The state-owned Saudi Arabian producer will reduce the official selling price of Arab Light by $1.05 a barrel for January from the previous month, according to the median estimate
Skyrocketing sugar prices left Ishaq Abdulraheem with few choices. Increasing the cost of bread would mean declining sales, so the Nigerian baker decided to cut his production by half. For scores of other bakers struggling to stay afloat while enduring higher costs for fuel and flour, the stratospheric sugar prices proved to be the last straw, and they closed for good. Sugar is needed to make bread, which is a staple for Nigeria's 210 million people, and for many who are struggling to put food on the table, it offers a cheap source of calories. Surging sugar prices an increase of 55 per cent in two months means fewer bakers and less bread. It is a very serious situation, Abdulraheem said. Sugar worldwide is trading at the highest prices since 2011, mainly due to lower global supplies after unusually dry weather damaged harvests in India and Thailand, the world's second- and third-largest exporters. This is just the latest hit for developing nations already coping with shortages
"The fundamental goal of China's development is to improve the well-being of the Chinese people, not to replace anyone," the state-run Xinhua News Agency cited him
The US wants India to share some of its burden in the Indo-Pacific by increasing its diplomatic and military presence in the region, Indian officials aware of the details said
"It is a reduction in workforce generally speaking," CEO C.S. Venkatakrishnan said in a Bloomberg TV interview Thursday in Singapore"
President Joe Biden is nominating a top adviser on Asia to serve as the State Department's second-ranking diplomat, the White House said Wednesday, elevating one of the architects of the administration's efforts to develop a more Asia-focused foreign policy. Kurt Campbell currently is deputy assistant to the president and coordinator for Indo-Pacific Affairs on the National Security Council. He has played an important role in helping Biden reinvigorate the diplomatic grouping of the United States, Japan, Australia and India, and has helped to ease historic tensions between South Korea and Japan and shape America's approach to China. If confirmed, he would replace Wendy Sherman, who retired in July, as deputy secretary of state. Kurt is a tremendous asset, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said in a statement. His passion and commitment to our alliances and partnerships is unquestionably strengthening America's strategic position in the world and improving our abili
The data are a discouraging sign for the global economy, which has seen its bid for recovery threatened by uncertainty over the Israel-Hamas war and the prospect of wider conflict in the region
One in four people in Asia and the Pacific will be above the age of 60 by 2050 and more than half of them will be women, UNFPA Asia-Pacific Regional Director Pio Smith said on Tuesday. Asia and the Pacific refer to a vast and diverse region that encompasses Asia and the Pacific Islands, which are scattered throughout the Pacific Ocean. Addressing a press briefing, Smith said along with ageing populations, countries are also witnessing low fertility rates as women are having fewer babies. "This means that while people are living longer, the working population is also shrinking," Smith said. By 2050, it is estimated that one in four people in Asia and the Pacific will be about the age of 60 and more than half of them will be women, he said. Smith said it is easy to hear alarm bells ring if the focus is only on the numbers. "We really do have to understand that population ageing and low fertility are not problems to be solved. They are demographic transitions that the human populati
Chinese warships in the region raise threat perceptions
India, the world's fifth largest economy in the world, is likely to overtake Japan to become the world's third-largest economy with a GDP of USD 7.3 trillion by 2030, S&P Global Market Intelligence said in its latest issue of PMI. After two years of rapid economic growth in 2021 and 2022, the Indian economy has continued to show sustained strong growth during the 2023 calendar year. India's gross domestic product (GDP) is expected to grow 6.2-6.3 per cent in the fiscal year ending in March 2024, being the fastest-growing major economy this fiscal year. Asia's third-largest economy grew by a stellar 7.8 per cent in the April-June quarter. "The near-term economic outlook is for continued rapid expansion during the remainder of 2023 and for 2024, underpinned by strong growth in domestic demand," S&P Global said. The acceleration of foreign direct investment inflows into India over the past decade reflects the favourable long-term growth outlook for the Indian economy, helped by a
Indian shuttlers Jagsher Singh Khangurra, Bornil Aakash Changmai and Tanvi Sharma advanced to the semifinals of the Badminton Asia U-17 and U-15 Junior Championships to assure themselves of a medal on day 4 of the tournament in Chengdu, China on Friday. In the boys' U15 singles category, Jagsher defeated China's MA Chu Xuan 21-14, 21-13 in just 28 minutes, while Bornil emerged victorious in a closely-contested match against Korea's Park Jung Bin, securing a 21-19, 22-20 victory. Tanvi Sharma overcame a first-game loss to register a 20-22, 21-15, 21-15 win over Liao Jui-Chi of Chinese Taipei in the girls' U17 singles quarter-final match. In the girls' U17 doubles match, Tanvi and Reshika Uthayasooriyan faced a 10-20, 20-22 defeat against the Chinese pair of Fu Xin Yi and Qin Shi Yang. Jagsher and Bornil will face off in the boys' U15 singles semi-finals on Saturday, while Tanvi will face second seed Anyapat Phichitpreechasak of Thailand in girls' U17 singles semi-final tie.
The deal, which would be among the top 10 biggest loans in Asia this year, could be sealed this week, according to people familiar with the matter
Globalisation is the overwhelming reality of our times and there must be a respective appreciation of multipolarity because a multipolar world is feasible only by a multipolar Asia, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar said in his address to the European Union (EU) Indo-Pacific Ministerial Forum (EIPMF) in Stockholm. Jaishankar is on a three-day visit to Sweden to participate in the EU Indo-Pacific Ministerial Forum (EIPMF). He also had discussions with several of his EU counterparts on a range of bilateral issues, including strengthening ties amid the Russia-Ukraine conflict. In his address at the EIPMF, Jaishankar called for regular, comprehensive and candid dialogue between India and the EU that is not just limited to the crisis of the day. Globalisation is the overwhelming reality of our times. However, far apart, regions and nations cannot be impervious to significant events elsewhere. Nor can we cherry-pick them to our convenience, he said. Indo-Pacific itself is ...
The web of relationships also includes trilateral partnerships among the US, Japan and South Korea, and one encompassing the US, Japan and the Philippines, the officials said
Focus is shifting to what steps authorities in the region may take after verbal warnings and stronger fixings failed to arrest the downdraft in their currencies
Rahul Gupta, Chairman and Managing Director of Gujarat Industrial Investment Corporation, exuded confidence over the positive impact of the ambitious corridor, given strategic position of the state
The two countries, which account for about 3/4 of Asia's power generation and most of its emissions, are also to a lesser extent using renewables to make up for the hydropower shortfall
"The main driver for investments was actually the semiconductor super cycle," Poh said, though that sector is now facing shrinking demand
Asia is where the longer-term growth will be, especially as you convert people from whatever the local whiskies are or the cheaper blends to more expensive whiskies over time
Israel's prime minister on Sunday floated the idea of building infrastructure projects such as a fiber optic cable linking countries in Asia and the Arabian Peninsula with Europe through Israel and Cyprus. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he's quite confident such an infrastructure corridor linking Asia to Europe through Israel and Cyprus is feasible. He said such projects could happen if Israel normalises relations with other countries in the region. The 2020 U.S.-brokered Abraham Accords normalised relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, and the Bidensadministration is trying to establish official ties between Israel and Saudi Arabia. An example and the most obvious one is a fiber optic connection. That's the shortest route. It's the safest route. It's the most economic route, Netanyahu said after talks with Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides. The Israeli leader's pitch is itself an extension of proposed energy links with Cyprus and Greece as