>> welcome to "daybreak: asia." i am haidi stroud-watts. sophie: i am sophie kamaruddin. >> i am shery ahn. our top stories this hour, president biden defends the afghanistan withdrawal as chaos erupts in kabul. he says america's mission was

never about nationbuilding. the s&p 500 now double its march 2020 low. berkshire hathaway cells stocks, including biogen and liberty global while adding to just three positions last quarter. this as we continue to see record highs in the s&p 500, perhaps on concerns about rising u.s.-china tensions. the sec chair saying investors should know about the risks of chinese companies, that american investors do not know everything about some chinese firms listed in u.s. stock exchanges. this coming after we have seen the regular holding ipos of chinese companies until they lose disclosures. haidi: we have seen that continuing to play out, chinese tech stocks slumping on monday after another round of it is is him from chinese state media or

online gaming. tencent falling. the messaging has been clear. china should tighten regulations of online gaming to ensure they don't misrepresent history. we continue to see the reparation -- the reverberation of this clampdown. other sectors are being affected. shery: perhaps we are also watching china angle toward the afghanistan chaos. beijing is saying they are going to play a constructive role in the afghanistan rebuilding. we have also seen chinese state media talk about attacking the u.s. effectiveness and peace building efforts. we will continue to discuss all of those with our guest today. haidi: we will be hearing from singapore's trade and industry minister and also from the

philippine central bank governor. let's take a look at the set up when it comes to markets trading this tuesday morning. sophie: it is exacerbated by the situation in afghanistan, which puts the onus on policymakers to maintain support for economic recoveries ahead of china's top legislative body meeting. we may see another qr cut in the fourth quarter from china. at bloomberg intelligence, they say don't rule out another fiscal boost from japan given the pickup in virus cases. the yen holding gains amid the safe haven bit we have been seeing. as treasuries have rallied, we have seen forecasters trim bets for u.s. yields even lower, now 1.60 for the u.s. 10 year yield. following up a chart, u.s.

futures edge lower early in the asia session. skeptics have lost the appetite to challenge rising markets. the s&p 500 extending its rally from the pandemic bottom. europe also edging ahead of asia and em. goldman raising their index and earnings targets. chinese stocks are on edge with north asian peers amid regulatory and delta woes. tencent and samsung are not pulling their weight, signaling more pain could be ahead. haidi: let's turn to vonnie quinn with the first word headlines. >> pfizer and biontech have submitted early data to u.s. regulators on booster shot trials. they say a third dose leads to higher levels of protective antibodies when given eight to nine months after the initial doses. results from a larger final

stage trial are due soon. the company want formal approval rather than emergency authorization. new york city is expanding its vaccine mandate to include museums, sports stadiums, zoos, movie theaters, and other venues. visitors and staff will need proof of at least their first probate shot. children under 12 are exempt but must wear a mask and be with someone who is vaccinated. the new rules do not apply to businesses, schools, or senior and childcare centers. the japanese government is extending its covid state of emergency through at least september 12 as the virus continues to spread. tokyo, osaka, kanawha, and three other regions will also expand their declaration. the state of emergency will remain through the tokyo paralympics, which will be held without spectators. hong kong has tightened travel

curbs for residents returning from 16 countries, including the u.s. and spain. the about-face comes two months after it started easing some of the world's strictest quarantine measures. those returning from countries deemed high risk must quarantine in a hotel for 21 days. unvaccinated residents from the last are no longer -- the lists are no longer allowed entry. global news 24 hours a day, on-air and at bloomberg quicktake, powered by more than 2700 journalists and analysts in more than 120 countries. i'm vonnie quinn. this is bloomberg. haidi: president biden is defending his decision to withdraw troops from afghanistan amid chaotic scenes in kabul with the return of the taliban. pres. biden: i stand squarely behind my decision. after 20 years, i have learned the hard way that there was never a good time to withdraw u.s. forces.

haidi: thousands rushed to kabul's international airport to flee the country. the associated press is reporting at least seven people were killed. let's bring in white house correspondent josh wingrove. distressing scenes as the airport remains the only exit point for people wanting to get out, including diplomatic staff, families, and people other countries are trying to get out. what is being done to ease the situation? josh: this is the update that was talked into biden's speech, which was mostly political, but there were nuggets. they are getting control of the towers at the airports so they can resume military and civilian flights, which are different areas of the airport. we all woke up to images, harrowing images of people desperate to get off the ground. u.s. flights have resumed and they are focusing on that.

biden is adding more tropes -- troops to help secure the airport and delivering a warning to the taliban that any intervention, violence, or targeting of u.s. troops or people they are trying to rescue would be met by some sort of unspecified retaliation. we will see whether that happens or not. the speech made clear the airport and evacuations are the priority. other countries are going to rely in part on the u.s. ability to secure that airport. going forward, biden made clear there was going to be no reversal of plan. he said the chaos was all the more reason to get out of the country. he wants out of afghanistan, he is getting out. he is skirting by the questions being raised by analysts, republicans and some democrats, about why they couldn't have

avoided this level of disorientation and chaos. one reason he cited was that the afghan government asked them not to accelerate vaccinations -- evacuations to early in fear it could trigger a crisis of confidence in the government. the taliban is now the government in afghanistan. if people were wondering the u.s. would pump the brakes on its withdrawal, the answer clearly was no. haidi: we are seeing the political firestorm this has caused for president biden. do we have any idea if this could have serious implications for his political future, his economic agenda? josh: it is always too early to say with these things. there is an interview with biden this week, so we will hear more from him directly in a couple

days. probably the american public is not that interested in the war in afghanistan so there is a chance he will not face much blowback. he could face blowback with other countries who have pledged to be back on the world stage. biden took power and assured the world the trump era was over. of course those arguments are going to be impacted, if not undercut, in the eyes of some, given what happened in afghanistan. we will see where that goes. there are open questions over how the taliban will deal with the u.s., how the u.s. will deal with the delavan, how the taliban will deal with the people of afghanistan. all this remains up in the air, but democrat or republican, trump or biden, afghanistan was not a popular war and both of them were hightailing it out of there. haidi: still ahead, more on the

crisis in afghanistan and bidens next steps. we will talk to daniel markey later this hour. next, the market outlook from crossmark's victoria fernandez. she tells us why she is trimming her exposure to growth. this is bloomberg. ♪

shery: traders are weighing a record-breaking run for the s&p 500 against concerns the delta virus will impact global growth. let's bring in victoria fernandez, chief market strategist at crossmark global investments. let me bring up this chart that takes a look at -- i guess you have to call it american exceptionalism. the index has doubled from the

pandemic bottom in march 2020. take a look at the blue, up 100%. overtaking asian emerging markets, which is losing steam. you can see the underperformance of china as well. what does the new frontier looks like as we work out what the delta variant regrowth -- variant means for growth? >> part of what we have been seeing in the markets with the delta variant is the concern that the globe is going to be effected. we know we have hit a growth with earnings in the u.s.. we even have a ton of earnings coming out with retail companies this week, so that's going to be more positive news. there is a strong underlying current for the equity market that the consumer is strong,

corporations are strong, there is a lot of liquidity. consumers are flush with cash. all of that tells us that even if growth comes back a little, which we anticipate it will, we are still going to be better than we were pre-pandemic. therefore the markets will trend higher. i think we hit 40 something new highs on the s&p this year, an amazing number. but there is going to be some choppiness. we have gone almost 200 days without having that 5% fall back, so we would not be surprised to see a fallback or consolidation in the second half of this year. haidi: where will the enterprises get back in? where would you be looking to see if any fallback would be an opportunity? >> you want it to be enough of a pullback that it would make sense. look at the names on your shopping list. i don't think it is necessary

because the market as a whole pulled back, that does not necessarily mean the quality names have the pullback. we have an overweight to the growth side over the last couple of years in our large-cap strategy. we are looking at the more cyclical names to balance out the portfolio. for us, names we would buy if there is a pullback. ford is a name we recently purchased. target is a name we would purchase. they have earnings this week so we would be curious to hear their guidance. that doesn't mean you eliminate the growth side. we still like tech names like oracle that has exposure to the cloud space and cloud services. shery: what about chipmakers? we have seen semi conductors stuck in this range, as this gtv chart on the bloomberg shows. >> semi conductors have pulled back quite a bit.

nvidia is probably one of our favorite names. we don't think of it as a typical semi conductor play that goes with the cyclical name. we think it is longer standing. it has a longer outlook. they are focusing in on the secular growth sectors, things having to do with data, gaming, data sectors, ai. those are areas we like so the fact they are serving those secular growth sectors gives you long-term holding potential for a name like nvidia. we would wait for a pullback there and that would be a name we add. we know there is a supply shortage, so that gives that support in the near to intermediate term. haidi: always great having your insights, chief market strategist at crossmark global investments. major hedge and billionaire investors disclosed their holdings in filings. several funds piling into

fintech and banks and selling tech holdings. su keenan joins us with the latest. we always go through what warren buffett's firm likes. he doesn't seem to like general motors much. su: he cut his stake 10% this quarter, the third quarter he has cut back, and has had the holding for nine years. he added barrick, the gold miner , and other interesting moves, cutting back on drugmakers, continuing to ramp up in the quarter stake and disclosing a spinoff in the merck spinoff. another firm that gets a lot of attention is the firm of george soros. it dumped all these stocks it picked up in the first quarter by the implosion of the fund run by bill hwang. the soros fund management sold

off all of those stocks, notably viacom, cbs, discovery, tencent, and baidu. it looks like the entire position sold off. they picked up a large chunk of those stocks in the first quarter. soros also added amazon. finally, it looks like the love affair with tech may be over in that a lot of these terms -- firms seem to be selling tech holdings. haidi: it does look like investments -- does it look like investments tied to the pandemic are still favored? su: we saw stocks like doordash picked up or added by hedge funds. chase coleman, tiger global, doubled its position in doordash. another one doubled their position, also added to its position in pellet gun, zoom also -- in peolton, zoom also,

and moderna was a big add for many funds. another big hedge fund added a new position worth more than $900 million. health care stocks were a big theme. medicaid insurers, another health care buy we saw in some filings. haidi: i am watching michael burry betting against kathy woods. we are seeing in these filings that psion asset management has bearish contracts against 235 and 500 shares of the ark innovation etf at the end of the second quarter, according to regulatory filings. that position valued at almost $31 million, so it is a pretty

big bet against cathie wood. sophie: burry warning about evaluation levels being unsustainable for months, so it is not surprising. he has been betting against w ood by having bearish wagers against tesla. he has increased those wagers against tesla with puts on a million tesla shares. shery: this is one of arkk's top picks and biggest holdings. michael burry perhaps has good reason to be bearish. we are getting more on tesla in a moment. the u.s. is stepping up scrutiny on its autopilot system and launching a formal investigation that covers more than 750,000 tesla vehicles. details next. this is bloomberg. ♪

haidi: the u.s. has opened an investigation into tesla's autopilot system after almost a dozen crashes. they stepped up scrutiny of the system. ed ludlow joins us with more. take us through what this investigation is looking into, what the major concerns are. ed: autopilot for tesla has very limited functionality. it is supposed to be cruise control, maintain speed and distance from the car in front of you and keep you in lane. if you look at tesla's website, it says the driver is supposed to have hands on the wheel and be paying attention. the investigation looks at 11 cases since 2018 when autopilot was engaged and the vehicle

collided with emergency responder vehicles. the spokesperson told bloomberg, we are going to look at the technology to guarantee the driver is paying attention. by extension, you ask, hold on, if there is a big fire truck with flashing red lights, how is it that you, the driver, manage to let your vehicle drive into it? that is the question with this probe. haidi: what could be the fallout? ed: there is concern for investors. you saw that in the share reaction on monday. a serious regulatory crackdown could impact tesla's future earnings. so much of what wall street assigned to tesla's valuation is future software sales. tesla challenge -- tesla charges $10,000 a month for a subscription. the evaluation is not based on how many vehicles tesla is

delivering, it is about the future, robo taxis, full autonomous vehicles. it is completely unclear how much bite, how much teeth, this probe has. it is not the first time they have looked at the autopilot, i'm sure it is not the last, but it has not carried serious consequences for does not. haidi: ed ludlow with the latest on the probe and the tesla stock crash. aia group reported results from new business for the first half that blew past analyst estimates. it's first-half operating profit came in at $3.1 billion while net income was $3.2 billion, a jump of 48% year-over-year. aia launched new operations and received regulatory approval to open a new branch. k ag is creating a new digital

infrastructure company focused on cloud assets in japan and other asian markets. the private equity firm has invested $2 billion in assets in the space. the newly appointed chairman says it is targeting $10 billion in enterprise value in five to seven years through deals and growth. the company that operates tim hortons in china is going public in a spac deal that values the chain at just under $1.7 billion, including debt. the deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter. tim hortons china is a joint venture between restaurant brands international and cartesian capital. tencent is also one investor. next, the taliban's rapid advance in afghanistan leaves many questions, including how the regime will exert their authority. johns hopkins professor daniel markey tells us how he expects

the crisis to unfold. don't miss our big interviews ahead. we hear from the singapore trade and industry minister. this is bloomberg. ♪ in business, it's never just another day. it's the big sale, or the big presentation. the day where everything goes right. or the one where nothing does. with comcast business you get the network that can deliver gig speeds to the most businesses and advanced cybersecurity to protect every device on it— all backed by a dedicated team, 24/7. every day in business is a big day. we'll keep you ready for what's next. comcast business powering possibilities. total gym includes everything you need to get into the best shape of your life. for every body at any age. it works every muscle group, including your core, using your own body weight as resistance. customers love total gym because it's fun, fast

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vonnie: the sec commission chair has issued his most direct warning yet on the risks of investing in chinese companies listed in the united states. he says he ordered the sec to pause green lighting ipo's of shell companies. the agency wants listing companies to increase disclosures, including the fact beijing may change rules

unexpectedly. >> i asked that we take a pause, for now, when such listings of shell company issuers associated with china-based operating companies. vonnie: china is promising to prioritize employment through its fiscal and monetary policies. the council says china still faces relatively large labor pressures during the current five-year plan period, which ends in 2025. it says emphasis to be placed on developing labor-intensive industries, vocational training, and higher quality jobs. malaysia's prime minister and his cabinet have resigned after more than 17 months in power. this fueled a crisis of leadership in a country hampered by a weakened economy and a surge in covid cases. the palace says he will stay on as a caretaker prime minister until a successor is named.

the king says fresh elections are not the best option during the pandemic. recovery efforts in haiti are gaining momentum after the devastating 7.2 earthquake. facing criticism over slow government response, the prime minister says his administration will act with greater speed. the announcement comes as tropical depression grace takes aim at the nation. so far more than 1400 deaths have been reported along with 6000 injured. global news 24 hours a day, on-air and at bloomberg quicktake, powered by more than 2700 journalists and analysts in more than 120 countries. i'm vonnie quinn. this is bloomberg. haidi: president biden has defended his decision to withdraw u.s. troops from afghanistan. other global leaders have also spoken about the exit of troops and the fallout. pres. biden: i stand squarely behind my decision.

after 20 years, i have learned the hard way that there is never a good time to withdraw u.s. forces. >> i urge all parties, especially the taliban, to exercise utmost restraint. >> we want to make sure we as the u.k. pull together our international partners, our like-minded partners, so we deal with that regime in a concerted way. >> the afghan army has failed to provide any resistance, or very little resistance. we all made an incorrect assessment and this wasn't just on the part of the germans. >> in time afghanistan will need its own manpower and europe alone cannot assume the consequences of the current situation. we have to anticipate this and protect ourselves against significant flows of migration. haidi: global leaders weighing in on the situation. our next guest says afghanistan

threatens to become a point of friction between the u.s. and china. joining us as daniel markey, research professor at johns hopkins university. he also helped plan u.s. policy for southeast asia from 2003 the 2007. thank you for your time. who will fill the void left by the u.s.? we are seeing china trying to forge ties with the taliban. >> the first void is being filled by the taliban themselves. after that i think pakistan is best situated on scene to have the greatest influence over events as they unfold. you mentioned china as a large and nearby neighbor, obviously with concerns of its own. i would say first the taliban are really in the driver's seat. if anyone from the outside, it would be pakistan. sophie: does this change the

dynamics and balance of power around nations in the world? >> i think everybody is looking. world leaders, certainly from the west, are trying to explain their decision to retreat, to withdraw. obviously this signals some kind of global recognition of the limits of the power not just of the united states but of its western partners. that doesn't necessarily mean that vacuum will be filled by other great partners, whether rush hour china, but it does show the limits of america's reach even when it is working with its closest allies. sophie: when it comes to the charm offensive we expect to see from the taliban, does it mask the fact that nothing has changed? is the hope of a stable afghanistan under the taliban possible? >> it's conceivable. it feels unlikely to me given

what we know about the telegram over many years -- about the taliban over the many years. even what we are hearing from the past few weeks about taliban behavior. there is one reason to hope the taliban well, for a time, the moderated, and that's the simple reality that afghanistan, with tens of millions of people, will not be easily governed and maybe not pacified by a fourth the size of the taliban. they are going to have to make arrangements with other parts of afghan society and will have to concede to them, at least temporarily, and we hope for longer, some degree of control over their lives, which for some afghans is all they really seek. >> beijing's playbook is economic diplomacy, which makes sense given how many assets they

have in that area. could that be more successful then military influence? >> it's possible. the taliban and any other regime that comes into power in afghanistan will need resources to stay afloat inside afghanistan. afghanistan itself being landlocked, extremely poor, and for decades at the mercy of outside donors, will be vulnerable to outside influence. china has plenty of financial resources. the chinese need to be careful as well. the afghan taliban are not purely motivated by money. they can be rented but maybe not bought. there will be limits to china's charm offensive, as you put it. >> what are the implications for al qaeda and other terrorist groups? >> this can't be good news if we are worried about these groups.

the potential they will see greater opportunities for safe haven inside afghanistan israel -- is real. it will be harder for the united states, for western intelligence services, to have any sense of what's happening inside afghanistan to track down such organizations, to make sure they don't mount attacks against the rest of the world will be harder without having a foothold there. the biden administration has suggested and by then when he was vice president suggested we could defend our interests against terrorism from further afield. now we will be putting that to the test. >> daniel markey, really great to have you with us. you can read more about afghanistan in today's edition of daybreak. bloomberg subscribers can go to dayb on your terminals and it is in the bloomberg anywhere

app. you can customize those settings so you get the news that matters to you. this is bloomberg. ♪ >> let's look at how we are setting up this tuesday session with the rest of the asian markets. sophie: we are seeing the shift to safe havens moderating early. nikkei futures edging higher while the yen is holding steady after being the outperformer on monday. it has retreated from the march high against the euro. check out the moves in bonds. we have a breather with the aussie 10 year yield back above 1.17 and treasury futures are a tick lower ahead of the fomc minutes. the consensus is we will see 1.60 in u.s. 10 year yields. pulling up the terminal ahead of

the korean open, we have the kospi still among the best performers since the pandemic bottom on this ranked returns last. we have seen the kospi under pressure of late, capping seven straight days of losses amid concerns the chip market could be peaking. bloomberg intelligence saying the kospi could face a reality check, that there is overinvestment when it comes to chip capacity. pulling up the board at morgan stanley, analysts reckon the selloff in korean stocks and the won could be an overreaction. they do see the korean won retreating back to 1145, 1150 in the next one to two weeks. morgan stanley saying the korean won will face appreciation pressure. shery: next, more heavy rains

hit japan after the climate report establishes a factual link between extreme weather events and emissions, but how much difference will the report make for climate skeptics? we discussed. this is bloomberg. ♪

>> last week's report on climate

change gave world leaders unprecedented evidence that a full-scale climate disaster is looming. the report offered no original research or told government what to do. let's bring in the bloomberg head of research. what are the most relevant findings for the asia-pacific region? >> thanks for having me. this year's report is quite extensive, almost 4000 pages. one of the unique features is an interactive outlet that allows policymakers, analysts, and corporations to look at individual regional impacts on different scenarios. this is a powerful tool for climate risk assessment. >> which aipac countries are reducing emissions in line with the recommendations and which ones are clearly not? >> unfortunately none of the

major aipac economies are reducing emissions in line with what's required. the report from 2018 said global emissions would have to be reduced by 45% by 2030 relative to the 2010 baseline to make sure we keep global warming to around 1.5 degrees. if you look at the major leaders in aipac, the largest two, china and india, their current target allows them to increase emissions up to 2030, so no reduction. china is the largest market for renewables and electric vehicles but also remains the largest market globally for coal power and the internal combustion engine. that has to change. >> we are counting down to the start of trade in tokyo. tokyo continues to battle its worst surge of coronavirus yet. the paralympics will be next

week and will also be without spectators. the government has made deals with pfizer for more vaccines. the latest report was for 120 million doses. on the eco-front, we do get the june tertiary industry index data leader. economists surveyed by bloomberg expect a gain of 1.8% month on month. in south korea, the deadline for firms to release second-quarter earnings. some names we are watching out for include jay y entertainment. there is also a bond sale happening later, 2.6 trillion one of 10 year government notes will be sold. haidi: $1 billion is how much facebook and instagram plans to pay their creators over the next year to will more influencers to the platform and away from the competition. the rapidly burgeoning creative

economy is changing social media as we know it. the head of instagram discussed creating incentives with emily chang. >> one of the most important changes is the explosive growth in mobile video. we want to lean into that. that doesn't mean you won't be able to post photos, that will always be part of instagram, but it does mean we need to lean more into mobile first video. that is growing across the internet and all social platforms and we feel we have been out of position. emily: you are investing in creators, trying to simplify the experience for creators. what do you think it is? obviously instagram has to scale. what else do you think is going to woo creators from spending their time on other platforms and on instagram alone? >> i think we have a relatively

unique combination of being a global platform but also being a platform with a variety of creators. we are seeing power ship from institutions to individuals across all industries. athletes are becoming more relevant than teams, journalists and editors are building their brands outside the publications they work for. we see that with voter creators, writers, politicians. we have a unique combination of global reach and a wide variety of tools for a wide variety of creators. emily: the goal is obvious -- is always innovation. facebook has been facing antitrust scrutiny because of its acquisition of instagram. instagram has been successful for facebook. will this scrutiny hamper facebook's ability to make acquisitions and innovate? >> it is more difficult to make acquisitions than it was a number of years ago. the scrutiny does affect us.

there is a lot of compliance, a lot of regulatory work, and there are a lot of people that work at instagram and facebook and they can become demotivated under scrutiny or question. in general what i tried to do as a leader is make sure my teams are focused on what matters most, creating value for the people that use our products every day. we have teams that focus on compliance or safety and integrity, but in general we want to make sure we are innovating and making sure that people who use instagram to connect with their friends can be entertained, that companies can make a living and do what they do best. i tried to make sure my team is focused on that as much as possible. emily: apple also getting antitrust scrutiny as well. there is controversy over new software features they are integrating to, they say, protect children.

do you think apple is taking its own power too far? >> i won't say they are taking it too far, but they do have an immense amount of power, not only over facebook and instagram, but anyone who relies on the app store to do their business. they also have a lot of access to personal information. you mentioned scrutiny about people getting private photo galleries. there is tension and it is important for any organization to protect people, particularly children. but there is a real tension between safety and privacy and these questions are important and they need to be discussed and argued in public because it is one of the most existential debates of our generation. haidi: the head of instagram speaking with emily chang. next, we take a look at the hp ahead of its latest results as the company reassesses its oil and gas business.

tune into bloomberg radio to hear more from newsmakers and get in-depth analysis from the daybreak team, broadcasting live from hong kong. plenty more ahead. stay with us. ♪

>> let's get a check of the

business flash headlines. the u.s. has opened an investigation into tesla's autopilot system after almost a dozen collisions involving first responder vehicles. an estimated 765,000 tesla models from 2014 onwards are under scrutiny. the regulator has the power to order recalls. jeff bezos and elon musk are on a collision course as blue origin continues to challenge u.s. government contracts with spacex to develop tech for moon landings. blue origin's says the evaluation process was unlawful and improper after it offered to contribute more than $2 billion of work at no cost to the government. apple has told u.s. and european retail staff it plans to bring back in person classes at its stores by the end of the month. reservation portals will open this week. the tech giant is trying to get

operations back on track after a year of covid disruptions. it recently lifted a mask mandate at u.s. stores, but reimposed them after a spike in cases. >> korea coming back from a holiday. let's turn to sophie for what stocks to watch. sophie: focusing on australian miners with bhp earnings on top. the sector is expected to have the best sector since 2008. the rebound in global demand does raise some concerns on sentiment for the mining sector, but citi reckoning we are likely seeing a pause at the midcycle. haidi: let's stick with the sector. bhp set to report full-year numbers later. the company is in the midst of a potential merger of its oil and gas units with which on

petroleum. what is the latest? pretty high expectations when it comes to the earnings. >> that's right. it should be a bonanza of an announcement from bhp this afternoon. local media reports suggest there might be an in principle agreement already in place on the transfer of bhp's oil and gas business to woodside, which would involve bhp shareholders taking a holding in the enlarged gas company. nothing confirmed from the company yet, but there is no doubt investors will be watching closely to see if they put some flesh on the bones from the announcement yesterday confirming the two sides were in talks. >> how are shareholders reacting? james: a mixed bag. they are picking up some discontent on the woodside side of the ledger.

a couple of shareholders told me they are concerned woodside might pay too much, given the figures in the media. we have had the $15 billion price tag. i have seen $20 billion australia mentioned. there is concerned they might pay too much. obviously the assets bhp holds in australia are late life assets. you get a strong operating asset with good cash flow, but also potentially substantial rehabilitation costs. there are concerns woodside would be taking on the rehabilitation risk. on the positive side, bhp has a stake in the scarborough project. that is woodside's jewel in the ground, getting the scarborough project in western australia off the ground. people are in a holding pattern

waiting for more detail. >> what does it mean long-term for bhp? james: clearly it would mean an acceleration of bhp's exit from fossil fuels, something mike henry, the ceo, has been alluding to in recent public utterances. he has been clear they want to point the business toward future commodities. >> james thornhill, our sydney deputy bureau chief, with the latest on bhp. we have the ceo, mike henry, joining us after the release of the results later. plus, the woodside acting ceo and the heads of other major aussie miners will be speaking to us throughout the week. coming up, an exclusive

interview with singapore minister of trade and industry don kim young. we also support risks and opportunities with the bank of singapore head of investment strategy. the market open in sydney and tokyo is next. this is bloomberg. ♪

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shery: hello and welcome to daybreak: asia. i'm shery ahn in new york. sophie: i'm sophie kamaruddin in hong kong. haidi: i'm howdy stroud-watts in sydney. our top story, asian investors are weighing worries against wall street's record run. president biden defending the afghanistan withdrawal as chaos

erupts in kabul. will be breaking singapore's july export numbers and get the outlook exclusively from the trade minister. shery: korea coming back from holiday. japan and australia starting to trade. sophie, what are you seeing? sophie: moves to the upside for japanese stocks. the topics higher by 6/10 of a percent. keeping an eye on tokyo electron today. check out the yen. steady after being in outperform overnight. the safe haven bid moderated somewhat. switching out the board to check in on the open and a south. after the long weekend for soul market -- for seoul markets. the concerns we could see -- morgan stanley has said it has

stuck to the reaction. the korean yuan will see some strengthening. we are seeing hrw under pressure. electronic shares, seeing some downside pressure for the stock so far. switching out the board for the open so far in sydney, this morning after we saw miners way in the encz mark, little change. keep an eye on bhp. seeing downside moves for the stock so far. the aussie dollar trading your a one-week low. we are seeing the bond rally with a little bit of steam. the 10-year rally pushing above 117. the 10 year yield staying around 126. forecasters rejig their benchmark targets in the midst of these growth concerns exacerbated by the situation in afghanistan. pulling out the chart on the terminal, mohamed el-erian

saying -- the s&p 500 ever higher. taking its rallies in the pandemic bottom to 100%. europe continuing to gain ground. edging out asia and e.m. markets. tiny stocks are the laggards. seeing the tech phobia weighing on the outlook. haidi: we will stick with chinese equities. significant overhang what it comes to the broader asian tech sector coming from ongoing uncertainty. let's bring in the head of investment strategy from the bank of singapore. i suppose when it comes to chinese names, valuations have come down so significantly. you see opportunity across the region? >> you hit the nail on the head. when we look at where valuations

could be especially every benchmark to the previous volatility in the tech sector, we are still a distance away. if not for the fact we think over the next two or three months there will still be regulatory overhang. especially in the tech sector. if not for this fact, we think this would the time to start averaging in. we think that point could come closer toward the end of september. probably the beginning of october when we get more clarity. shery: in terms -- sophie: in a terms of the delta risk -- played out very badly when it comes to southeast asia. where do you see the opportunity? there's been a lot more interest in the likes of indonesia. >> re-think that singapore -- we

think that singapore, equities, the market looks very interesting. the singapore market is dominated by the banks. we think the cyclical sector could do well. this will be positive for the singaporean banks. we think dividends will start to rise again. buybacks could come back into the picture. for the real estate sector, we think valuations are very attractive here. the uncertainty in the risk sector that have caused the cell down of the last quarters or so will likely resolve. that is one area of opportunity. we do see sector errors in the greater china -- sectors in the

greater china equity space. related to domestic consumption, 5g. plenty of opportunities for investors. shery: when tasking more about china but let me ask you about chipmakers across asia because korea is back from a holiday. before they left, we saw these drawdowns when it came to chipmakers leading the outflows from that market. why is the market so negative about the chip industry all of a sudden? darker the chip industry has had a good run -- >> the chip industry has had a good run. we think the higher chip prices are causing the demand to drop a little bit. under threat of the claims, we think the investor shortage should only be a little bit as well. on a relative basis, some level

-- some waning of the outlook in a sense. that is leading to the decline we have been seeing. a cause the regulatory overhang, the tech sector is not helping as well. all of this is a confluence of negative sectors we are seeing in the market now. shery: let me ask you about china because we have seen them hold the key rate steady but at the same time they have allowed for those policy loans to be rolled over. what does that mean in terms of more easing or not coming from the pboc? >> we think the pboc is starting to rethink the monetary supply again. the recent cut in the rrr shows we are sensitive to the growth

outlook. we are in -- we are in a soft patch. the recent retail number look fairly weak. we expect the chinese government to continue injecting liquidity into the market. that is good news because the chinese market is very much a credit driven animal. we think the combination we have seen the last few cycles, i.e. credit extension is a big driver of the chinese market. they will continue to hold true. we think that could very much be an indicator the bulk of it is really here. shery: great to have your insight. we continue to watch the downside pressure on chinese adrs, chinese companies. this as we get the most direct warning coming from the u.s. sec chair. now saying investors don't know about some of those chinese companies listed in the u.s.

take a listen to what he said. >> that we take a pause for now when such listings of's shell company listers based operating companies. haidi: being straightforward about the implications of a lack of transparency repeatedly calling for a demand that u.s. officials must be able to see financial documents and orders kid he put a timeline saying if they don't give access, open up their books, these companies be them chinese or in the cayman islands will not be able to be listed here in the u.s. when are the political pressure he has been facing from capitol hill to increased scrutiny of these chinese companies. shery: as we continue to see the rivalry between beijing and washington grow. let's get to vonnie quinn. vonnie: president biden has addressed americans from the white house as chaotic scenes

player in kabul where the taliban have returned to power. the associated press says at least seven people were killed as crowds rushed trying to board departing aircraft. the president says he is standing by the decision to withdraw u.s. forces saying the 20 year war in afghanistan was never about nationbuilding. >> i stand squarely behind my decision. after 20 years, i have learned the hard way. that there was never a good time to withdraw u.s. forces. vonnie: pfizer and beyond tech have submitted early-stage data to u.s. regulators on booster shot trials. they say a word does of their covid-19 vaccine leads to higher levels of protective antibodies when given a to nine months after the initial doses. results from larger -- from the water trial are due soon.

new york city is expanding its vaccine mandate to include sports stadiums, zoos, movie theaters and other venues. children under the age of 12 are exempt but must wear masks and be with someone who is vaccinated. the rules do not apply to businesses, schools or seniors in childcare centers. the japanese government is extending its covid state of emergency through the timber 12th as the virus continues to spread. the decoration for tokyo, osaka, okinawa and three other regions will be expended. the state of emergency will remain through the tokyo paralympics, which will be held without spectators. global news, 24 hours a day, on air and on quicktake by bloomberg, powered by more than 2700 journalists and analysts in over 120 countries. on vonnie quinn. this is bloomberg.

haidi: we will be getting insight into singapore's reopening. our interview with the country's minister parade -- minister of trade. more of the chaos and afghanistan as president biden defense decision to exit the country. we have the latest night. this is bloomberg. ♪

>> i stand squarely behind my decision. after 20 years, i have learned the hard way that there was never a good time to withdraw u.s. forces. >> i urge all parties, especially the taliban to exercise utmost restraint. >> what we want to do is make sure we as the u.k. pull together our like-minded partners so we deal with that regime in a concerted way. >> the afghan army failed to provide any resistance or very

little resistance. we'll made an incorrect assessment and this was not just a misinterpretation on the part of the germans. it was widespread. >> afghanistan will also need its own a manpower and europe alone cannot assume the consequences of the current situation. we have to anticipate this and protect ourselves against irregular flows of migration. shery: leaders weighing in on the situation in afghanistan. let's bring in our white house correspondent. just a few minutes ago, we heard from china the foreign minister held talks with russia and they talked about boosting communications on afghanistan. what do we know about the actions taken by leaders around the world on the country? >> right now, the western nations are focusing on the evacuation chair that includes president biden. you heard in his address today he came back from camp david to make that speech.

the remarks are going to hold for 36 hours or so. his schedule for tuesday has him scaring -- has him staying at camp david. the press secretary will speak to reporters tomorrow. i will be the next major address that issue. by then we might know more about how many people they had managed to get out of kabul, whether they had managed to secure the airport, whether they had managed secure -- to secure the tower. we don't know yet how the u.s. will treat that. i think most people would expect other countries are particularly china and russia to be quicker to recognize. broadly speaking, what biden underscored today and those who wants to the speech, this will be no surprise. he sees this not as a reason to backtrack on this plan, which was similar to donald trump's plan to withdraw donald trump's troops. there is broad public opinion

consensus and fairly broad consensus among american politicians around ending the involvement in that rather than backing off. biden is doubling down, saying the collapse around kabul is all the more reason for the u.s. to get out. we will see that rushed evacuation over the next several days. haidi: president biden continues to say this campaign was never about nationbuilding. the removal of u.s. troops present on the ground, what does it meet in terms of national security and regional implications now? >> this is a big open question. this is one where they are taking it on the chin because there have been warnings for weeks and months in particular around interpreters and other afghans helped the u.s. government things were not moving easily enough for those who wanted to get out of the country a chance to do so.

as for the national security ankle, joe biden was saying -- most analysts would agree with that. they're going to try to have the same impact on fighting terrorism without having boots on the ground. haidi: our white house correspondent with the latest. let's take a closer look at the role of china. there one of the first -- they are one of the first global powers to embrace the taliban. we spoke interestingly to daniel markey from johns hopkins. he spoke about the economic diplomacy playbook china is expected to use. >> china has plenty of resources to throw around. the chinese need to be careful as well. the afghan taliban are not

purely motivated by money. they can be rented but not bought. there will be limits to china's charm offensive. haidi: if we take a look at what the chinese are expected to do, we know china and russia have been talking. could this economic diplomacy work to ensure some stability where military presence clearly has not? >> the taliban are going to need good relations with some of the neighbors to get the economy going and meet the needs of the people. the taliban have come in to kabul. they have promised amnesty to people. they want to set up the government again. they're trying to show the world they can act responsibly at the moment cared they told their neighbors they will not cause any trouble for them. the question for china in

particular, once the u.s. gets out of there and china has most at stake. it has billions of dollars of investments next-door in pakistan it shares a border with afghanistan where it has been concerned about terrorism. for the chinese, it makes sense to engage the taliban. they have already hosted a delegation of top leaders a few weeks ago and so, they are preparing to deal with this government and economic diplomacy is kind of the main way china uses to try to stabilize different areas. we have seen that in pakistan. shery: will afghanistan become another point of friction between the united states and china? shery: in wake -- >> in a way, the u.s. and china ti tie on afghanistan. both places once a stable country that does not export terrorism cared for the u.s., that is terrorism in the form of al qaeda that led to the attacks

of 9/11 cared for china, that is terrorism i nation john that could destabilize beijing. there is an aligning of interests. in a way, the americans might be happy china will take more responsibility on this front. shery: the asia government managing editor. -- u.s. troops were vital for maintaining the status quo. >> it has had a chance to regroup. at has access to american arms. it has presented -- it is proven its resilience. the opposition in afghanistan is if anything weaker than it was. there is no sign of any mellowing by the taliban. >> a careful read. the world is a vacuum gets filled. i know you took three courses in

physics at oberlin a few years ago. it is the vacuum going to be filled by china with the 47 mile border they have constructed by the british in 1895? >> the chinese do not want to get into afghanistan. what they one is to get afghanistan out of china. they're worried about their own muslim minorities. the last thing they want is for them to be radicalized. none of the neighbors with the exception of pakistan, there is a lot of appetite for getting into afghanistan. they want to keep its terrorists, drugs out of their country. they're worried about refugee flows. that is the everything people are going to be -- that is the other think it will going to be worried about. >> let's swing to iran. the wonderful frontline effort that was done in number of weeks ago. it is sunni. it is she appeared is that ultimately what this will be about? >> i don't see particular friction between iran and afghanistan. we have problems with iran but

that is to do everything they are doing the region, their nuclear program. iran has been helpful in the past. . 20 years ago, the iranians were helpful in standing up a post-taliban government. they won a stable neighbor. they don't want one that is exporting drugs. i don't think a run is the place to look either for the problem or the solution. >> where do we look? do we look to the allies who feel somewhat betrayed by the u.s.? >> the answer is there is no solution to look for. this is now the new reality in afghanistan. it is going to be awful for afghans. the danger is they invite terrorists back in or terrorists invite themselves back in. america's reputation for consistency and reliability has taken a hit to our worry about the long-term consequences for pakistan. it is ironic. pakistan provided a sanctuary which cap the taliban alive and helped us to this point. it is possible some of the

taliban might want to go ahead and further radicalize pakistan. i the medium to long run, i would worry about that. for the knighted states, the focus has got to be in getting as many afghanistan's -- as many afghani's out of the country. we have to go around the world trying to demonstrate the awful scenes we are seeing in afghanistan are not somehow representative of the totality of american foreign policy. we have got to persuade people they should not read too much into this. >> a lot of officials have said this is not a war we could win. we were keeping the peace and sacrificing american soldiers. frankly soldiers of the allies to keep a piece that was unnatural in this nation. what do you say to counter that why it was important in your view for u.s. troops to remain in afghanistan at a much lower rate than they had been five or 10 years ago? >> we had reduced the u.s. monetary presence to around 3000 cared there has not been an

american combat death for 18 months. this was a situation i thought for a relatively modest investment we were getting good results. the american presence was essential to keep the 8000 allied troops there. it provided a psychological and military floor for the afghans. it was not going to give you peace. it was not going to give you a military victory. what was going to do was avoid bringing about what we are seeing on our screens. i think sometimes in a foreign policy of got to measure success not by what you accomplish but why -- but by what you averred. this was a success. we undermined our own aussie. -- our own policy. haidi: lots more to come on daybreak asia. this is bloomberg. ♪

shery: you're watching daybreak: asia.

don't miss our big interviews ahead. we will hear exclusively from singapore's minister in a few moments. the filipinos -- the filipino central bank governor ted plenty more. this is bloomberg.

haidi: we are just getting these lines crossing the bloomberg when it comes to singapore exports. exports number rising 12.7% year on year. lightly better than expectations of 12%. when it comes to the month on month number, a fall in july of 19 to 1%. i should say a gain of 9/10 of 1%. shery: it seems we are seeing

export growth numbers easing. the electronics side of things, shipments year on year rising 15%, which is easing from the jump of 25% under the previous month. this coming at a time when economists at hsbc have said we have seen already the electronics peak. we have seen south korea's chip exports falling for the first time last month since april. we'll be watching those numbers closely as we continue to see economic growth numbers out of the region. staying in singapore, it is all about vaccinations. 70% of its population has been fully vaccinated. 79% have received at least one dose, giving the city state one of the best vaccination rates in the world. let's cross to singapore where our chief international correspondent is standing by with our next guest.

>> singapore has started to ease restrictions and is looking to allow travel cared without quarantine for vaccinated travelers. we're excited to welcoming you to the lion city. let's get perspective from singapore's minister of trade. he is also cochair of singapore's covid task force. thank you for joining us. when we take a look at singapore's vaccination rate, it is making massive improvements. is it fair to assume it is a reopening strategy -- the reopening strategy is on track and if so, what can we expect? >> are vaccination has made good progress -- our vaccination has made good progreit is ahead of . we plan to receive two thirds vaccination of the population. we have achieved 70%. we are hoping we will be able to cover 80% of our population by

end of this month or early next month. remain on track. our reopening strategy is not going to be the big bank strategy. the risk of doing that is infection rate may climb rapidly . that will pose a risk to unknown factors including -- we do need to ensure the opening process is a calculated one, taking a more cautious approach in doing so in a step-by-step manner so we will continue to open up and at the same time keep the number of infections generally lower. haslinda: what would it take for singapore to have groups of more than five or eight? what would it take for singapore to remove the curfew of 10:30 for businesses? what would it take? >> it would also require the

whole world's infections have come under. singapore is an open economy. we have trouble coming from overseas. we have citizens traveling overseas and returning to singapore. as well as the emergence of a new variant. it is important for us to bear in mind infection will continue until the whole world is safe. we have to bear in mind the vaccines today although it is very effective against severe diseases, it is less effective to prevent transmission. we will continue to see a number of the cases in singapore. we are prepared for that. the key is to ensure we keep the number of serious cases and hospitalization cases located this will allow us to progressively open up the economy. we will then be able to allow

more people to socialize together. haslinda: you talk about how it is important for singapore to ensure its health care system, its hospitals are not overwhelmed. is there a threshold? is there a hospitalization rate that signifies acceptable? give us an idea of when we can expect a clampdown or tighter restrictions. what are the numbers you are looking at? >> it depends on many factors. it also depends on the severity of the disease, the cages we are seeing. we have -- the cases we are seem to we have sufficient capacity but we should not take it for granted. we have seen it happen all over the world. a new wave comes about. you will see cases rise exponentially. that is what we are trying to avoid. we accept the number of cases will go up as we open up more. we have to do all we can to

avoid the explosion of cases we have just seen. if we do have an exponential number of cases, we have a problem with health care capacity. if we are able to maintain a number of cases, even if it goes, we are able to slow down the growth rate, it will allow us to expand our capacity. haslinda: you have talked about opening up singapore to international travelers who have been vaccinated. apart from the country who have -- the countries you've mentioned before, what other countries are you looking at? would that be the u.s., u.k.? any clarity on that? >> we are keeping our options open. we are in discussions with quite a number of countries. it depends on the situation locally in singapore as well as the situation in those countries. if they are able to keep their infection under control and the infection rates are acceptable,

and the vaccination rates are high. those are the -- haslinda: are the u.s. and u.k. in that list? >> we continue to look at them. u.k., the u.s., australia and so on. to explore possibilities of opening up. some pilot arrangement where we allow groups of people with controlled itinerary and controlled arrangement so as to ensure to prevent transmission of the disease. we will do a few of these pilots for the vaccinated travelers. haslinda: the world is debating booster shots right now. we have israel already giving out one million booster shots. the u.s. considering them for the most vulnerable. what is the position on booster shots?

>> collecting data to better understand the effect of the booster shot and the need for it. a booster shot particularly for those who are immunocompromised. we will need to provide them with additional booster shots . haslinda: in your capacity as a trade minister, are you concerned about the shutdown we are seeing in china right now? there are some concerns that could lead to shipping woes and that could impact singapore. it just raised its growth projection. is that at risk? >> we are monitoring the situation.

our shipping lanes and our connectivity. it is important for us to look at the resiliency of our supply chains. we're in touch with our business leaders to understand their strategy to strengthen supply lines. we are watching this very carefully. at the moment, it does not seem to be affecting our shipping. haslinda: what is the biggest risk to singapore growth projection right now given we are seeing the reemergence and spread of the delta variant? we have seen even a slow down in china. the data yesterday fell short of estimates. >> we understand the concern we have is new waves of infection. new variants that emerge from covid-19 which will --

we are watching very carefully the emergence of possible variants around the world and we are in touch with the scientific community. we must be prepared to respond quickly. from singapore's point of view, we have strong fundamentals. i think we are quite confident we will be able to achieve our projection this year. haslinda: singapore will be welcoming the u.s. vice president to the city. what priorities or what issues will be key in those discussions with her? >> we will discuss a wide spectrum of issues including our collaboration.

not just the economy. we will discuss how we can look at pushing ahead with sustainability issues. how we can collaborate more in terms of research and development in technology. there will be many areas of interest will be discussing with vice president harris. haslinda: do you think it is a reflection of closer relations between the u.s. and singapore as well as southeast asia? >> i think it reflects the u.s. interest in singapore as well as in the asian region. we do want to see stronger engagement from the u.s. in this region in terms of the economy

and economic area as well as other areas. i think for the region and corporation, it is important to have a mutual interest in this area. haslinda: thank you for your time today. singapore minister for trade and industry. heading back to you. haidi: great conversation. let's take a look at a wavering session for asian stocks. display another record run in the u.s.. -- despite another record run in the u.s.. sophie: a laundry list of concerns. japanese stocks bouncing back. we are seeing the kospi had lower. extending losses for an eighth straight session. but a much all sectors in the red except for health care and

financials and pockets of tech. stocks weighed by minors with the banks wing bhp shares off more than 1% ahead of its report card. checking in on currency markets this tuesday morning, we have the yen holding onto a four day gain. the dollar is looking steady. there are plenty of reasons to stay bullish on the greenback in the near term. chief among them geopolitics as well as the fomc minutes. the rba minutes this tuesday and the rbnz decision on wednesday. at socgen, seeing this cross as a no-brainer when it comes to the trade. he is still keen on countries that are trying to normalize policy. markets are pricing in for the be ok, which could happen to the korean you want -- which could happen. testing the 1172 handle. morgan stanley does not see it breaking above 1175 in the next one to two breaks -- one to next -- one to two weeks.

uncertainty of who will form the next government. politics as well as virus woes have driven depreciation pressures. allowing broader em weakness in the face of fed taper chatter. shery: coming up, we have more on the latest ship crisis that sophie mentioned -- latest leadership crisis that sophie mentioned. this is bloomberg. ♪

vonnie: this is daybreak: asia. president joe biden has addressed americans from the white house as chaotic scenes play out in kabul where the taliban have returned to power. the associated press says at least seven people were killed as crowds rushed trying to board departing aircraft. the president says he is denting by the decision to withdraw the u.s. forces saying the 20 year war in afghanistan was never about nationbuilding. the state department says the u.s. is in constructive talks with the taliban in both kabul and ohio as it seeks to restore odor over afghanistan's main airports and reach a political settlement to the decades-old conflict. in a of afghanistan's new

leaders would depend on the taliban's willingness to create an inclusive government that involves women and others. the athlete -- the fcc commissioner delivered his morning. he says he ordered the sec to pause green lighting ipo's of shell companies that chinese firms use to list shares. agency wants companies to increase disclosures including the fact beijing may change roles unexpectedly. global news, 24 hours a day, on air and on quicktake by bloomberg, powered by more than 2700 journalists and analysts in over 120 countries. i'm vonnie quinn. this is bloomberg. shery: resigned after 17 months in power fueling a crisis of leadership. let's cross to the bloomberg opinion columnist.

he says he will be caretaker prime minister for the time being. where to now? >> the move is entirely up to the king. malaysia's orioles are used to operating -- malaysia's royals are used to staying in the shadows. the events have thrust them to the fore. when the cabinet collapsed in february of last year and he was tapped to be prime minister, that process took about a week. we have been building up to this one with numerous dress rehearsals for the past couple of months. hopefully that means we will get a name sooner. that has also allowed the positions to become entrenched. who knows. haidi: how does this worsen

things when it comes to the potential for any election? this is the second government to have collapsed since the 2018 general election. why wouldn't they be heading to the polls? >> there was a state election in summer. one of the malaysian states nestled at the tip of bony or -- of borneo. that became a calamity. that was a bona fide super-spreader event. given that malaysia is still clocking daily infections of around 20,000, there was a record last thursday, no one wants to take the chance of a worsening covid situation. you might not get the result you're looking for. elections can be unpredictable. at the very least, whoever succeeds needs to be able to demonstrate the support of a majority on the floor of the lower house. if you can't have any election, that is the next best thing to

you would think that would be a no-brainer in a representative democracy. not so easy. haidi: our bloomberg opinion columnist with the latest on asia. we will get further analysis later with the university of asia research institute. the about-face comes less than two months after it started easing some of the strictest quarantine measures. joining us is our senior medical reporter michelle cortez. why are we seeing hong kong ramping up restrictions for some of these residents returning certain countries? >> hong kong has done an amazing job of keeping the coronavirus out of the city and they are keen to continue that process. this is something china is also doing, really ramping up restrictions and making sure it continues its coronavirus, it's

covid zero status. the rest of the world as starting to open up and learning how to live with the virus and just trying to grapple with it as an endemic state. these movements i hong kong are absolutely essential. if they let any of the virus in, vaccination rates are pretty low. the population rates are very vulnerable. with the delta variant, we would see it spread exponentially. they are unwilling to take any risk. shery: china is strict about controlling their borders. is there a link here? >> i think china is talking with hong kong and figuring out ways to keep both of these areas safe. china borders hong kong and there is a lot of movement between these two countries even though restrictions are very strict in both locations. the concern is with the delta variant and people moving in and out of the country, you do have some of these little bit of

breakthroughs. china is just getting it recent outbreak under control. they are doing an excellent job unlike any other country in the world, actually having success acting the virus under control after seeing outbreak. there is concerned they don't want to have to deal with that in hong kong. the people are the ones thing with here especially people who are planning on coming back from countries like france or the united states or the locals planning to go there thinking they would only have to quarantine for seven days on the way back. that has been increased to 21 days. it makes it difficult for people to go anywhere and for businesses to run their operations. shery: the outbreak in japan continues. we have the paralympics starting next week. what can we expect in terms of infection rates? >> tokyo in particular is under state of emergency right now when it comes to the virus. we are seeing them try to get this under control. much less successful than we are

seeing in china. there are going to be in no viewers for the paralympic games just like there were not an a for the olympics. we are hoping the surge we saw coming as the olympics hit, we will not see another surgeon with the paralympics. --'s another surge with the para liv-ex. we do not see a lot of success the last time around. shery: our senior medical reporter. we have more ahead. this is bloomberg. ♪

shery: here's a quick check of the latest headlines. dhp confirmed at is in talks about a potential merger of its oil and gas unit with woodside petroleum to accelerate its retreat from fossil fuel. the company says options being discussed include disturbing woodside shares to bhp holders. bhp is reviewing a portfolio. pag is creating a new digital infrastructure company focused on cloud assets. the private equity firm has already invested in $2 billion of assets. bidding on rising demand for the storage. the newly appointed chairman says it is targeting $10 billion in enterprise value in five to

seven years through deals and growth. aaa group reported value in new business for the first half growing 29% growing past analyst estimates. first half profit came in at $3.1 billion while net income was 3.2 billion. a jump of 48% year on year. aia launched new operations and received regulatory approval to open a new branch in hubei province. haidi: big interviews ahead. we'll be speaking exclusively with the philippine central governor. will also be taking a look at chinese equity markets. adam smith will be joining us as well. a former treasury senior advisor. he will talk with us about the -- our markets coverage does continue.

where taking a look ahead to the start of trading in hong kong, shanghai and shenzhen. bloomberg markets china open is next. this is bloomberg. ♪

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>> welcome to "bloomberg markets: china open." i'm yvonne man. david: we're counting down to the opening of trade on the mainland here and hong kong. president biden defends his decision to withdraw from afghanistan amid chaotic scenes and some miscalculation. pres. biden: i always pr