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The World Health Organization said last year the syrups, made by Indian manufacturer Maiden Pharmaceuticals Ltd, contained lethal toxins ethylene glycol (EG) and diethylene glycol (DEG) – used in car brake fluid. "If you ask and you don't get informed, it's a dead end," Rutendo Kuwana, the WHO's team lead for incidents with substandard and falsified medicines, told Reuters in an interview on March 31. Drug inspectors found a dozen violations at Maiden last October related to the production of the cough syrups sold to Gambia, a government document showed. Among these, some of the COAs of raw ingredients used in making the syrups, including propylene glycol, were missing batch numbers. Kuwana said the WHO was sure of its own cough syrup test results from two separate independent laboratories, both of which showed contamination.

☆ 'Death zone' queues feared on Everest as Nepal grants record climbing permits
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( Gopal Sharma | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/2] A general view of the Everest base camp taken from a drone, in Nepal April 24, 2023. So far, Nepal has handed out a record 463 permits to climb Everest between March and May, beating 2021's 409. Climbing is a key earner for the poor country, where about 500,000 people are employed in tourism, including climbing, and the number of permits has been rising steadily. So far this year, Nepal has granted permits to 1,046 climbers for 24 peaks, earning the government $5.6 million, of which $5 million came from Everest alone. He said the government was considering introducing a requirement for climbers to scale at least one 6,000-metre peak in Nepal before attempting Everest.

☆ India court rejects Xiaomi's challenge to $676 mln asset freeze - Live Law
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

NEW DELHI, April 21 (Reuters) - A court in India's Karnataka state has rejected China-based Xiaomi Corp's (1810.HK) petition challenging the seizure of 55.51 billion rupees ($676.35 million) by the Enforcement Directorate, news website Live Law reported on Friday. India's federal financial crime agency froze Xiaomi's assets last year, alleging the company had made illegal remittances to foreign entities by passing them off as royalty payments. The company denies any wrongdoing. ($1 = 82.0725 Indian rupees)Reporting by Tanvi Mehta; Editing by Krishna N. DasOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Apple mainly assembles iPhones in India through Taiwan contract manufacturers but plans to expand into iPads and AirPods, as it looks to cut reliance on China. His comments came after a meeting on Wednesday with Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook in the capital, New Delhi. He inaugurated an Apple store in New Delhi on Thursday two days after opening its first outlet in Mumbai, the commercial capital. "We've come here only to see Tim Cook," said Manika Mehta, 32, an Android phone user who queued at the Delhi store. I'm drawn to Tim Cook, seeing the man he is and the journey."

☆ India opens new investigation into BBC in widening crackdown
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( Aftab Ahmed | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NEW DELHI, April 13 (Reuters) - India's financial crime-fighting agency has opened an investigation into alleged violations of foreign exchange rules by the BBC, a source told Reuters on Thursday, months after tax officials searched the broadcaster's Mumbai and Delhi offices. The latest investigation is being conducted by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) under India's Foreign Exchange Management Act. British Foreign Minister James Cleverly, during a visit to New Delhi in March, raised the BBC tax searches with his Indian counterpart. The British government said this week they were working to "review security and make changes to ensure the safety of its staff". Reporting by Aftab Ahmed, writing by Sakshi Dayal Editing by Krishna N. DasOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Fortune teller sees bleak future as Sri Lankans celebrate new year
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Uditha Jayasinghe | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

About 85% of Sri Lanka's 22 million population celebrate the New Year on April 14, observing auspicious times and visiting family. Sri Lanka's economic meltdown, triggered by a severe foreign exchange shortage, low tax revenues and high debt, has seen the cost of living soar. Sri Lanka secured an IMF bailout last month but is still ironing out how to restructure debt owed to bilateral creditors and bondholders. His power bill has jumped 29,000 rupees per month to 105,578 now after big increases in tariffs. Fortune teller Chandani hopes things will improve in the new year.

☆ Firefighters, army work to douse massive fire in Bangladesh market
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( Ruma Paul | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/4] Firefighters try to douse a fire that broke out in a clothing market in Dhaka, Bangladesh, April 4, 2023. REUTERS/Mohammad Ponir HossainDHAKA, April 4 (Reuters) - Firefighters and army personnel were working on Tuesday to douse a massive fire that raged through a shopping complex with 3,000 shops in Bangladesh's capital of Dhaka, fire officials said. Fire service official Rashid Bin Khalid told Reuters 50 fire units were working to douse the fire, the cause of which was not known immediately. Smoke engulfed the area and flames were seen rising from the complex, hampering rescue efforts, a fire official said. Reporting by Ruma Paul; Writing by by Shilpa Jamkhandikar; Editing by Krishna N. Das and Lincoln Feast.

☆ Wickremesinghe delivers IMF deal for Sri Lanka despite public mistrust
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-21 | by ( Uditha Jayasinghe | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Only 4% were satisfied with the way things were going in Sri Lanka, down from 7% in October but higher than 2% in June. The Paris Club of creditors, which includes Japan, earlier this year gave financing assurances to support the IMF deal. A Japan-funded $1.8 billion light-railway project, which was suspended in 2019, is among infrastructure projects that Sri Lanka is now trying to restart. But Sri Lanka still needs to renegotiate its debt, a potentially drawn-out process where Wickremesinghe, who is also the finance minister, will have to deal with demands from China, India and other creditors. A crisis-weary public may still have to absorb years of continuing hardship as Sri Lanka tries to fix its economy during the four-year IMF programme, warned Jayadeva Uyangoda, a senior political analyst.

[1/2] Sri Lankan rupees are seen in a bowl at a vegetable vendor's shop amid the rampant food inflation, amid Sri Lanka's economic crisis, in Colombo, Sri Lanka, July 29 , 2022. China has extended its "firm support to Sri Lanka through a debt treatment", EXIM Bank wrote in the letter to the Sri Lankan government on March 6. "Meanwhile, we would like to expedite the negotiation process with your side regarding medium- and long-term debt treatment in this window period, with a view to finalising the specifics of a debt treatment in the coming months. We will make our best efforts to contribute to the debt sustainability of Sri Lanka." The letter mirrors what EXIM Bank sent to Sri Lanka in January, except for the target of finalising debt-treatment specifics in the coming months.

[1/2] Sri Lankan rupees are seen in a bowl at a vegetable vendor's shop amid the rampant food inflation, amid Sri Lanka's economic crisis, in Colombo, Sri Lanka, July 29 , 2022. China has extended its "firm support to Sri Lanka through a debt treatment", EXIM Bank wrote in the letter to the Sri Lankan government on March 6. "Meanwhile, we would like to expedite the negotiation process with your side regarding medium- and long-term debt treatment in this window period, with a view to finalising the specifics of a debt treatment in the coming months. We will make our best efforts to contribute to the debt sustainability of Sri Lanka." By end-2020, Sri Lanka owed EXIM $2.83 billion, or 3.5% of its external debt, according to IMF data.

It was not clear what new support China, the world's biggest sovereign creditor, had extended to Sri Lanka on Monday. By end-2020, Sri Lanka owed the Export-Import Bank of China $2.83 billion or 3.5% of the island's external debt, according to IMF data. Sri Lanka needs to repay about $6 billion on average each year until 2029 and will have to keep engaging with the IMF, Wickremesinghe said. Countries in debt distress such as Zambia and Sri Lanka have faced unprecedented delays in securing IMF bailouts as China and Western economies have clashed over how to provide debt relief. Sri Lanka has been waiting for about 187 days to finalise a bailout after reaching a staff-level deal with the IMF.

☆ Sri Lanka expects approval of $2.9 billion IMF deal after China support
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Uditha Jayasinghe | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

"Sri Lanka has completed all prior actions that were required by the IMF," Wickremesinghe said. It was not clear what new support China, the world's biggest sovereign creditor, extended to Sri Lanka on Monday. By end-2020, Sri Lanka owed the Export-Import Bank of China $2.83 billion or 3.5% of the island's external debt, according to IMF data. Sri Lanka needs to repay about $6 billion on average each year until 2029 and will have to keep engaging with the IMF, Wickremesinghe said. Sri Lanka has been waiting for about 187 days to finalise a bailout after reaching a staff-level deal with the IMF.

☆ Sri Lanka says 'positive news' coming from IMF on $2.9 bln package
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Uditha Jayasinghe | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

COLOMBO, March 7 (Reuters) - Sri Lanka is on the verge of getting "very positive news" from the International Monetary Fund on a $2.9 billion programme, a government minister said on Tuesday, while a senior source said it had also won debt restructuring support from China. The island nation of 22 million is struggling with its worst economic crisis in more than seven decades. "Sri Lanka is on the verge of getting very positive news from the IMF," the junior finance minister, Shehan Semasinghe, told parliament. "The IMF programme is essential for us and Sri Lanka has worked very hard since last September to secure it." A senior Sri Lankan government official said the Export-Import Bank of China had written to the IMF supporting Sri Lanka's debt restructuring programme, which is critical to securing final approval for the loan.

☆ With China's support, Sri Lanka expects nod for $2.9 bln IMF deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Uditha Jayasinghe | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

"Sri Lanka has completed all prior actions that were required by the IMF," Wickremesinghe said. It was not clear what new support China, the world's biggest sovereign creditor, extended to Sri Lanka on Monday. By end-2020, Sri Lanka owed the China EximBank $2.83 billion or 3.5% of the island's external debt, according to IMF data. Sri Lanka needs to repay about $6 billion on average each year until 2029 and will have to keep engaging with the IMF, Wickremesinghe added. Sri Lanka has been waiting for about 187 days to finalise a bailout after reaching a staff-level deal with the IMF.

Sri Lanka's finance ministry and India's foreign ministry did not immediately respond to requests for comment. He said China, Sri Lanka's biggest lender, extended support for the IMF programme on Monday, clearing the way for the loan. The IMF said its board would meet on March 20 to review a preliminary staff-level agreement first signed with Sri Lanka in September. It said Sri Lanka had secured financing assurances from all major bilateral creditors. China and India are Sri Lanka's biggest lenders and both seek influence on the island located on a busy shipping route on the Indian Ocean.

☆ Exclusive: India may issue alert on Marion cough syrup exports after toxins found
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-04 | by ( Krishna N. Das | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] Logo of Marion Biotech, a healthcare and pharmaceutical company is seen on a gate outside their office in Noida, India, December 29, 2022. REUTERS/Anushree FadnavisNEW DELHI, March 4 (Reuters) - India may issue an alert on cough syrup exported by Marion Biotech, whose products have been linked to deaths in Uzbekistan, after tests showed many of the company's drug samples contained toxins, a drug inspector said on Saturday. "The health ministry could issue an alert. Babbar has been part of a team that inspected Marion's plant four times after Uzbekistan said in December the children died after consuming the company's cough syrups. India in October suspended production at Maiden for violating manufacturing standards after the WHO said four of its cough syrups may have killed dozens of children in Gambia.

Two Marion directors were "out of the country and will be arrested as soon as they land in India," senior police official Ram Badan Singh told Reuters. Uzbekistan in December said the children died after consuming Marion's cough syrups. The same toxin was found in cough syrups exported to Gambia by another Indian company, Maiden Pharmaceuticals. India in October suspended production at Maiden for violations of manufacturing standards after the World Health Organization said four of its cough syrups may have killed dozens of children in Gambia. The deaths in Gambia and Uzbekistan have dented the image of the $41 billion pharmaceutical industry in India, which is known as the "pharmacy of the world."

☆ Most G20 members condemn Ukraine war, except China and Russia
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

NEW DELHI, March 2 (Reuters) - Most members from the Group of 20 nations (G20) strongly condemned the war in Ukraine on Thursday, with only Russia and China disagreeing, current president India said after a meeting of the bloc's foreign ministers in New Delhi. India's "chair's summary & outcome document" after the meeting largely stuck to the language used in a similar statement it released following a meeting of G20 financial leaders last week. In that gathering too, Russia and China disagreed with statements condemning the war. Reporting by Shivam Patel in New Delhi Editing by Gareth Jones and Krishna N. DasOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ India's top court overhauls election commissioner appointment in 'historic' judgment
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-02 | by ( Sakshi Dayal | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Joseph, delivering the order of a constitution bench that heard several petitions calling for an independent committee to appoint election commissioners. "The election commission of India is to perform the arduous and unenviable task of remaining aloof from all forms of subjugation by and interference from the executive." "They have said the independence of the election commission is absolutely essential for democracy, and for that independence to be assured, you cannot have a system where the government alone appoints the election commissioners," he told reporters outside the court. India's former chief election commissioner, S.Y. Good for the perception of neutrality of the Election Commission."

☆ Blinken says G20 meeting in India marred by Russia-Ukraine war
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-02 | by ( Simon Lewis | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

This year’s host India has declined to blame Russia for the war, seeking a diplomatic solution and sharply boosting its purchases of Russian oil. The G20 should repeat calls – agreed upon by most G20 nations’ leaders in Bali in November - for Russia to end the war and withdraw for the sake of international peace and economic stability, Blinken said. Blinken said Russia has yet to agree to renew the Black Sea Grain Initiative, which facilitates the export of Ukraine's agricultural products, before it expires on March 18. "It is imperative the G20 speak up on behalf of extending and expanding the (Black Sea) grain initiative to strengthen food security for the most vulnerable," Blinken added. Reporting by Simon Lewis and Sudipto Ganguly; Editing by Krishna N. Das and Gareth JonesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ China urges global lenders' involvement in developing nations' debt
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/3] Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang and India's Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar shake hands before the start of G20 foreign ministers' meeting in New Delhi, India, March 2, 2023. India's Ministry of External Affairs/Handout via REUTERSNEW DELHI, March 2 (Reuters) - Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang called on global financial institutions on Thursday to play an active role in restructuring the debt of developing countries. "China has put forth relevant initiatives under the G20," Qin said. "China has suspended more debt service payments than any other G20 member, and participated in the debt treatment under the Common Framework." Last week, China urged G20 nations to conduct a fair, objective and in-depth analysis of the causes of global debt issues and to "resolve the problem in a comprehensive and effective manner".

☆ World Bank promises 'concessionality' in debt restructuring
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BENGALURU, Feb 25 (Reuters) - The World Bank will "provide as much concessionality to the debt treatment" for distressed economies as possible, its president told a meeting with the International Monetary Fund, India, China, and other creditor nations on Saturday. The United States, meanwhile, has repeatedly criticised China over its "foot-dragging" on debt relief for dozens of low-and middle-income countries. "The World Bank is committed to providing net positive flows in a way that maximizes concessionality in the restructuring process," David Malpass said at the Global Sovereign Debt Roundtable in India's Bengaluru city on the sidelines of the G20 financial leaders' meet. "We will provide as much concessionality to the debt treatment as possible." On Friday, Chinese Finance Minister Liu Kun told the G20 financial leaders that international financial institutions and commercial creditors should follow the principle of "joint action, fair burden" in debt settlements.

☆ India's push to regulate crypto gains IMF, U.S. support at G20
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/IllustrationBENGALURU, Feb 25 (Reuters) - A push by Group of 20 (G20) president India to regulate cryptocurrencies gained support from both the International Monetary Fund and the United States on Saturday as finance chiefs of the bloc wrap up two-days of talks. "We haven't suggested outright banning of crypto activities, but it is critical to put in place a strong regulatory framework," Yellen said. Earlier, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva told reporters after co-chairing a meeting with Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman that banning crypto should be an option. The Reserve Bank of India has said that cryptocurrencies should be banned as they are akin to a Ponzi scheme. On Thursday, the IMF laid out a nine-point action plan for how countries should treat crypto assets, with point number one a plea not to give cryptocurrencies legal tender status.

BENGALURU, Feb 25 (Reuters) - There are some disagreements over restructuring debt for distressed economies, the chief of the International Monetary Fund said on Saturday on the sidelines of a G20 meeting, adding that banning private cryptocurrencies should be an option. "On debt restructuring, while there are still some disagreements, we now have the global sovereign debt roundtable with consideration of all public and private creditors," IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva told reporters after the roundtable she co-chaired with Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. Apart from restructuring debt, regulating cryptocurrencies is another priority area for India, which Georgieva agreed with. "We have to differentiate between central bank digital currencies that are backed by the state and stable coins, and crypto assets that are privately issued," Georgieva said. "There has to be very strong push for regulation... if regulation fails, if you're slow to do it, then we should not take off the table banning those assets, because they may create financial stability risk."

☆ G20 chair India says most members condemn Ukraine war
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BENGALURU, Feb 25 (Reuters) - G20 chair India on Saturday said most members of the bloc "strongly condemned" the war in Ukraine and reiterated their positions demanding Russia's withdrawal from Ukraine. In a statement at the end of financial leaders' meet near Bengaluru, India said the statement condemning Russia's war was endorsed by all members except Russia and China. "The peaceful resolution of conflicts, efforts to address crises, as well as diplomacy and dialogue, are vital. Today’s era must not be of war," the statement said. Reporting by Shivam Patel in New Delhi; Editing by Krishna N. DasOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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