Azerbaijan Financial News

Countries at the United Nations climate summit have amped up the pressure on themselves by entering their final scheduled day of talks with no visible progress on their chief goals

Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Israel. Undeterred by the region's unrest, these devotees undertook a journey to the Holy Sepulchre, which houses Christ's tomb, driven by faith. For centuries, Christians worldwide have flocked to this revered site, and for Keralites, especially Christian faithfuls, its appeal remains strong. The data from the Israel Ministry of Tourism (IMOT) reveals that 9,600 Indian tourists visited Israel in 2024, with 50 per cent of them travelling for pilgrimage--most of them from Kerala.

Google is celebrating this year's Nowruz, the Persian New Year, with a special Doodle illustrated by guest artist Pendar Yousefi. The festival is being observed on March 20, precisely at 2:31 pm IST, which coincides with the spring equinox. The festival, which marks the beginning of the new year in the Persian calendar, has been observed for over 3,000 years. Nowruz means «new day» in Persian. The day has its roots in Zoroastrianism and ancient Persian culture. The festival symbolizes renewal, rebirth, and the triumph of light over darkness. The day signifies new beginnings and families gather to observe cultural festivities. In 2010, UNESCO added Nowruz to its Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, and the United Nations recognises March 21 as International Nowruz Day. On this day, about 300 million people across Iran, Central Asia, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, the Caucasus, Turkey, and parts of South Asia celebrate withe festival. Google, in its description of the Doodle, explained that central to Nowruz traditions is the haft-sin table, a display of seven symbolic items each beginning with the Persian letter 'sin. These include sprouts for rebirth, wheat pudding for strength, olives for love, berries for the sunrise, vinegar for patience, apples for beauty, and garlic for health.

World Bank officials, including President Ajay Banga, have faced criticism for flying private jets to a UN climate summit while advocating for carbon reduction. Critics have condemned their actions as «hypocrisy,» citing the massive carbon footprint of their travel and the organization's lavish spending habits.

The agency is implementing strict profiling measures for passengers heading to 15 countries such as Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, Turkiye, Qatar, Azerbaijan, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Egypt, Libya, Ethiopia, Senegal, Mauritania, and Kenya. According to a report submitted to the Lahore High Court (LHC) regarding a petition from a pilgrim denied travel to Saudi Arabia for Umrah, the FIA stated that travelers must possess a clear travel purpose, confirmed hotel bookings, and adequate financial resources. The FIA also mentioned that those traveling for Umrah should have sufficient religious understanding, as reported by Dawn.

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Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. The overarching travel theme for 2025 is community. That is, finding the community that shares one’s passion and pushing boundaries in order to have meaningful experiences.

Caspian Sea. This "ghost island" formed due to an eruption from the Kumani Bank mud volcano and vanished shortly after. NASA recorded the phenomenon using satellite images.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. As 2024 came to an end, a number of alarming articles have been published in various global and national media on 2024 being the hottest year on record, the disastrous impact of extreme events due to climate change, the need to enhance climate action in the face of contentious climate negotiations in Azerbaijan and an American election that does not bode well for the climate agenda, among others.

Days after Azerbaijan Airlines crash, Russia allegedly released a controversial Christmas propaganda video. In the purported Russian video shared by Ukraine's Centre for Countering Disinformation appears to showcase a bizarre piece of Russian propaganda, where a sleigh driven by a NATO-branded Santa Claus is shot down above Moscow.

Azerbaijan Airlines this week may have been caused by a Russian anti-aircraft missile.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. The preliminary results of Azerbaijan’s investigation into the deadly crash of a civilian airliner point to the plane being hit by a Russian antiaircraft missile, or shrapnel from it, said people briefed on the probe. Azerbaijan’s initial findings came quickly after aviation experts said visible damage to the Azerbaijan Airlines flight—carrying 62 passengers and five crew members—was evidence that it was hit by a munition.

Azerbaijan Airlines flight that crashed in Kazakhstan on Wednesday was downed by a Russian air defence system, four sources in Azerbaijan with knowledge of the investigation told Reuters.

Azerbaijani airliner with 67 people onboard crashed Wednesday near the Kazakhstani city of Aktau, killing 38 people and leaving 29 survivors, a Kazakh official said.Deputy Prime Minister Kanat Bozumbaev disclosed the figures while meeting with Azerbaijani officials, the Russian news agency Interfax reported.The Embraer 190 was en route from the Azerbaijani capital of Baku to the Russian city of Grozny in the North Caucasus when it was diverted and attempted an emergency landing 3 kilometers (1.8 miles) from Aktau, Azerbaijan Airlines said.Speaking at a news conference, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said that it was too soon to speculate on the reasons behind the crash, but said that the weather had forced the plane to change from its planned course.“The information provided to me is that the plane changed its course between Baku and Grozny due to worsening weather conditions and headed to Aktau airport, where it crashed upon landing,” he said.Russia’s civil aviation authority, Rosaviatsia, said that preliminary information showed that the pilots diverted to Aktau after a bird strike led to an emergency on board.According to Kazakh officials, those aboard the plane included 42 Azerbaijani citizens, 16 Russian nationals, six Kazakhs and three Kyrgyzstan nationals. Azerbaijan’s prosecutor general’s office previously said that 32 of the 67 people on board had survived the crash, but told journalists that the number wasn’t final.

Azerbaijan Airlines plane crash on Christmas Day has sparked widespread speculation and investigations into its cause. The Embraer 190 flying from Baku to Grozny made an emergency landing attempt near the Kazak city of Aktau and a total of 38 persons died, 29 of them survived with some degree of injury. In the set of the latest theories, there are also those which hypothesize the airplane could have misintercepted or fallen victim to a Russian air defense weapon.

Online platform Ixigo reported an 80-100% year-on-year (YoY) increase in bookings to destinations such as Thailand, Vietnam, Bali, and London. Agoda supported this trend, noting a 53% surge in international accommodation searches. Cleartrip observed a 1.2x jump in international leisure travel, with Southeast Asia and the Middle East emerging as key regions. Emerging destinations are a highlight this year. MakeMyTrip recorded 248% growth in searches for Azerbaijan and 100% growth for Malaysia. Similarly, Cleartrip observed spikes in bookings for Manila (2.5x) and Tbilisi (1.7x), alongside strong growth for Bali (2.6x) and Phuket (2.3x).

Goa emerging as the most searched domestic destination, according to Make My Trip’s latest report, named Travel Search & Booking Trends in India for Year-End 2024. The top 20 domestic cities account for 40% of all travel searches, with hill stations gaining significant traction. Notably, Manali, Varanasi, Mussoorie, and Udaipur reported double-digit growth in search interest, reflecting the growing preference for cooler, scenic retreats. Nearly 40% of the top destinations feature hill stations across North and South India, highlighting a widespread demand for nature escapes. This year, the travel rush peaks on December 21st—the Saturday before Christmas—similar to last year. However, a notable surge in searches for December 25th indicates that many travelers plan to extend their holidays through the New Year.

The next United Nations climate conference will be held in Belem, the capital of an Amazon region where widespread deforestation has turned the surrounding rainforest from a vital carbon sink into a significant carbon source

India were fast asleep, a drama unfolded at a sprawling conference hall of the Olympic stadium in Azerbaijan's capital Baku. Diplomats from nearly 200 countries, civil society representatives and journalists had gathered to witness a decision that could determine the fate of climate action in the Global South. But what transpired was far from routine — it was a moment of diplomatic brinkmanship that left many stunned and India's delegation fuming. As the president of this year's UN climate conference, Mukhtar Babayev, approached the centrepiece agenda item — the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG) on climate finance — India's Deputy Lead Negotiator Neelesh Sah rushed to COP29 Lead Negotiator Yalchin Rafiyev to convey that the country wants to make a statement before the adoption of the contentious decision. Around 2:30 am, without so much as a pause for objections or comments, Babayev hammered the gavel, declaring the USD 300 billion climate-finance package adopted. The move was so swift, it left delegates from many developing countries blinking in disbelief.

President-elect Donald Trump is threatening 100% tariffs against a bloc of nine nations if they act to undermine the U.S. dollar

ONGC Videsh Ltd, the overseas investment arm of state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), has completed the acquisition of Norwegian firm Equinor's stake in an Azerbaijan oilfield and an associated pipeline for USD 60 million, the firm said in a statement. OVL «has completed the acquisition of 0.615 per cent participating interest (PI) in offshore Azeri Chirag Gunashli (ACG) field in Azerbaijan from Equinor. This also includes the acquisition of 0.737 per cent shares of Baku Tbilisi Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline company through its wholly-owned subsidiary ONGC BTC Limited», a company statement said. The firm had signed a sale purchase agreement (SPA) for the stake buy in July and the deal was completed on November 29.