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Kuwait Times
6 hours ago
- Business
- Kuwait Times
India, Pakistan drone battles mark new arms race in Asia
Nuclear rivals to invest large sums in drones NEW DELHI: A little after 8:00 pm on May 8, red flares streaked through the night sky over the northern Indian city of Jammu as its air-defense systems opened fire on drones from neighboring Pakistan. The Indian and Pakistani militaries have deployed high-end fighter jets, conventional missiles and artillery during decades of clashes, but the four days of fighting in May marked the first time New Delhi and Islamabad utilized unmanned aerial vehicles at scale against each other. The fighting halted after the US announced it brokered a ceasefire but the South Asian powers, which spent more than $96 billion on defense last year, are now locked in a drones arms race, according to Reuters' interviews with 15 people, including security officials, industry executives and analysts in the two countries. Two of them said they expect increased use of UAVs by the nuclear-armed neighbors because small-scale drone attacks can strike targets without risking personnel or provoking uncontrollable escalation. India plans to invest heavily in local industry and could spend as much as $470 million on UAVs over the next 12 to 24 months, roughly three times pre-conflict levels, said Smit Shah of Drone Federation India, which represents over 550 companies and regularly interacts with the government. The previously unreported forecast, which came as India this month approved roughly $4.6 billion in emergency military procurement funds, was corroborated by two other industry executives. The Indian military plans to use some of that additional funding on combat and surveillance drones, according to two Indian officials familiar with the matter. Defense procurement in India tends to involve years of bureaucratic processes but officials are now calling drone makers in for trials and demonstrations at an unprecedented pace, said Vishal Saxena, a vice president at Indian UAV firm ideaForge Technology The Pakistan Air Force, meanwhile, is pushing to acquire more UAVs as it seeks to avoid risking its high-end aircraft, said a Pakistani source familiar with the matter. Pakistan and India both deployed cutting-edge generation 4.5 fighter jets during the latest clashes but cash-strapped Islamabad only has about 20 high-end Chinese-made J-10 fighters compared to the three dozen Rafales that Delhi can muster. Pakistan is likely to build on existing relationships to intensify collaboration with China and Turkey to advance domestic drone research and production capabilities, said Oishee Majumdar of defense intelligence firm Janes. Islamabad is relying on a collaboration between Pakistan's National Aerospace Science and Technology Park and Turkish defense contractor Baykar that locally assembles the YIHA-III drone, the Pakistani source said, adding a unit could be produced domestically in between two to three days. Pakistan's military declined to respond to Reuters' questions. The Indian defense ministry and Baykar did not return requests for comment. India and Pakistan 'appear to view drone strikes as a way to apply military pressure without immediately provoking large-scale escalation,' said King's College London political scientist Walter Ladwig III. 'UAVs allow leaders to demonstrate resolve, achieve visible effects, and manage domestic expectations — all without exposing expensive aircraft or pilots to danger,' he added. But such skirmishes are not entirely risk-free, and Ladwig noted that countries could also send UAVs to attack contested or densely populated areas where they might not previously have used manned platforms. Drone swarms and vintage guns The fighting in May, which was the fiercest in this century between the neighbors, came after an April 22 militant attack in the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir that killed 26 people, mostly Indian tourists. Delhi blamed the killings on 'terrorists' backed by Islamabad, which denied the charge. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi vowed revenge and Delhi on May 7 launched air strikes on what it described as 'terrorist infrastructure' in Pakistan. The next night, Pakistan sent hordes of drones along a 1,700-kilometer (772-mile) front with India, with between 300 and 400 of them pushing in along 36 locations to probe Indian air defences, Indian officials have said. Pakistan depended on Turkish-origin YIHA-III and Asisguard Songar drones, as well as the Shahpar-II UAV produced domestically by the state-owned Global Industrial & Defense Solutions conglomerate, according to two Pakistani sources. But much of this drone deployment was cut down by Cold War-era Indian anti-aircraft guns that were rigged to modern military radar and communication networks developed by state-run Bharat Electronics, according to two Indian officials. A Pakistan source denied that large numbers of its drones were shot down on May 8, but India did not appear to sustain significant damage from that drone raid. India's use of the anti-aircraft guns, which had not been designed for anti-drone-warfare, turned out to be surprisingly effective, said retired Indian Brig Anshuman Narang, now an UAV expert at Delhi's Centre for Joint Warfare Studies. 'Ten times better than what I'd expected,' he said. India also sent Zionist HAROP, Polish WARMATE and domestically-produced UAVs into Pakistani airspace, according to one Indian and two Pakistan sources. Some of them were also used for precision attacks on what two Indian officials described as military and militant infrastructure. The two Pakistani security sources confirmed that India deployed a large number of the HAROPs - a long-range loitering munition drone manufactured by Israel Aerospace Industries. Such UAVs, also known as suicide drones, stay over a target before crashing down and detonating on impact. Pakistan set up decoy radars in some areas to draw in the HAROPs, or waited for their flight time to come towards its end, so that they fell below 3,000 feet and could be shot down, a third Pakistani source said. Both sides claim to have notched victories in their use of UAVs. India successfully targeted infrastructure within Pakistan with minimal risk to personnel or major platforms, said KCL's Ladwig. For Pakistan's military, which claimed to have struck Indian defense facilities with UAVs, drone attacks allow it to signal action while drawing less international scrutiny than conventional methods, he noted. Cheap but with Achilles heel Despite the loss of many drones, both sides are doubling down. 'We're talking about relatively cheap technology,' said Washington-based South Asia expert Michael Kugelman. 'And while UAVs don't have the shock and awe effect of missiles and fighter jets, they can still convey a sense of power and purpose for those that launch them.' Indian defense planners are likely to expand domestic development of loitering munitions UAVs, according to an Indian security source and Sameer Joshi of Indian UAV maker NewSpace, which is deepening its research and development on such drones. 'Their ability to loiter, evade detection, and strike with precision marked a shift toward high-value, low-cost warfare with mass produced drones,' said Joshi, whose firm supplies the Indian military. — Reuters And firms like ideaForge, which has supplied over 2,000 UAVs to the Indian security forces, are also investing on enhancing the ability of its drones to be less vulnerable to electronic warfare, said Saxena. Another vulnerability that is harder to address is the Indian drone program's reliance on hard-to-replace components from China, an established military partner of Pakistan, four Indian dronemakers and officials said. India continues to depend on China-made magnets and lithium for UAV batteries, said Drone Federation India's Shah. 'Weaponization of the supply chain is also an issue,' said ideaForge's Saxena on the possibility of Beijing shutting the tap on components in certain situations. For instance, Chinese restrictions on the sale of drones and components to Ukraine have weakened Kyiv's ability to produce critical combat drones, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies think-tank. A spokesperson for China's Foreign Ministry said in response to Reuters' questions that Beijing has always implemented export controls on dual-use items in accordance with domestic laws and regulations as well as its international obligations. 'Diversification of supply chain is a medium to long term problem,' said Shah. 'You can't solve it in short term.'- Reuters
Business Insider
18 hours ago
- Business
- Business Insider
An LVMH exec says the luxury giant can't jack up prices on 2 key products to cover the hit from Trump's tariffs
French luxury giant LVMH said it had margins to increase the prices of its premium goods by 2 to 3% to offset President Donald Trump's tariffs, but two products will likely not see any price hikes. LVMH finance chief, Cécile Cabanis, said in a hearing in the French parliament on Wednesday that increasing the price of cognac and lower-priced beauty products would be difficult, per Reuters' translation. Cabanis said "the capacity to raise prices is not there" for these two products, per Reuters. Other products, like high jewelry, could withstand price increases. Per Reuters, LVMH's deputy CEO, Stéphane Bianchi, said in the hearing that buyers of LVMH's most premium products, like high jewelry, are likely to be able to absorb price increases. LVMH has seen a difficult few quarters, particularly with its alcohol sales. The company's cognac and spirits division reported a 17% sales decline in the latest quarter compared to the year before, per its earnings report. The report cited reasons for the slow performance, including "soft demand for Cognac in the United States and in China" and "uncertainties surrounding tariff policies." LVMH's cognac and spirit sales in 2024 were down 14% compared to 2023. Its perfumes and cosmetics sales remained flat in the recent quarter. It's not just cognac that's suffering — in the first half of 2024, LVMH sold 15% fewer Champagne bottles than the year before. In April, LVMH said it was looking at moving more of its production from Europe to the US to mitigate tariff risk. Per Trump's announcement on April 2, a baseline 10% tariff would be applied to goods from all countries entering the US. Goods from the European Union would be subjected to an additional 10% "reciprocal" tariff. But on April 9, Trump announced a 90-day pause on the additional tariffs to allow room for trade negotiations. Many of Trump's tariffs were blocked on Wednesday by the US Court of International Trade. However, the court did not specify what tariff-related action the administration must take. The Justice Department has appealed the court's order.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
LNG Slowdown in Asia Masks a Bigger Surge Ahead
Demand for liquefied natural gas from the biggest importing region—Asia—has remained strong this year, although it has experienced a certain softening compared to last year. Prices are to blame for the softening—and they're about to slide lower and reverse the demand trend. Asian LNG importers bought 112.45 million tons of LNG over the first five months of the year, Reuters' Clyde Russell wrote this week, citing data from Kpler. This was down 6.2% on the first five months of 2024. and most of the decline came from China, which sunned pricy spot market LNG. In May alone, however, LNG shipments to Asian countries inched higher than they were in April, although the total figure remained lower than the total for May last year. The reason was probably the same as the reason for the lower five-month imports: prices. LNG prices trended higher earlier this year than last mostly because of Europe. After two mild winters, Europe assumed its demand for gas—and LNG specifically—was more or less set, but it wasn't. The winter of 2024/25 was colder than the two last ones, and demand for gas surged, leading to a corresponding surge in imports, which, in turn, pushed international spot market prices higher. At one point, the supply situation got so grave that Europe had to divert LNG cargos from Australia and Oman, not to mention its record purchases of Russian LNG, which the European Union has been trying to give up. This is about to happen again later this year, by the way. Europe, as well as Asia, will need to stock up on gas for next winter season—except perhaps has been building its natural gas stocks conscientiously ever since its 2017 gas crunch, which saw parts of the country lose power and heating due to the premature switch from coal to gas without securing enough supply. Eight years on, China had comfortable levels of gas in stock and a trade beef with the U.S., so its LNG imports over the first quarter of 2025 fell to the lowest in five years. A mild winter helped as well. The trend continued in the second quarter as well, with Chinese LNG imports seen 20% lower in April 2025 than they were in April 2024. This is dragging Asia's total lower and, for some, creating the impression that overall LNG demand in the biggest importing region is going down on a sustainable curve because of alternative energy sources. This, however, is not exactly the case, and China is the best illustration. The world's biggest wind and solar investor, home to the biggest capacity of both by far continues to be also one of the largest gas importers in the world. China's alternative energy growth keeps breaking record—and gas imports remain substantial despite the annual drop attributable to weather patterns and solid stockpiling. Europe is another illustration of the robustness of the international gas market. Earlier this month, the continent saw a sudden jump in gas prices because of a production outage at a Norwegian offshore platform. Europe, like China, is betting a lot on alternative energy sources. Yet despite a surge in capacity, it still, like China, remains very much dependent on gas, as shown by the price spike following the outage at the Troll field. Meanwhile, LNG prices are about to move higher after their slide earlier in the year. At the start of May, the spot price fell to $11 per million British thermal units, but since then, it has climbed to $12.40 per mmBtu, as of the week to May 23. As Reuters' Russell points out in his column, this is probably due to supply constraints as Chevron's Wheatstone LNG plant entered maintenance and Freeport LNG in the U.S. experienced yet another outage. Demand is about to start climbing as well. One reason is the seasonal peak in demand that comes with higher summer temperatures in the northern hemisphere. The other is, yet again, Europe and its gas storage refill drive, which occurs regularly in the middle of the year. This year, Europe will need to buy more gas than in the last two. The winter of 2024/25 depleted its stocks, and President Trump has demanded more LNG purchases to shrink the EU's trade surplus with the United States. Currently, Europe's gas stocks are at around 47%, but this will need to rise substantially ahead of next winter. LNG purchases in Asia will pick up as well, with Trump's crusade against what he sees as trade injustice adding to demand drivers over the next few months. So, while Asia's demand for liquefied gas may be experiencing a lull, it is a temporary lull. There are simply very few alternatives that are on par with gas as a primary source of energy. By Irina Slav for More Top Reads From this article on
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
S&P 500 Forecast Cut to 5,900 Over Trade Worries
The S&P 500 is set to tread water around 5,900 by year-end, Reuters' poll of 51 equity strategists shows, as tariff jitters and debt worries clip upside. Conducted May 1528, the survey points to a median 2025 target of 5,900a 9.2% cut from February's 6,500 estimatedespite the index trading in the mid-5,900s today. Tariff uncertainty tops the list of headwinds, joined by concerns over the U.S. debt balance and Moody's recent downgrade of U.S. debt. Ameriprise's Anthony Saglimbene warns, It's very difficult to forecast given the tariff uncertainty and the changing dynamics that seem to happen daily. Strategists' sliced targets underscore how policy risk can trump earnings momentum: S&P 500 companies are still on track for mid-teens profit growth next year, but escalating trade frictions could erode that edge. Investors should care because a flat-to-down market in 2025 may force portfolio shifts away from growthier sectorsand heighten the value of defensive allocations. With Fed meetings and tariff talks heating up in H2, markets will watch for any signs of de-escalation or fresh levies that could reposition year-end levels. This article first appeared on GuruFocus. Sign in to access your portfolio
Economic Times
a day ago
- Politics
- Economic Times
China's most advanced bombers seen on disputed South China Sea island
Satellite imagery reveals China's deployment of H-6 bombers to Woody Island in the Paracel Islands, marking the first such landing since 2020. These bombers, equipped with anti-ship and land attack cruise missiles, signal Beijing's growing military capabilities amid regional tensions. The move coincides with upcoming defense forums and existing disputes over the South China Sea, raising concerns among regional players. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Satellite imagery shows China landed two of its most advanced bombers in the disputed Paracel islands in the South China Sea this month - a gesture that some analysts described as Beijing's latest signalling of its growing military capabilities to deployment marks the first time the long-range H-6 bombers have landed on Woody Island in the Paracels since 2020, and the movement of the now upgraded aircraft comes amid tensions with the Philippines, operations near Taiwan and ahead of the region's biggest defence forum this weekend."China's long-range bombers don't need to be on the Paracels so it does appear to be omni-directional signalling by Beijing - against the Philippines and against the U.S. and other things that are going on," said Collin Koh, a defence scholar at Singapore's S. Rajaratnam School of International President Emmanuel Macron is due to open the three-day Shangri-La Dialogue forum in Singapore with a speech on Friday while U.S. Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth will outline the Trump administration's approach to the region on Saturday.A British aircraft carrier is expected in the South China Sea on a rare deployment next month, diplomats captured two H-6 planes flying over the hotly disputed Scarborough Shoal, also in the South China Sea, just ahead of Hegseth's visit to the Philippines in late March, when he reaffirmed the United States' "ironclad commitment" to its treaty diplomats and analysts say deployments of the jet-powered H-6 are closely scrutinised, given the way its Cold War-era airframe has been modernised to carry anti-ship and land attack cruise missiles, while some of the planes are capable of launching nuclear-tipped ballistic missiles.A potential threat to U.S. bases in the region, H-6 bombers were deployed in wargames around Taiwan in October, and in July flew close to the U.S. mainland for the first time. Neither China's defence ministry nor the Philippines' maritime and national security council immediately responded to Reuters' requests for occupation of the Paracels is disputed by Vietnam, whose foreign ministry also did not immediately respond for DESIGNEchoing the development of the U.S. B-52, the basic H-6 dates back to 1950s Soviet designs but it remains China's most advanced long-range bomber having been re-fitted with improved engines and modern flight systems along with its state-of-the-art provided to Reuters by Maxar Technologies show two H-6 bombers on a runway on Woody Island on May Maxar image on the same date show two Y-20 transport aircraft and an KJ-500 early warning plane - an aircraft that is seen as vital to China being able to control and secure increasingly complex air and sea analysts said the planes may have first arrived on May 17 and been present until May Lewis, founder of open source data platform PLATracker, said they thought it was unlikely that the H-6s would be deployed long-term on Woody Island or be permanently based there."The ability to cycle forces through the bases, especially higher level assets like the H-6, provides the PLA with a force protection mechanism," he said, referring to China's People's Liberation Southern Theatre Command , which covers the South China Sea, maintains two regiments of the bombers, according to the London-based International Institute of Strategic bombers are generally kept at heavily fortified bases on the Chinese mainland, where they would have more protection in a conflict from U.S. attacks in conflict U.S. maintains jet fighter wings in Japan, including on its forward deployed aircraft carrier, and on Guam, which is also home to claims sovereignty over nearly all the South China Sea, including areas claimed by Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam.A 2016 ruling by an international arbitral tribunal found Beijing's sweeping claims had no basis under international law, a decision China rejects.
