India's central banking institution keeps repo rate unchanged at 6.5 pct for 7th time in row

STORY: India's central banking institution keeps repo rate unchanged at 6.5 pct for 7th time in row SHOOTING TIME: April 5, 2024 DATELINE: April 6, 2024 LENGTH: 00:01:13 LOCATION: New Delhi CATEGORY: ECONOMY SHOTLIST: 1. various of India Gate 2. various of RBI building 3. various of banks 4. various of market area STORYLINE: India's central banking institution, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), on Friday announced it has kept the repo rate unchanged at 6.5 percent. The repo rate is the rate at which the central bank lends money to commercial banks in the event of a shortfall of funds. This is the seventh time in a row the six-member Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) has decided to keep the key rates unchanged. According to the RBI, these decisions are in consonance with the objective of achieving the medium-term target for consumer price index (CPI) inflation of 4 percent within a band of plus or minus 2 percent, while supporting growth. Meanwhile, the real GDP growth for 2024-25 is projected at 7.0 perce

Maldivians vote in presidential runoff

STORY: Maldivians vote in presidential runoff DATELINE: Sept. 30, 2023 LENGTH: 00:01:20 LOCATION: Colombo CATEGORY: POLITICS SHOTLIST: 1. various of polling stations STORYLINE: The second round of presidential election in the Maldives concluded on Saturday, after no candidate secured more than 50 percent of votes in the first round to win outright. The runoff election featured a head-to-head contest between incumbent President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih and Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) and People's National Congress coalition's candidate Mohamed Muizzu, who is also the mayor of capital city Male. According to the Election Commission, a total of over 282,000 people are eligible to participate in the voting to choose the Indian Ocean archipelagic country's president with a five-year term. Voting started at 8 a.m. and concluded at 5 p.m. local time on Saturday, with 586 ballot boxes being set up for the election. Muizzu secured more than 46 percent of the votes, while Solih followed behind with 39 perce

THAILAND-VIETNAM-CHINA-RCEP-DURIAN TRADE

THAILAND-VIETNAM-CHINA-RCEP-DURIAN TRADE

(230920) -- CHUMPHON, Sept. 20, 2023 (Xinhua) -- Staff members sort freshly harvested durians at a durian plant in Chumphon, Thailand, Sept. 18, 2023. According to data from Thailand's Ministry of Commerce, China was the largest export market for Thai durians in 2022, accounting for more than 96 percent of the total export volume. As the vast majority of durians sold in the Chinese market are imported from Southeast Asia, the "king of fruits" has emerged as a prominent symbol of the booming China-ASEAN cooperation and China's vast market potential. The flow of goods in this regional market has continued to benefit from tariff-free policies and expanded market access under the frameworks of the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). In the first five months of this year, Guangxi imported 3.66 billion yuan worth of fruits from ASEAN countries, a marked rise of 194 percent year on year. Among the most notable increases is durian, which surged 516 perce

Kenyan shoppers' holiday spending habits changing amid inflation

STORY: Kenyan shoppers' holiday spending habits changing amid inflation DATELINE: Nov. 27, 2022 LENGTH: 00:01:55 LOCATION: Nairobi CATEGORY: SOCIETY/ECONOMY SHOTLIST: 1. various of the supermarket 2. STANDUP 1 (English): RUTH WANGARA, Xinhua reporter 3. SOUNDBITE 1 (English): PETER MWANGI, Local resident 4. SOUNDBITE 2 (English): ISAAC LAMO, Local resident 5. various of the cellphone store 6. SOUNDBITE 3 (English): GIDEON MUTALI, Cellphone store supervisor STORYLINE: STANDUP 1 (English): RUTH WANGARA, Xinhua reporter "With the high cost of living currently being experienced, Black November has been welcomed with enthusiasm by the people here in Kenya. I am in one of the biggest supermarkets in the country and as you can see behind me there are many people here hoping to enjoy the discounts to ease off the pressure of the high inflation rate." Monthly inflation data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) shows the east African nation's overall inflation rate stood at a record high of 9.2 perce

Malaysia sees number of deaths rise in 2021 due to COVID-19

STORY: Malaysia sees number of deaths rise in 2021 due to COVID-19 DATELINE: Oct. 13, 2022 LENGTH: 00:02:40 LOCATION: Kuala Lumpur CATEGORY: HEALTH SHOTLIST: 1. various of COVID-19-related public service announcements in Kuala Lumpur 2. various of medical practitioners at work 3. various of crowds accepting COVID-19 swab test 4. various of Kuala Lumpur Twin Towers and Kuala Lumpur Hospital with ambulances on the road STORYLINE: The number of deaths in Malaysia rose 34.5 percent to 224,569 in 2021 from 166,970 in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, official data showed Thursday. The crude death rate (CDR) also recorded an increase from 5.1 deaths in 2020 to 6.9 deaths in 2021 per 1,000 population, the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) said in a statement. All age groups recorded an increase in the number of deaths except the group aged 0-14 which saw the number decrease from 4,288 to 4,115 in 2021. The number of deaths for the group aged 41-59 years recorded the highest increase by 44 perce

Baby formula shortage worsening in U.S. prompts federal intervention

STORY: Baby formula shortage worsening in U.S. prompts federal intervention DATELINE: May 15, 2022 LENGTH: 0:01:20 LOCATION: LOS ANGELES, U.S. CATEGORY: SOCIETY SHOTLIST: 1. various of grocery store shelves bare of baby formula STORYLINE: Grocery store shelves were bare of baby formula around Denver and other cities in the United States Friday as the federal government continued unprecedented steps toward accelerating production and distribution of the vital supplement. U.S. President Joe Biden defended his response to the crisis Friday as Republicans and conservative media attacked his administration's actions. Across the country, mothers took to social media and drove up to 50 miles to look around amid baby food formula shortage, People, an American weekly magazine that specializes in celebrity news and human-interest stories, said Friday, calling the situation "very, very scary." Data released this week by Datasembly, which tracks baby formula stock at more than 11,000 stores, showed that 43 perce

The Misfits - film (1961)

The Misfits - film (1961)

Marilyn Monroe, Clark Gable, Montgomery Clift, Eli Wallach Characters: Roslyn Taber,Gay Langland,Perce Howland,Guido Film: The Misfits (1961) Director: John Huston 01 February 1961 Date: 01-Feb-61

The Misfits - film (1961)

The Misfits - film (1961)

Marilyn Monroe, Clark Gable & Montgomery Clift Characters: Roslyn Taber,Gay Langland & Perce Howland Film: The Misfits (1961) Director: John Huston 01 February 1961 Date: 01-Feb-61