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Northwood University economic outlook addresses coronavirus
January 2020 marked the beginning of a new calendar year, a presidential election year, as well as a new decade. Real U.S. GDP grew at 2.9% for 2019, not yet reaching the 4% growth rate President Donald Trump promised during his campaign in 2016 but has to date outpaced the annual average growth rate of the Obama presidency. Consumer and general business confidence ran at or near record levels on a monthly basis throughout much of 2019 with U.S. life expectancy realizing its first annual increase in 10 years in 2019.
This year began with impressive job growth in 2020 as just over 225,000 jobs were created in January, more than 60,000 jobs above initial expectations. The unemployment rate rose to 3.6% in January due to an unexpectedly large number of civilians entering or re-entering the workplace as a result of strong job and wage conditions. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, S+P 500, and NASDAQ all set records in January 2020 before retrenching from their peaks by month end. The Institute for Supply Management's (ISM) PMI Index closed January at 50.9%, up 3.1% for the month. The January 2020 close was the highest PMI level since July 2019. A PMI below 50% signals manufacturing is in recession, while a number at or above 50 percent signals manufacturing growth in the economy. Preliminary GDP data from the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta and ISM show the economy growing at a 2.4% growth rate for Q1 2020.
World oil prices ended 2019 at $67.77 as measured by the market for Brent North Sea Intermediate Crude and closed January 2020 at $53.39, down just over 21% to date. Gold almost offset oil by increasing roughly 19% an ounce on the commodities markets closing 2019 at $1,523 an ounce.
The U.S. Prime Rate remained at an average of 4.75% for January with inflation at 2.5% for the 12-month period ending January 2020. U.S. inflation increased by .2% over the previous 12 months ending January 2019.
As we often note, the best source of small business and much of entrepreneurial activity in the United States can be measured by studying the National Federation for Independent Businesses (NFIB) monthly Small Business Optimism Index. The index ended 2019 with one of its top 10 best years in its 46-year history. The NFIB's small business optimism index rose 1.6 points to 104.3 in January rebounding from a 2-point decline in December. The number finished well ahead of market expectations which predicted the index would come in around 103.5.
Our thoughts and prayers are with the people and nation of China as they deal with the effects of the coronavirus. Few anticipated the crippling effect the virus would have on the Chinese economy, its people, as well as its trading partners and their economies.
To measure the impact of the coronavirus, it is useful to reflect on the Chinese economy as it dealt with the SARS virus in late 2002 and early 2003. When the SARS virus peaked in 2003, China was the sixth largest economy in the world and accounted for about 4.3% of global GDP. The SARS outbreak realized 8,098 cases and resulted in 774 deaths globally (a 9.4% mortality rate). Estimates show that by early 2003, the SARS virus negatively impacted first quarter Chinese GDP by as much as 1% for the quarter. Just under two decades separate the health and economic impacts of the SARS virus and that of the coronavirus. Today, China is the second largest economy in the world accounting for at least 15.5% of the world's GDP, while playing a more ubiquitous and integrated role today in a much more complex global economy. The coronavirus by many indications poses less of a health risk than did SARS, but it has impacted a much wider range of the Chinese and global population. More than 70,000 cases have been reported with the latest death toll at 1,770 globally (a current mortality rate of 2.5%).
Since 2002, China plays a larger, more complex role in today's global economy from chemicals and solar panels to telecommunications equipment and automobile parts. China is among the world's largest markets for manufacturing as well as consumption. Our research concluded the virus could have a negative impact of .5 - 1% on first quarter Chinese GDP, which would take our estimate for the Chinese economy down to 5.2 - 4.7% growth for Q1 2020. We estimate that in 2019 alone, the Chinese economy manufactured and exported roughly $36.5 billion worth of automobile parts to be shipped to customers around the world. In the last couple of weeks, customers worried that parts could be tainted by the coronavirus, have shut down Korean plants, halting Hyundai's new automotive parts production to a standstill with as much as 50% of total Japanese new car production adversely impacted. Toyota and Fiat Chrysler could very well shut down European plants affected by the coronavirus-inspired supply chain problems. Roughly $21 billion of Chinese automobile parts exports are destined for the United States in 2020. Due to a longer supply chain in the United States, tainted Chinese parts have not been an issue to date and should not be for at least a month.
Failure to control the coronavirus is unacceptable as it will have an adverse impact on automobile production in the United States, Canada, Mexico and beyond in the coming months. The same will be true for other technologies such as cell phones, telecommunications equipment, and pharmaceuticals.
Today's complex global supply chain keeps prices low and quality high. The world overall is a better place, a more interdependent place, a more peaceful place and yes, sometimes an uneasy place because of global trade.
Dr. Timothy G. Nash, of The McNair Center for the Advancement of Free Enterprise and Entrepreneurship at Northwood University, can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.org or 989-837-4323.


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An individual can be searched out on the Internet by name, address, phone number, date of birth, profession, college or business affiliation, magazine subscriptions, medical condition or political contributions, the Federal Trade Commission was told last month.
The FTC is holding hearings aimed at deciding whether new rules or laws are needed to protect privacy in the age of computers and information technology.
The answer is yes.
A consortium of information companies has proposed self-governing rules to head off government action.
The companies would bar distribution of detailed credit information to other than legitimate subscribers such as banks; and they would let consumers choose to be excluded from databases that store information and share it with other companies.
Other data handlers propose to keep some sensitive information such as Social Security numbers, credit histories and salaries strictly to themselves, and sell addresses, employment information, birth dates and other information only with notification to consumers.
All such good ideas are voluntary, and together are insufficient. Some government-set standards are needed, at the very least so individuals whose privacy is invaded can hold someone accountable.
A bill to set Connecticut standards of consumer privacy died at the close of this year's General Assembly. For the time being, it's up to the FTC.
Evan Hendricks, editor of a privacy newsletter, had it right when he told the FTC: "We have to decide what human beings are in the electronic age. Are we going to be just chattel for commerce?"

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Founder Interview: It's a Business, Not an App with Alex Villanueva of Sprynt
Alex Villanueva, the founder and CEO of Sprynt, recently gave us an insider's look at his brand new, on-demand, ride-sharing business Savvy Apps helped launch. A few members of Savvy's team toured downtown Arlington, Va. in the unique, fully-electric Sprynt vehicles. Not only did we get to hear Alex talk about going from concept to reality, we got to see the Sprynt app and branding we created in action. Sprynt is a great example of why we continually tell entrepreneurs they're building a business and not just an app.
- 00:47 — What sets Sprynt apart from other ride-sharing services?
- 01:19 — Inspiration for the Sprynt service
- 01:39 — How Sprynt was able to launch successfully under a tight timeline
(see Tips to Build an Expert App Team)
- 02:54 — Initial validation on both sides of the Sprynt business
- 04:24 — Advice for entrepreneurs
(see How to Ensure Your App will be a Huge Failure)
- 05:10 — Dealing with doubt
- Even a great app will fail without strategy, branding, marketing, customer support, etc.
- Know your strengths. Find the right people and partners to tackle the other aspects of your business.
- Don't let self-doubt or skeptics stop you from trying.
Join 20,000+ Other Readers
Sign up to be notified of new blog posts and be the first to receive helpful app goodies from Savvy.


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Agricultural produce exporter Agrexco is set for liquidation. The only offer for the company from Kislev Forwarding and Custom Clearance Ltd. owned by Zvi Grinberg is now longer relevant, Tel Aviv District Court Judge Varda Alshech was told today during a debate on the company's stay of proceedings.
The trustee Adv. Shlomo Nass will now try to sell Agrexco as a "going concern" but will no longer be able to sell the company in its entirety. Judge Varda Alshech will rule on the matter tomorrow.
On Sunday, the company's bondholders rejected a debt settlement offer by the government controlled company which would have included a "haircut" of more than 80%. The bondholders' rejection was unanimous and they expect other unsecured creditors to join them.
The Government Companies Authority owns 30% of Agrexco, Tnuva Food Industries Ltd. owns 11%, and the Plants Production and Marketing Board owns 57%. The Plants Production and Marketing Board is controlled by the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Agriculture, basically rendering it another branch of the government.
The institutional bondholders claim that they invested in Agrexco in the understanding that a government controlled company would guarantee it should it ever become mired in difficulties, and that now the government was shirking its responsibilities with a "shrug of the shoulders."


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Deps P/L of Australia, a manufacturer of bore casing, screens and accessories, supports the use of only pipe that meets As1477 by purchasing pipe and fittings were possible from local manufacturers such as Pipemakers, Vinidex and Iplex. By supplying pipes that are made in Australia and meet As1477 , the Consultant, Driller, Engineer and end user such as a Farmer know that their criteria for the project is met, and the casing will have the strength to withstand the setting depth or collapse pressure.
In this case, a Farmer in NSW is taking the Driller, Importer and Pipe Manufacturer to court for the costs of a collapsed bore, the collapsed bore putting his livelihood at risk. The New York Times commented in “The Price of Made in China” report that six bridges have collapsed in China due to shoddy construction and inferior building materials and that many dealers do not take into consideration the additional costs that buying ‘Made in China’ brings.” Australian Competition and Consumer Commission states, “Under Australian product safety laws, importers are treated as manufacturers in the supply chain and must follow the rules set out by ACCC.”
By using Australian made pipes and products you can guarantee the quality of the product such as AS1477 on Pvc, if you need assurance that it meets this standard then we can supply a copy of the standards that the pipe we are selling meets As1477, which is also what “The Minimum Bore” standards require. The manufacturing and products from Deps managed by Victor Little has been delivering specialized piping solutions to Drillers, Plumbers, Engineers, Consultants and Resellers around the world in many fields for over 20 years.
Customer Alana, of Highland Drilling says, “I would like to thank you very much for the effort you went to get the pipe correct, it is an important contract for our company and I think in the future they will want to use more of it.” Jye, of Aqua Drilling, a division of Boart Longyear says,”Your pipes are much stronger than the imported ones we are using at the moment, when we push down these imported ones they flex yours don’t, I’d much prefer to use yours.”


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Former Fonterra Shareholders Council chairman Simon Couper explores Fonterra's core advantage.
Commenting on the half-year performances of Fonterra and Canterbury independent processor Synlait, Hoggard called on farmers to “sit tight, plan ahead and budget well”.
“The worst is not over yet, with farmers going into winter with the lower payouts starting to take effect and the drought affected regions, meaning farmers will be needing to buy in more supplementary feed than usual,” he says.
Fonterra dropped its dividend payout by 5c/kgMS while maintaining its milk price at $4.70/kgMS. For the six months ending January 2015, Fonterra recorded a 14% drop in revenue to $9.7 billion; net profit after tax stood at $183 million, down 16% over last year.
Hoggard says the drop in Fonterra’s dividend is disappointing. “The dividend’s role is to reflect the value in Fonterra’s value add products. The belief among farmers has been that a low farmgate milk price would then reduce the cost of producing value add products which would be reflected in a higher dividend returned to farmers. Obviously this isn’t the case so Fonterra will need to explain that well, and clearly, to their shareholder farmers.”
Synlait Milk has increased its 2015 forecast from $4.40/kgMS to a range of $4.50 - $4.70/kgMS despite posting a $6.4 million net loss for first six months.
Hoggard says there is some good news for Synlait suppliers. “The bronze lining is that at least Synlait farmers’ forecast payout is now not looking so grim and they are now experiencing a similar level of pain to Fonterra suppliers,” he says.
Synlait Milk chairman Graeme Milne says it is expecting a much stronger performance in the second half of the financial year, on the back of selling higher-margin infant and nutraceutical products.
Milne is confident that despite market volatility it has sufficient committed contracts in place to achieve a forecast net profit after tax result of $10 million - $15 million for the full year.
Fonterra chief executive Theo Spierings says the first half has been subdued for the co-op, due to high volatility and challenging global market conditions. “In the first quarter, opportunities to improve ingredients, consumer and foodservice gross margins were restricted until carryover inventory from the previous financial year was cleared.”
Spierings says Fonterra has a single-minded focus on delivering results – increasing sales volumes, reducing complexity and taking costs out to maximise returns.
“To accelerate delivery of strategy, my team and I are leading a comprehensive business transformation programme. It will firmly embed the best features of entrepreneurial thinking, such as effectiveness, efficiency and agility.”
Fonterra Shareholders Council chairman Ian Brown says farmers expected their co-op to deliver a higher dividend than the 10c/kgMS interim dividend announced last week.
“Shareholders rightfully want to see the strategy provide a return on their investment, especially given the low milk price environment farmers are currently experiencing.”
Last week Fonterra’s board and management held 40 farmer meetings to explain the results.


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China's Changan Auto Interested in Overseas Acquisitions, Volvo Included
It's no secret that Chinese automakers have been sniffing around the North American and European markets for some time now. The latest member of the group is Chongqing Changan Auto Group, which hopes to take advantage of the recession to find its way in.
"The longer the crisis lasts, the bigger the chance of failure or a scale-down of some American and European automakers," Changan Chairman Xu Liuping told Reuters at the Shanghai Auto Show. "And that has provided a chance for entry by Chinese manufacturers."
Changan is Ford's partner in the Chinese market and has already expressed interest in acquiring Ford's struggling Swedish brand Volvo. Though Xu would not comment specifically on the company's interest in Volvo, citing Chinese securities regulations, he told reporters "we are actively pursuing mergers and acquisitions at home and overseas but have not reached any deal so far."
Along with mergers and acquisitions, Changan is also working on entering overseas markets on its own. The automaker announced in February that it had reached a deal with Autopark Mexico to being building cars there in 2010 with an initial capacity of 50,000 vehicles per year. The Mexico facility is Changan's sixth overseas assembly site and could potentially supply cars to the North American market at some point in the future.
To continue its rapid expansion, Changan hopes to introduce 10 new models in the next three to five years and five more after that, all of which the automaker will develop in-house. Hybrid models will hit showrooms later this year and the company hopes to move 100,000 of them in the next two years. The company sold 861,377 vehicles in 2008.


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Port Canaveral business owners balance hope, realism during coronavirus outbreak
If you go by Port Canaveral, you will see something that officials say is extremely rare.
Every cruise ship spot is taken up, due to the suspending of cruises during the coronavirus outbreak. As a result, the local economy is also taking a hit.
"We're somewhat down substantially over last year, being spring break and somewhat, but we're not going out of business," Michael Schwarz, co-owner of Fish Lips Water Front-Bar and Grill.
Despite a decrease in traffic, co-owners Schwarz and Rich Hensel are bracing for the economic waves that are not far offshore.
"We have six cruise ships in the port today. Unfortunately, those cruise ships are not loading passengers," Hensel said. "And of course, the local hotel businesses are going to start to be impacted about it, as well, which will then impact the restaurants in the long run," Hensel added.
While there is uncertainty ahead for local business, one certainty is port operations. Port Canaveral CEO John Murray spoke about the future of operations.
"We're not going to close down in any capacity," Murray said.
Murray said the economy needs ships to still sail in and out.
"The bottom line is, we still need things in this country and these ports are how you get it," Murray said.
Murray said despite the extended stay of the cruise ships, they are seeing more cargo ships coming in due to item shortages around the country. He adds next week, a ship will come in carrying a material to help make toilet paper.
There are still terminal usage restrictions at the port due to the outbreak.
Despite uncharted water, Schwarz and Hensel are hopeful looking forward.
"It's going to get worse before it gets better, but as long as we're hanging in together, work together and take care of each other, I think we're going to make it through. We always have, always will," Schwarz said.


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The minimum requirements for the functioning of Facebook and Messenger have changed: on many mid-range smartphones they will no longer be able to be used
That the Windows platform on smartphones is not doing very well is not a mystery: the adoption of the Redmond operating system in the last few months has experienced a significant decline, the new devices are becoming less and less and those that arrive on the market are intended for professionals and companies. The definitive incentive to abandon the Microsoft operating system for could come from a company that has nothing to do with the production of smartphones, namely Facebook. In fact, in the latest update of its app, the social network of Menlo Park raised the minimum system requirements for correct operation from 1 GB to 2 GB of RAM.
Raising requirements for now it seems to be only nominal: appears in the description of the app, but does not prevent it from being installed, but in the future it may become effective, even for the Messenger messaging app. The reasons are easy to guess: between automatic playback videos, stickers, group chats and video calls, the two platforms require more and more computing capacity, and moreover even on Android devices with a single GB of RAM on board are now struggling to stay behind the requests of the most common apps; many view the move simply as an attempt to mask Facebook's poor efforts to write a decent version of its Windows apps.
Anyhow,transform the recommendation into a requirementWindows Mobile users who remained loyal to the Microsoft world, fans of the Nokia brand (later Lumia) who in majority and also recently have preferred low-end smartphones with only one GB of memory on board risk to permanently flee to other shores.


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Louis Vuitton has chosen Miami Design District to pre-launch the Men’s Spring/Summer 2018 with a series of fun vehicles – figuratively and literally – before the global launch on Jan 19th. To celebrate Miami and the men’s collection there will be an iconic LV VW bus which will be parked outside the Design District store from January 10th to 22nd, before it departs for Rodeo Drive and lastly heads to Hawaii. Inspired by the idea of exotic islands and travel, Kim Jones’ Spring Summer 2018 collection is overflowing with colorful prints, technical details and light weight fabrics.
Miami-themed limited edition bumper stickers will be gifted with each purchase from the Spring Summer 2018 menswear collection. Louis Vuitton Miami Design District will also be the first store in the US to offer the SS18 surfboard. Additionally, exclusive Monogram Pacific leather goods will be available for purchase only at the Miami Design District store.


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ATLANTA (AP) -- Coke's management team received another shakeup Tuesday, with incoming chairman and chief executive officer Doug Daft appointing North American division chief Jack Stahl as the company's next president and chief operating officer.
The Atlanta-based Coca Cola Co. said its board of directors would officially elect Stahl to the position at its April 19 meeting. The job had been vacant under outgoing chairman and chief executive officer M. Douglas Ivester.
Stahl, 46, will answer directly to Daft, the native Australian who will officially take over for Ivester at the company's shareholders meeting in April. The board elected Stahl as an executive vice president Tuesday until he takes his new job.
Previous news reports said Ivester's refusal to name a No. 2 man was one reason the board lost confidence in his leadership. Ivester announced last month he would retire in April, but said he made the decision to step down on his own after much "personal reflection."
Stahl, a 20-year Coke veteran, was once the company's youngest chief financial officer, taking that office at the age of 36.
"Daft is the expert on the company's business outside the U.S., and Stahl is the expert on the American business and finance side of things," said John Sicher, editor and publisher of Beverage Digest. "These two men make a formidable team."
The announcement is the latest in a series of moves Daft has made to shore up his executive staff.
He lured Carl Ware, the company's highest-ranking black executive, back from a planned retirement to run a newly created division and named a new head of the European division and a new chief marketing officer.
The board officially approved those moves Tuesday as well. Ware, new Europe chief Charles S. Frenette, new chief marketing officer Stephen C. Jones, new operations support head James E. Chestnut and general counsel Joseph R. Gladden Jr. all were named executive vice presidents.
"I think we're going to see a major change in how this company is governed and managed," Sicher said. "Doug Daft wants people who are running the non-U.S. parts of the business to be headquartered in their respective markets."
Meanwhile, rumors of future layoffs continued to percolate, the latest stemming from an analyst's prediction that the company will layoff as many as 2,000 midlevel managers
Bill Pecoriello of Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. said Tuesday that the layoffs will be part of Coke's "greatest sea change in its business in 20 years."
Company spokesman Ben Deutsch said the company would not comment on possible layoffs.
"We do not comment on rumor and speculation," Deutsch said. "The new management team of the company is examining every aspect of operations."
Pecoriello also said in an analytical report that Coke plans to shift its approach away from selling as much product as possible and toward "a realistic view of the volume growth the system can support given the realities of the world economies."
He also predicted the stock would reach $71 a share within the next year as the Asian markets, particularly Japan, strengthen after an economic crisis that hurt Coke's sales for much of the last two years.
Shares of Coke KO, +1.17% rose 3 15/16 to close at 65.


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Apple again under the magnifying glass of the EU antitrust
A new accusation for Apple by the European authorities. This time, NFC chip technology would be in the antitrust crosshairs.
Apple accused of NFC chips
The fight between Cupertino and the European authorities does not seem to have subsided. According to reports from the reuters.com portal, the EU antitrust is allegedly making accusations about the technology NFC chip from Apple. The latter may not only have to pay significant fines, but also have to change access to their ApplePay payment system. The issue now dates back to June 2020, when Margrethe Vestager, head of antitrust of the European Unionbegan to investigate the payment system of the American giant.
The concerns now are mostly about the NFC chip. This allows for tap-and-go payments on the iPhone, and is exclusive to Apple’s payment systems. This exclusivity would guarantee the American company an advantage over its competitors, violating the cardinal principles of competitiveness.
According to reuters.com, European authorities are preparing a debit note that will be sent to Tim Cook’s company within the next year. It is difficult to assess the amount of the fine, but a figure can be estimated around € 27.4 billion. NFC-enabled payments have grown in popularity mainly due to the pandemic. According to some analysts, Apple Pay’s broad reach gives it a competitive edge over rivals.
South Korea, Germany and the Netherlands: different authorities are investigating
The payment system of the Big Bitten Apple has not only made the European authorities turn up their noses. In fact the South Korea approved a bill on the issue just last month. This bans major app store operators, including Apple, from forcing software developers to use their own payment systems.
Germany also passed a law in 2019 requiring Apple to open its mobile payment system to rivals at reasonable prices. In the same year, the Dutch competition authority also launched an investigation into the App Store. The focus, in that case, was the imposition of a 30% commission for app developers.


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Monte Vista, CO — With 52,900 acres of potatoes on the receiving end of good rainfall and not much hail throughout the growing season, Colorado’s San Luis Valley was getting ready in August to harvest what growers and shippers were describing as a good crop size-, yield- and quality-wise.
Jim Ehrlich, executive director of the Colorado Potato Administrative Committee based in Monte Vista, said he had spoken with a crop consultant in mid-August, and Ehrlich said, “I think it’s going to be a good crop. There’s no reason to think otherwise.”
In June Ehrlich said the area had received more rain in May “than we ever had before,” and in August, he said, “We will have an above-average runoff for the year at 650,000 acre feet. I think we’re in very good shape. Well pressure and the water table came up in June, and we basically made it through another year.”
The director said new state regulations are coming out that will require the formation of water subdistricts on the south side of the Rio Grande River, which runs on the diagonal west-to-east through the valley.
“If the regulations do come out and no one sues, they’ll be enforced,” Ehrlich said.
While potato vines were being killed and the area prepared for harvest, Ehrlich shared figures from the 2014-15 shipping season, saying by the end of July the region had shipped nearly 14 million cwt of fresh market spuds. That number was closer to 15 million with process counted, he said.
The Aug. 6 issue of Spud Item, CPAC’s monthly newsletter, showed 2,561 shipments for the month of July, compared to 2,291 in July 2014 and 1,839 in 2013. Shipments to date were 30,325, compared to 29,344 in 2014 and 31,988 in 2013.
Of note this year is the increase of organic acreage, which multiple sources said is now more than 4,000 acres. Ehrlich could not confirm that number, but he did say the category continues to grow.
“Our conventional yellow market is also expanding,” he said. “It grows between 8 and 10 percent each year nationally, and it’s gaining traction. Russet Norkotahs continue to represent the most overall potato acreage in the area, he said. Reds are a considerably smaller percentage, and the Sangre is the No. 1 variety.
Fingerlings and specialty spuds are also on the increase in San Luis Valley production.
Looking at marketplaces, Ehrlich said Mexico remains a good buyer for Colorado spuds. Though U.S. potatoes are only allowed as far into Mexico as the current 26-kilometer buffer zone, the National Potato Council and the U.S. Potato Board, along with the USDA, are working to reverse decisions by Mexican courts that stop U.S. potatoes from going beyond that point.
Ehrlich said the first of eight hearings in Mexican courts was favorable to the United States when an injunction to prevent shipping was ruled invalid by a Mexican judge.
U.S. shippers, Mexican importers and Mexican grocery stores have all challenged such temporary injunctions, and this first ruling was cause for optimism.
“But it doesn’t really change anything at this point,” Ehrlich said. “We still have to go through the legal process. If the interior of Mexico were to open up, huge opportunities would be available to the entire potato industry. In the meantime, we have a trade mission coming from Central America and Mexico through the Western U.S. Trade Association and the Colorado Department of Agriculture, and we have a consultant in Mexico working on market research.”
This fall, Domex Superfresh Growers will debut a new line of two-pound gusseted Superfresh Kids-themed pear pouch bags with "Sesame Street" characters in support of the eat brighter! campaign.
The eat brighter! campaign is a unique and powerful partnership with Sesame Workshop and the Produce Marketing Association, in collaboration with the Partnership for a Healthier America, that encourages kids ages 2 to 5 to eat more fresh fruits and vegetables.
"Pears are a terrific fruit for kids of all ages. The many different varieties provide ample flavor and snacking opportunities with a variety of uses," Howard Nager, vice president of marketing Domex Superfresh Growers, said in a press release. "In addition to showcasing 'Sesame Street' characters, our new bags will also carry our own Superfresh Kids-theme branding, which features artwork of kids participating in various outdoor activities. We didn’t forget about all the moms and dads out there, the back of each bag provides ripening tips for achieving optimal flavor. We feel very strongly about connecting the grower with the consumer in an effort to showcase their dedication, energy and passion for growing the safest, best-tasting and most-nutritious products.”
There will be a separate pouch for Bartlett, Bosc, Anjou and Red Pear varieties. Individual varieties will be available in both conventional and organic options and each bag will feature bilingual information satisfying Canadian export requirements.
"This year’s pear crop is shaping up to provide excellent eating quality and flavor," Nager said. "Sizing will lean toward smaller fruit, which is ideal for the two-pound pouches. IRI data for the 52-week period ending June 14, 2015 has shown that dollar sales of bagged pears increased 15 percent over the previous 52-week period and it now represents 9 percent of dollar sales in the pear category.”
Domex Superfresh Growers works closely with its partner, Blue Bird Inc. of Wenatchee, WA, to grow, pack and ship some of the finest quality pears in the Pacific Northwest while representing almost 10 percent of the Northwest pear crop and over 25 percent of the organic supply.
Domex will conduct a social media campaign this fall supported by the hashtag #eatpears, where consumers will have an opportunity to win prizes.
QUEBEC CITY — With the theme “A Healthy Industry, a Shared Responsibility,” the Quebec Produce Marketing Association held its 68th annual convention Aug. 20-22 at the Fairmont Le Château Frontenac, here.
Convention delegates found a unique and enriching convention waiting for them, starting with a warm personal welcome from 2014-15 QPMA board president Sammy Cacciatore of Sun Grape Marketing and convention chairman Patrice Alain of Metro, followed by three days of networking, conferences, meetings and special themed evenings.
A new year — and new faces
The annual general meeting of the QPMA membership included election of a new board of directors and appointment of officers. Roland Lafont of Vergers Saint-Paul is now QPMA second vice president, while Pascal Guérin of JAG - Les Jardins A. Guérin et fils was elected to the board, representing the Growers-Packers-Processors-Shippers sector. Marie Gosselin of Mûr conseil joined the ranks of QPMA governors.
The event was also an opportunity for outgoing board president Sammy Cacciatore to thank his fellow board members for their active support during the past year.
“Each of you, each of us, shares the responsibility of fulfilling the QPMA mission, each according to our abilities and talents,” Cacciatore said. “And ours is certainly a healthy association, when you think of all the terrific projects the QPMA continues to deliver.”
The annual QPMA activities report was presented by Gosselin, one of the association’s acting directors while CEO Sophie Perreault is on maternity leave.
Guest speakers deliver the goods
Among the opportunities for convention-goers this year was a stimulating conference on the issues involving e-commerce in the produce industry led by Jacques Nantel, head of the marketing education department and director of programs at HEC Montréal. Nantel’s talk provided a major overview of new trends in e-commerce and their impact on consumer behavior patterns.
A session entitled “Stress on the Job,” was presented by Sonia Lupien, who explained to her audience what stress really is and how to better understand and cope with their own stress-related reactions. Lupien also offered some practical, down-to-earth tools to help control our responses to stress in real life.
Later, at the industry brunch, Julie DesGroseilliers, nutritionist, consultant and official spokesperson for the QPMA “I love 5 to 10 Servings a Day” campaign since day one, announced the campaign’s latest and greatest spinoffs – plus names of the participants and winners in the 10th annual “I Love” contest.
Last, but by no means least, Senegal-born humorist Boucar Diouf led the audience on a cross-culture food odyssey, “The Migration of Fruits and Vegetables.” Diouf, a former peanut farmer, charmed QPMA attendees with a presentation that featured tales from his own fascinating life.
A fun-filled convention for all
On Friday morning, participants had three activities from which to choose. Sports-minded convention-goers ignored overcast skies to take part in the morning’s “Quebec Fit & Fun” program, starting with a group warm-up and followed by a fitness-focused tour around Quebec City. QPMA epicures opted for “Workshops & Flavours,” a wine-tasting adventure featuring advice from professional sommeliers, a tapas buffet and a chance to create their own original cocktails. Food lovers, meanwhile, went on an excursion to the Île d’Orleans, where they savored the island’s unique charms, including a guided tour of local food delights.
On Thursday night, the Muse de l’Amérique Francophone chapel, which was deconsecrated in 1992, opened its doors wide to help guests celebrate the grand opening night of the convention. The chapel’s otherworldly atmosphere, enhanced by a capella vocal music and original arrangements by the group Qw4rtz, was the perfect setting to get convention goers in the groove.
On Friday evening, guests donned black and white for a James Bond-themed “007 Night” of elegance, action, martinis, gadgets and romance “from Quebec City with love.” During the evening, guests gave their best in tackling a series of mysteries posed by the emcee, or played secret agent in the video booth. Later on, they lit up the dance floor to music delivered by DJ Yo-C with backup by the talented Valérie Daure.
At the Saturday night banquet, guest of honor was Sebastian Proulx, MLA (Jean-Talon), appearing on behalf of the Quebec minister of agriculture, fisheries and food, Pierre Paradis. It was a memorable evening, led with spirit and flair by moderator Alexandra Diaz.
On this occasion, Alain Paré of Metro was honored as the 2015 Pillar of the Industry in Quebec for his distinguished professional career and personal qualities that have contributed to the advancement of the produce industry.
Next, Stephan Schmekel of Fresh Del Monte Produce (Canada) proudly accepted the QPMA board presidency for 2015-16, with “Building the Future” as his special theme in the year ahead. In his acceptance speech, Schmekel made a special appeal to young people in the produce industry.
“I’m proud to see that our association is positioned for renewal, thanks to the contributions of young men and women who are just as enthusiastically committed as all the rest of us,” Schmekel said in his address. “Those who know me personally are well aware of the importance I place on the next generation. So I’d like to take this opportunity to put out a message: If you’re young, please, get involved, because you are our industry’s future. Show how much you care, show how much better you can do it all. The more involved you get in this industry, the more you’ll get back in return.”
The evening concluded on a different note, ranging from humorous to hilarious, in a show by comedian Rachid Badoury.
Members in the spotlight
For a fourth consecutive year, the QPMA carried on its commitment to young produce industry talent in the “Cultivating the Next Generation” program, with the selection of a new intern who will have the opportunity to work for a full year inside the association.
In a frank and sincere speech, the third intern, Pierre Jr. Landry of Sobeys Québec, shared an account of his experience working with the QPMA over the past 12 months, before passing the torch to his successor. The recruit chosen by the selection committee, Julie Lefort of Serres Lefort, is the first woman to take part in the internship program.
This year the 10th annual “I Love” contest broke all previous records with 278 participants. This year’s lucky winners, chosen in a random draw, are:
To mark the 10th anniversary of the contest, a special “10 Years” category was created, open to any and all companies that had taken part in the contest over the last 10 years. The winning company drawn at random was Sun Grape Marketing.
At this year’s convention the QPMA once again gave members an opportunity to spotlight their latest developments in the fourth annual New Products Showcase. This year, 22 companies took advantage of the unique opportunity.
Days after sending WARN layoff notices to more than 22,000 employees, The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co. filed paperwork in hopes of using $5 million to retain 495 executives and key management employees — less than 2 percent of the overall workforce. Nearly $1 million of the funds would be divided between just 11 employees. The request was filed with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Southern District of New York.
Averaging losses of $4.5 million a month, A&P said its "wind down and ultimate closure is not a secret, and the longterm employment uncertainty has understandably caused much concern and consternation among [its] employees." Since it filed bankruptcy in mid-July, 54 "valuable employees" have been lost due to voluntary resignations.
The company went on to say "employees are resigning at an escalating rate," including its chief operating officer, the vice president of human resources and labor relations, the director of deli and bakery, and numerous store managers and district managers.
Of the $5 million, the average payment for corporate-level employees would be $25,000, with field-level employees averaging $7,000. Eleven employees would receive more than $50,000, including two unnamed individuals who would get $125,000 each. The retention payments range from 4 percent to 63 percent of each employee's annual base salary.
Currently, A&P and unions are at odds over the reduction and possible elimination of severance payments and job payments, and Christopher W. McGarry, A&P's chief restructuring officer, said it was not feasible to include union employees in the retention plan. He noted that they are "incentivized to remain with [A&P] and perform well to increase their chances of continued employment" if another company purchases the store.
Initially upon filing for bankruptcy protection the company said it would only sell about 120 stores and close an additional 25; however, since that time A&P has started to look for bidders for its remaining 153 stores. In its request, A&P said the loss of key employees was a distraction that could undermine the sale of its assets and its ability to maximize value and preserve jobs to the detriment of all stakeholders.
WASHINGTON — One month before Congress must act to reauthorize school nutrition standards, the United Fresh Produce Association defended government policies to increase fresh fruits and vegetables after a new study raised questions about consumption and plate waste.
The University of Vermont study, which was released Aug. 25, used digital imaging to capture students’ lunch trays before and after they exited the lunch line, and compared results before and after the U.S. Department of Agriculture rules went into effect.
Researchers found school children consuming slightly less of fruits and vegetables, despite the new offerings.
But United Fresh said plenty of studies have shown the benefits of offering a wide variety of fruits and vegetables in schools and the role of fresh produce in battling rising obesity rates.
Last January, the Gretchen Swan Center of Nutrition evaluated the current salad bar program and found that 57 percent of schools reported an increase in student participation in school lunch where salad bars are available, said Robert Guenther, senior vice president of public policy for United Fresh.
Another study at the University of Arkansas found USDA’s Fresh Fruit & Vegetable Program has been an effective tool in reducing obesity rates in children compared to schools that do not have the FFVP program.
“The bottom line is there are a number of factors that contribute to a student’s lunch experience and what can be associated to their eating patterns,” Guenther said. “More important, the fresh fruit and vegetable industry continues to be committed to working with their school nutrition partners across the country to provide students the best possible options for a healthy and delicious meal during school.”
The latest study comes as the Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Pat Roberts (R-KS) has scheduled a Sept. 17 markup of bipartisan legislation reauthorizing the child nutrition programs. The current law, the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010, is due for reauthorization by Sept. 30, 2015, leaving Congress few legislative days to get the job done.


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It's five years since Google first lifted the curtain on its Android mobile operating system.
Since then, it's taken the world by storm – and if the market analysts are to be believed, its presence in the enterprise is set to become even more pronounced in the coming five years. But not everyone will count this as a blessing.
For many IT chiefs, the emergence of a credible alternative to Apple's iPhone has been a life-saver. The fact that there are so many different Android smartphones available at all manner of price points, on numerous networks and tariffs has paved the way for the ostensibly consumer devices to swarm in to the enterprise. And it's avoided the eye-watering cost of having to offer to pay for employees' iPhone.
And as far anyone can tell at this stage, it looks as if a similar story will play out on the tablet front. This week, Gartner and IDC have made bold predictions about the shape of the mobile market, essentially predicting Android will win out.
But unless Google can do something about its lamentable security record, the Android avalanche is going to cause nothing but pain for IT.
The problem for Google – the rather-less-open-curator-of-Android-than-it-would-have-you-believe – is that it's the operating system's biggest selling points that are its biggest weakness.
Some users love the idea of being able to hack away at their handsets, install whatever applications they see fit, from wherever they choose to do so.
But that open philosophy also allows attackers a window of opportunity. And when looking at the numbers, the acceleration of Android malware is truly breath taking.
Speaking to V3 earlier, F-Secure security chief Mikko Hypponen said his firm had seen around 3,000 new Android-related malware samples in the first quarter of 2012. By the third quarter, it was detecting 51,000.
Now much of the malware seen to date has been pretty low-level stuff. It's irksome to find some toe-rag has made your phone dial lots of premium-rate numbers, and for smaller firms the costs could potentially be high. But it's a far cry from having crooks spy on company secrets, or seeing hard-won customer trust evaporate as thieves pilfer credit card records.
Double legal trouble for Musk as he also faces civil lawsuit over renewed British pot-holer 'paedo' claims
Battery development could help boost performance of smartphones
Topological photonic chips promise a more robust option for scalable quantum computers
In quantum physics both the chicken and the egg can come first, claim University of Queensland researchers
Cause-and-effect is not always straightforward in quantum physics


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September 11, 2013
NFIB Survey Show Small Business Owners Slowly Gaining Confidence
The National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) has released their latest survey of business owner confidence. It shows a continuing trend of improvement, though it remains stubbornly low.
We suspect that there is correlation between this sentiment and the lack of businesses on the market. Of course, since the supply is low, and demand remains high (especially from private equity investors), owners of solid, growing businesses have some pricing power in an otherwise tepid market.


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The Air Jordan 23 is scheduled to make a comeback for the first time since it’s release in 2008.
Could this be a special release for the upcoming Flight 23 store in Chicago? The Red uppers, Chicago Stars and “CHI” with the Skyline might be hinting exactly that. Newly surfaced is the Air Jordan XX3 which hasn’t been seen since 2008 and this time, it’s back featuring a University Red upper and Gum Yellow outsole. The Chi City skyline is seen on the heel, stitched on a smooth leather upper. The Air Jordan XX3 also features Chicago Stars around the collar and leather on the uppers.
Stay tuned with Modern Notoriety for more news on this upcoming Air Jordan XX3.
Air Jordan XX3 “Chicago”
Color: University Red/University Red-Gum Yellow
Style #: 811645-650
Update 7/7: Marcus Jordan previews a few detailed shots of the upcoming Air Jordan XX3 “CHI”.
Update 8/2: Here’s a detailed look at the Air Jordan XX9 “Chicago”


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Convenor Namal Karunaratne said that importing 6000 MT of Basmati from Pakistan under a FTA instead of providing a solution for the widely spread turmeric scarcity, was problematic.
Karunaratne believes that in order to support the local industry, rice should not be imported.
He accused the government of contradicting its own statements after claiming that imports were restricted on certain commodities in order to build a self-sufficient economy.
7,000 MT Turmeric demand for a decadeMeanwhile, Director General at the Department of Export Agriculture - Dr. A.P. Heenkenda says that the annual consumption of turmeric of Sri Lanka, (an essential ingredient in local kitchens), was around 7000 MT for around a decade before 2019.
He said that 5,000 metric tons of it was imported and only 2,000 metric tons was produced locally.
He says the local farmers were not motivated to cultivate turmeric because they did not get a good price for the crop.
Until recently, a kilo of turmeric was purchased for around Rs.20, he also pointed out.
Importation of 10 spices including turmeric and ginger has been banned since December 06, 2019.
Dr. Heenkenda points out that 1,500 hectares of turmeric have been cultivated at present and that a crop of 22,500 MT raw turmeric is expected from the crops grown from March to May.
He says that if 4,000 MT of this raw turmeric crop is set aside for planting, the country would be self-sufficient in turmeric by the end of 2021 or by early 2022.
Related News :


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New insights from a sample of 55,000 car-related transactions on the Autochek platform has revealed that millennials are more likely to apply for car loans than any other age group, with 75 percent of applications, compared to 13 percent for Generation X, 11 percent for Generation Z and 1 percent for Baby Boomers.
The data, which covered transactions from Kenya, Ghana, Nigeria, Cote d’Ivoire and Uganda, and represents a subset of Autochek’s overall transaction volume, also suggests that millennials were the top purchasers of cars across the continent. In multiple markets, millennials were responsible for the most sales, with more than half of vehicles sold in some markets. Gen X was typically in second place in most markets, with Baby boomers and Gen Z following behind.
With increasing access to education, technology, and employment opportunities, many millennials in Africa are earning higher income, becoming increasingly financially stable and are seeking ways to improve their standard of living, including buying cars as a symbol of status and mobility.
When it came to the choice of cars, Toyota was the top choice and led sales across the markets surveyed, except for Côte d’Ivoire where Suzuki was the top choice. Despite Toyota being the preferred car, with 56 percent sales in Nigeria, 37 percent in Ghana, 46 percent in Kenya, 49 percent in Uganda, the data also shows that millennials were also purchasing luxury brands, such as Lexus and Mercedes Benz among others.
According to Johan van der Merwe, Chief Executive Officer of Autochek Financial Services, ‘The trend of millennials driving car sales and finance across Africa is expected to continue as this generation becomes more financially independent and the continent’s economy continues to grow. Our main focus at AFS is to improve institutional credit access for automotive transactions from the current average of 2% to 50% across Africa, and catalyse the benefits that come with improved mobility’.
Despite being a $45 billion industry, Africa’s automotive market only has a 2% financing penetration rate, compared with the average of around 60-75 percent in emerging markets. At the same time, vehicle penetration is low, with 44 vehicles per 1,000 people in Africa, compared to the global average of 180.
Autochek is building the financial infrastructure to drive the penetration of auto financing across Africa, powered by a data analytics engine that makes it easier for financial institutions to offer credit to consumers. It has a partner-led retail footprint of more than 2,000 dealers and workshop locations across Africa, which enables unparalleled access to insights into vehicle-related transactions. The company recently launched Autochek Financial Services, new arm of the business that provides best in class technology and advisory solutions to car dealers, financial institutions and other stakeholders in Africa’s automotive ecosystem, supporting them to improve credit decisioning, collections, pricing, portfolio management and product development, as well as deliver an enhanced customer experience.


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We spoke with the governor about his hopes for this legislative session, his political turn to the left, his support of Medicaid expansion and teacher raises, the issue of illegal internet cafes, guns, jobs, property insurance and a proposed texting-while-driving ban.
When Art Basel came to Miami Beach in 2002, I couldn’t have been happier. I was about to graduate from the Maryland Institute College of Art and had plans to return to Florida. It seemed this was the place to be – outside of New York, that is. Over the years, Art Basel has grown, with satellite shows and pop-up galleries expanding throughout Miami.
03/25/13 - Monday’s Topical Currents is with journalist Phoebe Baker Hyde, about her dilemma of a “perfect storm” of self-doubt. She struggled with the notion that as a professional woman, she should be encumbered with the expense and trappings of fashion, makeup, new clothes, salon haircuts and jewelry.
Last month, Josh's Deli in Surfside was transformed into the Saffron Supper Club. The lights were turned down, and the duck prosciutto and smoked salmon were tucked away. Candles covered the long diner counter, and an infatuating aroma of nutty rice tahdig greeted dinners.
Florida's sales tax is a huge competitive downside for local retailers who sell the same products as their Internet competitors.
Because online sellers rarely collect the sales tax, it leaves the brick-and-mortar shops at a roughly 7-percent price disadvantage. And that's why business and retail lobbies have been demanding sales tax collection for online sales for years.
The issue arose during the WLRN-Miami Herald Session 2013 Town Hall last month, where we heard from Fort Lauderdale bookseller Donna Mergenhagen.
On a mostly sun drenched South Florida day, about 900 former Miami Herald employees—myself included-- joined the current staff on Wednesday to reminisce, cry, and mourn the loss of the once proud building by the bay that will soon become a hotel/condo and possible mega casino now planned for the old property.
The Miami Herald isn’t going away. The newspaper operations, along with news partner WLRN, will move out to Doral in April.
State officials, local dignitaries, and conservationalists gathered last Tuesday to celebrate the completion of the first phase of the Tamiami Trail bridge project. The plan took more than two decades to achieve and is part of a larger effort to restore fresh water flow to the Everglades.


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The Eaton Rapids Fire Department (ERFD) is sponsoring a mug fundraiser. They have obtained a unique, limited-edition mug to represent the men and women of ERFD. They are being sold with all proceeds going directly to the firefighters.
The stoneware tankard mug is fire engine red, with a “burnt” look glazed at the top, perfect for the fire department theme. It was created by Daneen Pottery out of St. Paul, Minnesota. It is hand-thrown, meaning that no two are exactly alike. It will hold 16 ounces of a hot or cold beverage and can go into the dishwasher. A detailed ERFD emblem is on the mug and acknowledges the almost 150 years of service that the department has been in existence. “Protecting the Island City” is boldly featured on the emblem.
“We have a lot of ‘coffee mug junkies’ who really love the mug,” ERFD Lt. Jeremy Milam explained. “This company makes mugs for various coffee companies and they’re really nice.”
“We also plan on having a 150th ERFD anniversary mug made by them in 2024,” Milam added. The Eaton Rapids fire department was established in 1874 by L.A. Bently and Frank Culley, the latter who was its first engineer, after some devastating fires destroyed much of the downtown. The first engine house was located on the west bank of the Grand River on the north side of East Knight Street, behind the current location of Quality Dairy. The first fire engine was purchased that fall at a cost of $5250.
Only 200 mugs are available and when those are gone, they’re gone. They’re selling fast, Milam said. After only a week of sales, they have approximately 80 left.
“We see people at their worst and we’re here to support them at their time of need,” Milam said. “So, we’re super thrilled that the community supports and approves of us and are purchasing these mugs,” he added.
The proceeds will be used to pay for things that come up over the year, Milam explained, like equipment they want over and above what the City provides, or to fund special events they might hold.
Eaton Rapids Fire Department has 19 part-time firefighters on call. In the past, they have done other fundraisers, like a kayak raffle, but the mug was chosen as it’s something that’s versatile and can be used all year. It’s also a nice collectible representing the ERFD.
For more information about purchasing an ERFD mug contact email@example.com, or any member of the fire department, or visit their Facebook page eatonrapidsfire.


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Nationwide, the price of candy was upabout 13% in September compared with a year earlier, according to figures from the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics. Datasembly, a research firm that tracks consumer prices, found one of the sharpest increases among grocery items in the candy aisle.
While there’s no data on Halloween costumes in particular, the cost for apparel and clothing rose 2.2% between September 2021 and last month, according to federal statistics. That includes a 5.5% jump over the summer.
Americans are expected to spend $3.6 billion on costumes, $3.4 billion on decorations, $3.1 billion on candy and $600 million on greeting cards for Halloween this year, the trade group said in a recent survey.
Enough people “want to get away from the gloom” of the pandemic that they may be willing to grit their teeth and pay up, said James W. Hughes, dean emeritus of Rutgers’ Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy. “It looks like this is sort of a post-pandemic expression of wanting to get back to normal,” Hughes said in a phone interview.


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We reported that Saudi Arabia has issued a ban on the BlackBerry service, so I suppose we shouldn’t be too surprised to hear what Saudia are doing in response. No, they are not protesting and rioting the decision in the streets. They are simply trying to sell their now-worthless BlackBerry handhelds.
The Associated Press reports that many Saudis, including store owners, have had to slash prices in an effort to sell BlackBerry handhelds prior to the service’s ban beginning at midnight. One example given is the slashing of a new BlackBerry from $300 to $100. Other BlackBerry owners in the country have been trying to swap their BlackBerry handsets for regular phones.
With an estimated 750,000 BlackBerry users in the country that’s a lot of phones that need to be dumped.
Read more at the AP.


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Small, low-cost internet satellites that provide affordable internet to everyone on the planet. These are what Elon Musk wants to create next after working on reusable rockets, space capsules and electric cars since the early 2000's, according to The Wall Street Journal. The publication says Musk is in the early stages of collaborating with Greg Wyler, who founded O3b Networks and led Google's internet satellite venture until earlier this year. The duo (with Wyler now representing WorldVu, a company he also founded recently) apparently plans to launch a total of 700 internet satellites into space. They want each of those satellites to cost less than $1 million to build and to weigh less than 250 pounds -- a huge undertaking, seeing as the smallest models these days cost several millions and weigh at least 500 pounds.
Wyler reportedly brought the idea to Google first during his time with the company, but he ended up leaving with his plans in tow, as he wasn't entirely sure Mountain View had "sufficient manufacturing expertise." Perhaps he thought things would fare better with the man behind Tesla and SpaceX, that's why he, along with Musk, have already talked to Florida and Colorado government officials about the possibility of building factories in those states. Still, they're in the very early stages of planning, and Musk might even drop out of the picture, since nothing's official just yet. If the two do decide to go through with their joint project, they'll first have to face a lot of regulatory hurdles and raise $1 billion to spend for the development process, among other issues. But hey, if this report is true, at least they don't have to worry about which rockets to use to launch the satellites to space anymore.


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The 2021 Apple TV 4K is now available at an all-time low price of $149.99 ($29.01 off) on Amazon. This comes down to its lowest price since its launch in 2021. The Amazon website shows the fastest delivery for this product by 2nd June. Customers can opt for more storage by paying $20 for the 64 GB variant.
Last year, the Cupertino-based giant introduced the next generation of Apple TV 4K with a new redesigned Siri remote and A12 Bionic chip. Apple is expected to announce the next generation of MacBook Air with an M2 chip for the hardware releases at this year’s WWDC.


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Retail management solutions provider Eurostop has partnered with two Singapore-based retailers, as it continues to grow its presence in the Far East.
The two latest retailers to select Eurostop as a technology partner are Spirit Sports and The Face Shop, adding to the six other recently signed customers in the country that are already using the vendor's head office management applications and electronic point-of-sale systems.
Among the retail businesses now working with Eurostop, which opened a new Singapore office at the start of March 2014, are Asia Square, Camouflage, Sunday 2000 and Party Mama Shop. The tech company also works with a number of larger industry players around the world, including fashion retailer Aquascutum.
Eurostop has recently released a Windows 8 omni-channel and multi-lingual version of its e-pos Touch system, which has been optimised to run on handheld devices including tablets and smartphones.
Richard Loh, managing director of Eurostop, commented: "Singapore is renowned for being a fashion shopping mecca, offering a wide variety of shops from independent specialists to the large multichannel retailers.
"We have seen rapid adoption of our Eurostop retail system in many different independent retailers and are delighted that we have been able to supply systems that support merchandisers' retail management operations."


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Sinister skin returns to Fortnite store
The sinister Plague Doctor skin has returned to the in-game store of Epic Games’ juggernaut battle royale title, Fortnite. The purchasable costume has been conspicuous by its absence since January 2020, notably the same timeframe that saw the growing status of the global COVID-19 pandemic.
As noted by Eurogamer, the “Scourge” and “Plague” skins have made frequent appearances in Fortnite’s rotational shop since their 2018 debut, available to purchase for 1500 V-Bucks each. But both outfits have been missing for two years, finally making a reappearance in-store earlier this week. The skins depict the frightening, beaked “plague doctors” of the 16th century, who would fill the beaked masks with herbal remedies in an effort to stave off infection as they visited the slums of working-class patients.
While Epic Games never made any open statement as to the reasoning behind the costume’s removal, it’s not hard to imagine that somebody might have thought it a wise and prudent move to not fill the world’s most popular video game with Plague Doctors during a period of global sickness.
The COVID-19 pandemic is, of course, very much still with us, but enough time has passed that many companies and communities are readjusting to a “Post-COVID” status, though it should be clearly noted that the coronavirus and its variants are still infecting hundreds of thousands of people on a daily basis. In total, some 13.2 billion doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have been administered since 2020.


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Do you need all the latest Microsoft connected entertainment news but don’t have the time to read our posts each week? Great. We’ve got a cure for that. enConnected Live, the only podcast the brought you the latest in Zune news for two full seasons, is coming back on April 7th as a Microsoft consumer and entertainment focused audio show. We apologize for Trav’s squeaky voice in advance.
This won’t entirely be the same show you may have heard before. Gaming and entertainment will be featured heavily in the new enConnected Live. It’ll also boast other connected entertainment news about Windows Phone, Windows, Amazon and other folks making large plays in the video and audio content space. Interviews and musical guests will also make their return in the 30 minute show.
Excited for the première? Here’s the show’s theme music to get you even more hyped up.


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Windows Phone 7 isn’t the only mobile operating system which will soon become incompatible for Skype. Microsoft has announced that Symbian users too will soon lose access to the popular instant messenger and video chat service.
Earlier this year, Microsoft had unpublished the Skype app from the Nokia Store. However, at that time, the users could still sideload the app to use the service “for a while”. Microsoft is now chopping the support lines for the Skype app from several outdated operating systems.
The company says that Skype for Symbian will stop working “within the next few weeks”. Some Symbian users who have used Skype on their handsets are receiving email from the Skype support.
Skype apps for Symbian are permanently retiring
We’ve noticed that you are, or previously were, signed into Skype on a Symbian phone, and we’re sorry to inform you that we are now permanently retiring all Skype apps for Symbian phones. As a result, within the next few weeks, you’ll no longer be able to sign in and use Skype on any Symbian phone.
You can still stay in touch with friends and family using Skype on an Android device, Nokia Lumia phone or desktop computer. You can sign into them all using the same Skype account. The latest versions of Skype for all your devices are available at http://www.skype.com/download.
Any Symbian users among our readers? What are you planning to do now? Would you get yourself a Windows Phone or any other OS-powered smartphone to continue using Skype?


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What's in Micron Technology, Inc. (MU) After Making 52-Week High?
Halliburton Company (HAL) Position Increased by Two Sigma Advisers, Lp Last Quarter
Duke Energy Corporation (DUK) stock recent close stands at $89.21
Brixmor Property Group Inc. (BRX) EVP Purchases $52920.00 in Stock
Sally Beauty Holdings (NYSE:SBH) Experiences Heavier than Usual Trading Volume
Tesla Hit by Class-Action Lawsuit Claiming Racial Discrimination
14 November 2017, 05:38 | Hattie Nash
A former Tesla employee is accusing Tesla of racial discrimination at its Fremont California factory. James Martin CNET
Overloaded with such allegations and lawsuits, Tesla is prepping to launch its semi truck on Thursday of this week. The lawsuit alleges no one from the company followed up with Vaughn about his complaint, nor did they investigate his claims.
Vaughn was sacked in October for "not having a positive attitude" and alleges in the lawsuit that he was called "n****r" repeatedly by supervisors and coworkers.
Vaughn's lawsuit is seeking class-action status and unspecified damages under California's anti-discrimination law.
Tesla has 33,000 employees worldwide, and approximately 10,000 of them work at the Fremont, Calif. assembly plant, according to Bloomberg News.
The company rejected the claims and stated the decision was based on worker performance reviews. He also claimed he was passed over for promotions because he complained to HR, according to Business Insider.
The lawsuit was filed on behalf of Marcus Vaughn, who worked in the Fremont factory from 23 April to 31 October.
The complaint, Vaughn v. Tesla Inc.in the Superior Court of California, alleges that Tesla workers, including supervisors, regularly used derogatory and discriminatory language against black workers.
In February, Tesla CEO Elon Musk informed the website Gizmodo that a staff member who wrote a post slamming the company was "paid by the UAW to join Tesla and agitate for a union".
Trump lands in Philippines, final stop in Asia
When the reporters asked Trump whether he would raise human rights at the meeting, Duterte replied with: "Whoa, whoa". Human Rights Watch said that even children are being targeted and described the issue as a "new level of depravity".
A Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) employee sued the company over racial harassment stating that over 100 employees are experiencing the same at the workplace, according to Bloomberg.
"Part of not being a huge jerk is considering how someone might feel who is part of a historically less represented group", Musk's email reads.
Vaughn then reached out to Larry Organ, an attorney at the California Civil Rights Law Group, after the law firm sued Tesla earlier this year when other former employees complained about racial harassment this year. "Sometimes these things happen unintentionally, in which case you should apologise". "In fairness, if someone is a jerk to you, but sincerely apologises, it is important to be thick-skinned and accept the apology". "Tesla is not doing enough. It's somewhat akin to saying 'stop being politically correct.' When you have a diverse workforce, you need to take steps to make sure everyone feels welcome in that workforce", he explained.
In addition to the growing number of lawsuits the company is facing, a unionization campaign by United Auto Workers is underway.
Apple Watch Can Detect Hypertension And Sleep Apnea
This new study shows the Watch can detect sleep apnea with a 90 percent accuracy and hypertension with an 82 percent accuracy. According to the American Sleep Apnea Association , approximately 22 million USA citizens suffer from sleep apnea.
Hackers can 'talk to your children' through connected toys
Which? is asking all retailers - such as Argos, Amazon ad Toys R Us - to stop selling smart toys with known security problems. It found that as the toy had no authentication protections, hackers could send a child voice messages and receive answers.
Group Lotus owner snaps up flying auto maker
In recent months the company has been aggressively scaling up its engineering force in preparation of the acquisition from Geely. It produces the Transition flying vehicle and also develops technologies for automated hybrid flying cars, like the TF-X.
Here's how long you have left to spend your old £10 notes
Its days have been numbered since the new polymer tenner, depicting author Jane Austen, entered circulation in September. The Bank of England has revealed that the old paper note featuring Charles Darwin will expire on 1 March 2018.


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Lightspeed recently hosted the latest in its Generative AI series in Los Angeles, a fireside chat with Ahmad Khan, Head of AI/ML Strategy at Snowflake, the cloud-computing based data cloud company. Lightspeed has been investing in AI for over a decade, and launched the Generative series of meetups to bring together founders, builders, and investors working in the generative AI space to trade ideas and learn from each other.
Khan spoke with Lightspeed partner Faraz Fatemi, who focuses on investments in consumer platforms, and co-hosted the gathering with Moritz Baier-Lentz, who heads the firm’s gaming initiatives.
During the discussion, Khan highlighted five areas in AI where he sees opportunities for entrepreneurs:
Capitalize on leveraging “unstructured” data
Khan estimated that more than 80 percent of most companies’ data is “unstructured,” including material such as word documents, images, and audio/video files. However, most companies are doing very little with this information, meaning that they’re leveraging less than 20 percent of their available data when making business decisions. Placing this unstructured data next to a large language model—effectively creating a chatbot—can help users interpret and analyze vast amounts of information that’s currently being underutilized. There’s a lot of potential in creating models tailored to the specific industries these companies are part of.
Privacy and security
Khan emphasized a growing concern among companies that their data will be used to train models that can be used by other companies, including competitors. As a result, companies often settle on inferior products that offer better security—creating a market for more secure products. For instance, even though Llama 2 is not the highest-performing large language model available, customers still choose it in lieu of models they have less control over, such as Chat GPT. Many companies’ advantages are in the uniqueness of their data, so they’re keen to avoid a situation where that data somehow ends up on the public Internet.
Gain an advantage by creating a superior user experience
How can startups compete against bigger competitors’ scale? Khan suggested focusing on creating pleasant user experiences—for example, by creating appealing User Interfaces. This is the approach Snowflake has taken. Since the company can’t really compete with cloud providers like Amazon Web Services—especially since much of their own services are built on top of it—they’ve focused on creating a superior user experience that justifies their higher price tag.
Focus on verticals
Khan suggested that another way for Davids to best Goliaths is by focusing less on general purpose applications and more on specific verticals such as manufacturing, finance, health care, or entertainment. “Learn what enterprises in your vertical are looking for,” he advised, and then service those needs. For example, even though Google will likely develop a medical large language model, it likely won’t go particularly in-depth—providing smaller companies an opportunity to build a model that does.
There’s a growing need for data attribution.
At one point in the evening, the conversation turned to the possibility of new models that track copyrighted material and allow the original creators of the material to be compensated, thus creating an incentive for those creators to develop more material for models. Khan cited several cases where companies can’t use open-source models for various legal reasons, including a movie studio that didn’t want to use open-source models for image generation. Instead, the studio used a model trained on data from Getty Images that was licensed and paid for. Going forward, there will be a growing market for similar models using attributable datasets.


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PROPTECH FOR GOOD - 'TOWARDS A
CIRCULAR ECONOMY: NO TIME TO WASTE'
TECH FOR IMPACT ASIA
August 7, 2020
September 3, 2020
Sann and Jean-Francois Thery shared guidelines on how companies can practice sustainability framing to resonate with Generation Green.
July 21, 2020
Sann and fellow researchers and professors published a manuscript: “Circular Cities: the case of Singapore”, examining Singapore’s current efforts and offers recommendations in the design and implementation of circular economy policies that have the potential to be extrapolated to similar cities.
POST COVID ECONOMY
SPINUP INNOVATION SUMMIT
GREEN IS THE NEW BLACK
April 17, 2020
May 22, 2020
June 12, 2020
Sann presented at the festival about taking little green steps towards a circular future, alongside Jean-Francois Thery of Ultra Super New to touch upon the greenwashing of sustainable products.
The Virtual Conscious Festival is organised annually in cities across Asia and Europe with an aim to empower people with knowledge and inspire them to take positive action to help save our planet. ?
The era of the activist consumer has long since arrived and the signals from this growing audience are everywhere.
Sann & Jean Francois of USN shared insights on what brand marketing to this future generation looks like, the impact and outcome, defining the role communication has to play and how to avoid the trappings of greenwashing?
Sann and Marc Allen presented at a webinar on rebuilding a circular and low emissions economy as part of the recovery from the COVID-19 crisis.
Prior to COVID-19, the world was already exceeding a number of planetary boundaries. As we emerge from this health and economic crisis and begin the recovery, there is a compelling case to rebuild the economy taking into account circular principles and work towards minimising impacts in the future.
SUSTAINABLE BRAND JAPAN
February 19, 2020
DUTCH CHAMBER OF COMMERCE SG /
March 13, 2020
Hosted by the Netherlands Innovation Network Singapore, Sann joined experts from Dutch and Singaporean agencies identified important themes as 'closed loop' farming, recovery of phosphorus from wastewater and labeling recycled phosphorus as a resource instead of as waste.
Sann Carriere was a panelist in the discussion “What is needed to realize a "recycling office"? At the session "Implementing a Circular Economy in a Circular Office" held at the International Conference on Sustainable Brands 2020 Yokohama, concrete examples and ideas for implementing CE from the perspective of "office" were shared.
February 12, 2020
Sann moderated the Sustainability Symposium, organized by the ADB-DutchCham (Dutch Chamber of Commerce Singapore) and Hollandse School Limited Singapore. Panellists include representatives from the aviation, finance and agribusiness sectors.


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Before its recent rally, ApeCoin (APE) was one of the worst-performing tokens, losing as much as 60% of its value in November. According to LookOnChain, the decline was caused by the project’s treasury selling its APE reserves. As per the Twitter user, the “ApeCoin treasury has been selling APE in small amounts.”
As per the user, over 4.6 million APE tokens, worth roughly $19.7 million, have been removed from the Treasury’s wallet. The user noted that 4,552,447 APE was sent to the address “0x876c,” and 47,552 APE was sent to the address “0xa29d”. According to LookOnChain, 5 ApeCoin Treasury wallets sent APE tokens to Coinbase, Binance, FTX, and KuCoin through the address “0xa29d” for sale.
Such a complex plan could have been utilized to cover one’s traces and hide a transfer of money intended for sale. Four additional ApeCoin Treasury wallets similarly sold APE reserves earlier today.
What caused the recent ApeCoin surge?
Over the last week, APE has witnessed significant gains. Moreover, the token is currently up by 24.9% on the weekly charts. The surge can be attributed to the announcement of APE staking rewards.
Horizen Labs updated the launch information for ApeCoin staking on November 23. Holders of APE, as well as Bored Ape and Mutant Ape NFT owners, will get token payouts for staking their owned tokens. Before rewards start on December 12, Horizen will make the staking interface available to customers on December 5.
However, Horizen revealed that several regions, including the United States, won’t be allowed to utilize its staking website due to regulatory issues. This caused a lot of debate on social media. Later, The Ape Foundation stated via a Twitter thread that alternative solutions could be used in those areas.
At press time, APE was trading at $4.05, down by 1.3% in the last 24 hours.


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Trading in Tesla shares was halted on Tuesday, after a tweet by chief executive Elon Musk sent shares soaring by more than 7%.
Shares in Tesla hit $367.25 after a message posted at 9.48am New York time on Mr Musk's verified Twitter account said: "Am considering taking Tesla private at $420. Funding secured."
Nasdaq stock exchange halted trading in Tesla shares around 2.08pm local time.
Mr Musk's statement came at a time when the electric car maker faces financial constraints, and barely a week after the company announced it had made its biggest net loss to date of $717.5m (£547.6m) during the second quarter ending in June.
During the conference call accompanying the results, Mr Musk said he expected the company to avoid going back to the markets for capital and to be "essentially self-funding on a go-forward basis".
At $420 per share, a deal would represent a 22.8% premium to Tesla's closing price on Monday, making it one of the
biggest deals to take a company private, with a price tag of about $72bn.
When asked on Twitter whether he was serious, Musk replied: "Yes….It saves a lot of headaches."
Am considering taking Tesla private at $420. Funding secured.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 7, 2018
Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for clarification.
But in a blog post by Musk on the Tesla website, he said: "I fundamentally believe that we are at our best when everyone is focused on executing, when we can remain focused on our long-term mission, and when there are not perverse incentives for people to try to harm what we're all trying to achieve.
"This is especially true for a company like Tesla that has a long-term, forward-looking mission. SpaceX is a perfect example: it is far more operationally efficient, and that is largely due to the fact that it is privately held."
The company had a market value of $58bn as of Monday's close.
Musk owns nearly 20% of the company.
Earlier in the day, the Financial Times reported that Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund had built an undisclosed stake of between 3% and 5% in Tesla.
Mr Musk has been under intense pressure this year to prove he can deliver on his promise to turn his money-losing company into a profitable higher-volume manufacturer.
Last week Tesla said it had achieved its goal of producing 5,000 Model 3 vehicles per week by the end of its second quarter in June, but burned through $739.5m (£565.2m) in cash during the period in order to do it.
The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) allows companies to use social media outlets like Facebook and Twitter to announce key information in compliance with its "fair disclosure" rules, as long as investors are alerted about which social media outlets will be used to disclose such information.
The Wall Street regulator did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Musk's tweet.
George Galliers, analyst at Evercore ISI said he believed the tweet was serious. He added: "I can't believe this is something to bluff or make fun of.
More from Elon Musk
"Given his historic frustration with short sellers, analysts and certain parts of the press, it is perhaps also not surprising that he has given consideration to taking the company private."
"Details, structure, participants and how the valuation has been determined remain to be seen."


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Against the backdrop of the recent recession, many people, through no fault of their own, are finding themselves in situations where they cannot afford to pay their bills. This all-too-familiar scenario has created a surge in consumer collection accounts as well as a rising number of complaints about overly aggressive bill collectors and their abusive tactics.
In March of 2011, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) released a Congressional report that demonstrated that in 2010 there was a 17 percent rise in the number of complaints involving consumer debt collection. Moreover, complaints about third-party bill collectors rose by a stark 25 percent. Overall, in 2010, consumer complaints about abusive and unlawful debt collection practices superseded every other compliant category except for identify theft. Perhaps not surprising because of easy access, the most frequent occurring complaint about these debt recovery agencies was telephone harassment of the debtor. Other complaints included the misrepresentation of amounts owed, demanding unlawful fees, contacting the consumer during prohibited times and more.
The Fair Debt Collection Practices ACT (FDCPA) is a component of the Consumer Credit Protection Act (CCPA). The FDCPA contains a list of federal restrictions that protects a consumer’s privacy as well as shields an individual from a debt collector’s abusive or harassing behavior. These limitations prevents a bill collector from calling at odd hours, contacting neighbors, friends or family about your debts, or making threats, and provides other protections designed to enforce consumer rights. The FTC’s report illustrates that despite the FDCPA, many collections agencies are creating much angst for consumers by engaging in unlawful and dubious debt recovery tactics.
Clearly, the recession has caused an influx of bad consumer debt. This increase could be the catalyst behind the surge in consumer complaints. However, some feel the debt recovery industry has problems that are more serious. They cite a high turnover rate and a poorly trained workforce as the core of the debt recovery industry’s problem.
Some bill collectors may willfully engage in vindictive and malicious behaviors designed to intentionally harm an individual’s credit report as well as hamper their credit repair efforts. This type of debt recovery agency engages in these illegal tactics against a debtor because most consumers are uninformed about the laws that govern debt collections and their rights. The best way to thwart an abusive bill collector’s efforts is for a consumer to be aware of their rights and be willing to take action against unlawful actions. For example, if a bill collector uses profanity, makes threats and calls during inappropriate hours, the bill collector may have violated the FDCPA. Moreover, if a collector can’t prove that they are the new owners of the debt or that they are bonded to collect in your state, that may violate the law as well. For more information, please visit the Debt Collections and Your Rights page on our website.
Consumers who feel intimidated, harassed or bullied by a debt collector’s abusive tactics, are encouraged to file a complaint with the FTC. Although the agency does not resolve individual complaints, they do use the information to build cases against debt recovery businesses that violate federal laws. Consumers can file complaints online at www.FTC.gov.
Lexington Law’s Concord level services will require the bureaus to uphold their statutory obligations to consumers with regard to fairness and accuracy of their credit reports. In addition, creditors and debt collectors must comply with several legal requirements in order to report your personal information to the credit bureaus. Our legal interventions are designed to protect your rights in this regard.


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”Because these lists are based on so much info, it gives a rather good picture of what Swedes were interested in finding out more about in 2011,” Google Sweden CEO Stina Honkamaa told The Local.
Just like last year, the top five searches in Sweden were Facebook, YouTube, Aftonbladet (daily), the market site blocket.se, and Hotmail.
According to Google Sweden head analyst Jonas Wallentin, 2011 was also characterized by information searches, which were often centred around some news event.
The Arab spring, the Fukushima nuclear accident in Japan, the death of Osama bin Laden and the Anders Behring Breivik massacre in Norway made a lot of Swedes turn to Google in search of more information.
Otherwise, Swedish celebs seem to be ousting the international stars when Swedes start googling, with singer Eric Saade knocking even child wonder Justin Bieber off the number one spot from last year.
Despite showing a growing interest in the LCHF (Low Carb High Fat) Swedes also donned aprons and headed for the baking table.
”In 2011 Swedes seem to have discovered the LCHF diet. At the same time more sweet stuff is being baked then ever before – cupcakes and macarons are climbing on the lists and we order pre-packed grocery bags like never before,” said Wallentin.
The quickest growing searches of food on google were characterized by sugar explosions such as pancakes (1), apple pie (2), cupcakes (3), macarons (4) and rhubarb pie (5).
Martin Johansson, one of the founders of cupcake caterers Cupcake Sthlm, said that he was aware of the trend towards sweet things, and cupcakes in particular.
“There was certainly a peak in the cupcake trend in Sweden in 2011. We have seen a massive interest in our services since we started in August last year,” Johansson told The Local.
At the same time, however, the search words ‘LCHF’ and ‘LCHF recipes’ are number one and two respectively on the ”Quickest growing food trends” list, with ”LCHF breakfast” coming in at number six.
“We’ve seen a ‘small explosion’ this year. Swedes want to be healthy, to lose weight and to feel better. From being something dieticians talked about, we’ve seen it turn into something ordinary people talk about over lunch or dinner – and search for on the internet,” LCHF dietician Elif Schmidt told The Local.
The pre-packed grocery bag, predicted by HUI Research (formerly the Swedish Retail Institute) to be the 2011 Christmas present of the year, also featured high up on the list.
Food and celebs aside, Google also looked at the questions Swedes ask when they search.
The ”What…” list was topped by ”What time is it?” at number one, followed by ”What does my name mean?”, ”What’s for dinner?” ”What week is it?” and the more philosophical ”What is love?” at number five.
In tenth place came ”What should I do?”.
According to Google, the company don’t censor the lists, which made it even more surprising that ”Sex”, which would be expected to rank high, didn’t quite make it into the top ten in 2011, coming in at place 11.


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Will we still be talking about the coronavirus crisis in 75 years?
With the Prime Minister laying out his plans for the staged lockdown easing, now is the time to think about what your business will look like in the post-pandemic world.
A quick V-shaped recovery is not likely to happen
The economic landscape is undeniably changing. And while some businesses are thriving, others can barely survive on the government support. With the deepest recession in modern history on the horizon and the expected sharp rise in unemployment, it’s safe to say that the economy will not bounce back any time soon.
Avoiding the “extinction debt”
We don’t know the full economic impact of the lockdown yet. But even with the available help of the furloughing scheme, rent and payment holidays, VAT deferral, and bounce back loans and grants, UK businesses are barely able to manage the cash flow emergency of this magnitude. And without a clear direction for the economic revival, many companies may be fated to close down.
Explore turnaround options
With business distress accelerating on an unprecedented scale, it’s crucial for the UK economy to escape any unnecessary insolvencies. In many cases, business turnaround or restructure options are available to get businesses back on their feet.
If you need help with understanding your options or planning the future, please contact us for a free impartial chat on 0800 118 2948.
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The average cost to UK organisations for data breach incidents has declined from £1.9m in 2010 to £1.75m in 2011, according to a report from security firm Symantec.
The decline suggests that organisations have improved their performance in preparing for and responding to a data breach, and that this has resulted in fewer records being lost in these breaches.
The findings come from a report entitled The 2011 Annual Study: UK Cost of Data Breach 2011, which examines a range of business costs and analyses the economic impact of lost or diminished customer trust by customer turnover.
"We're noticing that companies at risk of data loss are becoming wise to the financial impact of a data breach. These businesses are implementing steps, not just to prevent loss but to mitigate the damage, should a breach occur," said Mike Jones, senior product marketing manager at Symantec.
"It's not just direct costs such as fines from the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) that need to be considered, although these help to drive the business case for preventative measures, but also indirect costs such as brand impact and disappointed customers leaving the brand."
Although the organisational cost of data breaches has decreased for the fifth consecutive year, the cost per lost or stolen record has increased.
The average cost per record for organisations participating in the study increased from £71 in 2010 to £79 in 2011. Some £37 of this consists of indirect costs such as lost business, reputational damage or churn of existing customers.
The study also found that the main cause of a data breach is negligent employees or contractors, who accounted for 36 per cent of all data breaches.
The most costly attacks are malicious or criminal attacks. These have increased from 29 per cent in 2010 to 31 per cent in 2011.
The remaining 33 per cent of cases involved system glitches, including a combination of both IT and business process failures.
"Accordingly, organisations need to focus on processes, policies and technologies that address threats from the malicious insider or hacker," the report reads.
Some 64 per cent of the victims of malicious or criminal attacks said that these were found to be viruses, malware, worms or trojans.
Nearly a third (31 per cent) of all the organisations said that their data breach incident involved one or more lost or stolen data-bearing devices, such as laptops, tablets, smartphones and servers.
Jones warned businesses not to be complacent as it may affect their profits in the long term.
"We've shifted to an age where data breaches are now just a common occurrence. As such, UK consumers have become somewhat desensitised to data losses, but that doesn't mean that businesses should become complacent," he said.
"The cost of data loss still remains high and, in tighter economic times, even a single digit increase in customer churn can be terminal to profitability."


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VINEXPO RELEASED LATEST REPORT IN SHANGHAI, CHINA TO BECOME SECOND MOST VALUABLE MARKET
By Staff Reporter
French trade show organiser Vinexpo held a press conference in Shanghai to release the latest IWSR Vinexpo Report, predicting that global wine market will exceed USD207billion in 2022 and China will become the world's second most valuable wine market.
Presented by Vinexpo Chairman Christophe Navarre and Sales Director Mathieu Vanhalst, the press conference also updated the Chinese wine trade on the progress of the inaugural Vinexpo Shanghai to be held in October this year.
The latest IWSR Report predicted that China will overtake France within five years to become the world's second biggest wine market worth USD19.5 billion.
In 2017, the US market was worth USD34.8 billion, France came second at USD16.7 billion, China followed closely at USD16.5 billion. By volume, however, China only ranked fifth, after USA, Italy, France and Germany.
“Driven by the trend to ‘drink less but better’, value outstripped volume growth across all regions and is particularly evident in the Americas and Asia-Pacific,” said Mathieu Vanhalst.
The report predicted that fine wines (bottle price between USD10 and 20) will be the main source of growth up to 15% between now and 2022, with China and USA contributing most of the growth.
The spirits category is the next bright spot with an estimated 12% growth by 2022. The report predicted all high-end spirits (except vodka) will have growths in the next five years, especially in the Chinese and USA markets.
While red wine dominates global consumption with a 55% share, it is forecast to fall below 54% by 2022. Over the same period consumption of white wine, and particular rosé, are set to rise.
On the progress of the inaugural Vinexpo Shanghai, it was said that preparations are in full swing and many international producers have already signed up to participate in the first exhibition.
Visitors can expect to see Constellation and Gallo from USA, Osborne Group from Spain, Chapoutier from French Rhone, Siegel from Chile, China’s Changyu and many more in the show.
To be held from 23 to 25 October at the Shanghai World Expo Exhibition and Convention Center, this new biennial wine show reflects Vinexpo’s global expansion strategy and its determination to hold a show every year in the Chinese market alternately in Hong Kong and Shanghai.
(the writer can be contacted at: email@example.com)
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