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Although folks still opt to talk with sales reps physically when shopping for an auto, today’s customers are extremely choosing to do their online shopping. Well before, these purchasers have substantial targets and investigation more than ever. It has also faster the pace of automobile shopping by permitting customers to make conclusions more rapidly than ever before. With the elevate of online promoting as well as the online world, consumers are now prone to make an motor vehicle get online than right before. Here are one of the fads which are impacting auto shopping.
One research by Onbe, a digital installments program with 11 primary auto manufacturers, reviewed the online car-obtaining encounter plus the role it plays during the consumer’s buying process. The analysis interviewed 1,000 Americans older 18 to 99 to recognize the standards that influence client obtaining judgements. The investigation established that seamless electronic encounters engage in a crucial job in driving acquiring practices. The truth is, millennials will take into account 32Percent of brand new car or truck product sales in 2020, overtaking Baby Boomers the very first time ever before. Moreover, 68Per cent of clients underneath 30 wish to buy a new automobile in the following eighteen months, a testament to the expanding acquiring ability of youthful millennials.
While electronic digital retailing accounts for a smallish percentage of all round automobile revenue, it’s rising promptly, with a substance once-a-year expansion amount of 7.61 per-cent, according to a report by Frost & Sullivan. The fact is, vehicle eCommerce is estimated to generate $14.6 billion dollars in sales by 2035. Whilst the motor vehicle industry continues to be lagging associated with other industrial sectors from the digital retailing place, the key benefits of employing electronic digital motor vehicle searching are distinct.
Subsequently, the web based motor vehicle-shopping for working experience is among the most standard. The craze of buying online makes vehicle car dealerships get accustomed to the days. The Web lets prospective buyers to examine and compare vehicles from several locations, including car dealerships. However, suppliers must fulfill the purchaser wherever these are generally whilst store shopping. The way forward for automobile retailing depends upon modern systems and electronic alternatives. In addition to increasing buyer acquiring electrical power, consumers are also much more pleased to purchase a new auto on the web.
Using online instruments and solutions for motor vehicle purchasing has showed quite a few opportunities for firms inside the motor vehicle field. Which has a digital base, shoppers can choose a motor vehicle that will fit their needs and preferences. In addition to the capability of a web based car or truck-purchasing encounter, such a support also tends to make choosing a automobile much easier. By leveraging the effectiveness of the web, a buyer can acquire a completely new car without having visiting a dealership. It’s a great choice for motor vehicle-customers looking to purchase a new auto.
Currently, a lot of shoppers want to shop online regarding their cars. Even if this craze has existed for several years, there have been some conditions on the principle. Despite the simplicity of buying online, consumers nonetheless prefer to meet a salesman. When they have an electronic reputation, the easiest way to achieve this is usually to satisfy for a car dealer and have them. For many people people, this is simply not an option, nonetheless it may be useful with regards to getting a new car or truck.
Inspite of the convenience of online car shopping, it’s important to take into account the main advantages of these technologies. One example is, lots of shoppers would rather buy online. Along with surfing around in their mobile phone, on-line purchases are simpler for many of us. Plus the capability of internet shopping shows that customers will probably make a purchase than previously. And also in today’s planet, computerized retailers are getting to be greater than a simple shop. Unlike their typical cousins, auto prospective buyers also can make the most of a lot more individualized knowledge when selecting a car or truck.
While many individuals prefer to do their forms away from a dealer, they might by no means take into consideration getting a motor vehicle without having a test commute. This is usually a indication which the web is a easy medium sized for automobile store shopping. Also, 75% of respondents want to comprehensive the documentation away from a dealership. Furthermore, they’d instead do their shopping online than in an old-fashioned site. Aside from this, these research shows that a lot of people are increasingly more comfortable with on the net car transactions.
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#Wi13: It's a Wrap
Officially ended last night at the closing reception, Winter Institute 2018 was yet another wildly successful gathering of what is now the premier bookselling event in the U.S. Some 685 booksellers, 58 international guests and several hundred publishers, distributors, wholesalers and others mixed, talked shop and learned from each other. Major topics included how to make the book business, bookstores and the ABA more diverse and inclusive and how to make the bookstore business more viable--addressed at the Town Hall meeting and at various sessions and panels over the three days. At the same time, while acknowledging the many challenges that exist, attendees celebrated the general health of independent bookselling.
Among other highlights of the conference: the challenging talk by Junot Díaz; the very funny and very touching talk by Gary Shteyngart (see below); ABA CEO Oren Teicher's discussion of the state of indie bookselling (see below); Daniel Pink's third appearance at a Winter Institute, where he gave a timely presentation about aspects of time and mood.
Host city Memphis, Tenn., provided a lot of opportunity for eating amazing BBQ, engaging in striking sightseeing (particularly the National Civil Rights Museum), and visiting great bookstores (notably Burke's Book Store and Novel nearby, as well as Square Books in Oxford, Miss., and Turnrow Book Co., Greenwood, Miss.).
Also during busy Wi13:
For the first time, the Book Industry Charitable Foundation (Binc) held a fundraiser at the Winter Institute (and was Wi13's official charity). It sold out its 400 blinking guitar and musical note pins, and a very happy executive director Pamela French said Binc raised $7,000, more than it had expected.
Wi13 attendees welcomed Independent Bookstore Day, preparing for its fourth iteration on April 28 (not counting its one year as California Bookstore Day). A panel on IBD was "full of good ideas," executive director Samantha Schoech reported, and Calvin Crosby, executive director of the Northern California Independent Booksellers Association, described the traffic at IBD's consultation station as "frisky."
At Tuesday's breakfast, ABA CEO Oren Teicher noted that the association is working with BookExpo to improve BookExpo for independent booksellers. Toward that end, BookExpo is sending a representative to the spring regional booksellers association meetings to speak with booksellers and discuss changes in BookExpo's format and programming to benefit indie booksellers.
Congratulations to Three Lives & Co., New York City, which received shoutouts from two keynote speakers: Sarah Jessica Parker and Junot Díaz. And congratulations to BooksActually in Singapore, which is perhaps the most distant bookstore ever to receive a shoutout by a Winter Institute keynoter: Junot Díaz.
At yesterday's lunch, the shortlist for PW's Bookstore of the Year Award were announced:
Astoria Bookshop, Queens, N.Y.
Boulder Book Store, Boulder, Colo.
Gibson's Bookstore, Concord, N.H.
Source Booksellers, Detroit, Mich.
University Book Store, Seattle, Wash.
The shortlist for the Rep of the Year Award:
Eileen Bertelli of Parson Weems' Publisher Services
Judy DeBerry of Hachette Book Group
Frazer Dobson of Como Sales
John Mesjak of Abraham Associates
Bailey Walsh of the University of Chicago Press
Congratulations to all the nominees!
As always, we want to thank Mitchell Kaplan, owner of Books & Books in south Florida and the Cayman Islands, for having the inspiration for Winter Institute more than a dozen years ago when he was ABA president. And many, many thanks to the ABA board and staff for all the hard work that goes into putting on Winter Institute!
Look for more Shelf Awareness reporting on Wi13 next week and beyond.
Mark your calendars for Wi14, to be held next January 22-25 in Albuquerque!

domain: news


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With a planned increased in seat capacity for international passengers coming to Miami and higher hotel occupancy and daily rate recorded in just the first two weeks of this year, the county’s tourism outlook glows brightly.
For the first two weeks of the 2023 combined, occupancy in county hotels has risen 8.1% over the last year. Similarly, average daily rate rose 4.6%, and visitor volume – defined as demand, or how many people are checking into hotel rooms – is up another 12.1%, according to the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau.
“These first two weeks have been traditionally a shoulder period,” said David Whitaker, bureau president and CEO, referring to the period between peak and off-peak season. “So, to have increases in occupancy, daily average rate and volume is really, really encouraging. The goal is to continue that growth and success.”
Miami-Dade hotels in all of 2022 had an annual occupancy rate of 72.1%, 8% above 2021.
In 2021, which was “a bit of a struggle year, still dealing with the grip of Covid-19,” said Mr. Whitaker, the county had an annual 68.4% occupancy. Still, Miami-Dade ended as second in the nation among the top major destinations with more than 20,000 hotel rooms for occupancy.
“The entire country was dealing with Covid-19,” he said. “Tampa was in the number one spot at 68.4%, so Florida in general did quite well due to opening sooner, warm weather, and outdoor options that the Northeast and cold weather cities weren’t able to enjoy.”
Regarding annual average daily rate in 2022, Miami ended third nationally with $253.11, up 14% over 2021, following only New York and Hawaii.
“We could fill every hotel room in the city if we only charged $50 a night,” said Mr. Whitaker. “So, hotels that do very well find that balance between volume, occupancy and daily rate. Higher revenue per available room (RevPAR) generates more taxes for our destination, for our community and our municipal partners. The more successful a hotel is, the more employees they can hire and the more they can reinvest in the property.”
That’s why it’s important to market the destination to attract high value customers, he said. “Those are the customers that are looking to invest in great events. We’re looking to attract a very high-income, high-experience, high-expectation traveler.”
Another barometer of future success is planned seat capacity, the number of seats on arriving flights. International airlines have negotiated with Miami International Airport a total increase of 21% year-over-year in seats for January through March, said Mr. Whitaker. The biggest growth markets are to be the United Kingdom, up 32%; Canada, up 31%; Brazil, up 20%; and Spain, up 11%.
“The airlines, coming off one of the best years ever (2022), are adding more capacity,” he said.
For the second quarter, which is April through June, planned seat capacity is to increase 18% overall over the last year for international flights, led by Brazil, adding 38% capacity, and the UK adding 11%.
“We knew that Brazil had taken a pause because they were especially hit by Covid-19,” said Mr. Whitaker. “We’re thrilled to be welcoming them back and to see these seats [increased]. We anticipate a real surge in Brazilian visitors in the first six months, which is a big travel time for them.”
In addition, 16 new hotels countywide opened in 2022, which is helping bolster today’s tourism. That new properties added 2,964 rooms in inventory, a 4.7% increase over the prior year. “More rooms opening means more rooms to fill, and more work to continue to entice and welcome more visitors, but when 16 new hotels open in a year, that just shows you the investors’ confidence,” Mr. Whitaker said.
Those hotels include The Elser Hotel Miami, which opened in November; Arlo Wynwood, Wynwood’s first hotel, which opened in September; and Loews Coral Gables in Ponce de Leon, which opened in May.
Ten more properties plan to open this year, adding another 1,676 rooms to the hotel inventory, including The Brooklyn Hotel in Miami Beach, planned for January; Evvo Miami Hotel, planned for June; and citizen Miami South Beach, planned for September.
Also helping to bolster tourism are events and festivals, said Mr. Whitaker. Over 30 major festivals, meetings or conventions are scheduled in just the first six months of 2023, including the South Beach Jazz Festival, from Jan. 5-8; Art Deco Weekend, from Jan. 13-15; Discover Boating Miami International Boat Show, Feb. 15-19 – which last year generated an economic impact of more than $1.5 billion in the boating industry – the South Beach Wine & Food Festival, due Feb. 23-26; Miami Beach Pride, April 1-16; and many more.
In addition, last week, Terra Group and Turnberry, the two titans jointly developing the Grand Hyatt Miami Beach Convention Center Hotel, announced that Dallas-based general contractor and construction company Balfour Beatty will begin construction toward the end of the summer. Preconstruction of the 17-story, 800-room hotel is underway, and competition is expected in 2025.
“I can’t quantify yet” how much the hotel is going to impact meetings and conventions at the Miami Beach Convention Center, which recently underwent a $600 million renovation, said Mr. Whitaker, “but, we’re literally receiving dozens and dozens of new requests for information from meeting planners all over the country. There is an incredible surge of interest.”
The Convention Center headquarters hotel, at 17th Street and Convention Center Drive, will directly connect to the center via an elevated skybridge. It “will serve as the central anchor of the Miami Beach Convention Center District, steps away from the beachfront, hundreds of shops and restaurants along Lincoln Road, the New World Center, the Bass Museum, and the Fillmore Miami Beach,” said a press release by the joint team.
The hotel is to include 12 floors of guest rooms, 52 suites with beach views, four floors of meeting spaces and ballrooms, a resort-style pool deck, a signature restaurant, lobby lounge and bar, and retail space, all designed by architect Bernardo Fort-Brescia and his Miami-based firm Arquitectonica.


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The Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF) (www.TonyElumeluFoundation.org), Africa’s leading philanthropy empowering African entrepreneurs, is now accepting applications on www.TEFConnect.com for its TEF 2021 Entrepreneurship Program. The deadline is fast approaching , this year’s intervention, which includes funding of $ 5,000, mentoring and training for each selected company, prioritizes the economic recovery of young African entrepreneurs following the severe consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic.
To meet the unique challenges of the pandemic, lift millions of people out of poverty and create sustainable jobs across the continent, the Foundation’s entrepreneurship program will empower more than 3,500 young African entrepreneurs.
The Tony Elumelu Foundation, which celebrated ten years of impact in 2020, empowers a new generation of African entrepreneurs, through the TEF Entrepreneurship Program. Successful applicants receive world-class business training, mentorship, non-refundable seed capital of up to $ 5,000, and global networking opportunities. The program is open to entrepreneurs from across Africa, whether they are new start-ups or existing start-ups, operating in any sector.
Tony Elumelu Foundation CEO Ifeyinwa Ugochukwu said: “The Tony Elumelu Foundation demonstrates more than ever our commitment to unleashing the potential of young African entrepreneurs, the key to Africa’s long-term economic transformation. The pandemic has created challenges across the continent, but we know that with the proven Tony Elumelu Foundation program, we can execute the largest Covid-19 economic stimulus plan for African SMEs and break the cycle of poverty in Africa.
The Tony Elumelu Foundation’s $ 100 million entrepreneurship program, launched in 2015 to empower 10,000 entrepreneurs over 10 years, is now entering its 7the and has empowered to date over 9,000 young African entrepreneurs from 54 African countries. Potential applicants should apply on the digital networking hub for African entrepreneurs, www.TEFConnect.com.
- Coronavirus – Eswatini: COVID-19 update (February 23, 2021)
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- Coronavirus – Uganda: COVID-19 update (February 23, 2021)
- NaturalShrimp Signs Letter of Intent to Acquire Aquaculture Assets from Hydrenesis Aquaculture, LLC


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The merger of the special-purpose acquisition company
and the electric-vehicle maker born from Volvo is done, and the stock has launched with a volatile day of trading.
Early Friday, Polestar stock (ticker: PSNY) was at $12.10, up almost 8% to start its first day as a public company on the Nasdaq. But by late morning, the gain had vanished, leaving the shares down about 6.5% at $10.69. Then came the late rally. Shares closed at $13, up 14% for the day.
Dow Jones Industrial Average
ended Friday with respective gains of 3.1% and 2.7%.
The closing of the deal, which Polestar announced Thursday afternoon, brings roughly $900 million onto the books of the merged company. The final amount might be a little different, depending on how SPAC shareholders voted.
The predecessor stock,
(GGPI), closed Thursday at $11.23 a share.
At $13 a share, Polestar’s market capitalization is about $27 billion, based on the 2.1 billion shares that are outstanding now that the deal is closed. That works out to about 4.1 times estimated 2023 sales of $6.6 billion.
Polestar plans to ship about 124,000 units in 2023 to generate those sales. The company is delivering vehicles today, and plans to ship about 50,000 in 2022. What’s more, Polestar shipped about 29,000 in 2021.
Polestar manufactures its…
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- Mashable was in deep trouble financially before it sold for far below its one-time valuation of $250 million, according to documents reviewed by Business Insider.
- The company was heavily reliant on digital media advertising revenue, the documents show. It also lost $4.2 million in the three months through September.
- Ziff Davis is hoping to improve Mashable by focusing on search engine optimization and e-commerce, and says the Mashable addition makes Ziff Davis the “largest tech brand.”
The price tag was the first clue that a once high-flying digital media startup, was in serious trouble.
Mashable agreed to sell itself to Ziff Davis, owner of an assortment of digital media brands from PCMag to Askmen.com, for a reported $50 million.
That was a steep discount for a company had been valued at as much as $250 million in a fundraising round just last year. Shareholder documents reviewed by Business Insider help explain why the fire sale was necessary. The documents relate to the sale agreement, and paint a bleak picture of a company that failed to meet its own outsized expectations and was heavily exposed to a reckoning in digital advertising.
Weighed down by large long-term expenses like the high rent on its offices in New York, London and Singapore, Mashable ended September with about $4.65 million in cash on hand, down from $8.4 million at the start of the year, the documents show. Its loss for the three months through September was $4.2 million, and the financial statements suggest revenue growth was slowing.
The company essentially auctioned itself off, soliciting bids from 40 potential bidders. But it only received what it considered to be two serious offers, including the one it ultimately settled on from Ziff Davis. Mashable’s board believed the sale was preferable to subjecting shareholders to the “risks and uncertainties of the company’s business plan and prospects,” according to the documents.
While management and major investors saw some of the $50 million the company sold for, outstanding stock options provided to employees at various points during Mashable’s ascension, were completely worthless in the sale, the documents show.
Ziff Davis declined to comment for this article. Mashable did not respond to repeated requests for comment in time for publication.
Mashable looked set to miss its revenue targets
The Wall Street Journal reported in November that Mashable had raised revenue by 36% to $42 million in 2016, and was eyeing $50 million in revenue this year, potentially breaking even.
But details included in the shareholder agreement suggest the company was nowhere close to meeting those goals. They show that in 2016, revenue increased by 25% to $40.6 million, up from $30.1 million in 2015.
For 2017, the documents include revenue details for the three months through September. In that period revenue totaled about $8.6 million. It’s important not to extrapolate too much from one quarter’s financial statements, because the last six months of the year tend to be the largest for digital media revenue. That year-end growth can come on fast, and for Mashable it meant sales rose from $1.97 million in July to $3.6 million by September.
Still, even using the September sales as a monthly benchmark suggests annual sales of about $43 million – barely over the 2016 total.
It is heavily exposed to digital advertising at a challenging time
As rivals sought other revenue streams, Mashable was heavily exposed to digital advertising uncertainty at a time when Facebook and Google continue to eat up virtually every dollar of new ad spending.
Roughly 72% of Mashable’s revenue came from digital ads in the last three months before the sale; the next largest revenue source was distributed content, which accounted for 15% of revenue.
Though Mashable’s distributed revenue is about average – premium publishers generated around 14% of their overall revenues from distributing their content on third-party platforms in the first half of 2016- other revenue sources that could’ve buoyed the site were too small to make a significant impact.
E-commerce accounted for just 2% of the Mashable’s revenue in the latest three months, around $163,000. Events made up 7% of revenue, and licensing made up 3% of revenue. By comparison, Gizmodo Media Groupexpects e-commerce to make up a third of its total revenue this year,while other digital media publishers boast that events may make up 20% of their revenue by next year.
It was losing millions of dollars
Meanwhile, Mashable lost over $2.1 million in July alone, and more than $1 million in August and again in September, according to the documents.
Income statements from the last three months before the sale showed that the company spent over $470,000 on travel, meals, and entertainment for staff. The company also spent $100,000 on telecommunications, a figure far larger than that of many digital media companies, while production costs – presumably for advertising and other campaigns – cost $362,086.
Combined office rent in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, London, and Singapore climbed steadily over several years to $3,748,000 in 2016.
The majority of the costs were focused on its flagship office in Union Square in New York, located in the same building as other digital media companies including The Intercept and GMG. Conversations with executives from two other digital media companies in similarly high-priced areas suggest the company was paying significantly more for space compared to competitors of equivalent sizes.
To be sure, many independent, venture capital backed publishers are feeling the pain as they vie for leftover ad budgets. Even some of the biggest players in that world, BuzzFeed and Vice, have fallen short of revenue goals this year. And multiple mid-sized publishers, including Mic and Refinery29, have recently been hit with layoffs as they grapple with a new, smaller ad revenue reality in 2018.
But this much is clear: The results of Mashable’s financial predicament set the terms for the sale, which included a restructuring plan alluded to on numerous occasions throughout the merger agreement.
Ziff Davis said it would not enter into the merger unless Mashable CEO Pete Cashmore signed a continued employment contract (the documents BI reviewed did not disclose the amount the founder received as part of that contract). And the company established a $2.2 million pot to encourage top employees to stay. The allocation of that pot will be determined in consultation with an advisory committee made up of Cashmore, chief operating officer Michael Kriak, publisher Greg Gittrich, and chief technology officer Robyn Peterson.
But when the sale closed on December 5, the company laid off 50 staffers.
For its part, Ziff Davis appears to be taking action to remedy some of the issues at Mashable.
The company seemed to suggest during an all-hands call last week that it could only guarantee that its current New York and Los Angeles offices would remain open. It shut down offices in San Francisco in October – many of its employees there are now working from home, and plan on moving into the IGN office – and relocated its London team to a separate office.
In a separate meeting following the sale, managers announced that some staffers from PCMag, Geek, Computer Shopper, and IGN are set to move to Mashable’s office in New York (In a cruel twist, part of the Mashable logo sign at the New York office fell apart on Monday). They also announced plans to consolidate and integrate employees from Mashable’s business side into other teams at Ziff Davis.
Execs are hoping to boost search traffic by improving the so-called page-level-authority of individual posts, perhaps by writing longer, more in-depth stories, and said there was a site redesign in the works.
Further, Mashable appeared to abandon the pivot to social video that it embarked on in 2016 when it laid off two dozen editorial staffers , a likely product of the company’s failure to garner significant revenue from distributed channels.
Ziff Davis expects that the changes to the brand and restructuring will significantly improve the business.
In an all staff meeting earlier this month, Ziff Davis executives said that with the help of Mashable, by the end of 2018, it will be profitable.
Ziff Davis General Manager Mike Finnerty acknowledged the company needed some “quick wins,” but added if it does the “right things…we’re going to be number one in comScore tech.”
“We’re going to be the largest tech brand now with the combination of Mashable and all of the other things in the portfolio,” Finnerty said.
Andy Kiersz contributed reporting.


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A quarter of people in the U.S. still have extra weight that they gained in 2021. While they say they plan on losing it, most don’t intend to do anything about it before the end of the year. In fact, 40 percent of people consider the end of the year to be a write-off and have no intention of changing their habits until the new year. You don’t need January to happen to make better habits.
Sixty percent of people who intended to give up healthy habits had already done so, saying mid-November was their breaking point. With the holidays coming, most estimated that they would gain five and a half pounds before the new year. Thirty-seven percent said holiday food was too big of a temptation to limit themselves.
The majority of people, 63 percent, said they intended to make drastic changes in the new year and had resolutions. They looked at the New Year as a new beginning, and the main goals were to lose weight, eat healthier, save money and exercise more.
The study results show that people want to change, but the holidays are hard. They also show that most of us are “off the wagon” regarding healthy habits. Our team never wants to finger-wag. We understand that real life isn’t always about “sticking to the health plan no matter what.” Life happens. And the holidays should be fun. No one should feel guilty for enjoying food. But there are so many ways to stay healthy during the holidays. If you’ve let your healthy habits fall by the wayside since Thanksgiving, it’s not too late to get back on track. And you don’t have to make drastic changes to have a healthy, fun, happy holiday season!
One of the largest reasons people fail to meet their health goals is that their aim is too high or too vague. If you make a plan that is very difficult or ambiguous, it is hard to stick to. Adding in the temptation of the holidays makes giving up almost inevitable.
Set small specific goals for yourself this holiday season. Make daily or weekly resolutions. Plan to eat fresh vegetables daily. Or make a resolution to avoid candy or foods that are available all year round. Stick to enjoying the special things! Eat the foods you love in moderation, and don’t feel guilty.
You can also set goals to move every day. You don’t have to commit to a marathon to stay active. The holiday season often promotes a lazy lifestyle where we sit around watching movies and eating. But getting outside for a walk or staying on top of chores can keep you active throughout December.
You might be someone who likes starting a diet in January. That’s great! But, you can begin little healthy habits that work any time. If they are manageable and don’t intrude on your life, you may find they stick, unlike a New Year’s resolution.


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Sony to cut 10% workers, about 10,000 jobs
- Staff Silicon Valley Business Journal
Sony Corp. reportedly plans to cut its work force by 6 percent, or about 10,000 employees, over the next two years.
The Wall Street Journal Monday cited unnamed sources who said the cuts are planned by CEO Kazuo Hirai, who took over for Howard Stringer this month. The move will reportedly be part of a strategy session planned for Thursday.
Hirai is taking the helm after four consecutive years of losses at the Japanese electronics giant, as competitors including Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Samsung Electronics Co. have seen strong gains in smartphones and tablet devices.
The company has a service and engineering center in San Jose, as well as some Sony stores around Silicon Valley.
The North American headquarters of its game and entertainment unit is relocating to a big new campus in San Mateo from Foster City.
Written by Cromwell Schubarth. Contact him at firstname.lastname@example.org or 408.299.1823.
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Two Wide Bay region export-ready food businesses will soon be conquering international markets with funding from the Palaszczuk Government to help grow their enterprises.
Minister for Agricultural Industry Development and Fisheries Mark Furner said eight diverse food companies had received second round funding from the Growing Queensland’s Food Exports program, including Ironbark Citrus at Mundubbera and Gin Gin and Dry at Gin Gin.
“From Honey Murcott to Sunset Sweet, Ironbark Citrus know and grow them all,” Mr Furner said.
“Susan and Allen Jenkin produce over 5000 tonnes of premium mandarins each year and word must have spread, because it seems the world has developed an appetite for Ironbark Citrus.
“The grant will allow them to expand into Asia’s southeast, with high-value, premium mandarins on its way to the Philippines this season.”
Cameron and Muppi Dean from Gin Gin and Dry have developed a strong following in Queensland and word must have spread, because this funding will see their business expand into Asia.
“I’m sure it won’t take long for Asia to fall in love with Gin Gin and Dry’s range of dried pineapple, mango, banana and apple,” Mr Furner said.
“Not to mention the new facility completed at the end of 2017 that increased capacity four-fold – Cameron and Muppi are ready for that next step.
“They are well on their way to becoming yet another international success story of Queensland horticulture.
“Consumers love quality produce and they know it’s found in the Sunshine State.”
Growing Queensland’s Food Exports grantssupport regional producers already exporting or ready to export break in to lucrative overseas markets and supply chains.
The $1.3 million pilot program aims to boost Queensland’s food exports, delivering jobs and economic growth in regional areas.
“Not only is this a big win for the Wide Bay businesses, but for suppliers right across the state because with increased demand comes more jobs,” Mr Furner said.
By providing matching grants of up to $100,000, the Palaszczuk Government is supporting producers and food businesses to improve their export competitiveness through better understanding of their markets.
“So far, we’ve assisted macadamia, mango, melon, strawberry, sweet corn and pork producers to build their business capability to take advantage of opportunities to grow exports,” Mr Furner said.
The Growing Queensland’s Food Exports program focuses primarily on horticulture as Queensland is Australia’s largest producer of vegetables and the second largest producer of fruit and nuts.
More than $550,000 had already been allocated under the program.


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Along the Grand Canal in Venice, the historic Ca’ d’Oro stands out from the rest: a white, 13th-century palace once owned by Baron Giorgio Franchetti, who loved collecting art and design. Now his passions are brought to life in a new exhibition, just in time for the 58th Venice Biennale. “Dysfunctional,” presented by the Carpenters Workshop Gallery, is being staged at Ca’ d’Oro’s Galleria Giorgio Franchetti. The over 50 works presented in the palace’s exhibition space reflect the achievements of 23 artists, fashion icons, and designers, all of whom blur the boundaries of traditional artistic definitions.
One can’t ignore the baroque pomp of Venice, so the contemporary works here don’t either. From Renaissance paintings to bronze sculptures, this historic mansion–turned–museum (which has its own chapel) is decked out with both contemporary design and century-old art. Fashion designer Virgil Abloh presents “Acqua Alta,” a series of lopsided chairs that invite viewers to consider rising sea levels in a city like Venice. The seemingly sinking pieces of furniture, each of which has a door stopper wedged under one of its legs, fittingly overlook the lagoon.
French artist Michèle Lamy is showing “What Are We Fighting For?”, a series of punching bags that hang in a medieval courtyard. One is studded leather, while another looks like planet Earth. It feels reminiscent of what Joyce Carol Oates once said: “Boxing has become America’s tragic theater.” As Lamy explains to AD PRO: “At the time she said that, there weren’t any women boxers, but now there are more,” she says. “It was a different time—the rules were so strict. Now it’s more of a woman’s sport. It’s more friendly and human. It gives you some kind of joy you can’t explain.”
Meanwhile, fashion designer Rick Owens shows Double Bubble, one of his most well-known pieces, while the Verhoeven Twins show Moments of Happiness, comprising enormous bubbles hanging from the ceiling.
A common theme throughout the exhibition is light. In the leafy courtyard, Spanish artist Nacho Carbonell has created a texture intended to mimic sun-dappled light that washes across the trees. Meanwhile, the design group Random International has taken over a floor with Audience, which features over 120 interactive mirrors that turn (and flicker) in unison in a room full of Roman sculptures.
Amsterdam’s Studio Drift has created Fragile Future Chandelier Venice Mantegna, a LED light frame around Andrea Mantegna’s 16th-century painting of San Sebastian, like a glowing halo that echoes the painting’s own serenity. Each light is inside a dandelion (they call them “dandelights”).
“We feel more distant to the world because of tech, and in this moment, we want to bring nature and humans together,” Ralph Nauta, cofounder of Studio Drift, tells AD PRO. “We think tech needs to resonate more with nature.” Cofounder Lonneke Gordijn adds, “The Renaissance is when humans and nature parted. Five hundred years later, we need to bridge things together again.”


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American Heart Association and Nintendo Join Forces to Promote Healthy Living
The American Heart Association and Nintendo of America today announced a first-of-its-kind, multifaceted strategic relationship aimed at helping people create healthy lifestyles through physically active play. The two organizations will work together on multiple fronts to help consumers discover how active-play video games contribute to healthy living. Their joint efforts will arm consumers with information, provide people with hands-on experiences and arrange a summit of representatives from different backgrounds to discuss the benefits of active-play video games.
“Our two organizations come from different worlds, but we share a common goal,” said Clyde Yancy, M.D., president of the American Heart Association. “Showing people accessible ways to stay active has been a part of our mission for decades, but our research tells us nearly 70 percent of Americans are getting no regular physical activity. As an organization we are looking for ways to change this. Nintendo has demonstrated clear leadership in active-play video games with the popularity of the Wii system, and I’m confident that together we can encourage Americans to become more physically active.”
Recent research indicates that the average person spends more than eight hours of each day sitting down*. The American Heart Association has been conducting its own studies to investigate the reasons why many Americans aren’t more physically active. In a recent survey, more than half of respondents identified lack of time as one of the main obstacles preventing them from enjoying regular physical activity. Of those who almost never exercise, nearly 40 percent said that “exercise is not fun.” The American Heart Association and Nintendo aim to help eliminate these common barriers with a call to action that motivates people to “Get Informed,” “Get Empowered” and “Get Active.”
“Nintendo has been helping people get up off the couch and get playing since the Wii system launched in 2006,” said Cammie Dunaway, Nintendo of America’s executive vice president of Sales & Marketing. “By joining forces with the American Heart Association, we further our commitment to bringing fun and accessible active-play video games to a broader audience.”
To “Get Informed” about products that can be used to create a more physically active lifestyle, consumers will see the iconic American Heart Association brand on boxes for the Wii Fit™ Plus and Wii Sports Resort™ software and for the Wii™ system itself beginning this summer. Nintendo and the American Heart Association will also launch an online information center at www.activeplaynow.com, where visitors can read about the benefits of physically active play, conduct personal assessments and learn more about living a more physically active lifestyle.
Additionally, later this year Nintendo and the American Heart Association will convene a multidisciplinary summit of representatives from areas such as science, health care, research, physical activity, fitness and video gaming. The goal will be to bring together thought leaders, each with a unique perspective, to take a closer look at the synergies and potential benefits of active-play video games and physically active lifestyles. Some of the people involved in the development of the summit include Dr. Timothy Church, exercise physiologist and chair of the American Heart Association’s Physical Activity Committee; Hank Wasiak, a communications industry leader and self-help author; and Michael D. Gallagher, president and chief executive officer of the Entertainment Software Association, the trade association representing U.S. computer and video game publishers.
“Video games’ remarkable ability to inspire and motivate are keys to reaching new audiences. This alliance between Nintendo and the American Heart Association marks an extraordinary opportunity, not only for both groups but for the interactive entertainment software industry at large,” Gallagher said. “At a time when most Americans could benefit from more regular physical exercise, these high-profile efforts to promote healthy entertainment help to make active-play video games even more appealing to consumers of all kinds.”
The American Heart Association and Nintendo also will help people to “Get Empowered” by making personal choices about creating a healthy lifestyle. People can find fun new ways to incorporate physical activity into their lives, such as participating in Start! Heart Walk events and using the American Heart Association’s My Life Check test to evaluate their lifestyles. The relationship is also designed to help people “Get Active” through active-play video games like Nintendo’s Wii Fit Plus and Wii Sports Resort, which also will be showcased at select Start! Heart Walk events around the country.
Separate from this strategic relationship, the American Heart Association has recognized Nintendo of America as one of its Start! Fit-Friendly Companies, a designation for employers who go above and beyond when it comes to their employees’ health and provide opportunities for wellness in the workplace.
*According to a research study led by the Institute for Medicine and Public Health at Vanderbilt University that was published by the American Journal of Epidemiology in February 2008.
New Nintendo 3DS XL Bundle is a Dream Come True for Mario & Luigi Fans
The Year of Luigi continues into the holiday shopping season. Starting today on the "Cyber Monday of Luigi," a limited-edition, silver-colored Nintendo 3DS XL system featuring a fun image of Luigi running with his brother Mario is now available for purchase. The sleek system comes pre-installed with the Mario & Luigi: Dream Team game at a suggested retail price of $199.99. Read more...
Pokémon: BW Rival Destinies on Nintendo eShop
Starting on Nov 28th, you can follow the epic journey of your favorite Pokémon Trainer, Ash, in Pokémon: BW Rival Destinies on Nintendo eShop! Ten episodes from Pokémon: BW Rival Destinies, the Pokémon animated series, will be released on Nov 28th and then five more episodes will be released every week until Dec. 26, so be sure to visit the Nintendo eShop every Thursday to see what new adventures await Ash and his friends! Read more...
Coming Soon to the Nintendo eShop: Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo and the Rest of the Louvre
Nintendo has come up with some Nintendo 3DS software artistic enough to make even a 16th-century icon smile. For more than a year, visitors to the world-famous Louvre museum in Paris have been able to rent Nintendo 3DS systems loaded with software that serves as an interactive museum guide. Now Nintendo is making this software available to Nintendo 3DS owners everywhere. Read more...
Nintendo and Southwest Airlines bring friends, families and fun together for the holidays
Nintendo and Southwest Airlines surprised a full flight today, giving every single customer on board a free Wii U console. More than 100 passengers on flight 1883 from New Orleans to Dallas Love Field received Nintendo's HD video game system after they were greeted upon arrival by Mario himself. Mario surprised the customers with a special announcement during the flight, and Nintendo and Southwest Airlines representatives were on board to share in the fun. Read more...
Nintendo Turns Tryptophan into a "Trip-to-Fun"
Thanksgiving is all about spending time and having fun with family and friends. After eating a delicious turkey meal, what better way to change that tryptophan into a trip-to-fun than with an after-dinner serving of Nintendo? Starting this Thanksgiving weekend, Nintendo is offering a wide range of fantastic deals on both Wii U and Nintendo 3DS that are sure to make this Thanksgiving holiday one to remember. Read more...
Three Huge Franchises, One Epic Nintendo Launch Day
For any Nintendo fan, Nov. 22 is going to be one of the best days of the year. On Friday, three new games in three extraordinary franchises are launching on the Wii U and Nintendo 3DS systems. Super Mario 3D World for Wii U, The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds for the Nintendo 3DS family of systems and Mario Party: Island Tour, also for the Nintendo 3DS family of systems, are all launching in stores and in the Nintendo eShop. Read more...


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Place/Date: Sofia, Bulgaria - August 15th, 2017 at 6:21 am UTC · 3 min read
The AdEx team has just released the AdEx Core – the base smart contract that will power the advertising network. The team has explored the NEO smart contract system and has evaluated it as very well-designed and more beneficial for its operations, therefore it is committed to porting the AdEx Core to NEO.
Furthermore, the AdEx management believes that such a collaboration will be incredibly favourable for the NEO ecosystem as well, being one of the first decentralized applications (DApps) to ever run on NEO.
“We see the huge potential of NEO and this is why we are aiming at becoming the first NEO-based DApp,” said Ivo Georgiev, CEO and founder of AdEx. “We are exciting about porting the AdEx core as we are convinced this will increase the efficiency of our advertising network,” Georgiev added.
“We are looking forward to AdEx moving its core to the NEO ecosystem. We are positive that DApps will help us push the Smart Economy further, and AdEx is an excellent trailblazer for this,” commented Tony Tao, Secretary-general of NEO Council.
AdEx is currently working on releasing a prototype of their service. The prototype will be presented earlier than planned – the project’s white paper stipulates the first version of the platform will be released in February 2018, however the AdEx team is optimistic that it will be available to the general public a few months prior to that. The project is developing at a fast pace, and the ADX token is gaining a momentum on the various exchanges where it is traded.
The NEO project is evolving rapidly. Founded under the name Antshares in 2014, today it has rebranded and grown to become China’s first and largest open source blockchain with the ambitious plan to outperform Ethereum”. NEO’s smart contract code will support digital identities, decentralized commerce and asset digitization, thus introducing the concept of “Smart Economy”. Following the rebranding, the NEO token price has exploded, serving as a testament to the project’s worth.
AdEx is a decentralized ad network based on blockchain and smart contracts. It aims at solving many of the problems faced by the contemporary advertising industry, the largest of which is the lack of transparency in ad bidding and delivery.
NEO (formerly Antshares) is China’s first ever open source blockchain. Founded in 2014, NEO’s mission has been to reinvent the way commerce is done. Motivated by the belief that technology drives progress, NEO has been created to shift traditional economy into the new era of the Smart Economy.
Disclaimer: AdEx is the source of this content. Virtual currency is not legal tender, is not backed by the government, and accounts and value balances are not subject to consumer protections. This press release is for informational purposes only. The information does not constitute investment advice or an offer to invest.


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Korean Air has been manufacturing and supplying aircraft parts not only to Airbus but also to Boeing.
JioMart's expansion to 200 cities across India over the weekend is a reason for worry to Amazon and Flipkart
How has Fintech Improved the Foreign Exchange?
Whilst the forex market may be one of the biggest entities of its type in the world, there are other growth sectors emerging in the fast-moving world of financial services.
Take the global fintech space, for example, which includes a number of financial applications and is expected to be worth a staggering $305.7 billion (£249.7 billion) by the year ending 2023.
With a current CAGR of 22.7%, it’s little wonder that fintech is revolutionising several financial markets across the globe. But how exactly has fintech improved the foreign exchange, and how have traders been able to benefit?
1. The Reduction of Fees
Blockchain is one of the key technologies that drives fintech, and this is definitely had a seminal impact on the financial services space.
Synonymous with cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, blockchain is essentially a decentralised and transparent technology that can maintain accurate records across multiple devices.
When applied to the foreign exchange, it has the potential to create a fair and more open marketplace, whilst also reducing (and in some cases, eliminating) the fees associated with exchanging currencies and executing orders.
This only serves to make the market even more accessible, continuing a trend that has persisted throughout the digital age.
2. Combating Fraud
This brings us neatly onto the issue of fraud and forex market rigging, which has plagued the foreign exchange over the course of the last decade or so.
Fintech has begun to combat these issues, however, and not only by creating a more transparent marketplace in which all transactions are visible and outside the control of a central financial authority.
Beyond this, we’re seeing fintech platforms collate huge swathes of data, which can be analysed in detail and used to identify specific trends and patterns of investment.
This will make it almost impossible for traders to rig the market in the future, and this can only help to improve the reputation of the sector over time.
3. The Evolution of Mobile Trading Platforms
The combination of fintech and HTLM5 has also ushered in the age of mobile trading platforms, which have helped the forex market to evolve and become completely accessible to traders across the globe.
As a result of this, traders can access the 24-hour forex market regardless of their location, with three separate trading sessions available to investors in Europe, North America and the Asia Pacific region.
This has also made it easier for traders to execute a high volume of orders in real-time, which is ideal for day traders whose goal is to leverage trends and price shifts with optimal efficiency.
Fintech is also helping to improve the range and quality of analytical tools offered by these platforms, leading to more informed decision-making across the board.
This article does not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors or management of EconoTimes.


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We are now an official media partner for The Cycle Show; Check the official press release: –
The Cycle Show is the UK’s leading exhibition for cycling – 30/9/2011 to 2/10/2011; Halls 9-11, NEC, Birmingham!
Whether you are looking for the latest innovations from specialist brands, wanting to try out a new road or mountain bike or see the best BMX riders compete, The Cycle Show offers an amazing day out for everyone.
Supported by cycling celebrities, such as cycling champs Geraint Thomas and Rebecca Romero and Ben Swift, this year the show will offer 2012 product launches from world leading bike brands. Plus, the new look Cycle Store has a great selection of branded clothing, accessories, lights and shoes to buy.


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A programmer who showed how it was possible to slip malware onto iOS devices via apps submitted to the ultra-secure Apple App Store has been removed from the iOS Developer Program.
At the SysCan conference in Taiwan, programmer Charlie Miller was able to demonstrate how it was possible to slip an app containing malware into the Apple App Store.
Using his method, Miller was able to put an app into the store that was capable of phoning home to a remote computer that was then able to download unapproved commands onto the device and execute them at will.
These include the ability to steal users’ photos, read contacts and do other things to control the phone remotely.
Miller’s thesis was that with the new bug users can no longer be certain that apps they download from the store will behave nicely.
He demonstrated the new capability by getting his InstaStock app accepted onto the iTunes App Store in September as a seemingly innocent enough app that tracked stock prices in real time.
However, as demonstrated yesterday, the app contained secret code that bypassed protections built into iOS devices by Apple’s official cryptographic seal.
InstaStock had capabilities the Apple App Store wouldn’t have allowed without permission, such as the ability to remotely download pictures and contacts stored on an iPhone or an iPad.
He was also able to demonstrate how he could remotely control iPhones with InstaStock installed, such as play ringtones and make the smartphone vibrate.
Within hours, Miller, who works at security firm Accuvant, was informed by Apple that he was being terminated from the iOS Developer Program for violating his licence, which contained a clause in which he agreed he wouldn’t hide features, content or functionality in apps submitted to the store.


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Fighting food waste has become a key cause in the restaurant world, as environmental concerns grow more urgent and eateries come together to fight childhood hunger. Some chefs and restaurants are moving beyond donating unused food and composting to creative new solutions that curb food waste before it starts, from creating seasonal menus using only locally grown ingredients to inventing dishes using bits and pieces of produce that used to get thrown away.
At Candle Cafe’s New York City restaurants, taking a bigger bite out of food waste means using all the edible parts of the fruits and vegetables. “With fall upon us, beet and then the use of the beet greens come to mind. We can also always use veggie remains to help in making stocks and the excess from trimming our seitan cutlets becomes our wheat balls,” said Executive Director Mark Doskow.
The Candle Cafes on the city’s East and West sides are organic, vegetarian eateries with seasonal fare that’s sourced locally whenever possible. (read more…)
This post, sponsored by Kellogg’s, highlights groundbreaking research that examines A.M. consumer segment differences and eating behaviors, giving operators new profit opportunities and ideas.
Breakfast is no longer the morning meal that many of us knew as children. Leisurely sit-down meals composed of hearty items are now the exception, not the norm as consumers shift their A.M. eating behaviors.
Today, many people opt for items that are convenient and portable. But that morning meal also needs to be nutritious and help fuel their activities. Most importantly, different types of consumers define morning “meals” in entirely different ways.
That means operators need to change the traditional ways they connect with various types of customers.
Generally, consumers choose their A.M. destinations based on food quality and food value. Coffee and water are the top beverage choices, and they opt for baked goods if they’re looking for a cold meal and breakfast sandwiches if they want a hot meal. (read more…)
Somewhere between 300,000 and 400,000 people flooded the streets of Manhattan on Sunday for the People’s Climate March, the biggest and most diverse group ever to come together to push for action on climate change and, not surprisingly, many of the marchers were focused on issues surrounding sustainable food.
The event brought out activists with a wide variety of core causes, from anti-fracking and renewable energy interests to labor unions to animal welfare groups to student organizations to religious groups, all of them raising their signs and their voices for a common goal. Vegan groups and organic proponents were among the throngs, making the connections between climate and sustainable food.
It’s a message that consumer packaged food brands including Mars, General Mills and Nestle are increasingly taking to heart. The consumers staples industry sector has doubled its investments in activities aimed at reducing carbon emissions since 2012, according to a 2013 climate change report from the Carbon Disclosure Project. (read more…)


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FARMING incomes in Wales rose an average 7% last year, mainly on the back of favourable exchange rates.
Total Income from Farming in Wales climbed 60% from £106.5m in 2008 to £170.4 in 2009.
This produced an average farm income of £33,600, up from £31,300 in 2008 and £26,500 in 2007.
On Less Favoured Area (upland) grazing livestock farms the average farm income is forecast to increase 19% from £24,500 to £29,200.
Their lowland counterparts are expected to see a 16% boost in incomes, from £24,400 to £28,200.
Incomes for dairy farms are forecast to fall 11% from £62,600 to £55,400 – although this is still 15% higher than the five-year average.
Falling farm gate milk prices during the first part of 2009 are being blamed for the decrease.
Rural affairs minister Elin Jones said milk prices had improved from August onwards.
“It it is hoped this will be reflected in the final farm income survey published later in the year,” she said.
“Dairy farmers will also be benefiting from their share of the European Union’s 3.5m-euro fund awarded to the Welsh dairy industry, in recognition of the fall in milk prices, by the end of June this year.”
Exchange rates helped shore up beef and lamb prices and boost Single Farm Payments.
NFU Cymru president Ed Bailey urged caution, pointing out that reliance on currency fluctuations was a “fickle” basis for determining farm incomes.
But Elin Jones said the survey results were, on the whole, good news for the Welsh farming industry.
She said: “Farmers are responding to the market place and producing food to the highest quality, welfare and environmental standards that the consumer demands.
“The challenge now is to build on this success to ensure that our industry is resilient in the face of future changes.”


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Qualcomm’s new CEO Cristiano Amon outlined his plans for the semiconductor giant at a roundtable on the first day of work.
The big picture: Amon sees Qualcomm benefiting from the shift to remote work as demand for high-end computing and cloud infrastructures across multiple platforms grows, including augmented reality, connected cars and virtual reality.
What they say: Amon, who ran Qualcomm’s 5G business before starting as the new CEO on July 1, said his “number one challenge is how we get credit for being a very relevant company for the digital transformation of industries beyond the mobile “.
About the future of connected cars:
“Cars are becoming computers on wheels. They have a mechanical chassis and now they need this new digital chassis. This is where the technology goes and they will become a service center, not only on computing capacity, but also the connectivity next door. “.
On how Qualcomm will manage the remote work revolution:
“We hope to return to the office and do it in phases. As we get to the beginning of the school year, we will go to a hybrid work environment that we will maintain. There are so many things you can do remotely, but I think there are elements of culture. business that people get when they work together face to face. “
About whether we will see AR glasses next year:
“The answer is yes. … We are convinced that once you have the 5G network built in, your phone will evolve to allow for the element of augmented reality glasses. If you look at what’s happening with (VR), we’re getting to scale .I think it’s just the beginning of a turning point and we’ll see that happen in augmented reality glasses as well. “
About how better technology can support remote work:
“Imagine you wear RA glasses and you can do a 3D reconstruction of your room and, on top of that, you can place objects around it, one of which could be the representation of the person you have a meeting Zoom It will be another role in improving the quality of remote interaction “.
The summary: Still, Amon noted, “we’re social animals, so I think people will continue to interact face-to-face.”


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Audi AG announced its annual results for the 2017 financial year with a record turnover of €60 billion, along with a very healthy operating profit of €5.1 billion before special items, which include provisions related to the V6 3.0 TDI diesel issue in North America. Along with the results the company also announced strategic moves and landmarks in 2018, including the year end launch of their first fully electric vehicle – the Audi e-tron.
“In 2017, we demonstrated entrepreneurial strength and above all formulated a determined master plan for the coming years,” says Rupert Stadler, Chairman of the Board of Management of AUDI AG. “We intend to play a leading role in the tremendous upheaval facing our industry. By 2022 alone, we have planned more than €40 billion for development activities and investment. We are making Audi fit for this mission with our Action and Transformation Plan.”
Audi’s Action and Transformation Plan aims to achieve positive earnings effects totaling €10 billion by 2022 and to accelerate the organizational realignment for future business models. “We are implementing our program of measures quickly and systematically, we are becoming more efficient and we are investing freed-up resources in new, profitable growth. This has already allowed us to decide four additional new models and derivatives with an unchanged budget,” says Alexander Seitz, Member of the Board of Management for Finance, IT and Integrity.
Audi sold a record 1,878,105 automobiles over 2017, with global sales compensating for issues the group had in China. The brand also announced the e-tron, a fully electric SUv with fast charging at 150kW and charge times of under 30 minutes. The e-tron will be produced completely CO2-neutral at the converted Brussels plant where also the model’s batteries will be assembled. Audi Hungaria is ready to start production of the SUV’s electric motor in Győr, Hungary.


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Hong Kong's finance regulator has announced additional requirements for retail cryptocurrency traders
Hong Kong intends to permit regular investors to trade specific digital currencies on authorized exchanges in a significant move to establish itself as a crypto hub. This decision runs counter to both U.S. sanctions against the cryptocurrency industry and China's explicit ban on transactions related to cryptocurrencies.
To "allow all types of investors, including retail investors, to access trading services provided by licensed VA [virtual asset] trading platform operators," the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong (SFC) proposed in a recent consultation paper.
However, the suggestion suggests that a number of requirements are satisfied before cryptocurrency trading for ordinary investors is resumed. These requirements include expertise and risk evaluations, as well as possibly imposing restrictions on the amount of exposure traders are permitted to take.
The SFC also specified the requirements under which cryptocurrencies would be eligible for trading. Trading platforms would be in charge of investigating a token's development team, marketing materials, any legal issues, and network resistance to typical attacks like a 51% attack.
The token pool appears to be somewhat thin after that point, with the Commission suggesting that only "large-cap virtual assets" be permitted to be listed.
Tokens that are included in at least two 'approved indices' issued by at least two independent index providers are what the SFC refers to as this.
Discussions are currently ongoing over these and other facets of the recently proposed cryptosystem in Hong Kong. March 31, 2023, is the date for parties who are interested in taking part. The regime is planned to take effect on June 1st, 2023.
Since the Commission implemented the current legal framework in 2018, the virtual asset environment has altered dramatically, according to the Commission. Only institutional clients and professionals were permitted to use trading platforms under this structure.
This strategy has become a little looser over time. For instance, the SFC permitted retail traders to start trading derivative products and cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds (ETFs) last year.
Investors can access the underlying cryptocurrency using the latter kinds of products without having to assume ownership of the asset themselves. In December of last year, HKEX became one of the first stock exchanges in Hong Kong to introduce a Bitcoin and Ethereum ETF product. Both products track futures traded on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME).
CBW - External Analyst
The Digital Euro: Revolutionizing European Payment Systems
False hours ago


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Here you will find a roundup of all of the news and updates pertaining to Glenrowan. Be sure to check in here for details on availability, stockists, and key dates as news becomes available.
25/05/2020 — Penultimate draft completed; one step closer to being print-ready.
26/06/2020 — Final edit of the manuscript completed.
06/07/2020 — Glenrowan is on track for an August release date, with pre-orders likely to launch mid-July.
11/07/2020 — Pre-orders are now active until July 27.
25/07/2020 — Pre-orders are closing soon. Once pre-orders are finalised the process of mail outs will begin.
31/07/2020 — Glenrowan is now officially available. Orders can be made online.
01/09/2020 — Glenrowan is now available an an eBook across multiple formats. You can find it on Amazon Kindle, Rakuten Kobo, Booktopia and Barnes and Noble.
30/09/2020 — Less than 200 copies of the first edition are available. Second edition is in development with new layout and artwork, slated for a November 2020 release. Audiobook version is also in development.
01/10/2020 — Glenrowan signed first editions are now $34.95.
01/11/2020 — Glenrowan first edition is on sale for the month of November. Sale price is $20.00 and includes postage.
27/11/2020 — Glenrowan is now available for purchase from Eltham Bookshop, the Glenrowan Tourist Centre and coming soon to Booktique in Wangaratta, and the Beechworth info centre.
29/11/2020 — Glenrowan is available to purchase from Eltham Bookshop, the Vintage Hall Café (Glenrowan), Booktique (Wangaratta), and the Glenrowan Tourist Centre (Ned Kelly’s Last Stand animated theatre.)
03/01/2021 — Glenrowan is now available for purchase at the Geelong Gaol Museum.
08/01/2021 — Glenrowan is now available for purchase at the Beechworth Visitor Information Centre.
01/02/2021 — Glenrowan will soon be available for purchase at Kate’s Cottage, Glenrowan.
07/02/2021 – Glenrowan is now available from Kate’s Cottage, Glenrowan.
17/03/2021 – Glenrowan has been entered into the Australian Crime Writers Association’s Ned Kelly Awards.


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“Apple announced a massive increase to its capital program, but the majority of capital returns will be conducted through share repurchases,” Bob Ciura writes for Seeking Alpha. “Investors hoping that Apple would significantly increase its dividend, which seemed entirely appropriate given its fantastic earnings growth and mountain of cash on the balance sheet, should be disappointed.”
“For income investors, Apple’s dividend policy is a disappointment,” Ciura writes. “Growth investors obviously should love Apple’s capital return policy. The company is rapidly growing revenue and profits and is leveraging its balance sheet to buy back a ton of its stock. These initiatives should all help boost Apple’s stock price. However, investors interested in Apple for its dividend will not be as thrilled with Apple right now. Apple stock, even including the dividend increase, yields just 1.5%. This is significantly below the S&P 500 average yield of around 2%.”
“Investors who have held Apple stock for any length of time are likely sitting on significant gains since Apple is up 115% in the past two years,” Ciura writes. “For those who want income, it might not be a terrible idea to take some profits off the table and reinvest the proceeds in a stock that offers a more compelling dividend yield.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Apple is obviously focused on buybacks. Dividends are just a nice little perk for growth investors.
Apple expands capital return program to $200 billion – April 27, 2015


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Writers of articles and letters published in Wednesday’s issue of The Argus-Press expressed broad objections to the governor’s most recent stay-at-home order. Opinions expressed by Michigan’s Majority Leader Mike Shirkey and House Speaker Lee Chatfield question the legality of the order. Representatives from six Michigan districts write that, “If businesses fail to establish and enforce proper social distancing or if citizens’ actions begin to endanger each other, then the state could take additional well-defined action, but most people recognize the dangers of coronavirus and will act responsibly.”
Letter writer Sharon Dinkins states that social distancing is working to stop the spread of infection, that we can “trust people to do the right thing and trust businesses to know how to create the safest place for people social distancing.”
In a perfect world that would be true. Every shopper would maintain the recommended six feet of space from the person next in line and wear a mask to minimize person-to-person transmission. All businesses would create safe places by promoting distancing between employee and customer and by keeping surfaces sanitized.
But ours is clearly not a perfect world. While standing in a store’s check-out line today, observing the prescribed six feet of space between me and the customer ahead of me, I watched as that customer wiped her nose on her hand, rubbed her hand on her pants and then punched her code numbers into the card reader. When she left I asked the cashier for a wipe to sanitize the scanner and was told she didn’t have any. That of course means the check-out counter (while not a grocery store, the store sells some food items) was not wiped down between customers. Nor were wipes provided for sanitizing shopping carts.
No, we clearly cannot “trust all people to do the right thing,” and that’s why seemingly draconian rules are necessary. There is a reason that Michigan currently has 28,059 cases of coronavirus and 1,058 Michigan citizens have died from it. It’s not rocket science, folks.
Carole Stephens, Durand


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M&T Bank announced this week that it is launching a free app dedicated to making the world a more accessible place for people with cognitive and intellectual disabilities.
In collaboration with Magnusmode, M&T Bank will create new digital guides that provide visual cues and step-by-step instructions to help people access fundamental banking services. Available through the MagnusCards app, M&T Bank’s digital “Card Decks” are designed to increase banking accessibility for those with cognitive and intellectual disabilities.
“Launching M&T Bank’s MagnusCards will help us create a more inclusive, welcoming bank and expand our capabilities to meet the unique needs of our diverse community of customers,” said Sonny Sonnenstein, chief information officer for consumer, business and digital banking at M&T Bank. “We are excited to work with Magnusmode — not only because they’re an inspiring local startup, but also because their product is incredibly intuitive and well-designed to support our customers.”
Using digitalized “Card Decks,” the MagnusCards app guides users through tasks and activities that might otherwise feel challenging or overwhelming.
As Magusmode’s first U.S. bank partner, M&T Bank is offering an expanding “life skills library,” which provides practical guidance through storytelling card decks helping users navigate daily tasks and experiences, such as making ATM transactions and using a debit card for purchases. It uses applied behavior analysis methods, offering prompts and positive reinforcement to support experiential learning.
In addition to banking and money management, the app provides accessibility support for public transportation, health care, shopping, school and other places and activities people need to access as part of their daily lives.
M&T’s Disability Advocacy Network, an employee-led group that advocates for the needs of people with disabilities, identified MagnusCards as a potential opportunity for the bank, and guided its implementation and launch, working alongside M&T’s technology team and colleagues throughout the bank.
“Our MagnusCards will help people count money, use their debit card to purchase things, withdraw cash from an ATM or teller and deposit cash and checks into an ATM,” said David Zolnowski, president of DAN’s Western New York chapter and a parent-advocate whose son has Down syndrome. “Each of these essential guides will be extremely helpful to people with disabilities.”


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Wall Street slips as retail sales post steep drop
Stocks closed lower on Wall Street Tuesday, ending a five-day winning streak by the S&P 500, as investors turned cautious amid more signs that the coronavirus pandemic is still holding back the U.S. economy.
The benchmark index fell 0.7 percent, its biggest decline in four weeks. Technology stocks and a mix of companies that rely on consumer spending were the biggest weights on the market as traders become more concerned about the pace and breadth of economic growth amid a resurgent COVID-19. Those sectors tend to perform weakly in uncertain economic conditions.


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Towards end May, the Tatas picked up a majority stake in BigBasket, an online grocer. In June, it announced two back-to-back deals—first, in CureFit (an online fitness company) and then in 1mg, an online pharma outfit. Even as I write this, there are rumours swirling that the Tatas have shown eagerness to buy Dunzo, an online delivery company.
In another era, nearly two decades ago, another boss of the Tata group had shaken things up and set a strategic course of action through a series of high-profile buyouts. Those buyouts went by the name of Tetley, NatSteel, Corus, and Jaguar Land Rover. Their architect, the then Tata Sons chairman Ratan Tata, was much feted for these fed the big story of that era: globalisation.
The recent acquisitions, orchestrated by the current Tata Sons chairman, N. Chandrasekaran, feeds into the big story of this era: the rise of the digital economy. These companies will be the foundation on which one of Chandrasekaran’s biggest bets will be built: the Super App.
There are a handful of successful Super Apps (apps which do many things from shopping to cab hailing to ordering food to booking tickets and so on) in our neighbourhood—Alipay and WeChat in China; Grab, headquartered out of Singapore but used across Southeast Asia (Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, etc.); and Gojek which came out of Indonesia.
Investors love them. Grab is planning a merger with a special purpose acquisition company sometime later this year at a valuation of $40 billion. Tencent, the company that owns WeChat, nearly hit $1 trillion in valuation earlier in the year, and now is hovering in the range of $500 billion-$700 billion. In comparison, Tata Consultancy Services, the most valuable company in the Tata stable, has a market capitalisation of $170 billion. The next most valuable, Titan Company, is worth around $21 billion, or roughly half of what Grab is eyeing.
So you can’t fault Chandrasekaran’s motives. If he can build a Super App, he can potentially create something of tremendous value, a sort of sequel to TCS, and reap a disproportionate share of a valuable digital harvest. Even Silicon Valley, which has traditionally stayed away from Super Apps, betting on singular apps instead that do one job very well, is tempted by the idea: PayPal CEO Dan Schulman was recently quoted as saying that he was contemplating turning PayPal into a Super App!
Building a Super App isn’t easy. Think of the user journey for millions and millions of users, managing hundreds of mini apps (or mini programs as they are called) within the larger app, customer acquisition at scale, and so on.
But, in my book, Chandrasekaran’s biggest challenge will be to integrate and yet not integrate the startups he has acquired. Everything hinges on managing this paradox.
The key question: Can Chandrasekaran recreate, within the larger Tata universe, the environment in which these startups originally flourished?
Startup founders tend to be a breed of their own, with a near single minded belief in their ability to prevail. They hate being told what to do. (What complicates matters further is that the clutch of founders the Tatas are dealing with—CureFit’s Mukesh Bansal, BigBasket’s Hari Menon and 1mg’s Prashant Tandon—are stars, having built successful businesses from scratch.) The founder mindset is about being all in and being ready for binary outcomes—either they succeed or they fail. They don’t believe in half-measures.
Corporations are about accommodation, weighing the pros and cons, managing multiple opinions, and so on. Indeed, most larger companies work in ways (read bureaucracy) that mitigates risk taking.
Remember, in a startup, a risk taker is a valued employee; inside a traditional organisation, he is a threat.
Now let’s look at growth. Digital products are about continued innovation; the product is never, ever, perfect. Thus, they require continuous, significant, investment, especially in the early part of their journey. Quality product engineering is expensive, as is user acquisition, especially in a hyper-competitive market like India.
In established corporations, funding or capital allocation hinges on predictability. In turn, predictability is based on being able to project past events and outcomes into the future. Bean counters, basically the finance guys who sign-off on investments, love predictability; it de-risks their decision making.
The trouble with the digital space is that the past is no guide to the future. Who would have thought that a platform where people share short videos of random acts would become so successful (TikTok) or a site that started for college kids to connect with each other would emerge as one of the most dominant media companies in the world (Facebook). These two, plus numerous others (Uber, Netflix, Airbnb, Instagram, etc.), would have failed the predictability test. Because, had you looked into the past, you would have drawn a blank!
It’s no surprise therefore that virtually none of the dominant players of the digital economy have emerged from traditional companies. More important, they have been backed by venture capital money (including CureFit, 1mg, and BigBasket), where the risk-reward equation plays out very differently.
So, what happens, hypothetically, when any of these new businesses ask for funding to expand into an area where no Internet company has ever ventured before? Who will win, the bean counters or the founders? And how long will it take to even come to a resolution?
Even legends often don’t get it. In Merchants of Truth: Inside the News Revolution, a book on how U.S. media coped with digital disruption, Jill Abramson, the former Executive Editor of The New York Times (NYT), says how a plan for Washington Post to invest more in digital operations in 2005 was scuppered by none other than Warren Buffet. Then a board member, he believed there was no place for two global U.S. newspapers on the web, and the NYT had already pulled ahead. It would take a startup entrepreneur like Jeff Bezos to fire up the Post’s digital offering. The Post also passed up an opportunity to invest in Facebook, but that’s another story!
And even when legends do get it, they still fail, spectacularly. Back in 2005, when Buffet was being indifferent to Post’s digital push, one media personality saw the future. That year, Rupert Murdoch bought a social media platform called MySpace. It was a smart move: millions of teenagers loved hanging out on MySpace, their idols like Lily Allen or the Arctic Monkeys released songs there, and most importantly, Facebook was yet to become a powerhouse. A prescient Murdoch paid $580 million back then for a digital asset that could fundamentally alter his media empire.
In 2011 he sold it for $35 million. In a later tweet, Murdoch said “We screwed up in every way possible, learned lots of valuable, expensive lessons”.
An article in the Financial Times written in 2009 while NewsCorp still owned MySpace alluded to, among other things, the conflict between the product team which wanted to simplify the user journey and NewsCorp’s pushback that such an implementation would reduce short-term revenue. As someone who has built digital businesses, I can tell you that such conflicts between what’s good for the user (value accretive on the long term) versus what is good for revenue today are very common—and unless handled appropriately, they become huge fiascos.
While many such things went wrong at MySpace, the one that keeps coming back is NewsCorp’s bear-hug, which killed the freewheeling, entrepreneurial ways at MySpace, which at the time of acquisition was adding 70,000 new users per day and was valued at $12 billion at its peak in 2007.
All it needed perhaps was a lighter touch. And the NewsCorp empire might have looked very different today. The Tatas may want to keep that in mind.
Views are personal. The author is Chief Executive, Digital Business at the RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group, publishers of Fortune India. He was earlier President, ABP, Digital.


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Scams and frauds that have been reported in Suffolk this week
- Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto
People living in Suffolk are being warned about a number of scams that have been reported this week, including fake ambulance trust workers and people purporting to be gardeners.
Suffolk Trading Standards is the enforcement service that is responsible for protecting consumers and legitimate traders from scams and unfair trading in the county.
Here are some of the scams which have been reported this week:
Fake ambulance trust workers
Fraudsters have been making cold calls purporting to be from the ambulance trust in a bid to con people out of their personal details.
The East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust has warned people not to fall for the scam, which asks people to take part in a survey in a bid to gain their personal information.
A spokesman said: "Telephone calls in relation to surveys are only made if patients have contacted us directly to request a call back."
Men offering plants, trees and garden furniture
- 1 Boy, 5, dies after suffering serious head injury at department store
- 2 Woman in 20s dies in single car crash on A12 in Suffolk
- 3 Edmundson ruled out of opener as Cook discusses 'four, five or six' more transfers
- 4 Suffolk enjoys warehousing boom as more businesses flock to region
- 5 Swimmers report sickness symptoms after dip in Suffolk river
- 6 Suffolk pub reopens with exclusive Champagne carvery
- 7 A12 fully reopened after serious crash
- 8 Why Ipswich Town's American owners won't be making first visit for Morecambe clash
- 9 The Town players who have improved their stock in pre-season
- 10 Container ship that blocked Suez Canal due to arrive in Felixstowe
Suffolk Trading Standards received a report of men in a white van going door to door in Acton, Woolpit and Saxmundham, offering plants, trees and garden furniture.
They said these individuals often visit Suffolk and use the same sales patter - “last one”, “great price” "ex-exhibition stock" etc.
They currently state they have stock because they have not been able to sell them at the usual garden shows.
Their advice is to "NEVER buy at the door!"
There have also been reports that 'Nottingham Knockers' have been calling at properties in Stowmarket this week.
One individual called at a property in Temple Road, and the resident refused to engage with the man. He then became aggressive, hit the doorframe of the property and then slammed the gate forcefully.
Suffolk Trading Standards said these individuals are claiming that they have just come out of prison, and are on a youth offending scheme, attempting to mend their ways, or that they are an ex-soldier who his trying to find support themselves now they are not in the military.
They then try to sell the householder everyday household products at very high prices.
'Free' insulation checks
Also in Stowmarket, Suffolk Trading Standards has received a report of individuals going door to door offering to carry out checks on the loft insulation of the property.
Suffolk Trading Standards warned: "If anyone has entered into a contract for insulation, they can cancel within 14 days by writing to the company.
"Any trader that puts you under pressure by suggesting you have to make a decision there and then, or that the "special price" is only available for a limited period in order to make you sign up, may be committing a criminal offence.
"Doorstep traders are trained in sales techniques and can be very persuasive.
"Be very wary of signing anything as you may give up your rights to cancel."
You can report any suspected scams to Suffolk Trading Standards via 0808 223 1133.
When reporting doorstep incidents, it is best to try to supply key information such as the description of the individual and their vehicle, including the make, model and vehicle registration if seen.


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Nintendo offers Sadness to Wii U owners
Bymvpzbeak— — Posted in
Back when Nintendo first announced the Wii, in order to mollify the hardcore masses it showed off Sadness, a game presented in a melancholic, mature tone. Eventually, the game became vaporware, and because of how promising it once looked — and its unfulfilled destiny of proving there is a place for the hardcore gamer on the Wii — it became the Wii’s most famous vaporware until it was canceled. Now, the game is being resurrected for the Wii U.The premise of the original game was extremely unique: the player assumed the role of a woman in Ukraine before World War I, tasked with protecting her narcoleptic, schizophrenic, blind, nyctophobic son. Like another Wii success targeted at the hardcore audience, Mad World, Sadness was to be presented in black-and-white to foster the melancholy, but as we all remember, the game never made it to release.Aside from losing a mature game — something the Wii sorely needed — Sadness was also said to use the Wiimote in an actually interesting, waggle-free way where the controllers would control the character’s hands. When developer Nibris shut down, Sadness — an appropriate title for a studio shutting down — went along with it. Now, indie developers HullBreach Studios and Cthulhi Games are picking up the IP, and will aim to finally develop and release one of the Wii’s most famous what-if games.Speaking with Nintendo Life, the studios revealed a few details about the game, such as that they’re going to stick with the Slavic mythology, and the new title will likely be built in Unity. Perhaps most strikingly, the new game will shift to 2D, and include RPG and puzzle-based mechanics (they are indie developers, after all!) that didn’t seem to be in the original.Cthulhi Games revealed that the development duo are waiting for formal approval from the old developers. However, they did state that if approval is not granted, the team will simply change what legally prevents them from going ahead with the project, and continue with development. The game is being targeted for a 2016 Wii U exclusive release date, but strangely enough, the Wii U may not even be around by then.Expect more information from the devs sometime in 2014.


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Have you heard that there’s a huge wave of organized shoplifting — coordinated theft by groups effectively looting stores — sweeping the United States? You probably have. A couple of years ago, Walgreens said that organized shoplifting was behind its decision to close several locations in San Francisco. In April, the National Retail Federation issued a dire report claiming that “organized retail crime” was responsible for almost half of the store merchandise that vanished in 2021. The putative shoplifting tsunami has been relentlessly hyped both by the usual suspects, such as Fox News, and by some politicians.
But it never happened.
My guess is that most readers didn’t notice the retail federation’s recent retraction of its April claims. Probably even fewer people noticed when The San Francisco Chronicle examined police records and found that they didn’t support Walgreens’s assertions; “maybe we cried too much,” the company’s chief financial officer told investors earlier this year.
Data on shoplifting are flaky, depending a lot on retailers’ own reports. Was there really a surge in New York City, while shoplifting declined in the rest of the country? Maybe. What is clear is that the narrative of larcenous mobs sweeping through America’s stores wasn’t a depiction of reality; it was basically conjured out of some dubious data and a handful of videos.
Regular readers will have guessed that I’m going to draw some parallels with economic perceptions. The parallels are in fact striking, although on crime the gap between public perception and data goes back much further.
With respect to crime, the gap began to open up in the early 1990s. For reasons that are still much disputed, violent crime in America began a precipitous decline from around 1990 to around 2015, yet many Americans consistently told pollsters that crime was rising.
Were people accurately reporting their experience, whatever the data may have said? There’s strong evidence to the contrary. For one thing, people were much more positive about crime trends in their own areas — which they could observe at first hand — than they were about the nation as a whole. Also, the era of falling crime corresponds pretty closely with the rise of gentrification, of affluent Americans moving back into inner cities, which appears to have been linked to perceptions of reduced crime. Whatever they told pollsters, Americans voting with their feet — well, their moving vans — were saying that cities were becoming safer.
In short, Americans seem to have been feeling relatively safe themselves but believed that bad things were happening to other people somewhere else.
Now, there was a surge in violent crime, especially homicides, in 2020-21, presumably linked to social disruptions caused by the Covid pandemic. Data for 2022 and partial data for 2023 suggest that this surge is now receding. But are Americans really feeling that improvement? Again, look at what people do, not what they say. Foot traffic in major downtowns is down a lot since before the pandemic — but only on weekdays, when many people are still working from home. Traffic on weekends, when people go downtown for entertainment, shopping and so on, has more or less completely recovered, which is not what we’d see if people were terrified of visiting crime-ridden urban hellscapes.
All of this sounds extremely familiar to anyone studying economic sentiment. In recent years, Americans have been extremely negative about the national economy but much less so about their local economies. And everything we know about what Americans are doing, as opposed to what they tell pollsters, suggests that on average they’re feeling pretty good about their own situation: Consumer spending is strong, new business formation is high, and so on.
One more item about watching what people do, not what they say: Moody’s, the rating agency, has looked at surveys of businesses, like the one conducted by the National Federation of Independent Business. As Moody’s notes, these surveys include both “hard” indicators like hiring and capital expenditure plans, and softer questions, for example what people say they think about the business outlook. Sure enough, the hard indicators — which tell us what businesses are actually doing — are consistent with a strong economy, while the soft indicators are what you’d expect in the midst of a severe recession.
It’s probably worth mentioning that the N.F.I.B. is very Republican; OpenSecrets reports that G.O.P. candidates have received over 99 percent of its contributions so far this election cycle.
Journalists are frequently reluctant to acknowledge that public views of the economy are at odds with reality, lest they be called elitists citing fancy government statistics rather than listening to real people. And I keep seeing almost desperate efforts to find bad news in the economic data.
But the fundamental puzzle isn’t that people are unhappy despite favorable macroeconomic indicators. It is that Americans say that things are terrible but behave as if they’re doing pretty well. And I, at least, am inclined to place more weight on what people do than on what they say.


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PARIS (dpa-AFX) - France's inflation increased as initially estimated in October, final data from the statistical office Insee showed Wednesday.
Inflation rose to 1.1 percent in October from 1 percent in September. The was in line with the flash estimate published on October 31.
This third consecutive acceleration came from a sharper increase in food prices and a lesser drop in manufactured product prices.
On a monthly basis, consumer prices edged up 0.1 percent as estimated.
Inflation, based on the harmonized index of consumer prices, increased slightly to 1.2 percent from 1.1 percent a month ago.
The HICP gained 0.1 percent after a downturn of 0.2 percent in September. Both monthly and annual rates also matched preliminary estimate.
Core consumer prices climbed 0.5 percent, as in the three previous months.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX


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Legislation Backed By Attorney General Madigan, Rep. Marlow Colvin Heads to Senate
Springfield, ILÂ â€“ Attorney General Lisa Madigan announced House lawmakers passed legislation to create a statewide trust fund paid into by Illinois auto dealers to protect consumers from bearing the cost of traded-in vehicles when a dealership closes down.Â
House members voted 91-19 to send to the Senate HB 880, a measure aimed at preventing the hardship many Illinois car owners have faced when some dealerships have closed across the state.
â€œThis bill would create a trust fund to ensure that when a dealership closes a financial burden does not fall to the consumer, who we have seen time and again get stuck with the cost of both their trade-in and their new vehicle,â€ said Attorney General Madigan.
Madigan said the bill she crafted with state Rep. Marlow Colvin (D-Chicago) and Illinois auto dealers would require dealers pay $500 annually into the Dealer Recovery Trust Fund to pay off trade-ins when a dealership closes.
â€œI applaud my fellow House members for their support of this important consumer protection measure,â€ said Rep. Colvin, House sponsor of the legislation. â€œThis bill would ensure dealerships in Illinois share in the responsibility in making sure the cost of a traded-in vehicle does not shift to the consumer in the event a fellow dealership has to shut its doors.â€
Attorney General Madigan said at least 60 Illinois dealerships have closed and failed to pay off traded-in vehicles since 2000. Madiganâ€™s office has heard from dozens of consumers faced with the costs of traded-in vehicles after a dealership closed. Vehicle lien holders have sought payments from consumers and instituted collections against the consumer, risking damage to their credit and court judgments entered against them.
The bill will be sponsored in the Senate by Sen. Dan Kotowski (D-Park Ridge).Â