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Quest Means Business
Ukrainian Lawmakers Approve Martial Law; UAE Pardons British Academic Matthew Hedges; NASA Successfully Lands "Insight" on the Surface of Mars; Elon Musk Rates His Chance of Going to Mars Better Than Even; Amazon Shares Jump on Cyber Monday; Kenya Pushes for U.S. Tourists; Brexit Deal Faces Difficult Math in Parliament. Aired 3-4p ET
Aired November 26, 2018 - 15:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
RICHARD QUEST, HOST, QUEST MEANS BUSINESS: As Hala said, the President speaking. Let's listen in.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: .... migrants at the border (inaudible) border.
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Well, Mexico wants to see if they can get it straightened out, but we've - during certain times as you
know closed the border. They're not coming into the United States. They will not be coming into our country.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Inaudible).
TRUMP: Well, we don't like it. I believe they'll be opening up something else, and I was very tough. I spoke with her when I heard they were
closing, and I said, "You know, this country has done a lot for General Motors. You better get back in there soon. That's Ohio, and you better
get back in there soon." So we have a lot of pressure on them. You have senators, you have a lot of other people, a lot of pressure. They say the
Chevy Cruise is not selling well. I say well then, get a car that is selling well and put it back in.
So I think you're going to see something else happen there, but I'm not happy about it. Their car is not selling well, so they'll put something
else. I have no doubt that in a not-too-distant future they'll put something else. They better put something else in.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Sir, last night, in response to a "60 Minutes" report, you said --
TRUMP: John, go ahead.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Inaudible).
TRUMP: I've seen it, I've read some of it, and it's fine.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They say the economic impact will be devastating.
TRUMP: Yes, I don't believe it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You don't believe it?
TRUMP: No. No, I don't believe it. And here's the other thing, you're going to have to have China and Japan and all of Asia, and all of these
other countries. You know, it addresses our country. Right now, we're at the cleanest we've ever been, and it's very important to me. But we're
clean, but every other place on earth is dirty, that's not so good.
So I want clean air, I want clean water. Very important.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mr. President - are you comfortable tear gassing children (inaudible)?
TRUMP: They're not - as you know they're not. They had to use them because they were being rushed by some very people, and they used tear gas.
Here's the bottom line, nobody's coming into our country unless they come in legally. Go ahead.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (Inaudible) tell me a little bit about Senator Heitkamp --
TRUMP: Well, I know here. I know her and I know she apologized and she misspoke, but I will tell you this. I've known her for a period of time
now as a senator. She's been an excellent senator, she's done a great job, she's somebody that's respected in the Senate and I'm going there, I'm
going to make I guess two rallies on top of everything else. So we're going to do two and I hope you're all coming.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Have you talked to her specifically about her comment?
TRUMP: I have. I have.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What did she say?
TRUMP: She felt very badly, she certainly didn't mean that, and, you know, it was taken a certain way, but she certainly didn't mean it. And as I
understand it, she's already apologized and very strongly.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Sir, last night, in response to last night's "60 Minutes" piece you said your policy at the border was the same as the Obama
administration's? It wasn't. You decided to prosecute --
TRUMP: Say it again, what?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: In response to last night's "60 Minutes ...."
[15:05:00]
TRUMP: Yes, so I'll tell you what. Obama had a separation policy, we all had the same policy, I tried to do it differently but Obama had a
separation policy, but people don't like to talk about that.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Sir, it was different. You decided to prosecute everyone at the border.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Inaudible).
TRUMP: Sounds like a great deal for the EU, and I think we have to do this. I think we have to take a look at seriously whether or not the UK is
allowed to trade because, you know, right now if you look at the deal they may not be able to trade with us and that wouldn't be a good thing. I
don't think they meant that. I don't think that the Prime Minister meant that and hopefully she'll be able to do something about that.
But right now as the deal stands she may not - they may not be able to trade with the US and I don't think they want that at all. That would be a
very big negative for the deal.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And what do you say about (inaudible) ...
TRUMP: We do not like what's happening. Either way, we don't like what's happening and hopefully it'll get straightened out. I know Europe is -
they are not thrilled. They're working on it, too. We're all working on it together.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Inaudible).
TRUMP: Wed don't use it at all ...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Inaudible) ...
TRUMP: I did it, I spoke to her and I set up the facts that I am (inaudible). You know, the United States paid General Motors and for her
to take that company out of Ohio is not good. I think she's going to put something back in soon. That car is not selling. It's the Cruise - Chevy
Cruise, it's not selling. But hopefully she's going to come back and she's going to put something, but I told her I am not happy about it at all.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is it tariffs? Did she tell you why?
TRUMP: No not tariffs. It has nothing to do with tariffs. She says the car was not selling.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you looking forward to a deal with (inaudible) in Argentina? We're all going to go down and cover you down there, are you
going to make a deal you think?
TRUMP: Which one?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Inaudible)?
TRUMP: I think it could happen. We have a good relationship. He is what's the bottom line is, China has to treat us fairly. They haven't
been. They have to treat us fairly.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mr. President, as a father how do you feel about your children's (inaudible) --
QUEST: President Trump heading to the helicopter from the south lawn at the White House. Well, in a wide ranging series of comments, but mainly on
the question of GM and its decision to slash its staff including a quarter of its executives. You just heard President Trump said he does not like
the decision. Now GM shares rallied up 7% on the news. And this is where those shares are right now.
The plants that are effectively closing, they are in Detroit, Ohio, Maryland and Ontario. Two of those plants - it's not clear that they will
close until next year. Others will follow outside North America.
The union says it's heart breaking for thousands of people, thousands of workers at GM who are going to be laid off.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GREG MOFFAT, PLANT CHAIR, UNIFOR: They work every day and they make General Motors a lot of money. They're the best workers in the industry,
they're the best workers in General Motors and this is the reward they get.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: Now, the President - President Trump just said as he left the White House, he said, "I don't like it, I don't like it one bit. I told her,"
meaning Mary Barra, the Chief executive, "I've told her I don't like it. We are not happy. After all that the United States did for GM, she's going
to put something back in there soon." In reference to the fact that they're pulling out the Chevy Cruise car which is made there and putting it
back somewhere else.
Paula Newton is in Ottawa because besides the US plants that are closing, there are two in Ohio, they is also plants closing in Canada. Paula, you
heard the President. He doesn't like it. He will see this as a betrayal particularly on the back of a renegotiation of NAFTA.
PAULA NEWTON, CORRESPONDENT, CNN: Yes, and he can join certainly Canadian auto unions here in his opinion. What's interesting here is that both the
President and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, we're told by GM that this has nothing to do with the trade issue. That this is part of a general
restructuring in GM, them looking forward ahead in terms of what it will take for GM to stay on its feet, and apparently, these losing factories,
the fact that these were factories that had already decreased their shifts and were part of a losing strategy in terms of the cars they were putting
together.
What's interesting here though, is that the union here in Canada which walked off the job I should say as soon as they heard about this, they say
they will get back to work again tomorrow is saying, no, it's totally about trade. They still accuse GM of trying to put those low cost jobs in Mexico
and saying that it's not fair. I'm not sure if we have the bite. I want to listen to Jerry Dias from UNIFOR, the auto union there.
[15:10:00]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JERRY DIAS, NATIONAL PRESIDENT, UNIFOR: So the message today to General Motors is we are not going away without a fight. You can announce that we
don't have a product after 2019, but we can say to you, as you make decisions about reallocating our product including our Camaro, as you have
made decisions that have negatively impacted Canadian workers, you can make different decisions. Because as they have made the decision to move our
jobs to Mexico, they can absolutely make the same decision to bring our jobs back.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: What's interesting here is the President essentially making the same comments, saying they told me it's because these cars weren't selling,
but President Trump saying you will hear in the future. What remains to be seen is how those tariffs and trade will play into the future decisions not
just of GM, Richard, but a host of other auto companies.
We have to remember that Trudeau and Trump are headed of course to Argentina to join Mexico in signing that new trade agreement at the end of
this week.
QUEST: Yes, that's on the side - indeed, on the sidelines of the G-20. Thank you Paula in Ottawa. Lauren Fix is The Car Coach. She joins me from
Los Angeles ahead of the LA Auto Show.
So let's just - let's get right to the heart of it. You heard President Trump. You may not have been in the seat, but President Trump basically
said he has been assured - he believes that Mary Barra, she as he calls her, will be putting something into those plants, will be replacing it. Is
it your understanding that anything could or would replace the allocations for those plants?
LAUREN FIX, THE CAR COACH: Sure, that's entirely possible. Remember the number one selling vehicle is SUVs and pickup trucks. That's where the
bulk of the sales are. Sales in automotive as far as cars are down. Sedans are just dropped in every brand.
Note originally that SCA cut back on their line up and then Fords are only going to produce two, but they are going to produce quite a few SUVs. So
with that in mind you know that truck sales are strong. Look at what is selling, the number one selling vehicle is pickup trucks followed by SUVs
and crossovers. That's probably what their plan is, but you have to understand, she's got to look further forward. She can't just be looking
at the tip of her nose when it comes to sales.
QUEST: So is it likely or possible or potential or whatever that a pickup or an SUV or some other form of truck goes in there, or is there enough
capacity and enough production of those from other plants elsewhere?
FIX: Well, there's going to have to be some consolidation for sure. I know a lot of people are going to take the buyout and there are going to be
some jobs lost, but you can't keep selling 17 million vehicles every single year forever. It just doesn't happen that. People can only afford to buy
new cars every so often.
So with that thought in mind, especially here at the LA Auto Show, you know, they went in and they went all whole hog when it comes to electric
vehicles. They are just not selling at the levels on a global basis that they thought they would, especially here in the US. So she has to do
something to look ahead. She believes and that's her choice as a CEO that autonomous vehicles and electric vehicles are the future, and if that's the
direction that she wants to go, she has to get rid of cars and she has to start cutting down on some of these factories that are either outdated or
the cost of running them is obviously going to hurt her in the long haul.
QUEST: Quickly turn if we may just to wrap up all the - so much happening with automobiles, Carlos Ghosn he was from Nissan, he is now out from
Mitsubishi. Renault is still deciding what to do about this. How much of an upheaval is this in the auto industry?
FIX: Well, it look said very fishy to those of us on the inside the auto industry. I mean it looks like a soft coup. They didn't like the fact
that Carlos Ghosn was getting stronger and stronger. Remember, he was the Chairman on three different companies and he was running around. The fact
that he was taking money and not disclosing it does not sound right. It sounds very fishy to every single person I've talked to internally. Those
that I have spoken with, when they arrested him they didn't even charge him with anything. He's sitting in prison for 22 days, he can't talk to
anyone, but his attorney and sleep and food time with porridge.
So obviously, this is - they are sending a message and the message is, Nissan does not want to merge with Renault, and if they did - Renault is a
smaller car company and there is controlling interest of Renault and Nissan, although Nissan's stock Renault is not controlling.
QUEST: Now, those are very strong words, Lauren. That's a very strong point, but is it your understanding that Renault stands behind him? Bruno
Le Maire, the French Finance Minister suggested it might be otherwise. But from what you're hearing, does Renault standby him until it becomes clear.
FIX: I think they will because they need him to run that car company. Remember, it's like a third of the size of Nissan. And he's a very, very
smart man. I've met him multiple times. Very intelligent.
[15:15:10]
FIX: I've met him multiple times, very intelligent, and he doesn't understand why this is all going down from what I'm hearing from insiders.
I'm sure the message is, listen, we are not merging into one gigantic company, and if you try to do this to us, here's the message we're sending
back, we're booting you out.
QUEST: Lauren, one can always rely on you to tell us as you see it. I am delighted to have you. We'll talk more next time on the LA Auto Show,
which is what you came to talk about, but so many other things happening, we very much appreciate it.
FIX: Anytime.
QUEST: Now to the US markets. They sprang back into life and a strong rebound in the last hour or so. Now, we've still got 45 minutes of
trading. It is not closed and we're not quite at the best of the day, but not far from it. The Dow is doing in the last 60 minutes of trade, up 325.
It was 350 odd at its highest point of the day. There's also recovery in the energy market.
Brent crude is gaining more than 3%. And it takes the price over $60.00 a barrel, still way lower than a month ago. Virtu's Financial Matt Cheslock
explained earlier when I was on the floor of the exchange, the reasons behind today's rally.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MATT CHESLOCK, EQUITY TRADER, VIRTU FINANCIALS: For the short-term, we were over sold. To see what they did and the punishment they did to some
of these tech names in such a short amount of time, we're talking 20% to 25%, some of these major names, that's a huge move. That was due for a
little bit of a rally.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: Art Hogan is with me, chief market strategist at the investment bank B. Riley FBR in Boston, Massachusetts, good to see you as always, Art.
And so the rally looks like it's got legs for today, but one would be very cautious to say, I mean, it just merely takes us off the bottom from last
week.
ART HOGAN, CHIEF MARKET STRATEGIST, B. RILEY FBR: Certainly, one step at a time, Richard. I think this is a week where we actually get some
information on two of the biggest headwinds that this market has had over the last eight weeks, and clearly that's trade with China, and at the end
of the week the G-20 starts, so we may actually have some constructive conversation around trade and at least setup a platform for a dialogue and
I think that would be taken very positively by the market.
And the other is, we're going to hear from the Fed a couple of different times. We are going to hear from the Vice Chair again tomorrow, from the
Chairman on Wednesday, we get the minutes on Thursday.
So any change in tone from the Fed from overtly hawkish to modestly hawkish to modestly dovish, I think would be a positive for this market. I think
one of the things that the Fed did and Jay Powell was probably guilty of in October was speaking very clearly about how he felt about the neutral rate
of Fed funds rate and I think he needs to walk that back a little bit.
You know, his commentary about being a long way from neutral, caught the market by surprise and made it sound as though there was a target for Fed
rate regardless of what's going on in the rest of the world. And I think becoming more data dependent or at least, saying we're data dependent would
be a huge help.
QUEST: All right, so the market seems to have caught its breath and as you heard, Matt Cheslock, that many people believe it was oversold. I suspect
you probably - you go along with that. When you see the likes of Amazon, Netflix down 25%, 30%, Apple. These aren't virtual companies. They're
actually producing a product or a subscription people that people are buying.
HOGAN: They certainly are and it's interesting. The carnage has gone much deeper than the indexes have in terms of damage. When you look at the
average stock on the S&P 500, for example, it's down 20%. The index is off 8% or 9%. I think that there are more stocks that are down 20% than are
not in the S&P 500 in the current runoff and I think it's positive.
QUEST: So I was in Asia last week and talking to one of the bankers out in Asia, and they said they believed it could be up to another 20% on the
downward leg of this correction. Do you subscribe in any way to that thought?
HOGAN: Another 20% down for US markets, Richard or for Asian markets?
QUEST: Yes, for US.
HOGAN: Yes. No, I don't think so. I think if we look at the economic data stream and the leading economic indicators that just came out last
week, still positive by the better part of 6%. I think that means we're at least a year away from recession. That's what's going to cause this market
to really roll over more than what we've already seen.
So in my mind, I'd rather see what the economy is doing. We know that earnings growth was certainly spectacular this year. It will be less
spectacular next year, but it's not going to zero, and I think that's the important thing. The market is experiencing no economic growth and no
earnings growth next year. I just don't think that's the case.
QUEST: Let's see if the rally has legs. Good to see you as always, sir. Much appreciated. Thank you.
HOGAN: Thank you.
QUEST: As we continue, Theresa May is now in the lion's den otherwise known as the House of Commons. She has just two weeks until skeptical
lawmakers decide whether her Brexit deal lives or dies.
[15:20:00]
QUEST: Theresa May has a challenge for British lawmakers. Support my Brexit deal or watch the country descend into chaos. The House of Commons
is due to vote on December 11th and that gives Mrs. May two weeks to build support for the agreement that she has negotiated in Brussels. An
agreement she says is the best she could get. She warned the House there's no better option out there.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
THERESA MAY, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: And I can say to the House with absolute certainty that there is not a better deal available. And my
fellow leaders - my fellow leaders were very clear on that themselves yesterday. There is a choice which this House will have to make. We can
back this deal, deliver on the vote of the referendum and move onto building a brighter future of opportunity and prosperity for all our people
or this House can choose to reject this deal and go back to square one.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: Joining me now, Anthony Phillipson, the UK Trade Commissioner to North America, previously served as the director of trade in the department
for exiting the EU, knows this subject. Well, good to see you, Anthony.
ANTHONY PHILLIPSON, THE UK TRADE COMMISSIONER TO NORTH AMERICA: Thank you.
QUEST: Now, The deal is on the table, the Prime Minister is trying to sell it, but there are -- I listened to some of the debaters, as I'm sure you
did today. There are serious worries about what the UK's position will be. And you won't have heard this because you must have been coming up over
here, but President Trump - did you hear his comments in the last 25 minutes -that the UK may not be able to do deals with the United States.
Well, you're the trade rep in the United States. Will the UK be able to do a deal with the United States under this plan?
PHILLIPSON: Yes is the bottom line answer to that. And I did - I saw the President's remarks as I was waiting to come on, and we have always had
three ambitions in our --
QUEST: Hang in there, before we get to your ambitions --
PHILLIPSON: Regarding the US.
QUEST: Right, right, well, we'll get to those in a second if you may, sir. So, yes, the UK will be able to do a trade deal with the United States, but
not during the implementation period.
PHILLIPSON: So, there has always been the fact that we would need an implementation period to deliver a smooth orderly Brexit from the EU, which
is in the UK's interests. I would also say, it's in the interest of a large number of US investors who have invested in the UK for many, many
years.
By the end of that implementation period, we will have delivered a future partnership, and that's what's laid out in the 26-page document that was
agreed with European leaders yesterday, and I do believe, the Prime Minister believes that under the terms of that future relationship, which
we have set out as a shared ambition between us and the UE, the UK will have an independent trade policy.
[15:25:07]
PHILLIPSON: It says that a number of times and we will be able to deepen and strengthen our relationship under with the US.
QUEST: In that negotiation, that post departure negotiation, both the French have said that they are getting uppity over - over the question of
fishing rights, Spain is getting uppity over the issue of Gibraltar, if no agreement is reached, then the back stop with Northern Ireland kicks in,
which means, you won't be able to do a deal with the United States.
PHILLIPSON: The backstop on Northern Ireland, it's really important to be clear about this is an insurance policy. It is not something that we want
to have to use. It's not something that the EU wants to have to use. It is there just in case we do not get there and have a gap between the end of
the implementation period, which we could also choose to extend. There is provision for that in the withdrawal agreement as well in order to make
sure that both of us do not face a hard border in Ireland.
In terms of your comments about it, I mean, I would expect all the other member states to sort of have their own interest in that negotiation, but
all 27 have signed up to that framework document, all 27 set out an ambition for a deep free trade agreement, the like of which the UK and EU
does not have with anyone else. And the ambition of getting there talks about good faith and negotiating as soon as possible, even before we've
left in March, we will now start once this deal is agreed moving on to that future partnership.
QUEST: How difficult is it for you to sell the UK as an FDI home when you've got - the House of Commons deciding if it's going to pass the deal
and if it doesn't, then it will be - well, most people will be - it will be a rather disorderly departure from the union.
PHILLIPSON: The Prime Minister has made clear that she now plans to spend the next two weeks as we said, the meaningful vote will be on the 11th of
December, making the case to the country, to her colleagues that this is the best deal for Britain. It delivers on the referendum result, we take
back control of our borders, our laws and our money. It allows us to go anywhere in the world.
And to your point about FDI both existing investors and future investors, what they want to know is what kind of economy they're going to be
investing in the UK. What I think we can say with utter confidence, we will have an economy that is focused on innovation, an economy that is
focused on the future of the global economy. We will be open. We will want to provide an ecosystem that people can continue to invest in.
Because the other point I would say just picking up on the President's comments, we already have the most fantastic trade investment relationship
with the US. We are record investors in each other's country, the US is our biggest export partner. There are a million Brits who go to work for
American companies each day and a million Americans go to work for British companies, and our ambition, which I genuinely definitely believe we can do
under this deal is to take that relationship even deeper, even stronger into the future.
QUEST: Assuming, of course, the House of Commons passes it two weeks' time, but I guess that's a subject for another day.
PHILLIPSON: That's the Prime Minister's intention.
QUEST: Good to see you, sir.
PHILLIPSON: Thank you very much.
QUEST: As we continue tonight, a brave new world. Elon Musk wants to live there. NASA successfully lands on mars. Miles O'Brien is going to join
me. History is unfolding on the Red Planet, but what will we discover?
[15:30:06]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:30:00] RICHARD QUEST, HOST, QUEST MEANS BUSINESS: Hello, I'm Richard Quest, there is a lot more QUEST MEANS BUSINESS in just a moment. We'll be
inside an Amazon Fulfillment Center on the company's busiest day of the year, it is Cyber Monday. And get these ready, get your phones out and go
to cnn.com-slash-join.
We are wanting to know if you're ready and keen to follow Elon Musk to Mars. We'll have a question for you on that, and before we go any further,
this is Cnn, on this network, the facts always come first.
Ukraine's parliament has voted in favor of imposing martial law after a Naval standoff with Russia. Kiev accuses Moscow of firing on and then
seizing three of its ships near Crimea. Russian state media has reported the ships entered Russia's waters illegally, pointed guns at a Russian crew
and ignored warning shots to stop.
The United Arab Emirates has pardoned Matthew Hedges; the British PHD student who was convicted for spying for the U.K. government. While the
700th presidential pardons by the UAE were issued ahead of the country's national day. Hedges is expected to arrive in London tonight.
NASA has successfully landed a new spacecraft on the surface of Mars to study the planet's core. The Insight lander traveled for six and a half
months to reach Mars, will be used as a robotic arm to place instruments on the planet's surface to gather data about the planet's deep interior.
Only about 40 percent of all missions to Mars have been successful. Elon Musk is optimistic. Nonetheless, in an interview with "Axios", he says he
rates his chances of going to Mars better than even.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What's the probability we'll go to Mars?
ELON MUSK, CHAIRMAN & CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, TESLA & SPACEX: Seventy percent. And recently a number of breakthroughs that I am just really
fired up about.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: Elon Musk is excited and says 70 percent, please, get out your -- get out your phones and go to cnn.com-slash-join. And the question we're
asking -- do you think you will or could visit Mars in your lifetime? Now, some of us who are over 50 might say it's a bit of a tall stretch, but
you'll never know.
Those who are in their 20 -- well, I suppose even in their -- over 50s, possibility, 70s or 80s could get to Mars. Do you think that in your
lifetime, in our lifetime, in a generational lifetime, you'll be able to go to Mars? We'll follow the results very closely.
Miles O'Brien is our aviation and space analyst. Before we get to your -- whether you think you'll go to Mars, what is the significance of Insight
and the landing today?
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN AVIATION ANALYST: Richard, Insight is the first lander that NASA has put on the surface that is designed to look beneath the
surface. They -- I believe it's number eight as far as successful landings. They've looked at rocks, they've looked at the atmosphere, they
looked at the ionosphere, they know a lot about what happens outside the atmosphere immediately with their several orbiters.
But they've really done little more than scratched the surface. And this particular probe will do just that. It has a seismometer which will use
essentially Mars quakes to determine what's going on beneath the surface, what the various layers look like.
It'll have a --
QUEST: Right --
O'BRIEN: Sort of a hammer-drill device which will go down approximately 5 or 6 meters into the surface to measure the thermal radiation and thus
interpret how hot the core might be.
[15:35:00] And it will determine how much the planet wobbles as it spins, which will give you some inclination as to whether the core of that planet
is solid or liquid. All of this is of great interest to scientists who want to pursue the idea of putting humans on Mars.
But it's also a great way of understanding our planet too, Richard, because Mars is basically what earth looked like four and a half billion years ago.
Things just kind of froze there and we moved on with plate tectonics, volcanic --
QUEST: Well --
O'BRIEN: Activity and the atmosphere, burying the evidence.
QUEST: This is fascinating, and does it -- I was watching when it lands. How are we getting the data back because I was listening to the voice
counting down how many meters, 300 meters, 150 meters all the way down to the ground. But if it takes that long for the signal to get back to earth,
how are they managing this?
O'BRIEN: Everything you heard happened eight minutes before. So actually when you heard confirmation that it had reached the surface, that had
happened eight minutes prior. So we're just kind of in this long gap. It would be very difficult to exchange jokes with somebody on Mars. You
know, the punch line will be a problem with the timing and all.
So -- but basically using the -- kind of since orbiter is a relay, and there are a couple of experimental props up there, some cubes that's
briefcase size rovers that were being tested out, there's a relay idea as well. They're able to sort of see it as it goes down.
QUEST: And when would you expect to see the first pictures, the first evidence, the first discovery, the first thing that's going to get your
blood running?
O'BRIEN: Well, they just sent back the first picture, and unfortunately they probably should have cleaned off the lens cap, it's got a bunch of
dust on it. So I'd say the first picture is not so great. This is not a picture mission, Richard. They have deliberately flown to one of the most
boring landing sites you could find on Mars.
And the reason is they didn't want to have any rocks around them. The previous missions they were interested in rocks, had to go --
QUEST: Yes --
O'BRIEN: To more precarious places to be near the rocks. In this case, they found a giant parking lot if you will, because they're looking
underneath, so the pictures will be aired(ph).
QUEST: Aired(ph), all right, that's fine, I get you. Do you think you will visit Mars in or get a chance or just the potential to visit Mars in
our lifetime? Forty two percent say yes, 55 percent or so -- 57 percent say no. Where are you voting?
O'BRIEN: Well, I would say, Richard, I will confide in you that as I approach 60, and that's the new -- that's the new 40 in my view, maybe the
new 30. I feel great. But I do know that actually speaking as optimistic as Elon Musk may be, the chances of it fitting into my timeframe and my
budget are probably pretty thin.
I will tell you this before the global audience, if anybody wants to send me, I will go. I do want a round trip, though.
QUEST: That -- yes, you're coming up to 60, I mean round trips, you know, how long does it take to get there? I'm not saying -- listen, I'm not far
behind.
O'BRIEN: Seven months out, it's about a 500-day commitment and all the way in.
QUEST: Remember to stop the newspapers and the milk. Good, now thank you very much Miles O'Brien --
O'BRIEN: You're welcome, always a pleasure.
QUEST: And the numbers there, let's look at those numbers again, the final results, 50 -- so far, I can't see, 58 percent say that no, 41 percent say
yes. Retailers rally, Amazon shares are higher, shoppers are on the hunt for cyber deals. This could be the richest online shopping day in U.S.
history. It's QUEST MEANS BUSINESS.
[15:40:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: Amazon shares are having their best day in weeks. It's currently up around 4 percent or 5.25 percent at the moment. And the gain heading
back towards 1,600. It coincides with Cyber Monday that's expected to be the largest online shopping day in U.S. history. Around $8 billion in
sales overall. Clare Sebastian spent the day at one of Amazon's Fulfillment Centers.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN (voice-over): Well, this is what Amazon's distribution network looks like and it's said to be its busiest day of the
year.
(on camera): This is really where the journey begins. The items get shipped in on trucks and sorted out. And while Amazon is not the only
player getting in on the Cyber Monday sales, it is by far the biggest, and that's captured almost half of all ecommerce sales in the U.S. this year.
And you've really get a sense standing here in this facility which is more than a million square foot, just what it takes to run an e-commerce
operation on that kind of scale and why other retailers are scrambling to catch up. Well, this is what's called Picking, once you place your order,
the robot delivers it to the employee, to make sure it's the right thing and then sends it off to packings.
Speaking of Amazon employees, they have faced criticism in the past for the conditions in these Fulfillment Centers. They did though just raise the
minimum wage to $15 in the U.S. But on this, which is said to be the busiest day of the year for them, I asked them how they make sure the
employees are treated right?
LORI TORGERSON, AMAZON: So the safety of our associates is a top priority. We couldn't make this happen without them, and as you can see here today,
we're all busy delivering on behalf of customers and having fun while doing it.
SEBASTIAN (voice-over): These boxes are now heading out onto trucks ready to be sent to customers.
(on camera): Now, this all looks very smooth, of course, but make no mistake, this is a high pressure moment for Amazon. Their holiday sales
forecast disappointed so they're racing to recapture more sales. They're also for the first time this season offering free on millions of items to
all customers, not just prime members. And all of that of course means extra pressure behind the scenes.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: Clare is with me now, this is extraordinary, the professionalism, if you like, the way in which it's put together.
SEBASTIAN: Yes, it was extraordinary, Richard, we went in there expecting a frenzy. This is their biggest busiest day of the year, and what we got
was, you know, something really very ordinary. I've been in Amazon Fulfillment Centers before, and this really wasn't that different.
But I think the pressure is still there, Amazon reported earnings where their holiday season forecast was a little disappointing. And I think they
really have to try and recapture sales, and you see that with their free shipping offer, and other retailers are moving in.
We've got online sales at Target and Wal-Mart going up north of 40 percent in the last quarter, so there's a lot of competition out there.
QUEST: So the question, of course, is for example, I bought -- because I use this pen and it's a nice pen, so I decided to buy another one for some
friends. And it says it sold by a third party seller. Now, does that mean it's in a third party's place and then it's then delivered to Amazon and
then Amazon then deliver it.
SEBASTIAN: So more than half of Amazon's sales now are third parties. This has been a significant shift, and this is --
QUEST: But is that another third party's --
SEBASTIAN: They use --
QUEST: Standard for Amazon to start with --
SEBASTIAN: So if you look at the Fulfillment Center, that isn't just Amazon's retail business, that is a separate business called Fulfillment by
Amazon. And the third party sellers have to pay a fee to use that. But they do because often it's easier than doing it themselves --
QUEST: How does a Fulfillment Center have everything that they sell? Or does some have something for some others and they sell to --
SEBASTIAN: Some of them --
QUEST: And started really naive, I realize, but you know, I'm just a boy who sort of goes out and buys a newspaper.
[15:45:00] SEBASTIAN: It's always impossible to fathom, Richard, when you see these towers of items, you don't know how they manage their inventory.
And I will tell you that some of the Fulfillment Centers have bigger items, you don't see a lot of fun -- so for example in these trades, these tend to
be smaller items but they're all placed at random in the robotic shelves that move around.
And somehow, the computers know exactly where they are. But inventory management absolutely crucial to maintain profit margins for business like
this, so they must be doing it right.
QUEST: Sorry, thank you Clare Sebastian. U.S. tour operators are gathering for their annual conference on Tuesday, and Kenya's tourism
secretary will be there to attract more visitors. Not on the heels of the first direct flight from Nairobi to New York.
Now, you'll remember of course if you watched over the weekend, I had the pleasure of going on Safari with the secretary during my recent visit to
Kenya.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: I can never see the carnivals until eventually on top of me. This is the only city that's got a national park within its borders.
NAJIB BALALA, SECRETARY OF TOURISM, KENYA: Yes.
QUEST: Oh, buffalo, stop, there, buffalo, very nice. Are we going to see any lions today?
BALALA: Of course.
QUEST: Have you made the ministerial decree? I want to see them.
BALALA: We send a memo to them.
QUEST: To head of lions.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: The secretary has turned to visit us in New York, Najib Balala, good to see you, minister.
BALALA: Thank you.
QUEST: What are you telling them about what your offering is and how it differs from say South Africa or any of the other countries in East and
West Africa? The two have a Safari product.
BALALA: Well, Kenya's Safari is authentic one. We started --
QUEST: Oh, they would say the same thing.
BALALA: Well, there was Safari, the Swahili words, so it comes from Kenya. So it's authentic, it's really out of Africa, and now we have -- we've come
to -- you saw, to introduce the direct flight from New York to Nairobi, which is 15 hours. So it's direct and it's efficient as well.
QUEST: The question of security is never far from traveler's minds. There was of course the various governments and their restrictions which have now
been lifted in both cases. But in terms of what your government is now doing on the security front, what reassurances can you give?
BALALA: Well, that would -- since 2015, there haven't been any incidents and that the government is on top of it. So we have CCTVs all over the
cities, we have invested so much money in the human resources and also in equipments, in the security sector.
So we have done our best as a government to make sure that security is number one, not only for tourists, but for Kenyans and also our investors.
QUEST: And as you compete for tourism, I mean, is it just going to be about come and visit the animals?
BALALA: No --
QUEST: Because you've also got the coast.
BALALA: Yes.
QUEST: You've got the coast and some of the security problems of course came from attacks on holiday makers at the beach.
BALALA: Yes -- no, actually there hasn't been any attacks on tourists, neither holiday destinations. But there has been worries because of the
Indian Ocean and the piracy along the Somalia border, and that's where the worry has been. But yes, we have taken care of that.
But Kenya is not just about Safari, Kenya is about investment, Kenya is about -- again, apart from Safari, we have the beach, we have casual
tourism, sports tourism and you met Eliud Kipchoge who is a world record winner of the marathon. So we have beyond just animals, but yes our core
product is Safari and the beach.
QUEST: I was very surprised on my visit. I mean, it was a lot more relaxed than compared to say West Africa. East Africa or in particular
Nairobi felt a lot more relaxed. But the traffic minister, the traffic --
BALALA: Well --
QUEST: I mean, you've got time to get married and divorced in that traffic.
BALALA: Well, the same traffic I've experienced today in New York.
QUEST: Oh, touche.
BALALA: Yes, but I don't want to compare the traffic, but we are addressing that. The government is investing heavily now in by-passes and
infrastructure. So that can ease the traffic. We already have engineers on the ground to do a fly-over from the airport to the other side of the
city. So that will ease the traffic of Nairobi.
QUEST: And next time I'm visiting more animals and breakfast in the bush?
BALALA: Of course, during the migration in July-August.
QUEST: Well, you want me to migrate out?
(LAUGHTER)
BALALA: No, migrate in.
QUEST: Good to see you, thank you very much --
BALALA: Thank you then --
QUEST: Safe journey back sir --
BALALA: Thanks, thank you.
QUEST: Very exactly. It is QUEST MEANS BUSINESS, we'll have more in just a moment.
[15:50:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: So back to the Theresa May who has told British lawmakers to vote for the deal she's hammered out or face chaos. The government's vote will
be in two weeks time, and the mathematics is very difficult for the Prime Minister. Bianca Nobilo is with us in London.
And now ma'am, as I'm doing the arithmetic on the board, feel free to join in with any corrections however. There are 650 seats, just jump in if
anything more. Seven hundred and fifty seats in the House of Commons which 11 are non-voting, the action feign and the speakers and the various
things.
Divide that by 2, it's something like 319 and a bit. But reality if I'm right, Bianca, she needs 320 to win, is that right? Three hundred and
twenty votes to win.
BIANCA NOBILO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Three hundred and eighteen, three hundred and twenty -- yes, to be safe 320.
QUEST: Right, but she's only got 314 if you discount the members who are deputy speakers. The arithmetic is simply not there. If everybody votes
against her, she cannot get to 320.
NOBILO: No, there's no way at all. And even if we look at her own party where she'd be expecting to rely on support the most, at least 90 of her
MPs have now publicly declared in the media in some place that they're not supporting this deal. So she already doesn't have the numbers even if
we're just looking at them.
QUEST: So how on earth in the realms of possibility does she get to 318, which is the number, the basic number, 320 to be safe. When even if you
take a good -- let's just say for arguments sake, all 90 don't go -- only 50 rebel in her own party, she's miles off.
NOBILO: Yes, she is miles off. And that -- this is the 39 billion euro question that nobody can solve at the moment. Now, the Prime Minister's
government was hoping that they might be able to rely on some labor support. Now, we both know that's not a situation a Prime Minister ever
wants to be in, to have to rely on the opposition.
But there are Labor MPs that have leave constituencies that voted for Brexit. So Theresa May's government is thinking maybe you can mop up a few
of those, but even with them, she's way off the numbers, and then we had Jeremy Corbin publicly declare he is not going to support this deal and
his party isn't either.
QUEST: But even if the Labors who voted for Brexit, they could say we don't like this deal, but we still want Brexit, we want a better Brexit.
Again, I hate to ponder about it, but you are the expert into this, Bianca, how does she get to 320 -- 318 to be on the pessimistic side?
NOBILO: At the moment, nobody I've spoken to can answer that question, but she's still trying. So she must believe as to her advisors that there are
some pragmatists in the middle and I've spoken to some of them who don't like this deal. But they're either afraid of a no deal or they're afraid
of potentially a second referendum and risking Brexit if they're a Brexiteer.
[15:55:00] So they'll be inclined --
QUEST: Right --
NOBILO: To support this deal. That is an option for the Prime Minister, but no, it doesn't look likely as it stands because we're also looking at
the smaller parties like the Lib Dems and SNP, there's no way they're supporting this.
QUEST: And the DUP, they said they're not going to support. One final thought, the Anthony Phillipson(ph); the British Council General in New
York was just telling me, the debate starts next week, and there'll be a full weeks' worth of debate, I believe.
NOBILO: Yes, that's right, we've got the date just a few hours ago. The actual vote on this historic Brexit deal is the 11th of December, and then
the week prior to that, we're going to have every day starting from the Tuesday, we're going to have big debates on this Brexit deal.
And then Richard, to remind --
QUEST: Go ahead --
NOBILO: Our viewers, because this is important, it's not just this deal that there's a vote on. Yes, this is the hurdle that she has to confront
next, but after that, the entirety of the Brexit --
QUEST: Right --
NOBILO: Legislation is then voted on again which people think might be even harder for the Prime Minister than this.
QUEST: We need to pause on that, we need to leave the arithmetic of Brexit, thank you, Bianca. And we need to go to the arithmetic of the
market. We are barely off the top of the day, it's been a very strong session. The Dow is up 352 points.
We are moments away from the closing bell. It looks like -- well, not looks like it's going to be, it's now no records, but at least it's a
strong rally, all the other indices are up as well. We'll have our profitable moment at the closing bell after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: Tonight's profitable moment, so the Brexit vote will take place next week in the House of Commons, and as you saw from our discussion with
Bianca, the mathematics mean that at the moment, not only is it unlikely that she'll win, it's time -- almost impossible that she'll win.
But they are -- the numbers simply do not add up in favor of the Prime Minister. But nonetheless she will battle on. The question now of course
really has to be if the House of Commons broke, does not pass this, is there renegotiation, unlikely says the EU was -- downright chaos as the
U.K. looks forward to crushing out of the EU.
Those are all subjects for another day, it's been a marvelous rally on Wall Street. That's QUEST MEANS BUSINESS for tonight, I am Richard Quest in New
York, whatever you're up to in the hours ahead, I hope it is profitable. Two things the Dow is up very sharply, the day is done.
(BELL RINGING)
END
