Indian refiners are negotiating for additional crude cargoes from the US, Russia, and West Africa to ensure adequate supplies amid Middle East tensions. Refineries are maintaining normal processing rates and deferring maintenance to build reserves. The move comes as conflict impacts tanker movements through the Strait of Hormuz, a key energy transit route.
The deal shifts the US posture towards India from hostile to neutral, and that matters for growth, points out T T Ram Mohan.
The Trump administration has launched a premium immigration programme targeting wealthy individuals worldwide, offering permanent residency in the United States through expensive 'Gold Cards' that could generate billions in revenue for the American Treasury.
As in-person negotiations between India and the US kickstarted on Wednesday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said he expected India to strike the first bilateral trade deal to avert President Donald Trump's reciprocal tariffs.
I am inclined to believe that the Venezuela adventure is not an indication of American strength, alas, but rather of American weakness, points out Rajeev Srinivasan.
The statement did not name any country. But the US has often blamed India and China for purchasing Russian oil even when there are no tariffs on Beijing for it.
What we are watching is something different: A fog manufactured and maintained by the people who started the war, so that the question of why it was started never has to be answered, observes Prem Panicker in his must read blog on the war in the Middle East.
'Grassroots-level corruption, which disrupts the last-mile work, cannot be ignored in your enthusiasm and drive to get going to complete the project.' 'Like it was in MGNREGA, in some states, it is the case with the Jal Jeevan mission.' 'The last minute levels of corruption can ruin the intent of the project itself.' 'When you see that people can game a particular well-intended and well-crafted project, you need to correct that.'
The move by the US President came following a retaliatory move by China, where it increased its tariff on US goods from 34 per cent to 84 per cent starting April 10.
The United States has imposed sanctions on 275 individuals and entities, including 15 from India, for allegedly supporting Russia's military-industrial base.
The United States and Ukraine have signed an 'economic partnership agreement,' giving Washington, DC access to Ukraine's rare earth minerals in return for creating an investment fund in the country, CNN reported.
United States President Donald Trump has announced that Washington DC will stop minting pennies, citing their high production cost, which exceeds their face value and termed the practice "wasteful." President Trump said Sunday that he has instructed Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to "stop producing new pennies."
The United States Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), led by Elon Musk has announced cancelling a $22 million funding intended for 'voter turnout in India' on Saturday (Local Time).
US President Donald Trump has imposed tariffs and a travel ban on Colombia after the South American nation refused to accept two American military planes deporting undocumented Colombians. The move comes after President Trump announced mass deportations of illegal immigrants and warned countries of consequences if they refuse to accept them. Colombian President Gustavo Petro, in a post on X, said that the US cannot treat Colombian migrants as criminals and denied the entry of American planes carrying Colombian migrants into Colombian territory. Trump responded by imposing a 25% tariff on all goods coming into the US, a travel ban and immediate visa revocations on Colombian government officials, and visa sanctions on all party members, family members and supporters of the Colombian government. The US also announced enhanced customs and border protection inspections of all Colombian nationals and cargo on national security grounds. In retaliation, Colombia announced a 25% import tariff on American products.
US sanctions against two of Russia's largest oil companies are expected to impact Reliance Industries' crude imports from Russia, while state-run refiners may continue purchases through intermediary traders for now.
The US has sanctioned an Indian national based in the United Arab Emirates and two India-based entities for operating as part of Iran's shadow fleet and involved in shipping Iranian oil. The US Department of the Treasury said Jugwinder Singh Brar, who owns multiple shipping companies, operates as part of Iran's shadow fleet, which the US said is used to evade sanctions and transport Iranian oil. Brar also owns or controls India-based shipping company Global Tankers Private Limited and petrochemical sales company B and P Solutions Private Limited. The sanctions come as part of a US campaign of maximum pressure on Iran and target the country's petroleum and petrochemical sectors.
China sits on a mountain of United States treasury debt, reinforcing its position as the world's number one holder of US treasury securities with a total of $895.2 billion. China's foreign exchange reserves too stood at a mammoth $2.45 trillion at the end of March 2010.
On Wednesday, protests erupted across the United States in response to President Donald Trump's recent actions.
Sanctioning Russian oil would have led to a sharp surge in oil prices to above $80 per barrel levels, which would impact pump prices in the US ahead of midterm elections next year.
In trying to portray a globally sanctioned terrorist as a 'common man', Pakistan was exposed when its top official publically outed crucial details about Hafiz Abdul Rauf, including his national identity number which matched details in the database of the United States sanction list of terrorists.
Yellen, 74, was confirmed by the Senate in a broad bipartisan support of 84-15 votes on Monday. Both the Democratic and the Republican parties have 50 members in the 100-seat Senate.
In a significant gesture ahead of the high level Sino-US talks, China has increased its holdings of United States treasury debt by $17.7 billion, consolidating its position as the number one holder of US treasury securities with a total of $895.2 billion.
The 18 companies sanctioned include Marshall Islands-registered Changtai Shipping and Motionavigations Limited and UAE-based Indo Gulf Ship Management.
Beijing blocked the proposal that had been moved by the US and co-designated by India to blacklist Mir under the 1267 Al Qaeda Sanctions Committee of the UN Security Council as a global terrorist and subject him to assets freeze, travel ban and arms embargo.
The US treasury department informed about the sanctions following the October 7 attacks on Israel by Hamas.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday, April 11, 2023, met with US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen in Washington, DC.
If Beijing succeeds in this multipronged effort to challenge the current dominant power, it will have not just economic but political and security consequences. There is no let-up in the South China Sea nor any de-escalation moves on the India-China border. This portends to ominous signalling from Beijing, observes China expert Srikanth Kondapalli.
Meanwhile, US President Joe Biden condemned Russia's annexation of Ukrainian territory on Friday.
We the people are left in the wind, waiting on the whims of an unengaged president and an oligarch with a nearly bottomless wallet, observes Sree Sreenivasan.
WazirX lost about 45 per cent of its crypto assets to the security breach. People privy to the discussions say North Korea has been mentioned.
China has put a hold on a proposal moved at the United Nations by the United States and co-supported by India to designate Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorist Sajid Mir, one of India's most wanted terrorists and the main handler of the deadly 2008 Mumbai attacks, as a global terrorist.
Pakistan on Friday freed Saeed, the Lashkar-e-Tayiba founder, who immediately launched his anti-India rhetoric and vowed to mobilise people for the "cause of Kashmir".
The United States has offered rewards amounting to USD 20 million (around Rs 127 crore) for tips on whereabouts of four top leaders of the Islamic State, a day after the terror group claimed responsibility for its first attack on American soil.
Engineering and construction major Larsen & Toubro (L&T) reported a 25 per cent rise in net profit attributable to the owners of the company for the January-March quarter of 2024-25, owing to higher revenues and an exceptional gain. For the quarter under review, L&T posted a consolidated net profit of Rs 5,497.3 crore, while revenue rose 10.9 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) to Rs 74,392.28 crore.
A delegation of high-level executives from US public pension funds (non-profit and government sectors) is visiting India next week to assess and familiarise themselves with the investment opportunities in the country. These executives belong to various American states and cumulatively represent $1.8 trillion in assets under management (AUM) invested across the US and global markets. The United States (US) mission to India, which includes its embassy and consulates and the Department of Treasury, along with India's Ministry of Finance and the National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF), is hosting the delegation.
A US special envoy met senior Taliban representatives in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, and discussed the issue of Afghan central bank reserves.
Utilising a new executive order signed by President Donald Trump, issued on the eve of the 9/11 anniversary, the treasury department sanctioned over two dozen individuals and entities from 11 terrorist groups, including Pakistan-based Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan.
On November 10, the US Federal Reserve had approved the application of credit card major to become a bank holding company and the change in status facilitated American Express to explore various government funding and lending programmes. In return to the said loan, American Express will issue and sell preferred stock of about $3.39 billion and warrants to purchase shares of common stock for up to 15 per cent of that amount to the Treasury.
Hafiz Talha Saeed is a senior leader of the LeT and is the head of the cleric wing of the terrorist organisation.
It is learnt that China placed a hold on the proposal by India and the US to designate Mahmood as a global terrorist under the 1267 Al Qaeda Sanctions Committee of the UN Security Council.
