GK Updates - 11 June | Banking Quiz

World Bank lowers growth forecast for developing countries to 4.8%

I.Developing countries are headed for a year of disappointing growth, the World Bank said in its Global Economic Prospects (GEP) report, which has lowered its forecasts for developing countries to 4.8 per cent growth rate this year from the January estimate of 5.3 percent.

II.In its latest report, the Bank has lowered its forecasts for developing countries, now eying growth at 4.8 per cent this year, down from its January estimate of 5.3 per cent.

III.Signs point to strengthening in 2015 and 2016 to 5.4 and 5.5 per cent, respectively.

IV.China is expected to grow by 7.6 per cent this year, but this will depend on the success of rebalancing efforts. If a hard landing occurs, the reverberations across Asia would be widely felt, the Bank said.

V.Growth rates in the developing world remain far too modest to create the kind of jobs we need to improve the lives of the poorest 40 per cent, said World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim.

IRDA to launch mandatory pilot on insurance repository system

I.The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) is all set to launch a pilot on life insurance repository (IR) system.

II.This is meant for keeping/storing a policy in digitised/de-materialised form to be able access as and when required.

III.The two-month pilot would be started with effect from July 1, 2014 and it shall be mandatory of all life-insurers and existing five insurance repositories (IR) to participate in the programme, IRDA said in a circular issued on Tuesday.

IV.Each Life insurer shall also issue a minimum of 1,000 or 5% of the total individual policies issued during the launch period whichever is lower in electronic form for each of the IRs. This too shall be however subject to a minimum of 250 policies per IR.

V.For the policies converted/issued in electronic form, within an e-Insurance Account, the IR shall be responsible for providing the mandatory information such as policy status, history, premium dues with facility to print/download wherever necessary.

IOB to open second branch in Bangkok in early July: Narendra

I.Indian Overseas Bank (IOB) will in the first week of July open its second branch in Bangkok, its Chairman & Managing Director M Narendra has said.

II.This state-owned bank also plans to soon launch a qualified institutional placement (QIP) issue to mop up between Rs 1,000 and Rs 1,200 crore, he said.

III.The second Bangkok branch will become a reality more than six months after the Reserve Bank of India's approval for the same.

Pepsico wins trademark battle

I.Soft drink giant Pepsico India Holdings Pvt Ltd has won a trademark case in the Delhi High Court over the trademark ‘Aquafina’ used for its packaged drinking water.

II.A Bench of Justice GS Sistani restrained Aqua Mineral (India) from using “deceptively similar” trademark ‘Aquafine’ for causing infringement of rights.

III.The court also awarded damages to the tune of ₹5 lakh to Pepsico India on account of illegal activities of Aqua Mineral (India).

India may achieve 5.5% growth rate this year: World Bank

I.With the new Indian government showing signs of economic reforms and brings in transparency in governance, the World Bank feels that the world’s third-largest economy could achieve a growth rate of 5.5 per cent this year compared with 4.7 per cent last year.

II.“I think there is, overall a sense that recognition of the need for domestic solutions to policies is increasingly evident in India, as well,” World Bank economist Andrew Burns told reporters during a conference call yesterday.

III.Burns, lead author of the World Bank global economic outlook and the head of the team in the Macro Group, said: “The situation in India has obviously gone through a difficult period for the last couple of years, with growth below 5 per cent after several years after it was eight and even higher.”

IV.“Much of that has been a reflection of this process of being overheated and over-inflated, and a natural slowing of the economy. But there has also been a concern that the domestic reform process had lost momentum,” Burns said.

V.According to the report, GDP growth in South Asia slowed to an estimated 4.7 per cent in market price terms in calendar year 2013 (2.6 percentage points below average growth in 2003-12). This weakness mainly reflects subdued manufacturing activity and a sharp slowing of investment growth in India.

Nokia achieves record 4G speed

I.Finnish telecom firm Nokia on Wednesday said it demonstrated a record 4G speed that enables a high-definition movie to be downloaded in only 11 seconds.

II.The speed attained by Nokia on a South Korean network is 400 times faster than the top 4G options offered by telecom operators in India.

III.“Nokia and SK Telecom reached a throughput speed of 3.78 gigabits per second (gbps). At this speed, a mobile broadband user can download a full-length 5 GB high-definition (HD) movie in just 11 seconds,” Nokia said in a statement.

IV.At this speed, a Bollywood movie of 650 megabytes to 750 MB size can be downloaded in a second.

V.In India, Airtel offers a 4G speed of up to 10 megabits per second on the iPhone 5S and 5C, according to its website.

VI.Recently, Videocon Telecom in a statement also offered a similar 4G speed. In comparison, the 4G speed achieved by Nokia is 400 times faster.

Gary Gilmour, former cricketer of Australia died

I.Gary Gilmour, a former all-round cricketer of Australia died on 10 June 2014 in Sydney. He died at the age of 62 after battling with health problems for many years.

II.In 2005, he underwent a life-saving liver transplant.

Reuven Ruby Rivlin elected as 10th president of Israel

I.Reuven Ruby Rivlin on 10 June 2014 was elected as 10th president of Israel. Reuven Ruby Rivlin is a member of Likud party.

II.He will succeed Shimon Peres. Rivlin will sworn-in on 24 July 2014. Rivlin has defeated a long-time MP Meir Sheetrit by 63 to 53 in a secret run-off ballot.

III.Rivlin was elected after vote by members of the Knesset. Knesset is the name of the parliament of the Israel. Rivlin was elected for a term of seven years.

IV.He is expected to shift the presidency's focus from international affairs to more domestic matters.

Canara Bank opens branch in New York

I.Canara Bank has achieved a milestone by opening its branch in New York.

II.It will be the bank's seventh overseas branch after London, Leicester (UK), Hong Kong, Shanghai, Bahrain and Johannesburg.

III.The branch was opened today by Consul General of India in New York, Dnyaneshwar M Mulay. The New York branch premises was inaugurated by R K Dubey, Chairman and Managing Director, Canara Bank.

ICICI Academy to train over 6,000 youth for vocational skills

I.ICICI Academy for Skills, an institute set up by ICICI Foundation, is looking to train more than 6,000 youth at nine training centres across the country by the end of financial year 2014-2015.

II.ICICI Academy has signed three agreements with Spencers Retail Ltd, Bluechip Corporate Investment Centre Ltd and AkzoNobel India Ltd.

III.While Spencers Retail and Bluechip Corporate Investment Centre will provide employment opportunities to the eligible students of ICICI Academy, AkzoNobel will be a knowledge partner and will assist the academy in setting up a new course and building the course curriculum, ICICI Foundation said in a statement.

IV.It further said that over 100 companies across sectors such as financial services, automobiles, telecommunications and manufacturing have participated in the placement process. The academy has ensured 100 per cent placement for all eligible students looking for employment opportunities across all centres.

V.Currently, ICICI Academy offers vocational skill-building programmes in eight courses, including electrical and home appliance repair, retail café operations, web designing, selling skills and office administration. The course duration is around 12 weeks.

Jayalalithaa launches ‘Amma Salt’

I.Rolling out yet another pro-poor measure, the Jayalalithaa Government today launched three varieties of low-cost salt, named after the Chief Minister herself.

II.Jayalalithaa launched ‘Amma Salt’ at the Secretariat here, which follows up her government’s earlier initiatives like the subsidised ‘Amma’ Canteens and ‘Amma’ Mineral Water.

III.Jayalalithaa is addressed as ‘Amma’ (Mother) by her supporters.

IV.She has launched three varieties — Double Fortified, Low Sodium and Refined Free Flow Iodised Salt — under the ‘Amma’ Salt banner.

V.‘Amma Salt’, an initiative of the Tamil Nadu Salt Corporation, will now be available in the open market at prices lesser than those of private producers.

VI.A State Government release here said that the rates of salt by private producers in open market were Rs 25, Rs 21, and Rs 14 for Low Sodium, Double Fortified and Refined Free Flow Iodised Salt, respectively.

From Yusuf Khan to Dilip Kumar, ‘The Substance and the Shadow’ released

I.Indian cinema thespian Dilip Kumar’s autobiography ‘The Substance and the Shadow’ that chronicles his life since birth was released on Monday amidst big fanfare at a star-studded event in Mumbai.

II.Penned by writer and former journalist Udaya Tara Nayar, the book is a first person account of the 91-year-old legend’s ups and downs in his much-talked about relationships, marriage and movies.

III.Amitabh Bachchan, Dharmendra, Anil Ambani with wifeTina Ambani, Aamir Khan, Madhuri Dixit and Priyanka Chopra were among the celebrities who were present at the launch function. Veteran actor Vyjayanthimala, who has co-starred with Dilip Kumar in Naya Daur and Devdas, lit the inaugural lamp.

IV.Wife Saira Banu, dressed in a dazzling green sari, was at the side of Dilip Kumar.

V.Speaking at the function, Dilip Kumar said that a lot of what has been written about him so far was "full of distortions and misinformation" and he hoped the memoir would set the record straight. The memoir has many chapters dedicated to his ‘fairly tale’ marriage to Saira Banu.

Bengal gets Rs 28,318 cr investment proposals in 2013-14

I.West Bengal had received investment proposals worth Rs 28,318 crore during the financial year 2013-14, state Finance Minister Amit Mitra said today.

II.Informing the Assembly, Mitra said 156 proposals worth Rs 28,318 crore had been received and have employment generation potential of 1.52 lakh people.

III.Between June 2011 and January 2014, 296 projects are either in initiation or under implementation that would entail a total investment of Rs 78,092 crore.

IV.Mitra informed the House that this investment would result into an employment generation of 1.55 lakh people.

V.He said projects worth Rs 67,000 crore had been cleared but those got stuck in 14Y of the Land Ceiling Act.

Ukraine rejects Russia’s $100 gas ‘discount’

I.Russia has offered Ukraine a “discount” of $100 per thousand cubic metres of gas but Kiev has rejected the deal and is seeking a formal change to the rate set in the two sides’ contract, Ukraine prime minister said today.

II.We know these Russian games: a discount is set by a Russian government decision and rescinded by a Russian government decision. Our position remains the same — we want a change to the contract,” Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk said.

NASA to conduct Mars 'flying saucer' test on Earth

I.The U.S. space agency is getting ready to launch a “flying saucer” into Earth’s atmosphere to test technology that could be used to land on Mars.

II.For decades, NASA has depended on the same parachute design to slow spacecraft after they enter the Martian atmosphere. But it needs a larger and stronger parachute if it wants to land heavier objects and astronauts.

IIII.Weather permitting, a balloon carrying the saucer-shaped vehicle is set to launch from Hawaii. Then the vehicle will ignite its rocket engine and climb to 54 km. It will inflate a tube to slow itself down from supersonic speeds and unfurl a parachute for a water landing.

Sochi to host Anand-Carlsen rematch

I.The much-anticipated World Championship rematch between Indian veteran Viswanathan Anand and title-holder Magnus Carlsen will be staged from November 7 to 28 in Sochi, Russia.

II.FIDE President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov announced the schedule at a press conference, saying that the budget for the event has been set at $3 million.

III.The match will be played at the Olympic Village in Sochi.

IV.Both players have agreed with this plan, the ‘ITAR-TASS’ news agency reported.

V.Russian Chess Federation President Andrei Filatov has also confirmed that the body will participate in the organisation of the event.

VI.Carlsen became the world champion last November by defeating Anand in Chennai.

VII.However, the Indian, who held the world title from 2007 to 2013, earned a rematch by winning the Candidates Tournament in Khanty-Mansiysk.

Japan’s Nishimura to referee World Cup opener

I.Japan’s Yuichi Nishimura is to referee Thursday’s opening match of the World Cup between hosts Brazil and Croatia in Sao Paulo.

II.Nishimura will be assisted by compatriots Toru Sagara and Toshiyuki Nagi, with Alireza Faghani of Iran designated as the fourth official, football’s world governing body FIFA said Tuesday.

III.Nishimura, 42, was in charge of four matches at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, including the quarter-final between the Netherlands and Brazil.

IV.He is set to become the third Japanese referee to officiate at two World Cup finals after Shizuo Takada (1986 and 1990) and Toru Kamikawa (2002 and 2006).