International News
GulFood 2020
- The 25th Edition of the GulFood 2020, Dubai is being held from 16th to 20th February 2020.
- For India, GulFood 2020 will help in facilitating tie-ups between foreign investors and accelerate the pace of export of food products from India to the western market.
Sri Lanka’s Withdrawal from Co-Sponsorship of UNHRC Resolution 30/1
- The UNHRC resolution 30/1 calls for addressing war crimes and reconciliation efforts with minorities.
- The statement came after the U.S. imposed travel restrictions on Army chief Lt. Gen. Shavendra Silva and his immediate family members.
National News
Kashi Mahakal Express
- Indian Railways Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) it will launch its first overnight journey by a private train in the country named Kashi Mahakal Express.
- The train will be inaugurated on 16th February 2020 and will begin its regular service from 20th February 2020.
Govt. Announced Rs 540 Cr for Stalled Housing Projects
- The investment will benefit 1,800 homebuyers and will unlock Rs 3000 Crore of invested capital.
- The Central government announced a Rs 25,000 crore fund in November 2019, to help complete over 1,500 stalled housing projects.
WPI Inflation: 10 Month High at 3.1%
- Inflation in the vegetable category stood at 52.72%, while onion prices raised to 293 %, followed by potato at 87.84%.
- The WPI based inflation was at 2.59% in December 2019, and 2.76% in January 2019.
Moody's Forecast on India’s GDP
- The agency has forecasted global GDP growth down, and expect G-20 economies to collectively grow 2.4% in 2020, a softer rate than last year, followed by a pickup to 2.8% in 2021.
- It reduced the growth forecast for China to 5.2% in 2020 and a 5.7% growth in 2021.
CCI Approved 100% Shareholding of WABCO by ZF
- ZF is a global technology company and develops, manufactures and distributes products and systems for i) passenger vehicles ii) commercial vehicles iii) off-highway vehicles iv) industrial technology.
- WABCO is a global supplier of primarily pneumatic braking control systems, technologies and services.
Finance Commission: Expert Group on Agriculture Exports
- The 15th Finance Commission has decided to constitute a High-Level Expert Group on Agriculture Exports on 17th Feb 2020.
- The Committee will submit its recommendations within three months for further consideration of the Commission.
India/Bharat 2020
- Union Minister of Information & Broadcasting Prakash Javadekar unveiled the Annual Reference India/Bharat 2020 on 19th Feb 2020 in New Delhi.
- The minister also released the e-version of the book Annual Reference India / Bharat 2020 on the occasion.
2nd Phase of Swachh Bharat Mission Grameen
- The 2nd Phase of the Swachh Bharat Mission, Grameen has been approved till 2024-25 and will focus on Open Defecation Free Plus (ODF Plus).
- The ODF plus includes ODF sustainability and Solid and Liquid Waste Management (SLWM).
22nd Law Commission of India
- The 22nd Law Commission will function for a period of three years from its date of official constitution.
- Law Commission of India is a non-statutory body constituted by the Government from time to time.
Banking
RBI Report on Bank Loans
- It also showed that the deposits increased to 9.9%.
- In the fortnight to January 31, the outstanding loans rose Rs 989.26 billion ($13.86 billion) to Rs 101.03 trillion.
FinMin Addressed the Central Board of Directors of RBI
- The FinMin outlined the thinking behind the Union Budget 2020-21 and the focus areas of the Government in the meeting.
- The finance minister was accompanied by Minister of State for Finance Anurag Singh Thakur, Finance Secretary Rajiv Kumar and Expenditure Secretary T V Somanathan, and Dr Krishnamurthy Subramanian, Chief Economic Advisor.
Bajaj Finance Replaced SBI on BSE
- The SBI stock has fallen nearly 4% in the last two sessions following concerns over its asset quality in Vodafone Idea and Bharti Airtel's in AGR case.
- Currently, Reliance Industries Ltd is the country’s most valued company with a market cap of Rs 9.48 trillion.
SEBI Permitted Use of Regulatory Sandbox
- The 'regulatory sandbox' will serve as a testing ground for new business models and technologies that benefit investors, Indian markets and the economy at large.
- Under the regulatory framework, the eligible entities will be granted the facility to experiment with fintech solutions in a live environment and on real customers.
Centre Released Rs 19,950 Cr GST Compensation to States/UTs
- As per Ministry of Finance, total GST compensation cess of Rs 62,611 crore was collected in the FY 2017-18, out of which Rs 41,146 crore was released to the states/UTs that fiscal as GST compensation.
- In FY 2018-19, Rs 95,081 crore was collected as GST compensation cess of which Rs 69,275 crore was released to the states/UTs as GST compensation.
