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India is making significant strides towards becoming self-reliant in solar cell and module manufacturing. As per estimates from Rubix, an analytics services provider, imports of solar cells and modules declined by 20 per cent and 57 per cent respectively in the first eight months of 2024-25.

Junail Zafar Khan, a club-level Pakistan-origin cricketer, has died after collapsing on the ground during a local match played in extreme heat at the Concordia College here. In his 40s, Khan was representing Old Concordians Cricket Club in a match against Prince Alfred Old Collegians last Saturday, news.com.au reported. After fielding for 40 overs and batting for seven, Khan collapsed around 4pm Australian Central Daylight Time (ACDT). South Australia has been in the grip of extreme heat over and according to data from the Bureau of Meteorology, temperatures here were still above 40 degrees Celsius at the time. Adelaide Turf Cricket Association rules state that games are cancelled if the temperature climbs above 42 degrees Celsius. «We are deeply saddened by the passing of a valued member of the Old Concordians Cricket Club, who tragically suffered a medical episode while playing on the Concordia College oval today,» Khan's club said in a statement.

digital arsenals" to interfere in Western democracies, while their messaging around the war in Ukraine had become increasingly aligned. «Foreign information manipulation and interference is a major security threat to the EU,» foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said in a report. «We must not underestimate the power that this has over us, or the intentions of those behind it.» In its latest annual report on the subject Brussels said that last year it tracked disinformation attacks against over 80 countries and more than 200 organisations. The war in Ukraine remains a major target for Russia — but events such as the Olympics in Paris, elections in Moldova and farmers' protests in Germany were also in the crosshairs.

In its half year results released today (18 March), the company reported operating losses before tax amounting to £103m, mostly as a result of a £165m provision to cover for the firm's motor finance commissions. This was 217% down from the £88.1m in operating profits before tax reported in H1 2024, according to Close Brothers. Close Brothers Asset Management becomes an independent wealth business following sale to Oaktree But despite the «short-term impact of the motor finance commissions uncertainty» on the firm's financial performance, Close Brothers said its core banking mo...

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. A recent report by an investment bank says that the three biggest areas of focus on the economic-policy front for the Indian government right now are striking bilateral trade deals, stepping up investments in strategic industries such as semiconductors and reducing the burden of regulation on firms as well as citizens. The new Economic Survey written by officials in the finance ministry made a compelling case on how a surfeit of outdated regulations hold back the growth of firms, especially smaller enterprises that drive job creation.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Grade-A office spaces are seeing a drop in vacancy levels, along with improving occupancies, as the leasing trajectory is likely to maintain the good run in the March quarter (Q4FY25), too. Demand for commercial properties continues to be led by global capability centres (GCCs), rising traction in flexible workspaces, and IT/ITes.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. The consumer spending boom is fading, and that could spell trouble for the global economy. The latest retail sales report missed the mark on Monday.

Ambassador Qi noted that the public is largely unaware of these details. «This is because we do not shout about our assistance to Sri Lanka,» the ambassador noted. It may be noted here that Sri Lanka undertook a restructuring of $46 billion in external credit after announcing its first sovereign default amid the economic crisis of 2022. Furthermore, the ambassador expressed optimism about the potential for collaboration between China and India in developing Sri Lanka's northern province. In a significant statement, Qi said there is no dispute between China and India, as both nations have experienced rapid growth and should collaborate to achieve common objectives.

Airbnb property passed off as the real home of a Married At First Sight contestant has led to a massive controversy. Married At First Sight bride Jacqui Burfoot's «home» on the show was found to be not her own but actually a rented residence for just one night. Even as the controversy over her rented two-storey «home» erupted, the 29-year-old Jacqui also found herself in an embarrassing situation in the latest episode of the show aired on Monday (March 17). During the episode while she was filmed speaking to her TV husband Ryan Donnelly in her home in Sydney, several viewers took to social media with screenshots of the show to point out that her nostrils were not clean. «Jacqui has a boogie in her right nostril,» read one of the social media posts by a viewer. Several fans also stated that show producers and the camera crews should have alerted her about the unclean nose. But the social media trolling over Jacqui's nose seemed to be only a sideshow to the bigger storm brewing around her rented residential property. According to a report by Daily Mail Australia, Jacqui's massive property, which she presented as her residence, was in reality a rented Airbnb. Jacqui had taken Donnelly to her «home» in the show and gave him a tour of the same on Monday.

The ministry on Tuesday published on its social media several images of Chinese drones and ships and said 43 out of 59 of them entered Taiwan's air defence identification zone but that no confrontations were reported. Taiwan monitored the situation and deployed aircraft, navy ships and coastal anti-ship missile defences in response, the ministry said. China launches such missions on a daily basis in hopes of wearing down Taiwanese defences and morale, although the vast majority of the island's 23 million people reject Beijing's claim of sovereignty over Taiwan and its threat to use force to assert its control. It's unclear what prompted the large Chinese deployment. Daily figures often vary widely based on statements by the Taiwanese authorities or their US partners.

The NSE Nifty index was trading 251.6 points up at 22760.35, while BSE Sensex was up 851.73 points at 75021.68 at the time of writing this report.

Trump moves to axe Voice of America and other US-funded media, China and Russia are eager to fill the void. The targeting of VOA, Radio Free Europe and Radio Free Asia not only freezes some of the most dogged reporting on countries with heavily restricted media, but it comes after years of concerted efforts by Beijing and Moscow to promote their own worldview on the global media landscape. Trump issued an executive order Friday to pare down the nearly $1 billion US Agency for Global Media, with hundreds of journalists swiftly put on leave or fired, in his latest sweeping cut to the federal government. Lisa Curtis, who was a senior official on the National Security Council in Trump's first term and serves as board chair of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, formed in the Cold War to reach behind the Iron Curtain, said that closing the service «will actually help our adversaries.» «Countries like China, Russia and Iran are investing hundreds of millions of dollars pumping out anti-American propaganda and disinformation,» she said.

«The Trump administration and the White House were consulted by the Israelis on their attacks in Gaza tonight,» White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a Fox News interview. Palestinian medics in Gaza reported dozens of people were killed in the aftermath of a series of the most violent air attacks by Israel on the Palestinian enclave since a ceasefire was reached on January 19 between Israel and Hamas militants. A senior Hamas official said Israel had unilaterally overturned the ceasefire agreement. «As President Trump has made it clear — Hamas, the Houthis, Iran, all those who seek to terrorize not just Israel, but also the United States of America, will see a price to pay. All hell will break loose,» the White House spokesperson said.

Alphabet's latest offer is higher by roughly a third of the $23 billion deal it offered last year, which Wiz called off in July 2024 over concerns it would not clear antitrust hurdles.

Hotel chains in India say they are leveraging 'cutting-edge' AI technologies to enhance customer service, streamline operations, and amplify overall guest experience. Tata Group backed Indian Hotels Company (IHCL) said it has successfully piloted a robot assistant at its Ginger hotel at Mumbai Airport, setting the stage for 'a new era of hospitality.'

Many short-term positioning and momentum indicators suggest Wall Street was oversold, so in that light a continuation of the recovery is understandable. Chances for a truce in the Ukraine-Russia war, slender as they may be, are also lending some support to risky assets at the margins.

Retail sales rebounded marginally in February, but fell short of expectations, reflecting the increasing uncertainty over tariffs and large-scale firing of federal government employees. A separate report showed March factory activity in New York State plummeted the most in nearly two years.

inter-ministerial committee to address issues being faced by the country’s fintech industry that has run into multiple regulatory hurdles over the past few years. The committee comprises representatives from the Department of Financial Services, Department of Economic Affairs, NITI Aayog, Ministry of Electronics & Information technology (MeitY), Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Department of Economic Affairs (DEA), the Reserve Bank of India, markets regulator Sebi and founders of fintech firms Billdesk, Acko General Insurance, Groww, and Jupiter. ET has reviewed an order for the same issued by the financial services department on March 17.

NPCI) is working to phase out ‘collect calls’ for merchant payments as part of the government’s efforts to combat online frauds via the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), two bankers familiar with the matter said. A collect call is a ‘pull’ transaction, where a merchant initiates a payment request to the customer. Given that merchants have a higher degree of control over these, there is a more chance of fraud. Authorities are instead encouraging ‘push’ transactions, where the customer initiates the payment by scanning a QR code or through other means.

Canara Bank on Monday raised ₹4,000 crore through the sale of tier-II bonds maturing in 10 years at an annual coupon rate of 7.46%, according to a top bank official. Last December, Punjab National Bank raised ₹3,000 crore tier-II bonds maturing in 15 years at 7.43%.

Adani Green Energy (AGEL) refinanced a $1.06 billion construction facility which was due March 2025, bond analysts are recommending that investors suggest targeted bond buybacks to the Adani Group to reduce risk and manage the large volume of debt coming due. The new facility is reportedly borrowed at a weighted life of 19 years, and now carries a funding cost of 9.2%. The loan it refinanced was taken in 2021 to develop wind-solar hybrid projects.