March 2010

India to provide duty-free access to products from LDCs

Economic Times, 23 March 2010
India has informed the World Trade Organisation it will ensure the least developed countries (LDCs) get access to its market without duties or quotas.
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Anand Sharma urges banks to step up rural lending

India Today.in, 23 March 2010
Anand Sharma, Union Minister for Commerce and Industry, on Tuesday urged banks to shun the collateral-driven mindset and lend to rural entrepreneurs to push the country’s agenda of inclusive growth and sustainable development.
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Montek wants agri reforms, pushes for market prices

The Economic Times, 23 March 2010
The country’s apex planning body has called for wide-ranging reforms in agriculture, while criticising the strategy employed by the government to increase farm output and tame soaring food prices.
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IMF calls for more Asian infrastructure, social spending

Asia One Business, 23 March 2010
Asia’s developing economies must invest more in infrastructure and social welfare to promote long-term growth in a region where millions fell back into poverty during the global economic crisis, an IMF official said Monday.
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Monetary policy should target investment

Business Standard, 19 March 2010
India’s monetary policy should focus on increasing investments in productive sectors rather than inflation-targeting, according to Supachai Panitchpakdi, Director-General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).
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China opposes trade protectionism in all its forms

Phil Star.com, 19 March 2010
China yesterday voiced its support for the liberalization of global trade and opposition to trade protectionism in all its forms in order to pave the way for the economic recovery in the world at large.
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Open doors to trade, PM tells G20 negotiators

Toronto Sun, 19 March 2010
The world’s leading economies must keep doors open to trade or risk a prolonged recovery from the global recession, Prime Minister Stephen Harper warned chief negotiators for the upcoming G20 summit.
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What Obama’s Visit to Indonesia Means for Asia

Time World, 19 March 2010
The bronze statue of a 10-year-old Barack Obama, shod in sneakers and holding aloft a butterfly, quickly turned into a tourist attraction. Foreigners flocked to the public park in Jakarta to honor the U.S. President, who lived four years of his childhood in the Indonesian capital.
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World Bank Provides US$1.05 billion to Improve Education in India

World Bank-South Asia, 18 March 2010
The World Bank today approved two education projects worth US$1.05 billion to India, designed to boost the number of children enrolling in and completing elementary school, and to improve quality of engineering education across the country.
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Finland wants increased trade volume with Nigeria

Next, 16 March 2010
Finland wants to exploit the friendly investment climate of Nigeria to boost its business, said Paavo Vannrynen, the Finnish minister of foreign trade and development.
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Feeding the world: which countries are most at risk?

Calgary Herald, 16 March 2010
Most of sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia are facing extreme or high risk of food shortages, according to a ranking of 148 nations obtained by AFP.
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Use African-Indian Partnership to fight Poverty and Hunger

Ghana News, 15 March 2010
Vice President John Dramani Mahama on Monday advised African leaders participating in the Confederation of Indian Industry, EXIM Bank business conclave in New Delhi, India, to use the opportunity to fight hunger, poverty and diseases.
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US backs ban on bluefin tuna trade

Boston.com, 04 March 2010
The US government announced yesterday that it supports prohibiting international trade of Atlantic bluefin tuna, a move that could lead to the most sweeping trade restrictions ever imposed on the highly prized fish.
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Jairam suggests new climate team, drops critics from list

The Times of India, 04 March 2010
Union environment and forest minister Jairam Ramesh has dropped Prodipto Ghosh and Chandrashekhar Dasgupta – his most vocal critics – from the suggestive list forwarded to the PM for reconstitution of the core negotiating group on climate change.
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Elimination of trade barriers to make SAFTA workable

Pakistan Observer, 03 March 2010
The stakeholders, representing academia, industry and Government officials were jointly of the opinion that elimination of all types of barriers including change mindset of political mindset was much needed to make SAFTA workable.
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International Trade At The Cross-roads?

Financier world wide.com, 03 March 2010
The world moves on. The question is whether it will move so far and so fast as to leave the World Trade Organization (WTO) behind. The Doha Round negotiations have been stalled for months.
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Poverty Strategy: Have Strategies Made Impact on the Poor?

Daily Observer, 03 March 2010
Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSP) contain a country’s macroeconomic, structural and social policies, as well as programs to promote growth and reduce poverty.
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