
Breaking News Live July 24: In relief for Kilmar Abrego Garcia, judge bars ICE from taking him into custody
India will restart issuing tourist visas to Chinese citizens from July 24, its embassy in China announced on Wednesday, marking the first such move in five years, as both countries take steps to repair a relationship strained by border clashes and trade tensions, reported Reuters.
The decision follows a period of deep freeze in diplomatic and people-to-people ties after the 2020 Galwan clashes. In the aftermath, India had imposed sweeping restrictions on Chinese investments, banned hundreds of Chinese apps, and curtailed passenger traffic.

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Mint
5 minutes ago
- Mint
Banks, energy stocks drag Australia shares lower
Aug 8 (Reuters) - Australian shares inched lower on Friday, after two record-setting sessions, as banks and energy stocks declined, while investors braced for peak corporate earnings and the local central bank's rate decision next week. The S&P/ASX 200 index eased 0.1% to 8,827.10 points by 0048 GMT. It had slipped below the psychologically key 8,800-level to 8,794.50 points earlier in the day. Shares rallied in the past two sessions as investors priced in a high likelihood of a rate cut from the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) next week and the Federal Reserve in September. Market participants are now awaiting results from some of the largest Australian companies next week, including the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA), Westpac and ANZ Group. On the local bourse, financials fell 0.4%, with three of the "Big Four" banks losing between 0.2% and 0.5%. QBE Insurance lost 4.1% despite beating market estimates for half-year interim earnings. Energy stocks fell 0.3% as oil slipped for the sixth straight session after the Kremlin said President Vladimir Putin would meet U.S. President Donald Trump in the coming days, raising hopes for a diplomatic end to the war in Ukraine. Woodside Energy and Santos shed 0.7% and 0.1%, respectively. Meanwhile, miners rose 1.2%, capping losses on the benchmark, with Rio Tinto and BHP gaining 0.8% and 0.9%, respectively. Gold stocks advanced 1.6% tracking a jump in bullion prices, buoyed by safe-haven demand after Trump's tariffs took effect. Evolution Mining rose 1.5%. New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index inched 0.1% higher to 12,902.88 points. (Reporting by Shivangi Lahiri in Bengaluru; Editing by Sumana Nandy)
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Business Standard
5 minutes ago
- Business Standard
Trump tariffs hit India's garment makers as US buyers say move production
Ever since Donald Trump's tariff salvo on India this week, garment maker Pearl Global - whose US client list includes Gap and Kohl's - has been receiving midnight panic calls with an ultimatum: share the tariff hit or move production out of India. To calm US customers' nerves, Pearl Global has offered to shift production to its 17 factories in Bangladesh, Indonesia, Vietnam and Guatemala to bypass the steep US levies on Indian imports. "All the customers are already calling me. They want us to ... shift from India to the other countries," Managing Director Pallab Banerjee told Reuters in an interview. Trump's initial tariff proposals in April - which were lower for India than for the rival Asian garment hubs of Bangladesh, Vietnam and China - had been seen as an opportunity for India to rapidly expand in the $16 billion apparel exports market. But the tables have turned as relations between New Delhi and Washington have soured, with India now facing a 50 per cent tariff, versus 20 per cent for Bangladesh and Vietnam, and 30 per cent for China. Pearl gets roughly half of its business from the United States. Some clients offered to continue taking products from India if it could share the tariff burden, but that is not viable, Banerjee said, without naming the customers. 'In the doldrums' The 50 per cent US tariff - comprising 25 per cent that kicked in on Thursday and another 25 per cent due to come into force on August 28 as a penalty for buying Russian oil - has stunned US garment buyers and their Indian suppliers, who say they are considering taking their manufacturing operations beyond Indian shores, even to less-established garment hubs like Ethiopia and Nepal. Some exporters also say they have been asked by US clients to put orders on hold. New Delhi has called Trump tariffs "extremely unfortunate". India's garment sector was already grappling with a labour crunch and limited production capacity. But the prospect of exporters shifting production outside India would also be a blow to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "Make in India" policy drive. While Pearl can use its foreign factories to meet US orders, exporters that rely on domestic factories are set to be hit much harder. RichaCo Exports has shipped $111 million of garments to the US this year, with clients such as J. Crew Group, customs data shows. All were made in its more than two dozen factories across India. Around 95 per cent of its annual Indian revenues come from the United States, said general manager Dinesh Raheja. "We're exploring setting up a manufacturing base in (Nepal's capital) Kathmandu," he said. "The industry is in the doldrums." Orders on hold Earlier this week, India's biggest jeweller and watchmaker Titan told Reuters it was looking at shifting some manufacturing to the Middle East to maintain low-tariff access to US markets. Amit Agarwal, finance chief of top Indian garment maker Raymond, said he was pinning hopes on the company's one factory in Ethiopia - which faces just a 10 per cent US tariff and could possibly add more production lines within three months to cater to US clients. The tariff threat comes as India was emerging as a big alternative for US garment buyers like Walmart, as Bangladesh faces a political crisis, and companies look to diversify supply chains beyond China. Indian garment hub Tiruppur in the south, considered the country's knitwear capital and which accounts for nearly one-third of apparel exports, was bullish about the future earlier this year when Reuters visited and talked to exporters. Panic has now descended on the hub. Some factories in Tiruppur have been asked by customers to hold orders, while some plan to ship as many goods as possible before the full 50 per cent tariff kicks in, said Naveen Micheal John, executive director at Cotton Blossom India. "An importer, which had placed orders for underwear, has come back saying that if you haven't purchased yarns ... keep it on hold for now," he said. Some garments in Tiruppur cost US clients as little as $1, while a women's or men's T-shirt can vary from about $3.5-$5, which could soon face 50 per cent tariffs, said N. Thirukkumaran, general secretary of the Tiruppur Exporters Association. (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)


News18
29 minutes ago
- News18
'India A Strategic Partner, But We Won't Align On Everything': US On Russian Oil Rift, Tariff Row
Last Updated: The US reiterated concerns over India's Russian oil purchases, while affirming that New Delhi remains a strategic partner, in remarks ahead of PM Modi's visit to China. The United States on Friday said President Donald Trump has been very clear in the concerns he has regarding trade, and regarding India purchasing the Russian oil. It also said the India is a strategic partner, but both countries cannot align on everything. The response, by Principal Deputy Spokesperson for the US Department of State, Tommy Pigott, came after a journalist questioned him about Prime Minister Narendra Modi's scheduled visit to China. 'In terms of India, the President has been very clear in terms of the concerns he has regarding trade and the purchase of Russian oil," Tommy Pigott said. 'India is a strategic partner with whom we engage in a full and friendly dialogue," he said. 'But you are not going to align 100 per cent of the time on everything," he said. Days after Donald Trump announced an additional 25 per cent tariff on Indian imports as a penalty for continuing to buy Russian crude oil, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to visit China for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit this month. This would be his first trip to Beijing since the violent clashes between Indian and Chinese soldiers in 2020. Before heading to China, PM Narendra Modi will visit Japan on August 30. Get breaking news, in-depth analysis, and expert perspectives on everything from geopolitics to diplomacy and global trends. Stay informed with the latest world news only on News18. Download the News18 App to stay updated! view comments First Published: Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.