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corporations. what can we do for you? >> and now, "bbc world news." >> hello and welcome to newsday. >> here are the headlines. a major ratings agency warns of rosenker -- rosa and countries that they could be basing a downgrade. it is 10:00 a.m. here in singapore. it is 2:00 a.m. in london. welcome to newsday.

>> we do not have talketime -- t of the warning from the french president. almost the entire year, eurozone is on a negative credit watch. caroline in new york has more. >> european leaders have procrastinated for months. the u.s. credit rating agency or's has put the entire eurozone on a negative

credit watch. there is a 50/50 chance that some could see their credit downgraded. that would be a severe blow to countries like italy. enter germany, it could also set them back severely. they have enjoyed a aaa credit rating. there also an -- they have also been a political partner and finding the solution to the euro debt crisis. it puts european leaders under severe pressure to come up with a solution when they meet later this week. this is a warning that you wrote need to solve its problems quickly.

for coveroposals oconomowo budgetary controls would be looking for leadership and growth. there will be a european summit later this week. >> this was the start of a crucial week for the eurozone with a key eu summit. there was a meeting between france and germany, the two most powerful countries in the eurozone. automatic sanctions for those countries who broke the rules. and they wanted to stress their determination for during what was needed to solve the crisis.

>> i want to reestablish the confidence in the euro and the eurozone. we do not have time. we are well aware of the situation. >> the german chancellor said she would prefer all 27 members of the euro -- european union agreed to a change, but said she would be satisfied with just a 17 in the eurozone >> this package shows we are absolutely determined to keep the euro as a stable currency. >> the jiabao leader set -- the two leaders hope that this will help struggling country's finance their debts. what has been agreed? the two countries will push for an urgent change. there will be strict budget limits. deficit will not be allowed to exceed 3% of gnp and there will

be automatic sanctions agreed by the other member states for those who break the rules. there is concern now to the changes welcome to undermine their sovereignty >> being in the euro, respecting some discipline does not mean that we lose any control on our own economic policy. >> if a tree change involves all 27 members, it will need more support. if the changes are significant and i could trigger referenda elsewhere. but the prime minister was asked about holding a referendum in the uk. >> our approach is very simple. we have legislated now, so it is impossible for a british government to pass power from

britain to brussels without asking the british people in a referendum first. i am not intending to pass any hours from britain to brussels. it depends what happens next? european countries will the cost and -- will be asked this friday whether they accept the treaty change. the question is whether -- is how long this process will take. >> lets get more on this. acy economist joins me from new york. welcome to the bbc. -- a chief economist joins me from new york. welcome to the bbc. what was the saying that you did not already know? >> many of my colleagues have been saying for some time that there are significant risk to

the public financing system in europe. the s&p just validated those concerns to the extent that they needed validation and gave the market, perhaps, a more concrete appreciation of how serious the problems are. >> how much pressure using their opinions put on the european countries? >> if the germans were to lose their credit rating, that would be a blow to their prestige. it would raise their borrowing costs. already, just putting a cloud over the credit rating gives investors to doubt whether germany is the safe haven that they have of to now believe it is in the midst of this crisis. and number two, at the end of the day, resolving europe's banking problems is probably going to fall in the lap of the european financial stability fund. they have to borrow money from the port -- the market. if the credit rating is downgraded for europe, they will

have more difficulty doing that. all across the board, it affects countries in terms of prestige and in terms of borrowing costs. >> thank you. we will have to leave it there. the market have been reacting to this. be? is the latest there cann >> now that we are into the second hour of trading, all of them are trading lower. the as to be making the announcement that they may downgrade of the european countries has made them down across the board, including japan, south carolina. it is also weakening the position of an aging -- emerging

currencies. to tell us more about what this means, we are joined in singapore with -- by a chief agent strategies. -- chief asian strategist. why has the market fallen more than we thought? >> we had a pretty good run in the last week, particularly after the strong u.s. employment numbers. some investors are probably taking the money off the table in the short term, just waiting for this european position that comes on thursday. this is a fairly busy week. and we have the australian central bank announced it will cut rates, and we have issues with the european central bank as well. nevertheless, the underlying tone is positive. >> what if the s&p does downgrade the sovereign ratings of these 15 eurozone economies, including france and germany?

what will this mean for asian stock markets? will this mean more expensive borrowing costs and currency movements in? >> i do not think it will be any more exaggerated than what we saw in september. the u.s. economy has come back stronger than was expected. that is counterbalancing some of this. and germans are beginning to feel the pain of a credential downgrade, the fact that their bond auction was not successful entirely last week. i think the germans are now being induced to perhaps be a little more constructive in their efforts in europe. there might be a little more positively coming out of europe in the weeks ahead than what we have been used to. >> asian issues, such as china's monetary policy, that could be impacted by eurozone. could we also seek more interest rate cuts from the asian banks?

>> it could happen. i am not sure. the sentiment issue is starting to impact consumption in asia. we're getting some signals that domestic consumption and other domestic indicators across asia are all starting to turn south. i think governments and central banks around the region will start pumping drive the machine by going in for rate cuts in order to stem the spirit of non -- in order to stem this. >> thank you. the chief is strategist in a shot at hsbc. a public display after mr. putin's party was dealt a major blow at the polls. united russia maintain a narrow majority, but the numbers dwindled. adding to its troubles, official observers from the you say the poll was conducted unfairly. -- from the e.u. say the poll

was conducted unfairly. >> less than a mile from the kremlin, riot police struggling to clear the biggest demonstration this city has seen since the 1990's. it was an almost spontaneous reaction to what the crowd believe was a fixed election. russia without putin, they shouted. their anger focused on the country's prime minister, vladimir putin, who was been in power for almost 12 years, but who is now blamed for bride -- for residing over a bureaucracy rampant with corruption. >> we look back and realize we have got nothing. no reform of the police, the army, no battle against corruption. it is obvious that people who were so firmed two years ago, now they just say, you have not done anything. that is why we do not support you.

>> it was also the protesters themselves. there are moscows young middle class, who feel that in putin's russia, they have no future. and how can they change it when they feel the elections are so unfair? this has been a bad month for vladimir putin. first he was booed in public and any lost 1/3 of a seat in parliament. now there has been the biggest demonstration in moscow and more than a decade. but the opposition is not well organized and it is unclear if they can sustain this level of protest. bbc news, moscow. >> you are watching news day on the bbc, live from singapore and london. still to come, the race is on to save one of the largest rain forest in the world before it is too late. >> and even rent -- the winner is an indoor parking paper leaves.

former ivory coast president laurent gbagbo has made his first appearance at the international criminal court. using -- he is accused of involvement in crimes against humanity during violence that followed the disputed presidential elections a year ago. he is the first former head of state to be brought to the tribunal since its inception. >> the international criminal court is now in session. >> it was a landmark occasion for the international criminal court. the first time a former head of state has faced icc judges. laurent gbagbo was the president of ivory coast for 10 years. now he stands accused of being responsible for murder, rape, and persecution. he addressed the court in french and said he was aware of the charges against him. he did not need them read out. but mr. gbagbo raised questions about the circumstances of his

arrest in april. >> about 50 french tanks surrounded my residence, he said, while helicopters were attacking from the air. mr. gbagbo expressed concern as well about his sudden transfer to the hague last week. i said, where my going in this plane? and my guard did not have the courage to tell me, you are going to the hague. he said, and you are going to abidjan. i laughed because i understood. and his supporters say this amounts to political kidnapping. >> laurent gbagbo is the first person to come before the international criminal court in this case. bu be brought, regardless of political affiliation -- further cases will be brought, regardless of

political affiliation. >> this is newsday on the bbc. i am in singapore. >> i am in london as france and germany roll out a plan to tackle the eurozone debt crisis, a major rating agency warned there may be more downgrades to god. >> thousands have taken to the streets of moscow after observers -- more downgrades to com. >> thousands have taken to the streets of moscow after observers said the elections were handled unfairly. it is widely believed an effective international plan can only be reached if china agrees to carbon cuts. as our correspondent reports from beijing, economic development remains the country's top priority.

>> for him, it is all part of the daily routine. china's middle class have been used -- become use of the appliances of modern life. for some, easy come birds are always at hand. as the ranks of china's middle class as well, greenhouse gas emissions rise with them. she says you cannot blame people for wanting better lives. >> the west is not offering solutions. it is just complaining about other countries. why can't people here are the same kind of life that is already enjoyed by many in the west? >> of china is already the world's largest polluter, rely on coal to fuel its economic boom. although with carbon emissions measured per person are half that of the u.s., the demand for

energy is rising fast. emissions are not due to be here for another 20 years. critics say that by then, i will be far too late to tackle climate change. analyst jim walker says as china develops it will not agree to any cuts. but it does want to use energy more efficiently. >> you have china making its first commitment on carbon as part of its current government plan for the next five years. that is significant. the way they will do that is to try to drive energy efficiency in industrial sectors and thereby increasing the share of global -- low carbon generation, like wind and solar in the energy mix. >> china is pouring development in to clean technology, driving down costs are around the world. but critics say the pace of change is not happening -- happening quickly enough to make

a significant difference paradox -- a difference. >> in the future, changes may go a long way, but for now, it will be cold at continues to fuel the country's great development. it will lift millions out of poverty, but it is coming at a growing cost to the environment. >> one of the several proposals being considered at the climate change talks is that of countries to protect the forests. this is the second largest tropical rain forest. our correspondent has traveled where even army has to join the fight to save the juggle. >> more than 1 million square miles of rain forest, but will it survive?

condoleezza surround -- congolese surround one corner, but they are battling farmers and militia groups. >> are you managing to win this battle? >> yes, we have to. there is not a choice. >> poverty, a lack of roads, and conflict have kept huge chunks of the fourth out of reach. but africa's economy is finally booming, and congo, like the pristine jandola decade ago, is suddenly at risk. -- khristine john will decades ago, is suddenly at risk. >> we need to block what can and

try to build sustainable development. >> like this, sustainable stoves. it could havlve the number of trees used from the jungle. the plan being debated this week at the climate conference in south africa could eventually see billions of pounds being poured into congo. but it is complicated. >> we have lack of governance. if you do not have [unintelligible] it true b legged used to be in african countries. >> it will stay chaos? >> yes. >> for now, the poorly funded army does what it can. congo need more outside help, but is a tough place for anyone to operate. the idea is simple and compelling, pay congo and its soldiers to protect the vast

forest and prevent climate change, but in practice it is proving slow, risky, and chaotic. the motivation is there. the big money may be coming. there is a fight to save the world's second british rainforest -- but the fight to save the world's second biggest rain forest is going to be bruising. >> the winner of the turner prize, one of the art world's most prestigious awards, has been announced. >> but was announced in the northeast of england. only once before has the venue been outside london. here's a look at the winning entry. >> it is the time of year again and the darker fur is about to deliver -- the photographer is

about to deliver an early christmas present precaution -- early christmas present. >> the winner is [unintelligible] [cheers and applause] >> i did not expect that. >> but he was soon into his stride, the scottish born artist. >> it is an amazing legacy. something so is again evident of cultural popular consciousness exists. it is a great honor to be part of. >> he did not win for simply producing the sculpture, although it is part of his winning installation. he won for producing the space. everything around me as part of his artwork, from the paper leaves on the floor to the ceiling above political -- the

ceiling above. the painting on the wall, even the air vent. it is a theatrical environment designed to change the way you think and feel. >> it is about passing through the space, about being in the space, the space in between the sculptures as much as the soldiers themselves. i'm interested in this idea of dusting a room with atmosphere. >> one collector wrote this begin that being a contemporary art collector these days is comprehensively and indisputably vulgar. does the man who won the prize agree? >> i think i am very vulgar in a lot of things, but i'd do it from the bottom of my heart. i spend all my money than i earn and i live with it. by so enjoy living with it. -- i still enjoy living with it. >> over 100,000 people have already seen the show, more than

doubling the number of visitors the gallery received during the same time last year. martin is not the only person celebrating tonight. >> for anyone who has been wishing to get away from it all, even to another planet, we might have the ticket for you. has's kaplan mission confirmed a new planet in the so-called habitable zone, a region where water could exist on the surface. it might take a while to get there. it is 600 light years away. >> more discoveries. you have been watching newsday from the bbc. >> a reminder of our main news this hour, standard and poor's has warned that eurozone countries, including germany and france, could have their credit ratings downgraded. stay with us.

headlines on the way next. >> make sense of international news at bbc.com. >> funding was made possible by the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu. newman's own foundation. union bank. ♪

>> union bank has put its global financial strength to work for a wide range of companies. what can we do for you? >> bbc world news was present