Indonesia: President-elect Prabowo seeking grand coalition

Today's news: ByteDance does not want to sell TikTok; Indians' savings at 47-year low;. Japan will prevent foreign tourists from photographing Mount Fuji from some areas; Ties between Russia and Sri Lanka strengthen.

INDONESIA

President-elect Prabowo Subianto yesterday won the support of the NasDem party, which, however, did not specify whether it will be part of the governing coalition. In the elections, the party had given its support to Anies Baswedan, former governor of Jakarta. According to experts, Prabowo will succeed in forming a grand coalition so that there will be minimal opposition to the government.

USA - CHINA

TikTok's Chinese parent company, ByteDance, said it has no plans to sell the business after the US passed a law that could ban the app's use on US soil if it remains owned by ByteDance. "Foreign media reports that ByteDance will sell TikTok are not true," the company wrote in a post. Several Western governments fear that data collected by the app could be used by the Chinese government.

INDIA

According to data from the Reserve Bank of India, Indian household savings have hit a 47-year low. Savings fell to 5.3 per cent of gross domestic product in 2023, down from 7.3 per cent in 2022. One economist called this decline 'dramatic'. During the same period, there has been a sharp increase in household debt, as the more they get into debt, the more they devote a portion of their income to repayments, failing to set aside savings.

JAPAN

The authorities of Fujikawaguchiko have announced that starting next week they will install a black barrier to prevent the view of Mount Fuji by tourists, who are crowding into certain areas of the city, disturbing the lives of local residents. Tourism in Japan has been booming since border restrictions were lifted for the covid and the government has been working to attract visitors.

RUSSIA - SRI LANKA

Sri Lanka's Ambassador to Russia, Janita Lianage, said her country plans to join the Brics organisation, to 'have the opportunity to ensure security in both transport and manufacturing, and in many other areas', in the context of a visit to Russia by the Defence Minister and the head of the Colombo Security Committee.

UZBEKISTAN

The court in Tashkent placed a local resident under arrest for 15 days for his 'negative judgments' spread on social media against the traditional Uzbek clothes worn by models during a public event, and forced him to express his apologies on all sites, 'I ask God not to make me repeat this mistake, from now on I will only mind my own business'.

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