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Media Contacts: Cathy Kennedy, Cathryn Kennedy Consulting - 612-309-3951
Pam McCarthy-Kern, Cathryn Kennedy Consulting - 612-360-0647
ST. PAUL, Minn., Nov. 16, 2015 — The enchanting European Christmas Market will come to Union Depot’s East Plaza during the first two weekends in December, presenting a holiday festival inspired by “Christkindlmarkt,” an outdoor holiday festival common across central European countries.
The free, six-day open-air event features handmade goods from local crafters, artisans and vendors as well as authentic food offerings and drinks. Attendees will find blown-glass ornaments and artwork, holiday décor, clothing and more. Surrounded by carolers, Santa and reindeer, vendors will display their wares in an atmosphere befitting of a traditional Christmas market in Europe.
“The Market showcases traditions and flavors from European cultures to give families a delightful and diverse Christmastime experience,” said Renate Sharp, organizer of the European Christmas Market in St. Paul.
Beyond handmade goods, European-inspired foods will be served, such as traditional sausages, pretzels with mustard, goulash, gingerbread cookies and more. Beer and traditional glühwein (mulled wine) will also be available.
The European Christmas Market, now in its second year in St. Paul, will join the roster of Union Depot’s “Hub for the Holidays” events — coinciding with: Holiday Tree Lighting Celebration (Dec. 4); “North Pole Express” Holiday Train (Dec. 4-6 and Dec. 10-13); Holiday Movie Nights (Dec. 4 and Dec. 18); CP Holiday Train (Dec. 11); and Holiday Bake Sale (Dec. 12).
At a Glance: European Christmas Market at Union Depot in St. Paul
European Christmas Market — a free, six-day, open-air event inspired by “Christkindlmarkt,” an outdoor holiday festival common across Germany, Austria, Switzerland and other central European countries featuring handmade goods from local vendors and European-styled food and drink.
2–9 p.m., Friday, Dec. 4
10 a.m.–9 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 5
10 a.m.– 3 p.m., Sunday, Dec. 6
2–9 p.m., Friday, Dec. 11
10 a.m.–9 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 12
10 a.m.– 3 p.m., Sunday, Dec. 13
Union Depot— Outdoors on East Plaza
240 Kellogg Blvd E, St. Paul, MN 55101
Current entertainment includes:
Friday, December 4:
5:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.: Mechanical Maestros
6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.: Live reindeer
Friday, December 11:
5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.: Santa
Saturday, December 5:
11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.: Elizabethan Syngers
4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.: Santa
Saturday, December 12:
10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.: Tiny Christmas Elves (singers)
2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.: Elizabethan Syngers
Sunday, December 6:
10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.: Mechanical Maestros
12:30 p.m. to 1:00 p.m.: Peer Gynt Norwegian Dancers
Sunday, December 13:
10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.: Mechanical Maestros
Current vendors include:
Roseberry Children’s Boutique — children's items such as hand-knit sweaters, hats, mittens, hair clips, wings, tutus, and wooden and knit toys.
Lucy Iburg — hats, sweaters, mittens, bags and scarves with Scandinavian designs.
Mother Earth Gardens — compostable natural centerpieces and door décor, small winter containers of greens for porches, wreaths, ornaments, unique local and recycled gifts, cards and books.
Kettle Roasted Nuts — cinnamon roasted almonds, pecans, cashews, salted cashews and dark cocoa raspberry almonds.
Redeemed Dust Designs — wood-burned items such as spoons, rolling pins, cutting boards, recipe cardholders and more.
Teresa Ras of Gifts From Poland — mouth-blown European glass.
More vendors will be announced soon — stay clicked to www.uniondepot.or/holiday.
About UNION DEPOT...The beautifully renovated Union Depot, completed in 1926, was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974 and certified LEED® Gold in 2014. Ramsey County Regional Railroad Authority owns Union Depot which offers a full complement of transportation services including Amtrak®, Jefferson Lines, Greyhound and megabus.com. The Regional Railroad Authority is dedicated to a long-range vision that addresses changing transportation needs by preserving rail transit corridors for future transit use, studying transit options and providing transit services. JLL, under contract with the Regional Railroad Authority, is responsible for management of Union Depot and working collaboratively to establish a welcoming community gathering place at the historic landmark. For more information, go to uniondepot.org.
About European Christmas Market
The European Christmas Market, based in St. Paul, Minn., is a registered nonprofit organization that fosters European arts, revives European cultural traditions, and supports local artists and artisanal products. The event aims to engage the community in a celebration of local and global history, while sparking activity in the heart of Downtown St. Paul. Learn more at www.stpaulchristmasmarket.com.
JLL (NYSE: JLL) is a professional services and investment management firm offering specialized real estate services to clients seeking increased value by owning, occupying and investing in real estate. A Fortune 500 company with annual fee revenue of $4.7 billion and gross revenue of $5.4 billion, JLL has more than 230 corporate offices, operates in 80 countries and has a global workforce of approximately 58,000. On behalf of its clients, the firm provides management and real estate outsourcing services for a property portfolio of 3.4 billion square feet, or 316 million square meters, and completed $118 billion in sales, acquisitions and finance transactions in 2014. Its investment management business, LaSalle Investment Management, has $57.2 billion of real estate assets under management. JLL is the brand name, and a registered trademark, of Jones Lang LaSalle Incorporated. For further information, visit www.jll.com.


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Joining the Moment, SANDMARC, and Twelve South holiday sale events (among many others), it is now time for the Native Union Black Friday sale via its official Amazon storefront. The brand landed in our roundup of the best iPhone 14 cases with its (Re) Classic MagSafe model featuring a plant-based construction and a unique texture adorned with the Native Union Paris logo and a recycled microfiber inner lining. Best of all, the unique iPhone 14 models, both in black and the the tan-style Kraft colorway, are now seeing the very first price drop for Black Friday. Much of the same historical pricing data carries over to its matching (Re) Classic MagSafe Wallet and the Universal Wrist Sling alongside charging gear, cables, and its Snap 3-in-1 Magnetic Wireless Charger at up to 50% off. The deals start from $17.50 and you’ll find the best of them highlighted below.
Native Union Black Friday sale – Cases, wallets, more
- iPhone 14 (Re) Classic MagSafe Case $42 (Reg. $60)
- (Re) Classic Wallet MagSafe Wallet $35 (Reg. $50)
- iPhone Case Universal Wrist Sling $17.50 (Reg. $20)
- W.F.A 12.9-inch iPad Folio $42 (Reg. $60)
- Stow Lite 13-inch MacBook Sleeve $20 (Reg. $40)
- Stow Organizer $30 (Reg. $60)
- And even more…
Native Union Black Friday charging gear deals
- Snap 3-in-1 Magnetic Wireless Charger $126 (Reg. $180)
- Fast GaN Charger PD 65W $48 (Reg. $60)
- Smart Hub PD 45W $35 (Reg. $50)
- 8-ft. Type-C Belt Cable Pro $25 (Reg. $35)
- 6.5-ft. Lightning, USB-C and Micro-USB Cable $28 (Reg. $40)
- 4-ft. USB-A to Lightning Cable $21 (Reg. $30)
- 10-ft. Reinforced Lightning to USB-A Night Cable $28 (Reg. $40)
- And even more…
Be sure to dive into our Black Friday 2022 deal hub for even more of the discounts live ahead of tonight’s official start time. And then hit up more of the many iPhone 14 accessory sales now live below:
- Save on all of Apple’s official iPhone 14 series cases for the first time from $37.50
- Nomad takes 25% off entire collection of iPhone cases, MagSafe chargers, more
- Twelve South Black Friday Sale live with rare discounts on popular Apple accessories
- PopSockets Black Friday now live: Pokémon collection, MagSafe grips, more 20% off
- MUJJO Black Friday: First deals on iPhone 14 cases, wallets, more from $18
- CASETiFY Black Friday up to 30% off: iPhone 14 cases, more
- SANDMARC best prices ever! iPhone 14 cases, Apple Watch bands, 20% off
- Zagg takes 40% off sitewide on new MagSafe chargers, iPad Pro keyboards, more
- Casely Black Friday sale 50% off everything: iPhone 14 cases, MagSafe gear, more
- Totallee Black Friday sale now live with 50% off everything
- DODOcase Black Friday sale goes live with rare 30% off sitewide
- Exclusive all-time lows on Alto’s laser wood iPhone 14 cases now live at 20% off
- Peak Design’s Black Friday up to 30% off
- And even more…
Native Union iPhone 14 (Re) Classic MagSafe Case
- TEXTURED ELEGANCE: Crafted with Yatay, a premium plant-based material handcrafted in Italy, finished in a smooth & cross-grained design for an elevated feel for your iPhone.
- CARRY THAT CARES: 100% recycled frame fully wrapped in Yatay made from wheat, cereal & corn for carry that’s better for the Earth.
- MAGSAFE COMPATIBLE: Built-in magnets ensure seamless alignment for fast charging up to 15W & easy use with any MagSafe accessory.
- DROP PROTECTION: Built to last with a durable construction, closed-bottom structure & raised edges. Stay worry-free with drop protection up to 6ft / 1.8m.
- EXTRA CARE: Comes with a recycled microfiber inner lining that adds an extra layer of protection for your device
FTC: 9to5Toys is reader supported, we may earn income on affiliate links

domain: news


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Google’s rumored plans for a Spotify-like streaming music service are coming into clearer view, with a report that YouTube will play a big role.
Fortune, which says it was briefed by “sources in the record industry and at Google,” claims that YouTube will launch its music streaming service later this year. Like Spotify, it will reportedly allow anyone to listen to music for free, but will also offer a subscription plan for additional features and possibly ad-free listening.
YouTube’s service will reportedly have “some overlap” with Google Play Music, Google’s Android- and Web-based music service. Google Play will also get a subscription plan later this year, Fortune’s sources say.
The report leaves lots of questions unanswered, such as how much the service will cost and how exactly YouTube and Google Play will overlap. (For example, will YouTube’s service be available on Android phones? Will Google Play’s service be available on the Web? Or is this a single service that ties both brands together?) It’s not even clear whether YouTube’s offering would consist solely of music videos, standalone audio or some combination of the two.
This isn’t the first we’ve heard of a potential streaming music service from Google. Last month, the Financial Times and The Verge reported that Google was in talks with record labels, though the latter website warned that any launch was still “months away.”
Still, it wouldn’t be surprising if Google’s efforts to launch a streaming music service were gaining momentum. Music piracy declined by 17 percent last year, largely due to free, ad-supported streaming options such as Spotify and Pandora. The music industry has also warmed to other digital efforts such as the scan-and-match services offered by iTunes, Amazon Cloud Player and Google Play, after initially resisting efforts to let users access their songs from anywhere.
Accordingly, music revenues increased last year, the first gain for the recording industry since 1999. Although the music industry hasn’t given up on its anti-piracy efforts—such as the “six strikes” initiative that Internet service providers rolled out last month—record labels may have finally realized that offering as many legitimate options as possible is good for business as well as for listeners. That bodes well for more streaming music services from YouTube and others.


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Korean FinTech startup Travel Wallet, a global payment service, has secured 19.7 billion won ($15 million) in Series C investment from investors including SK Securities, Golden Oak Investment, Smilegate Investment, CJ Investment, and BNK Investment & Securities. This investment brings the cumulative amount of investment in Travel Wallet to 50 billion won ($38 million).
With this latest funding, Travel Wallet’s financial stability is expected to be further enhanced. The company now has 37.5 billion won in equity capital and 70 billion won in cash assets, a scale more than 10 times that of its customer prepaid charges.
Travel Wallet provides a global payment service that eliminates payment and exchange fees when traveling abroad or making purchases overseas. Users can exchange currencies of 38 countries through the Travel Wallet app and pay at over 100 million VISA online and offline stores worldwide, without any payment fees. The payment service is available in 38 currencies, including the US dollar, euro, yen, and various Asian currencies. Travel Wallet only charges the lowest level of fees in the country for other currencies.
By simplifying the complex international settlement and payment process, Travel Wallet has built its own modern foreign exchange trading system, drastically lowering the costs of existing international transactions. The company also offers Travel Pay, a service that provides the lowest level of overseas payment fees.
This year, Travel Wallet plans to launch a cloud-based B2B payment solution after three years of development. This solution aims to help domestic and foreign companies enter the payment business without initial cost investment by providing the necessary infrastructure for domestic and international payment business on a cloud basis.
- On Vacation, a Chat-Based Personalized Travel Platform, Secures Pre-A Investment from Fast Ventures
- Korean startup, Travelai will enter Thailand and Malaysia by early 2023
- PaymentInApp wants to provide better service than ‘Uber’ for Smart City public transit systems
- Korean Fintech startup Paywatch’s EWA service garners attention as a financial welfare service for employees


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The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) has warned that the combined effects of the Panama Canal Authority’s (ACP) new freshwater charge and Toll modification could add up to a price hike of over 30% for some ships passing through the Panama Canal.
As previously reported by Bunkerspot, the ‘freshwater charge’ was announced in January and is set to come into effect tomorrow (15 February). The charge will be set at $10,000 for any vessel over 125 feet long. There will also be a variable surcharge based on the level of the Gatun Lake at the time of transit. In a statement issued yesterday, the ICS said it had calculated that this move will increase costs to ships passing through the Panama Canal by up to 15%.
Meanwhile, ACP is also set to introduce what the ICS regards as ‘significant changes’ in its tolls, which will come into effect on 1 April. According to the ICS: ‘This Toll modification could see additional cost increases of up to 17% for ships passing through the Canal.’
The ICS continued: ‘If the charges are combined, some ships passing through the Panama Canal could face price hikes of over 30% by April 1st. The period between the announcement of the new “Freshwater Charges” and their date of implementation is only a month, giving little time to consider the decision and its potential effects. All stakeholders were engaged in the decision-making process for the Toll modification last year, and the Panama Canal Authority at this time agreed to defer increases to allow shipowners to factor in the rise.’
Guy Platten, the Secretary General of the ICS, commented: ‘While we have worked with the Panama Canal Authority to manage the upcoming implementation of toll modification rise on April 1st, the introduction of the ‘Freshwater Charges’ have taken the shipping industry by surprise.
‘The industry is currently facing increased price pressures globally, as demand has been hit hard by coronavirus and markets are adjusting to the new regulations on sulphur levels.
‘It is therefore highly inadvisable for the Panama Canal Authority to put increased strain on industry and the wider global economy at this time. Shipping already operates on the slimmest of margins. Cost hikes in this range, without sufficient warning, places undue pressure on the industry at a sensitive time when we are being asked to invest in a low emissions future.
‘We encourage the Panama Port Authority to consider postponing the introduction of the ‘Freshwater Charge’ to give industry a chance to better prepare.’


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Futures dropped as much as 1.5 percent before reports this week that may show U.S. consumer spending climbed at the slowest pace in almost a year and manufacturing cooled. The IEA, adviser to 28 nations, will act again if needed, Executive Director Nobuo Tanaka said in Beijing on June 25. Greek lawmakers will vote on a five-year austerity plan that must pass for the cash- strapped nation to secure more international aid.
Leading into the IEA’s decision to release stockpiles, we had a global economy that is slowing and we already had concerns over Greece, the IEA’s move suggests there is more urgency for lower oil prices than the market though.
Crude for August delivery fell as much as $1.34 to $89.82 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, and was at $90.34 at 8:43 a.m. Singapore time. Prices rose 14 cents, or 0.2 percent, to $91.16 on June 24, and are up 15 percent in the past year.
Brent oil for August delivery fell as much as $2.84, or 2.7 percent, to $102.28 a barrel on the ICE Futures Europe exchange in London. The contract dropped $2.14, or 2 percent, to $105.12 a barrel on June 24, the lowest close since Feb. 18.
Brent, the European benchmark contract, traded at a premium of $12.75 a barrel to U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures.
The Federal Reserve is unlikely to start a third round of quantitative easing, known as QE3, when a $600 billion purchase program ends this week.
The world’s biggest crude user may release oil stockpiles to drive prices lower and stimulate consumption.
Instead of QE3, we have IEA1, which is the release of strategic oil reserves, the IEA’s decision is really pushing oil prices down.
Consuming nations will release emergency oil stockpiles through the IEA for the third time in more than three decades as the war in Libya chokes global supplies, the Paris-based agency said on June 23.
The U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve will provide 30 million barrels of the IEA release, European members will supply about 20 million and Asian nations about 10 million barrels.
It’s helping Greece, it’s helping Europe, it’s helping everyone by lowering the cost of oil imports. Except in the case of Portugal, were they continue to have one of the most expensive final consumer prices for the motorist at the filing station, at the moment BP has the most expensive price per liter 1,601 for regular 95 Octane.
This attitude by the petrol companies Galp, BP, Repsol and Cepsa will affect Portugals austerity plan, as consumer demand will continue to drop as well as Tax revenue derived from petrol produtcs.
It seems like there’s a policy shift by the U.S. and some European Nations to try and get external markets to help lower crude prices, except in Portugal were consumer prices are inflated to record cost.


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'Finishing touches' being put on delayed Xbox One update
Microsoft is still working on the "finishing touches" of this month's Xbox One update. The first major update for the system was supposed to release yesterday, but Microsoft announced early in the morning that it would be delayed temporarily, offering no full explanation.
Reaching out for further clarification a Microsoft spokesperson told GameZone, "We've been slightly delayed and are still working on the finishing touches. We'll roll out the update as soon as possible. Thanks for your patience."
The update is still expected to release some time this week, but we've yet to hear a solid date. When it does release, the update will offer "many new improvements," including a lot of behind-the-scenes updates for developers building apps and games for the new system. Additionally, Xbox One consumers will see the return of the battery power indictor, support for USB keyboards, and the ability to see and manage storage space on the console.


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They wreak havoc at the recycling plant!
Plastic grocery bags are recyclable, but should be returned to retail centers.
When people throw bags in the recycle bin they end up wreaking havoc on the machinery at the recycling center. Workers have to shut down the facility to clean out all the bags that are jamming up the gears.
Thank you for your attention to this!


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If there's one stretch of highway in Metro Manila that has seen more than its fair share of history, it has to be EDSA. And while a lot of sights along the busiest thoroughfare in the metro have changed over the years, there are a few that have stood the test of time. Ford EDSA marked its 20th anniversary yesterday, and to commemorate the milestone, it renovated and reopened the historic car dealership.
Ford ASEAN president Mark Kaufman, Ford Philippines managing director Kay Hart, and dealer principal Edmund Yee attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony. Sporting a revamped design concept in line with Ford's corporate image, the reopened dealership now has a 14-vehicle showroom and a 24-bay service area.
Kaufman thanked the American carmaker's supporters, and said that Ford EDSA is proof of the company's dedication to the Filipino motorist. "This dealership offers so much Ford history in the Philippines and is a testament to Ford's ongoing commitment to the Filipino people to provide a truly unmatched customer experience," he said. "It's an honor for me to celebrate with our dealer partners on such an exciting day."
Meanwhile, Hart believes that with the new Ford EDSA, the company can continue its mission of providing the best Ford experience for their Filipino customers. "The reopening of Ford EDSA validates how much Filipinos have embraced the Ford brand over the last two decades, and this will drive us to go even further in ensuring we deliver a consistent and world-class customer and ownership experience in all our dealerships," she declared.
The dealership's new features include Wi-Fi connectivity and entertainment lounges for guests and customers. Ford Philippines is hoping to expand its number of dealerships to 40 locations by the end of the year. Ford EDSA was among the earliest dealerships to operate along EDSA's automotive row, which is now home to several other car brands as well.


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Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak is right to be praising the Science and Technology Ministry for its success with “Startup Thailand 2016”.
Last weekend saw over 10,000 young people per day crowd into the Queen Sirikit National Convention Centre. Many were civil servants, there to keep abreast of a scene revealed by local and foreign speakers. But some were actually startups – new companies marrying innovative ideas with modern technology to scale up their business.
Some of the most interesting insights came from the showcase of startups’ groundbreaking ideas.
Anyone seeking the best personal-loan deal would have been drawn to “ABorrow”, an app that compares loan rates from different financial institutions and saves the user from having to trawl the Web or the high street. The app’s developer makes money from charging a fee to the financial institutions that succeed in clinching deals with its users.
Seeing an opportunity in Bangkok’s notorious traffic woes, a number of startups are offering speedy delivery services by motorcycle. Among them is Skootar, a personal messenger service that charges full price for one-way trips but half price for any item the messenger then picks up at the destination point. From the original pickup point, it offers 10 stops on the return trip.
Car owners should love Drivebot, an app that turns your smartphone into a vehicular-health monitor – keeping a watch on everything from the engine to battery life.
Another innovative idea comes from Santabox. Over five months, the company got around 10,000 people to fill in a questionnaire on consumer satisfaction. This database is in turn being used to attract companies, particularly SMEs that don’t have big budgets to test markets. Samples are delivered to target groups and their feedback is displayed, allowing the producers to adjust their products before actually putting them on the market. Santabox earns money from the feedback.
Manning the booths at “Startup Thailand” were a young crowd mostly aged under 30 and offering enthusiastic explanations of what they were offering. The energy was palpable – something rarely experienced at other fairs or exhibitions.
A banker at the fair noted that Thais have plenty of ideas, but the national ecosystem is not fully supportive, especially when compared to Singapore.
The most attractive part of the event were the sessions in the Ballroom. Here, startups touted their fresh ideas while investors indicated which might win their financial support.
Hundreds attended each session, though fewer than 10 identified themselves as startups. In one session, when asked to show three investors what they had to offer only one young man came forward. He was given one minute to describe his product. It was an English-learning app, called Academia, which hooked up learners with native speakers. His product apparently needs improvement, but he scored 10 out of 10 for courage.
Many young Thais are aspiring to become entrepreneurs these days, but if they are seeking someone else’s money, they need to be more confident in their products and more courageous in selling their ideas. Otherwise the business scene will remain dominated by rich kids.
The government is eager to cultivate new ideas, convinced that this would help boost an economy that relies too much on exports of conventional goods. As such it recently announced that a Bt20-billion fund will be set up to support SMEs, including startups. The news certainly excited youngsters at the fair, but doubts remain over how the money will be distributed.
Dave McClure, founder and partner of 500 Startup, suggested the government spend the money through accelerator schemes – created by companies to screen the best ideas from startups.
Nuttawut Peungchareonpong, founder and CEO of Ookbee – Southeast Asia’s largest e-bookstore – noted that strenuous efforts must be made to ensure the sum is spent wisely. If funds go to companies that don’t have good business plans, the money would be wasted.
“Startups do need support, but not just financial support,” he noted.
Some speakers discussed the need for regulatory changes to promote startups. Others expressed doubts about other aspects of the Thai ecosystem, chiefly the education system.
On the first day of the event, Barak Sharabi, head of the Israeli Embassy’s Economic and Trade Mission, proudly revealed that his young country is now among the top five in the world in terms of innovation. He credited the government’s success in encouraging companies to set up some 300 research and development centres in the country.
Though Israel has a population of less than 10 million, some 1,200 startups are launched there each year. Sharabi also revealed another cultural nugget that should be of interest to Thais. In boardrooms in Thailand, directors rarely venture to speak unless first asked to by the chairman. In Israel, junior staffers are encouraged to tell the chairman if they think his ideas are wrong.
Sharabi says the ecosystem here could be more vibrant if Thai students were encouraged to ask more questions.
The Science and Technology Ministry has done a good job in sparking such huge public interest in startups. But it remains to be seen how many of the suggestions and recommendations floated at the fair will be applied in the government’s agenda.
Visiting the event, Somkid praised the private sector for boosting exports in the first quarter without government help. Ten years from now, if today’s startups are left to fend for themselves without any support, will they be receiving a minister’s praise?


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A major challenge for the govt will be to get a firm hold over the country's informal finance market, experts say
Mumbai: A major challenge for the Narendra Modi-led National Democratic Alliance government will be to get a firm hold over the country’s informal finance market that has grown to several trillions of rupees, experts said.
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Speaking at an event in India during which the company unveiled a new car for the Asian market, Ford boss Alan Mulally delivered a rather tepid and uncontroversial statement: that U.S. car demand has been showing signs of recovery, and that car sales stateside would increase over the next two years.
It would, however, prove difficult for car sales not to rise over the next two years. After all, they had fallen earlier this year to levels last experienced during the late Carter administration.
But investors, still hankering for good automobile news of any sort, bid up shares of last-man-standing-in-Detroit Ford by 5% Wednesday. The stock was changing hands late morning at $7.40, up 39 cents, on volume of 50 million shares. Average daily turnover is about 77 million shares.Ever since cash-for-clunkers, the domestic car business has been extruding intermittent signs of recovery. Mulally's words follow news from General Motors Tuesday that it plans to lift production at three of its plants in order to meet demand for some of its models and alleviate a burgeoning inventory shortage. Mulally and other Ford brass were in New Dehli to announce the coming production of the Figo, a small car that Ford will market all over Asia and yet another indication that the company will increasingly cast its lot with smaller, more energy-efficient vehicles. According to reports, Mulally said at the Figo unveiling that Ford expects the small-car segment to double within the next 10 years.
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""MFS Supply LLC"":http://www.mfssupply.com, an Ohio-based company that provides locks, lock boxes, and property management supplies to those in the real estate and general contractor industry, has opened a 10,500 square foot warehouse in Santa Fe Springs, California.[IMAGE]
The company says its new distribution center will greatly decrease ground shipping time and cost to West Coast customers and is yet another example of MFS Supply's customer-centric business model.
Until now, MFS Supply has been shipping products nationally from its corporate headquarters in Solon, Ohio. To meet the growing demand for locks, lock boxes, and[COLUMN_BREAK]
property management products nationwide, MFS Supply directors decided to expand. The new facility will house the same contractor and realtor inventory as MFS Supply's Ohio warehouse, such as lock boxes, sump pumps, and dehumidifiers.
""We're focused on customer service. This facility will serve our West Coast customers; allowing next day and 2-day shipping to California, Arizona, and Nevada,"" said Mike Hajec, MFS Supply's director of operations and development.
MFS Supply says it works diligently to get products and real estate supplies into customers' hands quickly. With shipments leaving California and Ohio, almost all U.S. cities can receive ground shipments within two business days. Both facilities also offer in-store pick-up for local customers.
MFS Supply also announced that it is offering free shipping on orders over $450, and the company says the shipping cost will never exceed $20 for any order less than $450.
Started in 2006 by professionals in the mortgage field service industry, MFS Supply offers a complete catalog of securing and hardware products, catering to contractors and realtors with a broad inventory of property management supplies.


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Microsoft, Intel, JPMorganChase, and other titans of the business world have joined forces to develop a computing system that would allow unrelated computers and servers to securely gather and store data. The Ethereum Enterprise Alliance will collaborate to create a system based on blockchain, a digital ledger system that doesn’t rely on a central authority to store and share data.
Blockchain is used by Bitcoin and the Ethereum software, which the alliance is seeking to standardize for use globally. Blockchains are seen as harder to hack because they rely on more than one authority.
The group hopes the system will create an easy and safe way for businesses to communicate financial data — like transactions and stock figures — across organizations, and securely share contracts. The system also has the potential to lower infrastructure costs by providing a technology solution to backend business operations.
By Prasana William


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Carnival Corp. says it was the victim of a ransomware attack that likely got some personal information about the cruise company's guests and employees.
The attack was first detected Saturday. The attack accessed an encrypted portion of technology systems for one of the cruise line's brands and certain data files were downloaded, the company said in a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
Carnival operates Carnival Cruise Line, Princess Cruises, Holland America Line and other lines, but the company didn't say in the filing which cruise line was affected.
The SEC filing also didn't say how many people's personal information may have been accessed, and spokesman Roger Frizzell said in an email that the company wasn't releasing any information other than what was in the securities filing.
AdvertisementAdvertise with NZME.
Carnival says it has launched an investigation into the ransomware attack and notified law enforcement. The Miami-based company also has reinforced the security of its information systems, Carnival said.
The Miami-based cruise operator is currently the world's largest travel company, with a fleet of over 100 vessels under multiple brands.
While some cruise markets are making a cautious return to sailing post-Covid, the company is still subject to pandemic disruption including a 'no sail' order which bans cruise ships from US ports until September 30, at the earliest.


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Microsoft has announced the titles available during December for Games with Gold. Below you can see the full list of games and when they will be available.
- The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing, December 1 to December 31
- Thief, December 15 to January 15
- Castlestorm, December 1 to December 15
- Sacred 3, December 16 to December 31
- Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising, December 16 to December 31


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(NBC News Channel) - The best way to bring back memories -- not bed bugs -- from your vacation?
Generic photo of bed bug.
Do your laundry!
That's because bed bugs are attracted to dirty clothes.
A new Bbritish study found the critters were twice as likely to creep into suitcases with soiled clothes , than those with clean laundry.
And it didn't take much dirt.
The clothes had only been worn for just a few hours before attracting bed bugs.
Experts say if you can't do laundry, keep all dirty items in a sealed plastic bag.


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Every year, Mondelēz International’s Cadbury, known for its chocolate eggs, hosts its famous Easter egg hunt. Last year, due to the pandemic, the hunt went virtual for the first time and people went wild for little virtual eggs they could send their loved ones who would then get the physical eggs delivered in real life. The “Worldwide Hide” campaign saw 2.3 million site visits with more than 809,000 virtual eggs hidden around the world.
Major holidays such as Easter present a major opportunity for candy brands like Cadbury, as well as a host of others, to capture first-party data, the consumer information coveted by brands as the loss of third-party cookies looms on the horizon. You might even be surprised at the type of brands that can capitalize on the Easter holiday. McDonald’s, for example, sells nearly a quarter of the year’s Filet-O-Fish sandwiches during the Lenten season, the 40 days leading up to Easter. McDonald’s is currently running a promotion for the popular sandwich through its app.
As much as holidays present an ideal opportunity for brands to collect more desired consumer data, it’s how brands communicate and then act on that first-party data that matters, Sid Gowda, senior vice president of strategy at Carat, tells The Current.
“The fragmentation of the digital landscape means brands will chase disparate data points across platforms, devices, and walled gardens,” Gowda says. “Being purposeful with data will be key to a sustainable data strategy in the future.”
First-party Easter eggs
The collection of first-party data helps brands learn more about their consumers and create more personalized campaigns, which, in turn, can create a better customer experience and maximize business impacts. A 2021 McKinsey study found that 72 percent of people said they expect companies they buy from to know their interests and recognize them as individuals with their own unique preferences.
But there’s no point in collecting first-party data if it just sits there gathering virtual dust. And yet, brands of all sorts are sitting on a “ton of unused data,” Gowda says.
“A key challenge brands face is inefficient campaign scaling,” he says. “With every new email, social media, and digital campaign, data is harnessed but unless they’re linked, they sit unused in silos.”
This issue is partially why brands in recent years have been embracing customer data platforms, or CDPs. A CDP acts as a central repository for all of a brand’s first-party data, allowing the them to allocate data wherever it’s needed, instead of building redundant databases for each use case. The data can then be used for multiple purposes, whether it’s helping consumers along the purchase journey or purchasing ads through a demand-side platform (DSP). For example, if a customer called a brand’s service department about a delayed shipment, a customer service agent will typically be able to recognize the number and bring up the customer’s order immediately.
Another option is the use of a data management platform, or DMP, which brands use to layer first-party data on top of existing third-party data. Brands, for example, can export first-party data from a CDP to a DMP to build out audiences for targeting.
Transparency is everything
However a brand chooses to use first-party data, an important step in today’s data-driven world is to be upfront and transparent with consumers about the use of the data, Gowda stresses. In fact, 91 percent of consumers are concerned about the amount of data that companies can collect about them, with 42 percent taking steps to reduce the amount of data they share online, according to a 2021 Dentsu report. No amount of chocolate eggs will extinguish that fear.
Tentpole events like holidays can serve not only as a way for brands to create personalized customer experiences, but also act as an opportunity to educate consumers about brands’ data policies in a transparent way, says Gowda.
“Brands are now promoting data privacy as a point of differentiation,” he adds. “It's a reflection of how consumers are more aware of the value of their data, than ever before.”


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NFT Startup Sorare Raises $680M, Valued At $4.3B
A hot startup from France in the nascent field of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) has raised a big round of funding…
A hot startup from France in the nascent field of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) has raised a big round of funding validating investor interest in the field. It’s Sorare, a football fantasy gaming platform based on real-life teams where the virtual players are represented by tradable NFTs.
- Sorare has raised a whopping $680mn Series B round led by SoftBank at a valuation of $4.3bn, it announced. That figure seems like the biggest-ever Series B round so far for a European startup.
- SoftBank led the round and was joined by a host of other investors, both new and existing, including Benchmark, Atomico, Bessemer Ventures, and D1 Capital. On the individual side, football stars including Gerard Piqué, Antoine Griezmann, and Rio Ferdinand (retired) also chipped into the round.
- Unsurprisingly, 2021 is the year of the NFT craze where billions of dollars worth of virtual goods have been traded across many platforms, Sorare included as one of the biggest such platforms. It should then be no surprise that investor interest in the space is very high right now.
- Sorare got into NFTs (in 2018) long before the craze came and it now appears to be reaping the fruits of being an early mover. At a valuation of $4.3bn, it’s been crowned France’s most valuable tech startup and more so in just three years of existence.
- As its business model, Sorare issues licensed cards from its end that users of its platform then buy from it to trade between each other. Right now, it doesn’t take a cut of player-to-player transactions but that seems like an obvious revenue source that could be adopted later, especially pertaining to the high-growth demands that come with big funding.


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Apple is not finished revolutionizing computing with the iPad. Fox Business Network reported on March 18, 2014 Apple is reportedly reintroducing iPad 4 today to replace the aging iPad 2. As supplies of iPad 2 begin to dry up Apple is set to reintroduce iPad 4.
Unnamed sources says consignments of iPad 4 are already beginning to arrive at Apple stores across the country. This anticipated move by Apple has followed a forecast by a KGI Securities analyst last month who said the firm’s fourth-generation iPad would now replace the aging iPad 2 in Q1 2014.
The slim and light iPad Air took the place of the iPad 4 with its Oct. 2013 launch. Apple meanwhile continued to sell the 16GB iPad 2 with a $399 price for the Wi-Fi-only version. The reintroduced iPad 4 is expected to be priced identical to that of the iPad 2. Consumers will therefore be able to get a more powerful device for the same price.
Reuters has also reported Apple is replacing iPad 2 with upgraded iPad 4. It's great news for consumers that an upgraded iPad 4 tablet will be offered in place of the mid-range iPad 2 for the same price. With a 9.7-inch retina display and a cost of just $399 for the 16GB Wi-Fi model this is a device a lot of iPad users are likely to consider buying. MandelMall.com offers Apple products for sale online from Amazon.


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Genetically Modified Organism is a downright dirty word among many environmentalists and food activists. People oppose GMOs for health reasons and because it’s mostly giant corporations like Monsanto that profit from the creation and distribution of GMOs in our food system. My guest today has a slightly different take on GMOs, though.
Fredrick Kaufman is a journalist who writes for Harper’s and Slate. This week on Sea Change Radio he posits that the real problem with GMOs is not the genetic modification per se, but the model by which these genetically modified foods are conceived, produced and distributed. He points out that a lot of innovation has come out of the open source movement in the technology world, and asks, why not apply it to food? Would open sourcing the genetic modification of foods enable food activists to turn this dirty word into a sustainable solution? Find out in Part One of host Alex Wise‘s two-part discussion with journalist Fredrick Kaufman. And here’s a link to Kaufman’s piece in Slate about open-source GMOs.


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Free voice calling feature lands on Facebook Messenger app in India
Facebook has announced voice calling support for its Facebook Messenger app in India. This means that Facebook users in India will now be able make voice calls to anyone on their Facebook Messenger friends list.
Voice calling feature is now available on both Android and iOS devices and users will find a ‘Free Call’ option in the chat window’s menu button on Android and ‘I’ button on iPhone.
To initiate a voice call from the Facebook Messenger Android app, users will just need to select a friend, and choose the “Free Call” option by hitting the menu button. Users using the iOS app will need to select a friend from their contact list and then tap on the 3-dot menu overflow icon on the upper right corner which displays ‘Call’ option in order to make a voice call.
An incoming call on Android devices will show up like a normal phone call with the caller’s full screen image in the background. On an iPhone, the call is denoted by a push notification.
Voice Calls can only be made between users who have the latest version of Facebook or Facebook Messenger app installed on their phone. The feature is not available on the web version of Facebook Messenger.
The voice calling feature on Facebook Messenger was first introduced by the social networking giant for iOS users in US and Canada in January 2013 and was later extended for the Android users in April 2013.
Users can download the latest version of Facebook Messenger from the Google Play store and the Apple App Store.


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Digital Transformation Leaders and Practitioners to Gather in Central London - October 8 and 9
London — September 24, 2019 — ForgeRock®, a leading provider of digital identity solutions, today announced an exciting agenda packed with customer speakers, industry thought-leaders and company executives for ForgeRock’s Identity Live in Central London, October 8 and 9. To view the agenda and register, please visit the Identity Live website.
Secures Most Favorable Position in All Categories including Product, Innovation and Market Leadership
San Francisco — September 5, 2019 — ForgeRock®, a leading provider of digital identity solutions, today announced that it has placed as the leading vendor in the KuppingerCole Leadership Compass for Identity API Platforms. Along with leading the Product, Innovation and Market categories, ForgeRock receives “Strong Positives” in Security, Functionality, Integration, Interoperability and Usability.
Recognizes the Company for its Ability to Execute and Completeness of Vision
San Francisco — August 16, 2019 — ForgeRock®, the leading platform provider of digital identity management solutions, today announced that it has been named a Visionary in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Access Management report, which was published on August 12, 2019.
The Identity Solution Bytes series, running bi-weekly, is designed to address the challenges faced within digital identity.
The Identity Platform You Can Trust
ForgeRock securely connects people, devices, and things, so every one and every thing can interact in today's IoT world. With billions of devices coming online every year, you need a flexible platform that scales.


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According to the Guide to Charges by Banks, other financial and non-financial institutions published by the Central Bank of Nigeria, the charge will only apply to transactions that fail due to the account being unfunded.
Direct debit is an arrangement made with a bank that allows a third party to transfer money from a person’s account on agreed dates.
“In line with the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) Guide to Charges, a failed direct debit transaction resulting from an unfunded account is liable to a charge of 1% of the transaction amount or N5,000 – the higher amount is applicable,” the email read.
“While this penal charge is only applicable if a customer’s account is insufficiently funded at the time of the transaction, the qualifying amount shall be debited to customers account once it is funded.
“We, therefore, wish to advise that you ensure your account is adequately funded at all times to facilitate a successful transaction, especially if you activate any form of direct debit instruction on your account.”
A screenshot from the CBN guide
Some customers are already questioning the directive on social media.


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Bitcoin Cash is the most popular hard fork of Bitcoin. The coin currently ranks thirteenth in terms of market capitalization. It has also been a significant gainer in the recent crypto market rebound, enabling it to create new monthly highs. It is also among the cryptocurrencies still trading in the green zone despite mild volatility.
Bitcoin Cash is trading at $677.35 at the time of writing after a 7.3% gain in 24 hours.
BCH Price Analysis
BCH’s price action in the past month has been marked with increasing volatility. The altcoin has created new monthly highs within this period, but it has also failed to maintain these levels. However, the trend has reversed in the past 24 hours, and BCH has retested new highs.
The current uptrend could be attributed to buyer support, as the market support is weakening. If the uptrend holds, we could see BCH test the upper resistance of $680. This is a major level for the altcoin, and if it manages to hold here, we could see an even greater rally towards $700. BCH attempted such a rally last week, but it was rejected at $700. However, buying pressure is currently strong; hence a rally beyond $700 is possible.
On the other hand, we could also see the uptrend fail, and BCH could retest lower support levels. The lower support for BCH lies at $650. Volatility has pushed BCH below this level this month, but it has managed to show strong signs of recovery. Erasing this month’s gains could happen if BCH drops below $600, as this could ignite selling pressure.
Bitcoin Cash is among the most popular cryptocurrencies, making it readily available to be used as a means of payment. Recently, PayPal launched its cryptocurrency services in the UK. In the announcement, BCH was among the coins that the payments giant selected. This is among the contributing factors to the recent bull rally.
Where to Buy BCH
If you want to buy BCH during the current bull rally, you can create a cryptocurrency exchange on eToro. eToro is a reliable and renowned exchange platform. If you are a new trader, crypto trading on eToro will be made easy with features such as copy trading and a demo account that give you an avenue to learn crypto trading strategies.
Looking to buy or trade Bitcoin Cash (BCH) now? Invest at eToro!
75% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider


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Tags: YTO International Ltd.
The Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) has annoucned the names of 17 new companies to join the international trade group, which provides business-development resources for the off-road equipment manufacturing industry. AEM members produce and market equipment, products and services used ...
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Ever since watching The Jeetson’s as a kid I have wondered if we’ll ever have flying passenger cars. This year at the CES show in Las Vegas, Uber is showing off their flying car model.
According to this report from CNET , Uber hopes to have their flying cars in the air by the mid-2020s. The air taxis will take off and land vertically by using six tilting fans. They will reach speeds of 150 mph. At least 19 companies are working on flying cars. Some of the cars are on display at the Consumer Electronics Show
Image Credit Steve Marcus | Reuters


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over 3.5 million tourists visited Myanmar in 2018, with about 492,097 travellers heading to the Mandalay Region, according to official statistics from the Mandalay Region’s Directorate of Hotels and Tourism.
Tourists who visited Mandalay were mostly from China, France, Thailand, and Germany. They visited some well-known landmarks such as the U Bein bridge, the Taungthaman lake, the Kuthodaw pagoda, the Mya Nan San Kyaw Golden Palace, the Maha Muni Buddha Image, the around Mandalay hill, and other ancient buildings and pagodas in the region.
According to statistics from the Mandalay Region’s Directorate of Hotels and Tourism, the region hosted 75,727 tourists in 2010, 99,016 tourists in 2011, 160,975 tourists in 2012, 219,518 tourists in 2013, 242,566 tourists in 2014, 306,432 tourists in 2015, 385,031 tourists in 2016, 483,784 tourists in 2017, and 492,097 tourists in 2018.
In 2018, about 1,335,714 tourists arrived in Myanmar via air, 9,370 travellers came to the country on board cruise ships, and 53,014 tourists entered the country through the border gates. A total of 3,551,428 tourists visited Myanmar, of which 1,398,098 tourists travelled to the country on a visa, while 2,153,330 tourists gained entry with a border pass.
Than Min Zaw (IPRD) (Translated by Hay Mar)


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Apple’s Reuse and Recycling Programme invites you to trade in your old Apple handset for a few bucks to put towards a new iPhone, but we’re hearing that the scheme is on the verge of expanding.
Anonymous sources say Apple will soon start accepting Android and BlackBerry handsets, from those looking to make the leap to the SS iPhone.
That’s the story over on 9to5mac, where sources reveal the new exchange programme will roll out in the “coming weeks”, upon completion of “extensive training”.
Essentially, Apple employees will be tasked with putting a value on customers’ Android and BlackBerry phones – based on condition and operability, and subsequently dishing out Apple gift cards accordingly.
Curiously, there’s no mention of Windows Phone, which presumably means Apple isn’t interested in your Lumia handset.
In an effort to sweeten the deal, Apple will help customers switch their contacts from Android to iPhone, but other data – including photos, video and music – will have to be transferred by customers. Of course, logistically, that’d entail doing a full backup of your phone's data before handing it over to Apple.
We’re not told where the new programme will launch specifically, but the aforementioned Reuse and Recycling thingy has rolled out in the US, Canada, Europe and Australia.
If anything, we suspect it’ll be the US first, with the UK hopefully hot on its heels.


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Figures from chartered accountant and business adviser Baker Tilly reveal local limited retailers achieved similar gross margins as plcs in 1999, around 13.5%, but this has since fallen to 10%, compared with plcs’ 15% returns.
Turnover per employee highlight further differences: limited groups averaged around £225,000 per head in 1999, but this has more recently levelled off at about £289,000, despite briefly rising above plcs in 2000. Plcs have risen from £260,000 to £310,000 per employee over five years. “Clearly plcs are more profitable – and that’s probably because they get better terms from the manufacturers,” says Baker Tilly managing partner Stephen Duffety.
“There will be some fall-out from the industry – some groups are operating with liabilities greater than assets: they are, in effect, insolvent. And they will be in trouble if interest rates rise and the economy stalls because many of them are on the cusp.”
He believes manufacturers are looking for a balanced portfolio of dealerships, consisting of businesses with clear succession planning, that are well funded and which deliver on performance.


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GrandVision acquires Zonnenbrillen.com
Optical retailer GrandVision Benelux has announced the acquisition of Dutch sunglasses e-tailer Zonnenbrillen.com for an undisclosed amount. The acquisition will be effective from 1 December and focuses on strengthening GrandVision’s online position in the Netherlands and Belgium.
GrandVision aims to strengthen its omni-channel distribution strategy and increase the online offering with the acquisition. According to GrandVision, Zonnenbrillen.com is the response to the changing demand of the online consumer, who demands product avilability 'anywhere, anytime'.
Leo van Welij, CEO at GrandVision Benelux, said: “This acquisition fits our vision. It is an important step to continue our upward trend as an omni-channel retailer and to accelerate our growth. By strengthening our online position, we will boost the entire organization and the strong brands we have [in our portfolio]. We are proud to be able to offer the consumer diverse options.”
Mischa Tan, co-founder at Zonnebrillen.com said: “We see a lot of synergy between the parties regarding the offer and the strong brands that GrandVision already has. Zonnebrillen.com is a great addition to the GrandVision portfolio. This month we won an FD Gazellen Award again- awarded to the fastest-growing companies in the Netherlands - indicating that we are on the right track. Together with GrandVision we can maximise our impact on the market in the Benelux.”
GrandVision has more than 800 Pearle, Eye Wish and GrandOptical stores in the Netherlands and Belgium. The retailer operates in more than 40 countries across Europe, the Americas, the Middle East and Asia in over 6,700 stores and employs more than 31,000 people.
Zonnenbrillen.com was founded by Mischa Tan and Rogier van Willigen. The Leiden-based company offers brands such as Burberry, Gucci, Ray-Ban, Oakley, Persol and Michael Kors.
Copyright © 2023 FashionNetwork.com All rights reserved.


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French health authorities said Friday that a child in Spain had also fallen ill after drinking Lactalis baby milk
Authority also raids and seals warehouse of Lactalis products distributor
This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten,
redistributed or derived from. Unless otherwise stated, all content is
copyrighted © 2023 The Express Tribune.


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Flight releases a bundle in collaboration with YouTuber Elise Ecklund
Elise Ecklund is known for her fun and quirky video content and for her original songs, with more than 1.5 million subscribers on her YouTube channel. Flight continues its collaboration with Elise Ecklund with the new Elise Ecklund Signature Travel Soprano Ukulele Bundle. The bundle includes the incredibly popular Elise Ecklund Signature Sunset Ukulele, a signature ukulele strap, a signature capo, a Flight FTC-33 tuner with color display, and a gig bag. Additionally, the bundle includes the Elise Ecklund Songbook, which has been published in collaboration with the world’s largest music publisher, Hal Leonard. The bundle is priced at $99.99.


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The UK Consumer Protection Authority (TRA) announced that the UK government has taken the decision to suspend anti-dumping duties on hot rolled steel originating from Russia and Iran to a 25% protective duty, until the import quota is exceeded.This suspension applies to 34 specific items covered by codes beginning with 7208, 7211, 7225, and 7226. As soon as the quota is exceeded, anti-dumping duties for Iran will be 17.9%, and for Russia, will range from 5.3% to 33%.
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The Cameroon Telecommunications has become the fourth mobile telephone operator after it was granted three concession agreements on Thursday, March 12 in Yaounde.
The three concession agreements were handed to on behalf of the government by the Minister of Post and Telecommunications Minette Libom Li Likeng who urged the latest mobile telephone operator to provide quality services to Cameroonians.
Minette Libom Li Likeng the arrival of CAMTEL in the mobile telephone sector will boost competition in the sector and provide consumers with better and quality services.
« This is a very important era for CAMTEL. After these concessions, we expect the regulator to well regulate the sector, the consumers will have good quality of services, good prices and will be more protected. Our digital economy can better develop now because there is competition and everybody in the sector will strive to improve, » Minister Minette Libom Li Likeng said.
On her part, the General Manager of CAMTEL, Judith Achidi Achu Yah Sunday, this is a new page in the corporation’s life which calls on the staff to double efforts in order to put the consumers at the top of their ‘change management and customer centricity’ policy.
She said CAMTEL is ready for the challenge and will have to reorganise into business units for proper functioning and management.
« The is a wonderful day in the life of CAMTEL and we are conscious of the challenges that lie ahead of us but we want to reassure our customers that we will be up to the task and will provide better services more thane ver before,» Judith Yah Sunday Achidi said.
Under the concession agreements, CAMTEL will concentrate on the establishment and operation of two electronic communication networks and one electronic communication transport network, notably ; the first communication network with national coverage will be open via 2G, 3G, and 4G technologies ; the second will be open to the public nationwide through wireless access; and third which involve transport network, will include submarine, cable landing stations and teleports for satellite networks.
After MTN, Orange, and Nextel, CAMTEL becomes the 4th mobile operator in Cameroon with the authorization to deploy up to 4G network. However, CAMTEL remains the only mobile operator having the exclusive right and licenceto carry out that service.


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You are here
Market turmoil attracts Japanese retail investors to foreign ETFs
[TOKYO] Although investors sold global shares worldwide earlier this year, long-term retail Japanese investors stepped up buying in foreign shares through exchange-traded funds (ETFs), seeing the market rout as a good opportunity for bargain-hunting.
In January and February, they bought a net 1.18 million shares in foreign ETFs, 87 per cent more than in the same two months a year ago, based on data from the three Japanese online brokerage firms that are the main providers of foreign ETFs to retail investors in Japan.
The data was provided by SBI Securities Co, Rakuten Securities Inc and Monex Inc and compiled by Reuters.
The number of net buyers in foreign ETFs in the first two months of 2016 jumped 67 per cent to 10,860 on the year, the data showed.
"In a falling market when almost all tickers are sold, it makes people want to diversify their investments to ride over the difficult time," said Yuichi Miyamoto, a trader services manager at Monex Inc.
Interest in the foreign ETFs, mostly US-listed ones, is being driven by demand for diversified risks among long-term Japanese retail investors, traders said.
As global equities markets crumbled early this year on the fall in oil prices and worries about the Chinese economy, these investors seized the chance to buy foreign ETFs at cheaper prices.
The Dow Jones industrial average is at 16,995.13, up 10 per cent from a two-year low of 15,450.56 hit in January.
The S&P 500 is at 1,989.57, also rebounding 10 per cent from a two-year low of 1,810.10 hit last month. "We've seen liquidity in ETF trade to rise in the wake of market crashes in the past, too," said Masafumi Watanabe, an ETF strategist at WisdomTree Japan.
ETFs like Vanguard Total World Stock Index Fund and Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund are popular ETF products among Japanese asset holders, the brokerages said.
In February, the brokerages also saw that iShares US Preferred Stock ETF was ranked high for the first time in several years.
Preferred stocks, a hybrid product that share some characteristics with bonds, are popular with investors seeking steady yields.
"This product is being favored by investors who seek high yields amid a low interest rate environment in the world," said Kumiko Kojima, vice president of iShares business at BlackRock Japan. "It's popular among investors who seek income gains rather than capital gains." In late January, the Bank Of Japan joined other central banks in reducing interest rates to negative levels.


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Home builders across the U.S. are beginning to hit the limits of what buyers will pay for new homes in this market, as early assessments of August sales activity indicate a marked slowdown in sales due to lofty prices and rising interest rates.
A survey of 273 builders by John Burns Real Estate Consulting in Irvine, Calif., found that the respondents’ sales of new homes declined by 4% in August from a month earlier. In past years, August typically has yielded a 2% gain from the July figure. Burns estimates that its survey, conducted Aug. 29 to Sept. 3, spans roughly 16% of new-home sales in the U.S.
Perhaps more telling: far fewer of Burns’s survey respondents reported raising their prices in August than had in previous months. Of the respondents in August, 47% reported raising prices, 48% held prices steady and 5% lowered prices—the largest percentage of reductions since March 2012.


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Sales tax receipts in Willowbrook are on the rise, according to village documents, but other revenues in the western suburb are lagging.
Sales taxes, which fund about 44 percent of the village's general fund, are up 5.7 percent compared with last year.
Village Administrator Tim Halik said last week that the increase was due to new businesses in town, including more restaurants.
Halik said a Meatheads Burger & Fries restaurant and a Pei Wei Asian Diner had recently opened in a strip mall in the 7100 block of Kingery Highway. About a mile south, a TCBY Yogurt store now occupies a storefront that used to house a Blockbuster video store.
"I think there are various factors for why the local economy is getting better, but the new businesses have really given us a boost," said Halik.
Halik said the village would like to redevelop a large parcel near the 7000 block of Kingery that now has a Kmart store. He said the village would receive more sales taxes if the site were redeveloped to include more restaurants and other retail outlets.
Village documents also show a 5.3 percent increase in restaurant taxes. In July, taxes were $41,944, up from $38,639 during the same month in 2011. Halik said these taxes are especially important for the village, as the suburb recoups a 1 percent sales tax on all food sales at restaurants.
The village, however, has experienced an 11.9 percent decrease in hotel/motel taxes. The village has several hotels near Interstate 55 and Kingery Highway.
"Room (rentals) are down," said Halik. "I think corporations have slowed down and in some cases stopped having conventions and meetings at hotels. It has impacted hotel stays across the country."
The village has also seen a huge decrease in motor fuel taxes. They have fallen by 38.1 percent compared to last year. Halik attributes the drop to a decrease in driving.
"Consumers are smart, and they are economizing on vacations and driving," said Halik. "We use that money to maintain our streets, so it will have an impact on the village. That's just another example of why we want to focus on generating other types of sales taxes."


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NEW YORK (AP) — Not even a month after flatly rejecting a takeover bid by two Brazilian companies, Chiquita will open its books to them.
Should Chiquita eventually see eye-to-eye with the investment firm Safra Group and Cutrale Group, a juice company, it could scuttle a proposed tie up with the Irish fruit company Fyffes, a merger that is far along in the process.
Chiquita did not elaborate Wednesday on why it had decided to talk with the Brazilian group and sign a confidentiality agreement. It said that it would "allow Cutrale / Safra to conduct due diligence, including access to a data room and its management team."
But Chiquita has been pressured to do so by two proxy advisory firms, and company shares have been depressed.
There has also been pushback on a national level against the type of deal Chiquita is trying to engineer with Fyffes.
The new company, called ChiquitaFyffes PLC, with a new headquarters in Ireland, would allow Chiquita to lower its U.S. tax rate.
Treasury Secretary Jacob said this week that the Obama administration would decide "in the very near future" what it could do to make it less profitable for U.S. companies to shift their legal addresses to other countries, a maneuver called an "inversion."
Political leaders like Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, the No. 2 Democrat in the Senate, have lashed out at inversions, saying that they increase the tax burden on everyone else.
Another major U.S. corporation, Walgreen Co., ditched an inversion plan last month under rising political heat.
Safra and Cutrale offered $611 million for Chiquita. The proposed merger with Fyffes is an all-stock deal that would move Chiquita's company headquarters from Charlotte, North Carolina, to Dublin, where Fyffes is based.
Shares of Chiquita Brands International Inc. rose 12 cents to $13.93 in midday trading.
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Disneyland Resort reopened not too long ago, and it has been a whirlwind since then!
We’ve been able to check out rides, restaurants, new safety procedures, and so much more at the parks, and fan-favorites continue to return. If you’re looking for somewhere to dine at the resort, then you’ll be happy to know that several restaurants are reopening soon, and one restaurant that’s already open will begin accepting reservations!
Over at Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa, you can dine at the GCH Craftsman Bar for some delicious poolside eats. This restaurant has been closed to those who aren’t hotel guests since it reopened, but all guests will be able to grab a bite here starting May 28th.
And on May 28th when it opens to the public, GCH Craftsman Bar will be taking online reservations. That way, you can guarantee yourself a seat at the table!
Stay tuned to AllEars for more Disneyland Resort news and more dining updates — we’ve got you covered with the latest!
What’s your favorite Disneyland Resort restaurant?


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Mahindra, which brought its first electric vehicle, the e2o, to the UK in April, has appointed Paul Haines as its head of aftersales and customer care.
With its UK base at Chiswick, West London, Mahindra is selling the e2o direct to consumers, without a franchised network.
It claims to have a “customer centric business model”, featuring mobile Mahindra authorised technicians for servicing at an owner’s home or place of work, six days a week, with the e2o’s telematics system to support this through remote diagnosis. Mahindra claims the customers inconvenience is at an absolute minimum, leaving Mahindra UK to do all the work, not the customer.
Haines has more than 20 year’s automotive industry experience, across both retail dealer network and fleet roles, including BMW, Honda, Volkswagen and Citroen,
“I am extremely pleased to join Mahindra and be part of one of the most exciting brands entering the European markets.
“Their electric vehicle strategy and focus is quite incredible from the FIA Formula E Championship to the recently launched Mahindra e2o City Car,” he said.
Steve Parkinson, CEO at Mahindra International UK said: “Paul’s experience and knowledge of the automotive aftersales arena is excellent and with our aftersales customer centric business model, Paul will be leading the innovation in the delivery of this.”


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Asia luxury distributor Bluebell Group has forged a joint venture (JV) with Swiss premium cigars manufacturer Oettinger Davidoff AG by selling 25.1 percent interest in its cigar business to Davidoff after selling 25 percent interest to the cigar maker a year ago. The transaction was effective on 1 January 2016.
Bluebell Cigars has a series of Davidoff stores which have been opened all over Asia except for mainland China, selling dominantly Davidoff products as well as a range of nonexclusive cigars and accessories from other brands.
“We started the cigar business in 1977 when the first Davidoff store was launched in Hong Kong. It was the first cigar store that opened in Asia with proper walk-in humidor,” Laurent de Rougemont, Managing Director of Bluebell Cigars told Retail in Asia on Friday.
As Davidoff’s exclusive distributor in Asia (except mainland China), Bluebell has built a distribution network throughout the region. Now Bluebell Cigars has 20 stores across Asia including the markets of Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia. With six retail stores, Hong Kong is the biggest market for Bluebell’s cigar business.
Davidoff store in Hong Kong’s Peninsula hotel
The luxury distributor has been using multiple distribution channels to distribute Davidoff’s products which include its own retail stores, wholesale, duty free shops as well as e-commerce.
“The sales of the retail stores contribute the largest part to our income. Through wholesale channel, we are able to sell Davidoff’s products to hotel, bars and casinos. We also work with duty free operators to sell our products at shops in airports, border and seaports,” said Rougemont.
Since launching the first store, Bluebell has been distributing Davidoff’s products for almost four decades. “We were very happy with our distribution agreement. However, the problem with any distribution agreement is that it was due to expire, and in our case this was within the next four to five years. Rather than having to continually go through the process of renegotiating it, we decided it would be easier to forge a joint venture,” said Ashley Micklewright, CEO of Bluebell Far East Ltd.
The two companies started talking about converting the business from a distribution agreement into a joint venture about four years ago. “We have been spending quite a bit of time negotiating the terms and conditions to move from a distribution agreement into a joint venture, as well as setting up the foundations on which to build,” noted Micklewright.
Davidoff gondola at airport duty free shop
It takes three steps to set up the JV according to Micklewright. “First of all, we had to put all the cigar businesses into a separate entity which is where the Bluebell Cigar came from. Then Davidoff bought 25 percent of the business, thereby becoming a minority shareholder. Now they access the right to purchase another 25.1 percent.”
After the latest transaction, Davidoff will own 50.1 percent interest of the JV and Bluebell will own 49.9 percent. “Even though Davidoff has a slight majority share of the JV, we will run it like we have an equal partnership,” Micklewright pointed out.
Bluebell Cigars will be renamed Davidoff of Geneva (Asia) Ltd. and will continue to be led by Laurent de Rougemont who has been named Senior Vice President Asia of the JV.
In a Distributor-Principal relationship, the distributor normally is under the pressure to sell more products and open more stores to meet the expectations of the Principal. However, under a joint venture, both parties become more strategic and commercially allied.
Rougemont believed that creating a joint venture will help the two companies to better develop the cigar business in Asia. “Now we are able to integrate the business from the production to selling to the end consumer. Together, we can work on the product development so that we can launch new products in the market faster. We will have more strategies allied, more innovation, and bigger marketing projects.”
“What’s more, the new partnership allows us to strengthen the digital aspect of distribution. Now we can work on the global platform to sell cigars online in Asia,” he added.
“We are more committed to each other now,” said Micklewright when asked to comment on the new partnership. “It’s like we have gone from being engaged to married, though I agree we were engaged a rather long time!”
Bluebell is the owner of retailinAsia


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Moody's Investors Service on Tuesday boosted its outlook on Reynolds American Inc. RAI, +0.00% to positive from stable, saying it expects the tobacco company to continue to grow profits despite fundamental weaknesses in the U.S. cigarette market.
The credit ratings firm also affirmed Reynold American's Baa3 rating, preserving its position on the last rung of investment-grade territory. Moody's said the rating could get an upgrade if the company sustains strong credit metrics and successfully manages litigation and regulatory challenges.
"Litigation and regulation remain ongoing risks, but the effects will likely be mitigated and/or delayed by legal challenges from both RAI and the industry and diversification into adjacent categories such as smokeless tobacco," said Janice Hofferber, a senior vice president at the ratings firm.
Reynolds American, the nation's second-largest tobacco company behind Altria Group Inc. MO, +0.72%, has seen cigarette volumes decline due to demographic changes and widespread public-smoking bans. Still, the company in recent years has turned its attention to a few core brands, such as Pall Mall and Camel, and is looking to smokeless products like its Grizzly moist snuff for growth.
Second-quarter results from Reynolds American saw earnings slip 11% as the company booked a litigation charge and saw costs rise.
Shares were recently up 16 cents to $37.07.


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Chinese netizens on Friday criticized malicious customers of an online fruit shop for greed and lack of conscience after they exploited the shop's pricing mistake to earn profits which put the shop in danger of closing down.
The customers in question made their orders at the fruit shop on China's e-commerce platform taobao.com after a user of a video-sharing site spread the error with his followers and asked them to make orders.
The user had his account at the Bilibili or B-station shut down on Thursday and apologized after his behavior drew public ire. Taobao.com announced it would help the shop minimize its losses.
The fruit shop owners, two farmers, planned to sell their oranges at 26 yuan for 4.5 kilograms, but mistakenly priced the oranges for 26 yuan per 2.25 tons on their online shop. According to taobao.com, the families of the two farmers are entirely dependent on the online shop.
But tens of thousands of orders involving 7 million yuan were made overnight, and the two faced complaints when the shop shut down as it could not afford to make the deliveries.
Chinese netizens showed understanding and sympathy to the farmers while criticizing buyers for using their mistakes to make unjust profits.
"Your gain is based on sacrificing your morality and ignoring social fairness and the shop's survival, and we should let off people's honest mistake," one netizen said.
The shop's website was still open on Friday, but no products were displayed. A notice said that the shop owners showed gratitude to netizens across the country who supported them after their careless pricing mistake, and they would refund customers and resume operation with the help of taobao.com.
The incident also brought to light a group of "bonus hunters" specializing in exploiting honest mistakes of merchants to demand products with a value far higher than the payment amount and demanding compensation if the shops could not afford the deal. The Bilibili user in the incident involved was one such "bonus hunter" who had around 3,000 followers.
An online survey on Weibo showed that 70 percent of the 6,200 respondents believed such behavior is shameful and should be banned.


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The global payments industry is growing fast as go-ahead startups in financial technology develop emerging technologies and investment from big banks filters through.
A 2016 report by Boston Consulting Group estimates the transaction banking market will reach some $2 trillion by 2024, up from $1.1 trillion in 2014.
While the spotlight has been on innovation and technology, businesses are now beginning to realise the benefits of new payment methods to fuel corporate growth and improve the bottom line.
Matteo Stefanel, managing partner of catalyst investor group Apis Partners, says the international networks for making payments have been considerably upgraded in recent years.
“Payments infrastructure globally is continuing to move towards more efficient real-time, 24/7 ubiquity, such as the Faster Payments system in the UK and IMPS in India,” he says.
Businesses harness disruptive technologies
Global businesses, such as taxi-hailing service Uber, owe much of their growth to the success of real-time payments. The Californian group, which started up in 2009, is now estimated to be worth more than $62 billion.
Its growth in profits has largely been down to harnessing disruptive technologies to gain a share in multiple markets.
Vaughan Rowsell, founder and chief product officer at Vend, says: “Uber offers a number of ways to pay, including Google Wallet and PayPal as well as credit card.
“Popular businesses are showing others that those payment solutions, which were new a few years ago, like contactless cards or mobile wallets, are now real, reliable and widely used. As adoption has been slow, but steady, the technology has been able to evolve and become better over time.”
Mr Stefanel agrees, stressing that payments should be thought of in the context of their role in enabling commerce.
“The level to which payments are frictionless can determine whether online baskets make it to checkout,” he says. “Amazon and Uber, with their one-click and invisible checkout processes, can very much attribute a portion of their success to this.”
Mr Rowsell says there is a lesson here for businesses that the biggest part of growing the bottom line is the number of options on offer to the customer.
He says: “The payment aspect of the buying process is hugely important to the customer experience. Shoppers expect choice, they expect payment to be quick and painless, and they expect it to be modern – on mobile, for example. Our patience for standing in a queue to pay for an item is diminishing.
More people are realising that using contactless with their mobile is easier than digging around for spare change when paying for lower-cost items
“By offering these new ways to pay, businesses can create a better customer experience, reduce queues and sell to more customers in a shorter timeframe, and therefore grow their profits.”
So, for businesses, quicker, cheaper systems and increased customer payment options mean there is now less reliance on cash. However, it also means that customer expectations are increasing.
Nigel Hyslop, president and UK managing director of Global Payments, says: “We have seen a sharp increase in the number of people using their mobile phone to make purchases online or pay with contactless for items up to £30.
“More people are realising that using contactless with their mobile is easier than digging around for spare change when paying for lower-cost items.”
In the last 12 months, there has been large-scale adoption of contactless payments at the physical point of sale (POS).
Figures from the UK Cards Association show the number of contactless transactions in January 2016 was up 212 per cent on the same month last year.
This has been spurred by banks continuing to issue contactless-enabled cards and retailers continuing to activate compatible POS terminals to take advantage of the lower acceptance costs of contactless payments.
However, payment innovation internationally goes much further than mobile and contactless payments.
Ian Foottit, head of UK financial services strategy team at consultancy group Deloitte, says small and medium-sized enterprises are benefitting from improved record keeping and integrated invoice management, while new fintech ideas are leading to flexible supplier financing and competitive foreign exchange rates for businesses.
“Large-scale retailers can use payments data to better understand the shopping behaviour of their customers and integrate payments with loyalty programmes,” he says.
“Small-scale merchants may benefit from the scope provided by secure online payments and convenience of mobile acceptance technology.”
Mr Foottit says businesses that embrace innovation in payments are likely to find they are able to streamline their operations and offer a greater customer experience.
Improving customer experience
Some of the largest companies in the world are using new payment methods to go one step further than paying for goods. They are using them to enhance buyer interaction with their products.
Starbucks is one example. The coffee giant launched mobile order and pay, which has been integrated with its rewards card system, enabling UK and US customers to pre-order through their mobile phone and collect on arrival.
The importance of the shifting payments landscape is probably best illustrated by looking at the world’s banks.
A recent report by consultants McKinsey notes that 11 of the world’s major banks have already started innovation hubs and a further six are directly investing in enhancing payment technologies.
Of those that aren’t, five are partnering with fintech firms, three are looking to acquire specialists in the market and three more are building brand new divisions from scratch.
At the beginning of April, banking co-operative SWIFT announced that 21 banks had signed up to a brand new global payments innovation initiative intended to improve the customer experience by increasing the speed, transparency and predictability of cross-border payments.
Participating banks include some of the biggest names in banking, such as Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Bank of China, Barclays, J.P. Morgan Chase, Royal Bank of Canada and Wells Fargo.


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The British Retail Consortium reported a year-on-year fall in UK retail footfall of more than 40%
Retail experts, the British Retail Consortium (BRC), has warned the latest England-wide lockdown, a third in ten months, could be the final nail in the coffin for some businesses.
Year-on-year UK retail footfall fell by more than 40% for 2020, with high street shops being worst hit.
Findings showed high street footfall nosedived almost 50%...
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STOCKHOLM (AP) - Swedish police say they are searching for a man wearing a clown mask and a yellow outfit holding "something sharp" who scared an 8-year-old boy on his way to school, the latest incident involving adults in creepy outfits in the Scandinavian region.
Police spokesman Stefan Dangardt says a passing motorist saw what happened and honked his horn, enabling the boy to run away.
Dangardt said the man also had red hair and a painted white face. The incident happened Thursday in Kumla, about 165 kilometers (105 miles) west of Stockholm. The Aftonbladet newspaper said the man is believed to be in his 20s.
Two years ago, similar incidents were reported in Sweden, Norway and Denmark, leading a Norwegian toy store chain to stop selling clown costumes in its 114 shops.


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Breakthroughs in advanced technologies; the proliferation of blockchain across industries; and the pressing issues of sustainability and Intellectual Property (IP) are fast becoming the most valuable commodities of the information age. These topics and more, were front and center of discussion at the recent Global Startup Awards Africa Summit, held on 14 and15 June in Cape Town. Attended by African innovators, thought-leaders, and decision-makers, the event aimed to facilitate the most comprehensive network of key industry experts that will leapfrog/accelerate African innovation, in line with the UN’s Sustainability Development Goals (SDGs).
One of the most popular panel discussions held at the summit was the opportunities blockchain technology provides. Local experts unpacked the concept and illustrated its success on the African continent.
These experts included Ian Putter, Head of Blockchain Centre of Excellence at Standard Bank Group and Founder of the Blockchain Research Institute (BRI) Africa, Adam Romyn, Co-founder and Chief Technology Officer at Momint and Anda Ngcaba, Chief of Operations at Algorand-UCT Financial Innovation Hub.
AFRICAN INNOVATION STIFLED BY LACK OF UNDERSTANDING
Blockchain is helping transform business across the world by enabling two or more people, businesses, or computers that may or may not know each other to exchange something of value in a digital environment — whether it be monetary, informational, or exchange of digital assets — without any intermediaries.
According to a Deloitte UK report1, the principal challenge associated with blockchain is a lack of awareness of the technology, especially in sectors other than banking, and a widespread lack of understanding of how it works. This is hampering investment and the exploration of ideas – specifically in Africa’s startup landscape.
Putter set the scene when he opened the discussion with, “Anything that is worth following takes time. We know that blockchain is the new evolution of the internet and thus education and research are needed to be our first focus in an effort for Africa to gain an understanding of the technology, as many people have the knowledge, but not understanding.”
This viewpoint was unanimously agreed upon by the panelists.
Ngcaba commented that “Education is very important. The worst thing is to speak to someone about blockchain who knows nothing about it and dismisses everything you are saying while trying to tie blockchain with cryptocurrencies when the two exist separately yet coexist as well.”
Due to blockchain being a fairly complicated concept to grasp, Fast Company South Africa’s Editor-in-Chief and moderator of the panel discussion, Wesley Diphoko noted that real-life use cases are needed to showcase the impact of what blockchain technology can do for the African continent.
Use cases go far beyond the acclaimed decentralised finance (DeFi) we already know of to use cases involving tracking and tracing supply chain movements and organisational governance.
Blockchain presents several distinct opportunities for startups. In particular, reducing information inequality and transaction costs can help new and small businesses overcome long-standing challenges related to scaling, transparency, and lack of business history, facilitating access to the African Continental Free Trade Area agreement (AfCFTA).
SMEs and new firms can also benefit from greater efficiency and quality of products and services, enhanced supply chain management, and blockchain-driven innovation in business models.
One of the underlying challenges faced with the advances of technology is that of regulations. There’s been a strong argument for blockchain applications to work within existing regulatory structures, not outside of them; but this means that regulators in all industries must understand the technology and its impact on the businesses and consumers in their sector.
While working on a project tokenising financial instruments using blockchain technology, Standard Bank discovered that the policies and regulations around the use of blockchain when dealing with finances need to be rewritten. “This is something that people will have to accept because security will always be important”, says Putter.
South Africa and several other African countries are fortunate enough to have regulators who are engaging with multiple partners including banks and crypto asset service providers as they do not want to stifle innovation, but rather engage and create something that is regulated, traceable, and can bring trust to people.
Putter adds that “Anything we do, we need to work with the regulators. This engagement model where we work with the regulators across Africa is going to enable people to understand the technology and to understand the regulatory standpoint. So, what we are actively doing is engaging with regulators and implementing use cases with regulators to show them the transparency and the benefits that blockchain technology will bring.”
One of the primary reasons blockchain technology and the development of Web3.0 are so valuable is because they have a shared infrastructure. This means that you don’t need to build your own but can leverage what is already available.
Romyn, sheds more, saying “You can build a small smart contract with a small front end, and still have a very powerful business. In Web2.0, you would have to build an entire backend which hosted your payment rails and the rest of the complexity, whereas in Web3.0 it has been built for you.”
As with the infant stages of every new technology, there will be downfalls, but you can bring the best of the old and the best of the new worlds together to speed up the implementation of these applications.
Romyn added that the most exciting thing that non-fungible tokens (NFTs) have presented to the world is what smart contracts can really do, such as execute agreements without the need of intermediaries where all parties are immediately notified of the outcome or programming a piece of digital artwork that ensures the artist receives royalties every time the artwork is traded. The opportunities are vast, and we are only getting started.
Another exciting application highlighted by Ngcaba is the development of Decentralised Autonomous Organisations (DAOs); where the growing youth population in Africa can contribute to different DAOs building applications simultaneously as many DeFi protocols are run by DAOs that let people vote on how the protocols should be run, similarly to a public company.
The panellists all agreed that collaboration is key.
The Blockchain Research Institute (BRI) Africa has been created by Standard Bank to connect governments and ecosystem players while leveraging their footprint in Africa to bring people and businesses together, and to create an ecosystem where people understand the regulatory environments.
It remains that Africa consists of many fragmented communities and ecosystems which hinders the momentum of growth in many industries. So, while the masses are being educated, ecosystems need to join forces to share resources and drive Africa’s growth from within.
“Across Africa we need collaboration. The opportunity of blockchain, if you can recognise the potential, is to collaborate at all levels of society. This is not something that is just going to be implemented and run across big companies. The thing that you want is consensus, where many people can take ownership of their lives and ownership of things that belong to them, such as clean drinking water, dignity, and the ability to participate on platforms. What we are working on in Africa is to enable communities to connect.” concluded Putter.
As blockchain technology represents a shift away from the traditional ways of doing things, it places trust and authority in a decentralised network rather than in a powerful central institution. For many, the lack of control can be unsettling. But for many, an imaginative approach is needed to understand the opportunities and how businesses can eventually benefit.


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NEW YORK (Reuters) – Wall Street stocks notched record closing highs on Monday as cooling trade tensions between Washington and Beijing and upbeat economic data from China boosted investor sentiment. The Dow surpassed its November closing high, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq marked record closes for the third straight session. Friday’s announcement of an interim trade deal between the world’s two biggest economies has lifted prospects for the global economy, several analysts said. Although growth in China is expected to continue moderating, the trade developments brightened the country’s economic outlook. Adding to the optimism, data released early on Monday showed China’s industrial output and retail sales growth accelerated in November. The U.S.-China trade deal suspended tariffs scheduled to take effect on Dec. 15 on a variety of consumer products, including Apple Inc’s (AAPL.O) iPhone. Apple shares rose 1.7% and provided the biggest boost to the S&P 500 .SPX and Nasdaq .IXIC. Shares of chipmakers, among the most trade-sensitive stocks, also rose. The Philadelphia SE Semiconductor index .SOX gained 1.0%. “It validates the best-case scenario people were expecting,” Oliver Pursche, chief market strategist at Bruderman Asset Management in New York, said of the removal of tariffs. Accommodative monetary policy by… Read full this story
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Woolworths appoints ex-Target head to board
US resident Kathee Tesija was former chief merchandising and supply chain officer and executive vice president at Target Corporation in the US between 2008 and 2015.
Tesija continued as a strategic adviser at Target until earlier this year and is also an independent director of US telecommunications company Verizon; and a senior adviser and consultant for a US consulting agency, Simpactful.
Gordon Cairns, Woolworths chair, said Tesija’s expertise in the areas of merchandising and supply chain management, as well as her international perspective, would be a great resource for Woolworths.
“I am also delighted we will now have a 50 per cent representation of women on the board of Woolworths,” Cairns said.
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