text:
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Tuesday announced its partnership with MPL Sports, the athleisure wear and sports merchandise brand from Mobile Premier League as the new kit sponsor and official merchandise partner for the Indian Cricket Team.
Under the newly-inked strategic partnership, MPL Sports has entered into a three-year agreement from November 2020 to December 2023. MPL Sports’ association with the BCCI begins with upcoming India’s tour of Australia which will see Team India sporting the new jerseys.
The senior men and women and the Under-19 teams are a part of the deal for the new kits.
Apart from India jerseys, MPL Sports will also sell licensed official merchandise. MPL Sports will offer the jerseys and its wide range of Team India merchandise to fans at affordable prices.
“We look forward to MPL Sports adding a new chapter to the team’s kit, and bring the official BCCI licensed merchandise within easy and convenient reach for the billion-plus fans,” said BCCI president Sourav Ganguly.
- IND vs KOR LIVE Score, Asian Games 2023 hockey semis: India in action vs four-time Asiad champions Korea
- India vs Thailand Women’s Kabaddi Live Score, Asian Games 2023: IND faces THA in Group A, Starting 7s out, Live Streaming info
- BWF Badminton World Championships 2023, Day 4: Indians in action, IST Timings, streaming info
- Japan’s Kento Momota out of Asian Games 2022 due to injury
- Prannoy, Sen make first round exits from China Open


text:
Circular Polymers by Ascend, a market-leading recycler of post-consumer carpet, today announced the launch of Cerene™, a line of recycled polymers and materials made from the company’s proprietary carpet reclaiming technology. Cerene is available as polyamide 6 and 66, PET, polypropylene and calcium carbonate as a consistent, sustainable feedstock for many applications, including molding and compounding. Recycling experts from Circular Polymers will be showcasing Cerene at Compounding World Expo on June 14-15 at the Messe Essen in Germany, joining Essetiplast by Ascend at Stand A525. Ascend Performance Materials, a fully integrated producer of durable high-performance materials and the majority owner of Circular Polymers by Ascend, is known for its innovations in nylon 6,6. Cerene will continue that legacy with offerings in nylon 6,6 while also bringing to market recycled polymers such as nylon 6, PET and PP. “Customers around the globe are seeking consistent and reliable post-consumer recycled materials,” said Maria Field, business director of Circular Polymers by Ascend. “Cerene is mechanically recycled using a process that minimizes our carbon footprint and environmental impact.” Circular Polymers by Ascend converts post-consumer carpet into fiber and pellets. The company uses a proprietary process in its California-based facilities to achieve unparalleled efficiency in recycling, successfully providing a new life for virtually every component of the carpet and backing. The company has redirected 85 million pounds of carpet from landfills into new goods since 2018. Ascend has a sustainability strategy based on three pillars: empowering people, innovating solutions and operating without compromise. The company recently announced two new efforts to reduce the carbon footprint of its products. Circular Polymers’ industry recognition includes the Plastic Industry Sustainability Innovation award, Innovation Showcase award from the Association of Plastic Recyclers, Arrow Award from the California Product Stewardship Council and Processor of the Year award from the Carpet America Recovery Effort.
March 12, 2024
Page Title: Circular Polymers by Ascend launches Cerene™ certified post-consumer recycled polymers and materials
Page URL: https://www.ascendmaterials.com/news/circular-polymers-by-ascend-launches-cerene-certified-post-consumer-recycled-polymers-and-materials/
Asia / Pacific / Australia: firstname.lastname@example.org
Europe / Africa: email@example.com
Ascend Performance Materials SPRL
Watson & Crick Hill Park
Rue Granbonpré 11 – Bâtiment H
B-1435 Mont-Saint-Guibert, Belgium
Phone: +32 10 608 600
Ascend Performance Materials (Shanghai) Co., Ltd.
Unit 3602, Raffles City Office Towers
268 Xi Zang Road (M)
Shanghai 200001, China
Phone: +86 21 6340 3300

domain: news


text:
This year’s “frightening” pace of change comes with challenges, but opportunities also exist for credit unions to evolve their brands and use data to connect with their members, says Randy Schultz, vice president of marketing for the Strum Agency.
The answer lies in aligning branding with data analytics, he says. “Credit unions that tap into members’ emotions with their brands will be the future disruptors and the future winners. This is about creating organizational clarity.”
Data analytics is a sophisticated way of listening to members, says Lee Allen, director of data analytics for the Strum Agency.
“Data is critical to understanding who your members are and what they want,” he says. “But it’s not good enough just to have data; it needs to be visual. If your data isn’t visible, it’s just noise.”
“Use data to get where you need to go, and build your brand around your data points,” Schulz adds. “Members are telling us what they want and need. If we’re there to help them, we’ll build lasting relationships.”


text:
- Subscribe NowLimited Time Offer
Houston Dynamo majority owner AEG no longer for sale
Send this story to a friend
Denver billionaire Phillip Anschutz said Thursday he’s terminating sale plans for Los Angeles-based AEG, the Denver Business Journal, an affiliated publication, reports.
Anschutz, chairman of AEG, began exploring a possible sale in September, but he now says he wants to take a more active role in the company, the report said.
AEG assets include ownership or contracts to operate more than 100 sports and entertainment venues worldwide, as well as a concert promotion unit, AEG Live.
Also on Thursday, Anschutz said AEG President and CEO Tim Leiweke would leave the company. Dan Beckerman, AEG CFO and COO, will succeed him. Jay Marciano, currently president and CEO of AEG Europe, will move to Los Angeles from London to become COO of AEG.
Olivia Pulsinelli is the web producer for the Houston Business Journal's award-winning website. Follow her on Twitter for more.
- Most popular
- Former Tony's chef dies at 28
- Looming water shortage worries Houston developers
- New multifamily to rise in Galleria area
- Texas Monthly 'best new bar' closes
- Waste Management to cut jobs in Houston, elsewhere
- Houston pizzeria plans major Houston, international expansion
- One-hour grocery delivery service launches in Houston
- Chicago deep-dish pizza chain coming to The Woodlands
- Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo names new COO
- First-time homebuyers squeezed out of Houston’s hot housing market
Audience Development Sales Executive Houston Business Journal | Houston, TX
Commercial Sales Manager American Omni Trading Company | Katy, TX
Director, Grant Development Houston Community College | Houston, TX
New Business Specialist VRTC, Inc. | Houston, TX
Zone Sales Manager-Houston, TX Nestle Waters | Houston, TX


text:
Shares in fashion house Oroton Group plunged more than 15 per cent after investors snubbed an against-the-trend earnings downgrade for its Marcs clothing business.
Oroton warned that Marcs would suffer a $1 million after-tax loss in the half to January 31, denting Oroton's bottom line by $1.25 million, compared with the corresponding period last year.
Shares in the company plummeted 45c to $2.45, its lowest close since August 2003.
Oroton managing director Ross Lane said yesterday it had been a mistake not to bring product development and buying at Marcs under Oroton's control.
Marcs had been allowed to maintain significant autonomy following its $22 million acquisition in November 2002 and Mr Lane said the Christmas line had not been popular with customers and stock levels were not right.
"Ultimately it's the customer's choice . . . [Marcs underperformance] was exactly to do with what was on offer, for example, we didn't have enough white shirts at Christmas and you should never run out of white shirts," he said.
"In this business, there's certain things that you know you're always going to sell, and in lots of those areas was where we ran out of stock."
Macquarie Equities private client adviser David Halliday said Oroton's earnings downgrade was against the trend in the retail sector and investors had been savage in reaction.
"Many companies are upgrading at the moment and it's a bit unusual to see downgrades coming through," Mr Halliday said.
"Any downgrades, even in a bad market, are dealt with harshly but even more so in a strong market where people have got the opportunity to put their money elsewhere in the same sector, or other sectors that are performing well.
"In an environment that is really quite robust for retailers, this is a result that is going against the trend of most of the others."
Oroton said financial benefits from improvements at Marcs should be evident within six to 12 months.
|Print this article Email to a friend||Top|
|Latest news by email
Get free news emails from The Sydney Morning Herald
|text | handheld (how to)||
Copyright © 2004. The Sydney Morning Herald.
|advertise | contact us|


text:
(G.N.S) Dt. 25
Gold prices jumped to a level of over 14-month high gaining by Rs 1,000 in 19 days at the bullion market of national capital Delhi. Broadly, gold prices are on a continuous rising streak since more than a month now on the back of wedding season buying. Gold prices surged by Rs 1,000 to over 14-month high of Rs 31,450 per 10 grams following a buying by local jewellers. Today only, gold prices saw a rise of Rs 350 to an over 14-month high of Rs 31,450 per 10 gram. Silver regained the Rs 41,000-mark by jumping Rs 1,100 on increased offtake by industrial units and coin makers, PTI said in a report.
“The rally in gold to a firm trend overseas as the dollar weakened to near three-year lows in the wake of comments by US Treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin that he welcomed a weaker currency, raising demand for the precious metal as a safe haven,” PTI reported citing unidentified bullion traders. In the international markets, gold rose 0.43% to trade at nearly 1-1/2 year high of $1,363.60 an ounce while silver gained 0.29% to $17.58 an ounce in Singapore. In the national capital, gold of 99.9% and 99.5% purity shot up by Rs 350 each to Rs 31,450 and Rs 31,300 per ten gram, respectively, a level last seen on 9 November 2016. Sovereign held steady at Rs 24,800 per piece of eight gram. Tracking gold, silver ready jumped Rs 1,100 to Rs 41,000 per kg and weekly-based delivery Rs 1,190 to Rs 40,130 per kg while the prices of silver coins stood flat at Rs 74,000 for buying and Rs 75,000 for selling of 100 pieces.
Gold prices have risen by Rs 2,050 in the last 37 days to Rs 31,450 per 10 grams from a price level of Rs 29,400. However, from the beginning of December until 12 December 2017, gold prices were on a sinking trend following a low demand from local jewellers all across.


text:
Cartell.ie report finds increase in new car emissions
A new report from Cartell.ie has found there has been an upturn in the average CO2 emissions of new vehicles sold in Ireland for the first two months of 2019. In 2018, yearly average emissions increased for the first time in fourteen years to 113g CO2 /km. The report finds that the upward trend has continued during the first two months of 2019, as the average emission recording of new vehicles sold for the period has increased to 115g CO2 /km.
Cartell.ie claims the increase may be due to a buying trend towards larger more practical vehicles such as SUVs. In 2018, Cartell examined CO2 emissions ratings in the private transport sector, as it had been then reported that Ireland faced a significant fine in 2020 due to increasing greenhouse gas emissions, partly attributed to the transport sector.
Average CO2 of new private vehicles bought in Ireland 2003-2019 (Source: Cartell Carstat)
Commenting on the findings, Cartell.ie’s John Byrne said “We are looking exclusively at new cars sold in Ireland so any arguments with respect to imported vehicles can be entirely discounted. We considered whether the average emissions are possibly increasing in line with a buying trend towards purchase of more expensive vehicles, meaning these results are correlative with the general increase in the value of new vehicles sold. However, this wouldn’t really explain the increase in emissions per se as manufacturers have invested considerable amounts of money to reduce emissions in their fleet in-line with overarching concerns for the environment globally.”


text:
The new look McEwan’s Lager relaunches in on-trade this month. It will be the first product for the brand to be rolled out nationally across the UK on-trade and forms part two of the wider McEwan’s re-brand, following a new look Export, Champion and Headspace, which were all relaunched last year.
Joanna Stickler is McEwan’s Brand Manager. She said, “There was a clear opportunity for a new lager to add depth and diversity to the category; competing not only in the Scottish market but also across the whole of the UK without compromising on quality and taste.”
“We knew we had the great product but it just needed bringing up to date. Keeping in line with the value that our customers expect, we have given it a new lease of life – with a premium look that doesn’t mean breaking the bank for our consumers.”
The brand say that McEwan’s Lager has secured over 200 stockists following an early release into the Marston’s estate earlier this year


text:
Malaysian airline industry profits looking good in Q3
Things are looking rosy for Malaysia’s airlines despite challenging times for the travel industry, with national flag-carrier Malaysia Airlines (MAS) recording a return to profit and budget carrier AirAsia’s profit jumping 151.6% in the third quarter.
Record passenger numbers have brought a turnaround in fortunes for MAS, which posted a RM233 million (US$73.9 million) Q3 2010 profit right after its RM535 million ($169.6 million) loss in the second quarter. This brings its overall profit for 2010 so far to RM9 million, again an increase on the RM120 million loss for the same period last year.
The airline has credited an economic recovery in Southeast Asia, an aggressive global marketing campaign and competitive pricing for the change. MAS’ cargo service MASkargo also enjoyed a 34% increase in revenues and the company will soon start to take delivery of dozens of new aircraft.
AirAsia, Southeast Asia’s largest budget airline by fleet size, recorded an even greater RM327.29 million ($103.7 million) profit for Q3, up from RM130.07 million for the same period last year. CEO Tony Fernandes said that this was despite Q3 being a traditionally slow month domestically due to Ramadan, and hopes for even greater things once the stronger fourth quarter season gets underway.
source & articles: Channel NewsAsia Business
- Biotech entrepreneurship flourishing in Malaysia
- ‘Wave’ of FDI flows into Malaysia in 2011
- The Economist: good policies creating a strong Penang
- Senai Hi-Tech Park will help transform Malaysia, says PM Najib
- Clark International Airport becoming an important Philippines hub
- AirAsia in share swap with Malaysia Airlines?
- Japanese M&A activity and FDI grows in Malaysia
- RIM may set up Blackberry procurement center in Penang
- Corporatize sports funding, says Malaysian govt.
- Indonesian courier start-up Go-Jek wins fame, prize


text:
- Subscribe NowLimited Time Offer
Sign Up for the St. Louis Business Journal Afternoon Edition Newsletter
Send this story to a friend
Furniture Brands' Q1 loss tops $21 million
Furniture Brands International Inc. reported a net loss of $21.2 million for the first quarter, compared with a profit of $379,000 in the first quarter of 2012, and ended the quarter with a $10.3 million in cash and $116.8 million in debt.
The company reported revenue for the quarter of $254.7 million, down 11.3 percent from $287.3 million in the first quarter of 2012.
The net loss for the quarter included $2.9 million in impairment and product rationalization charges, according to the company's earnings release. The company's drop in first-quarter profit margin was also prompted by increased freight costs, higher employee benefit costs, lower sales and the deleveraging of manufacturing costs, and inventory charges.
"While this was a difficult quarter in what was a volatile environment, we are aggressively addressing the issues," Chairman and CEO Ralph Scozzafava said in a statement. "We are well underway on implementing our transformation plan to restore positive EBITDA and free cash flow generation. Most notably, we made significant progress in revamping our stationary line at Lane and introduced a new line of motion upholstery at Broyhill."
Scozzafava said the company is continuing its cost-cutting efforts and has " identified further opportunities for meaningful reductions."
First-quarter sales at Furniture Brands' 49 Thomasville company-owned stores totaled $26.9 million , down slightly from sales of $27.5 million at 48 stores in the prior year period.
Salesperson Coldwell Banker Gundaker | Saint Louis, MO
Accountant, Client Accounting Cassidy Turley | Saint Louis, MO
Advertising Account Executive Image Publishing | Saint Louis, MO
Payroll Clerk Accountemps | Maryland Heights, MO
Cost Accountant Robert Half Finance & Accounting U.S | Highland, IL
- Most popular
- Near the Ferguson QuikTrip that burned, another quietly closes
- Nixon orders St. Louis County Police be taken off Ferguson security
- Police name officer involved in Michael Brown shooting
- Police fatally shoot suspect who brandished knife in north city
- Police name Michael Brown as suspect in convenience store robbery
- Officer who shot Michael Brown was not aware he was robbery suspect
- McKelvey, Payne and Consort team up for $60 million home development
- Another night of unrest in Ferguson
- Nixon declares state of emergency, curfew in Ferguson following unrest
- Former employee alleges race discrimination in suit against Plaza
A look at the day's business stories from media outlets around St. Louis


text:
This fall, Apple (AAPL -1.24%) is expected to launch three new iPhones. The first is expected to be a straightforward successor to this year's iPhone X -- think internal upgrades in a virtually identical form factor. The second is expected to simply be a larger version of the upgraded iPhone X.
And, finally, Apple is expected to launch an iPhone with a 6.1-inch liquid crystal display (LCD) aimed at more affordable price points. LCDs are a cheaper, less advanced type of mobile display technology than organic light-emitting diodes (OLED), which will be used in the successor to the iPhone X and its larger sibling.
KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo recently published (via MacRumors) some details about this year's upcoming 6.1-inch iPhone that I think investors should pay close attention to.
The key specifications
According to Kuo, the 6.1-inch LCD iPhone will have a single rear camera, just as the current iPhone 8 does. The more advanced dual-camera systems will be exclusive to the next-generation iPhone X and its larger counterpart.
Additionally, Kuo says that the 6.1-inch LCD iPhone will use an aluminum frame, once again just as the current iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus do. The current iPhone X uses a more expensive (and arguably more aesthetically pleasing) stainless-steel frame.
Interestingly, Kuo claims that the 6.1-inch LCD iPhone will use a logic board similar to the ones used in the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus, rather than a more advanced substrate-like printed circuit board, or SLP, that the current iPhone X and the next-generation iPhone X-class devices should use.
The analyst also expects the new 6.1-inch LCD iPhone to use a rectangular battery rather than an "L-shaped" battery (this can either be two cells connected together or a single battery cell in an "L" shape), likely in a bid to cut costs.
Kuo says that the 6.1-inch LCD iPhone will incorporate 3GB of RAM -- the same as today's iPhone 8 Plus and iPhone X, but lower than the 4GB that Kuo says the next-generation iPhone X models will have.
And, finally, Kuo claims that the 6.1-inch LCD iPhone will lack the company's pressure-sensitive display technology, known as 3D Touch.
Kuo is a well-connected and highly respected analyst who rarely gets the features and capabilities of future iPhones wrong. To that end, I fully believe that all of the specifications that he's given for the 6.1-inch iPhone so far are accurate.
From what Kuo describes, the 6.1-inch LCD iPhone looks like a device that's designed to bring the essence and the goodness of the iPhone X to a more affordable price point. The key features like a nearly bezel-free display, Apple's depth-sensing TrueDepth camera, and high-quality internal hardware are all there.
Where Apple seems to be cutting back is in the areas that aren't absolutely essential to the user experience. For example, using a cheaper aluminum frame isn't going to fundamentally impact the user experience relative to a device with a stainless steel one.
Additionally, while the dual-lens camera that debuted on the iPhone 7 Plus in late 2016 was a big selling point for the device, it's a cost adder that most smartphone buyers probably aren't willing to pay extra for. Users who absolutely have to have the dual-lens camera can opt for the successor to the iPhone X or its larger sibling.
Finally, Apple's 3D Touch technology really hasn't caught on in the way that Apple seemed to hope it would. 3D Touch adds additional component cost and manufacturing complexity, so I can see why Apple would strip it from the 6.1-inch LCD iPhone, particularly if Apple hopes to price the device aggressively without dinging its profit margins.
Indeed, as an added bonus for Apple, 3D Touch now becomes a selling point for the higher-end iPhone models, which could push customers who really enjoy 3D Touch toward the more expensive iPhones, ultimately boosting Apple's iPhone average selling prices and profits.


text:
Spence to go global, eyes new Colombo port project
The blue chip Aitken Spence conglomerate has declared its interest
in Colombo port terminal operations as part of an ambitious expansion
both locally and globally.
are interested in expanding the scale of our activity to include
port operations,” Aitken Spence managing director Rajan Britto
said in the company’s annual report to shareholders. “Hence,
we will be interested to participate in the development of the Colombo
South Harbour when expressions of interest are called for.“
The Harry Jayawardena controlled company was earlier known to be
interested in acquiring the Jaya Container Terminal of Colombo port
when the government was considering privatizing or ‘corporatising’
it. Britto also said the firm is expanding its fleet of cargo vessels
and hopes to expand in south Asia with bases in Bangladesh and India.
He said the company has looked at hotel projects in India and even
Libya under plans to go global.
focus is on delivering medium to long term shareholder value and
will not be swayed by short term tactics that would merely make
us a show-piece in the stock market,” Britto said.Jayawardena
said the company wants to expand nationally and internationally.
our tourism business we thought we were somewhat well diversified
by destination in having hotel properties in Sri Lanka and the Maldives.”
However, the tsunami struck both countries. Hence we have to think
globally and we plan to go global with some of our multinational


text:
Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan Inc., the largest fertilizer producer by market value, reported fourth-quarter profit and revenue that beat analysts’ estimates as sales volumes of its namesake crop nutrient rose to a record.
Net income climbed to 49 cents a share from 26 cents a year earlier, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan-based Potash Corp. said Thursday in a statement. That exceeded the 46-cent average of estimates compiled by Bloomberg. Sales were $1.9 billion, compared with the $1.68 billion average projection.
Potash Corp. sold 2.5 million metric tons of potash in the quarter. The average estimate of four analysts was for 2.26 million tons.
“Buyers went into the quarter with low inventories,” Spencer Churchill, a Toronto-based analyst at Paradigm Capital, said by phone before the results were released. “Some may have been trying to buy additional tons ahead of potentially higher prices later this year.”
North American potash prices have increased 17 percent in the past 12 months as buyers sought to replenish low inventories and after a supply disruption at OAO Uralkali’s Solikamsk-2 mine.
Prices may continue to advance on speculation about the magnitude of the damage caused in November by the underground flood at the Russian mine, Churchill said. Uralkali is monitoring the mine, which accounts for almost a fifth of its potash production capacity.
Potash prices have been recovering from the plunge that followed Uralkali’s decision in 2013 to operate at full capacity after quitting a sales accord with a Belarusian competitor.
Potash Corp., which also produces nitrogen- and phosphate-based fertilizers, sold potash for an average of $284 a ton in the quarter, compared with $282 a year earlier.
Farmers apply potash to their fields to help boost plant resistance to drought and to strengthen root systems.
Potash Corp. forecast first-quarter profit to range from 45 cents to 55 cents a share, compared with with the 51-cent average of 12 analysts’ estimates compiled by Bloomberg. Full- year profit will be $1.90 to $2.20 a share. The average estimate from 29 analysts is for $2.11.
Potash Corp. said it expects global potash shipments to decline this year to 58 million metric tons to 60 million tons, down from more than 61 million tons last year.
The company forecast potash sales of 9.2 million metric tons to 9.7 million tons, up from 9.3 million tons last year, according to the statement.
Potash Corp. rose 1.4 percent to $36.70 ahead of regular trading in New York. The shares rose 14 percent in the year ended yesterday.


text:
AMD has just revealed – during its E3 2015 Conference – that its new GPU, AMD Radeon R9 Fury X, will be priced at $649. That’s the same price that NVIDIA has set for its GTX 980Ti card. And while GTX 980Ti comes with more RAM, AMD’s Fury X is rumoured to be offering a better overall performance.
In addition, AMD revealed that the Radeon R9 Fury X board features a GPU Tach, which shows real time GPU activity through a row of window-facing LEDs.
Radeon R9 Fury X is the first and only card to use HBM, for exceptional 4K+ gaming and incredible VR experiences.
The other Fury model (Fury Pro) will be priced at $549.
The red team has also detailed the Radeon R9 Fury X, as well as all the Radeon R9 3XX graphics cards (R9 390X, R9 390 and R9 380).
Radeon R9 Fury X will come with 4GB of HBM VRAM, and a 4096-bit HBM memory controller. Its memory bandwidth can reach 512 GB/s and it will require 2x 8-pin connectors. You can view the full specs below.


text:
Glenn Kelman is the CEO of Redfin, an online residential brokerage based in Seattle. Given indicators suggesting the economy is picking up, Developments asked him to weigh in on what this could mean for housing.
I work at a real estate brokerage and — surprise, surprise — I think the market just took a turn for the better.
You should be skeptical of such a position, as our brokerage, Redfin, stands to profit when the market improves.
But we’ve only predicted a market improvement once before, in November 2008, when Redfin told the LA Times that California prices would begin climbing at the beginning of 2009. If you look at the Case-Shiller index for 2009, this is exactly what happened. Otherwise, we’ve been bears.
In our hometown of Seattle, we’ve said the market would drop 2%-4% in a single month, and 10% over the next year. When June 2010 sales were still frothy from a federal tax credit, we said on national TV that the market would become like a fat man who can’t get up. On other blogs and in the Wall Street Journal, we anticipated further declines. And we’ll say it here, too: January and February numbers will be woeful.
But in the past few days we have seen signs that March will be better. Traffic to our website, which had declined 4% in the fourth quarter, shot up 31% from December to January. In the past four weeks, Redfin customers touring properties popped 44%; Redfin customers signing offers increased 26%.
These data tell you a lot. Drawing on early-stage customer activity rather than waiting for local governments to record sales is like being able to bet the Super Bowl knowing the half-time score: You can still be wrong in the end, but you have a big leg up.
So now the question is, how much of this January’s activity is seasonal? The answer: all of it. Last January, when a home-buying tax credit was set to expire in April, the increases were even bigger: January 2010 visits to our website were up 34%, customers touring properties were up 25% and new offers were up 42%. Pretty normal.
January 2009 visits were up 41%, customers touring properties were up 32% and offers were up 46%, though this was compared to rock-bottom numbers from December 2008, when the global financial crisis reached its nadir. In January 2008, offers were up only 4%.
|The January Pop||Redfin’s Website Traffic||Redfin’s Touring Buyers||Offer-Writing Buyers|
So essentially this January is like January 2010 and January 2009, except slightly more customers are starting to tour homes, and slightly fewer are making offers.
The reason normal is noteworthy is that the past six months have been anything but normal. Sales volume fell dramatically right in the middle of the 2010 home-buying season, and prices began dropping again too in July.
Since then, buyers and sellers haven’t been able to agree on prices. For three years, the market hasn’t budged without a huge government subsidy, or bank foreclosures forcing its hand. Now, the market is moving on its own. In most major U.S. cities, prices will stop falling in March, and sales volume will increase. Major price run-ups are still years away, because millions of would-be sellers waiting in the shadows will absorb any increases in demand.
But for the first time in almost a year, we’ve had dozens of customers who’d been touring homes with us for months suddenly decide to act. They seem bolstered by surges in the stock market, corporate earnings and consumer confidence. In the space of two weeks, Redfin execs stopped fretting about whether we would have enough demand, and instead began worrying about how to handle it.
Who knows how long that will last? No one. But at Redfin, we’re hiring across the board because we believe that the market has, for the first time in years, fundamentally improved.


text:
- Clemson University in South Carolina, where the Sonoco Foundation funds the Food Research Excellence for Safety & Health (FRESH) program, recently launched a compostable packaging research initiative.
- The program is intended to serve commercially compostable packaging producers’ testing needs, and it will merge the institute’s R&D capabilities with a campus-wide organics recycling system. The lab is launching the initiative in phases, starting with in-vessel testing to evaluate different packaging’s compostability.
- In 2024, the university’s outdoor composting facility will be updated with two new dedicated reverse aeration bays and state-of-the-art monitoring from Engineered Compost Systems. The final phase will be to build a new composting facility that will be completed within two years, which is set to triple the current center’s capacity of 700 tons of organic waste per year.
Consumer packaged goods companies want to increase the amount of compostable packaging they use, according to PMMI and Amierpen’s 2023 Packaging Compass report, which expects a compound annual growth rate of 15-17% through 2030.
As interest in compostable packaging grows, so does the list of states that have passed laws meant to govern how compostable packaging is labeled and marketed. In another sign of growing interest in this issue, PepsiCo recently launched its own compostability testing operation.
At the same time, municipalities, haulers and composters are increasingly concerned about contamination from non-compostable packaging. Some composters have gone so far as to ban packaging from their lists of accepted materials.
The FRESH lab program aims to meet growing demand for compostability testing services and support brands as they plan the entire lifecycle of new packaging products, from production to marketing to disposal.
Anne Barr, executive director of Sonoco FRESH, said the lab is uniquely suited to launch this new initiative, both because of its history in compost research and its ties to Clemson’s agriculture school. Clemson launched its first compost research center in 2010 and processes organic waste from across the campus, including landscaping clippings and food waste from dining halls and housing. It also takes organic waste from the agriculture’s school’s experimental farms.
“I expect there to be interest from people in agriculture ... whether you're looking at [availability of] soil amendments or you're looking at what is the bigger impact,” she said. “If compostable packaging goes to scale, where's the compost going to go?”
Aside from supporting municipal composting efforts, Barr said, compostable packaging can also help reduce waste at larger scales — for example, in stemming the waste generated by expired products. Today, those products might go through depackaging systems, where “the food contents go into one stream, and the package goes into another stream.” But, “if you had truly compostable packaging, you could put the whole thing into the organics stream,” she said.
James Sternberg, an assistant professor of sustainable packaging at Clemson, said the institute will start with small-scale packaging compostability sample testing in vessels and gradually work up to larger tests. By late 2024, he said, they plan to be able to test compostability of, say, an entire clamshell or an entire chip bag under various conditions inside vessels of up to 20 gallons. The lab will measure how much packaging material is being mineralized by bacteria through aerobic digestion.
Plans for the new outdoor composting facility — which processes organics using a range of techniques, including turned static pile, in-vessel and aerated static pile — will be a key part of scaling up these efforts.
Public health is another consideration. “We have a PFAS expert from a government agency, because that's also one of the considerations,” said Barr, “just because it's compostable does not automatically make it good for the soil.”
Barr said the lab is developing the compostable packaging research initiative, which is being launched in collaboration with the South Carolina Department of Commerce, with input from multiple sectors. Clemson’s packaging science faculty and scientists from the ag school who are focused on soil health also are contributing. Industry stakeholders have also joined the institute’s steering committee.


text:
Microsoft uses flash to boost RAM HDD communications
The terms “FlashStore”, “ChunkyStash”, and “SkimpyStash” may not mean much to you right now, but if Microsoft has their way, these recently-developed software utilities will improve the efficiency of tomorrow’s data storage systems.
“Flash is great technology, but it requires intelligent software to make the best use of it,” says research scientist Sudipta Sengupta, who is a co-developer of Microsoft’s FlashStore research project. The design utilizes the speed of flash memory as a bridge between HDD and RAM to speed up communications between the two. The result is a data storage system that they claim is 60 times faster than the Berkeley DB system developed by Oracle.
“FlashStore is designed to eliminate random writes,” a paper by Microsoft explains. “It organizes data in a log structure on flash so that new data sent to flash does not lead to random writes and, hence, is not subject to garbage collection by the device.”
The process is even more efficient with ChunkyStash, an application that takes advantage of the flash bridge to prevent unnecessary data duplication, and companion SkimpyStash, a utility to further minimize the burden of the system’s RAM.
Flash storage alone is impractical to utilize for large-scale data storage operations because of the high price. The FlashStore system is a sort of compromise to improve performance significantly without breaking the bank.
While consumers may not be using FlashStore at home anytime soon, they may still benefit from the innovation if it is incorporated into Microsoft’s Xbox Live systems as the company has noted as a possible application of the technology.
If you’ve ever worked with enterprise-level database systems, you’ll likely have a special appreciation for just how much of a difference it can make to eliminate some of the read/write cycles and redundancy as data is transmitted. It sounds like Microsoft has really done something here which will improve performance significantly while remaining affordable enough to be a practical solution.
4 Comments on Microsoft uses flash to boost RAM HDD communications
- Posts: 954
- Posted on: 18 Feb 11 19:04
- Posts: 315
- Posted on: 18 Feb 11 21:49
- Posts: 221
- Posted on: 19 Feb 11 02:38
- Posts: 13375
- Posted on: 22 Feb 11 13:22
But someone else will claim it was their idea and the lawyers battles will start and the idea will be tied up for years..
That's assuming that someone else didn't create it before they did and that the idea is even patentable (then again, with the current PTO most anything is patentable).
All microsoft is doing is moving the flash buffer closer to the system bus.
Most popular headlines
- Tue 16 Apr 16:12 by DoMiN8ToR
- Software, Windows 8
The upcoming update of Windows 8 might allow users to boot to the desktop again.
- Fri 12 Apr 15:10 by DoMiN8ToR
The number of jobs in the film and music industry in the United States has increased despite the claimed negative effects of illegal downloads.
- Tue 9 Apr 14:23 by DoMiN8ToR
The PirateBay has moved to the domain thepiratebay.gl in fear that their previous domain would be ceased by Swedish authorities
- Wed 17 Apr 13:57 by DoMiN8ToR
- Solid State (ssd)
A Chinese tech site has posted a picture that reveals details on Intel's 9 series chipset.


text:
"We aim not only at providing our customers with the most innovative solutions available, but also ensuring our wide-ranging product line delivers exactly the right chemistry for their products."
Stéphanie Heng, Global Communications Director of allnex
Frankfurt, March 29, 2017 – allnex, the leading industrial coating resins company globally, will be exhibiting its latest technologies at the 2017 European Coatings Show (ECS), April 4-6, in the Messezentrum in Nuremberg, Germany. Visitors to stand No. 312 in Hall 1 can step into the world of resins and meet our experts to learn all about the new allnex and our comprehensive, state-of-the-art technology portfolio. Our dedicated professionals will represent all technologies of allnex, consisting of Liquid Resins & Additives, Radcure UV/EB Curable Coating Resins & Additives, Powder Coating Resins & Additives and Crosslinkers. Experts will be on hand to serve customers a broad range of solutions during the event. We also offer ECS visitors the opportunity to attend two allnex product presentations on the exhibition floor:
In addition, as part of the associated European Coatings Congress, our allnex experts will be presenting following papers on our most recent technology innovations:
“The ECS provides a great opportunity for us to introduce the new company allnex to a broad audience and to present our extensive portfolio to the industry. With the business combination of Allnex and Nuplex in September 2016, we now have a more comprehensive, state-of-the-art technology portfolio. As the leading industrial coating resins company globally, we aim not only at providing our customers with the most innovative solutions available, but also ensuring our wide-ranging product line delivers exactly the right chemistry for their products.’, comments Stéphanie Heng, Global Communications Director of allnex.
For more information about the show 2017, go to www.european-coatings-show.com/en


text:
American thrash metallers Megadeth are getting ready to release their latest album “Super Collider”, which will be in stores in June 4 via Tradecraft. While the fans have been eagerly waiting for the new album, an image, which looks like the cover artwork for “Super Collider” has surfaced online. Check out the cover artwork below!
It doesn’t look unique in my opinion and I strongly miss the presence of Vic Rattlehead but hopefully the album will kick asses! 🙂


text:
Asus, a leading hardware maker, has announced the launch of new graphics cards (GPUs). The cards are to be intended for the cryptocurrency minging mar
Asus, a leading hardware maker, has announced the launch of new graphics cards (GPUs). The cards are to be intended for the cryptocurrency minging markert.
Asus Mining RX 470 and Asus Mining P106 are designed to handle the energy and heat intensive process of mining.
“ASUS Mining RX 470 is designed for coin mining with high-efficiency components – delivering maximum hash-rate production at minimum cost.”, as the company wrote on their website.
It is speculated that the product release comes as a response to the growing interest in mining ethereum, as coindesk.com wrote in a recent article.
However, how are cryptocurrencies being mined? It is a process that involves new transaction blocks being added to the distributed network. At the same time, new blockchain tokens are being introduced to the system and awarded to the miner as a compensation. The miner gains a profit when the cost of electricity and the operation itself is lower that the revenue that comes from the tokens.
The jump in digital currency prices this year is reportedly driving demand for graphic cards. as Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD) told CNBC (cnbc.com).
Computer hardware retailers like Newegg, Best Buy and Amazon are sold out of most AMD RX 570 and RX 580 graphics card models, as the publication added.
The RX 470 will be available worldwide, while the Mining P106 card will be intended for the Chinese and Eastern European markets only, as Asus stated.


text:
An overhaul of consumer protection rights, led by the consumers' champion, Ed Mayo, is to be announced by Labour onMonday as the party moves to confront "bad companies" which cheat customers.
John Denham, the shadow business secretary, is to tell the Labour conference that Mayo will spend a year investigating how to tackle companies which knowingly "rip off" consumers.
He said: "What we want to tackle is a part of protecting consumers that has not been dealt with before.
"If you look at the things that have ripped off consumers, whether it is payment protection insurance, credit card scams, insurance referrals – they all have in common [the fact that] people at the top of the company knew they were wrong and no one thought they had a responsibility to do anything about it."
Mayo, formerly chief executive of the National Consumer Council, will examine two aspects in particular. One will deal with whether there should be clearer principles for fair treatment of consumers.
Denham cited differing standards: if a car or toaster was faulty, consumers would expect it to be recalled; but other consumer purchases, such as financial services, were not covered in the same way.
Another query will look at the role of whistleblowing, occasions when people know there is bad treatment.
Denham added: "The investigation will examine what we are calling the corporate cultures that con consumers. It is this attitude that 'it is not my job to make sure people get a fair deal'.
"We are going to look at how a combination of fair competition, better rights for consumers and clearer responsibilities on directors of companies can bring this to an end. This is bad enough at any time. But when prices are rising and wages are falling it is particularly important. It also plays into [Miliband's] theme of responsibility in companies and into the business story we are pushing in which good companies thrive not the bad companies."
Denham said he hoped that new consumer rights would apply universally in the way that the Advertising Standards Authority had rules that applied across the industry.
He said: "It is a change of culture. But usually changing culture can mean you change the way you frame laws as well.
"One idea is if you move away from just relying on specific consumer protection, designed for particular products, to a set of principles that underpin the way you should be treated – rather like ASA saying the advert should tell the truth. It doesn't have a code for every single type of advert, there is just a basic principle there. That might tip the balance in a different direction."
Denham denied he was attempting to burden business with more regulation. "If you don't tackle these things it leads to demands for more regulation – what you get is a mass of regulation that isn't necessarily joined up, each of which is designed to tackle a particular problem. And so you get a forest of regulation for companies to work through. The problem with that is that drags down the good companies that value their customers and want to look after them in the long term with the bad companies. The trick to the whole issue of regulation is keep it simple and make sure the burden that falls on the bad companies."
The consumer affairs minister, Edward Davey, announced last week that the government intended to update the law for goods and services and for digital content, with a single consumer rights bill. This bill would clarify the law on unfair contract terms, consolidate consumer powers for Trading Standards, and provide stronger protection for vulnerable customers targeted by aggressive sales practices.
Davey said: "Consumer law in the UK comes from a variety of Acts and regulation, making it complex and confusing. This is bad for consumers and bad for business as people don't know their rights and the cost of compliance for business is higher than necessary.
"The consumer bill of rights will consolidate, clarify and strengthen the consumer laws already in place, which will make it easier for everyone to understand and consumer rights in the UK will be stronger than ever. This bill will give everyone a single place to find all their consumer rights."
Current aggressive practices include implying a connection with social services or an old-age charity; preying on elderly people's fear of losing their independence; writing out cheques or an order form for the victim; and salespersons refusing to leave premises until they get a sale.
Denham is also expected to accuse the government of "sitting by and watching" while businesses close and jobs are lost and will call for immediate action from the government to unlock as much as £200bn worth of investment in infrastructure and green technology. He is expected to say: "Governments can't just sit by and watch while jobs go and companies suffer.
"Governments can shape the choices companies make; encourage investment in critical parts of the economy; use regulation not to burden, but to give confidence to investors; use procurement to foster skills, innovation and new markets; create the transparency that results in fair pay.
He will call on ministers to reverse the VAT rise, tax bank bonuses to pay for new home building and offer support to small businesses.


text:
A new product utilising local mangoes, bananas, ginger, soursop and moringa is due to hit the market by this weekend.
The initiative is the brainchild of senior police officer, Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), Trevor Modeste.
The products will be marketed under the trade name, Pam’s Choice.
In an exclusive interview with THE NEW TODAY newspaper on Tuesday, ACP Modeste said the products can be considered as a health food and that no additives or preservatives are being used in the processing.
“It’s a food for athletes”, he said, adding that it can be considered as an alternative to those who might be tempted to use banned substances to enhance their athletic performances.
ACP Modeste is a former national athlete and gold medal winner in Javelin at the OECS and CAC level.
He is awaiting machinery on order in China to help boost production.
According to ACP Modeste, the project is a work in progress and the plans include construction of a small plant in the near future.


text:
Global pay-TV market served 692m subscribers in 3Q-2010
Pay television markets have experienced many changes due to the entry of a number of new television platforms. These new platforms, such as digital terrestrial TV and online video, are stimulating more competition to the traditional pay-TV services. As a result, we are seeing slower subscriber growth in satellite and cable television services.
According to ABI, the slow growth in subscribers is notable especially in Western Europe and North America where the penetration rate is high. However, satellite and cable TV growth is expected to remain strong in the regions such as Eastern Europe and Latin America.
Pay digital terrestrial television has seen success in countries such as France, Italy and Spain. Italian pay terrestrial television provider Mediaset is the leader in the pay terrestrial TV market. Mediaset added nearly 300,000 subscribers in second quarter of 2010 to reach a total subscriber base of 4.4 million.
ABI said that there was strong growth in worldwide IPTV subscriptions in the third quarter of 2010, with more than 2.7 million IPTV subscribers added. Global broadband penetration is increasing, as well as the broadband speed. High-speed broadband opens an opportunity for operators to offer IPTV services.
Western Europe remains the largest IPTV market, followed by the Asia-Pacific region and North America. ABI Research expects that the worldwide IPTV subscriber base will exceed 53 million at the end of 2011.
Jason Blackwell, practice director at ABI Research, said: “The global number of pay-TV subscribers reached 692 million in the third quarter of 2010. Pay-TV subscriber growth is holding steady in a number of world regions.”
Khin Sandi Lynn, research associate at ABI Research, said: “At this moment Western Europe, with a comprehensive 99 percent of the terrestrial pay-TV market, holds the largest terrestrial television market share.”
Have your say and discuss with your peers on the InfoGrok community.
Participate by posting your comments now.


text:
Equinix Opens Fifth Data Center in Singapore and Deepens Commitment to National Sustainability Agenda
Equinix, Inc. (Nasdaq: EQIX), the world's digital infrastructure company™, today announced the opening of its fifth International Business Exchange™ (IBX®) data center in Singapore, SG5. With an initial investment of US$144 million, the purpose-built facility helps address the need for a sustainable, future-ready digital infrastructure to enhance enterprises’ digital resiliency.
Singapore’s Smart Nation initiative and digitalization efforts over the years have led local and regional businesses to realize the importance of an agile and resilient digital infrastructure to their business success. According to the latest Equinix Global Tech Trends Survey, 88% of surveyed companies in Singapore indicated that digitizing their IT infrastructure was a top priority, with 66% believing interconnection will help them navigate challenges.
Sustainability is becoming increasingly important for Singapore and businesses worldwide. Equinix’s Future First sustainability strategy and its 100% renewable energy goal are aligned with the country’s sustainable agenda, including the Singapore Green Plan 2030. In fact, Equinix has operated with 100% renewable energy in Singapore since 2020. Equinix is also the first in the data center industry to commit to reaching global climate-neutrality by 2030, backed by its science-based targets (SBT) and sustainability innovation agenda.
In conjunction with today’s opening of the SG5 IBX, Equinix organized a virtual event attended by Ms. Sandra Ng, Group Vice President, Practice Group, IDC, Mr. Foong Sew Bun, Managing Director and Group Head of Technology Services, DBS Bank, Mr. Romain Groleau, Managing Director, Accenture Southeast Asia and Mr. Wong Joo Seng, Founder and CEO, Spark Systems, to discuss sustainable digital infrastructure for Singapore and the region.
Highlights / Key Facts:
- The SG5 IBX is a new nine-story facility located at the Tanjong Kling data center park. Its addition strengthens Equinix’s cross-island presence and location diversity, with all five of Equinix’s current IBX data centers strategically spread across the island.
- The first phase of the SG5 IBX has more than 41,700 square feet (more than 3,970 square meters) of colocation space, offering an initial capacity of 1,300 cabinets. At full buildout, it will offer 5,000 cabinets, with a total colocation space of close to 129,000 square feet (12,000 square meters).
- The SG5 IBX is directly connected to the four existing Equinix IBX data centers in Singapore via low-latency dark fiber links and will enable customers to securely interconnect with more than 700 companies in the market. This expansion of our global platform allows customers to choose from a broad range of network services from over 200 providers, and interconnect directly to customers and partners on Platform Equinix® in their digital supply chain.
- Over the years, Equinix has been working with the government of Singapore and the wider business ecosystem to enable stakeholders in the private and public sectors to access global digital pathways, underpinning and driving innovation forward. Equinix hosts the most network-dense data centers in Singapore, and its IBX data centers have been purpose-built to meet stringent safety and data security guidelines of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). These facilities offer unparalleled digital access for financial services institutions in Singapore to deliver their workloads, supporting Singapore’s status as the regional financial hub.
- Addressing the urgency of climate change, Equinix is aiming to become climate-neutral and make a 50% absolute reduction in Scope 1 and 2 emissions across its global operation from a 2019 base year by 2030 as part of its Science-Based Target initiative. Aligned with the Paris Climate Agreement, this commitment is a critical step as Equinix continues to advance investments and innovations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
- SG5 leverages Equinix’s bespoke and innovative surface cooling technology, known as the Equinix Cooling Array, supporting high density customers whilst reducing water and power consumption needs. Combined with connection to Singapore’s recycled NEWater (ultra-clean, high-grade reclaimed water), an energy-saving process that is aligned with the Singapore government's green initiatives, SG5 is well positioned to support customer’s requirements from higher densities to their environmental and sustainability needs.
- Equinix Singapore data centers are also certified to meet rigorous environmental and energy management standards. The Equinix SG1 IBX data center is BCA-IMDA Green Mark certified; the SG2 and SG3 facilities have been certified to meet Platinum status; and SG4 is certified to meet GoldPLUS status. SG5 is also on schedule to meet the BCA-IMDA Green Mark and LEED certification.
- Equinix’s global platform currently spans 230 IBX data centers across 64 metros. In Asia-Pacific, Equinix has 47 IBX data centers in key metros across Australia, China, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea and Singapore.
- Sandra Ng, Group Vice President, Practice Group, IDC Asia/Pacific
“2021 opens new chapters for organizations on their way to the future enterprise, with the appearance of two interconnected DX cornerstone themes — digital acceleration and digital resiliency. IDC predicts a platform-based approach for digital resiliency will lead to better business performance. The rise of new data centers built in Singapore will further strengthen the country’s Smart City digital infrastructure and help drive business ecosystems towards collaboration and co-innovation with sustainability in mind for the future.”
- Joo Seng Wong, Co-founder & Chief Executive Officer, Spark Systems Pte Ltd
“Singapore is well-placed to serve the region and this will further crystalize its position amongst top global financial hubs, like New York, London and Tokyo. With the inclusion of SG5, the time it takes for a financial trade transaction is expected to drop significantly from 360 milliseconds to 1 to 2 milliseconds. This is a quantum leap in terms of latency improvement which cannot be achieved without the infrastructure that Equinix provides. I look forward to continue working with Equinix to bring further innovations into the financial services space.”
- Jeremy Deutsch, President, Equinix Asia-Pacific
"Businesses in the Asia-Pacific region continue to increase their demand for digital infrastructure, with Singapore being the epicenter for digital business growth in the region. We see a growing shift in the priorities of business leaders towards investing in environmental, social and governance initiatives when they consider their digital transformation plans, and Equinix is in full alignment with these goals as we put our sustainability targets into action. The expanded footprint in Singapore further brings our global target towards building the digital infrastructure of tomorrow responsibly and sustainably.”
- Yee May Leong, Managing Director, Equinix South Asia
"Singapore continues to flourish as the regional hub for digital exchange. Global businesses look to Singapore as the key location for where they build their digital infrastructure and leverage the ecosystem and cloud services available to ensure resilience, grow and scale across Asia-Pacific. As Singapore continues its Smart Nation journey and towards its National Green Plan 2030, we continue to support the digital transformation of the private and public sector with commitment in action for environmental sustainability.”
Equinix (Nasdaq: EQIX) is the world’s digital infrastructure company, enabling digital leaders to harness a trusted platform to bring together and interconnect the foundational infrastructure that powers their success. Equinix enables today’s businesses to access all the right places, partners and possibilities they need to accelerate advantage. With Equinix, they can scale with agility, speed the launch of digital services, deliver world-class experiences and multiply their value.


text:
RIM have just announced that they will be launching the new BlackBerry 10 mobile OS on January 30th 2013 which will happen “simultaneously in multiple countries around the world,” according to the company, alongside the launch of the new OS, the company will also be unveiling the first two BlackBerry 10 smartphone, with details revealed during the event.
The new BlackBerry 10 is said to include a ton of new features, but only a few have been revealed so far meaning we can only tell you about a few, the first of which is the BlackBerry Flow and BlackBerry Hub, Flow is a “new user experience that allows seamless navigation across open applications” and the hub has been designed to show all messages, notifications, feeds, and calendar events, a lot like notification center for iPhone.
BlackBerry Keyboard is another feature that will learn how you write and adapt to how you type, allowing for a quicker and more accurate typing experience, last up is BlackBerry Balance, which according to RIM “offers the most elegant way to satisfy both customer and corporate needs without compromising on either”, it apparently does this by keeping personal apps and information separate from work data, allowing the user to switch between each profile when they need to, and is probably one of the biggest reasons to buy a new BlackBerry device.
Check out the press release below, and make sure to keep coming back right to stay in the loop.
“In building BlackBerry 10, we set out to create a truly unique mobile computing experience that constantly adapts to your needs. Our team has been working tirelessly to bring our customers innovative features combined with a best in class browser, a rich application ecosystem, and cutting-edge multimedia capabilities. All of this will be integrated into a user experience – the BlackBerry Flow – that is unlike any smartphone on the market today,” said Thorsten Heins, President and CEO of Research In Motion. “Thanks to our strong partnerships with global carriers and a growing ecosystem of developers, we believe our customers will have the best experience possible with BlackBerry 10. We are looking forward to getting BlackBerry 10 in the hands of our customers around the world.”
BlackBerry 10 will offer a large catalog of the leading applications from across the globe and across all categories, including Games, Productivity, Social, Lifestyle and Leisure, Multimedia and Published Content, as well as applications designed for business and enterprise use.
The BlackBerry 10 platform has recently achieved FIPS 140-2 certification, which means that government agencies will be able to deploy BlackBerry 10 smartphones and BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10 as soon as it is available. This marks the first time BlackBerry products have been certified ahead of their launch. In addition, RIM recently announced that BlackBerry 10 smartphones have now entered more than 50 carrier labs with many more entries expected in the coming weeks.
Some key features of the new BlackBerry 10 devices already unveiled recently include:
BlackBerry Flow and BlackBerry Hub
BlackBerry Flow is a new user experience that allows seamless navigation across open applications and the BlackBerry Hub. All messages, notifications, feeds, and calendar events come into the BlackBerry Hub and no matter what the user is doing with the device, with a simple gesture, they can peek into the Hub at any time.
The BlackBerry Keyboard learns how you write and adapts to how you type so you can write faster and more accurately, giving you the kind of legendary typing experience that only BlackBerry can deliver.
BlackBerry Balance offers the most elegant way to satisfy both customer and corporate needs without compromising on either. With BlackBerry Balance, personal apps and information are kept separate from work data, and the customer can switch from their personal to work profile with a simple gesture. The work profile is fully encrypted and secure, enabling organizations to protect their content and applications, while at the same time letting customers get the most out of their smartphone for their personal use.


text:
|HD DVD NEWS||Receive HD DVD News via RSS|
Weinstein Co. Adds 'Scary Movie 4,' More HD DVD Launch Titles
Tags: Disc Announcements, Weinstein Co. (all tags) The Weinstein Co. has added three new titles to their lineup of HD DVD launch titles, led by the smash hit 'Scary Movie 4.'
In addition to 'Scary Movie 4,' 'The Matador' and 'Wolf Creek' will also hit HD DVD on December 19. All three titles join the Jennifer Aniston thriller 'Derailed,' which Weinstein previously announced for release last month.
Unfortunately, neither technical specs nor supplement details have not yet been issued for any of the Weinstein Co.'s HD DVD launch titles, which, as previously announced, will all be distributed by Genius Products.
We expect a full announcement from the Weinstein Co. in the coming days, and we'll keep you posted. In the meantime, we've added listings for all titles to our HD DVD Release Calendar.
Thanks to Eddie for the clarification!
- Earlier on High-Def Digest:
- Genius Jumps into HD DVD, Blu-ray (Sep 14, 2006)


text:
New figures released by the European Commission today, show that imports of U.S. soya beans by the European Union increased by 121% over the current market year (July 2018 to mid-April 2019), compared to the same period in the previous year.
With a share of 72% of EU soya beans imports, the U.S. is today Europe’s number one supplier. Conversely, Europe is the top destination of U.S. soya beans exports with 22%, followed by China (18%) and Mexico (9%).
Increasing trade in a number of areas and products, including soya beans, was one of the Joint Statement‘s objectives, as agreed between Presidents Juncker and Trump on 25 July 2018. The European Commission is following up on its commitment and has been regularly publishing figures on EU imports of soya beans from the United States. Today marks the fifth update report on trade of soya beans with the U.S.
Today’s report shows that:
- Compared to the first 42 weeks of the 2017/2018 marketing year (from July to mid-April), in the current market year EU imports of soya beans from the U.S. are up by 121% at 8,244,594 tonnes;
- In terms of the EU’s total imports of soya beans, the U.S. share is now at 72%, compared to 36% in in the same period last year. This puts the U.S. well ahead of Brazil (21%), the EU’s second main supplier, followed by Ukraine (2.3%), Canada (1.8%) and Paraguay (0.7%).
In January 2019, the Commission concluded that U.S. soya beans meet the technical requirements to be used in biofuels in the EU, a decision that creates the conditions for these exports to grow further by expanding its market opportunities in Europe.
The United States is also the most important origin for EU agri-food imports in general. The latest figures show that from February 2018 to January 2019, the value of agri-food imports from the U.S increased by 14%. This represents an increase in value of €1.5 billion, mainly due to the increase in imports of soya beans, soya bean oilcakes and several other products.
The EU imports about 14 million tonnes of soya beans per year as a source of protein to feed our animals, including chicken, pigs and cattle, as well as for milk production. Soya beans from the U.S. happen to be a very attractive feed option for European importers and users thanks to their competitive prices.
The data included in the report published today on soya beans, comes from the Crops Market Observatory which the European Commission launched in July 2017 to share market data and short-term analysis to ensure more transparency.
For more information


text:
Kanye West’s Yeezy line is getting somewhat more affordable.
GQ has the list of prices for the mogul’s third season, and the website points out that it’s less expensive than his other seasons. Previously, he going rate for a pair of sweatpants was approximately $510 USD. A camouflage trench coat was approximately $2,500 USD. A thermal tank top was approximately $307.
However, for the forthcoming season, consumers might not have to entirely refinance their mortgages. It’s $725 for an Anorak jacket, $350 for workout pants, and $195 for a knit t-shirt. GQ notes that some prices are flat-out slashed in half from before, pointing to a hoodie that was previously hovering around $600 that will be selling for $300 this time around.
GQ points out that Kanye’s Yeezy 2 was cheaper than Season 1, which suggests a trend — and that Kanye West might even be an advocate for the consumer.
It’s a smart move on West’s account, and perhaps it proves that he is, in fact, a smart retailer. A recent Tweet proved that he understood the concept of fast fashion, even his clothes do not fall in that category at all.
I just thought of the craziest idea of all … I’m going to sell winter coats in the winter!!!
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) February 24, 2016
Business Insider Emails & Alerts
Site highlights each day to your inbox.


text:
ST. ANTHONY, NL – The aisles were crowded for the first time in years as the Grenfell Memorial Co-Op opened its doors for two days to sell off its remaining stock.
On Feb. 8 and 9, the store opened for a cash-only sale and all items were available at 30 per cent off for members only.
The sale came after the historic store announced it would be closing its doors after 105 years of business.
On Thursday morning, the parking lot was full, spilling over to the side of the road and into other parking areas.
Within the store, board members including president John Budgell were volunteering to help fill the bags of customers. They were plenty busy as members lined the aisles and packed the building.
It was business they hadn’t seen in years.
According to store manager Boyd Manuel, if they had seen this many people just once a week, the store would still be open.
As of Friday morning, it was yet to be determined whether the store would open for another day. Manuel said it depended on how much product was left over.
He said the board needed to discuss what to do next.
If they decide not to open it again for another final sale, Feb. 9 could very well be the last day anyone shops at the Grenfell Memorial Co-Op.


text:
Since the start of the pandemic, Indian entrepreneurs seeking countries in which to launch their startups are looking beyond the usual suspects. The challenge is finding countries that are friendly to both innovation and immigration. According to Shilpa Menon, LCR Capital Partners’ senior director for India, countries that are “high on innovation” are not necessarily favorable to immigration. As a result, Indians are considering a newer set of destinations, obtaining visas through residence-by-investment programs in Portugal and Malta, setting up businesses in the United Arab Emirates, or applying for talent-based visas in Australia, the UK, and Singapore. This article examines the pros and cons of destinations where Indian entrepreneurs are moving, including unusual choices like Italy and Grenada (which offers a visa that can be used as a stepping-stone to US residency).
Read the full article here.


text:
A trading standards officer who moonlights as an lifeboat volunteer, a member of the British Standards Institute who champions accessibility, and the founder of consumer advice organisation Money Saving Expert, are among those named in the New Year Honours List 2022.
Roger Cohen, a Trading Standards Officer at East Sussex Council, received the MBE after 39 years’ service with the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) in recognition of his services to charity. In a letter to Cohen, CTSI Chief Executive John Herriman said: “Your MBE helps others to see the value attached to those engaged in trading standards as well as rewarding those, like you, that excel.”
Caroline Thomas, a member of the British Standards Institute Committee on Accessibility, was awarded the OBE for services to consumers. Herriman told Thomas the accolade was “hugely merited, and you will be immensely and rightly proud of the exceptional work you have done for consumers and being rewarded in this unique way.”
Consumer advice champion Martin Lewis was awarded the CBE, which comes in addition to the OBE he received in 2014. This year’s accolade is in recognition of services to broadcasting and consumer rights.
Mark Lloyd and James Jamieson, the Chief Executive and Chair of the Local Government Association respectively, each received a CBE for services to local government and to charity. Herriman wrote to them both to express CTSI’s “warmest congratulations and applause”.


text:
Price dive spurs record gold demand in China
Mainland boosts production as slump into bear market triggers buying rush by consumers
Gold consumption and production on the mainland expanded to records last year as prices that slumped into a bear market spurred sales of jewellery and bars, underlining a shift in global bullion demand from West to East.
Usage surged 41 per cent to 1,176.4 tonnes last year from 2012, according to data from the China Gold Association. Output rose 6.2 per cent to 428.16 tonnes, making China the largest bullion producer for a seventh year, it said.
China probably overtook India as the largest user last year, according to the World Gold Council.
Gold last year posted the biggest annual drop since 1981 as the United States Federal Reserve prepared to scale back monetary stimulus that boosted asset prices while failing to stoke inflation.
"The surge in Chinese gold consumption has helped to limit price declines," said Duan Shihua, a partner at Shanghai Leading Investment Management. "If Chinese demand is sustained, it will be a long-term bullish factor."
Gold for immediate delivery sank 28 per cent last year to end a 12-year rally as the Fed decided in December to trim monthly bond purchases.
Gold fell 14 per cent in the two days to April 15, the biggest such drop in three decades, spurring purchases of bracelets and coins around the world. The lower prices boosted Asian demand, helping to absorb metal flowing from Western markets, the gold council said in November.
Chow Tai Fook Jewellery reported last week that same-store sales in Hong Kong, Macau and the mainland from January 17 to February 3 expanded 15 per cent from a year earlier.
Gold rose 3.2 per cent last month, the first monthly gain since August last year, as the MSCI All-Country World Index of equities fell 4.1 per cent on concern that a rout in emerging markets may worsen. In mainland China, manufacturing and services data last week signalled the economy may be slowing as the authorities seek to control credit and the property market.
Liu Xu, an analyst at Capital Futures, estimates that mainland demand exceeded 1,400 tonnes last year as the gold association's data probably does not include government purchases and buying by financial institutions.
Usage by the jewellery industry climbed 43 per cent to 716.5 tonnes, according to the association's data. Consumption of bars rose 57 per cent to 375.7 tonnes, while coin demand slipped 1 per cent to 25 tonnes. Industrial use was 48.7 tonnes and other use 10.4 tonnes.


text:
Expectations soared high when Facebook acquired WhatsApp for a humungous $19 billion. The customers were sure that something special will come out since the largest messaging app was in Facebook’s kitty.
Immensely popular smartphone messaging service WhatsApp is sold! The buyer is Facebook! The social networking giant on Wednesday announced its plan to acquire the popular communications program WhatsApp for a whopping $19 billion in stock and cash.
Airtel and Apple became pioneers in offering 4G services on mobiles in India when the two companies announced that Apple iPhone 5s or 5c customers will be able to experience 4G on their handsets.
Micromax has added yet another affordable tablet in its product repertoire. The India based company launched the new Android tablet, the Funbook P280, priced at Rs 4,650.
Good news for iPhone fans! The newly-launched Apple iPhone 5c has received a price cut and this colorful device is now available to buyers at discounted price of Rs. 36,899 on e-commerce portal Amazon.in.
As an entrepreneur what would you do if your business venture is minting money? Probably you would think of safeguarding your business from the influx of competition and contemplate various expansion strategies. A conservative entrepreneur would keep things stable and hope that the windfall continues.
Apple to conquer the world of direction-finding!
“Perform or perish.” That’s the phrase well known to most companies operating in the corporate world. Sony has aggressively pursued this policy of shuttering down the low performing business units in the recent past.
Apparently, South African mobile social network, Mxit is all set to take a big bite out of India’s booming messaging app market.
Ad gurus do a lot of great and innovative things to shape the public's perception through a mix of creative and genius commercials. But what if they were also able to show you ads based upon your mood?


text:
The owners of the recently opened Rooh’s Berlin Doner and Kebab at the Five Points in downtown Barrie want to combine quick service and nutritious food options to make it a go-to location for a healthy breakfast or lunch.
"We provide freshly made coffee with fresh shawarma and doner kebab. Other shawarma places usually serve only fizzy drinks and drip coffee. They don’t have anything like an espresso machine," said manager Lovepreet Singh.
Rooh’s Berlin Doner and Kebab is particularly aimed at the downtown business lunch-break crowd, Singh explained.
"Typically, in downtown Barrie people grab ... fresh tea and whole-bean coffee from places that don’t serve any meat," he said.
Singh also noted that people working at offices don’t have much time to go from shop to shop for lunch.
"They usually have 30 minutes and have to choose between having fresh food or a fresh drink," he added.
Singh says Rooh’s Berlin Doner and Kebab pairs convenience with a menu that includes only white meat, which is uncommon at many establishments serving the popular street food.
"We see a growing demand for white meat shawarma," said Singh, alluding to what he says is a strong healthy eating vibe in Canada.
The choice of lamb will also soon be offered, he said.
The menu sees classic choices such as shawarma served in a wrap or sandwich, alongside side dishes such as salad, rice and fries, while popular coffee choices at Rooh’s include Americano, espresso, latte, mocha, and cappuccino.
The new shawarma restaurant opened in mid-January, with plans to keep expanding the menu to include more healthy choices, such as freshly made juice for the season.
Centrally located on Dunlop and Bayfield streets, Rooh’s Berlin Doner and Kebab took over a small Tim Hortons location, which closed its doors this past summer.
The restaurant is owned by Pritam Kaur and Gurjant Khera, a couple from India who moved to Canada in 2011 and have been residents of Barrie since 2019.
Kaur is the executive chef and a passionate about cooking. At a young age, she says she drew inspiration from watching her father cooking.
“In my family, I was mostly surrounded by many cooks as my father used to cook special meals every weekend rather than usual meals," she said.
Kaur said cooking gives her immense satisfaction and reminds her of the joy of the old days back home.
“If the customer feedback is positive, this will even boost my passion," she added.
Khera, meanwhile, looks after the business aspects of the new venture and is further exploring the opportunity to possibly open food outlets on a larger scale in Barrie.
Singh told BarrieToday the proprietors have just signed up to open a third storefront location in Barrie this year, focused on shawarma and Japanese food for take-out.
Kaur and Khera also own the Indian-themed restaurant Amaya, located at 19 Hart Dr., in south-end Barrie.
For more information on the Rooh’s Berlin Doner and Kebab in Barrie, visit their Facebook page.


text:
Today's stock market
|Index||Percentage Change||Point Change|
Financial shares led the market as long-term interest rates rose; the SPDR S&P Bank ETF (NYSEMKT:KBE) added 1.3%. Gold continued its decline of recent months, and the VanEck Vectors Gold Miners ETF (NYSEMKT:GDX) closed down 2.1%.
Hasbro investors have a little fun
Hasbro reported second-quarter earnings that easily blew through analysts estimates, sending shares soaring 12.9%. Revenue fell 7% to $904 million and earnings per share dropped 9.4% to $0.48. Analysts were expecting the company to earn only $0.29 per share on sales of $833 million.
Revenue in the U.S. and Canada fell 7% to $459 million as the market was disrupted by the liquidation of Toys R US inventory. International sales fell 11% to $380 million as excess inventory was cleared out of the European retail channel, where consumer behavior is rapidly shifting to online purchasing. Revenue from the entertaining and licensing segment increased 26% to $65 million.
Hasbro's gaming category was particularly strong, with revenue growing 14% to $313 million, thanks to success with Magic: The Gathering and Monopoly. The company's Marvel toy lines also delivered revenue growth from movie tie-ins such as Avengers: Infinity War, Black Panther, Deadpool, and Ant-Man and the Wasp.
Whereas the company's revenue decreased from last year, point of sale increased and inventory fell, pointing to improved performance in future quarters. Hasbro has said that the impact of Toys R Us would be concentrated in the first half of the year, and investors took second-quarter results as a sign the worst is over.
Halliburton tumbles on weak outlook for the second half
Shares of oil services provider Halliburton fell 8.1% after the company beat expectations for revenue on Q2, but gave a lower-than-expected outlook for the second half of the year. Revenue increased 24% to $6.15 billion, compared with the $6.11 billion observers were expecting, and earnings per share came in at $0.58, matching the analyst consensus. On the conference call, CEO Jeff Miller said the company expects Q3 EPS to be about flat with Q2, but analysts had been expecting $0.10 more.
Compared with the first quarter, revenue by the completion and production segment increased 9% to $4.2 billion, and operating income grew 34%. Drilling and evaluation revenue was up 3% sequentially with a 2% gain in operating income. North American revenue grew 9% due to increased onshore drilling activity, and international revenue increased 4%.
The disappointing profit forecast for next quarter was due partly to a shortage of pipeline capacity in the Permian basin, a growing problem for producers in the region, and cost inflation caused by a shortage of trucks and drivers. Halliburton also said there is a softening of activity in the Marcellus due to producers hitting production targets earlier than planned, a concern that came as a surprise to analysts.
Halliburton officials expressed optimism for 2019, saying that headwinds in the second half were temporary conditions that will set the stage for big gains next year. Investors, however, weren't willing to look past the short-term issues today.


text:
Fun-size chewy news bits to masticate on while you wait for the long weekend.
- A company has developed shades to alleviate the "negative effects brought on by prolonged use of the 3D feature on the Nintendo 3DS". They work by using "Tri-Acetate Cellulose amber lenses." Or witchcraft.
- Remember the call from Atlus offering a chance to be in a Catherine trailer? Well, Deathsmiles US publisher Aksys Games has submitted a video-response.
- Another titbit of E3 speculation: a sequel to DS RPG The World Ends With You may be announced at the show in June.
- Serious Sam 3 shots have popped up on the net. Game's out later this year.


text:
Don’t be too alarmed if you are driving by a McDonald’s with an upside-down M in Lynwood, California. Franchisee owner Patricia Williams revealed that the iconic McDonald’s emblem had been intentionally inverted in celebration of International Women’s Day on Thursday, March 8th.
For the first time in its history, the global fast-food franchise will exhibit a golden ‘W’ as its logo, in lieu of a ‘M’, across its digital platforms on Thursday to commemorate the remarkable achievements of its female employees and women around the world. In addition, employees at select U.S. McDonald’s restaurants will greet customers in customized celebratory attires to mark the occasion.
— ABC7 Eyewitness News (@ABC7) March 8, 2018
McDonald’s announcement follows a growing trend of internationally renowned brands altering their marketing strategies to cater to female consumers, utilizing International Women’s Day as a platform to advocate their support for gender equality.
In a statement to CNBC, McDonald’s spokesperson Lauren Altmin asserts how the corporation has been a constant proponent of women in the workforce, plying with opportunities to progress further in their career paths.
Altmin further emphasizes how “in the U.S. we take pride in our diversity and we are proud to share that today, six out of 10 restaurant managers are women.”
International Women’s Day is a day dedicated to memorializing the intercontinental progress and achievements of women. This year’s campaign theme strives to convey the urgency for gender parity, prompting the global community to #PressforProgress.
Are you looking for digital journalism training and experience? Are you a journalism major who wants to take your career to the next level? CMN’s Digital Journalism course gives you real-time experience, intense feedback on your writing, exposure to journalism influencers and mentors, and a great place to display your work. You can get academic credit too. Check out the Digital Journalism Course here.
Sign up for the Morning Scoop
Former Astronaut Mark Kelly Will Run for Senate in 2020
If elected in 2020, Kelly will become fourth-ever American astronaut elected to Congress.
Senator Elizabeth Warren Wants to Create a Public Option for Generic Drugs
The Massachusetts senator wants to take on big pharma.


text:
Coinbase Stock Rises 8% After Company Beats Q1 Revenue Estimates
- Coinbase (NASDAQ:COIN) reported an 81% reduction in YoY net loss during its recent earnings call for Q1’23.
- The crypto firm beat revenue estimates by 18%, raking in $773 million in the first quarter of 2023.
- The optimistic results led to an 8% spike in Coinbase’s share price in after-hours trading.
American crypto giant Coinbase delivered a rather optimistic financial update earlier today during its earnings call for the first quarter of 2023. The crypto exchange beat its revenue estimates by 18% while bringing down its year-over-year net loss by a whopping 81%. Furthermore, the firm reported a positive adjusted EBITDA for Q1’23.
According to the quarterly earnings report posted on Coinbase’s website, the company grew its total revenue by 23% compared to the previous quarter, raking in net revenue of $736 million in the first quarter of 2023. In addition to the revenue growth, the firm managed to bring down its recurring operating expenses by 37% QoQ.
Our Q1’23 financial results are in and our letter to shareholders can be found on the Investor Relations website at https://t.co/8ovHEtPRgf pic.twitter.com/4iWAPGZNMh
— Coinbase (@coinbase) May 4, 2023
One of the most impressive metrics posted by Coinbase was the 81% reduction in the YoY net loss, going from $430 million in Q1’22 to just $79 million in Q1’23. Despite incurring a $144 million restructuring expense, the American crypto exchange managed to generate $284 million in adjusted EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortisation).
Regarding Coinbase’s balance sheet, the firm holds a whopping $5.3 billion in USD resources. As for the crypto exchange’s performance, the first quarter total transaction revenue grew 16% QoQ to reach $375 million. Consumer transaction revenue also surged by 14%. Institutional transaction revenue saw the fastest growth, 67%.
The optimistic financial report from Coinbase led to a considerable hike in its share price ($COIN) earlier today. The stock gained more than 8% in after-hours trading, reaching as high as $53.7.
Speaking on the outlook for the second quarter, Coinbase stated, “Crypto market cap and crypto asset volatility have diverged in Q2 compared to Q1. We anticipate a sequential decline in subscription and services revenue, largely driven by the decline in USDC market cap.”
The post Coinbase Stock Rises 8% After Company Beats Q1 Revenue Estimates appeared first on Coin Edition.
See original on CoinEdition


text:
His Excellency Sultan bin Saeed Al Mansouri, UAE Minister of Economy, said the UAE and the US are well poised to build upon existing bilateral relations to register significant year on year growth across the trade and investment sectorsthe trade and inves
His Excellency Sultan Al Mansoori, UAE Minister of Economy, today commended the sustained efforts of the UAE and Australia in furthering bilateral economic ties and cooperation.
Under the patronage of His Excellency Sultan Bin Saeed Al Mansouri, Minister of Economy, and the presence of the Undersecretary His Excellency Engineer Mohammed Ahmed Bin Abdul Aziz Al Shehhi, the Ministry of Economy marked the Ninth Gulf Consumer Protect
Best viewed in 1024x768 or higher
compatible with Microsoft Internet Explorer 8 and Mozilla FireFox 3
© 2008, All right reserved. Last updated on


text:
The Windows Insider Program still isn’t attaching any of its release channels to a specific Windows 10 version. But at least we have a new Feature Experience Pack.
Google is rolling out Chrome OS 88 this week, adding a faster web sign-in experience and personalized lock screens to the platform.
On this episode of First Ring Daily, looking at credits for fitness, going online with apps, and a few good analogies.
15 months after it converted YouTube Music into a Progressive Web App (PWA), Google has done so with its flagship YouTube web app as well.
Spotify has quietly entered the market for audiobooks and is now offering 9 titles for free through its mobile and web apps.
A J.D. Power study claims that Americans now spend $47 per month, on average, for streaming services, up 24 percent from the $38 per month spent before the pandemic.
Microsoft announced today that it has added support for user profiles Progressive Web Apps (PWAs) that are installed as apps through the Edge web browser.
With the launch of Fitness+ in late 2020, Apple has really started to differentiate Apple Watch from other smartwatches.
On this episode of First Ring Daily, Xbox changes history, Paul has another laptop, and it is Monday.
Microsoft not so subtly mocks the new M1-based MacBook pro in a video ad that designed to look like it was made by a typical YouTube vlogger.
Two months after it jettisoned its Honor smartphone brand, a new report claims that Huawei is shopping its flagship Mate and P lines as well.
Long associated with gaming, Razer stakes a claim in the premium portable PC market with its impressive-looking Book 13.
Microsoft had two unforced errors this week but they tell a bigger story for the future of the brand.
When it came to promoting Windows 10 S, Microsoft made a Surface sacrifice.
Well, here we go again. For my second look at an M1-based Mac, I’m evaluating the 13-inch Apple MacBook Pro, which retails for $1299.
Microsoft has found their brains and will not double the price of Xbox Live Gold during a pandemic.
Happy Friday! Here’s a delightfully brief Ask Paul to kick off the weekend a bit early while we ponder this nation’s overdue return to decency.
On this episode of First Ring Daily, Microsoft raises the price of Xbox Live Gold, Google leaving the land down under, and Intel going up over the top.
On this edition of the Sams Report, Microsoft Edge turns 1, the company invests in self-driving cars, and acquisitions are starting to come into focus.
Is it me, or are these announcements coming earlier and earlier every month? Whatever: Xbox Live Gold subscribers are getting a special bonus in February.
We thought that Microsoft was moving to end the Xbox Live Gold subscription. Instead, the software giant is raising the price of the service.
Faced with new legislation in Australia that would force it to pay for news stories it now scrapes for free, Google says it could pull its search engine from the country.
Microprocessor giant Intel today reported that it earned a net income of $5.9 billion on $20 billion in revenues in the quarter ending December 31, 2020.
One year ago, Microsoft launched a very incomplete new Edge for the masses. Today, Edge is in much better shape, and now it’s getting some new features too.
Is Fall Guys coming to Xbox Game Pass? The developer says no but that may not be the entire story.
Leo, Mary Jo, and Paul discuss a major Windows 10X leak and what it means, Microsoft's self-driving car investment, a new Intel CEO, Julia White, Xbox, and much more.
Last month, I wrote about our need to stop supporting the current edition of the Windows 10 Field Guide and somehow move forward. Here’s the plan.


text:
- Cars selling below $25,000 dropped about 19% in March from February, according to Cars.com.
- Manufacturer incentives still exist on some models, although the average is down almost $1,000 from a year ago.
- The average price paid for a new car is about $40,000; for used cars, it's roughly $23,000.
It's a challenging time to be a car buyer.
High consumer demand coupled with a manufacturing shortage of microchips — key parts needed for today's autos to operate — have pinched new-car inventory at dealerships across the country. And with drivers seeking affordable options for hitting the open road, the used-car market isn't offering much of a reprieve.
"It's a seller's market, not a buyer's market," said Kelsey Mays, senior consumer affairs editor for Cars.com. "And sellers don't have that much to sell."
The average price paid for a new car is about $40,000, according to Edmunds.com. For used cars, it's roughly $23,000.
A year ago, when dealerships and manufacturing plans were shut down due to the pandemic, chipmakers pivoted to focusing on the consumer electronics industry — i.e., computers and gaming consoles — and are still scrambling to meet the renewed demand from automakers.
"The chip shortage is causing a lot of mayhem," said Ivan Drury, senior manager of insights at Edmunds.com. "But those chips are critical to a car because it's basically a rolling computer."
Some manufacturers have new cars produced that are sitting in their parking lots and waiting for chips to arrive and get installed, Drury said.
"It's what they can do to get the cars as close to completion as they can," he said.
One result from squeezed inventory is that fewer lower-cost vehicles are available. At Cars.com, listings for cars selling below $25,000 dropped about 19% in March from February. There's also just 38 days worth of inventory at dealerships, Mays said. That compares to the usual 65 to 70 days' worth.
"What's remaining on dealer lots is inventory that's more expensive," Mays said.
More from Personal Finance:
How investors can spot the next Bernie Madoff
Pressure mounts for Biden to forgive student debt
Here are smart things to do with your tax refund
However, while the chip shortage is expected to impact production through the end of the summer or early fall, not all automakers — or specific models — have been affected equally.
"It could be a good time to explore other brands if you're usually loyal to just one," Drury said. "There could be a vehicle that has the same features, the same color ... but just might be a different brand."
Although manufacturer incentives are not as plentiful as they've been in the past, there are some models that continue to be discounted. The average incentive amount is $3,527, down from $4,415 in March 2020 and $3,789 in March 2019, according to estimates from J.D. Power and LMC Automotive.
It could be a good time to explore other brands if you're usually loyal to just one.Ivan DrurySenior manager of insights at Edmunds.com
Chevrolet, for example, is offering deals on the 2021 Equinox that range from $3,500 to $6,500 for most versions through May 3, according to Cars.com. After the discount, the price would be anywhere from $21,000 to $38,000. The new Jeep Renegade comes with a factory discount of $2,000 to $6,000, putting the price you'd pay between $20,000 and $33,000.
If you're able to get a manufacturer's discount, don't assume there is no additional wiggle room in the price.
"That [reduced price] should be the starting point for negotiations," Mays said.
Additionally, high demand for used autos means your existing car may be more valuable, as well. The average amount for a trade-in is about $17,000, according to data from Edmunds. The average age of those cars is about 5.5 years.
"Those trade-in values are pretty dramatic," Drury said.
Average cost of financing a car
|New car||Used car|
Regardless of whether you're considering a new car or a pre-owned one, it's worth looking beyond just dealerships close to your home, Drury said. The bigger the radius of your search, the more options you'll have.
There are also other ways to bring down the cost of your purchase. Depending on your credit score, you may be able to find a 0% financing deal on a new car. Otherwise, the average interest rate paid on a new-car loan is about 4.5%, according to Edmunds. For used cars, it's 8.1%.
Be aware that the longer you stretch out your loan — say, for 72 or 84 months (six or seven years) — to afford the monthly payments, the more you'll pay in interest (unless it's 0%) and the greater the chance that you'll end up trading it for a new car before you've paid it off.
And in that scenario, if the trade-in value is less than what's owed on the loan, may consumers end up rolling that "negative equity" into the loan for their next car.


text:
BEIJING: Investment opportunities in India’s booming automobile and auto-components sectors have attracted around 100 Chinese firms to attend ‘Make in India’ seminars held in two key auto manufacturing hubs in China.
The seminars were the part of a series of industry and sector specific ‘Make in India’ events to be organised across China this year, the Indian Embassy here said in a statement.
“These seminars received an overwhelming response with nearly 180 representatives from around a hundred Chinese auto companies in Chongqing and Changchun attending the events,” the statement said.
During the seminars, Counsellor (Economic) Prashant Lokhande noted the important role played by the auto sector in India and highlighted the potential for collaboration between Indian and Chinese companies in the sector, the statement said,
Vinnie Mehta, Director General of the Automotive Component Manufacturers Association of India (ACMA), gave a detailed presentation on the strengths of India in the automotive sector and the areas for future growth, it said.
Santosh Pai, Partner, Link Legal India Law Services gave a presentation introducing the legal and regulatory framework in India with a special focus on the Goods and Services Tax.
During the seminars, Chinese companies queried about the taxation structure in India and the incentives offered to Chinese investors in the country, the statement said