Business
India, China join hands on oil

India and China are working closely on common trade concerns, including cooperation in buying oil and gas, against the backdrop of a US squeeze through tariffs and sanctions on Iranian oil imports, officials with direct knowledge of the matter said.
Efforts have been made by the world’s second- and third-largest oil importers to find common ground and energy cooperation is one of the key areas where the two sides can collectively bargain for better prices from producers, the officials added, asking not to be identified.
Following a visit to New Delhi in March by Li Fanrong, deputy chief of China’s National Energy Administration, the two sides created a joint working group on oil and gas. This is the first institutionalised arrangement between the two sides to cooperate in energy though they have several groups on issues such as counter-terrorism and the boundary dispute.
“A meeting between petroleum and natural gas secretary MM Kutty and the vice minister of China’s National Energy Administration, Li Fanrong, was held on March 26 in New Delhi to discuss cooperation in the oil and gas sector,” one of the government officials cited above said.
A person familiar with thinking in official quarters in Beijing said “both sides are closely discussing” cooperation in key areas such as oil purchases. He confirmed these issues had figured in the meeting between Kutty and Li in March.
Cooperation in energy has been on the agenda for some time – Kutty visited China last October – but the issue gained steam with the US announcing the end of exemptions to sanctions on Iranian oil imports last month.
Iran is important for the energy security of India and China as it is one of the largest suppliers of crude to the two major economies and the supply disruption due to US sanctions has huge strategic and economic costs for the two countries, Indian officials said on condition of anonymity.
The economic interests of India and China have also been threatened by the Trump administration’s announcement on ending preferential arrangements with India under the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) programme and raising import duties from 10% to 25% on Chinese goods worth $200 billion. New Delhi and Beijing are coming closer to counter trade barriers created by the US that threaten the two major Asian economies, the officials said.
Among issues that India and China can jointly work on is the “Asian premium” charged by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), the officials said. India is also concerned about the impact of US sanctions that kicked in on May 2 and cut off supplies from Iran, which accounted for more than 10% of the country’s oil requirements, and the need to rein in prices, they added.
The new arrangement marks a significant shift from the times when India and China often competed with each other to acquire stakes in oil and gas fields in Asia and Africa. Their cooperation in the field of energy was limited and India is now also looking at the possibility of also getting South Korea and Japan to join the buyers collective so as to create some sort of a grouping of buyers, officials said.
People familiar with developments on both sides said the cooperation is in line with the “Wuhan spirit”, a reference to the informal summit last year between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Xi Jinping that reset bilateral relations after the 2017 military stand-off at Doklam. They also pointed to Beijing’s changed stand on the UN listing of Pakistan-based terrorist Masood Azhar.
Though India has raised the issue of flexibility on the sanctions on Iranian oil, the US has been non-committal. On Monday, visiting US commerce secretary Wilbur Ross said his country will not ensure sale of cheaper oil to India as the commodity is controlled by private firms.
“Oil is owned by private people, so the government cannot force people to make concessionary prices,” Ross, here to participate in a trade forum, told reporters.
However, US ambassador Kenneth Juster said his country is working with other producers such as Saudi Arabia to ensure “adequate supply of oil”.
Though India has turned to alternative suppliers such as Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Kuwait to make up for the lost volumes from Iran, supplies from these sources is unlikely to be as cheap as Iranian oil as Tehran provided 60 days of credit and covered shipping and insurance costs.
Business
Breaking News: Silicon Valley Bank’s Collapse Sends Shockwaves Through Financial World – Is India’s Banking System Next to Crumble?

Image Source: maxpixel.net
Are Indian Banks Ready to Face the Heat of Rising Interest Rates?
As Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) faces the heat of collapsing amidst rising domestic interest rates, Indian banks are left wondering if they are next in line. With the Indian economy still recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic, the prospect of rising interest rates could lead to a devastating blow to the country’s banking sector. Will Indian banks be able to weather the storm or will they collapse like SVB?
Indian banks have already faced a tumultuous few years with multiple frauds and defaults taking place, leaving many questioning their resilience. With the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) indicating that it may hike interest rates in the near future, the pressure on Indian banks is set to increase. The question remains – are Indian banks prepared to face the heat of rising interest rates or will they buckle under the pressure? Only time will tell.
Business
Delhi: Businesses can now remain open 24×7, over 300 applications cleared by L-G

Photo by Rehan Fazal on Unsplash
From restaurants to transport services and BPOs to online delivery services, all those who apply for exemptions will be allowed to operate 24×7 in Delhi starting next week, with Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena approving the proposal to exempt 314 such places to operate all day long, some of them pending since 2016, officials said.
“The L-G has directed that notification to this effect be issued within seven days. The decision of providing exemption under Sections 14, 15 & 16 of the Delhi Shops & Establishment Act, 1954, is expected to boost employment generation and promote a positive and favorable business environment that is a prerequisite for economic growth. The decision will also provide a fillip to the much desired ‘nightlife’ in the city,” said an official.
Source: IndianExpress
Business
Swiggy Instamart figures, Mumbaikars ordered 570 times more condoms in the last one year

Customers are also ordering medical-related things through online shopping platforms. In metros like Mumbai, Hyderabad, Delhi, and Bangalore, people are buying goods online in large numbers. People living in metro cities including Bengaluru, Delhi, and Mumbai ordered an average of 6 million eggs in the last year.
These days people are doing online shopping fiercely in the country. Through Grocery Service Platforms, the goods of need are easily reaching people’s homes. From vegetables to medicines, just a few clicks on the smartphone are reaching people’s doorsteps. According to a survey, Swiggy Instamart has provided service to more than 9 million users between June 2021 and June 2022. In metros like Mumbai, Hyderabad, Delhi, and Bangalore, people are buying goods online in large numbers.
Healthcare products orders
Customers are also ordering medical-related things through online shopping platforms. According to a survey, Mumbaikars have ordered 570 times more condoms in the last 12 months. At the same time, in 2021, Instamart received orders for about two million sanitary napkins, menstrual cups, and tampons. Apart from this, a lot of orders have also been received for grocery items.
56 lakh packets of noodles ordered
According to the survey, between April and June last year, there was a 42 percent increase in the demand for ice cream in these metro cities. It was also learned that most of the orders were placed after 10 pm. In metro cities, people have ordered 5.6 million packets of instant noodles. In Hyderabad, users ordered around 27,000 bottles of fresh juice during the summer months.
60 lakh eggs ordered
The demand for eggs has increased manifold in the last two years. People living in metro cities including Bengaluru, Delhi, and Mumbai ordered an average of 6 million eggs in the last year. According to the report, customers from Bangalore and Hyderabad ordered the maximum number of eggs for breakfast. At the same time, people of Mumbai, Jaipur, and Coimbatore have ordered the maximum number of eggs online at the time of dinner.
Demand for dairy products
There has been a huge jump in orders for both tea and coffee. According to the report, there has been an increase of 2,000 percent in its demand. At the same time, 3 crore orders of milk have come for milk. People from Bangalore and Mumbai have placed more orders in the morning. Regular milk, full cream milk and toned milk are the most ordered dairy products.
Ordering fruits and vegetables
Orders for 62,000 tonnes of fruits and vegetables have been received in the last year. With 12,000 orders, Bengaluru tops the list of organic product buyers. At the same time, Hyderabad and Bangalore together have ordered more than 290 tonnes of green chilies in 12 months. Over 2 lakh orders have been received for bathroom cleaners, scrub pads, drain cleaners, and more in the last year.
Source: Aajtak
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