Business

14 Aug 2020; MEMO: Kuwait, facing one of the worst economic crunches in the oil-rich state’s history, posted an actual deficit of $18.44 billion in the 2019-2020 fiscal year, the Finance Minister said yesterday.

Total revenues fell by over 16 per cent in the fiscal year which ended in March, dropping to 17.22 billion Kuwaiti dinars ($56.3 billion), the Finance Ministry announced on Twitter.

Kuwait has been scrambling to boost state coffers badly hit by the coronavirus crisis and low crude prices.

14 Aug 2020; MEMO: Pakistan’s army chief, General Qamar Javed Bajwa, will visit Saudi Arabia on Sunday in an effort to calm escalating diplomatic tensions between the two countries over the unrest in Kashmir.

Reuters quoted Pakistani army spokesman, General Babar Iftikhar, as saying that General Bajwa will visit Riyadh, but claimed the visit was pre-planned and “primarily military affairs oriented”.

New Delhi, Aug 13 (PTI) An offshore patrol vessel (OPV) for the Indian Coast Guard was launched and rechristened as "Sarthak" on Thursday, the Defence Ministry said.

The ship was launched by Veena Ajay Kumar, wife of Defence Secretary Ajay Kumar, through video conferencing from the Coast Guard headquarters at New Delhi, said the ministry in a statement.

New Delhi, Aug 13 (PTI) India and Nigeria signed an agreement on space cooperation on Thursday, Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan said.

Calling Nigeria India's close friend and the largest trading partner in Africa, Muraleedharan said the MoU is another milestone in the relations of the two countries.

Mumbai, Aug 14 (PTI) Equity indices nursed losses for the third straight session on Friday as investors pruned exposure to banking, financial and consumption stocks amid negative global cues.

Weak macroeconomic data and a depreciating rupee further curbed risk appetite, traders said.

Tanking 663 points from the day's high, the 30-share BSE Sensex settled 433.15 points or 1.13 per cent lower at 37,877.34.

The broader NSE Nifty slumped 122.05 points or 1.08 per cent to close at 11,178.40.

13 Aug 2020; AA: Turkey's telecommunications giant Turk Telekom posted net profits of 1.64 billion Turkish liras ($253.6 million) in the first half of 2020, up from 745 million liras ($132.5 million) in the same period last year.

The firm's net sales were 13.27 billion Turkish liras ($2.05 billion) in the January-June period, increasing from 11.16 billion ($1.98 billion) in the first six months of 2019, according to the firm's statement on Thursday.

13 Aug 2020; AA: Turkey and Libya signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to boost trade and economic ties, the Turkish trade minister said Thursday.

The deal will lay the groundwork for resolving ongoing issues between Turkish firms and Libyan employers, setting new investments and undertaking new projects, Ruhsar Pekcan said at a meeting held in Turkey's capital Ankara.

13 Aug 2020; AA: Turkey's president on Thursday blamed Greece and the Greek Cypriot administration for increasing tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean by excluding Turkey and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC).

13 Aug 2020; MEMO: Palestine expects to become one of the first places to receive Russia’s coronavirus vaccine, Wafa news agency reported on Tuesday. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas thanked his Russian counterpart for the opportunity.

“We congratulate you,” Abbas told Vladimir Putin, “and through you we appreciate the efforts of the Russian scientists, laboratories and your government for being the leader of this unique scientific discovery.”

13 Aug 2020; MEMO: France said Wednesday that it will temporarily increase its military presence in the Eastern Mediterranean in the coming days, Anadolu reports.

President Emmanuel Macron and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis discussed the latest situation in the region, Macron’s office said in a statement.