The star Indian men’s badminton duo of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty have regained their top spot in the latest Badminton World Federation (BWF) Rankings after a remarkable victory at the Thailand Open Super 500 in Bangkok last week. Before the tournament, Satwik and Chirag were ranked third but managed to surpass China’s Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang.
South Korea’s Min Hyuk Kang and Seung Jae Seo hold the third position. They showcased impeccable form throughout the tournament, winning all their matches in straight games. Their dominant performance was highlighted in the final where they defeated China’s Chen Bo Yang and Liu Yi 21-15, 21-15 in just 46 minutes, securing their second Thailand Open men’s double's title.
The Indian pair first rose to the pinnacle of the world rankings on October 10, 2023, after their groundbreaking gold medal win at the Asian Games in Hangzhou, China. However, their reign was short-lived as Liang and Wang reclaimed the top spot three weeks later.
India's rank on the World Economic Forum's Travel & Tourism Development Index 2024 has risen to 39th place, with global tourism activities returning to pre-pandemic levels, the annual report showed. While the US topped the list, India is ranked highest in South Asia and among the lower-middle-income economies, the WEF said.
India was ranked 54th in the previously published index in 2021, though changes made to the index parameters limit its comparability to earlier years. After the US, Spain, Japan, France and Australia figure among the top five in the 2024 list. The biennial index analysed the travel and tourism sectors of 119 countries around a range of factors and policies.
Germany was ranked 6th, followed by the UK, China, Italy and Switzerland in the top ten. The index, prepared in collaboration with the University of Surrey, showed India is highly price-competitive (18th) and boasts competitive Air Transport (26th) and Ground and Port (25th) infrastructure. Country's overall Travel and Tourism Development Index score is 2.1% below its 2019.
India is set to play a pivotal role in facilitating the first-ever focused discussions on regulating tourism in Antarctica at the 46th Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting and 26th Meeting of the Committee for Environmental Protection. India has been a Consultative Party to the Antarctic Treaty since 1983.
National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR), Goa under Ministry of Earth Sciences, and the Antarctic Treaty Secretariat will organize these meetings in Kochi, Kerala. The ATCM and CEP are high-level global annual meetings conducted in accordance with the provisions of the Antarctic Treaty, a multilateral agreement of 56 Contracting Parties signed in 1959.
The International Day for Biological Diversity traces its roots back to a pivotal decision made by the United Nations General Assembly in 2000. The primary goal behind this initiative was to champion the preservation and sustainable utilisation of the diverse array of life on our planet.
This date holds special significance as it commemorates the momentous adoption of the Convention on Biological Diversity and the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, back in 1992. The theme for 2024, Be Part of the Plan, emphasises the need for a collective and coordinated approach to address and reverse the loss of biodiversity.
The Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI’s) state of the economy report observed that any durable alignment of headline retail inflation with the target of 4 per cent could recommence in the second half of FY25 and sustain until numbers closer to the target are seen during the course of FY26, dashing hopes of any reduction in the policy repo rate in the current financial year.
The RBI has projected consumer price index inflation of 4.5 per cent in FY25, with Q1 at 4.9 per cent; Q2 at 3.8 per cent; Q3 at 4.6 per cent; and Q4 at 4.5 per cent. According to the “State of Economy” report more than 60 per cent of the FDI equity flows were directed towards manufacturing, electricity and other energy, computer services, financial services and, retail,
Singapore, Mauritius, the US, the Netherlands, Japan and the UAE contributed to more than 80% of the flows. Net FDI declined to US$ 10.6 billion during 2023-24 from $ 28.0 billion a year ago, mainly reflecting higher repatriation. The net foreign direct investment in India -- inflows minus the outflows -- dropped sharply by 62.17 per cent to $10.58 billion in May 2024.
The 2024 Italian Open is now in the books with Poland’s Iga Swiatek victorious on the women’s side and Germany’s Alexander Zverev the winner on the men’s side. Swiatek trounced Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus 6-2, 6-3 in a rematch of the Madrid Masters final won by Swiatek, 7-5, 4-6, 7-6. This is Swiatek’s third Italian Open title.
This was Zverev’s first ATP title in 2024. The third seed in Rome won his second Italian Open. In 2017, he beat Djokovic 6-4, 6-3 for his first ATP Masters 1000 series title.
The market capitalisation of companies listed on BSE has crossed a record $5 trillion for the first time - hitting a fresh high on May 21 - data on the BSE website showed. Currently, only four stock markets world over are in the $5-trillion-plus club, namely, USA, China, Japan and Hong Kong.
The surge in the market capitalization of Indian equities was primarily driven by a surge in broader market indices. India's market capitalization has risen nearly 12 percent, while for the US it has gone up by 10 percent, and Hong Kong's has risen 16 percent.
European Union member states gave final agreement to the world’s first major law for regulating artificial intelligence, as institutions around the world race to introduce curbs for the technology. The EU Council said it had approved the AI Act — a groundbreaking piece of regulatory law that sets comprehensive rules surrounding artificial intelligence technology.
The AI Act applies a risk-based approach to artificial intelligence, meaning that different applications of the technology are treated differently, depending on the perceived threats they pose to society. The law prohibits applications of AI that are considered “unacceptable” in terms of their risk level.
Airbus Helicopters and Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for financing the purchase of Airbus’ helicopters in India. Under the MoU, both Airbus Helicopters and SIDBI would identify potential civil helicopter operators in India interested in financing solutions for purchasing the helicopters.
While Airbus would provide the technical and helicopter-industry knowledge, SIDBI would be responsible for evaluating the prospects and financing them exclusively for Airbus. This collaboration marks the foray of SIDBI into helicopter financing and meeting the financial and development needs of India’s rotary wing sector.
HDFC Bank said it has raised USD 500 million from IFC for onlending to underserved women borrowers. HDFC will extend finance for income generation, fostering financial inclusion and socio-economic growth. It will extend the microloans to self-help groups and joint liability groups of women enrolled under the Sustainable Livelihoods Initiative (SLI) of the lender.
IndiaFirst Life Insurance’s board has approved the appointment of Rushabh Gandhi as the managing director (MD) and chief executive officer (CEO) for five years effective July 1, 2024, or the date of regulatory approvals, whichever is earlier. R M Vishakha, the current MD and CEO of the life insurer, will retire on June 30, 2024.
