General

Shijith P Kunhitty / Russia’s total expenditure for the football World Cup that began this week is likely to be USD 11.6 billion, almost one percent of its GDP. Officials hope at least 1.5 million people will visit Russia during the event, which according to an analyst quoted in The Moscow Times could add USD 3 billion to the country’s economy. But a number crunching shows that previous hosts did not benefit from a spike in tourist spending. A…

Annabel SYMINGTON/ AFP•June 28, 2018 / Tourists hiking in Nepal’s Himalayan mountains are being pressured into costly helicopter evacuations at the first sight of trouble by guides linked to powerful brokers who are making a fortune on “unnecessary rescues”, industry insiders say. Dodgy operators are scamming tens of thousands of dollars from insurance companies by making multiple claims for a single chopper ride or pushing trekkers to accept airlifts for minor illnesses, an investigation by…