we have sony slumping. sony has decided not to defend its place in the market. follow me on twitter. jakarta.nderway in let's get the flavor of what is going on there. who has their hats on? >> the bears. up until 45 minutes back, the bulls put in a fighting chance. we had the pboc pointing out risk of their, setting the reference rate weaker, pushing up dollar. 6.5393 is your level now. headline was the big

cap between the onshore rate and the offshore rate did it has now widened. gap between the onshore rate and the offshore rate. it has now widened. influence due to the intervention of the pboc. they could intervene here in the offshore space. that is the gap between the onshore rate and the offshore rate. is widening. that's the weakest level since december of 2010. have a look at the shanghai, opening a little higher. it seems to have accelerated those gains over the last 10 minutes. bank of america merrill lynch

green.is will go back to of the year,he end which is roughly 22% down from where we are at the moment. what else we following? broader picture, third day of declines led by australia, the mining space down. japan on the way down as well. i weakening in the reference rate, every currency and asia has weakened. the reference in rate, every currency in asia has weekend. -- has weakened. we will get more on this. it may be reducing its out foot. -- it output.

those --s as well as declines as well as those listed in taiwan. tsmc down 1%. shares of of china bank down sharply, china's biggest homebuilder. know today that we did not know yesterday? >> we know about the resumption of trade in hong kong, opening inning at 930 -- opening at 9:30 a.m. local time. right now, down $2.60 hong kong. buildingargest home

bank or restructuring assets and planning a share sale amid what it calls a hostile takeover attempt. it acquired enough shares to become the largest shareholder 3%, -- 24.3%. they may be trying to dilute ownership with this share sale with unspecified assets as managers try to retain control. vanke suspended shares in a and h. it plans to reveal asset restructuring plans by january 18. sale, the potential share we don't know if those will be in a or h. that chinaknow is

insurance is increasing its now considered and out lie as it fights off this hostile bid. shares will remain halted now. we will beeze -- looking at this story and a lot more details in the program. we want your opinion. certain chief executive has been talking at the consumer elect tronics show -- electronics show. what has he been saying? >> sony is focusing on products aat matter and have made choice not to defend market share.

this comes back to profitability, that company trying to take higher margin mobile, it'ssion, looking at operating margins between 2% and 5%. it wants to look into this area because it can make a higher profit margin, rather than other electronics products out there. reverse a loss and profitability. popular, we are looking at the release of its virtual reality headset in the next month. of content, 17% of sony's profitability. electronics makes up 65% of

sales, and their looking for areas where they can increase rough and ability and take a higher profit margin. rishaad: let's have a look at some other stories. julia. get over to eight year highs? >> they have jump to an eight-year high following a privatized offer from the parent company. they have jumped light over 20%. they are offering to take the china unit private for $2.8 billion. the hong kong developer is offering it after eight similar bid was rejected by minority shareholders in 2014. showing newchange

world development and companies own about 70% of new world china. the developer has more than billion hong 31 kong dollars in cash. eight takes bite there in new world china, up by 21.5%. securities, a on chairman facing investigation by the commonest already. down by 2% there in shenzhen. in a long list of executives facing probes by china's ruling party. he is suspected of violations of discipline for personal reasons. thatsaid in a statement they were informed of the

investigation in a notice it received on tuesday from the parties discipline inspection committee. the company says it is operating normally. tokyo, nintendo shares dropping this morning following a downgrade of 6%. it says it expects nintendo's entry into the smartphone market won't make contributions until 2018. the rating was cut to , claiming operating income for that next financial year will likely be less than half its previous estimates because of reduced sales of the handheld player and revived assumptions about smartphone games. then tinto has outperformed the market over the past year by 30%. its march 2015by

announcement that it was entering the smartphone market. a big pullback in shares today on that downgrade. rishaad: thank you. bank of america merrill lynch saying chinese shares will plunge 30%. we will have that story. about later on, apple two/production. we have a look at why. why the cart motor industry could be in for a bumpy ride this year. this is "trending business". ♪

>> some stories making headlines , an earthquake measuring 5.1 newton north korea's nuclear site. the cause is not clear.

south korea it says it was artificial. a similar quake occurred in 2013 before they carried out a nuclear test. the north was reportedly prepared to test a new weapon. a ron regrets an attack on the saudi arabian embassy in protest of the execution of a cleric. a ron said it was committed to protect international law and would take every effort to prevent a repeat. said it was committed to protect international law and would take every effort to prevent a repeat. kuwait recalled its ambassador. an emotional president obama announced new gun control measures. broadens the order definition of who qualifies as a

gun dealer and bolstered that ground checks. the gun lobby did announced the measures. constant excuses for an suffice.te longer that is why we are here today, last massate the shooting, but to do something to try to prevent the next one. the automotive industry now, car sales at a record last year, cheap feel, strengthening economy, cheap interest rates, and the continued love for pickups and suvs. a 19% jump, the only carmaker to beat estimates. declines on the

back of that mission's cheating scandal. the motor industry is in for a tough year. the managing director of j at automotive p or why did you make chat call -- of js automotive. why did you make that call? >> the term we will use his global recession. the problem is the u.s. will not grow that much anymore. we believe the man been satisfied in the u.s. the former emerging in markets like brazil and russia, even china is now stalling. we believe china will only grow by another 1% or less. the margins will decrease. it will be a very tough year. why?ad:

we have these strong u.s. numbers. is it down to china? china.s not only down to 2015, where the growth was, mainly u.s. and japan and some other markets. the u.s. market will not grow that much. you have to look at tent up demand being satisfied, credit, interest rate coming up. up demand u being satisfied, credit, interest rate coming up. it will not crash. don't get me wrong. i don't see it can grow more than what it has grown. the thing is, ok, not

all carmakers are equal. we have different product cycles. who has the right product cycle going -- the right mix. will they do better than the aging ones? >> the best model cycle incidentally will be from volkswagen. they will finally bring the right product, that less expensive suvs will come onto mid-2016, and they are interesting products for the u.s. volkswagen will run into tremendous trouble in the u.s. they have the right product, but at the wrong time. the other set up our the toyotae, honda, nissan,

with the right product mix in the product cycle now, where they will be able to gain more market share as they did last year already. hyundai seems to be in a bit of trouble and difficult spot at this point in the u.s. rishaad: volkswagen is in a difficult spot. is it similar -- part of vw group is audi, and we saw what happened to audi in the 1980's. hasd it be that volkswagen to leave the world's second-biggest car market in the world? >> i don't think they will be forced to leave, but they will most likely lose the diesel business, of course. there market share will be

affected, losing some volume there, but with new products coming in, they might be able to mend the fences. we will have to wait how bad will be the impact of lawsuits from the states, government, and private lawsuits. we have no idea, nobody knows how bad it will be. it could go into billions and billions of dollars. having said that, not this year, but in the years out, because they will have to restructure, and they will have to reduce expenses -- the their research and development expenses. rishaad: have a good one. joining us from singapore. why a lazy airlines is asking passengers to help lighten the load. more on that after this. ♪

rishaad: you are watching "trending business". i am rishaad salamat. be prepared to travel light when you fly with malaysia airlines. the carrier has banned carry-on luggage. headwinds,cing aren't they? that is what they are blaming everything on, right? >> that's right. unusual, so it is taking the unusual step to ban bags on flights to paris and amsterdam. days,s the ban is for two the fifth and six of january.

it is now taking longer roots to tes afterter -- rou one of its planes was shot down over ukraine. parisiple seven 200 to takes 15 hours. 80, 13.5l flies the a3 hours. it takes a more direct route. with the headwinds, longer it doesn't need the additional weight from check in bags. seven kilos maximum hand carry for economy. 14 kilos for business and first class. you can still check your bag, but it will be on another flight, arriving at another time, sent to you as soon as possible.

you may have your bags offloaded as well. rishaad: tell me something. orn do these headwinds cease lose their velocity? any indication when this baggage ban will be lifted? it is hard to tell. passengers hope soon. thatsia airlines has said it depends on whether and wind conditions. it will review the ban later today. lots of questions are still being asked and on answered. it could have explored other options. some people are asking whether malaysia airlines is still taking paid cargo on european flights. they have been restructuring its international routes. it is expected to stop flying totally to paris and amsterdam. that means london will be the only european city it will be flying to.

what it has done is tie up with emirates, a comprehensive, co-share agreement. dubai will now be used as a stopover for flights to europe. that is what we know. thanks.: a quick look at other stories. fitbit, plunging by more than 18%. deviceest wearable failing to impress and las vegas. the fitbit lays is similar to the apple watch, now with more competition from rivals. share fell to 22% from 34%. shares the lowest since june. u.s. regulators concerned about high-speed computers to manipulate markets, they are planning a crackdown. brokers. to rate

brokers will be expected to use the ratings to root out any misconduct. the reports will be made public. right. mitsubishi said to be repairing to pull off a first for a major japanese bank. settingare saying it is up an innovation lab designed to research and development new financial technologies. employees in15 tokyo and silicon valley, and may add a third location in another major asian city. they will announce plans later this week. , quick look at the trading day hong kong, shanghai, japan. shanghai positive. hang seng up triple digits. 25 -- 225, up by just 1.1%. checked, shrugging

off reports of a nuclear test taking place in the north. still down by half of 1%. ♪

rishaad: let's have a look at top stories. a return to trade in hong kong, shares faltered last month. nke says it will announce a restructuring by january 18, likely to dilute holdings. shares of new world china jumping 20% after an offer to take it private. sharesffering cast for

at 26% premium. a similar bid was rejected by minority shareholders in 2014. chief executive saying the company has made the decision not to pursue market share. sony will "concentrate on products that matter." four k televisions, audio products, and digital cameras. , let's have a look at what is going on. what's driving sentiment? >> a lot of things at the moment. things got busy when the pboc weakened reference rates. we will get you more details on this. the earthquake detected near north korea nuclear testing

sites, more details on that in a moment. that is affecting sentiment as well. moving several stocks and south korea. pmilso have the services falling to a 17-month low. chinese economy that people are still bullish on , a negative and disappointing read on that space. we are extending our losses. continue to decline, volatility in japan and hong kong. it's becoming more risk off. let me give you an update what's happening with the renminbi, the other big mover as well. the onshore rate at its weakest level since 2011. the onshore rate is continuing to get sold down. in the offshore rate at its weakest level since 2011.

let me get to the level of where 667re for the onshore rate, . it has been quite a move up. that is that. what else? some big movers in hong kong, new world development offering a hefty premium for the china unit. that is driving shares up, up 21%. 780.ffer is for we usually see a gap there. it may not happen. new world down 2.4%. hostile takeover, down 7/10 of 1%.

the move seems to be driven by general sentiment. we are seeing accelerated losses in australia. the worst hit market this week. down for a third day, sharp losses. in 13 out of 13's box -- stocks in the mining space. back to you. rishaad: we have this earthquake recorded near 5.1 north korea's nuclear test site. south korea says it was artificial. we have been monitoring the headlines. what is the latest? the south korean defense ministry saying intelligence officials are analyzing the data right now. quake happened just about half an hour ago, 5.1 magnitude, as you mentioned. is to make an

important announcement at 12 30 p.m. korea time, so maybe just an hour from now. p.m. korea time, so maybe just an hour from now. south korea will convene for a security meeting in half an hour. japan's chief cabinet secretary speaking in tokyo, suspecting this quake was -- may have happened to a conducted nuclear test. remember, a similar quake like this happened in 2013 before north korea carried out that third nuclear test. we did hear from the north of being prepared for war at any time. the north was prepared to test a new weapon. south korean defense officials are holding an emergency national defense meeting and the next few minutes. weakening, three

quarters of 1%. the weakest level we have seen since september. again, we will get more live coming off the terminal on this quake and reports of a suspected nuclear test from north korea. rishaad: thank you. pyongyang, anf important announcement. i'm not sure whether that is sold time or north korean time -- seoul, korea time or north korea time. the north korean authorities will make an important announcement at half past 12. to the koreanact stocks. these specy we get it of trades, especially across defense-related shares listed in south korea whenever we have a potential ratcheting up by

north korea. there's another stock i want to point out. karen's --ther korean defense-related stock. we are seeing some weakness here. we are approaching 1200. this could -- you have this, and the fact that asian currencies are getting bid down. you what thatw looks like across other currencies, same thing dollar-yen, austrian dollar doing the same thing, there we go. a lot of things happening in the market. back to you. rishaad: thanks. shares down sharply and hong kong. china's biggest home builder resuming trading.

fighting a hostile takeover bid from the largest shareholder. >> share price down 11% right now. the a shares remaining halted. this is a good, old hostile takeover for china's largest homebuilder by a rather unknown group, diversified conglomerate in china that has made this hostile bid. that is what vanke is calling it. it is being made through two units. iny have taken a 24.3% stake vanke, displacing china resources as the number one shareholder. the reaction we have got is very interesting. share saleanning a now amid what it calls a hostile takeover. it is also doing asset restructuring, which they plan to announce by january 18, so a

week from monday. that is why the shares end shenzhen are suspended now. it is a complex restructuring, could be a prolonged share suspension. rishaad: this has so many moving parts. bit confusing. there is a lot of speculation e is the share sale of vank intended to dilute ownership. we will not make it more costly. in?aad: where does this fit is it an ally? is it a takeover attempt? , alsoind the scenes increasing its stake up to 7% while this other hostile bid was going on. initial reaction is they were

joining forces. actually, no. that anbang is an ally. ng is the insurance company that bought the waldorf-astoria hotel, other insurance assets in china and the rest of the world. they have a lot of cash. property companies are cash intensive. it makes sense. rishaad: thank you for making sense of that. >> i hope i did. let's quickly check on other stories. china, postingn its first annual sales drop since 2007. that chairman says he expects demand in china to remain weak, down to the sluggish economic picture for 2016.

one of the country's biggest offering of shares by lotte. no final decision on whether to proceed has been made. twitter's shares, a nasty time of it, really slump because of reports that the company may consider raising the character limit to as many as 10,000. it would be the equivalent of a 20-minute long speech. account the character may be adjusted depending on how users respond to trials. twitter removed its 140 limit last year. they are trying to make this more engaging. ♪ up next, a former australian billionaire who made and lost a fortune in coal. live on "trending business"

right after this short break. ♪

rishaad: you are back with "trending business" and rishaad salamat. chinese police arresting a suspected arsonists after a bus fire killed 17 people. 32 injured when the public bus caught fire. state media did not report a possible motive, but said the bus driver is assisting. the suspect was detained after being talked to down from a nearby building. group inr of a armed organ says they will leave when the federal land is returned of people. they are supporting to local ranchers jailed for arson, setting fires on federal territory and what they defend as land management.

police and the fbi have so far not confronted them. his ban one extends diesel engines in new delhi. the supreme court was hearing a challenge by mercedes. hardest hitl be the because it does not sell a diesel vehicle below the two liter limit. new delhi's smog is ranked as the world's worst. right. we will turn to a one-time australian coal magnet. electrician was ranked as austrians youngest billionaire, and managed to achieve that at 35. dollars,a million utilize that well, raised another $30 million, and then bought a queens land coal

deposit. year, $480ft a million on a property originally owned by rio tinto. heal that value the company at 1.2 billion u.s. dollars. then kohl's golden age came to an end. coal's golden age came to an end. he joins us now. >> thanks for having me on. , ainvested in the company small cap on the a strain exchange. originally successful, so very happy with that acquisition. , you need nearly

$30 million together by the end of the months to do this deal. how close are you to getting that? >> we are pretty comfortable. to go through a lot to get here. we are supported by major shareholders. it will create an equity investment to acquire another issuey through a rights and bring on one or two sophisticated investors to the register. , really, it has absolutely been crushed. how do you make money on it? >> look, there's no getting away from that. it has probably conditioned vendors and may a lot of companies assess overheads and productivity. we've had a bit of exchange rate

relief, which has been pretty good. makes operations more competitive. we are competitive with today's prices. you have to buy assets based on what will make money today. don't thinke -- i anybody is predicting a huge rise in the coal price in the near term. rishaad: why by now? look, i think a lot of the trade action will be driven by vendors. their willingness to accept thattions on properties are sitting on their balance sheets at far greater values. it wasn't quite so hard to part with such a high quality asset. it has a couple of hairs on it at the moment.

approvals in new south wells have not been timely or predictable, so we have a task ahead of his there. that is good for new south wales and we will get their approval. rishaad: a lot of opposition there, isn't there? >> look, there is a bit of opposition. there have to be some myths broken down in the marketplace. what australia produces is high come most of the coal traded in the marketplace is lower quality. ,traight is very high quality -- australia is very high quality. low's better than the

quality coal out of indonesia. rishaad: people are worried about you having an open their -- open pit there. >> have a look at the size and scale of thehe mines currently in operation. moved from no new mines, to know mines getting approvals. they change their mind every second day. keepines coming online, setting new levels of environmental excellent. you can't have your cake and eat it too. current approvals are very stringent, take a lot of time. quickly, you have

been famously media shy. why the change of heart? will we be seeing more of you? >> look, i think, you know, we all grow. i was young and i struggled to cope with the publicity when i was juncker -- younger. i was focused on keeping my family. i'm back to talking about something that i have some background in. i was never hands on in some of those young, foolish investments. to have moved on and close the book on all that and be back to focusing on what i'm really known for. rishaad: thank you very much indeed. joining us from sydney. breaking story, update on this one we have been covering, malaysia airlines.

a baggagey -- restriction put on, no checked in baggage on certain flights to europe, paris and amsterdam. it lifted those baggage restrictions. this is coming from a statement published on the airlines website. up next, operation innovation, japan's against bank getting set to make a move and developing technology. we are headed to tokyo to find out what this is all about. ♪

rishaad: trending business. i am rishaad salamat. mitsubishi ufj financial group setting up a division to research new financial technology, the first of its kind from a japanese bank, the plan announced later this week.

let's get over to bloomberg news. what do we know so far? >> good morning. we've been speaking to people familiar with the bank's plans. mitsubishi ufj financial group, japan's largest bank, is planning to open what they call an innovation lab. this will start out with 15 people, to locations, tokyo, silicon valley, and they are also looking at opening a third in asia going forward. the plan for this new unit is to separate from the main operations, and by having employees dressed in casual clothing in an environment conducive to innovation. aey believe they can create that up within the office will drive creation and allow them to try out new technologies withork more closely

partners. the location they have chosen is a brand-new building in tokyo, and it will be a hub for these types of companies, getting in with startups at the beginning and developing new technologies they can apply to financial products and services. rishaad: is there anything in the timing here? yeah, the banks ceo has been pushing to have the bank more involved in these types of ventures. it stems from the new three-year medium-term business plan, launched last year. for the last six months or so they have been working on setting up a separate unit that is just coming to fruition now. they will be announcing this new unit. rishaad: ok. is this the first time that this bank has ventured into financial tech?

>> not at all. in fact, the bank has been involved in a number of initiatives in the financial tech space. some examples include their use ibm's watson technology, which they're trying to automate some of the call center operations by using artificial intelligence. they've also place multilingual robots and branches able to interact and talk with customers in multiple languages. last year, they ran a financial tech challenge when they invited people to come in and bring in new technologies and put them in a competition format. one of the finalist out of that competition struck a deal with mitsubishi ufj financial group in december, and now they are working together to operate a smartphone mobile app that helps customers to choose preferences based on their risk aversion. thank you. joining us from tokyo. that is it for this edition of

"trending business". stay with us and get more on this breaking story about an earthquake, which the south koreans are saying is artificial. was it a nuclear test? asia edge is next. ♪

♪ >> from our studios in new york city, this is "charlie rose." charlie: ian bremmer is here, the president and founder of a political risk consulting firm, eurasia group. the company published its annual risk report today, outlining the main geopolitical developments to watch in the coming year. this year includes the transatlantic alliance, an increasingly closed europe, china's global footprint, as well as isis. saudi arabia is another country on the list. the country's prime minister announced that trade and diplomatic links to iran would be cut.