Category: Business

SYDNEY, May 05 – Epson has announced the call for entries for the 17th edition of the landmark Epson International Pano Awards – the world’s largest competition devoted to the craft and art of panoramic photography. It has also detailed the launch of the inaugural Epson International Pano Awards Exhibition – an evening of breathtaking panoramic photography, featuring a curated collection of award-winning images from past Pano Awards.

Overall winner of the 2025 Open Photographer of the Year and the Nature/Landscape category Last Fireworks by Alex Wides

The unique Epson International Pano Awards Exhibition 2026 runs from 4 -10 June 2026 and will be set within the iconic Garden Gallery at the Royal Botanic Garden Sydney. Attendees will see a striking showcase of award-winning panoramic images – all printed on an Epson SureColor P9560 Professional Photo and Fine Art Printer – and be able to take part in a silent auction.

The Garden Gallery at the Royal Botanic Garden Sydney

 The proceeds from the silent auction on selected pieces will be donated to Epson’s corporate partner Botanic Gardens of Sydney, to support the Australian Institute of Botanical Science and the Australian PlantBank’s Rainforest Seed Conservation Project. This important initiative helps preserve at-risk rainforest plants against threats like deforestation, climate change and disease. Winners of the silent auction will be notified and collect their pieces at the end of the exhibition.

Following a successful 2025 awards, Epson Australia and Epson Southeast Asia again join forces as the main sponsors of The Pano Awards 2026, which is now one of the most highly regarded and acclaimed photography awards in the world.

Epson Australia corporate marketing manager ANZ Priscilla Dickason said, “Every year we feel it is a real privilege to sponsor of these amazing awards. They mean so much to the industry and occupy a special place in the hearts and minds of photographers from all around the world. Epson is 100% committed to helping and supporting creativity through photography and print and the Pano awards are the perfect way to help us to achieve that goal. We are also delighted that we get to celebrate these amazing photographers and their incredible creations in such a prestigious gallery this year and have a wonderful exhibition of previous winners to complement them too.”

In 2025, The Epson International Pano Awards saw many thousands of entries submitted from hundreds of photographers across the globe. This year’s competition looks likely to be even more successful.

 

The winner of The Epson Digital Art Prize 2025

 

The Epson International Pano Awards’ Curator David Evans said, “I’m always delighted when I can officially announce that professional and amateur photographers around the world are now invited to enter the next Epson International Pano Awards. I can also announce that there is a new Aerial category in the Open and Amateur competitions, if you enter five or more images at once during the early bird period you save 20% and you’ll also be in the running to win the $1000 curator’s award.”

The Epson International Pano Awards’ Curator David Evans

Hattori Tai, Regional Director Commercial Products & Industrial Inkjet, Epson Southeast Asia, said, “Southeast Asia’s photography community is one of the most dynamic anywhere in the world. Panoramic work is a powerful way for our region’s visual storytellers to show how quickly their cities, coastlines and cultures are evolving. The Epson International Pano Awards gives these photographers a rare opportunity to stand shoulder to shoulder with the world’s best on a truly global platform. By supporting the awards, Epson Southeast Asia is committed not only to providing the print technology behind the final exhibition, but also to helping more photographers from our region gain the recognition their work deserves.”

 The judging panel for the 2026 Pano Awards includes some of the world’s top photographers and industry professionals, including Bill Bailey, Aaron Spence, Dan Zafra, Jacky Lee, Daniel Kordan, Abe Blair, Annette Mossbacher and Jennifer Renwick amongst others.

To hear from previous Pano Awards winners go to: https://youtu.be/vJ0AkDxLUuY and to hear from David Evans go to: https://youtu.be/EjL4DoQIHwY

Early-bird entries for the Epson International Pano Awards 2025 are now open until 22 June 2026 and final entries are due by 13 July 2026.

Participants can submit their entries here: https://thepanoawards.com/enter-awards/

For more information, contact David Evans at contact@thepanoawards.com

The Epson International Pano Award Exhibition details

• Date: Thursday, 4 -10 June 2026
• Location: Garden Gallery, Royal Botanic Garden Sydney

 Picture credits

Overall winner of the 2025 Open Photographer of the Year and the Nature/Landscape category Last Fireworks by Alex Wides

The Garden Gallery at the Royal Botanic Garden Sydney

The winner of The Epson Digital Art Prize 2025

The Epson International Pano Awards’ Curator David Evans

SAN DIEGO, May 04: Circular Genomics, the precision neurology leader pioneering circular RNA (circRNA)-based molecular diagnostics, today announced a strategic alliance with Vitazi.ai, an innovator in AI-powered retinal imaging and oculomics, to jointly develop a next-generation multimodal workflow for the early detection and risk stratification of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). This collaboration establishes a first-in-class diagnostic architecture designed to address critical market gaps in early-stage patient identification while expanding the reach and strategic value of both companies’ core technology platforms. Despite affecting millions of individuals globally, Alzheimer’s disease is often diagnosed years after symptom onset, with a significant proportion of early-stage patients missed due to limitations in accuracy, accessibility, and cost of existing diagnostic approaches. This diagnostic gap represents both a profound clinical challenge and a substantial market opportunity for scalable, accessible solutions capable of identifying patients earlier in the disease continuum.

The collaboration will combine Vitazi.ai’s non-invasive AI-driven retinal imaging analytics with Circular Genomics’ proprietary circRNA biomarker data through shared algorithmic and machine learning workflows to deliver intelligent, accurate early AD detection and risk stratification. By uniting complementary data modalities into a unified clinical workflow, the collaboration is positioned to unlock one of the most significant unmet needs in Alzheimer’s disease: the systematic underdiagnosis of patients in the earliest, most treatable stages—where therapeutic intervention holds the greatest potential for clinical and economic impact.

The envisioned diagnostic process introduces a two-step clinical workflow designed for scalability, accessibility, and seamless integration into existing care pathways:

Step 1: AI-Driven Retinal Triage — Non-invasive retinal imaging conducted in optometry or primary care settings to identify individuals at elevated risk, enabling broad population-level screening with minimal infrastructure requirements

Step 2: circRNA Molecular Confirmation — Blood-based detection of brain-derived circRNA biomarkers to confirm early disease biology and pathology, providing molecular precision and disease pathway-level insight beyond traditional protein biomarkers

Together, this multimodal analytical approach is engineered to enable earlier, more accurate patient identification, expand access to care across diverse healthcare settings, and support more effective deployment of emerging disease-modifying therapies—creating strategic value for healthcare systems, pharmaceutical partners, and payers.

“This collaboration represents a transformative step in how we scale early Alzheimer’s detection and expand the commercial and strategic reach of our circRNA platform,” said Paul Sargeant, PhD, Chief Executive Officer of Circular Genomics. “Our circRNA technology provides a systems-level view of Alzheimer’s disease biology capable of detecting molecular changes upstream of traditional protein biomarkers. Strategically, this partnership extends our platform’s clinical utility, accelerates market penetration across primary care and specialty settings, and creates compelling new opportunities for pharmaceutical partnerships focused on clinical trial enrichment, patient stratification, and real-world evidence generation.”

The collaboration will initially focus on the joint development of multimodal machine learning models that combine retinal imaging data with blood circRNA biomarker profiles to deliver intelligent early AD diagnostic and disease progression risk insights. Vitazi.ai’s oculomics platform leverages retinal imaging as a non-invasive window into systemic and neurological health, enabling optometrists and frontline clinicians to play an expanded role in preventive care and disease detection.

“We believe the future of disease detection lies in combining complementary data modalities that reflect different dimensions of human biology,” said Jeremy Stueven, MD, Chief Executive Officer of Vitazi.ai. “The retina provides a unique, non-invasive lens into neurological and vascular health, while circRNA offers deep molecular insight into disease pathways. Together, we could create a scalable, clinically meaningful solution that empowers providers to detect disease earlier and intervene more effectively delivering value across the care continuum.”

Circular RNA biomarkers are uniquely suited for neurodegenerative disease applications due to their stability, enrichment in brain tissue, and ability to cross the blood-brain barrier. Unlike single-analyte protein biomarkers, circRNAs enable a broader, pathway-level understanding of disease biology, offering the potential to better capture the complexity and heterogeneity of Alzheimer’s disease—a critical advantage for both diagnostic accuracy and therapeutic development support.

“This collaboration enables the melding of orthogonal biological signals—structural and molecular—into unified predictive models of disease through joint analytical framework development,” said Nikolaos Mellios, MD, PhD, Chief Scientific Officer and Co-Founder of Circular Genomics. “This approach represents a fundamental advancement in how we model and measure neurodegenerative disease biology, with implications that extend well beyond Alzheimer’s to the broader landscape of precision neurology.”

Mumbai, May 4 (BNP): The National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) has highlighted the resilience of India’s capital markets while announcing the launch of two new initiatives—PaRRVA and EGR—aimed at improving transparency and expanding market participation.

Speaking at the event, NSE leadership said India’s financial markets have shown strong stability despite global uncertainties, reflecting investor confidence and structural strength.

A key highlight of the development is the rollout of PaRRVA (Past Risk and Return Verification Agency), a framework designed to validate performance claims made by market intermediaries. The system is expected to improve transparency by ensuring that historical performance data shared with investors is independently verified.

The initiative has been developed in collaboration with industry stakeholders and is aimed at strengthening trust and improving the quality of disclosures in the financial ecosystem.

Alongside PaRRVA, the exchange also introduced the EGR (Electronic Gold Receipts) segment, which is designed to modernise gold trading and improve ease of access for investors.

Officials said these initiatives are part of broader efforts to deepen India’s capital markets, enhance investor protection, and build a more transparent and efficient trading ecosystem.

New Delhi, May 4 (BNP): Jindal Stainless reported a strong performance in the fourth quarter ended March 31, with consolidated net profit rising over 41% year-on-year, supported by higher revenues.

The company posted a net profit of ₹834.21 crore in Q4, compared to ₹589.96 crore in the same period last year, according to an exchange filing.

Total income during the quarter also increased to ₹11,427.91 crore, up from ₹10,292.27 crore in the corresponding period of the previous financial year.

The company said improved revenue performance contributed to the rise in profitability during the reporting quarter.

Mumbai, May 04: Air India SATS Airport Services Private Limited (AISATS) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Samsung Data Systems India Private Limited to facilitate seamless cargo movement of Samsung products manufactured at its Noida facility through the Multi Modal Cargo Hub at Noida International Airport.

The cargo hub, spanning 87 acres, features an Integrated Cargo Terminal with significant annual handling capacity in its first phase. Its strategic proximity to Samsung’s manufacturing unit is expected to enable faster cargo throughput, reduce transit times, and improve access to global export markets.

As Noida continues to emerge as one of the world’s largest mobile manufacturing clusters, producing smartphones, tablets, laptops, and other devices, this partnership is set to enhance logistics efficiency and streamline exports of high-value electronics.

The collaboration aligns with India’s rapidly growing electronics export ecosystem, supported by increasing global demand and strong domestic manufacturing capabilities. By leveraging advanced logistics infrastructure and digital integration, the partnership aims to improve supply chain agility, visibility, and overall efficiency.

The Multi Modal Cargo Hub has been designed as an integrated logistics platform, combining air cargo operations with multimodal connectivity. It includes an Integrated Cargo Terminal and a dedicated warehousing and logistics zone, catering to sectors such as electronics, pharmaceuticals, engineering goods, and e-commerce.

Commenting on the partnership, AISATS leadership highlighted the importance of building agile and globally competitive logistics infrastructure to support India’s rise as a manufacturing hub. Samsung SDS also emphasized the role of advanced logistics solutions in connecting India’s production centers with global markets efficiently.

This collaboration marks a significant step toward strengthening India’s export competitiveness by enabling faster, more reliable, and scalable cargo movement solutions.

Market Overview: Sensex, Nifty End Higher on Broad-Based Buying

Mumbai, May 4 (BNP): Indian equity markets ended the trading session on a positive note on Monday, supported by buying in blue-chip stocks and overall firm investor sentiment.

Benchmark indices saw a steady recovery during the day before closing with gains. The 30-share BSE Sensex rose 355.90 points, or 0.46%, to settle at 77,269.40. During intraday trade, it had climbed as much as 997.25 points to hit 77,910.75.

Similarly, the 50-share NSE Nifty advanced 121.75 points, or 0.51%, to close at 24,119.30.

Market participants said buying interest in heavyweight stocks helped support the indices through the session, even as investors tracked broader economic and political developments.

Overall, sentiment remained constructive, with markets managing to end the day firmly in the green after witnessing intraday volatility.

New Delhi, May 4 (BNP): India and Canada have started the second round of discussions on a proposed free trade agreement aimed at deepening economic cooperation and boosting trade and investment between the two countries.

 The negotiations are being held under the proposed Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), which is expected to cover a wide range of areas, including trade in goods, services, and other mutually agreed sectors.

According to officials, the latest round of talks began on May 4 in New Delhi and will continue for five days. The first round of negotiations was held earlier in March this year.

The proposed agreement is expected to open up new opportunities for businesses in both countries and further strengthen economic engagement between India and Canada.

New Delhi, May 04: Rays Power Infra Pvt. Ltd., announced that it has commissioned 1.1 GW of solar capacity in a single financial year the strongest year of execution in the company’s history. Delivered across Karnataka, Rajasthan and Gujarat, the achievement takes Rays Power Infra’s cumulative commissioned portfolio past 2.4 GWp and positions the company among India’s most active integrated solar platforms as the country accelerates toward its 500 GW non-fossil capacity target. Building on the momentum, Rays Power Infra is expanding its EPC order book, scaling its long-term IPP portfolio and selectively entering adjacencies including hybrid solar-wind, battery energy storage (BESS) and round-the-clock renewable solutions for utilities, large C&I customers, & Green Hydrogen and its derived Green fuels.

Ketan Mehta, Managing Director, Rays Power Infra said 

“Commissioning 1.1 GW in a single year is the most defining moment in our journey so far. It is a testament to the trust our customers place in us, the resilience of our execution teams and the platform we have patiently built over more than a decade. With this single-year delivery, our cumulative footprint has crossed 2.4 GWp, and Rays Power Infra is structurally positioned to play a meaningful role in India’s clean-energy transition,”

New Delhi, May 4 (BNP): India needs to take a more prepared and forward-looking approach to managing economic risks, especially in key sectors such as energy, food, fertilisers, and critical minerals, according to S. Mahendra Dev, Chairman of the EAC-PM.

Highlighting lessons from ongoing global tensions, particularly in West Asia, Dev said such developments show how quickly supply chains and prices can be disrupted. He stressed the importance of identifying potential vulnerabilities early and keeping a close watch on them.

According to him, regular monitoring of essential sectors can help the country respond faster to sudden changes, ensuring stable supplies and controlling price fluctuations. He also underlined the need to diversify sources and strengthen preparedness to reduce dependence on any single region.

The statement reflects a growing focus on building a more resilient economy that can better handle global uncertainties and protect domestic stability.