>> hello, and welcome to the "journal" on dw-tv. i am shane fankhauser in berlin. >> and i am brent goff with the business news. >> know when for the misery for thousands of travelers across europe as winter causes massive disruption. the european union criticized the crackdown on opposition supporters in belarus. in germany honors its top athletes for 2010. ♪ >> hello, welcome. central and northern european airports are struggling to stay open. the harsh winter weather is blasting across the continent. europe's busiest airport, heathrow, has resumed a limited

schedule, but hundreds of passengers remained stranded there. in frankfurt, things are not much better. >> stranded in frankfurt, and germany's biggest airport, one out of every four flights was canceled on monday. some passengers spent a third night in the terminal. only to find out that they were waiting in vain. >> i am coming from new york, and i want to go to poland. my flight is delayed for two days already, and now i just found out that, you know, my flight to poland was canceled. >> europe's busiest airport, london heathrow, resumed limited operations. british airways said a maximum of only one-third scheduled take off until wednesday morning. the chaos could continue over christmas. thousands of travelers are stranded. air-traffic at the two main airports in paris improved by monday afternoon, but officials

warned more delays are likely due to fresh snowfall. for passengers holding up in the terminals, there is at least hope that there will be over christmas. >> many international flights go to the main european hubs. so deep snow in europe is affecting passengers worldwide. the biggest hub is heathrow airport. our correspondent joined us on the telephone earlier for an update on the situation. >> not much improvement, i am afraid. only about one-third of flights have been operating in and out of heathrow airport today. that is a slight improvement on yesterday, were the airport was virtually shut down. we have seen one of the two runways operating today, a very restricted service. if you imagine, an airplane takes off every 45 seconds from heathrow airport normally, and those flights would be full this time of year. you can imagine how many passengers that leaves stranded. so much so now that the airport

terminals are so overcrowded with people waiting, the airport authorities have had to virtually closed them down. not much better news tomorrow. there will be a reduced schedule again with only one runway operating. no more passengers are being accepted into airport terminals due to the overcrowding problem. >> you gave us indication -- of course, it is an emotional time of year, christmas. how optimistic are officials of most passengers will be on their way before the holidays begin? >> the problem at heathrow airport, as always, is the backlog. hundreds of people are stuck waiting for spaces on flights. those flights are limited, and they are already fully booked. airport authorities have to give royalty to people who already have tickets. the question is, pretty good the other thousands of passengers better rating and desperate to get away for christmas? what we're seeing also in london art teachers around the

block at the aerostar station. people are looking for alternative ways to get a round your. a lot of the euro start services are being cancelled as well due to the weather. >> thank you for that. >> we will have money travel chaos across europe later in this bulletin. -- we will have more on travel across europe later. protesters arrested and several opposition had insisted against lukashenko in sunday's presidential election. berlin is very concerned about the situation. the central election commission in minsk says lukashenko won a landslide victory. lukashenko is standing firm and is denouncing the protesters for starting barbarism and destruction. >> the a nerve opposition supporters turned to violence as they tried to storm the electoral commission headquarters in minsk. but they did not get far.

police reinforcements arrived to disperse the crowd. several hundred people were arrested, many injured. riot police appeared to use their batons indiscriminately. >> president lukashenko was reelected with nearly 80% of the boat and justified the hard line taken by police. -- of the vote in justify the hard line taken by police. >> they will all end up behind bars. what it wanted to bring to minsk was not democracy but banditry. the police and military protected the country from decadence and barbarism. >> but international election observers see things differently. >> this election failed to give belarus' the new start it needed. the kind -- the process like transparency. in particular, i expect the government to account -- [inaudible]

>> it is not clear how many of the arrested protesters are still in custody. their families are trying to get information from the prisons in and around minsk. some of those arrested could face charges of inciting violence. >> we have been following events in minsk. we asked if the people that have been arrested will be staying in custody. >> well, yes, they will stay in custody. lukashenko has acted aggressively when asked about the fate of the opposition leaders. those detained violated orders, and he described the process as an event -- banditry and vandalism. apparently, lukashenko tries to show his ability to keep everything in bear loose -- in dollar is under control. >> will lukashenko take any

notice? >> it does not seem so. lukashenko has made it clear that he will stay his course on the other hand, i have the impression that the criticism from abroad has hit him more than he wants to admit. because he has reacted very emotionally and try to explain himself, saying the government in man's tried to meet european demands for elections, by allowing more provision candidates to take part. the europeans, of course, have a different view. they continue to see major shortcomings in the way this election took place. in particular, they condemned the security forces against the opposition. >> thank you very much. there's a lot of money floating around our way.

>> that is right. the world cannot get enough of what the eurozone is producing. the trade surplus of the currency union grew in october by more than 5 billion euros, twice the surplus that we saw in september. germany powered ahead yet again with its exports, 19% higher than they were in october 2009. trade and manufactured goods, especially chemicals and machinery, is especially strong. however, if you look just at energy, the eurozone has a negative trade balance, importing five times more energy than it sells abroad. you can tell the christmas is just around the corner. trade volumes on the european stock market were very low. there were low on monday and expected to remain that way. but there's plenty of fuel for shares. european stocks to their highest close in 27 months on monday, and mining and utilities shares led the way. we have the wrap up from the frankfurt stock exchange. >> a good start into the

christmas week at the german stock market. the dax could reach a new high, which did not last until the end of trading. it was an early christmas present for a company, which could survive with the help of the banks. shareholders have to pay the high price, too. but shares jumped by 80%. the winter was also in surplus, a driving up the shares of road salts. lufthansa has been suffering. >> all right. let's get a quick look at the market numbers. we will stay in frankfurt for the dax index hit another one- year high in the session. it closed 5% higher. similar story for the euro stoxx 50 index. ending the day higher. in new york, the dow is still in negative territory in late afternoon trading. 11,485. the euro going for $1.3116.

spain is on the right path to solving its economic problems, but there is much more to do. that is the word from the organization for economic cooperation and development. the oecd says spain has every chance to rise above its economic crisis if it enacts bold reforms in a sober survey of the challenges facing spain, the oecd says tax increases may be needed, even if growth next year remains weak. the value-added sales tax was height from 16% to 18% back in july, and consumer spending as sharply down. this christmas shopping season. china posing next five-year plan goes into effect in just a few days. despite being the factory for much of the world, china remains a land with a plan centrally controlled communist economy. the goals have been set for this transformation of the world's

second-largest economy, and we have this report. >> china's latest five-year plan sees the nation being transformed from a land that she but inefficient factories into a manufacturer of sophisticated environmental technology. five-year plans are the keystone of china's planned economy, and this one takes effect next year. one of the most important parts is to drastically reduce the amount of carbon dioxide emissions. to do that, china has earmarked 50 billion euros a year for environmental protection. another 22 billion0 enrollee will be devoted to research and development in fields such as information technology, material sciences, and biotechnology. china also plans measures to crack up domestic demand as it tries to reduce reliance on exports. german companies have to profit from the strategy. companies like bausch and the demons are leaders in green technology, such as wind power.

-- and his demands are leaders in green technology. climate protection is now part of beijing's economic policy. >> the internet giant ebay has agreed to buy a german fashion the site. you'll hear a lot about it in the future. ebay will pay 150 billion euros for it. the bay hosts of the move will strengthen its position in the fashion sector. in the past 18 months, ebay has been heavily investing in fashion and has launched sites in britain as well as right here in germany. back to you. >> thank you. the united nations security council has extended its peacekeeping mission in the ivory coast for six months. it defies orders to leave the incumbent president refuses to hand over power. the un african leaders in the west says he lost the runoff to the opposition leader.

washington and the eu had called on him to step down and are preparing sanctions against him and his allies. british police have arrested two men suspected of preparing a terrorist attack. there were detained during a series of dawn raids across england and wales. they are between 17 and 28. they are linked to a potential bomb plot. they have been monitored for several months by britain's domestic intelligence agency. britain and a number of other european countries have been on high security alert for the last month. officials say there is a heightened threat of terrorist attacks. north korea has called live fire exercises conducted monday by south korea as reckless but has backed down from its threat to retaliate. residents of yeonpyeong island on the yellow sea took shelter during the 90-minute live fire drills. p'yongyang's announcement that it would not respond to the maneuver eased fears of a war on

the korean peninsula. tensions have been acute sense last month, following an artillery exercise by south korean forces. european union environment ministers have been meeting in brussels to discuss the agreement reached at the recent u.n. climate summit in cancun. the eu to get leading role at the summit, calling on other countries to do more to permit climate change. the eu also has to do more. it wants to meet the same high standards it is demanding of everyone else. >> germany's environment minister says he thinks the climate summit in cancun was a success. now he and his counterparts in the european union have to show that they can implement the climate protection measures they're asking other countries to adopt. for instance, with the vans and other utility vehicles, new regulations will require them to burn less diesel and reduce carbon dioxide emissions. >> we have now said a long-term goal of 147 grams of co2 per

commager by 2020. for vehicles weighing up to three and a half tons. it is a very good compromise on something that was a source of the way for a long time. >> that figure is higher than with the european commission had proposed last year. still, the eu climate change commissioner sees the compromise as a step forward. >> we have that things that are definitely more ambitious than what the industry in the sector claims that they could do. >> germany had wanted even less stringent emissions levels betsy's this solution is one that can help both the environment and the car industry. >> germany's leading athletes were honored at an awards ceremony on sunday when sportster lists selected the sportsman, sports woman, and team of 2010. >> sebastian vettel wasn't named sportsman of the year, the youngest champion in a formal

and history. -- vettel was named sportsman of the year. >> you fight so hard all year, and when the reward comes, you cannot imagine how great it is and everything that happens to you. >> germany's national soccer team may only have made it to third place in the world cup in south africa, but there were more successful in the race for supporting honors. the captain and the german coach receive their awards for it now nearing legend. >> when you look back on it and see the pictures, you see how many millions of people there were in the streets and how much joy are playing generated. >> of all the winners, alpine skier maria riesch had the most complicated journey. from the world cup, she traveled by helicopter and jets to next location. she was handed the trophy by a

fellow two-time olympic champion. >> "in depth" is coming up. do not go away. we will be back in a minute. ♪ >> you invest time, ideas, and energy. you always give your very best, and you are mobile. just like us. dw-tv, on your iphone. >> sustainable protection for the earth, new ideas for slowing climate change -- are coming from all over the world. a major special series on global 3000.

pioneers for clean energy and climate protection projects. global 3000, on dw-tv. ♪ >> hello. the timing cannot have been worse. just as the christmas travel rush begins, europe is buried in snow. some of its business airports are all but shut down. heathrow grounded all but a few flights this weekend. and a fresh wave of snow has added to the chaos. officials advising people not to travel to the airport. in frankfurt, one flight in four has so far been cancelled today. three out of every 10 in paris. hundreds of passengers are camped out in waiting rooms across the continent. here in germany, some airlines are suggesting passengers give up and take the train. but rail officials said might be better not to travel at all. even the roads offer only a poor alternative. clearing crews are having trouble keeping up with the new

snowfall, and traveling by car can be treacherous opposition. here's a look at the travel situation across europe. >> even santa claus is no real comfort this christmas. most people at frankfurt airport just want to get away. that is one present he cannot come up with. the forces of nature have brought many european airports to a virtual standstill, just when they're needed most, a few days before christmas. all people can do is remain stoic. airport workers face a dual task. deicing planes in keeping the runways clear of snow and ice. >> that takes time, which adds up. as a result, we're seeing massive delays and cancellations. >> that means more aircraft stuck on the ground. it did not leave promptly, they need deicing all over again. london heathrow was practically paralyzed for most of the

around 3000 people got stuck in brussels because no planes could depart for heathrow. some of them had to wade in the transit area because they did not have a visa for belgium. >> we are trying to get some sleeping bags. it is not really comfortable, but we have no choice. >> we just wake up on the floor. on the floor. >> they are hiding from us. i do not know why. they should come here. it is called customer service. >> in frankfurt, stranded passengers at least at the comfort of camp beds. in heathrow, people had to do with heat insulating blankets. and the weather is threatening to disrupt some more long-term plans. >> we are supposed to get

married on december 27 and we have been stuck here now 24 hours, told we're not leaving until tuesday. no offer a hotel or a taxi, no way home. >> the staff are really friendly, but they could have given a bit more water and food. we have not had any food. it is so expensive in the airport. we're spending money on our wedding, and this is cutting into it. >> amazing, the whole country grind to a hold for a bit of snow. >> not quite the whole country. some people are enjoying the weather. and those who have nowhere to go and just been mired the winter wonderland. -- can just admire the winter wonderland. >> it is manic. people are coming out now. it is good fun though in the snow. >> your feet are getting a bit wet. an umbrella helps. but at the end of the day, it is great.

>> in paris, tourists are getting to see the site in an unusual light. and the locals are used to the odd cold snaps. >> we appreciate it. you have to take it easy. snow is not a catastrophe. in other countries, the have more to complain about. we're in the midst of winter and have to deal with it. >> it is have a couple times. it is different. everything with a white layer. it is beautiful for this time of year. >> but it does nothing much to turn the winter landed to a world of stress. things have come to a grinding halt on the roads of normandy and the north of france. severe weather warnings are in place for the region. and the blanket of snow was little comfort to truck drivers that the franco-belgian border. france, belgium, and luxembourg

imposed a partial ban on heavy goods vehicles on their motorways. germany had to take similar measures, as accidents blocked the audubon. snow and ice brought traffic on small roads to a standstill also. >> it is bathetic they cannot clear the roads in 48 hours. i drove through the audubon because i have to get to a training course in the country roads are blocked. nothing has been done. >> rail travelers are not very much better. frozen pouring ice on power lines and snow the train tracks, all in the middle of the christmas travel season. it would appear that the cold snap god to which -- caught in the reaail off guard. the crown said transition's over the weekend were so big that the company actually advised

against travel by train. -- the crowds at the train stations over the weekend were so big. >> at least they're communicating could they are clearly saying, people, things are not moving for the moment. it is a low point for transport policy. it cannot get worse. >> travel chaos in france, too. crowds thrown into a building in paris with services on the euro start between london and paris seen massive delays. and on the other side of the english channel, things were not much better either. >> no one was doing anything. all the stairways were blocked off. so there were guards just standing there. no one told us anything. i stood there for two hours. i cannot move because i was surrounded back to back with other bodies. >> whether traveling by plane, train, or automobile, it seems best to sit tight and hope for the best. complaining does not help. >> it makes no sense at all to try and blame somebody else

restore blaming each other. it is just the weather, and we have to live with it. >> it is not just passengers trying to get to their destination. it is cargo and freight, too. that means presence. in the run-up to christmas, there's some 5 million packages on the move in germany, twice as many as other times. the postman cannot reach every address. they say it is a key not to wait until the last minute to send gifts. >> everything you see lying around here is parcels from thursday or friday that we have not been able to deliver yet because of the weather situation. >> the post office is hoping most people have already sent off their christmas parcels, and the men and women who delivered them are saying much the same thing. >> if people send their packages off in time, that means for me personally that might only have to work seven or eight hours on christmas eve instead of 10 hours. >> it seems the greatest gift this season will be the chance to celebrate with loved ones.

and that makes it all the more crucial for those stuck at airports and train stations to reach their loved ones in time for the special day. monday did see some relief for travelers up to the chaos of saturday and sunday. but even if conditions do not get worse, it will be days before the situation gets back to normal. >> a lot of art have been canceled. we will find out when we get to the airport when it is like. >> until then, the pilot will have to wait and see, just like everybody else. >> that has been a rather wintry look in our "in depth" at the travel chaos across europe caused by the adverse weather conditions. we will keep you up-to-date on the latest right here in dw-tv. please do not go away. stay with us now. ♪ captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org-- ♪

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>>this week on world business... >>home to the world's longest river but still water stressed; how egypt is managing this precious resource. >>the potential savings on the programme of water measurement which we started averages between 20 to 30 per cent. >>singapore is a strong draw for skilled workers from malaysia, so what can the country do to stop the brain drain. >>it is not just about bringing people back, it is about retaining malaysians as well in the system. >>and driving into india as the country embraces golf. >>if you look at delhi golf club or some of the other popular golf clubs, there is a waiting list ofabout 35 years.

>>hello and welcome. i'm raya abirached and this is world business, your weekly insight into the global business trends shaping our lives. it's been said that egypt is the gift of the nile. certainly life without it would be unimaginable, but the nile's waters are a limited and capped resource and the population is growing rapidly. so how will the country be able to cope? >>reporter: egypt, with a per capita water supply each year of seven hundred and fifty cubic metres already exists in state technically described as water poverty. and with global warming and a possible rise in sea levels the situation looks set to get worse. dr el quosy is on the country's leading experts on water

management. >>ahmed el quosy: the supply is fixed and the demand is rocketing. the egyptian population only two hundred years backwas two point five million and now we are one hundred million and obviously this brings down steeply the per capita share. >>reporter: that population is increasing at more than eight per cent a year. to feed them it's been estimated the country will need to cultivate an extra two and a half million more acres of farmland by the end of the next decade alone. all of which will need to be irrigated. >>reporter: the government has started, with so far limited success, trying to get famers to manage their water supplies better - using closed rather than open drainage pipes and drip instead of flood irrigation.another solution is to encourage farmers to grow

less water intensive crops. >>ahmed el quosy: you produce one kilogramme of wheat per m3 of water but you might produce 5kg of citrus and you might produce ten kg of vegetables for the same cubic metre of water. >>reporter: another problem is that many of the country's farms are inefficient small holdings - sometimes as little as half or quarter of an acre. the government has set up a scheme, covering an initial five hundred thousand acres, to persuade farmers to collaborate and better manage their water supplies. >>abu-zeid: part of it is working with the farmers and initiating farmers' associations on the field level and those associations are elected among the users and they take responsibility of maintenance, of management using less water. >>reporter: saving on agriculture is just

the start though; the country also needs to better handle water wastage from its growing urban population. >>abu-zeid: the amount of water used is about 5 or 6% but the losses are up to 50% >>reporter: all told, according to dr. abu-zeid, the country's former minister of irrigation, the government plan could drastically improve efficiency. >>abu-zeid: the potential savings on the programme of water measurement which we started averages between 20 to 30 per cent. >>reporter: analysts argue that the introduction of water saving devices could make a significant difference. one study, in alexandria, has shown how much can be saved. >>abu-zeid: we are looking at least 20% in the current demand this could be achievable in the current assessments we are working on. >>reporter: yet despite all its conservation efforts

the country will still need to find more water. one route is desalination - which has already begun to play a role. >>abu-zeid: if you look at the tourism sector in egypt in south sinai, the red sea resorts all of these are actually using desalination for their main water supply >>reporter: ten more desalination plants are up for tender and the hope is that, desalinated water will eventually provide for ten per cent of the country's needs. yet another problem egypt needs to address though is the demands from the other up stream countries in the nile basin for a greater share of the river's water - all of whom reject treaties putin place by the british - which gave egypt and sudan full rights over all the nile's water. >>blair: egypt had used rather bellicose language when the upstream countries started the discussion about having a new treaty - bellicose language won't get it any where any more because these countries are both stronger, they're more efficient and with the world's media

looking at the region there isn't any alternative except a negotiated treaty. >>reporter: however many of country's water experts are optimistic that a new deal can be reached and - that much more of the nile's water can be utilised. >>abu-zeid: we have been negotiating a new treaty for the past 10 years - what is encouraging is that the water that falls on the nile basin is annually 1,600 billions cubic metre a year and the amount of water used right now is just five per cent of that. >>abu-zeid: there is a lot of water that is being lost in swamps in many areas - and this water could be developed for the benefit of all the countries sharing the nile river basin. >>reporter: there's no doubt that egypt must manage its water resources better in the coming years but there's also no doubt that it's taking steps to bring this about. reality is that it has no choice - the country's

survival depends on it. >>the loss of talent known as the brain drain is a serious challenge to many developing countries. for malaysia the worry is more acute because it sits right next door to singapore, one of the most attractive places for skilled expats. but the government is acting now to try and stem both the outflow of local talent and attract more foreign skilled workers. >>reporter: they are calling it the talent corporation. and though its task is far from simple, its mandate is clear: to find ways to boost the pool of skilled workers to help malaysia become a fully-developed country by 2020. >>razak: there is broad agreement that malaysia must look at all sources of talent including malaysians, our malaysian diaspora and foreigners, both in malaysia and abroad.

in undertaking an economic transformation, malaysia must build both world class companies and world class talent." >>reporter: as malaysia has begun placing greater emphasisrvices sector, the talent shortfall has been laid bare. and it's a clear impediment to private investment -- both foreign and domestic. >>bardan: of course it is very much a concern of the malaysian employers' federation because there are many complaints by our members that they don't get the right talent to man their human resource requirements. >>reporter: an estimated 700-thousand malaysians, almost all of them skilled, are currently working abroad. thebulk is just next door in singapore. and it's not only the proximity, the cultural similarities orthe higher wages that are responsible for the exodus. >>robert walters is an international human resources company. >>raj:

our neighbour has actually gotten the cream of our crop. you get government sectors that go in at the pre-university level so they actually offer scholarships to high-potential students depending on their results and these talents are bonded with the organization, and hence when you graduate you come back and you work for that particular government for say 10 years and that's how they keep the talent." >>reporter: singapore companies and government agencies also recruit malaysian and other foreign talent directlyfrom top western universities. >>some malaysian agencies are now taking a similarly pro-active approach to luring malaysian talent home. >>wilson wong was doing his law degree in the uk when the malaysian securities commission approachedhim. >>wong: "i was still in my student house writing my paper when i got an e-mail. i was surprised. they asked me to come to london

for an interview. i went and i got the offer then and there. >>reporter: and it's not just a case of losing or not grooming enough local talent to drive the economy forward. >>bardan: the figures as far as the foreign experts are in 2000 it is something like 80-thousand of them working in malaysia but the current figure is slightly less than 40-thousand. so it seems that thus far malaysia is not able to attract the talented workforce." >>reporter: one obvious reason is that malaysian wages are lower than more advanced economies. but that doesn'tmean it can't be very attractive to expatriates. >>andy davison is the publisher of the expat magazine. he also gave input to the government as it looked to set up the talent corporation. >>davison: the cost of living is one of the big plusses that most expats talk about and the overall lifestyle, the fact that you can live in landed property, the fact that you've got lots

of tourist destinationsyou can go to, a good choice of cuisine, the shopping malls. there's just a long list of things that they like." >>maelzer: "historically, malaysia hasn't made it easy for skilled foreigners to come and work here, let alone to stay on if they decide they like it. work permits have been tied to specific jobs and have needed to be renewed frequently. spouses of permit holders haven't been allowed to work. and to get permanent resident status could easily take a decade or more." >>reporter: the government is now tackling those obstacles. it's set to begin issuing 10-year passes for skilledforeigners, which will also allow them to switch jobs and also allow their spouses to work. >>davison: i must say they've been very very receptive to very often negative feedback on the subject and everything that i'm hearing is that there is going to be major changes. and i'm very encouraged by it because it looks like they've finally decided now, yes we do need more foreigners to come in here, that it's necessary for the economic growth of the country."

>>reporter: the government is also making it easier for malaysians abroad who have given up their citizenship toreturn with their families. >>one key reason people are migrating is because they believe their kids will get a better educationelsewhere. >>improving post-secondary education here would also reduce the number of students first studying, then settling overseas....as well as producing more skilled locals. >>razak: "there are two strands to it. it not just about bringing people back it's also about retaining malaysians as well in the system. you cannot gauge talent corporation's performance based only on the number of malaysians that come back. it's also about retaining malaysians who would otherwise have gone abroad." >>reporter: wong, at least, feels he made a sound decision to return. >>wong: "we are really opening up, liberalization is the word these days and it's really given renewed senseof enthusiasm for graduates from overseas to come back

home and be part of this exciting time." >>reporter: it will be music to the ears of the talent corporation, who'll be hoping to find many other malaysians singing a similar tune/sharing those sentiments. >>still to come on world business... >>we meet the former president of the european bank for reconstruction and development, jacques attali, at a time when the eurozone seems to be falling apart. >>the rough and ready sports of shinty and hurling clash together to form an interesting hybrid. >>and india is the land of cricket and hockey, but the country could soon be getting into the swing of golf. >>tee time... and the rest in just a moment on world business...

>>jacques attali, is one of the foremost french economists. he was an advisor to francois mitterrandfor a decade and was the founder and first president of the european bank for reconstruction and development. we caught up with him to get his take on the current situation in europe and finance in the developing world. >>reporter: jacques attali made his name as one of europe's leading economists but these days it's his observations as a futurologist that bring the crowds in. at this speech in front of hundreds of french business leaders, he warned that unless they worked together on new technological innovations rather than each fighting their own corner - they will be left behind completely within a decade. >>jacques attali launched one of the world's biggest micro-financing organizations several years before the concept really took off and believes technology played a vital role.

>>attali: "micro-financing is using internet quite a lot in order to reduce the cost of intermediaries to finance the poor therefore its useful to reduce the cost of banking. it's useful to link data which is around the world and it's useful to transmit information by all means. it's a tremendous instrument to push the development of micro-financing." >>reporter: however right now micro-financing is facing a backlash with accusations of strong arm tactics from loan collectors, over inflated interest rates and reports of the very poor being coerced into taking loans against their will. the problem has been especially acute in india where more than 50 suicideshave been linked to unscrupulous lenders. >>reporter: big banks are also getting in on the action, sensing a business opportunity that focuses on the vulnerable. >>attali: it's a small problem which is linked to a very specific issue in some countries like india which is not well controlled and where people

are not using the proper techniques to do it. you are not goingto get rid of credit because of sub-primes." >>reporter: throughout 2010 eurozone central bankers seemed to have been holed up in crisis meetings working outhow to keep the single currency from going into complete meltdown. he may feel rather lonely rightnow but in mr attali's view the opinion makers have read the situation wrong - it's not the euro facing collapse. >>attali: "no no no. the worst problem is dollars not euros. the euro is in a growth period. it's going to be very well. the real problem is with the dollar not the euro. >>bockman: really? in what sense? >>attali: the worst economy in the world is the us not the europeans. it's a country with huge debts, real problems, huge deficits, more than europe. europe has no debt at a federal level, zero debt while the us has 13 trillion dollars debt. " >>reporter: however he accepts the increasingly widespread view that the balance of economic power is now movingaway from the west

for good, but that does not necessarily mean it will be hurt by that seismic shift. >>bockman: is the west to be relegated to second tier status as asia and brazil >>attali: "that's a fact. the relative growth of the euro zone does not mean that we are going to decline. we are going to grow and that is fine. we are going to create new demand for us and it's good for the future." >>reporter: in fact jacques attali sees threats elsewhere where the consequences could be much more severe. takenuclear energy. at the moment the west is trying to contain who has access. does it have a moral right to? he says we have no choice. >>attali: "there is a treaty and this treaty has to be implemented. that's it. we cannot accept a world with more countries without out democracies and nuclear weapons. a country with nuclear weapons and no democracy is the beginning of a nightmare." >>the celtic cross-code sport of shinty/hurling is

an unusual hybrid. it has no dedicated leagues orclubs but is played at international level, has a unique rule book, opposing sides use different equipment, and even gives the ladies version of the same game a different name? we took a trip to dublin to find out more. >>reporter: in front of a 60-thousand strong crowd the ancient celtic sports of shinty and hurling combine to produce a thrilling spectacle in dublin's main stadium. >>the shinty sticks of the scottish national team are pitted against the hurleys of the irish in a clash as fierce as any ancient battle. >>cooney: we're all celts and it's important that we would try and get a game together to play against each other. for our players its important because it gives them recognition at the national level, gives them the opportunity to play under the irish jersey. 14" >>reporter: although both sports come from the same distant root - the rules of this cross-code game are unique.

>>daly: what we've had to do is compromise as best we can ... obviously the shinty players have a differentstick, the hurlers have a different stick so we believe the best way of achieving balance is to notallow the players to handle the ball with the exception of the goal keeper so the shinty players can keep the traditional skills of playing the ball on the ground, the hurling players can lift it andstrike but it is not permitted to take the ball in the hand. >>reporter: that significant rule change from the game of hurling can be hard to hold to as irish centre forward, neil mcmanus explains. >>mcmanus: all those boys have been playing hurling since they're maybe three or four years of age so whenever a ball comes to you at chest height the natural instinct is to catch it. so you really have to thinkwhat you're doing and concentrate. >>muriel: but the fact is this shinty-hurling match is a warm up for the day's main attraction - another crosscode international between gaelic and australian rules football. sharing the limelight with ireland's most popular sport it is hoped will raise the profile of hurling and its sister sport in scotland- shinty.

>>cameron: it's the only international that we have and we view this occasion as the ultimate in a pathway for our top players. for the players they have played for a club, for a region, for a district and now they are playing for their country ... we are still a minority sport and we don't have mass audiences. >>reporter: there are just 46 listed shinty clubs in scotland - compared to 2-thousand 500 hurling clubs in ireland - but both are amateur sports - and that's the way they are likely to stay. >>cooney: there was a push by players some years back that they wanted pay for play but now that's gone totally off the equation. we're working very closely with the gaelic players association in developing positive player welfare schemes and pay for play is not an issue. >>reporter: but winning sponsorship can

be. >>innes: you cannot make a career out of an amateur sport - there's just no money in it for us. if there werethen obviously we'd be very, very happy >>reporter: scottish hydro-electric recently signed a second three-year contract with shinty's governing body as its main sponsor for an undisclosed sum - but every player on this pitch needs to hold down a day job in order to survive. >>reporter: former shinty international captain gary innes has an instrumental part to play in promoting his beloved sport. an image of him playing shinty was used by scottish celtic rock group runrig on a recentalbum cover - and he features playing the accordion on runrig's shinty tribute song 'clash of the ash' - a reference to the type of wood used to fashion the shinty stick.

>>but when the whistle blows and the battle's done these shinty boys shine like the sun we don't play for fame, we don't play for cash we just play for the glory and the clash of the ash >>reporter: despite its ancient roots in the scottish highlands shinty is a sport undergoing change. >>innes: that's with great respect to the camanachd association putting money back into the sport and gettingit right back to grass roots levels in the cities. >>in a country where most people are cricket fans, india is seeing a rise in the popularity of golf.although still seen as a sport for the wealthy, young people and children in particular are now taking an interest and looking to play golf as a career. >>reporter: you know the economy is booming, when people take to the greens in increasing numbers. india may boast of only 150,000 people who play golf regularly - a tiny fraction of the population - but this is expected to grow rapidly. >>mehta: india as you know is a very promising market right now, especially for golf. there are

a few things that are coming together for india. if you look at the economic development in the last few years, which has resulted in higher income levels - more and more people are looking for a game like golf tobe a part of their lifestyle. >>reporter: golf is still an expensive sport here, with the most basic golf set costing 3 months' salary for an average indian. but unlike traditional golf markets like the us, europe and japan where the sport isplayed by an older population, in india it is growing popular among youngsters from middle-class families, keen to take it up as a career. >>reporter: many junior players are regularly competing in tournaments, in india and abroad. parents, too, are keen to encourage their children to become career golfers. classes cost 130 dollars a month, but that's not stopped kids as young as 4 from being enrolled in training programs. >>chellani: i come from school and come here to play golf. mama says to play golf. i have to play 9 holes or 18 holes in a day.

>>reporter: but building more golf courses is essential to increase the accessibility of the sport. there are only about 200 courses across india, and these are limited to the elite few who can afford expensive private clubs. a 5-year membership here can set you back 18,000 dollars. public courses do exist, where enthusiasts can play for just 6 dollars a day, but these are very few in number. >>mehta: if you look at delhi golf club or some of the other popular golf clubs, there is a waiting list of about 35 years. so that's not a happy situation at all for a brand like ours, but the way things are changing - there are almost 50 new golf courses and driving ranges which are either being planned orbuilt right now - that makes us very bullish about india. >>reporter: golf is also getting a boost from real estate developers, who are building luxury residences alongside golf courses. here at the dlf golf

& country club outside delhi, the prices of apartments start at 1 million dollars. >>ohri: golf courses in isolation don't make money - worldwide - it's always the real estate around it that justifies for that kind of land to be used... >>reporter: big business is also getting involved in organizing tournaments, with the total prize money on offergoing up by over 250 percent in the last 3 years. the most anticipated one is the 2 million dollar avantha masters, which is a european tour event. >>thapar: more and more sponsors are coming in wanting to take up tournaments, and we are now facing the reverse problem, that we just don't have enough weekend slots available that we can give it to a sponsor.that is causing prize money to rise as sponsorship bids go up. it's a very aspirational sport, so any brand that is very aspirational in terms of high net worth individuals is very keen to do that.

>>reporter: with the inclusion of golf in the 2016 olympics, the indian government is now expected to join the bandwagon and fund subsidised training programs. both golf enthusiasts and corporates will be bettingon this to boost the sport's popularity even further. >>that's it for this week's world business. thanks for watching. we'll see you again at the same time next week. hi, i'm rick steves, with more of the best of europe.

venice seems to be every italy connoisseur's... prague has always been beautiful... germany... the irish civilization... the eiffel tower was built... hope you've enjoyed the magic of...

stonehenge is roped off and viewable only from a distance, but england is dotted with less famous but more accessible stone circles. my favorite... avebury. the avebury stone circle, just 40 miles away, is as old as stonehenge and 16 times as big. and best of all, this megalithic playground welcomes kids, sheep, and anyone interested in a more hands-on experience.