COST Financial News

Barack Obama, turned to Kimberly Clausing, a former member of the Biden administration and author of a book extolling the virtues of free trade. «Everyone in this room agrees with your book,» Furman said. «No one outside of this room agrees with your book.» The academics and policy wonks gathered in the hotel conference room laughed, but the comment captured something real: After decades of helping shape policy on weighty matters such as taxes and health insurance, economists find that their influence is at a low ebb.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Dear reader, Hello and welcome to the first edition of 2025 of Climate Change And You. It’s been two months since Sayantan and I started the newsletter, and it has been a busy time in terms of climate news.

Mercedes-Benz's core car sales fell in 2024, a tough year for the auto industry marked by waning demand in a weak economy, especially in key market China, the German luxury carmaker said on Friday. It sold 1,983,400 cars during the year, down 3% versus 2023, weighed down by a 7% drop in China and a 3% decline in Europe. Annual sales of battery-electric cars (BEV) dropped by 23% to 185,100 vehicles, adding pressure on the carmaker as new, harsher EU CO2 emission reduction targets take effect this year, which could potentially mean costly pooling deals or hefty fines for Mercedes if the BEV sales don't pick up.

Walgreens booked a better-than-expected fiscal first quarter, but the drugstore chain lost $265 million as it closed U.S. stores and continued work to revive its business

microfinance institutions (MFIs) on Friday said that it would be difficult for them to lower interest rates unless they have access to cheaper sources of funds which can be ensured by a dedicated credit guarantee scheme, refinance facility or interest subvention. The rates charged by microfinance lenders have always been a contentious issue and have again come under regulatory glare following an increase in defaults seen in the sector. Most lenders charge between 21% and 24% a year. The Department of Financial Services at a meeting with MFI heads earlier this week urged them to reduce rates to make the loans viable for borrowers. «Given the cost structure, it would be difficult for NBFC-MFIs to reduce rates below 20%,» said Sadaf Sayeed, chief executive at Muthoot Microfinance.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves was criticised for being «missing in action» as she flew to Beijing for meetings with Chinese government officials and businesses on Thursday (9 January), leaving Treasury secretary Darren Jones to face questions in parliament over surging borrowing costs and demands for spending cuts. Analysts split over Reeves' culpability in UK gilt chaos as US bonds follow suit Jones defended his boss to the Commons and told the House she would not break her promise to borrow money only for investment, or to cover day-to-day spending. Long-term yields on UK government d...

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. The Los Angeles wildfires are set to be the costliest blaze in U.S. history, analysts said Thursday, as the first initial estimates of damage from the infernos soared with their unchecked spread.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Think 15% vacancy rates are only a problem for owners of office towers? America has a serious housing shortage, but not for the type of apartments that real-estate investors have been building in record numbers. The national vacancy rate for multifamily apartments reached 8% in the last quarter of 2024—higher than it was before the pandemic.

Malaysia has gorgeous attractions, including both marvellous cities and beautiful coastlines, rainforests, and multiethnicity. From enjoying the tall and prestigious structure of the Petronas Twin Tower in Kuala Lumpur to the mountainous trails of the Cameron Highlands or the scenic dive in Sipadan Island, having the right travel insurance for Malaysia is crucial.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. After years of raising prices, food companies making everything from cookies to snacks and frozen meals say they need to sell more products to post a profit. Price increases have been good for profits, but packaged food and snack company executives see sustained volume growth as the way forward, so they are flooding store aisles with new takes on familiar products, such as frozen bar-b-que loaded chicken patties.

DAM Capital report added. The report added that inflation is a foremost concern for FY26, with a projected decline to 4.5 per cent from the current level. The major reason behind the persistent inflation is domestic pressure. The pass-through effect of rising raw material costs, particularly in agriculture, food, and metals, is expected to contribute to persistent inflation. As demand increases, businesses are likely to raise prices of raw materials, impacting consumers.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Temperance in the world of cocktails implies drinking with restraint or in moderation. Bartender Pawan Rawat chanced upon the word while crafting the menu for the new bar Hitchens in Mumbai, and adopted it as the name for the zero-proof drinks section.

Prateek Group will invest over Rs 2,000 crore to develop a luxury housing project at Siddharth Vihar in Ghaziabad as part of its expansion plan amid strong consumer demand. The company on Friday announced launch of its new project 'Prateek Grand Begonia', spanning around 15 acre and comprising 2,400 flats. «We have already developed and delivered 4,500 flats in Siddharth Vihar. We are now starting a new housing project which is suitable for both end users and investors,» Prateek Group CMD Prashant Tiwari told reporters here. The company will sell 1,200 flats in the first phase. It will take only 30 per cent of the cost from customers at the time of booking and the remaining 70 per cent at the time of possession.

Narendra Modi on Friday said that his life's mantra was to never do anything «wrong» with bad intentions. Speaking in a podcast with Zerodha founder Nikhil Kamath, PM Modi said that human beings, including him, are prone to make mistakes, but it shouldn't be at the cost of doing things with bad intentions. «When I became the Chief Minister, I gave a speech in which I said, 'I will not shy away from hard work' and 'I will not do anything for myself' and 'I am human who can make mistakes, but I will never do anything wrong with bad intentions.' This is my life's Mantra. Everyone makes mistakes, including me. After all, I am a human being, not some God,» PM Modi said in the podcast hosted by Nikhil Kamath.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. New Delhi: The Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP) plans to use India as a testbed for new decarbonisation technologies that would then be commercially operationalised in other developing countries.

Newron Pharmaceuticals S.p.A. and Myung In Pharm Co. Ltd. on Friday announced that they have entered into a license agreement to develop, manufacture and commercialize Newron’s innovative modulator of the excessive release of glutamate, evenamide, an add-on therapy for treatment-resistant schizophrenia (TRS) and poorly responding patients with schizophrenia, in South Korea.

Joe Biden announced that the federal government will cover the costs of measures to protect lives and property in Southern California for six months.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. The trouble with taxation is not its inevitability, nor its comparison for that reason with mortality, but its susceptibility to being viewed through lenses tinted by the viewer’s own tax liability. Evidence of this rises and falls in waves, peaking around budget time.

Financial Services, the non-bank lending arm of HDFC Bank, is expected to soon launch a Rs 12,000-crore IPO. According to a report by Macquarie Capital, while the non-bank lender commands valuations similar to Bajaj Finance in the unlisted markets, its return on assets is 30% lower than Bajaj Finance. The company is a good bet based on its potential for an improvement in return on assets driven by margin expansion, and lower credit costs given its best-in-class underwriting standards, says the brokerage.

Some eligible working Canadians are set to receive advanced payments of workers benefits from the federal government this week.

San Diego County Supervisor Jim Desmond discusses the impact of Californias policies on residents amid uncontained wildfires.