way to invest in russia. the easy way is the index. .o i bought the etf as well there are various ways to play russia. russia is hated. in my view, wrongly so. and i hope that all of this is going to pass and i will make a lot of money. offset theou currency impact? >> i have not. the stock,looking at if it were not for the ruble, the stock would be up a lot this year. most things would be up a lot. the ruble has been the problem for the moscow stocks. withstand ongoing sanctions? they said the economy would be flat next year. to some, that is an optimistic

call. can they withstand the sections from the west? >> one reason i got involved with russia finally was because they had huge foreign currency reserves. they do not have much debt. they have a convertible currency. you look at other countries, india, all of these countries that people go on and on about, they all have blocked currencies. mean, russia is astonishing once i got more and more interested and looked more and more. i was amazed. they waste some of their reserves trying to defend the ruble, which i did not particularly approve of, but they have stops. they will let the market decide. >> the ruble has actually risen, hasn't it? >> it started going up. so much to talk about. talk to me about china. last friday,rate did that take you by surprise?

>> yes and no. i do not sit around thinking about it at all. i wish they had not. i would not have done that if i were china. they always get a little worried when things start going bad. china is slowing down due to its customers aren't slowing down. they have been trying to do something about the inflation, the property bubble, and rightly so, if you ask me. i am buying shares of china. since the economic plan in november of 2013, the chinese said these are the areas we are going to emphasize. if the government is going to put a lot of money into those areas, i am, too. they have more money than i do and they are smarter than i am. i am investing with them. you are investing in commodities. that is a given. >> well, agriculture is an offshoot of my interest in russia and agriculture. the markets that i have been japan,ng in this year,

russia, china, agriculture. that is where i have been putting my money. those are all depressed markets. why would you buy the u.s. at an all-time high when you can buy japan 60% below its all-time high or china? >> do you buy into abe-nomics? >> he is going to ruin japan. in the next two or three years, i hope he is going to make me a lot of money and the investment community. he is making stocks go up. >> because of the debt burden? >> the debt, debasing your currency. everything he is doing is wrong for the next 20 years. >> but you can make money out of that. what he is encouraging plans to buy shares, giving tax incentives for individuals to buy shares, pouring money into the economy. all of this is good for the stock market. if you are 10 years old in japan, you better leave. if you are 30 years old ,buy shares. >> give me a line on the eurozone. jim's take on the eurozone.

china, russia. >> that says it all. jim, good to see you. , invited to stage his first major exhibition in britain. that is next. stay with us. ♪

>> welcome back. i am mark barton. it is "countdown." it is 6:54 in london on this tuesday morning and it is hans nichols. take it away. normally, i give you the bill so i can show maybe a little nudity. we get close with this picture. a revealing frontal shot. it is news you can use. if you are going to get divorced, if you are a stay-at-home father, you may want to do it in germany. euros to hery 2500 ex-husband. he stayed at home while she -- while he took care of the kids, he stayed at home. i think you can get by on that for a month. you are going to have to move to germany. it only took 20 minutes for the judge to decide that case. >> caroline? >> i love this one in the guardian. an italian astronaut has taken an espresso machine up to space.

it has taken several years and , back intalian company 2012, another italian astronaut said the only thing they miss in space was good italian espresso. all of these difficulties to be able to produce espresso when you are in space. ss-presso is now up in space. bedroom.s caroline's lots of furniture overturned. this is overturned furniture at the serpentine gallery in london. it is part of this order and disorder concept that originated in the 1970's. is it art? >> looks like sort of a small

child or dogs run around. >> up next, kingfisher results break in the next couple of minutes. we will monitor the situation in ferguson. bloomberg news is on the ground. stay with us. ♪

protest returns to the street of ferguson, but surrey. a grand jury decides not to charge a police officer for the killing of an unarmed teenager. >> the european central bank will not be hurrying to buy assets to spur the euro. key decisions from one of the bankers. we are not going to rush to a new decision without know ing what they are. >> could striker become the u.s. company facing itself in britain to reduce taxes? it could be on the cards.

>> welcome to "countdown." i am mark barton. >> i am anna edwards. protests on the streets of ferguson, missouri. -- becomet has come familiar since a police officer shot and unarmed lack teenager in august. >> there has been a fresh outbreak of violence after the decision that officer darren wilson would not be charged with the killing of michael brown. a grand jury did not find sufficient evidence to indict him. a lawyer for the teenager's family said they were profoundly disappointed because her of our child will not face consequences for his actions. >> the situation in ferguson speaks to broader challenges that we still face as a nation.

the fact is, there are too many parts of this country in which a deep distrust exist between law enforcement and treaties of color. inwe are live on the ground ferguson. what have you seen overnight? >> we've seen outbreaks of vandalism, outbreaks of violence . people have taken to the streets. several have burned it down several businesses. police are out on the streets. there is a standoff with some protesters and activists who are here. several businesses have been broken into. it has been a pretty violent night. probably the most violent since the outbreaks began back in august. >> what can we expect next in terms of legal procedure? good the family of michael brown appealed this decision? >> this decision is basically

final from the state's point of view. there is a investigation by the department of justice. the family has the option of pursuing a civil settlement. in terms of the state trial, that is not going to happen because the grand jury did not bring an indictment. >> president obama has called for calm. what else did he say? >> he talked about the issues of distrust within communities of ofor between communities color and the police. we have seen a lot of animosity between police officers and young black and hispanic males. it has been something that is resonating in other parts of the country as well. that is why we are seeing protests in ferguson as major

cities across the u.s.. >> protesters elsewhere seem to be nonviolent, we understand. what about the broader context? since august, we have seen a re-examination of the relationship between law enforcement in the united states and minority groups across the u.s. is that a correct reading of what has been going on since august? >> yes. there has been a lot of soul-searching. the department of justice has called on police departments across the country to look at how their policing is done. as well as to look at communities of color and see how they can build better relationships with the police. there is soul-searching being done in ferguson as well. the ferguson police have been taken off the detail of the protest and are under investigation as to how they can change their ways and practices. there is a lot of animosity between the people they police and the actual department. >> thank you very much for

joining us. >> breaking news from kingfisher. it owns b and q. quarter werethird 2.8 2 billion. total retail profit was two under 25 billion pounds. there roughly in line with estimates. like for like sales in france in the third quarter fell about 4%. the company gets half of its profit from france. b and qthe u k, it is division saw sales up by 5%. they're estimating a gain on 1.5%. it has missed on like for like sales in the u.k. and ireland, like for like sales fell by 3.4%. analysts expected a drop of

2.8%. we remainy says cautious on our outlook, especially in france where, as i said, the company makes half of its profit. this is a company going to a change, particularly at the top. has been chief executive of the company for seven years and is stepping down on december 8. this is his last trading statement at fisher. the former french head of the neworama unit will be the chief executive officer. the company has and is it going through a bit of a transition at the top. they remain cautious, but it is amidst be and q sales. it has seen sales decline in france is oh. that is the news from kingfisher, which is europe's largest home improvement retailer. >> the property website putting

out their numbers. week go to caroline hyde. expectations.th this is their first ever full-year earnings. profit up only marginally, about 2%. they have been spending a lot on marketing and developing expansion. i think what is interesting is that they try to remain upbeat about the market. everyone is worried we have seen the shine come off the u.k. housing. the bubble. we saw the bank of england apply tougher affordability checks to mortgages. we have seen prices decline in november according to halifax. still, zoopla sounding upbeat. yes, there are political and economic challenges in the market, but they don't see any material impact. the first few months of their

last quarter of training, they say are going in line with expectations. what is the key challenge to many analysts were speaking me to about it, anthony codling earlier, the threat of agents mutual which is launching in january 2015. they will be launching a new website called on the market.com. they are launched by agents were sick to death of paying out high fees to zoopla. they offer a cheaper version. you get a cheaper fee, but you are only allowed to advertise one other rival. you have to drop one of them. zoopla is saying in the short term, this will have an impact. it is a challenge. there are numerous launches that we dealt with in the past and we always managed to navigate this well. they are saying in the longer term, they don't see the launch of on the market.com that much of a rifle.

jeffrey codling said the same thing yesterday. they got four days and -- 4000 estate agencies on there, but zoopla has 16,000. if you are going to sell your property, which you say, put it on the one with not so much traction? perhaps there is work to be done by the rival state agents setting up agents mutual. it sounds point from zoopla, profit up slightly but sales up 24%. they see traffic is up 33%. half a billion of visits this year in terms of people eyeing up the properties. the way they will develop this business model is overseas. they have property listings in france. they also are in mobile. we want to look at it on the trap it -- on the tablet. so addictive, you have to look at it on the move. >> we're not going to rush. that is one of the messages from

the european central bank, speaking exclusively to bloomberg. he said the ecb will look at all options by trying to buy new assets. the low inflation and low productivity remains obstacles to growth. >> we're not any inflation. inflation is not bad inflation in terms of the competitiveness of our economy to grow out of debt and to deliberate. we don't need to bring deflation. in inflation is a concern this is why we will be watching the numbers carefully. >> it seems like the ecb is there saying we are ready, ready to act. is it because the situation is worse than expected? >> it is not much worse than expected. we do see the economy and inflation.

urgency,degree of which does not apply only to monetary policy. creatingurgency in the of -- in the eurozone, urgency in addressing the labor market issues in the euro zone. there is urgency in creating jobs, and that is the only way to reconcile the european people with european project. >> you are talking about how europe needs to grow, we need to push reforms. how much of a danger is it that politicians take a back step? >> we have to be fair and acknowledge. we have seen a number of reforms in a number of countries, with countries under our program. what has been achieved already portugal, in ireland, also in greece, is commendable in terms of social reform and changes in the countries.

this is already a lot. a union, which is a huge step forward in terms of the eurozone. now, what needs to be delivered now is work. that is a big investment in that is why the question on the juencker plan is so important. >> what is your main concern facing europe? >> my main concern is that we cannot collectively design and implement a reform that would support productivity in europe. productivity is lagging. in the u.s., it has taken off substantially. this drives a wedge between the ability to get in the u.s. and the eurozone, and it is a threat for the future well-being of the eurozone. it is a threat for future jobs, in particular, the younger once

who badly need jobs. we a strong push in europe for the right mix of government and reform. >> executive board member of the european central bank speaking to francine lacqua. there will be much more from that interview throughout the morning. >> ferguson is trending on twitter. let us know what you would like to see more of on our show. we have a link to the bloomberg website and the coverage we have their of ferguson. there is more detail. today? else is trending >> ferguson is dominating. at least the three first training items -- trending items on twitter. our next guest says q any will not be necessary. we will talk all things europe with him in two minutes. ♪

>> welcome back to "countdown." the u.s.-based producer of surgical implants striker may be making a comeback for medical device-maker smith and nephew.

let's go to hans nichols for the story. are we talking tax inversions once again? >> it looks like from what we know about the deal, anna, that striker is considering taking over and read domicile and in london. technically, that would be an inversion. we will see if it applies to u.s. regulators. they considered a deal six months ago and were in the preliminary phases of it. this is a medical device maker from kalamazoo buying a medical device maker from the u.k., or based in the u.k. they admitted they were considering it. they went into a six-month cooling off period that ends this week and they are making -- they are considering making another bed. neither company had a comment. smith and nephew stock surged almost 10% and it settled back in the 5% range. also in potential m and a news,

we have bayer considering selling their diabetes device unit for up to 2 billion euros. maybe to a private equity coveted. on the one hand, we have two companies thinking about consolidating, thinking medical devices are the future, and you have buyers saying, maybe you want to get more into long-term that it's an come out of the medical device business. two different approaches. we will see how they shape out in the coming days. >> you could make some money there. thank you, hans nichols, joining us from berlin. >> we are less than one hour away from the opening of the european markets. we are joined now by jpmorgan portfolio manager stephen smith. is four points in 14ts highest level years.

it is amazing what you can discover on this terminal. >> he wasn't listening to me. >> i was, and one year. ear.was, in one >> the ecb's comprehensive assessment of the eurozone banking system -- if you look back to see what the behavior of banks has been, there has been huge emphasis of raising capital. on the other side of the balance sheet, it looks as if banks have been constraining their part of the system. they're keeping both sides of the balance sheet where it needed to be in order to hit that target. if you look at the ledger of credit or the last six months, you will start to see a change. it is glacial, but there is a change. banks realize they're going to pass the compounds assessment, so it appears to be changing. if you look at the ecb's own bank lending survey that came out a couple of weeks ago, you are seeing the demand for credit

is rising across most sectors of the economy. >> central banks have been major players in the market since the financial crisis of recent years. tell us your view of the ecb. i guess you find yourself in a position to have to predict what you think the ecb will do and what you think they should be doing. it might not always be the same thing. >> there is a spectrum of opinions on the ecb. i'm inclined to think it was doing well during the crisis. they were early to intervene in 2007. they made the merchant's extension of credit and kept at liquid. since then, the preoccupation with the comprehensive assessment means they focused on the credit channel as being the most important way to bring stimulus into the wider economy. the bank of england is an important component between corporate behavior. the fact that they have now completed this task of making the eurozone banking system fit a purpose means with the introduction of new policies

like targeted lpro's, which will extend credit to bank at cheap rates, they are asked to creating the environment in which credit can recover generally in the next year. i think the ecb has done rather well. >> you don't think they need to do full-blown quantitative easing? >> i'm fascinated about the notion of full-blown quantitative easing. if you think about how it worked in the u.s. and u.k., the most obvious beneficial impact was not only on asset prices, but on the pricing of mortgages. that led to residential real estate. we are seeing prices picking up there. if you think about the eurozone, the last thing you want to do in the eurozone is to encourage another residential real estate boom in spain, portugal, ireland. where is the stimulus is most necessary? it seems to be giving in ports to bank credit -- importance to bank credit. >> we will come back in a second. big news today. ing is cutting 1700 jobs.

we will speak live to the company's ceo in about 10 minutes' time. you will see that live on bloomberg. stephen stays with us from jpmorgan. ♪

>> welcome back. portfolio manager for jpmorgan of european equities.

forhere any case to be had buying -- i know you are in equities man -- is there any case to be had for buying , which debt at under 2% could happen for the first time ever? does that make the equities case very compelling? >> do you think that spanish debt is attractive? there is still a spread over bonds. people are looking for a yield pickup. it is there if you wanted. i think the credit risk in spain has very clearly receded in the last three or four years. they are now very close to running a try merry budget surplus -- a primary budget surplus. yes. in a world that is scarce of yield, if you feel like taking a tilted a 10 -- tilt at a 10-year, why not? >> even better that the yield is that low. we keep having guests on that say yes, dividend yield. that is their mantra. >> the difference between evan

yield and corporate yield is that it makes dividend yield very attractive a deep -- indeed. you need a conviction that the dividend it can grow over the next 10 years. dividend yield is a real return when bond yields is a nominal return. we have to think that the environment in europe is starting to recover. it could be that dividend yield is where you want to be. >> you do believe that profits are going to get a boost in 2015 at 2016 in european comedies. given what you have said about the banking sector being more fit for purpose? >> if you look at what europeanss have done in the past two years, it gets sharply in the last years but it has to manage to grow. for the first time, this year we are seeing year on year profit. it revealed growth year-over-year around 9%. corporate, around 13%. >> thank you very much.

ing cutting 1700 jobs. we will be speaking like to the company chief executive just after 7:30. he will be speaking to us on bloomberg. ♪

>> welcome back. i'm anna edwards. let's take a look at euro/dollar. december looms. we're almost there. december 4 will be marked in the fx calendar. ll they try to take measures to stimulate inflation? that said they were not going to make any hastey decisions.

they were going to be governed by the data. data could be useful. we have mario draghi. the e.c.b. head speaking on thursday of this week. inflation data will be key to this decision as to whether they do any further q.e. or go out and do full blown q.e. c.p.i. data for november is due on friday of this week ahead of that december 4 meeting. it is going to get more attention than perhaps what is normal. . 're expecting a 3.3% draghi said he would revive inflation fast as possible. do we see disagreement at the e.c.b.? we'll get deon that as we go through the coming weeks. >> there have been protests in the streets of ferguson,

missouri after a decision not to shoot a white police officer who shot and killed an unarmed black teenager. a grand jury didn't find sufficient evidence to indict the officer. >> first and foremost, we are a nation built on the rule of law. and so we need to accept that this decision was the grand jury's to make. there are american who is agree with it and there are americans who are deeply disappointed. even angry. it is an understandable reaction. >> a key decision maker at the e.c.b. said there is no rush to add more stimulus to the eurozone economy. the blank look at all the options open to it in next month's policy meeting. low productivity remains a concern in europe. >> my main concern would be that

-- we cannot design and that will he reforms support productivity in europe. productivity is lagging while in the u.s. it has picked up. it is driving a wedge. it is a threat for the future wellbeing of the european people. >> the former prime minister of portugal is being held without bail in a tax fraud investigation. he is one of four people designed in an inquiry for money laundering. he was prime minister from 2005 until 2011. i.n. zpwmbingsnk going to cut 7100 jobs. we're joined by the i.n.g.

c.e.o. thank you very much for joining us in a first on bloomberg conversation. thank you very much for talking to us. let's talk about what you have announced today. this is clearly about digital positioning of the bank in the future. you're trying to create something around this omni channel word. why are you getting rid of i.t. head count? tell us about what is going on here. >> it sounds like a contradiction but it is not really the case. you look at how the bank has been built from the bank infrastructure to the core infrastructure to an internet infrastructure to finally a mobile infrastructure, basically it has been kind of -- bricks laid on each other and what you to do is take those all out and basically replace it by one and the same. that's why you have less i.t.

applications and a much simpler process. that's why this will lead to lower jobs also in the i.t. environment. >> dealing with the legacy systems, in terms over the way the dutch banking sector is shaping up now, can you give us perspective on how quickly customers are gravitating away from branches toward using apps to do their banking and the internet to do their banking? is this a trend taking place more in the netherlands? what are your thoughts? customers in the netherlands like mobile banking. it took five to eight years for the internet to take over in terms of the transaction for banking and only two years for mobile to take over from internet. we already have more contacts with our customers.

through mobile and internet. out of the 8 million customers that we have, we have more than five million actively using the internet and two million actively using mobile. it shows clients really like this. they adopted it very quickly. for that, you have to go with the plan in order to ensure that their service and their experience is perfect. >> how integrated are the dutch retail banking operations and i.n.g. direct which operates outside the netherlands as well. how is that changing because of the noums you made today? >> not necessarily integrated. clearly all the knowledge that we have and experience that we have with our success of internet and mobile banking outside the netherlands, it is copy perience we use to that and from a branch environment to a more digital

environment. the branches will stay important, however. we have 261 branches in the netherlands but their role will change to become more advisory tots for consumers and small medium enterprises. >> are you not cutting any of those 261 branches? >> no, basically the current setup is right sized. we may close a demoum coming years. that is not really the point here. the point here is that the experience that clients are after with a bank, basically whether they work through us, through a branch internet, call center, mobile, that should be the same. wherever they live. mobile, this should be picked up by a branch easily as well. that experience, it doesn't really matter which teller you use. that's what we're after.

>> you have been in this job for over a year. how easy is it going to be to sell the seemingly fairly sizable changes to the business? >> well, it is a trend that has started a couple of years ago already. people know what is going on in the world. people see this rapidly change in customer behavior and therefore it is not unexpected from that perspective. clearly the moment you translate this -- 200 million in our i.t. systems in the netherlands alone. also resulting in job losses, clearly it is different use. as a consequence. but regrettably, this is what it brings. >> thank you very much for joining us to tell us the story. i.n.g. mers, c.e.o. for

alking to us from amsterdam. >> a google x labs advisor. jack, great to see you. you're in london. >> yes. >> you're here to talk about the importance of moonshots, for those who are not familiar with the term. tell us what moonshots. >> it came from the kennedy era when we said let's go to the moon and went to the moon. the first moon shot was in 1714 -- actu.k. when an actor of parliament said we'll give out 250 pounds. that was the first moon shot. >> the first one? nothing that happened before that was significant enough? >> later we now, the kennedy era and now we see companies like

tesla and space x. look at elon musk and what he has done. >> the area between science fiction and very brave audacious. >> people say wait a second. is that even pob? it is at the ovepblg possible and yet people can do it. these are companies that actually change what we do and create massive economic growth. job growth does not come from our companies it turns out. the reality is it comes from start-ups and growing businesses. >> here in the u.k., we have a conversations at the moment about how you take start-up businesses and scale up. that seems to be the focus. what does the silicon valley experience tell us? >> the scaling up is a critical point. we just had four, five days of silicon valley come to the u.k..

just finished up yesterday. and that was really focused on scaling up the entrepreneurs in cambridge and london. key to that is number one, human capital. the inability to give out stock options. the method technology attract the best too late the u.s. start-ups. hmrc will not let that go forward without lots of approval. in the u.s. we literally do it with the stroke of a pen. you scale up very quickly. i think hrmc should relook at those policies and say hey, let's give the u.k. start-ups the same tools that the u.s. start-ups have as well. >> we haven't had a twitter here or a facebook. it is a question often asked. where is the european twitter, facebook, ebay?

>> came bridge is starting to temperature up in terms of -- tep up in terms of that. the whole east london area, a silicon roundabout. ened up incubators for these start-ups. you need all of these pieces to me together to start the ecosystem. >> there does seem to be a lot of thinking in europe around how big google is. google exmp specifically. a lot of thinking of how big google should be allowed to do. there is search and then all the other parts. is there a reason those businesses should be together? do these bigger tech businesses have a role to play in fueling

those moon shots? >> i only speak for myself. i don't speak for any other company, google or otherwise. large companies do play key role. a lot of them have venture groups. u.p.s., the large freight carrier has a venture group and is invest in start-ups. people may not know that. they are going to be disrupted. out of business. look where traditional companies, barnes and noble, virgin record stores, all of these companies are gone now. large companies that they recognize, unless they invest in the start-ups and get a heads up in terms of what is happening. >> what is the most exciting idea you come up with in recent months? >> i would say this. what is going to affect all of us in terms of our health, one of the most important things to each of us personally, to our

families. the genomics. many people are not aware that the cost of sequencing a genom has come down in the last five years. litterfully the next few years, you'll be able to walk into the doctor's office and get your whole your a few enome sequence for hundred dollar quid. >> thank you for joining us. >> coming up, a night of protests on the streets of ferguson, missouri. at least 12 buildings are on fire police say. we'll be back after the break. ♪

>> is the dollar the best in an ugly parade? not my words. the word turnovers global head of g-10 foreign exchange at deutsche bank. his words were the dollar is the best in an ugly parade. it is hard to make a story more constructive than the dollar

story in the gmp-10. let's look at the bloomberg dollar spot index. this is it going back 12 months. it tracks the u.s. currency ainst 10 major exchanges including the euro and the pound. since that low there, on july 1, it has gained 10%. prospects for the u.s. economy outweigh other g-10 countries. it is very likely the fed will be the first to raise interest rates from a record low. the u.s. is the cleanest shirt in the dirty laundry. speculators certainly agree. they pushed net bullish dollar positions to a record $48 billion. they now see the dollar gaining against the euro, the yen and the pound and its other five

major peers as well. that is some turnaround because back in july, speculators were negative on the dollar against its eight major peers. be wary. this is a word of warning. the last time that speculators had a net long position on the dollar versus all eight of its major peers was march 2009. after then, the bloomberg dollar spot index peaked before embarking on an eight-month long 17% slump. worth watching. let's listen to what deutsche bank has to say about where the ollar will get to. 115 from 124 today and 118 respectively. median estimates of at least 60 strategists put the dollar at 1.23 per euro and 1 .16 against

yen by march 31. we'll start -- we will end with alan ruskin. the dollar the best in an ugly parade. >> now, you looking at nothing ugly. a live shot of the city of london. i say it is not ugly. let's see. is the sun shining on us today or does it look a bit gloomy? it looks a little bit gray in that shot. we will get a preview of today's trading session when we return after a very short break. ♪

>> welcome back to "countdown." a merger could be in the cards according to the advisory firm. joining with more is our reporter. thank you very much for joining us now. this is a fascinating story and it all involves a briefing that took place in mayfair early they are month. give us the details. a we know 20 hedge funds couple of weeks ago presented to them was the former jpmorgan banker and one of the key deal makers in the mining space.

he talked a lot about the macro outlook for the spector and specifically focused on this deal. he told them bluntly this deal will happen. that is significant. he is such a significant figure in this. >> he doesn't foe this is going to happen, though, to be clear. this is his view. he is a deal maker. it is something he knew was going to happen. and s new firm, hannam partners -- they are concerned they approached rio tinto in july. they rebuffed that approach in august. they are now sitting on the sidelines for six months after the takeover panel forced them to speculate on the conversation. must will head of glencore

be watching developments. >> yes. down 15%. for anyone to look at rio now, it is probably the best time. it was $190 a ton in 2011. it is a key earnings driver. he would be looking at this as a positive. dead.hought m&a was isn't he the man who told us about austerity for miners? >> big m&a is essentially dead. the major players have had their fingers burned in m&a in the last few years but glencore seems to be pushing ahead on this one. >> thank you very much for joining us today. good to get the details on that story. >> move smufe next. anna is helping again. >> i am. we're going to be speaking with the c.e.o. of latin america's

biggest bank. >> let's leave you with live pictures from ferguson. st. louis counties police say they have made at least 20 arrests. ♪ >> welcome to "on the move."

we are moments away from the start of european equity trading. 1700 is how many jobs ing will says it istch bank part of a plan to streamline the business. they may ask a few branches. we will bring you the share reaction. the ecb is in no hurry to buy new assets to stimulate the european economy. we sit down with the board member who made those comments. we will bring you that interview

later in the hour. riots on the streets of ferguson. chaos reigns and ferguson as a grand jury does not indict a white police officer who shot blacklled an unarmed teenager. president obama appeals for calm as tempers flare. european markets of the opening. let's check with caroline hyde, who has details. >> we are going to keep a close eye on markets. we have got a flurry of economic data, and chances are we could take a pause for breath if you are looking at the stock market. flat on the ftse 100. suddenly a little pause for breath after we hit a two-month high? theant more evidence economic indicators are on track. whether they are being supported as well. we got ver