text:
From Farm To Fork: Strengthening Supply Chain Transparency Across The Food Industry
Monday, April 18th, 2022
“The rampant uncertainty around pandemic-influenced supply and demand challenges will persist in 2022 — and the food industry can no longer afford to be caught off-guard by ‘unprecedented’ delays, disruptions, and shortages”.
Contributed by Cas Brentjens, Vice President of Infor Nexus Supply Chain Business Networks, APJ, Infor.
Cas Brentjens, Vice President of Infor Nexus Supply Chain Business Networks, APJ, Infor
Today’s consumers are hungrier than ever for information around the food they consume. Beyond basic nutritional facts and value, consumers now want to know where and how their food is grown — if the produce is organic and sustainably sourced, whether animals were involved and treated humanely in the farming process, and the impact of their food choices on the environment.
These questions are continually evolving, in addition to rising consumer calls for the disclosure of certifications and labels, such as ‘vegan’, ‘gluten-free’ and ‘non-GMO’ foods.
The pressure is mounting on food producers and manufacturers to address these new consumer demands, while complying with prevailing industry and food safety regulations. It is a tall order; one that can only be fulfilled by leveraging data-driven intelligence in real-time, to strengthen end-to-end visibility, transparency and traceability across the food supply chain.
Unfortunately, many producers have found themselves hindered by siloed operations and legacy software, which are unable to support the increasing need for agile processes and operations. Add to this an ongoing spate of supply chain snarls and delays across the globe, exacerbated by the pandemic, and we are faced with an industry in crisis.
The State Of Supply Chain Snarls
The past two years of the global pandemic have left supply chains in massive disarray. For starters, the interconnectedness of global trade has meant that any complexities and fragilities are closely interlinked; and a breakdown or bottleneck at any one part can halt and disrupt the entire value chain.
Current congestions and delays, for instance, are not merely an issue of shipping or traffic, but of global supply chain networks. 2021 saw a massive shortage of container ships across the globe, which were further exacerbated by historically high e-commerce demand in the pandemic, and thus, increased volumes of inbound shipping out of Asia.
These issues, compounded with a spate of ongoing labour woes, production constraints and delays, and unprecedented disruptions such as the Suez Canal port congestion, snowballed and majorly upended supply lines in the past year. The scale of these disruptions impacted even major food conglomerates, which reported a shortage of essential items across many of their outlets worldwide.
Multiply this effect across the many smaller farmers and producers whose supply lines are equally, if not more vulnerable, and its little wonder that food producers are struggling to keep up with order fulfillment — much less delivering greater traceability and transparency across the supply chain.
Driving Farm-To-Fork Transparency And Resiliency With Industry 4.0
Thankfully, many food producers are fast realising the need to leverage Industry 4.0 technologies in transforming their supply chain operations. This requires integrating the intelligence and speed of modern software into one’s supply chain ecosystem — from farmers to manufacturers, logistics and delivery partners, to retailers.
This enables food producers to track and trace their ingredients or products at any time, and across their network of suppliers, logistics providers and partners. More importantly, this precise visibility empowers producers to deliver detailed documentation of all ingredients and processes with ease, trickling down to engender stronger foundations of trust with consumers.
For starters, producers can look to leverage digital tools such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT), cloud and automation — many of which are already being applied to revolutionise farm-to-fork processes across the food industry. Real-time intelligence can also be applied to monitor the movement of goods at each stage of the value chain, granting producers an overview of their operations at once.
This, coupled with predictive analytics, can provide critical end-to-end visibility across the value chain, allowing producers to forecast any potential delays or disruptions to their operations. It also equips producers with the operational agility to map out contingencies, and pivot quickly to any changes in the market, as well as fluctuations in consumer demands.
Ultimately, leveraging smart tools and technologies allow food producers to gain a single, unified view of their various operations and functions at once, increasing operational intelligence and agility, while automating time and labour-intensive processes. This frees producers to focus on what truly matters: delivering quality products for the end consumer.
Supply Chain Visibility And Resiliency Become Mission-Critical In 2022
More than ever, organisations across the food industry and beyond are recognising that supply chain visibility and resiliency will be mission-critical to strengthening operational agility, especially as disruptions show no sign of abating.
IDC research indicates that increasing supply chain visibility is now an immediate priority for 58 percent of APAC organisations, and their supply chain strategies are evolving as well. Instead of single-minded pursuits of lower costs, business leaders are now looking towards holistic and multi-dimensional forms of real-time visibility across all their supply chain functions, both upstream and downstream — and food producers are no exception.
The rampant uncertainty around pandemic-influenced supply and demand challenges will persist in 2022 — and the food industry can no longer afford to be caught off-guard by ‘unprecedented’ delays, disruptions, and shortages.
Ultimately, success in the final mile delivery of products to consumers will become increasingly dependent on investments made in the first mile — and food producers must look to scale their use of Cloud, Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things, Big Data and predictive analytics to increase agility and control.
This will be crucial to enabling greater traceability and transparency across the food supply chain, allowing producers to deliver quality for consumers at speed and scale, even in a disruptive ‘new normal’.
MORE FOR YOU:
Moisture Detection Adds To Cold Chain Capabilities
Expertise In Canning: KHS And Ferrum Adopt Pioneering Role In Hygienic Machine Design
Coca-Cola Germany Switches Caps From Single-Use PET Bottles
Eat Healthy To Age Healthy
Understanding The Drive Of Healthy Aging Nutrition
Healthy Ageing: From Anti-Ageing To Age-Embracing
Creating Colourful Products That Cater To Modern Consumers
Nature’s Treasure Box: Plant-Based Ingredients To Support Today’s Lifestyle Choices
WANT MORE INSIDER NEWS? SUBSCRIBE TO OUR DIGITAL MAGAZINE NOW!
SHARE WITH FRIENDS:


text:
The automaker has purchased 15,000 seats for Google Apps, incuding Gmail.
Google has added another big company to its list of enterprise customers: Jaguar Land Rover. The automaker has signed on for 15,000 yearly subscriptions to Google Apps.
The announcement reportedly came at a Google conference in London on Thursday. A spokesman at Google's Mountain View, Calif., headquarters confirmed the deal, but said no further details were available at this time.
Ford Motor Co. sold Jaguar and Land Rover to India-based Tata Motors for $2.3 billion in 2008. Jaguar Land Rover is based in Conventry, United Kingdom.
Hamilton Beach, Fairchild Semiconductor, Genentech, and Johnson Diversey are among the large companies that have purchased thousands of seats for the Google Apps productivity suite. Among these large wins, CIOs seem primarily interested in Gmail, as an alternative to upgrading their aging, on-premises implementations of IBM Lotus Notes or Microsoft Exchange.
CIOs cite low cost (priced at $50 per seat, per year), low maintenance, and quick implementation as top factors in their choice of Google Apps. Johnson Diversey, a $3.4 billion-a-year manufacturer of commercial cleaning products, went live with Gmail for 12,000 employees, located in 70 countries, on a single day last May. Gmail replaced both Notes and Exchange platforms at the company.
Despite these wins, Google's enterprise customer roster for its fledgling Apps business remains tiny compared with Microsoft Office or IBM Lotus Notes. In general, large-business interest in the documents, presentations, and spreadsheet apps in the suite is more experimental, and often used as a complement to Microsoft Office.
Johnson Diversey's primary desktop app suite remains Microsoft Office, said CIO Brent Hoag in a recent interview.
Other than Gmail, use of Google Apps is "informal," Hoag said, and the company has also stuck with Lotus QuickPlace for its official document storage platform rather than Google Sites, although "we've used them both [Apps and Sites] extensively and they've increased productivity." Still, Hoag said, their functionality is limited compared with Office and QuickPlace.
InformationWeek has published an in-depth report on new software models. Download the report here (registration required).
SaaS As Innovation Driver?Software as a service is the clear No. 1 way enterprises consume cloud. InformationWeek's SaaS Innovation Survey reveals three tips to get the most from SaaS: Make it a popularity contest. Have an escape plan. And remember that identity is the new perimeter.
Top IT Trends to Watch in Financial ServicesIT pros at banks, investment houses, insurance companies, and other financial services organizations are focused on a range of issues, from peer-to-peer lending to cybersecurity to performance, agility, and compliance. It all matters.
Join us for a roundup of the top stories on InformationWeek.com for the week of September 18, 2016. We'll be talking with the InformationWeek.com editors and correspondents who brought you the top stories of the week to get the "story behind the story."

domain: news


text:
In his quest to build a better phone, Lei Jun visited hardware manufacturers from around the world. At Nokia, the head of R&D agreed with many of ideas, but had no ability to implement them. In the end, all of his hosts listened politely, but Lei Jun had nothing to show for it. Instead, he decided to build it himself.
The rest is already a part of history: Xiaomi Technology is likely the fastest growing tech company ever. In its first full financial year, Xiaomi generated $2.1 billion in revenue. That dwarfs the $713.4 million that Groupon did in its second full year of business, when it was said to be the fastest-growing company in history. In its second full year, Lei Jun, CEO of Xiaomi, expects the company to generate $4.5 billion.
MobiSights, a blog by the Great Wall Club, has an insightful collection of predictions for China’s mobile Internet in 2012. I’ve chosen my 5 favorite, but I also recommend you check out the entire series of 30+ predictions. These are true industry insiders (folks like the famous angel investor Xue Manzi, Zynga engineering head Ji Xu, and Glu CEO Niccolo de Masi), not just blogging blowhards like myself.
Douban is a social network with a renaissance culture. It’s not a product that just any user can fully appreciate upon first log-in. Douban’s rich contents include detailed book, movie and music reviews, forums that reflect specific cultures, a virtual township, and now a music platform for up-and-coming artists.
And Douban, ever defying convention, doesn’t have just one mobile app. It has an independent app for each of these specific cultures. Hot-off-the-shelf is Douban Musicians (豆瓣音乐人), an elegantly designed mobile application for both Android and iOS that’s about to change how users approach music on mobile.
Steve Bell of Trilogy VC has a theory: legendary entrepreneurs emerge from the ranks of starving students. The truly GREAT technology companies cited by students–Apple, Facebook, Microsoft, Google, Yahoo–were all founded by students. And China will follow, he says: “a student at a top University in China today is just as capable of starting the next Facebook, Google, Microsoft, Apple as students at Stanford, MIT, and Harvard.”
The Android Market is currently blocked in China, presumably by the Great Firewall. It may be temporary, but we tested it with different devices the result is always the same: connection expired. Blocks in China always come without official public notification.
NetEase Tech released an outstanding infographic today that outlines the mobile communications market in China. Here’s our breakdown by 1) service providers; 2) mobile population; 3) smartphone market; 4) manufacturers.
HTC, Motorola, and Samsung claim the top three spots in China’s white-hot Android handset market, according to a new report [Chinese] by app analytics startup UMeng (友盟).
UMeng also found that its top 100 apps gained 300% users in the first six months of 2011. Sessions (uses of those apps) grew by 400%. The insane Android growth curve that we’ve been waiting for has arrived.
Yesterday, Lei Jun gave a Steve Jobs-style keynote speech introducing the first Android Xiaomi Phone (小米手机). In terms of hardware specifications, it is among the top-end Android phones, with a price tag that couldn’t be anymore competitive at RMB 2000, or USD 313. China’s mobile market is the largest in the world, and Lei Jun’s latest attempt to conquer it is the most convincing one I have seen in a long time.
To date, technologies such as T9 and other predictive text solutions that make English input easy were not built with Chinese users in mind. The most ‘innovative’ method to date has been handwriting support for Chinese characters. Recently, four students from Shanghai Jiao Tong University introduced Aeviou, a new Chinese input method currently being tested on Android devices. The Aeviou keyboard is a simplified QWERTY keyboard without the 5 vowels and ‘v’ (hence the name aeviou).
iResearch released a chart today of the top mobile app stores in China in 2010. The survey methodology is vague–it asks ‘how often’ users visit an app store–but is useful as a broad indicator. The top store is Nokia’s OVI Store–but how long will that lead last?
tips [at] techrice [dot] com


text:
Main / Lifestyle / Candy Industry Magazine April 2010
Candy Industry Magazine April 2010
Name: Candy Industry Magazine April 2010
File size: 433mb
Merger and acquisition activity paled in comparison to deal-laden , and Candy April 23, All-natural demands spurring development amongst chocolate suppliers as consumers seek authenticity, traceability and wellness. Candy Industry Magazine August 18, August 20, This year, chocolate has taken members of Retail Confectioners International April The April issue features a look at Abdallah Candies, trends with has been an innovator in the cannabis infused-products industry in Colorado since
According to new NACS State of the Industry data, candy contributed percent of in-store sales. Candy accounted for percent of in-store gross margin. 22 Jul Candy Industry Magazine July The Women Behind Your Favorite Healthy Breakfasts Power Up For The Day” -Forbes Magazine Online. Candy and Snack Today – November/December Archive Issue Candy and Snack Today – March/April Archive Issue.
Candy Industry Magazine is a monthly, global confectionery publication covering all aspects of the market, from manufacturing to retail. In this issue: Industry experts highlight major trends impacting the category in , a look at the newest merchandising segment reports on cotton candy, sugarfree items, popcorn and the growing chocolate bar market. . March/April Daily news on confectionery and biscuit industry. Free access to news on chocolate, candy and biscuit processing. Crystal Lindell has more than 10 years of journalism experience, and worked primarily at daily newspapers before joining BNP Media the managing editor of a sister publication, Candy Industry Magazine, where she April 29, to adjust it to the market, occurred in , when we introduced the Wonka .. Planet explains to the Candy and Snack TODAY magazine (May/June, ).


text:
Google Spaces: YouTube, Search & Chrome Now Rolled Into One App
Even though Google might deny it, Google+ has proven to be kind of a flop in comparison to its social media competitors. However, the company has rolled out a new product - called Google Spaces - promising a new social media experience as it combines Google Chrome, Google Search and YouTube into one app.
Google Spaces allows users not just to share their insights, but to encourage group discussions as well. The new Google app provides a platform for Internet-goers to collaborate on a specific topic.
How Does Google Spaces Work?
Just like most Google platforms, Google Spaces is easy to use and very user-friendly. "It's simple enough: you create a 'Space' dedicated to a particular interest, and then invite your friends to discuss," explained TheNextWeb.
Although the purpose doesn't seem too revolutionary, Google Spaces gives users the convenience to access YouTube, Chrome and Google Search right from the app itself. Basically put, users won't have to "switch between apps to find and view shared content."
In addition to that, Google Spaces also offers a chat feature. TechCrunch notes that this very feature makes the Google app more eligible to be a competitor of Facebook's Messenger or WhatsApp "because of its focus on chatting and its mobile-friendly nature."
— TechCrunch (@TechCrunch) May 16, 2016
More In Store For Google Spaces
Google Product Director Luke Wroblewski shared in a blog post that further experimentation will be done on Google Spaces at Google I/O later this week. "We've created a space for each session so that developers can connect with each other and Googlers around topics at I/O, and we've got a few surprises too," wrote Wroblewski.
Google Spaces is already available for download. The app is available on Android, iOS and even on the web.


text:
CEVA partners with Ferrari, to serve as team partner of Scuderia Ferrari
CEVA Logistics, part of the CMA CGM Group, has signed a global, multi-year partnership with Ferrari to support its racing activities as official logistics partner.
January 27, 2022: CEVA Logistics, part of the CMA CGM Group, has signed a global, multi-year partnership with Ferrari to support its racing activities as official logistics partner.
CEVA will also serve as a team partner of Scuderia Ferrari, the most successful team ever in Formula 1 having won 239 races and 16 World Constructors’ Championships, says an official statement from CEVA Logistics.
"CEVA Logistics will provide all logistics support services for the Scuderia Ferrari cars and equipment for Grand Prix events as well as for the GT racing series and other Ferrari Challenge events."
As a team partner of Scuderia Ferrari, CEVA will have its logo featured on the new 2022 Scuderia Ferrari single seater as well as on team trucks and driver and pit crew equipment and apparel. Scuderia Ferrari’s new 2022 F1 car is set to be unveiled on February 17.
“The logistics industry is experiencing rapid change through the adoption of new technologies and so is Formula 1," says Mathieu Friedberg, CEO, CEVA Logistics. "With the next era of racing coming in 2022, we look forward to working alongside Scuderia Ferrari in showcasing these advancements in logistics and racing. The Scuderia Ferrari team wants to top the podium by navigating each course with agility and efficiency. At CEVA Logistics, our course is the world, and we want to navigate it every day for our customers with the same agility and efficiency.”
CEVA Logistics will ensure road and sea shipments of cars and equipment for Ferrari to race sites around the world. CEVA will support car and equipment shipments to Scuderia Ferrari event destinations as well as manage spare parts shipments in Europe and the global distribution of retail material. The 2022 Formula 1 world championship includes 23 global events beginning on March 18 in Bahrain and ending on Nov. 20 in Abu Dhabi.
Mattia Binotto, General Manager and Team principal, Scuderia Ferrari, added: “We are pleased to welcome CEVA Logistics as a new Team Partner to Scuderia. In the world of motor racing, efficiency and organisation are essential in order to achieve one’s goals in every area and logistics play a vital role in our daily activity, both at the track and in Maranello. With CEVA Logistics, we can count on a company that not only operates at the highest level in its sphere of activity, but is also particularly mindful of supporting us in achieving an objective that is key for Ferrari and Formula 1, namely becoming carbon neutral by 2030.”
As part of its efforts towards decarbonisation, CEVA currently offers customers alternative fuel options including biofuel, LNG and biomethane in ocean cargo, sustainable aviation fuels for air cargo, and biofuels or even electric vehicles for ground transport. Starting this year, Scuderia Ferrari’s F1 engines will be powered by a 10 percent-ethanol fuel. By 2026, the race cars will be using biofuels.


text:
Citroen has a long history of designing some strange cars, and this is its latest offering: the Ami 1 concept. There’s no word on a production variant, but the tiny concept car will be on show at t...
Contract Hire and Leasing News by James Kelly
- Alfa Romeo
- Aston Martin
- Land Rover
- MG Motor UK
Volkswagen has released a sketch of the high-performance T-Roc R ahead of its debut at the Geneva Motor Show. It follows a video of a prototype undergoing testing at the Nurburgring Nordschleife. ...
Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) for cars and vans is set to increase for the third time in three years from 1 April 2019. Although this time, it’s just in line with inflation. The increase in VED, or ‘r...
Dozens of new ‘19’ number plates are set to be banned in case they potentially cause offence, and this year the blacklist includes a few Brexit-related combinations that could potentially be inflam...
Most Popular This Week
- 1 Top five high mileage, low initial payment deals
- 2 Top five cars for under £200 per month
- 3 2019 Blue Badge scheme: Everything you need to know about the hidden disability changes
- 4 What were the top five company cars of 2018?
- 5 Top five hybrids for under £250 a month
- 6 First Drive Review: Audi A6 facelift
- 7 Top five cars for around £100 per month
- 8 Colour guide: How much difference does colour make to a Mercedes C-Class?
- 9 Relay car theft: What is it, how can you prevent it, and will your car insurance cover it?
- 10 Top five SUVs for less than £250 per month


text:
The Chamber of the Belt and Road Countries Members in Jilin & International Trade and Economic Cooperation Conference is held in Changchun, Jilin province, on Aug 27. (Photo: China Daily)
The Chamber of the Belt and Road Countries Members in Jilin & International Trade and Economic Cooperation Conference was held in Changchun, capital of Northeast China’s Jilin province, on Aug 27.
Hosted by the training center of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade and the council’s Jilin committee, the event was attended by around 230 people. It included representatives from companies and business associations from such countries as China, the Czech Republic, Mexico, Thailand and Jordan.
Addressing the event, Cao Yuguang, vice-president of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference Jilin Committee, said that the event was a platform for Jilin province and countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative to strengthen and broaden their cooperation.
He stressed that industrial and commercial circles contributed a lot to cooperation between countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative and a focus on cooperation should be put on Jilin’s advantageous industries.
Representatives from the Czech Republic, Thailand, and Laos also promoted their competitive industries at the event, looking to expand exchanges and cooperation with other countries.
Members of the Chamber of the Belt and Road Countries will next visit places such as Meihekou and Siping in Jilin province, to promote their industries and seek economic cooperation.


text:
CHICAGO — Supermarket companies that tend to promote managers from within should take care to remain receptive to business concepts and practices generated outside their companies, said panelists at the Food Marketing Institute Show here last week.
“There are of lot of advantages to coming up through the ranks,” said Rajiv Lal, a professor of retailing at Harvard Business School. “But at the same time, you want to have a culture where you are open to ideas from the outside.”
He even suggested it might be advantageous for retailers from different classes of trade to consider trading store managers among each other to help develop more well-rounded individuals.
Russell “Tres” Lund, chairman and chief executive officer, Lund Food Holdings, Minneapolis, said his company reached a point where it needed to bring in management help from outside.
At the same time, he said it is important for new hires to know they have an opportunity to move up in the ranks.
“I think it is a good practice for people when they start with us to know there are opportunities,” he said.
“I think the biggest challenge in talent development is recognition by senior management that real competitive advantage will come from investing in your people,” he said.
Jane Knaack-Esbeck, vice president of human resources and administration at Hy Vee, West Des Moines, Iowa, said careful hiring of new applicants and conducting regular performance reviews can help senior management focus more time on developing future leaders from the company's best performers, rather than wasting time disciplining the “bottom 20%” of employees that are underperformers.
“If you hire right, you don't have as many of those 20% to worry about,” she said.


text:
The days are numbered for Ranbaxy, one of the biggest household names in India as far as pharmaceutical companies go. The brand might be on its last legs in the wake of this year's largest merger in the Asian pharma sector.
Sun Pharma is likely to merge the Ranbaxy brand with its own after Monday's conditional nod from the Competition Commission of India (CCI) - a move that will provide the joint entity with a market share of nine per cent in India, reports Business Standard.
One of the key outcomes of the merger would be to create a single brand entity of Sun and the Ranbaxy brand would eventually dissolve, say analysts tracking the company.
"This is the most likely outcome and the merger was proposed keeping this in mind. This would be beneficial over a long term to have a single brand entity," said Sarabjit Kaur Nangra of Angel Broking.
Sun Pharma's managing director Dilip Shanghvi had earlier said during an interview that one of the options for the company was to create a single brand entity.
Retaining an acquired brand for long might prove to be a tough task, especially if it has not been bought purely for its brand strength. Ranbaxy scored heavily in its over-the-counter, or OTC, business, an area where pharma companies get to reach out to the end consumer themselves. Products like Revital (vitamin-based tablets) and Volini (pain reliever) have been endorsed by Bollywood stars.
"These have the equity that Sun would not want to let go of. So sub-brands might be retained after giving a spin to the mother brand," said a marketing expert on condition of anonymity.
Sun Pharma is now closer to being the fifth-largest generic company in the world by annual sales.


text:
Business confidence bounces back strongly in September after Brexit vote lull, optimism index reveals
Business confidence across the UK bounced back strongly last month after suffering a post-Brexit vote lull.
An index representing optimism among UK firms rose to 112.4 in September, after dropping to 105.0 in July and 109.7 in August - with a reading above 100 indicating positive business sentiment.
The survey of more than 500 business leaders by YouGov and the Centre for Economics and Business Research also showed that 44 per cent of businesses were now optimistic about the UK's economic prospects over the next 12 months, compared with 35 per cent in August.
Sunny outlook: The YouGov/CEBR business confidence index rose to 112.4 in September, after dropping to 105.0 in July and 109.7 in August.
That left only 35 per cent of businesses pessimistic about the British economy, compared with 45 per cent a month earlier.
Scott Corfe, a director at the CEBR, said: 'The panic that gripped businesses in the aftermath of the referendum has subsided and they are now much more level-headed and optimistic about the future of both their own organisations and the UK's economy in general.'
The figures echo positive data in the latest Markit/CIPS services purchasing managers' indices released this week, which largely showed a better than expected recovery after the Brexit vote.
YouGov and CEBR figures released last week also showed a continued recovery in consumer confidence, rising to 111.1, up one point from August. Consumer confidence is still two points shy of the pre-referendum reading.
But Mr Corfe cautioned that recent comments from the Conservative Party could have a notable impact on business sentiment.
He said: 'It should be noted that this research was carried out before the Conservative Party conference and all the talk of "hard Brexit" implying that the UK would prioritise immigration restrictions over access to the European single market.
'Once the shape of our economic relationship with the EU becomes clearer, these figures could shift notably.'
Most watched Money videos
- Age UK explains what is Pension Credit and how it can help you
- Fiat Panda spectacularly fails Euro NCAP test with zero stars
- Amazon Go set to land in London after launching in the U.S.
- Analyst explains why Fiat Panda received zero stars on NCAP test
- A UK guide to buying a used car
- 'It's time to be picky': Where to invest in tricky times
- A quick tour of the VW California Ocean campervan
- Ruffer profited in 2008 crash: Where is it investing now?
- Top tips to add value to your home with a renovation
- What the Budget 2018 means for you
- Philip Hammond announces new relief for first time buyers
- The Urus stars in Lamborghini's #sincewemadeitpossible


text:
"Kraft Heinz unintentionally showed its cards when its $143 billion bid for Unilever leaked to the public in February 2017," S&P said in its report.
According to S&P, the failed Unilever bid was evidence Kraft Heinz was hungry for a large asset to boost its revenue growth as well as "revealed the company's ambition of becoming a behemoth consumer packaged goods company run the 3G way, a lean juggernaut with ambitious cost cutting plans and zero-based budgeting."
The zero-based budgeting is a fundamental part of 3G's cost-reduction focus and strategy of delivering results by justifying expenses for every new budget period. This approach has caught on not just with food manufacturers tied to 3G but has been done at Campbell Soup too.
"In our opinion, Mondelez looks the most attractive among the packaged food companies and Colgate-Palmolive is the most attractive within household products and personal care," said S&P.
Added S&P: "Regardless of who the target ultimately is, we believe Kraft Heinz is actively searching, and that any large deal would likely be capitalized with sizeable equity in order to maintain investment grade ratings."
S&P believes Colgate-Palmolive is an especially "attractive target" to Kraft Heinz/3G because of the household and personal care products company's "global reach and leadership in its categories." It also pointed out that the deal would give Kraft Heinz a ramp into new categories such as home care, personal care and even pet food – all growing faster than ordinary packaged food.
At the same time, Kimberly-Clark would also provide an opportunity for Kraft Heinz to expand beyond food but S&P said "its product and brand portfolio is narrower than that of Unilever and Colgate-Palmolive. We also believe the paper and tissue categories are lower-growth, with tough competition from large rivals such as Procter & Gamble, making it difficult to drive top-line growth."
As for Mondelez, S&P sees the global food company as particularly attractive because of its stable of "strong" brands that compete in faster-growing categories, its global reach and the ability of an acquirer to improve its lackluster margins. That said, the ratings agency believes the size and terms of a deal with Mondelez would be the "biggest hurdles" to getting a deal done.
Based on S&P's analysis, Campbell Soup's "snack business would be attractive" to Kraft Heinz but it believes the weakness in the flagship soup segment (almost one-third of sales) would be a turn off. Another hurdle would be Campbell's founding family, which still controls a large chunk of the company.
Similarly, S&P believes Kellogg would be "a less probable target" in part because of the large ownership by a foundation and its presence on the board. Also, S&P said that a deal with Kellogg could be financed without much help from Berkshire Hathaway and still allow the combined entity to "maintain an investment grade rating."
As for General Mills, S&P said it would have a much smaller deal size than Mondelez and so "would demand less debt leverage to acquire." The weak operating performance at General Mills, however, could make a bid by Kraft Heinz more complicated and perhaps drive the price up because it might attract activist investors.
General Mills, Colgate-Palmolive and Kraft Heinz declined comment. CNBC also reached out to Mondelez, Campbell Soup, Kellogg, 3G, Berkshire Hathaway and PepsiCo.
Watch: Kraft Heinz drops bid for Unilever


text:
Dvid Granger is a story man.
"The most basic human impulse is to be told a story. You know, when you were a little kid, your parents probably told you stories," he says. "I have two daughters, and every Saturday night they make me tell them a story."
Confidence in storytelling is at the core of Mr. Granger's plan to snap Esquire out of the coma it has drifted into in recent years. As the new editor of the sleepy monthly, Mr. Granger, along with Publisher Valerie Salembier, is betting that grown men in the 1990s have the time and inclination to read stories for the sheer pleasure of it.
The test of these instincts is under way: September's Esquire, the first issue guided by Mr. Granger the former executive editor of GQ-hit the newsstands at 160 pages. Esquire, once a venue for stories by Hemingway and Faulkner, has a long way to go to regain its preeminence among men's magazines.
Esquire's advertising revenues have been in a serious slump, as confidence in the magazine's ability to deliver readers has waned. Ad pages declined 5.7% for the first half of 1997, to only 282 pages. Esquire would have to almost triple its ads to catch up with GQ, the category leader, which booked 821 pages in the first half of this year.
"We knew that 1997 would be a tough year," acknowledges Ms. Salembier, who was recruited by Cathleen P. Black, president of parent company Hearst Magazines, 13 months ago.
A snapshot of money spent by one advertiser tells the story: In 1996, Polo Ralph Lauren Corp. sunk $2.33 million ad dollars into GQ, while spending just $1 million at Esquire, according to research by Competitive Media Reporting.
Circulation is also lagging. Esquire's newsstand sales are about a third of those of GQ, whose newsstand circulation is 298,982. To beef up circulation, Esquire is offering a bargain-basement $9.97 yearly subscription, half the cost of a yearly subscription to GQ.
To top it off, over the past five years GQ has been lauded with 16 National Magazine Award nominations. And in that time, new contenders such as Details and Men's Health have become a threat.
"Esquire has been getting killed by GQ on the one hand, and getting nickeled-and-dimed on the other end by the smaller men's books," says Martin S. Walker of Walker Communications Inc.
Bucking the industry
Hearst has decided to set Esquire apart from the competition by allowing Mr. Granger to re-establish the book as a general-interest magazine. This approach bucks the magazine world's move toward "niche" titles that target specific interests, like fashion, fitness or gardening, and are service-oriented. While advertisers wait to see what Mr. Granger can deliver, other men's titles like Details and Men's Journal are also revamping themselves, nipping at the heels of GQ, the book that is thickest with ads.
Esquire's toughest sell may be to the advertising community. "We have had a hard time looking at it because we didn't know who the reader was," says Roberta Garfinkle, director of print media at Manhattan-based ad agency McCann-Erickson. "They've had so many different editors....The new editor would change the magazine and it would be just somewhat different."
Ms. Salembier insists that Esquire will now have a strong, attractive identity. "Esquire is the magazine for men who want to read; that's a huge point of difference," she says.
Mr. Granger is doing his part to create a stir. The September issue contains a feature by a writer who submitted himself to the treatments available to sustain erections.
"It's not just mindless service journalism," says Mr. Granger of David Friedman's humorous account of his adventures in the impotence industry. "He's telling you a story about an experience that he had."
Peers in the magazine world are impressed with Mr. Granger's deft hiring choices. Among those hires are star feature writer Tom Junod, a former handbag salesman whom Mr. Granger nurtured at GQ, and Editor at Large David Eggers, a 27-year-old former editor of the San Francisco humor magazine Might.
"Writers are excited about it, and that's a good sign," says Joe Dolce, former editor of Details, who quit that title this spring when he discovered that James Truman, the editorial director of Cond Nast Publications Inc., was shopping his job. Mr. Dolce expects Esquire will adopt a "much more modern tone, and a much more aggressive reporting stance."
The upcoming October issue features an essay from Rick Moody, one of the year's hottest fiction writers. Literary Editor Adrienne Miller, another GQ alum, has the job of discovering the next happening writer.
But Ms. Salembier and her staff are going to have to ignite some fire to compete against GQ's sales force. GQ Publisher Richard D. Beckman, a British expatriate known variously as the "Mad Dog" and the "Mad Cow" of Madison Avenue, is the marketing genius behind GQ's phenomenal ad growth. Ads jumped 150 pages after he staged a "Men of the Year" extravaganza at Radio City Music Hall last October, hosted by Phil Collins. Another is in the works for later this year, with David Bowie as host.
To pique interest in the new Esquire, Ms. Salembier hired Manhattan ad agency DeVito/Verdi to launch an advertising campaign months before a new editor was chosen. The magazine's current ads feature the slogan, "It's like GQ with a higher IQ." Industry insiders joke that the line should read, "Me Too, GQ."
But Mr. Granger sees differences between Esquire and its competitors: GQ is primarily a fashion magazine, while Men's Health, whose circulation has exploded to 1.3 million, is instructional. Readers are "ready for something that's substantial and surprising every month," he says. "And I think we can give it to them."


text:
The federal government shutdown has impacted the nation in a variety of ways, but here's one you might not have heard about: beer.
The reason is fairly simple: breweries need to have new beers' ingredients and labels federally approved before introducing them to the drinking public.
That hiccup, only compounded by the changing season, may soon be felt at Marshall Brewing Company. The Tulsa craft brewery is currently aging ales for the holidays, but won't be able to share them if the shutdown isn't lifted soon.
Just like the oak barrels stacked up and waiting, so is all the paperwork needed for you to drink what's inside the barrels.
"Let's get on with it. Let's move on with it," founder Eric Marshall said Wednesday. "Let's find an agreement and make things work."
One of Marshall's upcoming brews is the Black Dolphin Imperial Stout, still gathering a whiskey, oak and "maybe vanilla" flavor inside bourbon barrels.
Marshall says the Black Dolphin is set to be released in December if everything goes as planned, and is very important to the company's seasonal success.
"We are counting on that volume of sales in that quarter to fall into our yearly plan. If it doesn't happen that would be disappointing," he said.
Marshall's still working on the beer's label, but hopes the government passes a budget soon so the acceptance process can begin. Typically new brews are approved within a week, according to Marshall, but with a logjammed beer queue likely, that estimate could be much longer.
And don't expect seasonal wines either -- they're shut down as well.
Copyright 2013 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Also in the headlines
An additional police officer has been placed at Broken Arrow Sequoyah Middle School after a note found was deemed “not a credible threat.”
Pictures of the first winter storm of the season, Dec. 5 and 6.
KJRH 2 Works for You and Moody's Jewelry is giving away over $4,000 in jewelry from Dec. 9 through Dec. 20. Go to www.kjrh.com/contests to enter this 12 Days of Christmas giveaway.
The annual Food 2 Families food drive benefiting the Community Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma will begin Friday, Nov. 22 and end Dec. 15. We held our drive here at the station on Dec. 11.


text:
Cairo – Mubasher: BSH Home Appliances Group, a subsidiary of Germany's Bosch, has inked a preliminary contract with Egypt's New Urban Communities Authority to purchase two plots of land to establish an industrial complex for home appliances in the 10th of Ramadan City.
The signing ceremony was attended by Egyptian Prime Minister, Mostafa Madbouly, the Minister of Housing, Utilities, and Urban Communities, Assem El-Gazzar, and the Minister of Trade and Industry, Nevin Jameh, according to the Egyptian Cabinet's statement.
BSH Home Appliances will construct the industrial complex over around 160,000 square metres to manufacture home appliances.
The Egyptian Cabinet spokesman, Nader Saad, said that the contract is in line with the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed with Egypt in June 2019 for Bosch to construct its first industrial complex in MENA.
In a separate statement, BSH announced that the company will invest over EGP 550 million (EUR 30 million) in building its first cooking factory in Africa and the 13th in the world.
With a production capacity of over 350,000 appliances per year, the 30,000 square meter facility will be located on the 10th of Ramadan City close to Cairo.
The factory's construction is set to start in 2022, and the production is scheduled to begin in 2024.
In 2020, BSH recorded sales of EUR 13.9 billion by meeting consumer needs in 125 markets.


text:
Stay updated on tech news and trends; explore innovations for a safer digital space. The latest tech news about hardware, apps, electronics, and more. With huge companies like Google, Apple, and Amazon drawing your attention in different. ZDNET news and advice keep professionals prepared to embrace innovation and ready to build a better future. Tech news, reviews and analysis of computing, enterprise IT, cybersecurity, mobile technology, cloud computing, tech industry trends, how-tos. TechCrunch | Reporting on the business of technology, startups, venture capital funding, and Silicon Valley.
We bring you the future as it happens. From the latest in science and technology to the big stories in business and culture, we've got you covered. US News is a recognized leader in college, grad school, hospital, mutual fund, and car rankings. Track elected officials, research health conditions. The latest tech news about the world's best (and sometimes worst) hardware, apps, and much more. From top companies like Google and Apple to tiny startups. Tech News: Latest Techn news & updates on Smart Watches, Gaming Console, iOS updates with launch date and price straight from Business termpaperfastindia.online Technology News · CBS News Texas — Watch Live 24/7 · First Alert Weather · Current Conditions. Don't miss an update on the latest tech news from The Associated Press. AP News has everything you need to know for technology news today. Business news related to the technology industry, including Apple, Amazon, Microsoft, Google, and Facebook, plus consumer electronics, start-ups. Latest technology news stories including consumer electronics, science and space technology, gadgets, internet tech, medical devices, websites and social. Find the latest innovative technology news articles, videos and photos on termpaperfastindia.online Read about new inventions shaping the world and the future. BBC Innovation brings you the latest in Technology news and coverage from around the world, including health, environment, AI, and more. Gizmodo logo. Tech news, analysis, culture, business, security, and more.
From electronics and engineering to artificial intelligence, discover the latest developments, awe-inspiring features and in-depth analysis about today's. We bring you the future as it happens. From the latest in science and technology to the big stories in business and culture, we've got you covered. Our experts share the newest products and technologies that get you the most out of your world. Technology/Tech News - Get all the latest news on Technology, Gadgets with reviews, prices, features, highlights and specification on mint. Read the latest articles and commentary on technology at US News. Emerging technology news & insights | AI, Climate Change, BioTech, and more. GeekWire is a fast-growing, national technology news site with strong roots in the Seattle region and a large audience of loyal, tech-savvy readers around. Technology industry news, commentary and analysis, with reporting on big tech, startups, and internet culture. Tech news from top companies, including Google and Apple, to keep you informed on the latest tech, gadget and smartphone trends.
Curious about what's going on in tech but overwhelmed by it all? We keep you updated on the latest tech news and also explain exactly how it impacts YOU! View the latest technology headlines, gadget and smartphone trends, and insights from tech industry leaders. Get the latest news on technology businesses and Internet media at termpaperfastindia.online Learn about the digital trends and platforms that are disrupting media and. Tech Xplore covers the latest engineering, electronics and technology advances. Sky News technology provides you with all the latest tech and gadget news, game reviews, Internet and web news across the globe. Visit us today.
Stay updated with tech news today. Get the latest technology news, gadget updates, and mobile phone reviews. Visit Business Standard for comprehensive. Miami, FL · WFOR-TV Schedule · Our Newsletter · Top Headlines · Florida News · Politics · Facing South Florida · Health News · Latest Essentials. Latest Technology News and Daily Updates on Gadgets Get trending tech news, mobile phones, laptops, reviews, software updates, video games. Tech News Today: Get the latest technology news today, gadget news, updates on new phone launches, new Laptops, and AI news. Stay ahead with the recent tech.


text:
Sephora: Guillaume Motte appointed president and CEO of Sephora
The luxury group LVMH has just announced the appointment of Guillaume Motte as president and CEO of its selective perfumery brand Sephora. Guillaume Motte will take over from Chris de Lapuente, who also heads LVMH's selective distribution division, and who has held this position since last June, following the unexpected resignation of Martin Brok.
Guillaume Motte, deputy CEO of Fashion Group since May 2021, the LVMH division that brings together Celine, Givenchy, Loewe and Patou, is already familiar with the Sephora brand. Indeed from March 2018 to May 2021 he held the position of president Europe and Middle East of the beauty brand. Before joining the LVMH group, he was director of the men's fashion, Célio.
Sephora, which recently announced its return to the British market, has 2,650 stores in 35 countries, with a total of more than 35,000 employees, including about 6,000 in France. The AFP estimated Sephora's 2019 turnover at 10 billion euros.
Copyright © 2023 FashionNetwork.com All rights reserved.


text:
Google is replacing its iconic Gmail envelope logo with a That Google considered dropping the bull altogether or completely removing the Gmail red color, but individuals involved with consumer research studies were not pleased with the changes.
The research did, however, help Google recognize that the envelope part of the Gmail logo wasn’t a crucial design element, allowing the team to experiment with maintaining the M and adding Google’s traditional color palette.
Google is attempting to merge Gmail, Chat, and Docs into a central Office and Outlook email. The brand new Gmail logo still feels predominately red, with a The new Gmail emblem is currently an M created from Google’s heart blue, red, yellow, and green trademark colors. It closely matches similar logos for Google itself, Google Maps, Google Photos, Chrome, and many more Google products. The envelope is no more.
Small bit of yellow along with the blue and green holding the arch of the M. If you set it alongside Google’s other logos, then it’s difficult to distinguish between them, though.
Quick Company reports The new logos are part of a broader revamp of Google’s G Bundle applications, which has now been rebranded to Google Workspace.


text:
We’re big fans of grandma-style pizza here at Food Republic. The square-shaped pies that came from Long Island have become a staple of New York City pizzerias as well — even inspiring a saucy line of promotional bath linens at one of our favorite spots, GG’s in Manhattan’s East Village.
Now, it seems, this regional style of pizza-making is catching on nationally, too.
All this week, pizza partisans from around the world have gathered in Las Vegas for the International Pizza Expo — sometimes referred to as the Olympics or Super Bowl of pizza. The annual event spotlights the latest in pizza-making technology, as well as some of the most skilled pizza makers around, some of whom treat their craft like sport. There are contests for tossing dough and even folding pizza boxes.
Keynote speaker Tony Gemignani, author of The Pizza Bible, spoke with ABC TV’s Good Morning America about some of the hottest trends in the industry, now a $40 billion business worldwide. Gemignani touched on the chef-driven pizza trend as well as the weird squid-ink pizza phenomenon in Japan.
The growing popularity of the grandma style outside of its regional trappings is another significant development, according to Gemignani: “Grandma-style pizzas really originated on Long Island, and it’s gone across to the [New York City] boroughs. But now, grandma’s gone all the way to the West Coast, even to California. So grandma pizza is hot right now.”
Here’s the clip:


text:
Cash as Threat to Business in Azerbaijan
“Entrepreneurship in Azerbaijan more than at one-third does not recognize documentation and is based on cash payment. According to the World Bank, only 65% of businesses (mostly individuals) have bank accounts, which is a serious problem in terms of tax revenue.
As stated at the traditional IV forum "Tax system in Azerbaijan: realities and prospects" by the head of the local representation of WB Larisa Leshchenko, the World Bank is ready to assist Azerbaijan in solving this problem. According to her, a low level of non-cash payments is a serious problem for the country because the government should take serious measures in the promotion of non-cash payments, in particular to promote business, as well as informing the public.
"In the US, where I used to live, everyone enjoys payment cards, and I returned to Baku at the time when they do not use non-cash payments," said the expert, adding that the challenges currently facing the economy the country are caused by the decline in oil prices and other global processes. They are not one-day and continue in the medium term," said Leshchenko.
According to her, the World Bank predicts the average price of oil at $ 53 per barrel in 2015, $ 57 - in 2016. "In these conditions it is important to develop new programs, a new economic model in Azerbaijan and the World Bank will help in the local government," she added .-- 17D-


text:
Citing a company spokesman who asked not to be named, said Lucid would start exporting Air to Europe and the Middle East in “June or July,” followed by further expansion into China in 2023.
Another employee said Germany, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Italy, Monaco, Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and Norway will get Lucid Air first.
Meanwhile, customers in the UK have to wait a little longer because they have to wait for the right-hand drive version. The configuration for this right-hand drive is expected to begin later this year, with deliveries starting sometime in 2023. The report does not detail the Lucid Air pricing in Europe for the Lucid Air.
Meanwhile for the Middle East market, Lucid has just announced a substantial order for 100,000 electric vehicles from the Saudi government. Under the agreement, the Saudi Arabian government committed to purchase 50,000 electric vehicles from Lucid, with the option to purchase an additional 50,000 vehicles over a ten-year period.


text:
Precious Metals News Roundup
Week of September 30- October 4, 2019
Global Slowdown Spreads Across U.S. Economy
Economists lower third-quarter growth estimates after household spending nudged up 0.1% in August
By Sarah Chaney and Paul Kiernan Updated Sept. 27, 2019 4:30 pm ET
Consumers slowed spending and businesses cut back on investment in August, signs that a wobbling global economy and rising tariffs are sapping U.S. economic momentum.
Personal-consumption expenditures, or household spending, edged up a seasonally adjusted 0.1% in August from July, the Commerce Department said Friday.
The modest growth marked a sharp pullback from the first seven months of the year, when spending rose an average of 0.5% a month.
American consumers had been a bright spot in the economy. But weaker August spending showed consumers might be succumbing to some of the external headwinds that have shaken businesses and manufacturers for months.
Slowing global growth, fading effects from the 2017 tax cut and rising trade frictions are weighing on the U.S. economy.
“The domestic economy is not immune to all these headwinds,” said Lydia Boussour, U.S. economist at Oxford Economics. “The economy is gradually cooling.”
Consumer spending is the driving force behind the U.S. economy, accounting for more than two-thirds of total economic output. Another key source of demand in the economy, business investment, continued a stretch of weakness in August, according to a separate report Friday. Orders for long-lasting equipment and machinery, a proxy for business investment, fell 0.2% last month from July and 1.7% from August 2018.
Though some economists said Friday’s report exaggerated the extent of weakness among consumers, the pullback in consumer outlays and business investment bode poorly for third-quarter economic growth.
Economists lowered their estimates of third-quarter economic growth in the wake of spending and other data released Friday. Macroeconomic Advisers’ closely watched model for gross domestic product showed growth slowing to 1.7% in the third quarter, down from a previous estimate of 2.2%. Pantheon Macroeconomics, meanwhile, cut its forecast for third-quarter consumer-spending growth to 2.9% from 3.6%.
ther economists pointed to evidence that consumers remain on relatively solid footing. Much of the slowdown in consumer outlays in August could be traced to lower energy prices, which magnified a pullback in spending on gasoline and other energy goods. Expenditures on services slowed only modestly, while outlays on long-lasting consumer goods such as cars and furniture picked up.
“Furnishings and household durables are something that consumers tend to spend on when they feel relatively confident,” said Sonia Meskin, a senior economist at Standard Chartered.
For Ann Wingrove, president of Frankfort, Ky.-based gift shop Completely Kentucky, demand is still solid. Her store’s sales have increased about 9% this year compared with last as more customers trickle in to buy pottery and gift baskets. But tariffs are creating uncertainty about the future.
“I’m very concerned about consumer spending and how these tariffs are going to affect that,” she said.
Completely Kentucky received notifications from one vendor, a Kentucky-based silk scarf artist, suggesting the gift store should make purchases before a 25% tariff for silk from China hits. If the scarf prices go up, Ms. Wingrove fears Completely Kentucky will have to raise prices and sell fewer scarves.
“I’m heavily staffed now, so I am very concerned if our sales drop I will have to lay people off,” she said.
Other indications point to conditions supportive of consumer spending. Incomes grew 0.4% in August from a month earlier, led by a 0.6% jump in employee compensation. Annual inflation also remained low, undershooting the Federal Reserve’s 2% target.
Consumer sentiment, a measure of household sentiment released Friday by the University of Michigan, rose to 93.2 in September, up from August’s 89.8, though it was down 6.9% from September 2018. That represents the largest year-over-year drop since April 2016.
Richard Curtin, the survey’s chief economist, said the September numbers showed a slow erosion but were still quite favorable.
The outlook for consumers remained cloudy, as the Trump administration hit a new array of consumer products imported from China with higher tariffs at the beginning of this month.
Trade tensions are one reason businesses took a more cautious approach in the second quarter. Nonresidential fixed investment—which reflects spending on software, research and development, equipment and structures—fell at a 1.0% rate, compared with a 4.4% rise in the first three months of the year.
Buffett's Deception On Gold
Bert Dohmen Contributor - September 28, 2019 - Forbes
Warren Buffett is not a fan of gold. In his annual letter to investors earlier this year he wrote:
Those who regularly preach doom because of government budget deficits (as I regularly did myself for many years) might note that our country’s national debt has increased roughly 400-fold during the last of my 77-year periods.
That’s 40,000%! Suppose you had foreseen this increase and panicked at the prospect of runaway deficits and a worthless currency. To ‘protect’ yourself, you might have eschewed stocks and opted instead to buy [3.25] ounces of gold with your $114.75 [Buffet’s first investment 77 years ago].
And what would that supposed protection have delivered? You would now have an asset worth about $4,200, less than 1% of what would have been realized from a simple unmanaged investment in American business.
The magical metal was no match for the American mettle. [$114.75 would have grown to $606,811 if invested in a no-fee index fund tracking the S&P 500.]
My view: Buffett’s example is deceptive. It examines the performance over the last 77 years, whereas the gold price was in fact fixed by U.S. law until 1975, almost half of that time period. Is that an honest comparison?
So let’s see what gold did since 2001 when I gave a renewed long-term “buy” signal. In 1981, after gold had made its top above $800, I had predicted a 20-year bear market just when many gold bulls predicted a run to $3,000. It happened!
Gold plunged to about $250 by year 2001. At that time, no one even wanted to hear the word “gold.” Bearish sentiment was at extreme highs.
As you can see, gold far outperformed the S&P 500 since 2001. Buffett uses arbitrary dates, similar to many stock analysts who want to make a point against gold. They pick the dates that give them the results they want. It is disappointing.
I picked 2001 as a starting point according to my long-term signals, which indicated a bottom had been made at that time.
One analyst on financial TV recently said that “gold has been a horrible investment.” He didn’t give a time frame. Obviously, looking at gold’s recent performance, he is totally wrong. He manages stock portfolios.
Is gold competition for managed accounts in stocks? It shouldn’t be because it is an asset class, which have performed very well for my HedgeFolios membership program (not a managed account, which I don’t offer) this year.
However, there are times when an investor might want to sell when conditions are ripe for a sharp intermediate-term decline that may take months. During the 2008 global crisis, the VanEck Vectors Gold Miners ETF (GDX) plunged 72% during eight months, while gold declined 31%.
That showed that when hedge funds dump assets during the start of a bear market in order to raise cash, they also sell this sector.
But then both recovered nicely over the next three years.
When comparing gold performance, let’s use a broader index than the S&P 500, such as the NYSE Composite (blue line). Here is the chart of both. The outperformance of gold is even greater than against the S&P 500, about 3:1.
Also note that with bullish sentiment at extreme high levels, this is probably not the best time to buy gold for a while. If you missed the latest big upturn, it might be good to wait. There will be better opportunities.
Some speculators like more excitement in their trades, such as cryptocurrencies, which go up or down 20%-30% in 24 hours. In exchange for your money you get a computer entry, nothing tangible.
Eventually, these cryptos will be regulated out of existence. The central banks can’t tolerate private entities overtaking its role of creating money out of thin air. I prefer something the central banks of the world buy many tons of: gold.
On a quarterly basis, central banks increased their purchases of gold immensely in the first quarter of 2019. The World Gold Council reports that first-quarter 2019 purchases were the highest in six years, rising 68% above the year-ago quarter.
Early this year the World Gold Council reported that central banks around the globe bought the most gold in 2018 in over 51 years. According to the report, last year central banks bought 651 tonnes (metric) of gold. That is an increase of 74% from 2017.
The biggest buyers were China and Russia.
Gold will become the most desirable asset when the central banks restart their QE (quantitative easing) programs in order to avoid devastating recessions. The purchasing power of money will be eroded significantly.
The central banks are already pushing bond yields below zero with more than $17 trillion of bonds yielding below that level. That means the buyer of these bonds actually pays interest instead of receiving it.
That is the first time in 5,000 years of civilization that this experiment has been tried. It won’t end well!
The dangers of negative yields are recognized by the big smart money. Therefore, numerous countries are now buying large amounts of gold.
Conclusion: Chart readers will recognize that the above charts are long-term bullish. However, no market goes up in a straight line. Major upside resistance levels are ahead and will probably produce a sharp setback to chasten the perma-bulls.
The role of corrections in gold are to “shake the tree,” i.e. to separate weak holders from their holdings.
For many investors, it may be a good idea to have two portfolios:
One longer-term hold portfolio
One shorter-term timing portfolio to take big profits when everyone is bullish as now, and buy when bearishness is everywhere.
Most people cannot withstand sharp corrections and usually sell out at the bottom. That’s why often, depending on the individual, it is better to get out when technicals call for it, and get back in at lower prices. Only very experienced analysts can do that.
You will certainly not make 50% every 2.5 months in gold stocks, but you will be confident that gold-related investments will be a better asset for the very long term at this part in the cycle. If you buy it near the end of a correction, you can do even better.
I always look for investments that have something of value. It let’s me sleep at night.
Fear a recession? Here’s 3 reasons why the rising gold price could help
Peter Stephens | Sunday, 29th September, 2019
The risks facing the world economy appear to be intensifying. The trade war between the US and China has gradually increased in terms of its size and scale, while Brexit is now a matter of weeks away. Furthermore, the outlook for the European economy remains precarious, while China and the US are forecast to post slower growth in 2020 than in 2019.
All of this could mean that investors become increasingly downbeat about the prospects for the world economy. This could lead to a volatile period for the stock market, while it may also mean that the gold price continues to move higher.
Here’s why that trend could continue, and why buying into the rising gold price could prove to be a shrewd move.
Store of wealth
History shows that gold has been a store of wealth for many centuries. During the most challenging economic periods, gold has often been in high demand. This has led to it offering a lower positive correlation with the wider economy’s performance than many other mainstream assets.
Due to the aforementioned risks facing the world economy, the gold price has moved significantly higher during the course of 2019. It now trades 17% higher than it did at the start of the year. Since it had failed to rise over the previous four years, this suggests that demand for gold has spiked in recent months.
If the risks to the global economy remain high, gold could realistically trade much higher than it does today. In fact, when fears surrounding the world economy’s prospects were elevated in 2011 it traded 23% higher than it does today.
Interest rate falls
One factor that limited the rise in the gold price prior to 2019 was an increasingly restrictive US monetary policy. Since the US economy was delivering improving levels of performance, its interest rates were increased. This inhibited the gold price, since it became less appealing when compared to income-producing assets such as bonds and cash.
Now, though, investors expect the US to cut interest rates instead of increasing them. This could mean that gold gradually becomes increasingly attractive when compared to income-producing assets, which may lead to a rising gold price over the medium term. This could mean that if the economic outlook remains uncertain, interest rate cuts catalyse the gold price.
Even though the gold price has risen sharply in 2019, a number of major gold miners continue to offer good value for money. Therefore, they could deliver high long-term returns to investors – even if the world economy goes on to generate a high rate of growth.
As such, having exposure to the gold price through owning a diverse range of gold miners appears to be a sound move. It could help to protect your portfolio against the threat of a recession, as well as offer long-term upside.
UBS Doubles Down On Gold — Ups Its Forecast Again!
Simon Constable Sep 30, 2019, 02:17pm Forbes
The usually-conservative Swiss bank UBS has upped its forecast for the price of gold for the second time in less than two months.
Now it says the price for the yellow metal could reach as high as $1,730 a troy ounce next year, up $50 from an August forecast, a recent UBS report states. The note last month pointed to the possibility of $1,680 over the same timeframe.
If gold did soar that far it would be 17% above the recent price of $1,469.
The UBS report explains:
“An environment of negative and lower-for-longer real rates, slowing growth with downside risks, and elevated uncertainty strengthens the case for holding strategic gold allocations.”
The bullish move comes after a brutal September where the price tumbled from a high around $1,553.
Negative interest rates are only a part of the bullish case, UBS says.
UBS also points to the fact that gold prices are not whipsawing around. Instead they appear to be moving in measured steps, albeit downwards lately.
The report notes that ETF holdings, such as those in the SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) have been growing steadily.
For instance, the Gold Shares fund held 890 metric tons of the metal at the beginning of September versus 923 tons on Friday, according to the GoldShares website.
The other bullish blessing is that most of the investor love for the metal has not come from individual investors. Individuals are well-known for buying and selling assets of any kind at precisely the wrong time. That means that their relative absence from gold investing is a good thing for investors who want to see the price of bullion rally.
“[...] participation so far has largely been limited to institutional investors and the official sector,” the report says.
The official sector usually refers to central banks such as the Russian Central Bank.
A further boost could come from China the report says.
There are risks, according to the UBS report.
Notably, the U.S.-China trade war could get resolved, interest rates could rise, and the global economy could improve, the report explains.
Silver Investing Hits Record, Bullion Trading Jumps 82%
Adrian Ash - Bullion Vault - October 1, 2019
Gold prices this September touched new all-time highs for UK and Euro investors, and it averaged the highest daily price in US Dollar terms since March 2013, rising 0.8% to reach $1511 per ounce despite falling hard as the month ended.
Silver prices hit their highest month-average in 3 years, adding over 6.0% to reach $18.17 in US Dollar terms and – like gold – rising for the 4th month in a row despite Monday's drop.
The volatility across precious-metal prices saw daily trading volumes on BullionVault – the largest online and mobile-app marketplace for private investment in physical gold, silver and platinum – average £4.1 million, up 82.0% from the No.1 platform's prior 12-month average.
The number of people ending the month with more gold than they started slipped 8.6% from August's spike to the most since Donald Trump's US election victory in November 2016.
But the number of net sellers fell three times faster, down 26.5%. Together that pushed the Gold Investor Index – a unique measure of actual trading decisions in physical gold – up from 55.2 to 56.0, the highest reading in 13 months.
2019's jump in precious-metals investing is strongest in the Eurozone, where interest rates are most negative. The crash of DotCom Bubble 2.0 is also putting a shine on physical bullion for private investors.
Yes, September's count of first-time precious-metal investors fell from August's spike near a 3-year high, but it remained 60.7% above the prior 12-month average.
Eurozone residents again showed the strongest new interest, up 72.6% from the prior 12-month average versus a rise of 43.2% in the UK and a slip of 0.9% in the US.
Euro investors also led the jump in net demand for silver, which rose to 21.2 tonnes to set the largest monthly total since BullionVault added the metal to its trading platform in January 2010, five years after opening with gold.
That took the quantity of silver vaulted and insured for users to a new record above 802 tonnes, held in each client's choice of London, Singapore, Toronto or Zurich.
September's gold demand was also positive by weight, with BullionVault users buying 73.9kg as a group net of selling. That took the total quantity of gold vaulted and insured across those same locations plus New York up to a 4-month high of 38.3 tonnes.
Silver prices extended summer 2019's spike in early September to touch the highest since 2016 at $19.65 per ounce, before retreating $2.40 by month's end.
That volatility saw the number of people starting or adding to their silver holdings across the month slip 4.7% from August's 3-year high, but the number of sellers fell harder – shrinking by 15.9% from the previous month's 2.5-year peak.
Together that pushed the Silver Investor Index up from 54.9 to 55.9, a new 2-year high.
How does BullionVault trading compare with other markets for gold and silver?
Data from the US Mint meantime suggests that household demand for new gold or silver bullion coins remains weak, falling on September's price rise to barely one-quarter the level of the same month last year.
Gold jewellery demand is also struggling to digest these high prices in the giant consumer markets of China and India.
Among global investors wanting more cost-efficient exposure, silver's largest bullion-backed ETF – the iShares Silver Trust (NYSEArca: SLV) – saw net liquidation of 1.6% in September.
But like BullionVault, gold-backed ETFs also saw another month of inflows, taking their total backing very close to 2012's record and putting the 4-month inflow at its largest since early 2009, the depths of the US stock market's banking-crisis crash.
Bottom line? Widening political fractures make a strong case for spreading risk with gold, but the looming burst of fiscal stimulus plays to the pro-cyclical appeal of silver.
Silver, heavily used by industry and traded in a market only one-tenth the size of gold's, has also been used to exchange and store value for thousands of years.
Judging by September's activity on BullionVault – marketplace for the single largest pool of Western private investors in physical precious metals – a rising number of people expect that financial use to keep growing.
Gold prices could soar to $2,000 next year, says strategist
PUBLISHED THU, OCT 3 20192:25 AM EDT Eustance Huang
“Gold is a good alternative currency because it’s safe, and because it costs nothing to own it compared to paying negative rates on deposits,” said David Roche of Independent Strategy.
Gold prices could surge by about 30% to as high as $2,000 per ounce next year, Roche said. The price of spot gold currently stands at around $1,500 per ounce.
Gold prices could surge by about 30% to as high as $2,000 per ounce next year, according to David Roche, president and global strategist at Independent Strategy.
The price of spot gold currently stands at around $1,500 per ounce.
“What my gut says is that cause of the vilification of fiat currencies by central bankers, which is set to get worse — not better, people will look for an alternative currency,” Roche told CNBC’s “Squawk Box” on Thursday.
“Gold is a good alternative currency because it’s safe, and because it costs nothing to own it compared to paying negative rates on deposits,” Roche said.
As a result, gold prices will likely touch $1,600 before the end of this year, before moving higher to $2,000 next year, he said.
Roche’s comments come amid policy moves at major central banks in the past month.
The U.S. Federal Reserve slashed its benchmark overnight lending rate to a target range of 1.75% to 2% in September. The European Central Bank also cut its main deposit rate to a record low of -0.5% and launched a large new bond-buying program in the same month.
In Japan, where the short-term interest rate target is already in negative territory, the Bank of Japan signaled a chance of easing in October.
“We are more eager to act given heightening global risks. We will scrutinize economic and price developments thoroughly at next month’s meeting to decide whether to ease,” the central bank’s governor Haruhiko Kuroda told a news conference after the BOJ’s policy announcement in September.
Roche said central banks are now “quite rightly worried” about the next downturn after failing to achieve their inflation targets.
Instead of saying they’ve done enough, Roche said, central banks are saying, “Yes, we do need to spend lots of fiscal money but by the way, we can help. So actually, the government spends and we can supply the money. And we just run up bank balances between the two of us, which we can always write down.”
“That’s the new system now ... that I think is exactly what’s gonna happen,” Roche said. “That’s why I buy gold.”
— Reuters contributed to this report.
U.S. Payrolls and Wages Miss Estimates in New Sign of Downshift
By Katia Dmitrieva October 4, 2019, 5:30 AM PDT Updated on October 4, 2019, 7:48 AM PDT
U.S. hiring missed projections in September and wage gains cooled, offering a warning that the record-long expansion is poised for further slowing even as the jobless rate fell to a half-century low.
Private payrolls expanded by 114,000 after an upwardly revised 122,000 advance the prior month, according to a Labor Department report Friday that missed the median estimate of economists for a 130,000 gain. Total nonfarm payrolls climbed a below-forecast 136,000, which was boosted by 1,000 temporary government workers to prepare for the 2020 Census count.
Average hourly earnings rose 2.9% from a year earlier, the weakest in more than a year and missing estimates. The jobless rate unexpectedly dropped to 3.5%, the lowest since December 1969, from 3.7%.
Even with the shaky jobs and wage figures, traders of fed funds futures slightly reduced the amount of easing they expect from the U.S. central bank this year and marginally trimmed their expectations for an October cut amid a lower-than-expected unemployment rate. U.S. stocks rose and two-year Treasuries fell, while the dollar remained lower.
“Overall it is a bit of a mixed bag,” Torsten Slok, Deutsche Bank Securities chief economist, said on Bloomberg Television. But the main payrolls number along with weakness in manufacturing add to signs that the trade war is putting “downward pressure both on hiring and the economy.”
More broadly, the downbeat reading adds to signs President Donald Trump’s trade policy and weakness abroad pose an increasing threat to growth in the world’s largest economy. At the same time, the unemployment rate decline gave him a chance to boast, which he promptly did on Twitter minutes after the report, and was soon echoed by his economic adviser.
“There’s a lot of good data out there, and there’s some soft data,” Larry Kudlow, the head of the National Economic Council, said in a Bloomberg Television interview. “The headline number here is the 3.5% unemployment rate,” he said, citing gains by African Americans, Hispanics, and those without high school degrees.
The jobs report caps a week of U.S. economic data that whipsawed stocks and sent already-low Treasury yields tumbling, led by a key manufacturing gauge that sank deeper into contraction with the worst reading in a decade. A slowdown also threatens Trump’s re-election prospects next year, with the president frequently staking his message on a strong economy.
The data offer a contrast with characterizations by Fed Chairman Jerome Powell and his colleagues at recent meetings that job gains have been “solid,’’ though they may still have room to stick with that assessment. Late Thursday, Fed Vice Chairman Richard Clarida said the economy remains on solid footing and recession risks aren’t “particularly elevated under appropriate monetary policy.”
Powell is scheduled to deliver opening remarks at 2 p.m. in Washington at a Fed event, followed by comments from governors Lael Brainard and Randal Quarles.
Revisions were a bright spot, adding 45,000 jobs for the prior two months, though the three-month average still fell to 157,000 from 171,000.
The job gains were concentrated in health care and professional and business services. Retail employment contracted for an eighth-straight month, while construction payroll growth remained tepid.
Manufacturers subtracted 2,000 jobs, continuing a trend toward weaker growth. It likely reflects the slowdown at factories, seen also in data from the Institute for Supply Management, which points to slower production and orders amid weakening demand for goods.
Factory employment may be poised to fall further in coming months with General Motors Co. workers on strike. About 46,000 employees walked out Sept. 15, which was too late in the month to be captured in the Labor Department’s survey though may affect readings for October. At the same time, the strike may already be impacting wages and hours worked.
Average hourly earnings were little changed from the prior month, missing estimates for a gain, while the 2.9% annual wage gain fell below all estimates in Bloomberg’s survey of economists. Pay for production and nonsupervisory workers held up, though, with a gain of 3.5%, down only slightly from a decade-high of 3.6%.
U.S. wage growth slowed to weakest pace in more than a year in September
The U-6, or underemployment rate, slipped to 6.9%, the lowest since 2000, from 7.2%. Some analysts see this as a more accurate reflection of the labor market as it includes part-time workers who’d prefer a full-time position and those who aren’t actively looking.
Economists surveyed by Bloomberg had projected 145,000 new jobs with the unemployment rate remaining at 3.7% and average hourly earnings rising an unchanged 3.2%.


text:
Now don’t worry current or future investors. Looks like this was just a “glitch in the Matrix”. Earlier though, AAPL crashed 9% to $542.80. That’s a pretty big drop for the world’s biggest company to take! Apple’s trading stopped from 10:57am Eastern to 10:52am. Apparently this error was caused by a “fat-finger trade”, which according to Fortune’s Philip Elmer-DeWitt, is caused by someone pressing the wrong key.
Unfortunately there’s not an app for that…
But don’t worry, Wall Street looked into everything and seems to have it figured out and fixed as after only 5 minutes AAPL opened back up at $598.39.
The new iPad has been flying off the shelves in record numbers, and Apple is on top of the world right now. I don’t foresee any drastic or gradual decline in Apple’s stock any time soon.
Interested in seeing why the new iPad has been selling in record number?
We’re giving one away! Click here for the details!


text:
Textile Exchange after five years of corporate benchmarking – has prolonged the opportunity of its program to cover the vital area of biodiversity.
Biodiversity action is a crucial section of a raw materials business strategy and can provide climate benefits as well as benefits to nature and people.
The aim of the benchmark is to bring Textile Exchange’s Climate+ approach (where the “plus” includes biodiversity, water and soil health) to the epicenter of the textile industry’s action for material transformation. The recently-launched Biodiversity Insights Report, integrating data shared by 157 companies, sets the first baseline for the industry.
As per the report, 51 percent of fashion and textile companies identify biodiversity loss as an urgency risk. The report presents data submitted through ‘Biodiversity Benchmark’ to deliver an industry-specific assessment of how fashion and textile companies are understanding and addressing their impact on nature.
Thus biodiversity is rapidly becoming a focus area for fashion and textile companies.
The benchmark allows companies to comprehend their impacts and dependencies on nature in their materials sourcing strategies, chart a pathway to deliver positive biodiversity outcomes, and benchmark their progress.
Results and learnings from the Biodiversity Benchmark can then be directed back into the community to support transformative change for the sector.
Sustainability standards are the most extensively used portion by companies seeking to address their biodiversity impact. A remarkable 80 percent of companies are growing their uptake of certified materials as a way of dealing their impact on biodiversity. Certified organic cotton and other cotton standards are the most prevalent.
Greater number of companies are taking action to remediate biodiversity loss. Beyond standards, 38 percent of companies are implementing restorative/regenerative measures to support biodiversity, opening up prospects for collaboration across the value chain and within broader landscapes.
A growing number of companies are investing in biodiversity either financially or in kind. 38 percent of companies are making some kind of investment to improve outcomes for biodiversity, focused on projects within their own supply chain or beyond.
Greater transparency is still needed to track biodiversity outcomes. Only 14 percent of companies know the countries where their key raw materials are grown or extracted. Beyond country of origin, companies should also understand the broader landscape of where they are sourcing their materials, and 15 percent have already started mapping this against priority areas for biodiversity.
Understanding where the industry is at, and what the barriers and enablers are to the uptake of best practices, is an important first step. Only by knowing where we are will we be able to create the change needed to halt biodiversity loss and ensure the protection of nature for future generations and the health of our planet Earth.
Textile Exchange congratulates all baseline participants and invites others to join us in using the Biodiversity Benchmark to inform, measure and track improvements along a company’s individual biodiversity journey and as part of a collaborative effort to accelerate and scale action.


text:
Yet one other common company is looking for its monetary footing amid the fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic. Beloved snack company Peeled Snacks filed for chapter in Wilmington, Delaware on March 3, The Wall Street Journal stories. The model, recognized for its dried fruit and fruit crisps, had skilled a significant dip in sales associated to decrease site visitors in airports and fewer kids in colleges, two locations important to the company’s gross sales figures previous to COVID, in response to the model’s chapter submitting.
Peeled Snacks’ chapter submitting comes only one year after the model introduced plans to broaden. After changing into a B Corporation—a certification that signifies the model’s authorized transparency and dedication to moral practices—Peeled introduced in Feb. 2020 that it could be growing its product offerings after receiving a multimillion-dollar funding from Decathlon Capital Partners. “Peeled Snacks is well-positioned in the high-growth market for healthier snacks,” mentioned Decathlon’s Co-Founder and Managing Director John Borchers in a press release relating to the funding. “Their products are not only popular with consumers but start with fair labor policies and sustainable farming practices. Their business ethos and growth potential make us proud to invest in the Peeled Snack vision.”
But sadly, COVID modified Peeled Snacks’ plans, simply because it has for many different companies. Read on to find which different manufacturers are closing up store amid COVID. And for extra manufacturers making main adjustments, This Iconic Chain Is Closing Up to 50 Stores.
Alamo Drafthouse, a film chain recognized for its meals and cocktail service, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on March 3. The chain introduced that it plans to shut three of its 41 complete areas as a part of the chapter course of, together with theaters in Kansas City, Missouri, and two areas in Texas: the well-known The Ritz in Austin and one other theater in New Braunfels.
However, in a press release, the model expressed optimism in regards to the future. “Post-COVID, we’ll make certain that all of our signature series will find a new home at another Austin Alamo Drafthouse Cinema and that the spirit and personality of The Ritz will continue,” the company mentioned on their web site. And for the newest information in your favourite manufacturers delivered straight to your inbox, join for our each day publication.
The Disney Store, which sells every thing from Disney-branded toys to character costumes to housewares, introduced on March 3 that it could shuttering 60 of its 300 stores within the close to future, CNBC reported.
“Over the past few years, we’ve been focused on meeting consumers where they are already spending their time, such as the expansion of Disney store shop-in-shops around the world,” Stephanie Young, president of Consumer Products, Games and Publishing at Disney, mentioned in a press release (through People). “We now plan to create a more flexible, interconnected e-commerce experience that provides customers quick access to distinctive, high-quality merchandise throughout all our franchises.” And for some buying experiences you’ll by no means have once more, This Fan Favorite Chain Is Closing All Its Stores.
Paper Source, a beloved card and reward store, filed its petition for Chapter 11 chapter safety on March 2. The almost 40-year-old model, which presently operates 158 retail areas and an e-commerce business, will shut a minimal of 11 shops to assist offload debt.
“As with many other retail brands, [Paper Source has] sustained deep damage to their finances and operations as a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic,” defined Paper Source CFO Ronald Kruczynski within the company’s chapter submitting, through Retail Dive. And for one other company in hassle, take a look at This Popular Pizza Chain Just Filed for Bankruptcy.
Sunglass retailer Solstice filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Feb. 18, asserting that it could making “necessary changes” to its business mannequin within the close to future.
The chain didn’t announce any retailer closures on the time of its submitting, and, in actual fact, the company’s CEO, Mikey Rosenberg, mentioned that there should be good issues coming for the mall staple. “We are optimistic about reorganization as we proceed to see growing business in our shops as COVID restrictions are lifted and within the new fashions that our distributors are offering,” Rosenberg mentioned in a press release. And for extra shops in critical monetary hassle, This Popular Department Store Just Filed for Bankruptcy.


text:
Mini has unveiled an all-electric version of the classic Mini.
This demonstrates its appetite for electric driving and embracing zero-emission technology, said Mini.
The Mini Electric Concept was announced at the 2017 Frankfurt Motor Show, and paved the way for the brand’s first all-electric vehicle – which will be launched in 2019.
The electric vehicle is currently in development, based on the Mini 3 Door, and will be produced at the Mini Plant Oxford.
The company said the classic Mini Electric will remain unique, where a restored example of the classic Mini Cooper will serve as the basis for the vehicle.


text:
The lucrative holiday season is already over. But many online retailers still have a hangover from it, not just due to the stress of the shopping craziness, but also because weaknesses are becoming visible. But an increase in returns rates is far from a problem that online retailers face only once a year.
It’s a well-known problem that can severely threaten the profitability of a business. How do companies deal with returns and why do customers increasingly return goods?
Energy use, sustainability, and a plethora of plastic waste in our oceans — These topics are receiving more and more attention in the daily news or in the governments. The rapid rise of green party members in parliament also shows: Conservation is no longer a niche affair. People are worried about their home planet and are actively seeking solutions to tackle global warming. Digitisation and artificial intelligence can become an important piece of the puzzle in this mission.
A new year is a chance to conquer new horizons, tackle new business ideas and implement them, and advance innovations. To fulfill these intentions, it’s imperative to know the latest advances and master the technologies behind them.
Technology determines all areas of a digital economy and society, including trends. That’s why we’re highlighting Gartner’s strategic tech trends for 2019. The companies that succeed in bringing these into their business processes will be at the top and stand out from the competition.
Our digital world is also a world full of data that has to be processed and analysed ever faster and more accurately than ever. Classic computers have long since reached their limits, as they can only do one task after another. But a new kind of computing could change everything: Quantum Computing (QC). It has the potential to fully exploit artificial intelligence.
Quantum computing is the holy grail for global technology giants. But what exactly is a quantum computer and what can it be used for?
Being successful without maintaining a social media presence? Unlikely! Companies benefit from the enormous reach and a »personal« relationship with their customers. And networks? They’re making billions thanks to the social media presence of other companies.
Now it’s also the case with customer relationships that they’ll evolve with years to come and become even more intimate. Platforms want this anyway: They’re integrating more and more features so that companies can build relationships with their customers and grow social media marketing budgets year over year.
In 2019 social commerce will increase e-commerce sales, and also affect omnichannel retail. Which social commerce trends shouldn’t be missed in 2019? We’ll tell you.
Four out of five people in Germany own a smart phone. This means that 80 percent of the population have a camera with them at all times. As a result, users no longer have to remember what inspires them, but can simply take pictures of them. This not only applies to fashion and food, but also to interior design.
The holiday season is a time of lots of movement. People run into shops to buy their last gifts or the last ingredients for their feast, look for the perfect party outfit, and cram their bags to the last minute, before they go home on an often long journey. Excitement, stress, and loss of time precede the holiday calm and reflections.
Crowded shopping malls and endless queues cause chaos and frustration among consumers. In fact, nine out of ten shoppers avoid a store when queues are too long.
A few years ago, topics such as verticalisation or direct sales, which retailers and manufacturers used, are increasingly causing the question of how to deal with the trend of »platform economics« and which strategy is the right one to be answered.
The success of a digital platform is mostly dependent on how well it plays with other systems. But how can a platform develop solutions independently? In the fourth part of our »Digital Platforms« series, we explained to you what systems SAP C/4HANA consists of. At the end of the series, we’ll show you how individual solutions create a digital platform. Keyword: Integration.
Behind every professional swimmer there is a team of experts who contribute to the athlete’s success in the sport. There’s a manager, trainer, physiotherapist, and training partner.
Digital platforms also consist of different experts alias systems that cover the most diverse disciplines in e-commerce. These include marketing, sales, and services.
In the third part of our Digital Platforms, we explained what is special about the SAP HANA database. This time we’ll introduce you to their individual systems in detail.
Pretty cloudy on the horizon
As shown in the figure below, SAP C/4HANA includes the SAP Marketing Cloud, the SAP Commerce Cloud, the SAP Service Cloud, the SAP Customer Data Cloud, and the SAP Sales Cloud. Thanks to the acquisition of Hybris, Gigya and CallidusCloud solutions are also part of the platform.


text:
The iPhone X walked so the iPhone 11 could run.
16 Recent Stories
Those tiny circuits and toxic batteries built into the toys end up in a pile of e-waste alongside defunct computers and ancient iPhones.
In honor of Earth Day, save big on select used tech items across the site. Sales end at 11:59 pm PST on April 22.


text:
ADT Inc., a provider of security and automation solutions for homes and businesses, has revealed a “concierge services”campaign through the home automation platform, ADT Pulse.
The campaign showcases the benefits of integrated automation of lights, locks, doorbells, video and more – all backed by real protection and professional monitoring from ADT.
Additionally, ADT is showcasing how voice activation with Amazon Alexa gives customers an easy, hands-free solution for dynamic scenes that deliver a personalized service.
As part of this campaign, ADT has rolled out a series of new TV spots and online video vignettes that demonstrate various themed personal moments combining ADT’s life safety standards and customizable smart home experiences.
From a woman receiving a notification on her phone through her ADT-integrated video doorbell and remotely unlocks the door for her friend, to a family who prepares for their trip by setting their ADT system to “Vacation Mode,” automatically turning off the lights, turning down the thermostat and locking the door, personalization is at the fingertips of every ADT customer.
The campaign will also feature expanded capabilities with Amazon Alexa. Currently, ADT’s interactive Pulse Platform recognizes over 100 voice-activated utterances from Alexa.
“ADT brings the benefits of home automation and security together in one app, coupled with the ease and peace of mind that comes from a ‘do it for you’ installation and professionally monitored and maintained solution from ADT,” said Jamie Haenggi, Chief Growth Officer at ADT.
“We thought it would be interesting to celebrate some of the ways our more than 2.3 million home automation customers are using their system. As a leading voice integrator in the security industry, ADT continues to aggregate technologies seamlessly into our Pulse home automation app and offer more benefits to our customers coupled with the peace of mind of 24/7 monitoring.”
According to research from Parks Associates*, 32 percent of U.S. broadband households own at least one connected device, and 50 percent of households intend to purchase a smart home device in the next year – however many households are not taking full advantage of these devices to their fullest capacity.
With ADT, smart security is customized just for you, allowing customers to unlock the full potential of their smart home – providing personalized smart home security solutions in a single app, allowing smart home control via voice command and all-in-one app control – all backed by 24/7 monitoring and customer support.


text:
Security researchers at the app development firm Mysk Inc. found that some iPhone apps are using notifications to get around Apple's privacy rules governing the collection of user data.
The researchers said the data being collected through notification appears related to analytics, advertising, and tracking users across different apps and devices.
The use of notifications for gathering user data also gets around the practice of closing apps to prevent them from background data collection.
View Full Article
Abstracts Copyright © 2024 SmithBucklin, Washington, DC, USA
No entries found