The BRICS Report

Violent protest in Rio de Janeiro emerging, again Riot police cracked down and fired tear gas on thousands of protesters in central Rio de Janeiro Monday night as marches flooded the streets to reject unelected President Michel Temer’s proposed 20-year freeze on public spending that critics argue will spell disaster in the cash-strapped country.   18 Prisoners were killed in Riots last week At least 18 inmates died in clashes in two separate penitentiaries in Brazil's Amazon region and more than three dozen escaped after a third prison riot caused a large fire in a complex outside Sao Paulo, officials said Monday. Authorities were investigating a possible connection between the first two uprisings in the jungle states of Rondonia and Roraima, police said.   Eduardo Cunha has been arrested The central figure behind the impeachment of former Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff has been arrested on corruption charges. The office of Judge Sergio Moro and police officials said on Wednesday that former Congressman Eduardo Cunha, accused of pocketing millions of dollars in bribes from contractors with the oil company Petrobras, has been arrested.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

China remains bullish on BRICS China's president has said the long-term prospects of the Brics countries - Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa - are still positive despite a precarious global economy. President Xi Jinping said the Brics countries were among those currently enduring slower economic growth. But he stressed that the potential and strength of the group was "unchanged".   China seeks to overtake the US in the space race At a cost of more than $150 billion, the International Space Station (ISS) is the most expensive object ever built. The Chinese are expected to complete their own space station, potentially leaving the Asian power with the sole operating lab in the heavens. And given that Congress banned NASA from working bilaterally with anyone from the Chinese space program, it’s unclear if American astronauts will be welcome.   Chinese to increase luxury spending to US$120bn this year Chinese luxury spending is expected to reach 120.4 billion U.S. dollars in 2016, up 3 percent year on year, according to a report on Friday. The growth rate is down from last year's 10 percent as a sluggish economy dampens consumption of luxury goods, according to the report released by Fortune Character, a luxury consumption research agency.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hundreds are being questioned by Indian police in connection with a massive fraud ring that may have duped Americans out of tens of millions of dollars over the course of a single year. Reports surfaced earlier this week that police in India had raided a series of call centres and arrested at least 70 people on charges of extortion, impersonation and information technology crimes, according to The Associated Press. Employees at the call centre are believed to have sent out thousands of calls and messages each day, posing as U.S. tax collectors and threatening to involve American authorities if they weren't promptly paid.   11 Heads of State from BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) and Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) countries will attend the meeting. The BRICS summit will start on October 15 and will end the next day, following which there will be a retreat, in which BIMSTEC countries will take part, according to officials.   On Sept. 29 the Indian Army conducted a military strike against terrorist targets in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. The strike was a retaliation for a series of recent terrorist attacks against Indian military installations by Pakistan-based terrorist groups, reminding the world of this rivalry, which dates back to the creation of the two countries in 1947. India and Pakistan have engaged in direct military conflict four times in the past 70 years, and there are some fears that the current dispute may escalate to that point once again. This new period of heightened tensions highlights the failure of recent efforts by the two nations' leaders to ease tensions, and underscores their different domestic and diplomatic trajectories.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Russia’s parliamentary election was marred by over 3,600 violations the country’s top independent monitor Golos reported after a decisive win for the government. Ruling party United Russia won a record number of seats, in an expected victory by unexpected margins. Its new electoral chief hailed the vote as the cleanest in Russia’s history and, despite monitors noting violations were fewer than in previous occasions, the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) stressed the vote was still hampered by challenges to “fundamental freedoms and political rights” and “numerous procedural irregularities” during counting.   Moscow court found popular Russian blogger Anton Nosik guilty of posting online extremist materials and fined him 500,000 rubles (some $8,000) on Oct. 3. According to investigators, Nosik published a blog post titled "To wipe Syria off the map" on Oct. 1, 2015 with the purpose of inciting ethnic hatred. "The court found Nosik guilty of violating Part 2 of Article 282 of the Russian Criminal Code (inciting hatred or enmity, as well as humiliation of human dignity)," the judge said.   Russian President Vladimir Putin has appointed the head of the association for the protection of family, Anna Kuznetsova, as his plenipotentiary for children’s rights, replacing lawyer Pavel Astakhov. Before the appointment, Kuznetsova, 34, worked as the head of the Pokrov fund for the support of family, motherhood and childhood in Penza Region, central Russia. She also headed the Penza regional branch of the Mothers of Russia movement and the regional branch of the United Public Front movement. The newly appointed ombudsman has also held places in the women’s council with the regional governor and the regional public chamber.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brazil’s Ex-President Lula to be tried for corruption. President Temer says he is spending political capital to truly reform Brazil. Brazil run of Mega events finally comes to an end after nearly 1200 days of build ups and events…See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Terror attack on an Indian army base in Kashmir on Sunday has heightened tensions between India and Pakistan. Delhi battling an outbreak of mosquito borne diseases called Chikungunya and dengue. India’s Information Technology hub Bangalore recently witnessed violent protests due to a dispute over sharing of water.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

China’s diplomatic snub to Obama at the G20 China’s leaders have been accused of delivering a calculated diplomatic snub to Barack Obama after the US president was not provided with a staircase to leave his plane during his chaotic arrival in Hangzhou before the start of the G20. Chinese authorities have rolled out the red carpet for leaders including India’s prime minister, Narendra Modi, the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, the South Korean president, Park Geun-hye, Brazil’s president, Michel Temer, and the British prime minister, Theresa May, who touched down on Sunday morning.      British teen makes a fortune choosing baby names in China! Expecting a little bundle of joy but having trouble choosing a name? Gandalph, Cinderella, Harry Potter: all great names for your little tyke, right? Ok, maybe not. Don't worry though, Beau Jessup is here to help. The British 16-year-old has made around $64,000 helping Chinese parents navigate through the name game.     KFC flavour nail polish in Hong Kong In a marketing campaign produced by creative agency Ogilvy & Mather to create fun and excitement for the KFC brand in Hong Kong, they’ve created the KFC Finger Lickin’ Good Nail Polish that comes in two flavours/shades: Original Recipe and Hot & Spicy. Yes, it’s edible and supposedly tastes exactly like chicken. They are packed in designer bottles and boxes. The agency teamed up with food technologists at McCormick – the spice company that provides KFC with its famous secret recipe of herbs and spices – to release a limited edition line of these edible nail polishes.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The last State Duma elections, in December 2011, sparked a series of large protests in Moscow that still evoke a sense of trepidation among the Russian leadership. Elections represent the potentially most vulnerable period of any authoritarian regime. The initial reaction to the 2011 protests was to expand the public dialog to include many of the protest leaders (though never Alexei Navalny) and to make concessions on democratization— returning gubernatorial elections, for example. Prestigious Metropolitan School 57, which has a large Jewish representation in student body, is shaken by allegations, which have led to the resignation of the director and three other teachers. Sergey Mendelevich, the longtime director of Metropolitan School 57, resigned Saturday despite calls for him to remain at the head of the institution by parents — including several dozen people who staged an impromptu support rally for him at the school. In a release from the regulator notes that on 5 September 2016 started the final stage of the selection symbols of the new banknotes.  The Russian Central Bank has named the ten finalists for the symbol that will appear on new banknotes in denominations of 200 and 2,000 rubles. You can vote for Your-Russia. Russia, as well as coming 1 of October on the open Day the Bank of Russia to any territorial establishment and leave your vote for your favourite character by completing this form.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Olympic champion Ryan Lochte has been charged for falsely claiming that he and his three team-mates had been robbed at gun point during the Rio Olympics. It was later revealed that Lochte had made up the story. Brazil, South America’s largest economy, is finally poised to realise its long-anticipated potential as a global player, economists say, as the country rides its biggest economic expansion in three decades. Growth is being felt in nearly all parts of the economy, creating a new class of super rich. A juror for the International Tribunal for Democracy in Brazil wrote a scathing editorial this week denouncing what she calls the illegal government of interim President Michel Temer formed in an attempt by leading members of the opposition Brazilian Democratic Movement Party (PMDB) to avoid enhanced enforcement of the country’s corruption laws.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Beijing Auto to invest in Coega The Coega Development Corporation has signed a R11bn investment deal with the Beijing Automobile International Corporation for a completely knocked down automotive manufacturing plant in the Coega Industrial Development Zone (IDZ). Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies said in a media statement the investment was "significant" and deepened SA’s economic relationship with China. In a golf training club in the city's Tianhe district, a five-day training course for children is recruiting students during the summer vacation. A coach surnamed Deng told a Xinhua reporter that the course teaches basic knowledge and movements, as well as the etiquette of golf, "aiming to cultivate the physical and mental endurance of children." According to a staff member of the agency, it offers classes that develop "CEO characteristics" in children aged 3 to 12 years old. The cost is staggeringly high at 50,000 yuan ($7,500) a year for one or two sessions weekly.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A month before parliamentary elections, President Vladimir Putin has replaced his long-time ally Sergei Ivanov as Kremlin chief of staff, appointing a low-profile former diplomat in his place on Friday. Putin named Anton Vaino, 44, to the important post which involves drafting laws for the president to submit to parliament, monitoring their enforcement and conducting analysis of domestic and foreign affairs for the president. Two-time Olympic pole vault champion Yelena Isinbayeva says she will never accept or forgive the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) decision to uphold her ban from the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. Current world record holder Isinbayeva says that first place at the Games will forever be in question because of her exclusion. Heavy rain in Moscow has caused a river to burst its banks and flooded streets, trapping people in cars and buses. Russian state news organizations said about 200 people had to be evacuated from stalled vehicles on Monday. No injuries were reported. The weather service said that by early evening 92 millimeters (3.7 inches) of rain had fallen in Moscow, which is well over the monthly average for August.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Defense Minister Raul Jungmann on Sunday officially kicked off the security operations for the Rio 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games. The Brazilian Army, Navy and Air Force will make more than 22,000 men available to take care of defense and security of athletes, local residents, and tourists in Rio during the two events. Former Brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has filed a petition with the UN human rights committee outlining alleged abuses of power in the corruption case he is embroiled in. Chinese consumers are eating more beef than the country can produce, and that’s led to a sales bonanza for exporters in Brazil. About a year after recovering from a mad-cow scare, Brazil has supplanted Australia as the biggest seller of beef to China, where a production deficit is widening and imports are heading for a record.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An international tribunal in The Hague overwhelmingly backed the Philippines in a case on the disputed waters of the South China Sea, ruling that rocky outcrops claimed by China cannot be used as the basis of territorial claims. North Korea’s fifth underground nuclear test, when it happens sometime later this year, will occasion dread and set off the usual flutter of apprehension in the West. China has said it will help developing nations implement the UN's 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Indian cricket is set to change dramatically, after the judiciary ordered far-reaching changes in the functioning of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). Customers in India’s southern state of Kerala will have to dig deeper into their pockets each time they want to order a juicy burger, a cheese-laced pizza or other fast food such as doughnuts and tacos. The National Green Tribunal (NGT) on Monday directed the Regional Transport Office (RTO) in Delhi to de-register with immediate effect all diesel vehicles which are more than 10 years old.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A sweeping new Russian antiterrorism bill has raised fears among the country’s telecoms and internet companies that they will face significant costs to implement its data storage provisions. Hundreds of Russian and Ukrainian women have been sharing stories of sexual harassment, violence and rape on social media, after a post by a Ukrainian journalist went viral earlier this week. Russian reviewers have responded with both praise and barely concealed amusement to the BBC’s adaptation of War and Peace, with reviewers describing it as a “medium-budget soap opera” and a “classic with cleavage”.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Olympic and Paralympic Village consists of 31 apartment buildings, some as high as 17 storeys. In total, there are 3 604 apartments, which will be home to more than 17 000 athletes and team officials during the Rio 2016 Olympic Games and 6 000 during the Paralympic Games.   The microcephaly epidemic in Brazil has been speculated to be caused by the Zika virus. However, a study published on June 15 in the New England Journal of Medicine claims Zika may not be the real cause of microcephaly after all so further research is still needed to verify this.   It appears that UberCOPTER thinks they can offer solution. In partnership with European plane maker Airbus, Uber is running a month-long trial in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Uber users can use the app to hail a helicopter and pay $17-80 for a ride between airports, to their hotel or to conference centers. The service is operating from five helipads and four hotels, Fabio Sabba, Uber's communications director in Brazil, told the Canadian Press.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

At least 98 people were killed and 800 more were injured after a tornado - accompanied by hailstorms, thunderstorms and lightning - hit eastern China early Thursday afternoon, the government said.   Giant factories, a wide range of advanced locomotives and a modern exhibition centre may have impressed foreign visitors to one of China’s biggest bullet train producers – but it will take more than that to clinch deals. China is at an early stage of its push to export its high-speed rail technology, and there is much Beijing needs to address.   The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) Saturday held a "White Romance Beach Party" for 51 Chinese honeymoon couples in Thailand's southern province Surat Thai, in a bid to attract more Chinese honeymooners. Runjuan Tongrut, Director of TAT's East Asian Region said, this is part of activities under the "honeymoon campaign in Thailand", which attracts high-end tourists and raise awareness of Thailand as a honeymoon destination.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

India’s yoga-loving prime minister Narendra Modi proclaimed the ancient Indian practice the “biggest mass movement in the world” as he rose early on Tuesday to lead 30,000 devotees through a series of complex asanas in the city of Chandigarh.   Baba Ramdev, one of India’s most-celebrated yoga gurus and an outspoken critic of Western capitalism, has built a consumer-goods empire using his fame to peddle an ever-expanding portfolio of products based on traditional Indian medicine. Patanjali Ayurved Ltd., the company he founded in 2006 near his ashram on the Ganges in this Hindu holy city, has blossomed into one of India’s biggest brands by making creams, cleansers and supplements infused with centuries-old Ayurvedic remedies.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Russia to end decade’s long ban against HIV infected foreigners Russia is mulling lifting longstanding restrictions on entry of HIV-infected foreign citizens, the country’s health minister said at a high-level meeting devoted to AIDS and HIV at the UN General Assembly. Russia is considering changing its current legislation regarding the rights of HIV-infected foreign citizens and lift restrictions that prohibit their entry to the country, Veronika Skvortsova, Russia’s health minister, said, speaking on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly conference on HIV and AIDS on Wednesday.   The St Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) Russia's economy main focus at The St Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) to take place this week with CEO calling for the lifting of sanctions against Russia. USA declined invitation to attend the forum. Thousands of corporate executives, government officials, diplomats, analysts and journalists are due to descend on St Petersburg as the 20th international economic forum kicks off in the city on Thursday.   Russia faces additional 6 months of EU sanctions The EU is set to roll over its Ukraine-related sanctions against Russia for a further six months despite signs of the mood towards Moscow softening in some of the bloc’s member states. Diplomats had feared the move would spark a major political battle between states such as Hungary, Greece and Italy, which favour a rethink on sanctions, and the more hawkish states, including Poland and the Baltic countries, which want the regime to continue.   UEFA threaten Russia and England with disqualification UEFA on Sunday threatened to kick Russia and England out of the European Championship finals over fan violence but admitted there were stadium security flaws. European football's governing body UEFA issued the warning as German hooligans became the latest to join street battles that have marred the tournament, following three days of clashes in Marseille between Russian and English fans.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brazilian Billionaire is ready to sing like a Canary as part of a plea around the corruption scandal Incarcerated for orchestrating the crime of the century, a Brazilian billionaire named Marcelo Odebrecht seeks revenge and promises to bring down as many as 50 politicians in the processes. One of them may even be recently suspended president Dilma Rousseff. The scandal stemming from Brazil’s state-run oil firm Petrobras has created unheard of dissaray in the capital.   Interim president lacks credibility, and is banned from running again A mere 20 days into the seizure of power by the corruption-implicated “interim” President Michel Temer, overwhelming evidence has emerged proving that to be true: Already, two of the interim ministers in Temer’s all-white-male cabinet, including his anti-corruption minister, have been forced to resign after the emergence of secret recordings showing them plotting to obstruct that investigation (an investigation in which they, along with one-third of his cabinet, are personally implicated).   Dilma Rouseff takes to the streets for Woman in Democracy The march of "Women for democracy and against the coup" in Brazil brought thousands to the streets to resist the unraveling of social gains threatened by Michel Temer. Suspended Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff took to the streets in Rio de Janeiro Thursday along with thousands of women to reject the installed interim government of Michel Temer, slammed by protesters as a coup regime.   M-Banking in Brazil growing exponentially Mobile banking is taking off in Brazil with a 138 percent adoption growth registered between 2014 and 2015. According to numbers by the Brazilian Banking Federation (Febraban), the number of banking transactions carried out via a mobile device has gone up from 4,7 billion in 2014 to 11,2 billion in the following year. A number of African countries are big users of mobile money transfer, but changes to how the service is taxed could see Ugandan users returning to more low-tech options. Currently, m-banking accounts for 21 percent of 51 billion operations that take place across the 17 largest banking institutions in Brazil.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

China to relocate 2m rural poor China, fighting to stamp out poverty, will this year move more than two million of its poorest citizens from remote, inland regions to more developed areas, an official of the cabinet, or State Council, said on Tuesday. The mass relocation of people is a strategy targeted at lifting 10 million citizens out of poverty by 2020, state news agency Xinhua has said.   Chinese are officially the highest spending tourists! China Confidential, a Financial Times research service, estimates that total spending by Chinese travellers on outbound trips hit Rmb3.1tn ($498bn) in 2014. Spending by Chinese tourists is now greater than total spending on household consumption of around $436bn in Indonesia and $442bn in Turkey.   Starbucks goes big in China Starbucks is betting big on China, where the java giant's business has the potential to grow past that of the United States, CEO Howard Schultz told CNBC. Starbucks announced Thursday it would open its first international Starbucks Reserve Roastery & Tasting Room in Shanghai in 2017.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

India has successfully launched its first mini space shuttle on Monday as New Delhi's famously frugal space agency joined the global race to make rockets as reusable as airplanes. The shuttle was reportedly developed on a budget of just INR1 billion, a fraction of the billions of dollars spent by other nations' space programmes. The Reusable Launch Vehicle (RLV-TD), which is around the size of a minibus, hurtled into a blue sky over southeast India after its 7am lift off. A small town in the desert state of Rajasthan saw the mercury rise to a searing 123.8 degrees Fahrenheit (51 degrees Celsius), the hottest moment ever recorded in the South Asian nation. The heat on Thursday in Phalodi – a town of about 45 000 people – bested the previous national record set way back in 1956 when it reached 123.1 degrees Fahrenheit in another Rajasthani town, Alwar.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Crackdown on media, preparations for the new election cycle While Russian lawmakers are busy changing the country’s election laws in preparation for parliamentary elections this year, the lower house of parliament is due this month to consider whether President Vladimir Putin’s new National Guard should be allowed to shoot Russian citizens without warning. According to a draft law that Putin submitted to the State Duma, the National Guard would be prohibited from using firearms “at largely crowded places, if their use may casually hurt people.” While Ukrainians basked in their Eurovision win on Sunday, Russian officials and Kremlin-friendly media offered up a string of conspiracy theories to explain the win of Crimean Tatar singer Jamala, whose song “1944” was largely seen as a jab at the Kremlin. And some officials said Russia should boycott the song contest next year, since it is set to be held in Jamala's homeland of Ukraine. The usually kitsch song contest took on major political overtones this year, as Ukraine's Jamala squared off against Russian singer Sergei Lazarev in a showdown that many Eurovision fans saw as a continuation of the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine. Russia made it four Hockey World Championships wins on the bounce on Saturday, making short work of Switzerland 5-1, while Group B frontrunners Canada and Finland also won again. Following a disappointing opening day defeat to the Czech Republic, Russia has been on the march towards the knockout rounds and all but confirmed a place in the quarter-finals by defeating the Swiss at Moscow's Ice Palace. Oleg Znarok’s men were coming off the back of hitting ten goals against Denmark and confidence was clearly high against Switzerland. in a showdown that many Eurovision fans saw as a continuation of the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brazil's Senate is pressing ahead with the impeachment process against President Dilma Rousseff despite a surprise decision by the lower house's interim speaker to annul it. Renan Calheiros, the head of the Senate or upper house, said on Monday he had rejected the interim speaker's decision and that a vote in the Senate on whether to put Rousseff on trial would continue as scheduled. "No monocrotic decision can super impose a collective decision, especially when the decision was taken with the highest form of collectiveness in the house," he said. Earlier, Waldir Maranhao, who took over as acting speaker of the lower house last week, said there were procedural flaws in the April 17 vote in the chamber when it accepted the impeachment charges against Rousseff. Fitch Ratings has downgraded the rating assigned to the senior secured pass-through notes issued by Brazil Loan Trust I (the issuer) as follows: --USD661.9 million notes to 'BBsf' from 'BB+sf'; Outlook Negative. The transaction is a pass-through securitization of a 10-year amortizing loan originated by Bank of America N.A. ('A+'/ Outlook Stable) to the Brazilian State of Maranhao ('BB-'/ Outlook Negative). The loan is guaranteed on an unconditional and irrevocable basis by the Federative Republic of Brazil ('BB'/ Outlook Negative). For the third time since 2015, a Brazilian state judge has ordered a complete shut down on WhatsApp by forcing operators to block the service nationwide for 72 hours, and thus killing the main means of communication of 91% of the country's mobile users. The main question is why. Due to legal secrecy in the country, the details aren't released, but it appears that this isn't related to the first two bans in February of 2015 (issued by judge Luiz de Moura Correia from the state of Piauí) and December of 2015 (issued by a São Paulo judge). This time, it's judge Marcel Maia Montalvão, from a small town in the Sergipe state, the same judge who ordered the arrest of Facebook's vice president for Latin America, Diego Dzodan, over failure to comply with judicial orders in a drug trafficking case; an order that was later overturned by appellate court.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A man has reported the loss of HK$2 million (S$346,000) worth of foreign currency and valuables on board a Hong Kong-bound plane, in what is believed to be the biggest in-flight theft in the city. The passenger, a 39-year-old expatriate travelling on an Emirates flight from Dubai yesterday, realised his loss only after he had stepped off the plane at Hong Kong International Airport, the South China Morning Post reported. The money and valuables were in the man's bag, which was stowed in an overhead cabin during the flight, the Post said. A strict new law governing foreign nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) in China may have some groups packing up and heading home if they can't meet the law's requirements or fall afoul of police who will have increased powers to monitor and control them. The controversial measure was passed into law on Thursday and will take effect on Jan. 1, 2017, affecting thousands of foreign NGOs. The new law requires all foreign NGOs to have an official Chinese sponsor or host organization. The groups may not raise funds in China and may not conduct or fund political activities. If police suspect illegal activity, they can shut down NGO events, inspect their offices and finances and question staff at any time. Men in Chinese mainland outnumbered women by 33.66 million in a country of more than 1.37 billion by the end of 2015. This imbalance has led to great concern over the difficulty of finding a partner for the left-over men, chinanews.com reported. According to figures released by China's National Bureau of Statistics on Tuesday, the number of men in the Chinese mainland stands at 704,14 million while the number of their counterparts is 670,48 million by the end of 2015.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

India wants to become a $ 10 trillion economy by 2032. It aims to be where China is today economically. A policy think tank has been put in place to lay out a roadmap towards this goal.  One of India 's big business tycoons, Vijay Mallya had his passport revoked after he left for London leaving behind $ 1 billion in debt to banks. The banks approached the Supreme Court to ensure he remains in the country. There are reports of severe water shortages in India. One quarter of the country is reeling under drought, in rural areas, people have to walk for miles to get water.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Oil talks in Qatar fail, Russia's currency slumps again. Oil prices slumped nearly 4 percent after a weekend meeting of oil-producing nations failed to result in an agreement to curb production.   A law enforcement agency wants to close down a Moscow library. Moscow authorities have cancelled an order that would have seen the closure of close down a Moscow library.   A kidnapping in Moscow involving a Bentley turns out to be a prank. A group of young men suspected of kidnapping a woman in the trunk of her Bentley Continental (an expensive luxury car) in the center of Moscow in broad daylight have told police the whole thing was a hoax “to test the vigilance of the capital's inhabitants.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New allegations inflame political scandal in Brazil A Brazilian judge with a reputation for crusading against corrupt politicians rocked Brazil on Wednesday – at the end of a day that had already seen a jaw-dropping series of political twists and turns – by releasing audio of a tapped phone call between President Dilma Rousseff and former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. Roger Agnelli, the Brazilian banker who turned Vale into one of the world’s biggest mining companies, has died in a plane crash. He was 56. Agnelli, his wife and two children were among seven killed when his Comp Air 9 turboprop monoplane slammed into two homes around 3:20pm local time (18.20 GMT) on Saturday, minutes after taking off from an airport in northern São Paulo, an aviation official told Reuters. Brazil has decided to place thousands of floating solar panels on a reservoir that was created by one of the country’s most notorious dams. The renewable power project, which is located deep in the Amazon rainforest, could eventually generate enough electricity to power hundreds of thousands of homes. It’s technology could be replicated in other parts of the world with hydroelectric projects that are under-utilized. Authorities in Brazil have faced numerous roadblocks in the run up to the 2016 Rio Olympics, but the poor sale of tickets could be one of the biggest challenges for the South American country. With just four months remaining for the mega sporting event, only half of the available tickets have been sold so far.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tanzania is taking a hard stance against poachers and ivory smugglers, as two Chinese nationals have each received a sentence of 35 years for their crimes. They face 30 years jail for ivory smuggling and five years for bribery of police and wildlife officers. The sentence imposed on the two Chinese men is thought to be among the highest punishments ever imposed in such cases in Tanzania. McDonald’s is to open 1 250 new restaurants in China over the next five years as it focuses on high-growth markets to boost sales. This would make China the fast food chain’s second-largest market after the US. It’s said that Chinese will eat anything on the earth. Foreigners who travel to China are often shocked by weird things they have never eaten before.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

1. 1. All eyes on India in the semi finals of the T 20 World Cup 2. 2. India taking a big step toward gender parity in its armed forces. 3. 3. Women’s World T 20 also getting some attention.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the withdrawal from Syria of Russia’s main military forces, he suggested their assigned mission had already been completed. At the same time, Russian military bases will remain in Syria, keeping open the option of a return of Russian forces. This led to conflicting views of the current situation. Investigators working to extract data from flight recorders from a fly Dubai jet that crashed in Russia say they are "significantly damaged." Flight FZ981 from the United Arab Emirates was making its second attempt to land in Rostov-on-Don early Saturday when it crashed about 250 meters (800 feet) from a runway, killing all 62 people on board. Despite the general public impression of Russia as being relatively opposed to renewable energy and electric vehicles, the city of Moscow will actually, reportedly, be getting a fleet of electric buses. Though, some questions remain, based on the coverage of the situation.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A Million Cries to Kick out Brazil's President Protesters demanded that Dilma Rousseff step down amid allegations of massive corruption and a sputtering economy. There was a volatile mixture over the weekend, with an estimated one million people marching in the streets across Brazil against President Dilma Rousseff's government and demanding she resign. State prosecutors on Wednesday charged Brazil’s former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva with hiding his ownership interest in a beachfront apartment, adding to the growing legal woes of Brazil’s most prominent political figure. Investigations ordered into dozens of politicians linked to a massive corruption scandal at state oil giant Petrobras is sending shock waves through Brazil's governing coalition and South America's largest economy. Brazil's Supreme Court on Friday green lighted investigations into a who's who of the country's politics. Brazil’s economic gloom deepened on Wednesday when credit rating agency Moody’s downgraded the recession-hit nation’s sovereign debt status to junk. Moody’s said the outlook for Brazil’s issuer and bond ratings was negative due to the prospect of further deterioration in debt ratios amid an economic contraction.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Two Indian students accused of sedition for helping organise a protest at Delhi's prestigious Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), have handed themselves into police. Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya were among several wanted by police. The arrest of JNU student union head Kanhaiya Kumar earlier this month led to protests and clashes across India.   India's government has unveiled a budget aimed at boosting farm growth and appealing to the rural poor. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said he planned to double the income of struggling farmers in the next five years. Having overtaken China as the world's fastest-growing economy, India is seen as a bright spot in the global economy.   Open defecation is a serious problem in India. The percentage of population practising open defecation in southern Asia was 34 percent in 2015. However, without taking India in this calculation, the same number, i.e., southern Asia minus India drastically drops down to eight percent.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The development of the armed forces will always be among the most important tasks for the Russian state, Vladimir Putin said in a speech dedicated to Defender of the Fatherland Day, also praising the country’s aviation and navy fighting terrorists in Syria. Putin said "Our armed forces must always be ready to respond quickly and adequately to any potential threats, stop any provocation and aggressive actions," during a gala event dedicated to the upcoming holiday.   The authorities in Moscow have defended their right to demolish small businesses they say are illegal and unsafe. Last week they sent bulldozers to flatten hundreds of companies. Supporters of the move say the buildings were ugly and there is a need for more urban space. But angry business owners accuse the authorities of flouting the constitution.   A top Russian museum struggled to control record crowds as thousands rushed to see a 19th-century art exhibition, queueing outside in freezing temperatures to see the show before it closes Sunday and even breaking a door. The exhibition of paintings by Valentin Serov, renowned for his society portraits, broke attendance records at Moscow's Tretyakov Gallery. 'This exhibition broke all records with over 400,000 visitors.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Countries in the Americas, Oceania and Africa could stand to lose billions in tourism income due to Zika, the virus that causes deformities in newborns. There are currently 30 countries in the world with active transmission of the disease, which is spread through Aedes mosquitoes. Among them are Mexico and Brazil. Brazil, which is due to host the Olympics this summer, had the second highest income from tourism, with more than $7billion in the same year. Although there is currently no official statistics about how Zika is affecting travel numbers, widespread fears about the virus could drastically reduce visitor numbers. Though the Zika virus isn't scaring away Brazil's Carnival revelers and the country's hotels are reporting higher bookings than last year. Over 1 million tourists are expected to come to Rio de Janeiro for Carnival. Brazil is signing an agreement with the University of Texas to develop a vaccine against the Zika virus, the country's health minister said on Feb. 11, adding the goal is for the vaccine to be ready for clinical testing within 12 months.   Growth expectations for South Africa have tumbled in recent weeks as the government struggles with growing budget and trade gaps. Brazil walked a similar path a couple of years ago – but can South Africa draw any lessons from that spectacular fall? Economists nearly halved their 2016 GDP growth forecasts in January alone to a median 0.9 percent, from 1.6 percent in December. Such a souring in expectations is extraordinarily fast according to Reuters Polls data, which usually show incremental change over such a short period of time.   Brazil’s school feeding program first started in 1954 to address child hunger and improve school attendance. “At the beginning it was about a matter of feeding kids to go to school,” says Eduardo Manyari, an international adviser to the National School Feeding Program. “Some of them were very hungry. Through this action, they attended school more often.” Back then, the program was targeted to only the poorest parts of the country. In 2003, it was made a part of the national Zero Hunger Program to reduce hunger and ensure food security. At the time it was estimated that 44 million people, or 28 percent of the total population of Brazil, made less than $1 a day. But as the Zero Hunger Program brought down levels of poverty and hunger, overweight and obesity-related health problems began to rise.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To celebrate the Year of the Monkey, many Chinese travel back to see their families in the villages and townships that they come from, leading to gridlock and capacity strain across much of the country’s transit networks. Bad weather this week resulted in widespread delays and thousands of stranded travelers.   Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, who just concluded his visit to four African countries, has for three consecutive years chosen Africa as the destination for his first trip abroad each year. This shows the great importance China attaches to the vast African continent. This year's trip took Wang to Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique and Namibia from Jan. 30 to Feb. 6. For 26 consecutive years, Chinese foreign ministers have visited Africa at the beginning of the year.   China’s foreign-exchange reserves shrank to the smallest since 2012, indicating that the central bank sold dollars as the Yuan’s retreat to a five-year low exacerbated depreciation pressure. The world’s largest currency hoard decreased by $99.5 billion in January to $3.23 trillion, according to a People’s Bank of China statement released on Sunday    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The New Year saw the introduction of what the authorities in the Indian capital call an "odd-even" number plate scheme. It is a pretty simple idea: number plates that end in an odd number can only drive on odd-numbered days, even numbers on even-numbered days. In theory that should halve traffic numbers, but a host of exemptions means many more than half the nearly nine million vehicles registered in the city can still take to the roads every day. Nevertheless, congestion is noticeably down, and very pleasant that is too. But sadly the same doesn't appear to be true of air pollution - the target of the new restrictions, reports Justin Rowlatt.   India, a country grappling with violence against women, has one of the highest rates of acid attacks in the world – about 350 cases were officially reported in 2014. Their faces scarred, most acid attack survivors virtually “disappear” from society. But a cafe in the tourist hub of Agra, Sheroes Hangout, is helping them return to the mainstream by winning social acceptance for them.   In 2013, the Indian Supreme Court shocked the nation and the world by re-criminalizing homosexuality. Decades of progress, which had culminated in a 2009 ruling by a lower court to legalize same-sex activities, were swept away by the odd decision to reinstate a ban first imposted by British Colonial authorities in 1860. Tomorrow holds hope for change, however, as India's supreme judicial body is set to revisit the issue. Activists are hoping that the Supreme Court, which is known for its progressive approach to civil rights and the rights of minority groups, will rectify what many have interpreted as a gross affront to human dignity in the world's largest democracy. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Almost a decade after former KGB officer Alexander Litvinenko lay dying in a London hospital bed, a British judge has concluded who poisoned him: two Russian men, acting at the behest of Russia's security services, probably with approval from President Vladimir Putin. That finding prompted sharp exchanges Thursday between London and Moscow, and a diplomatic dilemma for both countries.   France hopes that international sanctions imposed on Russia for its intervention in Ukraine will be lifted "this summer," French Economy Minister Emmanuel Macron said on Sunday. The Minsk peace deal is a package of measures agreed by the leaders of France, Germany, Ukraine and Russia in the Belarusian capital. The accords, finalised in early 2015, effectively brought hostilities in Ukraine to an end after more than 9,000 people were killed in a civil war that broke out the previous April.   Art experts are examining a painting held in a private collection in St Petersburg they believe might be a second version of Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa. And leading Mona Lisa scholars say the similarities in colours, which are being examined using infra-red technology, hold the key to determining if the Russian painting is in fact another da Vinci.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For the world's worst-performing economies, no good will come from New Year's resolutions to do better. For many, 2016 will only bring more disappointment, say economists surveyed by Bloomberg. Oil-rich Venezuela will contract by 3.3 percent this year, the worst forecast of any of the 93 countries in the analysis, followed by junk-rated Brazil, debt-laden Greece and commodities-ravaged Russia.    In the space of just two days three former Brazilian presidents have been dragged into the investigation into a huge kickback scheme in the state-run oil firm Petrobras. According to informer Nestor Cerveró, the government of Fernando Henrique Cardoso, bitter adversary of President Dilma Rousseff, received “a US$100-million bribe” to get Petrobras to purchase of private Argentine oil company Perez Companc. But with the country stuck in a deep recession, unemployment and inflation rising, and President Dilma Rousseff’s government mired in the biggest corruption scandal in the country’s history, Brazilians are in no mood to party.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

China’s stock market volatility this past week Chinese shares have risen on the first day of trade since the lifting of a "circuit breaker" mechanism, which had been introduced to prevent sharp falls. Regulators stepped in after big losses in the mainland markets had led trade to be suspended twice this week.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.