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☆ Telling stories that go beyond the 24-hour news cycle
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-18 | by ( Business Insider Press Room | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Business Insider is pleased to announce that Erica Berenstein, deputy editor in chief and head of video, will moderate a panel at The Frontline Club in London on Thursday, October 3rd at 7pm GMT. The discussion will focus on how journalists can tell stories that go beyond the 24-hour news cycle and will include a panel of distinguished reporters from the BBC, The New York Times and Reuters. Berenstein will be accompanied by former BBC Newsnight producer, Sam McAlister, who arranged the programme's groundbreaking interview with Prince Andrew. The New York Times international correspondent, Megan Specia and Reuters' text and video journalist, Stephen Farrell, of Reuters, will also feature as panelists. The Frontline Club is based in Paddington, Central London and has hosted some of the biggest names in British journalism over the years and Business Insider is excited to contribute to its rich history.

Persons: Erica Berenstein, Sam McAlister, Prince Andrew, Megan Specia, Stephen Farrell Organizations: Frontline, BBC, The New York Times, Reuters, Business Locations: London, Paddington, Central London

☆ Women in Iceland want you to know it's not a gender equality utopia, despite what the statistics say
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-16 | by ( Grace Dean | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +22 min

AdvertisementBoth Icelandic and foreign-born women told BI that though they largely feel safe in Iceland, it's no feminist paradise. "That was like a wake up call for many women," Thorgerdur J. Einarsdóttir, professor of gender studies at the University of Iceland, told BI. Some groups of women are more vulnerable to violence and low wages, including foreign-born women, women with disabilities, and trans women, the interviewees said. Older generations fight so younger ones can flourishBut despite these concerns, the women BI spoke to said that they largely felt safe living in Iceland. Women BI spoke to largely said they felt optimistic about the changes that future generations would bring.

Persons: —, Arni Torfason, Saadia Zahidi, Valenttina Griffin, Grace Dean, Adolphsdóttir, Einarsdóttir, Vigdís Finnbogadóttir, Sigurðardóttir, Iceland's, Halldor Kolbeins, Sonja Ýr Þorbergsdóttir, Þorbergsdóttir, Inclusivity, Alice Olivia Clarke, Mads Claus Rasmussen, Ritzau Scanpix, they'd, Steinars, she'd, she's, Ása Steinars, Alondra Silva Muñoz, Griffin, Silva Muñoz, Sigrún, Rósa, that's, Shruthi Basappa, I've, it's, Jewells Chambers, Silva Muñoz –, millennials –, … Organizations: Service, Viking Women, Stockings, Women's Rights, Nordic, Red Stockings, United Nations, Farmers ' Union, University of Iceland, Getty, Iceland, UN, Statistics, Sweden –, Icelandic Teachers ' Union, SEI Locations: Iceland, Reykjavik, Icelandic, Denmark, AFP, Canada, Norway, Sweden, Statistics Iceland, Colombia, Lithuania, Spain, Poland, India, Chile, WomenTechIceland, it's, Brooklyn, New York City, Thorhildur

But industry experts say governments need to offer incentives for companies to bring sustainable AC technologies to market and scale up. Removing humidity requires cooling air to the point at which water vapour becomes a liquid to be drained. This inability to get rid of humidity without first cooling the air makes conventional ACs less efficient. The company's AC prototype uses these materials to dry out air, aiming to produce fewer emissions than traditional ACs. More than 1 billion people living in warm climates still lack access to cooling, according to nonprofit Sustainable Energy for All.

Persons: Pedro Rodriguez, Susana Vera, We've, Lily Riahi, Riahi, Sorin Grama, Grama, Gree, Daikin, Miki Yamanaka, Larissa Gross, UNEP's Riahi, Baolong Wang, Wang, Xavier Moya, Gloria Dickie, Katy Daigle, Simon Jessop, Josie Kao Organizations: Puerta del, REUTERS, Rights, International Energy Agency, United Nations Environment Programme's, Cool Coalition, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Daikin's Global Environment Center, Sustainable Energy, Tsinghua University, University of Cambridge, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Puerta del Sol, Madrid, Spain, Seville, Europe, Spanish, Beijing, Indonesia, Britain, U.S

REUTERS/Mike Blake//File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsDUBAI, Dec 1 (Reuters) - A United Nations-led effort to use space satellites to detect methane leaks from fossil fuel infrastructure has alerted governments to 127 major methane plumes across four continents since its launch at the start of this year. Environment Programme's (UNEP) Methane Alert and Response System (MARS) was created to support a 2021 global pledge by more than 150 countries to cut methane emissions by 30% by 2030. "Every kilogram of methane matters, but what we can see from our satellites is only the most outrageous of those emissions," said Manfredi Caltagirone, head of UNEP's International Methane Emissions Observatory. While satellites picked up more than 127 major plumes in 2023, some appeared short-lived and therefore too hard to trace, he said. Super-emitting events such as these are responsible for between 8% and 12% of methane emissions from the oil and gas industry.

Persons: Mike Blake, Manfredi Caltagirone, Caltagirone, Gloria Dickie, Barbara Lewis Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, United Nations, Programme's, UNEP, MARS, Thomson Locations: Pixley , California, U.S, Argentina, Dubai

First launched in 2000, the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) grants exports from qualifying African countries duty-free access to the United States - the world's largest consumer market. African countries are pushing for an early 10-year extension without changes to reassure businesses and investors. A recent push in the U.S. Senate is aiming to pass a quick AGOA renewal. 'FORWARD-LOOKING VISION'Over $10 billion worth of African exports entered the United States duty free last year under the programme. More than 80% of duty-free non-petroleum AGOA exports, for example, have come from just five countries - South Africa, Kenya, Lesotho, Madagascar and Ethiopia - in recent years.

Persons: Antony Blinken, Jonathan Ernst, Joe Biden's, Biden, Blinken, Katherine Tai, Cyril Ramaphosa, Harriet Ntabazi, We've, Ntabazi, Carien du, Tannur Anders, Alexander Winning, Nick Macfie Organizations: Hamas, Joint Base Andrews, REUTERS, U.S . Senate, United States Congress, United, U.S . International Trade Commission, U.S . Trade, U.S ., Central African, Thomson Locations: Israel, Gaza, Washington, East, Asia, Joint Base Andrews , Maryland, U.S, JOHANNESBURG, United States, Africa, China, Johannesburg, South Africa, Kenya, Lesotho, Madagascar, Ethiopia, Gabon, Niger, Uganda, Central African Republic, AGOA, Carien du Plessis

[1/2] Kenyan workers check clothes made for export at the United Aryan Export Processing Zone (EPZ) factory, operating under the U.S. African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), in Ruaraka district of Nairobi, Kenya October 26, 2023. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya Acquire Licensing RightsNov 1 (Reuters) - South Africa will host the annual African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) Forum in Johannesburg from Nov 2-4 to discuss the United States' flagship trade programme for the continent. The African Growth and Opportunity Act is a U.S. trade initiative passed in 2000 under former President Bill Clinton to deepen trade ties with Sub-Saharan Africa and help African countries develop their economies. AGOA provides duty-free access to the U.S. market for most agricultural and manufactured products exported by eligible African countries. African countries are pushing for an early 10-year extension without changes in order to reassure businesses and investors who might have concerns over AGOA's future.

Persons: Thomas Mukoya, Bill Clinton, AGOA, Nellie Peyton, Joe Bavier, Alexander Smith Organizations: United Aryan, Processing, U.S ., REUTERS, WHO, AGOA, U.S . Trade, Thomson Locations: Ruaraka district, Nairobi, Kenya, South Africa, Johannesburg, United States, U.S, Saharan Africa, Ghana, Lesotho, Madagascar, Ethiopia, AGOA .

The Global Cooling Pledge – set to be announced at the upcoming United Nations climate summit, COP28 – represents a tough request given the cooling industry is only expected to grow. The emissions from both the refrigerants and the energy used in cooling now account for about 7% of global greenhouse gas emissions, and are expected to triple by 2050 as temperatures continue to rise. "We need cooling, but it has to become more efficient," UNEP Cool Coalition global coordinator Lily Riahi said. Another 13 commitments outlined in the draft pledge include establishing minimum energy performance standards for air conditioning by 2030, and including cooling emissions in countries' overall climate action plans, called Nationally Determined Contributions. The UNEP estimates that global efforts to tackle cooling emissions could have a significant impact by 2050, avoiding the release of up to 86 billion metric tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent.

Persons: Tyrone Siu, –, Noah Horowitz, Lily Riahi, Gloria Dickie, Katy Daigle, Alexandra Hudson Organizations: China Import, Export Fair, Canton Fair, REUTERS, Reuters, United, Programme's, Cool Coalition, International Energy Agency, UNEP, Coalition, Alexandra Hudson Our, Thomson Locations: Canton, Guangzhou, China, India, United States, Nations, United Arab Emirates, Kigali, Montreal, Dubai, London

NEW YORK (AP) — The Clinton Global Initiative added gender equity as a pillar of the nonprofit’s work to sound the alarm about the increasing challenges women and girls currently face, Clinton Foundation Vice Chair Chelsea Clinton told The Associated Press in an interview Tuesday. “Whatever the issue -- it’s connected to women and it falls more heavily on women,” Chelsea Clinton said. “We are in this for the long haul for Ukraine, Ukrainians, and for democracy everywhere," Hillary Clinton said. “From the World Food Programme's perspective, the world on fire,” she told former President Bill Clinton. Andres said he was proud to be part of the Ukraine Action Network to help out through World Central Kitchen.

Persons: Chelsea Clinton, Cindy McCain, ” Chelsea Clinton, Hillary Clinton’s, “ we’ve, ”, “, we’ve, Hillary Clinton, Ukraine —, Orlando Bloom's, Don’t, Clinton, ” Zelenska, ” Cindy McCain, Bill Clinton, ” McCain, ” Chef Jose Andres, McCain, Andres, I’ve, “ WCK Organizations: Clinton Global Initiative, Clinton, Associated Press, United Nations Conference, Women, Network, Ukraine, Clinton Global, Ukraine Action Network, World, Kitchen Ukrainian, Lilly Endowment Inc, AP Locations: Beijing, Ukraine, Russia, “, Africa

A general view of the facade of Banco de la Nacion Argentina (Bank of the Argentine Nation), in Buenos Aires, Argentina December 7, 2021. The official FX rate will be fixed at 350 pesos per dollar until the October elections, the central bank said. The country's sovereign dollar bonds fell as much as 2 cents on the dollar, with the 2038 note leading the slide, according to MarketAxess data. Latin America's third-largest economy has been grappling with a severe economic crisis with sky-high inflation and falling central bank reserves. A candidate needs 45% of the Oct. 22 vote to win outright or 40% and a 10-point lead over second place.

Persons: Agustin Marcarian, Javier Milei, William Jackson, overvalued, Sunday's, Goldman Sachs, Patricia Bullrich, Sergio Massa, Ricardo Delgado, Eliana Raszewski, Rodrigo Campos, Jorge Otaola, Medha Singh, Adam Jourdan, Bernadette Baum, John Stonestreet, Andrew Cawthorne Organizations: de la Nacion Argentina, Bank of, Argentine, REUTERS, LONDON, Capital Economics, Investment, JPMorgan, Gross, Milei, Peronist, Economy, Analytica, Reuters Graphics Reuters, International Monetary Fund, IMF, Qatar, Thomson Locations: Buenos Aires, Argentina, Agustin Marcarian BUENOS AIRES, MERV, Argentine, refinance, Washington, Rosario

A general view of the facade of Banco de la Nacion Argentina (Bank of the Argentine Nation), in Buenos Aires, Argentina December 7, 2021. REUTERS/Agustin MarcarianBUENOS AIRES/LONDON, Aug 14 (Reuters) - Argentina's markets face an election hangover on Monday after a shock primary vote win for far-right libertarian Javier Milei - who wants to axe the central bank and dollarize the economy - shook up the race towards presidential elections in October. Rock-singing, wild-haired economist and lawmaker Milei far outperformed forecasts to win some 30% of the vote, the largest share with over 90% of ballots counted. Latin America's third-biggest economy has been grappling with a severe economic crisis with sky-high inflation and falling central bank reserves. A candidate needs 45% of the Oct. 22 vote to win outright or 40% and a 10-point lead over second place.

Persons: Agustin Marcarian, Javier Milei, Milei, Diego Pereira, Milei's, Goldman Sachs, Patricia Bullrich, Sergio Massa, Ricardo Delgado, Eliana Raszewski, Jorge Otaola, Adam Jourdan, Stephen Coates, Bernadette Baum Organizations: de la Nacion Argentina, Bank of, Argentine, REUTERS, LONDON, Investment, JPMorgan, Reuters Graphics Reuters, Gross, Peronist, Economy, Analytica, International Monetary Fund, Qatar, Thomson Locations: Buenos Aires, Argentina, Agustin Marcarian BUENOS AIRES, U.S, Argentine, refinance, Washington, Rosario

☆ Formula One's Netflix effect filtering down to schools
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( Alan Baldwin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, July 12 (Reuters) - Organisers of the 'F1 in Schools' competition say the Netflix 'Drive to Survive' effect is reaching the classroom with a record number of teams entered in this year's finals in Singapore in September. "There's 68% girls in Saudi doing it and three (Saudi) teams coming with a majority of girls," said Denford. The programme launched in Britain in 2000 with eight schools in Wakefield and now has more than 28,000 educational institutions involved worldwide. At the youngest level, kids start at the age of nine with paper cars powered by bicycle pumps. In the top 11-19 age bracket the cars are carved from a block of balsa wood and powered by a gas canister.

Persons: Andrew Denford, We've, Alan Baldwin, Toby Davis Organizations: Schools, Netflix, Singapore, Prix, Saudi, Formula, Pirelli, Thomson Locations: Singapore, Saudi, Britain, Wakefield, Soweto, Brazil

☆ Spain 2023 election: PM Sanchez and rival Feijoo in chaotic live TV debate
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/3] Spanish People's Party candidate Alberto Nunez Feijoo and Spain's Prime Minister and Socialist candidate Pedro Sanchez talk before a televised debate ahead of snap election in Madrid, Spain, July 10, 2023. With just under two weeks to go until the vote, opinion polls predict Feijoo as the likely winner, although he would probably need the support of far-right party Vox. Sanchez highlighted that Spain is among only a few European countries that has tamed inflation to below the European Central Bank's 2% target by 2023. Feijoo himself was recently pilloried for saying a Vox electoral candidate convicted of gender violence had a "hard divorce". Feijoo told Sanchez: "Those men who raped in the street are in the street because of you - there are more than 1,000 of them."

Persons: Alberto Nunez Feijoo, Pedro Sanchez, Juan Medina MADRID, gesticulating, Maria Jose Canel, Sanchez, Feijoo, Vox, Feijoo's, EH, Jose Miguel Contreras, Madrid's King, Madrid's King Juan Carlos University, Belen Carreno, Corina Rodriguez, Aislinn Laing, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: Spanish People's Party, Spain's, Socialist, REUTERS, People's Party, Madrid's Complutense University, Socialists, AS, Central, Vox, Madrid's, Madrid's King Juan, Atresmedia, Thomson Locations: Madrid, Spain, Ukraine, Basque

☆ Russian state TV attacks mutiny leader Prigozhin, says investigation still live
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-06 | by ( Andrew Osborn | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

July 5 (Reuters) - Russian state TV on Wednesday launched a fierce attack on Yevgeny Prigozhin, the exiled mercenary leader of an aborted armed mutiny last month, and said an investigation into what had happened was still being vigorously pursued. Under the agreement which ended the mutiny, Prigozhin, whose aim had been to topple the defence minister and chief of the General Staff for what he cast as their incompetent prosecution of the war, was meant to relocate to neighbouring Belarus. Images of armed Russian law enforcement agents entering Prigozhin's office were shown. "I consider that the creation of Yevgeny Prigozhin's image as a people's hero was all done by media fed by Yevgeny Prigozhin," said Petrov, referring to media outlets financed by Prigozhin. The programme showed what it said were multiple passports which Prigozhin had used and which carried different names.

Persons: Yevgeny Prigozhin, Prigozhin, Wagner, Vladimir Putin, Yevgeny Popov, Eduard Petrov, Petrov, Yevgeny, Putin, Andrew Osborn, Christopher Cushing Organizations: Wednesday, Kremlin, General Staff, Prigozhin, Thomson Locations: Russian, Rostov, Russia, Ukraine, Moscow, Belarus, St Petersburg

☆ UN recruits robots in strive to meet global development goals
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-05 | by ( Emma Farge | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Set in 2015, the U.N.'s 17 Sustainable Development Goals(SDGs) aim to improve human life and the planet by 2030 but are now widely perceived as a long shot. The two-day event will culminate with a panel of robots taking questions from journalists on Friday in the world's first human-robot press conference. The World Health Organization is working on a benchmarking system to ensure the accuracy of AI disease diagnoses. The ITU brings together 193 countries and over 900 organisations including universities and companies like Huawei Technologies [RIC:RIC:HWT.UL] and Google (GOOGL.O). It allocates global radio spectrum and satellite orbits and is involved with setting standards for artificial intelligence.

Persons: Nadine, Frederic Werner, ChatGPT, it's, Doreen Bogdan, Martin, Emma Farge, Emelia Sithole Organizations: International Telecommunication Union, ITU Telecommunication Standardization, World Health Organization, Huawei Technologies, Thomson Locations: GENEVA, Switzerland, Geneva

[1/2] Hsiao-Wei Lee, Afghanistan country director for World Food Programme (WFP), speaks during an interview with Reuters in Kabul, Afghanistan, March 20, 2023. "It's five million people we are able to serve for another couple of months but then beyond that we don't have the resources," WFP Afghanistan Country Director Hsiao-Wei Lee told Reuters. Around 15 million Afghans in danger from lack of food are in need of assistance, according to WFP. WFP needs $1 billion in funding to provide food aid and carry out planned projects between now until March, Lee said. WFP would stay in Afghanistan and carry out its other work such as nutrition projects, Lee said, even if the projected cuts took place.

Persons: Hsiao, Wei Lee, Sayed, Lee, it's, Charlotte Greenfield, Andrew Mills, Aurora Ellis Organizations: Food Programme, Reuters, REUTERS, United Nations, WFP, Afghanistan, Thomson Locations: Afghanistan, Kabul, Islamabad, Doha

☆ Pakistan hopes for bailout decision in day or two as IMF seeks deal 'quickly'
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif attends a summit on climate resilience in Pakistan, months after deadly floods in the country, at the United Nations, in Geneva, Switzerland, January 9, 2023. "The IMF team continues discussions with Pakistani authorities with the aim of quickly reaching an agreement on financial support from the IMF," mission chief Nathan Porter said. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said earlier in the day that he hoped consensus over the IMF programme's points "will lead to a decision in a day or two". The statement from the prime minister's office added that Sharif spoke to IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva about the country's bailout funds, stalled since November. The IMF funds subject to approval by its board promise respite for Pakistan, which is battling its worst economic meltdown, with an acute balance of payments crisis and falling reserves of foreign exchange.

Persons: Shehbaz Sharif, Denis Balibouse, Ishaq Dar, Nathan Porter, Sharif, Kristalina Georgieva, Dar, Asif Shahzad, Ariba Shahid, Gibran Naiyyar Peshimam, Shivam Patel, Charlotte Greenfield, Krishna N, Das, William Maclean, Mark Potter Organizations: Pakistan's, United Nations, REUTERS, Pakistan, International Monetary Fund, IMF, Thomson Locations: Pakistan, Geneva, Switzerland, ISLAMABAD, Islamabad, Paris

[1/2] Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif meets with managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Kristalina Georgieva, in Paris, France June 22, 2023. Press Information Department (PID)/Handout via REUTERSJune 22 (Reuters) - Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday briefed International Monetary Fund's managing director Kristalina Georgieva on the economic outlook of the cash-strapped South Asian nation, hoping for the release of critical stalled funds. Under the $6.5 billion EFF's 9th review, concluded earlier this year, Pakistan has been trying to secure $1.1 billion of funding that has been stalled since November. "The Prime Minister expressed the hope that the funds allocated under the IMF's EFF would be released as soon as possible," said a statement from his office. Pakistan has defended the budget, but at the same time offered to review it in any further talks with the IMF.

Persons: Shehbaz Sharif, Kristalina Georgieva, Sharif, Asif Shahzad, Shilpa Jamkhandikar, Sudipto Ganguly, Christina Fincher Organizations: Pakistan, International Monetary Fund, Press Information Department, REUTERS, Pakistan's, Monetary, Global Financing, EFF, Thomson Locations: Paris, France, Pakistan, Islamabad

Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with African leaders on June 17 in Russia. The Black Sea grain deal: Putin also claimed "the crisis on the global food market is not a consequence of conflict in Ukraine." “Ukrainian grain supply to the world’s markets doesn’t solve the problem of world hunger,” he said. “Countries in need should not suffer, so Moscow went to great lengths to ensure the supply of Ukrainian grain to African countries,” Putin said. Ramaphosa also pushed for "opening up of the movement of the grains across the Black Sea so whatever blockages there are should be released."

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Putin, Volodymyr Zelensky, ”, ” Putin, Cyril Ramaphosa, Ramaphosa, Maria Lvova Organizations: United Nations, “, Initiative, African Locations: Russia, Moscow, Ukraine, St . Petersburg, ”, Turkey, Africa, Russian

Now, according to an internal U.N. estimate obtained by Reuters, 5 million additional people in Sudan will require emergency assistance, half of them children. Even before the latest crisis, U.N. humanitarian appeals for Africa faced a $17-billion funding gap this year, risking leaving millions without lifesaving assistance. Last year, it spent a third of its overseas aid budget housing refugees inside the UK, a British aid watchdog said in March. Sudan was hosting over 1 million refugees, mainly from South Sudan, Eritrea, Ethiopia and Syria, before the outbreak of fighting last month. Aid workers have been killed, food aid looted, and WFP says it's running out of stocks.

☆ HDFC Bank to open more than 675 branches in semi-urban, rural areas in fiscal year 2024, bank official says
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-04 | by ( Siddhi Nayak | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MUMBAI, May 4 (Reuters) - HDFC Bank (HDBK.NS), India's largest private lender, is planning to open more than 675 branches in the semi-urban and rural geographies across the country in 2023-24, a senior bank official said on Thursday. The move is part of the lender's new programme targeting customers in semi-urban and rural areas, helping the bank meet some of its Priority Sector Lending (PSL) targets. PSL requirements, which include lending to weaker segments of the economy, are linked to an organisation's loan book. Of this, around 52% of the bank's branches are in the semi-urban and rural areas. Going forward, HDFC Bank aims to double business in semi-urban and rural areas - both by assets and liabilities - in the next two-to-three years, Vohra said.

☆ Ghana bilateral lenders in talks to form official creditor committee
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-13 | by ( Jorgelina Do Rosario | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, Feb 13 (Reuters) - Ghana's bilateral lenders are discussing the formation of an official creditor committee, a first step needed to engage in debt relief talks for the crisis-hit country, according to two sources with direct knowledge of the matter. The Paris Club of creditor nations has contacted other bilateral creditors, such as China, to engage on forming the committee and deciding who would chair it, one of the sources said. China is Ghana's single biggest bilateral creditor with $1.7 billion of debt, while Ghana owes $1.9 billion to Paris Club members, according to data from the International Institute of Finance. COMMON FRAMEWORK TALKSAn official creditor committee is a key step for Ghana to formally seek financing assurances from bilateral creditors stating they are willing to enter a debt rework process. Ghana has said it hopes for a rapid debt overhaul, though other countries undergoing common framework treatment have faced slow progress.

REUTERS/Francis KokorokoLONDON/ACCRA, Jan 10 (Reuters) - Ghana requested on Tuesday to restructure its bilateral debt under the common framework platform supported by the Group of 20 major economies, a source familiar with the situation told Reuters. Ghana's debt restructuring under the common framework aims to include non-Paris club members, such as China in debt relief talks. Reuters reported first on Thursday that Ghana was seeking debt treatment under the G20 programme. Some bondholders said Ghana opting to go down the common framework route put the prospect of a swift resolution further out of reach. "With the common framework and the poor track record on the timeline for that, it just makes things more uncertain," said Anders Faergemann, portfolio managers at PineBridge Investments.

☆ Investors eye Portuguese golden visas as authorities ponder programme's end
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-11 | by ( Catarina Demony | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

LISBON (Reuters) - Investments through Portugal’s “golden visa”, which gives wealthy foreigners residence rights, jumped nearly 50% last month, data showed on Sunday, as the government considers whether to scrap the controversial scheme. REUTERS/Rafael MarchanteThe golden visa has been heavily criticised at home for sending house prices and rents up, and the European Commission has called for the end of such national programmes. Murat Coskun, Get Golden Visa CEO, said Costa’s comments had had a “significant impact on the appetite” for the measure, with his company seeing a five-fold increase in inquiries. Data from border agency SEF on Sunday showed investment through golden visas increased 48% in November from October to 65 million euros, and was up 41% from a year earlier. Portugal suspended golden visas for Russians, but 431 had already benefited from the scheme since the time of its launch, according to SEF.

☆ Pakistan FX reserves held by central bank fall to $6.7 bln
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( Gibran Naiyyar Peshimam | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

ISLAMABAD, Dec 8 (Reuters) - Pakistan's foreign exchange reserves held by the central bank fell $784 million to $6.7 billion as of Dec. 2, the central bank said in a statement on Thursday, as the country struggles to meet external financing needs. "This decline is on account of the payment of US $1,000 million against maturing Pakistan International Sukuk and some other external debt repayments," the statement said. It said some debt repayments were offset by inflows, mainly $500 million received from the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. Local media reported on Thursday that Pakistan had sought $4.2 billion from Saudi Arabia to shore up its reserves. Saudi Arabia, China and the United Arab Emirates have already parked funds in Pakistan's central bank to help Islamabad.

"We’ve built a platform for cooperation that can truly transform Indonesia’s power sector from coal to renewables and support significant economic growth," U.S. Special Envoy on Climate Change John Kerry said. EARLIER, LOWER PEAKThe Treasury official said that the peak power emissions for Indonesia in 2030 under the plan would be at a level 25% lower than their currently estimated peak in 2037. Indonesia's annual emissions reduction over those years would be larger than Britain's annual power sector emissions, the official said. U.S., JAPAN LEADThe United States and Japan are co-leading the effort with Indonesia on behalf of the other G7 democracies Britain, Canada, France, Germany Italy, as well as partners Norway, Denmark and the European Union. On Monday, Japan announced it would help Indonesia transition away from coal power through public and private institutions, including the state-affiliated Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC).

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