Bloomberg India’s nationwide roll-out of smart power meters, aimed at supporting ailing utilities and bolstering reliable electricity supply, will cost about 1.5 trillion rupees ($21 billion), according to a government estimate. The prepaid meters are expected to help to improve billing and collection, which are the most basic problems facing the country’s ailing distribution companies, known as discoms. These utilities, ...

Bloomberg South Korea urged the US to “refrain from taking excessive measures” after the State Department raised its travel advisory on the Korean city of Daegu, where most of the nation’s novel coronavirus cases are centred. Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha spoke to US Deputy Secretary of State Stephen Biegun by phone, according to a statement from the South Korean foreign ...

Bloomberg India’s economy slowed to a more than six-year low in the final three months of last year, and it now faces a fresh threat from the coronavirus outbreak. Data showed growth decelerated to 4.7% in the three months through December from a year ago, the third straight quarter of decline and matching the median forecast in a Bloomberg survey ...