the story that we're following for you. the u.s. secretary of state might compare has met chancellor angela merkel in berlin the talks will cordial but there was no meeting of minds on relations with iran or any other issues. you're watching live from berlin up next business africa with monocle jones a man you could his mackinnon thanks so much for watching. what secrets lie behind these memos. to find out in an immersive experience and explore a fascinating and cultural heritage science. d.w. world heritage 360 giving up mouth. climate change.

sustainability move environmental projects. of globalization. biodiversity species monsour vision exploitation in quality. human rights displacement to. the global on current. global 3000. south africa launches a c o 2 attacks to clear the air but a big energy uses the war on the carbon tax will weigh on the nation's already struggling economy also coming up is africa's see as a front a colonial relic or is it a stabilizing economic force. welcome to the business africa i want to get jones in berlin good to have you with. yes and starting with sas africa which today reported

fresh data showing the economy is far from robust its trade deficit came in at under 3 and a half 1000000000 rand in april with exports falling 1.3 percent month on month not surprising then that south africa's plans to introduce a c o 2 tax burdens industry is being met with mixed response. it's a rare step for an emerging economy. south africa has become the 1st country in the continent to introduce a carbon tax. starting on june 1st companies whose activities produce greenhouse gases above in a loud threshold will have to pay just over $7.00 euro's per tonne emitted carbon tax and south africa it's a collaborative effort by the african revenue service and national treasury and government in order to allow companies to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions as south africa is one of the biggest emitters throughout africa the tax will boost

government coffers but its objective is not raising state revenue the goal is to protect the environment and join the global fight against climate change but africa's into the into the 25th in paris agreement which comes into effect in 2020 we have been placed into quite a significant amount of pressure in order to implement and some form of making as them for companies to be able to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions but there will be consequences especially since the countries largely depended on coal to generate electricity. and industries not entirely convinced the road forward will be easy the americans understand the imperatives of the green economy and the environment but we are quite concerned about the uncertainties around the carbon tax because none of the regulations of its implementation have been really clarified. various figures in the mining sector believe it will be difficult for an already struggling industry to implement the tax while remaining financially viable

and no one knows what effect if any the tax will have. it's are on the allowance of an initial phase it's around competitive countries where we could get an allowance. and that would make it very difficult for for the mining couple of mining companies to continue to work because it's a substantial cost for south african economies currently starring some fear this additional tax will create an unnecessary financial and human history of burden in a country with low growth rates and rampant unemployment for more let's cross over to philip divot associate editor of business insider south africa and john is the good have you with us please tell us which sectors the us sector would be hardest hit to by the c o 2 tax at this stage it looks as if the economy as a whole states this burden because an immediate impact the codecs will be a levy on steel so that it will in the diesel that really drives our economy in

south africa will it be so that'll give you a very even distribution of the economic impact after that we expect the mining industry to see quite a heavy impact and it looks like the electricity sector will not be read year to hit thanks to offsets and allowances and the use of green energy there it looks as if electricity prices won't go immediately but we do anticipate that that result you will see increases and that's when seafood prices increase and general information increase as a result now given the fact that the south african economy is struggling as it is is now the time to introduce such a tax. this is the burning question in south africa employment is the major political issue facing the country at the moment for instance here of this week change the name of the department of labor that the ministry of naming to the department of employment and labor he's putting his political future on the line is saying that jobs whose is the primary thinks unemployment has this to 15 year high

and the economy is struggling now to introduce this tax at this point today many people will say this is absolutely insane move the same time what we're hearing from the government side is that south africa must now start to decouple from carbon otherwise we won't see the foreign inflows we will see and foreign countries and companies and even individuals who are no longer willing to invest in carbon intensity economies who live money out so the argument is that in the long run this is the smart economic thing to do all right fit into that that says editor of business inside a south africa reporting from your hand is that about south africa introducing a c o 2 tax thank you so much. and now to some other stories making news around the world. in the u.s. a court ruling is forcing by a subsidiary monsanto to help clean up dozens of bodies of water that were contaminated with a hazardous chemical can seem to be the company's already struggling and expensive lawsuits because of its need to kill a round up and court cases are piling up causing furious fire shareholders to

question the monsanto purchased. british telecom mobile phone provider each is the 1st in europe to launch a high speed 5 g. service the 5 g. net will be available in parts of 6 cities including london birmingham and belfast vodafone will roll out its own 5 g. network next month 5 g. offers almost instantaneous data transfer needed in strategic sectors like energy transport banking and health care. and in peru potatoes are now in the limelight of the country boasts over 3 and a half 1000 different varieties of the tube or many of them are on display at bruce 10th annual festival in lima where people from across the country come to celebrate their different flavors colors and forms. now on the u.s. doorstep the president donna trump has said he will levy

a 5 percent tariff to all goods coming in from mexico unless mexico curbs migration across the u.s. southern border the tariff could rise to 25 percent in october donna trump wants mexican authorities to do more to combat illegal entries to the u.s. mexico's president and his mind when his obrador says he will respond with quote great prudence to translate his threat and that it won't stop his country ratifying the united states mexico canada agreement. and some praise the french backed s r c f a franc for its stability others denounce it as a colonial hang over so what is it about. the sea of a frank that is used by around 155000000 people in africa that get so many of them riled up the currency is used in west and central africa by 14 countries both regions have their own central banks but the s c f a frank is packed

to the euro and it's guaranteed by the french treasury in return france requires see if a member has to deposit at least 50 percent of their foreign exchange reserves currently about $10000000000.00 euros into a special account in the french treasury and they have to keep the inflation rate below 2 percent critics say that with the c.f.a. franc tied to the strong the euro member states cannot influence monetary policy to boost their economies competitiveness that there is something to talk about now with wendy passé from africa who joins us now from a studio in brussels wendy good to have you with us now listening to the concept of the see if a frank it's somewhat sounds anacreon istic doesn't work. 1st of all before we go free in this debate i just want to say that it's an economical debate even though these days many people bring question on the front see for when

they're talking about it i think according to me today the big problem is the fact that fancy face coming from a colonial time and also because it's linked to the euro and some people say that the fact that it was a phase linked to you will allow people to may to make more exportation then importation and this is a big cause sequence for the continent especially the african continent and this is also something that can stop then just and utilization of the continent so there is a big debate about it and i think that today. we need to have a clear communication about dystopia. so let's let's try and clarify it when there is this debate and people say there have arguments in favor and arguments against which argument has the upper hand which is the more realistic one. i think both voices need to be heard because today if you look in the african

continent especially if you told me of some economist there will tell you that the force a friend need to be reformed they just wanted to be changed by something new but they don't know exactly or they're not giving exactly what knew what newco currency need to be changed by different safer and i think also for most economies they say that difference a fire is a tool of economic domination used by france against african country this is an argument but i think it's not the only one argument i think today people are all involved that means african states friends economists and all the people involved in these 2 big need to sit down on the table and try to find something fair for everyone involved real difference if who is using it in these daily life right of india bashing different africa thank you so much for sharing your views on this topic with us thank you. now then coffee is becoming very

popular in china big name coffee shops popping up everywhere it has the reputation of being the land of tea but china now produces more beans than coffee powerhouses like costa rica and kenya combined. they've arrived in every major city international coffee chains are popping up all over china with a caffeine fueled enthusiasm starbucks opens a cafe here every 15 hours and suddenly everyone has their favorite coffee down to trim a flak no sugar for america i think a lot but as well as serving domestic demand china is increasingly helping the rest of the world get its coffee cake in recent years many farmers have converted to the crop some of them doubling their income to around $10.00 a day something worth singing about. before i grew corn and potatoes but i made much less money than i do now with coffee. because.

once famous for tea pu'er is now china's coffee capital the 1st plants were reportedly brought here by french missionaries some years later china is now the 13th biggest producer in the world cauldron by which a lot of the top plantation is located near the tropic of cancer it's a very favorable area for coffee cultivation as altitude climate and $1800.00 millimeters of precipitation per year it's ideal all matching energy. from bean to cup china is embracing coffee whatever form it takes. this is the a business africa for me in the team in the lead thanks for getting this company.

the fico africa. looks at the eco friendly mobility in a special edition from barbara good to meet her so what can we do to make getting yourself from a to b. more environmentally friendly. we look at the mobility of the future you know for a good solution.

60 minutes. with a. good link to news from africa. or links to exceptional stories and discussion from the news of easy i want with sandy debbie to come smash the coffee join us on facebook. for god. this is t w news africa coming up in the next 15 minutes mozambique's bid to rebuild the devastated gold city of beirut is hosting a u.n. backed meeting to raise billions of dollars needed to repair the damages polls by cycling's it die and can it pass some people have not even received aid. and beyond space and i describe above that's all about the lights the sober museum doubles as an experiment on environmental sustainability missing people experience

an alternative way to living in any.