WORLD

India’s merchandise exports in May rose by 20.55 per cent to USD 38.94 billion, while the trade deficit ballooned to a record USD 24.29 billion, according to the government data released on Wednesday.

Imports during May 2022 grew by 62.83 per cent to USD 63.22 billion, the data showed.The trade deficit stood at USD 6.53 billion in the same month last year. Cumulative exports in April-May 2022-23 rose by about 25 per cent to USD 78.72 billion.

Imports in April-May 2022-23 increased 45.42 per cent to USD 123.41 billion.The trade deficit during the first two months of this fiscal widened to USD 44.69 billion against USD 21.82 billion in the year-ago period.

(With inputs from agencies)

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett has said that his government has a “week or two” to stop its internal problems or else they may face collapse. In a statement to the Israeli Knesset, he said that Nir Orbach, who is a member of Bennett’s own right-wing Yamina party, will not be voting along with the coalition. “We have a week or week two to settle the problems in the coalition and then we can last a long time to continue the good we are doing,” Bennett told a special session of the Knesset according to Reuters. “But if we don’t succeed, we won’t be able to continue,” he added.

Since taking over the position from Benjamin Netanyahu, Bennett has faced a number to problems when it comes to keeping the coalition of eight parties together. He was sworn in as the Israeli President in June last year and the United Arab List (UAL), a party which stands with the Palestinian population of Israel, has constantly threatened to withdraw support from the ruling coalition.

A bipartisan group of US senators on Sunday proposed steps to curb gun violence following devastating mass shootings in Texas and New York, but the limited measures fall far short of the president's calls for change.

The shootings in May -- one at a Texas elementary school that killed 19 young children and two teachers, and another at a New York supermarket that left 10 Black people dead -- have piled pressure on politicians to take action.

But Republicans lawmakers, who have repeatedly blocked tougher measures, are still resisting major changes to gun regulations, instead pointing to mental health issues as the root of the problem.

The new proposals include tougher background checks for gun buyers under 21, increasing resources for states to keep weapons out of the hands of people deemed a risk, and cracking down on illegal gun purchases.

Expats who took part in a demonstration against the remarks on Prophet Muhammad by BJP spokespersons will be deported. The administration has issued instructions to arrest all expats part of Fahaheel protest on Friday.

According to sources, they will be deported as they violated the laws and regulations of the country which stipulates that sit-ins or demonstrations by expats are not to be organised in Kuwait.

The expats part of the protest will reportedly be banned from entering the country.

"All expats in Kuwait must respect Kuwait laws and not take part in any type of demonstrations," the government said in a release.

The defence chiefs of China and the United States held face-to-face talks for the first time on Friday, with both sides standing firm on their opposing views over Taiwan's right to rule itself, Reuters reported.

Issuing a stun warning to neighbouring Taiwan, China today said that Beijing will "not hesitate to start a war" if Taiwan declares independence, AFP reported.

The warning was issued by China's defence minister during the first face-to-face talks with his US counterpart Lloyd Austin in Singapore.

"If anyone dares to split Taiwan from China, the Chinese army will definitely not hesitate to start a war no matter the cost," Wu Qian quoted defence minister Wei Fenghe as saying during a meeting with Lloyd Austin.