26 March 2013 Current Affairs
Mumbai Slips to 66th Rank in Global Financial Centers List
According to the Global Financial Centres Index (GFCI) released on March 26,India's financial capital Mumbai slipped to 66th rank in the list of world's leading financial hubs, but New Delhi failed to make a mark.GFCI which provides profiles, ratings and rankings for 79 financial centres worldwide ranked Mumbai at the 66th place, down three places from last year when it was ranked 63rd on the coveted list.Mumbai is the only Indian city on the list, which was topped by London.New York was ranked second in the list followed by Hong Kong and Singapore in the third and fourth place respectively.Others in the top 10 are: Zurich (5th), Tokyo (6th), Geneva (7th), Boston (8th), Seoul (9th) and Frankfurt (10th).
Fifth BRICS Summit from March 26
South Africa will host the fifth BRICS Summit from 26 to 27 March 2013 at the Durban International Convention Centre (ICC). This will complete the first cycle of BRICS summits.BRICS is an acronym for the powerful grouping of the world’s leading emerging economies, namely Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.The BRICS mechanism aims to achieve peace, security, development and cooperation. It also seeks to contribute significantly to the development of humanity and establish a more equitable and fair world.
Italy's Foreign Minister Resigns Over Marine Case
On March 26 Foreign Minister Giulio Terzi resigned over the government’s decision to return two Italian marines to India to stand trial for killing two local fishermen in a case that has soured diplomatic ties between the countries.
Paris Honours Nelson Mandela
On 26 March the city of Paris made anti-apartheid hero Nelson Mandela an honorary citizen, but refused to grant an honour to Venezuela's late leftist firebrand leader Hugo Chavez.