Business

Washington, Apr 8 (AP-PTI) Congress voted overwhelmingly Thursday to suspend normal trade relations with Russia and ban the importation of its oil, ratcheting up the US response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine amid reports of atrocities.

House action came after the Senate approved the two bills with 100-0 votes. The measures now go to President Joe Biden to be signed into law.

Washington, Apr 8 (PTI) Two US lawmakers have introduced a bill in the House of Representatives that aims at granting an automatic right to H-4 visa holders to work in the country, a move which will benefit the spouses of thousands of foreigners, including Indians, and also address the labour shortage affecting American businesses.

Rome, Apr 8 (AP) The United Nations says prices for world food commodities like grains and vegetable oils reached their highest levels ever last month due to fallout from the war in Ukraine.

The UN Food and Agriculture Organization said Friday its Food Price Index, which tracks monthly changes in international prices for a basket of commodities, recorded a double-digit percentage-point increase in March from the record level already set the previous month.

New Delhi, Apr 7 (PTI) As Sri Lanka reels under a severe economic crisis that triggered a political upheaval, India on Thursday said it stands ready to continue assisting the island nation to recover from the difficulties in line with its 'Neighbourhood First' policy.

External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said India has been keenly following the evolving economic situation and other developments in Sri Lanka.

New Delhi, Apr 7 (PTI) The Ghazipur slaughterhouse in east Delhi will be closed from April 8 to 10 coinciding with the last three days of Navratra festival, the area's mayor has said.

East Delhi Mayor Shyam Sunder Aggarwal on Tuesday had said that the three-day closure of the abattoir was an annual exercise and "not a new order".

08 April 2022; MEMO: The Biden administration has stated in congressional correspondence that the potential sale of F-16 fighter jets to Turkiye would serve US interests and bolster NATO unity, according to a report published on Wednesday.

07 April 2022; MEMO: Turkish Foreign Minister, Mevlut Cavusoglu, said on Thursday his US counterpart, Antony Blinken, invited him for talks on 18 May, which would mark the first in three years between the NATO members that have taken steps to improve long-strained ties, Reuters reports.

Ankara and Washington have jousted over several issues, including Turkiye's purchase of Russian S-400 defences, which triggered US sanctions and Ankara's removal from a F-35 fighter jet programme where it was a buyer and manufacturer.

08 April 2022; MEMO: A senior US diplomat said the proposed pipeline to transport gas from the eastern Mediterranean to European markets, via Israel, Cyprus and Greece, was "not viable", stressing that "Europe needs to swiftly find alternative sources of energy following Russia's invasion of Ukraine", Reuters reported.

New Delhi, Apr 7 (PTI) Air India on Thursday cancelled its Delhi-Moscow service over the fear that its flight insurance may not be valid in Russian skies amid the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine, sources said.

Flight insurance is generally provided by companies based out of western countries.

Kolkata, Apr 7 (PTI) Accusing the Centre of not doing anything to control price rise of fuel and other essential commodities, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday insisted that a policy should be made to arrest the hike.

She claimed that the economic situation in the country was going from bad to worse, and expressed apprehension that states might not be able disburse salaries to employees in the days to come.