Business

New Delhi, Feb 12 (PTI) India and Maldives on Tuesday exchanged diplomatic notes for the implementation of a visa facilitation agreement to boost people to people contacts between the two countries.

The agreement was signed during Maldivian President Ibrahim Solih's visit to India in December within a month after taking charge of the high office. The visit was seen as an effort by his government to repair ties with India which came under severe strain during the presidentship of Abdulla Yameen, who was known to be close to China.

NEW YORK, Feb. 12 (Xinhua) -- A wintry mix of snow, sleet and rain hit New York City on Tuesday as a winter storm moved through the Northeast United States.

Snow arrived in the Big Apple in the morning and turned into icy sleet and eventually freezing rain, creating a wide swath of messy slush and a headache for pedestrians and drivers.

KATHMANDU, Feb. 12 (Xinhua) -- China emerged as the largest source market of foreign tourists to Nepal in January this year as the Himalayan country welcomed 15,343 Chinese tourists, Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) said on Tuesday.

India, traditionally the largest source market, came second with 14,650 tourists, according to NTB.

Kalyan Raj Sharma, managing director of trekking agency Adventure Outdoor, told Xinhua on Tuesday that the number of Chinese tourists began to rise ahead of the Chinese Lunar New Year that began on Feb. 5.

WASHINGTON, Feb. 11 (Xinhua) -- Nearly a million U.S. jobs could be lost due to U.S. newly imposed tariffs on foreign imports and retaliatory tariffs by its trading partners, a recently released study showed.

The study examines the economic effects of tariffs imposed by the United States on imports of foreign products since March 2018, retaliatory tariffs from other countries, and threatened tariffs on the U.S. economy and U.S. workers, one to three years after they have been in effect.

WASHINGTON, Feb. 11 (Xinhua) -- All U.S. states plus the District of Columbia will see net job loss as a result of the federal government's newly imposed tariffs on imports from U.S. trading partners as well as retaliations by the affected countries, a recent study has shown.

The study, titled Estimated Impacts of Tariffs on the U.S. Economy and Workers, was compiled by Trade Partnership Worldwide, LLC, an international trade and economic consulting firm, and commissioned by Tariffs Hurt the Heartland, a pro-free trade advocacy group. It was released last Wednesday.

WASHINGTON, Feb. 12 (Xinhua) -- Uncertainty hangs on as U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday that he is not happy with a bipartisan deal reached in principle by lawmakers in a bid to avert a government shutdown.

"I can't say I'm happy. I can't say I'm thrilled," Trump told reporters in the White House about the deal.

However, the president did not say whether he would sign or veto the deal, noting that he would hold a meeting to discuss it later.

BEIJING, Feb. 12 (Xinhua) -- China Tuesday urged relevant countries to stop using the excuse of so-called cyber spying and internet hacking to tarnish its image, and to stop actions and words that harm China's interests and bilateral ties.

Reports alleged that hackers working for China's state security department breached the network of a Norwegian software firm, as part of a global hacking operation aimed at stealing intellectual property and corporate secrets.

12 Feb 2019; AFP: US lawmakers announced late Monday an agreement in principle to avoid another government shutdown, with nearly $1.4 billion in money for construction of a wall on the border with Mexico, as President Donald Trump pushed his politically explosive crusade at a rally in the frontier city of El Paso.

A Chinese billionaire barred from Australia on suspicions he is part of a Communist Party influence campaign has lashed out at Canberra, calling it a "giant baby" that hasn't found its place in international politics.

Huang Xiangmo, a long-term Sydney resident, had been a prominent donor to Australia's two major parties before he was blocked from re-entering the country last week -- with his permanent residency visa revoked and a citizenship bid rejected.

12 Feb 2019; DW: Christian Democrat (CDU) leader Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer said the party had to prevent any repeat of the 2015 refugee crisis, which saw hundreds of thousands of migrants and refugees arrive in Germany.

"We must do everything we can to prevent this from happening again," the CDU leader said. "We have learned our lesson."

Kramp-Karrenbauer took over the conservative CDU leadership from Chancellor Angela Merkel in December.