Dubai Customs has reported a sharp rise in cargo handled through its Green Corridor with Oman, underscoring the growing importance of alternative land routes as disruptions to sea lanes reshape regional supply chains. Customs declarations processed through the corridor jumped from about 12,000 in March to nearly 100,000 in April 2026, while the declared value of goods moved through the route rose from AED1 billion to more […]
By Nitya Chakraborty Now that the U.S. President Donald Trump is back to Washington DC. After his two day summit talks in Beijing on May 14 and 15, it is appropriate to decode the gains of the summit. There were four major issues– Taiwan, Iran war, trade deals and facilitating more business for the American […]
The article Decoding Global Geopolitical Impact Of Trump-Xi Summit In Beijing appeared first on Latest India news, analysis and reports on Newspack by India Press Agency).
The measure, effective from 16 May for three months, applies to selected motor vehicles including passenger cars, jeeps, vans, buses, goods transport vehicles, ambulances, electric vehicles and hybrids. Vehicles for which letters of credit were opened on or before 15 May are exempt, limiting the immediate disruption for importers who had already committed payments before the order took effect.
The surcharge is levied on the applicable customs import duty, rather than directly on the total value of a vehicle. For many private vehicles, the customs import duty had stood at 30 per cent, meaning the added surcharge raises that component to 45 per cent. Other taxes and levies, including excise duties, value-added tax and sector-specific charges, mean the final tax burden on imported cars can be far higher than the headline customs duty figure.
Deputy Finance Minister Anil Jayantha Fernando said the step was designed to encourage buyers to delay vehicle imports rather than halt the trade outright. He said the government was responding to a sharp rise in import expenditure and added pressure on foreign reserves. “Given the current pressure on foreign exchange, we want people to delay their imports by three months,” he told reporters in Colombo.
The decision marks a swift policy adjustment by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s administration as Sri Lanka attempts to balance consumer demand, revenue needs and currency stability after years of severe economic strain. Vehicle imports were heavily restricted after the island’s 2022 financial collapse, when the country ran short of foreign exchange and struggled to pay for fuel, food and medicines. The gradual reopening of imports was seen as a sign of economic normalisation, but it has also revived concerns about the pressure placed on the balance of payments.
Sri Lanka remains dependent on imported fuel, leaving the economy exposed to swings in global crude prices. Tensions across the Middle East have pushed energy costs higher, forcing authorities to reassess import priorities. Fuel prices have already climbed sharply this year, adding to the cost of transport, electricity generation and logistics. The government is trying to prevent higher oil bills from draining reserves at a time when the country remains under a $2.9 billion International Monetary Fund programme.
The rupee has weakened against the US dollar this year, with official figures showing a fall of about 4.5 per cent since January. Central Bank Governor Nandalal Weerasinghe has warned lawmakers that the currency could remain under pressure unless global oil prices ease or the country reduces energy imports. That warning sharpened the policy case for curbing non-essential import demand, particularly in high-value categories such as vehicles.
Vehicle importers and consumers are likely to face a tougher market over the next quarter. The surcharge may delay purchases, reduce showroom availability and raise prices for buyers who choose to proceed. Importers with confirmed letters of credit before the cut-off date may have a temporary advantage, while new buyers could defer orders until the surcharge expires, provided the government does not extend it.
The policy also carries revenue implications. Vehicle imports are a lucrative source of tax income, and Sri Lanka has relied on trade-related levies to support public finances during its recovery. A surcharge may increase tax collected on each imported vehicle, but lower import volumes could offset that gain if buyers hold back. The government’s calculation appears to prioritise currency defence and reserve management over short-term market expansion.
Africa is losing about $5 billion a year to currency conversion costs, exposing a costly weakness in the continent’s ambition to build a seamless single market. A fresh assessment of cross-border trade barriers says limited currency convertibility remains one of the biggest obstacles facing businesses, traders and consumers across the continent. The cost arises because payments between African countries often pass through foreign currencies, mainly the dollar […]
UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan welcomed Modi on arrival, underscoring the personal diplomacy that has become a defining feature of ties between the two leaders. The visit opened the first leg of Modi’s five-nation tour, which is scheduled to include the Netherlands, Sweden, Norway and Italy between May 15 and 20.
The Abu Dhabi stop carries immediate strategic weight for New Delhi as energy markets remain exposed to geopolitical pressure and supply uncertainty. Discussions between the two sides were centred on long-term energy arrangements, petroleum reserves, liquefied petroleum gas supply and a wider defence framework, reflecting the broadening scope of a relationship once driven largely by trade, remittances and crude oil.
Agreements signed during the visit covered defence cooperation, petroleum reserve collaboration and LPG supply. The defence pact points to a gradual shift in the partnership towards security coordination, technology exchange and maritime stability, particularly as both countries seek to protect trade routes and energy flows across the Arabian Sea, the Gulf and the wider West Asia region.
Energy remains the strongest pillar of the relationship. The UAE is among India’s key suppliers of crude oil and gas, while Abu Dhabi’s state-linked energy companies have already taken part in India’s strategic petroleum reserve programme. New Delhi has been seeking to expand reserve capacity as part of a long-term effort to cushion the economy from global supply shocks, currency pressure and price spikes.
For Abu Dhabi, the visit fits a broader strategy of deepening ties with major Asian economies while positioning the UAE as an energy, finance, logistics and technology hub. The UAE’s investment push into ports, renewable energy, infrastructure, food corridors and financial services has increasingly aligned with India’s priorities in manufacturing, digital infrastructure and supply-chain diversification.
Bilateral trade has grown strongly since the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement came into force in 2022. The pact reduced tariffs on a wide range of goods and helped accelerate commerce in gems and jewellery, petroleum products, food, metals, machinery and services. Both sides have set ambitious targets to lift non-oil trade, while businesses have expanded their use of rupee-dirham settlement mechanisms and cross-border payment links.
The partnership has also moved deeper into technology. Artificial intelligence, digital public infrastructure, data centres, financial technology and advanced computing have emerged as major areas of cooperation, especially after high-level exchanges earlier this year involving Sheikh Mohamed and Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. The proposed deployment of advanced computing infrastructure in India, with UAE-linked institutions and companies involved, has reinforced the technology dimension of the relationship.
People-to-people ties remain central to the diplomatic equation. The UAE hosts one of the largest overseas communities from India, with millions working across construction, services, health care, finance, aviation, education and technology. Their remittances and social links have long shaped the political warmth between the two countries, while improved consular services, labour welfare frameworks and easier travel arrangements remain important issues in bilateral engagement.
Modi’s Abu Dhabi visit also follows a sequence of symbolic gestures that have strengthened the public profile of the relationship. Sheikh Mohamed visited India in January this year, while senior members of Abu Dhabi and Dubai’s ruling families have taken part in major diplomatic and technology engagements. Modi’s 2024 visit to the UAE included the inauguration of the BAPS Hindu Mandir in Abu Dhabi, a project presented by both sides as a marker of tolerance and cultural connection.
Aldar Properties has bought a residential and community retail project in Dubai Studio City for AED1.1 billion, marking a fresh step in the Abu Dhabi developer’s push to expand its recurring income base in Dubai’s fast-growing rental market. The acquisition from private developer SRG will give Aldar a build-to-rent community scheduled for completion in 2028. The project is planned around 312 homes across six mid-rise buildings, supported […]
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Abu Dhabi has condemned an attack on an Indian-flagged cargo vessel off Oman, calling it a terrorist act that threatens international navigation, regional stability and the security of vital maritime corridors. The UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the strike represented a dangerous escalation against commercial shipping at a time when the Gulf of Oman and nearby Strait of Hormuz remain central to […]
China’s search for safer gas supplies has pushed energy to the centre of Xi Jinping’s talks with Donald Trump in Beijing, where the war involving Iran has sharpened pressure on both sides to repair a trade channel that collapsed under tariffs. The discussions come as disruption around the Gulf has unsettled fuel markets, tightened liquefied natural gas flows into Asia and revived the commercial logic of United […]
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Dubai’s Gold Souq has come under a sharper regulatory spotlight after Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri, Minister of Economy and Tourism, led an inspection tour to assess whether merchants are meeting rules designed to prevent money laundering, terrorism financing and proliferation financing in the precious metals trade. The visit placed one of Dubai’s most prominent retail and wholesale gold hubs at the centre […]
South Africa’s rand firmed in early Wednesday trade as investors turned their attention to Beijing, where talks between U. S. President Donald Trump and China’s President Xi Jinping were expected to influence appetite for emerging-market assets, commodities and risk-sensitive currencies. By 0749 GMT, the rand was trading at 16.4517 against the dollar, about 0.4% stronger than its previous close. The move followed a weaker session on Tuesday, […]
South Africa’s retailers are paying a widening price for weak security systems, with losses now extending beyond stolen stock to staff safety, customer confidence, delivery costs, insurance premiums and already thin operating margins. Shrinkage has become a boardroom issue rather than a store-level irritation. Retailers are dealing with shoplifting, employee theft, fraud, vandalism, armed robberies, cyber intrusions and organised syndicates that target goods with established resale value. […]
By Nitya Chakraborty The developments in eastern and north eastern parts of India are getting increasing attention from Washington in the context of China’s planned moves to expand its control in Bangladesh and Myanmar, the two countries bordering the Indian states.US President Donald Trump’s unusual message sent to the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on […]
The article North East India Is Emerging As The Battle Ground For Power Between U.S. And China appeared first on Latest India news, analysis and reports on Newspack by India Press Agency).
By T N Ashok NEW DELHI: As the war in Iran deepens and flames spread across West Asia’s energy corridors, India finds itself confronting an uncomfortable truth: its economic vulnerabilities are once again tied to oil tankers navigating distant waters. Rising crude prices, disrupted shipping lanes, soaring aviation fuel costs, fears over fertiliser imports, and […]
The article PM’s Advisory On Austerity Measures Exposes His Govt’s Loss Of Control appeared first on Latest India news, analysis and reports on Newspack by India Press Agency).
Nigeria’s equities market has moved into a stronger expansion cycle as abundant domestic liquidity, expectations of looser monetary conditions and a widening valuation rerating continue to draw investors into listed banks, industrial counters, consumer goods companies and exchange-traded funds. Analysts at PAC Research have linked the rally on the Nigerian Exchange to four main forces: expanding local liquidity, expectations that monetary policy will normalise further, renewed […]
Dubai in 2008 was a different place to do business. The city was mid-boom, construction cranes were everywhere, and the interior design industry was running to keep pace with a market that wanted everything built fast. Standards existed, but they were applied loosely. Clients were moving quickly. So was everyone else. Then the correction came. The market contracted hard, and a lot of firms that had been […]
Checkmarx customers using Jenkins pipelines have been urged to review their environments after a modified version of the company’s Jenkins AST plugin was pushed to the official Jenkins Marketplace, extending a wider software supply chain campaign tied to compromised developer tooling. The affected release has been identified as version 2026.5.09 of the Checkmarx AST Scanner plugin, distributed as tampered HPI, JAR and POM artifacts. The exposed window […]
By Nitya Chakraborty The U.S. President Donald Trump begins his three-day visit to China on May 13 for his summit with the Chinese President Xi Jinping, the outcome of which has special significance for Trump in shaping his political future in the context of the midterm elections in November this year. Among both leaders, the […]
The article Donald Trump-Xi Jinping Are Both Aiming For Win-Win Outcome At Beijing Summit appeared first on Latest India news, analysis and reports on Newspack by India Press Agency).
German and Spanish police have shut down a revived version of Crimenetwork, the German-speaking dark web marketplace that had re-emerged within days of its 2024 takedown, arresting a 35-year-old German citizen at his home in Mallorca under a European arrest warrant. The suspect, from the Recklinghausen district in North Rhine-Westphalia, is accused of building and administering a new technical infrastructure for Crimenetwork after the original platform was […]
Nairobi became the centre of a sharper debate over Africa’s economic future on Monday as the Africa Forward Summit 2026 opened with agriculture emerging as a test of whether new Africa-France partnerships can move beyond diplomacy into measurable gains for producers. Co-hosted by President William Ruto and President Emmanuel Macron, the two-day gathering brings heads of state, multilateral lenders, business leaders, innovators and civil society groups to […]
Mubadala Investment Company and Tubacex Group have launched operations at their Abu Dhabi joint venture, bringing a specialised manufacturing platform for advanced Oil Country Tubular Goods into service as the UAE accelerates efforts to localise critical energy supply chains. The venture, operating under the TBX Nexxia brand, is focused on corrosion-resistant alloy tubular products used in demanding oil and gas infrastructure, particularly wells and production systems exposed […]
HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 11 May 2026 – Humansa, international leading integrated longevity institution and a premier destination for preventative healthcare, today announced the signing of a landmark Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited (HSBC) and HSBC Life (International) Limited. This strategic collaboration aims to integrate advanced health optimisation with financial and insurance services, redefining how clients manage both their healthspan in Hong Kong and across the region.
A unified vision: healthspan as a core family asset
In a city renowned for its financial sophistication, the HSBC x Humansa alliance introduces a new paradigm: treating healthspan as a critical component of the modern family portfolio. As longevity science advances and demand for preventative healthcare accelerates, the partnership establishes a pioneering framework for an integrated “health and wealth” ecosystem designed specifically for high‑net‑worth and ultra‑high‑net‑worth clients.
Research from the Stanford Center on Longevity and other leading institutions highlights that many people in developed markets may live close to 100 years, making sustained cognitive and physical performance essential for a life of purpose and fulfilment. Simultaneously, global wealth reports show that affluent families are shifting spending from status goods toward wellness and longevity, and expect their financial partners to support this transition.
Moving beyond siloed services that treat health, wealth and insurance separately, Humansa contributes clinical excellence and geroscience‑based, data‑driven insights, while HSBC brings its wealth and insurance capabilities and a long‑term commitment to Asia as the world’s next major cross‑border wealth hub. Together, the parties aim to build the specialised infrastructure needed to manage health as a high‑value, appreciating asset over a 100‑year life.
Research‑driven excellence for high‑net‑worth clients
Humansa will lead the exploration of specialised longevity programs and dedicated physical spaces that combine clinical precision, behavioural coaching, and premium client experiences tailored to HSBC’s clients. By merging Humansa’s geroscience expertise with HSBC’s global wealth management reach and HSBC Life’s insurance capabilities, the partnership seeks to ensure that clients living longer – and better, at every stage of life.
Directives of the strategic collaboration: three pillars of “Longevity as an Asset”
Under the terms of the MoU, the parties have committed to three key pillars:
Longevity hubs and programs for HSBC clients – Explore the development of flagship “Longevity as an Asset” hubs and programs, where HSBC high-net-worth clients can access Humansa’s advanced diagnostics, health assessments and geroscience‑based services designed to preserve and grow their healthspan capital.
Integrated health‑wealth and insurance advisory – Pilot models where Humansa’s health insights can complement HSBC’s wealth and HSBC Life’s insurance advisory, enabling clients to align wealth management protection and succession strategies with their projected healthspan and personal goals.
Thought leadership and ecosystem building – Co‑create thought‑leadership platforms including research, client forums and CEO‑level dialogues in Hong Kong and other regional hubs to advance understanding of the economics of a 100‑year life, positioning Hong Kong at the forefront of longevity‑driven innovation.
These pillars provide a structured roadmap for turning the idea of “longevity as an asset” into practical offerings and experiences for clients across Asia.
“Humansa was founded on a simple belief: in a 100‑year life, healthspan is the most under‑managed asset on the family balance sheet,” said Don So, Chief Executive Officer of Humansa. “By joining forces with HSBC and HSBC Life, we are building the infrastructure that clients need to measure, protect and grow that asset – with clinical rigour, personalised programs and experiences that match the sophistication of their financial lives.
“Health, wealth and protection are deeply interconnected and shouldn’t be treated in isolation. As people live longer and spend more years beyond working life, they need trusted solutions to protect, grow and pass on their wealth — especially in an increasingly uncertain macro environment. Our partnership with Humansa brings together the best of both organisations to offer high net worth customers a seamless, one-stop health and wealth management solution.” said Daisy Tsang, Chief Executive Officer, HSBC Life Hong Kong and Macau.
“People are living longer, and that changes what ‘wealth planning’ really means. Our partnership with Humansa will help our clients treat healthspan as a core family asset, alongside their financial wealth, so they can stay well, stay active and keep their options open over a longer life. By combining Humansa’s longevity expertise with HSBC’s wealth capabilities, we’ll explore new ways to deliver a premium client experience that supports wellbeing and long-term resilience, setting a new standard for how high‑net‑worth families live well across generations.” said Brian Hui, Chief Customer Officer, Retail Banking and Wealth Management, HSBC Hong Kong.
Hashtag: #Humansa
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
Humansa is a leading healthcare and wellness brand dedicated to extending the human healthspan through evidence-based preventative medicine, advanced diagnostics and holistic lifestyle solutions. Founded in 2020 and headquartered in Hong Kong, Humansa operates an extensive network of centres, offering services that span health assessments, medical services, restorative therapies, wellness coaching and skin aesthetics in a refined, hospitality-inspired environment.
The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited is the founding member of the HSBC Group and one of the world’s largest banking and financial services organisations, serving customers across Asia and beyond. HSBC Life (International) Limited is a leading life insurance company, offering a comprehensive range of protection and savings solutions to individuals and corporations across the region. Together, they provide integrated banking, wealth and insurance services designed to meet the evolving financial and lifestyle needs of their clients.
More than 70 days of near-total internet disruption have left millions of Iranians cut off from work, customers, banking tools and relatives abroad, turning a state security measure into a nationwide economic emergency. The shutdown, imposed after a fresh phase of unrest and intensified following military escalation in late February, has become one of the longest and most sweeping digital blackouts recorded in a major economy. Connectivity […]
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai DP World has launched an end-to-end cargo war risk insurance product for businesses moving goods through the Middle East, seeking to close coverage gaps that have widened as conflict risk, rerouting and port congestion reshape trade across the Arabian Gulf, Red Sea and connected inland corridors. The Dubai-based ports and logistics group said the policy would protect cargo across ocean or air transit, […]
Rwanda has moved to strengthen its access to the Central Corridor through a standard gauge railway link intended to connect Kigali with Tanzania’s expanding rail network and, later, the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo. The planned Rwandan section will run for about 150 kilometres from Rusumo on the Tanzanian border to Kigali, forming the final domestic stretch of the long-discussed Isaka-Kigali railway. The project is […]
