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On Monday night, Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton met for a highly anticipated debate. While the debate had its highlights, there are plenty of questions left unanswered. Are we any closer to predicting the next President of the United States of America? How should you trade the markets regardless of either party winning the White House?
Guide To Thriving In Election Year Markets
Every four years, the USA elects a president. Also every four years, investors and pundits try hard to predict how markets will respond to each party taking office. And yes, political parties promote certain values which (in theory) affect the markets. But do the parties’ agendas really influence the markets so much? Here’s what you need to know to trade the markets regardless of which party sits in the oval office.
Sounds crazy, right? Especially when you consider that this post is about politics. Except this post isn’t about politics. It’s about trading. And traders find ways to make money regardless of who’s in power.
Everyone has assumptions about what will happen when a certain candidate/party takes over the White House. In 2008, talking heads were clamoring that Obama would put gunmakers out of business, turn healthcare into charity cases, and put clean energy on a pedestal.
But look at the charts.
Smith & Wesson has dominated the market the past five years. The healthcare sector has outpaced the broad market by more than two points a year under Obama. And as for clean energy, which was expected to thrive under this administration? Well those stocks are down 47% under Obama.
Now, I’m not saying don’t vote. DEFINITELY vote. Add your voice to the rest of the country and be heard! But I am saying leave personal beliefs and opinions out of your trading. Political values have an impact on almost everyone’s investment behavior, in ways you may not even notice. One study found mutual and hedge fund managers who contribute to Democrats tend to own fewer “sin stocks” like alcohol, tobacco, or firearms than Republican-donating managers do.
A study of 60,000 investors done from 1991-2002 found people take greater market risks when their party controls Washington. The same study discovered that investors affiliated with the party out of power tend to grow restless and trade securities more frequently. That impatience causes them to underperform compared with when their party is in charge.
When you’re basing a decision on a political opinion, just consider that the S&P 500 has finished up more than 66% of years since 1926, and during that window of time there have been eight Republican and seven Democrat Presidents.
With the election currently happening let us watch this video from Bloomberg and find out what market history tell us about the election.
Investors have made money under failed administrations and successful ones. They’ve made money during war and during peace. And so can you. Just make sure you’re following news and events rather than opinion, and leave politics out of it.
The statements, views, and opinions of any article, contribution, editorial, or advertisement in this publication are not necessarily those of The Capitalist or its editorial staff, and are not considered an endorsement, sponsorship, or recommendation of any referenced product, service, issuer, or groups of issuers.
This publication provides general information about certain subjects, and should not be construed or taken as advice (legal, financial, investment, tax, or otherwise). Do not construe or take any information in this publication as a solicitation, offer, opinion, or recommendation to buy or sell any securities, bonds, or other financial instruments or to provide any legal, financial, investment, tax, or other advice or service about the suitability or profitability of any financial instruments or investments.
The Capitalist disclaims any liability for the accuracy of or your reliance on any statements, views, opinions, or information in this publication.
Dow Jones Industrial Average Breaks 29,000 For The First Time in History
Slight gains send Dow Jones Industrial Average above 29,000!
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed above 29,000 points for the first time and the S&P 500 index hit its second record high in three days Wednesday.
The milestones came on a day when the market traded in a narrow range as investors weighed the latest batch of corporate earnings reports and the widely anticipated signing of an initial trade deal between the U.S. and China.
President Donald Trump and China’s chief negotiator, Liu He, signed the “Phase 1″ deal before a group of corporate executives and reporters at the White House. The pact eases some sanctions on China. In return, Beijing has agreed to step up its purchases of U.S. farm products and other goods.
“This was telegraphed well enough that the market is kind of looking through it and toward the next phase and what that means,” said Keith Buchanan, portfolio manager at Globalt Investments.
Health care stocks accounted for much of the market’s gains. Utilities and makers of household goods also rose. Those gains outweighed losses in financial stocks, companies that rely on consumer spending and the energy sector.
The S&P 500 index rose 6.14 points, or 0.2%, to 3,289.29. The index also climbed to an all-time high on Monday.
The Dow gained 90.55 points, or 0.3%, to 29,030.22. The Nasdaq composite added 7.37 points, or 0.1%, to 9,258.70.
Smaller-company stocks fared better than the rest of the market. The Russell 2000 picked up 6.66 points, or 0-4%, to 1,682.40.
The benchmark S&P 500 index is on track for its second straight weekly gain.
Bond prices rose. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 1.78% from 1.81% late Tuesday.
While limited in its scope, investors have welcomed the U.S.-China deal in hopes that it will prevent further escalation in the 18-month long trade conflict that has slowed global growth, hurt American manufacturers and weighed on the Chinese economy. The world’s two largest economies will now have to deal with more contentious trade issues as they move ahead with negotiations. And punitive tariffs will remain on about $360 billion in Chinese goods as talks continue.
With the “Phase 1” agreement now a done deal, investors have more reason to focus on the rollout of corporate earnings reports over the next few weeks. Earnings have been flat to down for the last three quarters, and if the fourth quarter meets expectations, it should be around the same.
However, analysts are projecting 2020 corporate earnings growth to jump around 9.5%, which is why traders will be listening this earnings reporting season for any clues management teams give about their business prospects in coming months.
“We’re expecting a reacceleration in the back end of the year, so any (company) guidance that brings any type of skepticism to that could threaten the recent rally we’ve had and the gains that we’ve accrued in the past few months,” Buchanan said.
Health care stocks powered much of the market’s gains Wednesday. Several health insurers climbed as investors cheered a solid fourth-quarter earnings report from UnitedHealth Group.
The nation’s largest health insurer, which covers more than 49 million people, said its revenue rose 4% on a mix of insurance premiums and growth from urgent care and surgery centers. Its stock rose 2.8%. Other health insurers also moved higher. Anthem gained 1.6%, Cigna added 1.5% and Humana climbed 1.9%.
Technology companies also rose. The sector is reliant on China for sales and supply chains and benefits from better trade relations. Microsoft gained 0.7% and Advanced Micro Devices gained 0.8%.
Utilities and consumer staples sector stocks also notched gains. Edison International climbed 2.5% and PepsiCo rose 1.7%.
Financial stocks fell the most. Bank of America slid 1.8% after reporting weaker profits due to the rapid decline of interest rates in late 2019.
Energy stocks also fell along with the price of crude oil. Valero Energy dropped 3.3%.
Homebuilders marched broadly higher on news that U.S. home loan applications surged 30.2% last week from a week earlier. The pickup in mortgage applications reflects heightened demand for homes and suggests many buyers are eager to purchase a home now, rather than waiting for the traditional late-February start of the spring homebuying season. Hovnanian Enterprises jumped 6.4%.
Target slumped 6.6% after a disappointing holiday shopping season prompted the retailer to cut its forecast for a key sales measure in the fourth quarter. The company said weak sales of electronics, toys and home goods crimped sales growth to just 1.4% in November and December.
Benchmark crude oil fell 42 cents to settle at $57.81 a barrel. Brent crude oil, the international standard, dropped 49 cents to close at $64 a barrel.
Wholesale gasoline fell 1 cent to $1.64 per gallon. Heating oil declined 3 cents to $1.88 per gallon. Natural gas fell 7 cents to $2.12 per 1,000 cubic feet.
Gold rose $9.70 to $1,552.10 per ounce, silver rose 25 cents to $17.92 per ounce and copper fell 1 cent to $2.87 per pound.
The dollar fell to 109.91 Japanese yen from 110.00 yen on Tuesday. The euro strengthened to $1.1150 from $1.1128.
Markets in Europe closed mostly lower.
20 Stocks Every Investor Should Add to Their Watch List in 2020
Interested in what stocks to look out for this year? Then you’ll love this list of the best stocks to watch in 2020.
These funds purchase multiple stocks and spread risk appropriately across the top companies. This is the advice of Warren Buffett, who once said,
“By periodically investing in an index fund, for example, the know-nothing investor can actually outperform most investment professionals.”
If you’re looking for a stock index fund, check out Vanguard’s 500 Index Fund.
With that aside, here are the most promising stocks going in to 2020:
1. Chipotle Mexican Grill
Chipotle is an international chain of restaurants specializing in tacos, burritos, and other Mexican style cuisines. They have establishments all over the world from the United States to Germany and France.
This beloved food joint performed very well in the first two quarters of 2020 and are expected to continue to grow.
P/E ratio as of August 2019: 87.81
2. Constellation Brands, Inc.
Constellation is an international beer and wine producer. They are the largest importer of beer in the United States and command 7.4% of the market share.
P/E ratio as of August 2019: 17.00
3. Lululemon Athletica
Lululemon Athletica creates athletic apparel such as performance shirts, shorts, and pants, as well as yoga accessories. They’ve built a brand over the years that millions recognize and love.
P/E ratio as of August 2019: 47.51
4. Coty Inc.
Coty Incorporated is a multinational company that specializes in beauty products and services such as cosmetics, fragrances, skincare, and nail care.
Coty owns over 70 brands, such as CoverGirl, Clairol, and Bourjois. In 2018, the company’s revenue was over $9.4 billion.
As of August 2019, Coty Inc. stock is valued at 10.42 USD. Their P/E ratio is not yet available.
5. Anadarko Petroleum Corporation
Anadarko is in the natural gas and petroleum industry. This entails everything from gathering resources to treating and transporting gas. The company is also in the hard mineral business.
In early 2019, Anadarko had an estimated 1.47 billion barrels of oil in reserve, making it one of the biggest players in the industry.
As of August 2019, Anadarko’s stock is valued at 73.48 USD. Their P/E ratio is not available yet.
6. Brookfield Infrastructure Partners L.P.
Brookfield Infrastructure Partners acquires and manages infrastructure assets all over the world. They specialize in utilities, energy, and transportation infrastructure.
The company invests in ports, toll roads, pipelines, and telecommunication lines. In other words, things that people will always need and use.
P/E ratio as of August 2019: 75.27
7. ONEOK Inc.
ONEOK (pronounced “one – oak”) Incorporated is in the natural gas industry and is a key leader in the gathering, storing, processing, and transporting natural gas in the United States.
P/E ratio as of August 2019: 22.62
TerraForm Power Inc.
TerraForm Power specializes in renewable energy, particularly solar and wind power. There is an ever-growing trend that demands less damage to the environment.
As the world values green innovations, companies like TerraForm are expected to be favored in the coming years.
P/E ratio as of August 2020: 227.44
Netflix is a service provider and production company with their main product being a subscription-based streaming service.
Streaming TV and movies have largely replaced traditional television. With no commercials and instant access to thousands of products, Netflix is suspected to continue to grow.
P/E ratio as of August 2019: 120.23
iRobot is an advanced technology company that specializes in military and domestic robots. They designed the Roomba, which is an autonomous vacuum cleaner.
The U.S. military has purchased and uses thousands of robots from iRobot and are contracted to make more.
P/E ratio as of August 2019: 22.24
Amazon is a multinational company that specializes in e-commerce and cloud computing. It’s considered one of the big four technology companies along with Apple, Google (Alphabet, Inc.), and Facebook.
Amazon is well known for distributing goods through technological innovation and on a massive scale. Some estimate that Amazon commands 50% of all goods sold online.
P/E ratio as of August 2019: 73.65
11. Apple Inc.
Apple is a multinational tech company that develops and sells computer software, electronics, and online services. They designed some of the world’s greatest tech products including the iPhone and Apple Watch.
Being a leader in tech devices, many analysts believe Apple is one of the most promising stocks to invest in.
P/E ratio as of August 2019: 16.61
12. Alphabet Inc.
Alphabet Inc. is a multinational conglomerate founded in 2015. It’s the parent company of Google, which is the dominating search engine on the internet.
Google performs 90% of all searches on the internet. Alphabet has additional subsidiaries such as Calico, Capital G, and Deep Mind.
These subsidiaries have their hands in industries such as autonomous cars, biotechnology, video game software, and internet tech.
P/E ratio as of August 2019: 23.87
13. Facebook Inc.
Facebook is the popular American social media site founded by Mark Zuckerberg. In 2018, Facebook had a net income of $22.11 billion and its total assets were $97.33 billion.
Facebook has subsidiaries such as Instagram and WhatsApp, which are also very popular social media outlets.
P/E ratio as of August 2019: 31.00
14. MarketAxess Holdings Inc.
MarketAxess is an international company that specializes in financial technology, also known as fintech.
They operate an electronic trading platform for various credit markets such as corporate bonds and income products.
P/E ratio as of August 2019: 70.82
15. AT&T Inc.
AT&T is a multinational conglomerate holding company and is the world’s largest company in telecommunications.
AT&T is the parent company of Warren Media, which makes it the largest entertainment company in the world in terms of revenue.
P/E ratio as of August 2019: 14.17
16. Verizon Communications Inc.
Verizon is a multinational telecommunications conglomerate. They are well known for their subsidiary Verizon Wireless, which is its mobile network.
Together with AT&T, these two companies dominate the mobile and landline market. Since our needs for communications will develop, these two stocks are poised to grow.
P/E ratio as of August 2019: 14.49
17. Axon Enterprise Inc.
Axon Enterprise Inc. is a U.S.-based company that develops weapon products and technology for civilians and law enforcement. This company developed the Taser, a line of electric shock weapons.
Since then, Axon developed other technologies including body cameras and a cloud-based management system that empowers police departments to manage and review evidence.
P/E ratio as of August 2019: 129.55
18. Intuitive Surgical Inc.
Intuitive Surgical Inc. develops and manufactures surgical equipment to make surgeries less invasive. As of 2017, they had 4,271 bases worldwide.
P/E ratio as of August 2019: 48.51
19. Ford Motor Company
Despite the localized recession in Detroit, the automotive giant is doing very well.
The market continues to demand their SUVs and commercial vehicles, not to mention their luxury vehicles, which are usually created under their Lincoln brand.
P/E ratio as of August 2019: 16.90
20. General Motors Company
General Motors is a multinational manufacturer of vehicles and own automotive brands like Buick, GMC, Cadillac, and Chevrolet. They have nearly 400 facilities on six different continents.
P/E ratio as of August 2019: 6.19
Let’s point out two trends from this list:
- Tech and software companies are dominating
- Utility-related companies are tried and true
About half of the world still doesn’t have internet access. And a large portion still doesn’t have access to common devices like cell phones and laptops. That means these industries are set up to grow significantly for years to come.
Of course, that doesn’t mean other industries will simply disappear. As you’ve seen in the list, there are still key industries that our society relies on, such as energy and infrastructure companies.
Some of the most promising stocks are in tech and software, such as Apple, Facebook, Google, and Amazon.
Nevertheless, the wisest investment is still a stock index fund, which bets on the collective market rather than individual companies.
Washington State OKs Some of the Nation’s Toughest OT Rules
SEATTLE — Washington state is adopting some of the nation’s most aggressive overtime rules, restoring protections for hundreds of thousands of salaried workers and taking what supporters say is a crucial step toward rebuilding the middle class.
The Department of Labor and Industries finalized the rules Wednesday and will phase them in by 2028. By that time, salaried workers making up to about $83,400 a year will be entitled to time-and-a-half pay if they work more than 40 hours per week.
Workers making more than that could also get overtime unless they are certain types of professionals — such as those with higher degrees — or unless they are truly managers or executives, as demonstrated by their ability to and fire, direct other people’s work or make significant business decisions.
Many job categories will be affected, including shift managers at restaurants and retail establishments, office managers, some medical workers and other white-collar staff, officials said.
“We need to make sure the middle class shares in our state’s prosperity,” Washington Gov. Jay Inslee said in a news release. “Overtime protections ensure workers are fairly compensated when they work more than 40 hours in a given week — time that would otherwise be spent with their families and in their communities.”
Employees who are paid hourly have long been entitled to overtime. But salaried workers have generally been entitled to it only if they make less than a certain amount: about $23,660 under federal law, or more where state laws are more generous.
Those thresholds may have worked decades ago, when they meant that nearly two-thirds of salaried workers nationally were covered by overtime protections. But after a recession in the 1970s, lawmakers largely stopped updating them. Washington’s has been stuck at $13,000 since 1976.
As people’s salaries rose with inflation, they found themselves no longer eligible for overtime. Businesses have also been able to convert hourly workers into salaried ones who make just more than the threshold as a way to avoid additional staff or paying overtime.
In other cases, workers have been classified as managers when their actual duties more closely resemble those of hourly workers, officials said.
By some estimates, as few as 7% of salaried workers across the country are now entitled to overtime.
The federal government and several states, including California, New York, Pennsylvania, Colorado, Michigan and Massachusetts, have recently updated or started to update their overtime rules, but none have adopted a target threshold as high as Washington’s, said Paul Sonn, state policy program director with the National Employment Law Project.
The rules adopted by the Trump administration will raise the threshold to cover workers making up to $35,308 a year — a significant cut from the $47,000 limit proposed by the Obama administration.
“The overtime threshold is to the middle class as the minimum wage is to low-wage work,” said Nick Hanauer, a Seattle venture capitalist whose think-tank , Civic Ventures, advocates for progressive economic policies. “It is the indispensable labour protection for middle class people.”
Business groups in Washington have agreed that the state’s rules needed to be updated, but they criticized the plans as drastic. The Association of Washington Business, warned when the proposed rules came out in June that they would be a shock to many businesses and that they could particularly hurt nonprofits.
The organization warned that many businesses might convert salaried workers to hourly ones, reducing scheduling flexibility.
After hearing extensive public comment, the department added two years to the phase-in period. The threshold will increase incrementally until it reaches 2.5 times the minimum wage — about $83,400 — by 2028. The rules will phase in more slowly for businesses with fewer than 50 employees.
The department estimates that by the time they are fully implemented, the new rules will give overtime protections to about 260,000 workers who don’t have them and strengthen overtime protections for about 235,000 others. Affected workers will also become eligible for sick leave and retaliation protections.
At a news conference Wednesday, Labor and Industries Director Joel Sacks gave an example of one type of worker who will be protected : a shift manager who makes $40,000 a year but is expected to work 60 hours a week.
Under the new rules, that worker will be paid overtime for the additional hours, or the business will need to additional staff.
“It’s fair, it’s right and it’s long overdue,” Sacks said.
Among those who might be helped is Victor Duran, a co-manager of a sports apparel store south of Seattle. He said he makes about $52,000 a year and doesn’t get overtime, but is required to work at least 45 hours per week — and up to 60 during the holidays.
“We say bye to the family at the beginning of the season and say we’ll see them after Christmas,” Duran said.
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Manufacturers in the country have welcomed recommendations by the Presidential Taskforce on review of power purchase agreements, to reduce electricity charges for consumers and enterprises.
They, however, called for further reduction of electricity tariffs for enterprises beyond the recommended 33 percent, to at least half the current costs. Kenya Association of Manufacturers (KAM) says current charges have been detrimental to the sector and are the most expensive in the region.
"In this spirit, it is imperative that there is new focus on reviewing the taxes, levies, and charges on power bills for manufacturers to reduce the overall cost of power," said KAM Chairman, Muchai Kunyiha, arguing that this was the only businesses in the sector could compete with others in the region and preserve the country's edge as an investor-attractive destination.
He noted that in comparison to other countries in Africa, manufacturers in the country have been paying up to more than four times for electricity, a factor that has highly increased the cost of production and denied Kenya-made products competitiveness.
"Presently, the tariff for industrial consumers stands at US cts 18/kWh, compared to Ethiopia at US cts 4/kWh, Egypt US cts 6/kWh, Uganda US cts 12/kWh, Tanzania cts 7/kWh and South Africa US cts 9/kWh," Mr Kunyiha said in a statement Friday.
The association added it advocates for the need for reduced end-user tariff, stability and reliability of the grid, planning with end-user tariff in focus, Kenya Power's sustainability, net metering and fast-tracking of infrastructure projects during its engagement with the taskforce, as some of the ways to reduce power costs.
The taskforce was formed following a directive by President Uhuru Kenyatta in March, to undertake a comprehensive review and analysis of the terms of all Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) entered into by Kenya Power and develop a suitable strategy for engagement with the Independent Power Producers (IPPs) and lenders, the aim to achieve relief for electricity consumers and ensure the long-term viability and sustainability of the energy sector.
It handed over its report to the President on Wednesday, revealing that most of the PPAs had been skewed through exaggeration of prices for the deals with some IPPs, to the detriment of power consumers.
"The President has considered the Report of the Taskforce and notes that the key findings were: the vast differential between KenGen and IPP tariffs and electricity dispatch allocations, the lack of proper demand forecasting and planning, leading to irreconcilable projections as against demand, the existing risk allocation imbalances between KPLC and IPPs further exacerbated by poor contract management frameworks and an uncoordinated institutional architecture that inadvertently contributes to enhanced operational costs passed on to consumers," a press statement by the Presidency stated.
The taskforce recommended that there be established a path towards the reduction of the cost of electricity in the country by over 33 percent within four months. Manufacturers now say the only way the sector can regain its energy and operate competitively and cost effectively will be by reducing current electricity charges by half.
This is amid concerns from the sector that high power charges have been preventing potential investors, who would have catalysed economic development in the country, from setting up base in Kenya.
"The consequence of the proposed interventions is that a consumer who previously spent Sh500 per month on electricity shall by December 31, 2021 pay Sh330 per month. This cost reduction will be achieved through the reduction of the consumer tariffs from an average of Sh24 per kilowatt hour to Sh16 per kilowatt hour, which is about two thirds of the current tariff," the statement partly read.
Manufacturers termed the decision "a positive and encouraging move for industry, and a significant milestone in the long-standing efforts towards the reduction of power costs to boost local manufacturing and investment in the sector."
They said the decision would be a favourable boost for the sector as businesses recover from impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic.
"The recommendations provided will play a critical role in lowering the overall cost of electricity, particularly in reducing system losses and aligning Power Purchase Agreements to the Least Cost Power Development Plan," Mr Muchai added.

domain: news


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Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. is ready to forget 2010 and move forward.
The Japanese automaker, still reeling from major recalls, on Tuesday said it posted a 6 percent decline in December U.S. sales. It was the only major automaker to record a sales decline last year.
Toyota's retail sales were up slightly for the year, but were offset by a decline in fleet sales, which fell to about 8 percent of total.
“We're coming off the most challenging time in our 53-year history,” Don Esmond, head of Toyota's U.S. automotive operations, said Tuesday. “2010 was essentially an 11-month year for us, as we stopped production in January to focus all our attention on servicing customer vehicles.”
Light year for new products
In addition to the recalls, it was a relatively light year for new products from Toyota. The redesigned Sienna, 4Runner, Avalon and Scion tC -- all introduced in 2010 -- are low-volume models.
“There is perception that Toyota has been reeling this year,” Esmond said. “But Toyota will be the No. 1 retail brand for the third consecutive year, and Camry is the best selling car in America. Corolla, Tacoma and Lexus RX are all segment leaders. Lexus will be the best-selling luxury brand in the industry for the 11th consecutive year.”
But it's in passenger cars -- a traditional Toyota strength – where the automaker is being challenged by new models introduced by rivals such as Hyundai, Ford and Chevrolet.
“Camry and Corolla sales compared to the industry are pretty decent,” said Esmond. “Our car penetration continues to be good.”
Fuel efficiency gains
And the automaker is counting on demand for the Prius hybrid to benefit if gasoline prices continue to rise.
Bob Carter, Toyota Division general manager, said fuel efficiency began to enter consumer conversations more in December than earlier in the fourth quarter.
Toyota is counting on the introduction of 10 new or updated products this year, as well as a rebounding U.S. economy, to spur sales.
“We've never headed into a new year with as much excitement and anticipation as we are in 2011,” said Esmond. “The Toyota brand is in full recovery mode.”


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Namco hasn't really begun development of a planned Wii U outing for Tekken.
Apparently speaking at an event in France, as reported by Gamekyo, series producer Katsuhiro Harada said the core Tekken development team hasn't started on the project.
Rather, the project is in the hands of a separate team devoted to checking out new technology, currently evaluating the new console. The game will be the first Tekken title to grace Nintendo's home console range.
"Once this assessment and the various research projects completed, they send us these results and we can look more specifically above. But we are not at this stage today," Harada said.
"The project is still in its infancy."
Harada asked Nintendo fans to focus on Tekken 3D: Prime Edition in the meantime; the portable incarnation is due in February.
No release date has been set for the Wii U, although it is expected in northern summer 2012.


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China's largest search engine Baidu reported that net profit in the third quarter was up 80 percent year-on-year, as the company saw strong growth in website traffic, and benefited from improvements made to its online ad services.
By launching the Open Compute Project as a stand-alone foundation, Facebook is hoping to further standardize the market for data center equipment, thereby reducing costs and vendor lock-in, the new foundation's board members said at a press conferenc...
World Tech Update
Coming up on World Tech Update this week: Nokia launches two Windows Phones, Sony buys Sony Ericsson, Amazon boosts Kindle Fire production, Wikileaks stops publishing classified files and new technology tracks researchers at MIT.
IBM intends to make the security information and event management (SIEM) technology gained through the acquisition of Q1 Labs, which was officially closed yesterday, the centerpiece of IBM's broad security product portfolio.
Fabless semi-conductor maker LSI Corp. today announced it will acquire SandForce, the leading maker of flash memory controllers for enterprise-class and consumer flash cards and SSDs. The buyout catapults LSI into the leadership position in SATA SSD ...
The city of San Francisco can't make retailers display signs and stickers with information about cellphone health risks, but it can require retailers to give customers an information sheet about it, a federal judge ruled on Thursday.
Google+ usage has increased in October compared with last month, but the social networking site couldn't sustain a dramatic one-week surge that took place after it became publicly available on Sept. 20, according to Experian Hitwise.
ARM's new 64-bit ARMv8 architecture could be used in tablets and smartphones in a few years, which could help deliver better performance when running demanding applications such as video, analysts said on Thursday.
Android is the leading smartphone platform with a diverse array of devices available from a variety of manufacturers, and from virtually every wireless carrier. As capable as the Android OS might be, though, its diversity is also one of its greatest ...
When you show up late to a party, you should at least bring a bottle of wine (or a case of beer depending on the party). Nokia's highly-anticipated launch of Windows Phone 7.5 "Mango" smartphones comes fairly late in the game, and doesn't seem to add...
Motorola Mobility reported a net loss of US$32 million, or $0.11 a share, on net revenue of $3.26 billion for the third quarter, as the phone maker prepares to become a part of Google.
In less than a decade, that smartphone you're holding could have 32 times the memory, 20 times the bandwidth and a microprocessor core no bigger than a red blood cell, the CTO of chip design company ARM said on Thursday.
Advanced Micro Devices on Thursday reported revenue and profit growth for the third fiscal quarter of 2011, despite issues with the manufacturing of processors.
Hewlett-Packard has decided to keep its PC division after the company talked in recent weeks about spinning it off.
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Kid-focused cable outlet The Hub Network is expected on Wednesday to launch a new app for both iPad and iPhone, as well as a redesigned website with a new name, HubNetwork.com.
The app, which can be downloaded for free from the App Store on iTunes, has a “photo booth” that allows kids to insert the network’s many characters into their pictures and artwork. The network, jointly owned by Hasbro and Discovery Communications, features popular figures ranging from My Little Pony to The Care Bears and Strawberry Shortcake.
Users of the app will be encouraged to watch the cable network and vice versa. Viewers can scan Hub shows on air to find special codes that can unlock stickers and other extras in the app. The app will feature full episodes and video shorts from such programs as “Littlest Pet Shop” and “Transformers Prime.” Executives expect to refresh the app regularly.
“Kids now all have different devices, and we want to be where they are, and we want to be responsive to the experience they want, whether it’s in the car or out on the playground,” said Dena Kaplan, the network’s chief marketing officer.
The redesigned website, previously known as HubWorld.com, is built to work more easily on mobile tablets and offers games and more video, along with a “Family Hub” that allows kids and parents customize their digital experience and submit artwork, photos and video that can be used on the TV network.
The network has recently refreshed its logo and on-air graphics, and recently unveiled a new competition program hosted by Joey Fatone that is part of an effort to turn primetime into a family-viewing programming block.


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Toronto, Ontario – The United States has dropped its 10 percent tariff on Canadian aluminum, according to a report from CTV.
This announcement comes mere hours before the Canadian government had planned to announce their retaliatory measures.
U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer referred to “consultations” held with Canadian officials that apparently led to the decision to withdraw the tariffs that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has long been calling “unjust”. Lighthizer suggested that a balancing of the aluminum trade is likely to occur within the coming months and the decision to withdraw was made in light of this information.
The Canadian government’s response to the tariffs was to be announced at 3 p.m EST on Tuesday, however, the opportunity will instead be used for Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland and Small Business, Export Promotion and International Trade Minister Mary Ng to respond to the U.S.’s last-minute decision.
Lighthizer’s office warns that a “surge” in imports could lead to the tariff being reimposed, however.
The tariffs were originally introduced on Aug. 16 with U.S. President Donald Trump imposing the charges under Section 232 of the U.S. Trade Expansion Act, a measure that deals with products that are considered to pose a threat to American national security.
Shortly after Trump’s plans for the tariffs became public, Canadian officials said that they were planning to hit back with billion-dollar countermeasures that Freeland aimed to “inflict the minimal amount of damage on Canada, and to have frankly the strongest possible impact in the United States.”


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Partnership Will Provide Financial and Education Support To Advance Promising Entertainment And Gaming Startups; Ubisoft Joins Hedera Governing Council
Dallas, TX, February 3, 2022 7 AM EST – The HBAR Foundation and global video game publisher Ubisoft today announced a partnership focused on the rapidly expanding ecosystem at the intersection of distributed ledger technology and gaming, with an initiative that supports the development, growth and launch of next-generation gaming on the Hedera network. As part of this engagement, Ubisoft will become a member of the Hedera Governing Council, with representatives participating in governance and product direction, as well as leading industry-specific insights. As a council member, Ubisoft will also operate a node on the Hedera network.
In collaboration with the HBAR Foundation, Ubisoft is setting up a Hedera-dedicated track into the Ubisoft Entrepreneurs Lab. The Entrepreneurs Lab supports startups on a global scale, focusing on the future of entertainment. Together through this track, Ubisoft and THF will identify promising projects and startups and provide economic investment, as well as workshops and developer support, to assist in their success.
“Through this initiative, Ubisoft and the HBAR Foundation are forming a deep collaborative partnership, which recognizes the value proposition the Hedera network presents for the video games industry,“ said Alex Russman, of the HBAR Foundation. “Ubisoft has been a pioneer in its engagement with distributed ledger technology, and the decision to directly engage with THF to enhance the support it provides to entertainment and gaming innovators provides tremendous opportunities for developers, startups and users alike.”
“At Ubisoft, we believe that the distributed ledger technology holds a key to the future of gaming by opening new opportunities for players to become true stakeholders of our games. The Hedera network offers a promising take on this technology, notably through its scalability, energy efficiency and innovative consensus mechanism.” said Didier Genevois, Blockchain Technical Director at the Ubisoft Strategic Innovation Lab. “We look forward to exploring with the Hedera ecosystem through our participation in the Governing Council.”
Today’s news comes alongside the mainnet launch of smart contracts 2.0 on the Hedera network, which with the Hedera Token Service (HTS) integration provides flexibility, low cost fixed fees, scalability and carbon negative transactions, enabling significant benefits for the gaming industry beyond merely NFTs.
The HBAR Foundation fuels growth of the Hedera ecosystem by providing grants and resources for technical assistance, marketing and business development to developers, startups and organizations building on the network. Since open access in 2019, the public network has processed over 2 billion transactions generated by real-world applications.
Ubisoft is a creator of worlds, committed to enriching players’ lives with original and memorable entertainment experiences. Ubisoft’s global teams create and develop a deep and diverse portfolio of games, featuring brands such as Assassin’s Creed®, Brawlhalla®, For Honor®, Far Cry®, Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon®, Just Dance®, Rabbids®, Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six®, The Crew®, Tom Clancy’s The Division®, and Watch Dogs®. Through Ubisoft Connect, players can enjoy an ecosystem of services to enhance their gaming experience, get rewards and connect with friends across platforms. With Ubisoft+, the subscription service, they can access a growing catalog of more than 100 Ubisoft games and DLC. For the 2020-21 fiscal year, Ubisoft generated net bookings of €2,241 million. To learn more, please visit: www.ubisoftgroup.com.
About Ubisoft’s Strategic Innovation Lab
The mission of the Strategic Innovation Lab is to help Ubisoft anticipate the future. Both a think-tank and a do-tank, the Lab analyzes emerging technological, business and societal trends in order to identify opportunities for innovation. The team also develops prototypes and pilot projects to explore new areas, in collaboration with internal and external partners. This exploratory role allows Ubisoft to get a head start in identifying innovative ideas and assessing their potential, before eventually integrating them into the company on a larger scale.
About Ubisoft Entrepreneurs Lab
Ubisoft Entrepreneurs Lab supports startups on a global scale, focusing on the future of entertainment. By providing intensive, personalized support, this program helps talented entrepreneurs achieve their goals, and offers facilities both in Paris at STATION F, the biggest startup campus in the world.
About the HBAR Foundation
Founded in 2021, the HBAR Foundation fuels the development of the Hedera ecosystem by providing grants and other resources to developers, startups and organizations that seek to launch decentralized applications in DeFi, NFTs, CBDCs, ESGs, gaming and other sectors. In addition to providing funding through a streamlined grant process, the HBAR Foundation acts as an integrated force multiplier through expert support across technical, marketing, business development and other operational functions that are required to scale. For additional information, please visit www.hbarfoundation.org or follow the Foundation on Twitter at HBAR_foundation.
Source HEDERA NEWS


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At the time one of our biggest questions was who was going to build all of the functionality Zuckerberg envisioned. That answer has been answered to some extent as more and more companies buy into the idea of the metaverse.
However, an announcement from Meta this week brought the Meta Board of Directors to our attention. The announcement was that chief executive officer and co-founder of food delivery service Doordash, Tony Xu, was joining the board with immediate effect.
“Tony has built a great service for millions of people to get food and more from hundreds of thousands of restaurants and small businesses. I’ve always thought it’s important to have great tech leaders on our board, and Tony has direct experience both running a tech company and solving complex challenges in commerce. I look forward to learning from his perspective as we build towards the metaverse,” Zuckerberg wrote in a press release.
While this is a notable appointment, Xu is hardly the biggest name on the Meta board of directors. In fact, together the members of the board look like a who’s who of Silicon Valley.
The current board of directors includes:
- Mark Zuckerberg;
- Peggy Alford, executive vice president, Global Sales, PayPal Holdings, Inc.;
- Marc L. Andreessen, Andreessen Horowitz;
- Drew Houston, co-founder and CEO, Dropbox, Inc.;
- Nancy Killefer, Retired Senior partner, McKinsey & Company;
- Robert M. Kimmitt, Meta’s Lead Independent director and Senior International Counsel at WilmerHale LLP;
- Sheryl K. Sandberg, chief operating officer, Meta;
- Peter A. Thiel, Founders Fund;
- Tracey T. Travis, executive vice president and chief financial officer, The Estée Lauder Companies, Inc.;
- and Tony Xu, co-founder and CEO, DoorDash, Inc.
We find it interesting that Thiel is still on Meta’s board of directors given his political affiliations and the controversy he courted a few years back when it was alleged that he called Apartheid a “sound economic system”. However, we suspect that Thiel’s involvement is an artefact of his being one of Facebook’s original backers.
We also have to point out the fact that Meta makes use of WilmerHale for its legal counsel. This same firm was hired by Activision Blizzard and was accused of hiding information by the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing.
To be clear, we’re not saying something nefarious is going on, it’s not uncommon for CEOs and other bigwigs to serve on the board of directors for multiple companies. Bobby Kotick for instance still serves on the Coca Cola board of directors despite his failings at Activision Blizzard as its CEO.
However, with a board of directors as illustrious as this, the metaverse may become a reality faster than we anticipated and that in and of itself is worth keeping a cautious eye on what Zuck and his mates are up to.


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It wasn’t all business on a spate of corporate earnings conference calls this week.
Many CEOs took time out for a few thoughts on Super Bowl XLVII, according to the Wall Street Journal. That includes Carl Chaney, CEO of Hancock Holding Co. (NASDAQ: HBHC), the Gulfport, Miss.-based parent company of Hancock Bank, with bank branches all along the Gulf Coast, including 19 in the Tampa Bay area.
Chaney said the Super Bowl, being played in New Orleans on Feb. 3, is very good news for the region.
“A team from the West Coast and one from the East Coast and all the fans, corporate sponsors and media will be in New Orleans and other cities along the Gulf Coast, spending money and enjoying some good Southern hospitality. And when Super Bowl is sandwiched in between the two weekends of Mardi Gras, many businesses in our markets should be doing extremely well right now,” Chaney said.
He noted the economic impact the events could have on New Orleans and the Gulf Coast region.
“A study done by the University of New Orleans, commissioned by the Super Bowl host committee, indicated that the economic impact from the Super Bowl alone should be over $400 million, not including all of the local improvements and upgrades that have occurred in New Orleans recently. The combined economic impact of Mardi Gras and the Super Bowl on the Gulf Coast region is expected to exceed $1 billion. That’s a pretty good way to start 2013 in the heart of our franchise.”
Read more Super Bowl comments form Kevin Vasconi, chief information officer of Domino’s Pizza (NYSE: DPZ), Sergio Marchionne, CEO of Chrysler, and other executives in this report from the Wall Street Journal.
Margie Manning is Quality and Content Editor of the Tampa Bay Business Journal. She also covers banking, finance and professional services.
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Criminals have reportedly threatened to take over 250 million Apple accounts on April 7, 2017, if Apple does not pay a ransom. This could potentially allow them to remotely wipe iPhones, iPads, and some Apple computers. It could also lead to the compromise of confidential information and fraud. At this time, it appears that those responsible for the extortion attempt do possess some valid Apple account credentials. They have reportedly provided them to the media, likely to increase the pressure on Apple.
This could play out in a few different ways: It could be largely a bluff based on possession of a small number of credentials. A large number of the passwords might be outdated. Criminals may have the stolen credentials they claim, and carry through with the threat. Criminals may not honour the April 7 deadline as Apple and their customers react in a situation that is becoming dynamic. It is also possible that Apple servers could be swamped by users changing their passwords.
Apple has reportedly told the media that, “There have not been any breaches in any of Apple’s systems including iCloud and Apple ID. The alleged list of email addresses and passwords appears to have been obtained from previously compromised third-party services.” If that is the case, then only those who have used their Apple account on another site are likely impacted. However, given the uncertainty involved, that most Apple users back up their information to iCloud, and capabilities such as Find My Phone and remote wipe exist, the cost of changing one’s password seems exceptionally low compared to the potential risks.
Based on currently available information, the best course of action is to change Apple account passwords immediately and, if not already in place, turn on two-factor authentication.
Apple passwords can be changed at https://appleid.apple.com/ or from your iPhone or iPad (Settings -> iCloud -> Click on your name -> Passwords & Security -> Change Password).
Here are some of many articles on this evolving story:
This article will be updated as new information becomes available.


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The second China Internet Trade Fair返回活动首页
2010 Second China Internet Trade Fair
The second China Internet trade fair was successfully held in from July 2 to 4, 2010 at the Shenzhen Convention and Exhibition Center. At the second Expo, there were 236 well-known Internet companies at home and abroad, 298 exhibitors and 60 thousand visitors. More than 300 media reports and 46 investment institutions participated or commissioned. The 16 key promotion roadshow held, "the 2010 China Mobile Internet Summit, 2010 Chinese Internet e-commerce forum, 2010 China Internet investment and financing forum, 2010 industry website construction development trend forum, 2010 China Internet business model innovation forum, twenty-first Century elite entrepreneurs forum six forum, every super 600 people. There are 4 projects signed by the investment institution and the total amount of the project is over 35 million yuan. "CCTV", "Guangdong TV", "Shenzhen TV", "Shenzhen daily", "Nanfang Daily", "Southern Metropolis Daily" and other 16 authoritative media, the fair has been the focus of publicity. The Baidu search for the "2010 Second China Internet Trading Fair" reached 923000 news, and reached 711000 in Google search. Special Tencent, NetEase, Sina, Austria net, Shenzhen news network, Shenzhen window, Chinese Electronic Commerce Research Center, qianlong.com, youku.com, a city network, the first video network 17, reported online "fair" press more than 300.
Time: 2 2010, 07 months
Venue: Museum No. 8, Shenzhen Convention and Exhibition Center


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Light trucks and a strong domestic showing continued to propel Canadian new vehicle sales as the August total finished up 3.2 per cent from last year.
August wrapped up with 140,361 new vehicles sold, compared with 136,069 last August – this at a time of growing economic uncertainty and following a less than stellar performance in July.
“This is a very difficult market to predict,” explained auto analyst Dennis DesRosiers in his monthly sales report. “The fundamentals all point to some modest sales growth but the volatility makes all forecasts difficult. Although sales were strong in August they were still below levels achieved between 2005 to 2008, so Canada is still quite far from being a very healthy light vehicle market.”
Sales of light trucks hit 79,589, marking a 5.8-per cent jump over the tally from Aug. 2010 of 75,258. Passenger car sales slide just 0.1 per cent to 60,772 from 60,811.
The Detroit Big Three all had solid months with Chrysler up 16.6 per cent, Ford up 7.9 per cent and General Motors up 6.4 per cent.
“Since all outperformed the market all three of them picked up market share from the import nameplate side of the industry. The Detroit Three saw their sales increase by 9.5 per cent while import nameplate sales declined by 2.4 percent. And the same holds true for year to date sales with Detroit up 5.8 percent and import nameplates down by 1.8 percent,” he added.
Ford retained its spot as Canada's top-selling automaker with 25,927 vehicles sold. That total marked its best result in August in 23 years.
General Motors reported 25,045 vehicles sold, good enough for second place.
Other winners included Toyota up 10.3 per cent to 12,806 units; Hyundai up 0.9 per cent with 11,507 vehicles sold; Kia up 6.9 per cent to 5,804; Volkswagen moved 4,302 vehicles marking a 28-per cent leap; while Nissan and Mitsubishi enjoyed gains of 10.9 per cent and 30 per cent respectively.
Automakers that experienced an August downturn included a 30 per cent drop for Honda to 8,060 units; Mazda fell by 12.8 per cent; the embattled Suzuki brand dropped by 55.8 per cent; and a surprising slump of 20 per cent for Subaru.
Among the luxury lines, BMW posted solid sales of 2,844 vehicles in August, marking a 4.1 per cent jump over last August. That tally was good enough to best German rival Mercedes-Benz (which saw sales decline by 3.7 per cent in August), though MB is still winning the year-to-date race.
“I have a feeling that the battle for luxury supremacy is going to come down to the wire,” DesRosiers wrote.
Audi moved into third place in the luxury segment with sales up 6.5 per cent on the month to 1,466 units and are now up 16.6 per cent year to date.
“Last year they [Audi] snuck in ahead of Lexus for the first time and this year they have passed both Lexus and Acura. Just five years ago Audi was ninth in the luxury segments.”


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Two key figures in an investigation of what prosecutors call a $2.5 billion Ponzi scheme pleaded guilty in federal court in Sacramento Tuesday, paving the way for them to cooperate in an ongoing probe involving a now-defunct Benicia solar company.
Ronald Roach, a certified public accountant for DC Solar Solutions, and Joseph Bayliss, an ...Read more
Just because someone uses an Amazon Alexa device doesn't mean they've entered into a contract with Amazon.
That's one finding in a proposed order by U.S. Magistrate Judge Michelle Peterson that would deny Amazon's attempt to force arbitration and dismiss a putative class action lawsuit. The suit, filed in federal court in Seattle in June, ...Read more
The first Boeing executive head to roll as a result of the ongoing 737 MAX crisis is that of Kevin McAllister. The Boeing board decided to fire him as boss of Boeing Commercial Airplanes at a board meeting Monday in San Antonio.
McAllister was replaced immediately by Stan Deal, chief executive of Boeing's services division and formerly a ...Read more
SAN DIEGO -- Elmo, Big Bird, Cookie Monster and the rest of the "Sesame Street" gang will be putting down new roots in Southern California in 2021: SeaWorld Entertainment Inc. plans to turn its Aquatica water slide venue in Chula Vista into a new Sesame Place theme park.
Orlando, Fla.-based SeaWorld and Sesame Workshop, the educational ...Read more
WASHINGTON -- Facebook is on pace to spend more on federal lobbying this year than ever before, according to public disclosures out this week, as the social media giant's CEO prepares to testify Wednesday on Capitol Hill.
The company -- at the center of debates over the spread of falseinformation, data privacy and others -- spent $12.3 million ...Read more
Surgeon explains at home fix for dark spots
and uneven skin tones on skin...
The streaming wars are coming to your mobile phone.
Verizon Communications Inc. will offer a free year of new streaming service Disney+ to its wireless unlimited customers, Walt Disney Co. announced Tuesday.
The companies said new Verizon Fios home internet and 5G internet customers would also be eligible for a yearlong free subscription to ...Read more
On Sept. 22 Smaaash go-carts at Mall of America in Bloomington, Minn., abruptly closed its doors. Based in India, the company has no other U.S. locations and left no forwarding information on how to contact it. That left Randy Kraemer of Rosemount, Minn., wondering if he had any recourse. "I'm sitting on a $100 gift card," he said. "How do I get...Read more
With recreational marijuana use about to become legal in Illinois Jan. 1, the National Safety Council is urging employers to forbid workers in safety sensitive jobs from using cannabis, even when they're off the clock.
The Itasca, Ill.-based nonprofit on Monday said it "believes there is no level of cannabis use that is safe or acceptable for ...Read more
Free two-day delivery was so 2018. This holiday season, it's shaping up to be about next-day delivery.
Best Buy is among the retailers who have been able to shave a day off delivery through modernizing their supply chains. The electronics giant plans to announce Tuesday that about 99% of its customers are now able to get free next-day delivery ...Read more
Bernie Sanders has joined fellow Democratic presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren in decrying Amazon's heavy spending on Seattle's pivotal City Council elections.
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The little girl was dead.
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The At Home Fix That Is Like A Power Wash
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For the very first time, PEUGEOT launched operations in Pakistan through its exclusive partner Lucky Motor Corporation on March 12 in Karachi.
Partnership to facilitate the creation of state-of-the-art assembly facilities to boost employment, localization and local automotive industry in Pakistan and enhance the internationalization of PEUGEOT.
The first step of the partnership will begin with the introduction of the locally built PEUGEOT 2008. The full-electric e-2008 local production is also considered. PEUGEOT will become the first European Brand built in Pakistan.
European automotive manufacturer, PEUGEOT, has officially launched operations in Pakistan for the first time in its distinguished history with its exclusive partner Lucky Motor Corporation. The partnership commenced with the opening of eight 3S dealerships (Sales, after sales and services) in six cities: Islamabad, Lahore, Faisalabad, Sialkot and Gujranwala. A state-of-the-art facility will assemble cars in Karachi, Pakistan.
Lucky Motor Corporation is a subsidiary of the Yunus Brothers Group, which has a legacy spanning over five decades. Yunus Brother Group’s robust and dynamic approach has enabled it to gain considerable market share in the Pakistani automotive industry, and to set new benchmarks in terms of product offering & customer service. With the introduction of PEUGEOT, the company now aims to provide the best mobility solutions the European Brand can offer its customers.
PEUGEOT is an inventive brand that has been a pioneer in the automotive industry for over 211 years guided by its brand values; Allure, Emotion and Excellence, which represent sharp design, intuitive driving pleasure and uncompromising quality. With its entry into Pakistan, these values will be upheld as the brand strives to provide the market with the latest innovations and mobility solutions.
Linda JACKSON, CEO of the PEUGEOT Brand, said: “We are delighted with this partnership. This will be the first time a European car is assembled in Pakistan and we are excited to work with Lucky Motors to support employment, localization and the local automotive industry in the country. Internationalization is a key focus for PEUGEOT, with the B and C segment SUV growth in Pakistan, representing a great opportunity for us. This is also bolstered by the evolution of the legislation of the country towards electrification which is fully in line with our own strategy.”
Samir CHERFAN, Chief Operating Officer, Middle East & Africa Region, Stellantis, said: “We are excited to embark on this journey in Pakistan with our new partner, Lucky Motor Corporation. We see tremendous potential and opportunity for PEUGEOT in Pakistan, and are looking forward to serving customers in this exciting market.
Asif RIZVI, Cheif Operating Officer, Lucky Motors Company, said: “Lucky Motors is set to change the automotive landscape of Pakistan by introducing Peugeot, the first locally made European brand in the country. We are very excited to partner with Peugeot and look forward to being associated with Stellantis, a company that strongly believes in futuristic mobility solutions. Pakistan, with its 220 million population, offers a great opportunity for someone to come in and disrupt the automotive market. And we have no doubt that the Stellantis with its 14 brand portfolio, will be the one to do so. Lucky Motors is proud to become the first company in Pakistan to have multi-brand manufacturing and dealers. We are delighted to embark on this adventure, bringing with it the best automotive solutions, while also making meaningful contributions and investments that will support economic and social development in Pakistan.”
The introduction of the PEUGEOT 2008 is the first step of this ongoing commitment to the Pakistani customers. The 2008 has been a success story for the brand since its launch at the end of 2019. 26 international prizes, including the Red Dot Design Award, were received by the 2008. This model stands apart in the compact SUV segment with its distinctive design, advanced technology and efficient powertrains. It also benefits from The PEUGEOT i-Cockpit®, which features a stimulating interior design along with a state-of-the-art digital cluster and touchscreen that amplifies any driving experience. Its perceived quality and value make the 2008 the perfect model for Pakistani families.


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City Of Cheyenne To Parking Violators: Beware The Barnacle
The City of Cheyenne is warning anyone with more than three unpaid parking tickets to
"Beware the Barnacle.''
The Barnacle is basically a high-tech 21st-century version of the "boot' car immobilization device.
Mayor Patrick Collins, in his ''Mayor's Minute' news release last Friday set a goal for city parking officers of installing the device on at least five vehicles per week belonging to people with at least three unpaid tickets.
He noted that the city is owed $204,000 on 3,400 unpaid tickets. In a city news release, Collins is quoted as saying
“We have parking regulations because we want to turn those parking spaces [over] so people can park downtown as customers,” the mayor revealed. “[But] when employees park [their vehicles for] an extended [amount of] time, it limits the amount of parking for customers, [which] makes our downtown merchants less successful. So that’s why we’re trying to move on this, to make sure we have a place [for people] to park, and so that downtown is more financially viable."
Collins has in the past also said that the revenues from parking go to make scheduled bond payments on the Jack Spiker Parking Garage.
The Barnacle can only safely be applied to cars that don't have cracked windshields, so cars with those windshields will be immobilized with a traditional parking boot.
Collins says people who owe money on at least three parking tickets should call the city to set up a payment plan to avoid the Barnacle.
Ted Miazga, with the Cheyenne Police Department, said to have the barnacle removed from your windshield is quite simple.
“The vehicle owner can pay their fines by calling the number listed on the device or by scanning the QR code. When payment is received, a release code is generated, and the individual returns the Barnacle to a drop box location,” Miazga shared.
Wyoming Fall Color Guide: Where to Find Stunning Fall Foliage


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BoS targeting firms in bid to rival Big Four
Bank of Scotland will this week launch a fresh attempt to capture a larger slice of the small business banking marketplace in an effort to overturn the dominance of its 'Big Four' rivals.
Just weeks after the Competition Commission discarded price controls on small business banking, BoS is trying to differentiate itself by launching what it claims is the first offset loan and current account package for small and medium enterprises.
John Kerr, head of products at BoS Business Banking, said: 'Business Offset can potentially save customers thousands of pounds. It's the first genuine commercial offset product available in the UK and is the beginning of our strategy to disrupt the business banking marketplace and offer customers of the Big Four a significantly better deal.'
In August, the Commission removed four-year-old price controls imposed on Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds TSB and Royal Bank of Scotland in 2003 to encourage better deals for small and mediumsized enterprises. The Commission said the controls were no longer necessary to improve banking services as other providers had started to compete more aggressively for small firms' custom.
BoS will offer its offset account to firms with turnover of £1 million or less. Interest earned on capital can be transferred into loan interest repayments. The product works by combining a business offset loan and a current account and has until now been available only to large businesses.
Current account interest is calculated at 5.75% - the BoS base rate - and customers can opt either to reduce the term of their loan or to cut their monthly repayments. BoS estimated that on a £200,000 mortgage this could save a business nearly £16,000 and allow repayment six months early.
Harry Hussain, spokesman for BoS, said the offer was in response to demand from small companies. 'These businesses don't usually get flexible financing solutions from banks,' he said.
'The Competition Commission is trying to improve the deals businesses get from their banks because they have traditionally been under-provided for because of low margins.'
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Two major US retailers take harder line against guns in wake of Florida massacre
US retail giants Dick’s Sporting Goods and Walmart have taken steps to restrict gun sales following a mass shooting at a high school.The moves add two commercial heavyweights to the growing rift between corporate America and the gun lobby.Dick’s said it will immediately stop selling assault-style rifles and ban the sale of all guns to …
US retail giants Dick’s Sporting Goods and Walmart have taken steps to restrict gun sales following a mass shooting at a high school.
The moves add two commercial heavyweights to the growing rift between corporate America and the gun lobby.
Dick’s said it will immediately stop selling assault-style rifles and ban the sale of all guns to anyone under 21.
Its chief executive took on the National Rifle Association (NRA) by demanding tougher gun laws after the massacre in Florida.
Walmart, the nation’s largest retailer, followed late on Wednesday saying it will no longer sell firearms and ammunition to people younger than 21.
It had stopped selling AR-15s and other semi-automatic weapons in 2015, citing weak sales.
The announcements from the major national retailers came as students at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, returned to class for the first time since a teenager killed 17 students and educators with an AR-15 rifle two weeks ago.
“When we saw what the kids were going through and the grief of the parents and the kids who were killed in Parkland, we felt we needed to do something,” Dick’s Chairman and chief executive Ed Stack said on ABC’s Good Morning America.
Several major corporations, including MetLife, Hertz and Delta Air Lines, have cut ties with the NRA since the Florida tragedy. None of them were retailers who sold guns.
The announcements from Dick’s and Walmart drew hundreds of thousands of responses for and against the moves on the companies’ social media accounts.
Dick Sporting Goods had cut off sales of assault-style weapons after the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting.
But sales had resumed at its smaller chain of Field & Stream stores, which consisted of 35 outlets in 16 states as of October.
On Wednesday, Mr Stack said that would end, and he called on lawmakers to act now.
He urged them to ban assault-style firearms, bump stocks and high-capacity magazines and raise the minimum age to buy firearms to 21.
He said universal background checks should be required, and there should be a complete database of those banned from buying firearms.
He also called for the closing of the private sale and gun show loophole that enables purchasers to escape background checks.
“We support and respect the Second Amendment, and we recognise and appreciate that the vast majority of gun owners in this country are responsible, law-abiding citizens,” Mr Stack said in a letter.
“But we have to help solve the problem that’s in front of us. Gun violence is an epidemic that’s taking the lives of too many people, including the brightest hope for the future of America — our kids.”
Walmart said it was also removing items from its website that resemble assault-style rifles, including airsoft guns and toys.
“Our heritage as a company has always been in serving sportsmen and hunters, and we will continue to do so in a responsible way,” Walmart said.
The NRA has pushed back aggressively against calls for raising age limits for guns or restricting the sale of assault-style weapons.


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VICTORIA'S SECRET Angel Adriana Lima has confirmed that she has separated from her husband of five years, Marko Jaric. "After long and careful consideration, we have decided to separate," the couple said in a joint statement. "We are grateful to be the parents of two incredible young daughters that we will continue to co-parent. We would greatly appreciate your respect for our family's privacy as we begin this delicate next chapter for all members of our family." Adriana Lima met Jaric, a former NBA player, in 2006, and the couple married in 2009. before welcoming daughters Valentina, now four, and Sienna, 19 months. The family currently lives in Miami. The Brazilian is the longest-serving Victoria's Secret model, having walked in the brand's annual show since 1999, and was in London last month to announce that this year's showcase will take place in the capital.
Adriana Lima shows off her amazing body while modeling some lingerie for a new Victoria’s Secret commercial on Friday (August 8) in Los Angeles 2014. The 33-year-old supermodel got to work on the commercial the day after she spent the night at the Rihanna and Eminem concert for the opening of the Monster Tour. See my favorite NYC places to eat on @infatuation,” Adriana tweeted that day about a new article on http://1styahoo.blogspot.com/, which listed all of her favorite restaurants in the Big Apple.
Continuing to make a great name for himself since leaving Louis Vuitton, Marc Jacobs put a new spin on the usual during his runway show at Mercedes-Benz New York Fashion Week. It certainly didn’t hurt that Mr. Jacobs recruited popular posers like Adriana Lima, Kendall Jenner, Candice Swanepoel, Hilary Rhoda, Jessica Stam and Karlie Kloss to show off the new wares.


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A family run company in Whaley Bridge is celebrating 35 of business by thanking customers who have stood by them.
Nutri Advanced opened in 1981 by renowned naturopath Norman Eddie along with his son, Ken Eddie who said: “I sincerely thank all of our customers old and new for their support and belief in what we do at Nutri Advanced and especially for their belief in the benefits our products can achieve for them.” The company was originally created to educate healthcare professionals on the health benefits of nutrition and provide access to a range of premium nutritional supplements based on natural ingredients.
Now with a staff of 35 the business has become the UK’s number one supplier of nutritional supplements to complementary healthcare practitioners.
Ken, who is the managing director, said: “I think the reason we’ve continued to be successful is the emphasis we place on education which enables people to make informed decisions about their health.
“Over the last 35 years we’ve seen a real shift in the general public’s attitude towards the proactive management of their own health. By conducting their own research and by taking advantage of educational resources such as those we provide, people are finding credible alternatives to mainstream medicine and prescribed drugs.”


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Patrick O. Brown, CEO of Inconceivable Meals, not too long ago spoke at Net Summit, a digital convention attended by 100,000 folks, about the way forward for meals—which he sees as devoid of all animal merchandise. “Our mission is to utterly exchange using animals as a meals expertise by 2035. We’re useless critical about it and we imagine it’s doable,” Brown mentioned through the convention. “I used to be assured that we’d succeed once I launched this firm, and now I’m utterly assured. It’s recreation over for the incumbent [meat] trade—they simply don’t understand it but.”
The start of the top
Brown based Inconceivable Meals in 2011 and launched the corporate’s flagship product, the plant-based Impossible Burger, at upscale eating places in 2016. The Inconceivable Burger is now on the menu at upwards of 17,000 eating places nationwide, together with main fast-food chains equivalent to Burger King, White Castle, Red Robin, and eating places throughout the Disney empire. In 2019, Inconceivable Burger launched into the retail sector, rapidly turning into the best-selling packaged food item at its first retail companion Gelson’s Markets in Southern California. From day one, Brown has held steadfast to his mission of constructing animal-derived meals out of date within the subsequent 15 years, a aim the continuing COVID-19 pandemic rapidly moved ahead into the realm of chance.
The COVID-19 pandemic pushed Inconceivable Meals to aggressively develop its retail footprint, touchdown the Inconceivable Burger at greater than 8,000 retail areas, together with Kroger, Trader Joe’s, Target, and Walmart by fall 2020. And with plant-based meat extra available, buying habits shifted, with gross sales of refrigerated plant-based meat sales skyrocketing by 241 percent (in comparison with final yr) through the peak pandemic food-buying interval in mid-March and persevering with to develop by 113 % by means of April.
In the meantime, the meat trade didn’t fare as properly through the pandemic as its employees more and more contracted the virus whereas working shoulder-to-shoulder, resulting in slaughterhouse closures nationwide in April and meat shortages thereafter. As of December 4, there have been at the very least 43,000 constructive COVID-19 circumstances tied to meat processing services and at the very least 222 employees have died in consequence in response to The Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting.
A brand new meals system
Even earlier than the pandemic struck, impartial suppose tank RethinkX predicted in a 2019 report that the animal agriculture trade would fall right into a “demise spiral” by 2035. To exchange it, RethinkX recognized a “Meals-as-Software program” system—just like what Inconceivable Meals is at the moment creating—that’s 100 instances extra land environment friendly, 20 instances extra time environment friendly, and 10 instances extra water environment friendly, all whereas producing considerably much less waste.
This month, Inconceivable Meals launched its 2020 Influence Report titled “Turn Back the Clock” detailing how its plant-based Inconceivable Sausage—the second product it launched after the Inconceivable Burger—is vastly eco-friendlier than elevating pigs for pork. In comparison with pork-based sausage within the US, Inconceivable Sausage generates 71 % much less greenhouse gases, requires 41 % much less land space in a yr, has a 79 % decrease water footprint, and generates 57 % much less aquatic eutrophication.
“By far, the most important think about local weather change and the collapse of worldwide biodiversity is using animals as a meals expertise. Nothing comes shut. We have now to eliminate it,” Brown mentioned. “It’s way more essential than changing fossil fuels by way of advantages for the world.”
The street to 2035
All through the meteoric development of Inconceivable Meals, Brown has reiterated that the corporate is not only creating shopper merchandise however new applied sciences that can drastically change the way in which meals is produced. After tackling beef with Inconceivable Burger, the corporate moved on to pork, the world’s most consumed meat, with the January 2020 launch of Impossible Pork and Inconceivable Sausage—a fashioned plant-based pork sausage that’s at the moment supplied by Starbucks areas nationwide. In October, the corporate revealed that it’s engaged on its first non-meat product, a dairy-identical “functional” milk made from plants that it has but to call. Inconceivable Meals can be leveraging its data and expertise to develop alternate options to shrimp, fish, and complete cuts of meat equivalent to steak.
“What if you happen to might wave a magic wand and make the animal-based meals trade disappear? We might flip again the clock on world warming, reverse the worldwide collapse of biodiversity and halt species extinction, deforestation, water air pollution, and our public well being disaster?” Brown asks. “Our planet wants that magic wand. So Inconceivable Meals is inventing it—a brand new expertise platform for remodeling vegetation into scrumptious, nutritious, inexpensive meat, fish, and dairy meals, changing the outdated animal-based expertise within the world meals system.”
Up to now, Inconceivable Meals has raised $1.5 billion in funding capital to fund its mission and not too long ago launched the Impossible Investigator Project, a hiring initiative that can double the variety of scientists working on the firm to speed up its mission of disrupting animal agriculture on a world scale.
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ECOTOURISM Africa and Sports Tourism has paced up its domestic tourism marketing efforts by improving sporting facilities in resort towns in order to host big games in terms of sports giving the community the opportunity to showcase their talent.
The festival is scheduled for May 27 to 29 to promote sports tourism, market destination Zimbabwe and create sustainable development for marginalized communities in resort towns.
The Sports Tourism Experience will include sporting disciplines that are golf, tennis, mountain biking, marathon, and aerobic events, all of which will be hosted at several venues with the suitable procedures in place to ensure Covid-19 regulations are being followed.
Malvin Kanjere, the public relations and marketing director of Ecotourism Africa and Sports Tourism Inc said the aim of developing the Sports Tourism Experience was to help revive domestic tourism and support the continued collaborative efforts of the Government and the private sector to spur the recovery of tourism.
“This event is more like a social Olympics. We have had situations where social people just enjoy sports coming together from different parts of the country. The main idea is to tour our country and go to the resort’s town and play sports. This will improve the sports around because we want to build more sports facilities in resort towns in order to host major games in terms of sports. We want to give the people in those areas an opportunity to showcase their talent,” he said
Before the epidemic of the Covid-19 pandemic, sports tourism was becoming one of the fastest-rising sectors of the worldwide travel business.
Kanjere added that currently Ecotourism Africa and Sports Tourism are working with sponsors to improve sports in resort areas.
“We are working with a number of sponsors that we have approached. Some of them have been sponsoring us for many years including Define Media, Lake Harvest, and Delta Beverages. We are still waiting for others to come through and in regards with outline the roles of the events in terms of sports, we want to make tourism grow through sports around towns. This creates an opportunity for the girl child to tour their country and as well as showcase themselves in terms of talent.”
The Sports Tourism Experience will tour towns namely Kariba, Masvingo, Nyanga, Victoria Falls, Bulawayo, and Harare starting from 26 May.
The Sports Tourism Experience has incorporated the World Health Organization’s recommended safety guidelines in its operations which include strict hygiene processes, cautious temperature checks, and necessary mask-wearing. Ecotourism Africa works with hoteliers like Africa sun, Montclair, Nyamazi greens and others around Nyanga as well.


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Business:Management & Marketing
100 | Jo Fairley, Ryan Holiday & Christina Kreitel On Powering Up (Live From The Summit)
To quote Stacey Soble of Salon Today magazine, "approximately 600 salon owners and managers kicked off the New Year with a powerful day of business education at the 2019 Phorest Salon Owners Summit at the Convention Centre in Dublin, Ireland, on January 7."
Now in its fifth year, the Salon Owners Summit has become one of the most talked about event in the hair & beauty industry - in Europe and further afield. Tune in for this week's celebratory 100th episode as Killian and Zoe put on their journalistic hats to deliver exclusive interviews and vox pops!
Co-hosted by Killian Vigna and Zoe Belisle-Springer (Phorest Salon Software)
It is Free


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Welcome to Ad Age's Wake-Up Call, our daily roundup of advertising, marketing, media and digital news. You can get an audio version of this briefing on your Alexa device. Search for "Ad Age" under "Skills" in the Alexa app. What people are talking about today: For years, Papa John (aka founder John Schnatter of the fast-food pizza chain) was the face on Papa John's ads and pizza boxes. Now that Schnatter is persona non grata, the company is using lots of other faces in an ad -- the faces of its employees, Ad Age's Jessica Wohl writes. The company's new spot isn't about a boss named John, it's about Nadya, Amit, Jordan, Nicholas, Alaura, Zafira, Bill and Dougie. Wohl notes that "the video features 24 people, including franchise owners and managers of Papa John's restaurants around the world, including people of color." That's notable because Schnatter exited as chairman after using a racial slur on a conference call. (Here's a timeline of the Schnatter debacle.) The ad, from Endeavor Global Marketing, was directed by Ramaa Mosley. She's the first woman to direct a commercial for the brand, Wohl reports.
Also: Grammar enthusiasts, brace yourselves: "Papa John's may soon go by the name Papa Johns," that is, minus the apostrophe, Wohl writes. Filings regarding new wording and brand imagery were submitted to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in late August. It seems it's part of Papa John's International Inc.'s attempts to erase Schnatter from the brand even though he's still the company's largest shareholder.
F&B + KBS = F&B
Say goodbye to the Kirshenbaum Bond Senecal & Partners agency brand. Megan Graham reports in Ad Age that the KBS name is being retired as ad holding company MDC Partners merges KBS with sister agency Forsman & Bodenfors. Got that? In other words, F&B + KBS = F&B.
Here's a brief history of the KBS name, courtesy of Graham:
The moniker "has been around in one form or another since 1987 when the original founders, Jon Bond and Richard Kirshenbaum, then referred to as 'ad brats,' opened a shop known for bleeding-edge creative on brands like No Excuses, Moet & Chandon and Snapple before selling a stake to MDC in 2004. Five years later, the name was changed to KBS after Lori Senecal joined as president-CEO. Senecal, who later moved to global CEO at sibling CP&B, retired from advertising last year."
Wish upon a star: In honor of the KBS legacy, Ad Age's Graham writes, "the agency named a star 'KBS' in the Corvus galaxy via the Star-Name Registry."
The Snapple Lady: Eater recently looked back at the '90s ads starring the Snapple Lady, created by the agency, calling them a groundbreaking "dose of TV reality and everyday humor infused with Americana."
A new low
"The TV industry's annual celebration of itself continues to shed viewers," Ad Age's Anthony Crupi writes. According to Nielsen live-plus-same-day data, NBC's broadcast of the Emmy Awards averaged 10.2 million viewers. The number was down 11 percent from last year's Emmys, which aired on a Sunday. Crupi adds: "While Monday night's broadcast now stands as the all-time lowest-rated Emmys on record, the declines are in keeping with the diminishing returns posted by TV's other high-end award shows." At least they're all in it together.
The trouble with targeting
Facebook faces a complaint that its ad targeting practices let employers discriminate against women, Bloomberg News reports. The American Civil Liberties Union says it filed charges with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission against Facebook and companies that targeted job ads only to younger male Facebook users. The Communications Workers of America and the employment law firm Outten & Golden joined the complaint, which zeroed in on jobs like mechanic or truck driver.
What the ACLU says: "When employers in male-dominated fields advertise their jobs only to men, it prevents women from breaking into those fields."
What Facebook says: "There is no place for discrimination on Facebook; it's strictly prohibited in our policies, and over the past year, we've strengthened our systems to further protect against misuse," Joe Osborne, a Facebook spokesman, said in an email to Bloomberg. Facebook is studying the complaint and looks forward to "defending our practices," Osborne said.
More Facebook news: As recently as last year, Facebook "pressed financial firms for the ability to use customer data flowing through its Messenger platform for a range of purposes, including advertising," The Wall Street Journal reports.
Bigfoot: What happens when a former marketer, someone with experience building brands (including Talenti Gelato), runs for office? You get an "amazing political attack ad," Ad Age's Simon Dumenco writes. The loopy spot from Dean Phillips, running for Congress in Minnesota, stars Bigfoot.
Midterms: Instagram is launching a "campaign to help encourage users to register to vote, using ads in both users' feeds and Stories to offer an easy link with information on registering," The Verge writes.
Bert + Ernie forever: Are they a couple or not? A former Sesame Street writer says yes. Sesame Workshop says no, because "puppets do not have a sexual orientation." Vulture investigates that claim and dismisses it: "This is poppycock," it says. The Muppets are "absolutely sexual."
Benvenuti: Starbucks has a new outpost of its high-end bakery and bar in Chicago. Ad Age's Jessica Wohl has details, including about the "Apertivo hour" deal. (Buy an alcoholic drink and get a complimentary pizza tasting plate.)
Retail: "Google is planning to open a store in SoHo after all," Crain's New York Business reports. (Google also reportedly has its sights set on a retail location in Chicago too, in the trendy Fulton Market district.)
Are you a Best Place to Work?: Ad Age's Best Places to Work is not only open for submissions, but you better get cracking. Deadline to enter is Friday at 5 p.m. Along with our new partner, Latitude, we've switched things up a bit. Importantly, the criteria has been modernized to better reflect the policies and attitudes that make up a successful work environment and, importantly, to even out the playing field for companies big and small. Enter here!
Creativity pick of the day: Pumping breast milk can make you feel like a dairy cow, given the weird contraptions and tubes involved. Enter the Elvie Breast Pump, which is silent, wire-free and can be slipped discreetly into your bra. A funny new campaign by Mother features dancing moms and "a song with lyrics such as, "'In case you had not noticed, these are not udders, they're my boobs,'" Ad Age's Alexandra Jardine writes. Check it out here.
Friendly reminder: Friday is the deadline to enter Ad Age's annual Best Places to Work.


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MINNEAPOLIS - Music, food and election polls! What more do you need?
Well okay. Maybe a lot more than that, but those three topics are the subject of this week's "Taking KARE of Business with Dale Kurschner of Twin Cities Business.
Amazon has upped it's music game by releasing "Amazon Music Unlimited". It's $10 a month or $8, if you're a Prime member and will compete with the likes of Spotify and Apple Music.
"It's the Holy Grail of retail. To do a membership plan where you can then track everything about your members, so you can better cater to your member's interest. Supposedly both sides win," said Kurschner.
Now you don't need to be a member to shop at Whole Foods, just extra cash. The chain is expected to open stores in the low-income neighborhoods of Detroit, Chicago, and soon in Newark, according to the Wall Street Journal.
"When it comes to urban-blighted areas, it's hard for people to get fresh produce or much of anything in terms of healthy food. And, so, it'll be interesting to see if they can make that work from a revenue perspective," Kurschner said.
We're less than four weeks from Election Day. Twin Cities Business recently asked nearly 150 business leaders across Minnesota who they plan to vote for.
The results were tight: 34% for Donald Trump to 32% for Hillary Clinton.
"When you hear about some of the things that Clinton has said about tax policy, from a business perspective it's not as welcoming as a typical Republican candidate normally would be. So, to see she was only trailing by two percent and 24% were undecided was pretty telling about the Republican choice," Kurschner said.
The poll was conducted on Sept. 30th.


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Online lender CAN Capital has removed CEO Dan Demeo and promoted Parris Sanz in his place. Bloomberg reported that Demeo and two other executives were on a “leave of absence” sending shudders across the entire online lending industry. Demeo, who joined the company in 2010 as CFO, was elevated to the CEO position in 2013.
The FT quoted a CAN Capital spokesperson as saying;
“It became clear that our business has grown and evolved faster than some of our internal processes.”
The statement joined the revelation that CAN had “paused” the process of driving new customers to the platform, perhaps echoing some of the challenges at other large financial firms.
The online lending industry has struggled in 2016 after several years of promising growth. In May, the founding CEO of Lending Club was unceremoniously jettisoned as questionable processes came to light. The repercussions lead to institutional investors pulling back for the entire industry. Several online lenders have since ceased originating loans.
According to their website, CAN Capital has assisted over 70,000 small businesses gain access to over $6 Billion in working capital since its founding in 1998.