2025-09-01 07:57

Xi, Putin and Modi talk in China Putin calls Modi his "dear friend" Modi rides in Putin's limousine Modi discussed cooperation in all areas MOSCOW/NEW DELHI, Sept 1 (Reuters) - India's Narendra Modi told Vladimir Putin on Monday that India and Russia stood side by side even in difficult times after the Kremlin chief called the Indian prime minister his "dear friend" and gave him a lift in his armoured limousine. China and India are the biggest buyers of crude oil from Russia, the world's second largest exporter. Trump has imposed additional tariffs on India over the purchases but there is no sign that India or China are going to stop them. Sign up here. On the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) meeting in China's port city of Tianjin, Modi held Putin's hand as they walked towards Chinese President Xi Jinping. All three smiled as they spoke, surrounded by translators. Later, Modi posted a picture on X of him and Putin inside the armoured Aurus limousine used by the Russian leader. Putin often travels with the Aurus on foreign trips and has occasionally offered rides to fellow leaders - or even gifted the vehicle, as he did to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in 2024. "Even in the most difficult situations, India and Russia have always walked shoulder to shoulder," Modi said. "Our close cooperation is important not only for the people of both countries but also for global peace, stability and prosperity." At the bilateral meeting, Putin addressed Modi in Russian as "Dear Mr Prime Minister, dear friend." "Russia and India have maintained special relations for decades, friendly and trusting. This is the foundation for the development of our relations in the future," Putin said. Modi said he welcomed recent efforts aimed at stopping the war in Ukraine, which he hoped would end as soon as possible. On Saturday, Modi reaffirmed his support for a peaceful settlement during a telephone conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Modi's office said. "Had an excellent meeting with President Putin," Modi said on X on Monday, adding that they had discussed cooperating "in all sectors, including trade, fertilisers, space, security and culture." "Our Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership remains a vital pillar of regional and global stability," Modi said. https://www.reuters.com/world/china/modi-says-russia-india-stand-together-even-difficult-times-2025-09-01/

2025-09-01 07:42

Eric Trump praises Metaplanet CEO's crypto push, social media videos show Eric Trump named adviser to Metaplanet in March Metaplanet shares surged 740% in past year, but are down sharply recently Firm plans to sell up to 550 million shares for about $884 million TOKYO, Sept 1 (Reuters) - Eric Trump took the stage in Tokyo on Monday to throw his support behind Japanese bitcoin treasury company Metaplanet (3350.T) , opens new tab, as the U.S. president's family expands its crypto ventures internationally. The second son of President Donald Trump was named in March as an adviser to Metaplanet, which holds more than $2 billion in bitcoin, and his attendance at the company's extraordinary shareholders' meeting followed an appearance last week at the Bitcoin Asia conference in Hong Kong. Sign up here. Metaplanet called the meeting to approve a plan that would allow it to sell up to 550 million new shares overseas for 130.3 billion yen ($884.41 million), with the bulk of the proceeds to be spent on buying more bitcoin. Three people who came out of the meeting held in the Shibuya area of central Tokyo said the capital-raising plan was approved. Metaplanet declined to comment on Eric Trump's involvement in the meeting, when Reuters contacted the company before the event began. It did not respond to a subsequent email seeking comment on the capital-raising vote. A representative for Eric Trump did not respond to requests for comment. Donald Trump has promised to be the "crypto president", saying he backs the asset class because it can improve the banking system and increase the dominance of the U.S. dollar. Some of Trump's businesses in areas such as crypto, which have added substantially to his wealth, benefit from U.S. policy shifts under him and have invited criticism. American Bitcoin, a miner of the cryptocurrency founded by Eric Trump and his brother Donald Trump Jr., is aiming to list on the Nasdaq this month. In Hong Kong, Eric Trump expressed confidence the cryptocurrency would reach $1 million in value within several years. Bitcoin traded at $108,046.79 on Monday, down from its record of $124,480.82 touched last month. COSTUMES AND FOOD TRUCKS Previously a hotel operator, Metaplanet's pivot into crypto has paid off handsomely. Citing Michael Saylor's bitcoin treasury firm Strategy MSTR.O , opens new tab as an inspiration, founder and chief executive Simon Gerovich liquidated most of Metaplanet's hotel assets, already in the doldrums due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and piled into the cryptocurrency starting in April 2024. At the meeting venue on Monday, it was a festive scene, with people in costumes lined up at the entrance, food trucks assembled, and a K-Pop band due to perform. Media were not allowed to observe the meeting. In the afternoon, Gerovich and Eric Trump took the stage wearing matching Metaplanet jerseys, according to shareholder videos posted on social media. "I think a lot of people, Simon included, and certainly me included, would say that Michael Saylor kind of led the front in the United States," Eric Trump said, referring to the push into cryptocurrencies. "There's no question that Simon's led the front in all of Asia." Selling bonds and warrants, Metaplanet has continued to buy bitcoin and is now the seventh-largest holder among public treasuries globally, according to BitcoinTreasuries.net. It announced on Monday it added another 1,009 coins to bring its total hoard to 20,000. Its shares have surged about 740% in the past 12 months, compared with a 13% advance in the benchmark Topix (.TOPX) , opens new tab index. Even so, the stock has tumbled by more than half since its peak in June, and was down 5.5% on Monday. Metaplanet appointed Eric Trump earlier this year to a newly formed board of advisers, calling him a "leading voice and advocate of digital asset adoption worldwide". The company, which trades on the Standard section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange, was previously known as Red Planet Japan and focused on hotel operations. Before that, it was a wholesaler of music CDs. The company's subsidiary, Red Planet Hotels Japan, filed for bankruptcy in May 2024. ($1 = 147.3300 yen) https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/eric-trump-takes-stage-japan-bitcoin-firm-metaplanet-votes-capital-plan-2025-09-01/

2025-09-01 07:41

Rescuers comb rubble of homes in remote mountainous area Helicopters ferry the injured to hospital Midnight quake hit at a depth of 10 km (6 miles) KABUL, Sept 1 (Reuters) - More than 600 people were killed and over 1,500 injured in one of Afghanistan's worst earthquakes, authorities said on Monday, as helicopters ferried the wounded to hospital after they were plucked from rubble being combed for survivors. The disaster will further stretch the resources of the South Asian nation already grappling with humanitarian crises, from a sharp drop in aid to a huge pushback of its citizens from neighbouring countries. Sign up here. The quake of magnitude 6 killed at least 622 people in the eastern provinces of Kunar and Nangarhar, the Taliban-run Afghan interior ministry said, with more than 1,500 injured and numerous houses destroyed. "All our ... teams have been mobilised to accelerate assistance, so that comprehensive and full support can be provided," ministry spokesperson Abdul Maten Qanee told Reuters, citing efforts in areas from security to food and health. In Kabul, the capital, health authorities said rescuers were racing to reach remote hamlets dotting an area with a long history of earthquakes and floods. The earthquake was Afghanistan's deadliest since June 2022, when tremors of magnitude 6.1 killed at least 1,000 people. Images from Reuters Television showed helicopters ferrying out the affected, while residents helped soldiers and medics carry the wounded to ambulances. The quake razed three villages in Kunar, with substantial damage in many others, authorities said. At least 610 people were killed in Kunar with 12 dead in Nangarhar, they added. Rescuers were scrambling to find survivors in the area bordering Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa region, where homes of mud and stone were levelled by the midnight quake that hit at a depth of 10 km (6 miles). Military rescue teams fanned out across the two provinces, the defence ministry said in a statement, adding that 40 flights had carried out 420 wounded and dead. "So far, no foreign governments have reached out to provide support for rescue or relief work," a foreign office spokesperson said. Afghanistan is prone to deadly earthquakes, particularly in the Hindu Kush mountain range, where the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates meet. A series of earthquakes in its west killed more than 1,000 people last year, underscoring the vulnerability of one of the world's poorest countries to natural disasters. https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/afghan-earthquake-magnitude-6-kills-622-injures-over-1500-2025-09-01/

2025-09-01 07:38

NEW DELHI, Sept 1 (Reuters) - India's top court on Monday dismissed a petition challenging the government's move to roll out 20% ethanol-blended fuel across the country. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/climate-energy/indias-top-court-dismisses-petition-challenging-move-ethanol-blended-fuel-2025-09-01/

2025-09-01 07:18

MUMBAI, Sept 1 (Reuters) - The Indian rupee fell to a record low on Monday, reflecting the cumulative impact of elevated hedging by importers and increased short positions by market participants in response to higher U.S. tariffs. The rupee dropped to 88.33 against the U.S. dollar on Monday, breaching Friday’s all time low of 88.3075. Analysts said the move was an extension of the pressure seen late last week. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/india/indian-rupee-slides-all-time-low-surge-hedging-speculative-bets-2025-09-01/

2025-09-01 07:17

PARIS, Sept 1 (Reuters) - Steps by U.S. President Donald Trump to remove Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell or Fed governor Lisa Cook would represent a "very serious danger for the U.S. economy and the world economy", said European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde on Monday. Trump has repeatedly attacked the Fed's chair, Jerome Powell, for not cutting the short-term interest rate and threatened to fire him. Trump is also attempting to fire Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook. Sign up here. "If U.S. monetary policy were no longer independent and instead dependent on the dictates of this or that person, then I believe that the effect on the balance of the American economy could, as a result of the effects this would have around the world, be very worrying, because it is the largest economy in the world," Lagarde told Radio Classique. Lagarde also told Radio Classique that a ruling on Friday by a U.S. appeals court that most of Donald Trump's tariffs were illegal were adding a "further layer of uncertainty" to the global economic outlook. https://www.reuters.com/business/ecbs-lagarde-warns-risk-world-economy-via-trump-interference-fed-2025-09-01/