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(Geneva) – Ireland has committed €1 million to support the International Trade Centre (ITC) throughout 2023.

ITC Executive Director Pamela Coke-Hamilton and H.E. Ambassador Noel White, Permanent Representative of Ireland to the United Nations and other International Organizations at Geneva, today signed the grant agreement at ITC in Geneva.

The funds provide flexibility and predictability for ITC to implement its Operational Plan 2023 and to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The agreement reaffirms the alignment of ITC and Ireland’s development priorities by focusing on enhancing the competitiveness of small businesses, addressing global peace and prosperity, and prioritizing the needs of the most vulnerable in least developed countries.

‘This contribution reflects the importance Ireland attaches to the work of ITC and our ongoing commitment to a positive partnership. Our policy for international development seeks to put the ‘furthest behind first’. Through our partnership with ITC, we are helping developing countries, including least developed countries, to meet the challenges of the ‘four Cs’ of COVID, climate, conflict and cost-of-living.’

H.E. Ambassador Noel White, Permanent Representative of Ireland to the United Nations and other International Organizations at Geneva

‘Ireland is a reliable, long-term partner of ITC, and we are grateful for our continuing collaboration. Together, we’re supporting key players in the global economy – small businesses in developing countries – to navigate crises and changes in the trading landscape. The flexible core financing provided by Ireland allows us to quickly respond to the needs of our clients so they can play a role in inclusive and sustainable trade-led development.’

Pamela Coke-Hamilton, Executive Director, International Trade Centre (ITC)

About the International Trade Centre: The International Trade Centre is the joint agency of the World Trade Organization and the United Nations. ITC assists micro, small and medium-sized enterprises in developing countries to become more competitive in global markets – thus contributing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. For more information, visit www.intracen.org.

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The Committee on Agriculture’s food security work programme has entered a decisive phase, with the release of the coordinator’s report outlining his views on where there could be convergence among members. At a meeting on 19 July, members reviewed the report, which focuses on the needs of least-developed countries (LDCs) and net food-importing developing countries (NFIDCs), for the first time, welcoming its circulation and considering it a good basis for further discussions. The aim is to find agreement on recommendations by November 2023.

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India has outlawed the export of non-basmati white rice in an attempt to ward off looming domestic price spikes.
Heavy rains have hurt crops in the country and rice prices have risen by more than 11% over the last 12 months.
Non-basmati white grain currently accounts for about a quarter of India’s rice exports, the Ministry of Consumer Affairs said as it announced the policy change.
Experts warned the move could push up global food prices.
“It’s fair to say this will have quite an impact on global food prices,” said Emma Wall, head of investment analysis and research at Hargreaves Lansdown.
Food supplies are already under pressure, after Russia’s withdrawal this week from a deal guaranteeing safe passage of Ukrainian grain, including wheat.
India is the world’s biggest exporter of rice, accounting for more than 40% of global shipments. Non-basmati rice is mainly exported to countries in Asia and Africa.
Last year, the Indian government imposed a 20% export tax to try to discourage foreign sales. It has also limited wheat and sugar shipments.
But exporting can be more lucrative for Indian farmers than selling domestically.
The government said that farmers would still be able to export other kinds of rice, including long-grain basmati, ensuring they “get the benefit of remunerative prices in the international market”.
The state will also consider requests to allow shipments to other countries based on food security needs, the Directorate General of Foreign Trade said.
The invasion of Ukraine last year caused global food prices to surge.
While those pressures have since eased at an international level, in India, bad weather has damaged crops in many northern states, prompting the cost of many items – including tomatoes and onions – to rise sharply.
Vegetable prices jumped 12% from May to June, contributing to the rising cost of living. Inflation rose to 4.8% last month, which was higher than expected as a result of the climbing food costs.
The rising cost of living has put political pressure on the government in India, ahead of national elections next year. The country will also see state-level elections in the coming months.
Devinder Sharma, an expert in agriculture policy in India, said the government was trying to get ahead of an anticipated production shortfall, with rice-growing regions in the south also exposed to risks of dry rain as the El Nino weather pattern sweeps through later this year.
“The government is taking a very, very precautionary kind of approach,” he said.

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Airlines’ cargo revenue is slumping. That’s a sign of good news for travel recovery.
Delta, United and American this month each reported year-over-year declines of about 40% in their second-quarter cargo revenue.
For the first half of 2023, Delta’s cargo business generated $381 million, down from $561 million in the first half of 2022, while American’s cargo unit brought in $420 million compared with $692 million in the first six months of last year. United brought in $760 million from cargo so far this year, down from $1.2 billion a year earlier.

Meanwhile, airlines are reporting record revenue, if not earnings, thanks to the rebound in travel demand. That means the business impact of cargo, which once helped prop up airlines’ revenue during the Covid pandemic travel plunge, has faded.
Cargo revenue at United, which generates the most of that business of the three largest U.S. carriers, for the first half of 2023 represented a less than 3% slice of the carrier’s $25.6 billion year-to-date revenue.
That’s a significantly smaller portion than 2020, when cargo revenue made up more than 10% of United’s sales.

Through June, cargo revenue made up 1.3% and 1.6% of overall revenue at Delta and American, respectively, down from 3.5% and 12% in 2020.
But it’s not all bad news.
Flying goods around the world was a lifeline for passenger carriers during the pandemic when bookings dried up and travel restrictions forced airlines to slash service abroad.
Normally about half the world’s air cargo flies in the bellies of passenger planes. That reduced cargo capacity during the pandemic helped drive shipping rates up to records, along with strong e-commerce demand, supply chain problems and port congestion.
But travel demand has roared back, particularly for international trips, as customers rush to take vacations abroad that they put off in recent years.
The renewed demand has prompted airlines to add back service. U.S.-Europe flights alone are expected to be the highest in five years.
The added passenger capacity also boosts the world’s supply of space to fly cargo, at the same time that demand for air cargo is waning.
The Baltic Air Freight Index, which tracks worldwide air cargo rates, is down 47% from a year earlier. In May, the latest available data, the International Air Transport Association, said air cargo capacity was up nearly 15% from the same month of 2022 while demand dropped 5%.
Airlines are planning to expand flights this year, too, to capitalize on strong international travel demand, a trend that could further drive down cargo revenue.

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BEIJING, July 21 (Reuters) – Chinese authorities announced measures on Friday intended to help boost sales of automobiles and electronics with the goal of shoring up a sluggish economy, but the steps failed to impress investors who have been clamouring for stronger stimulus.
Regions will be encouraged to increase annual car purchase quotas and efforts will be made to support sales of second-hand vehicles, said a statement on automobile consumption published by 13 government agencies including state planner National Development and Reform Commission.
As China’s post-pandemic economic recovery slows, policymakers have identified the country’s automobile sector as a key lever which they want to use to shore up growth. In June, they unexpectedly extended a purchase tax break on new energy vehicles (NEVs) until 2027.
But domestic consumer demand has remained weak and the world’s largest auto market has been grappling with a price war triggered by Tesla (TSLA.O) in January that has since spread to more than 40 brands offering discounts on their vehicles.
In March, a top industry association urged the auto industry and authorities to cool the ‘price-cut hype’ to ensure the healthy and stable development of the industry.
The Friday statement aimed at encouraging automobile consumption echoed this. “Localities must not roll out protectionist policies and avoid vicious competition,” it said.
A separate statement on supporting sales of electronics products said authorities would encourage scientific research institutes and market entities to actively apply domestic artificial intelligence (AI) technology to improve intelligence levels of electronic products.
The measures echoed similar ones announced by authorities in recent months and failed to boost the market, with shares in China’s automobiles index (.CSI931008) down 0.3% and the electronics index (.CSI930652) falling 0.6% against a 0.1% rise in the benchmark index (.CSI300).
“These supports will unlikely significantly boost consumption when people are still generally reluctant to spend as they lack confidence in the economic recovery,” UBS said in a note on Friday.
Investors have said they are disappointed by China’s weak second quarter growth and want to see stronger stimulus, with some pinning their hopes on the Politburo meeting later this month.
Reporting by Qiaoyi Li, Liz Lee and Brenda Goh; Additional reporting by Jason Xue; Editing by Tom Hogue and Muralikumar Anantharaman.

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