text:
SHANGHAI (Nov 13): Malaysia, via the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB), will continue its research and development (R&D) to increase palm oil-based value-added products for companies in China to export to Muslim regions within the country, Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof said.
Fadillah, who is also the Plantation and Commodities Minister, said that to date, several products are being commercialised in China, thanks to the Palm Oil Research and Technical Service Institute of Malaysian Palm Oil Board (Portsim).
“So far, we are very satisfied with what has been produced. Now, we need to look at how we can expand products developed by Portsim, in line with China’s tastes and market requirements.
“Portsim has succeeded in providing solutions and assistance to industry players by transforming their production methods through the use of palm oil,” he told the media during his visit to the research institute here on Sunday.
Fadillah said that Chinese companies previously used other raw materials for their products, but now, in order to cater to a much larger market, they are replacing these with palm oil, which is halal and more suitable for the global Islamic market.
He said that the research institute is looking into health products based on the versatile crop tocotrienol, moving forward.
“We will also meet with China’s agriculture minister to seek recognition of the Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO) certification for their products,” he added.
Founded in 2005, Portsim is a branch of the MPOB in China that aims to develop, expand and advance the Malaysian palm oil market in China, and provide technical support and advisory services for related enterprises.
Fadillah is on his maiden official visit to China from Nov 12-19 to strengthen cooperation in R&D, as well as capacity building in the field of commodities, especially in promoting the MSPO certification scheme at the global level.
The export value of palm-based products to China in 2022 totalled RM16.41 billion, while the export value of Malaysian palm oil to the country in the same year was RM8.44 billion.
Meanwhile, Portsim general manager Yoong Jun Hao shared that the research institute has received China’s accreditation from the China National Accreditation Services (CNAS) and the China Inspection Body and Laboratory Mandatory Approval (CMA).
“This is a recognition to our labs that we also fulfil all the requirements in China in terms of their standards and quality.
“In addition, we are here to help serve the industry by expanding their markets into higher value addition segments in China by selling more downstream products made with Malaysia’s palm oil products through our R&D and commercialisation activities.
“Through this, we can help our industries move into the downstream segment to produce more value-added products, and this will help secure loyal customers in China and, at the same time, help our country to expand further our palm oil market,” he said.
Yoong added that yearly, Portsim would create three to eight new products and that vegan meat is among this year’s new products.
“We foresee the vegan market growing, especially in China and Europe; therefore, this product has a huge potential,” he added.
Fadillah, Shanghai mayor exchange views on bilateral relations
Fadillah arrives in China on palm oil trade mission
Malaysia confident of higher palm oil, related products exports to China — Fadillah
Malaysia seeking to widen partnership with China in emerging growth areas — Fadillah
High-level visits heighten new level of Malaysia-China strategic partnership
Fadillah to hold several bilateral meetings in Beijing


text:
Audi has dismissed forced redundancies in Germany prior to 2020, its labor employer stated, extending job guarantees by two years even as the Volkswagen-owned automaker grapples with the fallout from the automaker’s emissions scandal.
Volkswagen flagship luxury division reduced its projection for profitability and sales in late October after sustaining further costs associated with the group’s rigging of diesel emissions tests.
However Audi has stated on Monday its top management would attempt to negotiate a “thorough pact” with labor that could even extend job guarantees for its 61,000 German staff far into the next years in exchange for actions to enhance performance.
“The extension of work guarantees is a significant success,” stated works council chief Peter Mosch during a gathering of over 10,000 workers at Audi’s primary plant located in Ingolstadt. Management and the works council are going for a deal sometime next year.
The move comes 2 weeks after workers at Volkswagen’s core brand won assurances there would be no forced terminations in Germany for more years.
That deal cleared the way to decreasing 23,000 jobs at the Volkswagen brand in Germany through buyouts, early retirements and reducing part-time personnel.
Audi’s German employees have grown worried about their jobs since management decided in January to utilize a factory in Brussels to construct the brand’s very first mass-produced electric model and develop the site a key plant for electrical movement within the Volkswagen group.
Audi has likewise stated it will take a look at the possibility of cutting about 1,500 short-lived jobs at Ingolstadt as it prepares to meet 2017 output targets with its core labor force. Ingolstadt has employed 44,000 individuals.
The works council last month struck a contract with management to maintain pricey graveyard shift, although the deal involved some modifications to production.

domain: news


text:
May 4, 2018
NSSF Expels Dick’s Sporting Goods
NEWTOWN, Conn. — The National Shooting Sports Foundation® (NSSF®), the trade association for the firearms, ammunition, hunting and shooting sports industries, Board of Governors today unanimously voted to expel Dick’s Sporting Goods from membership for conduct detrimental to the best interests of the Foundation.
Dick’s Sporting Goods recently hired a Washington D.C.-based government affairs firm, for “[l]obbying related to gun control.” Dick’s Sporting Goods CEO Edward W. Stack announced earlier this year the Field and Stream stores in the retail chain would end sales of modern sporting rifles, voluntarily raise the age to 21 to purchase firearms in their stores and called for more restrictive legislation. Dick’s later announced they would destroy the remaining modern sporting rifle inventory. NSSF responded that business decisions should be individually made, but was nonetheless disappointed and the decision does not reflect the reality of the vast majority of law-abiding gun owners.
The National Shooting Sports Foundation is the trade association for the firearms industry. Its mission is to promote, protect and preserve hunting and the shooting sports. Formed in 1961, NSSF has a membership of more than 13,000 manufacturers, distributors, firearms retailers, shooting ranges, sportsmen’s organizations and publishers. For more information, visit nssf.org.
Categories: Featured, Industry News, Press Releases, Ranges, Retailers, Top Stories


text:
The Supreme Court’s recent ruling allowing companies like Hobby Lobby not to cover contraception compelled openly gay actor George Takei to support a boycott against it and other companies that choose “to impose [their] religious beliefs on… employees.”
In part, Takei’s blog post reads:
… As Justice Ginsberg’s stinging dissent pointed out, companies run by Scientologists could refuse to cover antidepressants, and those run by Jews or Hindus could refuse to cover medications derived from pigs (such as many anesthetics, intravenous fluids, or medications coated in gelatin)… one wonders whether the case would have come out differently if a Muslim-run chain business attempted to impose Sharia law on its employees.
As many have pointed out, Hobby Lobby is the same company that invests in Pfizer and Teva Pharmaceuticals, makers of abortion inducing-drugs and the morning after pill. It also buys most of its inventory from China, where forced abortions are common. The hypocrisy is galling.
… Once the law starts permitting exceptions based on “sincerely held religious beliefs” there’s no end to the mischief and discrimination that will ensue. Indeed, this is the same logic that certain restaurants and hotels have been trying to deploy to allow proprietors to refuse service to gay couples.
We are a nation that respects religious beliefs, but also the right not to have those beliefs imposed upon you by others…
While we work to overturn this decision by legislation, people of good conscious should BOYCOTT any for-profit business, including Hobby Lobby, which chooses to impose its religious beliefs on its employees.
The only way such companies ever learn to treat people with decency and tolerance is to hit them where it counts–in their pocketbooks. I won’t be shopping there, and women everywhere should exercise their right of protest and refuse to shop there as well.
In related news, Twitter users have begun skewering Hobby Lobby’s win by using the #DrHobbyLobby hashtag to ask the company ironic questions about women’s health.
The feminist blog Jezebel also has a list of 82 other companies and organizations that oppose health care coverage for birth control.


text:
The latest Android Nougat 7.1 update may give smartphones a new option.
According to rumors, the latest Android 7.1 OS update may give smartphones and Android devices the reboot option. There are also rumors that the reboot function may only be exclusive to the upcoming Pixel phones by Google.
Reboot Option for Android Devices via Android 7.1 Nougat Update?
According to an unnamed source cited by Android Police, the latest Android 7.1 update may add the long-awaited reboot button to Android devices. It is not clear if other devices that don't run on Android 7.1 out of the box will also have the option when they install the update on their devices.
Google Pixel, Pixel XL to Have Reboot Buttons?
Samsung and LG seem to have no problem incorporating the reboot button on their Android devices, but the same could not be said for Google and their devices. It is not known why they have not added this feature yet.
There have been rumors that the Google Pixel and Pixel XL will be having the Android 7.1 Nougat as their default OS. Due to this, the software may have its own reboot button because of it. However, the reboot button may not make it out of the testing phase according to the outlet. The reboot function may only be there to make it easier for developers and testers of the Android 7.1 Nougat update.
Google Pixel, Pixel XL Specs, Features, Release Date
The coming of the Google Pixel and Pixel XL is rumored to herald the change of the company's branding. Mirror wrote that Google may be favoring to brand their smartphones using the Pixel line instead of Nexus.
The Google Pixel will reportedly have a 5-inch display, while the Pixel XL will be slightly larger at 5.5-inches. Both models are rumored to have quad-core Qualcomm processors, 12MP rear cameras, 8MP front cameras and 4GB RAM. However, they will have different battery sizes as the XL will have the 2,770mAH and the XL will have 3,450mAh. They will also have different storage capacities. The Pixel and Pixel XL will be officially launched by October 4.
As for the pricing, the outlet speculates that the 16GB version of the Pixel will be around $380 and the 32GB version will be around $440. Meanwhile, its larger sibling will have three different storage capacities. The 16GB version of the Pixel XL will be around $580, the 64GB will be around $650 and the 128GB will be around $750.


text:
Intel Offers $1 Million App Challenge – All Tablets to Ship With RealSense 3D Scanners Next Year
It’s quite incredible to think how quickly 3D scanning technology has come in only a few short years. If you were to step into your Delorean, and travel all the way back to a time when having access to a 3D scanner likely meant you worked in the medical field, you would have to set your dial all the way back to the year of 2010. Yeah not too long ago, right?
With the spread in popularity of 3D scanners, and with CAD software getting much less complicated to use, the number of applications for 3D scanning has exploded. Imagine a future where every consumer tablet sold, or better yet, the billions of smartphones sold each year, had a 3D scanner built into them. How would the world change? 3D selfies anyone?
Intel, one of the world’s largest semiconductor chip manufacturers, envisions a future just like this, and it all begins next year! Yesterday, Intel CEO Brian Krzanich spoke at MakerCon in New York, where he revealed that the company is aiming to integrate their RealSense technology in all of their new tablets in 2015.
“Our goal is to just have a tablet that you can go out and buy that has this capability,” Krzanich said, according to Gizmag. “Eventually within two or three years I want to be able to put it on a phone.”
Could you imagine what such technology will do, not only for the 3D selfie industry (half joking), but for that of the 3D printing space? The total number of 3D printable models will explode, and if you can’t find something to print online, just go out and take a 3D scan of an object with your phone. Surely just about every manufacturer is cringing right about now, as they begin to picture the bootlegging of just about everything. See a cool necklace your friend has? Just take a quick scan with your phone, and print one out for yourself.
“The idea is you go out, you see something you like and you just capture it,” Krzanich explained.
Intel has high hopes for their RealSense platform, and has thus announced a contest which they hope will spur on the development of innovative applications for their 3D scanning technology. The Intel RealSense Technology App Challenge 2014 will pit developers against each other, competing for $1 million in prizes by creating applications that combine imnersive human-computer interaction with the 3D Intel cameras on their soon to launch tablets and smartphones. More details on this challenge can be found here.
For those of you looking for a tablet with this RealSense technology in it, the Dell Venue 8 7000 series, which is the thinnest tablet to date at just 6mm thick, will be the very first offered, and it was just unveiled last week.
Let’s hear your thoughts on what a world filled with billions of 3D scanners may look like, and the implications of such a technological shift for the 3D printing space. Discuss in the Intel RealSense 3D scanner forum thread on 3DPB.com.
You May Also Like
3D Printing Awakens Renewed Interest in Polymeric Heart Valves for Patient-Specific Treatment
Authors Charles D. Resor and Deepak L Batte review the recent work of André R. Studart and his co-researchers in creating artificial heart valves via 3D printing. Their findings are...
3D Printed Microfluidic Device Designed to Customize Cancer Treatment
Testing cancer treatments is a lot of trial and error currently, and patients are often subject to multiple uncomfortable and time-consuming therapies before finding one that works. Developments have been...
Comparing the Operational Characteristics of Plastic 3D Printed Spur Gears
Spur gears, which can achieve high transmission ratio and energy efficiency, are comment elements used in the transmission of motion and high intensity power for mechanical power drives, i.e. belt...
Russian Researchers Develop Biocompatible 3D Polymeric Materials for Tissue Repair
Many researchers and scientists have turned to 3D printing for applications in tissue engineering, and a team from the Polymer Materials for Tissue Engineering and Transplantology Laboratory of Peter the Great St....
View our broad assortment of in house and third party products.


text:
Ford to Show Focus ST, ST-R and Fiesta ST in LA
When you think of Ford and performance, you think Mustang and muscle. But that's about to change. For the fiirst time ever, Ford's Sport Technologies badge will be worn by vehicles available in 40 markets, including North America.
The Focus ST and ST-R will be on display at the Los Angeles Auto Show, as well as the Fiesta ST Concept. Ford says its ST badge represents exhilarating performance, excellent handling, addictive sound and sporty design.
The all-new Focus ST features aggressively enhanced front and rear bumpers, adds a rear spoiler and side skirts, and is offered in five unique colors. It is powered by Ford's fuel efficient 2.0-liter EcoBoost engine.
The Fiesta ST Concept is equipped with a turbocharged 1.6-liter four-cylinder Ford EcoBoost engine that delivers 180 horsepower. Its silhouette is inspired by the Fiesta RS WRC.
"Fiesta has a rich history of high-performance models so a new ST performance model is a logical next step in our performance vehicle strategy," said Derrick Kuzak, Ford group vice president.


text:
A day after a judge had ruled a previous demand for information about the service’s hosts was too broad, Bloomberg News has reported that, the New York’s attorney general issued a revised subpoena in a tax probe of home-sharing firm Airbnb Inc. Airbnb, which is based in San Francisco, lets its customers rent a couch, bedroom or even a house from a host and makes its money by charging a fee for each transaction.
A spokesman for New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, Matt Mittenthal, has reported that according to Bloomberg News, “The time has come for Airbnb to stop shielding hosts who may be violating a law that provides vital protections for building residents and tourists.”
According to Yahoo News, Airbnb Inc. called the judge’s decision to squash the subpoena “good news for New Yorkers who simply want to share their home and the city they love.”
The judge wrote that there is evidence that “a substantial number of hosts” may be violating the law and tax provisions, while Airbnb Inc. failed to show the information request is “unduly burdensome” or that the host information is confidential. However, the subpoena as drafted was not limited to New York City or rentals of less than 30 days, nor did it take into account exceptions to the tax law, he wrote.
The law prohibits owners or renters of apartments in multi-unit buildings from renting them for less than 30 days unless they remain present, according to a report by Yahoo News.
“We are reviewing this new demand, but remain eager to work with the attorney general and we will continue to advocate for New Yorkers who simply want to share their homes,” an Airbnb Inc. spokesman, Nick Papas, said yesterday in a statement according to a report by Bloomberg News.
According to My Fox NY, “Should additional time be needed for the implementation of any changes or adjustments, the state will request it,” Assistant Attorney General Seth Branham wrote.
Image credit: www.time.com


text:
Vireo Health International has acquired Massachusetts licensed cannabis company Mayflower Botanicals in a combination cash and stock deal. It’s the company’s third acquisition since it began trading on the Canadian Securities Exchange.
Vireo now operates in nine states throughout the U.S. They also acquired 73 acres of land zoned for medical cannabis production, processing, and distribution. The move into Massachusetts marks their first move into a state with a recreational cannabis program.
CEO Kyle Kingsley, a board-certified emergency room physician, said it is “time to recognize that a public health policy focused on adults replacing their consumption of alcoholic beverages and tobacco products with cannabis has the potential to save thousands of lives each year.”
“As we expand into adult-use states such as Massachusetts, our physician-led team will provide consumers with medically- and scientifically-based products and advice designed to highlight the potential health benefits of replacing alcohol and tobacco with cannabis.” – Kingsley in a press release
According to a LoHud.com report, Vireo has spent millions of dollars lobbying in New York for recreational cannabis legalization; which was dropped from the state budget last month. Vireo COO Ari Hoffnung told LoHud the company would “continue working with the Legislature” to end cannabis prohibition in the state.
Get daily cannabis business news updates. Subscribe


text:
Panasonic Acquires 2% Stake in Tesla
TOKYO (AP) — Panasonic Corp. is investing $30 million in Tesla Motors Inc., the U.S. maker of electric sports cars, eyeing expansion in the global market for green vehicles, both sides said Thursday.
Panasonic, Japan's biggest electronics maker, will acquire about a 2 percent stake in Tesla, purchasing Tesla common stock at $21.15 per share.
Panasonic, which already makes batteries for Tesla vehicles, said the two firms will jointly market and sell battery packs for electric cars.
|<< PREVIOUS||NEXT >>|
blog comments powered by Disqus


text:
“Plastic waste is one of the biggest sustainability issues the world is facing today,” Nestlé CEO Mark Schneider says. “Tackling it requires a collective approach. We are committed to finding improved solutions to reduce, re-use and recycle.” Japan is the biggest market for KitKats, with 4 million being sold every day. By swapping out the candy bar’s shiny plastic wrap for eco-friendly matte paper, Nestlé expects to cut down on roughly 380 tons of plastic each year.
The new packaging is not only good for the environment, but it’s fun too! Each KitKat bar will include instructions on how to fold a traditional origami crane—a symbol of hope and healing. Customers are encouraged to turn their trash into art, with the hope that the paper will remain in use for longer.
The environmentally-friendly packaging debuts with the most popular KitKat Mini flavors—original, matcha, and dark chocolate—but the positive change is just the beginning. Next year, Nestlé Japan plans to release paper bags for its normal-sized KitKat multipacks, and will roll out single-layer paper wrappers for individual KitKats in 2021.


text:
Q&A: The global fish trade and world hunger
In this Q&A interview, Grimur Valdimarsson, Director of FAO's Fisheries Industries Division, talks about the global fish trade and what it means for the fight against hunger in the developing world.
When we talk about the fish trade, what do we mean?
We're talking about a tremendous global commodities chain spanning hundreds of countries and employing millions of people. Each year, around 37 percent of all fish that is caught or farmed is exported and traded internationally. In value terms, we're talking about over US$70 billion worth of business.
But what is particularly interesting for us here at FAO is that around half of that is exports from developing countries -- clearly, this trade is very important to them as a source of government revenue and jobs, and therefore is playing a key role in the fight against world hunger.
Indeed, net export revenues from fish earned by developing countries passed US$20 billion in 2004 -- that's more than the combined total of the other commodities they are exporting, including coffee, tea and bananas.
And then within the developing countries group, those countries where hunger is most problematic -- what we at FAO call Low Income Food Deficit Countries, or LIFDCs -- are heavily involved in the sector. In 2003, LIFDCS accounted for over 20 percent of total value of all fish exports, with net export revenues estimated at around US$8.6 billion dollars. That's a lot of money for some very poor countries wrestling with poverty and hunger.
Isn't there concern that by exporting fish, these countries will have less to eat?
That's a worry that has been voiced. But our studies suggest that while that can happen, it doesn't happen that often. Instead, we've seen that, usually, when countries actively participate in the fish trade, their food security situation improves, because international trade in fishery products generates employment, higher incomes, and greater foreign exchange earnings. Moreover, the revenues generated by the fish exports are often used to import cheaper foods.
However, there are other concerns that FAO is drawing attention to.
The main risk associated with the fish trade is that increased demand for fish to supply international markets can sometimes result in excessive fishing pressure, leading to the over-exploitation and wasteful use of some fish stocks. This can impact on food security, especially where there is a high dependence on fish in the diet.
Sustainable resource management practices are a necessary condition for sustainable international trade. Market demand needs to be coupled with a sustainable resource management policy.
How do we do that?
Well, we here at FAO think that we have a very good blueprint in our Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries. We'd like to see countries do more to more vigorously incorporate the tenets of the Code into their fishing practices.
We've also just produced a set of guidelines for responsible fish trade, which we are presenting next week at the meeting of the FAO Subcommittee on Fish Trade in Santiago de Compostela, Spain.
The basic idea is that international trade in fish should not compromise the sustainable development of fisheries and the responsible utilization of living aquatic resources. That is, if we want to continue to farm and capture fish, eat them, trade them in the future -- and we do -- then we need to manage them responsibly now. The goal is healthy, sustainable fisheries which are capable of supplying fish and providing all the benefits I've described, indefinitely.
e-mail this article


text:
The Lenovo Tab P12 Pro will be the successor to the Tab P11 Pro that was launched in India earlier this year. It has a top-of-the-line Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 processor in conjugation with the Adreno 640 GPU.
It also has 8 GB of RAM with the new Tab P12 Pro, at least with one of the variants. It is another major upgrade from a maximum of 6GB RAM that the Tab P11 Pro offered. It has an OLED display and runs Android 11 with the display resolution 2560×1600 which translates to a pixel density of 240 PPI.
The Tab P12 Pro will have significantly more power than the current Tab P11 Pro. Lenovo is the fastest-growing Android tablet manufacturer. The Samsung’s tablet shipments in Q2 2021 showed an 18% growth compared to the same period last year. Lenovo is in the second position, but it saw a 67% increase in shipments compared to Q2 2020.


text:
Wellington Drive Technologies says it hopes a new partnership will let it expand manufacturing to Latin America, its largest export market.
The company, which makes energy-efficient motors, has formed a partnership with East West Manufacturing.
Wellington Drive's chief financial officer Howard Milliner says that will let the company move some of its manufacturing from China to East West's factory in Vietnam.
He says that will help to reduce costs and accelerate growth.
Mr Milliner says the partnership could also help Wellington Drive to expand its manufacturing and supply chains beyond Asia.
Mr Milliner says East West will purchase an 8.4% stake in Wellington Drive for $1.6 million.
East West also has the option to buy a further 3.7% stake in the next two years.
In August Wellington Drive posted its first ever operating profit of $13,000 for the month of June.
But it's still forecasting an operating loss for the full year of less than $3 million, with an operating profit in 2014.


text:
Ratings agency Standard & Poor's affirmed India's sovereign rating at "BBB-minus" with a "negative" outlook, reiterating there was a one-in-three chance of a ratings downgrade over the next 12 months, a statement said on Friday. Full Article
China president takes charge of sweeping economic reform plans - sources. Full Article
Confused while buying stocks? Get buy, sell or hold recommendations from VantageTrade. Full Coverage
NTPC's weightage in MSCI India to rise post share sale: Citi
Reuters Market Eye - NTPC's (NTPC.NS) weight in MSCI India index would rise from 0.63 percent to 1.79 percent as the company's free float stock increases after its offer for sale, Citigroup said in a note, quoting MSCI.
The government will sell 783.26 million shares, or 9.5 percent stake, in NTPC through a single-day auction, as part of its drive to raise 270 billion rupees by selling shares in some state enterprises in the 2012/13 fiscal year.
Citigroup also adds that NTPC's weight would increase in FTSE and Nifty indexes as well in March and April/May respectively, which should lead to a lot of passive demand/flows in the stock.
The investment bank expects MSCI to implement changes at its quarterly rebalancing on Feb 28.
(Reporting by Abhishek Vishnoi)
- Tweet this
- Share this
- Digg this


text:
Cisco Misses Expectations for the First Time
Computer networking giant Cisco Systems said today its fiscal 2001 second-quarter earnings rose 48 percent but missed Wall Street's earnings expectations for the first time in several years as the company sounded a note of caution about the economy.
"Cisco missed both on revenue and earnings," said Chuck Hill, research director at First Call/Thomson Financial. The company had repeatedly beat Wall Street estimates by a penny a share.
The San Jose, Calif.-based company said its profit before one-time items rose to $1.33 billion, or 18 cents a share, for its fiscal second quarter ended Jan. 27, from $897 million, or 12 cents a share, in the year-ago quarter. Analysts had on average expected Cisco to report pro forma earnings of 19 cents a share, according to First Call/Thomson Financial.
Sales, which had been widely watched for a slowdown, rose 55 percent to $6.75 billion from $4.36 billion in 2000, falling short of Wall Street's expectations for $7 billion to $7.2 billion.
Cisco, which makes an estimated 70 percent of the world's routers that direct traffic on the Internet, also said it is "cautious" about the market pause.
"While we remain cautious about the implications of a brief pause in the current 10-year expansion of the U.S. economy, we believe that Cisco has never been better positioned to help our customers solve their two most important business issues: increasing productivity and creating new sources of revenue," Cisco Chief Executive John Chambers said in a statement.
"We remain confident about the market opportunity ahead of us over the next three to five years," he added. "This confidence is based on the continued impact of the Internet on productivity, and just how much more work needs to be done before every company is an e-company and a majority of the world's countries are e-countries.
Chambers warned less than two weeks ago that January's business was "more challenging than we anticipated," leading many analysts to question whether Cisco's and the telecommunications industry's growth are slowing.
In after-hours trading, Cisco's stock fell to $34-3/8 on Instinet after closing at $35-3/4, up $1-3/16, or 3.44 percent, on Nasdaq. In the past year, the Internet equipment infrastructure company's stock has underperformed the Nasdaq 100 Index by almost 6 percent.
BACK TO TOP
Disney Earnings Helped by Theme Parks
Walt Disney, (Disney is the parent company of ABCNEWS.com) reported today a higher than expected rise in fiscal first-quarter earnings before one time charges, with improvements in its theme park business, films and its hit show Who Wants To Be A Millionaire offsetting weaker advertising sales in its broadcasting business and losses in its Internet Group.
The Burbank, Calif., company, which owns a film studio, the ABC and ESPN television networks and several theme parks, reported a profit of $341 million, or 16 cents a share, for the three months ended Dec. 31, compared with $278 million, or 13 cents a share, a year earlier. The results exclude one-time charges and assume the same portfolio of assets in both periods.
The Wall Street consensus estimate compiled by research firm First Call/Thomson Financial was a profit of 15 cents a share before charges.
Excluding losses of $228 million from its stake in the Disney Internet Group, the company reported a profit of $594 million, or 28 cents a share.
Disney announced last week it would shut down its money-losing Internet media network Go.com and dissolve its tracking stock for the Disney Internet Group, converting those shares into common stock as of March 20. The company said at the time it would cut 400 jobs and take more than $800 million in second-quarter restructuring charges.
For the first quarter, Disney took a one-time charge of $228 million for accounting changes related to its films and a $50 million charge for changes in derivative accounting.
Including those charges, the company reported net income of $63 million, or 3 cents a share, compared with $356 million, or 17 cents a share, a year earlier.
Revenues climbed 7.2 percent to $7.31 billion from $6.82 billion, on a pro forma basis.
The company's media networks segment, its largest, saw an 8 percent decline in earnings, despite a 6 percent increase in revenue. Disney said broadcasting results declined due to soft advertising, lower ratings and higher programming costs, although these factors were offset by more episodes of its hit ABC show Who Wants To Be A Millionaire.
Disney said its theme parks earnings rose 8 percent on a 9 percent increase in revenue during the quarter.
Film division results flipped to a profit from a loss in the year-ago period, on a 15 percent increase in revenues, helped by the release of Toy Story 2 on video and films like Remember The Titans and Unbreakable.
Consumer products earnings fell 13 percent on a revenue decline of 6 percent.
The figures were released before financial markets opened.
Along with other media stocks, however, Disney has sunk in recent months based on weakening advertising sales compared to last year. The shares reached their 52-week low in December, briefly touching $26.
BACK TO TOP
PepsiCo Posts Sharply Higher Earnings in Q4
PepsiCo reported a nearly 25 percent increase in fourth quarter earnings on Monday, citing double-digit profit growth in both its snacks and beverage businesses and an extra week of results in the latest period.
The nation's biggest salty snacks maker and second biggest soft drink concern earned $611 million, or 41 cents a share, in the three months ended Dec. 30 compared with $490 million, or 33 cents a share, a year ago.
Revenue rose to $6.4 billion from $5.7 billion a year earlier.
PepsiCo ends its fiscal year on the last Saturday in December and that meant the latest quarter included 17 weeks compared with 16 the previous year. The extra week boosted earnings by $44 million, or 3 cents a share, on sales of $294 million.
Without the extra week, it earned $567 million, or 38 cents a share, on sales of $6.1 billion in the latest period.
Analysts surveyed by First Call/Thomson Financial had been looking for earnings of 38 cents a share for the quarter.
"Our strength was broadbased with solid earnings growth across every business, domestic and international," said Roger Enrico, chairman and chief executive.
He said the company expects "consistently healthy results" throughout this year.
Operating profits at the Frito-Lay snacks division rose 10 percent in North America and 11 percent overseas if the extra week is excluded in the latest quarter. The Tostitos and Lay's chip brands led snack food volume growth in North America,
Pepsi-Cola North America's operating profit climbed 13 percent despite investment in introducing lemon-lime Sierra Mist and a line of Dole juice drinks. Pepsi-Cola profits overseas were flat in contrast to a $7 million operating loss last year.
Looking ahead, Pepsi plans several new product launches including Pepsi Lemon Twist and the Code Red flavor extension of Mountain Dew, as well as contributions from its newly acquired SoBe noncarbonated beverages this year.
Profits rose 16 percent at the Tropicana juice division.
For the year, PepsiCo earned $2.18 billion, or $1.48 a share, versus $2.05 billion, or $1.37 a share, a year ago.
BACK TO TOP
The company also repeated its outlook for 2001 earnings.
"Our solid operating performance in 2000 confirms both the validity of our business model and our ability to execute on it," said Verizon Chairman and Co-Chief Executive Charles Lee.
Verizon, formed through last year's merger of Bell Atlantic and GTE , said profits rose to $1.9 billion, or 77 cents a share, compared with $1.7 billion, or 63 cents a share, a year ago.
The results were in line with company and Wall Street forecasts per share, according to research firm First Call/Thomson Financial.
The company said its fourth-quarter results were 70 cents per diluted share, on net income of $1.9 billion, an 11.1 percent rise from 63 cents, or $1.7 billion, in the same period the year before.
Verizon said fourth-quarter revenues rose to $16.9 billion from $15.8 billion for the year-ago period. The reported results for all periods incorporate the net after-tax effect of gains, charges and other adjustments.
Shares of Verizon have gained about 21 percent in the past three months. They have outperformed the Standard & Poors 500-stock index by about 34 percent.
Total adjusted U.S. telecom revenues grew 3.3 percent for the fourth quarter, to $10.9 billion.
Verizon said it expected its 2001 earnings to be in the range of $3.13 to $3.17 a share. The company made a similar forecast in December.
Verizon said it added 190,000 digital subscriber lines in the fourth, 46 percent more than in the third quarter. The lines allow high-speed Internet access through regular telephone wires.
The 540,000 lines in service at the end of the year represent an increase of more than 500 percent over the number in service at the end of 1999.
The company said it was "well positioned in 2001 to further transform our growth profile and move into our target ranges of 8-10 percent revenue growth and $3.13-$3.17 earnings per share."
The company made a similar earnings forecast in December.
Verizon's long-distance unit ended the year with 4.9 million customers nationwide, 44 percent more than the year before. Verizon is the fourth-biggest U.S. provider of
Verizon Wireless added 1.2 million net new customers during the fourth quarter, 5.9 percent more net additions than in fourth-quarter 1999. The total number of customers grew 15.6 percent year-over-year to 27.5 million.
Wireless revenues for the quarter grew to $4.1 billion, up 16.7 percent from fourth-quarter 1999.
Verizon said it added 190,000 digital subscriber lines in the fourth quarter, 46 percent more than in the third quarter. The lines allow high-speed Internet access through regular telephone wires.
The 540,000 lines in service at the end of the year represent a rise of more than 500 percent over the number in service at the end of 1999, it said. BACK TO TOP Fourth-quarter revenue was $6.26 billion, down from $7.70 billion in the fourth quarter of 1999.
DuPont edged Wall Street expectations of 46 cents per share, according to First Call/Thomson Financial.
Raw materials costs soared by $1.3 billion during the year, mostly on the price of crude oil. Like other chemical manufacturers, DuPont is heavily dependent on oil, natural gas and other petroleum byproducts.
The cost of raw materials soared by $250 million in the fourth quarter alone, the company said.
"Our employees worldwide have done a tremendous job countering some of the worst conditions in our industry in a decade," said Charles O. Holliday Jr., DuPont chairman and chief executive. "Six segments had higher revenue and five improved earnings vs. last year, a very solid performance."
An 11 percent slump in U.S. sales was partly offset by a 2 percent gain in overseas sales, but overall sales volume saw a decline of about 5 percent in the quarter.
A strong overseas dollar also hurt the company's profits, with the weak euro reducing quarterly earnings by 5 cents a share and by 15 cents a share for the year, the company said.
For the year, DuPont earned $2.31 billion, or $2.21 per share, on revenue of $29.27 billion. In the year-ago period, DuPont earned $7.69 billion, or $7.08 billion, on revenue of $27.89 billion.
BACK TO TOP
Pfizer's Profits Rise on Strong Viagra Sales
Pfizer, the No. 1 U.S. drugmaker, reported today a 20 percent gain in fourth-quarter operating earnings, meeting Wall Street expectations, helped by sales of its blockbuster anti-cholesterol drug, Lipitor, and arthritis treatment Celebrex.
The New York-based company, also known for its anti-impotence pill Viagra, reported earnings of $1.76 billion, or 27 cents per diluted share, excluding the impact of special items and merger-related costs. In the same year-ago period, the company earned $1.47 billion, or 23 cents per share.
Analysts, on average, had estimated the drugmaker, which acquired New Jersey drug maker Warner-Lambert Co. last year along with Warner-Lambert's crown jewel, Lipitor, would earn 27 cents a share.
After special items and merger related costs, quarterly net income fell 3 percent to $1.42 billion compared with $1.27 billion in the year ago period. Earnings per share after items remained flat at 23 cents.
"With remarkable speed and focus, we have rapidly integrated the industry's two fastest-growing companies while more than doubling our initially forecasted year-2000 merger savings to about $430 million," said Chairman William Steere Jr.
Looking at 2001, Pfizer forecast earnings per share of $1.27 or better, excluding items, and said it plans to spend $5 billion on research and development. Pfizer said it sees 25 percent earnings growth through 2002, and double-digit recorded revenue growth in 2001.
The company said fourth-quarter revenues with special items rose 8 percent to $8.1 billion compared with $7.5 billion a year ago. Reported global sales of prescription drugs in the United States rose 19 percent to $4.2 billion, excluding the impact of foreign exchange and the company's withdrawal last year of diabetes drug Rezulin following safety concerns.
Outside the U.S., pharmaceutical sales jumped 20 percent to $2.3 billion in the quarter on the same basis.
Shares of Pfizer have flourished in 2000 along with those of the rest of the pharmaceutical industry, as investors took money out of slumping technology stocks in favor of defensive areas like the drugs sector — an area seen as safe haven because the economy does not affect how many pills people take.
The stock has outperformed its peers on the American Stock Exchange Pharmaceutical Index by nearly 5 percent over the last 52 weeks, and out-paced the benchmark Standard & Poor's 500 index by about 20 percent over that period.
Pfizer said its so-called "alliance" revenues from combined sales of two drugs it co-markets with other companies — Pharmacia Corp.'s Celebrex and Eisai Inc.'s Alzheimer's disease treatment Aricept — soared 63 percent to $348 million in the quarter.
Global sales of Lipitor jumped 26 percent to $1.43 billion and grew 33 percent in the year to $5 billion — reaching the company's previously stated goal.
Global Viagra sales in the period rose 37 percent to $380 million in the fourth quarter.
Regarding its acquisition of Warner-Lambert, Pfizer said it achieved $430 million in savings in 2000 and sees merger savings in 2001 of $1.2 billion, growing to at least $1.6 billion in 2002. BACK TO TOP
International Paper's Earnings Fall 36 Percent
International Paper, the world's largest paper and forest products company, said today its fourth-quarter earnings fell 36 percent due to rising energy costs and the slowing U.S. economy.
The company said net earnings for the quarter, before special items, were $145 million, or 28 cents per share, compared with $227 million, or 55 cents per share in the 1999 quarter.
After special items, including pre-tax, one-time charges for Union Camp and Champion merger-related costs, IP posted a loss of 85 cents for the fourth quarter.
After IP warned a month ago of an earnings shortfall, the average consensus of analysts polled by First Call/Thomson Financial was lowered from 44 cents to 30 cents per share.
Fourth-quarter net sales were $7.2 billion, compared with $6.3 billion for the same period in 1999.
John Dillon, chairman and chief executive officer, said the slowing economy and rising energy costs occurred when the weather turns colder and demand drops for lumber and other wood products.
"As demand fell, we maintained our commitment to keep our production in line with customer orders, which negatively impacted overall sales," he said. "While many of these factors are continuing into the opening months of 2001, the steps we are taking will lead to a stronger International Paper for the long term."
International Paper said it has nearly completed its previously announced plan to adjust capacity as the wood products industry continues to battle lower demand and higher energy costs.
The company has closed its Mobile, Ala. and Camden, Ark. mills, and completed the downsizing of the Courtland, Ala. mill. The closure of the Lockhaven, Pa. mill is proceeding on schedule, IP said.
It also said asset sales are progressing rapidly as International Paper focuses on its three core businesses — paper, packaging and forest products. The company has increased its asset sales target to $5 billion, including timberlands, to be completed by the end of 2001.
It said it aims to reduce capital spending to $1.2 billion in the year 2001, which is about 60 percent of depreciation and amortization. The capital expenditure program in 2001 is 20 percent below the $1.4 billion spent in the year 2000, it said.
International Paper makes paper, packaging and wood and building products, as well as being the largest private forest landowner in the world. It has operations in nearly 50 countries, employs more than 117,000 people and exports its products to more than 130 nations. BACK TO TOP
Mad Cow Takes a Bite out of McDonald's
Fast food giant McDonald's said today its fourth-quarter earnings fell 7 percent as an outbreak of mad cow disease in Europe pushed the region's sales down 10 percent and threatened to weaken the company's first quarter results.
Net income at the Oak Brook, Ill.-based hamburger maker, the largest restaurant company in the world, fell to $452 million, or 34 cents a share, from $486.2 million, or 35 cents a share, a year earlier. McDonald's was expected to earn 35 cents a share, according to a recent poll of analysts by First Call/Thomson Financial.
McDonald's, which operates nearly 5,500 restaurants in Europe, its second-largest market behind the United States, has since November seen sales erode amid an outbreak of mad cow disease, or bovine spongiform encephalopathy, on the continent.
BSE is a chronic degenerative disease affecting the central nervous system of cattle and is believed to be contracted through feed containing animal by-products. It has been linked to a similar brain-wasting disease in humans.
CEO Jack Greenberg said in a statement that he expects a difficult first quarter of 2001 due to continued mad cow concerns, tough comparisons from last year, and an extra trading day in 2000.
"We expect the first quarter to be very challenging, due to outstanding results and an extra trading day in 2000, and continuing consumer confidence issues about European beef," he said.
The company has been battling public fears with stepped up advertising and greater promotion of non-beef products.
Sales to Europe, the company's second-largest market behind the U.S., fell 10 percent in the quarter to $2.21 billion from $2.45 billion one year ago. Operating income fell 17 percent to $267.3 million from $322.2 million.
"Europe got hit pretty hard," said Bear Stearns analyst Joe Buckley, who in June lowered his rating on McDonald's shares to neutral due to broader international concerns, including fluctuations in the euro. "The problem with mad cow is that it is an unknown. No one knows how long these concerns last."
Systemwide sales, which include sales from restaurants owned by franchises and those owned by the company, rose to $9.92 billion from $9.75 billion a year ago.
Sales in the United States, McDonald's largest market, rose 3 percent to $4.82 billion, from $4.68 billion one year ago. Operating income rose 14 percent to $385.3 million from $338.9 million. Sales in Asia Pacific, McDonald's third-largest market, rose 3 percent to $1.75 billion from $1.70 billion a year ago.
"Despite a number of operating challenges, our worldwide comparable sales were positive and systemwide sales increased seven percent in constant currencies for the year," Greenberg said.
The company plans to add about 1,700 restaurants in 2001, he said. The company said that 2001 per share earnings were expected to grow between 10 percent to 13 percent, excluding the impact of foreign currency translation.
In the year, it plans to buy back about $1.2 billion in stock, the remainder of a three-year $4.5 billion plan. In 2000, it purchased $2.0 billion worth. BACK TO TOP
Qwest Tops Wall Street
Telephone and data services provider Qwest Communications today posted a better-than-expected 44 percent jump in fourth-quarter profits, propelled by robust growth in Internet, data and wireless telephone revenues.
Qwest, which acquired regional phone company U S West Inc. last year in a $36 billion deal, said in a statement it was on track to meet its targets for 2001 revenues and earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, or EBITDA, a key measure of a company's performance.
Andrew Hamerling, an analyst with Banc of America, called the results "terrific."
"Everything is as expected," he said. "Overall I'd say it's a great quarter."
The Denver-based company said pro forma profits excluding one-time items rose to $270 million, or 16 cents a diluted share, compared with $188 million, or 11 cents a share, a year ago.
The results beat Wall Street expectations of 14 cents a share, according to research firm First Call/Thomson Financial.
"With the initial integration of the [U S West] merger successfully completed, we are on track to meet our expected growth rates," Chairman and Chief Executive Joseph Nacchio said in a statement.
Qwest said revenues rose 9.9 percent to $5.02 billion. The increase was driven by growth of almost 40 percent in Internet and data services.
Wireless revenues rose 90 percent to almost $150 million. The number of wireless customers increased to more than 805,000, above the company's target of 800,000 for the end of 2000.
Fourth-quarter EBITDA was up 19.7 percent, to $1.99 billion.
Shares of Qwest have fallen about 10 percent amid sharp declines throughout the telecom sector over the past year. Its stock has underperformed the Standard & Poor's 500 index by about 4 percent.
The company also said it expected to double the number of customers for its digital subscriber line (DSL) service, which provides high-speed Internet access over conventional phone lines, to 500,000 by the end of the year.
Qwest said it ended 2000 with more than 255,000 DSL customers, above its target of 250,000.
It also said it expected to file with the Federal Communications Commission to enter long-distance service in several states by the end of 2001.
It expects to apply to reenter long-distance business in one of the states in its local service area by the summer.
Tavis McCourt, an analyst with Morgan Keegan & Co. Inc. in Memphis, Tenn., said entry into long-distance markets was vital for Qwest's growth.
"Certainly they are going to be as aggressive as possible to make that a reality," he said.
Qwest reiterated that it expected 2001 revenues to be in the range of $21.3 billion to $21.7 billion and EBITDA to be $8.5 billion to $8.7 billion.
Hamerling, the Banc of America analyst, said the biggest challenge facing Qwest was to meet its target of 20 percent long-term EBITDA growth.
BACK TO TOP
Whirlpool Reiterates Job Cuts
Appliance maker Whirlpool met Wall Street's lowered fourth-quarter earnings expectations and affirmed its global restructuring plan will mean up to 6,000 jobs cut in the coming year.
The company said today it expects to trim more than 2,000 jobs worldwide as part of the restructuring's first phase, with more details to be announced within two weeks.
All told, the company shake-up — which will pare 10 percent of Whirlpool's 60,000-member work force — will result in pre-tax charges of $300 million to $350 million, with annualized savings of $225 million to $250 million, the company said.
"This will be a year of challenge and opportunity," David R. Whitwam, Whirlpool's chairman and chief executive, said in a statement. "We believe that our strong brands, global platform, innovative products and consumer focus — combined with our restructuring efforts and the associated lower cost structure — will produce a strong operational performance and solid financial results in 2001."
Whirlpool said its fourth-quarter net earnings were $67 million, or $1 per share, compared with $113 million, or $1.51 per share, during the year-ago period.
Analysts surveyed by First Call/Thomson Financial were expecting 99 cents per share, having lowered their estimate from $1.42 a share after Whirlpool issued an earnings warning last month. At the time, Whirlpool blamed intensified price competition, rising material costs, and slowing or declining demand.
The company said sales during the three months ended Dec. 31 were $2.58 billion, down 4 percent from $2.69 billion in the year-ago period.
It added that it expects its first-quarter performance, excluding charges, to be in line with fourth-quarter earnings of $1 per share. Analysts surveyed by First Call/Thomson Financial had been expecting $1.02 per share.
The North American appliance industry has been expected to be down 7 percent to 8 percent in the fourth quarter versus the same period in 1999, Whirlpool said last month. Earlier company estimates forecast a fourth-quarter decline in industry shipments of 2 percent to 3 percent.
Whirlpool has said its restructuring involves a reduction and reconfiguration of global operations, including the closure of some plants.
For the year, Whirlpool earned $367 million, or $5.20 per share, on sales of $10.33 billion. In the previous year, the company earned $347 million, or $4.56 per share, on sales of $10.51 billion.
Whirlpool is the world's largest manufacturer and marketer of major home appliances. It sells products under 11 brand names in more than 170 countries. The Benton Harbor-based company has major operations in seven states — Arkansas, Indiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Ohio, Oklahoma and Tennessee — and 12 countries, including Canada and Mexico.
BACK TO TOP -->


text:
India’s first black alkaline water brand Evocus aims to sell 5 million bottles in its first year
- Evocus — the country’s first
black alkaline water— has been launched in the national capital region today.
nutrient waterbottle is priced at ₹100 and is presently available across 24Seven and Food Hall.
- The Company aims to sell upto 5 million bottles in the first year.
AdvertisementEvocus — the country’s first black alkaline water — was launched in the national capital today.
The nutrient water bottle is priced at ₹100, is manufactured by AV Organics, a startup based out of Gujarat. The product is presently available across 24Seven and Food Hall. The Company aims to sell upto 5 million bottles in the first year.
Before its Delhi launch, the company launched the product in Pune, Chandigarh and Vadodara. It is slated to be launched in eight cities over the next five months — Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Mumbai, Chennai, Indore, Ahmedabad and Surat.
Evocus claims to provide “sustained hydration, better detoxification and improved metabolism benefits” to consumers. Alkaline water has a pH level above 7. It contains more than 70 minerals which provide for better metabolism and digestion--hence rendering it with black colour.
“The National Capital Region is an important market for us considering the NCR’s diverse, discerning consumer base, we are confident the alkaline, mineral-enriched Evocus will meet their desire for wellness through improved hydration and better detoxification,” said Aakash Vaghela, founder and managing director at AV Organics.
The startup invested $1 million on the bottling plant in Vadodara, which can produce nearly 40 million bottles annually.
‘Black drinking water’ at ₹100 a bottle – a 30-year old Gujarati realtor’s new business idea for India's healthy brigade
Five years on, India may not even get a chance to solve its on-going water crisis risking hundreds of millions of lives
AdvertisementIndia’s water crisis deepens as Hyderabad might run out of water, like Chennai
- India's National Security Advisor Doval meets US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in Delhi
- Airbnb predicts what travel in 2021 will look like
- Schools in Rajasthan may reopen on November 2 for 10th through 12th grade
- Air pollution ups COVID-19 deaths by 15% worldwide, claims study
- China launches three new spy satellites amid border dispute with India and tensions in the South China Sea


text:
You're held to the highest standard in the event that a couple of touchdown catches isn't enough to allow you to at least stand still with your Madden rating.
Every week, EA's Madden video game launches each week a new Team of the Week featuring star players from past and current NFL games. It's Week 12 in the NFL and we're seeing a variety of teams already fighting for playoff spots in the home stretch. The past weekend featured a variety of important performances, including one by the Denver Broncos' Patrick Surtain II. He was named Player of the Week accolades in Madden 22 TOTW 12. Here's the latest news on his items and more, as well as predictions.
After some amazing football last weekend, it's time to announce the"Team of The Week.. Coming in hot to be used on Madden 22 totw 12 players cards are the new Patrick Surtain POTW item. Surtain has recorded five tackles, and two interceptions as well as an interception for the Broncos on Sunday, when they played the Chargers. Denver won to pick the win by 28-13. The Broncos improved to 6-5 in the highly-competitive AFC.
The new Player of the Day card (below) will be a 94-OVR, with a Man to Man Archetype. It includes 95 Jumping, Man Coverage in 94, Acceleration as well as 93 Zone Coverage. Agility 93, and Speed, in addition to other fantastic characteristics.
Three other items unveiled for Madden's Team of the Week 12 lineup are player card packs for prior performances in November. The limited-access pack this week goes to Jason Pierre-Paul. He gets the 95 OVR Speed Rusher archetype. His card brings 95 Finesse Moves with 95 Play Recognition, Acceleration of 94 points, 91 Strength and the speed of 89.
Buy Madden 22 Coins, MUT 22 Coins For Sale - https://www.mmoexp.com/Nfl-22/Coins.html


text:
OnePlus is set to follow up the OnePlus Nord with a 2021 sequel set to launch sometime in the spring. A rumor report quoting a reliable source indicates the new phone is going to be a definitive upgrade over its predecessor in at least one way — the processor. The new Nord, apparently set to be named the Nord 2, may come with MediaTek’s Dimensity 1200 SoC, a flagship-class chip that’s more powerful than the midrange Snapdragon 765 found in the first Nord.
Here’s why this is a big deal for MediaTek especially. Most high-end Android phones sold across the world use chips from Qualcomm. A more “mainstream” brand like OnePlus will give MediaTek more credibility in the high-end market, especially internationally, and it’ll also provide some much-needed competition to Qualcomm. It has been MediaTek’s intention to fight for inclusion in high-end phones since it launched its 5G endeavors, and a OnePlus deal would be a significant step forward for the company.
The MediaTek Dimensity 1200 is an impressive chip. Here’s a quote from our earlier coverage: “Built using a 6nm process, the octa-core Dimensity 1200 uses an ultra-core Arm Cortex A78, three super-core Arm Cortex A78, and four Arm Cortex A55 cores, with a Sub-6 5G modem built-in, a nine-core GPU, and an updated six-core APU for artificial intelligence duties, which provides a 10% performance upgrade over previous versions.”
The Dimensity 1200 supports cameras up to 200-megapixels with 4K HDR video recording. It can power FHD+ displays with a refresh rate up to 168Hz. It also offers Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.2 connectivity options. OnePlus made its name in building affordable flagship phones, and the Nord was a return to this after prices of its other phones crept up. The reasonably priced, yet powerful Dimensity 1200 fits in with the Nord brand, and with OnePlus’s own ethos.
Don’t expect the OnePlus Nord 2 to be a specced-out beast with a 200-megapixel camera or a 144Hz display, especially if OnePlus plans to keep it affordable, but what the Dimensity 1200 does offer is flexibility. OnePlus can prioritize what matters most, and that may lead to a more interesting phone than the original Nord.
OnePlus is likely still shipping the OnePlus 9 and 9 Pro with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 processor, but the Nord 2 will be an option for those who want a powerful smartphone without having to pay flagship prices, and that’s also exactly what MediaTek wants to be known for.
- Do Pixel 6 cases fit the Pixel 7? Here’s what you need to know
- Does the Google Pixel 7 have wireless charging? Charge options, explained
- Google’s special speaker dock turns the Pixel Tablet into a massive Nest Hub
- Google Pixel 7 and 7 Pro hands-on: Google’s best Pixels get a little better
- Why the Pixel 7 Pro’s similarity to the Pixel 6 Pro is the best thing about it


text:
From 13 till 15 February strategic session on region development took part in Ulan-Ude. Teachers of the BHSAD and specialists of different industries – Umberto Giraudo, BA (Hons) Interior Architecture and Design course leader, Fedor Raschevsky, architect and course leader of "Interior design" course and fashion designers Anna Chernykh and Vladimir Tamilin – shared their experience and ideas on developing the region.
Baikal BEST programme is the initiative of the Ministry of Economics of Buryatia. At first only government officials were involved in the programme, but then its initiators decided to invite creative minds to share their insights as well.
During the session different topics were discussed, such as recycling, developing tourism and improving the quality of life. Designers Anna Chernykh and Vladimir Tamilin advised that fashion industry can be used to promote the culture and tourism of the region, while architect Fedor Raschevsky started working on creating a new creative cluster based in an old distillery in Ulan-Ude.
Baikal BEST program will be in the works until 2035. And this year's session opened the opportunity of involving specialists from creative industries in this project.


text:
Citigroup Inc. is launching a new digital token service and blockchain system, in its latest investment into digital assets. The $1.72 trillion asset manager will launch the digital token, called Citi Token Services, for real-time payments.
According to Citigroup, the product will turn customers’ deposits into digital tokens, which can be sent instantly to anyone worldwide. The firm’s treasury and trade solutions division will run the new digital asset.
“The development of Citi Token Services is part of our journey to deliver real-time, always-on, next-generation transaction banking services to our institutional clients,” Shahmir Khaliq, global head of the company’s services division, says in a statement. To operate the Citi Token service, Citigroup will work on a private blockchain owned and operated by the company.
The newest feature comes after months of testing a regulated liability network. The network would allow banks to simulate issuing digital money representing their customers’ own funds before settling through central bank reserves on a distributed ledger. The test targeted the Fed and was to prove that digital currency can improve wholesale payments.
In addition, Citi group members won’t need to set up a digital wallet to use this new feature. The service will be accessible through Citibank’s existing system. According to the bank, Citi Token Services will also apply to a global cash management pilot, enabling clients to transfer liquidity between Citi branches on a 24/7 basis.


text:
SAN DIEGO – Sept. 17, 2010– Whole Foods Market today announced that it has awarded the latest low-interest loan out of its Southern Pacific region to a tortilla chip company in San Diego through the company's Local Producer Loan Program. The loan to Whale Tails Chips is part of a company-wide initiative to provide up to $10 million in low-interest, long-term loans to small local producers throughout the U.S.
“We are so pleased with both this program and the fact that even with the current economic situation we can continue to provide loans to our valued producers,” said Patrick Bradley, Southern Pacific Regional President for Whole Foods Market. “We want our regional producers to know that we are more than a retailer – we are here to help them grow their businesses. We are happy to support Whale Tails and their commitment to protecting the environment and manufacturing a high quality product. ”
Whale Tails Chips is an innovative company that makes corn tortilla chips in the shape of a whale’s tail, with a mission for fine quality snacks that make dipping easy. Whale Tails Chips promotes the understanding and preservation of whales and the environment while maintaining socially and environmentally responsible business practices. The company will use the loan to promote the benefits of changing to a BioPlastic compostable film that will be used in their chip bags, which will be available soon. Compostable BioPlastic both reduces the need for using crude oil in the manufacturing process and the long-term harm of plastic in landfills and the oceans.
“I am so proud and honored to be the recipient of this loan,” said Ric Kraszewski, Vice President of Sales for Whale Tails Chips. “I hope to spread knowledge about the use of compostable bags and set the example for other companies, showing that if I can go green, we all can. Let’s change how we make plastics and get it out of our oceans.”
To date, local producers in the Southern Pacific Region, which includes California, Arizona, Hawaii and Nevada, have received $125,455 in loans. Other loan recipients include Laughing Giraffe Organics, Alaska’s Bakery, Righteously Raw and NuttZo.
To apply for a loan through Whole Foods Market’s Local Producer Loan Program, producers must meet Whole Foods Market’s quality standards, use the funds for expansion, not operating expenses, and have a viable business plan. Loans range from $1,000 to $100,000 and have fixed, low interest rates. To view online video testimonials and to learn more about the Local Producer Loan Program, visit wholefoodsmarket.com/loans.


text:
This is Hot Pod, The Verge’s newsletter about podcasting and the audio industry. Sign up here for more.
Hello! Apologies for the late send, I have been buried in Hot Pod Summit prep. I promise it will be worth it! We’re putting together a great lineup for 2024. We’re still working on our invitation list — if you’re interested in attending, let us know here.
This is about the time yakky media folks like myself come out with predictions for next year. Nick Quah published takes from people across the industry today for Vulture. Yesterday, The Podglomerate’s Joni Deutsch had a piece for Nieman Lab with her own predictions. I highly recommend checking out both!
Today, I don’t have predictions so much as stories on which I am keeping a close watch. Let’s get into it.
Talent deals up for renewal
Many of those big-money, multiyear deals announced in 2020 and 2021 are coming up for renewal in 2024. Companies spent tens of millions of dollars (or, in Joe Rogan’s case, hundreds of millions of dollars) to snatch up top podcasting talent. Now, they have to decide: was it worth it, and will it be worth it to play that game again?
As media companies become more austere in their spending, it is easy to assume that we won’t see these minimum guarantee deals again. But celebrity chat shows, for better or worse, have endured. Rogan is still untouchable, SmartLess is bigger than ever, and Apple just named Julia Louis-Dreyfus’ podcast Show of the Year. One agent told me that despite the doom and gloom of the industry, their clients have had a growth year. These hosts have audiences, and audio companies are going to have to pay up to keep them.
That is not to say everyone will get a renewal or that a renewal will mean the same kind of deal as before. Arrangements in which the minimum guarantee is smaller but the revenue potential is higher (like with Trevor Noah’s Spotify deal) could become more common.
And not everyone may get a renewal, after all! It’s hard to see how Spotify would not fight for Rogan or SiriusXM would not pay to keep Ashley Flowers. But maybe that is less of a priority for, say, Dax Shepard. Armchair Expert ranked ninth on Apple Podcasts in 2020 and was snatched up by Spotify in 2021. Since then, it has lost its buzz, and Spotify decided to distribute it across platforms earlier this year (which the company has not done with its two biggest stars, Rogan and Alex Cooper). Today, Armchair Expert ranks 30th on Spotify and 118th on Apple. That is nothing to sniff at, but I would be surprised if he got another $50 million deal.
Regulatory changes in Europe
Some long-simmering tech regulation in Europe is going to come to a head next year. This has been championed first and foremost by Spotify, which has railed against Apple’s control over in-app payments for subscriptions and audiobooks. But if things shake out the way the EU intends, it could make for a more competitive audio industry overall.
In 2022, the European Union adopted the Digital Markets Act as law, which prevents “gatekeeper” companies (Apple, Alphabet, Meta, Amazon, ByteDance, and Microsoft) from employing practices that derail smaller tech companies. There is a lot involved, but one of the key tenets is banning those companies from self-preferencing their own products and services in places such as search (Google) or marketplaces (the App Store). Those companies have until March to be in compliance with the new law.
This could potentially be great for Spotify’s bottom line. It could also make it easier for audio startups to compete in the open market. The tangible effects in the US next year will be minimal, if they are anything at all. But if the next great audio company can emerge in this new landscape, the podcast industry may have something to gain in the long run.
More AI (duh)
This year, I noticed a distinct shift in the industry’s attitude toward AI. When I left for maternity leave in April, people (including me!!) seemed to be really nervous about what innovations in AI technology would mean for podcasting, especially as examples mostly came in the form of fully AI-generated podcasts like The Joe Rogan AI Experience. When I got back in September, it seemed like people had reached the stage of AI acceptance.
I don’t think that means we will see too many significant podcasts that are totally AI. Instead, I think it means we will see AI seep into podcasting in subtle ways. Voice cloning technology, like that by ElevenLabs, is getting better and has been used by studios like Dear Media for Believable: The Coco Berthmann Story and Vox Media Podcast Network for Land of the Giants’ season on Tesla. Spotify’s new tool that automatically translates podcasts into other languages could be a game-changer for scaling shows. And there are probably a million other ways it can be used that I am not thinking about because that is simply not how my brain works.
If my vibe earlier this year was that the robots will destroy all media jobs (still a possibility!!), I am more hopeful that there are ways AI can be deployed that do not fundamentally alter the core of a podcast.
A year for reinvention
I know you are already aware of this, but a lot of people were laid off this year. It has been devastating to watch talented producers, engineers, and ad professionals be cut adrift because of companies that got into podcasting without a solid strategy. Unfortunately, some of them won’t be able to wait around for those jobs to come back and will move on to other sectors. But some will remain and make things that push the industry forward.
I want to be clear, this is not a replacement for good jobs that allow people to live their lives while making good work (and, you know, have health insurance). But out from under the thumb of corporate overlords who demand yet another true crime show or haphazardly throw in programmatic ads or impose (and then change) metrics, people in podcasting will innovate. Maybe that means funky show concepts that would never get approved by a SiriusXM or Spotify. Or that could mean alternate business models and ownership structures. Or maybe we will even get that long-anticipated fix for podcast discovery.
This time last year, things (rightfully) seemed bleak. And people have a lot of right to feel betrayed by the companies that threw money at podcasting just to drop it a few years later. But I am hopeful that 2024 will bring good things in podcasting, though probably not from the people or places you expect.
Anything you are thinking about going into the new year? Feel free to reach out at [email protected].


text:
Cineworld (LSE:CINE) has had a 2020 to forget and will be hoping for a better 2021. The Covid-19 pandemic has effectively shut down its operations and things have looked bleak for many months now. Surprisingly to many, the Cineworld share price has rallied in the past six weeks or so, which makes it look like a potential opportunity.
Cineworld share price woes
Cineworld has taken on a large amount of debt to navigate the pandemic. I believe this enormous debt level could have an effect on profits for years to come, which is not good news for investors. Any profits will probably repay creditors rather than reward shareholders.
News of the Covid-19 vaccine and its roll out in the UK have caused the share price to rally with improving investor sentiment. Since the beginning of November, CINE’s price soared over 120%. However, in the whole of 2020, it is down over 70%.
I am not willing to gamble my hard earned cash on the Cineworld share price. Instead I am looking at other alternatives.
Top UK growth stock for 2021
I believe Clipper Logistics (LSE:CLG) is one of the top UK growth stocks right now and that it will only get better in 2021. CLG offers services such as warehousing, delivery, e-commerce fulfilment, and returns management for retailers. It has a distinguished client base. This includes the likes of ASOS, John Lewis, M&S, and Sports Direct.
The CLG share price has a lot of momentum right now, unlike the Cineworld share price. CLG’s share price is up nearly 100% in 2020 alone. It has also surpassed pre-crash levels. Clipper has benefitted from government restrictions during the pandemic as consumers turn to online shopping and this is reflected in recent results.
Earlier this month, CLG released interim half-year results for the six months ending 31 October 2020. Revenue rose almost 20% compared to the same period last year. There was particularly strong performance in e-fulfilment and returns management. These divisions were up nearly 40% in revenue alone. Profit before tax and amortisation was up nearly 35% compared to the same period. The business has prospered during the economic downturn in my opinion.
In late August, CLG announced full-year results for the year ending 30 April 2020. Revenue increased by almost 9% to £500.7m while basic earnings per share rose by over 20% to 15.9p. Due to these favourable results, a dividend of 9.7p per share was declared. These results were also very favourable and only a small portion of the time period was within the pandemic. This shows CLG was already on the up prior the downturn.
Forget the CINE share price
I believe the Cineworld share price has rallied due to the belief that life may return to normal eventually due to the vaccine news. A company like Clipper Logistics has performed well throughout the downturn. I believe that the services it provides and customer base it possesses could lead to further big contract wins and catapult it towards a new level of growth. Analysts also expect CLG’s revenue to grow approximately 20% alone for this full fiscal year, which is very promising.
I mentioned earlier the Cineworld share price is too much of a gamble. Clipper Logistics is a good opportunity for 2021 in my opinion. I am also looking at other stocks that I believe could be top performers in 2021.
Jabran Khan has no position in any shares mentioned. The Motley Fool UK has recommended Clipper Logistics. Views expressed on the companies mentioned in this article are those of the writer and therefore may differ from the official recommendations we make in our subscription services such as Share Advisor, Hidden Winners and Pro. Here at The Motley Fool we believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.


text:
The latest insider build of Windows 11, which can be installed by people who have signed up to help test out the operating system before its launch on October 5, makes a small – but useful – tweak to the Start menu, by adding ‘Sign-in options’ above the power options.
- Find out where to buy Windows 10
- How to download Windows 11 right now
- Soothing sounds are coming to themes in Windows 11
Being able to quickly change how you sign into Windows 11 is certainly helpful, so we’re glad to see Microsoft experimenting with easier access.
Even if you’re testing out Windows 11, you may not see this change just yet as the new build, 22458, is currently only out for people on the Dev Channel. This is for people testing very early versions of Windows 11, mainly to see if their apps are compatible. Most people will probably be using the beta channel instead, which offers older, but more stable, Windows 11 preview builds. If this change proves successful then it may be a few weeks before we see it in the beta channel.
As Windows Central reports, this new build includes several bug fixes as well, including a fixing a Start menu bug that affected its performance. Here’s the full list of fixes from Microsoft’s changelog:
- Fixed an underlying issue that was impacting Start reliability.
- Folders with # in folder name can now be added to indexing.
- Addressed an issue that was causing Settings to crash sometimes when trying to open the Display page.
- Clicking “More about refresh rate” in Advanced Display Settings now opens the support page it’s supposed to.
- Fixed an issue where the Location page in Settings wasn’t showing warning text explaining why the location services setting was greyed out if it was greyed out.
- Changes made to preferences under Manage App Execution Alias in Settings should now be preserved.
- Fixed a couple of typos in the output of dll (Issue #206).
- Mitigated an issue that could make certain games unexpectedly crash when using ALT + Enter (i.e., switch between full screen and windowed) during with Auto HDR enabled.
- Addressed an issue that was causing text truncation in the Encrypting File System window in certain cases.
- Fixed a rare scenario that could result in an uninstalled in-box app unexpectedly reappearing after reboot.
- Appx commandlets should now work with PowerShell 7.0+ printui.dll
This build also includes a new Tips app, which Microsoft says comes with over 100 tips “to help you get started on Windows 11 and learn new things—discover keyboard shortcuts, find ways to optimize your PC, dive into productivity tips for Office, power up your gaming on Windows, and much more.”
While this new app could help people get used to Windows 11, there’s also concern that it could mean Windows 11 also gets more annoying pop-ups. Let’s hope that’s not the case.
Get daily insight, inspiration and deals in your inbox
Get the hottest deals available in your inbox plus news, reviews, opinion, analysis and more from the TechRadar team.
Analysis: Room for improvement
As we mentioned, Microsoft’s tweaks to Windows 11’s Start menu have provided to be rather controversial. Moving it to the center of the screen has frustrated a lot of people, who are used to it being I the far-left of the taskbar. Pinning and moving apps have also been restricted.
As Microsoft found out with Windows 8, where it dropped the Start menu altogether, a lot of Windows users care deeply about the Start menu. As the name suggests, for many people it’s the first thing they use when on their PC, so any changes have to be carefully thought about. After all, after the backlash Windows 8 got, the Start menu was back in Windows 10.
Part of the reason why Microsoft has made Windows 11 available early to insiders is to get feedback, and if the concerns about the Windows 11 Start menu are numerous enough, it could lead to Microsoft rethinking its plans.
This latest tweak also shows that Microsoft isn’t finished with the Start menu, and is trying out new things, even with the final release of Windows 11 coming in a few weeks. This is good news, as it shows the company is happy to keep working on the Start menu, and will hopefully find a way to make it appeal to as many users as possible.
- These are the best laptops
Matt is TechRadar's Managing Editor for Core Tech, looking after computing and mobile technology. Having written for a number of publications such as PC Plus, PC Format, T3 and Linux Format, there's no aspect of technology that Matt isn't passionate about, especially computing and PC gaming. Ever since he got an Amiga A500+ for Christmas in 1991, he's loved using (and playing on) computers, and will talk endlessly about how The Secret of Monkey Island is the best game ever made.


text:
Did you miss any underground crypto news this week? Probably. The Daily Decrypt delivers all the headlines you'll want to know.
The ProTip extension for Chrome has been upgraded to version one. ProTip is the closest thing to Patreon's pull-model in crypto right now (being your own bank is the “push” model). ProTip has been designed to let content consumers automatically tip out all their favorite content creators each week by loading up the in-browser ProTip wallet. The wallet tracks the user's time spent on any page throughout the week which features a Bitcoin address, and divides the goods up among them without requiring further input.
This telling image was spotted at a magazine rack in a Barnes & Noble:
Bitwala has joined Coinimal in offering a Bitcoin-to-PayPal top-up service. The companies charge account holders no fee for this service, but users must still pay PayPal's commercial transaction fee.
Developers at Streamium have reached out to their user-base to see who's who among their earliest adopters. They've found that roughly half their streamers are “cam girls” – the ladies of the night (and day) who sell their charms and beauty over chat sessions. Streamium's developers expect that cam girls have found refuge in their protocol due to Bitcoin's impossibility of chargebacks, Streamium's ability to accept “test payments” before full purchase, and its lack of fees.
OpenLedger is the web-based version of BitShares 2.0 – the “Graphene” wallet. Beyond its wallet, there are also user-issued assets, a user-issued asset exchange, a centralized exchange gateway, a decentralized exchange (or “dex,” though it's reported to have low liquidity), a voting section, and more. Some say that banks and financial institutions – if they still exist in the future – will use OpenLedger/Graphene.
The Economist has awarded Satoshi Nakamoto with the No Boundaries Award at the Innovation Awards & Summit 2015 for his creation of “a digital currency for peer-to-peer transactions.”
Payment processor Coinify has gone from allowing merchants to accept bitcoin to equipping them to accept a total of 16 cryptocurrencies. Among them are Ether, Dogecoin, Reddcoin, Nubits, StorjX, and Counterparty.
Cold storage expert MyCryptoVault has published an interest piece on how to hide money in photographs. Using the now-vintage Microsoft Paint, the blog details how breaking an imported photo down by colors can generate the random 64 characters needed to create a public-private key pair for a Bitcoin address.
And what happened on Friday, November 6? Watch The Daily Decrypt's episode to find out:
The Daily Decrypt is a Monday-through-Friday newscast about off-the-beaten path crypto projects and groundswell innovations. Follow them on Twitter and Facebook, or check out their Soundcloud podcast.


text:
If you?re with Nike, you don?t worry about China. The company reported that its revenue from that country soared 20% in the just completed quarter.
If you work elsewhere, however, you probably shudder when the topic turns to the hit China delivered in Q2. IBM, for instance, said China revenue for the period was down 25%.
Yum! Brands reported same-store sales there tumbled 10% while China operating profit plunged 25%. China sales were down 4% despite 7% unit growth.
Siemens said China sales declined 8% in the quarter, and new orders fell 2%.
BorgWarner blamed China?s limping auto market while reporting an overall 21% drop in net income.
United Technologies did not escape unscathed. New orders for its Otis elevator division were down 10% in China. Chinese orders in its climate, controls, and security segment were off 15%.
Anheuser-Busch InBev said volume fell 6.5% in China.
Frans van Houten, chief executive of Philips NV, on his earnings call spoke of ?negative order intake? in China.
Caterpillar continued to suffer. ?Our industry has been cut in half in the last year as they stabilize that economy,? said CEO Doug Oberhelman, referring to the Chinese authorities.
China was mentioned in almost half of the recent earnings calls of S&P 500 companies according to FactSet.
No surprise that China is now the factor lowering forecasts for the rest of the year. Take Volkswagen, the market leader in the world?s largest auto market. The German company, citing ?uncertainties,? expects this year?s sales in China to be lower than 2104?s.
Ford, generally doing well in that country, is not expecting a banner year either. ?At best we?re saying flat, probably down,? said CFO Bob Shanks to the BBC. If China sales in fact fall, it will be the first decline for the company there since 1990.
Companies by and large didn?t appreciate the magnitude of China?s slowdown and were caught off guard in Q2. Most executives, however, are not particularly perturbed. Says Apple CEO Tim Cook: ?Nothing that?s happened has changed our fundamental view that China will be Apple?s largest market at some point in the future.? And then there?s Mark Fields. ?We?re still very bullish on China, but it?s going to go through its fluctuations,? said the Ford CEO. ?That?s what happens in emerging markets.?
Read more at?FORBES


text:
Tesla CEO and self-dubbed Technoking is back-peddling on the company’s stance about bitcoin and has suspended purchases of its electric vehicles with the cryptocurrency.
The change of stance, which was delivered via tweet, comes just weeks after Tesla CFO and dubbed “Master of Coin” Zach Kirkhorn said the company believes in the longevity of bitcoin, despite its volatility. The tweet from Musk sent the price of bitcoin down more than 4% (and falling). The price of bitcoin is down more than 7% for the day, although some of that decrease occurred prior to Musk’s tweet:
Tesla has suspended vehicle purchases using Bitcoin. We are concerned about rapidly increasing use of fossil fuels for Bitcoin mining and transactions, especially coal, which has the worst emissions of any fuel.
Cryptocurrency is a good idea on many levels and we believe it has a promising future, but this cannot come at a great cost to the environment.
Tesla will not be selling any Bitcoin and we intend to use it for transactions as soon as mining transitions to more sustainable energy. We are also looking at other cryptocurrencies that use <1% of Bitcoin’s energy/transaction.
Tesla invested $1.5 billion in bitcoin this quarter and then trimmed its position by 10%, Kirkhorn said during the company’s quarterly earnings call in April. That sale made a $101 million “positive impact” to the company’s profitability in the first quarter.


text:
November 29, 2021
Beloved Italian Pub Saved by Loyal Customers
Birre Treviso, a local pub in the town of Treviso, Italy, survived the pandemic thanks to its regular customers.
October 17, 2021
Verdant Treviso, Italy is Recognized for its Green Practices
Treviso took third at the European Green Leaf 2022 Award for its sustainability plan.


text:
Big Lots sees ‘store of the future’ in Beaumont
Big Lots closed its last Beaumont store soon after Hurricane Rita tore through the city in 2005.
For its long-anticipated return, the discount retailer has teamed with a local charity that is still helping victims of the region’s last devastating tropical storm, the one called Harvey that wreaked havoc two years ago.
Big Lots, which recently opened its store on the Eastex Freeway, is donating $5 to Habitat of Humanity of Jefferson County every time a BIG Rewards loyalty card holder redeems a reward through July 20. Members get $5 back for every three purchases.
“Since Harvey, we’ve been deeply committed to helping with repairs and rebuild in our communities, and serving the people who can’t typically qualify for a mortgage from a lender,” Habitat affiliate manager Sandee Wagner said during a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Friday. “It is with the help of partners like Big Lots that we can continue those missions.”
Regional team leader Mitch Deutsch, who opens Big Lots stores from Houston to Lafayette, Louisiana, said customer interest has been strong.
“I’ve opened a lot of stores in my time, but this is by far one of the most engaged communities I’ve seen,” he said. “We knew from the amount of people that said they already shopped at the surrounding stores that there a good home here, but this is exciting.”
Deutsch said the Beaumont Big Lots represents the newest design for a company that made its name selling overruns on name-brand items. The Beaumont location features “the store of the future,” with an open show floor capable of showing off an array of furniture with a curated collection of essentials lining the perimeter of the store.
Securing enough square footage in commercial real estate markets like Beaumont can be challenging.
Deutsch said the company had difficulty securing a lease on a suitable building before it was snapped up. The mass exodus of Toys R Us stores around the country, including the former Eastex Freeway location, has put more space on the market.
Shoppers took to the new Beaumont store on Friday, taking advantage of promotions that included goodie bags filled with some of the items the store stocks in its pantry and essentials sections. Mayor Becky Ames and Big Lots management addressed 8:30 a.m. ribbon-cutting crowd.
Bernice and Stacey Guidry said they often went to the Big Lots stores in Orange or Port Arthur, but they were excited that Beaumont was finally getting its own.
“I always find something here,” Bernice Guidry said.
Madonna Siemson came with a plan to leave with a new couch.
“You just can’t find better prices,” she said.
Columbus, Ohio-based Big Lots has more than 1,400 stores in 47 states and has continued to expand its item selection to toys, electronics and accessories.
Deutsch said the brand is also developing a system for allowing customers to pick up items ordered online in local stores.
“But one of our most valuable assets will still be the size of our back rooms,” Deutsch said. “We’re one of the largest furniture retailers because we usually always have whatever the customers sees out front in stock.”


text:
MUMBAI, April 16 (Reuters) - India’s Bharti Retail Ltd, a subsidiary of Bharti Enterprises, has launched its first food and grocery stores ahead of the roll-out of its wholesale centres that are being set up with Wal-Mart Stores Inc (WMT.N).
Bharti Retail said on Wednesday it had opened three Easy Day stores selling groceries, personal care and household products in Ludhiana in western Punjab state.
Bharti Retail aims to spend $2.5 billion by 2015 in multiple-format stores including hypermarkets and supermarkets, that will compete with Pantaloon Retail India Ltd PART.BO, the Aditya Birla Group, RPG Group and Reliance Industries (RELI.BO).
Bharti Enterprises also has an equal venture with Wal-Mart for wholesale cash-and-carry and back-end supply chain management. The venture will launch the first store by the end of 2008 and aims to open 10 to 15 centres over seven years.
The high cost of real estate was a challenge, Managing Director Rajan Mittal told Reuters recently.
The Easy Day neighbourhood stores, measuring 2,500 to 4,500 sq. ft., were offering jobs to vendors of fruits, vegetables and meat, as well as to housewives and retired people, Bharti Retail said in a statement.
“These initiatives will help facilitate inclusive growth in communities in which its stores operate,” it said.
It may also help mitigate concerns about job losses from the growth of modern retail in India, where only about 3 percent of the retail industry is in the hands of large companies.
The tightly-controlled industry, estimated at about $350 billion, is forecast to nearly double in size by 2015.
Foreign multiple-brand retailers are currently only allowed wholesale and franchise operations in India.
Germany’s Metro AG MEOG.DE and Shoprite Holdings (SHPJ.J) have wholesale centres, while France’s Carrefour (CARR.PA) and Tesco Plc (TSCO.L) are also in talks for similar deals. (Reporting by Rina Chandran; Editing by John Mair)


text:
Spring and early summer are abloom on the East Coast. And the floriculture industry in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Maryland have much to do with it.
Despite the economic recession, New Jersey's floriculture crops was $178 million last year, up 7% from 2009. And State Secretary of Agriculture Douglas Fisher traveled to Timothy's Center for Gardening at Robbinsville, N.J., recently to announce the findings.
of a report by the USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service.
Timothy's Center for Gardening is typical of intensive horticultural operations. Tim Serinese, a third-generation grower, grows annuals, perennials and fall mums on one and a half acres. "Our specialty is our large selection and quality – we have one of the largest retail perennial departments in the area," says Serinese, who has an Ornamental Horticulture degree from Delaware Valley College.
"The best part of this business is knowing your customers enjoy coming to your store and that you are helping to make the yard or garden the way they want it," he adds. The business was started by his grandfather, father and uncle on the same location in 1965.
New Jersey, according to NASS, ranks eighth in the nation in expanded wholesale value of floriculture crops, just behind neighboring New York, but outpacing Pennsylvania and Maryland. Floriculture crops include bedding plants, such as flowering annuals, and also cut flowers, chrysanthemums, hostas, lilies, poinsettias and foliage plants.
Garden State bedding and garden plants sales were $110.5 million, an increase of 3% from a year earlier. Cut flower sales totaled $12.4 million, also up from $11.4 million in 2009, says Fisher.Dominick Mondi, executive director of the New Jersey Nursery and Landscape Association, adds that the survey shows floriculture is a viable industry in New Jersey. Along with other horticultural products and services, it's a great contributor to the local economy.


text:
The Most Sought After Pair of Air Jordan 1s in The World Were Worn By Michael Jordan
17 years since his final retirement, and since the last dance with Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman, the most expensive pair of<a href="https://retroworldnews.com/the-greatest-and-rarest-air-jordans-ever-made/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"> 1s make their way back on the market. First appearing in a 2012 eBay auction, the most costly and significant pair of shoes in both sneaker and sporting history, worn by Michael Jordan, himself, were awarded to brand-enthusiast Jordan Geller.
Eight years later, the most sought after pair of sneakers in the world, make a grand comeback – this time from the glitzy auction house , better known for selling multi-million-dollar Monets and . Housed in impeccable condition at the ShoeZeum, Jordan Gellar has witnessed the worth of all Michael Jordan merchandise steadily rise, as the public’s interest and excitement in the player continues to grow exponentially in light of Netflix’s latest documentary-series, dubbed ‘The Last Dance’. Valued for at least USD$100,000 to $150,000 – the pair is expected to go for a high price because of its worn-out, scuffed and vintage appeal, which represent Jordan’s every win, loss, and on-court-battle fought against the best of the best.


text:
On September 25, Rodolfo Méndez, the Ministro de Obras Públicas y Transportes (MOPT), admitted that all sectors would be taken into account in the drafting of the regulations for the public transport of people, but last week changed his mind and left out the Uber company out of the roundtable.
The reversal of decision by Méndez could be linked to the anger displayed by the official taxi drivers on the MOPT’s intention to include Uber in the negotiations.
The inclusion of Uber in the drafting of regulations was made by Méndez during his appearance before the Comisión de Asuntos Económicos.
Former Alajuela mayor and now legislator for the National Liberation Party (PLN), Roberto Thompson, confirmed the statement by the transport minister, who told legislators expressly that “they (Uner) are going to have to be considered”.
However, on Friday, MOPT deputy minister, Eduardo Brenes, confirmed that Uber is not part of the talks because it is an illegal service.
Rubén Vargas, General Secretary of the Unión de Taxistas Costarricenses (Union of Costa Rican Taxi Drivers), confirmed that they are part of that work team that is drafting the final proposal and said that “in order for Uber to be regulated, the taxi drivers union demand that Uber have signage, pay taxes, insurance, a limited number of vehicles and equal rates”.
The draft is expected to reach legislators to begin discussion in early 2019.
Since Uber is a software platform that connects private parties it created a legal vaccum that the public transportation law of Costa Rica did not address. As Uber began to grow in Costa Rica so did the hostility of the taxi services against Uber drivers and the company.
Uber began operations in Costa Rica in August 2015 and reports having more than 22,000 associates (independent drivers) and over 740,000 users, and a source of direct employment for 550 people.