Page 14 - India

India, Africa should look at doubling bilateral tarde by 2030: Goyal

India and Africa should look at doubling bilateral trade by 2030 from the current level of USD 82 billion, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on Friday. He also called for increasing cooperation in areas like critical minerals, agriculture, technology and manufacturing . The two-way trade increased from USD 56 billion in 2015-16 to USD 82 billion (India's exports stood at USD 42 billion and imports were USD 40 billion) in 2024-25. This is suboptimal trade despite huge opportunities, he said, adding "we should look at doubling the trade by 2030. It is a bold target but achievable". The numbers show that there is a huge untapped potential between the two regions. "Looking at the current situation across the world, this is an ideal opportunity for us to relook at our engagement," Goyal said at an industry chamber event. He also said that India can supply high quality milk products to Mauritius, which can help cool inflation of this commodity in the island nation. Goya

India submits official bid to host 2030 Commonwealth Games in Ahmedabad

India on Friday officially submitted its proposal to host the 2030 Commonwealth Games, marking a significant step in its ambition to bring the multi-sport event back to the country after two decades. The formal bid was submitted to the Commonwealth Sport (the Commonwealth Games Federation) by a delegation with representation from the Commonwealth Games Association of India and the Government of Gujarat. The bid positions Ahmedabad as the host city for the Centenary edition of the Games, marking 100 years of the Commonwealth Games.. Gujarat Sports Minister Harsh Sanghavi said India's Games will be based on the ancient principle of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam', meaning "the world is one family. offering unity and human connection. Atithi Devo Bhava, or the guest is divine, will guide the planning for all the stakeholders that will visit India for the Games. Indian Olympic Association (IOA) President PT Usha said, "This bid represents the aspirations of an entire nation. The Commonwealth G

LIVE news: Thai court removes Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra from office

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Telangana may face ₹7,000 cr annual loss from GST reform: Deputy CM

With the proposed GST rate rationalisation, Telangana is estimated to lose nearly Rs 7,000 crore annually, Deputy Chief Minister Bhatti Vikramarka said on Friday, requesting the Centre to properly compensate states for the losses expected from the new tax measure. Addressing the media in the national capital, Vikramarka said Telangana's accumulated losses since the introduction of GST are estimated to be nearly Rs 80,000 crore. "Estimates are saying that Telangana alone may lose Rs 7,000 crore annually (after the GST rate rationalisation). So when a state is estimated to lose Rs 7,000 to Rs 10,000 crore, it would impact welfare and developmental programmes of the respective states. However, we welcome the rate rationalisation and request the Centre to properly compensate," Vikramarka said. In order to compensate states for the losses due to rate rationalisation, the Centre should channel the revenue collected from taxes or cess on sin and luxury products to the states, he opined. H

India's GST cuts risk delay as states demand safeguards for revenue loss

Gross GST collections hit a record ₹22.1 trillion in fiscal year 2025, 9.4 per cent higher than a year earlier

Finland's President Stubb, PM Modi discuss India-EU trade and tech ties

Finland's President Alexander Stubb on Tuesday reiterated his country's support for an early conclusion of a mutually beneficial India-EU Free Trade Agreement in a phone call to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. A PMO statement said the two leaders also reviewed progress in the India-Finland bilateral relationship and reaffirmed their commitment to enhance partnership in emerging fields, including quantum technologies, 6G, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and sustainability. Stubb affirmed support for the success of the AI Impact Summit to be hosted by India in 2026, it added. The statement said Stubb shared his assessment with Modi on the recent meetings held between the leaders of Europe, the United States and Ukraine in Washington on the resolution of the conflict in Ukraine. Modi reiterated India's consistent support for the peaceful resolution of the conflict and early restoration of peace and stability, it added.

US tariffs a wake-up call for India to push bold reforms: Amitabh Kant

India should view US tariffs as a wake-up call to implement bold and once-in-a-generation reforms and diversify its export markets for long-term growth, former Niti Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant said on Wednesday. Addressing the BN Memorial Lecture organised by IRS (C&IT) Association, Kant said, "This is India's century, irrespective of Trump's tariff, I strongly believe that Trump has given us a huge opportunity for reforms". On the US excuse of Russian oil imports for tariff hike, Kant said, "It's not about Russian oil. If it were the issue, then China buys much more Russian oil and Turkey buys as much Russian oil". The former G-20 Sherpa also talked about disruption in the global supply chain and India's need to improve administrative efficiency for the rapid expansion of production infrastructure. "Trump's tariffs must be a wake-up call for India. The irony is striking: the U.S. is actively negotiating with Russia and China, the latter being the largest buyer of Russian oil, yet ...

India-Africa trade surpassed $100 bn in 2024-25: MoS Kirti Vardhan Singh

Union minister Kirti Vardhan Singh on Wednesday said India-Africa trade has crossed USD 100 billion and New Delhi has emerged as one of the top-five investors in the continent. Addressing the inaugural session of the 20th CII India-Africa Business Conclave in the national capital, Singh said India has extended concessional loans worth over USD 12 billion and USD 700 million in grant assistance for projects across Africa, apart from offering 50,000 scholarships for African youth, of which more than 42,000 have already been utilised. "This year's theme is different as we have decided to move from project partnership and growth partnership to the spirit of 'Co-creating a Shared Future', which signifies the sentiment attached to this remarkable journey," the minister said. "India's bilateral trade with Africa has crossed the magical figure of USD 100 billion in 2024-25 compared to USD 56 billion in 2019-2020. With cumulative investments over USD 75 billion from 1996-2024, India is among

Fiji PM Rabuka visits UIDAI's Delhi headquarter to strengthen digital ties

Prime Minister of Fiji Sitiveni Ligamamada Rabuka on Tuesday visited the head office of the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) in New Delhi, accompanied by a high-level delegation. The visit reflects the growing collaboration between India and Fiji in the field of digital transformation, including cooperation in development of innovative digital transformational solutions. It also underlines India's commitment to sharing its expertise in digital public infrastructure with global partners, an official release said. During the visit to UIDAI headquarters in Delhi, the Prime Minister of Fiji was briefed on India's pioneering digital identity system that forms the foundational layer of India digital public infrastructure, an official release said. He was welcomed by the Chief Executive Officer of UIDAI Bhuvnesh Kumar, and senior officials of the Ministry of External Affairs and Ministry of Electronics and IT. Deputy Director General of UIDAI Vivek Chandra Verma, and ...

Why India, UK, Denmark are suspending postal shipments to the US

US President Donald Trump issued an executive order scrapping the trade exemption known as 'de minimis', which had permitted goods valued at up to $800 to enter the US without duty

India engages second US lobbying firm ahead of 50% export tariff hike

The move follows concerns that India was outpaced by Pakistan in influence over US policy and criticism over its continued purchase of discounted Russian crude oil

Nikki Haley urges India to take Trump's view on Russian oil seriously

India should take President Donald Trump's concerns over its procurement of Russian crude oil seriously and work with the White House to find a solution to the issue, Republican leader Nikki Haley has said. The Trump administration has been severely critical of India for its procurement of discounted crude oil from Russia. Interestingly, Washington has not been criticising China, the largest importer of Russian crude oil. Defending its purchase of Russian crude oil, India has been maintaining that its energy procurement is driven by national interest and market dynamics. Haley, the Indian-origin Republican leader, on Saturday posted on 'X' a portion of an opinion piece she wrote in the Newsweek four days back. The former South Carolina governor's social media post urging New Delhi to take President Trump's concerns over the Russian crude oil seriously came after she faced criticism within her party following the opinion piece. In the article, Haley argued that India must be treate

Snowflake ramps up India investments, targets growth across sectors: MD

AI data cloud firm Snowflake views India as a "land of opportunities" for data and AI, and is significantly increasing its investments in the country to tap into its massive potential, a top company official has said. The company is strategically expanding its presence and capabilities, aiming to grow its headcount to over 700 employees by the end of 2025. "Snowflake is doubling down on India as an investment destination. As a destination where we are heavily invested to make sure that we serve the Indian market, we serve global customers from India, and we also invest in the country in terms of AI and skill sets out there. "If you look at the world of data in India, we have a lot of headroom to expand, not only Snowflake, but most players in this space, there's a massive headroom to expand," Vijayant Rai, India MD of Snowflake, told PTI. The company has recently opened a new office in Mumbai and plans to expand its presence in Bengaluru by August 2025. These expansions will suppo

Govt commits 97% of chip manufacturing fund, scope for new projects

The government has committed around Rs 62,900 crore, or 97 per cent, of the Rs 65,000 crore fund earmarked as incentives for semiconductor production in the country, a top official said on Friday. While briefing on the Semicon India 2025 event, Electronics and IT Secretary S Krishnan said the funds left can accommodate only small projects. He said that under the Rs 76,000 crore India Semiconductor Mission, Rs 65,000 crore was allocated for chip production, Rs 10,000 crore for the modernisation of the Semiconductor Laboratory in Mohali and Rs 1,000 crore for the design-linked incentive scheme. "Out of this Rs 65,000 crore, I think we have committed close to Rs 62,900 crore or so already. We have limited funding, which we have available; we might be able to just accommodate two or three small projects," Krishnan said. Talking about the Semicon India event, he said that the three-day event will be held from September 2-4 at Yashobhoomi in the national capital, which is expected to be

WHO-WMO warn extreme heat threatens workers' health and global productivity

Analysing evidence from studies from past five decades that 'have provided conclusive evidence that workplace heat stress directly threatens workers' ability to live healthy and productive lives'

PM Modi, Prez Putin among 20 world leaders to attend SCO summit: China

China on Friday said the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit to be held in Tianjin later this month will be the largest in the bloc's history, with 20 world leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, attending it. The Tianjin meeting of the 10-member grouping from Aug 31-Sept 1 is the fifth summit being hosted by China. It will be the largest in SCO history, China's Assistant Foreign Minister Liu Bin told a media briefing here. Besides Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, the summit will be attended by PM Modi and a host of world leaders, Liu said. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, his Indonesian counterpart Prabowo Subianto, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh are other prominent leaders to attend the summit, he said. From the subcontinent, Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif, Nepal's Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli and Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu will attend the summit, Liu ...

72% of employers plan workforce expansion via new job creation: Report

India's white-collar job market is likely to witness a surge in the latter half of 2025, with nearly 72 per cent of employers interviewed planning workforce expansion through net new job creation, a report said on Friday. According to Naukri's bi-annual 'Hiring Outlook' report, the white-collar job market is expected to maintain strong hiring momentum, with 94 per cent of employers planning to hire during the second half of the current fiscal. The report is based on input from 1,300 employers across the sectors in India. Among these employers, nearly three-quarters (72 per cent) indicated they expect new job creation, the report said. Even as there is an ongoing buzz around job losses due to artificial intelligence (AI), 87 per cent of employers do not foresee any significant impact on overall employment. Instead, it revealed that 13 per cent of them expect AI to act as a catalyst for job creation, particularly in emerging roles. Sectors most likely to benefit include IT (42 per

India energy giants back nuclear power to boost clean electricity output

Atomic power is witnessing a revival globally due to its ability to deliver low-emissions energy

Indian envoy, US lawmakers discuss trade, energy security amid tariff row

Indian envoy Vinay Mohan Kwatra on Friday discussed mutually beneficial trade engagement and energy security with US lawmakers amid tariff tensions between Washington and New Delhi. The Indian ambassador met Senator Bill Hagerty and thanked him for consistent and strong support to the India-US partnership. Briefed him on continuing bilateral discussions for fair, balanced and mutually beneficial trade engagement, the Indian envoy posted on social media. He also shared perspectives on India's energy security and the growing trade between India and the US in hydrocarbons with Senator Hagerty. Kwatra also held a productive conversation with Congressman Greg Landsman and briefed him on developments in bilateral trade engagement. Briefed him on recent developments in bilateral trade engagement and energy security, and the growing hydrocarbon partnership between our countries, he posted on social media. Earlier, Kwatra met with Rep Josh Gottheimer, Ranking Member of the National Securi

India leads global malware attacks as AI fuels ransomware surge: Acronis

India has emerged as the most-targeted nation for malware attacks, topping global charts, with Artificial Intelligence (AI) fuelling a surge in ransomware, a new report by cybersecurity firm Acronis has said. The biannual report covers the global threat landscape as encountered by the Acronis Threat Research Unit (TRU) and Acronis sensors on Windows endpoints from January through June 2025. Based on signals from over one million unique endpoints distributed around the world, the report also incorporates statistics focused on threats targeting Windows operating systems, given their prevalence as compared to macOS and Linux. India emerged as the most targeted country globally, with 12.4 per cent of monitored endpoints affected, highlighting the nation's growing vulnerability to sophisticated threats such as AI-powered phishing and impersonation attacks, according to Acronis. "Ransomware remains the major threat for large and medium-sized businesses, with new groups increasingly ...