BRICS news and updates .... February 6

From SCMP:
India and Russia back China's call for 'new world order'
Foreign ministers of two nations meet Chinese counterpart in Beijing as China 'seeks to counterbalance US influence' in the Asia-Pacific
Russia and India added their voices on Monday to China's call for a new world order and endorsed Beijing's plans to mark the 70th anniversary of the end of the second world war.
The foreign ministers of the three nations met in the capital for talks just a week after US President Barack Obama made a high-profile trip to India.
After Monday's  meeting, President Xi Jinping gave a positive assessment of China's ties with the two nations, despite New Delhi's apparent distrust towards Beijing.
In a joint communique, the three nations vowed to "build a more just, fair and stable international political and economic order" and a "multi-polar" world.....

From Reuters:
  Chinese iron ore imports seen rising to 1 bln tonnes as top miners rule...

...China's iron ore imports are forecast to rise to a record 1 billion tonnes this year, with main suppliers Australia and Brazil expanding their share in the world's top market for the raw material, justifying their plans to expand output.

The move by global miners Vale, Rio Tinto , BHP Billiton and Fortescue Metals Group to boost production has fuelled a glut that has slashed iron ore prices by more than 50 percent over the past year....

From BRICSpost
Chinese President says   will align with Russia in global affairs
Even as Washington and its allies intensified their  harsh rhetoric against Moscow, Chinese President Xi Jinping has vowed that Beijing will step up cooperation in global affairs with Moscow in 2015.

Xi said China will aid Russia in preparing for the BRICS Summit in the Russian city of Ufa in July where the two nations will jointly maintain emerging economies’ interests and promote global economic governance reform.
Xi met visiting Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Monday in Beijing.

The leaders of five of the world’s largest emerging markets are showcasing a new $100 billion currency reserve fund and $100 development bank. The BRICS have evolved from the original term coined in 2001 by then-Goldman Sachs Group Inc. economist Jim O’Neill to describe the growing weight of the largest emerging markets in the global economy.
Meanwhile, Chinese and Russian officials are preparing to jointly commemorate the 70th anniversary of the end of WWII this year.
They should use it to “celebrate the historic contribution the two countries, as main battlefields in the east and west, made in the war, and to maintain postwar peace and security”, Xi told Lavrov.....


From NITIcentral
Terming the development   of the green economy for sustainable development as the most "pressing" global agenda, Russia today advocated a combined effort by the BRICS countries for implementing eco-friendly initiatives and priorities.

It also said that future cooperation with India on "pressing" issues like water resources treatment, environment security and decrease of dangerous emissions will be discussed in "detail" at the BRICS summit, scheduled to take place later this year in Moscow.

"During the BRICS meeting of environment ministers, we have chosen specially the topic of development of green economy resolution of environmental problems and competitiveness of business in the context of green economy. We believe it is the most pressing agenda for all the world," said Russian Environment Minister Sergei Donskoi, who is currently on a visit to India.
He said that at the meeting of the environment ministers, Russia will also discuss the probable mechanism and technologies for implementing these priorities in the economy as part of a policy for increasing the quality of life in BRICS countries, which comprise Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.
"We would like to suggest that the effort of the BRICS countries should be combined and put together for implementing green initiatives and priorities in our economies so as to increase its competitiveness and business attractiveness," the minister said.....

From RTBusiness
The Russian government has submitted a bill to lawmakers to ratify the BRICS bank. The New Development Bank will have assets of $100 billion from Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa and rival the World Bank and International Monetary Fund.
The New Development Bank agreement will come into force only after all five countries ratify the legislation.
"The agreement envisages the creation of a multilateral financial institution, the New Development Bank, that will finance infrastructure projects and sustainable development projects in BRICS countries and developing countries," says a briefing note obtained by TASS. .....

From GlobalTimes:
Next July, Russia will be hosting  the seventh summit of the BRICS group, which includes Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. Back in 2009, Russia hosted the group's first summit, in Yekaterinburg in the Urals. This time, President Vladimir Putin has chosen Ufa, the capital of Bashkortostan, a short distance west of the Urals.

The political distance Russia has traveled in the last six years, and particularly in 2014, is much greater. As a result, Moscow is likely to pay more attention to BRICS than before. During the Russian presidency, BRICS will take another step toward pushing for reforms in global governance and enhancing the member states' impact on global issues.

By hosting the leaders of the leading non-Western nations, Putin will demonstrate to the Russian people and the world that his country is anything but isolated. BRICS, after all, brings together countries whose combined population is 3 billion, 40 percent of the world's total. They also account for a quarter of the global GDP and nearly a fifth of international trade. .....