News In Numbers: iPhone X reportedly assembled by students working overtime illegally
In other news, it is reportedly the first time that a permanent member of UN Security Council has not got a seat at the ICJ
3.66%
What is it? The interest rate to be paid on $800 million corporate bond issued by the Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL).
Why is it important? The overseas bond issue by India’s largest private firm was priced at 130 basis points over US treasury yield on 10-year bonds. The yield spread - the difference between US treasury and corporate bond - is the lowest ever by an Indian company in a decade.
Tell me more: Moody’s upgrade of India’s sovereign rating, and lack of options for foreign investors to invest in corporate debt in India has resulted in higher demand for RIL’s bond issue. Foreign investors have invested $23.7 billion in debt and $6.08 billion in equity in current calendar year.
10 years
What is it? The number of years within which India is expected to hit peak thermal coal demand, according to a report by Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis.
Why is it important? The demand projection is lower than International Energy Agency’s projection of doubling of coal demand by 2040. Renewable energy, reduction in transmission and distribution loss and use of energy-efficient devices will contribute to lower demand.
Tell me more: India’s power sector is mainly run by coal, which provides around 60% of its capacity and over three-fourths of its total generation.
3
What is it? The number of Indians who have secured a position in a United Nations (UN) body in the last few months, with the latest being Justice Dalveer Bhandari who was re-elected as a judge at the International Court of Justice (ICJ).
Why is it important? It is reportedly the first time that a permanent member of UN Security Council has not got a seat at the ICJ. Also, this is the first time in 71 years that there would be no British judge on the bench of the ICJ. Bhandari won in the General Assembly while Britain’s Christopher Greenwood got the Security Council vote.
Tell me more: There have been three other Indian judges that were elected to the ICJ earlier: BN Rau, Nagendra Singh and RS Pathak.
3,000
What is it? The number of students who have been reportedly illegally working overtime to assemble Apple’s latest iPhoneX at a factory of Hon Hai Precision Industry (or Foxconn).
Why is it important? Both Apple and Foxconn have acknowledged cases of student interns working overtime. The former has said that its audit has thrown up instances of students working overtime at a Chinese factory though this should not have been allowed while the latter said the work was voluntary and that they had been compensated for it. Apple’s main supplier has been criticised in the past for making people work long hours in harsh conditions amidst serious safety concerns.
Tell me more: Apple has also been under fire for the horrible and illegal working conditions employed in its supplier’s factories.
25 seconds
What is it? The amount of time allowed to tennis players between points in grand slams, starting from Australian open in January 2018, and will be enforced by shot-clocks.
Why is it important? The introduction of shot-clocks will shorten the duration of a tennis match. A study of two matches by the Wall Street Journal revealed only 17.5% of the match time was spent playing tennis. So far, 20 seconds were allowed between points but were not measured accurately.
Tell me more: Other decisions taken by the Grand Slam Board include limiting pre-match warm-ups to five minutes.
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