Country Financial News

BEIRUT (Reuters) — Lebanon risks being «ostracised» by the international community if its nearly year-long presidential vacuum drags on further, France's special envoy Jean-Yves Le Drian told a local Lebanese newspaper in an interview published on Tuesday.

It's a historic moment for the renewable energy sector as WattPower introduces its cutting-edge factory in the heart of Chennai, India, offering advanced Smart PV solutions that will reshape the renewable energy landscape in the subcontinent. New Delhi, 03 June 2023: The future's looking brighter than ever as WattPower, Solar Photovoltaic solutions provider based with its roots in Germany, proudly announces the grand opening of its state-of-the-art facility in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. This exciting move comes in response to India's soaring appetite for green energy solutions.

Live Mint, Ramachandran points towards the country's "conducive environment" to attract global investments, the economic prospects vis-à-vis China and other Asia Pacific (APAC) nations, how India can leverage from advancements in artificial intelligence and whether its net-zero goals are aligned with the growth vision. Edited excerpts from the interview.

British International Investment (BII) plans to invest about $1 billion in Indian climate-related projects by 2026, a top official said, drawn to the country's expanding renewable energy capacity. «We are evaluating exciting businesses in sectors such as bio-fuels, circular economy… as part of the vision for the 2030 roadmap agreed between India and the UK,» Nick O'Donohoe, CEO of BII told Reuters on Tuesday. In India, BII invested over $300 million in climate finance last year in sectors such as renewable energy, electric mobility and sustainable agriculture. Its' current portfolio in India is valued at $2.2 billion with investment in over 290 businesses. Last year, BII agreed to invest up to $250 million in automaker Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd's new electric vehicle unit. «India has produced the best returns of any geography we have invested in,» said O'Donohoe, citing buoyant stock markets and a stable political environment in the country. The company has about 8.2 billion pounds ($9.98 billion) worth of assets through its investments in around 1,500 businesses in emerging economies across 65 countries. On total portfolio investment, the company got 5% in annual return over a rolling 7-year period, he said, declining to give detail on returns on Indian investments.

The world's largest package delivery company, which earns the largest chunk of its revenue during the fourth quarter that includes the festive season, said it was filling full- and part-time seasonal positions by across shifts in hundreds of locations across the country. Both UPS and rival FedEx Corp hire thousands of temporary workers each year to move more parcels between the months of October and January. Hiring at UPS comes against the backdrop of a new five-year contract, covering some 340,000 Teamsters-represented workers in the U.S., which would increase wage and benefit costs for the company. Last month, the Atlanta-based firm cut its full-year revenue and profitability targets, citing higher-than-expected labor costs as well as business lost during the tumultuous contract talks with Teamsters union. UPS executives said in August that customers shifted 1 million packages per day to other providers, resulting in about $200 million in lost sales. They estimated that roughly a third of that volume landed with FedEx. Analysts expect holiday sales to grow at a slower pace this year as high inflation eats into household budgets. A report from career consultancy firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas showed that weaker spending and increased labor costs would result in U.S.

NABARD) concluded the country's first social impact bond issue, but raised less than it could have due to higher costs for the issuer, three bankers said on Tuesday. NABARD accepted bids worth 10.40 billion rupees ($124.9 million), the bankers said, declining to be identified as they are not authorised to speak to the media. NABARD had planned to raise at least 10 billion rupees via this issue, with a greenshoe option to retain an additional 20 billion rupees.

NH7 music festival, a beloved annual event since its inception in 2009, has consistently brought together a diverse range of artists from both India and around the world. The 14th edition of this celebrated festival has recently revealed its first phase lineup, which includes more than 28 local and international performers.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Monday said that the southwest monsoon current has started withdrawing from parts of Rajasthan, indicating the beginning of the end of its four-month journey. The normal withdrawal date is 17 September. The full withdrawal typically takes about a month.

The United Kingdom is “a home for financial and technological innovation,” according to Chris Larsen, co-founder and executive chairman of US fintech and blockchain firm Ripple.

Supreme Court on Tuesday referred to a seven-judge bench the issue of reconsidering the correctness of a verdict delivered by a five-judge bench which had said that unstamped arbitration agreements are not enforceable in law. A five-judge bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud passed the order while considering a curative petition in which the matter regarding the need for reconsideration of the five-judge bench judgement delivered on April 25 this year was raised.

Predator drones of the Indian Navy have flown over 13,000 hours of missions across the Indian Ocean Region from INS Rajali, Naval Air Base here and helped the maritime force keep a close watch on the entire area for interest of the country. The two drones have been operated by the Indian Navy since November 2020 when the force got them on lease from the American firm General Atomics as part of the emergency procurement powers. «The aircraft has the capability to cover over 4,000-8,000 kms in one go and can operate for more than 30 hours in one stretch which allows them to cover the entire Indian Ocean Region in one go,» the second in command of the Navy's drone unit Lieutenant Commander Lokesh Pandey told ANI. Team covered the operations of the most advanced drone of the force here where the Predator showcased its capabilities. Asked about the 15 more advanced Predator MQ-9B drones that the force would be getting from the US under a tri-services deal, the first Mission Commander of the Predator drones in the country Lieutenant Commander Varsha said the new drones being planned would be equipped with weapons including air to ground missiles, bombs and submarine detection kits fitted with sonobuoys which can help detect the hidden enemy submarines. The Predator drones can be equipped with American Hellfire missiles, bombs and other high-level sensors which can be used for carrying out strikes from long ranges against enemy targets. The American forces have used drones to carry out countless strikes against terrorists like al-Qaeda's Ayman al-Zawahiri, and others. The Indian armed forces are getting 31 of these drones in total as part of a deal announced by India during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's state visit to

Tata Power EV Charging Solutions Limited (TPEVCSL) on Tuesday announced its collaboration with Kolkata Airport Authority to install to establish EV charging points at the airport, the company said in a press release. The formal inauguration of four EV chargers (DC-CCS2 and single-gun GB/T chargers) took place on Tuesday, September 26, 2023. A formal agreement was inked between the Airport Authorities of India and Tata Power for setting up charging stations. These chargers are suitable to charge all electric cars available in the country.

Army chiefs and senior officers from 30 countries including the United States met in India Tuesday to discuss threats facing the Asia-Pacific region, in the face of concern at an increasingly assertive China. US Army chief Randy George said the region was «critically important», speaking to reporters alongside his Indian counterpart Manoj Pande, and vowed to boost cooperation to «maintain a free and open Indo-Pacific». Generals from Japan and Australia, which make up the «Quad» defence cooperation forum alongside Washington and New Delhi, also took part, as did Britain and France. As the generals met, China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi said that Beijing would oppose the «wanton expansion of military alliances», the latest in a string of warnings as Washington deepens security ties in the Asia-Pacific. Beijing has long said that any effort to establish a NATO-like military alliance in the Asia-Pacific would provoke conflict. Nations present at the two-day conference in New Delhi included Vietnam and the Philippines, both of which have longstanding pending territorial disputes with China. The conference, which launched in 1999, brings together army chiefs and top officers from 30 countries. India's Pande said the region faced challenges on both land and at sea. «These range from territorial disputes over land masses, or in some cases, even over artificially expanded islands to acquire real estate and establish military bases,» Pande added, in an indirect reference to China. India has also had to balance its traditional alliance with Russia — the provider of most of its arms imports, and now a source of cut-price oil — with growing ties to Washington. «The partnership between India and the US armies is vital for

PTI. Earlier, to avoid arrest, Badal had sought anticipatory bail from the court. A hearing on his appeal was to be held in the session court of Bathinda on Tuesday.

CAMBRIDGE, England—The U.K.’s storied universities have a problem. They lose money on almost every British student they teach. The country’s university system boasts 11 of the world’s top 100 universities, with three in the top 10—in a country that has just 1% of the global population.

The most important and uncertain Olympic event this year is happening this week. It might just result in a gold medal for Americans and humiliation for Russians. And nobody can watch it.

After years of sales troubles in China, Ford Motor saw a chance to ride the tide of electrification to arrest its demise. From around 2020, the automaker followed Tesla’s formula of bypassing dealers to sell its cars directly to consumers. It introduced the Mustang Mach-E—an electric SUV with the iconic galloping horse logo, which Ford’s executives saw as a strong competitor to Tesla’s EVs.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. CEO Jamie Dimon says geopolitics after Russia's invasion in Ukraine is the biggest risk, larger than high inflation or a U.S. recession.

Sev.en Global Investments’ raid on a majority shareholding in coal miner Coronado Global Resources could soon be followed by the acquisition of more Australian power generation and steelmaking assets.

Digital payment through Unified Payments Interface (UPI) has seen a multi-fold jump with transactions crossing a landmark figure of 10 billion in August primarily driven by Person-to-Merchant (P2M) transactions, a report said. The number of UPI transactions in January 2018 was 151 million, and it reached 9.3 billion in June 2023, primarily driven by the growth in P2M transactions, the report by Worldline said. In January 2022, P2M transactions accounted for 40.3% of all UPI transactions compared to 57.5% in June 2023 and this percentage is likely to grow further, it said.

software update from Apple for its iPhone 12 and are reviewing it, a source at the French digital ministry told Reuters on Tuesday. The US tech company had pledged to update the software to defuse a row over radiation levels. It had until Wednesday to do so after France suspended sales of iPhone 12 handsets following tests it said found breaches of radiation exposure limits.