Budget 2018-19

  NEW DELHI (Reuters) – India’s Trade Minister Piyush Goyal will have a one-on-one meeting with his Chinese counterpart on Tuesday at the G-20 summit in Italy, the government said in a statement. NEW DELHI (Reuters) –  India’s Trade Minister  Piyush Goyal will have a one-on-one meeting with his Chinese counterpart on Tuesday at the G-20 summit in Italy, the government said in a statement. Goyal will also meet other trade ministers, including those from the United States, South Korea, Australia, South Africa, Brazil, and Canada, among others, the statement said on Monday. Relations between India and China have been strained due to border related issues.

  The Therapeutic Goods Administration on Monday gave provisional approval for people aged 16 and over to use the vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech Australia’s medical regulator has approved use of its first coronavirus vaccine, paving the way for inoculations to begin next month. The Therapeutic Goods Administration on Monday gave provisional approval for people aged 16 and over to use the vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech. The regulator said priority would be given to groups that include aged-care residents and workers, frontline healthcare workers, and quarantine workers. Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison welcomed the development. He said Australia was among the first countries to complete a comprehensive and thorough process to formally approve a vaccine rather than just grant an emergency approval. Australia is aiming to complete inoculations by October. The nation of 26 million people has reported fewer than 30,000 virus cases and a little over 900 deaths...

Officials in the Australian state of New South Wales have named over 100 venues across Sydney as potential Covid-19 hotspots, instructing anyone who attended them to self-isolate and get tested Officials in the Australian state of New South Wales (NSW) have named over 100 venues across Sydney as potential COVID-19 hotspots, instructing anyone who attended them to self-isolate and get tested. NSW recorded eight locally acquired cases of COVID-19 on Tuesday, taking a recent outbreak to 90 infections. Seven of the new cases were linked to Sydney’s Northern Beaches where the outbreak originated and one remained under investigation. Health alerts were issued for gyms, bars and cafes, primarily inside the original outbreak area, but also across Greater Sydney. NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said despite the remaining risk she was happy to see the number of new cases drop into the single figures, compared with 15 the day before and 30 on Sunday. “The threat is there because of the number of v...

  China, which has arrested several journalists for their coverage of the Covid-19, is the world’s worst jailer for the second year in a row, said a report by the Committee to Protect Journalists China, which has arrested several journalists for their coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic, is the world’s worst jailer for the second year in a row, according to a report by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), an independent press freedom advocacy organisation. According to its annual global survey, at least 274 journalists have been jailed on December 1, exceeding the high of 272 in 2016.”China, which arrested several journalists for their coverage of the pandemic, was the world’s worst jailer for the second year in a row. It was followed by Turkey, which continues to try journalists free on parole and arrest new ones; Egypt, which went to great lengths to keep custody of journalists not convicted of any crime; and Saudi Arabia,” the report highlighted. The CPJ has pointed out tha...

  China’s blacklist — delivered verbally to commodities traders — includes coal, barley, copper, sugar, timber, wine and lobster What started as a political spat between Beijing and Canberra has become a one-sided trade war that threatens serious disruption for an expanding number of Australian exporters. China won’t allow imports of a swathe of Australian commodities and foodstuffs from as early as this week, according to people familiar with the matter. The curbs are a major escalation in Beijing’s pressure campaign following a two-year stand-off over issues from technology to the origins of coronavirus. China’s blacklist — delivered verbally to commodities traders — includes coal, barley, copper, sugar, timber, wine and lobster. It doesn’t cover materials, like iron ore or natural gas, where import curbs could unduly damage China’s own economy. “The Chinese warned earlier this year that many of the goods that Australia exports were replaceable,” Richard McGregor, senior fellow a...