Critical minerals: the new arena of U.S.–China competition
The U.S. and China are locked in a growing struggle over critical minerals, the materials that power everything from electric vehicles and microchips ...
As some top global banks scale back climate efforts, India is moving forward with mandatory rules for lenders to report and manage climate-related financial risks.
India’s central bank is close to finalising regulatory guidelines that will require banks and financial institutions to report and manage the risks they face from climate change, three sources with knowledge of the matter have confirmed.
The framework, under discussion since 2022, is expected to instruct financial entities to regularly disclose climate-related risks within their lending portfolios, including mitigation strategies and measurable targets. The aim is to improve transparency and help the financial system adapt to climate vulnerabilities.
According to the proposal, disclosures will be introduced on a voluntary basis starting from fiscal year 2027, with mandatory compliance from fiscal year 2028. India’s fiscal year runs from April to March.
In addition to disclosures, banks will be required to conduct periodic stress tests to evaluate the potential financial impact of adverse climate events, such as floods, droughts or extreme temperatures.
This initiative mirrors steps taken by countries such as the United Kingdom and Japan, which have made climate risk reporting compulsory in line with their commitments to a low-carbon economy.
The Reserve Bank of India’s move contrasts with the recent decisions of several leading global banks, including JP Morgan, Citibank, Morgan Stanley and HSBC, which have scaled back climate-related commitments. Analysts have suggested this trend may be influenced by the re-election of U.S. President Donald Trump, whose administration is widely seen as sceptical towards climate policy.
By advancing these regulations, India signals its commitment to integrating climate risk into financial governance, supporting green investment and safeguarding long-term financial stability.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) unveiled a new underground ballistic missile base on Wednesday (4 February), just over a day before the start of mediated nuclear negotiations with the United States, slated for Friday in Oman.
Rivers and reservoirs across Spain and Portugal were on the verge of overflowing on Wednesday as a new weather front pounded the Iberian peninsula, compounding damage from last week's Storm Kristin.
Morocco has evacuated more than 100,000 people from four provinces after heavy rainfall triggered flash floods across several northern regions, the Interior Ministry said on Wednesday.
A second group of Palestinians receiving medical treatment arrived in Egypt from Gaza via the Rafah border crossing on Tuesday (3 February).
The World Health Organization has added the Nipah virus to its list of the world’s top 10 priority diseases, alongside COVID-19 and the Zika virus, warning that its epidemic potential highlights the global risk posed by fast-spreading outbreaks.
Wall Street ended sharply lower on Tuesday as investors worried about artificial intelligence (AI) creating more competition for software makers, keeping them on edge ahead of quarterly reports from Alphabet and Amazon later this week.
U.S. stock markets finished mixed on Wednesday (28 January) as investors reacted calmly after the Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged, a decision that had been widely expected and largely priced in.
The S&P 500 edged to a record closing high on Tuesday, marking its fifth consecutive day of gains, as strong advances in technology stocks offset a sharp selloff in healthcare shares and a mixed batch of corporate earnings.
Chevron is in talks with Iraq’s oil ministry over potential changes to the commercial framework governing the West Qurna 2 oilfield, one of the world’s largest producing assets, after Baghdad nationalised the field earlier this month following U.S. sanctions imposed on Russia’s Lukoil.
Argentina's economic activity shrunk 0.3% in November compared with the same month last year, marking the first monthly contraction of 2025, data from Argentina's national statistics agency showed on Wednesday.
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