♪ >> hello, and welcome to the "journal" on dw-tv. i am brian thomas. >> and i am steve chaid with your business update. >> our headlines -- the president of serious his victory over the opposition is in near and that he will not step down. late night eurozone crisis talks now underway between the german chancellor and imf head christine lagarde here in berlin. and new hampshire goes to the polls to select a republican challenger to president barack obama. ♪

>> syrian president bashar al- assad has planned -- blamed for rent agitators for anti- government protest. the country's largest opposition group, the syrian national council, called the speech incitement to violence that could push the country closer to civil war. assad said the unrest would only come to an end when the flow of funds and weapons from abroad stops. >> there was sustained of saw -- applause as bashar al-assad took the stage at the university of the damascus. it was one of his few appearances since the uprising started in march last year. he blamed syria's problems on outside forces. >> this conspiracy of foreign powers is obvious to everyone. everyone of us understand what they planned. it is editorial at the syrian people.

the only people who do not know this have their eyes and ears closed. >> assad claimed there were no orders to shoot anti-regime protesters. not true, say dozens of army and secret service deserters that the u.n. says that, on average, 40 people a day are being shot dead by government forces in syria. these images purports to show regime troops with armored vehicles in the east of the country. assad insists he is not stepping down, but he pledged to reform the constitution later this year. >> this new constitution has an important aim, the establishment of a multi-party system. >> many in the west have reacted with skepticism to assad's pledges, including germany. >> over the past few months, we have heard a lot of announcements from the assad regime, but it too few deeds, and it is only through deeds that we can judge the words.

>> the continued violence has led some in the opposition to give up hope for political solution. and after the failure of the arab league to stop the crisis, there are increasing calls for foreign intervention. >> let's go to our middle east analyst who joins us in the studio. welcome. first off, that was a very wide- ranging speech for president assad. on one hand, he said the opposition is running out of steam. on the other hand, he said he is due to put a referendum in place. >> there is a lot of wishful thinking -- speaking in his speech. we see more and more provinces in syria getting involved in to this uprising. at the same time, the president made it clear that he will not compromise, that he is not seeking a real dialogue with the opposition. he considers them to be terrorists that are being steered from the outside, wherever that may be. he thinks his military is still in charge.

indeed, there is no way of toppling mr. assad without support of the army. so far, they do side with the president, because they are his own tribal group, so to speak, and they see no reason to let him go. the situation is very tragic for syria. the president does not understand the seriousness of the situation. >> you mentioned the support of the elite who run the country. christians are also behind the regime. how much support in told us assad enjoy? >> difficult to say. but he still holds the support of at least 30% to 40% of the population. religious minorities, merchant communities in the capital and aleppo, the economic center of syria, so there is still substantial support. the interesting fact remains whether or not the middle class will continue to support him. the rich city merchants or whether they will prefer to see

him replaced by someone else do to the syrian economy falling apart. >> as ever, to some much. >> a car bomb in northwestern pakistan has left at least 30 people dead and more than 60 wounded. it's a place in a market in the troubled kuiper region which borders afghanistan. local officials say the bomb hit an anti-taliban militia and set up to combat insurgents. they suspect it was started by islamist extremists. it is one of the deadliest attacks in pakistan in recent months. nigeria is being shaken by more instability with eight people reported killed by suspected islamist militants in an northern state. earlier, five people were killed in an attack on a mosque in at the southern city. there was anti-christian violence in the muslim north. there have been tense protests over rising fuel prices in nigeria. on tuesday, tens of thousands of people demonstrated in the

capital abuja and elsewhere. fuel prices in nigeria have more than doubled since president goodluck jonathan remove subsidies to the beginning of this month. here in berlin, the german government is continuing its push to rein in the eurozone debt crisis. at this hour, chancellor angela merkel is holding talks with the international monetary fund's chief, christine lagarde, seen here at an earlier meeting. sources say the agenda includes funding for the eurozone stability facility, the plan for deeper fiscal integration, and the debt crisis facing in greece and the non-jurors on country, hungary, which is also in danger of default. let's go live to our political correspondent, simon, who joins us in berlin. what is at the center of these talks this evening? >> these are being described as informal talks, and we were told that there would not be any

official statements to the media. so we can only make an educated guess as to what is at the center of the talks. as you have said, two things in the main, the role of the international monetary fund in helping to rescue the euro. what can it do to is aboard eurozone economies? not all countries are willing to make the extra contributions to imf funds that chancellor merkel things are needed. of course, it is this is written in greece that it will be talking about. that country is stumbling efforts to get its finances in order. >> stumbling could be putting it mildly. are germany and the imf still fully behind greece? >> certainly, they are. chancellor merkel has repeated that, of course, she does not want greece to lead the eurozone. she wants to see that country, you know, moving forward and strengthening its economy. but she has reiterated that

greece must do more to implement the reforms, the fiscal reforms, that it has agreed to before support money can be paid across. there is 130 billion euros up european support money that has been waiting to go to greece since december. she said the catalytic a when there are real signs that greece is implementing the necessary reforms. one other thing that the private investors, people who have lent money to greece, they want to know the details of the restructuring of the debt, the 50% write-down they have been asked to agree to. until they know what the terms are, they are unlikely to agree. so the pressure remains on greece tonight. >> as those talks continue. simon, thank you so very much for now. let's go over to steve. a very different story for france, which has hurt some reassurances today. >> a big market rally, a huge relief rally.

european shares soared tuesday after fitch ratings said it does not plan to downgrade france this year and that it remains confident the 17-nation eurozone will not break up in the coming months. you're out's bailout fund reliance on the top credit ratings of france and germany to borrow at affordable rates. the downgrade for friends would torpedo the region's efforts to stem the current debt crisis. however, it was not all good news. several other european countries, including italy, were warned that their credit ratings could be downgraded by the end of this month unless they continue to pursue reforms. and to restore economic growth. spain, belgium, ireland, and slovenia, as well as cyprus, all remain on a negative watch. european markets did rally tuesday as investors were given some cause for cautious optimism our correspondent sent us this summary of tuesday's trading action from the frankfurt stock exchange. >> little optimism concerning the debt crisis entered the

floor again. the rating agency, fitch, announced to france that they may probably keep its aaa rating. also, austria and germany will remain a aaa. this has been very good news there that investors heard here. and it felt great relief, the dax has been jumping up by nearly 2%. on the software shares went down sharply. germany's second-biggest software maker announced that the company missed its target for last year. software papers lost by nearly 20%. and sap shares went down. >> we will stay in frankfurt for a closer look at the numbers. the blue-chip dax up by a 2.4% at the closing bell. the euro stoxx 50 finishing at

2347, gaining. in new york, the dow up by 0.6%, 12,466. the euro trading at a value of $1.2787. running the world's most valuable brand, apple has made it tim cooke the highest paid ceo in the u.s. he did over as ceo shortly before steve jobs died in october, and he has been rewarded handsomely for what apple's board called his critical contribution to the company's success and a smooth leadership transition. earnings documents filed for 2011 show that his pay package was valued at $378 million, mostly made up of apple shares. by contrast, the former ceo, steve jobs, it said in an annual salary of just $1 for many years. however, he owned shares in apple that are valued at well over $2 billion.

to the airline sector, air berlin has reported a drop in passengers for the second month in a row. germany's second-largest airline says that it is caring 12% fewer people in december, although passenger figures were up for the year as a whole. the carrier has been cutting flight connections and seats as it tries to return to profit. air berlin has been in the red for years, but better times to be on the horizon but they got a boost last night when another airline agreed to buy more than 29% of shares there. that is your business update. >> a breaking story we're following closely. officials have issued a local tsunami warning in western indonesia. they say the threat is low. this follows a powerful quake of the island of sumatra. the epicenter of these 7.3 magnitude earthquake was about 420 mm from a city. no reports of casualties or damage thus far.

to the united states now, where voters in new hampshire are casting their ballots in the president joe primaries. barack obama is running unopposed in the democrats' side. on the republican side, mitt romney hopes he can build on his narrow win in iowa last week. romney shows a strong lead. ron paul is vying for second place among the other contenders. >> as is customary, of voting in new hampshire got under way at midnight local time in the tiny hamlet of dixville notch. there were more spectators than voters, with just six ballots cast but there were quickly counted. one each for newt gingrich and ron paul. dw for jon huntsman and mitt romney. -- two for jon huntsman and mitt romney. ronnie was the clear favorite going into the primary. the multimillionaire businessman has been under where it -- under fire for comment on health care

made hours before the primary. >> i want individuals to have their own insurance. that means the insurance company will have an incentive to keep you healthy. it also means that if you do not like what they do, you can fire them. i like being able to fire people to provide services to me. >> former utah governor and u.s. diplomats jon huntsman was quick to pounce on romney's remarks. >> governor romney enjoys firing people. i enjoy creating jobs. >> four other candidates are running for the republicans. former house speaker newt gingrich needs of an expected to revive his campaign. ron paul is the outsider to it. but whoever wins new hampshire, it will be another eight months before the nomination is officially decided. >> here in germany, and new pirate party has been talking with the press, stating that keeping government out of people's private lives is a commitment, especially online. their message proved a strong draw in the capital berlin or

the came from nowhere to garner almost 9% of the vote in last year's elections but today, party leaders at the want to keep up the momentum. >> berlin pose a political novice is taking stage, where old crows fly their trade. the pirates ready to take questions from the berlin press corps. they have only been represented in a german regional assembly for six months now. their image, fresh and different. but they still need to get used to a political regime. >> routine can be difficult if you are a prisoner to it and cannot think beyond it. i hope we never get to that point. >> in september 2011, the pirates got political shock waves by winning almost 97 of the bout in berlin's regional election. since then, party membership has doubled to almost 27. the poll that over 5% nationally. so far, they have been tackling

issues like civil rights and internet freedom. their leader admits they're working on proposals for big issues, like the eurozone crisis. >> we can honestly say that we are working on the answers. we do not have the answers. at the that is more sensible than it did settings and the prematurely and having to readjust later. " the pirates won to firmly anchor themselves in the german political system over the coming year. an upcoming regional election could see them winning seats there, and that could be good practice for the national election expected in 2013. >> heavy snowfall over the weekend in the alps is continuing to cause traffic gridlock. many mountain roads in austria remain and passable, and the rise in its directors had said lead to an increase for survival actions. many austrian ski resorts, people have been doing their rest -- best to clear away the snow. snow removal machines have been working flat out.

many ski slopes have now reopened, but they're being closely monitored by local rescue patrols. i will be right back. we will be looking at the question, can businesses afford to be ethical at a time of economic crisis? stay with us for that. ♪ ♪ ♪

>> welcome back. the eurozone economic crisis has led to a shake-out and consolidation in numerous industries across the continent could but it is also creating new opportunities. with people thinking twice before spending, even here in germany, many are looking for more than just good value. they also want his or businesses that do not exploit workers or destroy the environment. and number of companies using high ethical standards to brand their products, that is growing. cheever is better might just be going out of style. here is a look at three companies whose success is tied

to their commitment to principles, as well as profit. >> london recycled fabric. these fabrics are produced in an austrian village and shipped all over the world. they are used to make seat covers, curtains, are carpets' for this in the opera house or tokyo concert hall. luxury hotels and theaters are among the company's clients. the fabrics are durable, and more importantly, non-flammable. the business is now in the seventh generation, and it probably would have continued to operate in the same way if company boss had not gone to see a movie with his children. the film was al gore's "an inconvenient truth," about the ramifications of global warming. >> my daughter asked, daddy, what are you doing for the environment?

is it, you know, i turn off the stand by function and submit my rubbish. then she said, we have a company, why don't we do something with our company? >> the company's engineers began working closely with german textile researchers. their goal, to develop a polyester yard that can be recycled. they experimented with various colors and chemicals until they finally found the right combination. a completely new material. the fabrics created with the yarn are as attractive than robust as the old ones. but after their worn out, they no longer need to be thrown away. instead, customers can take the used textiles to a number of recycling firms in a worldwide network. he expects that in about three years, he will start getting the old friends back and will be able to turn them into new ones. -- star getting the old threads that can start turning them into new ones. supermarkets with a mission. thomas is very fussy about

sourcing the pork chops so that is butcher's counter is. is the manager at this supermarket chain. it is one of the largest in germany, with 300 stores and turnover of more than 1 billion euros. but the chain does not rely on factory rock-bottom prices. instead, it works closely with local farmers. >> if people respect animals and want to act responsibly, they set up production differently. in the end, i think people can taste the difference. some of them care that the -- some of the love and care that animals receive is reflected in the products. >> customers are supposed to be able to pinpoint where their food comes from. labels and information at tables are bound throughout the stores. is also eager to pioneer new products, such as a type of flour that it's easier to digest. >> today, it is not so much about people's energy needs as it was 100 years ago.

today, it is about the right and nutrition for the brain. people need to be a to process the flood of information in our society. that requires a different nutritional basis. >> and in keeping with the corporate philosophy at the company, the stores also sell bread from their own organic debris speed up the message is, the right ingredients make a difference. ethical investment. this man is focused on the big players in the world economy. he is on his way to meet clients in germany's financial capital frankfurt. they include private investors, banks, and pension funds, all interested in at the goal investments. among them, the state-owned kfw bank, which has invested in companies deemed to have high ethical standards. >> the process of rethinking is underway. we're speaking in a lengthy process. we're adding a fourth aspect of the investment criteria the

financial sector has been accustomed to for decades. along with liquidity, returns, and security, this considers what the money is used for. >> the consultancy examines some 3000 firms on different continents. it looks at how they earn their money, how they treat their workers and suppliers, and whether their production methods are environmentally sustainable. acel is responsible for assessing the 30 companies on the german dax index. he has found a social responsibility and the environment are playing an increasingly important role. even in traditional blue-chip companies. >> bmw and the auto sector is an example. and metro is an international front runner when it comes to the responsibilities a big shareholder companies. >> the realization that money is

not everything is gradually seeping into more and more sectors of the economy. the result is that small family firms and plc's are reconsidering how they do business. >> just how representative are these companies of the way business is really done? we put the question to president of the ethics association of german industry. >> they are very representative. why? because ethics, that is a thing which is growing up in all of europe. we have more and more companies which are very interested in an ethical questions so they are representative. >> your organization has about 22,000 members. how difficult is it to get them to follow ethical procedures? >> yes, so it is not very easy always. why? because an owner is asking, what do i earn with ethics, and earnings is not the first question in ethics. the first question is, are we

fare with their customers, with our employees, with society? if you are fair, then it does not cost very much money. on the other side, you have at the switch cost some money. that is ok. but it you know that 70% of all customers in europe are interested in at the core questions, then they decide which of the cool things and ethical questions, then they decide we will buy this or that from the company wishes ethically fair. i think that is important. >> where do you think the pressure for change should come from? should it come from government or from the consumers themselves? >> i think if only the government is the body to pressures, then i do not think that will help a lot. i think the customer must do it, because the customer, he decides what he will hire what he will not buy. so if they buy things which are in and ethical way, fair and clear, then it is better as a

pressure question. better for the companies to decide what the customer wants. >> doing business in an ethical way often means passing costs on to the consumers. are they willing to pay for it? >> well, as i said, 70% of all european customers decide with ethical points if they buy something. we have things like fair trade and things like that. so the customer says, yes, i pay a little bit more of that product is made in an ethical, fair way. so i think the future will show that the sustainability is that what we want. >> these are uncertain economic times, aren't they? >> yes. >> that being the case, can you convince producers to pass on costs to consumers? >> that is a very important question. because the company must ask how expensive is it to produce a product, and ethical questions made it a lot more expensive

than other products, then it is not so easy. but i think some%, 1% to 3%, that is not the question. so they can invest that. >> thank you so very much for speaking with us. and thank you for being here. see you again next time. ♪ captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org-- ♪ ♪