Union Minister of Commerce & Industry and Aviation Suresh Prabhu launched Niryat Mitra – mobile App in New Delhi on Wednesday. The app developed by the Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) is available both on Android and on IOS platforms.

It provides wide range of information required to undertake international trade right from the policy provisions for export and import, applicable GST rate, available export incentives, tariff, preferential tariff, market access requirements – SPS and TBT measures.

The most interesting part is that all the information is available at tariff line. The app works internally to map the ITC HS code of other countries with that of India and provides all the required data without the users bothering about the HS code of any country. Presently the app comes with the data of 87 countries.

China's exports surged more than expected in July despite U.S. duties and its closely watched surplus with the United States remained near record highs, as the world's two major economic powers ramped up a bitter dispute that some fear could derail global growth.

In the latest move by President Donald Trump to put pressure on Beijing to negotiate trade concessions, Washington is set to begin collecting 25% tariffs on another $16 billion in Chinese goods on Aug. 23.Wednesday's Chinese data provide the first readings of the overall trade picture for the world's second-largest economy since U.S duties on $34 billion of Chinese imports came into effect on July 6. All the same, China's exports for July rose a bigger than expected 12.2% year-on-year, showing little tariff impact for now and beating June's 11.2% rise and analysts expectations in a Reuters poll for 10% growth.

Of more direct consequence in the Sino-U.S. trade war, China's surplus with the United States shrank only marginally to $28.09 billion last month from a record $28.97 billion in June. Washington has long criticised China's trade surplus with the United States and has demanded Beijing cut it. Those demands could get even more strident if the yuan's sharp drop in recent months raises the ire of the United States, which has in the past repeatedly criticised Beijing for manipulating its currency to gain an unfair trade advantage.

KOLKATA: The telecom regulator on Tuesday announced the integration of its mobile apps --- DND 2.0 and MyCall – with e-governance platform, UMANG to help consumers access multiple government services easily.

UMANG or 'unified mobile application for new-age governance’ has been developed by National e-Governance division of the ministry of electronics & IT (MeitY).

“UMANG provides a single Android platform to all Indian citizens to access pan-India e-governance services, ranging from central to local bodies and other citizen-centric services,” Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) said Tuesday in a media statement. 

Public sector non-life insurance firm United India Insurance Company today announced the appointment of S Gopakumar as its Director and General Manager with immediate effect.

Prior to taking up the new role, Gopakumar was serving GIC Housing Finance Ltd as its Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, a company statement said. Gopakumar began his career with public sector National Insurance Company and has held various responsibilities in his more than three decade experience.

Former Tamil Nadu chief minister and DMK patriarch M Karunanidhi passed away on Tuesday at the age of 94. The veteran politician was admitted in Kauvery Hospital in the city two weeks ago, where he was being treated by a panel of expert doctors. His body was taken to his Gopalapuram residence last night, after which it was shifted to Rajaji Hall. Several political leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, paid their last respects to Karunanidhi.

The Madras High Court granted permission to bury Karunanidhi behind Anna Samadhi — the memorial of C N Annadurai — on Marina beach. This comes after several arguments against or in favour of the matter in the court. The order led to emotional scenes at Rajaji Hall, as Karunanidhi’s son Stalin and senior leaders broke into tears. The Madras High Court which held a late-night hearing on a plea by DMK’s lawyers took up the case at 8 am this morning.

India doubled the import tax on more than 300 textile products to 20 percent on Tuesday as the world's biggest producer of cotton tries to curb rising imports from China.

It was the second tax hike on textiles in as many months after an increase on other products including fibre and apparels last month.

The moves are expected to provide relief to the domestic textile industry, which has been hit by cheaper imports. India's total textile imports jumped by 16 percent to a record $7 billion in the fiscal year to March 2018. Of this, about $3 billion were from China.

Japan’s SoftBank Group Corp reported a 49 percent jump in quarterly profit on Monday, boosted by the sale of its stake in Indian e-commerce giant Flipkart in the first public divestment by the conglomerate’s massive Vision Fund.SoftBank, which is planning to list its domestic telecoms business, also said profit was bolstered by the sale of most of the Chinese operations of chip design unit ARM Holdings.The sales are the first signs of SoftBank monetizing its investments after pumping billions of dollars into technology companies around the world yet taking little profit.

Its Vision Fund is the world’s largest private equity fund, raising over $93 billion at its first major close in May last year. The fund, which is yet to complete its final close, had invested $27.1 billion in 29 firms as at June-end, SoftBank said on Monday.

Its investments are now worth $32.5 billion on the rising value of its various stakes such as in shared office space company WeWork Cos. SoftBank has around 1,700 of its own staff currently using some of WeWork Japan’s 6,250 seats.

“We are considering moving all of SoftBank’s headquarters into WeWork (offices) in the near future,” Chief Executive Masayoshi Son said on Monday.

Son has previously said a second Vision Fund is being planned, but on Monday declined to comment on timing or size.

Donald Trump  has warned America’s trading partners that anyone who does business with Iran will not be doing business with the US, after his administration reimposed blanket sanctions.

The US president described the new sanctions, which hit Iran’s access to dollars, gold and precious metals, as “the most biting ever imposed”.

“In November they ratchet up to yet another level,” he tweeted. “Anyone doing business with Iran will NOT be doing business with the United States. I am asking for WORLD PEACE, nothing less!”

Within hours of the sanctions taking effect, the German carmaker Daimler, which announced a joint venture in Iran last year, said it was halting its business activities in the country.

The punitive measures came into force in the early hours of Tuesday, and follow Trump’s decision in May to renege on the landmark 2015 deal to curtail Iran’s nuclear ambitions.

The sanctions also target a range of industries, including Iran’s carmaking sector, and will be followed by a set of additional and even more stringent measures by 4 November, including an embargo on the import of Iranian oil and sanctions on its banking sector.

Trump’s latest comments appear aimed at the EU, which is attempting to protect European businesses from the sanctions and has vowed to safeguard firms.

The nominating committee of Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) has selected Ajay Data, Founder & CEO of Data XGen Plus and a global leader in email linguistic services, as a new council member of Country Code Supporting Organisation (ccNSO).

Ajay Data is the first Indian to have been selected as a member of ccNSO and will be representing India at a global level. He will be the custodian of Asia, Australia and Pacific Islands as a member of ccNSO.

Data has got a two-year term and will take up the position during ICANN 63 Meet in Spain in October 2018. The members of ccNSO, which is ICANN’s policy development body for ccTLD (country code top-level domains) issues, are all country code top level domain operators from around the world.