عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Business

G20 Agrees on Reforming WTO

Traditional dancers receive officials at the venue of one of the G20 meetings in India. (AP)
Traditional dancers receive officials at the venue of one of the G20 meetings in India. (AP)
TT
TT

G20 Agrees on Reforming WTO

Traditional dancers receive officials at the venue of one of the G20 meetings in India. (AP)
Traditional dancers receive officials at the venue of one of the G20 meetings in India. (AP)

The Group of 20 (G20) nations has agreed to work on reforms to the World Trade Organization (WTO) ahead of its critical ministerial meeting in February next year, the Indian government said on Friday.

Indian Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal said during a press conference after a meeting of trade ministers of the G20 countries in Rajasthan that the group has exchanged views on WTO reforms and any decision will be taken during WTO's 13th ministerial conference in Abu Dhabi in February.

The WTO's top appeals bench, which rules on top international trade disputes, has been idle for more than two years due to blockages of adjudicator appointments dating to former US president Donald Trump's administration.

Under President Joe Biden, Washington has resisted calls by WTO members to approve appointments and has instead been leading negotiations on rebooting the WTO's paralyzed dispute mechanism.

The proposed reforms would include having a well-functioning Dispute Settlement System accessible to all members by 2024.

At the Rajasthan meeting, G20 members also agreed to improve WTO functioning and strengthen trust in the multilateral trading system.

The G20 takes in countries conducting over 75 percent of global trade and functions under the Indian presidency.

Meanwhile, G20 summit negotiator Amitabh Kant said on Friday India hopes to convince members of the G20 grouping of nations to find amicable solutions to geopolitical issues in response to a question about the Russian-Ukrainian war.

The Ukrainian war has cast a long shadow over global diplomacy since it began in February last year. India, now president of the G20, has taken a primarily neutral stance, generally declining to blame Russia and urging a diplomatic solution.

Speaking at a Business 20 (B20) summit in New Delhi, Kant said the group stood for growth, but war created "a huge implication in economics" by bringing challenges regarding food, fuel, and fertilizer.

"The war is not our creation," Kant said. "Our challenge is to put developmental issues right in the forefront."

The G20 summit is set to take place next month.

During the two-day event, India hopes to forge agreement among members on matters ranging from reforms of multilateral banks to developing a global approach to cryptocurrencies.

Most Viewed

 
 
Business

UK’s Burnham Says He Is Open to Discussing EU Free Movement

21 October 2026, United Kingdom, London: Britain's Prime Minister Andy Burnham leaves 10 Downing Street to attend Prime Minister's Questions at the Houses of Parliament. (dpa)
21 October 2026, United Kingdom, London: Britain's Prime Minister Andy Burnham leaves 10 Downing Street to attend Prime Minister's Questions at the Houses of Parliament. (dpa)
TT
TT

UK’s Burnham Says He Is Open to Discussing EU Free Movement

21 October 2026, United Kingdom, London: Britain's Prime Minister Andy Burnham leaves 10 Downing Street to attend Prime Minister's Questions at the Houses of Parliament. (dpa)
21 October 2026, United Kingdom, London: Britain's Prime Minister Andy Burnham leaves 10 Downing Street to attend Prime Minister's Questions at the Houses of Parliament. (dpa)

British Prime Minister Andy Burnham has said he wants a discussion about returning to the European Union's freedom of movement rules for workers, a key issue in the 2016 Brexit referendum which led to Britain leaving the bloc.

Building on previous comments about the need to rethink ties with Brussels, Burnham told the Sunday Times that the influx of EU workers into Britain before Brexit had posed very significant challenges. "But, at the same time, it ‌was a ‌type of immigration that perhaps wasn't as difficult (as now)," he ‌said.

"Revolving ⁠door migration where ⁠people would come and then go back is different. The balance of migration has changed, hasn't it, since then? I think we’ve just got to have an honest discussion about those things."

Official data has shown long-term net migration in 2025 fell to close to its level before a new post-Brexit immigration system was introduced at the start of 2021.

In September, two months after replacing Keir Starmer as Labour Party leader ⁠and prime minister, Burnham said Britain should consider options for ‌its relationship with the EU, including possibly rejoining ‌the bloc one day.

He had previously backed the pledges of Starmer's government which included no ‌return to freedom of movement which Brussels sets as a condition for being ‌part of the bloc's single market.

In his interview with the Sunday Times, conducted on October 19, Burnham said the issue of freedom of movement could be considered as part of a broader reset of Britain's relationship with the EU, including on data sharing and ‌migration.

"You've got to see it in the round, rather than just looking at freedom of movement on its own," ⁠he said.

Burnham, who ⁠is trying to find ways to speed up Britain's economy, is due to meet top EU officials for a summit on November 20.

He said he could not imagine recommending that Britain adopt the euro currency or the EU's border-free travel arrangements.

A new referendum would be needed to rejoin the EU but not necessarily to join the bloc's single market or a customs union, the Sunday Times quoted Burnham as saying.

Former Conservative finance minister Jeremy Hunt, who campaigned to stay in the EU in 2016, said it would be a mistake to reopen one of the fundamental debates of the referendum and he said relaxing immigration rules would hurt people in Britain.

"I think it will be a hammer blow to getting people off welfare and into work," Hunt told Sky News.

Business

Sydney’s New International Airport Opens to Passengers

A Jetstar aircraft departs on the inaugural commercial service from the newly-opened Western Sydney International Airport in Sydney on October 25, 2026, marking the start of regular passenger operations at Australia's newest international gateway. (AFP)
A Jetstar aircraft departs on the inaugural commercial service from the newly-opened Western Sydney International Airport in Sydney on October 25, 2026, marking the start of regular passenger operations at Australia's newest international gateway. (AFP)
TT
TT

Sydney’s New International Airport Opens to Passengers

A Jetstar aircraft departs on the inaugural commercial service from the newly-opened Western Sydney International Airport in Sydney on October 25, 2026, marking the start of regular passenger operations at Australia's newest international gateway. (AFP)
A Jetstar aircraft departs on the inaugural commercial service from the newly-opened Western Sydney International Airport in Sydney on October 25, 2026, marking the start of regular passenger operations at Australia's newest international gateway. (AFP)

Sydney's new ‌A$5.6 billion ($3.94 billion) airport opened to passengers on Sunday after more than a decade of planning, in what Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said was a milestone for the country's most populous city.

The new Western Sydney International Airport in Badgerys Creek, about 60 km (37.3 miles) west of central Sydney, will operate 24 hours a day, ‌giving airlines ‌access to a fast-growing and ethnically ‌diverse ⁠population center.

The current ⁠airport, located closer to Sydney's central business district, can host takeoffs and landings only until 11 p.m. and after 6 a.m., limiting airline scheduling options relative to other major Australian cities like Melbourne.

"For ⁠the first time in more ‌than 50 years, ‌Australia is opening a major new airport. It’s ‌a milestone that has been decades in ‌the making," Albanese said in a statement.

"I’m very proud to officially open it," he said.

Qantas' budget arm Jetstar was due to ‌operate the first outbound flight to the Gold Coast on Sunday, ⁠the ⁠airport said in a statement. The airport has capacity for more than 80 million passenger movements annually, it said.

The start of passenger services comes after cargo flights commenced at the facility in July.

Located on a 1,780-hectare (4,398-acre) site purchased by the federal government in the 1980s, the airport was completed in July 2025 after a seven-year build and 15 years of planning.

Business

Trump Says Audi to Invest $4.2 Bn in Its First US Auto Plant

US President Donald Trump looks on as CEO of Audi AG Gernot Dollner speaks at a midterm election campaign rally at Guardian Centers of Georgia in Perry, Georgia on October 24, 2026. (AFP)
US President Donald Trump looks on as CEO of Audi AG Gernot Dollner speaks at a midterm election campaign rally at Guardian Centers of Georgia in Perry, Georgia on October 24, 2026. (AFP)
TT
TT

Trump Says Audi to Invest $4.2 Bn in Its First US Auto Plant

US President Donald Trump looks on as CEO of Audi AG Gernot Dollner speaks at a midterm election campaign rally at Guardian Centers of Georgia in Perry, Georgia on October 24, 2026. (AFP)
US President Donald Trump looks on as CEO of Audi AG Gernot Dollner speaks at a midterm election campaign rally at Guardian Centers of Georgia in Perry, Georgia on October 24, 2026. (AFP)

US President Donald Trump announced on Saturday that German automaker Audi planned to invest $4.2 billion to build its first factory in the United States that will produce 200,000 vehicles a year.

Audi confirmed the investment in a release, saying the plant would create about 4,500 jobs.

"I'm thrilled to announce a massive auto manufacturing investment in the great state of Georgia by a fantastic company," Trump said at a campaign rally 10 days ahead of the November 3 midterm elections that will determine control of the US Congress.

"Audi has just committed to invest $4.2 billion dollars in nearby Macon, Georgia, to begin the construction next month on a massive plant that will produce 200,000 cars a year," Trump continued.

Audi, which is a unit of Volkswagen, said in its release that construction was scheduled to begin next year and production in the early 2030s.

"The planned investment intends to mark a long-term commitment to the United States and to establish North America as a third major pillar of Audi's global production network alongside Europe and China," it said.

VW, long a titan of German industry, has struggled with US tariffs, Chinese competition and patchy demand in Europe.

About 50,000 job cuts have already been agreed across the 10-brand Volkswagen Group -- mostly at VW, Audi and Porsche -- but the company has said another 50,000 could be required worldwide to slash costs.