Category: Business

The key features of the Umang app include claim submission, UAN card downloads, and even secure face-based login for new users.

The Umang app offers a digital platform to access several important services to EPFO subscribers, allowing them to skip physical paperwork and manage their Provident Fund account on the go. From checking passbooks to submitting claims, the app centralises everything in one place, making it easier for users to stay updated on their retirement savings.
The key features include claim submission, UAN card downloads, and even secure face-based login for new users.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on Sunday reported the first human case in the United States of travel-associated New World screwworm, a flesh-eating parasite, from an outbreak-affected country.
The case, investigated by the Maryland Department of Health and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, was confirmed by the CDC as New World screwworm on August 4, and involved a patient who returned from travel to El Salvador, HHS spokesman Andrew G. Nixon said in an email to Reuters.

Earlier, Reuters reported that beef industry sources said last week that the CDC had confirmed a case of New World screwworm in a person in Maryland who had traveled to the United States from Guatemala.
Nixon did not address the discrepancy on the source of the human case.
“The risk to public health in the United States from this introduction is very low,” he said.
The U.S. government has not confirmed any cases in animals this year.
The differing accounts from the U.S. government and industry sources on the human case are likely to further rattle an industry of cattle ranchers, beef producers and livestock traders already on high alert for potential U.S. infestations as screwworm has moved northward from Central America and southern Mexico.

The government’s confirmation of a screwworm case comes just over a week after U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins traveled to Texas to announce plans to build a sterile fly facility there as part of efforts to combat the pest.
The USDA has estimated a screwworm outbreak could cost the economy in Texas, the biggest U.S. cattle-producing state, about $1.8 billion in livestock deaths, labor costs and medication expenses.
An executive of the industry group Beef Alliance sent emails last week to about two dozen people in the livestock and beef sectors, informing them that the CDC had confirmed a human case of screwworm in Maryland in a person who had traveled to the U.S. from Guatemala, according to a source, who asked not to be identified, and who shared the contents of the emails with Reuters.

Beth Thompson, South Dakota’s state veterinarian, told Reuters on Sunday that she was notified of a human case in Maryland within the last week by a person with direct knowledge of it.CDC deferred questions to Maryland on a call with state animal health officials, Thompson said.“We found out via other routes and then had to go to CDC to tell us what was going on,” she said. “They weren’t forthcoming at all. They turned it back over to the state to confirm anything that had happened or what had been found in this traveler.”
Another source said that state veterinarians had learned about a human case in Maryland during a call last week with the CDC. A Maryland state government official also confirmed a case.
A spokesperson for the Maryland Department of Health did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
WHAT ARE SCREWWORMS?Screwworms are parasitic flies whose females lay eggs in wounds on any warm-blooded animal. Once the eggs hatch, hundreds of screwworm larvae use their sharp mouths to burrow through living flesh, eventually killing their host if left untreated.
The maggots’ feeding is similar to a screw being driven into wood, giving the pests their name.

Screwworms can be devastating in cattle and wildlife, and rarely infest humans, though an infestation in either an animal or a person can be fatal.
Treatment is onerous, and involves removing hundreds of larvae and thoroughly disinfecting wounds. But infestations are typically survivable if treated early enough.
The emails from the Beef Alliance executive said that due to patient privacy laws, there were no other details available about the positive human case of screwworm. The person was treated and prevention measures were implemented in the state, the email said.
A livestock economist at Texas A&M University was asked to prepare a report for Rollins on the impacts to industry of the border closure to Mexican cattle, according to the emails, a measure that has largely been in effect since November to prevent the arrival of screwworm to the United States.
The CDC was required to report the positive New World screwworm case to both Maryland health officials and the Maryland state veterinarian, one of the emails said, adding that the CDC also notified other agriculture stakeholders.
“We remain hopeful that, since awareness is currently limited to industry representatives and state veterinarians, the likelihood of a positive case being leaked is low, minimizing market impact,” the beef industry executive wrote.
A representative for the Beef Alliance did not respond to requests for comment.

IMPACT ON BEEF AND CATTLE FUTURES

Livestock traders and beef producers have been on edge about the potential for cases in cattle as prices have already hit record highs because the U.S. cattle herd is at its smallest size in seven decades.
A human case and the lack of transparency around it could present a political challenge for Rollins. The USDA has set traps and sent mounted officers along the border, but it has faced criticism from some cattle producers and market analysts for not acting faster to pursue increased fly production.
Rollins first announced plans for a sterile fly facility at Moore Air Force Base in Edinburg, Texas – near where a production facility to combat screwworm operated during the last major outbreak 50 years ago – in June, saying that the facility would take two to three years to come online.A spokesperson for the USDA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.Mexico has also taken efforts to limit the spread of the pest, which can kill livestock within weeks if not treated. The Mexican government said in July that it started to build a $51 million sterile fly production facility in the country’s south.
The sole operating plant is in Panama City and can produce a maximum of 100 million sterile screwworm flies each week. The USDA has estimated that 500 million flies would need to be released weekly to push the fly back to the Darien Gap, the stretch of rainforest between Panama and Colombia.
Screwworms have been traveling north through Mexico from Central America since 2023. They are endemic in Cuba, Haiti, the Dominican Republic and countries in South America, according to the USDA.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/us-confirms-nations-first-travel-associated-human-screwworm-case-connected-2025-08-25/

The launch of the satellite culminates a decade-long partnership between TI and the ISRO to optimise the performance of the electronic systems responsible for this Earth-observation mission.

Bengaluru: Nasdaq-listed semiconductor company Texas Instruments (TI) semiconductors are enabling the radar imaging and scientific exploration payloads for the NASA-Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) synthetic aperture radar (NISAR) satellite, which was recently launched into orbit.

The launch of the satellite culminates a decade-long partnership between TI and the ISRO to optimise the performance of the electronic systems responsible for this Earth-observation mission.

The ISRO describes NISAR as the first Earth-observation mission to use dual-band synthetic aperture radar (SAR) technology, enabling the system to capture precise, high-resolution images during the day, night and all weather conditions. TI’s technology is enabling the satellite’s next-generation capabilities through efficient power management, high-speed data transfer, and precise signal sampling and timing.

“From selecting the right products to ensuring consistent support across development cycles, TI’s technical expertise helped us navigate complex payload requirements,” said Nilesh Desai, Director, Space Applications Centre (SAC), ISRO. “A deeply coupled partnership, specifically focused on high-impact mixed signal and analog semiconductors, enabled ISRO to meet the system-level requirements for a satellite in low Earth orbit. Together, we achieved the space-grade performance standards needed for this important mission,” he added.

Throughout the project life cycle, TI’s system expertise and space-grade semiconductors, which are designed to withstand the harshest space environments, helped enable the advanced S-band SAR capabilities of the NISAR mission, the company said in a release. The company provided a radiation-hardened power management die for SAC-ISRO developed a point-of-load hybrid power module, helping optimise size, weight and power for the mission payloads.

Source : https://www.deccanherald.com/business/companies/texas-instruments-semiconductors-power-isros-nisar-satellite-3691191

Many consumers reported problems such as poor service quality, non-refunds, overcharging, and failure to honour the guaranteed 5-minute auto arrival.

The ride-hailing company Rapido has been slapped with a Rs 10 lakh penalty by the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) due to misleading advertising practices. The Ministry of Consumer Affairs said on August 21, 2025, that Rapido must also compensate customers who availed the “Auto in 5 minutes or Get Rs 50” offer but never received the promised refund. This follows an investigation revealing that Rapido’s claims of “Guaranteed Auto” and “Auto in 5 min or get Rs 50” were misleading and false.
According to the Ministry, “CCPA took cognisance of the misleading advertisements of Rapido that promised consumers “AUTO IN 5 MIN OR GET Rs 50” and “Guaranteed Auto”. After detailed examination, CCPA has held these advertisements to be false, misleading and unfair to consumers and has directed to discontinue the misleading advertisements with immediate effect.”
It added: “while the advertisement prominently claimed “Auto in 5 min or get Rs 50”, the Terms and Conditions stated that the guarantee was being offered by individual captains and not by Rapido itself. This contradictory stance attempted to shift liability away from the company, misleading consumers about the very assurance made in the advertisement.”

ChatGPT maker OpenAI on Tuesday launched ChatGPT Go, a new India-only subscription plan priced at 399 rupees (US$4.57) per month, its most affordable offering yet, as the company looks to deepen its presence in its second-largest market.

Global companies often offer cheaper subscription plans for India’s price-sensitive market, targeting the nearly one billion internet users in the world’s most populous nation.

The U.S. Commerce Department said on Tuesday it is hiking steel and aluminum tariffs on more than 400 products including wind turbines, mobile cranes, appliances, bulldozers and other heavy equipment, along with railcars, motorcycles, marine engines, furniture and hundreds of other products.

The department said 407 product categories are being added to the list of “derivative” steel and aluminum products covered by sectoral tariffs, with a 50 per cent tariff on any steel and aluminum content of these products plus the country rate on the non-steel and non-aluminum content.

Evercore ISI said in a research note the move covers more than 400 product codes representing over $200 billion in imports last year and estimates it will raise the overall effective tariff rate by around 1 per centage point.

The department is also adding imported parts for automotive exhaust systems and electrical steel needed for electric vehicles to the new tariffs as well as components for buses, air conditioners as well as appliances including refrigerators, freezers and dryers.

A group of foreign automakers had urged the department not to add the parts, saying the U.S. does not have the domestic capacity to handle current demand.

Tesla unsuccessfully asked Commerce to reject a request to add steel products used in electric vehicle motors and wind turbines, saying there was no available U.S. capacity to produce steel for use in the drive unit of EVs.

Source: https://www.channelnewsasia.com/business/us-hikes-steel-aluminum-tariffs-imported-appliances-railcars-ev-parts-5303081

Under the proposed Regulation & Promotion of Online Gaming Act, banks and financial institutions will not be allowed to process or transfer funds for real-money online games.

The Union Cabinet has approved the Online Gaming Bill, a move aimed at regulating the rapidly growing digital gaming sector and putting a stop to online betting. According to sources, the Bill is likely to ban all money-based gaming transactions once it comes into force.

WHAT THE BILL PROPOSES

Under the proposed Regulation & Promotion of Online Gaming Act, banks and financial institutions will not be allowed to process or transfer funds for real-money online games.

The Bill also proposes a complete prohibition on advertisements promoting real money gaming, continued promotion of E-sports and non-monetary skill-based games and strict action against unregistered or illegal gaming platforms.

The legislation is expected to be introduced in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday.

WHY THIS IS BEING DONE

Online gaming has been under scrutiny ever since the government imposed a 28% GST on such platforms in October 2023. From FY25, winnings from online games are taxed at 30%, and offshore gaming operators have been brought within the Indian tax net.

In December 2023, new criminal provisions under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita made unauthorised betting a criminal offence, punishable with up to seven years in jail and heavy fines.

While “betting and gambling” fall under the State List of the Constitution, the Centre has already blocked more than 1,400 websites and apps involved in online betting or gambling between 2022 and February 2025.

ADDRESSING CONCERNS OF ADDICTION

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said on Friday that foreign companies that want to do business in Brazil are welcome, speaking at the opening ceremony for a factory for Chinese automaker GWM (601633.SS), in the state of Sao Paulo.
“Count on the Brazilian government. Whoever wants to leave, leave. Whoever wants to come, we welcome you with open arms,” Lula said at the ceremony.

During his speech, Lula criticized the 50% tariffs on Brazilian goods imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump, and said that his country is facing an “unnecessary turbulence.”

Lula said in an interview with Reuters earlier this month that he would initiate a conversation at the BRICS group of developing nations, which includes China, about how to tackle Trump’s tariffs.

The leftist leader noted that in the past automakers Ford (F.N), and Mercedes (MBGn.DE), have decided to scale back their operations in Brazil, but celebrated the arrival of other companies, like China’s GWM (601633.SS). Brazil is always open to negotiating business, he stressed.
GWM’s Brazilian arm has capacity to produce 50,000 vehicles per year and is expected to generate more than 2,000 jobs in the future when it begins exporting vehicles to Latin America, according to a press release.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/brazil-is-open-business-lula-says-chinese-factory-opening-2025-08-15/

Big GST relief soon! Prime Minister Narendra Modiin his Independence Day speech announced that the  Goods and Services Tax(GST) burden on the common man is set to come down from this Diwali with next-generation reforms slated to be rolled out.

PM Modi stressed the need for the next phase of GST reforms, which aim to provide relief to ordinary citizens, farmers, the middle class, and small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).

The ministry of finance has released details on the proposed GST reforms, saying that a two-slab GST structure is being mulled – standard and merit – and special rates on select items. The new GST structure will replace the current 5%, 12%, 18%, 28% slabs. A GST Council meeting is expected next month.

On the 79th Independence Day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi emphasized the significance of the Goods and Services Tax (GST), introduced in 2017, as a major reform that has positively impacted the country.

To achieve a self-reliant India, the Central Government is planning major GST reforms based on three main pillars:

1. Structural reforms

2. Rate rationalization

3. Ease of living

The government has submitted its GST rate rationalization and reform proposals to the Group of Ministers (GoM) formed by the GST Council for review.

The focus of the next-generation reforms includes adjusting tax rates to benefit all societal segments, particularly the common man, women, students, the middle class, and farmers.

The reforms aim to reduce classification disputes, correct inverted duty structures in certain sectors, ensure rate stability, and improve the ease of doing business. These efforts are expected to strengthen key economic sectors, boost economic activity, and promote sectoral growth.

Key Pillars of the Proposed GST Reforms:

1. Structural Reforms:

– Correcting inverted duty structures to align input and output tax rates, reducing input tax credit accumulation, and supporting domestic value addition.

– Resolving classification issues to streamline rate structures, minimize disputes, simplify compliance, and ensure equity and consistency across sectors.

– Providing long-term clarity on rates and policy direction to build industry confidence and support better business planning.

2. Rate Rationalization:

– Reducing taxes on essential and aspirational goods to enhance affordability, boost consumption, and make these goods more accessible.

– Moving towards a simpler tax system with two slabs—standard and merit—with special rates for select items.

– The end of compensation cess has created fiscal space, allowing for greater flexibility in rationalizing and aligning tax rates within the GST framework for sustainability.

3. Ease of Living:

– Implementing seamless, technology-driven, and time-bound registration, especially for small businesses and startups.

– Introducing pre-filled returns to reduce manual intervention and eliminate mismatches.

– Ensuring faster and automated processing of refunds for exporters and those with inverted duty structures.

The Centre’s proposal, based on these three pillars, has been shared with the GoM for further discussion. The initiative aims to foster a constructive, inclusive, and consensus-based dialogue among all stakeholders.

The GST Council will consider the GoM’s recommendations in its next meeting, with efforts to facilitate early implementation so that the benefits are realized within the current financial year, the ministry of finance said.

Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/big-gst-cheer-for-common-man-two-slab-tax-structure-to-replace-5-28-rates-finance-ministry-shares-important-details/articleshow/123317852.cms

Starting October 4, 2025, the Reserve Bank of India will implement a faster cheque-clearing system, reducing settlement time from up to two working days to just a few hours during business hours.

The government has proposed two rates – 5% and 18% – under the revamped Goods and Services Tax regime.

The Central government is expected to announce a huge respite in the GST structure, bringing the daily-use products in 5 per cent category while slashing the tax rate of 90 per cent of the items in the 28% tax bracket to 18%, PTI quoted government sources as saying on Friday.

The sources also said that 90% of taxable items in the existing 28% bracket are likely to shift to the 18% slab in the revamped regime. A special 40% GST will also be applicable on luxury goods.

Earlier in the day, PM Modi announced that the government was set to bring a major reform in GST, which would significantly relieve consumers and small businesses.

The PM stated that the revisions in the GST would be rolled out around Diwali and described them as a “double Diwali gift” for the people.

“This Diwali, I am going to give you a ‘double Diwali’ gift. A major announcement is coming for the people of the country. Over the past eight years, we implemented a major GST reform that significantly reduced the tax burden across the nation. Now, after eight years, the time has come to review it. We have formed a high-powered committee to begin this review process and have held consultations with the states as well. We are now bringing in next-generation GST reforms. This will become a Diwali gift for the nation,” PM Modi said.

“Tax rates on essential goods and daily needs will be reduced under a simplified framework. This will bring significant relief and convenience. Our MSMEs and small industries will also benefit greatly from these changes,” he added.

The government has previously said that it wants to change GST rates and reduce the number of brackets, referring to tax rates for different categories, under a tax regime introduced in 2017.

Source: https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/centre-gst-new-tax-slabs-18-per-cent-brackets-101755259108519.html

President Donald Trump on Monday confirmed reports that semiconductor giant Nvidia would pay the United States 15 percent of its revenues from sales of certain artificial intelligence chips to China.

Speaking to reporters at the White House, Trump argued that Nvidia’s “H20” chips are “obsolete,” despite previously being targeted for export restrictions.

He said that to lift the restrictions, he had agreed to a 15-percent cut from Nvidia: “If I’m going to do that, I want you to pay us as a country something, because I’m giving you a release. I released them only from the H20.”

The California-based company produces some of the world’s most advanced semiconductors but cannot ship its most cutting-edge chips to China due to concerns that Beijing could use them to enhance military capabilities.

Nvidia developed the H20 — a less powerful version of its AI processing units — specifically for export to China.

That plan stalled when the Trump administration tightened export licensing requirements in April.

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang met with Trump at the White House last week and agreed to give the federal government the cut from its revenues, a highly unusual arrangement in the international tech trade, according to reports in the Financial Times, Bloomberg and New York Times.

“While we haven’t shipped H20 to China for months, we hope export control rules will let America compete in China and worldwide,” a Nvidia spokesperson told AFP.

The company spokesperson added: “America cannot repeat 5G and lose telecommunication leadership. America’s AI tech stack can be the world’s standard if we race.”

Investors are betting that AI will transform the global economy, and last month Nvidia — the world’s most valuable company and a leading designer of high-end AI chips — became the first company ever to hit $4 trillion in market value.

The firm has, however, become entangled in trade tensions between China and the United States, which are waging a heated battle for dominance to produce the chips that power AI.

The United States has been restricting which chips Nvidia can export to China on national security grounds.

After Huang’s meeting with Trump, the Commerce Department on Friday started granting the licenses for chip sales, according to media reports.

Silicon Valley-based AMD will also pay 15 percent of revenue on Chinese sales of its MI308 chips, which it was previously barred from exporting to the country.

AMD did not respond to requests for comment.

Source : https://www.ibtimes.com/trump-says-nvidia-give-us-cut-china-chip-sales-3780673

JSW Cement sold its shares in the price band of Rs 139-147 apiece, which could be applied for a minimum of 102 shares and its multiples to raise Rs 3,600 crore.

JSW Cement is likely to finalize the basis of allotment of its shares on Tuesday, August 12. Applicant bidders will get the messages, alerts or emails for debit of their funds or revocations of their IPO mandate today or latest by Wednesday, August 13. The cement player saw a decent response from the investors.

The IPO of Mumbai-based JSW Cement was open for bidding between August 07-August 11. It had offered its shares in the price band of Rs 139-147 per share with a lot size of 102 shares. The company raised a total of Rs 3,600 crore via IPO, which included a fresh share sale of Rs 1,600 crore and an offer-for-sale (OFS) of up to 13,60,54,421 equity shares worth Rs 2,000 crore.

The issue was overall subscribed only 7.77 times fetching over 12.75 lakh applications. The allocation for the qualified institutional bidders (QIBs) was subscribed 15.80 times The portion for non-institutional investors (NIIs) booked 10.97 times. Allocations for retail investors and employees were booked 1.81 times.

The grey market premium (GMP) of JSW Cement has seen some correction, following a muted bidding and weak market sentiments. Last heard, the company was commanding a premium of Rs 5-6 in the unofficial market, suggesting a listing pop of 3-4 per cent for the investors. The GMP stood at Rs 13 when the issue had opened for bidding.

Incorporated in 2006, Mumbai-headquartered JSW Cement is a manufacturer of green cement in India. As part of the JSW Group, the company is committed to sustainability and innovation in the cement industry. The company operated seven plants across the country. It had an installed grinding capacity of 20.60 MMTPA as of March 31, 2025.

JM Financial, Axis Capital, Citigroup Global Markets India, SBI Capital Markets DAM Capital Advisors, Goldman Sachs (India), Kotak Mahindra Capital are the book-running lead managers of the JSW Cement IPO, while Kfin Technologies is the registrar for the issue. Shares of the company shall be listed on both BSE and NSE on August 14.

Investors, who had bid for the issue of JSW Cement, can check the allotment status on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) website:

1) Visit https://www.bseindia.com/investors/appli_check.aspx

2) Under the issue type, click Equity

3) Under the issue name, select JSW Cement Limited in the dropbox

4) Write the application number

5) Add the PAN card ID

6) Click on ‘I am not a Robot’ and hit search button

Source : https://www.businesstoday.in/markets/ipo-corner/story/jsw-cement-ipo-allotment-status-check-application-latest-gmp-listing-date-488978-2025-08-12

Check minimum average balance requirements for across various banks including SBI, ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, and so on.

Minimum Balance Rules Comparison: The Private Lender ICICI Bank has recently announced that the minimum balance requirement for savings accounts opened on or after August 01, 2025 will be increased to Rs 50,000 from the earlier Rs 10,000. The move has been met with some criticism from various echelons of society, as it will hamper people with low income from getting access to financial and banking services.

In metro and urban branches, the minimum average monthly balance (MAMB) will be Rs 50,000, up from the earlier Rs 10,000. In semi-urban branches, it will rise to Rs 25,000 from Rs 5,000, while in rural branches, the requirement will double to Rs 10,000 from Rs 5,000. The higher MAMB will apply only to new accounts opened after August 1.

esla will streamline its AI chip research to focus on its development of inference chips used to run AI models and make real-time decisions, CEO Elon Musk said, after a media report he had ordered the closure of the in-house Dojo supercomputer team.

Bloomberg News on Thursday cited people familiar with the matter as saying Musk had ordered the Dojo team to be disbanded, with team leader Peter Bannon departing the company.

Tesla (TSLA.O), opens new tab did not reply to a Reuters request for comment.

The Dojo supercomputer was designed around custom training chips to process vast amounts of data and video from Tesla EVs to train the automaker’s autonomous-driving software.

“It doesn’t make sense for Tesla to divide its resources and scale two quite different AI chip designs,” Musk said in an X post late on Thursday.

“The Tesla AI5, AI6 and subsequent chips will be excellent for inference and at least pretty good for training. All effort is focused on that,” he said, without directly mentioning Dojo.

Morgan Stanley analysts led by Adam Jonas valued the Dojo supercomputer at $500 billion in 2023, saying it opened a new market for the automaker beyond cars sales, similar to how Amazon’s cloud unit boosts profit for the ecommerce firm.

“Dojo is the key accelerant at the intersection of hardware and software,” the brokerage said on August 4. Jonas did not immediately respond to a query if the latest development would hurt Tesla’s valuation.

Tech companies are increasingly designing custom chips to cut latency, power and cost, while consolidating around fewer architectures.

Tesla has been restructuring over the past year, with its share price slumping as sales of its EVs were hit by rising competition and a backlash by European consumers in particular against Musk’s political views.

The company has seen multiple executive departures and cut thousands of jobs, and redirected its focus to AI-driven self-driving technology and robotics, with Musk pursuing an integration strategy across his tech business empire.

Musk has said next-generation AI5 chips would be produced at the end of 2026 and last month announced a $16.5 billion deal to source AI6 chips from Samsung Electronics (005930.KS), opens new tab, without providing a production timeline.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/tesla-streamline-its-ai-chip-design-work-musk-says-2025-08-07

The Centre on Friday announced the subsidised retail sale price of tomatoes in the range of Rs 47-60 per kg in the national capital through the National Cooperative Consumers’ Federation of India (NCCF), to provide relief to buyers.

The Centre on Friday announced the subsidised retail sale price of tomatoes in the range of Rs 47-60 per kg in the national capital through the National Cooperative Consumers’ Federation of India (NCCF), to provide relief to buyers.

NCCF Sells 27,307 kg at Subsidised Rates

The NCCF, which has been procuring tomatoes from Azadpur mandi since August 4, is retailing them with minimal margins, the consumer affairs ministry said.

“To date, NCCF has sold 27,307 kilograms of tomatoes at retail prices ranging from Rs 47 to Rs 60 per kg, depending on the procurement cost,” the ministry stated.

Retail Outlets and Mobile Vans in Key Locations

Retail sales are being conducted through NCCF’s stationary outlets at Nehru Place, Udyog Bhawan, Patel Chowk, and Rajiv Chowk, as well as through 6-7 mobile vans operating at various locations across the city.

A similar initiative was undertaken by NCCF in previous years as well. The ministry said tomato prices have spiked temporarily in Delhi due to rains, but the all-India average remains stable.

Rain-Related Disruption Pushes Prices to ₹85/kg

The current average retail price of tomatoes in Delhi at Rs 73 per kg is primarily due to heavy rainfall in northern and north-western regions since the last week of July.

“This weather-related disruption caused prices to spike to as high as Rs 85 per kg by the end of July,” the ministry said in a statement.

Prices Begin to Stabilise as Arrivals Recover

However, with the recovery and stabilisation of daily arrivals at Azadpur mandi over the past week, both mandi and retail prices have begun to decline.

The retail prices at various centres across the country are influenced by temporary localised factors rather than any fundamental demand-supply imbalance or production shortfall, the ministry noted.

No Price Surge in Chennai or Mumbai

In contrast, major cities such as Chennai and Mumbai, which have not experienced abnormal weather conditions in recent weeks, have not witnessed a similar price surge.

The current average retail prices in Chennai and Mumbai are Rs 50 per kg and Rs 58 per kg, respectively – substantially lower than Delhi’s prevailing price.

Source : https://www.freepressjournal.in/business/centre-launches-subsidised-tomato-sale-in-delhi-at-4760kg-to-tackle-rain-driven-price-spike

New Delhi has put on hold its plans to procure new U.S. weapons and aircraft, according to three Indian officials familiar with the matter, in India’s first concrete sign of discontent after tariffs imposed on its exports by President Donald Trump dragged ties to their lowest level in decades.
India had been planning to send Defence Minister Rajnath Singh to Washington in the coming weeks for an announcement on some of the purchases, but that trip has been cancelled, two of the people said.

Trump on Aug. 6 imposed an additional 25% tariff on Indian goods as punishment for Delhi’s purchases of Russian oil, which he said meant the country was funding Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. That raised the total duty on Indian exports to 50% – among the highest of any U.S. trading partner.
The president has a history of rapidly reversing himself on tariffs and India has said it remains actively engaged in discussions with Washington. One of the people said the defence purchases could go ahead once India had clarity on tariffs and the direction of bilateral ties, but “just not as soon as they were expected to.”

Written instructions had not been given to pause the purchases, another official said, indicating that Delhi had the option to quickly reverse course, though there was “no forward movement at least for now.”
Post publication of this story, India’s government issued a statement it attributed to a Ministry of Defence source describing news reports of a pause in the talks as “false and fabricated.” The statement also said procurement was progressing as per “extant procedures.”
Delhi, which has forged a close partnership with America in recent years, has said it is being unfairly targeted and that Washington and its European allies continue to trade with Moscow when it is in their interest.
Reuters is reporting for the first time that discussions on India’s purchases of Stryker combat vehicles made by General Dynamics Land Systems and Javelin anti-tank missiles developed by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin (LMT.N) have been paused due to the tariffs.

Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had in February announced plans to pursue procurement and joint production of those items.
Singh had also been planning to announce the purchase of six Boeing P8I reconnaissance aircraft and support systems for the Indian Navy during his now-cancelled trip, two of the people said. Talks over procuring the aircraft in a proposed $3.6 billion deal were at an advanced stage, according to the officials.
Boeing, Lockheed Martin and General Dynamics referred queries to the Indian and U.S. governments. Raytheon did not return a request for comment.

RUSSIAN RELATIONS

India’s deepening security relationship with the U.S., which is fuelled by their shared strategic rivalry with China, was heralded by many U.S. analysts as one of the key areas of foreign-policy progress in the first Trump administration.

Delhi is the world’s second-largest arms importer and Russia has traditionally been its top supplier. India has in recent years however, shifted to importing from Western powers like France, Israel and the U.S., according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute think-tank.
The shift in suppliers was driven partly by constraints on Russia’s ability to export arms, which it is utilizing heavily in its invasion of Ukraine. Some Russian weapons have also performed poorly in the battlefield, according to Western analysts.
The broader U.S.-India defence partnership, which includes intelligence sharing and joint military exercises, continues without hiccups, one of the Indian officials said.
India also remains open to scaling back on oil imports from Russia and is open to making deals elsewhere, including the U.S., if it can get similar prices, according to two other Indian sources.
Trump’s threats and rising anti-U.S. nationalism in India have “made it politically difficult for Modi to make the shift from Russia to the U.S.,” one of the people said. Nonetheless, discounts on the landing cost of Russian oil have shrunk to the lowest since 2022.
India’s petroleum ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
While the rupture in U.S.-India ties was abrupt, there have been strains in the relationship. Delhi has repeatedly rebutted Trump’s claim that the U.S. brokered a ceasefire between India and Pakistan after four days of fighting between the nuclear-armed neighbours in May. Trump also hosted Pakistan’s army chief at the White House in the weeks following the conflict.
In recent months, Moscow has been actively pitching Delhi on buying new defence technologies like its S-500 surface-to-air missile system, according to one of the Indian officials, as well as a Russian source familiar with the talks.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/india-pauses-plans-buy-us-arms-after-trumps-tariffs-2025-08-08/

Nebraska cattle rancher Craig Uden bought 200 extra mother cows and their babies over a few weeks in May to expand his herd as dry weather gave way to rain that rejuvenated land used for grazing.
In South Dakota, Troy Hadrick kept 16 more young female cows, known as heifers, on his farm than he did last year to be used for breeding, rather than sending them to be slaughtered for beef.

More than 1,400 miles south in Texas, the biggest cattle-producing state, Fausto Salinas was also preserving heifers to increase his herd.

In major U.S. livestock regions, some ranchers have slowly begun taking the first steps to boost cattle production after the nation’s inventory shrank due to a years-long drought that dried up pasture land used for grazing and hiked feeding costs.
By the beginning of the year, the herd had dwindled to 86.7 million cattle, the smallest number for the time period since 1951, according to U.S. government data.
When grass failed to grow on pasture land that turned from green to brown and as feed grains became too expensive, ranchers began to ship off more cattle to be slaughtered. Some producers searched miles away for hay to nourish their remaining animals.

The drop in supply drove U.S. food companies to increasingly import beef from other countries, including Australia and Brazil.
Though in its early stages, the herd expansion is now a sign of hope for consumers shelling out for expensive steaks and for meatpackers losing money buying high-priced cattle to slaughter.
“Cattle availability should improve in coming years,” Tyson Foods (TSN.N), CEO Donnie King said during an earnings call this week.
Farmers’ cautious plans to rebuild mark a turning point after a continuous downsizing of the herd for six years in a row pushed beef prices to record highs in 2025.
Cattle prices reached records too, slashing the profits of processors like Tyson and providing income for farmers who also grow grains and have struggled to turn a profit from selling crops.
Cattle production is the nation’s most important agricultural industry, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which said the sector consistently accounts for the largest share of total cash receipts for farm commodities.

After delays due to persistent dryness, improved rains are motivating the expansion, along with expectations that cattle prices will remain lofty during the long rebuilding process, ranchers said.
In Nebraska, the second biggest cattle-producing state, the portion of the herd in areas suffering from drought dropped to 19% in late July from 79% two years earlier, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor.
Near Cozad, a city of 4,000 people where Uden works with his son-in-law, rains have not quit since starting around Mother’s Day in May, Uden said. Grass conditions look the best since 2011, he added.
The dramatic improvement comes as a record U.S. corn harvest is expected to boost available feed supplies.
“Everything has kind of fallen into place,” said Uden, 64. “The cattle will have plenty to eat this year.”

Ranches in South Texas also benefited from one of the greenest summers in years, a welcome reprieve after the punishing drought turned forage brown and dry and killed some cattle.
“Right now, we’re in the process of rebuilding,” said Salinas, a rancher in Rio Grande City, Texas, who sold cattle during the drought.

TIGHTER SUPPLIES

When ranchers retain heifers, beef production temporarily slows because the animals are not being sent to be slaughtered; it will also likely push meat prices even higher before they come down, agricultural economists said.
Consumers have shown resilience to the climbing cost of beef, but increased prices will test demand, they said.
It takes about two years before beef output rises after ranchers make initial moves to expand because that is how long it takes to raise full-grown cattle, ranchers said.
U.S. cattle and beef supplies are set to decline even further after President Donald Trump’s administration halted imports of Mexican livestock in July to keep out New World screwworm, a devastating pest.
U.S. beef imports from Brazil, a key supplier of meat used to make hamburgers, are also expected to fall after Trump imposed a 50% trade tariff on Wednesday.

MEATPACKERS LOSE BIG

Beef producers such as Tyson and Cargill have waited years for ranchers to begin rebuilding herds because companies must increasingly compete with one another to buy limited supplies.
Processors were losing about $300 on each head of cattle they slaughtered on Tuesday, according to livestock marketing advisory service HedgersEdge.com.
Farmers have worried a processor may shutter a beef plant due to hefty losses, though Cargill told Reuters it had no plans to do so.
“It’s not overwhelmingly glaring that, ‘Hey we’re starting to rebuild the cow herd,’ but I think there are quite a few signals,” said Jarrod Gillig, senior vice president of Cargill’s North American beef business.
For one, strong prices for heifers at a major video livestock sale in July signaled the animals will be retained on farms, Gillig said.
In rural feedlots, about 4.2 million heifers were being fattened for slaughter as of July 1, down 5% from 2024, according to USDA data. The decline likely reflects that ranchers are keeping at least a few more heifers on farms to reproduce, analysts said.
Tyson said a 16% drop in beef cow slaughtering from January to June was another early indicator of ranchers retaining heifers on their farms. The meatpacker reported cattle costs climbed by about $560 million in the quarter that ended on June 28, compared to a year earlier.
Herd rebuilding will begin in earnest next year, and the beef business will see benefits in 2028, King said.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/us-cattle-ranchers-slowly-start-rebuild-decimated-herd-2025-08-07/

RBI Governor Malhotra said UPI transactions aren’t free to run and someone has to bear the cost. With ICICI Bank introducing UPI fees for Payment Aggregators, free UPI may change soon.

After the RBI Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting, Governor Malhotra addressed the media and made a key statement about UPI (Unified Payment Interface).

He clarified that while UPI has been free for users till now, it doesn’t mean it will stay that way forever.

“I never claimed UPI would always be free,” Malhotra said. “There are real costs in processing these transactions, and someone has to pay.”

He further added that it doesn’t matter who pays — users, banks, or businesses — but the costs must be covered for the system to survive in the long run.

UPI’s Massive Growth Story

UPI has become one of the biggest digital payment systems not just in India, but across the world.

According to a recent IMF report, titled Growing Retail Digital Payments: The Value of Interoperability, UPI is now:

– Handling 85 percent of India’s digital payments

– Powering nearly 60 percent of global real-time transactions

– Processing 640+ million transactions every day

In June 2025 alone, UPI recorded 18.39 billion transactions, worth Rs 24 lakh crore — a 32 percent increase compared to June 2024.

Are Free UPI Transactions Ending?

Governor Malhotra’s comments come amid rising signs that the free UPI model might change.

According to an ET Wealth Online report, ICICI Bank has started charging Payment Aggregators (PAs) for processing UPI transactions, effective August 1, 2025.

Although the bank hasn’t made an official public announcement, sources said the new charges were shared with PAs in June.

This move is seen as a signal that more banks or service providers might follow, eventually leading to UPI fees being passed to users — either partially or in full.

The additional 25 per cent import duty announced by US President Donald Trump on Indian goods could lead to a 30 per cent decline at USD 60.6 billion in India’s exports to America this fiscal, think tank GTRI said on Monday.

To help exports, it suggested the government to revive the interest equalisation scheme, create a helpdesk, use trade agreements strategically, and onboard new exporters.

India now faces a 25 per cent country-specific tariff and an extra unspecified penalty on its exports to the United States — one of the highest among Asian exporters, second only to China at 30 per cent.

In contrast, competitors such as Vietnam (20 per cent), Bangladesh (18 per cent), Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines (19 per cent), and Japan and South Korea (15 per cent) enjoy lower rates.

This puts Indian exports at a clear disadvantage across most sectors, barring a few exemptions, the Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) said.

The new US tariff regime excludes pharmaceuticals, energy products, critical minerals, and semiconductors.

“But outside these, Indian goods are under pressure. As a result, India’s exports to the US — currently its largest export market — are projected to decline by nearly 30 per cent, falling from USD 86.5 billion in FY2025 to around USD 60.6 billion in FY2026,” it said.

GTRI Founder Ajay Srivastava said India’s garment exports are among the worst hit.

Knitted and woven garments — each worth USD 2.7 billion — now face steep US tariffs of 38.9 per cent and 35.3 per cent, much higher than the rates for Vietnam, Bangladesh, and Cambodia, GTRI said, adding made-up textiles like towels and bedsheets, which earn India USD 3 billion in exports (with nearly half going to the US), now face a 34 per cent duty.

This gives a clear advantage to competitors like Pakistan and Vietnam, he said.

He also said that India’s USD 2 billion shrimp exports, which make up 32 per cent of global supply, will now face a 25 per cent US tariff.

This wipes out their price edge over rivals like Canada and Chile, who benefit from free trade deals with the US, he added.

Jewellery exports worth USD 10 billion — 40 per cent of India’s global jewellery trade — now face a 27.1 per cent duty. With the sector adding just 3-4 per cent in value, margins are thin. Mechanical gold jewellery exports to the US (USD 3.6 billion) are likely to be hit the hardest.

India’s USD 4.7 billion in metal exports — mainly steel, aluminium, and copper — will also suffer, as the higher cost is expected to curb demand from US infrastructure and energy buyers, the think tank said.

India’s engineering exports — USD 6.7 billion in machinery and USD 2.6 billion in auto parts — now face over 26 per cent US tariffs, making them costlier than similar goods from Mexico (zero tariff) and Japan (15 per cent).

Petroleum exports worth USD 4.1 billion are still tariff-free, but India’s use of Russian crude could invite penalties, he said, adding pharmaceuticals (USD 9.8 billion) and smartphones (USD 10.6 billion) are currently exempt, but not safe — Trump has warned of tariffs on Indian medicines and tighter rules on electronics with Chinese parts.

He added that exporting more to other countries to make up for losses in the US market won’t be easy.

Further, he said Trump’s 27.1 per cent tariff on India’s USD 10 billion diamond and jewellery exports, 40 per cent of its global trade in the sector — delivers a “heavy blow” to the sector.

With value addition barely 3-4 per cent, margins are wafer-thin, and such duties can turn exports instantly unviable.

Source : https://www.freepressjournal.in/business/indias-exports-to-us-may-fall-30-to-usd-606-billion-this-fiscal-due-to-trump-tariffs-gtri

China’s independent oil companies are ramping up operations in Iraq, investing billions of dollars in OPEC’s number two producer even as some global majors have scaled back from a market dominated by Beijing’s big state-run firms.
Drawn by more lucrative contract arrangements, smaller Chinese producers are on track to double their output in Iraq to 500,000 barrels per day by around 2030, according to estimates by executives at four of the firms, a figure not previously reported.

For Baghdad, which is also seeking to lure global giants, the growing presence of the mostly privately run Chinese players marks a shift as Iraq comes under growing pressure to accelerate projects, according to multiple Iraqi energy officials. In recent years, Iraq’s oil ministry had pushed back on rising Chinese control over its oilfields.
For the smaller Chinese firms, managed by veterans of China’s state heavyweights, Iraq is an opportunity to leverage lower costs and faster development of projects that may be too small for Western or Chinese majors.
With meagre prospects in China’s state-dominated oil and gas industry, the overseas push mirrors a pattern by Chinese firms in other heavy industries to find new markets for productive capacity and expertise.

Little-known players including Geo-Jade Petroleum Corp (600759.SS), United Energy Group (0467.HK), Zhongman Petroleum and Natural Gas Group (603619.SS), and Anton Oilfield Services Group(3337.HK), made a splash last year when they won half of Iraq’s exploration licensing rounds.
Executives at smaller Chinese producers say Iraq’s investment climate has improved as the country becomes more politically stable and Baghdad is keen to attract Chinese as well as Western companies.
Iraq wants to boost output by more than half to over 6 million bpd by 2029. China’s CNPC alone accounts for more than half of Iraq’s current production at massive fields including Haifaya, Rumaila and West Qurna 1.

PROFIT-SHARING, RISK TOLERANCE

Iraq’s shift a year ago to contracts based on profit-sharing from fixed-fee agreements – an attempt to accelerate projects after ExxonMobil and Shell scaled back – helped lure Chinese independents.

These smaller firms are nimbler than the big Chinese companies and more risk-tolerant than many companies that might consider investing in the Gulf economy.
Chinese companies offer competitive financing, cut costs with cheaper Chinese labour and equipment and are willing to accept lower margins to win long-term contracts, said Ali Abdulameer at state-run Basra Oil Co, which finalises contracts with foreign firms.
“They are known for rapid project execution, strict adherence to timelines and a high tolerance for operating in areas with security challenges,” he said. “Doing business with the Chinese is much easier and less complicated, compared to Western companies.”
Smaller Chinese firms can develop an oilfield in Iraq in two to three years, faster than the five to 10 years for Western firms, Chinese executives said.

“Chinese independents have much lower management costs compared to Western firms and are also more competitive versus Chinese state-run players,” said Dai Xiaoping, CEO of Geo-Jade Petroleum, which has five blocks in Iraq.
The independents have driven down the industry cost to drill a development well in a major Iraqi oilfield by about half from a decade ago to between $4 million and $5 million, Dai said.

TRADE-OFFS

A Geo-Jade-led consortium agreed in May to invest in the South Basra project, which includes ramping up the Tuba field in southern Iraq to 100,000 bpd and building a 200,000-bpd refinery. Geo-Jade, committing $848 million, plans to revive output at the largely mothballed field to 40,000 bpd by around mid-2027, Dai told Reuters.
The project also calls for a petrochemical complex and two power stations, requiring a multi-billion-dollar investment, said Dai, a reserve engineer who previously worked overseas with CNPC and Sinopec.
Zhenhua Oil, a small state-run firm that partnered with CNPC in a $3 billion deal to develop Ahdab oilfield in 2008, the first major foreign-invested project after Saddam Hussein was toppled in 2003, aims to double its production to 250,000 bpd by 2030, a company official said.
Zhongman Petroleum announced in June a plan to spend $481 million on the Middle Euphrates and East Baghdad North blocks won in 2024.
Chinese firms’ cheaper projects can come at the expense of Iraq’s goal to introduce more advanced technologies.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/chinas-independent-oil-firms-elbow-into-iraqs-majors-dominated-market-2025-08-04/

A sweeping 25 per cent tariff by the United States on Indian exports has triggered panic among domestic industries, especially textiles, steel and agriculture. Facing potential order cancellations and job losses, exporters have urged the Indian government to launch an emergency export promotion mission and extend financial support.

Indian exporters are staring at a crisis after the United States announced a uniform 25 per cent tariff—plus additional penalties—on all goods imported from India, starting August 7, 2025. The abrupt move has rattled key sectors like textiles, engineering, steel and agriculture, prompting an urgent call for government intervention.
“Exporters spoke about the adverse effects of tariffs. They want support,” a government official told The Economic Times, following a high-level meeting between commerce minister Piyush Goyal and industry leaders.
The tariff, significantly higher than rates faced by rivals like Bangladesh, Vietnam and Pakistan, could jeopardise nearly half of India’s $87 billion export volume to the US—New Delhi’s top trade partner and a key market for price-sensitive sectors.

In a major supply chain shift, Apple CEO Tim Cook confirmed that the majority of iPhones sold in the United States are now manufactured in India. While China focuses on non-US markets, Vietnam leads production of MacBooks and iPads. Cook also flagged a looming $1.1 billion tariff burden amid policy uncertainty.

In a milestone for India’s electronics manufacturing sector, Apple CEO Tim Cook has revealed that most iPhones sold in the United States during the past quarter were assembled in India. Speaking after Apple’s quarterly earnings call, Cook’s remarks confirmed a major realignment in the company’s global supply chain strategy, reported The Times of India.
“There hasn’t been a change to that, which is—the vast majority of the iPhones sold in the US, or the majority, I should say—have a country of origin of India,” Cook told analysts, underscoring how India is now a key hub for Apple’s domestic US supply.
While India takes the lead in iPhone production for the American market, Cook clarified that Vietnam now serves as the primary production centre for MacBooks, iPads, and Apple Watches. China, once the dominant manufacturing base for nearly all Apple products, continues to produce for non-US markets.

Nvidia chips do not contain “backdoors” allowing remote access, the US tech giant has said, after Beijing summoned company representatives to discuss “serious security issues”.

The California-based company is a world-leading producer of AI semiconductors, and this month became the first company to hit US$4 trillion in market value.

But it has become entangled in trade tensions between China and the United States, and Washington effectively restricts which chips Nvidia can export to China on national security grounds.

“Cybersecurity is critically important to us. Nvidia does not have ‘backdoors’ in our chips that would give anyone a remote way to access or control them,” Nvidia said in a statement Thursday (Jul 31).

A key issue has been Chinese access to the “H20” – a less powerful version of Nvidia’s AI processing units that the company developed specifically for export to China.

Nvidia said this month it would resume H20 sales to China after Washington pledged to remove licensing curbs that had halted exports.

But the tech giant still faces obstacles – US lawmakers have proposed plans to require Nvidia and other manufacturers of advanced AI chips to include built-in location tracking capabilities.

Beijing’s top internet regulator said Thursday it had summoned Nvidia representatives to discuss recently discovered “serious security issues” involving the H20.

The Cyberspace Administration of China said it had asked Nvidia to “explain the security risks of vulnerabilities and backdoors in its H20 chips sold to China and submit relevant supporting materials”.

China is aiming to reduce reliance on foreign tech by promoting Huawei’s domestically developed 910C chip as an alternative to the H20, said Jost Wubbeke of the Sinolytics consultancy.

“From that perspective, the US decision to allow renewed exports of the H20 to China could be seen as counterproductive, as it might tempt Chinese hyperscalers to revert to the H20, potentially undermining momentum behind the 910C and other domestic alternatives,” he said.

Other hurdles to Nvidia’s operations in China are the sputtering economy, beset by a years-long property sector crisis, and heightened trade headwinds under US President Donald Trump.

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/east-asia/nvidia-says-no-backdoors-in-chips-china-questions-security-5271431

Nikhil Ravishankar, an India-origin executive, will assume the role of CEO at Air New Zealand starting October 20, 2025, after almost five years with the airline.

India-origin Nikhil Ravishankar is set to take over as the CEO of Air New Zealand from October this year after being associated with the carrier for nearly five years. Incidentally, Air India CEO and MD Campbell Wilson is from New Zealand.
“Currently the airline’s Chief Digital Officer, Nikhil will officially take over as CEO on 20 October 2025. In the nearly five years that Nikhil has been at Air New Zealand he has gained a deep understanding of the aviation sector, and the airline. He has also led major advances in the airline’s technology backbone, loyalty programme and customer proposition,” Air New Zealand said in a statement on July 30.
Prior to joining the airline, Ravishankar was Chief Digital Officer at Vector and Managing Director of Accenture.

“I’m both thrilled and humbled to be given this opportunity to lead Air New Zealand… airlines are complex, and safety underpins every decision we make,” he said in the statement.
Air New Zealand offers more than 400 flights a day to 49 domestic and international destinations. It has a fleet of more than 100 planes, including Boeing 777s, 787s, Airbus 320s, ATRs and Q300s, as per its website.
Meanwhile, Air New Zealand and Air India, in March this year, announced that they will explore the introduction of a direct service between the two countries by the end of 2028, subject to new aircraft deliveries and approvals from relevant government regulators.
Both airlines had also inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to boost air connectivity between India and New Zealand. Both airlines will have a new codeshare partnership on 16 routes between India, Singapore, Australia, and New Zealand.

Source : https://www.timesnownews.com/business-economy/companies/india-origin-nikhil-ravishankar-set-to-become-air-new-zealands-ceo-article-152384349

Telecom Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said that Starlink has been granted a Unified License to launch satellite internet services in India and that the frameworks for spectrum allocation and gateway establishment are ready.

India has officially granted Elon Musk’s Starlink a licence to provide satellite-based internet services, paving the way for the company’s entry into the country’s growing digital market, Union Telecom Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said on Thursday. The approval comes as India marks the 30th anniversary of its first-ever cellular call, made on July 31, 1995.

“Starlink has been granted a Unified License to launch satellite internet services in India. Frameworks for spectrum allocation and gateway establishment are ready, ensuring smooth rollout,” news agency PTI quoted the Union minister as saying.

The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) granted Starlink the authorisation earlier in July. The company had first applied for permissions in 2021 but faced delays over spectrum allocation and regulatory approvals. The recent green light follows months of engagement with Indian authorities and marks a significant step toward offering internet access in remote regions of the country.

Starlink, operated by Musk’s SpaceX, is expected to compete with other players such as Bharti Group-backed Eutelsat OneWeb and Reliance Jio’s JV with SES, both of which are awaiting spectrum allocation to begin operations. All three companies aim to deliver high-speed internet using a constellation of low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellites.

INDIA’S DIGITAL GROWTH STORY

Announcing the approval, Minister Scindia also took the opportunity to reflect on India’s sweeping digital progress under the Narendra Modi government. Over the past decade, India has seen a dramatic expansion in telecom and internet infrastructure.

The number of telephone connections in India now exceeds 1.2 billion, while internet subscriptions have surged nearly 286 per cent to 970 million. Broadband usage, too, has grown more than 1,450 per cent — from 60 million users in 2014 to 944 million today. Also, low data costs, now at just Rs 8.9 per GB — a drop of 96.6 per cent — make data services among the most affordable globally.

BSNL’s TURNAROUND AND 5G EXPANSIONS

A major milestone highlighted was the financial turnaround of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL), the state-run telecom operator. After nearly two decades of losses, BSNL posted net profits of Rs 262 crore and Rs 280 crore in the last two financial years. The operator has deployed over 83,000 4G sites, 74,000 of which are now operational using indigenous technology.

The minister also noted the rapid rollout of 5G services across the country. As of now, 99.6 per cent of districts are covered with over 4.74 lakh 5G towers and a user base of 300 million. India also ranks among the top six countries in terms of 6G patent filings. “With the world’s highest per capita 5G usage—32 GB per month—India is demonstrating strong technological leadership,” Scindia added.

Now, Starlink’s entry adds a fresh dimension to India’s digital future, especially for regions that remain beyond the reach of traditional fiber and cellular networks.

The satellite-based approach promises to bridge the urban-rural divide and improve connectivity in remote locations such as mountainous areas, islands, and border regions.

Starlink aims to provide high-speed, low-latency broadband to users across India, and is now moving forward with plans to set up local gateways and ground stations, pending final spectrum allocation.

With the regulatory landscape now clarified and infrastructure support in place, India’s satcom sector is poised for rapid growth, complementing its already massive mobile network.

Source : https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/starlink-gets-licence-to-start-ops-in-india-way-cleared-for-spectrum-allocation-2764432-2025-07-31

Microsoft (MSFT.O), forecast on Wednesday a record $30 billion in capital spending for the current fiscal first quarter, after booming sales in its Azure cloud computing business showcased the growing returns on its massive bets on artificial intelligence.
Shares of the software company rose 9% in extended trading after it said Azure sales surpassed $75 billion on an annual basis, the first time it has disclosed that figure, beating expectations for $74.62 billion.

Microsoft’s higher-than-expected capital expenditure forecast – its largest ever for a single quarter – put it on track to potentially outspend its rivals over the next year. It came after Google said it would spend more on data centers to meet demand for AI services, and Meta projected higher sales with only modest increases in spending. The trio of results could help resolve investor questions about whether Big Tech is benefiting from its massive data center buildout, with capital spending to reach $330 billion this year.
Microsoft and Meta’s results helped fuel a $500-billion gain in AI stocks.

“I feel very good that the spend that we’re making is correlated to basically contracted, on-the-books business that we need to deliver,” Microsoft Chief Financial Officer Amy Hood said on a conference call with investors.

Microsoft’s cloud business still trails market leader Amazon Web Services (AMZN.O), which had a head start in cloud computing and brought in $107.56 billion in its most recent fiscal year. But investors said Microsoft’s new revenue figure indicates its investments are translating to increased sales.
“Now that Microsoft’s disclosing that number, it’s really just helping justify the huge investments,” said Dave Wagner, portfolio manager at Aptus Capital Advisors, which holds Microsoft shares.
Rival Alphabet’s (GOOGL.O), earnings also showed last week that AI spending was rising, but so were the returns, as it beat revenue estimates and lifted its outlay forecast by $10 billion.

Microsoft said Azure revenue jumped 39% in the June quarter, more than the average analyst estimate of 34.75%, according to Visible Alpha. The company said it expects growth of 37% for the current quarter, beating analyst estimates of 33.5%, according to Visible Alpha data.

Microsoft has said the spending is crucial to overcoming supply constraints that have hampered its ability to meet soaring AI demand. The fiscal first-quarter capital expenditure estimate of $30 billion surpassed analysts’ expectations of $23.75 billion, according to Visible Alpha data.
In the just-ended fiscal fourth quarter, capital spending rose 27% to $24.2 billion, compared with estimates of $23.08 billion, per Visible Alpha.
Microsoft said its Copilot AI tools had surpassed 100 million monthly active users, the first time it has provided such a figure. Google has said rival Gemini has 450 million active users.

Overall revenue rose 18% to $76.4 billion in the April-June period, Microsoft’s fiscal fourth quarter. Analysts on average expected $73.81 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG.

LONGER-LIVED ASSETS

Microsoft said its capital spending trended slightly toward longer-lived assets such as data centers, after it previously told investors the mix would shift toward shorter-lived assets such as chips over its 2026 fiscal year. Jonathan Neilson, Microsoft’s vice president of investor relations, said that guidance does not mean that Microsoft will not continue to invest in longer-lived assets when capacity is needed to meet demand.
“We are going to absolutely invest against that,” Neilson said in an interview.
The company has emerged as an early leader in making money from AI thanks to its exclusive access to OpenAI’s technology. The tie-up has helped attract scores of businesses to its cloud service and allowed Microsoft to swiftly roll out AI products such as its M365 Copilot AI assistant for enterprises.
“The bar was set really high. And my impression is they delivered … They were able to execute in a very demanding environment,” said Dan Morgan, portfolio manager at Synovus Trust, which owns Microsoft shares.
Microsoft is just $200 billion short of becoming only the second company to hit a $4-trillion valuation, with its shares up about 20% this year.
But investor doubts have risen about the OpenAI tie-up as the companies renegotiate the deal and the startup shifts some workloads to rivals, including Google and Oracle .

Source : https://www.reuters.com/business/microsoft-spend-record-30-billion-this-quarter-ai-investments-pay-off-2025-07-30/

ChatGPT-maker OpenAI roughly doubled its revenue in the first seven months of the year, reaching $12 billion in annualized revenue, the Information reported on Wednesday citing a source.

Reuters could not immediately confirm the report. OpenAI declined to comment.

The figure implies that OpenAI is generating $1 billion a month, the report said, adding that the company has around 700 million weekly active users for its ChatGPT products used by both consumers and business customers.

The Microsoft-backed company has increased its cash burn projection to roughly $8 billion in 2025, up $1 billion from the cash burn it projected earlier in the year, the Information said.

The firm has been lining up investors for the second $30 billion portion of its funding round, the report said, adding that shareholders Sequoia Capital and Tiger Global Management are investing hundreds of millions of dollars in the round.

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/business/openai-hits-12-billion-in-annualized-revenue-information-reports-5268801

The Income Tax department denied claims of increased long-term capital gains tax on LLPs in the new Income Tax Bill, 2025

The Income Tax department on Tuesday categorically refuted the claims of a possible increase in the long-term capital gains (LTCG) tax on Limited Liability Partnerships (LLPs) in the new Income Tax Bill, 2025.

The Income Tax Department in a post on X has clarified that the new Bill, which is currently under parliamentary scrutiny, does not include any change in tax rates.

“There are news articles circulating on various media platforms that the new Income Tax Bill, 2025 proposes to change tax rates on LTCG for certain categories of taxpayers. It is clarified that the Income Tax Bill, 2025 aims at language simplification and removal of redundant/obsolete provisions. It does not seek to change any rates of taxes,” the I-T Department said in a post on X.

“Any ambiguity in this respect shall be duly addressed during the passing of the Bill,” it added.

Rumours were circulating on social media the draft Bill’s provisions on Alternate Minimum Tax (AMT) could effectively raise the LTCG tax on LLPs from 12.5% to 18.5%.

Several tax practitioners have voiced concerns that the way AMT provisions have been redrafted may result in higher effective tax liability for LLPs currently benefiting from lower LTCG rates.

Source : https://www.news18.com/business/income-tax-bill-is-18-5-ltcg-tax-rates-proposed-on-llps-under-new-draft-bill-ws-l-9471921.html

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has announced mass layoffs affecting approximately 12,000 employees, or 2% of its workforce, marking the largest reductions in the company’s history.

The announcement of mass layoffs at Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has prompted the Nascent Information Technology Employees Senate (NITES) to reach out to Labour Minister Mansukh Mandaviya. On Sunday, India’s largest IT services firm confirmed plans to lay off around 12,000 employees this year, roughly 2% of its total workforce.
With this move, TCS is set to carry out the largest workforce reduction in its history. Back in 2015, the company had terminated around 3,000 employees, roughly 1% of its staff then. This latest layoff is now being seen as the biggest mass termination the Indian IT industry has ever witnessed.

TCS job cut: The move is part of a broader plan to adapt to changing technology trends and streamline operations as the company aims to become a “future-ready” organisation.

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), India’s largest software exporter, is planning to lay off around 12,000 employees, or about 2% of its global workforce, during the current financial year.

The move is part of a broader plan to adapt to changing technology trends and streamline operations as the company aims to become a “future-ready” organisation.

This comes shortly after TCS updated its HR policy, requiring employees to maintain at least 225 billable days a year and capping bench time at 35 days.

In a statement, TCS said, “TCS is on a journey to become a future-ready organisation. This includes strategic initiatives on multiple fronts including investing in new-tech areas, entering new markets, deploying AI at scale for our clients and ourselves, deepening our partnerships, creating next-gen infrastructure and realigning our workforce model.”

“Towards this, a number of reskilling and redeployment initiatives have been underway. As part of this journey, we will also be releasing associates from the organisation whose deployment may not be feasible. This will impact about 2% of our global workforce, primarily in the middle and the senior grades, over the course of the year.”

The company stressed that this change is being handled with care to ensure that client service remains unaffected.

“We understand that this is a challenging time for our colleagues likely to be affected. We thank them for their service and we will be making all efforts to provide appropriate benefits, outplacement, counselling, and support as they transition to new opportunities,” the statement added.

TCS CEO and MD K Krithivasan said that the layoffs will not be done in a rush. He explained that the process will involve identifying impacted employees carefully and giving them a fair opportunity to be redeployed.

“It’s a process through which we identify the people. It will be coming through the year. We won’t do it in a hurry. We will be first talking to the people that could be impacted. We will provide them an opportunity. When we are not able to provide the opportunity, then we need to do the step we need. And, that is, we will do whatever is the benefit that we have to provide,” Krithivasan told Moneycontrol.

He added that the company will follow its HR policy to ensure that outgoing employees are treated with dignity and provided adequate support.

Source : https://www.indiatoday.in/business/story/tcs-layoff-job-cut-12000-what-it-company-offer-to-affected-employees-updated-hr-policy-ai-2762192-2025-07-27

Tesla CEO Elon Musk said the U.S. automaker had signed a $16.5 billion deal to source chips from Samsung Electronics, a move expected to bolster the South Korean tech giant’s loss-making contract manufacturing business.

Samsung shares rose more than 6 per cent after the news.

“Samsung’s giant new Texas fab will be dedicated to making Tesla’s next-generation AI6 chip. The strategic importance of this is hard to overstate,” Musk said in a post on X on Monday.

If Musk was referring to Samsung’s upcoming Taylor, Texas, plant, the deal could revive the project that has faced delays amid Samsung’s struggles to retain and win major customers.

“Samsung agreed to allow Tesla to assist in maximizing manufacturing efficiency. This is a critical point, as I will walk the line personally to accelerate the pace of progress. And the fab is conveniently located not far from my house,” Musk said on his social media platform.

While no timeline was provided for AI6 chip production, Musk has previously said that next-generation A15 chips will be produced at the end of 2026, suggesting A16 would follow.

Samsung currently makes Tesla’s A14 chips, which power its Full Self-Driving driver assistant system, while TSMC will make the AI5 initially in Taiwan and then Arizona, Musk has said.

In October, Reuters reported that Samsung had postponed taking deliveries of ASML chipmaking equipment for its factory in Texas as it had not yet won any major customers for the project. It has already delayed the plant’s operational start to 2026.

Samsung, the world’s top memory chip maker, also produces logic chips designed by customers through its foundry business. The Texas project is central to Samsung Chairman Jay Y. Lee’s strategy to expand beyond its bread-and-butter memory chips into contract chip manufacturing.

Samsung currently trails a distant second in the global foundry market, with an 8 per cent share versus leader TSMC’s 67 per cent share, data from market researcher Trendforce show.

Samsung had earlier announced the $16.5 billion chip supply deal without naming the client, saying the customer had requested confidentiality about the details of the deal, which will run through the end of 2033.

Three sources briefed about the matter told Reuters that Tesla was the customer for the deal.

HELP FOUNDRY BUSINESS

The news comes as Samsung, which is due to report its earnings on Thursday, faces mounting pressure in the race to produce artificial intelligence chips, where it trails rivals such as TSMC and SK Hynix. This lag has weighed heavily on its profits and share price.

Pak Yuak, an analyst at Kiwoom Securities, said the deal would help reduce losses at Samsung’s foundry business, which he estimated exceeded 5 trillion won ($3.6 billion) in the first half of the year.

Analysts say Samsung has struggled with the defection of key clients to TSMC for advanced chips. TSMC counts Apple, Nvidia and Qualcomm among its customers.

It is not clear whether the Samsung-Tesla deal is related to ongoing trade talks between Korea and the United States. Seoul is seeking U.S. partnerships in chips and shipbuilding amid last-ditch efforts to reach a trade deal to eliminate or reduce potential 25 per cent U.S. tariffs.

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/business/musk-says-tesla-samsung-electronics-sign-165-billion-chip-supply-deal-5261791

McDonald’s Corp is planning to sell eight prime retail properties in Hong Kong with a total market value of around HK$1.2 billion ($152.89 million), JLL, which has been appointed as the sole agent of the sale, said on Monday.

The McDonald’s outlets in the locations will continue to operate, JLL executive director of capital markets Eunice Tang said in a statement.

In a separate statement, McDonald’s Corp said it continually reviewed its property portfolio and that the Hong Kong sites were available for sale as part of that assessment.

The fast-food company, which is headquartered in Chicago, said it remained fully committed to the Hong Kong market.

Hong Kong Economic Times reported earlier on Monday McDonald’s planned to sell all of its 23 retail spaces – valued at nearly HK$3 billion in total – in batches, but it would continue operating in existing locations as tenants, and the sale would not affect its operations in the city.

McDonald’s has around 256 restaurants in Hong Kong, the report said, many in rented spaces.

In 2017, McDonald’s Corp sold an 80 per cent stake in its mainland Chinese and Hong Kong operations to a group that included CITIC Ltd, its investment arm CITIC Capital, and Carlyle Group for up to $2.1 billion. But the assets remain under McDonald’s Corp.

The sale of the eight retail properties is offered through a public tender that ends on September 16. JLL said it had already received significant interest from a wide pool of potential investors.

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/business/mcdonalds-sell-8-hong-kong-retail-spaces-valued-153-million-jll-says-5262161

A bitter family feud has erupted in the RS 30,000 crore Sona Group after the sudden death of chairman Sunjay Kapur. His mother, Rani Kapur, alleges coercion and exclusion from key decisions, including the appointment of daughter-in-law Priya Sachdev Kapur.

Following the death of Sunjay Kapur, the fight for control over the Sona Group – an empire worth Rs 30,000 crore – took an ugly turn when his mother Rani Kapur alleged that she was “coerced” into signing some documents while she was grieving over his son’s untimely death. The issue escalated further when the company went ahead with the annual general meeting (AGM) on Friday, despite Rani Kapur’s objection. Furthermore, the flagship company, Sona BLW Precision Forgings Ltd, said that Sunjay Kapur’s mother has not been a shareholder since 2019, justifying the proceedings.
Kapur wrote to the board, asserting herself as the majority shareholder and requesting that the Annual General Meeting scheduled for this afternoon be postponed.
She alleged that she had been coerced into signing certain documents and raised objections over the appointment of “certain people (i.e., Priya Sachdev Kapur, her daughter-in-law)” who, she claimed, were representing the family without her consent.

In response, the company, in a filing to the stock exchanges, stated that in May 2019 it had received a “declaration of significant beneficial ownership” identifying Sunjay Kapur as the “sole beneficial owner…”.
The company justified Priya Sachdev Kapur’s appointment as a non-executive director, saying her name was “duly reviewed… and approved”. The company also clarified that Rani Kapur’s allegation of being coerced into signing documents was not true, as the board stressed that no documents had been signed or obtained from her since Sunjay Kapur’s death.
The family feud erupted after an email from Rani Kapur late Thursday, in which she requested the deferment of the Annual General Meeting (AGM). The board stated it sought legal advice on how to proceed “out of respect” for Ms Kapur.
“Based on the legal counsel and the fact Rani Kapur is not a shareholder of the Company, the Company concluded that it could not defer the AGM,” the exchange filing said.
Earlier, Kapur had accused her ‘enemies’ of attempting to usurp her family’s legacy while she was mourning the loss of her son. She said she had been informed of an item on the AGM agenda, i.e., “the passing of a resolution to appoint certain Director(s) as being the representative of the Kapur family”.
That ‘representative’ was Priya Sachdev Kapur.
Kapur made it very clear that she had not been consulted in this decision.
“For the record, I state I have not given any consent or officially nominated any person to come on the board of the company, or any other Sona Group company, after my son’s demise, or given any consent to any person to represent me in any capacity before any Sona Group company.”
“At this stage I do not wish to dilate any further on various gross illegalities… except to state, in no uncertain terms, that it is imperative that no decisions are taken without my consent,” she added.
According to a report in The Economic Times, Rani Kapur, who asserts that she holds majority ownership in the Sona Group based on her late husband’s 2015 will, may approach the high court next week to seek a declaration affirming her status as a shareholder and alleging she was excluded from voting at the AGM. Sources also indicated that she is likely to file a petition before the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), accusing the company of oppression and mismanagement. However, her legal counsel, senior advocate Vaibhav Gaggar, has denied that any legal proceedings have been initiated at this stage.

Source : https://www.timesnownews.com/business-economy/companies/who-controls-sona-group-now-kapur-familys-battle-over-legacy-and-power-after-sunjay-kapurs-death-explained-article-152348570

In a sweeping move under the Trump administration’s directive to streamline federal agencies, NASA is set to lose nearly 3,870 employees through a voluntary resignation programme, raising concerns about talent drain and mission safety.

In a significant reshaping of the United States space programme, NASA has confirmed that approximately 3,870 employees will resign from the agency as part of a Deferred Resignation Program launched in 2025, aligning with the Trump administration’s broader push to reduce the federal workforce, said a Bloomberg report.
The mass exits, expected to leave NASA with a civil servant base of roughly 14,000, mark one of the largest voluntary exits in the agency’s history. This includes both phases of the resignation offer and the normal attrition rate of around 500 staff.
“This is about ensuring we become a more streamlined and efficient organisation,” said NASA in an official statement issued Friday. “But safety remains a top priority as we pursue a Golden Era of exploration, including to the Moon and Mars.”

The first round of resignations began in early 2025, when about 870 employees, or 4.8 per cent of the agency’s workforce, opted in. The second round, launched in June with a July 25 deadline, saw a staggering 3,000 employees, or 16.4 per cent, agree to leave,reported Bloomberg.
Former acting administrator Janet Petro, during a June town hall, acknowledged the gravity of the situation, “The reason we are doing this is to minimise any involuntary workforce reductions in the future. That is our whole goal, minimising that.”
While NASA emphasised that participation in the programme is voluntary, and resignations are still under review, internal sources revealed concerns that the talent drain could affect NASA’s mission-readiness.
A letter titled “The Voyager Declaration”, signed by hundreds of current and former NASA employees, has been sent to interim administrator Sean Duffy, also head of the US Transportation Department. It warns, “Thousands of NASA civil servant employees have already been terminated, resigned or retired early, taking with them highly specialised, irreplaceable knowledge crucial to carrying out NASA’s mission.”
The letter calls for a reevaluation of the administration’s strategy, citing the risk to mission-critical operations and deep-space initiatives.
The Department of Government Efficiency, headed by Elon Musk as part of Trump’s controversial federal reforms, has been instrumental in overseeing this reduction. However, critics argue the plan may have long-term consequences for America’s space ambitions.
The move has already drawn scrutiny from aerospace contractors, union representatives, and Congressional aides. Experts caution that an exodus of this scale — particularly of scientific and engineering staff — may result in delays to key programmes like Artemis, Orion, and deep-space robotic missions.
NASA has reportedly applied for a “blanket waiver” earlier this year in hopes of shielding probationary employees from forced layoffs, but its status remains unclear.

Source : https://www.timesnownews.com/business-economy/companies/mass-resignations-at-nasa-spark-alarm-3870-employees-set-to-exit-amid-trump-era-workforce-cuts-article-152348674

A higher ethanol blend should theoretically lower the price of petrol. It has instead, potentially increased the average cost of vehicle ownership. Here’s how.

Having achieved its 20% ethanol blending targets five years prior to its deadline, it’s safe to say that biofuel is to play a key role in the central government’s plan to reduce crude oil dependence. It’s a win-win for both the government and the agricultural sector, which can now utilise excess sugar for ethanol production.

With the exception of Delhi, petrol prices range between ₹100 – ₹104.2 per litre. Earlier this year, the per-litre price of ethanol increased by ₹1.69, bringing the total ex-mill cost of ethanol produced for the purposes of blending with petrol to ₹57.97. Given that ethanol is a little over half the price of petrol, the 20% blend, which was achieved earlier this year, should theoretically be accompanied by a marginal drop in petrol prices. In 2021, a 20% blend was projected to reduce petrol prices by ₹8/litre, according to a report by CNBC TV18. That hasn’t turned out to be the case.

In India, retail fuel prices are determined by international crude oil prices and the existing tax structure imposed by states via excise and VAT. While there has been no major fluctuation in VAT in the last couple of years, excise duty did go up in April, although the cost was not passed on to the customers, according to a report by Reuters. However, the benefit of the lower cost of production of ethanol has also not been passed down to the customers. In fact, it has indirectly added to the running cost of a petrol vehicle as ethanol burns much faster than petrol and isn’t as energy efficient.

Translation: lower mileage. You have to buy a lot more blended petrol in order to go the same distance as you would without unblended petrol. The prices also depend on just how the ethanol is produced. According to a report by the Centre of Social and Economic Progress, ethanol derived from B-Heavy Mollases, Sugarcane juice, sugar, sugar syrup, and damaged food grains brings the ex-mill price range up to ₹60 – ₹65.6. Add transportation charges and a 5% flat GST charge per litre, and the weighted average comes down to ₹65.35/litre of ethanol. Theoretically, then, the average price of petrol should be around ₹95/litre, which is only available in Delhi at the moment.

The report goes on to claim there is enough evidence to suggest that the Ethanol Blend Petrol Programme has played a key role in reducing crude oil imports, saving foreign exchange and generating domestic revenue. However, no cost benefit has been passed down to the customer. With the government working to meet an E27 target ( a 27-30% ethanol blend by 2030) there’s no evidence to suggest that the consumer will benefit at all. In fact, as it stands, the move is costing the petrol car consumer due to lower mileage and wear and tear caused by the corrosive nature of ethanol.

Source : https://www.hindustantimes.com/business/can-a-higher-ethanol-blend-negatively-impact-petrol-prices-101753498932155.html

An Antonov An-24 passenger plane carrying 48 people crashed in Russia’s far east on Thursday as it was preparing to land, killing everyone on board in an incident that spotlighted the continued use of old, Soviet-era aircraft.
The burning fuselage of the plane, which was made in 1976, was spotted by a search helicopter after it disappeared from radar screens. It had been attempting to land for a second time after failing to touch down on its first approach, the Far Eastern Transport Prosecutor’s Office said in a statement.

Operated by the privately owned Siberian regional airline Angara, it had been en route from the city of Blagoveshchensk near the Chinese border to Tynda, an important railway junction in the Amur region. It was carrying 42 passengers, including five children, and six crew.
The regional governor and federal investigators confirmed that everyone on board had been killed.
Investigators said they had opened a criminal case into the suspected violation of air traffic and air transport rules, resulting in the death of more than two people through negligence. The plane had recently passed a technical safety inspection, Russian news agencies reported, and had been involved in four apparently minor incidents since 2018.

The crash is likely to raise new questions about the viability of continuing to fly such old planes in far-flung corners of Russia at a time when Western sanctions have crimped Moscow’s ability to access investment and spare parts.
It may also prompt other countries that operate the aircraft to review their fleets. North Korea, Kazakhstan, Laos, Cuba, Ethiopia, Myanmar and Zimbabwe operate the An-24, according to the authoritative RussianPlanes web-portal.
Video shot from a helicopter showed pale smoke rising from the crash site in a densely forested hilly area around 15 km (10 miles) from Tynda. There were no roads to the site and a rescue team had to use heavy machinery to cut a path there.
President Vladimir Putin expressed his condolences to the families of those killed and held a minute’s silence at the start of a government meeting.

At least one Chinese citizen was reported to have been on board and Chinese President Xi Jinping sent his condolences to Putin.
Moscow said it had set up a commission to deal with the aftermath in addition to the criminal and air safety investigations. A representative of Angara said they could not offer any more details.

‘FLYING TRACTORS’

Angara is based in the Siberian city of Irkutsk and serves airports in Siberia and Russia’s far east. Before Thursday’s crash, it operated 10 An-24s built between 1972 and 1976, according to RussianPlanes.
It was one of two Siberian airlines that last year asked the Russian government, to extend the service life of the Antonov aircraft, as Russian planemakers scramble to plug the gap left by an exodus of foreign manufacturers.
Nicknamed “flying tractors” by some, the propeller-driven An-24s are regarded as reliable workhorses inside Russia and are well-suited to Siberia as they are able to operate in sub-zero conditions and don’t have to land on runways.
But airline executives, pilots and industry experts say the cost of maintaining the Antonovs – which make up a fraction of Russia’s fleet of over 1,000 passenger planes – has increased after Western sanctions against Russia over its war in Ukraine hit investment and access to parts.
Almost 1,340 An-24 planes were built in the Soviet Union. Eighty-eight have now been lost because of crashes and 65 because of serious incidents without casualties, and 75 are currently in operation, according to data from the RussianPlanes web-portal and Reuters analysis.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/soviet-era-passenger-plane-crashes-russias-far-east-killing-all-48-board-2025-07-24/

Demand in China has begun surging for a business that, in theory, shouldn’t exist: the repair of advanced Nvidia (NVDA.O), artificial intelligence chipsets that the U.S. has banned the export of to its trade and tech rival.
Around a dozen boutique companies now offer repair services, according to two such firms in the tech hub of Shenzhen which say they predominantly fix Nvidia’s H100 graphics processing units (GPUs) that have somehow made their way to the country, as well as A100 GPUs and a range of other chips.

Even before it was launched, the H100 was banned from sale in China in September 2022 by U.S. authorities keen to rein in Chinese technological development, particularly advances that its military could use. Its predecessor, the A100, was also banned at the same time after being on the market for over two years.
“There is really significant repair demand,” said a co-owner of a firm that has been fixing Nvidia’s gaming GPUs for 15 years and began working on AI chips in late 2024.
Business has been so good that the owners created a new company to handle those orders, which now repairs up to 500 Nvidia AI chips per month. Its facilities, as shown in social media advertising, include a room which can accommodate 256 servers, simulating customers’ data centre environments to conduct testing and validate repairs.

The rapid growth of the repair industry from late last year supports the view that there has been a significant amount of smuggling of Nvidia chipsets into China. Tenders have shown that the government and the military have made purchases of the U.S. firm’s banned AI chips.
Concern about large-scale smuggling of high-end Nvidia products into China has prompted both Republican and Democratic lawmakers to introduce bills that would require the tracking of chipsets so that their location can be verified after they are sold. U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration also backed the idea this week.
The thriving repair industry also highlights how Nvidia’s advanced GPUs remain in high demand despite new, albeit less powerful, products from Chinese tech giant Huawei (HWT.UL).
Though the buying, selling and repair of Nvidia GPUs is not illegal in China, sources for this article were reluctant to draw scrutiny from U.S. or Chinese authorities and declined to be identified.

Nvidia cannot legally provide repair or replacement items for restricted products in China. In contrast, sources said if an Nvidia GPU in another nation has a defect and is under warranty, which is normally three years, the company usually replaces it.
An Nvidia spokesperson said only the company and authorised partners “are able to provide the service and support that customers need. Using restricted products without approved hardware, software, and technical support is a nonstarter, both technically and economically.”

REPAIR DEMAND MAY NOT FADE

Nvidia has only just been allowed to recommence sales of its H20 AI chipset, which has been specifically developed for China to comply with U.S. restrictions. Switching over to H20 chipsets is, however, not necessarily a simple or good option for Chinese entities.
Price is an issue as one H20 server with eight GPUs inside will likely cost more than 1 million yuan ($139,400), industry sources say. H20 chipsets, which have increased memory bandwidth, have been specifically designed for AI inference work, but firms involved in the training of large language models would likely prefer H100 chipsets which are better suited to that task.

Industry sources said some of the H100 and A100 GPUs in China have been crunching data around the clock for years now, leading to an increase in failure rates. Depending on how frequently a GPU is used and how often it is maintained, an Nvidia GPU generally lasts two to five years before needing to be repaired, they said.
According to the first source, his company charges between 10,000 yuan and 20,000 yuan ($1,400 to $2,800) to fix a GPU depending on the complexity of the problem.
The second Shenzhen-based repair service provider – which shifted from GPU rentals to repairs this year – says it can repair up to 200 Nvidia AI chips each month, charging about 10% of the GPUs’ original selling price per repair.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/china/china-repair-demand-banned-nvidia-ai-chipsets-booms-2025-07-24/

In response to rising US-China tensions and intensifying data security laws, BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, has implemented strict new rules for employees traveling to China. The policy, effective 16 July, prohibits the use of company-issued devices and network access during both business and personal travel, signalling growing corporate unease over regulatory unpredictability in the world’s second-largest economy.

On 16 July 2025, BlackRock Inc., which manages over $10 trillion in global assets, introduced a new internal travel protocol that bars employees from using company-issued iPhones, iPads, laptops, or accessing the company’s network while in China, according to internal memos reviewed by Bloomberg and Reuters.
Instead, travelling employees must rely on temporary “loaner” devices and are not permitted to access BlackRock systems via VPN or any remote access methods while in the country—even during personal visits. The move reflects increasing operational caution in a climate marked by tightened data laws and geopolitical volatility.

A federal court in Marshall, Texas, said on Wednesday that U.S. telecom company Verizon Wireless must pay $175 million in damages for violating an inventor’s patent rights related to wireless communications technology.

The jury’s decision in favor of Headwater Research comes just months after the firm secured a $278 million verdict in a separate patent dispute against Samsung over wireless technology, also in the same Marshall, Texas, federal court.

Spokespeople for Verizon and attorneys for Headwater did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Wednesday’s verdict.

Tyler, Texas-based Headwater was founded by scientist and inventor Gregory Raleigh. Headwater said in its complaint in 2023 that its patented technology allows wireless devices to “reduce data usage and network congestion, extend battery life by decreasing power consumption, and enable users to stay connected.”

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/business/verizon-owes-175-million-in-patent-infringement-case-texas-jury-says-5255456

Tesla(TSLA.O), Chief Executive Elon Musk said on Wednesday that U.S. government cuts in support for electric vehicle makers could lead to a “few rough quarters” for the company before a wave of revenue from self-driving software and services begins late next year.
Shares fell nearly 5% after Musk responded on a quarterly results conference call to questions about new U.S. government policies under President Donald Trump.

Musk’s electric vehicle maker posted the worst quarterly sales decline in more than a decade and profit that missed Wall Street targets, but its profit margin on making cars was better than many feared. Musk is pursuing autonomous driving to power privately owned vehicles as well as robotaxis that it plans to put into production next year.
In the meantime, it is working on a new, cheaper car, though Chief Financial Officer Vaibhav Taneja said that production would ramp up next quarter, slower than initially expected. It produced some initial units by the end of June. The company did not provide an update on its full-year deliveries forecast, citing the economy and timing of the new car rollout.

“Tesla’s disappointing results aren’t surprising given the rocky road it’s traveled recently,” said eMarketer analyst Jacob Bourne. “A truly affordable model will hit the bullseye in terms of boosting sales if Tesla can effectively position it right without detracting from its higher-priced models.”
The second straight quarterly revenue drop, with a 12% fall, comes despite the launch of a refreshed version of its best-selling Model Y SUV that investors had hoped would help revive demand.
A 51% dive in sales of automotive regulatory credits, which other automakers who have difficulty complying with government emissions rules buy from Tesla, also hurt revenue and profit.
Revenue fell to $22.5 billion for the April-June quarter from $25.50 billion a year earlier, slightly behind analyst targets compiled by LSEG. Adjusted profit per share of 40 cents lagged the Wall Street consensus.

The automotive gross margin, which excludes regulatory credits, was 14.96%, above Wall Street estimates, helped in part by lower cost per vehicle.
Pricing and margins are important as Tesla wrestles with demand and faces falling government support. Tesla global deliveries dropped 13.5% in the second quarter, and the U.S. government later this year is cutting $7,500 tax credits for EV buyers.
“We probably could have a few rough quarters,” Musk said, when asked about the credits. “I’m not saying we will, but we could – you know, Q4, Q1, maybe Q2, but once you get to autonomy at scale in the second half of next year, certainly by the end of next year, I think I’d be surprised if Tesla’s economics are not very compelling.”

AUTONOMOUS RIDE HAILING

Tesla had said in April it would start producing the more affordable model by the end of the first half and sources had told Reuters the vehicle, a stripped-down version of its Model Y SUV, would be delayed by at least months. Tesla on Wednesday did not disclose any details of the model, how many units it had made, or how it would be priced. Musk responded to a question of what the vehicle would look like by saying, “It’s just a Model Y,” joking that he “let the cat out of the bag there.”

Tesla’s lineup is relatively old, despite a recent refresh of the flagship Model Y, and it faces rising competition from cheaper EVs, especially in China, and a persistent backlash against Musk’s far-right political views.
The company also said it continued to expect volume production of its custom-built robotaxi – called the Cybercab – and Semi Truck in 2026.
Much of the company’s trillion-dollar valuation hangs on its bet on its robotaxi service – a small trial of which was started in Austin, Texas, last month with about a dozen Model Y SUVs – and on its development of humanoid robots.
“Autonomy is the story,” Musk said on the conference call, describing plans to roll out autonomous ride hailing to about half of the U.S. population by the end of this year. Tesla is looking for robotaxi regulatory approval in the San Francisco Bay Area, Nevada, Arizona, Florida and other places, he said, and the company is close to getting regulatory approval for supervised Full Self-Driving driver assistance software in the Netherlands. The robotaxi business was likely to have a material impact on financials around the end of next year, Musk said.
Investors are concerned about whether Musk will be able to devote enough time and attention to Tesla after he locked horns with Trump by forming a new political party this month. He had promised weeks earlier that he would cut back on government work and focus on his companies.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/tesla-likely-faces-a-few-rough-quarters-end-us-ev-support-musk-says-2025-07-23/

Hundreds of thousands of doses of mpox vaccine that the United States had promised to send to African nations are in danger of going to waste, dozens of congressional Democrats said in a letter to the U.S. State Department on Wednesday.
Forty-eight Democratic members of the House of Representatives, led by Representatives Mark Pocan of Wisconsin and Sara Jacobs of California, signed the letter, saying that the vaccines may expire as they sit in warehouses, wasting the U.S. taxpayer dollars that paid for them.

The letter said 800,000 doses of the vaccines are at risk, and that some 220,000 doses could be viable if the State Department begins shipping them immediately.
“This is a moral, strategic, and public health failure in the making,” the letter said.
The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Republican U.S. President Donald Trump has made sharp cuts to foreign aid programs since beginning his second term six months ago, firing thousands of aid agency employees and contractors and throwing global humanitarian operations into chaos.
The Republican-controlled Senate and House of Representatives passed legislation this month approving Trump’s request for about $8 billion in foreign aid cuts.

Trump has said the U.S. pays disproportionately for foreign aid, and he wants other countries to shoulder more of the burden.
The World Health Organization first declared the outbreak of mpox in August 2024, when an outbreak of a new form of the disease spread from the badly-hit Democratic Republic of Congo to neighboring countries.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/hundreds-thousands-us-taxpayer-funded-vaccine-doses-may-expire-lawmakers-say-2025-07-23/

CoinDCX in the FIR said that the full financial impact is being absorbed by the company’s treasury reserves, with no losses passed on to customers.

Indian cryptocurrency exchange CoinDCX has reported a major security breach resulting in a loss of approximately ₹378 crore ($44.2 million). The incident, which took place on July 19 at 4 am IST, involved unauthorized access to an internal operational account on a partner exchange. The company has assured users that their funds remain secure and unaffected.

In a FIR released on Sunday, CoinDCX said that the full financial impact is being absorbed by the company’s treasury reserves, with no losses passed on to customers. Co-founders Sumit Gupta and Neeraj Khandelwal addressed the situation on the social media platform X, attributing the breach to a “sophisticated server attack” targeting an internal wallet used for liquidity provisioning.

“Today, one of our internal operational accounts – used only for liquidity provisioning on a partner exchange – was compromised due to a sophisticated server breach. I confirm that the CoinDCX wallets used to store customer assets are not impacted and are completely safe. This won’t cause any loss to our customers. CoinDCX will be bearing the full amount,” Gupta posted.

Khandelwal added, “The total amount lost was ₹378 crore ($44 million) out of our treasury assets. CoinDCX Treasury will be bearing these losses.”

The incident was first flagged by blockchain investigator ZachXBT, after which CoinDCX made the breach public. However, the delay of nearly 17 hours before disclosure has sparked criticism online, even as many commended the company’s decision to protect user assets.

Following the news, a rush of withdrawal requests overwhelmed CoinDCX’s systems, causing its portfolio APIs—which display user balances and transaction histories—to become temporarily unresponsive. Many users were unable to view their holdings for several hours, fueling speculation and anxiety across platforms. The company later confirmed that the APIs have been restored.

CoinDCX stated that the affected infrastructure has been completely isolated, and platform operations are functioning normally. Trading activities, INR deposits, and withdrawals continue without disruption. The company clarified that INR withdrawals below ₹5 lakh will be processed within 5 hours, while those above ₹5 lakh will be completed within 72 hours.

CoinDCX has reported the breach to the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) and initiated forensic investigations in collaboration with two globally reputed cybersecurity firms. The company has committed to sharing its findings publicly.

Source: https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/coindcx-suffers-378-crore-security-breach-company-explains-what-happened-101753062902511.html

The India Cellular and Electronics Association (ICEA) has warned that unnotified trade restrictions imposed by China are disrupting supply chains and jeopardising India’s target of exporting $32 billion worth of smartphones in FY26. These measures, which impact capital goods, raw materials, and skilled personnel, could reverse India’s manufacturing gains and undermine its emerging role as a global electronics hub.

India’s electronics industry has raised serious concerns over China’s informal trade restrictions, which it claims are quietly undermining the country’s smartphone export ambitions. In a letter to the government, the India Cellular and Electronics Association (ICEA) said these curbs pose a significant threat to India’s export target of $32 billion for FY26, up from $24.1 billion the previous year.
The ICEA , whose members include Apple, Google, Motorola, Foxconn, Tata Electronics, Vivo, Oppo, Lava, Dixon, and Flex, said China has been deploying unofficial and sequential curbs on the export of capital equipment, rare minerals, and skilled Chinese personnel, all of which are critical to smartphone production in India.
“While domestic production remains relatively insulated for now, export-linked manufacturing to the tune of $24 billion in FY25, projected to cross $32 billion in FY26 in smartphones, has now come under serious risk,” ICEA said in its letter.

IIT Kharagpur graduate Pavan Guntupalli faced seven failed startups and 75 investor rejections before launching Rapido, India’s first bike-taxi platform now worth Rs 9,350 crore. His journey from failure to leading a transport revolution is a lesson in resilience, vision and timing.

When Pavan Guntupalli launched Rapido in 2015, few believed bike taxis could survive India’s crowded mobility market. But today, Rapido is valued at Rs 9,350 crore, operates in over 100 cities, and has been downloaded by over 5 crore users-all thanks to one man’s refusal to give up.
Before this success, Guntupalli endured seven failed ventures and 75 investor rejections. It wasn’t until a chance traffic jam sparked a breakthrough idea that things began to change.

Jio BlackRock, a high-profile joint venture between Jio Financial Services and global investment giant BlackRock, has made a ₹17,800 crore debut with three debt mutual fund schemes. But beyond the big numbers, it signals a strategic push to revolutionise Indian retail investing using tech, trust, and telecom.

Earlier this month, Jio BlackRock Asset Management, the 50:50 joint venture between Mukesh Ambani’s Jio Financial Services and US-based investment powerhouse BlackRock, marked its official entry into India’s mutual fund industry with a bang. The firm mobilised Rs 17,800 crore through the New Fund Offers (NFOs) of its first three debt-focused schemes.
This impressive launch places Jio BlackRock at 29th among 47 Indian fund houses by assets under management (AUM), based on June-quarter data. While it’s a long climb to the top in an industry where the top 10 players command 77 per cent of the Rs 72.3 trillion mutual fund space, Ambani and BlackRock are betting on scale, technology, and retail muscle to disrupt the game.

What is Jio BlackRock?

At its core, Jio BlackRock is a digital-first asset management company, seeking to fuse Reliance Jio’s telecom reach with BlackRock’s investment expertise. The goal is simple yet audacious: to bring millions of Indians—particularly from Tier II and Tier III cities—into the formal investment fold through mutual funds.
The venture aims to democratise access to mutual fund products, targeting users directly through Reliance’s financial ecosystem, especially the Jio Finance app, pre-installed on phones used by 475 million Reliance Jio subscribers.

Why Does It Matter?

India’s mutual fund industry has traditionally been top-heavy and metro-centric. Back in 2017, the top 35 cities accounted for about 90 per cent of the AUM. By March 2025, this had fallen to around 70 per cent, with rural and semi-urban participation rising steadily.
Jio BlackRock is well-positioned to tap into this shift. Its telecom backbone gives it reach, while BlackRock’s proprietary investment and risk-management systems offer the sophistication needed to manage funds at scale. “It’s not just about size—it’s about sustained performance,” said a Mumbai-based mutual fund analyst. “If they can marry performance with access, it could be a defining moment for Indian retail investing.”

How Will It Work?

Dolly Chaiwala, the viral tea-staller, has announced the launch of his business venture, receiving a plethora of applications to purchase the franchise.

Sunil Patil, also known as Dolly Chaiwala on the internet, has announced the launch of his business franchise Dolly Ki Tapri through an expensive franchise model across India. A Nagpur-based tea seller, Patil gained viral fame for his unique tea-serving style and a video appearance with Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates. He has now ventured into the business world, while also declaring his plans to expand the new brand.

“It’s India’s first viral street brand, and now… It’s a business opportunity. From carts to flagship cafes, we’re launching nationwide and looking for real people with real passion to carry this dream forward. If you’ve ever wanted to build something big, something desi, something truly legendary — this is your moment. Limited cities. Unlimited chai. Applications open now.” Patil wrote on his official social media channels, announcing the launch of “Dolly Ki Tapri”. The post contained a link to an application form through Instagram Stories, with three franchise options detailed for prospective business partners. Over 1,600 applications have already been received.

Dolly Chaiwala Franchise Cost

Dolly Chaiwala’s application form lists cart stall, store model and flagship cafe models with the range of costs described. While a cart stall can be bought for Rs 4.5 lakhs to Rs 6 lakhs in the venture, the store model franchise is available for Rs 20-22 lakhs. Business partners eyeing the Flagship Café model will have to shell out Rs 39 lakh to Rs 43 lakh. These models are part of Patil’s vision of growing the “Dolly Ki Tapri” from just a viral internet sensation to a well-structured and functioning nationwide business entity.

“Dolly Ki Tapri” Stuns The Internet Again

The announcement comes as tech giants such as Meta aggressively chase high-profile acquisitions and offer multi-million-dollar pay packages to attract top talent in the race to lead the next wave of artificial intelligence.

Mark Zuckerberg said on Monday that Meta Platforms would spend hundreds of billions of dollars on computing power to build superintelligence, intensifying his pursuit of a technology he has chased with a talent war for top AI engineers.

The announcement comes as tech giants such as Meta aggressively chase high-profile acquisitions and offer multi-million-dollar pay packages to attract top talent in the race to lead the next wave of artificial intelligence.

“We have the capital from our business to do this,” Zuckerberg said in a post on Threads.

The Facebook and Instagram parent has recently unveiled its new division, Meta Superintelligence Labs (MSL), to unify the company’s AI efforts, following setbacks with its Llama 4 model and key staff departures.

Source: https://www.deccanherald.com/business/companies/zuckerberg-says-meta-will-invest-hundreds-of-billions-in-superintelligence-2-3629833

The social media firm has slashed premium account subscription fee for mobile app by about 48 per cent to Rs 470 from Rs 900 it charged earlier on a monthly basis.

Social media platform X has slashed subscription fees for account holders in India by up to 48 per cent, according to updates on its portal.

The social media firm has slashed premium account subscription fee for mobile app by about 48 per cent to Rs 470 from Rs 900 it charged earlier on a monthly basis.

The subscribers of premium and premium-plus service at X get a checkmark next to their name or id.

Similarly, X has reduced premium subscription fee by about 34 per cent for web accounts to Rs 427 from Rs 650 charged earlier.

The charges for premium subscription on mobile apps are higher at Rs 470 due to additional fees charged by app stores.

The company has slashed monthly subscription for basic subscribers on their handle by 30 per cent to Rs 170 from Rs 243.75 earlier.

The basic account holder gets featured to enable them to edit posts, write longer posts, background video playback and they can download videos.

The reduction is about 34 per cent for the annual subscription fee of basic account, which will be billed Rs 1,700 on an annual basis, down from Rs 2,590.48 charged earlier.

The premium plus subscription of X account now cost users about 26 per cent less at Rs 2,570 on web compared to Rs 3,470 charged earlier.

The premium plus accounts on X are completely ad free, holders can write articles, get access to SuperGrok with Grok 4. These services are not available for premium and basic account holders.

Source : https://www.deccanherald.com/business/companies/x-slashes-subscription-fees-in-india-by-up-to-48-3626474

Tesla is set to open its first Indian showroom in Mumbai’s Bandra Kurla Complex on July 15. The Tesla India X account shared a “coming soon” post on Friday night.

Tesla has signalled its imminent entry into the Indian market with a “coming soon” teaser on its newly created X (formerly Twitter) account, giving a long-awaited update to fans and potential buyers in the country.

Tesla is set to open its first Indian showroom in Mumbai’s Bandra Kurla Complex on July 15. The opening marks the electric vehicle (EV) giant’s formal debut in the world’s third-largest car market. The company is expected to begin deliveries of its popular Model Y SUVs by late August, as per a report by Bloomberg.

The Mumbai showroom, referred to as a “Tesla experience centre” in invitations sent to the media, will initially open its doors to VIPs and business partners. General public access is likely to follow the week after. Visitors will reportedly be able to compare model options, check prices, and begin configuring orders, possibly as early as next week.

Tesla’s debut in India comes after years of speculation, lobbying over import duties, and even a cancelled visit by CEO Elon Musk last year. While Musk had earlier expressed interest in investing $2-3 billion to build EVs locally, reports suggest the company is currently focused on imports, not manufacturing.

Commercial records from January to June indicate that Tesla imported around $1 million worth of vehicles, chargers, and accessories into India, mainly from China and the US. This includes six Model Y SUVs, five priced at $32,500 each and one long-range variant at $46,000, as well as several Superchargers.

Due to India’s steep import duty of around 70% on fully-built cars under $40,000, the final price for Indian customers is expected to be significantly higher than the car’s US cost. This could make the Model Y a test case for how far Indian consumers are willing to stretch for the Tesla brand.

The timing of Tesla’s India entry aligns with its broader strategy to expand in newer markets amid declining sales elsewhere and underused capacity at its global factories. The Indian EV market, while still in its early stages, is growing steadily with increasing interest among urban buyers and policy pushes from the government.

Source : https://www.indiatoday.in/business/story/tesla-drops-coming-soon-teaser-on-new-x-account-ahead-of-india-launch-2754573-2025-07-11

Complaints were lodged after Grok posted antisemitic content, including praise for Adolf Hitler. Elon Musk’s xAI removed “inappropriate” posts.

Tech billionaire Elon Musk’s AI chatbot Grok is at the center of scandal after posting antisemitic remarks.

Developer xAI announced on Wednesday that it was in the process of removing “inappropriate posts” by Grok on the online platform X.

That comes after complaints from users on social media platform X and the US-based Anti-Defamation League (ADL) that Grok was producing content that had antisemitic tropes and praise for Adolf Hitler.

xAI removing ‘inappropriate posts’
In a post on X, Grok said it was “aware of recent posts made by Grok and [is] actively working to remove the inappropriate posts.”

“Since being made aware of the content, xAI has taken action to ban hate speech before Grok posts on X. xAI is training only truth-seeking and thanks to the millions of users on X, we are able to quickly identify and update the model where training could be improved.”

The ADL called for Grok, along with other producers of Large Language Model (LLM) software, to avoid “producing content rooted in antisemitic and extremist hate.”

“What we are seeing from Grok LLM right now is irresponsible, dangerous and antisemitic, plain and simple. This supercharging of extremist rhetoric will only amplify and encourage the antisemitism that is already surging on X and many other platforms,” the ADL said on X.

Source: https://www.dw.com/en/musks-grok-chatbot-at-the-center-of-antisemitic-scandal/a-73212009

As Bitcoin’s market cap has crossed into the trillions, more institutional investors are entering the space. Large firms that once stayed away are now taking positions in digital assets, helping push prices higher.

Bitcoin reached a fresh all-time high on Wednesday, climbing close to the $112,000 mark as demand from institutional investors and a broader appetite for risk continued to drive momentum in the cryptocurrency market.

The world’s most popular digital currency touched a new peak of $111,988.90 during the day and was last seen trading at $111,259, up 0.4%. Since the beginning of 2025, Bitcoin has gained more than 18%, making it one of the top-performing assets of the year so far.

The rally is being supported by several factors, including expectations of a rate cut in the United States, falling strength of the dollar, and a renewed interest from large financial firms that are now more comfortable investing in cryptocurrencies.

INSTITUTIONAL INTEREST ON THE RISE

Anthony Pompliano, founder and CEO of Professional Capital Management, said in a note to investors that Bitcoin has become a safer bet as it grows in market size. “Bitcoin is the only asset I am aware of where it becomes less risky as it grows in size,” he said, explaining that its trillion-dollar valuation now makes it suitable for big capital allocators.

As Bitcoin’s market cap has crossed into the trillions, more institutional investors are entering the space. Large firms that once stayed away are now taking positions in digital assets, helping push prices higher.

U.S. FED RATE OUTLOOK TRIGGERS RISK SENTIMENT

The recent surge in Bitcoin also followed the release of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s June meeting minutes. Most policymakers signalled support for at least one interest rate cut in 2025, which sparked a risk-on mood in global markets. Investors see this as a positive sign for assets like Bitcoin that often benefit from easier monetary conditions.

Edul Patel, Co-founder and CEO of crypto investment platform Mudrex, said Bitcoin broke out of its consolidation phase and cleared key resistance levels following the Fed’s update. He said that “Bitcoin recorded a fresh all-time high of $112,022” and added that the weakening U.S. dollar made the cryptocurrency more attractive.

The U.S. dollar index dropped to its weakest level in 21 years when compared to its 200-day moving average, pushing many investors to shift to alternative stores of value like Bitcoin.

MARKET LOOKS AHEAD TO CPI DATA AND FED MEETING

Patel also pointed out that Bitcoin is now trading above $111,300, and if momentum continues, it could enter a price discovery phase—where prices move into uncharted territory with no clear resistance levels.

However, traders are now focusing on the U.S. inflation data due on July 11 and the Federal Reserve’s upcoming policy decision. These two events could shape the next direction of the cryptocurrency market.

Another boost for Bitcoin has come from recent pro-crypto moves in the U.S. political landscape. The Trump administration’s friendly stance towards digital assets has added confidence among crypto traders.

Reports suggest that Trump Media & Technology Group, led by members of the U.S. president’s family, is preparing to launch an exchange-traded fund (ETF) that will invest in multiple cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, Ether, Solana, and Ripple. The firm has filed the necessary paperwork with the U.S. markets regulator.

Source: https://www.indiatoday.in/business/market/story/bitcoin-all-time-high-usd-112000-near-crypto-currency-price-rise-fed-rate-cut-investor-optimism-2753509-2025-07-10

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva says that his nation would act with reciprocity.

United States President Donald Trump launched his global tariff assault into overdrive on Wednesday (Jul 9), announcing a new 50 per cent tariff on US copper imports and a 50 per cent duty on goods from Brazil, both to start on Aug 1.

“I am announcing a 50 per cent TARIFF on Copper, effective Aug 1, 2025, after receiving a robust NATIONAL SECURITY ASSESSMENT,” Trump said in a post on his Truth Social media platform, a reference to a “Section 232” national security trade investigation into the red metal that has been underway.

The announcement came hours after he also informed Brazil that its “reciprocal” tariff on Aug 1 would rise to 50 per cent from 10 per cent, a shockingly high level for a country with a balanced US trade relationship.

Trump first broached the copper tariff during a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday, setting off a scramble by companies to import as much copper as soon as possible from Chile and other major suppliers.

He blamed the decline of the US copper industry on past administrations, saying copper was needed for semiconductors, aircraft, electric vehicle batteries and military hardware.

“America will, once again, build a DOMINANT Copper Industry,” Trump wrote.

Trump’s Brazil tariff order came in a letter to Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva that vented anger over what he called the “Witch Hunt” trial of Lula’s right-wing predecessor, Jair Bolsonaro, and added to an increasingly bitter public feud with Lula.

Trump also criticised what he said were Brazil’s attacks on free elections, Americans’ free speech and “SECRET and UNLAWFUL Censorship Orders to US Social Media platforms”.

He ordered the US Trade Representative’s office to launch a new “Section 301” unfair trade practices investigation that could add even more tariffs, citing “Brazil’s continued attacks on the Digital Trade Activities of American companies”.

But Trump’s letter to Lula contained the same language as previous form letters describing Brazil’s trading relationship as “very unfair”.

Lula on Wednesday said that his nation would act with reciprocity.

“Any measure to unilaterally raise tariffs will be responded to in accordance with Brazil’s Economic Reciprocity Law,” Lula’s office said in a statement.

However, the government hit back at X and accused it of twisting facts and delaying unblocking the accounts of Reuters.

New Delhi: Elon Musk-owned social media platform X on Tuesday expressed deep concern about “ongoing press censorship” in India, days after global news agency Reuters’ account was ‘withheld’ in the country after an order by the Narendra Modi government.

However, the government hit back at X and accused it of twisting facts and delaying unblocking the accounts of Reuters.

X’s Global Government Affairs account has claimed that last week (July 3), the Indian government ordered the social media platform to block 2,355 accounts in the country, including that of Reuters “under Section 69A of the IT Act”. It added that non-compliance with the order “risked criminal liability”.

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology demanded immediate action- within one hour, without providing justification, and required the accounts to remain blocked until further notice, the post said.

After public outcry, the government requested X to unblock @Reuters and @ReutersWorld, the X said in its post.

“We are deeply concerned about ongoing press censorship in India due to these blocking orders. X is exploring all legal options available. Unlike users located in India, X is restricted by Indian law in its ability to bring legal challenges against these executive orders. We urge affected users to pursue legal remedies through the courts,” X said.

The social media platform also claimed that India’s IT ministry demanded that X adhere to the order “within an hour” and did not provide any “justification” for the move.

Source: https://www.deccanherald.com/india/govt-denies-making-any-fresh-demand-for-blockage-of-global-wire-agencys-x-account-3620998

During a meeting with Anton Siluanov, Finance Minister of Russia, Sitharaman expressed gratitude for the support extended by President Vladimir Putin after the Pahalgam terror attack, the finance ministry said in a post on X.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman held a series of bilateral meetings, including with Russian and Chinese counterparts, and discussed issues of bilateral cooperation and interests.

These meetings were held on the sidelines of the BRICS Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meeting in Rio de Janeiro.

During a meeting with Anton Siluanov, Finance Minister of Russia, Sitharaman expressed gratitude for the support extended by President Vladimir Putin after the Pahalgam terror attack, the finance ministry said in a post on X.

The two leaders discussed India-Russia long-standing partnership.

The finance minister observed that India and Russia enjoy exemplary levels of mutual trust and understanding and our Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership remains resilient and steadfast, it said.

The two sides also discussed issues of bilateral cooperation, including cooperation in the financial sector, along with matters related to NDB.

In another bilateral meeting with her Chinese counterpart Lan Fo’an, both leaders discussed strengthening collaboration across a wide range of areas due to the common rich human capital, deep civilisational ties, and expanding economic influence.

The two leaders recalled their last meeting in Samarkand in September 2024 on the sidelines of the AIIB Annual Meetings, another post by the finance ministry said.

Sitharaman underlined that India and China are uniquely positioned to drive inclusive global growth and innovation as the two nations are the largest and fastest-growing economies in the world.

The finance minister suggested that deeper engagement between the two countries can help amplify the voice of developing economies, and shape global narratives that reflect the priorities and aspirations of the global South, it said.

During bilateral meeting with Thomas Djiwandono, Vice Finance Minister of Indonesia, Sitharaman said India looks forward to hosting the Indonesia Economic and Financial Dialogue soon.

She also thanked Indonesia for their support in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack, a separate post on X by the finance ministry said.

Source: https://www.freepressjournal.in/business/at-brics-meet-fm-nirmala-sitharaman-holds-bilateral-talks-with-china-russia-brazil-and-indonesia

After a 25-year presence, Microsoft has reportedly shut down its operations in Pakistan, leaving only a small liaison office. Founding country manager Jawwad Rehman called the move “more than a corporate exit,” reflecting on the deteriorating business climate that even global tech giants find unsustainable.

Global software giant Microsoft has formally exited Pakistan, ending a 25-year presence that began in June 2000. The decision, although not publicly announced by the company itself, was confirmed through a LinkedIn post by Jawwad Rehman, the founding country manager of Microsoft Pakistan.
The exit reportedly comes after years of gradual downsizing, culminating in the complete closure of operational activities and a reduction to a small liaison office with just five employees. This move has raised significant concerns in Pakistan’s business and tech communities, with observers warning that it reflects broader structural challenges facing the country’s investment environment.

“End of an Era”: A Founder Reflects

In his emotionally charged post titled “End of an Era… Microsoft Pakistan”, Rehman wrote: “Today, I learned that Microsoft is officially closing its operations in Pakistan. The last few remaining employees were formally informed and just like that, an era ends…”
Rehman, who launched Microsoft Pakistan in 2000, said the departure was not just a business decision but a sobering signal of Pakistan’s worsening economic and governance conditions. “This is more than a corporate exit. It’s a sobering signal of the environment our country has created… one where even global giants like Microsoft find it unsustainable to stay,” he wrote.

He further questioned the national leadership and policy drift, asking: “We must ask: What changed? What was lost? What happened to the values, leadership, and vision that once made it all possible?”

Why Microsoft Left

While Microsoft has made no official comment, reports suggest that its retreat stems from macroeconomic instability, regulatory uncertainty, digital policy inconsistency, and a shrinking commercial market. Pakistan’s current foreign exchange challenges, import restrictions, and poor ease-of-doing-business rankings have already triggered exits or downsizing from several multinational firms over the past three years.
TechRadar reported that Microsoft’s presence in Pakistan had been steadily diminishing, and the remaining employees were formally informed this week. With this move, Microsoft joins a growing list of multinationals, including Procter & Gamble, Suzuki, and Lotte, that have restructured or exited operations in Pakistan due to a difficult economic environment.

The gain in forex reserves during week ended June 27 was led by an increase in foreign currency assets, which surge by $5.75 billion to $594.82 billion.

India’s Latest Forex Reserves: India’s foreign exchange reserves rose sharply by $4.84 billion to $702.78 billion in the week ended June 27, bringing them within striking distance of the all-time-high level of $704.89 billion recorded in end-September 2024, according to the latest data released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

This marks a strong rebound from late January levels, when reserves had fallen to a multi-month low of around $624 billion.

The gain was led by an increase in foreign currency assets, while gold reserves declined. The value of gold reserves fell $1.23 billion to $84.5 billion, while foreign currency assets surged by $5.75 billion to $594.82 billion.

Foreign currency assets, expressed in dollar terms, account for the impact of the appreciation or depreciation of other currencies such as the euro, pound, and yen held in the reserves.

Special drawing rights (SDRs) rose by $158 million to $18.83 billion during the week ended June 27. India’s reserve position with the IMF also saw an uptick of $176 million to $4.62 billion, according to the RBI data released on July 4.

Despite the headline rise in reserves, the RBI’s forward dollar book — which represents future dollar obligations — fell by $19 billion in April and May, shrinking to $65.2 billion in May from a record $88.7 billion in February. However, the RBI’s net dollar sales during the same period were relatively modest at $3.2 billion.

The forward book positions matter because they can offset part of the comfort provided by headline reserves, as they reflect future dollar outflows.

The rupee, which has seen increased volatility since April amid global trade tensions, has also been supported by the RBI intervention. The central bank strategically buys dollars when the rupee is strong and sells them when it weakens to smooth out volatility and prevent steep depreciation.

In its last monetary policy statement, RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra said India’s forex reserves were adequate to cover 11 months of imports and 96% of the country’s external debt, underlining the strength of India’s external position.

Source : https://www.news18.com/business/economy/indias-forex-reserves-cross-700-billion-again-near-all-time-high-9422071.html

Nvidia was on track to become the most valuable company in history on Thursday (Jul 2), with the chipmaker’s market capitalisation reaching US$3.92 trillion as Wall Street doubled down on optimism about artificial intelligence.

Shares of the leading designer of high-end AI chips were up 2.2 per cent at US$160.60 in morning trading, giving the company a higher market capitalisation than Apple’s record closing value of US$3.915 trillion on Dec 26, 2024.

Nvidia’s newest chips have made gains in training the largest AI models, fueling demand for products by the Santa Clara, California, company.

Microsoft is currently the second-most valuable company on Wall Street, with a market capitalisation of US$3.7 trillion as its shares rose 1.5 per cent to US$498.5.

Apple rose 0.8 per cent, giving it a market value of US$3.19 trillion, in third place.

A race among Microsoft, Amazon.com, Meta Platforms, Alphabet and Tesla to build AI data centres and dominate the emerging technology has fueled insatiable demand for Nvidia’s high-end processors.

“When the first company crossed a trillion dollars, it was amazing. And now you’re talking four trillion, which is just incredible. It tells you that there’s this huge rush with AI spending and everybody’s chasing it right now,” said Joe Saluzzi, co-manager of trading at Themis Trading.

The stock market value of Nvidia, whose core technology was developed to power video games, has increased nearly eightfold over the past four years, from US$500 billion in 2021.

Nvidia is now worth more than the combined value of the Canadian and Mexican stock markets, according to LSEG data. The tech company also exceeds the total value of all publicly listed companies in the United Kingdom.

Nvidia recently traded at about 32 times analysts’ expected earnings for the next 12 months, below its average of about 41 over the past five years, according to LSEG data.

That relatively modest price-to-earnings valuation reflects steadily increasing earnings estimates that have outpaced Nvidia’s sizable stock gains.

The company’s stock has now rebounded more than 68 per cent from its recent closing low on Apr 4, when Wall Street was reeling from President Donald Trump’s global tariff announcements.

US stocks, including Nvidia, have recovered on expectations that the White House will cement trade deals to soften Trump’s tariffs. Nvidia holds a weight of nearly 7.4 per cent on the benchmark S&P 500.

AI POSTER CHILD
Nvidia’s swelling market capitalisation underscores Wall Street’s big bets on the proliferation of generative AI technology, with the chipmaker’s hardware serving as the foundation.

Co-founded in 1993 by CEO Jensen Huang, Nvidia has evolved from a niche company popular among video game enthusiasts into Wall Street’s barometer for the AI industry.

The stock’s recent rally comes after a slow first half of the year, when investor optimism about AI took a back seat to worries about tariffs and Trump’s trade dispute with Beijing.

Chinese startup DeepSeek in January triggered a selloff in global equities markets with a cut-price AI model that outperformed many Western competitors and sparked speculation that companies might spend less on high-end processors.

Source: https://www.channelnewsasia.com/business/nvidia-set-become-most-valuable-company-history-ai-5218971

In terms of extant guidelines, banks and NBFCs are not permitted to levy foreclosure charges/pre-payment penalties on any floating rate term-loan sanctioned to individual borrowers with or without co-obligant(s) for purposes other than business.

The RBI on Wednesday directed banks and other lenders not to levy any pre-payment charges on all floating-rate loans and advances, including for business purposes, availed by individuals and micro and small enterprises (MSEs).

The directions will be applicable to all loans and advances sanctioned or renewed on or after January 1, 2026.

In terms of extant guidelines, banks and NBFCs are not permitted to levy foreclosure charges/pre-payment penalties on any floating rate term-loan sanctioned to individual borrowers with or without co-obligant(s) for purposes other than business.

In a circular, the Reserve Bank said the availability of easy and affordable financing to micro and small enterprises (MSEs) is of paramount importance.

However, the Reserve Bank’s supervisory reviews have indicated divergent practices among regulated entities (REs) with regard to the levy of pre-payment charges in case of loans sanctioned to MSEs, which lead to customer grievances and disputes, it said.

Based on a review of the supervisory findings and public feedback received on a draft circular, the central bank has issued the Reserve Bank of India (Pre-payment Charges on Loans) Directions, 2025.

For all loans granted for business purpose to individuals and MSEs, with or without co-obligant(s), a commercial bank (excluding Small Finance bank, Regional Rural bank and Local Area bank), a Tier 4 Primary (Urban) Co-operative bank, an NBFC-UL, and an All India Financial Institution “shall not levy any pre-payment charges”, said the directions.

Also, for all loans granted for purposes other than business to individuals, with or without co-obligant(s), a regulated entity (RE) shall not levy pre-payment charges, it said.

“A Small Finance bank, a Regional Rural bank, a Tier 3 Primary (Urban) Cooperative bank, State Cooperative bank, Central Cooperative bank and an NBFCML shall not levy any pre-payment charges on loans with sanctioned amount/ limit up to Rs 50 lakh,” it added.

The RBI also said the norms will be applicable irrespective of the source of funds used for pre-payment of loans, either in part or in full, and without any minimum lock-in period.

Source : https://www.deccanherald.com/business/rbi-directs-banks-other-lenders-not-to-levy-pre-payment-charges-on-biz-loans-to-individuals-mses-3613159

Meta (META.O), CEO Mark Zuckerberg has reorganized the company’s artificial intelligence efforts under a new division called Meta Superintelligence Labs, according to a source on Monday.
The division will be headed by Alexandr Wang, former CEO of data labeling startup Scale AI. He will be the chief AI officer of the new initiative at the social media giant, the source said.

The high-stakes push follows senior staff departures and a poor reception for Meta’s latest open-source Llama 4 model, challenges that have allowed rivals including Google, OpenAI and China’s DeepSeek to seize momentum in the AI race.

Zuckerberg hopes the new lab will fast-track work on artificial general intelligence – machines that can outthink humans – and help create new cash flows from the Meta AI app, image-to-video ad tools and smart glasses.
Over the past month, Zuckerberg personally led an aggressive talent raid, floating offers for startups including OpenAI co-founder Ilya Sutskever’s Safe Superintelligence (SSI) and courting prospects directly on WhatsApp with million-dollar pay packages.
Earlier this month, the Facebook and Instagram parent invested $14.3 billion in Scale AI.
Apart from Wang and some Scale AI staff, the new division will reportedly include SSI’s co-founder and CEO, Daniel Gross.

Former GitHub CEO Nat Friedman will co-lead the Superintelligence Labs with Wang and head the company’s work on AI products and applied research, according to the source.
Zuckerberg has also brought on 11 new hires in the AI field, including researchers from OpenAI, Anthropic and Google, the source said.
The new appointments include former DeepMind researchers Jack Rae and Pei Sun; several OpenAI alumni such as Jiahui Yu, Shuchao Bi, Shengjia Zhao and Hongyu Ren; as well as Anthropic’s Joel Pobar, who previously spent more than a decade at Meta, according to the source.
Earlier this month, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said Meta had offered his employees bonuses of $100 million to recruit them.
But some analysts worry that Meta’s AGI bet could be another moonshot to yield near-term returns. Its other big bet, the Reality Labs unit, has burned through more than $60 billion since 2020, with little to show beyond the Ray-Ban smart glasses and Quest headsets.

Together, big tech companies are expected to spend $320 billion on AI this year.
In 2024, Microsoft spent $650 million to scoop up most of Inflection AI’s staff, including co-founder Mustafa Suleyman, while Amazon poached key talent from Adept.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/business/meta-deepens-ai-push-with-superintelligence-lab-source-says-2025-06-30/

Hong Kong builder New World Development said on Monday (Jun 30) it had received commitments for a HK$88.2 billion (US$11.24 billion) loan refinancing, as the builder finalises a crucial lifeline in a distressed property market.

New World’s refinancing, poised to be one of the largest ever seen in Hong Kong, concludes months of negotiations over a debt package designed to steer the company away from the brink of default.

The deal offers a temporary reprieve, while China’s prolonged property downturn continues to cast a shadow over the developer’s outlook.

New World said it had refinanced portions of its existing offshore unsecured debt, including bank loans, through a new facility, and had also aligned the terms of its remaining loan agreements.

The new facility consists of multiple tranches of bank loans with different maturities, with the earliest being Jun 30, 2028.

The refinancing includes terms such as financial covenants and security over certain assets that provide the firm with greater flexibility to effectively manage its ongoing business operations and financial requirements, the company said.

“We would like to express our sincere gratitude to the banking community for their continued support. This is a testament to the confidence placed in our operation,” said Echo Huang, CEO of New World.

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/business/hong-kongs-new-world-development-gets-us1124-billion-refinancing-5211381

Oil prices edged down on Tuesday, weighed by expectations of an OPEC+ output hike in August and concerns of an economic slowdown driven by prospects of higher U.S. tariffs.

Brent crude futures for September delivery fell 16 cents, or 0.24 per cent, to $66.58 a barrel by 0000 GMT. U.S.

West Texas Intermediate crude declined 20 cents, or 0.31 per cent, to $64.91 a barrel.

“The market is now concerned that the OPEC+ alliance will continue with its accelerated rate of output increases,” ANZ senior commodity strategist Daniel Hynes said in a note.

Four OPEC+ sources told Reuters last week that the group plans to raise output by 411,000 barrels per day in August, following similar hikes in May, June, and July.

If approved, this would bring OPEC+’s total supply increase for the year to 1.78 million bpd, equivalent to more than 1.5 per cent of global oil demand. OPEC and its allies including Russia, together known as OPEC+, will meet on July 6.

Uncertainty about U.S. tariffs and their impact on global growth also kept a lid on oil prices.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent warned that countries could be notified of sharply higher tariffs despite good-faith negotiations as a July 9 deadline approaches, when tariff rates are scheduled to revert from a temporary 10 per cent level to President Donald Trump’s suspended rates of 11 per cent to 50 per cent announced on April 2.

Morgan Stanley expects Brent futures to retrace to around $60 by early next year, with the market being well supplied and geopolitical risk abating following the Israel-Iran de-escalation. It expects an oversupply of 1.3 million bpd in 2026.

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/business/oil-edges-down-expectations-more-opec-supply-tariff-fears-5212936

Nvidia’s (NVDA.O),  stock hit a record high on Wednesday, and the chipmaker reclaimed the crown as the world’s most valuable company after an analyst said the chipmaker was set to ride a “Golden Wave” of artificial intelligence.
Shares of the Santa Clara, California-based company rose over 4% to a record high of $154.10. The rise sent Nvidia’s stock market value to $3.76 trillion, overtaking Microsoft (MSFT.O), which was last valued at $3.65 trillion following a 0.2% increase in its stock.

Fueling Nvidia’s latest rally, Loop Capital lifted its price target for the designer of high-end AI processors to $250 from $175, while maintaining its “buy” rating.
“Our work suggests we are entering the next ‘Golden Wave’ of Gen AI adoption and NVDA is at the front-end of another material leg of stronger than anticipated demand,” Loop Capital analyst Ananda Baruah wrote in a client note.
Nvidia’s latest gains reflect the U.S. stock market’s return to the “AI trade” that fueled massive gains in chip stocks and related technology companies in recent years on optimism about the emerging technology.

Nvidia recently traded at about 30 times analysts’ expected earnings for the next 12 months, below its average of about 40 over the past five years, according to LSEG data. That relatively modest price-to-earnings valuation reflects steadily increasing earnings estimates that have outpaced Nvidia’s sizable stock gains.
Nvidia, Microsoft and Apple (AAPL.O), have traded places several times as the world’s most valuable company over the past year, with Microsoft leading recently after overtaking Nvidia in early June.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/business/nvidia-hits-record-high-analyst-predicts-ai-golden-wave-2025-06-25/

At least 11 people were killed, including a teenager, and more wounded in a Tuesday night shooting in the central Mexican city of Irapuato, authorities said on Wednesday.
The attorney general’s office in Guanajuato, the violence-plagued state where Irapuato is located, said that 20 others were hospitalized with gunshot wounds.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said earlier on Wednesday that the victims included children, although the attorney general’s office later confirmed only one casualty was a minor, aged 17.

“It is very unfortunate what happened. An investigation is under way,” Sheinbaum said.
Local media reported the shooting happened during an evening party celebrating a Catholic holiday, the Nativity of John the Baptist.
A video circulating on social media showed people dancing in the patio of a housing complex while a band played in the background, before gunfire erupted. Reuters was not immediately able to verify the video.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/least-10-killed-home-shooting-central-mexico-2025-06-25/

Global environmental lobby Greenpeace added its voice on Monday to protests against this week’s celebrity wedding in Venice between American tech billionaire Jeff Bezos and journalist Laura Sanchez.
The event, expected to attract some 200 guests including U.S. President Donald Trump’s daughter Ivanka and son-in-law Jared Kushner, as well as scores of stars from film, fashion and business, has been dubbed “the wedding of the century”.

But some locals see the celebration as the latest sign of the brash commodification of a beautiful but fragile city that has long been overrun with tourism while steadily depopulating.
Activists from Greenpeace Italy and UK group “Everyone hates Elon” (Musk) unfolded a giant banner in central St Mark’s Square with a picture of Bezos laughing and a sign reading: “If you can rent Venice for your wedding you can pay more tax.”
Local police arrived to talk to activists and check their identification documents, before they rolled up their banner.
“The problem is not the wedding, the problem is the system. We think that one big billionaire can’t rent a city for his pleasure,” Simona Abbate, one of the protesters, told Reuters.

Mayor Luigi Brugnaro and regional governor Luca Zaia have defended the wedding, arguing that it will bring an economic windfall to local businesses, including the motor boats and gondolas that operate its myriad canals.
Zaia said the celebrations were expected to cost 20-30 million euros ($23-$34 million).
Bezos will also make sizable charity donations, including a million euros for Corila, an academic consortium that studies Venice’s lagoon ecosystem, Italy’s Corriere della Sera newspaper and the ANSA news agency reported on Sunday.
Earlier this month, anti-Bezos banners were hung from St Mark’s bell tower and from the famed Rialto bridge, while locals threatened peaceful blockades against the event, saying Venice needed public services and housing, not VIPs and over-tourism.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/greenpeace-joins-protests-against-gala-bezos-wedding-venice-2025-06-23/

The proposal will burn India’s foreign reserves, decrease foreign exchange inflow, and disrupt non-residents’ existing financial strategies.

On May 22, 2025, the US House of Representatives passed the controversial ‘The One, Big, Beautiful Bill’. The Bill includes a significant provision levying an excise tax on every single dollar of remittance or international money transfer made by non-US citizens. The proposal has inevitably sent shockwaves across immigrant communities, especially, the second-largest migrant community, the Indian diaspora. As per the RBI’s March 2025 report, the US accounted for 28% of India’s total remittances of $118 billion, which amounts to $33 billion in the financial year 2024.

What is the remittance tax?

The Big Beautiful Bill proposes to levy a 3.5% (originally envisaged 5%) excise tax on every outbound remittance made by immigrants. This means, for example, a single transaction of Rs. 1 lakh ($1154.96) transfer will attract Rs. 3,500 (USD 40.42). In the absence of any cap, the new tax will apply to all transfers, whether single or multiple, small or big in amount. If one goes by the RBI’s latest report, the Indian community should prepare to cough up a little over $1 billion in remittance taxes, annually.

Who are the subjects?

Non-US residents having assets or income in the US, including ESOP proceeds, restricted stock units (RSUs), employees holding work permit H1B, H2A, L1 visas, students holding F1 visa, and Green Card holders awaiting US citizenship will be subject to the tax.

The Bill exempts US citizens or nationals, individuals of Indian origin holding US citizenship, provided they use ‘qualified remittance transfer providers’ from the tax ambit. In case of remittances made through non-qualified channels, the tax will apply. However, they are eligible to claim it as a tax refund.

Who gets a tax refund?

The exempted US citizens and nationals can claim back full tax refund, subject to providing a valid Social Security Number or SSN (similar to India’s Aadhaar) and proof of taxes paid. As the new levy is labelled as ‘Excise Tax on Remittances’ and not a tax on income, it is very unlikely to fall within the ambit of Article 2 of the India-US tax treaty. Thus, it may not extend the refund mechanism to non-resident Indians. Also, as of now, there is no clarity whether this additional tax will be available for a tax credit in India.

Effect on Indian households

The proposal will burn India’s foreign reserves, decrease foreign exchange inflow, and disrupt non-residents’ existing financial strategies. Whether a non-resident is supporting aged parents, funding education, healthcare, household consumption, or investing in real estate back in India, they will all feel the pinch. The remittance from the US is a lifeline for thousands of families in the country.

A significant drop in remittances is likely to affect real estate investments in major Indian cities, including Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Mumbai, Delhi’s NCR, as well as capital market and gold. The young Indian working professionals will be hit hard, because a large chunk of their salaries go into repaying higher education loans taken out here.

As per a research report, the levy may result in a 10-15% decrease in remittances to India, or a $12-18 billion yearly shortfall.

What should NRIs do?

Indian professionals as a permanent solution may negotiate with their employers the additional 3.5% cost as part of their salary package, or increase the part of the salary paid here, to set off the impact effectively. Since the tax will apply across all legitimate channels, including NRE/NRO accounts and traditional banks backed by increased regulatory supervision and stricter KYC norms, it will be very difficult to bypass the levy. The compliance burden for non-residents will increase manifold.

Indian govt’s reaction

A finance ministry official reportedly told a local daily that the Government is yet to make an impact analysis of the remittance tax. However, a formal word could be expected during the upcoming monsoon session of the Parliament.

Source : https://www.deccanherald.com/business/economy/the-big-beautiful-bill-its-impact-on-indian-households-3597797

The crash must prompt fundamental reforms—beginning with the regulator and extending to airline management—as the aviation ecosystem is structurally compromised.

The Indian aviation industry is facing its biggest crisis in decades as it grapples with the devastating crash of Air India’s Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner at Ahmedabad on June 12, 2025. The London-bound AI171 went down just 36 seconds after takeoff, killing over 240 passengers and several others on the ground.

The tragedy has shattered the airline’s narrative of renewal under Tata Group ownership, exposing deep cracks in its safety culture and raising fresh questions about the effectiveness of regulatory oversight in one of the world’s fastest-growing aviation markets.

A pattern of neglect

Air India has been under scrutiny for repeated safety violations in recent years, particularly since Tata Sons took over the airline.

More of that later. In September 2022, Air India unveiled a five–year roadmap called Vihaan.AI, focusing on five key pillars: exceptional customer experience, robust operations, industry-best talent, industry leadership, and commercial efficiency and profitability.

But an entirely different scenario has been unfolding since the Renaissance project was launched nearly three years ago.

A recent Reuters report stated that days before the crash, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) had warned the airline about operating three Airbus aircraft without conducting any inspections of the critical emergency escape slides. According to the report, one aircraft was allowed to fly international routes despite safety checks being overdue by over a month; another had missed inspections by more than three months.

In another instance, and as recently as February this year, the regulator imposed a Rs 30 lakh penalty on Air India for allegedly allowing one of the pilots to operate a flight without complying with certain regulatory norms. The DGCA, in its order, stated that it has found “recurrent rostering issues” among the crew, which violate flight duty time and rest periods.

On an earlier occasion, a DGCA review in 2023 revealed that internal safety audit reports by the airline at major airports, including Delhi, Mumbai, and Goa, had been altered. The report was shared with the regulator after being asked to do so by the regulator. Moreover, it was reported that an unauthorised official had allegedly signed off on safety documents, including medical and ramp checks.

Regulatory shortfalls

The DGCA’s role in this unfolding disaster cannot be ignored, either. It is widely acknowledged that the watchdog is dangerously understaffed and underfunded to an extent that raises serious concerns. Parliamentary data shows half of the posts in the organisation are vacant. Adding to their woes, a Parliamentary Standing Committee reported a 91% cut in funding for civil aviation safety infrastructure earlier this year, even as the number of domestic airports has doubled from 74 in 2014 to 147.

Such a resource crunch is likely to impact the regulator’s efficiency. There have been multiple reports about how audits are conducted in a hurry or are skipped altogether. In the case of Air India, repeated warnings appear to have failed to elicit corrective action.

The economic fallout

The economic impact of the crash is expected to hurt all the stakeholders. According to preliminary estimates, the insurance payout could reach $475 million, making it one of India’s costliest aviation claims. That includes $125 million for the aircraft’s hull and engines, and roughly $350 million in passenger liability.

The ripple effects are already visible. Insurance premiums for Indian carriers, especially those operating Boeing fleets, are expected to rise by up to 100% in the next underwriting cycle. Air India and SpiceJet, both major Boeing customers, may see premiums increase from $28 million to between $40 million and $50 million annually. The cost will likely be passed on to passengers through higher ticket prices, estimated to rise by 2% to 5% or even more on metro routes.

Aircraft leasing costs are also expected to increase, especially for Boeing models. Lessors will now factor in higher risk and insurance liabilities.

Mounting safety breaches

Meanwhile, two former senior flight attendants have written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, alleging that they were asked to resign from the airline for refusing to lie about a serious safety incident involving the same model of Dreamliner that crashed. According to their June 19 letter, a door malfunction on flight AI-129 in May 2024 resulted in the accidental deployment of an emergency slide raft after the aircraft landed at Heathrow Airport in London. The incident, they say, was hushed up by both the airline and the DGCA, and if there was ever a formal inquiry, it was never made public.

Another whistleblower, Captain Deven Kanani, claims he was dismissed in 2023 after raising the oxygen supply issues on Boeing 777 flights operating on high-altitude routes. According to him, the aircraft had just 12 minutes of oxygen reserve—barely enough in the event of sudden depressurisation.

These incidents don’t appear to be isolated. In 2024 alone, the aviation ministry reported 23 safety violations by Indian carriers, 12 of which involved Air India or its low-fare airline, Air India Express. The violations ranged from unauthorised cockpit access to insufficient oxygen supplies. This led to Air India being fined its largest amount, $127,000.

Need for reform

The crash must prompt fundamental reforms—beginning with the regulator and extending to airline management—as the aviation ecosystem is structurally compromised.

The Government must recruit professionals to manage the DGCA. An earlier experiment to get executives from global consultancy companies to hold key positions in the organisation resulted in chaos rather than strengthening it. The agency should be empowered to hire the best in the business, and remuneration should be market-driven. Surveillance should shift from reactive audits to real-time monitoring using digital tools, predictive analytics, and rigorous flight safety databases.

The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) requires increased funding, which would enable the agency to modernise its investigative capabilities. Its Rs 9 crore black box lab reportedly failed to retrieve data from the damaged recorders in the Ahmedabad crash, underlining the need for investment in technical infrastructure.

Source : https://www.deccanherald.com/business/companies/flight-ai-171-wasn-t-an-accident-it-was-a-consequence-3597806

Tesla (TSLA.O), deployed a small group of self-driving taxis picking up paying passengers on Sunday in Austin, Texas, with CEO Elon Musk announcing the “robotaxi launch” and social-media influencers posting videos of their first rides.
The event marked the first time Tesla cars without human drivers have carried paying riders, a business that Musk sees as crucial to the electric car maker’s financial future.

He called the moment the “culmination of a decade of hard work” in a post on his social-media platform X and noted that “the AI chip and software teams were built from scratch within Tesla.”
Teslas were spotted early Sunday in a neighborhood called South Congress with no one in the driver’s seat but one person in the passenger seat. The automaker planned a small trial with about 10 vehicles and front-seat riders acting as “safety monitors,” though it remained unclear how much control they had over the vehicles.
In recent days, the automaker sent invites to a select group of influencers for a carefully monitored robotaxi trial in a limited zone. The rides are being offered for a flat fee of $4.20, Musk said on X.

Tesla investor and social-media personality Sawyer Merritt posted videos on X Sunday afternoon showing him ordering, getting picked up, and taking a ride to a nearby bar and restaurant, Frazier’s Long and Low, using a Tesla robotaxi app.
If Tesla succeeds with the small deployment, it still faces major challenges in delivering on Musk’s promises to scale up quickly in Austin and other cities, industry experts say.
It could take years or decades for Tesla and self-driving rivals, such as Alphabet’s (GOOGL.O), Waymo, to fully develop a robotaxi industry, said Philip Koopman, a Carnegie Mellon University computer-engineering professor with expertise in autonomous-vehicle technology.
A successful Austin trial for Tesla, he said, would be “the end of the beginning – not the beginning of the end.”
Most of Tesla’s sky-high stock value now rests on its ability to deliver robotaxis and humanoid robots, according to many industry analysts. Tesla is by far the world’s most valuable automaker.

As Tesla’s robotaxi-rollout date approached, Texas lawmakers moved to enact autonomous-vehicle rules. Texas Governor Greg Abbott, a Republican, on Friday signed legislation requiring a state permit to operate self-driving vehicles.
The law, which takes effect September 1, signals that state officials from both parties want the driverless-vehicle industry to proceed cautiously.
Tesla did not respond to requests for comment. The governor’s office declined to comment.

“EASY TO GET, EASY TO LOSE”

The law softens the state’s previous anti-regulation stance on autonomous vehicles. A 2017 Texas law specifically prohibited cities from regulating self-driving cars.
The new law requires autonomous-vehicle operators to get approval from the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles before operating on public streets without a human driver. It gives state authorities the power to revoke permits for operators they deem a public danger.

The law also requires firms to provide information on how first responders can deal with their driverless vehicles in emergency situations.
The law’s permit requirements for an “automated motor vehicle” are not onerous but require firms to attest their vehicles can operate legally and safely.
It defines an automated vehicle as having at least “Level 4” autonomous-driving capability under a recognized standard, meaning it can operate with no human driver under specified conditions. Level 5 autonomy is the top level and means a car can drive itself anywhere, under any conditions.
Compliance remains far easier than in some states, notably California, which requires submission of vehicle-testing data under state oversight.
Bryant Walker Smith, a University of South Carolina law professor who focuses on autonomous driving, said it appears any company that meets minimum application requirements will get a Texas permit – but could also lose it if problems arise.
“California permits are hard to get, easy to lose,” he said. “In Texas, the permit is easy to get and easy to lose.”

MUSK’S SAFETY PLEDGES

The Tesla robotaxi rollout comes after more than a decade of Musk’s unfulfilled promises to deliver self-driving Teslas.
Musk has said Tesla would be “super paranoid” about robotaxi safety in Austin, including operating in limited areas.
The service in Austin will have other restrictions as well. Tesla plans to avoid bad weather, difficult intersections, and will not carry anyone below age 18.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/tesla-tiptoes-into-long-promised-robotaxi-service-2025-06-22/

Around 10,000 Russian soldiers are fighting in Russia’s Kursk region, about 90 square kilometers (35 square miles) of which is controlled by Ukraine, Ukraine’s top military commander said.
“We control about 90 square kilometers of territory in the Hlushkov district of the Kursk region of the Russian Federation, and these are our preemptive actions in response to a possible enemy attack,” Oleksandr Syrskyi said without elaborating, in remarks released by his office for publication on Sunday.
The Ukrainian military said the activity in this area prevented Russia from sending a significant number of its forces to Ukraine’s eastern region of Donetsk, where some of the heaviest fighting has taken place in the more than three-year-old full-scale invasion.
Syrskyi’s troops are repelling Russian forces along the frontline, which stretches for about 1,200 km, where the situation remains difficult, the Ukrainian military said.
Russian gains have accelerated in May and June, though the Ukrainian military says it comes at a cost of high Russian casualties in small assault-group attacks.
While the military says its troops repelled Russian approaches toward Ukraine’s Dnipropetrovsk region borders last week, the pressure continues in the country’s eastern and northern regions.

The Russian military also continues its deadly drone and missile attacks on the Ukrainian cities further from the front, prompting Ukraine to innovate its approaches to air defence.
Ukraine’s military said it currently destroys around 82% of Shahed-type drones launched by Russia but requires more surface-to-air missile systems to defend critical infrastructure and cities.
The military said the air force was also working on developing the use of light aircraft and drone interceptors in repelling Russian assaults which can involve hundreds of drones.
Ukraine also relies on its long-range capabilities to deal damage to economic and military targets on Russian territory, increasing the cost of war to Moscow.
Between January and May, Ukraine dealt over $1.3 billion in direct losses in the Russian oil refining and fuel production industry, energy and transport supplies as well as strategic communications, the Ukrainian military said.

Source: https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/ukraine-fighting-10000-russian-troops-kursk-region-ukrainian-commander-says-2025-06-22/

A U.S. attack on Iranian nuclear sites could lead to a knee-jerk reaction in global markets when they reopen, sending oil prices higher and triggering a rush to safety, investors said, as they assessed how the latest escalation of tensions would ripple through the global economy.
The attack, which was announced by President Donald Trump on social media site Truth Social, deepens U.S. involvement in the Middle East conflict. That was the question going into the weekend, when investors were mulling a host of different market scenarios.

In the immediate aftermath of the announcement, they expected the U.S. involvement was likely to cause a selloff in equities and a possible bid for the dollar and other safe-haven assets when trading begins, but also said much uncertainty about the course of the conflict remained.
Trump called the attack “a spectacular military success” in a televised address to the nation and said Iran’s “key nuclear enrichment facilities have been completely and totally obliterated”. He said the U.S. military could go after other targets in Iran if the country did not agree to peace.
“I think the markets are going to be initially alarmed, and I think oil will open higher,” said Mark Spindel, chief investment officer at Potomac River Capital.

“We don’t have any damage assessment and that will take some time. Even though he has described this as ‘done’, we’re engaged. What comes next?” Spindel said.
“I think the uncertainty is going to blanket the markets, as now Americans everywhere are going to be exposed. It’s going to raise uncertainty and volatility, particularly in oil,” he added.
Spindel, however, said there was time to digest the news before markets open and said he was making arrangements to talk to other market participants.

OIL PRICES, INFLATION

A key concern for markets would center around the potential impact of the developments in the Middle East on oil prices and thus on inflation. A rise in inflation could dampen consumer confidence and lessen the chance of near-term interest rate cuts.
“This adds a complicated new layer of risk that we’ll have to consider and pay attention to,” said Jack Ablin, chief investment officer of Cresset Capital. “This is definitely going to have an impact on energy prices and potentially on inflation as well.”

While global benchmark Brent crude futures have risen as much as 18% since June 10, hitting a near five-month high of $79.04 on Thursday, the S&P 500 (.SPX) has been little changed, following an initial drop when Israel launched its attacks on Iran on June 13.

Before the U.S. attack on Saturday, analysts at Oxford Economics modeled three scenarios, including a de-escalation of the conflict, a complete shutdown in Iranian oil production and a closure of the Strait of Hormuz, “each with increasingly large impacts on global oil prices.”
In the most severe case, global oil prices jump to around $130 per barrel, driving U.S. inflation near 6% by the end of this year, Oxford said in the note.
“Although the price shock inevitably dampens consumer spending because of the hit to real incomes, the scale of the rise in inflation and concerns about the potential for second-round inflation effects likely ruin any chance of rate cuts in the U.S. this year,” Oxford said in the note, which was published before the U.S. strikes.

In comments after the announcement on Saturday, Jamie Cox, managing partner at Harris Financial Group, agreed oil prices would likely spike on the initial news. But Cox said he expected prices to likely level in a few days as the attacks could lead Iran to seek a peace deal with Israel and the United States.
“With this demonstration of force and total annihilation of its nuclear capabilities, they’ve lost all of their leverage and will likely hit the escape button to a peace deal,” Cox said.
Economists warn that a dramatic rise in oil prices could damage a global economy already strained by Trump’s tariffs.
Still, any pullback in equities might be fleeting, history suggests. During past prominent instances of Middle East tensions coming to a boil, including the 2003 Iraq invasion and the 2019 attacks on Saudi oil facilities, stocks initially languished but soon recovered to trade higher in the months ahead.
On average, the S&P 500 slipped 0.3% in the three weeks following the start of conflict, but was 2.3% higher on average two months following the conflict, according to data from Wedbush Securities and CapIQ Pro.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/middle-east-tensions-put-investors-alert-weighing-worst-case-scenarios-2025-06-21/

Genpact is under fire for mandating a 10-hour workday without formal HR communication or salary hikes, sparking widespread protests over burnout, surveillance, and a toxic work culture. Employees have taken to social media and Reddit to voice frustration, calling the policy exploitative and unsustainable.

Global professional services giant Genpact is facing a wave of internal dissent and public backlash after introducing a controversial 10-hour mandatory workday, implemented without formal communication or corresponding salary hikes. The move has sparked fears of burnout, digital surveillance, and eroding work-life balance—particularly within its Hyderabad office, where employees report a drop in morale.
According to a report by The Hindu, the extended work policy, in effect since mid-June, requires employees to log 10 active hours daily on a proprietary productivity platform. Workers who comply can earn up to 500 points per month, redeemable for a modest Rs 3,000 incentive, with only a 5 per cent bonus (around Rs 150) for additional hours beyond the daily quota. Critically, no increase in base salary accompanies the policy.
“There’s nothing on paper. It’s all word of mouth. If anyone challenges it, they’re accused of being difficult and risk termination,” a senior recruitment staffer told The Hindu, citing the absence of an official HR circular.

What’s fuelling the backlash is not just the demand for longer hours but how the policy was introduced—informally through team leads and managers, without written directives. This opaque rollout, insiders say, has created confusion and left employees fearful of retribution if they speak up.

Amidst the outcry, some employees say they are monitored via WAM, a tool reportedly capable of tracking keystrokes and screen activity. Employees must now maintain nine active hours out of ten, or risk receiving warning emails. Repeat violations, according to Reddit threads, could lead to bonus deductions or poor performance appraisals.

Japanese carmaker Toyota Motor Corp will raise prices of some vehicles it sells in the U.S. by more than $200 from July, Bloomberg News reported on Friday.

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/business/toyota-raise-us-auto-prices-more-200-july-bloomberg-news-reports-5195261

The relocation requests affect employees across several teams and could require moves to cities like Seattle, Arlington, Virginia, and Washington, DC.

Amazon.com Inc. is asking some of its corporate employees to relocate closer to their managers and teams, a move that’s raising concern among staff already unsettled by past job cuts and looming fears over artificial intelligence replacing roles.
The relocation requests affect employees across several teams and could require moves to cities like Seattle, Arlington, Virginia, and Washington, DC, Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter. In some cases, the changes could mean cross-country moves, particularly challenging for mid-career professionals with families and working spouses.
The policy is being communicated quietly, often through one-on-one meetings or team town halls rather than mass emails.

Amazon.com Inc. is asking some of its corporate employees to relocate closer to their managers and teams, a move that’s raising concern among staff already unsettled by past job cuts and looming fears over artificial intelligence replacing roles.
The relocation requests affect employees across several teams and could require moves to cities like Seattle, Arlington, Virginia, and Washington, DC, Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter. In some cases, the changes could mean cross-country moves, particularly challenging for mid-career professionals with families and working spouses.
The policy is being communicated quietly, often through one-on-one meetings or team town halls rather than mass emails.

Internal Slack messages reviewed by Bloomberg showed employees discussing the policy and expressing frustration. One employee said their team was given 30 days to decide on relocating, followed by 60 days to either move or resign — with no severance for those who chose to quit.

Amazon said it offers relocation support “based on individual circumstances,” adding, “we hear from the majority of our teammates that they love the energy from being located together.”

Source : https://www.timesnownews.com/business-economy/companies/amazon-relocation-employees-ai-settlements-article-152118052

India has halted premium orthodox tea exports to Iran worth Rs 100–150 crore following network disruptions and erratic connectivity in Iran, as deepening Iran–Israel conflict poses broader risks for West Asian trade routes and oil market volatility.

India has suspended all shipments of premium orthodox tea to Iran amid widespread disruption triggered by the ongoing Iran–Israel conflict. The pause, affecting exports valued between Rs 100 crore and Rs 150 crore, was prompted by communication blackouts, closed commercial offices, and rising regional instability.
“It has been one week since the war began. The shipments for the past week are on hold as we are not able to establish contact with our buyers,” said Mohit Agarwal, director at Asian Tea Company.
According to exporters, Iran typically sources high volumes of orthodox tea from India during the second flush season—a premium crop window for exporters. But erratic connectivity and institutional closures in Iran have left consignments undelivered and contact lines dead.

“Offices are closed in Iran, and therefore, the exporters are not able to contact the Iranian buyers. Connectivity has become a major issue in Iran due to the war situation,” Agarwal added.

Omnicom Media’s India chief was frustrated. It was October 5, 2023 and a rival was trying to poach the U.S. firm’s client by offering lower prices, just weeks after global advertising agencies and broadcasters struck secret pacts on ad rates in the South Asian country.
The attempt to woo the client violated the agencies’ agreement, Omnicom Media’s India CEO Kartik Sharma wrote in a WhatsApp group comprising a who’s who of advertising, according to excerpts of the discussion documented by antitrust investigators and verified by Reuters.

“This kind of practice is not in the spirit of what we are collectively trying to achieve,” Sharma wrote, without identifying the parties.
Shashi Sinha, then India CEO of New York-based IPG Mediabrands, suggested an industry group should “admonish the agency”.
The exchanges form part of a confidential dossier compiled by India’s antitrust watchdog that chronicles how global advertising companies, including leading U.S. and European firms, coordinated to rig prices in the world’s most populous nation.
Reuters reviewed evidence from the Competition Commission of India (CCI) investigation, including a 10-page document with messages and records of meetings between top advertising executives, and two industry agreements under scrutiny for antitrust violations; and interviewed two people familiar with the probe.

The key details, which haven’t been previously reported, centre on WhatsApp interactions involving 11 industry executives. They include the top India or South Asia executives of WPP’s (WPP.L), GroupM; U.S.-based Omnicom Media (OMC.N), and Interpublic’s (IPG.N), IPG Mediabrands; France’s Publicis (PUBP.PA), and Havas Media (HAVAS.AS); Japan’s Dentsu (4324.T), and India’s Madison World.
Over WhatsApp and in meetings, the executives coordinated responses to clients, which “resulted in alignment of competing advertising agencies,” CCI officials said in the August 9 dossier, determining on an initial basis that the conduct contravened competition law.
The firms agreed to cooperate on pricing, including not to undercut each other; colluded with broadcasters to deny business to agencies that didn’t comply; and discussed financial terms involving at least four Indian clients over conference calls, according to the investigation documents.

The documents don’t indicate whether the agencies’ foreign headquarters were aware of the executives’ actions.
A spokesperson for WPP Media, which until May was known as GroupM, told Reuters it was aware of the investigation but declined to comment further.
A Dentsu India spokesperson confirmed Reuters reporting that it had disclosed industry practices to the CCI in February 2024 under the regulator’s leniency program, which enables lesser penalties for firms that share evidence of malpractice. The spokesperson didn’t address specific evidence raised in the dossier but said the firm had implemented stricter audits and controls.
The other agencies and their executives didn’t respond to Reuters questions about the antitrust probe and information in the dossier. The regulator also didn’t respond to queries.

Reuters has reported that in March, as part of the continuing investigation, the regulator raided the Indian offices of many advertising firms and an industry group that represents broadcasters, including the Reliance-Disney venture and Sony (6758.T)

CCI investigations typically take several months. The regulator can’t press criminal charges, but can impose financial penalties on the media agencies of up to three times their profit or 10% of an Indian entity’s global turnover, whichever is higher, for each year of wrongdoing.

SECRET PACTS

WPP Media, the world’s largest media buying agency, last year – when it was still known as GroupM – won new India business worth $447 million, followed by Omnicom’s $183 million, according to research firm COMvergence.
But India’s near-$30 billion media and entertainment sector is grappling with weak consumer sentiment. Ad spending will rise 7% to $19 billion in 2025, the slowest growth in three years, according to GroupM estimates.
The CCI is investigating the role of two industry bodies, the Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI) and the Indian Broadcasting & Digital Foundation (IBDF), in orchestrating the suspected cartel.
The former group is led by WPP Media India head Prasanth Kumar, while the broadcasting body’s president is Kevin Vaz, a top Reliance-Disney venture executive. Neither industry group responded to requests for comment.
The dossier shows the AAAI circulated guidelines to ad agencies in August 2023: They must charge clients whose annual spending exceeds $29 million a minimum 3% commission for digital ads and 2.5% for traditional media. Lower-spending clients would pay higher minimum commissions of up to 8%.
A month later, the industry associations entered a joint pact, agreeing no agency would “unilaterally offer any discount” on rates while pitching for business.
The pact, reviewed by Reuters, declared its aim was to eliminate “lower pricing as a reason to award a pitch”.
The advertising firms began coordinating their activities at least as early as August 2023, according to the CCI documents.
Ad executives who met on December 1 that year hailed their collaboration as a “great success” and resolved to continue, according to meeting minutes cited in the CCI’s evidence.

‘ALL ALIGNED’

In the U.S., the Federal Trade Commission this month sought information from advertising agencies as part of a probe into whether they coordinated boycotts of certain sites. The Justice Department in 2016 probed agencies it suspected of rigging bids to favour in-house units, but eventually closed the case without bringing charges.
Brewer Anheuser-Busch InBev used CCI’s leniency program to blow the whistle on an industry cartel in India in 2017.
In the case of the ad industry, Dentsu India told Reuters it filed its leniency application with the CCI not as a reaction to external pressure but out of a decision to “support reform from within”.
Two people with knowledge of the matter told Reuters the evidence Dentsu submitted included a transcript of the WhatsApp group. The group, formed in August 2023 and reviewed in part by Reuters, was named “AAAI media agencies” and contained scores of chat messages.
Participants included Kumar of WPP’s media company, Sharma of Omnicom Media, IPG Mediabrands’ Sinha, Havas Media India CEO Mohit Joshi, Dentsu South Asia CEO Harsha Razdan and then-media business CEO Anita Kotwani, Publicis South Asia chief Anupriya Acharya and Madison boss Sam Balsara, the investigators’ evidence shows.
Members of the group discussed advertising pitches and coordinated on interactions with clients such as food delivery giant Swiggy (SWIG.NS), drug maker Cipla (CIPL.NS), SoftBank-backed e-commerce firm Meesho, and Kshema Insurance.
In Swiggy’s case, the AAAI arranged a Zoom call with media agency heads to discuss the company’s advertising pitch. Later, GroupM’s Kumar, as AAAI president, suggested an email response to Swiggy explaining the industry’s agreed position on rebates.
“Ok all aligned thanks,” he wrote after a consensus emerged.
Kshema told Reuters the insurer was unaware of the matter. The other clients didn’t respond to questions.
During another discussion on client rebates, an unspecified Dentsu executive told rivals over WhatsApp that “the lowest we go to is retain 30% and 70% we pass back to the client,” according to the CCI dossier.
CCI officials noted in the document that advertisers and the broadcasters’ group had sought to penalise enterprises that didn’t comply with the pricing pacts.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/boards-policy-regulation/how-worlds-top-ad-agencies-aligned-fix-prices-india-2025-06-19/

Apple is interested in tapping generative artificial intelligence to help speed up the design of the custom chips at the heart of its devices, its top hardware technology executive said in private remarks last month.

Johny Srouji, Apple’s senior vice president of hardware technologies, made the remarks in a speech in Belgium, where he was receiving an award from Imec, an independent semiconductor research and development group that works closely with most of the world’s biggest chipmakers.

In the speech, a recording of which was reviewed by Reuters, Srouji outlined Apple’s development of custom chips from the first A4 chip in an iPhone in 2010 to the most recent chips that power Mac desktop computers and the Vision Pro headset.

He said one of the key lessons Apple learned was that it needed to use the most cutting-edge tools available to design its chips, including the latest chip design software from electronic design automation (EDA) firms.

The two biggest players in that industry – Cadence Design Systems and Synopsys – have been racing to add artificial intelligence to their offerings.

“EDA companies are super critical in supporting our chip design complexities,” Srouji said in his remarks. “Generative AI techniques have a high potential in getting more design work in less time, and it can be a huge productivity boost.”

Srouji said another key lesson Apple learned in designing its own chips was to make big bets and not look back.

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/business/apple-eyes-using-ai-design-its-chips-technology-executive-says-5191001

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday approved Gilead Sciences (GILD.O), opens new tab lenacapavir, a twice-yearly injection, for preventing HIV infection in adults and adolescents.
Gilead said the drug will be sold under the brand name Yeztugo.

Investors and AIDS activists had been eagerly awaiting the regulatory decision for a drug some have said could help end the 44-year-old HIV epidemic.
Lenacapavir, part of a class of drugs known as capsid inhibitors, proved nearly 100% effective at preventing HIV in large trials last year, raising new hope of interrupting transmission of the virus that infects 1.3 million people a year.

The academic journal Science dubbed the experimental pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) drug the 2024 Breakthrough of the Year.
“This is a milestone moment,” said Gilead Chief Executive Daniel O’Day of the approval.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/us-fda-approves-gileads-twice-yearly-injection-hiv-prevention-2025-06-18/

All new videos uploaded on Facebook will soon be classified as Reels, simplifying how users publish visual content, social media giant Meta Platforms (META.O), said on Tuesday.
The Instagram parent said Reels on Facebook will no longer have length or format restrictions, and include all types of video content — short, long and live.

Previously uploaded video content will remain as such on the platform while videos posted after the change will be classified as Reels. The company will also rename the Video tab as Reels tab.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/business/all-new-facebook-videos-be-classified-reels-soon-meta-says-2025-06-17/

When Hurricane Helene’s flood waters slammed into Lake Lure’s century-old dam last September, gouging a massive scar into one embankment and cascading five months’ worth of rain down its sides, town commissioner Dave DiOrio worried it might fail.
Emergency sirens blared. “DAM FAILURE IMMINENT!” the National Weather Service warned in a social media post, urging 3,000 residents living downstream to seek higher ground.

“When it starts breaking out on the sides, I mean who knows,” said DiOrio, a former Navy captain with an engineering background.
In the end, the dam held. But the disaster galvanized the North Carolina resort town’s efforts to seek federal funding for an ambitious rebuilding plan – including $200 million for the dam alone.

The initial response from the Federal Emergency Management Agency seemed encouraging. Deanne Criswell, who then headed the agency under President Joe Biden, told Lake Lure leaders that FEMA wanted to invest in projects that would harden areas against future disasters.
Now President Donald Trump’s plans to shrink or even abolish FEMA, and push some of the costs of responding to disasters onto the states, have injected uncertainty into Lake Lure’s recovery, town officials said.

Since taking office, Trump has declined funding requests from six disaster-hit states for projects to guard against future storms, a category of aid known as hazard mitigation. All of the states are run by Republican governors.
Lake Lure officials are centering their plan to rebuild in a more resilient way around a new dam on the 720-acre reservoir. The town, with a year-round population of just 1,400, can draw 10,000 visitors a day during the summer, when people come to relax on Lake Lure’s beaches, water ski or hike local trails.

While FEMA doesn’t usually build new dams, DiOrio said the town’s leaders were thinking big because of the proactive stance on hazard mitigation projects under Biden. He worries that FEMA under Trump is retreating from such investments.
“I think what we’re seeing is a de-scoping of FEMA,” DiOrio said. “If it does, that leaves us in limbo land.”

Helene caused an estimated $60 billion in damage in western North Carolina and killed 250 people across seven states, making it the deadliest hurricane to hit the U.S. mainland since Katrina in 2005 left nearly 1,400 dead.

As it does sometimes with major disasters, FEMA covered 100% of the costs for debris removal and emergency protective measures for six months after Helene. That dropped to 90% in late March, but is still above the usual 75%, a FEMA spokesperson said in response to questions.
Those federal funds are paying for the excavators and dump trucks still working to extract debris from the lake. With the town’s main attraction closed for the summer, hotel reservations are down sharply and traffic into local shops sparse.

“Without Lake Lure — it’s not only our namesake, it’s the central part of our community,” said Jim Proctor, a town council member who owns eight lake-side cabins, only two of which are occupied. “Believe it or not, nobody wants to have a vacation rental next to a big construction zone.”

SHRINKING FEMA

Because the dam held, Lake Lure and communities downstream escaped the catastrophe that befell the neighboring town of Chimney Rock, whose main street was largely wiped out.
“This lake saved a lot of people, because the flood that came down through the county, this lake caught,” said Michael Hager, a lobbyist for Lake Lure and former Republican majority leader in the North Carolina House of Representatives.

Trump said last week he plans to start phasing out FEMA and distribute disaster relief from the White House. His administration has taken an axe to some of the agency’s hazard mitigation programs, despite research showing such investment can save money and lives.
A 2019 National Institute of Building Sciences study found that every $1 invested in mitigation saves up to $13 in avoided losses. A Chamber of Commerce study put the return-on-investment at 13 to 1.

In April, FEMA said it was ending the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities program, calling it “wasteful and ineffective” and more concerned with “political agendas” than helping Americans. The program had funded general mitigation projects, unrelated to specific disasters.

The administration has yet to announce changes to the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program, a separate funding channel routinely offered in addition to recovery aid after a disaster. North Carolina was approved for HMGP funding after Helene.
But in recent weeks Trump has declined HMGP requests from Mississippi, Oklahoma, Iowa, Missouri, Virginia and Arkansas.

The FEMA spokesperson said the Trump administration was focused on addressing “large unobligated balances” of HMGP funding and working with states to identify projects and draw down “balances in a way that makes the nation more resilient.”
DiOrio said the town was now less confident of FEMA funding for a new dam, a project that could take 10 years. He was reaching out to seek funds from other agencies, including the Army Corps of Engineers.

And the dam is just one of several big-ticket items on Lake Lure’s rebuilding list. The town wants to move a wastewater treatment plant out of a flood zone, at a projected cost of $35 million, and to replace its century-old sewage system at the bottom of the lake, which could cost $100 million.

FEMA has not yet received engineering assessments to make a determination on aid, the FEMA spokesperson said.
The state, meanwhile, faces a greater share of the recovery cost burden after FEMA last month denied its request to extend total cost reimbursement beyond an initial 180-day period.

North Carolina’s governor, Democrat Josh Stein, has warned the new arrangement could cost the state an additional $200 million, potentially requiring cuts to funds for roads and schools and less money for communities like Lake Lure.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/shrinking-fema-puts-lake-towns-rebuilding-plans-limbo-2025-06-17/

Home Minister Amit Shah recently declared, “Indus waters will be taken to Rajasthan’s Ganganagar through canals within three years,” adding that Pakistan would be left “craving for every drop of water.” India’s recent moves mark a significant policy shift. For decades, it did not fully utilize its rights over the western rivers due to the rivers’ natural flow into Pakistan.

The flow of Indus River water to Pakistan’s Sindh province has declined amid India’s stance that “blood and water cannot flow together.” During the kharif crop season, this has triggered a severe irrigation crisis.

The water released on June 16 was just 1.33 lakh cusecs, according to Pakistan’s Indus River System Authority (IRSA), down 16.87% from the 1.6 lakh cusecs released on the same day last year. The shortfall is threatening to devastate crop yields and rural incomes while monsoon rains are still at least two weeks away.

Home Minister Amit Shah recently declared, “Indus waters will be taken to Rajasthan’s Ganganagar through canals within three years,” adding that Pakistan would be left “craving for every drop of water.”

The new infrastructure aims to better utilise India’s share under the IWT and reduce surplus flow to Pakistan.

India controls the three eastern rivers, Ravi, Beas, and Sutlej, while Pakistan has rights over the western rivers, which are Indus, Jhelum, and Chenab. The Indus Waters Treaty, brokered by the World Bank in 1960, governs the division of six rivers between the two nations. Though tensions have flared over the years, the treaty had remained intact until this year’s suspension post Pahalgam terror attack.

India’s recent moves mark a significant policy shift. For decades, it did not fully utilise its rights over the western rivers due to the rivers’ natural flow into Pakistan.

To divert excess water from the western rivers to the states of Punjab, Haryana, and Rajasthan, India is preparing to construct a 113-km-long canal and 12 tunnels . According to officials, the feasibility studies are underway, and the full project could be completed in three years.

Source : https://www.freepressjournal.in/business/crisis-in-pakistan-flow-of-indus-river-to-pakistans-sindh-province-declines-amid-indias-stance-triggers-severe-irrigation-crisis-during-kharif-crop-season

A major digital overhaul is underway at UIDAI as it prepares to introduce a QR code-based e-Aadhaar system, making physical copies redundant and simplifying update procedures through integrated government databases by November 2025.

The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) is gearing up to roll out a revamped e-Aadhaar system that will eliminate the need for photocopies of Aadhaar cards, while drastically easing the data update process. The initiative is expected to be fully operational by November 2025, according to UIDAI CEO Bhuvnesh Kumar, who revealed the update exclusively to The Times of India.
“You will soon be able to do everything sitting at home other than providing fingerprints and IRIS,” Kumar stated, highlighting the shift towards a more citizen-centric, paperless Aadhaar ecosystem.

Pi Coin faced a significant decline of over 35%, dropping from $0.62 to $0.40 amid rising geopolitical tensions, particularly involving Israel and Iran, leading to a wider cryptocurrency sell-off. While the price stabilised at $0.55, it remains below its peak of $1.27, and trading volumes surged by 276%.

In a notable downturn, Pi Coin experienced a drastic decline of over 35%, plummeting from $0.62 to $0.40 within minutes. This sudden crash has raised concerns among investors and prompted speculation about the potential for recovery. On Friday, the PI Coin faced a sharp drop that coincided with escalating geopolitical tensions, particularly a military strike involving Israel and Iran.
This turmoil contributed to a broader sell-off in the cryptocurrency market, where Bitcoin fell by $5,000 and Ethereum decreased by over 9%. Following the crash, the price of PI Coin stabilised around $0.55, although it remains significantly lower than its recent peak of $1.27.
Trading volumes surged by 276% during this period, highlighting a wave of sell orders. The current price reflects a decline of over 53% from its 30-day high, leaving many holders anxious about the future. Analyst Moon Jeff noted, “Every time an altseason begins, something happens to kill the momentum.”

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Saturday that Ukrainian forces had recaptured Andriivka village in northeastern Sumy region as part of a drive to expel Russian forces from the area.
Zelenskiy has in the past week focused on what he describes as a drive to push out Russian forces from the Sumy region, with border areas gripped by heavy fighting. He says Russia has amassed 53,000 troops in the area.

“Based on recent developments, our special thanks go to the soldiers of the 225th Separate Assault Regiment — for offensive operations in the Sumy region and the liberation, in particular, of Andriivka,” Zelenskiy said in his nightly video address.
Zelenskiy also noted “successful actions” near Pokrovsk, for months a focus of Russian attacks in their slow advance on the eastern front, and “strong results” near Kupiansk, an area in northeastern Ukraine that has come under heavy Russian pressure.
In remarks released for publication earlier on Saturday, Zelenskiy said Ukrainian forces had stopped Russian troops advancing in Sumy region and were battling to regain control along the border.

“We are levelling the position. The fighting there is along the border. You should understand that the enemy has been stopped there. And the maximum depth at which the fighting takes place is 7 km (4 miles) from the border,” Zelenskiy said.
Reuters could not verify the battlefield reports.
Russia’s troops have been focusing their assaults in the eastern Donetsk region, with Pokrovsk a particular target.
But since the start of the month, they have intensified their attacks in the northeast, announcing plans to create a so-called ‘buffer zone’ in the Sumy and Kharkiv regions.
Russia’s Defence Ministry said on Saturday that its forces had seized the village of Zelenyi Kut, southwest of Pokrovsk.
The Russian war in Ukraine is in its fourth year, but it has intensified in recent weeks.
Ukraine conducted an audacious drone attack this month that took out multiple aircraft inside Russia and also hit the bridge connecting Russia to the annexed Crimean peninsula using underwater explosives.

Moscow ramped up its air assaults after the attack.

MAINTAINING DEFENSIVE LINES

Zelenskiy said Ukrainian troops had maintained defensive lines along more than 1,000 km of the frontline. He also dismissed Moscow’s claims that Russian troops had crossed into the central Ukrainian region of Dnipropetrovsk.
Zelenskiy said that Russia was sending small assault groups “to get one foot on the administrative border” and make a picture or a video, but these attacks were repelled.
The popular Ukrainian military blog DeepState, which relies on open-source data, said Ukrainian troops had repelled a Russian attack in the area, but also reported Russian advances in other areas, including Pokrovsk.
Dnipropetrovsk borders three regions that are partially occupied by Russia – Donetsk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia. Russia now controls about one-fifth of Ukrainian territory.

Zelenskiy acknowledged that Ukraine was unable to regain all of its territory by military force and reiterated his pleas for stronger sanctions to force Moscow into talks to end the war.
Two rounds of peace talks in Istanbul produced few results that could lead to a ceasefire and a broader peace deal. The two sides agreed only to exchange prisoners of war.
Several swaps have already been conducted this month, and Zelenskiy said he expected them to continue until June 20 or 21.
In separate remarks made on communications platform Telegram on Saturday, he said that a new group of Ukrainian prisoners of war had come home as part of another swap with Russia.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/zelenskiy-says-ukraine-halts-russian-troops-advance-sumy-region-2025-06-14/

Whether you rely on AI for research, coding, or quick answers, downtime can be disruptive. Fortunately, there are powerful alternatives available that are just as good, if not better. Google Gemini, Claude, and Meta AI are all equipped to offer intelligent responses and generate media.

ChatGPT faced an unexpected outage earlier this week, with many users in India and the US reporting of errors in responses. OpenAI has ironed out all issues that caused the downtime and ChatGPT is running perfectly fine now. Whether you rely on AI for research, coding, or quick answers, downtime can be disruptive. Fortunately, there are powerful alternatives available that are just as good, if not better. Google Gemini, Claude, and Meta AI are all equipped to offer intelligent responses and generate media. Here’s a quick guide to the best tools to use when ChatGPT isn’t working.

1. Google Gemini

Google Gemini, formerly known as Bard, is one of the most powerful AI alternatives to ChatGPT. Built on Google’s advanced AI models, Gemini integrates seamlessly with Google Search, Gmail, Docs, and other Workspace tools, making it highly efficient for real-time research, writing, and productivity tasks. It provides up-to-date information directly from the web and supports multimodal input, including text and images. Its tight integration with Google’s ecosystem gives it an edge for everyday users and professionals alike. Whether you need help drafting emails, summarizing documents, or generating creative content, Gemini will be equally helpful as ChatGPT. Gemini is free to use on the web and mobile, but it offers subscription plans as well for premium features. A user must practice caution and fact check everything before using any content that is AI generated.

2. Claude.ai

Claude is also an AI chatbot that feels and looks very similar to ChatGPT. It is also available for free but comes with paid plans as well for premium features access. Claude, developed by Anthropic, is a conversational AI designed with a strong emphasis on safety, ethics, and thoughtful responses. Known for its ability to handle large amounts of context, Claude excels at creative writing, document analysis, and long-form conversations. It’s particularly useful for users who need clarity, depth, and nuance in their interactions.

Source : https://www.freepressjournal.in/business/chatgpt-not-working-here-are-3-alternatives-that-are-just-as-good

Alphabet’s (GOOGL.O), Google, the largest customer of Scale AI, plans to cut ties with Scale after news broke that rival Meta (META.O), is taking a 49% stake in the AI data-labeling startup, five sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.
Google had planned to pay Scale AI about $200 million this year for the human-labeled training data that is crucial for developing technology, including the sophisticated AI models that power Gemini, its ChatGPT competitor, one of the sources said.

The search giant already held conversations with several of Scale AI’s rivals this week as it seeks to shift away much of that workload, sources added.
Scale’s loss of significant business comes as Meta takes a big stake in the company, valuing it at $29 billion. Scale was worth $14 billion before the deal.
Scale AI intends to keep its business running while its CEO, Alexandr Wang, along with a few employees, move over to Meta. Since its core business is concentrated around a few customers, it could suffer greatly if it loses key customers like Google.
In a statement, a Scale AI spokesperson said its business, which spans work with major companies and governments, remains strong, as it is committed to protecting customer data. The company declined to comment on specifics with Google.

Scale AI raked in $870 million in revenue in 2024, and Google spent some $150 million on Scale AI’s services last year, sources said.
Other major tech companies that are customers of Scale’s, including Microsoft (MSFT.O), are also backing away. Elon Musk’s xAI is also looking to exit, one of the sources said. OpenAI decided to pull back from Scale several months ago, according to sources familiar with the matter, though it spends far less money than Google. OpenAI’s CFO said on Friday that the company will continue to work with Scale AI, as one of its many data vendors.
Companies that compete with Meta in developing cutting-edge AI models are concerned that doing business with Scale could expose their research priorities and road map to a rival, five sources said. By contracting with Scale AI, customers often share proprietary data as well as prototype products for which Scale’s workers are providing data-labeling services. With Meta now taking a 49% stake, AI companies are concerned that one of their chief rivals could gain knowledge about their business strategy and technical blueprints.

Google, Microsoft and OpenAI declined to comment. xAI did not respond to a request for comment.

RIVALS SEE OPENINGS

The bulk of Scale AI’s revenue comes from charging generative AI model makers for providing access to a network of human trainers with specialized knowledge – from historians to scientists, some with doctorate degrees. The humans annotate complex datasets that are used to “post-train” AI models, and as AI models have become smarter, the demand for the sophisticated human-provided examples has surged, and one annotation could cost as much as $100.
Scale also does data-labeling for enterprises like self-driving car companies and the U.S. government, which are likely to stay, according to the sources. But its biggest money-maker is in partnering with generative AI model makers, the sources said.
Google had already sought to diversify its data service providers for more than a year, three of the sources said. But Meta’s moves this week have led Google to seek to move off Scale AI on all its key contracts, the sources added. Because of the way data-labeling contracts are structured, that process could happen quickly, two sources said.

This will provide an opening for Scale AI’s rivals to jump in.
“The Meta-Scale deal marks a turning point,” said Jonathan Siddharth, CEO of Turing, a Scale AI competitor. “Leading AI labs are realizing neutrality is no longer optional, it’s essential.”
Labelbox, another competitor, will “probably generate hundreds of millions of new revenue” by the end of the year from customers fleeing Scale, its CEO, Manu Sharma, told Reuters.
Handshake, a competitor focusing on building a network of PhDs and experts, saw a surge of workload from top AI labs that compete with Meta.
“Our demand has tripled overnight after the news,” said Garrett Lord, CEO at Handshake.
Many AI labs now want to hire in-house data-labelers, which allows their data to remain secure, said Brendan Foody, CEO of Mercor, a startup that in addition to competing directly with Scale AI also builds technology around being able to recruit and vet candidates in an automated way, enabling AI labs to scale up their data labeling operations quickly.
Founded in 2016, Scale AI provides vast amounts of labeled data or curated training data, which is crucial for developing sophisticated tools such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/business/google-scale-ais-largest-customer-plans-split-after-meta-deal-sources-say-2025-06-13/

Gold futures in India crossed ₹1,00,000 per 10 grams on the MCX for the first time on 13 June 2025, driven by escalating Middle East tensions, a falling rupee, and robust global demand for safe-haven assets. Analysts warn of further gains as geopolitical instability deepens.

Gold prices surged to a historic high on Friday as domestic futures on the Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) breached the Rs 1 lakh mark for the first time. Gold touched Rs 1,00,403 per 10 grams, up 2 per cent in early trade, amid geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, a weakened Indian rupee, and strong global demand for safe-haven assets.
The surge reflects a confluence of factors affecting global commodity markets and investor sentiment, with analysts expecting further upward movement if volatility continues.

Ukraine has brought home the bodies of 1,212 soldiers killed in the war with Russia, the Kyiv officials responsible for exchanging prisoners of war said on Wednesday.
In Moscow, Kremlin aide Vladimir Medinsky said Ukraine for its part had returned 27 bodies of Russian soldiers.

“As a result of the repatriation activities …, the bodies of 1,212 fallen defenders have been returned to Ukraine,” Kyiv’s prisoner exchange coordination committee said on the Telegram messaging app.

It released photos from the scene showing personnel of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) at an undisclosed location, walking past several refrigerated trucks.
Some trucks were marked with emblems of “On the Shield,” a Ukrainian organisation involved in the retrieval and evacuation of military dead.
Kyiv and Moscow reached agreement at their most recent round of talks last week on a large-scale exchange of corpses of war dead, though the deal was marred by wrangling over its implementation.
On Sunday, Medinsky said Ukraine had postponed taking the first 1,212 bodies. Russian officials also said that refrigerated trucks loaded with corpses waited for five days at the border before Ukraine accepted them.

Ukraine’s coordination body said a deal had been reached on repatriating bodies but the date had not been finalised, and accused Russia of unilateral and uncoordinated actions.
On June 2, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said that Russia wanted to transfer 6,000 bodies back to Ukraine, but that only about 15% of them had been identified.
“We already had a moment once when they transferred bodies to us and were also transferring bodies of Russian dead soldiers,” Zelenskiy said at a briefing.
The 1,212 bodies will now be transferred to experts of Ukraine’s Interior Ministry, law enforcement agencies and the Health Ministry who will try to ascertain their identities as soon as possible, the prisoner exchange coordination body said.
On Monday, Russia and Ukraine exchanged dozens of prisoners of war under the age of 25, as well as severely wounded and ill prisoners on Tuesday, in emotional homecoming scenes, the first step in a series of planned swaps that could become the biggest of the war triggered by Russia’s 2022 invasion.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/ukraine-brings-home-bodies-1212-soldiers-officials-say-2025-06-11/

U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s dismissal of an independent panel of experts citing the goal of restoring trust in vaccines could undermine confidence in those available now, putting Americans at risk of preventable infectious diseases, public health experts and others said on Monday.
Kennedy, a longtime vaccine skeptic, said in a commentary published in the Wall Street Journal that he was firing all 17 members of the Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices (ACIP) at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention “to re-establish public confidence in vaccine science.”

The committee reviews vaccines approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and makes recommendations to the CDC on their use.
“I fear that there will be human lives lost here because of this,” said Dr. Sean O’Leary, chair of the American Academy of Pediatrics’ Committee on Infectious Diseases.
“It is a special kind of irony that he is saying he is doing this to restore trust, given that he is, as an individual, more responsible for sowing distrust in vaccines than almost anyone I can name,” O’Leary said.
O’Leary said pediatricians have already been fielding calls from parents who are confused about conflicting announcements earlier this month narrowing the use of COVID-19 vaccines for healthy children and pregnant women. “This is only going to add to that,” he said.

A U.S. Department of Health and Human Services spokesman said the agency is prioritizing public health, evidence-based medicine, and restoring public confidence in vaccine science.
The firing of the entire vaccine advisory committee comes just weeks before a scheduled public meeting in which advisers were expected to weigh in and vote on a number of decisions, including the 2025-26 COVID-19 vaccine boosters.
The health agency said the committee will meet as scheduled on June 25-27, but it is unclear who would serve on that panel or how they have been vetted for conflicts of interest. The agency said it would replace them with new members currently under consideration.
Fired ACIP member Noel Brewer, a professor of public health at the University of North Carolina, said it took about 18 months from the time he applied until he was serving as an ACIP member.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer decried the changes. “Wiping out an entire panel of vaccine experts doesn’t build trust — it shatters it, and worse, it sends a chilling message: that ideology matters more than evidence, and politics more than public health,” he said in a statement.
Former CDC Director Dr. Thomas Frieden called out Kennedy’s “false claims” in the Wall Street Journal piece, saying the panel was rife with conflicts of interest. Most of the panel was appointed last year, the CDC website shows.
“Make no mistake: Politicizing the ACIP as Secretary Kennedy is doing will undermine public trust under the guise of improving it.”

Source : https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/kennedys-firing-independent-cdc-advisers-undermines-vaccine-confidence-experts-2025-06-10/

Gautam Adani earned Rs 10.41 crore in FY25, a 12% rise from last year, yet still modest compared to several senior executives in his group. Here’s how India Inc’s top bosses stack up.

Gautam Adani, India’s second-richest individual, drew a total remuneration of Rs 10.41 crore in the financial year 2024–25, according to company filings, a figure that is not only lower than many of his industry peers but also less than several top executives within his own conglomerate.
Adani, 62, who heads the ports-to-energy Adani Group, drew salaries from just two of the nine listed group companies, as revealed in annual reports reviewed by PTI. His FY25 remuneration rose 12% from Rs 9.26 crore in FY24.
From the group’s flagship firm Adani Enterprises Ltd (AEL), he received Rs 2.26 crore as salary and Rs28 lakh in perquisites and other benefits, totalling Rs 2.54 crore — marginally up from Rs 2.46 crore the previous year. He also drew Rs 7.87 crore from Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd (APSEZ), comprising Rs 1.8 crore in salary and Rs 6.07 crore as commission. This too was an increase from Rs 6.8 crore in FY24.

Despite his massive wealth, estimated at $82.5 billion (as per Bloomberg Billionaires Index), Adani’s salary is modest when compared to corporate heavyweights. According to PTI, other key business leaders like Sunil Bharti Mittal of Bharti Airtel earned Rs 32.27 crore in FY24, Rajiv Bajaj of Bajaj Auto drew Rs 53.75 crore, Pawan Munjal of Hero MotoCorp took home Rs 109 crore, L&T’s S.N. Subrahmanyan earned Rs 76.25 crore, and Infosys CEO Salil Parekh topped with Rs 80.62 crore.

This 50-basis-point (0.5%) reduction is the steepest rate cut by the RBI since the emergency 75-basis-point easing in March 2020, when the economy was under severe strain due to the Covid pandemic.

New Delhi: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Friday cut key policy interest rates by a larger-than-expected 50 basis points, a move that will lead to a drop in EMIs on home, auto and other loans and boost economic growth by reinvigorating credit cycle as inflation remains muted.

This 50-basis-point (0.5%) reduction is the steepest rate cut by the RBI since the emergency 75-basis-point easing in March 2020, when the economy was under severe strain due to the Covid pandemic.

The repo rate, the interest at which the RBI lends money to commercial banks for their short-term needs, has been cut to 5.5% with immediate effect, from the earlier 6%.

The standing deposit facility (SDF) rate under the liquidity adjustment facility has been cut to 5.25% and the marginal standing facility (MSF) rate and the bank rate to 5.75%.

A majority of the lending and deposit rates offered by the commercial banks are guided by these RBI’s policy rates.

RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra termed the move as “frontloading” of the rate cuts. This means a 25 bps rate cut, which was expected in August or October, has been advanced to send a stronger message to consumers and investors.

“It is imperative to continue to stimulate domestic private consumption and investment through policy levers to step up the growth momentum. This changed growth-inflation dynamics calls for not only continuing with the policy easing but also frontloading the rate cuts to support growth,” Malhotra said.

Harsha Vardhan Agarwal, President of industry chamber FICCI, said the frontloaded rate cut “sends a strong signal of the RBI’s commitment to supporting growth”. “The move is timely and will help boost domestic demand, encourage credit offtake, and inject further momentum into economic activity,” Agarwal added.

Five of the six members of the RBI’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), including Malhotra, voted for the 50 bps cut. One external member Saugata Bhattacharya voted for a smaller 25-bps cut.

The MPC also decided to change the stance from “accommodative” to “neutral”. This means the RBI is no longer committed to only cutting rates as in an accommodative stance, but is now open to either hiking or further reducing rates based on evolving economic data.

Source: https://www.deccanherald.com/business/rbi-delivers-a-surprise-jumbo-rate-cut-emis-to-fall-3575295

A Chicago-based private equity firm – controlled by a member of the family that founded American publishing company Rand McNally – has an “economic interest” in the logistics company involved in a controversial new aid distribution operation in Gaza.
McNally Capital, founded in 2008 by Ward McNally, helped “support the establishment” of Safe Reach Solutions, a McNally Capital spokesperson told Reuters. SRS is a for-profit company established in Wyoming in November, state incorporation records show.

It is in the spotlight for its involvement with the U.S.- and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which last week started distributing aid in the war-torn Palestinian enclave. The foundation paused work on Wednesday after a series of deadly shootings near the distribution sites of people on their way to pick up aid. It has suffered from the departure of senior personnel.
“McNally Capital has provided administrative advice to SRS and worked in collaboration with multiple parties to enable SRS to carry out its mission,” the spokesperson said. “While McNally Capital has an economic interest in SRS, the firm does not actively manage SRS or have a day-to-day operating role.”

SRS is run by a former CIA official named Phil Reilly, but its ownership has not previously been disclosed. Reuters has not been able to establish who funds the newly created foundation.
The spokesperson did not provide details of the scale of the investment in SRS by McNally Capital, which says it has $380 million under management.
McNally Capital founder Ward McNally is the great great great grandson of the co-founder of Rand McNally. The McNally family sold the publishing company in 1997.
A spokesperson for SRS confirmed it worked with the foundation, also known as GHF, but did not answer specific questions about ownership.
GHF, which resumed aid distribution on Thursday, did not respond to a request for comment
While Israel and the United States have both said they don’t finance the operation, they have pushed the United Nations and international aid groups to work with it, arguing that aid distributed by a long-established U.N. aid network was diverted to Hamas. Hamas has denied that.

Israel blocked almost all aid into Gaza for 11 weeks until May 19, and has since only allowed limited deliveries in, mostly managed by the new GHF operation.
This week GHF pressed Israel to boost civilian safety beyond the perimeter of its distribution sites after Gazan health officials said at least 27 Palestinians were killed and dozens wounded by Israeli fire near one of the food distribution sites on Tuesday, the third consecutive day of chaos and bloodshed to blight the aid operation.
The Israeli military said its forces on Tuesday had opened fire on a group of people they viewed as a threat after they left a designated access route near the distribution center in Rafah. It said it was investigating what had happened.
The U.N and most other aid groups have refused to work with GHF because they say it is not neutral and that the distribution model militarizes aid and forces displacement.

Source: https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/gaza-aid-logistics-company-funded-by-chicago-private-equity-firm-2025-06-05/

Some European auto parts plants have suspended output and Mercedes-Benz is considering ways to protect against shortages of rare earths, as concerns about the damage from China’s restrictions on critical mineral exports deepen across the globe.
China’s decision in April to suspend exports of a wide range of rare earths and related magnets has upended the supply chains central to automakers, aerospace manufacturers, semiconductor companies and military contractors around the world.

China’s dominance of the critical mineral industry, key to the green energy transition, is increasingly viewed as a key point of leverage for Beijing in its trade war with U.S. President Donald Trump. China produces around 90% of the world’s rare earths, and auto industry representatives have warned of increasing threats to production due to their dependency on it for those parts.
“It just puts stress on a system that’s highly organised with parts being ordered many weeks in advance,” said Sherry House, Ford’s finance chief, at an investor conference on Wednesday.
She said China’s export controls add administrative layers that are sometimes smooth, and sometimes not. “We’re managing it. It continues to be an issue, and we continue to work the issues.”

EU trade commissioner Maros Sefcovic said on Wednesday that he and his Chinese counterpart had agreed to clarify the rare earth situation as quickly as possible.
“We must reduce our dependencies on all countries, particularly on a number of countries like China, on which we are more than 100% dependent,” said EU Commissioner for Industrial Strategy Stephane Sejourne.
“The export (curbs) increase our will to diversify,” he said as Brussels identified 13 new projects outside the bloc aimed at increasing supplies of metals and minerals essential.
Europe’s auto supplier association CLEPA said several production lines have shut down after running out of supplies, the latest to warn about the growing threat to manufacturing due to the controls.
Of the hundreds of requests for export licenses made by auto suppliers since early April, only a quarter have been granted so far, CLEPA added, with some requests rejected on what the association described as “highly procedural grounds”.

It did not identify the companies but warned of further outages.
While China’s announcement in April coincided with a broader package of retaliation against Washington’s tariffs, the measures apply globally and are causing worry among business executives around the world.
Earlier on Wednesday, Mercedes-Benz (MBGn.DE), production chief Joerg Burzer said he was talking to top suppliers about building “buffers” such as stockpiles to protect against potential threats to supply. Mercedes was currently not affected by the shortage.
BMW (BMWG.DE), said that part of its supplier network was disrupted but its own plants were running as normal.
German and U.S. automakers have complained that the restrictions imposed by China threaten production, following a similar grievance from an Indian EV maker last week.

Mathias Miedreich, board member for electrified propulsion at German automotive supplier ZF Friedrichshafen, said the company has largely been able to get needed permits from China.
In a media briefing on Tuesday, he said he worries though that the situation eventually could resemble the computer-chip shortage during the COVID-19 pandemic, which wiped out millions of vehicles from automakers’ production plans.
Many are lobbying their governments to find a quick solution but some companies only have enough supplies to last a few weeks or months, Wolfgang Weber, CEO of Germany’s electrical and digital industry association ZVEI, said in an emailed statement.
Swedish Autoliv (ALV.N), , the world’s biggest maker of airbags and seatbelts, said its operations are not affected, but CEO Mikael Bratt said he has set up a task force to manage the situation.

RELIANCE ON CHINA

There are few alternatives to China.
Automakers from General Motors (GM.N), to BMW and major suppliers like ZF and BorgWarner (BWA.N), are researching or have developed motors with low- to zero rare earth content in a bid to cut their reliance on China, but few have managed to scale production to bring down costs.
BMW has deployed a magnet-free electric motor for its latest generation of electric cars, but still requires rare earths for smaller motors powering components like windshield wipers or car window rollers.
“There is no solution for the next three years except to come to an agreement with China,” said Andreas Kroll, managing director of Noble Elements, rare earths importer for medium-sized companies and startups without their own inventories.
“China controls practically 99.8 percent of global production of heavy rare earths. Other countries can only produce these in minimal quantities, virtually on a laboratory scale.”
China’s slow pace of easing its critical mineral export controls has become a focus of Trump’s criticism of Beijing, which he says has violated the truce reached last month to roll back tariffs and trade restrictions.
Trump has sought to redefine the United States’ trading relationship with its biggest economic rival by imposing steep tariffs on billions of dollars of imported goods in hopes of narrowing a trade deficit and bringing back lost manufacturing.
He imposed tariffs as high as 145% against China only to scale them back after a selloff in stock, bond and currency markets over the sweeping nature of the levies. China has responded with its own tariffs and is leveraging its dominance in key supply chains to persuade Trump to back down.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/some-european-auto-supplier-plants-shut-down-after-chinas-rare-earth-curbs-2025-06-04/

As Artificial Intelligence sweeps across industries, American labour unions are rallying for worker protections, demanding legislation, transparency, and accountability. With lawsuits surfacing and jobs on the line, unions fear a future where human labour is displaced without recourse. Labour leaders argue that automation could erode the core of worker rights.

Major American labour unions intensified their opposition to Artificial Intelligence on 4th June 2025, demanding legal safeguards and transparency amid concerns that widespread AI integration across industries could displace millions of jobs. The effort, reported by The Times of India, reveals mounting anxiety as workers grapple with a future shaped by automation and generative AI.

Cartier, the luxury jewellery company owned by Richemont, had its website hacked and some client data stolen, it told customers, according to an email seen by Reuters on Tuesday (Jun 3).

The attack is the latest case of a company being targeted by cyber criminals, with several retailers including Marks & Spencer and Victoria’s Secret disclosing similar incidents.

Cartier, whose watches, necklaces and bracelets have been worn by Taylor Swift, Angelina Jolie and Michelle Obama, said “an unauthorised party gained temporary access to our system.”

“Limited client information”, such as names, e-mail addresses and countries, had been obtained, Cartier said in the email. “The affected information did not include any passwords, credit card details or other banking information,” it said, noting it had since contained the issue.

The company said it had further enhanced the protection of its systems and data, as well as informed the relevant authorities, and was also working with “leading external cybersecurity experts.”

Cartier did not respond to a request for comment.

Julius Cerniauskas, CEO of web intelligence firm Oxylabs, said the breach showed no brand is safe from cybercrime.

“Attackers are becoming more opportunistic and sophisticated, targeting brands that hold valuable customer data, not just credit card numbers,” he said.

US lingerie company Victoria’s Secret on Tuesday disclosed that a security incident relating to its information technology systems had forced it to temporarily shut down its website for a few days last week.

Victoria’s Secret said the breach did not impact its financial results for the first quarter or cause a material disruption to its operations, but warned that its second quarter could be hit by the additional expenses incurred following the incident.

British retailer Marks & Spencer said last month a “highly sophisticated and targeted” cyberattack in April will cost it about US$405 million in lost profits.

Fashion brand The North Face, owned by VF Corporation, has also emailed some customers, saying it discovered a “small-scale” attack in April this year.

The company told customers the hackers used “credential stuffing”, trying usernames and passwords stolen from another data breach in the hope customers have reused the credentials across multiple accounts, the BBC said on Tuesday.

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/business/cartier-tells-customers-some-data-stolen-cyberattack-5164336

Alarm over China’s stranglehold on critical minerals grew on Tuesday as global automakers joined their U.S. counterparts to complain that restrictions by China on exports of rare earth alloys, mixtures and magnets could cause production delays and outages without a quick solution.
German automakers became the latest to warn that China’s export restrictions threaten to shut down production and rattle their local economies, following a similar complaint from an Indian EV maker last week.

China’s decision in April to suspend exports of a wide range of critical minerals and magnets has upended the supply chains central to automakers, aerospace manufacturers, semiconductor companies and military contractors around the world.
The move underscores China’s dominance of the critical mineral industry and is seen as leverage by China in its ongoing trade war with U.S. President Donald Trump.
Trump has sought to redefine the trading relationship with the U.S.’ top economic rival China by imposing steep tariffs on billions of dollars of imported goods in hopes of narrowing a wide trade deficit and bringing back lost manufacturing.

Trump imposed tariffs as high as 145% against China only to scale them back after stock, bond and currency markets revolted over the sweeping nature of the levies. China has responded with its own tariffs and is leveraging its dominance in key supply chains to persuade Trump to back down.
Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are expected to talk this week, White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Tuesday, and the export ban is expected to be high on the agenda.
“I can assure you that the administration is actively monitoring China’s compliance with the Geneva trade agreement,” she said. “Our administration officials continue to be engaged in correspondence with their Chinese counterparts.”
Trump has previously signaled that China’s slow pace of easing the critical mineral export ban represents a violation of the Geneva agreement.

Shipments of the magnets, essential for assembling everything from cars and drones to robots and missiles, have been halted at many Chinese ports while license applications make their way through the Chinese regulatory system.
The suspension has triggered anxiety in corporate boardrooms and nations’ capitals – from Tokyo to Washington – as officials scrambled to identify limited alternative options amid fears that production of new automobiles and other items could grind to a halt by summer’s end.
“If the situation is not changed quickly, production delays and even production outages can no longer be ruled out,” Hildegard Mueller, head of Germany’s auto lobby, told Reuters on Tuesday.
Frank Fannon, a minerals industry consultant and former U.S. assistant secretary of state for energy resources during Trump’s first term, said the global disruptions are not shocking to those paying attention.

“I don’t think anyone should be surprised how this is playing out. We have a production challenge (in the U.S.) and we need to leverage our whole of government approach to secure resources and ramp up domestic capability as soon as possible. The time horizon to do this was yesterday,” Fannon.
Diplomats, automakers and other executives from India, Japan and Europe were urgently seeking meetings with Beijing officials to push for faster approval of rare earth magnet exports, sources told Reuters, as shortages threatened to halt global supply chains.
A business delegation from Japan will visit Beijing in early June to meet the Ministry of Commerce over the curbs and European diplomats from countries with big auto industries have also sought “emergency” meetings with Chinese officials in recent weeks, Reuters reported.
India, where Bajaj Auto (BAJA.NS), warned that any further delays in securing the supply of rare earth magnets from China could “seriously impact” electric vehicle production, is organizing a trip for auto executives in the next two to three weeks.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/global-alarms-rise-chinas-critical-mineral-export-ban-takes-hold-2025-06-03/