Covid extension

(Image: Twitter @ANI) About a dozen states on June 29 pitched for extending by a few years the compensation paid to states for revenue lost from the implementation of the goods and services tax (GST) regime. The GST Council, the highest decision-making body of the indirect tax regime, however, did not take any decision at its meeting. A final decision is likely to be taken in the next GST council meeting in the first week of August, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said while talking to the media after the 47th GST Council meeting in Chandigarh. "As many as 16 states spoke on GST compensation in today’s meeting. Of this there were 3-4 states that said that they have to stand on their own and not depend on compensation," Sitharaman said. When a nationwide GST subsumed 17 central and state levies from July 1, 2017, it was decided that states will be compensated for any loss of revenue from the new tax for five years. That timeframe is ending on June 30. With two years … [Read more...] about 12 states demand extension of GST compensation beyond June

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Topline The Biden administration’s Covid-19 vaccine mandate for federal employees has once again been blocked in court—at least for now—as a federal appeals court ruled Monday it will rehear the case and threw out its previous decision that upheld the vaccine requirement. Key Facts The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the vaccine mandate in April, after a district court judge blocked the requirement in January, siding with the anti-vaccine organizations and federal employees who brought a lawsuit challenging it. The court accepted a request Monday from the challengers to rehear the case en banc, which means that the court will issue a judgment from all the judges on the appeals court, rather than a panel of a few judges, as was the case with the April ruling. Because they’re rehearing the case, the court dissolved its ruling from April, which means the district judge’s ruling blocking … [Read more...] about Biden Vaccine Mandate For Federal Employees Blocked Again As Appeals Court Dissolves Earlier Ruling

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin InnovationRx is your weekly digest of healthcare news. To get it in your inbox, subscribe here . T he World Health Organization said over the weekend that the spread of monkeypox does not yet rise to the level of a public health emergency of international concern. However, the committee will reconvene if there is significant spread to additional countries and higher rates of cases in the next 21 days. On Tuesday, the Biden Administration announced plans to expand access to nearly 300,000 doses of the monkeypox vaccine manufactured by Denmark-based Bavarian Nordic. By the end of the year, the federal government expects 1.6 million doses will be available. “While monkeypox poses minimal risk to most Americans, we are doing everything we can to offer vaccines to those at high-risk of contracting the virus,” HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra said in a statement . Monkeypox does not spread as easily as Covid-19. It is … [Read more...] about InnovationRx: Monkeypox Vaccine Rollout; Plus, Omicron-Specific Boosters

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Memories of the Federal Reserve’s 1994 tightening cycle still tend to trigger financial PTSD here in Asia. Under the direction of then-Chairman Alan Greenspan, the Fed doubled short-term interest rates in just 12 months. The ferocity of the moves racked up some serious collateral damage: Mexico’s economic meltdown; the bankruptcy of Orange County, California; the death of 129-year-old bond dealer Kidder, Peabody & Co.; and developing Asia. It took a few years, but the dollar’s powerful rally in response to higher U.S. rates made currency pegs in Bangkok, Jakarta and Seoul impossible to maintain. The resulting devaluations in 1997 set the region back decades in terms of living standards and economic confidence. Now, the Jerome Powell-led Fed seems set to outdo the worst of the Greenspan era. Not because of the magnitude of the rate hikes Team Powell might engineer, but because of how far it’s fallen behind the … [Read more...] about Federal Reserve Is Losing Asia Faster Than In 1994

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Travelers are returning to the skies in 2022 for domestic and international flights. This summer will be the busiest travel season since the Covid-19 pandemic began. However, many flights are being canceled or delayed. What is the root cause? Here are a few factors you should know about if you plan to travel. Pilot Shortages Are The Primary Reason Many delays and cancellations are because of an industry-wide pilot shortage. In addition, the legacy carriers and regional operators don’t have enough staff for various reasons. As a result, airlines are combining routes or discontinuing services when necessary to offset staffing shortages. This move is similar to the height of the pandemic when carriers reduced to minimal service as travel demand plummeted. However, consolidating flights to conserve pilots and reduce operating expenses isn’t as simple as waving a magic wand. Pilots can only fly planes they are … [Read more...] about What’s Causing Flight Delays And Cancellations?

There is no leadership crisis at RBL Bank and incoming chief R. Subramaniakumar will use his expertise to build RBL Bank 2.0, the bank management told Moneycontrol in an exclusive interview on June 15. In a candid conversation with Moneycontrol, RBL Bank’s new Managing Director and CEO (MD & CEO) R. Subramaniakumar and outgoing interim CEO Rajeev Ahuja open up on challenges related to the bank’s leadership transition and fall in share prices. The RBL Bank management also gave guidance on the bank’s asset quality, its microfinance and card portfolio, and business outlook for FY23. Edited excerpts: Q- The announcement naming you as the next CEO came Saturday. Were you tensed? Close Kumar - I caught up with my six and a half hours of sleep. Normally I sleep for up to seven hours a night. I could catch up on my sleep because both Rajeev and I and the team are very clear on the path forward. So, there was no need for me to get under much pressure. Q- Mr. … [Read more...] about Exclusive Interview| No leadership crisis at RBL Bank, RBI to take final call on board nominee, says management

- A + A KUALA LUMPUR (June 23): Genting Hong Kong Ltd has sold operating entity Crystal Cruises and two cruise ships under the latter to private equity group Heritage Group, which is led by billionaire Manfredi Lefebvre d'Ovidio under the planned restructuring of Genting Hong Kong, which is facing severe financial difficulties following Covid-19-driven global movement restrictions. The Maritime Executive reported that Heritage Group confirmed on Wednesday (June 22, 2022) that it had purchased Crystal Cruises and its two cruise ships — Crystal Serenity and Crystal Symphony — through A&K Travel Group. The report however did not specify the purchase price for Crystal Cruises although it was earlier reported that Crystal Serenity and Crystal Symphony, both of which were under arrest in Bahamian waters for more than four months, were sold on June 14, 2022 for a combined US$128 million (about RM564 million). "Lefebvre d'Ovidio acquired 80% of A&K in May 2019, … [Read more...] about Genting sells Crystal Cruises, arrested ships to private equity group

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Average Credit Card Interest Rates Have Topped 20% Rising interest rates have pushed the annual percentage rates on credit cards to new highs. The average annual percentage rate on a new credit card is now more than 20%, according to LendingTree’s tracker. It’s the first time that rates have topped 20% since the tracker began in 2018. And rates are poised to go even higher across the board. Credit card balances reached $841 billion in the first three months of the year, according to a report from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. In the same timeframe, 229 million people opened new credit card accounts, an increase from the previous quarter. [ CNBC ] Inflation Causing 85% Of Americans to Adjust Their Essential Purchases You don’t have to follow the news to know inflation is raging. Inflation in May 2022 was up 8.6% from the past twelve months. A quarter of respondents selected that they only have a little … [Read more...] about This Week In Credit Card News: Average Card Interest Rate Tops 20%; Inflation Wrecking Personal Budgets

- A + A (June 25): Shares in China’s electric-vehicle (EV) makers are trouncing global industry leader Tesla Inc, bolstered by Beijing’s consumption incentives and heavy dip-buying from investors. American depository receipts of Nio Inc, XPeng Inc and Li Auto Inc have surged at least 64% each over the past month to be among the top gainers in Chinese stocks traded in the US. The sharp rally reflects improving sentiment following a months-long slump due to worries over high valuation and supply bottlenecks. Their gains easily beat Tesla’s 17% advance, with the divergence in China and US policy outlooks and investor jitters over how Elon Musk will fund a potential Twitter Inc deal weighing on the EV giant’s share price. China’s EV industry hit a trough during Shanghai’s lockdown ⁠— when not even one car was sold in the city in April and factories were forced to shut down or operate under heavy restrictions. Authorities have since unveiled a slew of stimulus measures … [Read more...] about Chinese EV stocks are all the rage, trouncing Tesla

AS you’re aware, there is a serious manpower situation that Malaysia is facing. Some are saying Malaysia is at breaking point. It’s feared that our country is missing a golden opportunity to capitalise on high palm oil prices and will suffer production losses because of the acute shortage of workers. What has been done? According to the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) report in 2015, up to 78% of the oil palm plantation workers are foreign workers, with most of them coming from Indonesia. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, there was no new arrival of foreign workers beginning from March 2020, and Malaysia recently opened its international borders on April 1, 2022. Due to the shortage of workers in the oil palm plantation sector, expected revenue losses are around RM20bil. ALSO READ: More foreign labour soon This has led to the Malaysian Cabinet to agree to a special exemption for the intake of 32,000 foreign workers for the palm oil sector in April 2022. As mentioned much … [Read more...] about Resolving worker shortage woes