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Google Squares Up to European Commission

Search giant counters European Commission claims that it is abusing its dominance and one of China's best-known businessmen says his countries economic ambitions are unrealistic.

Google is taking on Europe. The European Commission has accused the search giant of abusing its dominance online and strangling competition - charges that could lead to fines and compulsory changes in its business practices. Google has countered with claims it has no legal duty to direct internet traffic to its competitors and that the Commission doesn't understand how dynamic the market for online shopping already is. So is Google not playing fair, or is the European Commission playing catch up? We speak to Scott Thurm, Deputy Technology Editor at The Wall Street Journal to explain what is at issue.

Wang Jianli, one of China's best-known businessmen, has said his country needs to drop unrealistic official economic growth targets - and that government dreams of growing the economy by 7% are just that. Investors in China are concerned: the main Shanghai index of leading shares has dropped 20% in two weeks and the currency is tumbling too. Irwin Stelzer of the Hudson Institute gives us his view on the Chinese ambition.

Recently a tide of capital has flowed out of emerging markets, but one boat beating against the current is India - its growth rate is expected to overtake China, and the country will become a 'new tiger', according to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. But does the claim match reality? The BBC's Business Editor Kamal Ahmed reports from Delhi.

And scientists in Virginia publish a study claiming that some scientific studies are not quite as solid as you might think.

Throughout the programme our guests are Nisid Hajari, Asia Editor for Bloomberg View in Singapore and Peter Morici, Professor of International Business at the University of Maryland.

(Photo: The Google logo. Credit: Getty)

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50 minutes

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  • Fri 28 Aug 2015 00:06GMT

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