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In a bold departure from the 'baby steps' over the past year, RBI has brought the battle against inflation at the centre of economic policy, in the context of the surge in international oil and commodity prices, by raising the key policy lending rates of repo and reverse repo by 50 basis points to 7.25 and 6.25 per cent respectively, with immediate effect. The Bank Rate and CRR (cash reserve ratio) remain at 6 per cent as before.

HA NOI - Finance ministers from France and Japan will join top officials from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and International Monetary Fund (IMF) and other key Asian policymakers at a high-level seminar here later this week to discuss reforming the international monetary system to promote greater global monetary and financial stability.

HA NOI, VIET NAM - The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is funding a new model university for Viet Nam that will help one of the region’s most dynamic economies stay on track towards becoming a fully industrialized nation.

Just as the world recalls in horror the April 26 nuclear accident at Chernobyl in Ukraine 25 years ago, another nuclear disaster of staggering proportions is unfolding at Fukushima in Japan. In some ways, this isn’t a coincidence. The global nuclear industry has learnt no lessons from Chernobyl, nor sobered down its hubris-driven, fanciful claims about the safety of nuclear power. As we see below, a similar catastrophe could occur in any of the world’s 400-odd reactors.

Osama bin Laden’s death is of greater relevance to the West than to India. The Al Qaeda leader’s primary target was America, followed by Europe which was a breeding ground for some, like the 9/11 bomber Mohammed Atta and the failed shoe bomber, Richard Reid. Occasional terrorist acts were also carried out in Europe as, for instance, in Madrid and London. But, as a Saudi who resented the presence of American troops in Islam’s holy land, Osama’s antipathy towards the US was all-consuming. It is possible that his proximity to the Americans during the anti-Soviet jehad in Afghanistan bred further contempt for them because of their arrogance and pleasure-loving lifestyle.

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA – The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and Australia’s Export Finance and Insurance Corporation (EFIC) have signed a risk-sharing agreement that should make it easier for some of Asia’s developing economies to import crucial Australian goods. The agreement is part of ADB’s Trade Finance Program (TFP).

New York: Warning of the consequences of unsustainable consumption and production on the world’s ecosystems, a senior United Nations official today urged Member States to agree on a plan to promote a more efficient and safer use of the Earth’s resources.

On 2 May 2011, the Working Party on Vanuatu’s accession, which reconvened in April, cleared the path for its membership in the WTO by approving, ad referendum, the accession package which spells out the terms of Vanuatu’s accession.

New York: Experts from around the world gathered in Vienna today for the start of a five-day United Nations conference aimed at standardizing the use of place names so that governments, organizations and the public can benefit.

New York: The joint United Nations-African Union peacekeeping mission in Darfur has announced a new initiative to help aid agencies access hard-to-reach communities in parts of the strife-torn Sudanese region.