International Financial News

Minister for Youth Affairs & Sports and Labour & Employment Mansukh Mandaviya welcomed Indian Olympic Association (IOA) President PT Usha's move to have Yoga included in the Asian Games programme. «It is only fair that, in keeping with its wide popularity, Yoga becomes a competitive sport and is in the Asian Games,» Mandaviya said as per an IOA release. The IOA President has written to the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) President Raja Randhir Singh on June 26 to consider the proposal of including Yoga as a sport in the Asian Games.

NASA has announced an extension of astronauts Butch Wilmore and Sunita Williams' mission aboard Boeing's Starliner capsule, launched on June 5. This decision follows technical issues that have delayed their return from the International Space Station (ISS), prompting ongoing evaluations and ground testing. Nasa's commercial crew program manager, Steve Stich, emphasised that the astronauts are safe and in no rush to return, saying, «We're not in any rush to come home.» The official mentioned that the duo is having a pleasant stay aboard the space station. He said, «enjoying their time on the space station,» and further added, «our plan is to continue to return them on Starliner and return them home at the right time.»

JP Morgan bond index got off to a muted start with a lower-than-expected quantum of foreign flows on Friday, belying expectations of an immediate deluge. Bankers, including a top executive at the US bank, said however that overseas investment worth billions will steadily be pumped into the debt market of the world's fastest-growing major economy. Indian bonds debuted in JP Morgan's GBI-EM global index suite on Friday, with the country expected to reach a maximum weight of 10% in the GBI-EM Global Diversified Index over a 10-month period. JP Morgan's analysts expect foreign investment worth $20-25 billion to flow to the local bond market from the move.

Israel large numbers of munitions, including more than 10,000 highly destructive 2,000-pound bombs and thousands of Hellfire missiles, since the start of the war in Gaza, said two U.S. officials briefed on an updated list of weapons shipments. Between the war's start last October and recent days, the United States has transferred at least 14,000 of the MK-84 2,000-pound bombs, 6,500 500-pound bombs, 3,000 Hellfire precision-guided air-to-ground missiles, 1,000 bunker-buster bombs, 2,600 air-dropped small-diameter bombs, and other munitions, according to the officials, who were not authorized to speak publicly. While the officials didn't give a timeline for the shipments, the totals suggest there has been no significant drop-off in U.S. military support for its ally, despite international calls to limit weapons supplies and a recent administration decision to pause a shipment of powerful bombs.

Sebi) on Friday proposed that mutual funds should disclose risk adjusted return of their schemes to help investors take informed investment decision. "… it is felt that the risk adjusted return (RAR) of a scheme portfolio represents a more holistic measure of the scheme's performance because it quantifies the amount of return generated by a mutual fund scheme for each unit of risk taken to achieve that return," Sebi said in a discussion paper. The current regulatory framework does not mandate disclosure of RAR along with the returns of a mutual fund scheme.

Delhi airport's Terminal 1 collapsed amid record rain early Friday morning as the monsoon swamped the national capital region. The tubular structure crushed cars, including cabs, as it came down, shutting off entry into the building and leaving passengers stranded. Flights to and from the terminal at the Indira Gandhi International Airport, one of the busiest in the world, were cancelled, civil aviation minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu told reporters after inspecting the airport. T1 is used for the domestic flight operations of IndiGo and SpiceJet, handling about 1,400 movements daily. In total, 123 flights were cancelled.

NASA astronauts who are struck on a Boeing Star liner aircraft will return by July 20. They have travelled to the International Space Station (ISS). This aircraft can spend only up to 45 days docked to the ISS. Their lift-off was on June 5. There are two astronauts on board this aircraft. Sunita Williams and Butch Willmore were scheduled to stay for a week but the stay was extended due to certain helium leaks and thruster problems. NASA is also experimenting with various US private agencies to launch their astronauts so as to cut down their reliance on the Russians. This has been reported by Fox News.

NASA says two astronauts will stay in space longer to continue troubleshooting Boeing’s capsule

India on Friday said it opposes unilateral actions seeking to change the status quo by force in South China Sea amid concerns over China's escalatory moves against the Philippines' maritime operations in the region. Tensions between China and the Philippines escalated following an incident of violent clash between their maritime security personnel few days back in the South China Sea. «We have always emphasised on adherence to international law, respect for the rules-based order, and resolution of disputes in a peaceful manner,» external affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said. «Other than that, we also believe that there should not be any incident or approach that destabilises the region,» he said.

Companies like Barclays, TransUnion, and OakNorth among others are hiring leaders in technology, particularly for roles in cloud, artificial intelligence and machine learning, but also cybersecurity, risk management, and compliance. BFSI GCCs employ between 3,20,000-3,60,000 professionals, accounting for 20-25% of the total GCC workforce, and 30% of digital banking products produced globally are developed in India, according to ANSR, which specialises in setting up and managing GCCs. Those in the BFSI space are not hiring as strongly as some other sectors, but there is a steady rise in demand for leadership roles in banking and markets operations, and in asset and wealth management, it said.

European stocks are cheap relative to US equities from a valuation perspective. And they got even cheaper recently, dipping after French President Emmanuel Macron called for a snap election amid the rise of the National Rally party’s Marine Le Pen.

Motilal Oswal picked Maruti Suzuki and Ashok Leyland as their top picks from among the auto OEMs while Craftsman Automation, Happy Forgings and Samvardhana Motherson International from the auto ancillary segment, stating that one will have to make selective micro strategies to outperform in the sector. “It is now an established fact that the majority of easy gains in Auto OEM stocks are now behind us, as we have witnessed significant volume growth across segments over the last two years, and input costs also appear to have bottomed out,” said a report by Motilal Oswal.

Gujarat state’s GIFT City model in Karnataka. “I wish to put forward a request for your support and assistance in establishing a central business district hosting a global financial and IT hub, similar to the Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City) project of Gujarat, in Karnataka,” Kharge said in a formal letter addressing the FM on Tuesday.

Carl Weber’s 'The Family Business,' featuring Ernie Hudson. Season 5 debuts on July 4, with two episodes, followed by weekly releases until the finale on August 29.

rainfall in the capital on Friday, the roof of Terminal 1 at the Indira Gandhi International Airport collapsed, resulting in one fatality and six injuries. This incident has sparked a blame game between the Modi government and the opposition. Political Accusations Amid Tragedy Following the collapse, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge blamed «corruption and criminal negligence» during the Modi government's tenure for the infrastructure failure.

India and the US have decided to extend a 2 per cent equalisation levy or digital tax on e-commerce supplies until June 30, the finance ministry said on Friday. In a major reform of the international tax system, India and the US have joined 134 other members of the OECD/G20 Inclusive Framework (including Austria, France, Italy, Spain, and the UK) in reaching an agreement on October 8, 2021, on the statement on a two-pillar solution to address the tax challenges arising from the digitalisation of the economy. On October 21, 2021, the US and Austria, France, Italy, Spain, and the UK reached a political compromise on the transitional approach to the unilateral measures in force while Pillar 1 is implemented. On November 24, 2021, India and the US agreed that the same terms that apply under the October 2021 Joint Statement shall apply between India and the US with respect to India's charge of 2 per cent equalisation levy on e-commerce supply of services and the US' trade action regarding the said Equalisation Levy.

Kochi: The Udupi Cochin Shipyard Limited (UCSL), a wholly owned subsidiary of the Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL), has bagged a Rs 1,100 crore-worth international order for eight 6300 TDW dry cargo vessels. CSL said it has won an international order from Wilson ASA, Norway, for the design and construction of four 6,300 TDW dry cargo vessels. «An agreement has also been entered into for an additional four vessels of the same type, which will be formally contracted within September 19, 2024,» a CSL release said. CSL said the new order was a continuation of the contract awarded in June 2023 for the design and construction of six 3800 TDW dry cargo vessels, which are now at advanced levels of construction at the yard at Udupi in Karnataka.

Karnataka government on Friday made a pitch to the Centre for establishing a dedicated Central Business District, modelled on the lines of Gujarat’s GIFT City in the state, besides seeking faster clearance for multiple projects across sectors. The demand was part of a ‘wishlist’ IT & BT minister Priyank Kharge sent to Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Union IT minister Ashwini Vaishnav ahead of the Union Budget. Karnataka, he wrote, wanted to set up a Central Business District that would act as a global financial and IT hub. “The state has a vibrant economy with IT, BT, aerospace, automotive, textiles, and heavy industries forming the cream of the investment pie. The state is strategically located, and is well-positioned to replicate a similar business [on the lines of GIFT city] hub in its bosom,” he said.

Indian students (75 females and 71 males) have been awarded the prestigious Erasmus Mundus scholarships for the 2-year master’s programme in Europe under Erasmus+ for the 2024 academic year, making India one of the top recipients of the scholarship. Worldwide, 2603 students from 137 countries have been awarded scholarships this year for the Erasmus Mundus Joint master’s degree, which offers a study programme jointly delivered by an international consortium of higher education institutions. 2024 also marks the 20th anniversary of the Erasmus Mundus Joint Master’s program, a milestone that underscores the program's positive impact on students, higher education institutions, and countries beyond the EU. India has been the largest beneficiary of the programme, with over 2000 students receiving the Erasmus Mundus Scholarship since its inception in 2004. Overall, more than 6,000 Erasmus+ short and long-term scholarships have been awarded to Indian students since the program opened to international students in 2004, providing access to state-of-the-art education and research facilities, international exposure, and valuable professional networks and thus opened up wider professional opportunities. To mark both these milestones, the Delegation of the European Union to India hosted an event for the grantees, celebrating the growing people-to-people links and mobility between the EU and India. These scholars are set to embark on their international degree programs in Europe starting this September.

Delhi and the National Capital Region experienced continuous rainfall accompanied by thunderstorms and lightning on Friday. The heavy rain led to traffic snarls and roadblocks. An under-construction wall collapsed in the Vasant Vihar area entrapping a few workers underneath, ANI reported.