BRICS News

China’s GDP beat forecasts in the first quarter of 2017, coming it at 6.9 per cent [Xinhua]
Chinese markets appeared to shrug off the Moody’s ratings downgrade on Thursday and Friday as they rallied, led by the Shanghai Composite which closed up 1.43 per cent.
Amid media criticism that its ratings assessments are neither objective nor scientific, Moody’s on Friday said that it does not believe the government’s economic reforms will be enough to wholly stop the growing national debt.

South Korea has been keeping its military on high alert since the North began to increase the frequency of its ballistic missile tests and threaten the region [Xinhua]
Newly elected South Korean President Moon Jae-in is set to overhaul Seoul’s foreign policy with particular emphasis on easing tensions with the North.
On Wednesday, Moon appointed prominent university professors Lee Sang-Chul and Kim Ki-jung to the top security advisory positions to help him formulate new policies.

China’s C919 can carry 190 passengers for a distance of just over 4,000 km [Xinhua]
Just two weeks after China launched its largest locally manufactured passenger plane the C919, Beijing and Moscow announced a joint initiative to build wide-body commercial airplanes.
China’s state Commercial Aircraft Corp of China Ltd (COMAC) which manufactures the C919 and Russia’s United Aircraft Corp (UAC) said that they are looking for some of the market share in “competitive long range wide-body commercial aircraft” currently dominated by Boeing and AirBus.

About 50 people were injured in the blast at Manchester Arena following a concert [Xinhua]At least 19 people were killed and 59 wounded in an explosion at the end of a concert by US singer Ariana Grande in the English city of Manchester on Monday.
British Prime Minister Theresa May said on Tuesday that authorities were working to establish the details of the blast, adding that it was being treated as an “appalling terrorist attack”.

In April, Credit rating agency Standard and Poor’s (S&P) downgraded South Africa’s rating to junk status [GCIS]
Concern about the health of the South African economy and its impact on the rest of the continent has been mounting in recent days.
Following the sacking of revered Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan in late March, South Africa’s markets went into a downward spiral as investor confidence took a beating.
A few days later, S&P Global Ratings cut South African foreign debt to sub-investment grade in April.

Temer’s party has been beset by corruption accusation, potentially derailing his efforts to spearhead a revitalization of Brazil’s economy in 2017? [Xinhua]
Brazil’s currency, the real, which had been making gains against the US dollar over the past year plummeted by more than six per cent on Thursday on media reports that the country’s president was embroiled in yet another alleged corruption scandal.
The severe plunge of the currency also caused a domino effect in the Bovespa stock market which lost 10 per cent of its value within an hour of its morning open.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says that a number of refugees were killed during the air raid allegedly carried out by US-led coalition forces in a Syrian town near the Iraqi border [Xinhua]
The London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) says the death toll from a suspected US-led coalition air strike near the Iraqi border has risen to 42 and will likely continue to rise.
On Tuesday, SOHR said that 11 children and 6 women were among the fatalities in the border town of Al Bokamal.
It said the fatality list included at least 14 Iraqi refugees.

Chinese President Xi Jinping has been meeting with world leaders ahead of the Belt Road Forum for Cooperation, and has been hoping to boost trade and economic deals around the world [Xinhua]
Chinese President Xi Jinping has met with a number of leaders arriving in Beijing to attend the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation which begins May 14.
On Saturday, Xi met with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and they announced that they would enhance China-Hungary ties.

The famous ancient Silk Road served as a corridor for trade and cultural exchanges between Asia and Europe dating back to 2,000 years ago [Xinhua]
A number of countries in Europe, Asia and the Middle East are gearing up to attend the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation, which begins on May 14 in Beijing.
Some 28 heads of state and government leaders, including Russian President Vladimir Putin, with additional delegations, participants, scholars, experts and journalists from 110 countries are expected in the Chinese capital over the coming weekend.

Russian soldiers march at the Victory Day Parade on May 9th in Moscow, Russia [PPIO]
Russia today marks the end of World War II in Europe and its victory over Nazi Germany in 1945.
This year’s 72nd Victory Day parade included some 10,000 members of the armed forces showcasing more than 100 advanced military hardware, including tanks, anti-ballistic missiles, and other displays of Russian defence systems and weaponry, as TU-160 and TU-95MS bomber aircraft fly over Red Square in the capital Moscow.