Bloomberg India’s top court rejected a plea by mobile carriers seeking more time to settle billions of dollars in back-fees and began contempt proceedings against the companies, threatening to push Vodafone Group Plc’s beleaguered local venture to the brink weeks after it warned of a potential collapse. The Supreme Court’s three-judge panel, headed by Arun Mishra, said that operators including ...

Bloomberg China is administering its centuries-old traditional medicine on patients affected by the coronavirus disease, a top health official said. Treatment in Wuhan hospitals combine Traditional Chinese Medicine, popularly known as TCM, and western medicines, said Wang Hesheng, the new health commission head in Hubei, the province at the center of the virus outbreak. He said TCM was applied on ...

Bloomberg China’s spending on overseas energy projects has dropped to its lowest in more than a decade, as the nation focusses on domestic issues and rethinks its strategy around indebtedness and the world’s energy mix. The nation’s foreign energy financing dropped by 69% to $3.2 billion in 2019, according to data from Boston University’s Global Development Policy Center. Only three ...

Bloomberg The US and the Taliban have reached agreement on a seven-day reduction in violence in Afghanistan that’s intended to lead to a broader accord to end America’s longest war. A senior US official said that the two sides have a deal on the reduction of violence that, if achieved, would be followed by a peace plan allowing the US ...

Bloomberg The US will evacuate its citizens from the virus-hit Diamond Princess cruise ship that’s been quarantined in Japan, according to a statement on the American embassy in Japan’s website. The Department of State will provide chartered aircraft to bring American passengers and crew back to the US. The ship is the largest infection cluster outside China. An additional 67 ...

Bloomberg Attorney General William Barr has ordered a review of the prosecution against Donald Trump’s former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn, adding to a series of interventions this week in politically sensitive cases tied to the president. Barr has appointed US Attorney Jeffrey Jensen to examine the case against Flynn and potentially other matters, according to a person familiar with ...

Bloomberg President Donald Trump’s longtime associate Roger Stone filed a sealed request for a new trial less than a week before he’s due to be sentenced for lying to Congress, witness tampering and other crimes. The Republican operative filed the request in Washington federal court. US District Judge Amy Berman Jackson ordered prosecutors to file a sealed response by February ...

Bloomberg Following an unexpected election triumph, Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald wasted little time in calling for a united Ireland, demanding a referendum on reunification within five years. Meanwhile, one of her successful candidates regaled his celebrating supporters with the iconic “Up the RA” slogan, referring to the Irish Republican Army, the terror group which fought in the name ...

Bloomberg Weather, terrain and human factors were behind the crash of a UH-60M Black Hawk helicopter in January that killed eight defense ministry officers including Taiwan’s top uniformed military officer. An initial investigation report showed that cloud and mist were thick due to sudden changes in the weather in the mountainous area, the Ministry of National Defense’s Air Force Command ...

If the past is any guide — and it certainly will be — President Trump’s ambitious attempts to cut federal spending will almost certainly come to naught. The historical record is clear. As a practical matter, once government programs are created, they’re virtually impossible to kill, even if they’ve outlived their usefulness. Veterans of past budget wars (including me) going ...