Shruti Srivastava

India has sought consultations with the US at the World Trade Organization over tariffs imposed by the White House on some quartz products, adding another point of friction between the two countries as they remain without a trade deal.

India’s share of exports to the US remained largely unchanged despite a year of President Donald Trump’s punitive tariffs and New Delhi’s efforts to diversify its trade with a raft of new deals with other countries.

India, the world’s second-biggest sugar producer, has allowed mills and refiners to import duty-free raw sugar in an effort to tame record local prices.

Sugar is a politically-sensitive issue in India, the world’s largest consumer of the sweetener.

Stricter US sanctions on Iran are unlikely to hit local exports as the Persian Gulf nation’s bilateral trade with India is largely limited to pharmaceuticals and agricultural commodities, led by basmati rice.

Stricter US sanctions on Iran are unlikely to significantly affect India's exports to the country, as bilateral trade is mainly concentrated in pharmaceuticals and agricultural products, particularly basmati rice.

India’s trade minister pitched his country as a place where “entrepreneurship is celebrated,” as he led its largest-ever business delegation to Japan and urged Japanese companies to double their presence in India.

Nepal will need at least “a few billion dollars” to recover from the devastation caused by flash floods, prompting the $45 billion economy to seek international funding for a massive reconstruction effort, according to Finance Minister Swarnim Wagle.

In the second phase, the government plans to put in place temporary shelter, providing basics including food, water, electricity, and telecommunications, and possibly ‘cash for work initiatives’.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has long sought to balance ties with Russia and the US as part of India’s broader policy of strategic autonomy. Maintaining an equilibrium has become more challenging since President Donald Trump returned to the White House.