As many as 300 vessels are backed up in Shanghai, waiting to load up or discharge compared to this time last year. We get the latest from the BBC's Monica Millar in Singapore and we also hear about the knock on affects from Steve Lamar, President and CEO of the American Apparel & Footwear Association. Amid a worsening humanitarian crisis, the UN is seeking $4.4bn in aid for Afghanistan. We hear from Mark Malloch-Brown, president of the Open Society Foundations, and former deputy secretary general of the UN, discusses what role western sanctions are playing in the extreme hunger faced by many in Afghanistan. Also in the programme, with just a few days to go before the first round of France's presidential election, the BBC's Theo Leggett reports from the east of the country on how concerns about the rising cost of living are impacting the rival campaigns. Plus, with the current high cost of natural gas, there are renewed calls for countries to move away from the fossil fuel as a way of heating our homes. One alternative is the heat pump, and the BBC's climate editor Justin Rowlatt explains how they work. And joining us throughout the programme are Rachel Cartland, a former Hong Kong government official and the author of Paper Tigress and Alison van Diggelen, host of freshdialogues.com, is with us from Silicon Valley.

(Picture: A ship in Shanghai. Picture credit: Getty Images.)