text:
A tariff exclusion request for intermodal chassis from China has been welcomed by U.S. fleets and leasing companies, but the request is pitting some US trailer manufacturers against the biggest chassis builder in the industry.
The Section 301 exclusion request by the American Trucking Associations was posted August 15, and the comment period closed August 29.
“At the request of motor carrier members that buy chassis, ATA filed the exclusion,” ATA Chief Economist & Senior Vice President of International Trade Policy & Cross-Border Operations Bob Costello tells Trailer/Body BUILDERS. “Those carriers were concerned that, in the near term, there is not enough US chassis production or capacity to meet their demand.”
Indeed, the ATA filing with the US Trade Representative details the grounds for the request: In 2018, the demand for chassis in the United States ranged between 53,000 and nearly 55,000 units, while US manufacturers were able to satisfy less than 10% of that demand, according to the analysis drawn from industry data, including the annual Trailer Output Report by TBB.
Some 43,000 chassis for the US market came from CIMC Intermodal Equipment, the US arm of China International Marine Containers Group Ltd., the largest shipping equipment supplier in the world. Many CIMC-IE chassis models are completed in China and shipped directly to US customers, while other models are assembled in the US from kits shipped from China. All are subject to a 25% percent tariff set to rise to 30% in October.
ATA also points out that the only other imported chassis sold in the US come from Mexico, where Hyundai Translead built 6,621 units in 2018.
“While many companies actively try to source from US and third country producers, there simply is not enough supply from these sources to meet the large and growing demand in the United States,” the ATA request states, noting that a typical order is 1,000 to 2,000 trailers for a volume discount. “U.S. chassis manufacturers simply do not have the capacity to accommodate such large quantities in the timeframe demanded by the industry.”
The filing adds that while CIMC IE can fill large orders in 1 to 2 months, domestic manufacturers “typically” require 6 to 12 months.
In June, ATA used similar arguments in asking that 53-foot domestic intermodal containers be excluded from the tariffs on Chinese goods. USTR granted that request August 15.
Based on public responses filed with USTR, the ATA chassis request is supported by leasing companies such as Flexi-Van Leasing, which states that while the company buys “a substantial number” of chassis from US manufacturers, the domestic suppliers offer “nowhere near the sufficient manufacturing capacity” to meet present and future demand. Additionally, the tariff means Flexi-Van “would be buying four chassis but paying for five.”
Leasing giants Direct ChassisLink Inc. (DCLI) and TRAC Intermodal, along with the trade association Institute of International Container Lessors LTD, also filed responses in support of the exclusion.
Domestic manufacturers, however, argue ATA’s analysis of the data is misleading: US suppliers had significant chassis capacity that sat idle in 2018 due to a “glut” of trailers from China, imported to get ahead of the tariff charges—and those units, with a short lead time for delivery, made for more attractive replies to bid requests.
“There is sufficient capacity in the domestic market to satisfy demand for chassis in the United States,” writes Truck Trailer Manufacturer Association President Jeff Sims in the organization’s response opposing the exclusion. “Chinese manufacturers like CIMC ramped up production and imported additional chassis far beyond demand levels to ensure that their imported products would not be subject to the higher tariff. This ‘import surge’ has been widely reported and recognized in the trade community as a whole.
“U.S. manufacturers have been undercut by Chinese manufacturers in price and therefore were not given the opportunity to satisfy the full demand. If given the opportunity in a fairly traded market, TTMA members would likely be able to meet the full demand in the market.”
Sample data from five TTMA members indicates that those members currently have the capacity to produce 39,000 chassis per year, and other TTMA members have additional capacity available that can be brought back online quickly if “fairly traded” orders were available, the association contends. If given the opportunity, those same five TTMA members could ramp up annual production to 43,000 chassis within six months and to 68,000 chassis within 12 months.
TTMA also takes issue with the ATA claim that chassis with certain dimensions can only be sourced from China, again arguing that “in a fairly traded market” US manufacturers can meet that demand.
“There is nothing special or unique about the Chinese chassis other than their unfairly low prices,” Sims concludes.
“The claim that US manufacturers cannot meet customers' delivery requirements is a red herring, and we urge the USTR not to fall for it,” writes Stoughton President and CEO Bob Wahlin. “Granting the request of the ATA for exclusion of container chassis would be tantamount to rewarding our Chinese competitors for achieving the precise results the tariffs are designed to address: protecting American manufacturers from the unfair advantages enjoyed by our Chinese competitors by establishing a more fair and even playing field in which to sell their products.”
Cheetah Chassis, likewise, says the ATA request is “akin to blaming the victim” after years of unfair Chinese trade practices which have “nearly killed the domestic container chassis industry.” The filing also notes that USTR has already considered the issues addressed by ATA during briefings on the tariff ahead of the initial 2018 action—and determined then that the tariffs should be imposed.
“The ATA is merely attempting to have USTR reconsider the same decision, which is wholly inappropriate,” the Cheetah response says.
But CIMC IE President and CEO Frank Sonzala, in a statement for Trailer/Body BUILDERS, insists that his is “an AMERICAN company, with Americans employed in two facilities in the USA.”
“Many other Americans are employed in our dealers' distribution networks and also many more Americans employed by trucking companies, logistics companies, leasing companies and American chassis pools and ports,” Sonzala says. “The ATA clearly submitted on behalf of the trucking industry. We entirely agree with the ATA submission for exclusion of the tariffs on chassis.
“There is a major need for new chassis and that demand is not being fulfilled due to the 25% and soon to be 30% tariff. The damage to the entire trucking industry is affecting all Americans in the business.”


text:
Consumer confidence lowest in six years - survey
Consumer confidence has fallen and that's not surprise to retailers. The Westpac McDermott Miller survey for consumer confidence has fallen to its lowest level in six years. More consumers than ever feel they are personally worse off now than a year ago, and see no likelihood of improvement in the year ahead. The general manager of public affairs for Retail NZ, Greg Harford, told RNZ reporter Tom Furley businesses are feeling it.

domain: news


text:
Bitdefender, a leading global cybersecurity company protecting over 500 million systems worldwide, has been named Top Player in Endpoint Security by analyst company Radicati for the “breadth and depth“ of its products and its “solid vision for the future.”
Radicati (radicati.com), the renowned market research firm, placed Bitdefender as one of only six companies in the Top Player quadrant of its Radicati Market Quadrants for the endpoint security sector in its 2020 report.
Radicati Market Quadrants, which ranks companies based on their preeminence in their market and the quality of their products, uses criteria in selecting companies including deployment options, platform support, malware detection, antivirus removal tools, firewall, URL filtering, managed detection and response, encryption and many other traits.
The Top Players quadrant consists of companies that “shape the market with their technology and strategic vision”. The other segments include Trailblazers, Specialists, and Mature Players.
“Bitdefender is an integrated platform, easily deployed by organizations of all sizes, which offers risk analytics, hardening, prevention, and EDR for endpoints, cloud resources, and network connected devices. Bitdefender‘s technology and vision position it as a Top Player,” said Sara Radicati, CEO, The Radicati Group. “Our selection criteria are stringent and thorough, and Bitdefender has fully proven its merit in every aspect that we could measure.”
“Bitdefender has focused on innovation and technological breakthroughs throughout its 19-year history,” said Steve Kelley, President and General Manager of Business Solutions Group at Bitdefender. “The success that this has brought us has accelerated in recent years as we have reached a critical mass that has propelled us to the top of the market. It is an honor to see this recognized by an organization with the unparalleled quality and reputation of Radicati.”
Bitdefender (bitdefender.com) is a global cybersecurity leader protecting over 500 million systems in more than 150 countries. Since 2001, Bitdefender innovation has consistently delivered award-winning security products and threat intelligence for the smart connected home, mobile users, modern businesses and their networks, devices, data centers and Cloud infrastructure. Today, Bitdefender is also the provider of choice, embedded in over 38% of the world's security solutions. Recognized by industry, respected by vendors and evangelized by customers, Bitdefender is the cybersecurity company you can trust and rely on.


text:
What is more, I believe the sellers will be asked to do this in an outcome-focused way. That means getting the consumer to realise that they should be certain of what they want before they buy.
The FSA is rightly concerned that the quick and easy financial services product purchase decision has a horrible habit of turning out to be the wrong one, making consumers think twice and get the decision right is a laudable regulatory aim.
But the FSA will have to deal with two probable seller reactions if the Icob rules are not to be a mockery. The first is that non-advisers will move to web-only sales – a fastgrowing non-advised area already – in order to get away with things more easily.
The second probable reaction is that whatever way they sell, those scared of making the consumer think twice will make the warnings as meaningless as they are now. On the web, they will perhaps rely on a huge “tick to acknowledge you accept our terms” pop-up that no one ever reads. Over the phone, it will be a monotone drawl that is read out once the decision is already made in the consumer’s mind so they switch off and just want to get on with it.
Bearing in mind these fears, I was delighted to read FSA director of retail policy and themes Dan Waters quoted as saying: “For many people, the internet is the channel of choice for shopping around for financial products. However, it can expose consumers to high risk as they are able to make instant purchases without advice. This is why it is so important that firms’ websites are fair, clear and not misleading. Firms should take immediate steps to improve their websites. The FSA will be carrying out a further review in March 2008 and will take action if it finds further failings.”
That sounds like planned enforcement to me and it would be wonderful if it was a joined-up approach governing Icob sellers too. Let us hope the enforcers make this rule count.
If web-based sellers, or those providers whose products they sell want to see a way in which consumers could be treated fairly in this area, they could have a look at the dummy website at www.lifesearch.co.uk/ breakthrough and see an effective way of confronting consumers with the realities of their situation.
Over-the-phone operators can easily develop a verbal version. The aim in all cases is to ask short, clear questions to which the expected answer is not totally obvious. In a world crowded with warnings, that is perhaps the best way of making warnings work.
Now, I suspect that sort of outcome-focused approach is the last thing that non-advisers will want, so, as ever, it will be up to advisers to draw the attention of Waters and his team to those who flout or, more likely, subvert the rules with non-outcome-focused warnings, so that the bad practice that is most non-advised selling today is sorted out.
Tom Baigrie (firstname.lastname@example.org) is managing director of Baigrie Davies Lifesearch


text:
FRONTIER WILL DEFER TRAVEL TO ZIKA AREAS
Denver- based Frontier Airlines will give a credit for a future flight to pregnant women and their traveling companions if they booked a trip to a place dealing with an outbreak of Zika virus.
To qualify, a customer needs to provide a doctor’s note, Frontier spokesman Jim Faulkner said. He said that so far, the airline has received only a few calls about the virus.
From Denver International Airport, travelers can fly to Cancun, Puerto Vallarta and Cabo San Lucas in Mexico. The airline also has routes fromother cities to Jamaica and Dominican Republic. The virus has been detected inMexico and Dominican Republic.
Ping Identity: Revenues could grow to $ 100M.
Denver security firm Ping Identity on Thursday shared the company’s revenue growth in 2015 as it preps for a possible initial public offering this year.
Subscriptions to its identity software products helped boost revenues 40 percent in 2015 from the prior year. The company says it is on track to hit $ 100 million in annual recurring revenues this year.
Ping is private and not required to report actual income or revenues. But it shared some growth numbers from last year, including that 20 percent of its bookings came from international customers and it added 135 employees.
AT& T hires retail GM for RockyMountain region.
AT& T stores in Colorado have a new boss. On Thursday, AT& T named Nancy Garvey as vice president and general manager of the AT& TMobility sales organization for the Rocky Mountain region. Garvey — who previously served a similar role in AT& T’s Kansas, Missouri and Southern Illinois region— will oversee 725 retail employees and nearly 500 stores.
Walgreens tells Theranos to stop using lab. Walgreens
has told blood- testing startup Theranos to stop sending samples collected at the drugstore chain’s stores to a testing facility that drew regulatory scrutiny over possible patient risks.
The company said Thursday that it told Theranos to either send tests to a certified lab in the Phoenix area that Theranos runs or to an accredited third- party lab. The decision affects 40 stores in Arizona and a Palo Alto, Calif., store.
IBM CEO getting $ 4.5M bonus. International BusinessMachines
Corp. CEO Virginia Rometty is getting a $ 4.5 million performance bonus for 2015, despite the computer maker’s ongoing financial struggles.
Rometty’s total earnings for the yearwon’t be clear until IBM discloses the value of certain equity grants, but her bonuswas $ 900,000 more than the $ 3.6 million she earned last year. The IBM CEO’s base pay for 2016 remains unchanged at $ 1.6 million, with $ 13.3million in long- term incentive stock awards, the company saidThursday.
Bank of Japan boasts negative interest policy
B tokyo » The Bank of Japan on Friday introduced a negative interest policy in amove to boost a stumbling recovery in theworld’s third- largest economy.
The central bank said it is imposing a 0.1 percent fee on some deposits left with the central bank, effectively a negative interest rate.
Themove had an immediate positive impact on Japan’s financial market.


text:
Tom Ford is no longer open for business in The Shops Buckhead Atlanta, the high-end mixed-use development that earlier this year was acquired by Ponce City Market developer Jamestown.
The retailer closed its doors on October 14 and is relocating to Phipps Plaza, a move that was first announced in mid-2019.
Tom Ford’s new 4,500-square-foot boutique in the Simon mall is set to debut on November 1, a manager for the retailer confirmed in a telephone conversation with What Now Atlanta Saturday.
Houston this year is also welcoming a location of Tom Ford, and also at a Simon property.
“We’re very pleased to continue our long-standing relationship with Simon through the addition of our two newest stores in Phipps Plaza and The Galleria,” Tom Ford, the company’s CEO and creative director, said in a press release earlier this year.
“Houston and Atlanta continue to be very strong markets for our business, and we look forward to serving our customers in these new stores.”
Tom Ford isn’t the only luxury retailer slated to debut soon in the Saks Fifth Avenue wing in Phipps Plaza.
Dolce & Gabbana is “coming soon” to adjacent space, according to an update site plan for the Buckhead mall, at 3500 Peachtree Rd NE.
Phipps Plaza for a year has been amidst an overhaul into a “transformative mixed-use redevelopment” which will include the arrival of Nobu Hotel and Restaurant Atlanta, a 90,000 square-foot Life Time, and One Phipps Plaza, a 13-story, 350,000 square foot Class A office building.
The “reimagined” Phipps Plaza is set to open in phases beginning in 2020.


text:
Attention Mrs Hinch fans, B&M have launched their biggest cleaning event ever TODAY (Wednesday 30 January) and it includes some of the Instagram sensation’s must-have products.
The much loved Big Clean event launched this week and there’s everything from cloths to bleach that Mrs Hinch swears by – including products from her favourite brands Minky and Zoflora.
Some of the 28-year-old’s top products include Star Drops White Vinegar 750ml (99p), 1001 Carpet Freshener (£1.89), CIF Cream 500ml (£1) and Leather Wipes 60pk (£1).
One item the ‘Hinch Army’ are most familiar with is the Minky M Cloth Anti-Bacterial Cleaning Pad which has become like gold dust and is sold out everywhere – it’s even on eBay for 35 times the original price!
B&M are selling their own version, Scrub Buddy Scourers 3pk, for just £1.99 and customers are already going mad for them.
One Instagram user shared on her story how much she loves the scrub sponge, which is almost identical to the Minky pad.
With customers already taking to social media to share which products they’ve spotted in stores, the discount retailer are expecting the shelves to be cleared.
One user shared a photo of sell-out budget paste “The Pink Stuff” for just £1 which Mrs Hinch recently revealed is the secret to achieving a sparkling hob.
Other products in the event include Daz Pods 42 pack for just £5.99 which are currently £10 in Morrisons, or Unstoppables Fresh Plug In Oil Refills are just £3.99, they’re £7 in Asda.
You can also pick up Vileda Mocio Mop Refills 2pk for just £3.99, they’d set you back £5.50 in Wilko’s!
The Big Clean event is on in B&M stores nationwide until Tuesday 26th February, so head down to your nearest B&M store now to get your “hinching hour” on.


text:
Coronavirus: Italy carefully reopens for business
26 May 2020 | 12:44 pm
Restaurants, shops and museums are now allowed to reopen in Italy, under certain conditions. For many business owners, the new rules remain too difficult to operate under.
30 May 2020
France is full of small museums that retrace its history. In the south-western town of Agen, the museum of fine arts houses 3,000 works of art.
23 Jun 2020
Traffic is back on the streets of Riyadh, and restaurants and hair salons have reopened as Saudi Arabia lifts its coronavirus curfew. Saudi Arabia has been the hardest-hit Gulf state during the pandemic, with over 150,000 confirmed cases.
27 Jun 2020
In the capitals of the two Koreas, rival museums offer radically different accounts of the same conflict: a war launched to unify the peninsula that now defines its division.
3 Sep 2020
Chukwuemeka Nnaji, President of the Nigeria Union of Traders Association in Ghana joins CNBC Africa for more.
4 Oct 2020
Congolese activist Mwazulu Diyabanza has tried to remove looted art from museums in protest against the theft of African art treasures. Now he is facing trial.
16 Oct 2020
Faced with rising coronavirus cases, Catalonia closes restaurants and bars for two weeks.
28 Dec 2020
Fire razes 254 shops in Yar' Kasuwa in Abuja
24 Jan 2021
Melanie Igbe's restaurant hosted 50 people a day when it opened in Nigeria's megacity Lagos a year ago. Fear of coronavirus has driven most diners away, but Igbe believes inflation rather than the pandemic may kill her business.
10 Feb 2021
Erin Osun, Lobu residents flee as communities, houses, shops, vehicles burnt
14 Feb 2021
With restaurants and cafés closed due to the pandemic, an alternative is emerging among Brussels hoteliers: transforming bedrooms into private dining rooms, so guests can enjoy an evening "as if at a restaurant" but in compliance with the law.
27 Feb 2021
Singaporean Sue-Anne Chng used to wear a different outfit on all 15 days of the Lunar New Year, when it is customary to don new clothes to symbolise a fresh start. But this year she will wear second-hand items exchanged for her old clothes at a store catering to people concerned about the impact of fast fashion on the environment. Several swapping initiatives, from permanent shops to pop-up events, have appeared in the affluent city-state in a bid to encourage consumers to make the most of what is already in their closets.
3 hours ago
Find these stories and much more when you grab a copy of The Guardian on Thursday.
7 hours ago
After speaking with Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas, the German chancellor bristled at his use of the words apartheid and Holocaust with regards to Israel.
7 hours ago
11 Hindu men given life sentences for raping a Muslim woman in 2002 and killing seven of her family have been released from prison. The rape took place during riots in Gujarat state, led at the time by Narendra Modi.
9 hours ago
Officials of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) currently being questioned by the Nigerian Senate have claimed that some of the payment vouchers relating to the transfer of the sum of 17.16 billion in 2013 have been eaten up by termites.
10 hours ago
The vast majority of Sierran Leoneans — 80 percent in fact — are under 35. But is the government doing enough to empower this young generation? DW's Edith Kimani asks young Sierra Leoneans if they feel powerful enough to make their mark on the global stage.


text:
NEC Offers Risk-Free, Money Back Guarantee on SAN Products
Effort is focused on building the company's branded storage business and increase sales.
By Chris Talbot
NEC is looking to increase its branded storage business by offering a risk-free, 30-day money back guarantee to customers.
The guarantee not only offers customers their money back with no questions asked, but also includes de-installation and removal of the equipment, paid freight to ship the equipment back and even data migration to the storage of the customer's choice. The 30-day guarantee is meant to get customers to consider NEC as an alternative while offering them no risk, said Josh Eddy, product marketing manager for NEC's Advanced Storage Products Group.
NEC may not be a huge brand name in North America when it comes storage, but the company regularly ranks in the top 10 worldwide storage vendors, Eddy explained. Much of its business has been through OEM sales, though. Now, NEC is trying to build its branded business up more.
"The reason that we do this is we're trying to increase sales, and we do that because we provide the best value in SAN storage," Eddy said.
NEC is confident in the dependability, scalability and efficiency of its systems, as the company has been in the storage business since 1959, he said. Because of that, Eddy said he doesn't actually expect any customers to take advantage of the 30-day guarantee, but it can open their eyes to an alternative storage vendor--and they know there's no risk involved, he said.
"We are so confident in this belief that customers are going to find value in these three core areas that we stand behind it 100 per cent," Eddy said.
The 30-day clock doesn't kick in at the point of sale or delivery, but after the storage solution (NEC's D-Series SAN product) has been installed and is up and running, he noted.


text:
Madhya Pradesh Tourism Board (MPTB) is organising the 7th edition of ‘Jal Mahotsav’, one of the biggest events of the State, from November 28 at Hanuwantiya island in Khandwa district. Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan will inaugurate the ‘Water Carnival’ which will endure for two months until January 28, 2023. The event will be graced by the Minister Tourism, Culture, Religious Trust and Endowment Department Usha Thakur.
Highlighting the Jal Mahotsav, Principal Secretary Tourism and Culture and Managing Director, MP Tourism Board Sheo Shekhar Shukla said, “Jal Mahotsav has established itself as an ideal destination for adventure lovers across the country. The tourism board constantly strives to enhance the enthusiasm and enjoyment of tourists through new innovations. In this series, a flying inflatable boat activity is being organised at Hanuwantiya island located on the backwaters of Indira Sagar Dam. Tourists will enjoy such an activity for the first time in the country. Adventure activities such as scuba diving, night safari at Boriyamal Island, luxury regal series boat, 40 feet-high rope swing, zip cycle, paramotoring, parasailing, speed boat, jet-ski, hot air ballooning, motor boat riding etc. will be the major attractions.
The tourism board, in association with Sunset Desert Camp, is operating the Tent City on the backwaters of Indira Sagar Dam for tourists. The tent city will have 104 luxury Swiss tents as well as an AC conference hall for corporate conferences.


text:
YouDazzle is the first ever Silicon Valley MLM Start Up and they are promising to provide the best online meeting and file sharing platform in the world.
The company was recently featured on Tech Crunch:
One unique aspect of YouDazzleâ€™s model is in its sales distribution strategy. Instead of employing an in-house sales team, the company is building an outside salesforce similar. Similar to the way that Avon makeup representatives sell the companyâ€™s makeup independently, YouDazzle is building aÂ team of â€œYouDazzle Cloud Consultants,â€ who will sell the product. The startup will train these individuals to not only sell the service but also be able to work with customers and teams to get them up and running, answer questions, troubleshoot and more.
The company has secured funding from Charmath Palihapitiya, a Facebook executive who was in charge of the Facebook Platform and also launched Facebook’s OnlineÂ AdvertisingÂ Platform.
Can we solve the #1 Business problem people have today? Yes -- and the answer is simple...
With 2,000 locations open or in development in 15 countries, Snap Fitness is the top choice
Thin Energy is looking for a limited number of motivated business minded people
Coaching is a high-margin business where you can utilize your sales and/or business experience.
The coffee vending business is your opportunity to cash in on the 30 billion dollar coffee industry.


text:
British telecommunications company Vodafone agreed on Monday to buy Spain's Ono for 7.2 billion euros ($10 billion) as it seeks to expand operations across Europe.
The deal is part of a broader trend of mergers and takeovers in Europe, where the mobile industry is split among some 150 major operators crisscrossing national lines -- compared to just four in the United States.
Grupo Corporativo Ono S.A. provides phone, mobile and television services to 1.9 million customers and has the largest "next-generation network" in Spain, reaching 7.2 million homes, or 41 percent of the country. Vodafone says Ono has abundant spare capacity, giving it space to expand.
Last year the company announced a major partnership with Spotify in the U.K., bundling its 4G plan with two years of the music service (or a subscription to Sky Sports Mobile TV). The acquisition of Ono could bring a similar deal to Spain, though no announcements have been made.
Vodafone is flush with cash after agreeing last year to sell its stake in a U.S. venture to Verizon for $130 billion in cash and stock -- one of the biggest deals in corporate history.
Monday's deal marks Vodafone's second major acquisition in Europe, after its purchase of Kabel Deutschland last year. Vodafone was attracted by Kabel Deutschland's extensive cable network, which it could use to expand its fixed-line, broadband and television business.
The deal allows Vodafone to accelerate its expansion in Europe, save costs in its Spanish operations and take advantage of the rapid increase in the adoption of unified communications products and services in the Spanish market. Ono has invested approximately 7 billion euros in its network since 1998.
Analysts were divided over the potential benefits of the deal.
"Spain has been the source of losses for several quarters, and bundling Vodafone's mobile services with popular broadband and cable TV offerings is the only realistic choice to drive up customer retention, new subscribers and per-customer revenues," said Jason Sumner, technology analyst at The Economist Intelligence Unit.


text:
'When Jeff Bezos announced that Amazon would be raising its minimum wage to $15 an hour last week, the reception was rapturous. The Seattle Times called it “the just thing.” “Good for them,” said President Trump’s chief economic adviser Larry Kudlow. “I’m in favor of higher wages.” Bloomberg called it proof that “an even higher minimum wage is probably safe for big, productive cities.” Senator Bernie Sanders, a chief Bezos antagonist, called it “enormously important.” “Unequivocally good news,” said The Washington Post.
The latter is owned by Jeff Bezos, an all-too-easily forgotten point these days. Because for all the questions to follow this announcement — Why now? What is Amazon eliminating to pay for this? How much praise does Bezos, recently crowned the World’s Richest Man, deserve while paying, as of 2017, a median Amazon income of $28,446? — we are not asking the real one.
When did we become The United States of Amazon?
Author, entrepreneur and NYU business professor Scott Galloway has emerged as one of Amazon’s fiercest critics. At last month’s Recode Code Commerce, Galloway gave a 45-minute talk on the future of retail that savaged Amazon and warned of the threats the company poses not just economically but philosophically and morally.
“I believe our society is effectively going through this very uncomfortable transition that is bad for our youth, bad for America and bad for the planet where we no longer worship at the altar of character and kindness,” he said. “We worship at the altar of innovators and billionaires.”'
Read more: Break up Amazon before it does any more damage to America
Did you like this article?
Thank you for your vote!
11 June 2019
Police say there's 'no guarantee' criminal charges will be brought over Grenfell Tower fire that killed 72 and investigation could take another three years
Is There A “Power Player” Behind The Current Tech Craziness Propelling The New World Order’s Geo-governance?
From our advertisers
13 hours ago
Behind the Syrian Network for Human Rights: How an opposition front group became Western media’s go-to monitor
From our advertisers


text:
Amazon seeks to pause antitrust review of 2019 deal with India's Future: Reporttext_fields
Amazon.com Inc has asked the Supreme Court of India to pause an expedited review of allegations that the US firm concealed information while seeking antitrust clearance for a 2019 deal with Future Group, reports Reuters.
The Competition Commission of India (CCI) in June accused Amazon of concealing facts and making false submissions when it sought approval for the $200 million investment into a Future unit in 2019, a deal that is now at the heart of protracted legal disputes between the two sides.
The Supreme Court approach by Amazon comes as the CCI on Wednesday held a closed-door hearing where the US firm's lawyers declined to argue and explain their position on the matter, saying they had asked the top court to pause the process.
according to the report, the watchdog noted in an internal document that it had decided to give no extensions to the company to explain its position and will now issue an order in due course. The CCI decision is critical to Amazon's legal challenges.
If the CCI rules against Amazon and revokes the 2019 approval, it could have wide-ranging ramifications on the US firm's ongoing legal battle with Future, people familiar with the case say.
That's because Amazon has so far successfully used the 2019 Future unit deal to argue breach of certain contracts when the Indian company announced plans to sell its retail assets to rival Reliance Industries for $3.4 billion last year.
Future, which denies any wrongdoing, accuses Amazon of illegally interfering in its business decisions and derailing a potential deal without which it says it will face liquidation.


text:
Accenture’s Pulse of Media Consumer Survey found 49% of those surveyed are viewing over-the-top video through a broadband connection on their TV. In the US the figure is 50%, while in the UK it is 48%.
Consumers are also said to be viewing content on mobile devices, creating video playlists, posting videos on social media. Social networks are also an increasing source of information about new TV shows, illustrating the importance of services like Zeebox.
“We are seeing a seismic shift in consumer viewing habits,” said Robin Murdoch, a managing director in Accenture’s Media & Entertainment industry group. “The connected consumer is now comfortable viewing TV shows and video on a variety of screens, as well as sharing opinions of that content via social channels or recommendation engines.”
Unsurprisingly it is the younger consumer that is first to embrace the new delivery mechanisms. In the US, 82% of consumers between the ages of 18 and 24 watch some OTT video, with 60% watching at least a quarter of their video over-the-top (compared to 32% of US consumers overall). In the UK, 75% of consumers in that age group watch some OTT, with 54% watching at least 25 percent (compared with 28 percent of overall consumers) in this manner.
Accenture says 49% of consumers are now subscribing to a range of video delivery services, suggesting OTT video consumption has grown at an astonishing rate since last measured by Accenture in March 2011 at 8%. Subscription and access levels to such services are now on a par with satellite among those surveyed.
It should be noted that the research was conducted online, where there is likely to be a greater acceptance of broadband-delivered video.
In the U.K., 26 percent of those surveyed subscribe to or access OTT services like Netflix, LoveFilm, or BBC’s iPlayer on TV services, or Sky Go/Now TV from Sky, compared with 30% to satellite. (Sky Go is of course available free to Sky satellite subscribers)
The survey also probed consumers’ willingness to pay for content and found that more than one-third (36%) would be willing to pay to see a favorite show continue. Of that group, 18 percent indicated they would pay £10 or more, and half (50 percent) would pay £1-£4. Younger consumers were more willing to contribute to the cause with nearly three-quarters (72%) of 18-24 year-olds in the US and more than half (54%) of the respondents in the UK.


text:
While calling the economy strong and financial vulnerabilities moderate, he also said the central bank is hearing a "rising chorus" of concern about tariffs and the U.S.'s turn toward protectionist trade policies. WALL STREET: Major U.S. indexes fell after the Fed pushed interest rates higher as expected. President Trump expressed his displeasure over the Federal Reserve raising the benchmark interest rate by another quarter-percentage point.
While the full text of its new trade agreement with the United States has to be released, Mexico never won protection from future tariffs, said Heyman. The U.S. exported more goods to Canada past year than to China, Japan and Germany combined. But late on Thursday, U.S. officials reached out to Canada to ask for details of Ottawa's negotiating demands and where it might be able to make compromises, Reuters reported .
In a statement Thursday, Musk said the SEC lawsuit left him "deeply saddened and disappointed". "In truth and in fact, Musk had not even discussed, much less confirmed, key deal terms, including price, with any potential funding source", the SEC said in the complaint filed in federal district court in the Southern District of NY.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission made the connection clear at a Thursday press conference after announcing that it had sued Musk for falsely asserting that he had secured funding to take the company private at $420 a share. That day, Tesla shares closed up 11 per cent from the previous day. The regulator wants Musk to pay fines and any money he gained from the spike-causing tweets, and wants to remove him as CEO of Tesla.
Facebook has since releasing the security update said attackers used APIs to access personal information. The social media site do not know who is behind the attack or where they are based, according to a statement. As another precaution, the company is also turning off the " View As " feature temporarily while it conducts a review. The company has also reset the access tokens to an additional 40 million accounts that were the subject of a View As look up as a precautionary measure.
Her blueprint for the United Kingdom leaving the European Union, known as the Chequers plan, was rejected by EU leaders at a disastrous summit in Salzburg, Austria, last week . Tusk's rejection of the Chequers plan has created a political problem for the prime minister ahead of the Conservative Party conference. She will go on to say she has a plan for an economy that is knowledge-rich, highly-innovative, highly-skilled and high quality but with low tax and smart regulation.
As it is often the case with Tesla , they made a decision to come up with a solution in-house: "they are building their own vehicle carriers", Electrek reported on Monday. In a Twitter post from the company's chief executive, Elon Musk , it was found out that Tesla is now undergoing an extreme shortage of trailers especially-designed to transport the electric cars.
The Federal Reserve increased the target range for its benchmark interest rate to two to two-point-two-five percent, . setting the rate at its highest level since April 2008. Interest rate hikes have sped up under Chairman Jerome Powell in response to a robust economy, which will help curb inflation. "We've been hearing a rising chorus of concerns from businesses all over the country about disruption of supply chains, materials cost increases and loss of markets", Powell said.
Trump went on to say that the United States will be taxing cars coming in from Canada because the U.S. is "very unhappy" with the current NAFTA negotiations. "We don't have any comment beyond that". The White House now plans to submit a new proposed trade agreement between the USA and Mexico for Congress to begin reviewing as soon as this week.
Iranian Minister of Petroleum has welcomed OPECs decision effectively rebuffing President Donald Trump's calls for a hike in oil output, saying USA empty dream to zero Irans oil exports would not realize. "If he wants the price of oil not to go up and the market not to get destabilised, he should stop unwarranted and disruptive interference in the Middle East and not be an obstacle to the production and export of Iran's oil".
Sources with knowledge of the talks have told The Globe and Mail that, in addition to these matters, Canada's demand for an exclusion from potential future auto tariffs, and US demands for tougher pharmaceutical patent protections and increased duty-free online purchases for Canadian consumers, have not been resolved.
But he said producers would reduce "supply if there is ever. a demand shock to the market". Brent could rise to $100 for the first time since 2014 as the market braces for the loss of Iranian supplies due to USA sanctions, according to Mercuria Energy Group Ltd.
Kors, which will be renamed Capri Holdings Ltd., said it expects to increase Versace's revenue to $2 billion and increase the number of its retail outlets to 300 from 200. The brand is known for its opulent, glamorous designs that are always in heavy rotation on celebs. Jefferies reiterated its "buy" rating for Micheal Kors after the acquisition of the Italian designer house Versace .
Speaking at the United Nations General Assembly , Mr Trump described Iran as having a "corrupt dictatorship" which he claims "fueled and funded" the civil war in Syria. "We must protect our sovereignty and our cherished independence above all", said Trump. " Didn't expect that reaction , but that's OK", he responded.
Currently, one of the most popular and widespread methods for tipping influencers and content creators on Twitter and Reddit is through the XRP Tip Bot, which has facilitated over 55,000 XRP tips totaling at 72,684 XRP sent in total.
The rise comes amid pledges by the Arabian Gulf Opec oil producers of sufficient oil production capacities to meet demand , even as the group remained vague about allotment of quotas during its latest technical committee meet on Sunday.
Two years into Instagram's tenure-which began only eight years ago!-the famously prescient Mark Zuckerberg bought Instagram for $1 billion in cash and stock, seeing in the burgeoning company the promise of a tech giant. Instagram had about 30 million users in 2012, the year it was purchased by Facebook for what appeared to be an eye-watering $1bn. Still, any risk from the "over-Facebookization" of Instagram would take time to play out, said Mr.
The chain advised consumers to cut up strawberries before eating them. Countdown is working with New Zealand and Australian authorities. This comes after a massive recall across the Tasman, where the product was pulled from the shelves of a number of supermarkets after the discovery of strawberries spiked with needles across six regions in Australia.
ABC managing director Michelle Guthrie has been sacked from the national broadcaster. ABC chair Justin Milne said "In resolving to seek fresh leadership, the Board's foremost consideration was the long-term interests of our own people and the millions of Australians who engage with ABC content every week".
Consumers are still being urged to buy strawberries and other fruit however they have been warned to slice the fruit before eating it. "We have worked with our suppliers to implement additional control measures to ensure strawberries are inspected before they are sent to supermarkets", a spokesperson said.
The current price action confirms the notion that the crude oil market is "fragile" and highly sensitive to the upside on any news that even hints at lower supply. Speaking of oil, recently oil prices were increased by 1.6% in the USA, as the US stocks fell by 5.3 Million barrels. Opec and oil producers outside the group, including Russian Federation, will meet on Sunday to revise oil production quotas.
Coca Cola issued a statement on the media speculation, on Monday, which said: "We have no interest in marijuana or cannabis ". Heather MacGregor, a spokeswoman for Aurora, said in an emailed statement that the cannabis producer has expressed specific interest in the infused-beverage space , and intends to enter that market, BNN Bloomberg's David George-Cosh reported .
Brent crude futures had dropped 29 cents, or 0.37 percent, to $77.76 per barrel by 12.02pm. USA crude futures (CLc1) were down 6 cents at $69.79, after gaining 1.4 percent the day before. USA stock indexes broadly fell yesterday, weighing on oil futures, on expectations that Trump would go ahead with the new tariffs and that Beijing would retaliate.
An official with the Directorate General of Civil Aviation told CNN News 18 that the crew forgot to press a button . "The passenger claimed that Jet Airways has not taken care of its customers and therefore he should be paid Rs 30 lakh in addition to 100 upgrade vouchers to enable him travel in a business class on an economy class ticket", a source said.
Amazon will handle the home charging installation through its Amazon Home Services division. Although most of the e-tron quattro's styling cues have already appeared on other Audi models, they've all been adapted to make it look a bit more futuristic.
It's in an early stage, Bloomberg notes, adding that probes like this can take several months and sometimes end with prosecutors deciding not to take action. Musk surprised investors on August 7 with his plan to take Tesla private , tweeting that he had " funding secured " for a deal that would have valued the company at $72 billion.
Workers in Chicago , McDonald's home town, Durham, Kansas City , Los Angeles, Miami, Milwaukee, New Orleans , Orlando, San Francisco and St Louis will all walk out at lunchtime in an effort to highlight their struggle and call on the company to take action.
Offers may vary by location. In honor of National Cheeseburger Day, Wendy's is giving away a free Dave's Single with the purchase of just about anything for the rest of September. The FB Burger normally sells for $8 to $10. The only thing better than a deliciously juicy burger is one that's topped in creamy, melted cheese. Red Robin is offering a $5 "gourmet cheeseburger", complete with its signature Bottomless Steak Fries, with the purchase of any beverage.
The president had already announced tariffs on $ 50 billion (€43 billion) worth of Chinese goods since July in two phases. The new tariffs that President Trump put on $ 200 billion worth of Chinese goods Monday will hit home in a place that may not sit well with American consumers: their holiday gift-giving budgets.
On the contrary, Trump has picked fights with each of those trading partners - from imposing tariffs on imported steel and aluminum to demanding that Mexico and China transform the North American Free Trade Agreement into a deal more favorable to the United States .


text:
More people are heading to the dealership, according to new numbers released by some of the biggest automakers.
Most car makers are reporting stronger than expected sales for August.
Automotive expert Dr. Tim Nash of Northwood University says, in addition to the aging fleet of vehicles being replaced, there is a lot of pent up demand.
"The average age of an automobile is now in double digits," said Nash.
Nash says end of model year closeout incentives, along with lower gas prices, are also encouraging sales.
Garber Chevrolet in Midland says sales are up about seven percent from last year.
"I think there was a time when consumer confidence was a little bit lower and I think we're experiencing a lot higher consumer confidence right now so that may play into it," said Craig Lang, general manager.
The dealership is noting an increase in S.U.V. and truck sales, including with some models built in Flint.
Chrysler saw a 20 percent increase from August of last year. Ford sales rose by a half percent. General Motors national sales numbers dropped by just over one percent but automotive experts say that indicates sales are holding steady after the recent recalls of 29 million vehicles.


text:
Do you hate wrapping Christmas gifts? Or are you just plain bad at it?
Either way (but we know it’s the latter), bring your haul to Breather (36 Gloucester St.) for at-your-service wrapping — on the house.The on-demand work and private space start-up is offering free giftwrapping services to anyone who RSVPs for a spot between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 19.
For Breather — which opened doors in Boston in Aprilwith locations in Back Bay and Harvard Square —the Christmas tunes, free coffee and endless supply of Scotch tape and wrapping paperis an easy ploy to get new potential users into their Instagram-ready rooms, which are available for rent by the hour.
The Montreal-based company currently has nine minimalist single rooms perfect for meetings, phone calls and rendezvous in the Boston area, with additional locations in San Francisco, New York and Canada. Rates range $25-$40 per hour.
But don’t worry, it’s not entirely a PR stunt—they’ll also make a donation to The Boys and Girls Club of Boston for every RSVP. Hey now, that’s some holiday cheer.


text:
The rise in prices is driven by energy and food products in the wake of the war in Ukraine.
Consumer price inflation in Japan reached 2.8% in August year on year (excluding fresh products), according to data published on Tuesday September 20, a new high since October 2014 against a backdrop of soaring energy prices.
Excluding 2014, a period when prices were artificially boosted by a VAT hike, inflation in August was even the highest recorded in Japan since 1991. The August figure was also slightly higher than expectations of the consensus of economists from the Bloomberg agency (2.7%). Without taking energy into account, inflation was more moderate (1.6%), while also being higher than in July, due to the increase in the prices of other products, notably food.
Not yet ripe for monetary tightening
However, these statistics should not immediately move the Bank of Japan (BoJ), whose monetary policy decision is expected on Thursday. The BoJ continues to maintain its rates at levels close to zero, contrary to the other major global central banks, which has caused the yen to fall for several months, particularly against the dollar. Even though its inflation target of 2% excluding fresh food has been achieved since April, the BoJ believes that Japan is not yet ripe for monetary tightening.
Because the rise in prices in the archipelago is essentially driven by external factors (the surge in energy and food prices in the wake of the war in Ukraine) and temporary, according to the BoJ, which would like to see wages increase further to generate a healthy inflation. But this analysis by the BoJ is increasingly criticized, especially since the institution also puts into perspective the negative impact of the fall of the yen on small and medium-sized businesses and Japanese consumers, which makes it unpopular in the same way than the Japanese government.


text:
A ROW today erupted over £30m plans to build a vast leisure complex in south Liverpool featuring three hotels, a multiplex cinema, bars and restaurants.
New Mersey Leisure, earmarked for 14 acres of a 49-acre derelict site next to the New Mersey retail park, in Speke, would create 325 permanent jobs and pump £5.5m per year into the city’s economy, its developer the Benmore Group said.
But the project, recommended for approval by Liverpool council’s planning committee next Tuesday, has met with vocal opposition from car manufacturer Ford and rival developer Peel.
Ford sub-leases land on the proposed site from ANSA Logistics, to store up to 4,000 vehicles transported there by the neighbouring freight rail network.
In an objection letter backed by the union Unite, Ford said the jobs of 188 workers linked to the site could be jeopardised if the scheme is permitted.
Through solicitors Cushman and Wakefield, the firm told the council: “Ford has categorically established there is no other suitable, affordable rail-connected site able to support the current operation locally.
“Closure of this site as a distribution centre for Ford would result in a move away from the North West for this operation, and the loss to the area of skilled employment as a result.”
Benmore, which owns the freehold to the land, said it would create a “substantial area of land” for car storage at the former Tea Factory, off Speke Hall Road.
An eight-page letter submitted by Peel claimed the proposals would not help regional economic growth. The Port of Liverpool owner highlighted the “diminished ability” to make best use of the “rare rail freight connection” and said there was no legitimate demand for three hotels on the site.
Its letter said: “The New Mersey proposals represent economic development but not sustainable economic growth.
“On the contrary, they will frustrate the realisation of expanded rail-freight use in the city, which should have negative regional implications.”
A spokesman for Benmore said access to the rail network “would not be affected”.
The firm, which is also behind plans to redevelop the former Pioneer Buildings, in Dale Street, into a 120-bedroom hotel, initially wants to build a seven-screen cinema, 18 leisure units and a 78-bedroom hotel at the Speke site.
It also wants outline planning permission for two further 78 and 120-bedroom hotels.
If planning permission is granted, the park could be open by the end of next year.


text:
CNY Farms blog
Check the farm blog for local farming news and June is Dairy Month trivia questions.
Mexico, NY -- Like all dairy farmers, Gary and James Hurlbut always have something to do on their farm. If they're not fixing fences on their town of Mexico farm, they're feeding cows. If that's all done, they are fixing equipment. And then after that, there's hay to harvest.
But for all this work -- usually 15 hours a day -- they are losing money. They are putting off paying bills because they don't have the money. The farm business hasn't paid them a salary in six weeks. And for the first time since they've owned the farm, they are applying for a loan just to get by.
"We are losing $6,000 every month," Gary Hurlbut said. "When all is said and done, at the end of the month, we have nothing left."
As the country celebrates National Dairy Month beginning today, the Hurlbuts and other dairy farmers are suffering from the low prices being paid for their milk.
The cost per 100 pounds of milk -- which equals 11.6 gallons -- is down nearly $7 from last year.
In April 2008, farmers received $18.76 per 100 pounds, or $1.62 per gallon. This April, they received $11.83 per 100 pounds, or $1.01 per gallon.
More about milk prices
Why have prices dropped?
Overseas demand for milk is down from last year because of the worldwide economic slump, the end of the melamine scare in China and the end of the drought and drop in milk production in New Zealand. The U.S. and New York exported a lot of milk last year when the economy was good, people stopped buying powdered milk from China and New Zealand was not producing much milk because of the drought. This led to higher prices for farmers last year.
Milk production in New York state is up slightly in 2007.
What's the impact?
• Milk prices in stores have gone down, but not as much as the prices paid to farmers
• U.S. ups exports to other nations
• Farmers reduce the number of cows through slaughter
The domino effect
As farm milk prices plummet, the effect trickles down to other businesses.
"(If dairy farmers aren't doing well), that will impact the equipment dealers, feed dealers and insurance salesmen and veterinarians, " said state Sen. Darrel Aubertine, chair of the Senate Ag Committee. "This will then impact other parts of agriculture like apple growers and onion growers. As goes dairy, so goes ag. And it all affects the (economies)of rural communities."
He also said the issue affects food safety because having milk and milk products produced locally is "in everyone's best interest."
Yet, prices in the grocery store don't always correspond.
In May 2008, a gallon of skim milk in Auburn and Syracuse was selling for an average of $2.55 a gallon. This month, gallons of skim at Wegmans markets in Syracuse and Auburn were $2.69. But milk has been selling for $1.65 a gallon through store sales and value-card deals.
Nationally, the average price for a gallon of milk at grocery stores last month was down just 19 percent from its peak of $3.83 in July. Farmers, on the other hand, got $1.04 a gallon in April -- 35 percent less than they were paid last fall.
"Does that make any sense to you?" Hurlbut asks.
Finances have gotten so bad that loan requests to the federal Farm Service Agency are way up. Mark Dennis, the agency's state executive officer in Syracuse, said his office had about $66 million to loan in New York state and that amount usually lasts through the summer.
The $66 million was gone by March 27.
"Some farms are just hemorrhaging cash," Dennis said. "It has not been good."
And nationally, the low milk price is driving some farmers out of business.
Hurlbut said his father used to say "there's got to be an easier way to make a living." He's beginning to know what his father was talking about.
Farmers cannot set the price they get for their milk. Instead, it's based on a formula that comes from cheese prices from the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.
Prices paid to farmers started to dive last October. The culprit is the age-old economic theory of supply and demand.
"Demand is down, and supply is up," Hurlbut said.
Ed Gallagher, vice president of economics and risk management for Dairylea Cooperative, said prices probably won't rebound much until fall or winter this year. Dairylea is the largest cooperative of dairy farmers in the Northeast.
The remedy is the supply of milk has to be cut, he said.
Some measures to do that already have been taken.
On May 22, the U.S. Department of Agriculture activated the Dairy Export Incentive Program, which helps the United States export more nonfat dry milk, butter and cheese overseas. This helps cut surpluses.
Also, Cooperatives Working Together, a national program developed by National Milk Producers Federation to strengthen and stabilize milk prices by balancing supply with demand, recently accepted bids from farmers to sell and slaughter nearly 103,000 cows out of about 9.2 million milk cattle in the country.
This would reduce the number of cows producing milk. The result would be a reduction of 2 billion pounds, or nearly 232 million gallons, of milk production capacity.
"The country has ramped up on expanding world demand," Gallagher said. "But with the recession, the melamine scare (from milk in China) and increasing milk production in New Zealand, we have lost a lot of international demand."
The price paid for farmers' milk ebbs and flows during the year and from year to year. Farmers are used to this. But every once in a while, prices plunge too deeply, too quickly.
Right now,"falling national and international demand beginning in 2008 (has) resulted in prices falling to 1979 levels," according to a report from Agri-Mark, another large milk cooperative covering New York and the Northeast.
"But this one is really scary," Gallagher said. "Farmers haven't gone through a cycle like this before."
So why is it so bad this time around?
Mark Stephenson, senior extension associate at Cornell University, said there are two reasons.
"While prices are as low as they have been in a while, costs are higher then when we've been in a trough before," he said. "That makes it impossible for farms to cash flow."
"And in the past when there's been a trough, we've bounced off the bottom in a month or two," Stephenson said. "This trough is more persistent."
Hurlbut said last year was a challenge financially, mostly because of high fuel costs (gas and diesel were around $4.50 a gallon). But at least he was getting about $18 to $20 per hundred pounds ($1.55 to $1.72 gallon)
This year, fuel costs less, but other things have gone up, such as fertilizer, grain, taxes, electricity and telephone.
But last year, the farm business was able to pay Hurlbut and his brother so they could pay their living expenses. But not this year.
"Our mother gave us money to pay some expenses (such as her funeral) after she died," Hurlbut said. "We had a little left over and that's what we're using right now."
The Hurlbuts milk 56 cows, operate about 10 acres of apple orchards and run a maple syrup business. Last year, Hurlbut said the farm caught up on debt from the rest of the year when apple season began.
He can't even make money selling bull calves. In March 2008, he was paid $105 for one bull calf. In March of this year, he got $4.16 for two bull calves.
"Last year was tight," Hurlbut said. "This year is a lot worse -- there's no comparison."


text:
While probably not the large expansion AT&T customers were looking for, especially those customers thinking about getting the new Nokia Lumia 900, the carrier’s network has expanded nonetheless moving into one new big market and expanding in another major one.
AT&T has announced that it’s high-speed, next-generation 4G LTE network has arrived in St. Louis, Missouri today and expanded in New York City to Staten Island. AT&T’s network was already available in the other four boroughs of New York – Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan and Queens – so it’s nice to see the carrier light up the fifth borough with its new network.
The carrier has quite a few markets that should be getting 4G LTE service soon.
Those markets include:
- Baton Rouge, LA
- New Orleans, LA
- Cleveland, OH
- Akron, OH
- Canton, OH
- Lafayette, IN
We’re assuming both New Orleans and Baton Rouge will have the service by the time CTIA kicks off in the former of the two come May 8th. The other four markets aren’t so clear at this time.
The arrival of 4G LTE in St. Louis and Staten Island couldn’t come at a better time for those in those markets. AT&T currently has the widest selection of 4G LTE devices that it has ever had, a lineup that includes not only the Lumia 900 but the HTC Titan II and the Samsung Galaxy Note.
So while AT&T might not have the footprint that Verizon’s 4G LTE network has, it definitely has some things to offer those that can’t or don’t want to move to Big Red.
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.


text:
Planet 13 Holdings Inc. (CSE: PLTH) (OTCQX: PLNHF), a leading vertically-integrated cannabis company, reported its financial results late Thursday for the three-month and nine-month periods ended September 30, 2022.
"High inflation and interest rates have impacted all areas of the economy, driving down consumer spending, including here in Las Vegas. We have been able to maintain a 9% retail market share, despite this economic downturn and an 18% increase in Nevada dispensaries year over year,” Larry Scheffler, co-CEO of Planet 13 said.
"From a competitive standpoint, we continue to perform well, maintaining retail market share in our historical 8-10% range in addition to holding or gaining share for each of our brands in Nevada."
Planet 13 co-CEO Bob Groesbeck noted that through the …


text:
The cost of living crisis, a return to pre-Covid levels and the growth of delivered were three of the key topics discussed at this year’s FWD Live event. Wholesalers and suppliers from across the UK were in attendance at St. Georges Park in Burton-Upon-Trent to hear from leading industry figures and discuss the best ways to move forward as an indsutry.
Here are ten things learnt at the conference:
1. A cut to fuel duty and VAT on food were voted as the two key practical interventions the government should make to help maintain affordable food supply, as part of a survey completed by the delegates in attendance.
2. Sustainability practises need to be shared across the entire the industry for the sector to evolve ethically. “It’s a competitive disadvantage for wholesalers if they don’t collaborate on sustainable practises and data,” said Zero Carbon Forum founder Mark Chapman.
3. The SWA is taking its sustainability project a further step forward with chief executive Colin Smith revealing that it will be appointing a head of sustainability as part of its ongoing commitment to the decarbonisation of the Scottish wholesale industry.
4. Henderson Foodservice managing director Cathal Geoghem called for a business voice to be added as part of the political discussions relating to the Northern Ireland protocol.
5. There was some slight disagreement on the future of the rapid delivery market, with Mark Jones, sales director of Blakemore predicting the rate of growth to slow and the market to consolidate, whereas Dael Links of Snappy Shopper forsees an upwards curve over the next few years.
6. Research from TWC shows an appetite for the rapid delivery of grocery products. It’s findings show that 51% of consumers found the idea of rapid grocery delivery appealing, rising to 69% of those living in London.
7. “There will always be two key routes to market, and Parfetts will always support the cash & carry sector, as well as delivered” said Gurms Athwal. He also added the growth of delivered leads to greater cash flow problems, despite its obvious overall benefits.
8. Confex’s managing director Tom Gittins outlined Amex’s benefits to the industry: “It is a neat solution that helps solve a lot of financial issues across the wholesale spectrum,” he explained. In the same panel, Creed managing director Philip De Ternant said there is less loyalty to suppliers compared to three years ago: “We’re more willing to buy from what is available now.”
9. An economic study revealed a 31.2% increase in the days it takes to get products from manufacturers to consumers over the past 12-14 months from 11.8 to 15.5 days on average.
10. A study analysing the economic contribution of wholesale shows the industry performing above pre-Covid levels, with employment in the sector and turnover now surpassing the 2018 figure.


text:
The government could announce within two weeks a device to compensate for the loss of value of stocks that traders have not been able to sell during the sales, said Minister Delegate for SMEs Alain Griset on Tuesday.
We are going to look, within the framework of the solidarity fund, how to take into account the loss of value of stocks
", declared Alain Griset on France Culture.
Read also: Even extended, the sales did not seduce the French
The devices are currently under study.
There are several possible schemes.
I think that within a fortnight at most, with [the Minister of the Economy] Bruno Le Maire, we will be able to announce a device adapted to the needs
”, specified the Minister.
We will look in the next few days at the state of stocks
" and make sure that "
it does not weigh for the future
", so that the traders "
can tomorrow reinvest and buy new stock
", explained Alain Griset.
The winter sales, the launch of which had been postponed at the request of associations of small traders from January 6 to 20, were then extended from February 16 to March 2, but without meeting with great success with customers.
The sales took place while health restrictions were being tightened to fight the Covid-19 epidemic, in particular with the establishment of a curfew at 6 p.m., then the closure of shopping centers over 20,000 square meters.


text:
linuxandlife.com: The micro computer Raspberry Pi has become a real hit among tech fans all over the world. The model A was sold out in the US just within a few hours. Everybody wants this credit-card sized computer.
- Raspberri Pi Model A now available in the US
- Meet Sweetbox, sweet case for your Raspberry Pi
- RaspberryPi: Don't Open That I/O Port
linuxuser.co.uk: The CuBox, announced in December 2011, has been slow in coming to the UK, but is finally available through compact computing specialist New IT. Has it been worth the wait?
zdnet.com: I've just bought a new Aspire One 725 Acer sub-notebook/netbook - here's my take and my adventures loading it with three different flavours of Linux.
linux.com: Linux may be reaching new heights every day in desktop and mobile computing, but if there's any domain in which its might has long been undisputed, it's servers.
itwire.com: Skynet, the self-aware computers featured in the Terminator movies, is becoming more and more of a reality if a former IBM Chief Scientist is to be believed.
h-online.com: Tests on Dell's Ultrabook with pre-installed Ubuntu 12.04 show that the manufacturer has gone to some trouble to ensure that it runs well with Linux.
polygon.com: Valve's decision to break away from their work with Xi3 and their modular "Piston" computer won't impact the Xi3 Piston or how it works, the computer maker said today in a prepared statement.
arstechnica.com: When you buy a Raspberry Pi, the $35 computer doesn't come with an operating system. Loading your operating system of choice onto an SD card and then booting the Pi turns out to be pretty easy. But where do Pi-compatible operating systems come from?
arstechnica.com: The folks who built the Raspberry Pi knew they had a great idea, but they probably didn't anticipate just how successful it would be. The Raspberry Pi Foundation today is celebrating the computer's first birthday, a million devices sold, and countless DIY and programming projects completed.
h-online.com: Bill Richardson, a software engineer for Google, has detailed how to boot a conventional Linux distribution on the company's new Chromebook Pixel.
liliputing.com: While the project has hit some roadbumps, Seigo says factory tooling for a new tablet has begun, and the first models could roll off the production line by May.
linuxinsider.com: While Apple certainly remains a force in the market with smartphones, tablets and MacBooks, the company seems more focused on the first two categories and less so on its latest laptop computers -- which, regardless of past arguments from Apple, are strikingly reminiscent of Linux netbooks.
- Raspberry Pi Model A released one year later
- New $25 Raspberry Pi Linux PC Lands in Europe; Cuts RAM, More Efficient
- Getting rid of telemarketers with a Banana Phone
h-online.com: Booting Linux using UEFI just once on various Samsung laptops is enough to permanently stop them working. Several reports have been posted on the Ubuntu bug tracker, but the problem is likely to also be present in other Linux distributions, as it appears to be caused by a kernel driver for Samsung laptops.
linux-magazine.com: After six years of development, founder Eben Upton and the other members of the Raspberry Pi Foundation are finally seeing the results of their efforts.
mybroadband.co.za: There’s a quiet revolution taking place in the world of electronics and it’s being led by ordinary people, writes Alistair Fairweather.
linuxuser.co.uk: The specs say it’s packed with power, but has CompuLab truly delivered an intense product in such a small package?
adventuresinoss.com: Back in December I learned that Dell was releasing an Ubuntu optimized version of its XPS 13 laptop. I ordered one, and I thought I’d share my experience here.
theregister.co.uk: Netbooks – those compact, underpowered, inexpensive notebook PCs once hailed as the future of mobile computing – are set to disappear from retailer shelves in 2013, as the last remaining manufacturers of the devices prepare to exit the market.


text:
Insights-X announces new hall and extra services
| 30 May, 2019
Insights-X in Nuremberg is taking place for the fifth time from 9 to 12 October 2019 and is currently set to welcome 256 exhibitors from 38 countries.
In addition, organiser Spielwarenmesse eG is introducing several new features at the fifth edition of Insights-X, including the new Hall 3C and an extended range of services. These include the InsightsTalks at the InsightsArena, and the new Special Area #Inspiration.
The supporting programme is rounded off with the popular networking and hands-on events staged by exhibitors.
Last year, 5,512 highly qualified visitors from 92 nations wended their way to the stationery expo.
Ernst Kick, CEO Spielwarenmesse eG, said, “We’re very focused on pushing forward with our bespoke concept, the success of which is clearly being confirmed by our exhibitors who are not only satisfied with the organisation of the fair but also say it’s of key importance to their marketing activities.”
This year, the newly built Hall 3C replaces Hall 3. It is directly connected to the familiar Halls 1 and 2, resulting in shorter walking distances. With a 3,000 m² glass facade, the modern Hall will accommodate the InsightsArena and Atelier as well as the PartnerLounge and the Food Court.


text:
TACOMA, Wash. (AP) – A former Port Angeles naturopathic physician was sentenced to eight months in prison and one year supervised release after being found guilty of selling products he claimed could prevent numerous serious diseases, including COVID-19.
Richard Marschall was convicted in 2021, after a four-day trial, of introducing misbranded drugs into interstate commerce, his third conviction.
That’s according to the U.S. Attorney’s office.
The jury found that his marketing was false or misleading and because his products were not listed with the FDA.
At the sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge Benjamin Settle said it’s dangerous during the COVID pandemic for people to defer medical care.


text:
Furphy good, better, greener
ICONIC GOULBURN VALLEY MANUFACTURER FLICKS SUSTAINABLE SWITCH, DEPLOYING CLEAN ENERGY SOURCES
Shepparton’s Furphy Foundry has made the switch to clean, green energy sources, with all its power requirements now generated from solar energy.
The foundry, which produces public outdoor furniture for use across the country, has also modernised its casting plant with a new electric induction furnace.
The $250,000 upgrades have been jointly funded by the company and a Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning grant program.
Furphy Foundry managing director Sam Furphy said the grant had helped the company switch its operations to cleaner technology, benefiting its production process and staff.
‘‘We can now proudly say that all products produced by Furphy Foundry are made from a clean energy source, and that is very good for business, the community and the planet,’’ he said.
He said all of the foundry’s power requirements were now generated from solar energy, with any surplus energy remaining in the grid.
Mr Furphy said the new German-made electric induction furnace created a reduced carbon footprint, reduced costs and created a safer working environment.
‘‘The furnace was always expensive to run from the grid, but now we can produce as much as we can put on the floor. It’s doubled our output,’’ he said.
Mr Furphy said the company’s clean, green approach also extended to its use of timber, which was sustainably harvested around Australia, while metal castings and slats were made from 100 per cent recycled aluminium.
The 157-year-old Shepparton-based company renowned for its iconic Furphy water cart, now specialises in manufacturing durable outdoor community items, including seats, benches, restrooms, picnic settings, litter receptacles, barbecues, drinking fountains, bike racks, bollards, impact security, shelters, tree furniture and urban art.
Many of the company’s products will be used in the current Shepparton Maude St Mall upgrades.
Mr Furphy thanked the state government for supporting the company in its switch to using sustainable, clean energy sources.
‘‘It’s good to see this 157-year-old business now able to use clean technology,’’ he said.


text:
To promote its new racy teen drama, Skins, MTV has launched an entertainment checkin service that lets fans interact with each other, the show and even snag free tunes.
Partnering with social television startup Starling, MTV has created a co-viewing tool called MTV Skins Captionbomb. The premise is rather simple: Access the tool via Facebook, and then start chatting.
Users are presented with a card on which their Facebook picture appears, and then can start interacting with others in order to "unlock" new cards, which feature the faces of the Skins cast. Players can then "Play" those cards by commenting on them, thereby contributing to the general conversation about the show.
Perhaps the coolest aspect of the game is that you're not just playing for virtual currency, you can also unlock free MP3 downloads from bands featured on the show — mostly indie acts like The Drums and The So So Glos.
"We were trying to figure out how we could get beyond a checkin and create more interesting engaging ways that users can interact around our shows," says Suejin Yang, vice president of product development for MTV.
"Music is a big part of the show experience," says Colin Helms, vice president of MTV Digital Media. "They're putting a lot of new and indie music into the show. The theme song was even sourced from the audience," he adds, citing 3D Friends, the band that provided the track.
In addition to crowdsourcing the theme song, MTV really took to the web to grow buzz for the show. Since Skins was originally a UK show, it was easier to grow a fanbase before the premiere.
"We usually build a community after the show has launched," says Helms. "We did the opposite with Skins."
In fact, MTV started ramping up online efforts three months before the show's premiere last night, January 17. The network launched skins.tv, a community hub featuring show content and a variety of apps, including Where It Went Down, which lets users share where memorable moments "went down"; the Fast Society group-texting mobile app, which we covered in the past; and a Facebook app to determine your "party personality."
According to MTV, this virtual pre-gaming, if you will, paid off — garnering more than 5 million video streams and 700,000 uniques on the skins.tv site, 9,000 followers on Twitter, 55,000 "Likes" on Facebook, and 2,500 followers on Tumblr. That's all before the show launched.
Granted, Skins has the advantage of being a known entity with a pre-existing fanbase, but MTV and Starling's efforts — particularly the addition of free music to the checkin game — certainly are innovative.
Yes, entertainment checkin services are a known entity — that's basically the premise of GetGlue (who sometimes even doles out physical rewards rather than digital stickers), and WE tv has partnered with entertainment checkin service Miso to create a branded campaign around the show Bridezillas.
Still, the addition of music — including up-and-coming music — fits perfectly with the campaign. Viewers are not only exposed to new music, they're also impelled to interact with the show in order to get it.
"The whole experience is going beyond the badge," says Kenny Miller, co-founder of Starling.tv. "To give people things they can actually use."
While it may be counterintuitive — and distracting — to actively engage with others while also watching a show, recent studies have shown that a goodly number of people watch TV and surf the web simultaneously, and given that this is a show geared toward 12- to 24-year-olds, we imagine most of the viewers are online anyway.
What do you think of this campaign? Will you play while tuning into Skins next week?


text:
Music Streaming Wars: Top 8 Contenders
Background: Rdio launched in 2010 and is available worldwide. Last week, CEO Drew Lerner stepped down.
Specs: Rdio is known for built-in music discovery and offers three types of monthly subscriptions--Web ($4.99), unlimited Web & mobile ($9.99), and unlimited family ($17.99). "Heavy Rotation" selects music based on what you've been listening to and who you follow, while "Collections" houses playlists in an easy-to-search tab.
Is it working? It's hard to tell, but the executive shake-up doesn't inspire confidence. In an interview with Bloomberg, Lerner said "momentum from last year has been tremendous," but declined to give specific figures.


text:
solidThinking is now a proud member of Icsid (International Council of Societies of Industrial Design), a partner of the International Design Alliance. Icsid membership comprises educational, governmental, promotional and professional organizations and associations from over 50 countries.
In other solidThinking news, the company’s upcoming release, solidThinking Inspired 8.5, was previewed in the latest issue of DEVELOP3D magazine. The next release promises over 900 enhancements, updates and new features. The software runs on Mac and Windows and is scheduled for a mid-February release. You can read that online article here.
To learn more about solidThinking visit: www.solidthinking.com


text:
Last month — in an effort to maintain supply — grocery stores in Utah put limits on the amount of beef customers could buy in one shopping trip.
While some Utahns may have worried about the state’s beef supply, Brent Tanner, executive director for Utah Beef Council, told lawmakers Monday that there’s plenty of cattle available.
“It’s not that we have a shortage of animals,” he told the Retirement and Independent Entities Interim Committee. “[The pandemic] has created a situation [that] … changed the dynamic of our marketing and our transportation and processing.”
Tanner said the problem lies in the food supply chain and the fact that three of Utah’s meat processing facilities have either closed or reduced capacity after employees tested positive for COVID-19.
At peak levels during the pandemic, processing plants were reduced to 50% capacity, resulting in less beef at grocery stores.
Tanner said there were also transportation issues, which the Beef Council has continued to discuss with the Department of Agriculture and Food and with the state Legislature.
“It’s brought to our attention that we do need to have local processing,” he said in the virtual meeting. “We do need to have local production because in these emergency situations we don’t want to be relying upon international [facilities] or food products that are at great distances from where we are.”
Reduced processing capacity increased bidding, which led to a dramatic increase in beef prices for Utahns.
Tanner said prior to the pandemic, boxed beef was about $200 per hundredweight. For about a week that price increased to over $400 per hundredweight but is now returning to the normal range.
He made it clear that the price difference has not meant increased profits to ranchers and livestock producers. The Utah Beef Council has requested that the Department of Justice investigate the steep price increases. Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes has also requested that.
While some plants have closed or reduced production, Tanner said he’s not aware of any cattle or beef products that have been wasted in Utah. However, he did estimate that over 1 million head of cattle throughout the United States haven’t been processed as they normally would have been. This can happen if the animals are taken to a processing facility that is closed and they can’t return to farms to avoid spreading diseases.
The pandemic also meant a lot of lost revenue for the cattle industry. The beef council had Dillon Feuz, department head of agricultural commodity marketing at Utah State University, analyze a research project conducted this spring that gave insight into the scope of the economic damage.
The study showed that nationwide the cattle industry is projected to lose about $13.5 billion, and Utah could lose as much as $120 million.
“That’s pretty devastating to cattle producers and the beef industry in state of Utah,” said Tanner.


text:
Mimaki USA announces a virtual press conference on Oct. 20 at 3 p.m. ET. The conference includes an exclusive presentation of its new UV flatbed printers, as well as other developments.
According to the company, it’s launching various new UV solutions, ranging from the upgraded UJF Series printers to the large-format JFX600. In addition, it announces it’s lowering the MSRP on the majority of its products. It will also discuss how it is responding to current global shipping challenges.
If you wish to attend, RSVP here.


text:
A tempered glass screen protector seemingly designed specifically for the upcoming Huawei P20 Plus – which is also being referred to as the Huawei P11 Plus – has been spotted on Amazon France where the product can be reserved for the price of €10.99 after an €8 discount. The screen protector will apparently arrive in stock on January 31, 2018, according to the product listing, and meanwhile, the Huawei P20 Plus itself has been recently reported to launch on February 26.
One of the more interesting bits of information that can be extrapolated from this recent listing on Amazon France lies in the fact that the screen protector at hand indirectly confirms the Huawei P20 Plus’ alleged design, complete with a full-screen form factor and an iPhone X-like notch at the top of the screen. On the other hand, it’s important to point out that according to a series of recent sketches which, in turn, have been picked up by third-parties and turned into high-quality 3D renders, the Huawei device supposed to adopt a notch would be the Huawei P20 Pro, not the Plus variant. With that in mind, there seems to be some confusion surrounding this Amazon listing as to whether the screen protector is meant for the P20 Pro or the P20 Plus. Regardless, all evidence so far suggests that one of these smartphones at least will adopt a full-screen design language with virtually no bezels, and interestingly enough the same device could be the first in the OEM’s lineup to adopt Face ID-like capabilities. Huawei had previously demonstrated its face recognition technology near the end of 2017, calling it the Point Cloud Depth Camera and promising the ability to capture 10 times more points in space compared to Apple’s technology. Though the camera array was initially showcased in an accessory designed to attach to a smartphone via USB, it appears that the Huawei P20 Plus may be the first device to incorporate the technology within its dedicated notch.
While the back of the device hasn’t been shown in the Amazon listing at hand, according to previous reports the Huawei P20 Plus will carry three main cameras backed by Leica which should open up some interesting possibilities in terms of image capturing. The device is also expected to feature the HiSilicon Kirin 970 SoC paired with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of on-board memory, and should be accompanied at launch by two additional variants currently known as the Huawei P20 and the aforementioned P20 Pro, the latter of which will reportedly sit at the top of the range with the help of a new (yet-unannounced) Kirin 975 chipset.


text:
In a recent interview with The Guardian, not only does the creator of Mario and Zelda reflect on his career and the state of gaming, he also hints at 'new characters' Nintendo could introduce soon.
LG V10: A solid contender distracted with gimmicks
...of Windows phone frenzy, Marshmallow 'progress' and a Ninja Monkey
Windows 10 build 10586.104 and changelog history site rolls out
windows 10 update
Is Steve Ballmer the unsung hero of Microsoft's resurgence?
Coin 2.0: More of a conversation piece than your credit card replacement
Shigeru Miyamoto, the famed creator of games like Super Mario Bros and the Legend of Zelda, announced he is retiring from his role as the leader of game design at Nintendo to work on smaller titles.


text:
In Europe, France and Spain have adopted versions of a plan put forth by Bary S.R. Pradelski, an economist at Oxford University, and Miquel Oliu-Barton, a mathematician at the Université Paris-Dauphine, to divide countries into dangerous red and safer green zones, and allow travel within and between the green while strictly curtailing it in the red.
The researchers are pushing for the European Union to reopen the tourism business that is so critical for southern European countries by allowing travel between green areas that have low infection rates, hospital capacity to spare, and effective testing and tracing systems. Governments could focus their resources on the red areas of most economic importance, increasing testing and adding hospital capacity to turn them green.
“The impact of not having any tourism in the summer would bring Greece, Italy and Spain to an economic situation like they experienced in the Great Recession,” Mr. Pradelski said. Spain, for instance, has agreed to open the island of Majorca to tourists from some countries, including Germany and France, while keeping it closed to travel to and from the Spanish mainland.
In the United States, a group of researchers including Ms. Baicker is following a different track: using cellphone data and surveys to identify which businesses are more crowded, as well as how much of their business is conducted indoors, and how much interaction it involves, either person to person or via touching shared surfaces.
Customers tend to linger longer in a Chuck E. Cheese than in a Chick-fil-A, increasing their risk of contagion if somebody nearby is infected. Chick-fil-A, however, receives a lot more customers per square foot, bringing more people in contact with one another. Nail salons involve more personal interaction than lawn and garden stores. Some restaurants are packed at certain times, while others receive a steady trickle throughout the day.
The researchers’ idea is that businesses could retrofit in ways suited to each — say, spacing out tables or limiting foot traffic — while safeguarding health. Moreover, with access to real-time information, consumers could avoid riskier businesses and shop when their preferred stores might be less crowded.
The New York City study also relied on cellphone data. That research, by Mr. Birge and Ozan Candogan of the University of Chicago and Yiding Feng of Northwestern University, is based on the premise that residents of one neighborhood can become infected, or infect others, while at work in another — depending on how long they spend there and the infection rate in both. The risk of spreading the virus by opening a given neighborhood to business also rises with the size of its susceptible population.


text:
Amazon.com, Inc. (Nasdaq: AMZN) stock settled in for a second consecutive day of declines on Thursday following President Trump’s latest tweet about the online retailer. It seemed to confirm what we heard earlier this week, which was that the president was said to be “obsessed” with Amazon. However, analysts have been quick to try to calm investor fears for Amazon stock by saying there’s little the U.S. government could really do to cause problems for the company.
Regulatory risks start to weigh on Amazon stock, thanks to Trump
Amazon stock was a heavy weight on the S&P 500’s consumer discretionary sector on Thursday, as the company accounts for roughly 20% of the sector’s market capitalization. Deutsche Bank analyst Lloyd Walmsley said in a note this week that the regulatory risks related to Trump’s views of the company are mostly just headline risks for Amazon stock with no real impact on the company’s business. In fact, he called the concerns “significantly less concerning for investors” than the data concerns fellow FANG constituent Facebook is dealing with.
Among the potential issues that were raised are antitrust concerns, sales tax and potential problems pertaining to the U.S. Postal Service. Walmsley said it didn’t surprise him that Amazon stock plunged on the back of these concerns because of what’s happening to Facebook in connection with the Cambridge Analytica data scandal. He does see “some small risk” that President Trump could criticize the online retailer using “the bully pulpit” and possibly even place some roadblocks in its way.
However, he emphasized that the company isn’t as fragile as Facebook is right now because he thinks it would be very difficult for the Trump administration to really change anything for Amazon. As a result, he sees Trump’s latest tweet as nothing more than a distraction that’s been amplified by what’s happening to Facebook. He sees the recent pullback in Amazon stock as a buying opportunity and maintains his Buy rating and $1,650 price target.


text:
The sooner the public abides by social distancing and mask-wearing guidelines, the sooner we can safely return to the lives we all want to be living.
Chang-Wan-Ji, 83, and his wife Hsu Sho-er, 84 gave the world exactly what it never knew it needed — octogenarian streetwear influencers.
While Americans and Brits binge watched Emily In Paris with aplomb, French women took to a myriad of media platforms to rebuke the perpetuation of stereotypes the show relies on.
Fashion is a way of showing the world who we are. But with the world’s current conscious awakening, should fashion still matter? Frances Corner, author of Why Fashion Matters, explains why it still does.


text:
In a recent exciting announcement, Google has rolled out a game-changing feature for its Business Starter plans – pooled storage. This development is set to
We’re diving into the world of Google Workspace to show you how to create an email group. Email groups are a fantastic way to simplify
In the last decade, digital media has spread like wildfire in the world of marketing. The ever-increasing use of internet and the exponential growth of
Please Fill In The Details.


text:
Foot Locker (NYSE:FL) beat Wall Street’s view on the top and bottom lines in the third quarter, although its profit still slipped 1.9% amid higher expenses.
Continue Reading Below
Investors cheered the earnings beat and sales growth, sending shares up 4.7% to $48.50 early Friday morning.
The New York-based athletic apparel retailer reported a profit of $104 million, below the year-ago period’s $106 million. Per-share earnings rose a penny to 70 cents due to fewer shares outstanding.
Excluding tax benefits and other items, earnings checked in at 68 cents versus the 63 cents in the same quarter last year. Analysts were looking for 66 cents a share.
Sales climbed 6.4% to $1.62 billion, exceeding Wall Street’s expectations for $1.57 billion.
Increases in product costs contributed to a 6.8% jump in total expenses.
Foot Locker said comparable stores continued to improve with a 4.1% increase in the latest period. Along with smaller rival Finish Line (NASDAQ:FINL), Foot Locker has seen its sales tick higher in recent years, thanks to new products from Nike (NYSE:NKE) and other apparel makers.
In July, Foot Locker announced a $254 million acquisition of Runners Point Group, a specialty athletic store and online retailer based in Germany.


text:
The Kroger Co. is teaming up with Chase Pay—the digital engagement wallet from JPMorgan Chase & Co.— to offer mobile payments starting with select retail markets and e-commerce programs in 2018.
Chase has opened a pop-up shopping mall at the World Trade Centre complex in Manhattan in an effort to encourage consumers to try out its under-performing proprietary mobile wallet Chase Pay.
Sionic Mobile, provider of the fast-growing Mobile Rewards Marketplace™ and ION Commerce Engine™ (ICE) mobile loyalty and payments platform, has named Nat Milburn as managing director of Enterprise Development.
Chase is collaborating with Boston-based tech company LevelUp to integrate its technology into the Chase Pay app, enabling users to order ahead at fast food joints and save time.
Chase Bank Kenya, an innovative and fast-growing bank with an ambitious strategy across Africa, has successfully migrated its full card portfolio to the WAY4 payment software platform from Electra Card System.
Samsung will introduce its mobile payments service in South Korea later this month, with Visa, MasterCard and several major banks onboard for a US launch in September.
Chase today announced the latest enhancement to its award-winning mobile app with the addition of Touch ID authentication for iPhones (5s, 6 and 6 plus), becoming one of the first U.S. banks to offer the feature.
ElectraCard Services (ECS), a leading provider of software and processing solutions for electronic payment systems, announced that the student prepaid cards program at Chase Bank, Kenya has been launched on the electra platform.
JPMorgan Chase announced today that Barry Sommers has been named CEO of the Consumer Bank at Chase, including Chase Wealth Management.
Chase Bank (K) Limited and UNISCOO (University Students Community Organization) have announced a partnership to launch a MasterCard prepaid card available to its members.
© Finextra Research 2019


text:
WACO, Texas (FOX 44)- July 30th was Mac House‘s last day of operation on Franklin Avenue, but don’t worry macaroni fanatics, they’re not going away for good. The Waco known Mac House is transitioning to a food truck business.
With Mac House on wheels, they will transform the shop on Franklin into the first ever Pop‘s Lemonade brick- and- mortar.
“Our hope is that as we convert this space to really the first ever pops lemonade, drive thru, customizable lemonades, crafted teas, frozen lemonade, popsicles, and even some more things on the horizon,” says Head Hospitality CEO Abby Head.
For the past two years, many small businesses have seen many obstacles due to COVID-19, prices of product increasing, supply chain breakdown, and staffing shortages.
“We’re seeing a more stable market over the past 18 months. And that’s why we we feel like that inflation, yes, it’s going to affect us, but it’ll probably impact us a little bit less pursuing Pops,” says Head.
Head Hospitality CEO Abby Head hopes by making this transition, Mac House will thrive.
“We’ve seen over the past 18 to 24 months. As with the way food costs are constantly increasing, we can’t keep up with it. That switching to a food truck model is going to make the most sense not only for our customers, but also for our team,” says Head.
Head says they don’t want to steer customers away by raising the prices of their products but rather charge them for what they really want.
“And as prices increase, what we’ve found is what we’re able to provide through a drive thru is not necessarily the price point that people are looking for, for a drive thru experience,” says Head.
Even though you can’t get your mac and cheese in your favorite spot, Mac House will continue to serve the Waco community.
“Hopefully, since we will maintain a presence here, we really look forward to being able to bring the mac house food truck back to this parking lot so that people can still come to the same location they’re used to,” says Head/
Mac House food truck plans to open in the new year. To find out where you can spot them in town make sure to follow their social media pages.