Nineteen nations, including Algeria, Egypt and Indonesia have shown interest in joining the BRICS group of nations. The group has received membership requests from these nations ahead of its annual summit, said Anil Sooklal, South Africa’s ambassador to the group in an interview on April 24. The BRICS group of nations is preparing to hold the proposed annual summit in South Africa. The emerging markets bloc will meet in Cape Town on June 2-3 to discuss its expansion, added Anil Sooklal. Thirteen countries have formally asked to join the group and another six have asked informally. Conclu
For the third in a row, tech giant Google has ranked as Singapore’s best employer, led by work-from-home and flexible work arrangements when the Covid-19 pandemic hit. Despite the challenging times, with mass layoffs and company closures, the company has stuck to its hybrid work arrangements, helping it maintain its top ranking in the Singapore’s Best Employers 2023 list attests. Consumer goods corporation Procter & Gamble (P&G) came in second, followed by financial services company Wells Fargo. Tech giant Apple and jet engine maker Rolls-Royce made the rest of the top five, ou
HCL Co-founder Ajai Chowdhry has said that India can replace China to become the product factory of the world. To him, in the next eight or 10 years, there is going to be a huge opportunity in hardware, presenting a huge opportunity for startups and to make India a product nation, he added. In an interview, Chowdhry — who is part of the IT ministry-constituted advisory panel of experts that will steer objectives and provide guidance on the semiconductor program — said India’s manufacturing push, supported by favourable policies, is timely and positions the country strongly to grab a
Companies in East Asia are facing more inspection on their environmental credentials and net-zero emissions pledges. In January, South Korea became the first nation in East Asia to draft a law that would fine firms for false or exaggerated green claims. South Korean oil company SK E&S was pressured by activists into withdrawing claims that it would produce carbon-free gas. Industry professionals are calling for tougher action against companies to target greenwashing in the Asia-Pacific region. SK E&S has said it would produce “CO2-free” liquefied natural gas (LNG). In March
Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri is confident that India will meet the target of supplying petrol mixed with 20 percent ethanol by 2025, five years ahead of the previously planned roll-out in 2030. Petrol blended with 20 percent ethanol was launched at select petrol pumps in 11 states and Union Territories in February 2023 under a programme to raise the use of biofuels to cut emissions and dependence on oil imports. Currently, 10 percent ethanol is blended in 90 percent petrol. The blending of 10 percent ethanol in petrol was accomplished in June 2022, five mo
Indian Railways (IR) registered a record revenue of Rs 2.40 lakh crore in the financial year 2022-23, with a nearly 24 per cent increase from the previous year's revenue of Rs 1.94 lakh crore. In 2022-23, the freight revenue rose to Rs 1.62 lakh crore, a growth of nearly 15 per cent from the last year. The passenger revenue recorded an all-time high growth of 61 per cent to reach Rs 63,300 crore. “After three years, Indian Railways is able to fully meet the pension expenditures. Buoyancy in revenues and tight expenditure management have helped in achieving an operating ratio of 98.14 per
Apple Card customers in the U.S. can open a savings account and earn interest through an Apple saving account. While there are no fees associated with the account, there is a maximum balance limit of $250,000. The annual percentage yield (APY) of 4.15% applies to any sized balance and there is no minimum balance required. Apple has partnered with Goldman Sachs for the banking feature created specifically for Apple Card customers. When customers pay with their Apple Card, they get cash back on all purchases. By default, all purchases grant you 1% in cash rewards and 2% for all purchases mad
The Group of Seven (G7) industrialised nations has pledged to quit fossil fuels faster and urged other countries to follow suit, but have not set any new deadlines on quitting the use of polluting fuels like coal. After two days of talks in the northern city of Sapporo in Japan on April 16, the bloc's climate and environment ministers vowed to accelerate the phase-out of unabated fossil fuels so as to achieve net zero in energy systems by 2050 at the latest. However, they failed to offer any new deadline beyond last year’s G7 pledge to largely end fossil fuel use in their electricity sec
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on April 1 announced the framework for acceptance of Green Deposits of regulated entities (RE), to foster and develop a green finance ecosystem in the country. It will come into effect from June 1, 2023. A green deposit means an interest-bearing deposit, received by the RE for a fixed period and the proceeds of which are earmarked for being allocated towards green finance. The framework is intended to “encourage REs to offer green deposits to customers, protect interest of the depositors, aid customers to achieve their sustainability agenda, address gre
Underlining closer cooperation between Kyiv and New Delhi, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Emine Dzhaparova suggested how India can play a bigger role in the ongoing war. During her first official visit to India since the start of the Ukraine war in February last year, Dzhaparova said, “Ukraine really wants India to come closer to it. We had different pages in history but now Ukraine is gaining independence. We are now capable of being the subject, not the object.” Speaking at a think tank in New Delhi, Dzhaparova called for restarting the relationship between India a