Country Financial News

Trudeau government in Canada, as ex-House Speaker Newt Gringrich has claimed that the people of Canada and the House is losing confidence in the reigning Canadian PM, based on the way caved in to Trump recently. Gingrich went on to say that Trump has had an undue influence on Trudeau and the overall perspective changed about the Canadian PM in this sudden ceasefire of sots, which was looking impossible at a point when Trudeau was going all guns blazing.

National Bank of Canada’s $5-billion takeover of Canadian Western Bank has cleared its final regulatory hurdle.

«We have held many meetings and looking at what best can be done,» said Dr Anupam Prakash, chairman of the OTC sub-committee. Unlike other countries like the US, UK or China, India does not have a policy framework to support and regulate distribution, marketing and consumption of OTC drugs. This is despite the fact that commonly used medicines for cough and cold as well as contraceptives are sold over the counter. Neither the Drugs & Cosmetics Act, 1940 nor the Drugs & Cosmetics Rules, 1945 (D&C) defines OTC medicines.

At a meeting in the UK Parliament complex this week, stakeholders gathered to reflect on the report's findings and make the case that investing in ending malaria is the economically smart thing to do. It was noted how community health workers in India, comprising mainly women, are reaching remote populations and «significantly driving down malaria cases and deaths».

In this article

While Monday’s 2024 Fall Economic Statement contained very little in the way of tax changes, the government did provide further details on its progress toward automatic tax filing, at least for some Canadians.

With president-elect Donald Trump threatening punitive tariffs of 25 per cent, Canada should look to a reliable, old ally for expanding trade: the United Kingdom.

The Biden administration says it is canceling federal student loans for another 55,000 public service workers through an existing forgiveness program

Workers at Starbucks stores plan to go on a five-day strike starting Friday to protest lack of progress in contract negotiations with the company

violence against Hindus and other minorities have been reported in Bangladesh this year till December 8, and India's expectation is Dhaka will take necessary measures to ensure their safety, the government said on Friday. Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh gave the information in a written response to a query in Rajya Sabha, citing data from minority and human rights organisations. In Pakistan, the number of cases of violence against Hindus and other minorities in Pakistan this year stood at «112 till October 2024,» the MoS said. The corresponding figures for 2022 were 47 in Bangladesh and 241 in Pakistan, while in 2023 the figures were 302 in Bangladesh and 103 in Pakistan, according to the data he shared.

Nitin Gadkari has expressed strong opposition to live-in relationships and same-sex marriages, calling both “wrong” and stating they could destabilize society. In a recent YouTube podcast, Gadkari said that same-sex marriages would «collapse the social structure» and warned that their legalization could lead to the acceptance of other controversial practices. «Same-sex marriage would lead to the collapse of the social structure,» Gadkari said, adding that if such marriages were allowed, it could pave the way for future governments to consider enabling men to have multiple wives. «Both live-in relationships and same-sex marriages are inappropriate,» he added. Gadkari also shared insights from his visit to the British Parliament, where he said he asked UK leaders about the key challenges facing their country. He recalled that they identified a major issue as the growing trend of young men and women in European nations opting for live-in relationships instead of marriage. In the podcast, Gadkari stressed the importance of balancing the sex ratio and emphasized that married couples should have children to ensure societal stability. “If the sex ratio reaches a point where there are 1,500 women and only 1,000 men, we may have to allow men to have two wives,” he said.

ICC reached a breakthrough in the Champions Trophy impasse with India playing all its matches of the mega event at a neutral venue instead of host country under a reciprocal arrangement. In return, Pakistan will also play all its games in ICC events hosted by India at a neutral venue until the ongoing cycle ends in 2027. The deadlock over the hosting of next year's Champions Trophy finally ended on Thursday. «I think the PCB took the sensible approach and instead of doing something rash and facing isolation in the ICC and among other cricket nations, it opted for a solution where I think the PCB has gained more than the BCCI,» said the legendary Javed Miandad.

Swan Energy has signed a preliminary agreement with Singapore’s AG&P Terminals & Logistics to form a joint venture for supplying liquefied natural gas in India and other countries, the company said in a regulatory filing on Friday. Swan Energy will hold a 51% stake in the JV and AG&P LNG the remaining. AG&P LNG will also collaborate on Swan Energy’s LNG regasification terminal and will also have an option to take equity stake, the companies said. The companies will also form another JV for a floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) and a floating storage unit to operate Swan Energy’s LNG terminal. AG&P LNG will hold 51% stake in this JV with Swan holding the rest.

As per Jaishankar, India's foreign policy today is based on three principles. «Active engagement with countries, nation's interests first under any circumstance and humanitarian approach with ethics».

Nikhil Kamath, co-founder of Zerodha, has consistently emphasized the potential of the energy transition sector as a big investment opportunity. During a podcast with rapper Badshah and actress Kriti Sanon earlier this year, Kamath highlighted the expansive scope of his investments in electric vehicles (EVs), ranging from scooters and buses to trucks, and hinted at the possibility of venturing into air taxis in the future. Towards the end of the year, Kamath reinforced his confidence in this sector through a social media post, underscoring his belief that the transition to electric vehicles is inevitable. He noted that pollution, rather than broader climate issues, could accelerate this shift. Additionally, he pointed out that the reduction in commuting costs per kilometer could help offset the higher initial capital expenditure associated with EVs. «The largest bet this year for me has been that all vehicles will be electric someday; we have invested in everything from scooters to busses to trucks to maybe air taxis next,» Zerodha co-founder said in his post.

Creamy, delectable – and pricey

Packaged foods in the U_S_ must follow new rules in order to call themselves “healthy.”

President Vladimir Putin boasted that his military operation in Ukraine has strengthened Russia and denied that the ouster of key ally Bashar Assad in Syria had hurt Moscow’s prestige, as he held his annual news conference and call-in show Thursday.

«For the first time Chair Powell kind of tipped his hat to that saying we just do not know what is going to go on. So, in this environment with not much in the way of rate cuts, I thought there will only be two actually in the new dot plot. I thought they would be a bit more hawkish. I am surprised the market was so surprised but there you go,» says Geoff Dennis, Independent Emerging Markets Commentator. What should one be prepared for in the year 2025 because given the fact that you had the Federal Reserve go ahead and lowered their dot plot when you talk about the rate cuts come next year. You saw the markets spook. How should one read into all of these signs because yesterday when you saw the US GDP growth as well, they revised it upwards? Geoff Dennis: It is a difficult environment for emerging markets let me start by saying that and it is summed up by the fact that the Fed is now assumed anyway in terms of the dot plot that the midpoint is two interest rate cuts.

data centres humming at the outskirts of Dublin are consuming more electricity than all of the urban homes in Ireland and starting to wear out the warm welcome that brought them here. Now, a country that made itself a computing factory for Amazon, Google, Meta, Microsoft and TikTok is wondering whether it was all worth it as tech giants look around the world to build even more data centres to fuel the next wave of artificial intelligence. Fears of rolling blackouts led Ireland's grid operator to halt new data centres near Dublin until 2028. These huge buildings and their powerful computers last year consumed 21% of the nation’s electricity, according to official records. No other country has reported a higher burden to the International Energy Agency.

Yoon Suk Yeol over his December 3 declaration of martial law, summoning him for questioning on Christmas Day despite his repeated refusal to cooperate. The Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials, which is leading a joint investigation with police and military authorities into the ill-conceived power grab that lasted only a few hours, said it plans to question Yoon on charges of abuse of authority and orchestrating a rebellion. Yoon, whose presidential powers have been suspended since the opposition-controlled National Assembly impeached him on December 14, has dodged several requests by the joint investigation team and public prosecutors while also blocking searches of his office. It's not clear what investigators can do if Yoon continues to reject their demands. Under the country's laws, locations potentially linked to military secrets cannot be seized or searched without the consent of the person in charge, and it's unlikely that Yoon will voluntarily leave his residence if he faces of being compelled to appear.