World

NEW DELHI: Tesla Inc has written to Indian ministries seeking a big reduction in import duties on electric vehicles (EVs), a move it says will boost demand and generate revenue for the government, two sources with knowledge of the matter said. Its pitch, however, is likely to face resistance from Prime Minister Narendra Modi's administration which has championed high import taxes for many industries in a bid to boost local manufacturing. Other luxury automakers in India have also lobbied the government in the past to lower taxes on imported cars but have had little success due to opposition from rivals with domestic operations. Tesla, which aims to begin sales in India this year, said in a letter to ministries and the country's leading think-tank Niti Aayog that slashing federal taxes o...

SHANGHAI: A slew of measures by Chinese authorities to tame soaring raw material costs has had only a fleeting effect, leaving the world's largest manufacturing base facing the harsh reality of substantially higher input costs for the foreseeable future. China's enormous manufacturing industry, population and fast-growing economy mean it has uniquely large commodity requirements that substantially exceed domestic output. The recent boom in the price of everything from copper to coal has pushed the country's producer prices up by the most since 2008 and dragged on its recovery from the coronavirus pandemic. With major economies in Europe and North America also cranking up again after coronavirus lockdowns, competition for raw materials is only expected to intensify, limiting the near-term...

Five people jumped from an apartment building in Myanmar's main city of Yangon, killing at least two of them, in a bid to escape a raid by security forces, media reports said, sparking condemnation among opponents of military rule. The military overthrew the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in February; since then the country has been thrown into crisis with almost daily protests and fighting between the army and hastily formed militias. Tuesday's (Aug 10) incident occurred in the Botahtaung district of Yangon, with media reports saying at least two died while the others were seriously hurt and taken to hospital. The Myanmar Now news portal showed a photograph of three people lying motionless on the ground in an alleyway, while the US-funded RFA (Radio Free Asia) said that all fiv...

Although the start of the women’s artistic gymnastics at the Tokyo Olympics was disappointing for the usually dominant US team, the Americans still have the most medal opportunities of any country. The Russians, competing as the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) as part of sanctions due to several doping scandals, qualified for Tuesday’s team final ahead of the Americans after an off day for US star Simone Biles. But the US women’s qualifying efforts earned them 11 medal attempts at the Tokyo Games, the maximum possible. That includes the team event, two in the all-around and two in each of the four apparatus finals. ROC could earn at most 10 medals since they qualified only one gymnast to the balance beam finals, and China have the next highest medal chances at seven. The top eight of 1...

A Frontier Airlines passenger was taped to his seat after he allegedly groped two flight attendants and punched another in the face on a Miami-bound flight from Philadelphia last week, according to a police report. The passenger, 22-year-old Maxwell Berry of Norwalk, Ohio, had finished two drinks and was ordering another when he allegedly brushed his empty cup against a flight attendant's "back side inappropriately," said the Miami-Dade Police Department report about the July 31 flight. Berry later allegedly groped the breasts of two flight attendants, who asked a third cabin crew member for help, the report said. Berry then allegedly punched that flight attendant in the face "with a closed fist." Berry could not immediately be reached for comment. "A fight ensued," said the report. The...

Nike is at risk of running out of sneakers made in Vietnam as the Covid crisis worsens around the global, according to a new report from S&P Global Market Intelligence. The warning comes after two of Nike's suppliers in Vietnam, Chang Shin Vietnam Co. and Pou Chen Corp., recently halted production due to a rapidly growing Covid outbreak in the region. In fiscal 2020, Nike said contract factories in Vietnam made roughly 50% of total Nike branded footwear. A new analysis from Panjiva, a business line of S&P Global Market Intelligence, found Vietnam accounted for 49% of U.S. seaborne imports linked to Nike and its products in the second quarter of 2021. Nike's imports from Vietnam are led by footwear, Panjiva said, which was included in 82% of shipments in the 12 months ended June 30. "Th...

With no indication of a U.S.-China leaders’ summit in the works, nor any outcomes announced from high-level diplomatic talks on Monday, relations between Beijing and Washington appear to be at a standstill as both sides insist the other must make concessions for ties to improve. U.S. officials had stressed that Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman’s trip to the northern Chinese port city of Tianjin to meet Foreign Minister Wang Yi and other officials was a chance to ensure that stiffening competition between the two geopolitical rivals does not veer into conflict. But the combative statements that emerged from the meeting — albeit coupled with suggestions from officials that closed-door sessions were marginally more cordial — mirrored the tone set in Alaska in March, when the first se...

BANGKOK: Myanmar's military ruler Min Aung Hlaing on Sunday (Aug 1) again promised new multi-party elections and said his government is ready to work with any special envoy named by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). He also said a state of emergency would lifted by August 2023, extending the military's initial timeline given when it deposed Aung San Suu Kyi on Feb 1. He spoke in a televised address six months after the army seized power from a civilian government after disputed elections won by Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi's ruling party, which he described as "terrorists". "We will accomplish the provisions of the state of emergency by August 2023," he said. "I pledge to hold multiparty elections without fail." The general's announcement would place Myanmar in th...

NEW DELHI: India is considering slashing import duties on electric cars to as low as 40 per cent, two senior government officials told Reuters, days after Tesla Inc's appeals for a cut polarised the country's auto industry. For imported electric vehicles (EVs) with a value of less than US$40,000 - including the car's cost, insurance and freight - the government is discussing slashing the tax rate to 40per cent from 60per cent presently, the officials told Reuters. For EVs valued at more than US$40,000, it is looking at cutting the rate to 60per cent from 100 per cent, they said. "We haven't firmed up the reduction in duties yet, but there are discussions that are ongoing," one of the officials said. India is the world's fifth-largest car market with annual sales of about 3 million vehi...

NEW YORK : Google employees based in the same office before the pandemic could see different changes in pay if they switch to working from home permanently, with long commuters hit harder, according to a company pay calculator seen by Reuters. It is an experiment taking place across Silicon Valley, which often sets trends for other large employers. Facebook and Twitter also cut pay for remote employees who move to less expensive areas, while smaller companies including Reddit and Zillow have shifted to location-agnostic pay models, citing advantages when it comes to hiring, retention and diversity. Alphabet Inc's Google stands out in offering employees a calculator that allows them to see the effects of a move. But in practice, some remote employees, especially those who commute from lo...