. >>> very good afternoon from cnn hong kong, i'm andrew stevens. more travel misery in europe as air france cancels half of all its flights. the airline tells passengers not to bother traveling until the end of the week. >>> it's a big day for greece and a landmark day in europe's history. it's been 20 years since the signing of the maastricht treaty. the question is was it such a good idea after all? >>> if you've ever wondered during your daily commute just how the underground was built, you might want to stick around for this story. >> tunnelling is always a difficult and expensive business. even more so here in hong kong with all these tower blocks and buildings around you. they have to blast their way through the bedrom. down here. >> a view of hong kong you don't often get to see. we go underground to look at the city's efforts to expand its transport network. >>> first up, andrew, there are heavy corporate stories we're watching here in europe this tuesday. let's start out with bp. this company just reported its latest set of earnings about

i'm nina dos santos at cnn london. >> and i'm andrew stevens in hong kong. you're watching cnn, the world's news leader. we'll see you next time. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com

i'm andrew stevens. >>> today's trade deficit hits a record level. what's behind these numbers? natural disasters for one. >>> europe's finance ministers hope to settle difference this is monday as they meet once again to try to fend off what could be the eurozone's first sovereign default. >>> and iran stopped selling britain to britain and france as a team of inspectors arrive in tehran for talks about the country's nuclear program. >>> natural disasters have taken a toll on the economies of two asian countries. we'll start with thailand here. you'll see the thai economy in the fourth quarter of the year contracted by a whopping 10.7% compared with the previous quarter. that's due to the country's worst flooding, you'll remember, in decades. let's take a look at what it means for the whole year. the government figures show the economy grew just .10%. if you take a look at that, thailand is expected to grow between 5.5% and 6.5% thanks to increased domestic demand and a recovery in industrial production. but there is a much bigger concern on the horizon. we're talking about jap

thanks so much, andrew stevens, live in seoul, south korea. charles? >>> still to come here on "world business today," a bitter trademark battle over the ipad. we'll tell you why chinese companies attempted to have sales of apple's tablet banned on its home territory. ask me. [ male announcer ] if you think even the best bed can only lie there... ask me what it's like when my tempurpedic moves? [ male announcer ] ...talk to someone who owns an adjustable version of the most highly recommended bed in america. ask me about my tempur advanced ergo. ask me about having all the right moves. [ male announcer ] these are real tempur advanced ergo owners. find one for yourself. check out twitter. try your friends on facebook. see what they have to say unedited. goes up. ask me what it's like to get a massage anytime you want. goes down. ergonomics. ergonomics. [ male announcer ] tempurpedic brand owners are more satisfied than owners of any traditional mattress brand. [ laughs ] [ woman ] ask me why i'm glad i didn't wait till i'm too old to enjoy this. [ male

i'm andrew stevens, welcome to "world business today" today. the top stories this tuesday. >> i'm exhausted. >> as well he might be. it took more than 13 hours. europe's finance ministers have finally agreed a second bailout deal for greece. we'll tell you exactly what it entails. >>> dominique strauss-kahn is being questioned by french police tao now. we'll have head on allegation that is the former head of the imf participated in a prostitution ring. >>> an exz collusive interview with an inside trade who are says dodge gee deals are note a victimless crime. >> now after all the riots and resignations, the mistargets and miscommunications, greece has its bailout. after 13 hours of talks, the word came greece had met numerous conditions and would receive $173 billion. that should help it default next month. it surely does not mark an end to the country's financial troubles. tt deal greece to cut the debt to 125% of grngsdp down to from a staggering level of 160%. if all goes according to plan greece can miss the debt repaymentless without the

. >> and a very good afternoon from cnn hong kong, i'm andrew stevens. welcome to "world business today" this friday, january -- i should say february 17th. now, rupert murdoch heads to his london headquarters as a dark cloud hangs over his sun newspaper. >>> china's vice president hits 48d on the last leg of his u.s. tour and there's speculation of a studio tie-up. >>> and linsanity translates into marketing madness. how jeremy lin's performance on the basketball court means a slam dunk for sports stores. >>> the last time that the media mogul rupert murdoch jetted in here to london to deal with a crisis at his newspaper empire one of those newspapers published its final edition that very same day. that was the news of the world and that was just seven months ago. it's a long time in the newspaper business, it seems, because another scandal now engulfs his uk tabloid flabship "the sun." later today, murdoch is expected to address a newsroom full of furious journalists at that newspaper. this follows the arrest of nichb current and former "sun" staff in

i'm andrew stevens. you've watch be "world business today." our top stories this monday, february 27th. the world bank issues a stark warning to china, free up the markets or face some dire economic consequences. >> g-20 finance ministers say europe needs to beef up its bailout fund. they're ramping up the pressure on germany to lead the way. >> and the numbers say it all. 71-31. julia gillard remains in power but the australian prime minister must now restore unity within her own party. >>> first up, though, european stock markets have been open for a touch over an hour now. it's not get off to the best week so far. it wasn't much different in asia where the trend was overwhelmingly a downward one. let's go over to andrew. zblf that's right, nina. our top story today, the world bank plus a chinese think tank issuing a stern warning to the chinese government. in a report entitled china 2030, the two institutions say china has to move to a freer, more commercially driven economy if it wants to sustain its rapid growth path. estimates suggest th

i'm andrew stevens in hong kong. >> i'm nina dos santos in london.

. >> and i'm andrew stevens at cnn hong kong. the top stories this february the 3rd, friday, it's megamerger in the making. xstra tchlt at and glencore. >>> bentley rolls out a vehicle worth around $200,000. >>> and it's nearly super bowl sunday where the halftime ainvestment rts can cost as much as a movie. >>> the mining group xstrata are in talks to merge with glencore. the deal could be worth as much as $88 billion and according to some reports it could be formally announced as soon as early next week, glencore is the world's biggest commodity trader and xstrata one of the biggest mining firms. it could result in a monster company big enough to make up most of its rivals. >> it is sizable and unsurprising that the deal, if it does actually manage to go ahead, is expected to send a series of shock waves through the entire mining industry because i merger would create the fourth largest mining company leaving only the likes of b hchhp and rio tinto as bei the couple that are bigger than that. giving us perspective is david leno

i'm nina del santos in cnn london. >>> i'm andrew stevens at cnn hong kong. nina and i will be back joined by ali velshi. we'll be looking at the impact of the ever rising gas prices on the economy and the u.s. indeed around the world the next few days. join us, wbt, for more on that. we have the opening bell from wall street in a few hours from now. bye. ask me. [ male announcer ] even if you think you can live with your old mattress... ask me how i've never slept better. [ male announcer ] ...why not talk to one of the 6 million people who've switched to the most highly recommended bed in america? it's not a sealy, a simmons, or a serta. ask me about my tempur-pedic. ask me how i can finally sleep all night. ask me how great my back feels every morning. [ male announcer ] did you know there's a tempur-pedic for everybody? tempur-pedic beds now come in soft, firm, and everything in between. ask me how i don't wake up anymore when he comes to bed. [ male announcer ] these are real tempur-pedic owners. ask someone you know. check out twitter or your friends on

. >> and a very good afternoon from cnn hong kong, i'm andrew stevens. you're watching "world business today." the top stories this mon, february the 6th. >> debt negotiations are down to the wire in athens. can greece reach a deal with creditors before time runs out? >>> the stage is now set for a potential new trade war as china bans its airlines from complying with an eu carbon tax plan. >>> and it's halftime in america, too. people around the world hurry and they're all wondering what they can do to make a comb back. >>> chrysler's halftime in america ad resonates with super bowl fans with a little help from clint eastwood. >>> pulling out the big guns there. it is 11:00 a.m. in athens and it's the 11th hour for these greek politicians here hoping to secure a new bailout from their international creditors. most asian markets were happy to take their cue from the positive u.s. jobs number which came out on friday, but european investors have one eye on events that could trigger a catastrophic default. charles, good to see you. the mood grim where you

. >> and i'm andrew stevens at cnn hong kong. welcome back to "world business today." >> let's take another look at where the market's going here in europe. we're about 90 minutes into the trading day. of course, greece's future in the eurozone hanging in the balance this friday after eurozone finance ministers rejected a plan that the greek government had managed to put together to try and cut into the austerity budget and also try and make more cuts, notably, on contentious issues, like for instance, pension cuts. wasn't good enough for eurozone finance ministers and they've rejected the plan and it's back to the drawing board, giving the markets a sense of nervousness after yesterday's euphoria. the dax is down 0.9% and the cac and just the ftse holding up, though just a third of a percent, andrew. >> there's a lot of expectations built into the fact that greece will sort out this issue, hasn't there, nina? and they're certainly taking it to the line, two more days and we would hopefully have a result. now, here in asia, the g

. >> reporter: should twice- convicted killer, 32-year-old lee stevens, live or die? jurors have been deliberating a sentence since last wednesday, with no answer yet. legal expert, andrew levy. >> well, it's not supposed to be easy for the state to kill someone, even if you are in favor of the death penalty, i think most people recognize that we have to be sure. >> reporter: the same jury found stevens guilty of murdering 42-year-old corporal david mcgirn inside the now closed house of corrections in jessop. stevens was serving a life sentence for another murder. >> reporter: stevens is a landmark case. for the first time ever, prosecutors used a dna link to pursue the death penalty. under maryland's new and more stringent capital punishment law. >> the first case is always important. and is always going to be something that goes to court. and lawyers are going to look to set a baseline. >> reporter: since 2009, the state can only seek a death sentence in first-degree murder cases that have biological or dna evidence. a video recording of the crime or a videotaped co