text:
Sri Lanka mall cuts rents in Coronavirus downturn, stock price soars
ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s CT Land Development Plc, a property developer that owns Colombo’s Majestic City mall said it was cutting rents as occupancy fell, while its stock price has soared 33 percent since May.
“A temporary downward rental restructuring strategy is being formulated in order to move forward strategically and to maintain the current occupancy levels,” Chairman R Selvaskandan told shareholders in the annual report.
“The Company is cautiously optimistic that the actions proposed will stabilise the economic standing of the tenants, strengthen the bonds of goodwill and also lead to improved profitability for the Company after the year 2022/23 by the implementation of such a strategy.”
The dampened sentiment and Coronavirus lockdowns in 2020 came on top of a Easter Sunday bomb attacks in April 2020.
“Many of the outlets located at Majestic City (MC) were affected,” he said. “Although the Company extended rental waivers and discounted rentals, several tenants opted to cease operations at the MC mall.
“At the reporting date rented shop space amounts to 77 percent of the total rentable space.”
Selvaskandan said with Coronavirus being contained customer patronage had improved at the Majestic City but business volumes had not come back to normal as yet.
“The Company continues to closely monitor the business volumes on a day to day basis to assist the tenants where required and ensure sustainability,” he said.
CT Land was however going ahead with a 360 million rupee refurbishment.
In the June quarter the firm waived rent to help tenants as Coronavirus curfews were imposed.
“Although there were signs of improvement through the festive season of 2019 the COVID-19 pandemic has again adversely affected the recovery,”
“The Company immediately shut down the complex from mid March, 2020 onwards, and again offered zero and reduced rental schemes to tenants to enable them to cope with the present downturn and mitigate their losses to some extent.”
Revenues fell 78 percent to 29 million rupees in June 2020 quarter and the firm lost 19 million rupees, down from a 55.5 million rupee profit a year earlier.
In the year to March 2020 revenues fell 5.8 percent to 559 million rupees and profits fell 54 percent to 187 million rupees.
Earnings were 3.21 rupees per share.
Meanwhile the CT Land Development Plc stock has soared from 24 rupees at the end of May 2020, to close at 32.00 rupees, up 30 cents by October 02.
Sri Lanka’s stocks rose 12 percent in September, becoming the world’s best performing stock market amid excess liquidity in money markets.
The overnight call money rate was 4.52 percent on October 02. Sri Lanka’s consumer price inflation was 4.0 percent in the 12-months to September. (Colombo/Oct05/2020)


text:
Richest People In Singapore 2023
These are the Richest People In Singapore 2023. This year seems to be an interesting year for the richest in Singapore.
Instead, we see three billionaires who made their fortunes in technology and medical devices, a change from the usual real estate and banking tycoons – a reflection of the changes that the pandemic has wrought on our economy.
Four of the top ten billionaires are also naturalized Singapore citizens. Meanwhile, those who are Singapore-born are setting up their family fortunes or part of a family fortune.
Property remains a favorite of Singapore’s richest. The Wees and the Khoos who have made their initial wealth have also expanded to real estate while those who were already in real estate are still expanding in the area.
Richest People In Singapore 2023
Interestingly, both Forrest Li and Eduardo Saverin who made their fortunes through technology are moving towards finance in different ways: e-payments/ online banking and venture capital. Perhaps, this is a new direction that the richest will move towards.
Some have rags to riches stories, while others are more riches to riches.
Without farther ado, here are the Top 10 Richest People In Singapore. A departure from previous years, this year’s top list includes names from technology and medical sectors.
Richest People In Singapore 2023 And How They Built Their Fortunes.
10. Wee Cho Yaw Net Worth: $5.3 Billion
At age 91, Wee Cho Yaw is a venerable main stay in Singapore’s billionaire list. Currently Chairman Emeritus of United Overseas Bank, he stepped down as director of UOB after sixty years.
His oldest son Wee Ee Chong is UOB’s CEO, while his younger son Wee Ee Lim has a board seat.
Over the years, while staying true to their banking roots, the family has also expanded into real estate. In 2017, Wee acquired 45 unsold apartments in the Nassim, a luxury condo, for $411.6 million through his family’s real estate arm, Kheng Leong.
9. Kwee Brothers Net Worth: $5.5 Billion
Founded by their Indonesian father, Pontiac Land is controlled by the four Kwee siblings today.
They own luxury hotels in Singapore, Sydney and Maldives, prime commercial buildings across Singapore, as well as having developed premium residential buildings.
In New York, the brothers own majority stake in the luxurious 53W53 building, designed by Jean Nouvel, beside the Museum of Modern Art.
In 2017, they acquired the Cappella Hotel group. Additionally, they are partnering Mayo Clinic to develop a hotel in the centre of the May Clinic campus in Rochester. In the coming 4Q2020, Pontiac Land is launching a luxury resort, Faris Islands, in Maldives.
8. Khoo Family Net Worth: $6.3 Billion
The Khoo family are the heirs of late banker Khoo Teck Puat, who invested in Standard Chartered Bank in 1986.
The lion’s share of their fortune comes from the sale of their stake in Standard Chartered Bank for $4 billion in 2006.
They also own the Goodwood Group of Hotels, including Singapore’s historic Goodwood Park Hotel, which is currently chaired by Mavis Khoo-Oei.
7. Forrest Li Net Worth: $7.1 Billion
Founder of Singapore’s most valuable company, Sea, Forrest Li is a new entrant to the richest list, driven by a spectacular rally in Sea’s stock price.
Under its name, Sea runs Garena, a online games developer and publisher, as well as Shopee, an e-commerce platform.
6. Kwek Leng Beng & family Net Worth: $8.8 Billion
In 2019, CDL successfully bought over the Millennium & Copthorne Hotels (M&C).
Hong Leong Group also owns Hong Leong Finance which is Singapore’s largest finance company, with a network of 28 branches and 12 SME Centres.
CHECK THIS OUT : Top 10 Richest Sportsmen in Singapore And Their Net Worth
5. Robert & Philip Ng Net Worth: $13.2 Billion
The group was founded by their father Ng Teng Fong, who moved from China to Singapore in 1934, later known as “The King of Orchard Road.”
4. Eduardo Saverin Net Worth: $14 Billion
Saverin cofounded Facebook with Harvard classmate Mark Zuckerberg in 2004. Today, he still derives most of his wealth from his small but valuable stake in Facebook.
In 2016, he launched venture fund B Capital, with Raj Ganguly, backed by the Boston Consulting Group, which has recently closed $820 million for its second fund to invest in growth-stage startups.
3. Goh Cheng Liang Net Worth: $14.8 Billion
Goh Cheng Liang, founder of Wuthelam, started making paints in a small factory in Singapore before he went on to partner with Japan’s Nippon Paint in 1962, becoming the main distributor in Singapore, a collaboration that is ongoing today.
In 2020, Nippon Paint stuck a S$16.69 billion deal with Goh to merge and create a consolidated paints and coatings company in Asia, combining two of Asia’s biggest paints and coatings groups.
2. Li Xiting Net Worth: $17.8 Billion
Li Xiting is founder and chairman of Shenzhen Mindray Bio-Medical Electronics, a supplier of medical devices, headquartered in Shenzhen.
Mindray donated $4.6 million worth of medical devices to hospitals during the COVID-19 pandemic, including in hard-hit Wuhan and northern Italy.
CHECK THIS : Top 10 Richest Politicians in Singapore by Forbes
1. Zhang Yong & Shu Ping Net Worth: $19 Billion
In the top spot is Zhang Yong, founder of Haidilao, and his wife, Shu Ping, co-founder and director. They are both naturalised Singapore citizens.
Haidilao which went public in September 2018, has US$3.8 billion in sales from 768 restaurants, mostly in China but also in the U.S., Japan, South Korea and Singapore.
Thanks to the love for its spicy dishes and attentive customer service, including offering free manicures for waiting customers, Haidilao is worth about $42B in market capitalisation.
Top 10 Richest People In Singapore 2023 and How They Built Their Fortunes. – Newshub360.net
CHECK THIS OUT :
Credit : Newshub360.net

domain: news


text:
[VIEWPOINT]Seoul's role in promoting plasticThe credit card industry is under fire from the press for several reasons. A recent serial murder case was spurred by credit card debt, and the surge in bad credit is blamed on the relentless and careless issuance of credit cards by the firms. The high interest rates on card loans and the hawking of credit cards on the street have contributed to this anger about the industry.
The government's recent announcement that it will impose direct controls on credit card companies is well in line with the recent criticism. The major points of the new regulations are as follows: Credit card companies have to reduce their cash service and card loan businesses to 50 percent of their total business by 2004; cash service records have to be reported to the Korea Federation of Banks; minors applying for a credit card have to have the approval of the parents and card issuance on the street is prohibited.
I agree with the intentions of the government to develop the credit card industry in a positive direction. But although the direct measures were taken out of good will, they could create new problems. If a limit on credit card loans is imposed, customers who are in need of quick cash have no other place to turn to but the private loan market. Measures that are introduced to weed out people with bad credit could become a reason for increased bad credit.
Different fates await the card companies. Bank-related credit cards can draw on the facilities of all the bank's branches, but pure credit card companies like Samsung Credit Card or LG Card have only about four dozen branches, which puts them at a disadvantage in recruiting new cardholders. These pure credit card companies, that have shown their foreign counterparts a few marketing tricks like specialized credit cards for women are balking at street sales ban, which is against the principles of fair competition.
Since the world economy is functioning more and more globally, the government's regulations should be kept to a minimum. First, in order to prevent minors from getting tarred with a bad credit rating, it should be illegal to issue them cards. These minors are the future of our country, and they should be protected by law. Second, provisions for loan losses should be increased. Those measures will help credit card companies focus on quality rather than quantity.
Third, the credit card companies, that already share information on persons with bad credit ratings, should also share information on those with good ratings for a fee. The Credit Management Fund has such a system by which banks can obtain credit information on new customers, and the system is widely used in lending decisions involving small and medium firms. Fourth, instead of imposing a limit on cash advances, the government should allow card companies to set a limit based on their customer's credit record. If the credit card firm has a higher delinquency ratio than the industry average, the firm should be penalized. The government should closely watch credit card companies for signs that they are engaging in strong-arm or other illegal collection activities.
Recovering trust in credit card companies is a problem that has to be solved by the companies themselves. Credit card companies did their best to expand their businesses, but it was the government's policy that helped Korea's credit card industry bloom. Through the government's restrictions on who could enter the business, seven credit card companies have an oligopoly in a market that has enormous growth potential.
Beginning in 2000, tax benefits were given based on the amount a taxpayer spent using credit cards. Since the change in tax rules, sales made using plastic jumped to 224 trillion won ($173 billion) in 2000 and to 443 trillion won in 2001 compared to 90 trillion won in 1999. On top of all that, the government threatened tax investigations on businesses that did not use credit cards, a move unheard of in other countries.
Surely, credit card companies have a strong ally in the government. In line with the government's policy to promote credit card use, the companies should devise a strategy that would cure the problems of exuberant issuing of cards. It is time for the companies to reflect on what true market economy principles are.
The writer is a professor of economics at Seoul Women's University
by Lee Chong-ook


text:
Google also announced a new device category ("smart displays") as well as the adoption of Google Assistant by a range of smart speaker, headphone and TV manufacturers. We also finally know what to call the abilities that Assistant has. Both displays will also support HD video and contain a 10-watt speaker - flawless for YouTube videos which you can search and play just by asking Google Assistant out loud.
The new devices will generally work like the other smart speakers flooding the market at the moment - such as Google Home. Both Smart displays are expected to be available early this summer.
A royal battle seems in the offing between Google and Amazon now that the former has chose to take on Amazon with its smart displays that pose a direct challenge to Echo Show devices. The new display joins the JBL Link View as a smart display device featuring Google Assistant.
The Lenovo Smart Display is the more plain-looking of the two announced today but comes with options. The Smart Display can do basically everything you'd expect a Google Assistant-powered device to be able to do. Another feature being pushed is the ability to set up a Routine that lets you customize the information you need when you say a specific command to Google Assistant such as "Hey Google, good morning". Google's answer to Amazon Echo Show.
Finally, Google is working on smart wireless earbuds.More news: Release of dossier transcript a step for transparency
Inside, the Smart Display's hardware reads like a low-end tablet. Everybody and their mother is announcing support for Alexa or Google Assistant with their devices, and frankly, it's a bit unnerving. The smaller device has an 8-inch, HD touchscreen while the larger device has a 10-inch, FHD touchscreen.
As for price, the 8-inch Lenovo Smart Display will cost $199.99 (about £150 / AU$255) while the 10-inch version costs $249.99 (about £185 / AU$320). Video calling is enabled with a 5MP camera (front facing obviously).
On phones, the Assistant slides up a panel from the bottom of the screen, but on smart displays the hotword pops up as an overlay with the colored Google dots at the top of the screen.
Google has built the operating system entirely itself, giving Assistant a viable UI that feels fluid and useful for a product like this.


text:
CUSHMAN & WAKEFIELD TOP OF THE SHOPS
Cushman & Wakefield’s Scottish retail team are celebrating after picking up two major industry awards this week.
The team won the title of Leisure Hotel and Retail Team of the Year at the prestigious Scottish Property Awards held in Glasgow on Thursday (3rd March).
Headed up by Stuart Moncur, Head of National Retail & Occupier Services, the property agents have won the inaugural award following a record breaking 12 months in which they secured major lettings for leading brands such as Emporio Armani, Michael Kors, Arran Aromatics and Hawes & Curtis, and brought the first CAU restaurant and Miller and Carter Steakhouse to Glasgow.
In addition they brokered the largest letting of the year by securing JD Sports on Argyle Street in Glasgow and secured new stores for high street retailers including Fat Face, Jaeger and Swatch.
Cushman & Wakefield’s success at the Scottish Property Awards came hot on the heels of the news that they had also taken top spot in the EGi Deals Competition in the retail rankings for Scotland. They also contributed to Cushman & Wakefield’s retail team topping the UK table and the company taking the number one place for overall lettings in the UK.
Stuart, who splits his time across the UK Retail team’s six offices, said: “It has been an incredible week, we are delighted to have won recognition from the judges at the Scottish Property Awards, particularly in a year when we have not only witnessed the retail landscape transforming itself, but also whilst our business has gone through the extremely successful merger with DTZ.
“To retain the top spot in the EGi rankings was terrific and I am so proud of the entire team who have contributed to our success. The team continue to provide our clients with market leading advice, as well as a clear insight into how the retail landscaping is continuing to evolve. We are delighted to influence the way we are all shopping, working and living.”
Cushman & Wakefield’s Scottish Retail Team currently advise on 12 Scottish retail parks as well as 16 shopping centres across Scotland, and were responsible for 80% of lettings in Scotland’s two premier shopping thoroughfares – Buchanan Street in Glasgow and Princes Street in Edinburgh.
0141 354 6542


text:
On Sunday, Elon Musk said on Twitter that the Twitter deal is dead unless the company commit to disclosing its spam data. The Tesla CEO tweet was in response to a misunderstanding of his tweets and became “one of the top 5 most retweeted posts ever.” Musk retorted that he will log SpaceX’s future launches so they can allow Congress and the public “to see exactly how awesome [its] rockets are.”
Musk Says Twitter Deal Is Dead Unless Company Prove Spam Stats
Tesla CEO Elon Musk said on Thursday that a proposed Twitter deal is dead unless the company can prove that it has significantly reduced its rate of spamming. The deal, which was announced in March, would have allowed Tesla to use Twitter’s data for autonomous driving purposes. “Unless Twitter can show concrete proof that spam levels are drastically reduced, the agreement is off,” said Musk in a statement.
What Does Musk’s Tweet Mean for Twitter?
Despite previous assurances by Twitter CEO Dick Costolo that a proposed joint venture deal between the two companies was still alive, it appears that the deal is dead – at least for now – as Musk tweeted on Wednesday night “No agreement yet. Lots of downside in any agreement. Twitter would be mad to do a deal with me.”
The rough negotiations between the two companies started earlier this month when reports surfaced that Twitter was in talks to purchase Silicon Valley entrepreneur and Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk’s electric car company for $1 billion. According to Reuters, an agreement could have netted Twitter more than 1 million active monthly users and increased its engagement rates with users from 50 percent to 75 percent. However, the negotiations quickly fell apart, with both sides failing to come to an agreement over Twitter’s use of user data and tweets being deemed spam.
While it remains unclear what specifically transpired between the two companies that led to the breakdown in negotiations, it likely has something to do with Musk’s reluctance to cede control over his company over to Twitter. The fight between these two tech giants likely will continue until one side gains an advantage over the other, which is why investors were likely hesitant about any potential deal.
Grilled Cheese Delivery Service Will Now Deliver to the Office
Twitter announced that they have nullified their agreement with the company,unless they can prove that their spam stats have decreased. The reliability of Twitter has been questioned by manyusers over the past year or so, and this deal only served to fuel those speculations. CEO of Twitter, Jack Dorsey, said in a blog post “We’ve been working hard to clean up our act, but we clearly still have more work to do. Until we can be certain that our efforts are effective, we’ll not renew Twitter’s contract with the Electoral Commission in the UK.”
Many on Twitter Think This Is a Joke
In a tweet this morning, Tesla and SolarCity CEO Elon Musk confirmed reports that the two companies have dissolved their contract, effective immediately. In a series of tweets, Musk said the deal was dead unless Twitter can prove its spam stats are not higher than other companies.
What Does This Mean for Tesla and Solarcity?
This appears to be a case of sour grapes on Tesla’s part. The company was apparently angry with SolarCity for poaching some of its employees, presumably with offers of better salaries and working conditions. It’s possible that Tesla thought its drastic measures – such as terminating the contract – would scare SolarCity into staying quiet. However, given that SolarCity continued to raise awareness of the issue on social media, it seems like Tesla’s tactics backfired.
This isn’t the only controversy involving Musk and Twitter. Earlier this year, he faced criticism after reporting that there had been a (non-existent) terrorist attack on his home city of Palo Alto. He later deleted the tweet and apologized for his response. Twitter has also been accused of discriminating against conservatives on its platform. With all this drama swirling around Musk, it’s possible that he’s simplytesting Twitter’s


text:
One of the most packed weekends of NFL Playoffs in history is here with a total of six Wild Card games scheduled to be played between Saturday and Sunday. By Sunday night, six teams will have been eliminated while six others will advance.
Each of the six games will be televised on either CBS, Fox, NBC, or ABC/ESPN. New this year are some unusual simulcasts including the Bears vs Saints Wild Card game that will be on both CBS and Nickelodeon as the NFL seeks younger viewers.
Not everyone has access to a TV so if that’s you, here’s the best way to stream each of the 2021 NFL Playoffs Wild Card weekend games without cable on any of the aforementioned channels. You can do so on a phone, tablet, computer, Amazon Firestick or Fire TV, Roku, Apple TV or other smart Internet-enabled device.
CBS Games via Amazon Prime
The Colts at Bills (Saturday, 1:05 pm ET) and Bears at Saints (Sunday, 4:40 pm ET) games will be televised on CBS. Taking advantage of a free 7-day trial of CBS All Access via Amazon Prime for Prime Members allows you to stream either game, and upcoming CBS games including the big one, on CBS online for free. Then you can decide if you want to keep CBS All Access to watch future NFL games before the trial expires.
If you don’t have Amazon Prime yet, sign-up for a 30-day Prime free trial or a six-month free trial if you’re a student, then take advantage of the 7-day CBS All Access free trial and football will be at your fingertips or voice by saying “Alexa, watch football on CBS All Access.”
Watch All Channels with Fubo TV
With a FuboTV 7-day free trial you can stream every 2021 NFL Playoffs Wild Card game for free without the need of the “Sports Plus” add-on, though you can certainly add it within your free trial to enjoy even more sports channels. This includes CBS, NBC, ABC, Fox, ESPN, Nickelodeon, and Freeform.
Fubo TV offers three days of auto recording in case you miss something live, and 30 hours of Cloud DVR service so you can record any missed program or sporting event to watch later.
Once you’ve activated the trial or signed up beyond the trial, simply search for and access the FuboTV app from your favorite streaming device or smart TV and away you go.
Watch NFL Playoffs with Hulu w/Live TV
Another streaming service where you can watch the 2021 NFL Playoffs online without cable is Hulu with Live TV. Hulu’s Live TV channel selection includes CBS, NBC, Fox, ABC and ESPN in most markets, and many other sports channels to enjoy.
Plus, with Hulu with Live TV you’ll get 50 hours of cloud DVR storage to keep your favorite programming around for repeat viewing. That’s in addition to Hulu’s vast library of accessible content and originals.
2021 NFL Playoffs Wildcard Weekend Schedule
Here’s the TV channels and start times for the six NFL Wild card games in 2021.
Saturday, January 9th
Indianapolis at Buffalo (1:05 pm ET, CBS)
Los Angeles Rams at Seattle (4:40 pm ET, Fox)
Tampa Bay at Washington (8:15 pm ET, NBC)
Sunday, January 10th
Baltimore at Tennessee (1:05 pm ET, ABC/ESPN/ESPN2/Freeform/ESPN Deportes)
Chicago at New Orleans (4:40 pm ET, CBS/Nickelodeon)
Cleveland at Pittsburgh (8:15 pm ET, NBC)


text:
- Products & Services
- Knowledge Base
Franklin, MA - May 7, 2010 - Berry Plastics is pleased to announce that its Nashua and Polyken brand HVAC foil tape products will now be produced with an unbleached disposable release liner. This simple change, which does not affect the manufacturing of the tape, reduces emissions directly related to the manufacturing of the release liners and the emissions from producing the tape resulting in an environmental gain for better air quality. The bleached paper liner that has historically been used in the tape rolls will be discontinued.
The release liner will function as it always has. The only difference will be visual. The color of the disposable liner used within the foil roll will be a naturally occurring brown color instead of the white that is derived from the bleaching of paper pulp. The cores used for the foil tapes will continue to be made from 100% recycled materials.
Findings from the Environmental Defense Fund Paper Task Force demonstrate that there are significant environmental gains to be won by replacing bleached liners with unbleached liners. For example, the change is predicted to reduce annual sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions by the equivalent of eliminating 1,787 18-wheelers per year, reduce greenhouse gases (CO2) equivalent to eliminating 160 cars, reduced wastewater consumption equivalent to 42 swimming pools, and reduce wood use by the equivalent of 13,641 trees.
"By making this change to unbleached liners Berry Plastics is able to continue to align the products it manufactures with its commitment to sustainability," says Berry Plastics Director of Business Development Ben Cross. "Taking steps, even those that may seem small, can make a big difference," he adds.
For further information on Berry Plastics change to unbleached liners, please contact Ben Cross, Director of Business Development at BenCross@berryplastics.com or by calling 508.918.1683.
About Berry Plastics
Berry Plastics is a leading manufacturer and marketer of plastic packaging products. Berry Plastics is a major producer of a wide range of products, including open top and closed top packaging, polyethylene-based plastic films, industrial tapes, medical specialties, packaging, heat-shrinkable coatings, specialty laminates, and FIBCs. The company's 13,000 plus customers range from large multinational corporations to small local businesses. Based in Evansville, Indiana, the company has 66 manufacturing facilities worldwide and nearly 13,400 employees. For more information, please visit http://www.berryplastics.com.
# # #


text:
On Tuesday, Kanye West made headlines for his outlandish, irresponsible comments on slavery, claiming the hundreds of years of captivity and resistance to be a choice.
Although West took to Twitter to clarify his statement, most were not convinced. As a result, many have banned together to get West all the way out of here. Not only has the rapper been “canceled” on social media, but several have signed a petition to convince Adidas to sever business ties with the Yeezy Brand boss.
“While Kanye can live safely in his multi million-dollar castle, the rest of black America is continually marginalized and subject to unjust laws and treatment. Some even die because this behavior is so ingrained in our society,” the Care2 petition read. “Kanye West has a right to free speech, and he has the right to spout lies and misinformation and misplaced opinions – but we as consumers have the right to fight back against this type of dangerous propaganda.”
“The German apparel company may wish to rethink their lucrative deal with West after his jaw-dropping outburst,” the petition read, as about 7,500 out of 10,000 people joined the fight against West, “Tell the world [Adidas does] not want anything to do with anyone who believes that millions of Africans chose to toil the fields in bondage.”
However, the German firm has already said it has no intentions of parting ways with the controversial rapper.
“We neither comment nor speculate on every single comment that our external creators are making,” the brand’s CEO said in an interview with Bloomberg. “Kanye has been and is a very important part of our strategy and he’s been a fantastic creator, and that’s where I’m going to leave it.”
“While Kanye’s a very important part of the Adidas brand, Adidas is a large global company with a very, very strong presence around the world and will continue to perform well,” he continued. Although the comments were very important to consider, the company had “not had any conversation” with Kanye about it nor have they discussed the issue internally.


text:
LG G2 Starts Getting Lollipop Update In IndiaBy cheatmaster 06:11 Sun, 25 Jul 2021 Comments
Back in March this year, LG confirmed that the Android Lollipop update for the G2 will arrive in India in Q2, and now it looks like the update has started hitting the device.
The update - which weighs in at around 750Mega Bytes (MB) and carries a build number of LRX22G - brings Android 5.0.2 to the handset, which was released back in September 2013 and currently runs KitKat. What's worth mentioning here is that the update is only available via LG Personal Computer (PC) Suite.
This comes just days after the LG G2 Mini, which is a shrunk down version of the G2, started getting the update in Greece.
Please LOGIN or REGISTER To Gain Full Access To This Article


text:
The province plans to spend more than $200 million on employment and skills training.
The province plans to give $500 million in loans and grants to a steel manufacturer in Hamilton.
The Ford government plans to invest $100 million of taxpayer money in technology companies.
The $3.8 billion program will provide up to $25,000 in subsidies per employer.
Advertisers pay for reaching groups of consumers that will buy their products.
When I play 18 holes, the person who benefits is me.
The federal government plans to spend $130 million on electric vehicle charging stations.
In a $19 trillion economy, the loss of a $70 billion industry just isn’t that big a deal.
A box of Pampers costs $70 off the shelf in Iqaluit compared to $35 online.
This week I got an email from the Quebec Liberal Party that gives new meaning to the term “Quebec, Inc.”


text:
Latest Marilyn Monroe Stories
ATLANTA, Oct. 29 /PRNewswire/ -- A new Turner Classic Movies (TCM) poll gauges how modern movies, stars and filmmakers stack up against Hollywood icons.
NEWPORT BEACH, Calif., March 3 /PRNewswire/ -- In his thrilling new, tell-all biography, Jeanne Carmen: MY WILD, WILD LIFE as a New York Pin Up Queen, Trick Shot Golfer & Hollywood Actress (published by iUniverse), debut author Brandon James chronicles the amazing life and wild times of Pin Up Icon Jeanne Carmen, a true American Icon who escaped poverty and eventually rose to fame and fortune. The biography follows the legendary Carmen as she traveled the long, winding and sometimes...
LOS ANGELES, Feb.
SANTA MONICA, Calif., Nov.
NEW YORK and BERLIN, Nov. 10 /PRNewswire/ -- From November 10-19 artnet Auctions is featuring Faces & Figures, a special sale of 375 photographs by 185 renowned modern & contemporary artists.
A dozen multimillion-dollar bids for a Los Angeles crypt directly above that of Marilyn Monroe have all fallen through, the seller says. They were all phony-balonies, said Elsie Poncher, who put the crypt that holds the remains of her husband, Richard, up for auction on eBay. The winning bid from Japan was $4.6 million and there were 11 other bids of at least $4.5 million.
An eBay bidder from Japan who agreed to pay $4.6 million for the mausoleum crypt above Hollywood sex symbol Marilyn Monroe has backed out of the deal. The Los Angeles Times reported the winning bidder e-mailed seller Elsie Poncher Monday, shortly after receiving an invoice, and called off the sale. I am awfully sorry, but I need to cancel this because of the paying problem, the message said. The 11 other bidders who offered to pay at least $4.5 million for the tomb at California's Pierce...
A California woman plans to list the crypt now occupied by her husband on eBay with a unique selling point: It is just above the one where Marilyn Monroe rests. Elsie Poncher told the Los Angeles Times the minimum bid will be $500,000 for the crypt at Pierce Brothers Westwood Village Memorial Park.
Pictures paint concepts of a thousand words- now, for the first time, scientists studying the brain have worked out how words paint concepts in our minds.
NEW YORK and BERLIN, June 29 /PRNewswire/ -- artnet Auctions sale of Icons: 20th-21st Century Photographic Portraits showed strength in the photographs market as the ten-day online photographs auction concluded June 25 with $135,000 in sales (including 10% buyer's premium).
- The practice of two or more parties jointly purchasing all or part of a butchered cow and dividing the meat between them.


text:
Microsoft places huge cap-ex bets on datacenters for cloud and AI
CFO says paying customers expected to flood in from 2024
Microsoft is betting big on generative AI by spending many billions of dollars more on building datacenter capacity in anticipation of a rapid uptick in demand from paying customers, expected to start in anger from calendar 2024.
Despite tightening its belt on R&D dollars for the first time since 2016, capital expenditures in Q4 of Microsoft's fiscal 2023 ended 30 June were $10.7 billion, up from $7.8 billion in the prior three months.
Amy Hood, CFO at Microsoft, told analysts on a conference call the money is to "support cloud demand, including investment in AI infrastructure." This includes new datacenters plus more "CPUs and GPUs and networking equipment."
This elevated spend will continue well into the new financial year. "I think the real focus here is being able to be aggressive in meeting the demand curve," Hood said on a conference call in response to a question about the pace of adoption of generative AI.
Github Copilot – a coding assistant developed by GitHub and OpenAI – was released in October 2021. Individual developers are charged $10 a month or $100 for a year's subscription, and the Business version costs $19 per month per user. Github said in February that 1.2 million developers used the technical preview as of September 2022.
The only Copilot product to have gone GA, GitHub Copilot is not without its controversies, including questions about the training of the AI which uses volumes of publicly available source code, drawing on these materials to respond to prompts.
Microsoft is sprinkling Copilot across much of its portfolio from Windows, to 365, Dynamics and more. In all cases the use is designed to save time and unlock productivity gains. Microsoft is to charge $30 per user per month for Copilot under an E3, E5, Business Standard and Business Premium licenses.
"The pitch of a dollar a day to significantly increase the productivity of an employee might work," Rob Sanfilippo, analyst at Directions on Microsoft said last week.
Microsoft started to talk up its new Copilot-plus products in March, as the generative LLM bandwagon-jumping intensified. Microsoft 365 Copilot remains in private preview with 600 invited but paying customers, according to Directions on Microsoft. There is not yet a release date on when the product - which will be integrated into the user interface for Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Loop and Teams – will be used live production environments.
The analyst says the next product to roll off the GA conveyor belt is Dynamics 365. It won't be an extra cost to punters with certain premium software licenses and will be an add-on for others, "most likely Professional licenses."
Bing Chat Enterprise was released in preview last week for Microsoft 365 E3, E5, Business Premium and Business Standard license holders, and will be available to them at no additional cost. A standalone plan will be $5 a month.
Back at this week's conference call, Microsoft CFO Hood said investments in datacenters and AI is because the "demand signal is quite strong. It remains strong.
"I'm thrilled with the products announcements we've made, I'm thrilled with them moving to paid preview and then moving to GA. They absolutely are expansive in terms of addressable market. They reach new budget pools."
She added: "As you know we're focused on executing against that. And then revenue is an outcome… the demand signal requires the capital expense."
Hood expects the AI services to "pull along Azure," as customers use Microsoft products running on Azure and then use the public cloud's AI tools to build their own generative AI, as credit rating agency Moody's did recently.
Microsoft, along with AWS and the other major hyperscalers already account for 37 percent of the world's datacenter capacity, according to Synergy Research Group (SRG) – and that capacity is going to almost double over the next half decade.
John Dinsdale, chief analyst and research director at SRG, told us via an emailed comment the opportunities for companies that want to "lead the charge in cloud services are - buty so are the investments required.
"You need to have a network of hypserscale data centers that straddles the world. Amazon, Google and Microsoft each has 150-200 hyperscale data centers in operation, and each has another 80-100 in the pipeline.
You need to fund that scale and the constant technology changes that are driving innovation, hence the billions of dollars invested by each of market leaders every quarter. You need to be a company that has credibility and the right brand in all regions of the world. And you need total management commitment and a strategy that is built around long term vision rather than short term gains. There will be late arrivals, but they'll be picking up crumbs from the masters' tables," he added.
Over at Google, cap-ex investment was $13 billion in the first half of calendar 2023 versus $16.6 billion a year earlier. Ruth Porat, ex-CFO and newly crowned President and Chief Investment Officer, said part of this is related to "delays in certain datacenter construction projects."
"We expect elevated levels of investment in our technical infrastructure increasing through the back half of 2023 and continuing to grow in 2024. The primary driver is to support the opportunities we see in AI across Alphabet, including investments in GPUs and proprietary TPUs as well as datacenter capacity," she told analysts on the conference call this week.
- 1 in 4 Brits are playing with generative AI, and some take its word as gospel
- AI mentioned 175 times during Microsoft's Q4 earnings call
- OpenAI pauses Bing search feature over paywall bypass abilities
- Artificial General Intelligence remains a distant dream despite LLM boom
"And as we continue to see the pace of innovation accelerate, we just want to make sure we're positioned to address the opportunity across Alphabet."
Scott Kessler, Third Bridge global sector lead for tech media and telecommunications, estimates Google spent "upwards of $200 billion on AI investments over the past decade."
"Much of that isn't necessarily appreciated by users and investors," he told Reuters.
In one sense, cost is becoming an ever higher barrier to entry into the world of technology, something that big fish like Microsoft and Google probably don't hate. ®


text:
- Shanghai is the worst performing of the world's equity markets since peaking in January, and it could remain under pressure until trade tensions ease up.
- U.S. tariffs on $34 billion in Chinese goods went into effect Friday, and China retaliated with its own tariffs right away.
- Wells Fargo strategists give chances for a full blown trade war about 10 percent odds, but the chances are only about 10 percent the trade wars will go away quickly.
- The most likely scenario is a drawn out negotiations that will have moments of drama and continue to create volatility for stocks, they said.
Mainland Chinese stocks have been the world’s worst performers and they could continue to be volatile as long as Beijing and Washington battle over trade.
The Shanghai index, since peaking Jan. 24, is down 23 percent and the Shenzen is down 22 percent in that time. The U.S. since its Jan. 26 peak, is down just about 4 percent.
Wells Fargo strategists handicapped odds of trade tensions escalating into a full-blown trade war at only 10 percent, but they also see just a 10 percent chance that it could go away quickly. They put an 80 percent probability on negotiations dragging out for a very long time, and that would keep China’s stocks markets volatile and under pressure.
“Our base case scenario is: Buckle your seat belt. This is going to be a prolonged period of negotiations that’s going to ebb between getting what looks to be a quick resolution or we’re on the cliff of what appears to be a trade war, full escalation,” said Peter Donisanu, global market strategist with Wells Fargo.
The U.S. slapped tariffs on $34 billion in Chinese goods, and China retaliated with its own tariffs. Shanghai closed up nearly a half percent Friday, after it and other Asian stock markets rebounded after opening weaker.
“The broader picture is what could happen to the economies, the bigger economic impact, and if we did go down that path of rapid escalation, that could affect Chinese economic growth which is currently on a path toward slowing,” said Donisanu. “That path of slowing growth could accelerate and lead to a whole host of concerns that we had about China’s economy going to fall off the cliff.”
The world’s second largest economy rapid decline from a trade war could impact all the countries that trade with it. Donisanu said while the Chinese stock market has been losing ground because of trade war fears, the canary in the coal mine for a trade war that slams global growth would come if the U.S. stock market breaks down.
“The negotiation really is being drive by the U.S. The direction and tone of where we can go with this trade war or no trade war…is being driven by the U.S.,” he said. The big concern is what happens if the U.S. were to move ahead on its 10 percent tariffs on $200 billion in Chinese goods.
But Donisanu said aside from the trade concerns, mainland China still has appeal. “We think the fundamentals remain intact for emerging markets in Asia and for emerging markets as a whole,” said Donisanu, adding Wells views emerging markets more favorably as valuations have declined.
BlackRock strategists this week said they see the greatest opportunities in emerging Asian markets, but a possible China slowdown or trade disruptions are a risk. “Economic reforms, improving corporate expansion in the developed world is another positive. Risks include a further sharp rise in the U.S. dollar, trade tensions and elections,” they wrote.
They said the economic backdrop is encouraging. “China’s growth and corporate earnings are solid. We like selected Southeast Asian markets but recognize a faster-than-expected Chinese slowdown or disruptions in global trade would pose risks to the entire region,” the strategists noted.
As the trade tensions heated up, the People's Bank of China has cut some reserve requirements to boost lending.
"The PBOC has been taking steps that the point is we’re seeing a central bank that is stepping in during a period of softer economic growth to really help juice the economy and provide that buffer from a rapid deceleration in growth that had be a concern going into 2018," Donisanu said.
Strategists say the fear is that trade skirmishes will stall business decisions and weight on sentiment.
"It's traded that's weighing on business sentiment so the PBOC is really just stepping in making credit easier to obtain to cushion the decline in their economic growth rate, " Donisanu said.
China's currency has become a subject of much speculation as it quickly slid recently to the lowest levels since November. The move sparked talk that China could intentionally devalue the yuan to gain an upper hand if more tariffs were put on its exports.
“Markets are playing a bigger role in the movement in the yuan but in terms of whether policy makers would put measures in place that would weaken the yuan further further to punish the U.S. We already heard from Beijing. That is not something they’re willing to do,” he said.
Many currency strategists say China would not use the remnimbi as a weapon. “We continue to think a competitive devaluation scenario is unlikely because a sharp depreciation could reignite speculative capital outflows, which would be counterproductive by tightening financial conditions,” wrote Dylan Riddle of IFF. “Instead, we see recent RMB weakness as a reversal of excess strength, with perhaps a side-signal that recent trade tensions are unwelcome.”


text:
Since Google paid Fitbit $2.1 billion more than two years ago, there hasn’t been much product integration between the two businesses’ offerings. This fall, it seems, that will change. In addition to a sleek Fitbit connection on the incoming Pixel Watch, it appears that the anticipated Fitbit Sense 2 and Versa 4 may also integrate with Google Wallet.
According to 9to5Google, Google Wallet, which includes Google Pay, is reportedly adding Fitbit smartwatch functionality in the most recent version of Android’s Play Services. This contains a brand-new menu with visuals that resemble a Fitbit smartwatch. Additionally, the photos are identified as “Fitbit watch illustrations.” However, it’s unclear whether Google Wallet will completely replace Fitbit Pay or if it will serve as an alternative, similar to how Samsung smartwatches currently let users download Google Wallet. 9to5 According to Google, there may also be a way to integrate Google Wallet with Fitbit Pay in order to make the service available for earlier watches.
Google Assistant is now the only functional link between Fitbit and Google on the wrist.
The only virtual assistant available on Fitbit devices prior to the Versa 2 was Alexa. After Google acquired Fitbit, Google Assistant was subsequently made available on the Versa 3 and Sense. Fitbit devices were among the first wearables to provide a choice of two digital assistants as a result. On Samsung Galaxy smartwatches running Wear OS 3, you can currently do the same.
The decision to include Google Assistant on Fitbits was simple. Fitbit’s gadgets already have Alexa on them. Google would never allow its greatest opponent in the field of digital assistants to be the only choice on one of its devices. But the decision to include Google Wallet could spell Fitbit Pay’s demise. The service has historically been a little picky. Though widely supported by banks and public transportation networks (at least in the United States), it is a minor player in the contactless payments industry. And unlike Google Pay, Apple Pay, or Samsung Pay, its user interface isn’t as fluid.
In any event, the volume of Sense 2 and Versa 4 leaks indicates that Fitbit will probably announce something new shortly. With Google stepping up its wearable initiatives, we should be able to learn more than just about Fitbit’s future trajectory. However, it seems for the time being that the two businesses are moving toward more integration, similar to Google and Nest. The real question is whether Fitbit can sustain its own identity over time, or if a Google Fitbit Versa 5 will be available by this time next year.


text:
After spending 20 months trying to use the Internet to bring together corporate IT workers and open-source software developers to collaborate on technology projects, CollabNet Inc. has shut down its SourceXchange online marketplace due to a lack of adequate revenue.
Collab.Net co-founder Brian Behlendorf said in a statement posted on the San Francisco-based company’s Web site that SourceXchange closed on Friday. “While a unique idea, and one that we feel really adhered more closely to the open-source ideal than any other work-for-hire site ever did, it simply did not achieve the volume of business necessary to maintain the site and evolve the offering to meet the needs of sponsors and developers,” said Behlendorf, who helped create the Apache Web server.
SourceXchange was one of several new Internet-based marketplaces that let companies post proposals for open-source software projects and seek bids on the work from programmers. Collab.Net launched the site in mid-1999 and then raised $35 million in funding last June from a group of nine technology vendors, including Hewlett-Packard Co., Intel Corp., Oracle Corp. and Sun Microsystems Inc.
But a Collab.Net spokeswoman Monday said the company began shifting its focus away from SourceXchange last fall, in order to give full attention to a collaborative software package called SourceCast, which was used to run the online marketplace. SourceXchange “was a great idea, but it was ahead of its time,” she added.
The big problem was that many companies preferred to seek application development help from known entities with which they had already established working relationships, said Bernie Mills, vice president of marketing at Collab.Net. “The model they wanted to use was the model of a trusted contractor,” rather than canvassing an online collaborative site such as SourceXchange, Mills said.
Tracy Corbo, an analyst at Hurwitz Group Inc. in Framingham, Mass., said she was surprised by the site’s closure, especially because the softening economy makes it more likely that companies will seek outside project help instead of hiring new full-time employees. “Maybe it was a case of being too early to market,” she said of the idea.


text:
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Drivers using advanced driver assistance systems like Tesla Autopilot or General Motors Super Cruise often treat their vehicles as fully self-driving despite warnings, a new study has found.
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), an industry funded group that prods automakers to make safer vehicles, said on Tuesday a survey found regular users of Super Cruise, Nissan/Infiniti ProPILOT Assist and Tesla Autopilot "said they were more likely to perform non-driving-related activities like eating or texting while using their partial automation systems than while driving unassisted."
The IIHS study of 600 active users found 53% of Super Cruise, 42% of Autopilot and 12% of ProPILOT Assist owners "said that they were comfortable treating their vehicles as fully self-driving."
About 40% of users of Autopilot and Super Cruise - two systems with lockout features for failing to pay attention - reported systems had at some point switched off while they were driving and would not reactivate.
"The big-picture message here is that the early adopters of these systems still have a poor understanding of the
technology’s limits," said IIHS President David Harkey.
The study comes as the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is scrutinizing Autopilot crashes.
Since 2016, the NHTSA has opened 37 special investigations involving 18 deaths in crashes involving Tesla vehicles and where systems like Autopilot were suspected of use.
Tesla did not respond to requests for comment. Tesla says Autopilot does not make vehicles autonomous and is intended for use with a fully attentive driver who is prepared to take over.
GM, which in August said owners could use Super Cruise on 400,000 miles (643,740 km) of North American roads and plans to offer Super Cruise on 22 models by the end of 2023, did not immediately comment.
IIHS said advertisements for Super Cruise focus on hands-free capabilities while Autopilot evokes the name used in passenger airplanes and "implies Tesla’s system is more capable than it really is." IIHS in contrast noted ProPILOT Assist "suggests that it’s an assistance feature, rather than a replacement for the driver."
NHTSA and automakers say none of the systems make vehicles autonomous.
Nissan said its name "is clearly communicating ProPILOT Assist as a system to aid the driver, and it requires hands-on operation. The driver maintains control of the vehicle at all times."
(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Robert Birsel)


text:
Jinja – Busoga Kingdom has secured a lucrative market for coffee farmers in the sub-region, Daily Monitor can reveal.
The deal struck with German company Neumann Kaffee Gruppe (NKG), one of the world’s leading players in the coffee value chain, will eliminate the middle man from the picture, leaving the farmers to directly negotiate for what is due to them as opposed to what is meant for them.
Busoga Kingdom Prime Minister, Mr Joseph Muvawala revealed the deal last week, saying the reward that will be accrued from this move will be far better than the proceeds gotten out of sugarcane growing in the region.
Speaking at the launch of Busoga Coffee Project at the Kingdom headquarters in Bugembe last week, Mr Muvawala disclosed the partnership with NKG, describing it as the biggest buyer of coffee in the world.
He said: “We are going to eliminate middle men who have been buying coffee from farmers at a low price.”
He continued: “Neumann Kaffee Gruppe will be buying our coffee at Shs5,600 per kilogramme instead of Shs3,200 which is the current price at which farmers sell their coffee.”
Part of his job description, he said, is to see Busoga sub-region become the leading producer of coffee in Uganda as well as with the richest farmers in the country.
This, he said, can be achieved through working hard and focusing in coffee growing, let alone work as a team in cooperative so as to harness advantages that accrue from mass production.
Coffee demonstration farms will also be established while letting land for sugar cane growing will be discouraged as a measure to protect the fertility of the soil reserved for coffee growing.
Traditionally coffee is the country’s leading cash crop. However farmers in Busoga sub-region, although good coffee farmers, appear to be more endeared toward sugar cane growing at the expense of other cash crops, including food crops.
The appeal by the Kingdom’s Prime Minister that coffee can be grown alongside food crops could be a game changer that eventually results into farmers abandoning sugar cane in favour of coffee growing.
The next battle will be how the sugar producers, most of whom are located in Busoga sub-region will react to the Kingdom’s open appeal to leave sugar cane growing in favour of coffee plantations.


text:
There’s a Petition to Bring DRM Back to Xbox One
Microsoft's initial decision to make the Xbox One a DRM machine was quickly met with disdain. Consumers weren't happy that game trading was to be mandated, or that a daily internet check-in would be required to play all games, even singleplayer. As significant as the backlash was, it didn't encompass everyone, so when Microsoft did a 180 on its DRM policies not everyone was celebrating.
A petition has found its way to Change.org which calls for Microsoft to bring DRM back to the Xbox One. The petition starter argues that the original design was the "future of entertainment" and that consumers were "uninformed" when raising hell against it.
At present there are over 1,800 supporters of the petition with hundreds more signing every hour.
One perk that has been lost with Microsoft's recent policy changes was family sharing which allowed quick and easy access of games between up to 10 family members. Despite this, being able to play the console without restriction and having access to traditional game trading has outweighed the loss for most consumers.
It's unlikely that Microsoft will be willing to do yet another reversal for the Xbox One, especially after the praise it recently received. Furthermore, this petition may be falling on deaf ears.


text:
What are elite global technologists up to in 2022? They’re supporting the Experience Economy. That’s from the AppDynamics report Agents of Transformation 2022. It’s the fourth annual report that analyzes the skills and attributes of this segment of professionals.
According to AppDynamics, theses elites are a new class of technology experts who pivot between business strategy and IT operations. They are meeting the demand to make all products and services digitally available in the context of heightened security threats, increasing complexity, and the shift to hybrid work and the cloud.
“The bar continues to rise, and over the last year we have seen a redefinition of what it means to be an Agent of Transformation. These leaders are looking to better understand how issues in their respective domains impact the total experience of users and applications, adapting to change with solutions that positively affect the overall business,” said Liz Centoni, EVP, Chief Strategy Officer, GM of Applications.
A survey of the group’s members found:
- 88% believe that the role of technologist has changed
- 84% say the definition of an “Agent of Transformation” has evolved
- 66% believe it is now more difficult to be an Agent of Transformation
- One in four Agents of Transformation say their organization remains in reactive, “fire-fighting mode”
As the construction industry continues to face increased demand, labour shortages among skilled tradespeople and materials shortages due to supply chain issues, tech that supports the industry is expanding. Construction management software Procore is now working with Amazon Web Services (AWS) to leverage AWS IoT TwinMaker. It will extend the value of construction data into facility operations.
Procore’s platform connects all construction stakeholders in the lifecycle of a built asset. AWS IoT TwinMaker will allow Procore data to be integrated from design and construction into operations.
“We’re very excited about our partnership with AWS. Roughly 80% of the lifecycle cost of a project is in the operations phase,” said Tiffany LaBruno, product director, owners at Procore. “With this partnership we can leverage Procore’s course of construction data during that operations phase to help owners reduce costs, optimize performance, and be better prepared for future project needs.”
With supply chain issues still affecting every industry, coupled with the new threat of global food shortages as a result of war in Ukraine (Europe’s bread basket), there’s more happening in AgriTech.
Blue like an Orange Sustainable Capital working with the Lightsmith Group and Unbox Capital, has raised $60 million US in investment in Solinftec, a precision agriculture company with operations in Brazil, the United States and Latin America.
Solinftec develops technological solutions that allow clients to optimize agricultural processes, increasing productivity and sustainability in the field. The company’s solutions monitor more than 85% of the sugarcane operations in Brazil, in addition to grain, fiber, and perennial crops markets, such as citrus, coffee, and forestry. It’s latest offering, Solix AG Robotics, was announced and commercially launched in Brazil in April 2022..
Agriculture is the world’s second-largest source of greenhouse gas emissions. Precision agriculture management practices using technology can improve energy efficiency and mitigate climate change.
“Sustainable agriculture is critical for climate change and food security a priority within our investment mandate. It is very exciting to partner with the founders and investors of Solinftec. We are impressed by its trajectory and growth potential, a company that thrives on innovation by understanding the needs and challenges in the field,” said Cristina Penteado, Managing Director and Head of Brazil of Blue like an Orange Sustainable Capital.
More information: https://bluelikeanorangecapital.com/
Latest posts by Kate Baggott (see all)
- Jabmo takes B2B marketing honours; medical imaging market hits $24.6 billion; Gainsight Pulse and Content Marketing World coming up - August 16, 2022
- B2B News for Thursday, August 11, 2022: More Electronic Vehicle Charging Stations, New Tool to Protect Decentralized Finance Blockchains - August 11, 2022
- B2B News for Tuesday, August 9, 2022: Automotive Parts Merger, Cloud 9 Acquires Toothfairy, Rocketlane Launches Customer Onboarding Platform - August 9, 2022


text:
Whole Foods Market Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Brokerages (NYSE:WFM)
Whole Foods Market (NYSE:WFM) has earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the twenty-eight ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, Stock Ratings Network reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $46.52.
Whole Foods Market (NYSE:WFM) traded down 0.01% during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $39.1801. 861,352 shares of the company’s stock traded hands. Whole Foods Market has a 1-year low of $36.08 and a 1-year high of $65.59. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $37.89 and its 200-day moving average is $44.3. The company has a market cap of $14.154 billion and a P/E ratio of 25.61. Whole Foods Market also was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Traders purchased 26,968 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 116% compared to the typical volume of 12,512 call options.
Whole Foods Market (NYSE:WFM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $3.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.39 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.38 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Whole Foods Market will post $1.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.
In other Whole Foods Market news, Insider Mark T. Dixon sold 6,926 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.03, for a total transaction of $263,395.78. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.
A number of analysts have recently weighed in on WFM shares. Analysts at Wedbush initiated coverage on shares of Whole Foods Market in a research note on Thursday. They set a “neutral” rating and a $40.00 price target on the stock. Separately, analysts at Zacks reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Whole Foods Market in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. They now have a $40.00 price target on the stock. Finally, analysts at Citigroup Inc. reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Whole Foods Market in a research note on Monday, August 4th. They now have a $40.00 price target on the stock, down previously from $41.00.
Whole Foods Market, Inc (NYSE:WFM), is a retailer of natural and organic foods.
Receive News & Ratings for Whole Foods Market Inc Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Whole Foods Market Inc and related companies with Analyst Ratings Network's FREE daily email newsletter.


text:
On Saturday 14th February 2009 Park Cameras teams up with Olympus to showcase the exciting new E-30, the latest in Olympus’s E-System product line-up. Attending on the day will not only give you the chance to handle the E-30 for yourself but also the chance to be one of the first to own this revolutionary new DSLR and take advantage of some unrepeatable new product offers. If this wasn’t enough, Olympus will also be showcasing their latest MJU ‘Tough’ cameras, providing a wide choice of this year’s must-have digital compact cameras. Again, those attending on the day can take advantage of dedicated technical support throughout the day as well as unrepeatable offers and promotions only available to those attending instore on the day.
For more information, please visit our website, www.parkcameras.com
or call a member of the Park Cameras team on 01444 23 70 70 where a member of the team will be only too happy to assist your query.


text:
Food scientist receives World Food Prize award
June 18, 2007
by Eric Schroeder
DES MOINES, IOWA — Philip E. Nelson, president of the Institute of Food Technologists in 2002 and food science professor at Purdue University, has been named the 2007 World Food Prize laureate for his achievements in the development of bulk aseptic packaging and storage. His work has helped perishable foods such as fruits and vegetables to be distributed globally in a sterile environment without refrigeration and without significant loss of nutrients.
Dr. Nelson was announced as the winner of the award by Ambassador Kenneth M. Quinn, president of the World Food Prize Foundation, at a June 18 ceremony at the U.S. State Department hosted by Daniel Sullivan, assistant secretary for Economic, Energy and Business Affairs.
"Dr. Nelson’s pioneering work, which began with tomatoes and later included a variety of seasonal crops, has made it possible to produce ultra-large scale quantities of high-quality food," said Mr. Quinn, who will present the award to Dr. Nelson at a special laureate award ceremony at the Iowa State Capitol in Des Moines on Oct. 18. "This food can then be stored for long periods of time and transported to all corners of the world without losing nutritional value or taste."
Dr. Nelson’s innovative research led to the development of preserving and transporting perishable foods without refrigeration in carbon steel tanks ranging in size from delivery truck to ocean freighter. By coating tanks with epoxy resin and sterilizing valves and filters, food may be stored and removed without introducing contaminants. As a result, enormous volumes of food are safely stored and shipped around the globe for final processing, packaging and distribution.
He later partnered with the Scholle Corp. to develop a low-cost aseptic "bag-in-box" system for preserving and shipping goods. By the 1980s, this technology had spread throughout the global food industry.
Dr. Nelson is the first food scientist and second I.F.T. member to receive the World Food Prize.
The World Food Prize recognizes efforts to improve the quality, quantity and availability of food in the world.


text:
TANZANIA – South Africa’s City Lodge Hotel Group is selling its stakes in three hotels in Kenya, as well as its City Lodge Hotel Dar es Salaam in Tanzania, to subsidiaries of the UK-based investment firm Actis.
The Kenyan hotels, 127-room Fairview Hotel in Nairobi, the 171-room City Lodge Hotel at Two Rivers in Runda also in Nairobi and the 84-room Town Lodge Upper Hill in Nairobi, will be sold for almost R141 million (US$9.5 million) while the Tanzanian hotel will fetch R1 million (US$67,366).
Including impairments, the Kenyan and Tanzanian hotels contributed more than R371 million (US$25 million) in losses for the six months to end-December 2020, as the Covid-19 pandemic continued to wreak havoc on the global tourism industry.
City Lodge saw revenue from its 62 hotels fall by 73% in the six months to end-December 2020, compared to the same period in the previous year.
The company suffered a loss of R550 million (US$37 million) in the six months, from a profit of R46 million (US$3.1 million) in the previous year.
The group said the proceeds from the sale of its Kenyan and Tanzanian hotels will be used to help settle its debt.
The group had R530 million (US$35.7 million) in interest-bearing borrowings at the end of the year.
In December 2020, Nairobi’s Fairview Hotel, Town Lodge and City Lodge Two Rivers were put up for sale as the South African hospitality group which owns the three units plans to exit East Africa after barely six years of operation.
“Shareholders are advised that following receipt of an unsolicited non-binding offer for the proposed acquisition of City Lodge’s East African operations, comprising of its hotels situated in Kenya and Tanzania, the company has entered into negotiations which, if successfully concluded, may have a material effect on the price of the Company’s securities,” said the firm.
“The proceeds from the sale of its Kenyan and Tanzanian hotels will be used to help settle its debt”City Lodge
The update was shared at the Johannesburg Stock Exchange where the hotel is listed.
The firm said that occupancy levels have been below expectations at Two Rivers while bookings in the Tanzanian unit have been sluggish, leaving only Fairview with a robust performance.
“The 2020 financial year was our most challenging operating year in the group’s 35-year history, mainly due to the lockdown protocols implemented by the South African government, and similar restrictions in the rest of Africa countries in which the group operates,” said Chairman Bulelani Ngcuka.
The planned exit comes at a time the group has been marketing Fairview more actively to South Africans and positioning it as a first-choice conferencing, events and wedding venue.