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☆ How a Sugar Industry Stamp of Approval Hid Coerced Hysterectomies
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-30 | by ( Megha Rajagopalan | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Bags of sugar that leave the Dalmia Bharat Sugar mill in the western Indian city of Kolhapur come with an industry guarantee: It was harvested humanely, in fields free of child labor, debt bondage and abuse. The mill is certified by a group called Bonsucro, which sets the industry standard for sugar production. But a New York Times investigation found that Bonsucro’s inspections were all but guaranteed not to find problems. Internal documents and interviews with sugar mill executives, experts and Bonsucro contractors show that mills retain tremendous control over what auditors see and whom they can talk to. Even the auditor who said she inspected the Dalmia mill said turning up problems was extremely rare.

Persons: General Mills Organizations: Brands, Cola, PepsiCo, Unilever, General, New York Times Locations: Indian, Kolhapur

☆ Labor Abuses Abroad
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-30 | by ( Megha Rajagopalan | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

In the 1990s, more U.S. companies began manufacturing abroad, where labor was cheaper. Journalists, consumers and human rights groups noticed that, away from the eyes of American unions and regulators, these multinationals sometimes used brutal cost-saving measures, such as sweat shops and child labor. Companies would hire outside inspectors to scrutinize their supply chains. These inspectors would visit their suppliers’ factories, investigate abuses and determine whether everyone was following the rules. Major companies signed on, sending a message that they could clean up their own supply chains.

Persons: —, Saumya Khandelwal Organizations: Journalists, Times Locations: India, Maharashtra

☆ Stephen King, Sarah Jessica Parker and More Share Their Top Books of the 21st Century
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-08 | by ( The New York Times Books Staff | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +26 min

To determine the best books of the 21st century , The New York Times Book Review and The Upshot polled hundreds of literary luminaries. Stephen King Stephen King has written more than 60 books, many of which have been adapted for film and television. Min Jin Lee Min Jin Lee has written two novels: FREE FOOD FOR MILLIONAIRES and PACHINKO, which was one of The Times’s 10 Best Books of 2017. Scott Turow Scott Turow is an attorney and writer best known for legal thrillers like PRESUMED INNOCENT and THE BURDEN OF PROOF. DU BOIS, was one of The Times’s 10 Best Books of 2021.

Persons: Stephen King Stephen King, ”, Ian McEwan ●, Christine Falls, Benjamin Black ●, Donna Tartt, Gillian Flynn ●, Cormac McCarthy ●, Margaret Atwood ●, Sarah Waters ●, Philip Roth ●, Viet Thanh Nguyen, “, Stephen King, Min Jin Lee Min Jin Lee, Anthony Doerr ●, Katherine Boo ●, Colm Tóibín ●, Julie Otsuka ● “, Tara Westover ● “, Matthew Desmond ● “, Marilynne Robinson, Edward P, Jones, Barbara Ehrenreich ●, Phil Klay Karl Ove Knausgaard Karl Ove Knausgaard, Roberto Bolaño ● “, Maggie Nelson ● “, Elena Ferrante ● “, Ben Marcus ● “, Emmanuel Carrère ●, Kazuo Ishiguro ●, Claire Keegan ● “, Peter Handke ●, Denis Johnson ●, Svetlana Alexievich, Bonnie Garmus Bonnie Garmus, Barnes, Nehisi Coates, Barbara Kingsolver ●, Tara Westover, Matt Ridley ●, Harry Potter, Prince, Rowling ●, Dave Eggers ●, Henry David Thoreau, Laura Dassow, Ben Rice ●, Colson Whitehead ●, Timothy Egan Nana Kwame Adjei ‑ Brenyah Nana Kwame Adjei ‑, ZZ Packer, Diana Khoi Nguyen, “ Greenwood, Michael Christie, Solmaz Sharif, Min Jin Lee ● “, George Saunders ● “, Jesmyn Ward, Ted Chiang ●, George Saunders ●, Colson Whitehead, Chimamanda Ngozi, Edwidge Danticat, Aracelis Girmay, Natsuo Kirino, Roberto Bolaño ●, Francisco Goldman ●, Paul Beatty Sarah Jessica Parker Sarah Jessica Parker, Tayari Jones, Sting, Paul Murray ●, Megha Majumdar ●, Anthony Marra ●, Jonathan Franzen ●, Donna Tartt ●, Janika Oza, Patrick Radden Keefe, Sonali Deraniyagala James Patterson James Patterson, Bill Clinton, Dolly Parton, J.D . Barker, Stephen King ● “, Markus Zusak ●, Tara Westover ●, Stieg Larsson, Gillian Flynn, Rowling, Anthony Bourdain ●, Keith Richards, James Fox ●, Dennis Lehane ●, Laura Hillenbrand Elin Hilderbrand Elin Hilderbrand, “ Alice, Oliver, Charles Bock ●, Curtis Sittenfeld, Tim Winton ●, Lily King ● “, Anna Quindlen ●, Lauren Groff ● “, Maggie O'Farrell, Raven Leilani, Erin Morgenstern Annette Gordon ‑ Reed Annette Gordon, Reed, Siddhartha Mukherjee, Annette Gordon, Reed ●, Henrietta, Rebecca Skloot ●, Louis Menand ●, Isabel Wilkerson ●, Hilary, Rebecca Roanhorse Rebecca Roanhorse, Hugo, Ann Leckie ● “, Ted Chiang ● “, Kim Stanley Robinson ●, Stephen Graham Jones ●, Ken Liu ●, Djèlí Clark ●, Louise Erdrich ●, Theodore Sturgeon Marlon James Marlon James, Booker, Maria McCann ● “, Bird, James McBride ●, Alan Hollinghurst ●, Min Jin Lee ●, Skippy, Patrick French Roxane Gay Roxane Gay, Michael Chabon ●, Alicia Erian ●, Bernardine Evaristo, Kiese Laymon, Carmen Maria Machado ●, Zadie Smith, Emma Donoghue ●, Ann Patchett Jonathan Lethem Jonathan Lethem, Eugene Lim ●, Olga Ravn ●, Percival Everett ●, Keith Ridgway ●, Renee Gladman ●, Lydia Millet ● “, Helen DeWitt ● “, Robin McLean ●, Christopher Sorrentino Sarah MacLean Sarah MacLean, Angelina M, Lopez ● “, Lisa Kleypas ●, Jennifer Crusie ●, Circe, Madeline Miller, Kresley Cole ●, Beverly Jenkins ● “ Georgie, Kate Clayborn ● “ Hana Khan, Uzma Jalaluddin, Milla Vane ● “, Sherry Thomas Ed Yong Ed Yong, Bel Canto, Ann Patchett, Nana Kwame Adjei, Abed Salama, Nathan Thrall, Mohsin Hamid ● “, Helen Macdonald ● “, Jenny Odell ●, Julie Otsuka, Amal El, Max Gladstone ●, Hernan Diaz, Thomas Chatterton Williams Thomas Chatterton Williams, Hagar's, Jones ●, Catherine Lacey ● “, Dana Spiotta, Joan Silber ● “ Malcolm X, Manning Marable, Alice Munro ●, Hua Hsu, Veronica, Mary Gaitskill ●, Isabel Wilkerson Paul Tremblay Paul Tremblay, Mark Z, Joker, Kaoru Takamura ●, Benjamín Labatut, Stephen Graham Jones, Mariana Enriquez ●, Sara Levine ●, Colson Whitehead Nick Hornby Nick Hornby, Michael Chabon, David Kynaston ●, Billy Lynn's, Ben Fountain ●, Richard Russo, Olive Kitteridge, Elizabeth Strout ●, Mark Harris ●, Adrian Nicole LeBlanc ●, Scott Turow Scott Turow, Sam Quinones ● “, Elena Ferrante, Ann Goldstein, ●, Timothy Snyder ●, Adam Johnson ●, Ann Goldstein ●, Daniel Kahneman ● “, Daniel Alarcón Daniel Alarcón, Oscar Wao, Junot Díaz, Claudia Rankine, Jones ● “, Adrian Nicole LeBlanc ● “, Patrick Radden Keefe Honorée Fanonne Jeffers Honorée Fanonne Jeffers, Victor Luckerson ●, Alice Walker ●, Toni Morrison ●, Toni Morrison ● “, Ibram X, Tiya Miles ●, Isabel Wilkerson Lucy Sante Lucy Sante, Uwe Johnson, Damion Searls, Jeremiah Moss ●, Sigrid Nunez ●, Ian Penman, Mike DeCapite ●, Rachel Kushner ●, Ed Park ●, Svetlana Alexievich Gary Shteyngart Gary Shteyngart, Pitchaya Sudbanthad, Amy Hempel, Amy Hempel ● “, Colm Tóibín, Joseph O’Neill ●, Rachel Cusk ●, Tony Judt ●, Isabel Wilkerson Anand Giridharadas Anand Giridharadas, Jane Mayer ●, Andrew Solomon ● “, Hanya Yanagihara, Suketu Mehta, Karl Ove Knausgaard ●, Asne Seierstad, Joan Didion Jessamine Chan Jessamine, Barack Obama, Tang, Chloé Cooper Jones, Andrea Elliott ● “, Jenny Erpenbeck, Lauren Groff ●, Cathy Park Hong, Sheila Heti ●, Dorothy Roberts Michael Robbins Michael Robbins, Michael Robbins, Kristin Ross ●, Lauren Berlant, Andreas Malm ●, Anahid Nersessian, “ Lila, Mike Davis ●, Chelsey Minnis, Fred Moten ●, Mary Gaitskill Alma, Alma Katsu, Jonathan Strange, Norrell, Susanna Clarke ● “, Sarah Waters, Julie Otsuka ●, Audrey Niffenegger ●, Megan Abbott Megan Abbott, Edgar, Joyce Carol Oates, Kate Atkinson ●, Robert Kolker ●, Oyinkan Braithwaite ●, Daniel Woodrell ●, Joan Didion Joshua Ferris Joshua Ferris, Hemingway, Anne Enright, Patricia Lockwood ●, Paul Harding ●, Ann Napolitano Ann Napolitano, David Mitchell ●, Yaa Gyasi, Emily St, John Mandel ●, John Irving John Irving, OWEN MEANY, John Boyne, Paul Theroux, Abraham Verghese ●, James Salter ●, Nix, Nathan Hill, Edmund White ●, Peter Matthiessen ●, Michael Ondaatje ●, Jeanette Winterson Tiya Miles Tiya Miles, Frederick Douglass, David W, Blight, Andrew Sean Greer ●, Michael Pollan ●, Dara Horn ●, Stephen Greenblatt ●, Jami Attenberg Jami Attenberg, Ada Limón ●, Jonathan Franzen, Alison Bechdel, Sloane Crosley, Alexander Chee ●, Patti Smith ●, Morgan Parker ●, Sara Novic Stephen L, Carter Stephen L, Carter, Deirdre McCloskey ●, Mohsin Hamid ●, Virginia Postrel, Umberto, Geraldine Brooks ●, Richard Powers ●, Jane Brox ●, David Bentley Hart, Lesley Nneka Arimah, Sarah Schulman Sarah Schulman, Mattilda Bernstein, Natasha Trethewey ●, Adania Shibli, Ned Blackhawk ●, Stephanie E, Rogers, Martha S, Steven W, Raja Shehadeh ●, Hugh Ryan Elizabeth Hand Elizabeth Hand, Rene Denfeld ●, Henry Darger, John M, MacGregor ● “, Dan Chaon ● “ James Tiptree Jr, Julie Phillips ●, Kelly Link, Morgan Talty ●, Robert Macfarlane ●, William Gibson Dion Graham Dion Graham, Jonathan Eig’s, Colson Whitehead’s CROOK, Omar El Akkad, Wolf, Marlon James ● “, Winfred Rembert, Cixin Liu ● “, Dave Eggers ● “, George Floyd, Robert Samuels, Toluse, Jonathan Eig ●, Jonathan Eig ● “ Washington, Jeremy Denk Jeremy Denk, David Foster Wallace ●, Jeff, Geoff Dyer ●, Hanif Abdurraqib, Elif Batuman, Alex Ross ●, Kate Molleson Morgan Jerkins Morgan Jerkins, Zora Neale Hurston, Haruki Murakami ●, Masha Gessen ●, Safiya Sinclair ● “, Carmen Maria Machado ● “, Imani Perry, Jesmyn Ward Michael Roth Michael Roth, Amy Bloom, Saidiya Hartman, Valeria Luiselli ●, Jon Fosse, Daniel Kahneman ●, Ben Lerner ●, Jennifer Egan Organizations: New York, Argonauts, J.K, Railroad, Corrections, ”, A.M, Harvard University, OF, Metaphysical, Suns, Ministry, Indians, The New York Times, Hawthorn, Child, Roberto Bolaño ● “, New Yorker, NPR, University of Oklahoma, DU BOIS, PEN, “, Yale Law School, THE, Umberto Eco, Beginners, MacArthur Foundation, Wesleyan University, Topeka School Locations: ”, Brooklyn, Norwegian, Ben Marcus ● “ The, Nantucket, OF MONTICELLO, Monticello, “, BROOKLYN, Britain, Jones ● “ Lincoln, Feral, Bangkok, Susanna Clarke ● “ Lincoln, Burma, Texas, Jonathan Eig ● “, “ Austerlitz, Venice, Death, Varanasi, America, Lorraine

☆ Cybersecurity professionals share best practices for securing 5G networks
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-20 | by ( Rosalie Chan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Professionals at the RSA Conference shared insights on securing 5G devices and networks. Business Insider spoke with several cybersecurity professionals at the annual RSA Conference, which took place from May 6 to 9 in San Francisco. Private 5G networks will change the way in which everything connects." Here are cybersecurity professionals' best practices for securing 5G devices and networks. That's because as more devices get connected to 5G networks, the bigger the attack surface becomes.

Persons: —, Nathan Howe, it's, Andrea Carcano, Boaz Gelbord, Donna Johnson, you've, Christine Gadsby, It's, Darren Guccione, Guccione, Jimmy Mesta, Carcano Organizations: RSA, Service, Business, RSA Conference, Nozomi Networks, BlackBerry, RAD Security Locations: San Francisco, cybersecurity

is a national security correspondent for The Times, focusing on U.S. military affairs and counterterrorism issues overseas, topics he has reported on for more than three decades.

Organizations: The Times

Young girls are pushed into illegal child marriages so they can work alongside their husbands cutting and gathering sugar cane. Labor brokers loan money for the surgeries, even to resolve ailments as routine as heavy, painful periods. Hysterectomies keep them working, undistracted by doctor visits or the hardship of menstruating in a field with no access to running water, toilets or shelter. But for many sugar laborers, the operation has a particularly grim outcome: Borrowing against future wages plunges them further into debt, ensuring that they return to the fields next season and beyond. Workers’ rights groups and the United Nations labor agency have defined such arrangements as forced labor.

Persons: Young, Hysterectomies Organizations: New York Times, Fuller, Labor, Workers, United Nations Locations: Maharashtra

☆ We Spent Months With India’s Sugar Cutters. Here’s What We Found.
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-24 | by ( Megha Rajagopalan | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Women who cut sugar cane in the Indian state of Maharashtra are getting unnecessary hysterectomies, often as a way to keep working, undistracted by periods, pregnancies or gynecological checkups. My colleagues and I traveled across the impoverished district of Beed, which is home to many migrant sugar-cane workers. We visited tiny villages and met laborers in their homes. We talked to their employers, visited sugar mills, interviewed doctors and reviewed medical records. We interviewed women who cut sugar cane for companies that supply household brands including Coca-Cola and a major franchisee of PepsiCo, which have helped make the state a powerhouse for sugar, one of India’s most important industries.

Organizations: PepsiCo Locations: Indian, Maharashtra, Beed

☆ A Jacksonville Jaguars ex-employee was given 78 months in prison after stealing $22 million that his lawyers said he later lost on Draft Kings and FanDuel
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-13 | by ( Matthew Loh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A Jaguars ex-employee has been sentenced to 78 months in prison for stealing $22 million from the team. Amit Patel, 31, spent almost all of the money on losses on Draft Kings and FanDuel, his lawyers said. Prosecutors said Patel also used the cash to buy private flights, luxury items, and cars. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . AdvertisementA former Jacksonville Jaguars employee who pleaded guilty to stealing $22 million from the team was sentenced to six and a half years in prison on Tuesday.

Persons: Amit Patel, FanDuel, Prosecutors, Patel, —, undoubtably, Tiger Woods, Philippe, Megha Parekh, Parekh, Henry Lee Adams Jr Organizations: Jaguars, Service, Jacksonville Jaguars, Justice Department, Tesla, Nissan, Associated Press, BI, ESPN, NFL Locations: District, Florida, Beach , Florida

☆ We moved to Finland and aren't sure it's the 'happiest country in the world' — but we have no regrets
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-07 | by ( Charissa Cheong | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Kovalonoks and Goswami got married in Turku, Finland, in August 2023. We think Finland is a good place to raise childrenMegha: We rent an apartment in Turku, a few kilometers from the city center. Megha: We would like to have a family of our own someday, and we think Finland is a good place to raise children. Courtesy of QpidindiaWe think expats in Finland face unique challengesMegha: Finland has been named the happiest country in the world six times in a row in the World Happiness Report. I think Finland has several things that allow people to be content, such as work-life balance and good healthcare and education.

Persons: —, Kristaps Kovalonoks, Megha Goswami, Megha, wasn't, Kristaps, Kovalonoks, Goswami, Barbara Kaucher, we're, We've, that's, I've Organizations: Service, University of Turku, Business Locations: Finland, Estonian, Latvia, India, Turku, Nordic, Riga

☆ The World’s Key Canal Is Clogged Up. Winter Fuel Prices Could Get Wacky.
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-01 | by ( Megha Mandavia | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The Panama Canal is running out of water, threatening the global supply chains and industries that depend on it. WSJ takes you inside the canal’s operations to understand what this means for the future of this vital shipping route. It could make your winter heating bills more unpredictable too, particularly if you live at the end of long and vulnerable fuel supply chains. Prices for Brent crude, the main global benchmark, are down about $9 a barrel, or about 10%, since mid-September. But Asian propane LPG prices are lower only by 3%, data from Argus Media shows, trading around $665 per metric ton in late November.

Organizations: Brent, Argus Media Locations: Panama, Asia

☆ Exclusive: BYD tells India partner it wants to drop $1 billion EV investment plan, sources say
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-28 | by ( Sarita Chaganti Singh | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

BYD executives told Megha Engineering last week that the battery and EV maker wanted to drop pursuit of the investment, according to the two people with knowledge of that exchange. BYD, China's largest EV maker, declined to comment on the status of its investment proposal and whether it would pull the plan to produce electric cars in India. Megha Engineering did not respond to request to comment. A final decision on whether to approve BYD's investment proposal would be taken by Indian ministries of trade and heavy industries. In 2013 it started building electric buses in India with Megha Engineering, under a joint venture company called Olectra Greentech (OLEC.NS).

Persons: BYD, Megha, Aditi Shah, Zoey Zhang, Kevin Krolicki, Simon Cameron, Moore Organizations: Reuters, Megha Engineering, Engineering, automaker Tata Motors, Thomson Locations: DELHI, India, New Delhi, Hyderabad, China, Shanghai

☆ India rejects BYD's $1 bln factory proposal -Economic Times
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

NEW DELHI, July 22 (Reuters) - India has rejected Chinese automaker BYD Co's (002594.SZ) proposal to set up a $1 billion factory in India in partnership with Hyderabad-based Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Ltd, the Economic Times reported on Saturday. Reuters reported this month that BYD had submitted a $1 billion investment proposal to build electric cars and batteries in India in partnership with a local company. Reuters could not independently verify the contents of The Economic Times' report. India's Department of Commerce, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) had sought opinions from other departments on the investment proposal, the report said. "Security concerns with respect to Chinese investments in India were flagged during the deliberations," the report quoted an Indian official as saying.

Persons: BYD, Sarita Chaganti Singh, Jason Neely Organizations: Engineering, Infrastructure Ltd, Economic Times, Reuters, India's Department of Commerce, Department, Promotion of Industry, Internal, Thomson Locations: DELHI, India, Hyderabad

REUTERS/Nick Carey/File PhotoNEW DELHI, July 14 (Reuters) - China's BYD Co (002594.SZ) has submitted a $1 billion investment proposal to build electric cars and batteries in India in partnership with a local company, three people with direct knowledge of the plan told Reuters. The longer-term plan is to build a full line-up of BYD-brand EVs in India from hatchbacks to luxury models, one of the three people said. BYD, the world's largest producer of EVs and plug-in hybrid vehicles, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. If the India investment is approved, it would give BYD a presence in all major global car markets with the exception of the United States. The investment proposal also includes a plan by BYD and Megha to set up charging stations in India and build research and development and training centres, the sources said.

Persons: Nick Carey, BYD, Tesla, EVs, Sarita Chaganti Singh, Aditi Shah, Zoey Zhang, Shivangi Acharya, Kevin Krolicki, Jacqueline Wong Organizations: REUTERS, Reuters, BYD, Shivangi, Thomson Locations: Farnborough, Britain, DELHI, India, Hyderabad, hatchbacks, United States, New Delhi, Shanghai

☆ BYD seeks nod for $1 billion plan to build EVs and batteries in India
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-14 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

China's BYD Co has submitted a $1 billion investment proposal to build electric vehicles and batteries in India in partnership with a local company, three people with direct knowledge of the plan told Reuters. The longer-term plan is to build a full line-up of BYD-brand EVs in India from hatchbacks to luxury models, one of the three people said. BYD, the world's largest producer of EVs and plug-in hybrid vehicles, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. If the India investment is approved, it would give BYD a presence in all major global car markets with the exception of the United States. The investment proposal also includes a plan by BYD and Megha to set up charging stations in India and build research and development and training centres, the sources said.

Persons: China's BYD, BYD, Tesla, EVs Organizations: Auto, Reuters, BYD Locations: Shenyang, Liaoning Province of China, India, Hyderabad, hatchbacks, United States

Kumar, like others in his position, knows all too well the frustrations that can build when work is scarce. “Since childhood, we’ve been facing this competition,” said Sarang Agrawal, 28, who is studying for the Indian civil service entrance test. There’s competition everywhere.”Sarang Agrawal (center) is studying in the hope of becoming a civil servant. Vijay Bedi/CNNNo social life, no love life … and no plan BLike Kumar and Kumari, Agrawal knows all about competition. He is among the more than 1 million people who apply each year for a position in the Indian civil service.

☆ Rusty Old Oil Tankers Fetch Big Bucks Thanks to Russia
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Megha Mandavia | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The age of a vessel isn’t a factor in how well shipping companies are doing these days. Photo: ISAAC URRUTIA/REUTERS“Gone With the Wind” anti-hero Rhett Butler’s brutal take on war still resonates almost a century later. “There were two times for making big money, one in the upbuilding of a country and the other in its destruction. Slow money on the upbuilding, fast money in the crackup.”

☆ Indian Tech’s Promise of Rivaling China Is Falling Apart
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( Megha Mandavia | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

Technology-education company Byju’s is the most highly valued Indian startup—on paper. Photo: manjunath kiran/Agence France-Presse/Getty ImagesThe Indian edtech company Byju’s was the poster child of the Asian country’s startup boom, attracting a lofty valuation while meeting the needs of millions of students across the country as the pandemic hurt their access to schools and education. It is now turning out to be a symbol of everything that went wrong with India’s promise of creating internet companies to rival such Chinese titans as Alibaba and Tencent. The country’s hot startup ecosystem, which lured such investors as SoftBank and Tiger Global, is facing questions on financial accountability and discipline, expensive acquisitions, heady valuations and whether investors overestimated India’s total addressable market, or TAM. Public listings have been delayed, and layoffs are now almost a daily occurrence.

☆ The Green Revolution Is Here. Which Big Miners Are Prepared?
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Megha Mandavia | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Money is a sticking point in climate-change negotiations around the world. Illustration: Preston Jessee/WSJA decade of underinvestment and a dense thicket of permits are challenges that the world’s top miners need to tackle head on. Over the last six months mining firms have begun jostling to acquire copper assets. One major reason: The U.S. Inflation Reduction Act, essentially a massive green industry policy bill, which passed last August. Copper supply now looks likely to fall far short of demand over the next decade—unless big new greenfield projects are brought online.

☆ The Next Big Bull Market Could Be Copper
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-02 | by ( Megha Mandavia | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The copper wave is coming. Photo: John Moore/Getty ImagesGlencore ’s aggressive pursuit of Canada’s Teck Resources has put a spotlight on the race to secure access to copper. Traditionally seen as a cyclical economic indicator, the metal is also poised to play a key role in the world’s green transition—which is being supercharged by recent legislation, including the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), passed last year. Green technologies including electric vehicles and solar panels use more copper than equivalent fossil-fuel-based technologies, and supply growth looks likely to fall far well short of demand over the coming decade.

☆ India’s Population Boom Is an Opportunity—and an Economic Threat
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Megha Mandavia | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

People waited for a train in Mumbai on April 19. Photo: punit paranjpe/Agence France-Presse/Getty ImagesIndia is set to reach a notable milestone this year—becoming the world’s most populous country. That squarely positions it as an alternative to China: Both as a manufacturer and, perhaps someday, as the world’s largest market. The onus is now on the South Asian giant to fulfill that promise or bear the consequences.

☆ For Food Price Inflation Clues, Watch India
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Megha Mandavia | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

A World Bank report noted that export restrictions by India could raise world rice prices. A poor season can topple governments and threaten global food security—especially when export restrictions on food have become sticky despite easing food prices. U.S. and Australian forecasts now point to an increased probability of an El Niño episode in 2023. El Niño is a periodic weather event that drives monsoon clouds away from India—and has historically hurt food production. A subpar monsoon is an underappreciated threat to global food security and inflation.

☆ Coal Is Too Hot to Handle—Maybe Even for Glencore
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( Megha Mandavia | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

Teck Resources says that its own plan for its company would mean better opportunities to maximize value for its shareholders. Glencore , one of the world’s largest coal miners and traders, wants more coal—just not in its backyard. An emerging battle for fellow coal heavyweight Teck Resources ’ assets says a lot about the curious position the black stuff finds itself occupying in the postpandemic, post-Ukraine-invasion world. Glencore is pursuing Teck Resources in a $23 billion deal that would create two new companies—one for Glencore and Teck’s merged base-metal and other assorted businesses, and another for their merged thermal, coking coal and ferroalloys businesses. The Swiss commodities giant’s initial proposal for an all-share deal, and a revised offer that sweetens the deal with $8.2 billion in cash as an alternative to shares in the combined coal company, were both rejected by the Canadian miner this month.

☆ India Rockets Into the Global Space Race
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( Megha Mandavia | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

India’s investment promotion agency expects the country’s share of the global space sector economy to reach more than 10% by 2030. The stars are aligning for India to join the space race. Factors in its favor include the Ukraine war, growing mistrust between the West and China, and a soon-to-be released domestic Indian space policy. India’s cabinet greenlighted a long-pending space policy last week, although details aren’t yet public. Space technology firms and their investors hope the new policy will simplify regulation and make foreign investment easier.

☆ For Apple, India Is the Next China
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-10 | by ( Megha Mandavia | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Apple ’s playbook in India is evolving, from testing the country as a counterweight to China’s supply-chain dominance to viewing it as an emerging growth hub for demand. Both of these strategies are working off each other.

☆ India Asserts Itself on Global Tech Deals
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Megha Mandavia | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Tech firms such as Google look set to face heightened scrutiny if they try to expand their presence in India. India wants to have a seat at the table vetting overseas mergers and acquisitions as the country asserts itself on the global tech stage. If the country’s internet population is anything to go by, it is about time. Earlier this week, India authorized its antitrust regulator to parse global deals by approving amendments to the competition law, which includes a requirement for companies with substantial business operations in the South Asian nation to seek antitrust permissions for all deals exceeding 20 billion Indian rupees ($244 million) in transaction value. Until now, the Competition Commission of India examined deals based on companies’ asset size and turnover.

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