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☆ Russian sales of weapons to India are being held up by a dispute over which currency to use
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Jason Ma | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Deliveries of Russian weapons to India have been on hold due to a currency dispute. Russia is the top supplier of weapons to India, which uses the Su-30 fighter and T-90 tanks. Meanwhile, Russia won't take Indian rupees because of exchange-rate volatility, the report added. Russia is the top supplier of weapons to India, which uses the Su-30 and MiG-29 fighter jets as well as T-90 tanks, among other Russian-made arms. Last month, India complained that Russia isn't delivering weapons it owes because it's throwing everything at Ukraine.

Collisions are more likely in such cases, raising the odds of a devastating oil spill. It’s also harder to tell whether the vessels with murky ownership comply with the strict rules governing oil transfers at sea, according to Kenney. Group of Seven nations have imposed a cap on the price of Russian oil and oil products, and a smaller pool of buyers can also negotiate greater discounts. China’s imports of Russian oil in the first quarter of the year rose 38% compared with a year prior, according to Kpler data. As trade of Russian oil has become more complex, many Western shippers have pulled back.

HOUSTON/NEW DELHI, April 21 (Reuters) - South America's fastest growing oil producer has turned down the Indian government's request for discounted crude oil purchases during trade discussions, Guyana Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo said on Thursday. Guyana's oil production in total has tripled from a year ago to about 380,000 barrels of oil per day. "Any sale of our crude will have to be on commercial terms, not a discounted terms," Jagdeo said at a briefing. Indian buyers have sought a discount to compensate for high freight costs to send its oil to the Asian country, Jagdeo said. "Guyana crude is costly for us because of high freight.

Unsecured loans – mostly personal loans and credit cards – do not carry any collateral and therefore pose higher risk. Indian banks have been growing their unsecured lending portfolio as the pandemic-induced stress began to ease. "Risks in unsecured lending has been on the RBI's radar," said a senior official at a private bank. This has pushed up the weighted average lending rate of banks by 95 bps in the same period. "It is trying to identify early warning signals in unsecured lending to not be caught off guard later."

☆ Chinese people say they don't care that India is taking over as the world's most populous country: 'No one even wants 1st place'
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Matthew Loh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

India's population is set to hit 1.428 billion, while China's drops to 1.425 billion, per the UN. "No one even wants first place for this," one user wrote on the social media platform. India's population boom also marks a shift in China's long-held identity of bursting growth — China has been the world's most populous country for decades. But people on Weibo, China's version of Twitter, say the title is inconsequential, and some are even happy to see it go. "No one even wants first place for this," one user wrote in a top comment as news broke of the UN estimates last week.

☆ Opinion: The world just tilted in India’s favor
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Opinion Frida Ghitis | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

She is a weekly opinion contributor to CNN, a contributing columnist to The Washington Post and a columnist for World Politics Review. CNN —Imagine a world in which the world’s most populous country is a democracy. The United Nations Population Fund announced Wednesday that, according to its calculations, India’s 1.4 billion have already surpassed mainland China’s population, and will exceed all of China’s – including Hong Kong’s population – by the middle of this year. In addition to shrinking, China’s population is growing older. Today, after decades of breakneck economic growth, China’s population is much wealthier than India’s.

“From education and developers to manufacturing and the environment, we’re committed to growing and investing across the country,” Cook wrote on Twitter following the meeting. The California-based giant is the world’s second biggest smartphone maker behind Samsung (SSNLF), but its 6% share of the Indian market remains small. Apple has also been ramping up its manufacturing in India, where it first began making iPhones in 2017. In recent months, it has expanded production there after suffering supply chain snags in mainland China, which accounts for the bulk of its smartphone manufacturing. Last month, Foxconn CEO Young Liu also spent a week in the country and met with Modi.

☆ India’s Population to Surpass China’s by Midyear
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Shan Li | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

A nurse checks on a newborn at a hospital in Patiala, India. India’s population is expected to continue growing over the next four decades. Photo: Elke Scholiers/Getty ImagesNEW DELHI—The United Nations, in a report about global population trends released Wednesday, said India would overtake China as the world’s most populous country by midyear. India will have 1.4286 billion people by July 1, surpassing China’s population of 1.4257 billion by nearly three million people, according to the U.N. report. China’s data doesn’t include the populations of Hong Kong, Macau or Taiwan.

West Texas Intermediate U.S. crude fell 33 cents, also 0.4%, to $80.53 a barrel. In Europe, European Central Bank officials are also wary of inflation and suggesting interest rates must keep rising. Meanwhile, the economy of top crude oil importer China grew by a faster-than-expected 4.5% in the first quarter, while the country's oil refinery throughput rose to record levels in March, data showed. ,Adding more pressure on oil benchmarks is Asian refiners continuing to seize Russian crude in April. India and China have snapped up the vast majority of Russian oil so far in April at prices above the Western price cap of $60 per barrel, according to traders and Reuters calculations.

April 19 (Reuters) - Oil drifted lower on Wednesday as the market weighed potential interest rate hikes from the Federal Reserve that could slow growth and dampen oil consumption, offsetting falling U.S. inventories and strong Chinese economic data. The U.S. Federal Reserve likely has one more interest rate rise in store to fight inflation, Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic said on Tuesday. Meanwhile, the economy of top crude oil importer China grew by a faster-than-expected 4.5% in the first quarter, while the country's oil refinery throughput rose to record levels in March, data showed. ,Adding more pressure on the oil benchmarks is that Asian refiners continues to seize Russian crude in April. India and China have snapped up the vast majority of Russian oil so far in April at prices above the Western price cap of $60 per barrel, according to traders and Reuters calculations.

☆ Global rice shortage is set to be the largest in 20 years – here's why
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Lee Ying Shan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

The global rice market is set to log its largest shortfall in two decades in 2023, according to Fitch Solutions. "At the global level, the most evident impact of the global rice deficit has been, and still is, decade-high rice prices," Fitch Solutions' commodities analyst Charles Hart said. That would mar the largest global rice deficit since 2003/2004, when the global rice markets generated a deficit of 18.6 million tonnes, said Hart. "The global rice production deficit situation will increase the cost of importing rice for major rice importers such as Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia and African countries in 2023," said Tjakra. "It is our view that global rice production will stage a solid rebound in 2023/24, expecting total output to rise by 2.5% year on year," Fitch's report forecast, hinging on India being a "principal engine" of global rice output over the next five years.

☆ India's population is on the brink of overtaking China's, UN says
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Jenni Reid | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

People visit the Kartavya Path in the early evening in New Delhi, India, on Tuesday, April 18, 2023. Photographer: Prashanth Vishwanathan/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesThe United Nations estimates India's population will be 1.4286 billion by the middle of 2023 — ahead of the 1.4257 billion it sees for mainland China's population. The overtake has been widely-predicted as China's population growth has slowed, with the number of people last year falling for the first time since the early 1960s. The U.N. has previously forecast China's population will decline to 1.313 billion by 2050 and fall below 800 million by 2100. The U.N. figures exclude the "special administrative regions" of Hong Kong, which it estimates at 7.5 million, and Macao, at 0.7 million.

☆ Will This Be the ‘Indian Century’? Four Key Questions
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Alex Travelli | Weiyi Cai | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +11 min

Annual population growth 3% Growing population Projected Projected 2% India’s population is projected to grow until the 2060s. 1% 0 Declining population -1% 1960 2000 2040 2080 3% Projected 2% China’s population declined for the first time in 2022. Fertility rate 8 children per woman Projected Projected 6 India 4 India’s fertility rate ensures a roughly stable population. Age 100+ Male Female Male Female 95–99 90–91 85–89 80–81 75–79 70–71 Nearly 80% of India’s population is younger than 50. 20–21 15–19 10–11 5–9 0–4 Age 100+ Male Female 95–99 90–91 85–89 80–81 Nearly 80% of India’s population is younger than 50.

☆ Why India is so important to Apple
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Kif Leswing | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Cook said in February that Apple had its best sales quarter ever for iPhones in India in the quarter ending in December. Most phones sold in India are priced below even the least-expensive new Apple iPhone. India could end up being a big winner as Apple looks for non-Chinese manufacturing options. Tim Cook, Apple's Chief Executive Officer (CEO) reacts as a man shows him Apple's Macintosh outside the Apple store at Jio World Drive mall, Mumbai, India on April 18, 2023. Apple was bullish on India back then, too: "India will be the most populous country in the world in 2022," Cook told CNBC's Jim Cramer at the time, saying it had "huge market potential."

☆ Apple CEO Tim Cook to meet with India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi following Mumbai store opening
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Seema Mody | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Prime Minister Narendra Modi launches slew of infrastructure projects from MMRDA Grounds, at Bandra-Kurla Complex, Bandra (East) on Jan. 19, 2023 in Mumbai, India. After opening a flagship store in Mumbai, CEO Tim Cook will travel to New Delhi to meet with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday. Apple's growth in India is widely seen as a success story by Modi and Indian officials. Flipkart and Amazon are dueling for the top spot in India's e-commerce market, and both face competition from newcomer Meesho. — CNBC's Steve Kovach contributed to this reportWATCH: Tim Cook visits India to open first Apple retail store

☆ Inside the Online Market for Overseas Abortion Pills
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( Allison Mccann | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +17 min

A selection of abortion pill kits available online from overseas sellers. A chart of the estimated number of abortion pills provided outside the U.S. health care system from July through December 2022. For most patients, the cost of the service remains the most important factor in deciding where to get pills online. A chart showing the minimum, average and maximum cost of abortion pills from overseas providers: Aid Access, Las Libres and for-profit online sellers. A chart showing the minimum, average and maximum delivery speeds of abortion pills from overseas providers: Aid Access, Las Libres and for-profit online sellers.

☆ INDIA RUPEE Rupee to inch up ahead of key US inflation data
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Nimesh Vora | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The non-deliverable forwards indicate the rupee will open at around 82.06-82.10 to the U.S. dollar compared with 82.12 in the previous session. Heading into the data, investors are pricing in a 70% chance that the Fed will raise rates by 25 bps points at the May meeting. The India inflation data is due a few hours before the U.S. number. India's consumer inflation rate likely softened in March to 5.80%, dipping below the Reserve Bank of India's upper tolerance limit of 6% for the first time this year, according to a Reuters poll. "India inflation is way less important (than U.S.) for how the rupee will open tomorrow," the spot trader said.

☆ How India's birth control battle falters in rural district
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Dave Lucas | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Zamerun Nisha, 33, lies down after giving birth while a doctor holds and cleans her newborn baby, at the labor ward of a community health center in Bahadurganj subdivision of Kishanganj district, Bihar, India, March 21, 2023. India’s fertility rate, fell to 2.0 in 2019-21, but State health officials estimate Kishanganj's fertility rate at 4.8 or 4.9, creating a population growth problem that the state is trying to curb with the distribution of condoms and birth control pills, as well as the paying 3,000 Indian rupees ($36.50) to women who get sterilized, 4,000 rupees to men, and 500 rupees per surgery to the health workers who perform them. "I talk to women while they are experiencing labor pain and nudge them to undergo sterilization immediately after delivery," said Parvati Rajak, a medical officer in one of Kishanganj’s seven government health centers. "But the final choice is always made by the family." REUTERS/Anushree FadnavisClose

☆ Rich countries and India should cut a climate pact
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-10 | by ( Hugo Dixon | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Emissions from the world’s most populous country are only 7% of greenhouse gases but are growing fast while those produced by rich countries have largely peaked. To do so, it will need policies that incentivise green investment, including accelerating its plans for carbon pricing. Rich countries can also help, even at a time when their budgets are stretched. India could then be much more ambitious in its transition plan and the G7 and other rich countries could mobilise funds, focussing on key bottlenecks. But if the central government comes up with a solution, rich countries could help fund it.

☆ Ukrainian deputy foreign minister due to seek Indian aid - report
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NEW DELHI, April 8 (Reuters) - Ukraine's First Deputy Foreign Minister Emine Dzhaparova is due to visit India on Monday and will seek humanitarian aid and equipment to repair energy infrastructure damaged during Russia's invasion, the Hindu newspaper reported on Saturday. Dzhaparova is expected to invite Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit Kyiv, the newspaper said. Ukraine is keen to get an invitation to participate in G20 meetings and for Zelenskiy to be invited to speak to G20 leaders during the summit, the newspaper said. The Indian Council of World Affairs, a New Delhi-based think tank, said on Twitter it would host a talk with Dzhaparova on Tuesday. Writing by Neha Arora; Additional reporting by Krishn Kaushik in NEW DELHI; Editing by Robert BirselOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ A top TikTok lawyer reportedly laughed when an employee asked about a potential ban in US
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-07 | by ( Grace Mayer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A top TikTok lawyer was reportedly asked what the company would do if the app was banned in the US. Several countries banned TikTok on government devices, and India has an outright ban on the app. Australia recently moved to ban TikTok on government devices, a move that the United States, Canada, France, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom previously made. India has had an outright ban on TikTok in place since 2020. Still, experts have said a full TikTok ban in the US is the last possible option for the US.

☆ China accounts for two thirds of world's planned new coal power - research
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

"The more new coal projects come online, the steeper the cuts and commitments need to be in the future," said GEM's Flora Champenois, lead author of the report. Outside China, planned new capacity fell 20% last year, with no projects proposed either in the European Union or North America. India accounted for 60.5 GW of the proposed capacity while Indonesia is planning to build another 26 GW. Overall, worldwide coal-fired power capacity grew by 19.5 GW last year, with 45.5 GW of newly constructed capacity - mostly from China - offset by plant retirements totalling 26 GW. China's coal plant approvals last year were the highest since 2015, as local governments responded to concerns that power supply instability could undermine economic growth.

☆ Indian rescuers scour site of deadly avalanche for any more victims
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] Rescue team members search for survivors after an avalanche in the northeastern state of Sikkim, India, April 4, 2023. Indian Ministry of Defence/Handout via REUTERSApril 5 (Reuters) - Rescue teams made final checks on Wednesday for anyone still trapped in an avalanche that swept down on a road in the Indian Himalayan state of Sikkim the day before, killing seven people. We will scour the area properly before we call them off," Tenzing Loden Lepcha, a police official in the northeastern state, told Reuters by telephone. Avalanches have killed at least 120 people in the Indian Himalayas over the past two years. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences concluded in 2018 that climate change had increased avalanche risks in the Himalayas.

☆ INDIA RUPEE Indian rupee to strengthen as weak US data pushes dollar to 2-month low
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Nimesh Vora | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MUMBAI, April 5 (Reuters) - The Indian rupee is expected to rise against the U.S. currency on Wednesday as weak manufacturing and job openings data dented demand for the dollar. The non-deliverable forwards indicate the rupee will open at around 82.08-82.12 to the U.S. dollar, compared with 82.3325 on Monday. The dollar index overnight dropped to its lowest level since Feb. 2. Data overnight showed U.S. job openings dropped to their lowest level in nearly two years in February, indicating that the Fed rate hikes were cooling off the U.S. labour market. The job openings release comes on the back of data that showed that U.S. manufacturing activity slumped in March to the lowest level in nearly three years.

☆ India avalanche kills six, injures 30 and traps many more - police
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] Rescue team members search for survivors after an avalanche in the northeastern state of Sikkim, India, April 4, 2023. Indian Ministry of Defence/Handout via REUTERSGUWAHATI, India, April 4 (Reuters) - An avalanche in India's northeastern state of Sikkim on Tuesday killed at least six people, injured 30 and trapped many more, local officials said. All six dead were tourists and at least 70 people were feared trapped in the snow, rescue officials said. Rescue operations were on at the site, Reuters partner ANI reported on Twitter. An ANI video showed rescue workers and local residents crowding at the site of the accident.

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