Business

New Delhi, Feb 8 (PTI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday held talks with his Sri Lankan counterpart Mahinda Rajapaksa covering the entire expanse of bilateral ties between the two countries including in areas of defence and security.

Mahinda Rajapaksa, elder brother of Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, arrived here on Friday on a five-day visit, his first overseas tour after being appointed as prime minister of the island nation in November last year.

PUTRAJAYA, Feb 7 (NNN-BERNAMA) — Malaysian diplomatic missions in China will continue their operations to provide consular assistance to countrymen and maintain close collaboration with the authorities of the host country.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Wisma Putra) said the cabinet decision to bring home non-essential staff and family members from the Malaysian diplomatic missions in China was made as part of the government’s state of preparedness in its response to the 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) epidemic.

WASHINGTON, Feb 8 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The United States criminalized transactions with Venezuelan flag carrier Conviasa, saying it wanted to pressure President Nicolas Maduro to cede power.

Under the new sanctions, anyone in the United States will be banned from any transactions with Conviasa, which stands for Consorcio Venezolano de Industrias Aeronauticas y Servicios.

Shahr-e Kord, Feb 6, IRNA - Iranian Minster of Industry, Mine and Trade Reza Rahmani announced on Thursday that the country has stood at the tenth place in the world in terms of producing copper and steel.

In producing those two products, Iran could set a record as it overtook France and Italy, Rahmani said in a meeting held in this central western Iranian city of Shahr-e Kord with Friday prayer leader.

WASHINGTON, Feb 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta said that African nations should be free to cooperate with both the United States and China, warning that foreign powers were exacerbating the continent’s divisions.

Kenyatta was speaking on a visit to Washington, where speculation has built that the United States will seek to negotiate a free-trade agreement with Kenya, in what would be a first with an African nation.

06 Feb 2020; MEMO: Abu Dhabi based Etihad Airways has decided to sell 38 aircrafts for $1 billion in a bid to reduce losses incurred by the national carrier.

The company said in a statement on Tuesday that the aircrafts include 16 Boeing 777-300ERs and 22 Airbus A330s which have been sold to KKR investment firm and commercial aviation finance company Altavair AirFinance.

Lucknow, Feb 5 (PTI) An MoU was signed between HAL and Israel's Elbit Systems during the DefExpo-2020 on Wednesday to assess the feasibility of joint development of an unmanned aerial vehicle.

The MoU is aimed at assessing the feasibility of a joint development of a vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) UAV for maritime and land-based military operations, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited said in a release.

Mumbai, Feb 6 (PTI) The Reserve Bank of India, for the second straight time, on Thursday kept its key policy rate unchanged at 5.15 per cent, maintaining its accommodative policy stance as long as it was necessary to revive growth.

The central bank retained GDP growth at 5 per cent for 2019-20 and pegged it at 6 per cent for the next fiscal.

HAVANA, Feb 6 (NNN-PRENSA LATINA) – Russian Foreign Affairs Minister, Sergei Lavrov, arrive in Cuba on Wednesday, to bolster political and economic ties with the Caribbean island, local media said.

Lavrov is scheduled to meet with his Cuban counterpart, Bruno Rodriguez, in the eastern city of Santiago de Cuba, as part of a four-day, three-nation tour of Latin America.

BEIRUT, Feb 6 (NNN-NNA) – General Confederation of Lebanese Workers (CGTL), said that, 10,000 workers have lost their jobs, while 60,000 employees suffered a 50-percent cut in their salaries, as nationwide protests continue, a local media outlet reported.

Some businesses are taking advantage of the current crisis, to fire employees and make more profits by reducing their costs, CGTL’s Vice President, Hassan Fakih was quoted by Elnashra, an independent online newspaper, as saying.