KOSEP’s contribution

KATHMANDU:

Korea South East Power Co (KOSEP), the main shareholder of Nepal Water and Energy Development Company Pvt Ltd (NWEDC) has contributed around $50,000 to Nepali ambassador in South Korea as relief aid for earthquake affected people. After Nepal was struck by the devastating earthquake on April 25, all staff members of KOSEP started raising funds voluntarily to provide relief and rehabilitation support to the earthquake affected people, as per a press statement issued on Thursday. NWEDC, which is developing 216-MW Upper Trishuli-1 hydroelectric project in Rasuwa district, has implemented an immediate relief operation to the project affected communities by airlifting injured people and providing relief materials like rice, tents, drinking water and salt, among others. — HNS

British retail sales

LONDON:

Bitish retail sales rose far stronger than expected in April from the previous month, official data showed on Thursday, with customers profiting from falling prices. Sales by volume jumped by 1.2 per cent last month compared with March, the Office for National Statistics said in a statement. Analysts’ consensus forecast had been for a gain of 0.4 per cent after a fall in March. Retail sales grew by 4.7 per cent in April compared with one year earlier. — AFP

US jobless aid up

WASHINGTON:

More Americans sought unemployment aid last week, though the number of applications remains at a historically low level that is consistent with a healthy job market. Weekly applications increased 10,000 to a seasonally adjusted 274,000, the Labor Department said on Thursday. The four-week average, a less volatile figure, fell to a fresh 15-year low of 266,250. Applications are a proxy for layoffs, so the very low readings indicate that most employees have solid job security. Businesses also appear to be confident enough in the economy to keep their workers. With fewer people seeking benefits, the number receiving them has also declined. Total recipients fell 12,000 to 2.2 million, the lowest since November 2000. — AP

German rail strike

FRANKFURT:

German railways operator Deutsche Bahn on Thursday announced an end to a drivers’ strike that had paralysed train travel in Europe’s biggest economy, after the feuding sides agreed to mediation. But fresh trouble appeared to be brewing elsewhere, as the biggest rail union threatened industrial action if a pay deal was not reached soon. While Deutsche Bahn (DB) said it would probably take until Saturday for normal services to resume, ‘millions of rail passengers can breathe a sigh of relief’. — AFP

SpiceJet eyes fund

MUMBAI:

Low-cost carrier SpiceJet Ltd, which came close to collapsing in December after running out of cash to pay its creditors, is looking to raise an additional INR three billion ($47 million) and increase its fleet size to 45 to 50 aircraft by the end of fiscal 2015, the company said on Thursday. — Reuters

Source: THT