Coming to a street near you, the future of cars may be electric, but is the Technology Mainstream enough to become mass market yet . In the Programme Today we take a look at some of the issues surrounding the switch to electric vehicles, are they still too expensive to buy, and how practical are they for very long journeys . A few hours ago, ford unveiled its brand new electric car, called the mustang mach e. Ford hope theyre on to a winner, the mustang is the worlds best selling sports coupe, and the new car is the first vehicle in fords range to be built as an electric vehicle from the ground up. Its also fords response to teslas model y. Electric mobility is expanding. In 2018, the Global Electric car fleet exceeded 5. 1 million, up 2 million from the previous year. China remains the Worlds Largest electric car market, followed by europe and the united states. But this contrasts massively with sales of the internal combustion engine, recent research for the first half of this year over 90 of all cars sold around the world had one. Carter balkcom from the german carmaker audi, feels more in the industry are now taking electric cars seriously. Tesla, a company that has been solely focused on electric vehicle production, you have two give them credit for blazing the trail, but if you look at other entries on the marketplace from other countries that also do normal cars, this is really the first time you are getting long range, fully usable, everyday usable electric vehicles coming from mainstream manufacturers. Im nowjoined by amanda stretton, whos the motoring editor at confused. Com lets talk about ford first. It was a massive event, the launch of the mustang mach e. A massive event, the launch of the mustang mache. Yes, and ford need to. There have been struggling over yea rs, to. There have been struggling over years, and the interesting thing is that they have decided to use the mustang name with this car, because mustang name with this car, because mustang is a name synonymous with american muscle cars, gas guzzling and yet they are taking the performance aspect of that name and actually putting that into this electric car, so a lot of hopes right on the scar. Will this work . Will it help it remain independent . Is carmakers are being gobbled up and merging. I really hope so, it is and merging. I really hope so, it is a shame to see in recent years what has happened to ford, a company that really pioneered this, they have been on the tail end of the curve in recent yea rs. Been on the tail end of the curve in recent years. I really hope this is a game changer. Interesting how this car has been priced, it sits in the midrange and is much more affordable, obviously there are various different models of car depending on the battery that you actually go for, it is going to be really interesting. In terms of range, drives around 300 miles before it needs recharging, which is very similar to the tesla model 3. Yes, most of the high end cars are at that type of range now, but the thing with electric it also varies depending on the temperature outside, because when it is very cold he will see your range decrease. But when it comes to our behaviour as car buyers, we have yet to make the shift en masse. We have mentioned in china is the biggest market at the moment, so what is holding us back . We have got this push all thing going on. People know that this is what they are meant to do, they know that we need to make the move into electric mobility, because everyone is aware of the conversation on climate change. But the poll isnt really there, and the pull is having the right product, making it accessible, cost effective, and easy to use. Manufacturers are doing their bit, at those different price points coming onto the market, the infrastructure is still a bit shaky in certain places, and wales where there is only one or two public charge points per 100,000 head of population, which clearly isnt anywhere near enough. That we have got that difficult situation at the moment where we are starting to move, andi moment where we are starting to move, and i think people are really confused about when the right time to make the switch is going to be. Because this is a really big investment. It is a huge investment. Your car is the biggest thing that you are going to buy after your house, and electric is even more expensive than internal combustion engines. Do take a look online, more detail there about what ford is up to. Softbank has confirmed that it plans to merge its internet unit yahoo japan with messaging app operator line. The move comes as the Japanese Technology giant scoops up troubled Internet Companies as a defence against rivals like rakuten. Lets go to our Asia Business hub where shara njit leyl is following the story. Whats going on . More detail . Essentially it will create a 30 billion company which will become japans largest internet company. It will also be a viable global competitor in the Artificial Intelligence by stopping many more details will be emerging at a press conference that they are holding later today, so no specific details on how much money, for instance, is changing hands on the steel as of yet. Yahoo japan last month changed its name to z holdings, and the deal to merge with line will be completed by october 2020. It is coming at a time of heightened Political Tension and this merger might be the two countries most significant Economic Cooperation of the last decade stopping japan and south korea have been engaged in a trade row over political differences going back to japans treatment of comfort women and world war ii. These companies have also competed in fields such as Digital Payments and this alliance may allow them to consolidate in that area, both companies we know have also been investing an Artificial Intelligence to improve their services. We dont know how their services. We dont know how the mobile payment rivalry will be resolved but they did say they will align on the development of ai powered product. Thank you. The dubai air show is underway. The event is one of the largest aviation gatherings in the world. The bbcs Sameer Hashmi is there and sent this report. From fighter planes and military drones, to commercial airliners and private jets, the drones, to commercial airliners and privatejets, the biggest names in aerospace our hair into by. Are here in dubai. The last dubai airshow delivered over 110 million, but this time the backdrop is more uncertain. The ongoing trade more is starting to impact this rapidly growing middle east market. Factors have also struggled to deliver aircraft on time to airlines. Boeing is using this opportunity to reassure its customers stopping its 737 max aircraft remains grounded following two crashes. Its a hot topic in the middle east, as they are the second biggest buyer of this aircraft. Firms are coming under pressure to find new ways to cut down emissions. Some airlines are 110w down emissions. Some airlines are now moving to more fuel Efficient Airlines like this one that earn less fuel. This is a show that defence manufacturers cannot afford to mess stopping the middle east is home to some of the biggest military spenders in the world, and with insecurity rising in the region, it is thought that budgets will go up. Fighterjets from is thought that budgets will go up. Fighter jets from the is thought that budgets will go up. Fighterjets from the united states, britain, and france are all here to make their mark. The russians are here too, with theirjets and helicopters, and the chinese are displaying drones. Meanwhile, regional players like saudi arabia and the uae are demonstrating their Homegrown Technology stopping nearly 90,000 people are expected to attend the show, but its not clear whether that will translate into big sales for the industry. And we will hear more about that event this week. Now lets brief you on some other business stories uk Prime Minister borisjohnson will outline his plans to reduce Business Rates and provide a series of tax breaks worth about £1bn a year. According to a report by the finanical times, johnson will reveal the new measures in a speech later today. Companies, especially retailers, have compalined about rising Business Rates in recent months. Canadas barrick gold has sold its 50 stake in a huge gold mine in Western Australia to Saracen Mineral Holding for 750m. Barrick, the worlds second largest producer of the yellow metal, said the funds would boost its Balance Sheet and also be used to invest in exisiting projects. Saudi aramco the Saudi State Oil giant has announced it will be listing 1. 5 of its shares, which it hopes will raise just above 25 billion. That would make it the Worlds Largest initial Public Offering ever valuing the company in the region of 1. 7 trillion. However, the figure would be below the 2 trillion valuation crown prince mohammmed bin salman had hoped to reach. So you are up to date on the latest business stories. Up next newsbriefing. Jonathan charles will rejoin me, but first washingtons Smithsonian National zoo is about to say goodbye to one of its most popular residents. In a couple of days time, bei bei the panda will be flown back to china. As part of an agreement between the two countries, all pandas have to be returned when they are four years old, for breeding purposes. The bbcs tim allman explains. Parting is such sweet sorrow, but there is always time for cake. Bei bei enjoyed some last minute treats before his trip to china, his fans having a last look at him. We love him and we have been coming regularly to see him and we just wanted to come for our last opportunity before he goes to china. Im sad that we dont get to see him anymore but im happy hes going back to his homeland. Im sure he will be happy to see some other pandas as well. Bei bei was born at the zoo in august 2015. His mother was a gift from china. A panda keeper and vet will travel with him on a privatejet. Appropriate, really, when you think that bei bei translates as precious treasure. Well be taking 15 to 20 kilos of bamboo, apples, potatoes, carrots, some some sugarcane, honey and biscuits. All the things he likes throughout the day. We will take them with us so on that flight we can provide him with everything he needs. He sets off on tuesday, journeying to a new home and a new life. Bye bye, bei bei, bye bye. Coming up at six oclock on breakfast dan walker and Louise Minchin will have all the days news, business and sport. This is the briefing from bbc news. The latest headlines Hong Kong Police have arrested at least forty protesters after a two day standoff at the Polytechnic University building. Prince andrew stands by his exclusive interview to the bbc to defend his friendship with sex offender jeffrey epstein, sources say. Its been seen as deeply damaging large parts of central venice in italy are once again under water, as another exceptionally high tide has inundated the city. Now its time to look at the stories that are making the headlines in the media across the world. We begin with chinas global times, the state controlled paper covers the hong kong protests saying Central Government in beijings given its strongest signal yet over ending the violence. Prince andrew still on many of the uk front pages, including the times, which says he remains defiant over the bbc interview dubbed a car crash. It also has an exclusive piece from our colleague Emily Maitlis on her experience getting the scoop. The Daily Telegraph reports on illegal migrant crossings increasingly being carried out with the help of social media, and the calls from british authorities for a clampdown on some networks. A couples therapist turned counsellor for colleagues features in the i paper. Why more workplaces could benefit from help usually given to people in rocky romantic relationships. And finally, is simply having a desk at home the key to getting your child to go to university . The findings of a surprising study feature on bbc news online. With me isjonathan charles, from the European Bank for reconstruction and development. Global times, really important to say this is a state controlled newspaper saying what it thinks about the protests that have been going on for more than five months. The editor by the way of global times, a state controlled newspaper in china is one of the most hardline people in hong kong, he himself has called for live ammunition to be used in hong kong, so