Page 19 - Uk

India, UK close to concluding FTA talks, working to iron out issues on IPRs

India and the UK are "very close" to concluding negotiations for a proposed free trade agreement as both sides are working to iron out differences on issues including investment treaty, intellectual property rights (IPRs) and rules of origin, a senior government official said on Friday. The official also said there is a broad consensus on matters related to auto and spirits, however "nothing is agreed till everything is agreed". The 11th round of talks was concluded recently. For that round, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal visited London and took stock of the negotiations. The official exuded confidence that the negotiations will be concluded this year. "We are very close and are trying to conclude the talks as early as possible," the official added. Out of the total 26 chapters in the FTA, 19 have been closed. "Remaining issues include IPRs, rules of origin and investment treaty," the official added. In the rules of origin chap

India to be world's largest economy by 2060, says UK MP Karan Bilimoria

British Parliamentarian Lord Karan Bilimoria has predicted that India will become the world's largest economy by 2060. India has overtaken the United Kingdom and it's now the fifth largest economy in the world, he said on the sidelines of the Investiture Ceremony of his alma mater Hyderabad Public School (HPS), Begumpet, recently. "The whole world is looking up to India. India is now, without doubt, going to be one of the three superpowers in the world very shortly. Within 25 years, my prediction is India will have a GDP of 32 trillion dollars and would be the second largest economy in the world. I go one step further, I believe by 2060 India would be the largest economy in the world," Bilimoria, Member of the Britain's House of Lords, told PTI. He expressed hope that the India-UK free trade agreement being discussed is "imminent". Trade between the two countries was increasing very rapidly and it is now over 30 billion pounds a year, the UK lawmaker noted. "But, I still think tha

UK-India FTA to provide fair level playing field: Chivas Brothers

Chivas Brothers, a leading manufacturer of Scotch whiskey, expects the proposed free trade agreement between the UK and India would provide a "fair level playing field" on customs duties for liquor companies, its Chairman and CEO Jean Etienne Gourgues said. He also said that the proposed agreement may also help increase investments and promote domestic manufacturing of premium liquor in India. The two countries have been negotiating a free trade agreement (FTA) since January 2021 and senior officials of both sides concluded the 11th round of negotiations. Currently, Scotch whiskey, imported from the UK - both in bottled and bulk - is taxed at around 150 per cent in India, however, if the pact between the two governments is signed, then it would provide liberalisation in tariff and will be a 'win-win' for both India and the UK, he added. Our expectation is a fair level playing field between India and the UK. When we export scotch whisky to India, we pay a very high tax of over 150

We await new Microsoft proposal on Activision deal: UK antitrust regulator

It has been left increasingly isolated in opposition after US regulator, the FTC, failed to block it in court last week, and the CMA has taken the unprecedented step of reopening talks

UK's high food inflation not driven by weak competition: Regulator

UK food price inflation reached its highest since 1977 in March at more than 19%, according to official data

Microsoft, Activision Blizzard extend deadline to close $69 bn deal

The deadline for Microsoft's USD 69 billion acquisition of video game company Activision Blizzard has been extended to as the companies seek to close a deal that has been challenged by regulators in the US, as well as by UK's Competition and Markets Authority. Microsoft believes that pushing back the deadline to Oct. 18 will provide enough time to work through the remaining regulatory issues, said Brad Smith, the company's president. We are confident about our prospects for getting this deal across the finish line, Smith said. The extension comes with a bigger termination fee, should the deal be called off, and a number of other new agreements. Tuesday marked an important deadline for the deal announced 18 months earlier. Both Microsoft and Activision had agreed that either party could walk away from the planned merger if it hadn't closed by then, triggering Microsoft to potentially have to pay a USD 3 billion breakup fee unless both sides decided to renegotiate. That termination

Broadcom's $61 bn VMware purchase wins UK competition watchdog's approval

Computer chip and software maker Broadcom's USD 61 billion plan to buy cloud technology company VMware cleared another hurdle on Wednesday after Britain's competition regulator gave the deal provisional clearance. The Competition and Markets Authority said its investigation found the deal would not substantially reduce competition in the supply of hardware components for computer servers in the UK. The deal also would be unlikely to harm innovation, the regulator said. Thousands of British businesses and public bodies, including major banks, big retailers, telecom operators and government departments rely on Broadcom gear and VMware software, the regulator said. Both companies are based in California. The CMA will now seek feedback before issuing its final report September 12. The European Commission, the EU's executive arm and top antitrust enforcer, cleared the deal last week after Broadcom made concessions to address its concerns about competition. Broadcom wants to establish a

UK inflation slows sharply, offering some relief to Bank of England

Bank Rate peaking at 6% is no longer fully priced, which had been the case on Tuesday

UK signs pact to join Pacific trade deal, focus now turns to China

Formerly known as the TPP, the agreement at one time included the US and was seen as a way of containing China's growing influence in the Asia Pacific

UK extends Activision deadline after Microsoft's 'complex' proposal

British antitrust regulators on Friday extended their deadline to issue a final order blocking Microsoft's USD 69 billion plan to buy video game maker Activision Blizzard, allowing them to consider the US tech giant's detailed and complex submission" pleading its case. The Competition and Markets Authority had rejected the deal the biggest in tech history over fears it would stifle competition for popular game titles like Call of Duty in the fast-growing cloud gaming market. But the UK watchdog appears to have softened its position after a judge thwarted US regulators' efforts to block the deal. The authority says it has pushed its original deadline back six weeks to August 29 so it could go through Microsoft's response, which details material changes in circumstance and special reasons why regulators shouldn't issue an order to reject the deal. The watchdog's decision could be a good sign for Microsoft and Activision as they battle to close the agreement signed nearly 18 months

UK visa fees, health surcharge to rise to meet higher costs, says PM Sunak

The fees and health surcharge paid towards the UK's state-funded National Health Service (NHS) by visa applicants from around the world, including Indians, are set to rise "significantly to meet the country's public sector wage increase, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said on Thursday. The British Indian leader, who was under pressure to accept the recommendation of an independent review of pay for teachers, police, junior doctors and other public sector workers, confirmed a hike between 5 and 7 per cent across the board. However, he stressed that this would not be met with higher government borrowing for fear of further stoking high inflation and therefore the costs would need to be found elsewhere. If we're going to prioritise paying public sector workers more, that money has to come from somewhere else because I'm not prepared to put up people's taxes and I don't think it would be responsible or right to borrow more because that would just make inflation worse, Sunak told reporters a

PM Modi wants every mindset to be that of developed nation's mind: Goyal

'Till we make our mind accept that we are going to be a developed nation, we will never become a developed nation. And wealth sustainability is a harsh reality we all have to accept

India-UK FTA: Goyal, Badenoch discuss thorny issues in negotiations

India and the UK began negotiations on the FTA in January 2022, and set a Diwali deadline last year for the trade pact

UK banks resilient to support struggling households: Bank of England

The Bank of England warned Wednesday that UK households are facing mounting financial difficulties from the sharp increase in interest rates but expressed hope that the country's biggest banks are resilient enough to offer more help than they could before the global financial crisis 15 years ago. In its half-yearly financial assessment, the central bank said British households are facing higher debt burdens because of rising interest rates, particularly people whose fixed-rate mortgage deals have come to an end or soon will. However, the Bank of England said several factors should limit the number of people who default on their mortgages. It noted, for example, that UK banks have more capital and are carrying far less debt than they did 15 years ago, allowing them to offer struggling households more financial options. That includes permitting borrowers to vary the terms of their loans. The average household also is carrying less debt than then during the financial crisis, the centra

Microsoft cleared to buy Activision in US as UK pauses fight: Report

Microsoft and Activision can't close their deal because of the UK veto, said Tom Smith, a competition lawyer at Geradin Partners

Essar Oil UK to expand fuel distribution into London, South East of England

Essar Oil (UK) Ltd, the leading integrated downstream energy company, on Monday said it has signed an agreement with Essex-based storer of refining petroleum products Oikos Storage Ltd to expand its operations into London and the South East of England. The firm owns UK's Stanlow oil refinery and a network of petrol stations in the country. "Under the agreement, Essar will store and distribute middle distillate fuels at Oikos' Canvey Island facility to serve the Thames region. Furthermore, the agreement will leverage Oikos' connectivity to the United Kingdom Oil Pipeline (UKOP) system to supply the Northampton and Midlands regions," the company said in a statement. Currently, diesel and jet fuels are pumped from the Stanlow refinery to the Midlands and Northampton regions along the UKOP system. "As a result of this agreement, Essar's imports of middle distillates will be pumped from Oikos to Northampton and the Midlands regions, providing significant supply resilience and increasing

Indo-Pacific region on agenda for talks between Biden, Sunak in UK

The Indo-Pacific region and the broader geopolitical context were among the topics on the agenda for talks when British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak hosted US President Joe Biden at 10 Downing Street in London on Monday. The US leader arrived in the UK ahead of a North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) summit in Lithuania, with the Russia-Ukraine conflict and the West's support for the latter central to the talks. Biden, who was received by King Charles III at Windsor Castle later, hailed the UK-US relationship as rock solid ahead of his discussions with Sunak. Looking ahead to this week's NATO Summit, the Prime Minister and President Biden agreed on the need to strengthen our alliance and maintain our support for Ukraine, a Downing Street spokesperson said in a readout of their discussions. They discussed the progress of the counter-offensive and emphasised the importance of the country's international partners committing to its long-term defence, providing the support Ukraine need

BBC suspends presenter over claims he paid a teenager for explicit photos

The BBC said Sunday that it has suspended a leading presenter who is alleged to have paid a teenager for sexually explicit photos. As senior British politicians urged a rapid investigation, the broadcaster said it was working to establish the facts of a complex and fast-moving set of circumstances. The UK's publicly funded national broadcaster was scrambling to head off a worsening crisis after The Sun newspaper reported allegations that the male presenter gave a youth 35,000 pounds ($45,000) starting in 2020 when the young person was 17. Neither the star nor the youth was identified. Amid speculation on social media about the identity of the presenter, several of the BBC's best-known stars spoke up to say it wasn't them. Though the age of sexual consent in Britain is 16, it's a crime to make or possess indecent images of anyone under 18. The Sun said the young person's mother had complained to the BBC in May but that the presenter had remained on the air. The BBC said in a state

Piyush Goyal to visit UK for FTA negotiations, review progress of TEPA

India and the UK began negotiations on the FTA in January 2022, and set a Diwali deadline last year for the trade pact

Any attack on Indian mission 'unacceptable': UK amid Khalistani threats

The UK government on Thursday declared that any direct attacks on the High Commission of India in London are "completely unacceptable" amid anti-India attacks by Khalistani extremists emerging on social media channels. UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly took to Twitter to declare that the safety of the staff at India's diplomatic mission in the country is paramount. His intervention follows threats and attacks targeted at Indian diplomatic missions in the US, Australia and Canada and some threatening posters emerging online with images of Indian High Commissioner to the UK Vikram Doraiswami and Dr Shashank Vikram, the Consul General of India in Birmingham. Any direct attacks on the Indian High Commission in London are completely unacceptable, said Cleverly. We have made clear to Vikram Doraiswami and the Government of India that the safety of staff at the High Commission is paramount, he said. There has been a very visible Metropolitan Police security presence at India House in .