Independent News & People Network Desk of News

India-UK free trade pact may come into force from second week of May: Official

Source: The Hindu Business Line – Markets · Published: 2026-04-12T07:13:06+00:00

On July 24, 2025, India and the UK signed the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement, allowing 99% of Indian exports to enter the UK duty-free, while reducing tariffs on British goods like cars and whisky in India

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US, India hold engagements to advance defence cooperation

Source: The Hindu Business Line – Markets · Published: 2026-04-12T07:08:28+00:00

Marking the visit, the US Ambassador to India, Sergio Gor, shared his welcome in a post on X, stating, "We welcome Air Chief Marshal AP Singh to the U.S. and look forward to increased cooperation with India”

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Benin holds presidential election four months after failed coup

Source: The Guardian - World · Published: 2026-04-12T07:00:11+00:00

As president Patrice Talon steps down after a decade, the west African country’s finance minister is favourite to winThis Sunday, just four months after a failed coup, Benin heads to the polls for a presidential election that feels more like a coronation than a contest.Patrice Talon, the businessman turned politician who has been president since 2016, is ineligible to run again after serving two five-year terms. Continue reading...

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Bunker busters and a Burger King: a visual guide to US military bases on British soil

Source: The Guardian - World · Published: 2026-04-12T07:00:10+00:00

War with Iran has brought 15 American sites across the UK countryside firmly into the spotlightThey are dotted across the UK countryside, often obscured from public view behind highly secured perimeter fences. Technically, they are on British soil, and misleadingly most have “Royal Air Force” in their name.But in many respects, these military outposts are under the control of the US president and commander-in-chief. Continue reading...

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Floods, power outages and hundreds evacuated as Cyclone Vaianu lashes New Zealand’s North Island

Source: The Guardian - World · Published: 2026-04-12T06:41:52+00:00

Cyclone crossed coast near Maketu peninsula, packing destructive winds exceeding 130km/h (80 mph), heavy rain and large swellsCyclone Vaianu made landfall in New Zealand’s North Island on Sunday, triggering floods, power outages and forcing hundreds to evacuate.The cyclone crossed the coast near the Maketu peninsula, packing destructive winds exceeding 130km/h (80 mph), heavy rain and large swells, national weather provider MetService said, describing Vaianu as a “life-threatening” system. Continue reading...

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Trump shares article suggesting option with him to enforce naval blockade on Iran

Source: The Hindu Business Line – Markets · Published: 2026-04-12T06:19:02+00:00

Just the News cited experts suggesting that Trump could “out-blockade” Iran’s control of the Strait of Hormuz, referencing earlier US military operations in Venezuela where a naval blockade affected the economy

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FPIs extend sell-off in April; pull out ₹48,213 crore in 10 days

Source: The Hindu Business Line – Markets · Published: 2026-04-12T06:10:50+00:00

Market participants attributed the sustained selling pressure to a combination of global macroeconomic headwinds and heightened geopolitical risks

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NCLAT reaffirms project-specific insolvency proceedings against realty firms

Source: The Hindu Business Line – Markets · Published: 2026-04-12T06:10:09+00:00

The appellate tribunal highlighted that putting all other projects of the realty firms, which are unrelated to the default, is not in the interest of homebuyers and other stakeholders of other projects

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'West Asia war a good opportunity for energy reforms, lower costs for industry'

Source: The Hindu Business Line – Markets · Published: 2026-04-12T06:03:14+00:00

The month-long West Asia conflict presents a “great opportunity” to set the pricing correctly for energy, says Neelkanth Mishra, chief economist of Axis Bank and member of the Prime Minister’s External Advisory Council

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Here’s the latest.

Source: New York Times - World · Published: 2026-04-12T06:01:31+00:00
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Hungarians vote in hard-fought election that could oust Viktor Orbán after 16 years

Source: The Guardian - World · Published: 2026-04-12T06:00:09+00:00

Rightwing leader trails in polls to Péter Magyar, despite support from JD Vance on recent visitHungarians are heading to the ballot boxes to vote in a hard-fought parliamentary election that could oust Viktor Orbán after 16 years in power and potentially reshape the central European country’s relations with the EU, Moscow and Washington.In the campaign, Orbán – the EU’s longest-serving leader – has trailed in the polls as he faces an unprecedented challenge from Péter Magyar, a former elite member of Orbán’s Fidesz party. Continue reading...

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‘Your photos will be deleted’: Apple users warned over ‘nasty’ iCloud storage scam

Source: The Guardian - World · Published: 2026-04-12T06:00:09+00:00

Fraudsters send emails claiming storage is full or nearly full, then trick people into clicking on links that can expose bank and personal detailsFor a while you’ve been getting messages from Apple saying “your iCloud storage is full”. They say you have exceeded your storage plan, so documents are no longer being backed up, and photos you take aren’t being uploaded.You have been resisting Apple’s efforts to get you to pay a minimum of 99p a month for more storage. But it seems that you can’t keep putting off the inevitable: you have received an email which says your iCloud account has been blo

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‘We’re trapped’: despair for sellers as Iran war knocks confidence in UK housing market

Source: The Guardian - World · Published: 2026-04-12T06:00:09+00:00

Estate agents say rising mortgage costs have created a mood of fear, with Canterbury among the cities being hitHave you lost a mortgage deal or seen your rate rise?On a warm, spring morning in Canterbury, the cobbled streets are buzzing with activity and the white Tudor houses gleam in the sun.It is a scene that seems far removed from events in the Middle East, but the conflict is undermining business and consumer confidence – rattling the city’s housing market just as the spring selling season began. Continue reading...

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Pauline Hanson says convicted rapist employed by One Nation has been sacked

Source: The Guardian - World · Published: 2026-04-12T05:58:44+00:00

James Paterson had called decision by Pauline Hanson’s party to rehire Sean Black ‘absolutely extraordinary’Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastPauline Hanson says she has sacked the convicted rapist who worked as One Nation’s campaign manager, but accused Coalition MPs of playing “gutter politics” by criticising her decision to rehire him.Sean Black, who in 2018 was jailed for rape and subsequently lost his appeal against the conviction, was initially rehired by One Nation in 2020 as a campaign director after serving

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Two supertankers U-turn in Hormuz as US-Iran talks break down

Source: The Hindu Business Line – Markets · Published: 2026-04-12T05:40:00+00:00

A trio of very large crude carriers — all without direct links to Iran — began to approach the narrow waterway from the Gulf of Oman late on Saturday, ship-tracking data show

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Penny Wong calls failed peace talks between US and Iran ‘disappointing’ and urges resumption

Source: The Guardian - World · Published: 2026-04-12T05:35:39+00:00

Australia’s foreign affairs minister says priority ‘must be to continue the ceasefire and return to negotiations’Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAustralia’s foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, has urged the US and Iran to continue the ceasefire and return to negotiations quickly, after peace talks failed to secure a deal or the re-opening of the strait of Hormuz.Historic face-to-face meetings in Pakistan – marking the highest-level of direct engagement between Washington and Tehran in decades – seemingly broke down after a marathon 21-hour first day of talks. Conti

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По ту сторону старта: кто создавал «Восток»

Source: Vedomosti – All Articles · Published: 2026-04-12T05:03:20+00:00

65 лет назад космический корабль «Восток-1» впервые в истории вывел человека на орбиту. Весь мир знает его имя, но гораздо реже вспоминают о тех, кто остался «за кадром», сделав этот полет возможным. «Ведомости» вспоминают команду советских умов, отправивших Юрия Гагарина к звездам и вернувших его невредимым на Землю.

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