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EU countries will next week discuss a plan to set up a naval mission to help protect Red Sea shipping following attacks from Yemen's Huthi rebels, diplomats said Friday. The proposal — in the pipeline in Brussels for several weeks — was mooted before US and British forces struck rebel-held Yemen. Any EU effort would seek to complement a US-led coalition, which includes numerous countries from the bloc, already operating in the vital shipping route. The exact details of the size and scope of any EU mission remain to be hammered out and European diplomats said a first discussion would take place in Brussels on Tuesday.

Congress leader Karan Singh on Friday said that after the Supreme Court's Ayodhya judgment, there should be no hesitation in attending the consecration ceremony at the Ram temple on January 22. In a statement, Singh said he has received the «beautiful invitation» to the «historic pran pratishtha ceremony», but he will not be able to attend it due to medical reasons. The ceremony «will be celebrated by about a billion Hindus around the globe,» he said.

Shaktikanta Das: At the moment, the Indian banking sector remains resilient and robust, even if you look at the unsecured consumer loans and some segments of personal loans. The numbers that we have before us are not particularly alarming.

premium goods will outperform broad-based competitors as the country’s affluent class is expected to nearly double to 100 million people within three years, according to Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Strong economic growth, stable monetary policy and high credit growth has increased the purchasing power of top earning Indians over the past decade. This has resulted in the number of affluent Indians earning above $10,000 per annum from 24 million consumers in 2015 to 60 million, or 4.1% of the population currently, according to a Goldman report published on Friday. The world’s fifth-largest economy is tipped to become the third-biggest by 2027, according to the International Monetary Fund, with the country seeing rising spending power among its middle-class, benefiting firms with premium brands in leisure, jewelry, out-of-home food and healthcare, according to Goldman. “There has been a significant increase in the value of financial and physical assets in India in the past three years which is driving an increasing wealth,” according to the report.

During the course of his protracted legal struggle in the United States, Changpeng "CZ" Zhao, who formerly served as the CEO of Binance, has encountered a serious setback. In response to Zhao's second request to fly outside of the country, a federal judge named Richard Jones of the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington in Seattle declined to grant his request. This determination was made as a part of the processes that took place prior to the sentence hearing for Zhao.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India is proposing to start same-day settlement from March, before moving to a real-time process in 2025. The shorter cycles will be optional for investors and run alongside the existing system where trades are settled in one day, or T+1 in industry parlance. Global appetite for quicker resolution has grown after a spike in prices of ‘meme stocks’ in 2021 left brokers like Robinhood Markets Inc.

consecration ceremony at the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya, religious organisations like VHP, RSS, and their allies are distributing the worshipped 'akshat' to devotees. The distribution which was started on New Year's Day, involves rice grains mixed with turmeric and ghee, is considered sacred in Hindu rituals. General Secretary of Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Champat Rai emphasized that, while receiving 'akshat,' people will be requested to gather at local temples, turning the event into a festive celebration.

Narendra Modi today took part in 'Swachhata Abhiyan' at the Kalaram temple in Maharashtra's Nashik. The PM had also appealed to everyone to carry out Swachhata activities at temples across the country.

Narendra Modi on Friday described India's present-day youth as the most fortunate generation of the 21st century, poised to take the country to greater heights during "Amrit Kaal", and urged them to participate in the electoral process to «reduce» the influence of dynastic politics. Addressing a gathering after inaugurating the 27th National Youth Festival here, Modi said dynastic politics has caused immense harm to the country and urged the youth to get themselves enrolled as voters as soon as possible. «India is the mother of democracy.

Ritesh Aggarwal has revealed that “Ayodhya saw a 70% jump in OYO app users vs Goa (50%) and Nainital (60%)". According to MakeMyTrip's co-founder and group CEO Rajesh Magow, there is a 5x upside in searches year-on-year and there are 4x more bookings as compared to last year for Ayodhya. “At the moment, room night bookings in Ayodhya are almost 10 percent of the top pilgrimage sites in the country, so the potential for growth is significant," Magow observed, as quoted by Moneycontrol.

By Xie Yu and Selena Li

BEIJING (Reuters) — China's 2023 two-way trade with Russia hit $240 billion, setting yet another new record, Chinese customs data showed on Friday, as the two countries pushed for closer economic ties even as the war in Ukraine raged on.

A pair of teenage girls from Montreal were soaking in humble gratitude when they arrived home after they saved a couple from drowning in Barbados.

Houthi spokesperson says targeting of ships heading towards Israel will continue, after United States backed coalition, including United Kingdom, launches heavy airstrikes across Yemen. The Yemen's Houthi spokesperson also said, “No justification for the US-UK attack on Yemen". The attack by the US and UK on Yemen comes weeks after the Houthi rebels allegedly unleashed disruptive attacks on Red Sea hurting commercial shipping on the trade route.

Investing.com-- Oil prices rose sharply in Asian trade on Friday after U.S.-led forces launched airstrikes against the Iran-backed Houthi group in Yemen, ramping up concerns over more disruptions to Middle East supplies.

New Delhi: India’s G20 Sherpa and former NITI Aayog chief executive Amitabh Kant emphasized the country's strategic shift towards a circular economy, citing its potential to foster environmental conservation, economic growth, and job creation. Speaking at the ‘FICCI Circular Economy Symposium’, Kant set forth an ambitious target for India to reduce the cost of green hydrogen production to $1 per kg by 2030, down from the current rate of $4.5 per kg. Kant underscored the urgency for India to accelerate its growth rate from the current 7.5 percent to between 9 and 10 percent per annum in the coming years, with a particular focus on renewable energy and green hydrogen.

Citi Research on Friday lowered its Brent price forecasts for this year and 2025, citing oversupply concerns but expects prices holding above $70 per barrel in 2024 as OPEC+ keeps global oil markets «finely balanced». Citi cut its 2024 Brent price forecast by $1 to $74 per barrel and slashed 2025 forecast by $10 to $60 per barrel, but said in a note that recent activity in the Red Sea causing further tension in the Middle East could see near-term upside to the risk premium. The United States and Britain launched strikes from the air and sea against Houthi military targets in Yemen in response to the movement's attacks on ships in the Red Sea, a dramatic regional widening of the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza. Brent crude futures were trading around $79 a barrel at 0337 GMT on Friday, while U.S.

₹17,840 crore. Atal Setu is the longest bridge in India and also the longest sea bridge in the country. The bridge is about 21.8 km long six-lane bridge having about 16.5 km length over sea and about 5.5 km on the land.

IMF's executive board approved an immediate disbursement of around $700 million for Pakistan Thursday as part of a program to support the cash-strapped South Asian country through an economic crisis. The funds were unlocked after the International Monetary Fund board approved the first review of a nine-month, $3 billion loan agreement reached in July 2023 to help Pakistan weather a balance-of-payments crisis and service crippling external debt.

As we step into the new year, the World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting offers corporate leaders, policymakers and other stakeholders a chance to assess the year gone by and take stock of challenges and opportunities, extending to geopolitical developments, climate exigencies and economic hurdles. India has long had a significant presence at Davos and Indian industry has put together a formidable agenda aligned with the WEF’s theme of ‘Rebuilding Trust’ this year.

₹30,500 crore during his visit to Maharashtra.He will inaugurate the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Sewri-Nhava Sheva Atal Setu built at a cost of about ₹17,840 crore. Atal Setu is the longest bridge in India and also the longest sea bridge in the country.Join us to read the LIVE updates on PM Modi's visit to Mumbai on 12 January:The maximum speed limit for four-wheelers on the Mumbai Trans Harbour Link (MTHL) will be 100 kmph.The speed will be restricted to 40 kmph on the ascent and descent of the bridge.There will be no entry for vehicles like motorcycles, mopeds, three-wheelers, autos, tractors, animal-drawn vehicles and slow-moving vehicles.PM Modi will also lay the foundation stone of the underground road tunnel connecting Eastern Freeway's Orange Gate to Marine Drive.