MSC Irina, world's largest container ship, docks at Kerala's Vizhinjam port
MSC IRINA, the world's largest container ship by capacity, docked at Vizhinjam International Seaport, which was commissioned last month. This is the maiden call of the ship to a South Asian port. Port director Divya S Iyer welcomed the ship's captain and crew.
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan hailed the arrival of MSC IRINA at the port as a proud and historic moment for the state.
'Kerala welcomes MSC IRINA, the largest container ship to call at any South Asian port, with immense pride. Measuring 399.9m in length and 61.3m in width, with a capacity of 24,346 TEUs, her arrival at Vizhinjam marks a historic moment. A proud milestone that underscores our port's strategic global role and galvanises our collective dream of growth,'' Vijayan posted on X.
In a post on X, Karan Adani, Managing Director of Adani Ports and SEZ Ltd, said, '…This marks the vessel's maiden visit to the South Asian shores, making it a milestone not just for Vizhinjam but for India's emergence as a key player in global transshipment.'
The port, managed by Adani Ports and SEZ Private Limited on a design, build, finance, operate and transfer (DBFOT) model, has been making remarkable achievements in transshipment container handling.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Economic Times
7 hours ago
- Economic Times
World Bank predicts India dhoom amid global gloom
Live Events (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel New Delhi: The World Bank has lowered India's growth forecast for FY26 to 6.3% from 6.7% estimated in January, though it's projected to remain one of the fastest growing economies globally. The country's FY27 growth is also seen 0.2 percentage point lower at 6.5%, according to the World Bank's latest Global Economic Prospects (GEP) World Bank attributed the reduction in expected growth to weaker export performance on the part of key trade partners and rising global trade growth is also expected to decelerate amid rising global policy uncertainty, the report gross domestic product (GDP) expanded by 6.5% in FY25, according to official data released last month. Last week, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) retained its 6.5% growth projection for FY26 as it cut the key interest rate by a higher-than-expected half a percentage point to support growth is expected to slow to 2.3% in 2025 compared with 2.7% projected in January, amid the rise in trade barriers and an uncertain policy environment, marking the slowest pace of expansion since 2008, excluding periods of US' growth forecast has been revised downwards to 1.4% in 2025 from 2.3% projected in January by the multilateral lender. China's growth projection remains unchanged at 4.5% in 2025."Emerging-market and developing economies reaped the rewards of trade integration but now find themselves on the frontlines of a global trade conflict," said M Ayhan Kose, World Bank's deputy chief economist and director of the prospects group. "India continues to grow faster than any other major economy."The South Asian region is likely to face a slowdown with growth expected at 5.8% in 2025 compared with an estimated 6% in 2024, due to the impact of rising trade barriers, dampened business confidence and weaker investment, according to the World is then anticipated to increase to an average of 6.2% annually in 2026-27, driven by improving activity in India and elsewhere, aligning with the region's potential estimates, it income growth in South Asia is estimated to stabilise at 5%, on average, over 2025-27, which would further reduce poverty. However, excluding India, per-capita income growth is expected to rise to 3% in 2027 from 2.1% in 2011-12 and 2022-23, nearly 270 million people in India were lifted out of extreme poverty in India, according to the latest data released by the World Bank.
Time of India
7 hours ago
- Time of India
World Bank predicts India dhoom amid global gloom
New Delhi: The World Bank has lowered India's growth forecast for FY26 to 6.3% from 6.7% estimated in January, though it's projected to remain one of the fastest growing economies globally. The country's FY27 growth is also seen 0.2 percentage point lower at 6.5%, according to the World Bank's latest Global Economic Prospects (GEP) report. The World Bank attributed the reduction in expected growth to weaker export performance on the part of key trade partners and rising global trade barriers. Investment growth is also expected to decelerate amid rising global policy uncertainty, the report said. India's gross domestic product (GDP) expanded by 6.5% in FY25, according to official data released last month. Last week, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) retained its 6.5% growth projection for FY26 as it cut the key interest rate by a higher-than-expected half a percentage point to support growth. Global growth is expected to slow to 2.3% in 2025 compared with 2.7% projected in January, amid the rise in trade barriers and an uncertain policy environment, marking the slowest pace of expansion since 2008, excluding periods of recession. Live Events The US' growth forecast has been revised downwards to 1.4% in 2025 from 2.3% projected in January by the multilateral lender. China's growth projection remains unchanged at 4.5% in 2025. India: A Bright Spot "Emerging-market and developing economies reaped the rewards of trade integration but now find themselves on the frontlines of a global trade conflict," said M Ayhan Kose, World Bank's deputy chief economist and director of the prospects group. "India continues to grow faster than any other major economy." The South Asian region is likely to face a slowdown with growth expected at 5.8% in 2025 compared with an estimated 6% in 2024, due to the impact of rising trade barriers, dampened business confidence and weaker investment, according to the World Bank. Growth is then anticipated to increase to an average of 6.2% annually in 2026-27, driven by improving activity in India and elsewhere, aligning with the region's potential estimates, it added. Per-capita income growth in South Asia is estimated to stabilise at 5%, on average, over 2025-27, which would further reduce poverty. However, excluding India, per-capita income growth is expected to rise to 3% in 2027 from 2.1% in 2025. Between 2011-12 and 2022-23, nearly 270 million people in India were lifted out of extreme poverty in India, according to the latest data released by the World Bank.
Indian Express
8 hours ago
- Indian Express
Pakistan boosts defence budget by 20% but slashes overall spending in 2025-26
Pakistan will raise defence spending by a steep 20% after a military clash with its old enemy India last month, but will slash overall federal expenditure for fiscal 2025-26 by a hefty 7% to 17.57 trillion rupees ($62 billion). The budget presented on Tuesday by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's government allocated 2.55 trillion rupees ($9 billion) to defence in July-June 2025-26, up from 2.12 trillion. It projected a deficit of 3.9% of GDP against the 5.9% targeted for 2024-25. Inflation was projected at 7.5% and growth at 4.2%. The South Asian nation wants to kickstart growth while boosting its defences after the worst fighting with its neighbour in nearly three decades – which it has cast as a victory – and meeting the strictures of an International Monetary Fund finance programme. 'After defeating India in a conventional war, now we have to surpass it in the economic field,' Sharif said in a statement. Pakistan must also contend with the uncertainty of new import tariffs being imposed by the United States, its biggest export market. The clash with India was sparked in April by Islamists who killed 26 men in an attack on Hindu tourists in Indian Kashmir. Islamabad denied New Delhi's allegation that the militants were backed by Pakistan. Four days of fighting featured jets, missiles, drones and artillery. For the coming year, Pakistan's government allocated 742 billion Pakistani rupees ($2.63 billion) to military pensions, taking the entire defence budget to 3.292 trillion Pakistani rupees ($11.67 billion). That included 704 billion Pakistani rupees ($2.5 billion) in spending on equipment and other physical assets. India's defence spending in its 2025–26 (April-March) fiscal year was set at $78.7 billion, up 9.5%, including pensions and $21 billion earmarked for equipment. It has indicated that it too will boost defence spending further. Sharif's government has projected 4.2% economic growth in 2025-26, saying it has steadied the economy, which looked at risk of defaulting on its debts as recently as 2023. Growth this fiscal year is likely to be 2.7%, against the budgeted target of 3.6%. Pakistan's growth lags far behind the region. In 2024, South Asian countries grew by an average of 5.8% and the Asian Development Bank expects 6.0% in 2025. Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said the government intended to complete the privatisation of Pakistan International Airlines, a request of the IMF. Growth should be aided by a sharp drop in the cost of borrowing, the government says, after a succession of interest rate cuts. But economists warn that monetary policy alone may not be enough, with fiscal constraints and IMF-mandated reforms still weighing on investment. Aurangzeb said that the budget was the start of a strategy to boost exports, increase foreign currency reserves to avoid the balance of payments crises of the past, and create a more competitive economy. 'In short, our budget strategy is to change the economy's DNA by bringing basic changes,' he said.
