ramy inocencio, our asia business analyst. thank you. charles? the u.s.-based hotel giant marriott is casting its sights eastward with a heavy focus on china. they say they are developing 07 new hotels in asia with an additional 110 projects in the early planning stages. half of these 180 new properties will be in china. marriott has several thousand properties in the united states and dozens of other countries. it owns the renaissance and the ritz-carlton brands as well as its own. the coo will shed some light on the markets. he was asked how the weaker u.s. dollar is affecting profits
differently, better, to be more local. i think as we take those steps we also see there are opportunities in not just the luxury space but in the middle market as well. well, that was the marriott coo. he says marriott is rolling out the fairfield courtyard brand in india. austerity in australia? the government is planning to spend tight as it tries to rebalance its finances. china is a locomotive of growth but how will the country s urban centers keep up? nationwide insurance. talk to me.