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Happy 30 years ago today was the day we were born and we are happy to announce that Happy 30 is the first British television series to be honoured with the UK’s ‘Happy 30th’ birthday.
The series will be screened for the first time on Saturday, January 25, 2019, at the Royal Television Society (RTS) in London.
“It’s a great day to celebrate Happy 30, a British TV series with a big, bold message: It’s OK to be a little bit happy,” said the RTS’ Chief Executive Officer, Richard Leeson.
“We’re delighted that our 30th anniversary celebrations are bringing us together to celebrate our special anniversary with an exclusive Happy 30 screening and the UK debut of Happy 30 in cinemas across the country.
“Happy 30 has been a huge part of my life, and I am so proud to be the proud host of its first UK screening in cinemasy. “
As part of our 30 years of celebrating Happy, the series has been screened in many countries around the world, and with the launch of the series in cinemases, we are looking forward to seeing it screened in our own homes and in our local cinemas,” said Leeson, who added that the series will air in more than 120 cinemas worldwide.
“Happy 30 has been a huge part of my life, and I am so proud to be the proud host of its first UK screening in cinemasy.
I am also incredibly grateful for the incredible support from our global fans and our international partners, who have come together to make this show an even bigger success than ever before.”
The series was created by BBC Television, and aired on the BBC Two television network in the United Kingdom from 2003 to 2015.
It was a hit on the UK broadcast networks, and featured a range of different characters and plots including a detective called Detective Sergeant Dermot, an eccentric scientist named Professor Tumor and a gang of gangsters called the Black Crows.
The show has been nominated for three Emmys, including Best Drama Series, three Golden Globes, a Bafta, two British TV Movie Awards and a Tony Award.
It is also the subject of a British comedy series which is available in the UK and overseas on Netflix.
The RTS’s executive producer, Richard Lewis, said: “We are thrilled to be bringing this show to the Rts this year.
“This is an amazing achievement for the Royal Society, for the RTA, and for our UK viewers. “
Happy 30 has a very special place in our hearts and it will be very special to see it screened on the Royal Theatre. “
This is an amazing achievement for the Royal Society, for the RTA, and for our UK viewers.
Happy 30 is also available in several other countries including Australia, Canada, Germany, Israel, Japan, Mexico, South Korea, Spain, United Kingdom and the United Arab Emirates. “
If you are planning to go to one of the many screenings in the RTP theatres across the United States or Canada, please make sure you book tickets for your local theatre as they may be cheaper than buying them online.”
Happy 30 is also available in several other countries including Australia, Canada, Germany, Israel, Japan, Mexico, South Korea, Spain, United Kingdom and the United Arab Emirates.
The new series will premiere in cinemascores in the US and Canada, and in cinemastores in Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, Colombia and the Dominican Republic on February 13.
It has been commissioned by BBC Worldwide, BBC World News and the RTE.
The UK’s Happy 30 TV Series will air at cinemas in the following cities: Birmingham, Bristol, Glasgow, London, Manchester, Nottingham, Newcastle, Oxford, Sheffield, Sunderland, Swansea and Torquay.
Happy TV will be available on the Amazon Prime Video streaming service starting in early 2019.
Happy TV series is also available for download on iTunes and at the Amazon store.
“Happy 30 will be the first series of our own to be screened on BBC Worldwide’s new, digital platforms, as part of a new partnership with the BBC World Service.
The new series is a natural extension of our existing catalogue of British TV programmes, which have been released on many platforms in the past decade, including Netflix, Apple TV, Vudu, Amazon Fire TV and Xbox One.
We are also delighted to be joining forces with BBC Worldwide to bring the UK to the big screen,” said Simon Leeson – Director of Programming.
The UK’s Happy Movie series is available on Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Kindle, Apple TV, Vudu and Apple TV, and Amazon Fire TV


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While initiating coverage on the stock with a 'buy' rating and setting a target price of Rs 790, HSBC Global Research said a surge in retail assets under management (AUM) and the prospect of lower volatility in asset quality during the next economic cycle could trigger a positive re-rating for IIFL Finance.
IIFL Finance shares, which rallied 22% in the last three months, are currently trading at Rs 583.
One of the standout projections is a staggering 25% Compounded Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) in Assets Under Management (AUM), demonstrating the company's potential to attract and manage a growing portfolio. The Return on Assets (RoA) is also expected to range from 3.5% to 3.8%, signifying a healthy financial performance.
IIFL Finance has strategically diversified its portfolio with assets totaling $8.3 billion as of Q1 FY24. This diversification includes offering loans against gold, unsecured personal loans, affordable housing loans, loans against property, and microfinance. These varied services enhance the company's resilience to market fluctuations and could potentially lead to decreased asset quality volatility in the future.
Abhishek Murarka, a senior analyst at HSBC, highlights four strategic pivots that have contributed to the company's success. These include improved liability management, stronger risk management, aggressive investments in distribution and technology, and pioneering the co-lending model in collaboration with banks, which optimizes capital utilization and reduces risk.
Despite these promising prospects, HSBC cautions that risks remain on the horizon. These potential risks encompass business cyclicality, regulatory changes in co-lending practices, challenges in new ventures like digital loans, liquidity constraints, and shifts in repo rates that may impact sentiment within the Non-Banking Financial Company (NBFC) sector.
Monday, 27 Nov, 2023
- Top Electronic Cos’ Imports Fall in 5 Yrs on Local Play
Leading consumer electronic companies such as Apple, Samsung, Dixon Technologies and Havells saw a significant reduction in imports as a percentage of sales in the last fiscal year from the pre-Covid period, according to the latest regulatory data filed by them.PepsiCo India may Name George Kovoor President
PepsiCo India is likely to appoint George Kovoor, one of its most senior executives, as president, as the incumbent, Ahmed ElSheikh, is expected to relocate to a global role at the American food and beverage company early next year, said executives with knowledge of the matter.Banks want Boards Kept out of Loan Renewals in ‘Related Party’ Cases
Spotting a brother, the in-laws, or even a stepsister, of a director on a borrower’s board can be maddening for bankers. Still, they can’t disregard the links — lending to companies (where a bank’s director has a ‘connection’) without the clearance or knowledge of the bank’s board is breaking the law.

domain: news


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T-Mobile Turns an Industry on Its Ear
Farhad Manjoo FEB. 26, 2014
A rash of consumer-friendliness has broken out across the mobile data industry. Over the last year, the four major carriers - AT&T, Verizon, Sprint and T-Mobile - have cut prices and offered greater flexibility in how they sell their voice, text and broadband services. The industry could be on the verge of an all-out price war.
Who is responsible for this blessed state of affairs?
Credit must go to the United States government.
In 2011, officials at the Federal Communications Commission and the Justice Department moved to block AT&T's proposed $39 billion acquisition of T-Mobile. That kept the struggling, fourth-place carrier alive as an independent firm. And it led John J. Legere, T-Mobile's flamboyant, foul-mouthed chief executive, to brand his company the "uncarrier," and inaugurate a string of measures that have turned every accepted practice in the mobile business on its head.


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Currently, when the world is working towards sustainable development, solar energy takes up a major portion of achieving the goal. To save resources and use solar energy, solar panels are receiving a big thumbs up from all around the sector. Although the maintenance of these panels is important, this comes to be an issue for the operator.
As a solution to this problem, 3 college students – Akshat Bhatia, Aryaman Chaudhary, and Himanshu Panda launched a new start-up, Flynovate which is a computer-vision-enabled autonomous Drone-as-a-Service (DRaaS) start-up that inspects and detects every visual and internal defect in every solar panel present in a Solar Farm followed by fully autonomous solar farm cleaning via autonomous drones.
Akshat Bhatia, Aryaman Chaudhary, and Himanshu Panda are 4th-year students of Computer Science Engineering and Business Systems, Electronics and Communications Engineering, and Mechanical Engineering respectively from the Thapar Institute of Engineering and Technology. Knowing each other from 1st year of college, they shared energy that connected all of them and their passion to build Flynovate.
The young minds started building this technology when they found out that solar panels can lose up to 80% of their efficiency if not cleaned and maintained properly, after speaking to an individual who was doing research in the solar energy segment. This is how the Flynovate team identified their first gap in the market.
“All of us at Flynovate are motivated to create something that would directly or indirectly impact the maximum number of people. That is what drives us, that together we can create something meaningful and impactful that can change the world for the better”. They say.
After months of hard work and sleepless nights, the team has completed two Product tests, one with a Bhiwadi Jal Pradushan Nivaran Association and the second one with a giant company, Jindal Steel and Power Limited. In this testing, they cleaned the required section of the solar power farm and did a thermal inspection of every solar panel in that section of the plant to create a post-inspection report and find thermal defects via their ML model which affected the efficiency of the solar plant.
Their current team of college students and fresh graduates have come together to work towards building this new technology. They are currently onboarding their first few customers who would get the opportunity to incorporate drone technology in their solar plants for one-of-its-kind maintenance by giving out product trials and becoming one of the first people to get an overall drone solution in the solar industry.
While this technology can be scaled to an array of domains, the company is targeting the solar power plant industry and its maintenance. The solar industry is an extremely fast-growing energy sector, with new solar plants being installed almost every month. The constant increase in the size and scale of this industry and minimal technological advancement in its maintenance has created a huge gap in terms of quality, speed, and efficiency. The company believes that drones and their application fit perfectly in this sector, to create a meaningful difference.
In addition, their team is coming up with multiple product tests and customer PoCs which would encourage more solar farm owners to connect with the company and try their new and exciting service.
Flynovate provides statistics, aerial imagery, and potential faults summed up in a post-inspection report, that can be accessed through their cloud dashboard. Hence, prevents companies from spending huge fortunes and time by eliminating the use of manual labor or heavy machinery that may accidentally harm/damage the panel. Further followed by a completely autonomous solar panel-oriented drone cleaning service. The same technology can be scaled up to be used in various energy sectors to maximize their working efficiency.
Flynovate – How it works
Flynovate operates on a contractual model. The pricing is similar to what the manual labor charges and depends on the size of the solar farm being served. Their motive is to provide the best all-around service using robotics and AI to their customers, beating all current solutions in terms of speed and quality, and working efficiency.
The team of Flynovate gave their all in building such an incredible technology and their story of ups and downs encourages everyone to keep trying. One must believe in oneself to make their ambitions come true.
Three young students of colleges who became the founders of Flynovate show that your age should not bring you down from starting something up. Being young and innovative can be a force to push you up and bring a change.
Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
What is Flynovate?
Flynovate is a drone as a service-based startup that inspect and detects every visual and internal defect in every solar panel present in a Solar Farm.
Who are the founders of Flynovate?
3 college students namely – Akshat Bhatia, Aryaman Chaudhary, and Himanshu Panda launched a new start-up, Flynovate which is a computer-vision-enabled autonomous swarm of drones that inspect and detects every visual and internal defect in every solar panel present in a Solar Farm.
How does Flynovate work?
Flynovate operates on a contractual/revenue based model. The pricing is similar to what the manual labour charges and depends on the size of the solar farm being served. Their motive is to provide the best all-around service using robotics and AI to their customers beating all current solutions in terms of speed and quality because it is the most important factor in customer satisfaction.


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As part of the 10th anniversary of making video games, game company THQ Nordic announced in a livestream last week of confirmed video games that’s being developed right now. Among the list we have Outcast 2: A New Beginning, Jagged Alliance 3 and Expeditions Rome. However, amongst the announced games, two games have taken the spotlight on the internet. First, we’re getting a new SpongeBob SquarePants video game. In a trailer with the iconic song Sweet Victory in the background, the new SpongeBob game is called SpongeBob SquarePants: the Cosmic Shake. There is no release date or gameplay yet, but this game is expected to be release for all platforms and most likely have SpongeBob enter a multiverse theme story.
If you enjoyed the first Remake game, get ready for Remake 2. Based on the 2006 game, THQ Nordic will be working on remaking this classic alien video game. Whether you like the series, or want to relieve this classic game, rest assure to you that Destroy All Humans! 2 – Reprobed will be coming to PC, Xbox and PlayStation. It’s unknown for a Switch port, but the first game came out later for Switch. A Switch version of this sequel might arrive later.


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USPS Acknowledges "Some Risk" to Customers With New Mail Changes
The agency is addressing concerns amid the peak holiday season.
As we head into the holiday season, the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) is wrapping up the third year of a major, decade-long transformation. Dubbed the Delivering for America (DFA) plan, this overhaul originated in 2021 as part of Postmaster General Louis DeJoy's promise to bring the USPS back from financial ruin. But as more and more adjustments are made to the agency's operations under DFA, there is no knowing whether or not they could have negative consequences at a time when postal demands are heightened during the holidays. In fact, the Postal Service has just admitted this themselves. Read on to discover more about why the USPS is acknowledging "some risk" to customers with new mail changes.
The USPS just entered its peak mailing season.
The Postal Service's work notably ramps up at the end of the year. "Each year, increased package volume and operational changes during the peak mailing season (peak season)—Thanksgiving through New Year's Eve—significantly strain the Postal Service's processing and distribution networks," the USPS Office of Inspector General (USPSOIG) explained in a new Nov. 15 report.
More than 11.7 billion mailpieces and packages were processed during the holiday season in 2022, according to a recent press release from the USPS. On average, it took the agency just 2.5 days to deliver a mailpiece or package to its intended destination during this time last year.
But now certain mail changes are adding concerns about the Postal Service's ability to handle this year's peak season.
The agency made certain mail changes ahead of the holidays.
Every year, the Postal Service creates "peak season initiatives" to help handle the increased demand it faces during the holidays. In its new report, the USPSOIG evaluated the agency's preparedness for this year's peak season through these preparedness initiatives that are "meant to help the Postal Service have the right amount of personnel, resources, and package capacity throughout its processing, transportation, and delivery networks."
There were several changes the USPSOIG took note of, particularly in terms of staffing levels. According to the report, the USPS is planning to hire only 10,000 temporary employees during the current holiday season. This is a 64 percent reduction in the agency's seasonal hiring, as it made 28,000 temporary hires during the last "peak season," Government Executive reported.
Breaking this down, the Postal Service is planning to seasonally hire around 4,500 retail and delivery employees (which is down 30 percent from last year) and about 5,500 operations and processing workers (which is down 75 percent from last year). But this is actually the second consecutive year in which the agency has significantly reduced its season hiring, according to the news outlet.
Some of these changes could put customers at risk for package delays.
In addition to lowering its seasonal staffing help, the USPSOIG also noted concerns with the agency's consolidation efforts. Through its DFA plan, the Postal Service has been in the process of "combining and centralizing" its mail processing, sorting, and distributing operations into just 60 new Regional Processing and Distribution Centers (RPDCs).
But the inspector general's office recently started examining the performance at one of these new mega-centers, and early results indicate that the change has led to an increase in the USPS missing its targets, according to Government Executive. These changes have officials worried about the risks customers could face with package delays during the holidays.
"The Postal Service has developed plans to handle the upcoming peak season. If the initiatives are implemented as planned and volume forecasts are accurate, the Postal Service should be prepared for peak season," the USPSOIG stated in its report. "However, the Postal Service is undertaking significant changes to its network and products this year. Specifically, changes to processing put the Postal Service at risk for parcel delays."
But the Postal Service said it is prepared nevertheless.
The USPS is aware that these changes could cause problems during the peak season, but Isaac Cronkhite, the agency's chief processing and distribution officer, told Government Executive that management is confident it can adequately address any issues that may arise.
"While we acknowledge that there is some risk associated with the significant changes to our network and how we process our products, we believe that the benefits of streamlining operations outweigh the risk," Cronkhite said. "We are prepared to mitigate any risk associated with the changes."
DeJoy also touted the Postal Service's preparedness, noting that its strategic and early planning with these changes will allow the agency to be the "most affordable way to ship and mail holiday cheer" in 2023.
"In the face of the busiest shipping season, the United States Postal Service stands ready," the Postmaster General told Government Executive. "We are confident in our ability to handle the holiday season surge with the same efficiency and reliability that the nation has come to expect from us throughout the year."


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Those who think the new Mazda 3 looks pretty good in the metal, you’re not alone.
The folks at design competition Red Dot have just awarded it the “Red Dot: Best of the Best” prize.
It’s a top honour given out by an international jury of design experts on only the “most exceptional products”.
And judging by what we discovered on our drive, we think that description pretty much nails it.
The new hatchback and sedan express an evolution of Mazda’s Kodo design language.
It’s evident across Mazda’s current lineup, but the Mazda 3 takes it to the next level with almost concept-car-like proportions.
The designers did away with character lines and other “superfluous elements”, said the Mazda 3’s chief designer Yasutake Tsuchida.
Mr Tsuchida said that they wanted to express the “purity of Japanese aesthetics”.
“The level of refinement is the product of human hands with vast experience, and we’re delighted to be recognised by the global design community,” he added.
It’s not the first time Mazda has won at Red Dot Awards.
Incredibly, the company won the 2017 awards with the MX-5 RF, while the 2015 awards were swept by the MX-5 soft top, CX-3 and Mazda 2.
The outgoing Mazda 3 generation won in 2014 while the Mazda 6 won in 2013.
For the new car, Mazda has engineered in a human-centric experience for both driver and passenger.
Cabin layout and components have been tweaked to prevent discomfort and fatigue.
That’s especially evident in areas like the door, which have padded areas to rest your arm on.
The cockpit is also laid out in a sensible, visually pleasing arrangement that doesn’t have too much going on.
By winning the award, the new Mazda 3 now can proudly bear the Red Dot symbol.


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After an annual 2021 financial year that gave the company a record economic performance, in 2022 the financial performance of Sinotrans, the Chinese logistics company of Hong Kong's China Merchants Group (CMG), posted a sharp decline. of revenues, while profits reached new all-time highs thanks mainly to the positive trend in the first half followed by a second half of the year less brilliant.
In particular, last year revenues amounted to 108.8 billion yuan (15.8 billion), with a -12.5% percent decline on the 2021 percent that was caused by the reduction in the volume of business generated by the maritime shipments operated by the company and e-commerce activities. In 2022, in fact, the turnover produced by shipping by sea was 49.7 billion yuan, with a significant contraction of -26.7% percent on the previous annual financial year, while the turnover of air shipments grew slightly by 0.9% percent to 8.0 billion yuan and more supported was the increase in the turnover of shipments by rail at 9.4 billion yuan (+ 42.7%). Other logistics assets generated revenues of 27.4 billion (+ 13.5%), while the e-commerce segment filed 2022 with a turnover of 11.9 billion yuan (-16.7%). The Chinese logistics company specified that the turnover in segments of the shipping and e-commerce activities were determined by the increase in fuel costs and the diversification of the transport guidelines caused by the Russia-Ukraine conflict and that the e-commerce sector has also suffered from factors such as tax reform in the European Union and the contraction of demand coming from foreign markets.
Sinotrans closed down 2022 with a record operating profit of 5.2 billion yuan (+ 6.9%) and with a record net profit of 4.2 billion (+ 7.8%).


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It’s time to take responsibility for quality data
Over the past 20 years, the influence and power of big data have grown immensely. While this growth has gone largely unchecked, it has brought innumerable benefits to those who want to harness data to connect with people in a more efficient and effective way.
As the data available improves, and the positive effects of harnessing and utilizing that data increases, data will become more integrated in all stages of decision making, and across all industries.
As a result of this, we in the data collection sphere need to be more proactive at identifying incorrect data and ensuring that any faulty data is quickly squashed out of our systems and silos.
The warning signs are there. The implementation of the GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) in Europe last May made a lot of people sit up and take note on the importance of accurate data. And it continues to draw attention to challenges of generating accurate data.
The challenges are reflected on the users’ end. More than two-thirds of people surveyed by Deloitte stated that third-party data on them was 0 to 50 percent correct as a whole. Half of those people said the information held about them was less than 25% accurate.
These rather shocking findings cause two problems. Firstly, it endangers the relationship between marketer and user. If you are approaching someone with a message, blatantly incorrect information is always going to be an immediate turnoff for consumers and may make the initial reasons for the approaching void.
The Deloitte survey mentioned above found that inaccurate data regularly led to decreased customer loyalty and a resulting hit on revenue, both from reduced confidence in the product and in missed opportunities stemming from inaccurate data. In such a saturated digital landscape, tarnishing your reputation due to faulty data may be irreparable.
Poor quality data also wastes a humongous amount of time— a business resource that is incredibly valuable. According to the New York Times, data scientists spend from 50 to 80 percent of their time preparing unruly digital data so can it can be explored for useful information.
The damage caused by this is underlined by research from Experian Data Quality. They found that inaccurate data has a direct impact on the bottom line of a staggering 88 percent of companies, with the average company losing up to 12 percent in revenue because of these failings. IBM believes that poor quality data costs the US economy alone $3.1 trillion every year. Globally, the cost is far bigger.
Further ramifications are being caused by the wider understanding of data, and a series of scandals over the last year. While not explicitly connected to faulty data, the Facebook and Cambridge Analytica scandal drew significant attention to big data issues.
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This attention is warranted, and it means that those who are collecting and harnessing huge swathes of data have a social responsibility to ensure that their data is correct and used properly. This is key in regaining and maintaining trust in both direct relationships to users and in the industry as a whole.
So what can be done to improve the situation? The key is putting control in the hands of the user. Data-utilizing businesses must be supported by powerful opt-in and opt-out processes across the network to ensure that the users’ experience and security is put at the forefront of the product offering.
This can be done through offering users a unique identification code that ensures the data held on them is accurate and consistent, with added encryption to ensure that no personal information can ever be used to track them.
We are standing at the precipice of a new generation in digital marketing, with a wave of exciting and innovative generation of tools, users, and companies ready to reach them. It is vital that we ensure that data is collected accurately, and used ethically. Otherwise, we run the risk of squandering the magnificent opportunity that we have in front of us.
Contributed by Sam Amrani, Founder & Executive Chairman of Tamoco.
30 November 2023


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A new study has revealed the countries that produce the most e-waste, with the UK ranking second to Norway.
The study by Uswitch analysed data from the Global E-waste monitor 2020, to reveal the countries that generate the most e-waste.
Norway is the country that produces the most e-waste at 26 kg per person, according to the study.
However, Uswitch says that Norway has taken steps to improve its e-waste management, through a “take back” scheme. It continues that this means the companies that produce electrical or electronic equipment and batteries help finance the electronic waste and recycling industry.
Uswitch says estimates suggest that each smartphone produces 93kg of CO2.
The UK generates the second-highest amount of e-waste per capita in the world, with 23.9 kg. Uswitch says that recent research suggests that by 2024, the UK will overtake Norway to become the world’s biggest contributor.
Switzerland is 3rd on the list, producing 23.4kg per capita of e-waste. Similarly to Norway, Switzerland also has a “take-back” system to encourage companies to tackle the issue, Uswitch says.
The study also highlights that IT and telecoms e-waste has almost doubled in the UK between 2008 (19,053 tonnes) to 2022 (37,631 tonnes estimated).
Uswitch continues that if the current trend continues, the UK will be producing just under 55,000 tonnes of e-waste by 2030.
Which countries does the study say produce the most E-waste?
|Rank||Country||Region||National e-waste legislation/policy or regulation in place||E-waste generated (kt)||E-waste generated per capita (kg)|


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Accelerating NAFTA\’s tariff cuts helps taxpayers and consumers. TPA victory in Senate is next.
WASHINGTON – The Bush administration said Wednesday that the United States, Canada and Mexico have begun implementing tariff reductions faster than required by the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), amounting to a great victory for consumers, taxpayers and businesses in the three partner nations.
Under NAFTA, which set up a free-trade area among the three nations in 1994, border taxes are being eliminated in a phase out period that lasts until 2008. However, NAFTA allowed for periodic negotiations to accelerate the tariff cuts. Earlier negotiations resulted in a speed-up in cuts in 1997, 1998 and 2000.
The new reductions will cover $25 billion in annual trade. One major item covered in the accelerated tariff reductions that went into effect on Jan. 1 were U.S. tariffs on rubber and plastic footwear. Mexico agreed to faster reductions in tariffs on U.S. and Canadian-made motor vehicles, electronic products, toys and chemicals.
"Tariffs are taxes," said taxpayer advocate Grover Norquist, who heads Americans for Tax Reform in Washington, DC. "This move by the Commerce Department is not only a victory for consumers and taxpayers in the United States, but for our friends in Canada and Mexico as well."
The new reductions will see Mexico\’s average tariff on U.S. goods fall to less than 0.5 percent this year – down from a pre-NAFTA average level of 10 percent.
"Free trade benefits all parties involved. It lowers taxes on consumers, opens markets for businesses, and creates more efficient economies wherever implemented. And with NAFTA so close to completion, the next step is to begin talks on a Free Trade Area of the Americas to create an entire hemisphere of free trade among democratic nations from the Bering Strait to the Tierra del Fuego. For a new century, it will usher in an era of peace and prosperity for all of North and South America."


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- March 19, 2013
- Posted by: admin
- Category: Media & Broadcasting
Listed holding company Remgro is eyeing a multi-channel strategy through its interest in e-tv owner, Sabido, as it looks to enhance its revenue streams. This would include online channels.
Remgro has an effective interest of 31.6% in Sabido which has a range of media interests, which includes South Africa’s only private free-to-air television channel, e.tv, its sister news service, eNews Channel Africa (eNCA), Gauteng-based radio station, Yfm and various studio and facilities businesses.
“The focus of the group for the forthcoming months is the ongoing development of a multi-channel strategy to enhance its competitiveness across a multiplicity of platforms and provide opportunities for new revenue streams,” Remgro said on Tuesday (19 March).
“This includes the launch of e-tv Online and eNCA Online in the first half of 2013,” it said.
In reporting its interim results for the period ended December, 2012, Remgro noted that Sabido’s contribution to its headline earnings for the period under review amounted to R78 million (2011: R72 million).
“Despite aggressive growth in pay television, which is impacting on audience share for free-to-air services, e-tv has managed to hold its own against the increasing competition,” Remgro said.
All Media Products Survey (AMPS) figures for June 2012 showed a 2.6% growth for e-tv, ahead of the industry’s 1.2% growth, taking its reach to 16.5 million viewers.
However, the holding group said that audience and advertising share are increasingly under pressure from pay-TV as the continued delays in the launch of digital terrestrial television prevent free-to-air services from providing multi-channel offerings.
“The future of free-to-air television in South Africa, including e-tv, is critically dependent on the availability of a free-to-air platform which can compete effectively with the dominant pay-TV player,” it said.
Remgro has an effective interest of 31.6% in Sabido which has a range of media interests, which includes South Africa’s only private free-to-air television channel, e.tv, its sister news service, eNews Channel Africa (eNCA),Gauteng-based radio station, Yfm and various studio and facilities businesses.
Remgro said that e.sat tv’s primary operating business, eNCA, benefited from subscriber growth in the DStv Compact platform and retained its position as the premier news service on DStv.
eNCA launched on the Sky digital platform in the United Kingdom during August 2012, making it available to 10 million UK households and the service is now available internationally on online platform Livestation, Remgro said.
“Advertising sales on e-tv, eNCA and Yfm were under pressure during the period under review but programming and operating costs remained stable. The studios and facilities businesses performed as expected with the exception of post-production business, The Refinery, which is experiencing difficult market conditions,” Remgro said.
Source: BusinessTech – Gareth Vorster


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Global leader Nayax : Vending and unattended retail operators who are equipped with Nayax cashless card readers, such as the VPOS Touch and Onyx, can now accept American Express transactions, giving them a broader opportunity to grow their customer base and revenue.
This newly formed partnership brings significant benefits for both Nayax Customers and American Express Cardmembers. By accepting American Express, Nayax customers will be able to increase sales by attracting high spending and loyal Cardmembers, who spend 1.2x more per transaction and almost four times more annually compared to the other average credit and charge card holders in the UK. This will also offer more value to AMEX Cardmembers as they will be able to use their preferred payment methods on Nayax devices in the UK and eventually across the EEA.
‘This is very exciting news for consumers across the UK,’ says Lewis Zimbler, the General Manager at Nayax UK. ‘Choosing how you pay greatly boosts consumer satisfaction and improves experience. Nayax’s partnership with American Express is just one of the steps we are taking to provide consumers with the best possible payment experience.
Keith McDonald, Vice President, Payment Facilitation & Small Merchant Partnerships, American Express UK., said: ‘American Express is excited to partner with Nayax, enabling more locations across the UK to welcome our loyal and high spending Cardmembers. Through such partnerships, we’re adding thousands of new locations every year, meaning our Cardmembers have an even greater choice of where they can use their Card.’
 Research shows Cardmembers spend on average 3.9x more annually & 3.2x more frequently compared to the average UK credit and charge card. Refers to American Express internal data for UK Cardmembers spending across Europe compared to Global Data Payment Card Analytics for transactions with domestic cards at terminals in the country and outside the country, including at physical terminals and initiated remotely, 2021.
Visit Nayax at Vendex North on stands 23 and 24 to find out more on this story and many others.
Learn more here
Access Planet Vending archive of Nayax news and features, HERE


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According to Borna; Perhaps one of the shocks that can even endanger the lives of citizens is that they leave their home or workplace and suddenly encounter the scene that their vehicle is not in the place where they parked. This is often due to car theft, and it is necessary for citizens to contact the police in the first instance so that they may be able to stop the thief in a restraining plan. Thefts that these days mostly affect domestic cars due to weak security systems.
The thief was released because of Corona
Detective Colonel Khairullah Dolatkhah, the head of the 5th Intelligence Police Station in Greater Tehran, told Borna: It was a robbery.
Regarding the details of this case, he added: “This gang has stolen over 300 vehicles, and it is possible that their number will reach 400, and it has many plaintiffs.” In one of these cars, which was stolen from Taleghan city, there were about 8 billion and four hundred million tomans of commercial goods, all of which were stolen.
The theft made me nervous
One of the plaintiffs in this case admitted: I put my commercial goods in the car and returned to the store for a moment to get ready to go and distribute the goods in Tehran, but when I came out, I saw in disbelief that the car They have won.
He added: “When I checked the cameras, I saw that a blue Mazda 3 had stopped next to my car, and this thief got out of that car and stole my car within a short time.” I have neither a father nor a mother, I have just gotten married and it was my whole life in this car that I found hope in life again through conscious efforts. I was nervous and just a few days ago at 04:30 in the morning I was told to go to the emergency room immediately and I found out that they had found my property and car.
The target was domestic cars
The defendant in this case said about his trick in stealing cars: “Two people always accompanied me in robberies, and I have been stealing cars since 1998, when I was released from prison due to Corona.” I was released from prison at the same time as the other two, and we only stole Iranian cars. We went to Iranian cars that we knew did not have enough security and were parked in secluded streets to make it easier to steal them.
“Depending on the working day, I would steal between 3 and 6 cars every day,” he said. Domestic cars can be unlocked more easily, which is why we did not go for foreign cars.
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Ford sees record profits in North America in first quarter
The New York Times (4/25, Vlasic, Subscription Publication) reports, “The Ford Motor Company said on Wednesday that its net income improved 15 percent in the first quarter to $1.6 billion, as record results in North America compensated for losses in Europe and South America.” The automaker’s sales in the US “rose 11 percent in the first three months of this year, compared with a 6 percent increase for the overall industry. In North America, Ford posted a pretax profit of $2.4 billion, a 14-percent improvement over the same period a year ago.”
The Detroit Free Press (4/25, Priddle) reports, “Ford’s global revenue rose 10.5% to $35.8 billion, almost all of it coming from Americans buying more cars and trucks at higher prices.” While the automaker “once was overly reliant on trucks, several of its cars, especially the Fusion, Focus and the Escape crossover, are selling briskly.” Chief Financial Officer Bob Shanks “said the mix is better for the company long term, but Ford took a $300 million hit in the quarter because small vehicles have smaller profit margins than pickups and large SUVs. Pickup sales have also picked up as the housing market continues to recover.”
The Detroit News (4/24, Henkel) reported the “automaker lost $462 million in Europe last quarter, in line with its previous guidance. Ford expects to lose $2 billion in Europe this year as auto sales fall to record lows.” The company “posted a small profit of $6 million in Asia, where its market share now sits at 3 percent. It’s the third consecutive quarter Ford has posted a profit in the region.” While in South America, the company lost $218 million.
USA Today (4/24, Meier) noted, “A major focus for Ford is growth in its Asia-Pacific-Africa business, particularly China, where it playing catch-up with Detroit rival General Motors and other global giants such as Volkswagen that have a big head start there.” The company “has been making gains in China, with market share up to 3.5%, and reported earlier this month that March wholesale sales there were up 65% to 81,387 passenger and commercial vehicles and that first-quarter wholesale sales were up 54% to 186,596.”
Bloomberg News (4/25, Trudell) reports, “Ford forecast that it would boost global production by 13 percent from a year earlier to 1.65 million vehicles. Output may rise to 800,000 vehicles in North America and 390,000 in Europe, up 63,000 and 21,000, respectively.”


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Arsenic poisoning is probably the last thing on your mind when you’re feeding a baby or diving into a stir-fry dish. Scientists are now saying, though, that the issue needs to be on your radar, particularly when it comes to rice ingredients in baby food.
A report from advocacy group Healthy Babies Bright Futures found that infant cereals with rice contain up to six times more arsenic than those made with other grains, like oatmeal or multi-grain.
The findings come on the heels of an April 2016 study by researchers at Dartmouth College, who found that the inorganic arsenic levels in babies’ urine was much higher in those who ate rice-based cereals and snacks compared to babies who didn’t eat these rice-containing foods.
This is a big deal, because 80 percent of babies eat rice cereal during their first year of life. Previous studies suggest that exposure to arsenic early in life may lead to adverse developmental effects.
Arsenic in rice isn’t the only arsenic exposure to be worried about, but it consistently tests high because rice plants absorb 10 times more arsenic than other grain plants. Let’s see what the other threats are when it comes to arsenic poisoning, but first, what is it anyway?
What Is Arsenic?
Arsenic is a naturally occurring chemical element that is widely distributed in the Earth’s crust. Arsenic levels in the environment can vary by locality, and it is found in water, air, and soil.
Arsenic in drinking water is a widespread concern. But, arsenic levels tend to be higher in groundwater sources, such as wells, than from surface sources, such as lakes or reservoirs.
Water, air, and soil contamination from mining and fracking, coal-fired power plants, arsenic-treated lumber, and arsenic-containing pesticides also contributes to increased levels of arsenic in certain locations.
There are two types of arsenic: Organic arsenic simply indicates that a carbon atom is part of the arsenic bond. Common sources include fish and crustaceans.
Inorganic arsenic is abundant in nature and without a carbon atom in the arsenic bond. This type is considered much more toxic to the human body.
Unfortunately, it’s often found in rice and rice ingredients, apple juice, and other foods and drinks. These compounds are oftentimes found in manufactured items like pressure-treated wood, although pressure-treated wood is more likely to contain nano-copper today.
Arsenic Poisoning Symptoms
Some of the biggest signs and symptoms of arsenic poisoning include:
- Red, swollen skin
- Bad breath and garlic body odor
- Abdominal pain
- Nausea and vomiting
- Pins and needles feeling in toes and fingers
- Low blood pressure
- Chest pain
- Shortness of breath
- Abnormal heart rhythm
- Sore throat
Arsenic poisoning symptoms like these can develop as quickly as within 30 minutes after high levels of exposure.
Meanwhile, long-term exposure can lead to even more arsenic poisoning symptoms, such as:
- Chronic digestive issues
- Skin pigmentation changes
- Chronic sore throat
- Wars and lesion
- White lines on the nails
- Hard patches on soles of feet and palms of hands
Threats and Causes
While the concept of low-level arsenic poisoning from rice sources is nothing new, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has been slow to take action. In spring 2016, the government agency released a proposed limit for inorganic arsenic in infant rice cereal. People consume the most rice relative to their weight when they are just 8 months old, thanks to the rise in popularity of of rice-based baby cereals and snacks.
Baby Food and Arsenic Threats
The study done by Healthy Babies Bright Futures tested 105 infant cereals made by nine different brands, which included rice and non-rice varieties, like those made from oatmeal, barley, quinoa, corn and more. Out of the 42 cereals that were made from rice, all but one contained more arsenic than the non-rice cereals. The average ppb of the rice cereals was 85, while the average for the other cereals was 14.
There was a small bit of good news: The 85 ppb average of arsenic levels for cereals tested in 2016-17 was actually down from 103 ppb average of cereals tested in 2013-14, meaning cereal makers are slowly making their own changes. However, when you compare the amount of arsenic still found in cereals to the much-lower levels of cereals made without rice, it’s extremely startling, and when you consider the health effects that arsenic poisoning can have, it’s even more frightening.
While acute arsenic poisoning leads to red blood cell destruction, convulsions, coma and sometimes death, chronic, low-dose exposure to inorganic arsenic has been linked to certain cancers, skin lesions, cardiovascular disease, neurotoxicity and diabetes.
- In the general U.S. population, the main source of arsenic exposure is via ingestion of food containing arsenic. Groundwater sometimes harbors arsenic, making it important for well users to get water tested every few years and find appropriate filtration systems if necessary.
- The National Toxicology Program’s Report on Carcinogens lists arsenic as a cancer-causing agent because it’s been shown to play a part in bladder, kidney, liver, lung and prostate cancers.
- Brown rice has about 80 percent more inorganic arsenic compared to white rice but contains many more nutrients. For that reason, researchers don’t suggest switching completely to white rice, but you should use the arsenic-reducing cooking tips found below.
- Consumer Reports testing found that basmati rice grown in California contained the lowest levels of arsenic. All types of rice, except sushi and quick-cooking rice, from Texas, Louisiana and Arkansas contained the highest levels of inorganic arsenic in Consumer Reports testing.
- Hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking,” a controversial form of natural gas extraction, may mobilize arsenic underground and in aquifers, potentially threatening groundwater supplies.
Arsenic poisoning occurs when there is an excessive accumulation of arsenic in the body, either through ingestion, inhalation or skin contact with arsenic compounds. It can lead to a wide range of symptoms and potentially life-threatening complications if not treated promptly.
The diagnosis of arsenic poisoning typically involves the following steps:
- Medical history: The doctor will inquire about the patient’s symptoms, occupational or environmental exposure to arsenic, and any other relevant information.
- Physical examination: A thorough examination may reveal specific signs associated with arsenic poisoning, such as skin changes, abnormal nail growth or signs of systemic toxicity.
- Laboratory tests: Several tests can help confirm the diagnosis, including:
- Blood and urine tests: These tests can detect the presence of arsenic and measure the levels in the body.
- Hair and nail analysis: Arsenic can accumulate in these tissues over time and provide evidence of chronic exposure.
- Other tests: Additional tests may be conducted to assess organ function and evaluate potential complications.
1. Remove/avoid source of exposure
The first step in treatment is to identify and eliminate the source of arsenic exposure. This may involve avoiding contaminated water, soil or other environmental factors.
2. Supportive care
Depending on the severity of symptoms, supportive measures may be necessary to stabilize the patient. This can include ensuring adequate oxygenation, intravenous fluids and close monitoring of vital signs.
Chelating agents are substances that bind to heavy metals like arsenic, facilitating their elimination from the body. The choice of chelating agent depends on factors such as the severity of poisoning, the individual’s condition and the presence of any complications.
4. Supportive treatments
Specific treatments may be required to manage complications associated with arsenic poisoning. For example, if kidney function is affected, dialysis may be necessary to assist with the removal of toxins from the bloodstream.
5. Long-term follow-up
Arsenic poisoning can have long-lasting effects on health. Patients who have been treated for arsenic poisoning should undergo regular medical check-ups to monitor their recovery and manage any ongoing health issues.
It’s important to note that the diagnosis and treatment of arsenic poisoning should be carried out by health care professionals experienced in managing toxic exposures. If you suspect arsenic poisoning, seek immediate medical attention.
Foods and Drinks Sometimes High in Arsenic
1. Dairy-Free and Gluten-Free Foods
As we now know, it’s not just rice, but rice ingredients in processed foods, too, that lead to unsafe exposures to arsenic. Aside from baby food, watch out for rice milk and gluten-free processed foods and sweeteners that use rice ingredients to replace wheat or dairy ingredients.
2. Apple and Grape Juice
Apple juice is another source of toxic arsenic. Consumer Reports testing looked at 88 apple juice samples from 28 brands of apple and grape juice and discovered that about 10 percent of the samples contained arsenic levels that exceeded federal drinking-water standards.
Why grape juice? Check your labels. Many brands use apple juice as a filler juice.
3. Red Wine
In 2015, University of Washington researchers released a study showing that 98 percent of red wines tested contained arsenic levels exceeding U.S. drinking water standards. Scientists analyzed 65 red wines from the four biggest wine-producing states: California, Washington, New York and Oregon.
The conclusion? If wine is a person’s only source of arsenic in the diet, it may not pose a health hazard. (Assuming people not heavy drinkers.)
However, it’s wise to analyze your diet for sources of arsenic. If you’re eating and drinking several arsenic-rich selections, it’s best to cut some exposures out.
How to Avoid Arsenic in Food
Aside from eating less rice and foods containing rice ingredients, there are a few tricks you can use to significantly lower arsenic levels in rice:
- Cook rice like pasta. Instead of following cooking instructions on rice packages, cook it by adding much more water. (Kind of how you’d cook pasta — 6 to 10 parts water per one part rice.) Scientists proved this method could reduce arsenic levels in rice by up to 40 percent. It could, however, also lower levels of some rice nutrients, too.
- Researchers from the U.K. found that cooking rice in a coffee pot reduced arsenic by up to 85 percent.
- Replace rice with quinoa, a low-arsenic grain that is also rich in protein. Buckwheat and millet are two other low-arsenic options.
- Rice is a food staple around the world, but because the plant absorbs 10 times more arsenic than other grain plants, it often tests high in inorganic arsenic, the most dangerous form of the heavy metal. This type of arsenic is linked to certain cancers, developmental problems, cardiovascular disease, skin lesions and diabetes, among other health problems.
- Luckily, there are several ways to reduce arsenic in rice, particularly healthier brown rice. These include cooking rice in lots of water and choosing rice grown in areas that produce products generally lower in arsenic.
- Given the health threats associated with this risky crop, it only makes sense to set maximum allowable levels for arsenic in other foods, too. These include things like crackers, pastas and breakfast cereals, where manufacturers can use other ingredients as substitutes for rice flour, bran or syrup.
- The Environmental Working Group also advocates for funding research into growing techniques and technologies that will lower the amount of arsenic rice plants absorb.


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CrossID, the French-based software and online applications company, will be integrating its point-of-sale and enterprise resource planning (ERP) technologies into mIT@’s TiDaeX online hub. By leveraging the employment of mIT@’s open-access, easy-to-use e-jobsheet tyre service app, CrossID’s 320 tyre dealer customers can update their stock efficiently in their core systems while offering automatic data sharing with their customers.
By using the e-jobsheet app integrated into CrossID’s technology solutions, data is passed automatically via the TiDaeXonline hub to both contract holder and dealer (for stock updates and billing) when work is completed on the app. This enables commercial tyre service providers to enhance their service to customers and third parties by improving efficiencies and data dissemination. This data gives full visibility to all work carried out, which is almost instantaneously available back from the field, helping to enhance service agility and business accuracy.
Jean-Luc Giusti, managing director of CrossID, explained: “When mIT@ presented its innovative digitisation to us we realised we could offer our customers integrated solutions. These solutions would enable them to be more agile and efficient as well as being systematically linked to key manufacturer customers also participating on the platform.”
Steve Daly, director of mIT@, comments, “CrossID has an enviable software design and service reputation in France, and both parties see great mutual benefit from the integration.
“Our strategy to expand e-jobsheet's reach across Europe is gathering pace. More and more software solutions providers will be able to realise the benefits and added-value the open-access, multi-language digital tablet-based service work platform can deliver to tyre dealer markets.”


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After a year of pushing back on an IRS rule that would have made it more difficult for manufacturers to invest in new equipment, the NAM can declare a win, according to Bloomberg Government (subscription).
Here’s a recap:
- Before 2017, businesses could pretty much subtract their full interest payments on debt—but the 2017 tax reform law limited the business interest deduction to 30% of earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) for tax years starting in 2018.
- Starting in 2022, the deduction was limited even more, to earnings before interest and tax (EBIT). Excluding depreciation and amortization would make it more expensive for businesses like manufacturers to finance capital equipment purchases.
- Here’s where it could’ve gotten worse: The Treasury Department had proposed a rule that would have effectively imposed the EBIT standard now instead of two years from now.
For a capital-intensive industry like manufacturing, where businesses use debt to finance important investments in critical technology, that was going to cause a lot of strain even before COVID-19. Throw in a pandemic and a tough economic environment, and that proposed rule looks even worse.
The NAM aggressively pushed back, leading more than 80 trade associations to oppose that change. On Tuesday, the Treasury Department released its final rules—without that provision.
The NAM says: “Congress’s goal in reforming our tax system was to help businesses invest and grow, but the proposed rule would have had the opposite effect,” said NAM Vice President of Tax and Domestic Economic Policy Chris Netram. “We are pleased that Treasury did the right thing, helping support the men and women who make things in America.”
The bottom line: Because of this rule, it will be easier for manufacturers to invest in their business, their employees and their communities.


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£300m Meadowhall expansion halted as Covid-19 impact bites
Plans for a £300 million expansion of Sheffield's Meadowhall shopping centre have reportedly been put on ice by its owners.
It comes as co-owner British Land announced on Wednesday that it has collected less than half of the rent due on its retail properties as a result of the coronavirus shutdown.
The expansion project includes plans to add 330,000 sq ft to the shopping centre, creating restaurants, a cafe court, cinema and other leisure space.
Meadowhall shopping centre, which generates £82 million a year in rent, is home to Britain’s leading fashion brands. But various tenants have collapsed since the start of the lockdown, with several including Oasis, Warehouse and Cath Kidston closing all UK stores.
According to TheBusinessDesk.com, the £300 million expansion is “unlikely to progress” in the medium-term as the Covid-19 crisis has left both retailers and landlords out of pocket.
The project has been in the planning for more than four years.
Meadowhall is jointly owned by British Land and the Government Pension Fund of Norway.
Copyright © 2023 FashionNetwork.com All rights reserved.


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Cloudera has agreed to acquire certain assets of Arcadia Data, a provider of cloud-native AI-powered business intelligence and real-time analytics.
Arcadia Data in October 2018 announced it raised $15 million in a Series B funding round led by Pelion Venture Partners with participation from existing investors Intel Capital, Mayfield Fund, and Blumberg Capital. Arcadia Data raised $27 million to date.
Main customers of Arcadia Data include Nokia, P&G, RBC Royal Bank, Komatsu, Neustar, Enstar, among others.
Arcadia Data says five of the top seven financial services companies are among its customers and more than 2,500 companies are using Arcadia Instant.
Arcadia Data’s architecture delivers insights from modern data platforms like cloud object stores, Apache Kafka and Apache Hadoop. Arcadia’s ArcEngine technology enables enterprises to generate insights in use cases like data lakes, cybersecurity, IoT and customer intelligence.
Cloudera and Arcadia Data together will accelerate time-to-insight for Cloudera customers, and drive the future of the enterprise data cloud for businesses that need to solve complex data management and analytic use cases.
Sushil Thomas is the co-founder and CEO of Arcadia Data. Priyank Patel is the co-founder and CPO; Shant Hovsepian is co-founder and CTO and Doug Cameron is the co-founder and chief architect at Arcadia Data. The entire Arcadia Data organization will join Cloudera.
Cloudera reported revenue of $196.7 million in its second quarter of fiscal year 2020, ended July 31, 2019. Carl Icahn, an investor, and his associates have picked up more than 18 percent stake in Cloudera.


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MTN MobileMoney Limited has suspend a mobile money agent called KONAPET Enterprise for extorting GHC7 from a customer who cashed out GHC1,700.
KONAPET is a MoMo agent which operates near the Pentecost Church at Odorkor Official Town in Accra.
The facts of the case are that a customer (name withheld) went to KONAPET on July 10, 2021, to cash out GHC1,700.
Per the MoMo rules, the customer is supposed to be charged a maximum of GHC10 for any cash out from GHC1,000 and beyond.
But the customer reported to #SQUEAKGH that the female operator of the agent wallet insisted on charging GHC17, so instead of cashing out GHC1,700 from the customer’s wallet, she cashed out GHC1,707 but gave the customer GHC1,700 in cash.
In effect, she kept the GHC7, while the system also automatically charged the customer GHC10 for the cash out transaction.
According to the customer, the lady claimed she had to charge the extra GHC7 to cover “extra bank charges whenever she visits the banks to load her wallet.”
#SQUEAKGH reported the matter to MTN and to the Mobile Money Advocacy Group of Ghana (MOMAG), with evidence of the transaction.
Both MTN and MOMAG described the action of the agent as a crime, which is legally actionable, and promised to deal with the agent.
On July 12, 2021 MTN reached out to the agent and their investigations confirmed the story of customer, leading to the immediate suspension of the agent’s wallet.
CEO of MTN MobileMoney Limited, Eli Hini told TechGh24 they are doing further investigations before they finally reach out to the customer and refund his GHC7 to him.
He said agent might be completely blacklisted from the entire mobile money business, if further investigations reveal she has extorted money from other customers like she did to the customer in question.
It would be recalled that in June, mobile money agents put out a statement announcing increases in cash out fees to cover an extra 10% tax on their fees as announced by the Ghana Revenue Authority. But MTN in particular, put out a statement asking customers not to agree to any extra fees apart what is automatically charged on the transaction.
The leadership of the mobile money agents, the mobile money operators and the GRA have since been meeting to iron out how to handle the 10 per cent tax. But some agents like, KONAPET Enterprise have decided to circumvent the process and slap their own charges on customers arbitrarily in the name of bank charges.
Eli Hini reiterated the warning that any agent caught extorting money from customers would be completely removed from the ecosystem and where necessary, be handed over to the law enforcement agencies.


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The company have announced the additions to the recent Garden Gourmet range.
This year has seen a huge increase in fish, seafood, and egg alternatives with products such as tuna alternatives, tofu scramble, and even vegan salmon. Garden Gourmet has announced the latest seafood and egg alternative to hit the shelves.
The vegan shrimp alternative named Vrimp is made from a blend of seaweed, peas, and konjac root. Described by nestle as a good source of fibre that mimics the taste and texture of real ‘succulent’ shrimps. They are shaped via moulds to create a similar shape and then coloured with paprika and carrot to have the recognisable appearance of shrimp.
The egg alternative Garden Gourmet vEGGie is made from soy protein with Omega-3 fatty acids. The product will be suitable for replacing animal eggs in most situations including scrambled, pancakes, and baking. The vEGGie will be a liquid product similar to other egg replacements on the market.
Both products are to be trialled across their European market including Switzerland where Nestle is based however the full list of participating countries is yet to be released.
Nestle currently produce the VUNA tuna alternative in their European market. The Garden Gourmet brand released several meat alternatives in the UK earlier this year that include burgers, sausages, mince, and chicken-style fillets. They also provide meat alternatives to hospitality including the popular meatless meatballs at Subway.
Nestlé Chief Technology Officer, Stefan Palzer said: “Our new plant-based shrimp and egg alternatives have an authentic texture and flavor, as well as a favorable nutritional profile which makes them a good replacement for animal-based shrimp and eggs in a wide range of dishes.
The current UK products by Garden Gourmet are available at Tesco stores nationwide.


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Australian humourist Dan Ilic successfully crowdfunds outdoor ads
Powerful messages are appearing across Glasgow’s cityscape as brands, charities and activists leverage Scotland’s outdoor advertising inventory during COP26, the UN climate change conference.
From October 30 to November 14, advertisers will appear on 55 screens which make up Ocean Outdoor’s large format digital roadside estate right across the country, delivering more than 42 million impacts.
The sites include Ocean’s brand new 55 square metre full motion screen which is located in Glasgow’s North Hanover Street just outside George Square. Ocean is the number one player in large format digital screens across central Scotland.
The line-up of brands for the COP26 period includes Brewdog, Electronic Arts, EDF Energy, Fortescue Metals Group, Hewlett Packard, Hitachi, Scottish Power, Sky, Tennent’s Brewery, Unilever, Volvo and the Woodland Trust. The Scottish government has also taken outdoor advertising space.
Outdoor specialists Kinetic, Posterscope, Rapport and Talon and the ethical creative agency Media Bounty were involved in the planning of the campaigns.
They include The World Is Looking To You Cop 26, a series of powerful graffiti style posters pairing messages for delegates with photographs of individuals who have experienced disasters intensified by climate change. Commissioned by Media Bounty and supported by a collaboration of more than 40 organisations, the design was created by Iris.
A number of different executions designed for various formats and accompanied by frank messages such as Will you act now, or pray we get a later?, remind delegates of the importance of their actions and collective responsibilities with regards to climate change and the future of humanity.
One of the iterations explicitly states that the ad space has been taken to prevent other companies from using the opportunity for reassuring statements that “everything is okay”.
The campaign has been collectively developed by the organisations involved in conjunction with the Quadrature Climate Foundation.
Following a 10 week sealed bid auction earlier this year, outdoor inventory is close to capacity for the period of the summit which will see upwards of 20,000 world leaders and delegates assemble in Glasgow.
Ocean Scotland managing director Marc Keenan said: “COP26 is one of the most important environmental conference ever to be held and the first and last thing delegates will see as they arrive at and leave the conference will be our high impact outdoor advertising screens.
“Ocean delivers a critical communications platform for those brands and organisations that are on the frontline line of the climate emergency and COP26 is a unique opportunity to speak directly to decision makers on an international scale about a critical global issue. What outdoor advertising affords is a trusted, impactful environment, something which brands and organisations have clearly recognised.”
Australian investigative humourist Dan Ilic has crowd funded three satirical outdoor adverts which appear on Ocean’s Expressway Tower from October 30 to November 14, roasting Australia’s climate record.
The large format portrait screen sits on the busy A814 facing traffic entering the city and will deliver close to 350,000 views.
The campaign, A Rational Fear, features three different messages including Cuddle a Koala Before We Make Them Extinct! and Australia: Net Zero Ambitions by 2050!, accompanied by a kangeroo with its tail on fire.
Activist Dan raised more than 40,000 Australian dollars (£21,000) from donors in just two hours to pay for the digital screens. He says the surplus funds will be used to buy other billboards in key political constituencies in Australia.
“Thousands of Australians have chipped in to say that the Australian Government doesn’t represent them on the world stage. The Australian Prime Minister’s COP26 climate plan is much worse than that time the English sent the ANZACs to the wrong beach,” said Dan.


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SKRYBE is evolving
The conflict in Ukraine forced us to temporarily pause the development of the SKRYBE app while we relocated our development team to Poland.
I'm happy to say everyone has relocated successfully.
The development of SKRYBE is back on track,
and at a furious pace.
We are developing a new way to create, share and store pictures, artwork, memes, invites and more.
It's a big job, but we want to get it right...
right out of the box.
More on the way...


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Barcelona, Spain – Waste not, want not. Or more precisely, waste less, earn more. It’s a formula that markets are increasingly adopting as global leaders learn to cope with the growth in population – and consumption.
By 2025 cities will be producing 2.2 billion tonnes of solid waste annually, doubling 2012 levels. By 2030, 3 billion new customers will have entered the market. By 2050, 2.5 billion additional people will live in cities. With 30 percent of food going to waste and cars parked 95 percent of the time, consumption puts incredibly high pressure on the planet and its finite resources.
Is the world ready to shift towards a new, innovative and sustainable way of doing business?
Using less resources and recycling is only a partial solution. “If we have finite resources we need to be careful with how we use them. But just being careful is not the solution,” says Ellen MacArthur, founder of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation. “It buys us time, but it buys us time for what?”
MacArthur is a leading advocate of a “circular economy” based on minimizing waste and reusing resources. The European Union, for example, has adopted an action plan to help transition its economy to a circular one, promising to “boost global competitiveness, foster sustainable economic growth and generate new jobs.
The linear economy’s “take-make-use-dispose” needs to give way to a resilient and sustainable economy for the long-term. That economy aims to limit the extraction of raw materials and eliminate the production of waste; an economy that is restorative and regenerative by design, and which feeds back into the system. As MacArthur points out, an economy that “keeps the product to its highest value and utility at all times.”
A McKinsey study called the transition to a circular economy a $1 trillion business opportunity for the global economy.
The urgency and strategies needed to accelerate the transition from a linear economy to a circular economy was the focus of the first edition of the Circular Economy European Summit (CEES) in Barcelona, Spain in November.
Business Steps Up
Top executives of leading businesses have started to realize that “it is not about the product itself, but about how the product fits into the entire system,” as MacArthur states. Lighting giant Philips is a good example. It has designed a circular lighting model based on lighting design, lifetime reliability, technical lifetime extension, upgradeability, disassembly and recycling. It now provides light as a service to the Amsterdan Schiphol Airport.
“Systems thinking is applied broadly in the circular economy. In order to effectively transition to circular economy, links and consequences within and across the systems are taken into consideration at all times” says Lewis Perkins, President of the non-profit Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute. H&M, the second largest fashion retailer in the world, acknowledged during the CEES that the fashion industry is the second most polluting industry in the world, after oil, and that there is a need for a systemic change in the way fashion is made and used. Although the company has already put in place recycling programs, will it be able to totally transition from a “take-make-use-dispose” model to a fully circular model?
Cities as Living Labs
Paris, Helsinki, Amsterdam and London are making circular strides . Helsinki aspires to make car ownership obsolete by creating a multimodal transport infrastructure and offering a mobility on-demand system by 2025. The city of Paris, together with other 20 institutions from Greater Paris, made the first steps to transition to a circular economy by developing a white paper with 65 initiatives in areas such as innovation and experimentation, and changes in legislation.
Investors and financial institutions are paying close attention to the nascent circular models. Banking institutions like ING Bank, Intesa Sanpaolo, or PGGM have already recognized that the global financial market needs to change to be able to finance these initiatives and make the transition to circular economy possible. “Circular economy is a great opportunity to rethink the concept of risk in the financial industry” said Massimiano Tellini, head of Circular Economy at the Italian bank Intesa Sanpaolo.
The financial systems need to change from a credit perspective to be able to better adapt to the new business models. Circular models rely more on service provision and, as such, cashflows structures change and inflows get concentrated at specific periods of time; businesses’ capacity to bring in the customers with the right creditworthiness determines the companies’ credit risk levels; solvency and working capital needs might also change.
“Circular economy is a way to reinforce trust and redeem stakeholders in the economy at all levels, so that opportunities can be shared and created,” said Tellini.
Is the global economy prepared for that? Will it be possible to develop innovative business models that replace existing ones and contribute to a real sustainable growth? Will businesses, governments and investors help replicate and scale up circular models that have proven successful?
Photo credit: Philips.


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This story is part of a week-long Modern Retail editorial package looking into this year’s holiday season. Retailers have suffered over the last six months, and many are pitting their hopes on this last quarter. In this series, we look at what’s changed and what it means for the retail industry in the years to come.
The coronavirus has upended the traditional way of doing business in ever single retail category, and toys is no exception.
This year, as fewer people do their holiday shopping at stores, more toy sales are expected to move online. That means retailers like Walmart and Target also have to shift more of their marketing efforts for toys online, as do top toy brands like Mattel and Hasbro. Retailers are promoting their top toy lists online and trying to secure as many exclusives as possible, while toy brands are focusing on digital platforms like TikTok and YouTube. This was a trend that was already underway before the start of the coronavirus outbreak, but has since been accelerated.
According to eMarketer, e-commerce sales of toys are projected to grow 34.9% year-over-year, compared to 1.5.5% the year prior. The firm is also projecting that this year, e-commerce will make up 45.1% of all toy sales. However, in-store continues to make up a large percentage of toy sales, because of the fact that the largest toy retailers are also some of the largest brick-and-mortar retailers in the U.S. Since the bankruptcy filing of Toys ‘R’ Us in 2017, the retailers that have dominated toy sales are Walmart and Target — as well as e-commerce giant Amazon.
“[Toys] is probably the second or third category that really migrated online, with books being the first,” said Andrew Lipsman, e-commerce analyst at eMarketer. “Parents are buying on behalf of kids, and the parents don’t necessarily need that full in-store shopping experience.” Rather, he said, parents looking for toys value how easy it is to find the particular product their child wants online, how quickly it can be delivered and which retailer carries it for cheap.
Each year, Walmart, Amazon and Target attempt to gain an edge over competitors by trying to get as many exclusives as possible from top companies like Lego, Disney and Mattel, and then touting in those exclusives in “top toy lists” that they promote online and through catalogs. Amazon, in fact started releasing a print catalog highlighting its top toys for the holidays in 2018 — a testament to just how much of a driving force old-school marketing tactics like lists play in the toy category.
But one of the challenges retailers face this year is that it’s unclear what exactly will be the top toys this year, Katie Thomas, lead at the Kearney Consumer Institute said in an email. “Without traditional movie launches, as well as children seeing each other less due to hybrid learning or reduced activities, [there’s] less chatter amongst [kids] to drive up interest in one specific toy.”
Last year, top toy lists at Walmart, Amazon and Target included “Frozen 2” and “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” toys in their top two lists. Both films were released in November and December last year. This year, with no new films, retailers are instead leaning on what’s worked well for them in the past. Target and Walmart’s list of top toys, for example, includes Harry Potter and Star Wars lego sets, as well as a “Frozen 2” dolls.
But retailers are also searching for new partners, outside of entertainment studios, to help them secure new exclusives. Target, for example, has partnered with FAO Schwartz this year to carry exclusive products from the famed New York City toy store, such as a piano dance mat like the giant in-store piano that the store was known for.
Retailers are also promoting their holiday toys this year earlier than ever, as they brace for parents to start their holiday shopping earlier this year than ever before. Walmart, for example released its top list of holiday toys at the beginning of September.
The other wrinkle is that, as fewer people do their shopping in stores, brands and retailers are look for ways to recreate the experience of trying out a toy in store. This was something that retailers were already bracing for, as more toy sales have continued to move online for the past several years.
In 2018, startup Camp launched, which seeks to create a more modern in-store toy shopping experience, by having more space for product demos. Also that year, Walmart created a joint venture with video startup Eko, and through that partnership has created Walmart Wonder Lab, a website where kids can virtually unbox and try out toys.
“What I’m seeing more of is retailers having video content on their site,” said Tory Gundelach, senior vice president of retail insights at Kantar Consulting said.
Toy brands, meanwhile have been advertising more on video platforms, or striking deals with influencers to virtually showcase their toys. CNBC reported last week that that toy companies such as Zuru and IMC Toys have seen spikes in toys coinciding with videos showcasing them going viral on TikTok. Meanwhile, Mattel COO Richard Dickson said on the Modern Retail podcast earlier this month that YouTube was a key focus for the company, as it was creating more videos for its own channels and for partnerships with influencers. And Mattel’s television arm struck a deal with Netflix to create a new animated series.
“Continuing to be where our consumers are means, today, being everywhere — recognizing that our brands need to be on all platforms that are relevant to our consumers,” he said.


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Shares of S.African food producer Premier surge 11% on debut
JOHANNESBURG, March 24 (Reuters) - Shares of South African food producer Premier Group surged by more than 11% after listing on Friday, in a vote of investor confidence in the company after recent market turmoil.
Premier Group, held by billionaire Christo Wiese's private equity firm Brait (BATJ.J), is one of the oldest food producers in the country with top brands such as Blue Ribbon bread and Snowflake baking products.
Its shares, which were offered at 53.82 rand ($2.96), were trading at 60 rand by 1340 GMT.
Global markets have been battered by fears of a new banking crisis and Federal Reserve rate hikes. South Africa's blue-chip index (.JTOPI) has fallen almost 8% from an all-time high hit earlier this year, and was 1.7% lower on Friday.
"We'll be the only listed food manufacturer in South Africa that gives you a strong return on invested capital, a good entry point (and) continued growth in earnings," the Group's Chief Executive Officer Kobus Gertenbach told Reuters.
Premier postponed a planned listing last year as domestic political uncertainty roiled the market, but investor pressure forced Brait and Wiese - a revered businessman credited with creating Africa's biggest food retail company Shoprite (SHPJ.J) - to reconsider.
"Its a very, very good company in a very difficult industry," said Wayne McCurrie, portfolio manager with FNB.
Richard Cheesman, Senior Investment Analyst at Protea Capital Management, said even though high-quality food companies were more expensive than other stocks on the local bourse, food was a defensive business.
"People still have to eat, no matter the economic environment," he said.
Premier, which owns a quarter of the country's bread market, joins other food producers on the JSE such as Tiger Brands (TBSJ.J) and Avi Ltd (AVIJ.J) which have weathered the inflationary pressure.
($1 = 18.2079 rand)
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.


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New York Times Beats Profit And Revenue Estimates
New York Times Co. said Thursday it had net income of $9.4 million, or 6 cents a share, in the third quarter, after a loss of $12.5 million, or 8 cents a share, in the year-earlier period. Adjusted per-share earnings came to 9 cents, ahead of the FactSet consensus of 6 cents. Revenue rose to $367 million from $365 million, also ahead of the FactSet consensus of $365 million. The company added 51,000 net digital subscribers in the quarter, bringing the total to 1.04 million. "This is the largest number of net subscribers we have added in a quarter since Q4 2012, evidence of our ability to continue to grow our digital subscriber count more than four years after the launch of our pay model and of the high demand for our digital journalism," Chief Executive Mark Thompson said in a statement. The company is now expecting circulation revenue to increase at the same pace in the fourth quarter and for ad revenue to rise in the mid-single digits. Shares were not yet active in premarket trade, but are down 1.4% in the year so far, while the S&P 500 has gained 1.5%.
Copyright © 2015 MarketWatch, Inc.


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The idea of a smartwatch isn’t exactly a novel concept in our world today, however previous releases of these devices haven’t seen booming success yet. Now that a few have gone before them, Apple’s new iWatch is poised to set the gold standard for high tech watches. The iWatch will launch in October of 2014 with a special event hosted by Apple. There are a few iWatch features that will allow it to separate from the rest of the smartwatch pack. Let’s take a look at what will make the iWatch so special.
While the exact specifics of the iWatch have not yet been released, bits and pieces have made their way to the media. One of the coolest iWatch features is that it will have multiple biometric sensors. This means that it won’t merely be an accessory to the iPhone. The iWatch will track health metrics like heart rate, hours of sleep, calories burned and the number of steps that the watch wearer has taken in a day. Not only will fitness enthusiasts be drawn to the watch, but the biometric sensors will also attract tech-savvy individuals as well.
Some tech industry analysts believe that the iWatch could be so technically advanced that it could even potentially replace the popular iPod, which means that it has the potential to play music. A watch that plays and stores music will revolutionize the watch industry as few watches currently support such a capability. Many people already carry music on their phones, thus the iWatch will be attractive to those who want their playlists “on hand” wherever they go.
The iWatch is expected to sync up with the iPhone in a seamless and flawless manner. It will send call and message notifications from the iPhone directly to the iWatch, empowering the user to know exactly who is trying to communicate them and when they made the call or text. Other smartwatches do sync up with different electronic devices but the iWatch is expected to provide the deepest, most thorough level of compatibility with an already existing technological device. This feature will obviously be a pull for iPhone users.
If the Watch Fits
Reports are stating that the iWatch will come in multiple sizes, which will make it much more appealing than other smartwatches on the market. They are meant to not only to fit both men and women with different size wrists, but also to possibly make the watch easier to wear if it is being used while exercising. More than just a fashion statement, it will be especially useful for music and biometric tracking during workouts since it can be attached to other parts of the arm besides the wrist, like the forearm or bicep.
Staying Ahead of the Curve
The iWatch will have a curved display just like its sister device, the iPhone6. Few electronic devices on the market have curved displays, so Apple is once again “ahead of the curve” so to speak. The iWatch will also have a special sapphire coating so that it retains an unblemished shine throughout its lifespan. By implementing this new technology, consumers will be more likely to choose the iWatch over the now dated smartphones without the newest technology.
The release of the iWatch is still to come, so we have yet to see the true success of the device and how it will stack up to others. Due to the highly advanced technology, the iWatch has a better chance of being more user-friendly for consumers, which could help skyrocket its success. Only time will tell, but perhaps the world just isn’t ready for smartwatches yet, and no matter the design, technology, or style, consumers could still be disinterested. Information for this article was provided by the Apple experts at Apple Shark who provide users with a place to sell used iPhones no matter what condition they are in.


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From farmers to cement, steel, logistics, transportation and automobiles, the back-end is struggling to get going due to the liquidity crisis.
Viveat Pinto & Aditi Divekar, Chandan Kishore Kant & Sohini Das report.
Devendra Shetty runs a small canteen in central Mumbai. On most days, it does brisk business but the past week has been bad. Demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes, Shetty explains, has not only meant fewer customers walking in for lunch. He’s also having a tough time with suppliers.
"Most of them ask me how I will pay them. Our business works on cash. Typically, we clear payments as quickly as possible, to avoid having to carry too much credit on our books. Now, I am forced to pick up supplies on credit till this currency crisis eases. I don't like this," he says.
This is a dilemma shared by millions of traders, entrepreneurs, small-time retailers, transporters and intermediaries. India's back-end, which works on cash, has almost come to a standstill because of the demonetisation drive announced last week.
Goods are not moving because truckers and logistics players are not willing to take these without cash. Trade, at the same time, is short of funds and, hence, not willing to stock beyond a point. So, a straight impact on manufacturers.
Take retailers of fast moving consumer goods, considered among the most widespread of trade networks. This business has suffered badly, especially at the 'last mile', where the density of retailers is high.
It is estimated that of the country's 12-15 million retail outlets, 9.4-9.5 mn are the traditional 'mom and pop' or 'kirana' stores. Cash is the preferred mode of transaction, as it allows them to keep costs down, make payments quickly and ensure the cycle of demand and supply is met easily.
"Kiranawalas operate on very thin margins. They run a tight ship, funded typically by cash," explains Sumit Malhotra, managing director, Bajaj Corp, maker of Bajaj Almond hair oil. "This entire system goes out of gear if there is a liquidity crisis. And, contrary to popular belief, this will take time to be restored, at least three to six months."
FMCG companies expect sales to suffer in the December quarter, due to destocking by traders and retailers. The revenue impact could be 10-15% in the quarter for the sector.
Take also the steel and cement trade; it hasn’t moved in the past few days.
The revenue impact for steel is estimated to be huge, according to sources at the Bombay Iron Merchants' Association. "There is no movement of stocks in warehouses. Nobody is doing anything for the past two to three days and the entire buy-sell cycle has been disrupted," said a source at the body.
Cement is worse. A key constituent of the building and construction industry, initial checks reveal dealers are not buying new stock. The cause is not only a liquidity crunch but also fear whether the real estate market will use up their material due to a slowdown there, on account of the demonetisation drive. Typically, the average life of a cement bag is five to six weeks and dealers cannot keep a high level of inventory for long, experts said.
Already in the September quarter, growth in cement demand had fallen to 2.55% from 5.5% in the June quarter and 11.5% in the March one. Analysts estimate the 440-million tonne market will end 2016-17 with growth not more than 2-2.5%, against 4.6% the previous year.
Transporters say truck rentals will shoot up as small operators, who work on only cash, go out of business. Ashok Shah, chairman, V Trans India, says: "Big companies like ours which runs approximately 1,100 trucks daily have credit arrangements. That is not the case with small operators, who have to pay Rs 50,000 to drivers for various expenses over long routes. With the shortage of liquidity, these trucks will make fewer trips, impacting transportation and pushing up rentals."
The transportation impact is fairly widespread, as everything from perishables to non-perishables is delivered via road in India.
According to sector estimates, the ratio of goods transported by road in India vis-a-vis rail is 70:30. A liquidity crunch, says Kultaran Singh Atwal, chairman, All India Motor Transport Congress, hits at the heart of the business.
Automobiles are also not spared.
Dealers say the propensity to pay the down-payment for a car in cash is more in rural areas, as agricultural income there is mostly in cash.
A paucity of liquid funds, therefore, will mean people in rural areas are likely to defer purchases, impacting sales. Around 35% of passenger car sales come from the rural markets; in two-wheelers, this share is around 50 per cent, says Vishnu Mathur, director-general, Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers. Nobody is excited at this stage, he says. Essential supplies to be hit from Monday, warn truckers.
Business of about Rs 1,000 crore would be affected
Megha Manchanda reports from New Delhi
The cash-driven transport sector is one of many bearing the brunt of the current currency crisis, with truckers saying supplies of fruit, vegetables and grain will get hit from Monday if the situation does not improve. For, they say, there is scarcity of cash with the drivers, vendors, labourers and also the authorities.
There are tens of millions directly and indirectly are associated with the sector. Business of about Rs 1,000 crore would be affected, a transporter said.
The Union ministry of road transport and highways had, in the wake of the government’s demonetisation announcement, waived toll payment at all highways. Even so, the All India Motor Transport Congress, an apex body for transporters, has said the limit of Rs 10,000 withdrawal a day and a maximum of Rs 20,000 a week is minuscule and is paralysing their members’ business. As much as 80 per cent of transport costs (fuel, toll payments, drivers’ board and lodging, repairs, payments to loaders) are cash-based, it says.
In the area around Delhi, it is a twin blow, as an estimated 200,000 diesel-powered vehicles went off the roads from Sunday, on a National Green Tribunal order barring vehicles 15 years old or more from plying on or entering this city. The city government has begun the process of de-registering these vehicles.
Govt likely to put curbs on jewellers
Rajesh Bhayani reports from Mumbai
On Rajat Sharma's show Aap Ki Adalat on India TV, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley mentioned thrice that shops of a particular industry were open till very late in the night after Narendra Modi's demonetisation announcement. He was obviously referring to jewellers who were selling gold by accepting withdrawn currency notes, which has continued.
According to sources, the government is likely to clamp down on jewellers and Tuesday, November 15, will be the last day for them to deposit old high-value currency notes.
The gold and jewellery route has been followed by persons with black money to convert their Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes at a haircut of 20-40%.
This move will halt such sales of gold at a huge premium against old currency notes, which jewellers were doing till the income tax department raided them across the country on Friday and sent around 600 notices to jewellers asking the details of daily sales from November 7 to 10. The I-T department, in its notices, also asked for CCTV footages, especially of cameras near cash counters, to seek date-wise information and to check if PAN numbers or ID proofs were collected from customers.
Another strong rumour in the market is about banning import of gold till March 2017, which according to sources, is unlikely, but will not be surprised to see some restrictions on imports till end-December.
Sudheesh Nambiath, lead analyst, precious metals demand, GFMS, Thomson Reuters, said, Banning imports would send a wrong message to the industry. The government hasn't been against the industry and is only interested in streamlining the process and restrict movement of unaccounted money to gold and jewellery. The buzz that jewellers will be asked to deposit cash till November 15 in itself will take care of the diversion of old currency notes to gold, diamonds, silver and precious stones.
Banks are heavy on data currently with multiple inter-relationships on variables and running a good analytics can easily identify accounts with spurious deals. That is a more intelligent approach than banning gold import.
If gold imports are restricted or banned for a few months as the buzz suggests, selling existing stock or recycled gold will be the only source for business. However, such restrictions will take premiums higher and some old idle jewellery with households may be sold in market at a premium, said an analyst.
Meanwhile, other methods of laundering black money hoarded in the banned notes are also flourishing. Some chartered accountants are using their smaller clients to launder their larger clients money. Up to 35-40% premiums are quoted for such entries by CAs. Some players have used daily wage earners to exchange Rs 4,000 and in return they were given more than their daily wages. In cities such as Surat and Ahmedabad, workers made Rs 600-1,000 for each exchange of Rs 4,000. Reports of very long queues outside banks also include such persons, said a Gujarat-based trader.
While the hawala market or unofficial foreign currency market has come to a virtual standstill, some dealers have sold dollars between Rs 85 and Rs 110 against the official rate of around Rs 67 per dollar.
Agriculture markets come to halt
Rajesh Bhayani reports from Mumbai
Trade in mandis or Agriculture Produce Market Committees in many parts of the country has come to a standstill because of spiralling effects of demonetisation move.
Farmers, who are used to accepting money only in the form of cash, resist money in any other form and traders don’t have cash with them to buy farm products.
It is only in those mandis that are computerised and where payment is made electronically, is trade going on smoothly.
According to traders, it would take a few weeks before the situation is back to normal when farmers start accepting electronic fund transfer or accept cheque payment.
There are about 200 mandis that are integrated with the electronic national agriculture market. However, trade on the electronic platform is very small.
Rajesh Agrawal, former chairman of The Soybean Processors Association of India, said: "APMCs in Madhya Pradesh were closed following the demonitisation move. These are set to open gradually, but it’ll take a while before trade becomes normal and farmers bring their produce as usual."
The closure has not impacted soya bean prices because market has been over-supplied.
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan had to intervene to convince farmers that traders would transfer money into their bank accounts. In MP, such electronic payment would be easy as farmers in the state were registered for the wheat procurement programme four years ago and procurement money was deposited in their accounts.
A Mumbai-based trader from Vashi APMC dealing with Rajasthan traders said that 14 mandis, where farmers have been convinced to accept electronic fund transfer, would open in one or two days. The rest start functioning gradually as acceptance among farmers increase. Mandis in Gujarat are no better as problems faced by them are similar.
Devendra Vora of Friendship Trading, a wheat trader at Vashi APMC, said: "In Vashi, trade has fallen 90 per cent due to liquidity issues and later arrivals of trucks, which were held up on the roads due to various reasons following withdrawal of currency notes. The issue here is with transporters who brought commodities from producing centres are not accepting cheques and want cash, which is not available. This could be sorted out as systems develop."
Notably, more and more farmers are being convinced to accept digital payment. They have their Jan-Dhan accounts, if not other bank accounts. But for the common electronic agriculture market to develop and local mandis to discover transparent pricing, electronic fund transfer has to get acceptance among farmers and transporters.
Photograph: PTI Photo.