LIVE: Govt asks Twitter to respond in 5 days for showing Leh as part of J&K

Attorney General KK Venugopal grants consent for initiating criminal contempt against stand up comedian Kunal Kamra, for his alleged derogatory tweets against a SC judge. Tune in for LIVE updates.

2:03 AM

Chinese President Xi Jinping decided to halt Ant's IPO: Report

China's President Xi Jinping personally decided to pull the plug on Ant Group's $37-billion (£28 billion) initial public offering, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday, citing Chinese officials with the knowledge of the matter.

 

The decision to stop what would have been the world's largest ever IPO, came days after the fintech giant's billionaire founder Jack Ma launched a public attack on the country's financial watchdogs and banks.

 

President Xi ordered Chinese regulators to investigate and effectively shut down Ant's stock market flotation, the report said https://www.wsj.com/articles/china-president-xi-jinping-halted-jack-ma-ant-ipo-11605203556?mod=hp_lead_pos4.

 

Ant Group did not immediately respond to Reuters request for comment. The Information Office of the State Council, China's cabinet, could not be reached immediately for comment.

1:56 AM

Not my 'last election', Bihar CM Nitish Kumar says remarks misinterpreted

1:54 AM

Wall Street drops as pandemic fears return

Wall Street tumbled on Thursday as US coronavirus infections surged and investors weighed the timeline for the mass rollout of an effective vaccine.

 

New York became the latest state to introduce stricter social distancing rules on Wednesday, as new infections in the country surged above 100,000 for an eighth consecutive day.

 

The blue-chip Dow was pulled down by industrial and financial companies sensitive to economic growth, with Boeing Co  and Goldman Sachs each down almost 2 per cent.

1:54 AM

Wall Street drops as pandemic fears return

Wall Street tumbled on Thursday as US coronavirus infections surged and investors weighed the timeline for the mass rollout of an effective vaccine.

 

New York became the latest state to introduce stricter social distancing rules on Wednesday, as new infections in the country surged above 100,000 for an eighth consecutive day.

 

The blue-chip Dow was pulled down by industrial and financial companies sensitive to economic growth, with Boeing Co  and Goldman Sachs each down almost 2 per cent.

1:33 AM

UN: 870,000 measles cases in 2019, highest in 23 years

The number of children sickened by measles in 2019 was the highest in 23 years, according to new data published by the World Health Organization and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

 

In a study published on Thursday, WHO and CDC said there were nearly 870,000 cases of measles last year, and the number of deaths about 207,500 increased by almost 50 per cent since 2016. Officials blamed the record number of cases on a significant drop in vaccination; children must receive two doses of the measles vaccine to avoid being sickened by the highly contagious disease.

1:28 AM

US piles up record October budget deficit of $284.1 billion

The US is starting the 2021 budget year the way the old year ended, with soaring deficits.

 

The Treasury Department reported Thursday that the federal government ran up a record October deficit of $284.1 billion, nearly double the red ink of the same month a year ago, as revenues declined while spending to deal with the impact of the coronavirus soared.

 

The October deficit was almost double the $134.5 billion deficit logged in October 2019. It smashed the previous October record of a $176 billion deficit set in 2009, when the government was spending heavily to lift the country out of a deep recession caused by the 2008 financial crisis.

1:16 AM

US needs tougher antitrust enforcement: Biden transition team expert

The United States should increase enforcement of antitrust laws as part of a general attack on social ills, Bill Baer, who is on President-elect Joe Biden's transition team for the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), said on Thursday.

 

Baer pointed to multi-year battles that the FTC had to fight a series of hospital mergers as well as its ongoing battle against brand name pharmaceutical companies settling patent litigation by paying generic companies to delay entering the market, so-called pay-for-delay deals. The healthcare industry is one that has seen dizzying price increases.

 

"We should care too about under enforcement because it's led to growing concentration in many markets, think agriculture, telecom, wireless, travel, pharma and beer," he said at an American Bar Association conference.

12:43 AM

Trump administration readies crackdown on US investments in Chinese firms: Report

12:05 AM

PM Modi congratulates Myanmar's Aung San Suu Kyi over her party's election win

11:52 PM

Grand Alliance declares Tejashwi its leader; alleges manipulation in counting of votes

11:52 PM

If there's agreement on anything, India must insist on a joint statement: Congress on Ladakh standoff

11:40 PM

Modi unveils Vivekananda's statue in JNU, says ideology should not override national interest

11:38 PM

Obama mentions Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in his memoir

Former US president Barack Obama says Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has a "nervous, unformed quality" about him like a student eager to impress the teacher but lacking aptitude and passion to "master the subject."

 

The New York Times reviewed Obama's memoir 'A Promised Land', in which among other issues, the first Black American President has talked about political leaders from around the world.

 

On Gandhi, Obama says he has "a nervous, unformed quality about him, as if he were a student who'd done the coursework and was eager to impress the teacher but deep down lacked either the aptitude or the passion to master the subject," according to The New York Times review.

 

Gandhi's mother and Congress president Sonia Gandhi also appears to find mention in the memoir.

11:16 PM

Still struggling to put pieces together: Tiger Woods

Augusta Masters defending champion Tiger Woods says he is still trying to put all the pieces together and added that not playing in front of spectators due to the Coronavirus pandemic will be tough.

 

Woods, who has won five times at the Augusta Masters, was speaking to reporters ahead of this year's last Major, which has been shifted from its traditional date in April.

 

"It's been gearing up for the major championships and trying to understand what we have to deal with this year with Covid and trying to be safe," he was quoted as saying by CNN.com

10:37 PM

Fiscal impact of stimulus to be around 0.6% of GDP in FY21: Experts

Welcoming the latest round of stimulus announced by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday, experts said the measures will support the economic recovery boosting demand, job creation and by providing funds to the MSME and stressed sectors. The fiscal impact of the stimulus is likely to be around 0.25-0.6 per cent of GDP in the current fiscal, they said.

 

The finance minister announced tax relief on select home sale deals, enhanced credit guarantee programme for small businesses and provided incentives for new job creation as the government widened stimulus measures to boost the economy.

 

The measures that also include additional fertiliser subsidy and already announced production-linked incentive scheme for manufacturing units, totalled Rs 2.65 lakh crore, taking the cumulative stimulus package announced since the lockdown to almost Rs 30 lakh crore, or 15 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

10:37 PM

India hopes Russia-brokered pact between Armenia & Azerbaijan to halt fighting over Nagorno-Karabakh will defuse immediate tensions and result in peace, security in the region

10:15 PM

Future Retail tells Delhi HC that Amazon is not its shareholder, has no say in its affairs and interim order passed by Singapore arbitrator is of no value

9:33 PM

Dhanteras sales kick off on muted note; high prices of gold, silver dent sentiment

Pre-Diwali Dhanteras sales of gold and silver witnessed a tepid response from consumers on Thursday on account of high prices of the precious metals and sluggish demand due to Covid-19 induced economic hardship, according to jewellers and industry experts.

 

However, jewellers are expecting maximum footfalls on Friday as Dhanteras -- considered the most auspicious day in Hindu calendar for buying items, ranging from precious metals like gold and silver to utensils -- is being celebrated for two days this year.

 

Although the buying sentiment has improved after the Covid-19 curbs were relaxed, consumers are still wary of investing in precious metal at current high rates.

9:32 PM

Disappointed with performance in Bihar election, CWC will review it soon: Congress

9:31 PM

Centre has no plan to revive economy that continues to be in dire straits; it's instead doing headline management: Congress

9:04 PM

Eastern Railway to increase suburban train services in Howrah, Sealdah divisions of West Bengal to 'almost 100%' to cope with rush of passengers during peak hours: official

8:41 PM

India to host SCO heads summit on Nov 30 via virtual conference: MEA

India will be hosting the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) heads of government summit in the virtual format on 30th Nov. We have accordingly informed all 8 SCO members state, 4 observer states, SCO secretary general & Director of SCO: Anurag Srivastava, MEA Spokesperson

8:19 PM

Anganwadi workers in Maharashtra will get special allowance of Rs 2,000 for Diwali: State minister

8:19 PM

Religare case: Delhi court dismisses bail plea of ex-CEO Maninder Singh in case of alleged misappropriation of funds

7:53 PM

Maharashtra govt tells Bombay HC it will implement National Green Tribunal order banning firecrackers in districts where air quality index is poor or worse

7:33 PM

Manonmaniam Sundaranar University in #TamilNadu has removed Arundhati Roy's 'Walking with the Comrades' from MA English syllabus after complaints from ABVP, several people

7:09 PM

Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveils a statue of Swami Vivekananda at the JNU campus, via video conferencing

7:07 PM

Twitter remains committed to partnership with Indian govt, says spokesperson

Twitter remains committed to partnering with Govt of India & Ministry of Electronics & IT to serve the public conversation. Duly responded to the letter & as part of our correspondence, shared a comprehensive update with latest developments regarding geo-tag issue: Twitter Spox

6:47 PM

Court remands suspended IAS officer M Sivasankar in judicial custody till Nov 26 in ED case related to money-laundering charges in Kerala gold-smuggling racket

6:18 PM

MeitY issues notice to Twitter for showing Leh as part of J&K

Ministry of Electronics & IT issued notice to Twitter on November 9 for showing Leh as part of J&K instead of Union Territory of Ladakh. Notice directed Twitter to explain in 5 days as to why legal action shouldn't be taken against them for disrespecting India's territorial integrity.