Amid global headwinds, India’s merchandise exports plunged to $34.8 billion in December, 2022, 12.2% down on-yearly basis as compared with $39.27 billion in the previous year, government data showed.

However, merchandise exports for the period April-December 2022 registered a growth of 9% to $332.76 billion on a year-on-year basis. Meanwhile, imports in December also fell to $58.24 billion as compared with $60.33 billion in the same month of last year. Overall imports during April-December grew to $551.70 billion as against $441.50 billion in the corresponding period of last year.

The services export for December 2022 stood at $27.34 billion, as compared to $25.98 billion in December 2021. Whereas services import for December 2022 stood at $15.56 billion as compared to $14.94 billion in December 2021. The trade deficit in the April-December period widened to $218.94 billion, 60% increase over the previous year during the same period.

Wholesale inflation (WPI)  in December 2022 fell below 5% for the first time since February 2021.  The WPI in December 2022 was 4.95%, as per data released by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, Ministry of Commerce.

The government has reduced the windfall profit tax levied on domestically-produced crude oil as well as on the export of diesel and ATF, in line with softening international oil prices.

The levy on crude oil produced by companies such as Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) has been cut to Rs 1,900 per tonne from Rs 2,100 per tonne.

Crude oil pumped out of the ground and from below the seabed is refined and converted into fuel like petrol, diesel and aviation turbine fuel (ATF).

The government has also reduced the tax on export of diesel to Rs 5 per litre, from Rs 6.5 and the same on overseas shipments of ATF to Rs 3.5 a litre, from Rs 4.5 a litre. The new tax rates are effective from January 17.

India has been ranked the second-largest tourist market for Singapore in 2022 behind Indonesia, with 686,000 Indian arrivals.

Tourists from Indonesia, India and Australia were among the top spenders in the first nine months of 2022 with a spending of 8.96 billion Singapore dollars (SGD) .

India was the second-largest tourist market for Singapore in 2022 with 686,000 Indian visitors.

Indonesia was the largest tourist market with 1.1 million arrivals from the country. Malaysia with 591,000 tourists was in third place.

Flags from Russia and Belarus were banned from the site of the Australian Open on  Jan 17 after more than one was brought into the stands by spectators on Day 1 of the year's first Grand Slam tournament.

Normally, flags can be displayed during matches at Melbourne Park. But Tennis Australia reversed that policy for the two countries involved in the invasion of Ukraine that began nearly a year ago.

The sleeping giant that is the Women’s Indian Premier League is finally awake as the BCCI, on Jan 16 , announced that Viacom18 Media has acquired the media rights for the first five seasons of the tournament for a massive cumulative sum of Rs 951 crores.

With 22 matches per year for the first three seasons and a possibility of increasing it to 33/34 games for 2026-27 seasons, Viacom18 will be paying a whopping Rs 7.09 crore per match till 2027. 

Q1. JP Nadda's term as the national president of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has been extended till

1. June 2023
2. June 2024
3. June 2025
4. June 2026
5. None of These

Q2. Name the Italian film legend who achieved international stardom during the 1950s and was dubbed "the most beautiful woman in the world" after the title of one of her movies and who  died in Rome on Jan 16 ?

1. Roberto Rossellini
2. Luchino Visconti
3. Vittorio De Sica
4. Gina Lollobrigida
5. None of These

Q3. Name the prominent chef and Instagram influencer who was arrested in Tehran on January 4 and who has been released recently ?

1. Mahsa Amini
2. Nik Yousefi
3. Navab Ebrahimi
4. Taraneh Alidoosti
5. None of These

Q4. Name the President of Vietnam who has resigned amid a major anti-corruption drive that has seen several ministers fired.

1. Nguyen Xuan Phuc
2. Tôn Đức Thắng
3. Trần Đức Lương
4. Trường Chinh
5. None of These

Q5. Name the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba leader who has been declared as a global terrorist by the UN Security Council ?

1. Hafiz Saeed
2. Shahid Mahmood
3. Abdul Rehman Makki
4. Hafiz Talah Saeed
5. None of These

Answers

1--------------2   June 2024

2--------------4   Gina Lollobrigida

3-------------3   Navab Ebrahimi

4-------------1   Nguyen Xuan Phuc

5--------------3   Abdul Rehman Makki 

Delhi Police on Jan 16 registered an FIR against unidentified persons for allegedly making indecent comments on social media about the daughters of Indian cricketers Virat Kohli and MS Dhoni, following a complaint by the Delhi Commission for Women.

The FIR was registered at the Special Cell unit of the city police under the relevant section of the Information Technology Act.