April 28, 2026 10:03 PM

Rajnath Singh holds key bilateral talks in Bishkek to boost defence ties; discusses West Asia security with China, Russia

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh held a series of high-level bilateral meetings with his counterparts from Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and Belarus on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Defence Ministers’ Meeting in Bishkek on April 28, aimed at strengthening defence cooperation and addressing regional security concerns. During his meeting with Kyrgyz Defence Minister Major General Mukambetov Ruslan Mustafaevich, Singh discussed ways to deepen existing defence ties and enhan...

April 17, 2026 10:02 PM

India, China hold bilateral consultations on SCO matters in Delhi

India and China held Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) bilateral consultations in New Delhi on April 16-17. The consultations were led by India’s SCO National Coordinator Alok A. Dimri and China’s National Coordinator Ambassador Yan Wenbin According to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), India and China exchanged views on implementation of SCO leaders’ decisions and the future-course of the organization. Both sides agreed to continue and consolidate mutual-cooperation and consul...

April 13, 2026 4:19 PM

ASEAN foreign ministers urge US and Iran to push for permanent resolution

ASEAN foreign ministers called on Monday for the United States and Iran to continue negotiating a permanent end to their conflict, and to implement the ceasefire fully and effectively. The ministers, who met virtually to discuss the war in the Middle East, also called for the restoration of safe, unimpeded and continuous passage of vessels and aircraft in the Strait of Hormuz. Beyond immediate security concerns, ASEAN highlighted the broader implications of the conflict on regional stability, ...

April 13, 2026 3:03 PM

China urges restraint over US blockade of Strait of Hormuz, backs talks

China urged calm and restraint by all sides on Monday, following U.S. President Donald Trump's threat to blockade the Strait of Hormuz after the failure of weekend talks in Islamabad aimed at ending the Iran war. Before the war, most Iranian oil exports were shipped to China, the top global importer of crude. Keeping the key Strait of Hormuz waterway safe, stable and unimpeded served the interest of the international community, foreign ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun told a regular press conf...

March 26, 2026 6:04 PM

G7 leaders’ June summit to include India, South Korea, Brazil, Kenya, but not China, Elysee says

France will host the leaders of India, South Korea, Brazil and Kenya at the G7 leaders' summit in Evian-les-Bains in June, a move Paris says is aimed at broadening support for its goal of correcting global economic imbalances. At the core of France's push is a drive to prevent a "massive financial crisis" by urging China - which will be notable by its absence - to boost domestic demand and reduce its destabilising exports, and by calling on the U.S. to curb its deficits and on Europe to produce...

March 18, 2026 9:36 AM

Trump postpones trip to Beijing as Iran war delays China reset

President Donald Trump on Tuesday said he was postponing a highly anticipated trip to Beijing to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping as the war with Iran upends U.S. foreign policy and delays an effort to ease tensions between the world’s two biggest economies. "We are resetting the meeting," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. "We're working with China. They were fine with it." Trump had been set to travel to Beijing from March 31 to April 2 for the first trip there of his 14-month-...

March 16, 2026 9:38 AM

China’s economy builds early momentum in 2026 as risks mount

China's factory output growth quickened in January-February while retail sales rebounded, in a steady start to the year for an economy confronting multiple challenges including the fallout from the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran. Industrial output rose 6.3% from the same period in the previous year, National Bureau of Statistics data showed on Monday, up from the 5.2% growth clocked in December. It beat a 5% expansion forecast in a Reuters poll and marked the quickest growth since September last...

March 11, 2026 1:39 PM

Hormuz disruption threatens global oil supplies

The Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most critical energy routes, is facing severe disruption as tensions escalate in West Asia. The narrow waterway lies between Iran to the north and the Musandam Peninsula to the south, a territory shared by Oman and the United Arab Emirates. Stretching about 178 kilometres in length and narrowing to roughly 39 kilometres at its tightest point, the strait carries around 20 million barrels of oil each day under normal conditions. That accounts for nearly o...

March 2, 2026 3:20 PM

India’s API market likely to grow 5–7 pc through FY28

India’s active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) market, currently valued at about $15–16 billion, is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 5–7 per cent in FY27 and FY28, a report said on Monday. The report from CareEdge Ratings said the growth will be driven by favourable government policies, a structural shift toward high‑potency and complex APIs, rising domestic demand and deeper penetration into regulated and emerging markets. Indian pharma firms are shifting from bas...

February 16, 2026 3:09 PM

China’s humanoid robots ready for Lunar New Year showtime

China's most-watched TV show, the annual CCTV Spring Festival gala, will be viewed later on Monday as a showcase for the country's cutting-edge industrial policy and Beijing's push to dominate humanoid robots and the future of manufacturing. Four rising humanoid robot startups - Unitree Robotics, Galbot, Noetix and MagicLab - are set to showcase their products in the gala, a televised event and touchstone for China comparable to the Super Bowl for the United States. The hype surrounding China'...