India-Asean Trade Ministers Meets

India – ASEAN Troika Trade Ministers’ meeting was held in New Delhi today for informal consultation on the ongoing Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). The meeting was attended by Union Minister of Commerce & Industry and Railways, Piyush Goyal, Acting Minister of Commerce of Thailand, Ms. Chutima Bunyapraphasara, Minister of Trade of Indonesia, Enggartiasto Lukita, Secretary General, ASEAN, Lim Jock Hoi and TNC Chair of RCEP, Iman Pambagyo.

Addressing the meeting Piyush Goyal said that India looks at RCEP as a logical extension of its Act East Policy and it holds enormous potential for economic growth and stability for the entire region.  He said that in the 26th round of RCEP negotiations at the Experts level, which has concluded recently in Melbourne, some progress has been achieved with member countries showing a degree of flexibility and accommodation.

Waiving off Charges on NEFT and RTGS

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) vide its circular on ‘National Electronic Funds Transfer (NEFT) and Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) systems – Waiver of charges’ dated 11.06.2019, has decided that with effect from July 1, 2019, processing charges and time varying charges levied on banks by RBI for outward transactions undertaken using the RTGS system, as also the processing charges levied by RBI for transactions processed in NEFT system would be waived by the Reserve Bank.

The banks are also advised by RBI to pass on the benefits to their customers for undertaking transactions using RTGS and NEFT systems. This waiver of processing and time varying charges by RBI on banks will reduce the cost of RTGS and NEFT transactions and will give fillip to digital fund  movement.

One of Africa’s 100 most influential women

The May edition of Forbes Afrique, the French-language version of the influential economic periodical that focuses specifically on African affairs, has listed Marie-Chantal Kaninda, Executive Director (ED) of the World Diamond Council (WDC), as one the continent’s 100 most influential women.

“With this fifth edition of Africa's 100 Most Influential Women ranking, the presence of African women at the highest levels in all sectors is no longer a shadow of a doubt,” wrote Nadia Mensah-Acogny, the Forbes Afrique journalist who has been compiling the list since 2013.

“But despite this, gender equality still leaves something to be desired and the finding is bitter. African women are still under-represented in the private sector. Like everywhere in the world, diversity remains a challenge for women in Africa. However, there is no need to despair, because beautiful energies are set up to get things done faster.”

Final Permit for the Terronera Mine

Endeavour Silver Corp announces that it has received the final tailings permit for the Terronera silver-gold mine project located in Jalisco state, Mexico.

The ETJ permit, or “Authorization to Change Soil Use on Forest Land”, was issued by the Mexican Ministry of Environment.  It gives Endeavour Silver the right to store tailings from the proposed Terronera high grade, underground; silver-gold mine in a secure, filtered dry stack tailings facility adjacent to the proposed plant site.

Become a campaign ambassador!

The City of Antwerp has a rich diamond history dating back as far as 1447, developing over the centuries into the world’s leading diamond trading centre it is today. Its reputation is so widely recognized that Antwerp has become synonymous with diamonds internationally. The City considers its diamond industry one of Antwerp’ leading USPs, highlighting diamonds as a key ingredient in its in recipe for promotional success.

The AWDC and the City of Antwerp work together closely to include the diamond industry in the City’s (international) positioning campaigns, and wish to broaden the use of the marketing campaign we developed in the fall of 2017: “In Antwerp we speak diamond. Diamond Capital since 1447.” We share the goal of promoting Antwerp as the world’s Diamond Capital, and want to ensure this message is delivered loud and clear. We want you to join us in this effort.

Gold-backed ETF at largest monthly increase

Holdings in global gold-backed ETFs and similar products rose sharply in June by 127 tonnes (t) to 2,548t – equivalent to US$5.5bn in inflows – as geopolitical uncertainty increased and central banks signalled a shift to a more accommodative policy over the coming months. This drove rates and the US dollar lower and shifted the momentum in gold as its price moved to a six-year high.

Global Assets Under Management (AUM) in US dollars rose 15% to US$115bn, the largest monthly increase since 2012, as all regions experienced inflows. More than half the AUM growth came from the 9% gold price rally in US dollars.

Recovery of 54 carat fancy yellow diamond

Firestone Diamonds plc is pleased to announce the recovery of a 54 carat intense fancy yellow, sawable diamond from its Liqhobong Mine in Lesotho. The diamond will go on sale at the next tender which is scheduled to take place during September 2019.

Paul Bosma, Chief Executive Officer, commented: “The Liqhobong mine has become known for its fancy yellow stones but this one is the largest we've recovered so far and is therefore quite special. Although certain segments of the diamond market are currently struggling, the demand for unique natural stones remains positive.”

FDI inflows remained robust in to India

The Union Minster of Finance and Corporate Affairs, Nirmala Sitharaman said that FDI inflows into India have remained robust despite global headwinds. Presenting the Union Budget 2019-20 in Parliament, she said that India’s FDI inflows in 2018-19 remained strong at USD 64.375 billion marking a 6% growth over the previous year. The Finance Minister proposed further to consolidate the gains in order to make India, a more attractive FDI destination.

Global Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) flows slid by 13% in 2018, to USD 1.3 trillion from USD 1.5 trillion the previous year-the third consecutive annual decline, according to UNCTAD’s World Investment Report 2019.

The Finance Minister further stated that it is high time India not only gets integrated into global value chain of production of goods and services, but also become part of the global financial system to mobilise global savings, mostly institutionalized in pension, insurance and sovereign wealth funds.

E-Challan System to check traffic violations

The Government has implemented E-challan System to effectively check violations like drunk driving, over speeding and other traffic laws. It is an integrated information technology based enforcement solution to manage traffic laws violations through an Android-based mobile app and back-end web application for use by the Transport Enforcement Wing and Traffic Police.

Finland, underexplored diamond potential

The Diamond prospective area in Finland is nearly the same size as the Slave Craton in Canada. By analogy with other shield areas, the potential exists for further and significant diamond discoveries in Finland. Furthermore, the late Archean terrain comprising much of eastern and northern Finland is contiguous with the Karelia and Kola–Kuloi cratons in Russia, which contain the major Archangelsk kimberlite province, at the easternmost edge of the shield, and diamond-bearing lamproites at Kostamuksha, near the Finnish border.