As India celebrates Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s 75th birthday today, curiosity grows about his wealth and background. Born on Sept. 17, 1950, in Vadnagar in the western Indian state of Gujarat, Modi rose from humble beginnings to become India’s prime minister for three consecutive terms. His journey is often portrayed…
Technology professional Akhmad Hanan is asking a critical question: Can China with its DeepSeek model bypass restrictions by innovating in software while building its own chip ecosystem? The country’s pioneering company in AI systems appears determined to prove it can. In late August, DeepSeek released version 3.1 of its large…
Ford is set to slash up to 1,000 jobs at the company’s Electric Vehicle Center in Cologne, Germany. The move comes as a retaliatory measure to Europe’s demand for EVs being lower than anticipated, according to Investing.com. Ford established the Cologne facility in 2023, when the company expected EVs to…
Azmat Asimov, a resident of Astana, Kazakhstan’s capital, has announced on Facebook his intention to sue Saudi Aramco, the world’s largest oil producer, for alleged unfair dismissal. Asimov said he was dismissed in 2020 while seriously ill, to the point of disability. He claims management canceled his scheduled medical exam,…
Microsoft and OpenAI are revising their partnership with a new non-binding agreement that could transform OpenAI from a nonprofit into a for-profit entity. This is a significant move as OpenAI seeks new funding and considers going public, according to Reuters. While both companies are keeping quiet about the money details,…
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has filed a motion to dismiss its case against Trevor Milton, founder and former CEO of electric and hydrogen truck maker Nikola, Reuters reported. The SEC filed the civil case in 2021, with Milton accused of misleading investors by overstating Nikola’s technology, including…
Albania has appointed a new «minister» to oversee public procurement. Unlike any predecessor, this official resists bribery, intimidation or favoritism because Diella, an artificial intelligence–powered bot, fills the role, The News Daily reported. Prime Minister Edi Rama, preparing to enter his fourth term, announced on Thursday that Diella — whose…
Oracle is on the verge of joining the trillion-dollar club as its stock surges, driven by soaring demand for cloud computing to support AI systems. The company’s market value is now $933 billion, after shares jumped 36% on Wednesday and continued to rise on Thursday, according to Reuters. The rally…
Europe’s carmakers face pressure from all sides: shrinking sales, rising energy costs and fierce international rivals. Mercedes-Benz boss Ole Källenius, who heads the European car industry association ACEA, warns that the EU’s green agenda risks undermining the auto industry unless it adopts a more pragmatic approach to reaching zero emissions.…
A clinical trial in the U.K. is evaluating a new blood test that could reshape how Alzheimer’s disease is diagnosed, according to The National. Participants showing early signs of dementia are being recruited through NHS memory clinics to evaluate the test’s effectiveness. Researchers expect to have conclusive results within the…
Before wrapping up his four-day visit to China on Sept. 3, Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev met with Shen Yanfeng, head of the China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC). This move was widely interpreted as Tashkent exploring alternatives should its tentative nuclear deal with Russia’s Rosatom stall, Eurasianet.org reported. Russia’s Rosatom is…
Gold surged to another record high on Wednesday, breaking through $3,500 an ounce as traders increasingly bet on the Fed cutting rates and worried about growing political and trade tensions, according to Reuters. The precious metal reached $3,546.99 before settling at $3,534.88. Furthermore, U.S. gold futures for December delivery climbed…
Anthropic, an artificial intelligence (AI) safety and research company founded by former OpenAI research executives including CEO Dario Amodei, reported closing a $13 billion funding round on Sept. 2, according to CNBC. The company’s valuation rose to $183 billion, marking nearly a threefold increase since its previous raise in March…
Kraft Heinz announced Tuesday that it will split into two publicly traded companies in 2026, marking the end of its troubled decade-long merger, according to CNN. One new company will house faster-growing brands like Heinz ketchup, Kraft Mac & Cheese, and Philadelphia cream cheese. The other will focus on slower-performing…
Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov announced the launch of an underground gold mining project at Kumtor, Central Asia’s largest gold mine, as reported by Interfax Kazakhstan. «The underground gold mining project is set to operate for 17 years, with geological reserves of 147 tons of gold officially added to the national…
A recent environmental report shows China added more coal power plant capacity in the first half of 2025 than in any year since 2016, despite having significant renewable resources, according to DW.com, citing the Center for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) and Global Energy Monitor (GEM). The findings…
Fall traditionally revives financial markets: the companies publish financial reports, investors revise their portfolios and stock prices gain fresh momentum. Analysts at Freedom Broker have highlighted key investment ideas for Kazakhstan and global markets. Kazakhstan’s market One of the fall’s wild cards is the Kazakhstan Electricity Grid Operating Company…
KazMunayGas (KMG), Kazakhstan’s national oil company, reported revenue of 4.5 trillion tenge for the first six months of 2025 (about $8.8 billion at the period’s average exchange rate), up 6.2% year-on-year (YoY). Growth was driven by higher processing volumes at KMG International refineries and the weakening of the tenge, which…
About 50% of regular deposits are under $27,000, according to the Kazakhstan Deposit Insurance Fund (KDIF). According to the fund’s methodology, there are three types of retail deposits denominated in tenge: mass (up to 15 million tenge), medium (from 15 million to 50 million tenge) and large (over 50 million…
Kazakhstan’s processing industry has shown steady growth, with output reaching approximately $29.6 billion in the first seven months of 2025. According to the Ministry of Industry and Construction, the processing industry grew by 6.1%, with its share in the country’s economy reaching 13.9% over the period from January to July…
Kazakhstan’s largest gold producer, Kazzinc, 70.2% of which is owned by Switzerland-based Glencore, reduced zinc production from its own sources to 61,800 tons in the first six months of 2025, down 3% year-on-year (YoY), according to Glencore’s report. Meanwhile, zinc in concentrate production rose by 13% to 37,200 tons, while…
BNK Commercial Bank — formerly the microfinance organization BNK Finance Kazakhstan and recently transformed into a bank — has received a written directive from Kazakhstan’s Agency for Regulation and Development of the Financial Market (ARDFM) for violating prudential ratios, the agency reported. The former MFO received its banking license on…
Kazakh companies face double taxation and full veterinary, sanitary and customs checks when exporting goods to other Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) members, Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov said at the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council meeting in Cholpon-Ata, Kyrgyzstan. «In a number of cases, unimpeded transit through the territory of EEU member states…
In the first six months of 2025, Lotte Rakhat Confectionery reported a profit of about $3.9 million, down 53.4%, or $4.4 million, from the same period last year, according to the company’s filing on the Kazakhstan Stock Exchange (KASE) website. The drop was largely due to a 23.4% fall in…
