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NEWS STREAM

Taking A Bite Out Of Apple, CEO Tim Cook Blames China And Its Economic Slowdown; In Hiding, The First Women To Enter A Temple In Kerala After A Ban Was Lifted Are Now Sheltering For Their Own Safety; The Historic Trip To The Other Side, China Lands A Rover On The Far Side Of The Moon For The First Time; A Significant Shift In Washington, The 116th Congress Will Be Sworn In Handing Control Of The House Of Representatives To The Democrats; In Saudi Arabia, Prosecutors Are Seeking The Death Penalty Against Five Of The 11 Suspects Accused In The Murder Of Jamal Khashoggi. Aired: 8-9a ET

Aired January 03, 2019 - 08:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


KRISTIE LU STOUT, HOST, "NEWS STREAM": I am Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong and welcome to "News Stream". Taking a bite out of Apple, CEO Tim Cook

blames China and its economic slowdown, but the company is profit warning. In hiding, the first women to enter a Temple in Kerala after a ban was

lifted are now sheltering for their own safety, and the historic trip to the other side, China lands a Rover on the far side of the moon for the

first time.

It is just an hour and a half to go before Thursday's trading day kicks off in the U.S and it could be a rocky one. The tech-heavy NASDAQ is projected

to open down by about 2%. That's after Apple announced it would miss its holiday sales target, mainly because of weak iPhone sales in China.

It is Apple's stock plummeted losing a staggering $55 billion in value in after-hours trading. This is all adding to investor fears about China's

slowing economy and the trade war with the U.S.

Apple lowered its revenue estimate for the last quarter to $84 billion; that's at least $5 billion lower than a previous estimate, CEO Tim Cook

explained the slump.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TIM COOK, CEO, APPLE: And so as we look at what's going on in China, it's clear that the economy began to slow there for the second half. And what I

believe to be the case is the trade tensions between the United States and China put additional pressure on their economy.

And so we saw, as the quarter went on, things like traffic in our retail stores, traffic in our channel partner stores, the reports of the

smartphone industry contracting.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LU STOUT: Tim Cook there blaming the trade war, blaming the slowdown in China, and it's not just Apple. Analysts say that the slowdown in China,

the world's second largest economy could hit other western brands like Starbucks, General Motors, and Volkswagen.

Some analysts say forget about the trade war. The Chinese economy itself has bigger problems. Growth in 2018 is expected to be the weakest since

1990. The outlook for this year, even worse. Chinese consumers may not be as willing to fork out the cash for the latest smartphone or luxury item.

CNN's Anna Stewart is in London for more on the global stock reaction to all of this, but first, let's go to our chief CNN business correspondent,

Christine Romans who joins us live from New York where premarket trading is under way and Christine, as we just showed on the big wall here, it's not

just Apple. So many American brands rely on China for growth. You know, the trade war, the slowdown, putting all that at serious risk now.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT, CNN: It is and it complicates the trade negotiations between the U.S. and China and that's

what's going to be fascinating to watch is whether the American negotiators see this as leverage for the United States.

It shows that the American tariff strategy is putting pressure on China and the Chinese and maybe, it brings them to the table sooner and give more

concessions to the U.S. But also the United States stock market had really a rough ride in the last month, month and a half of the year, too, so maybe

that weakens the American position.

At any rate, Apple is the locust here and you have got the company's market cap now below $700 billion. And over the past year, you're back where you

started essentially, even lower than where you were where you started the year for Apple shares.

So this is something that Apple shareholders are feeling keenly, 7% or 8% is what it looks like it will be at the opening bell lower if you look at

futures and the way the stock is trading in after hours.

And the big feeling here, really, Kristie is that Apple won't be the last American company that is going to be hurt by China's slowdown. It is

certainly a harbinger of what we've been hearing about the slowdown in China and what that is going to mean for American brands, Kristie.

LU STOUT: Yes, Apple has a big China problem, but Apple also has its own separate issues. Could Apple and Tim Cook be making China a scapegoat?

ROMANS: That's a really good question because that's what a lot of the analysts have been talking about this morning. You know, there have been

other missteps in terms of China in that market before. But what really has rattled focus is this idea that or without Apple's other problems with

its China strategy, if you got a rapidly slowing Chinese economy and again, even more rapidly slowing towards the latter half of the second half of

year, what is going to be the reverberation for other companies heading into the beginning of the year?

So less the Apple story this morning and more now a guessing game of who else could be hurt.

LU STOUT: Absolutely. Christine Romans, thank you so much for joining us now. Let's go to Anna Stewart for the global market reaction. She joins

us from CNN London and Anna, again, that surprise announcement from Apple, the mounting uncertainty over China is weighing on global markets. What's

the latest?

[08:05:08]

ANNA STEWART, REPORTER, CNN: For sure. Firstly, on the Apple stock down some 8% in after-hours trading and the anxiety is really spread throughout

the markets. Asia had a very choppy session, if you bring up the indices there. They did bring up some recovery by the end, but most of them closed

in the red.

And then this morning, we had Europe opening again on the down side; mostly in the red, and actually, I have to say we're not seeing much recovery here

at all. Extended losses in the DAX, in the French CAC current, down nearly a percent there as well, and that's after a really dismal start of the

year, Kristie.

Yesterday, we saw all of them open with steep declines and States-side, both sides of the pond, you know, some choppy trading following their open,

but really very volatile. I think we're going to see more of this to come.

LU STOUT: Yes, and the global picture ahead for the year are clouds already gathering here.

STEWART: Yes, something of a 2018 hangover, I think, Kristie. All the anxiety, all the uncertainties and risks that we were looking at last month

and it was a very volatile month are still here.

It's the U.S.-China trade tensions, it's political issues country by country across the world whether you're looking at the likes of Brexit here

in Europe, and Italy's populist government, whether it's the U.S. shutdown States -side or whether, of course, with China it's just the slowing

economy and the impact that will have.

Plus, we're just looking at a fiscal stimulus being taken off the table by Central Banks. All of these headwinds are only going to get worse probably

in the months to come.

LU STOUT: And 2019 just started, we are already on such shaky ground. Anna Stewart reporting, thank you so much. We are going to have more on

Apple's shock warning along with the opening bell on Wall Street, coming up on "First Move with Julia Chatterley," that starts in less than an hour

from now.

Now, China's prosecutor general says that there is, quote, "no doubt that two Canadians being detained in China broke the law." Last month, Michael

Spavor and Michael Kovrig - they were both taken into custody on suspicion of quote, "activities that endanger China's national security."

However, their detention is seen by some as an act of retribution for Canada's arrest of a top Huawei executive. Meanwhile, the U.S. and Russia

- they have been embroiled in a spat over alleged spying. Senior U.S. diplomats are demanding answers from the Kremlin about the arrest of an

American man on espionage charges.

The U.S. Ambassador to Russia, Jon Hunstman met with Paul Whelan at a Moscow jail on Wednesday following his arrest last Friday. Russia's

security service, the FSB says, Whelan was detained last Friday on suspicion of carrying out an active espionage, but offered no further

details. Whelan's family insists he is not a spy.

Whelan's arrest comes two weeks after alleged Russian spy, Maria Butina, pleaded guilty in the U.S. to trying to infiltrate political circles and

influence U.S.-Russia relations prompting some U.S. officials to view Whelan's arrest as an act of retaliation.

Earlier, CNN's national security analyst and retired CIA Chief of Russia Operations Steve Hull spoke with John Vause. He said he believes neither

Butina nor Whelan are spies.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEVE HULL, NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST, CNN: This is not and won't be a spy swap largely because there are no spies involved. Mr. Whelan is clearly

not an intelligence officer, not a spy. Somebody who is simply essentially been taken hostage by the Russian government, who will fabricate whatever

supposed evidence that they have. They are very good at that. They've done before.

Maria Butina is definitely linked to this case, but she also is not really a professional spy. She is simply somebody that was working on an

oligarch's behalf, on behalf of the Russian government, but neither of them are spies.

What is happening here, is Vladimir Putin is using this American citizen, Mr. Whelan, or hopes to use him anyway as leverage probably to try to get

Butina out of the United States as soon as possible.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LU STOUT: And using him as a bargaining chip that may come sooner rather than later. Butina faces a maximum of five years in prison, but would

likely serve just a few months, if any. Then she will probably be deported back to Russia.

Now, it is a historic day in Washington as the 116th Congress is set to be sworn in on Capitol Hill. A record number of women are taking seats in the

new Congress, which is also the most racially and ethnically diverse ever.

Democrats now take control of the House of Representatives, while Republicans retain control of the Senate, but over-shadowing this important

day is the ongoing government shutdown now entering its 13th day.

Our CNN's Lauren Fox is live from Capitol Hill in Washington. She joins us now. Lauren, the Democrats would take control of the House today. What do

they plan to do with their new majority?

LAUREN FOX, POLITICS CONGRESSIONAL REPORTER, CNN: Well, it is a new era up here on Capitol Hill. Democrats have been in the minority for nearly a

decade. So, today, there is going to be a lot of pomp and circumstance. First, they have to vote for a new Speaker. We expect that to be Nancy

Pelosi. She'll be retaking the gavel.

Now, the next thing she will do is she will swear in the 116th Congress, and as you mentioned, this is a historic number of women that will be on

the House floor today, including the first Muslim woman and the first Native American women ever elected to the House of Representatives.

[08:10:06]

FOX: After that, they're going to get down to business. They need to try to reopen the government. They will vote on a bill that includes six

Senate passed appropriations bills, as well as a continuing resolution to keep the Department of Homeland Security funded through February.

Now, remember, there is still a divided government in Washington. So Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Republican in the Senate, will not be

putting that Democratic-passed bill on his floor. He says that's because President Trump isn't expected to sign it. There's no point to have that

kind of exercise.

Now, that's all just what we can see. Behind the scenes, Democrats have been working for months to prepare for Democratic investigations into

President Donald Trump. It's a new day on Capitol Hill, and the President better get ready to listen to some Ddemocrats.

LU STOUT: Yes, it's a new day on Capitol Hill. It's a new day for Trump. The President only has had to deal with an obedient Republican Party, you

know, the last two years, is he ready for this new reality with the Democrats now taking over the House?

FOX: Well, today, we expect the Democrats to file their first piece of legislation, it's HR-1, and what it does is it makes sweeping ethics

reforms, as well as demands that someone like President Trump, a sitting President as well as presidential candidates would have disclose ten years

of tax returns. Now, we don't expect that bill to ultimately make it to the President's desk, but that's just a sampling of the kind of oversight

that Democrats are hoping to do into the President's administration.

And you know, there's going to be further investigations on everything from his campaign's ties to Russia to Cabinet Secretary travel. It is going to

be so much scrutiny on this administration. I think it's hard to really say that the President is going to be ready for something like this.

LU STOUT: Yes, today is the day when the Trump presidency fundamentally changes. Wow. Lauren Fox reporting live for us. Thank you so much. Take

care.

FOX: Thank you.

LU STOUT: Now on his first day as acting U.S. Secretary of Defense, Patrick Shanahan told Pentagon leaders to, quote, "Remember China, China,

China." His focus on Beijing stepped up military activities comes as confusion bounced over the U.S. military withdrawal from Syria.

President Trump now says that there is no specific timetable, but not long ago, he indicated that they would start returning right away. Here is

CNN's Barbara Starr.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

BARBARA STARR, PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT, CNN (voice over): On Patrick Shanahan's first day as acting Defense Secretary, President Trump focused

more on the man he just replaced, now former Secretary James Mattis.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: but what has he done for me? How has he done in Afghanistan? Not too good. President Obama fired him

and essentially, so did I.

STARR (voice over): Mattis, however, resigned after having his advice ignored by the President according to sources directly familiar with

Mattis's thinking. Now Shanahan takes on the burden of figuring out Trump's changing rhetoric on pulling 2,000 ground troops from Syria which

the President described as --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: We're talking about sand and death. That's what we're talking about. We're not talking about vast wealth. We're talking about sand and

death.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STARR (voice over): Now the President insisting he has no specific timetable for pulling troops out.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: Over a period of time. I never said I'm getting out tomorrow.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STARR (voice over): But in a White House produced video just last month, Trump was adamant on an immediate troop withdrawal.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: They're all come back and they're coming back now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STARR (voice over): For his part, Shanahan remained focused on the White House's message about border security.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PATRICK SHANAHAN, ACTING SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: The threat is real. The risks are real. We need to control our borders.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STARR (voice over): But commanders say, it could take as long as four months to get troops out of Syria safely.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARK HERTLING, LT. GEN. (RET.), MILITARY ANALYST, CNN: He made the decision first and then started looking for things to either back it up or

run contrary to what he thought. That is confusing to not only our allies, but also our foes, and it's especially confusing for the military people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STARR: So did Trump fire Mattis? Well, he did push the Secretary out two months earlier than Mattis had planned to go. But Mattis had already

resigned. Barbara Starr, CNN, the Pentagon.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

LU STOUT: You're watching "News Stream" and still to come, protests over who can enter one of Hinduism's holiest shrines turn deadly in India; a man

is killed in violent clashes. We are live in New Delhi.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:15:00]

LU STOUT: We are coming to you live from Hong Kong, welcome back, this is "News Stream" and now, to Saudi Arabia where prosecutors are seeking the

death penalty against five of the 11 suspects accused in the murder of Jamal Khashoggi. That's according to the Kingdom's state-run news agency.

The journalist was killed in October moments after entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.

Two women who entered one of India's holiest sites after a centuries' long ban are now in hiding. Protests broke out after the pair set foot into the

s Sabarimala temple which has been off limits to women of menstruating age for centuries. At least one person has been killed, several others injured

including a police officer.

In September, India's Supreme Court lifted a ban on women aged 10 to 50 from accessing the temple. Our Nikhil Kumar joins us now with more on the

story from New Delhi, and Nikhil, these protests have turned deadly. What's the situation right now in Kerala?

NIKHIL KUMAR, NEW DELHI BUREAU CHIEF, CNN: The situation, Kristie, remains tense. One man as you say died, he died in protests yesterday. He was

injured during a clash between supporters of the BJP, the political party of Prime Minister Modi which opposes the lifting of the ban, and activists

from the local communist party that runs the state of Kerala where the temple is located, which is in support of lifting the ban. When they

clashed, this man was injured. He was taken to hospital. He later succumbed to his injuries over there according to police.

Today, the state has been under a virtual sort of shutdown. Parts of it sort of really life have come to a grinding halt because of calls by

protesters to drop daily rife after these two women entered this temple earlier on Wednesday.

So it remains tense. The issue remains divisive and contentious. And we expect it to remain so as we work our way towards the next milestone here

which is likely going to be later in January when the Supreme Court revisits the judgment from September. There are a bunch of petitions filed

by orthodox Hindus calling on the court to review this judgement. They will do that later this month. We will see what happens, but for now, the

situation is very tense.

Thousands of police out in the streets across Kerala including around the temple after these two women went in there and they remain in hiding in an

undisclosed location for their safety -- Kristie.

LU STOUT: The situation remains very tense in Kerala. Is politics fanning the flames of these violent protests and these clashes over gender

equality?

KUMAR: It certainly is. So India is only a few months away from national elections, and has become a political issue - a major political issue ahead

of that contest. The BJP, the Prime Minister's party, other people from across the political spectrum have been weighing in on either side. The

Prime Minister's party has chosen to side with the orthodox Hindus to say that, "Look, this is a matter of religion. This is a matter of tradition.

This is not a matter of law."

But the local communist party that governs that state, they say, no, this is about equality. This is all about gender equality, about striking a

blow against patriarchy. And so that set up this political clash. Today's shutdown was triggered by calls from activists within the BJP, among other

groups.

[08:20:02]

KUMAR: So it is very political and that's one of the things that's added to the tensions and made this issue already so complicated, ever more

complicated. You have questions about the rule of law, you have questions about gender equality, of course, and now you have all of these questions

about politics. But for many people, at the end of the day, it just comes back to gender equality.

Earlier today, I spoke to a man who was part of the group that went in with these two women early Wednesday morning - a psychologist. He has nothing

to do with them apart from being a supporter of that cause. And he said that, "Look, at the end of the day, this was a about breaking a taboo."

And he applauded those women for doing that. Somebody who doesn't know them, who got in touch with them over social media and accompanied them

because he believes in this cause as a cause to make sure that there is gender equality, more gender equality in this country -- Kristie.

LU STOUT: Yes, but as you lay out, there are just so many contentious issues that play here. This is about breaking taboos, this is about gender

equality. It's also about the rule of law. It's about politicizing all of these. Is there going to be any sort of respite from these scenes of

violent protests. What's going to happen next?

KUMAR: Well, authorities have been working to make sure that these protests don't become more violent, that they don't spiral out of control.

It's one reason why since September, there's been a blanket really of police around the temple site itself in Kerala, more than a thousand police

personnel there to keep the peace.

And the forces were out in force again today in Kerala. We'll just have to wait and see what happens in coming days, in coming weeks. But one thing

is for sure. That this is a very, very emotive flashpoint for everybody concerned on both sides of the argument. For the people who want this ban

to remain in place, they're not willing to put any dissent to that point of view. They say, this has nothing to do with the courts. If the courts

start intervening with this one temple, well, where are they going to stop?

But equally, as I say, for people on the other side, it's just as emotive. They see this as a vestige of discrimination, one of many in this country.

Often, that discrimination is presented in violent ways against women. In this case, they say, "Look, this something that just shouldn't be there."

These are women devotees. They want to be counted as devotees, as equal devotees as the men. And it's about time that this changed -- Kristie.

LU STOUT: Yes, there's so much at stake here. This will continue to be a flashpoint for some time to come. Nikhil Kumar, reporting live for us from

New Delhi. Thank you so much.

Now, North Korea's top diplomat in Italy may have defected. His name, Jo Song Gil and his wife have reportedly been missing since early November,

and a major South Korean newspaper claims he is seeking asylum in the west. If this report is true, that would be the highest ranking North Korean

official to defect since 2016.

Germany could soon see the type of protests that we've been following in France for weeks now. The Yellow Vest Movement has been venting its anger

against the French government. What started out as a protest against a planned fuel hike, erupted into demonstrations against wider reform plans,

and that has reportedly inspired the leader of a left-wing grassroots group to organize protests against Germany's government in the coming year.

Media reports say that the German is called Get-Up Movement has some 170,000 followers. Although France's Yellow Vest Movement has lost some

momentum, it is still a headache for the French President, Emmanuel Macron. Mr. Macron is also facing questions about a former aide. Melissa Bell has

more.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MELISSA BELL, CORRESPONDENT, CNN (voice over): 2019 began with a bang in Paris with 300,000 people out on the Champs-Elysee to see in the New Year.

But amongst the revelers, a high visibility reminder that the troubles of 2018 may not be over.

Gilet jaune protesters had called for a festive and nonviolent gathering, their eighth since the protest over a hike in the fuel tax began in

November and a reminder also that they do not intend to stop. On New Year's Eve, the French President addressed them directly.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EMMANUEL MACRON, FRENCH PRESIDENT (Through a translator): To me this anger means one thing, whatever its success is, we didn't resign ourselves. Our

country wants to build a better future based on our ability to invent new ways of doing things and of being together. To me, that's 2018's lesson.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BELL (voice over): But even as Emmanuel Macron attempts to look ahead, the past is casting a shadow in the shape of this man, Alexandre Benalla, the

former senior aide and security adviser who hasn't strayed far from the headlines ever since a video emerged of him beating up a protester on May

the 1st.

The Elysee initially suspended him, then later fired him under pressure from a media storm. Benalla says he was just a citizen trying to help out

and that he made a big mistake. President Macron has denied any cover up.

[08:25:05 ]

BELL (voice over): A Parliamentary Commission was set up to investigate Benalla's role at the Elysee. In September, he appeared and told the

Commission that he had lost any privileges including official passports that he might have had.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALEXANDER BENALLA, FORMER MACRON AIDE (Through a translator): Have they been returned? They are in the office that I occupied at the Elysee, so I

think that the Elysee must have taken care of it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BELL (voice over); Three months later, that was found to be a lie. When it emerged in the French press that Benalla had travelled to Chad on a

diplomatic passport, meeting the Chadian President only weeks before Emmanuel Macron paid a Christmas visit to French troops there.

Macron's Chief of Staff told the press that Benalla was neither a formal nor an informal envoy of the government and that if he claimed to be, that

would be false. Benalla's lawyers could not be reached, but he told the investigative journalism website, "Mediapart" that he had been in touch

with the President and that that would be difficult for the Elysee to deny given his regular exchanges that are still on his mobile phone.

The Elysee has now confirmed to CNN that Emmanuel Macron did send two text messages to Benella since his resignation, messages that many now very

eager to see.

Melissa Bell, CNN, Paris.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

LU STOUT: You're watching "News Stream" and still ahead, China makes history with the first lunar landing on the far side of the moon. We are

live in Beijing on that milestone mission.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong, you're watching "News Stream" and these are your world headlines. It's not looking so good for Wall

Street right now. At this hour, the tech-heavy NASDAQ is projected to open down under 2%. The Dow also poised for a triple digit loss. This follows

Apple's warning that it would miss its sales target for the holiday quarter, blaming weak sales in China.

U.S. President Donald Trump told lawmakers on Wednesday, he can't accept a proposal from Democrats to reopen the government because it would make him

look foolish. That's according to a person familiar with the exchange. The White House meeting came just hours after - or ahead of a significant

shift in Washington, the 116th Congress will be sworn in this afternoon handing control of the House of Representatives to the Democrats.

In Saudi Arabia, prosecutors are seeking the death penalty against five of the 11 suspects accused in the murder of Jamal Khashoggi. That's according

to the Kingdom's state run news agency. The journalists was killed in October moments after entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.

[08:30:04]

LU STOUT: The first two women to enter India's Sabarimala temple after hundreds of years are now in hiding. The pair's entry into the shrine

which had previously been off limits to most women has sparked protests and left at least one person dead. In September, India's Supreme Court lifted

the ban on women aged 10 to 50 from accessing the site.

Now, tropical storm Pabuk is forcing thousands of people to flee southern Thailand. It is high tourist season in places like Koh Samui and Ko Phi

Phi. The government is warning residents to be alert as the area is not used to these types of storms; and officials tells CNN that the storm could

cause waves as high as seven meters and dump over 250 millimeters of rain.

Now, China is boasting a major achievement for its Space Program today. The state TV reports that it has landed a vehicle on the far side of the

moon. The rover sent back these new images of the moon just a short time ago. The mission here is to conduct a number of experiments, including

attempts to find water and other resources and to see if plants can grow in low gravity. CNN's Matt Rivers is in Beijing. He joins us now. Matt,

what has China achieved here?

MATT RIVERS, CORRESPONDENT, CNN: Well, I think you can look at it in two tracks, really, Kristie. I think on the one hand for a scientific

achievement, this is a big deal for China, getting this lunar rover successfully launched to the moon, doing all the technical difficulties

that are required in getting that done. I mean, that's an accomplishment, no matter which way you look at it.

But on the other hand, you're also looking at an accomplishment of perception. This is China making its presence known, saying to the rest of

the world, "We will not cede space exploration to countries just like the United States and Russia."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RIVERS (voice over): Chinese state media confirming a first in the history of space exploration announcing China's Chang'e-4 mission successfully

landed a lunar rover on the far side of the moon, and these are the first two close up images of the ground the rover sent back. This is the first

time any country will explore the far side of the moon on the ground.

China's six-wheeled rover faces a long to-do list, like observing whether plants will grow in the low gravity and exploring whether water or other

resources lie at the moon's poles. They will be able to listen more clearly to the sounds of deep space because here, there is no

electromagnetic interference from earth.

The far side of the moon is the hemisphere that never faces earth. It's been mapped extensively, but never visited, mainly because it's not

possible to communicate directly to earth from there. China launched a relay satellite to solve that issue.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RIVERS: It's a big step forward for China, because historically, its Space Program really lagged behind the U.S. and Russia. But now it's a huge

point of national pride. So this place like this one here at the National Museum help inspire a sense of wonder and optimism amongst ordinary Chinese

people that when it comes to space, anything is now possible. Kind of like the U.S. was back in the 60s and 70s.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RIVERS (voice over): China has already launched two space stations and by 2022, hopes to launch another potentially capable of replacing the aging

International Space Station. A probe to Mars is set for launch in 2020.

And In 2015, CNN got exclusive access to training facilities used by Chinese astronauts where we saw firsthand how China is planning to send

more people into space.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RIVERS: And it's because of all of that that some people wonder whether it will be China and not the United States that will dominate space

exploration in the near future.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RIVERS (voice over): The U.S. Congress bars NASA from working with China due to national security concerns. And with the Trump administration's

plan to create a military Space Force, the stage is set for competition in both the civilian and military arenas.

Trump has also directed NASA to return astronauts to the moon and they might not be alone. Between China's Chang'e missions, and its man-flight

programs, many experts predict Beijing is gearing up to send its own astronauts to plant a Chinese flag on the moon as soon as possible.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

RIVERS: Now, Kristie, far be it from me to declare some sort of new space race or something between the United States and China. We don't know if it

is going get to that point. But if there was going to be a competition in space -- civilian arena, military arena, getting to the moon, getting to

Mars -- whatever it's going to be, really the only two countries, at least for now that it seems like that race could be between is going to be China

and the United States.

LU STOUT: Yes, and what was achieved today, a win for science, a win for China as well. Matt Rivers reporting live from Beijing, thank you.

For more on the significance of the landing, I'm joined now by former NASA astronaut Leroy Chiao. He has been on four space missions, and most

recently served as the Commander of the International Space Station. Leroy, pleasure to have you on the program. Thank you for joining us

[08:35:00]

LU STOUT: What the Chinese did today - this is a first. But why is it that China did this, that China has become the first to land a spacecraft

on the far side of the moon?

LEROY CHIAO, RETIRED NASA ASTRONAUT: Well, what we've seen is a steady progression and a long range plan, very detailed goals and China is

marching down that road ever since they first launched Yang Liwei in 2003, establishing themselves as only the third country able to launch astronauts

into space, now, only one of two and now they have landed on the far side of the moon with a rover. That's a first. That's never been done.

They showed a high level of sophistication in first launching a satellite communications - a relay satellite into what is called a halo orbit so that

they could communicate with that rover, and what they're demonstrating is a technological and operational prowess. And as you were saying in your

segment, they have big plans to have their own International Space Station and also to land their astronauts on the moon.

LU STOUT: Yes, and so now that China has a rover on the far side of the moon, will the next human to walk the moon be speaking Mandarin - will be

from China?

CHIAO: Well, that is certainly maybe more than a possibility, maybe even a probability. I think the wild card in there is will some of these

commercial companies stop by the moon before they want to go to Mars? And so there's an interesting competition that's gearing up not only

necessarily between nations but also between some of these commercial companies that we're seeing.

LU STOUT: Yes, and bringing it back to China, why is China in space? What are China's plans in space?

CHIAO: Well, first and foremost reason, any country that has a space program and gets - especially gets into the human spaced flight program is

for national prestige and to show their technological prowess and China is doing both of those things.

You've seen especially their human space flight program is very measured. They're not launching very often. They're very deliberate. They have

specific goals that build upon the previous mission on each one and same with their unmanned program. They have gone farther with their Chang'e

series. This is the fourth one and this is the most ambitious one. Each one has done more and more, and so what you're seeing is a high level of

sophistication and very deliberate plan.

LU STOUT: Yes, the Chang'e 4, the current mission, the rover that is on the far side of the moon, you call it the most ambitious just one yet.

What kind of experiments will it conduct on the surface of the moon and what can humankind learn from it?

CHIAO: Well, this is going to be doing some things that have never been done before. It has a ground penetrating radar. They'll be mapping the

structure underneath the surface of the moon. Because the moon is shielding the spacecraft from all the radio emissions from the earth,

they'll be able to do some detailed studies of using - measuring the radio waves and radio astronomy and make some observations that have never been

done before. And they've got some other experiments, too. For example, they're going to be demonstrating or seeing if they can grow plants in the

one sixth gravity of the lunar surface.

LU STOUT: And this year, of course, you know, this year will be the 50th Anniversary of the Apollo moon landing. Today, China has landed a rover on

the far side of the moon. This is historic. But why did it take so long?

CHIAO: Well, of course, China was starting from a point much behind the United States and Russia. Russia, of course, launched Yuri Gagarin into

space first and then the United States followed with Alan Shepard a few weeks later back in 1961.

And so, if you fast forward to China launching Yang Liwei in 2003, that's a pretty big gap, right? So it took that long for China really to kind of

bring their infrastructure up to the point where they are able to do the things that we were doing. Now, having said that, they are not doing it

with 60s technologies. Their technologies are up to date.

From what I've seen, they have a high degree of sophistication. So nobody should make the mistake of thinking that they're just recreating what we've

done in the 60s and 70s. That's simply not true.

LU STOUT: Yes, but this is such an incredible space milestone achieved by the Chinese today, just days after what NASA's New Horizon sent back those

incredible photographs. What a week for space, Leroy Chaio, thank you for joining us here on the program and take care.

CHIAO: My pleasure.

LU STOUT: Now, you're watching "News Stream" and still ahead, what do you do when your kid takes all your money and rips it into shreds? A man in

China was forced to find out. I've got the story, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:40:00]

LU STOUT: Welcome back, now, may have seen our reporting on that ambitious project designed to clean up plastic from the Pacific Ocean, but

unfortunately, it's not quite working as planned. Now, due to a structural malfunction, the Wilson as it is called has to go back to port earlier than

planned for repairs.

The system set sail from San Francisco in September with the goal of cleaning half of the great Pacific garbage patch over the next five years.

But organizers say that the 600 meter long device may not be moving fast enough to catch the plastic. It's also creating waves that keep the

plastic from entering the mouth of the device.

Now, a man in China is counting his blessings as his cash - he is counting his catch, as well, after staff at a bank branch in Shanghai made sure he

didn't lose the money. Now, this is the story, the man had withdrawn more than 9,000 yuan. That's about $1,300.00 for deposit for a car, but while

he was cooking something at home, his own child shredded the notes, some into more than a dozen pieces, so the man, he rushed back to the bank.

The tellers, they went straight to work patiently pasting the pieces back together. And as you can imagine, it took them a day and a half. Now, the

manager said that the bank was just following the rules when customers return torn currency.

Now, Netflix is pleading with its viewers to stop imitating Sandra Bullock and the hit movie "Bird Box."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SANDRA BULLOCK, AMERICAN ACTRESS: You hear something in the woods, you tell me. You hear something in the water, you tell me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LU STOUT: Now, in the film, Bullock and two children wander blindfolded through a post-apocalyptic world and that has given rise to a real-world

internet craze and viewers, they have been uploading videos of themselves and their children blindfolded and going about their daily routines. You

can see them staggering through their homes or stumbling around outside or inside stores. It is getting so bad that Netflix has released a warning

saying this, quote, "Please do not hurt yourself with this "Bird Box" challenge." You've been warned.

And that is "News Stream." I am Kristie Lu Stout. Don't go anywhere though, "World Sport" with Amanda Davies is next.

(SPORTS)

[09:00:00]

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