KATHMANDU: US Embassy Chargé d’Affaires John Carwile joined Acting President of FNCCI Pashupati Murarka and Immediate Past President Suraj Vaidya to officially open the Innovation Hub inside FNCCI headquarters on Thursday. The Innovation Hub is a new addition to the US Embassy’s American Spaces resource centres located throughout Nepal, as per a press statement. Located inside the FNCCI building, the Innovation Hub is open to the public and features computers with access to research databases, free wi-fi, a circulating collection of books and a children’s corner. The Innovation Hub also has special materials for entrepreneurs and four workstations for people who are starting a business. The Hub will host unique programming for students, civil society groups, business owners and the general public. The statement quoted Chargé d’Affaires Carwile as saying, “It is our hope that Nepal’s students, future entrepreneurs and business leaders will use the Innovation Hub not only to help grow Nepal’s economy but to move it in new directions.” It is open Sunday through Friday from 10:30am to 5:00pm. There is a nominal membership fee.

IATA backs off plan

MIAMI: A major airline industry group said on Wednesday it is backing off plans to introduce a standard size carry-on bag that would be smaller than some countries currently allow on planes. The Geneva-based International Air Transport Association (IATA) said in a statement it was ‘pausing the rollout of its Cabin OK initiative and beginning a comprehensive reassessment in light of concerns expressed, primarily in North America’. The plan was announced at the group’s annual meeting in Miami Beach earlier this month, and was subsequently met with outcry from some US lawmakers and a handful of US airlines, including Delta.

Gazprom’s pipeline

SAINT PETERSBURG: Russian gas giant Gazprom on Thursday agreed a plan with Shell, E.ON and OMV aimed at building a new gas pipeline to Germany, the companies said in a statement. In the memorandum of understanding, Germany’s E.ON, Austria’s OMV and Anglo-Dutch Shell would join up to construct the new route under the Baltic Sea from Russia with a capacity of 55 billion cubic metres per year.