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Photo Credit: TLC/Discovery
For the last few years, TLC has aired an annual holiday special called Crazy Christmas Lights. The show chronicled "extreme Christmas lighting enthusiasts" (people who go overboard when decorating their houses), and encouraged their insanity by putting them on TV.
This year, TLC's at it again, but this time with a twist. On Sunday (at 9 p.m.), they'll air Invasion of the Christmas Lights, which features both the lighting enthusiasts and the neighbors who've had it with the crowds, traffic, noise and litter that result from their displays.
Some neighbors call the cops; others speed-dial their lawyers. And the decorating crazies have responded in kind. One guys installs more than 30 surveillance cameras around his small yard to ward off vandals. Another spends thousands in court, defending himself in a noise violation indictment (from his Christmas music display). He gets convicted anyway.
The promos don't mention the issue of wasteful energy consumption, but I checked around to see if people are worried about that, too. And wouldn't you know it, I found a Web site called energyjustice.net, which has issued a call for people to mobilize against the wasteful energy consumption that accompanies over-the-top Christmas lighting.
On the site, they offer downloadable Christmas Police Violation tickets. (You're meant to print it out and then stick it on the door of the outrageously lit house.) Here's what the printable ticket says: "Though your holiday display is festive and enjoyable, it is consuming energy unnecessarily. As a service to the community and to our clean energy future, we ask you to comply with our holiday display guidelines."
FYI, those guidelines include operating inside of an illumination period (two weeks before Christmas through one week after); refraining from keeping the lights on overnight; and using compact fluorescents, which use four times less energy than incandescent lights.
So I guess if you're really offended by outrageous displays of Christmas lights, you could always mail one of these "tickets" to the families you see on TLC. Or you could just not watch the show. That's up to you.
Do you think Christmas lights are harmful to the environment? Chime in below!


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Just before Christmas last year, Governors Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos and Atiku Bagudu of Kebbi States together launched Lake Rice to the public. “Lake” was coined from the names of the two states. The occasion culminated a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed by the two states in Lagos on March 23, 2016 on production and distribution of rice.
At the MoU’s signing, Governor Bagudu said, “Nigeria cannot afford to continually depend on imported rice. What we are doing is to pioneer a collaboration that will bring other states on board later as we believe that our potentials are enormous and we must have pacesetters to start that process of joint collaboration for our collective good.” Ambode on his part said Lagos State “is the largest consumer of food commodities in the country by virtue of its large population. The state has the market with the required purchasing power. The state has an estimated consumption of 798,000 metric tons of milled rice per year which is equivalent to 15.96 million of 50 kilogram bags with a value of N135 billion per annum. We have the economic prowess to produce rice locally. The era of imported rice is gone. The reality is for all of us to embrace the consumption of local food and commodities. Lagos State presently consumes 6,000 heads of cattle daily which may increase to 8,000 in the next five years.”
Kebbi State has 1.2 million hectares for rice cultivation but only 600,000 were used to cultivate rice last season. In Katsina State last December, when Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Godwin Emefiele launched the CBN Anchor Borrowers Program and 2016/2017 Dry Season Farming, he said the top four imported food items including rice and wheat consume over N1 trillion in foreign exchange annually. CBN’s Anchor Borrower and the Federal Government’s provision of credit scheme to farmer have resulted in improved rice production, though the system is yet to be completely settled.
Normally, this initiative should have been left in the hands of the private sector. However, government had the foresight to see that blanket trust in the private sector could harm its import substitution policy, especially where rice is concerned. For example, left to millers, who are the anchors, they would have sponsored or funded the number of farmers that their capacity and funds could accommodate, leaving the country with a huge gap in rice supply. CBN therefore stepped in and provided commercial banks with 50% of the funds and guaranteed the same. However, the risk-averse commercial banks were not comfortable with the 50% guaranteed. They now want farmers to contribute 10%, millers 20% and banks would give the remaining 20%.
The Bank of Agriculture (BOA) which is owned by CBN and Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development then waded in. BOA has suffered neglect over the years and operates more like a parastatal under the Ministry of Agriculture than a bank. We therefore call for an arrangement where commercial banks’ demands could be accommodated because they have the capacity to handle the program’s requirements. The future of local rice production should be private sector driven. We also urge stakeholders to apply the lessons learned from last season. For example, the program almost ran into glitches in some parts of the country due to issues of late take-off and recovery of loans from farmers.
We are glad that other states are now borrowing a leaf from the success stories of Lagos, Kebbi and Ebonyi. Katsina for example has launched its dry season Anchor Borrower Program and has dedicated N8 billion which is 9% of the state’s 2017 budget to agriculture. Niger State, which used to be the largest producer of rain-fed rice in the country, has also earmarked six irrigation centers to be rehabilitated in 2017. Other states should be encouraged to enter into similar partnership not only in rice production but in other products as well where they have comparative advantage. Congratulations, Lagos and Kebbi for setting the pace.

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Hyundai, the Korean car major launched the much anticipated new version of its compact car Hyundai i10 today and has been shelved at an introductory price of Rs 3.48 lakh to Rs 5.91 lakh(ex-showroom ,Delhi). The car popularly termed as the 'Next Gen i10', has finally made its global debut today as the launch in India has preceded the showcase at Paris auto expo. With the latest onslaught from various competitors launching newer models like VW Polo, Chevrolet Beat, Ford Figo, K Series Maruti Swift and the Fiat Punto, the Korean car major certainly had to take this initiative.
India has become the most sought after market for luxury carmakers. Sales of luxury cars in the country are zooming ahead in top gear this year. Carmakers like Mercedes Benz, Audi, Land Rover, BMW and Jaguar have extensive plans for the country after this sudden increase in demand. This surge in demand can be attributed to the increase in per capita income.
India's most popular model Hyundai i10 would get a facelift in India tomorrow and would now be blessed with a 1.2 Litre MPFI Kappa Petrol Engine sporting VVTI technology. The facelift in India would come much before the rest of the world witnesses the same in the Paris Motor Show 2010 scheduled to start on 2nd Oct. The new engine would offer more power than the existing Kappa 1.2 Litre engine without VVTI technology.
The leader in luxury premium cars in India, BMW India launched a brand new variant of the Bimmer's most popular SUV BMW X5. This rebirth comes as a move to capture a greater share in the fastest growing automobile market globally, the Indian automobile market. The X5 was originally launched in 2006 and this all news X5 is an upgraded version of the same.
Researching cars online has been around for a while now but buying them online is new and the thing of the future. An Indian American doctor made the first global car purchase on eBay India Motors. He bought a Tata Nano from the online retail major.
Ashish Shah’s, head eBay India Motors was quoted by a financial daily saying, “This is the first international car purchase made on eBay India Motors and we are glad that we are enabling customers to benefit from the great deals and convenience the website has to offer.”
Re-birth of BMW X5 is already scheduled tomorrow that is 21st September, 2010, in Gurgaon, and the BMWX5 lovers are looking forward to its launch. The new changes in the model are done on its front that now has a wider outboard air intakes borrowed from 5 series while the trademark kidney grille enjoys the centre spot. Moreover, the rear side of the new BMW X5 is redesigned and comes in body colour in a view to add more appeal to the overall appearance.
If you have been planning to buy the tiny little Tata Nano then its time to get one booked. Bookings for the car have started at several dealerships across the country after nearly one-and-a-half years. Tata Motors had stopped bookings for Tata Nano in April last year due to capacity constraints.
The recently launched small car by Nissan is all set to get a diesel variant before the end of this year, the company confirmed the report. Nissan Motor India Pvt Limited also announced its plans for the future. The company is going to launch nine new models by 2012.
Tata Motors' owned British car brand Jaguar turned 75 this year and having crossed this milestone, the carmaker has come up with a dynamic new model. According to media reports, the company would be showcasing a new concept sports car at the upcoming Paris motor show. The styling for the new concept car is one that fits the celebration of the company’s 75th anniversary.
HSCI, Honda Siel Cars India seems to be in a mode of jubilation as the premium car manufacturer has announced the beginning of “The Great Honda Fest”, starting from today extended over this festive season till 5th November'2010. The fest would witness the launch of special edition versions of many popular hatchbacks from the company's stable including that of Jazz, Civic, Accord, CR-V and Honda City.
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PodcastOne Adds "The Rich Eisen Show" Tweet Pic Of The Day ESPN Returning To MLB Playoffs Norway Pulling Oslo's Bid For '22 Games Derek Jeter Launches New Website FXFL Signs Deal For Carriage On ESPN3 LeBron James Producing "Becoming" Brain Bank Finds CTE Increase In Former NFLers Classified Advertisements
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SBJ In-Depth: Video Gaming
Published March 15, 2011
Advances in motion-based technology have created new opportunities in the video game industry, but have also challenged traditional players in the space to evolve. We will look at how game producers are working to protect and grow their market share, whether it’s with casual or competitive gamers. Key leaders in the video game business will reveal what to expect next with everything from free online games to traditional game systems. Publishing Date: April 11 Ad Close: March 28 Materials Close: March 30.
For more information, contact Julie Tuttle, National Director of Advertising at 212 500 0711 or firstname.lastname@example.org.


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Cruise ships are a familiar sight at Port Canaveral, looming on the horizon low and large as you cross over the Banana River.
Expect to see more, because it’s already been a good year for Florida’s cruise industry. In fact, Florida bookings increased 20 percent so far in 2017 compared to the same period last year, AAA said in a release.
That bodes well for the world’s second-busiest cruise port in multi-day embarkations.
The surge of bookings is due to a release of pent-up demand from 2016, AAA said. “It seems people’s minds have re-set” and travelers feel comfortable stretching their sea legs.
Thirty-six cruise ships broke the waters of Port Canaveral during fiscal-year 2016, according to the port. Total revenue from cruise operations increased about 10 percent year-over-year with a 2.5 percent uptick in passengers. Revenue from parking increased about 2 percent.
The top cruise destinations in 2017 based on AAA rankings are Europe, the Caribbean, Alaska, Canada/New England and Australia/New Zealand, in order of popularity.
Nearly 30 percent of Florida travelers surveyed by AAA said they plan to take an ocean cruise in 2017.
More than 25 million people will board an ocean liner worldwide at an increase of 4.5 percent from last year, according to the Cruise Line International Association.
Vicky Evans, assistant vice president of travel sales development at AAA, said the cruise industry is in a constant state of change trying to entice cruisers.
"Every year, cruise lines unveil new ships that are bigger and better than their predecessors. Some of the newest ships offer onboard activities like bumper cars, skydiving, ice skating, and rock climbing,” Evans said in a release. “So there really is something for everyone, and you do not have to leave the ship to find it."


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Google is welcoming any app developer to become part of its Chromecast offering if they are willing to meet its terms. How many companies will take advantage of its invitation? Josh Wein, editor of FierceOnlineVideo, explores Chromecast's app potential in his latest Editor's Corner.
YouTube said it has started to audit the views that videos receive on its site to cut down on fraudulent traffic. The move could be a boon to advertisers that seek greater accuracy and reliability in online ad metrics.
Half a year after introducing the Chromecast, Google has thrown open the gates to its $35 HDMI dongle, giving any app developer who meets its terms of service access to the TV. That could mean a huge step forward for consumers' ability to watch online video on HDTV sets, and it certainly means a big step forward in the ability of independent app makers to reach viewers. But I wonder who will take Google up on its open invitation.
Chromecast may be getting some new content very soon now that Google has opened the software development kit (SDK) to all developers.
Samsung Electronics has publicly and privately invested a great deal of time, energy and money into supporting the mobile platform Tizen, but momentum for the software seems to be faltering. As noted by the Wall Street Journal, some of the world's largest carriers--including Sprint in the United States--are backing away or hedging their support for Tizen just as it appeared to be on the cusp of being commercially introduced.
Lenovo CEO Yang Yuanqing said he hopes the company's $2.91 billion purchase of Google's Motorola Mobile division will help it to pass smartphone market leaders Samsung Electronics and Apple, though he acknowledged that would take time.
Google CFO Patrick Pichette said that the company's sale of its Motorola Mobile business to Lenovo would be a "win-win" for the wider Android ecosystem and that Google will continue to support all of its Android partners.
Google's decision to sell its Motorola Mobile division to Lenovo for $2.91 billion represents a large financial loss for Google, but it likely means that Google is prepared to reduce tensions with its Android licensees, according to analysts. Additionally, analysts say the deal will catapult Lenovo into a stronger position in the smartphone market, putting pressure on both Apple and other Android players.
Google will sell its Motorola Mobile division to China's Lenovo for $2.91 billion, the companies announced. That price is far below the $12.4 billion Google paid for Motorola and its patents in 2011. However, Google said it will retain the "vast majority" of Motorola's patents as part of its deal with Lenovo. When Google purchased Motorola, the company said that fully $5.5 billion of the deal was based on the value of Motorola's trove of 17,000 wireless patents.
Google and Samsung Electronics forged a wide-ranging, patent-licensing deal that covers the companies' existing patent portfolios and all patents they will each file over the next 10 years. The move is likely a way for Google to cement cooperation with Samsung, which is the largest OEM making products that run Google's Android mobile platform.


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“Above the Trend Line” – Your Industry Rumor Central for 9/1/2021
Sep 1, 2021
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“Above the Trend Line” – Your Industry Rumor Central for 9/1/2021
Above the Trend Line: your industry rumor central is a recurring feature of insideBIGDATA. In this column, we present a variety of short time-critical news items grouped by category such as M&A activity, people movements, funding news, industry partnerships, customer wins, rumors and general scuttlebutt floating around the big data, data science and machine learning industries including behind-the-scenes anecdotes and curious buzz. Our intent is to provide you a one-stop source of late-breaking news to help you keep abreast of this fast-paced ecosystem. We’re working hard on your behalf with our extensive vendor network to give you all the latest happenings. Heard of something yourself? Tell us! Just e-mail me at: firstname.lastname@example.org. Be sure to Tweet Above the Trend Line articles using the hashtag: #abovethetrendline. Welcome back to another installment of “Above the Trend Line.” Let ‘s get moving with some new funding news … Databricks , the Data and AI company, announced a $1.6 Billion round of funding to accelerate innovation and adoption of the data lakehouse, as the data architecture’s popularity across data-driven organizations continues to grow at a rapid pace. The Series H funding, led by Counterpoint Global (Morgan Stanley), puts Databricks at a $38 billion post-money valuation. Counterpoint Global is joined by other new investors including Baillie Gifford, ClearBridge Investments and UC Investments (Office of the Chief Investment Officer of the Regents of the University of California). Existing investors participating in the round include Andreessen Horowitz, funds and accounts managed by BlackRock, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments), Coatue Management, Fidelity Management & Research, Franklin Templeton, GIC, Greenoaks, Octahedron Capital, funds and accounts managed by T. Rowe Price Associates, Inc., Tiger Global Management and Whale Rock Capital Management … Monad, Inc ., a security data cloud innovator, emerged from stealth with $17 million in Series A investment. This round is led by Index Ventures with participation from Sequoia Capital and headed by security veterans Christian Almenar and Jacolon Walker. The Monad platform helps customers connect data from various security tools into any data warehouse, making it easier to build security applications and compliance workflows. The new funding, which brings the total investment to $19 million, comes 12 months after the Sequoia-led seed round, and enables the company to scale its development efforts for its security data cloud platform. Shaun Maguire, partner at Sequoia, will join the Monad board of directors along with Carlos Gonzalez-Cadenas, partner at Index Ventures, joining as board observer … Workera.ai , the precision upskilling platform, announced that it has completed a $16M Series A. This latest round of funding follows a seed round of $5M in October 2020. The Series A was led by New Enterprise Associates (NEA) alongside existing investors Owl Ventures and AI Fund, as well as AI luminaries Richard Socher of AIX Ventures, Pieter Abbeel, Lake Dai and Mehran Sahami. This new infusion of capital will be used to accelerate product development and fuel the company’s go-to-market strategy … Shield AI a fast-growing defense technology company developing AI and self-driving technologies for aircraft, announced it has raised $210M in equity financing as part of a Series D fundraising round, increasing its valuation past the billion-dollar mark. The management team projects an additional $75M in debt and $15M in equity to be secured in the coming weeks, bringing the total Series D proceeds to $300M … Monte Carlo has raised $60 million in Series C funding from ICONIQ Growth with participation from Salesforce Ventures and existing investors Accel, GGV Capital, and Redpoint Ventures – bringing the company’s total funding to $101M. With this round, the company will fuel the growth of the Data Observability category, further develop its product offerings to better serve customers, support more use cases, and expand to new markets … Grafana Labs , the company behind the ubiquitous open and composable operational dashboards, announced a $220 million Series C investment round, co-led by new investors Sequoia Capital and Coatue, with participation from existing investors Lightspeed Venture Partners, Lead Edge Capital, and GIC. The new investment values Grafana Labs at $3 billion (for crypto fans, that’s more than 60,500 BTC as of August 23 at 22:00 UTC), more than ten times the valuation of the Series A round just two years ago … Ferret , the ‘relationship intelligence’ platform, announced a $4M seed investment. Artesian and 30+ angel investors, including Lanyon Advisory and Paul Grinberg, chairman of the Axos Bank participated in this round. The funding will fuel the acquisition and collection of exclusive data, and expand artificial intelligence search, monitoring, and natural language processing capabilities.Ferret is an AI platform architected from the ground up to empower companies and individuals with real-time, unbiased intelligence to identify risks and embrace opportunities … Motion2AI closed a $12.6M Series A from venture capitalists in the US and Korea. US investor Mir Ventures led this Series A, and Smilegate Investment, Mirae Asset, IMM, Intervest, Future Play, Shinhan Capital, Nest Company, and Amantani Partners participated … Centaur Labs, a medical data labeling company, announced $15 million in funding to fuel the company’s mission to annotate the world’s medical data. The Series A round was led by Matrix Partners with participation from Accel, Global Founders Capital, Susa Ventures, Y Combinator, and individual investors including John Capodilupo (founder and CTO of WHOOP) and Elliot Cohen (founder and CPO of PillPack). The new capital will fund the company’s efforts to rapidly expand its trusted global network of labelers and accelerate product development and hiring … Cribl , a leading Observability Pipeline company, announced it raised $200 million in new Series C funding led by Greylock and Redpoint Ventures, joined by new investor IVP, existing investors Sequoia and CRV, and with strategic investment from Citi Ventures and Crowdstrike. This Series C funding brings Cribl’s total funding to $254 million, coming on the heels of sizable deals with large enterprise customers including FINRA, Rivian, and Cox Automotive … Quantum Brilliance , a venture-backed Australian-German full-stack quantum accelerator startup, announced closing a AU$13 million seed investment co-led by the QxBranch founders’ and Main Sequence investment consortium.Quantum Brilliance harnesses synthetic diamonds to build quantum accelerators that do not require near absolute zero temperature or complex laser systems to operate like mainframe quantum computers. Quantum Brilliance is one of only a few companies worldwide already delivering quantum computing systems for customers to operate on-site today … Julia Computing has been awarded funding by the US Department of Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to bring Julia’s advanced artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) capabilities to the field of fully digital phased array systems. Funding was awarded as part of DARPA’s Tensors for Reprogrammable Intelligent Array Demonstrations (TRIAD) program. In M&A news we heard … Zebra Technologies (NASDAQ: ZBRA), an innovator at the front line of business with solutions and partners that deliver a performance edge, announced it intends to acquire antuit.ai , a provider of artificial intelligence (AI)-powered Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) solutions specific to forecasting and merchandising for the retail and CPG industries … Corum announced that their client, British Columbia, Canada-based S-FRAME Software, has been acquired by Altair, the global leader converging simulation, HPC, and AI. S-FRAME’s structural analysis software platform is used by engineers to evaluate a structure’s ability to withstand external loads (like wind, water, and snow) and meet design code requirements around the world. Altair will offer S-FRAME software through its Altair Units platform, expanding its product offering for architects and civil engineers … Advantage Solutions has acquired Strong Analytics , a provider of artificial intelligence, machine learning and data science services for leading brands in consumer goods and retail, automotive, hospitality, marketing and advertising, pharmaceuticals, technology and other industries … Appen Limited (ASX:APX), a leading provider of high-quality training data for organizations that build effective AI systems at scale, announced it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Quadrant , a global leader in mobile location data, Point-of-Interest data, and corresponding compliance services. Quadrant and Appen’s unified business will be strongly positioned to deliver high-quality data to organisations that rely on geolocation for their business. Quadrant’s Geolancer product, delivering accurate, up-to-date, and manually verified POI data, will expand its global reach and scale by tapping into Appen’s global crowd of over one million workers in over 170 countries. With the acquisition, we expect Geolancer to become the market-leading POI platform … Aicadium , a global technology company founded by Temasek and dedicated to creating and scaling AI solutions, announced the acquisition of BasisAI , a Singapore-based provider of scalable and responsible artificial intelligence (AI) software. The two organisations will be jointly known as Aicadium and will expand operations to serve a global enterprise customer base. BasisAI was co-founded by Liu Feng-Yuan, Linus Lee, and Silvanus Lee in 2018 to draw on their world-class experience in building scalable AI from Silicon Valley companies and seize the vast opportunity to build an AI powerhouse in the APAC region. We also learned of a number of new partnerships, alignments and collaborations … C3 AI and Google Cloud today announced a new, first-of-its-kind partnership to help organizations across multiple industries accelerate their application of artificial intelligence (AI) solutions. Under the agreement, both companies’ global sales teams will co-sell C3 AI’s enterprise AI applications, running on Google Cloud. The entire portfolio of C3 AI’s Enterprise AI applications, including industry-specific AI Applications, C3 AI Suite®, C3 AI CRM, and C3 AI Ex Machina, are now available on Google Cloud’s global, secure, and low-latency infrastructure, enabling customers to run C3 AI on the industry’s cleanest cloud … APARAVI ® Software Corporation, the trusted disruptor in unstructured data management, announced the company’s partnership with Terralogic , a leading global technology and IT services provider across the Americas and Asia for financial companies, who is now using Aparavi platform to discover, classify, intelligently govern and consolidate distributed data for their customers … Neustar Inc. , a global information services and technology company and leader in identity resolution, announced a partnership with Dynata , the first-party data and insights platform. Dynata provides Neustar Second-Party Data Marketplace clients direct access to an extensive library of fully permissioned, first-party survey data covering the unique habits, preferences, and attitudes of over 62 million consumers worldwide. When combined with Neustar’s expansive consumer data and identity graph, Dynata’s consumer research data provides marketers with the audience insight and reach they need to improve marketing’s impact on sales and customer experience …. Backblaze, Inc. , a leading storage cloud company serving nearly 500,000 customers across 175+ countries, announced a new partnership with Vultr , the largest privately-owned global hyperscale cloud, to provide developers with a simple, enterprise-grade alternative for cloud computing resources outside the monolithic Amazon, Google, or Microsoft ecosystems … Qumulo , a leader in simplifying enterprise file data management across hybrid cloud environments, announced its collaboration with Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) to debut the highest file density node on the market for hyperactive data workloads, a compact 1U form factor HPE ProLiant DL325 Gen10 Plus 291TB All-NVMe Node purpose-built for Qumulo. Whether aggregating autonomous vehicle data, video surveillance and security data or capturing images while performing cutting-edge research, enterprises can now store the highest amount of data in the industry’s smallest all-flash data center footprint, while dramatically increasing scalability and cost savings simultaneously … Top Artificial Intelligence (AI) chipmaker Hailo has partnered with Macnica , a leading global semiconductor distributor, to sell Hailo’s products in Japan. The agreement with Macnica will allow Hailo to expand its presence in Japan, extending its reach to customers in fields such as smart retail, smart cities, smart homes, industry 4.0, and beyond … AI Clearing , a market leader in automated analytics for large-scale construction and infrastructure projects, announced a global partnership with Doosan Mobility Innovation, Inc. (DMI), part of leading industrial corporation Doosan Group.The partnership will integrate AI Clearing’s AI-powered construction progress monitoring capabilities into DMI’s first-of-a-kind hydrogen-powered drone products to deliver granular visibility for large infrastructure projects. Hydrogen-powered drones are able to stay airborne for more than 2 hours which is 3-4 times longer than LiPo (lithium-ion polymer) drones, alleviating the need for multiple batteries and launch points. Collectively, the efficiency and visibility of the joint solution provides construction teams with valuable, near real-time aerial data insights … Hivecell , the Edge-as-a-Service company, and Hasty , a leading end-to-end platform for vision AI, announced a partnership that will be deployed on-premise and used in hyper security-sensitive environments for high-stakes vision AI applications. By leveraging the two solutions, organizations can more efficiently make relevant, data-driven decisions at the edge. In people movement activity we have … Data Machines Corporation doubled down on its mission to redefine what is possible with automation and artificial intelligence with the recent announcement that Matthew Quinn has been selected as CEO. A highly respected and trusted leader with 20 years of experience across data science, academia, and government sectors, Quinn is committed to supporting the company’s growth while shaping the future of the industry and delivering on the vision of Founder, Eric Whyne … Anaconda, Inc., provider of the popular data science platform, announced that it would begin funding the Pyston project by hiring its lead developers, Kevin Modzelewski and Marius Wachtler. This move marks the latest milestone in Anaconda’s history of advancing state-of-the-art Python performance. At Anaconda, Pyston’s core developers will focus on building an open-source community of users, contributors, and maintainers to ensure the Pyston project’s long-term sustainability … Moogsoft , the AI-pioneer and observability with AIOps leader, announced the appointment of Mike Cabot as the company’s Senior Vice President of Commercial and Velocity Sales. With over 20 years of experience in sales leadership, Cabot will play a key role in driving sales and revenue growth, with a particular emphasis on driving the product-led growth agenda at Moogsoft … Databricks , the Data and AI company, announced the appointment of longtime software executive and seasoned security chief, Fermín Serna, as the company’s new Chief Security Officer (CSO). Serna will lead Databricks’ high-impact network, platform and user security programs along with governance and compliance efforts as the company expands its platform capabilities and positions itself for the next phase of growth … Lightmatter , a leader in photonic computing, announced it has appointed Raghib Hussain, President of Products and Technologies at Marvell, to its board of directors. Raghib joins the Lightmatter board with over 20 years of experience driving innovative commercial strategy in communications, security, networking, computing and semiconductor technologies. In this new customer wins category we learned … VAST Data , the storage software company breaking decades-old tradeoffs, announced that a major auto manufacturer has given VAST’s Universal Storage platform the steering wheel. In doing so, the auto company is leveraging VAST’s all-flash architecture in an investment of over $10 million for critical data-intensive efforts from supporting the automotive design process to managing the complex datasets produced by next-generation intelligent vehicles … Noogata , a global leader in no-code artificial intelligence (AI) data analytics for enterprises, has been selected by luggage and accessories firm, the Bugatti Group, to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of their e-commerce business and marketing strategies globally. This will significantly grow their e-commerce business, with a strategic objective of moving 50% of their sales online. For Noogata it represents further growth, and adds the Bugatti Group to its existing client roster that includes PepsiCo, Colgate Palmolive and mDesign … Allvue Systems , a leading alternative investment technology solutions provider, announced that they have chosen Snowflake, the Data Cloud Company, to offer a centralized Data Cloud that will significantly enhance and simplify clients’ data storage and processing capabilities across business lines and asset classes. Allvue’s new data lake solution will enable clients to warehouse and manage all of their data on one integrated, user-friendly system. The sophisticated, cloud-native platform will feature APIs for easy, global accessibility, as well as the ability to query their entire data catalog at once to unlock insights that inform portfolio and investment decisions. In addition, the platform’s event-driven integration and cohesive business intelligence (“BI”) solution will simplify data collection and enhance reporting processes across business lines and audiences, increasing operational efficiencies front-to-back. Deep Learning Patent Update – provided by Nelson E. (Nick) Brestoff, J.D., M.S. Exec. Manager & Chief Inventor, Intraspexion LLC . As of August 31, 2021, the number of U.S. “deep learning” patents — at 753 — is now noticeably above the total for all of 2020, which was 726. Let’s do the math: 753 divided by 8 is 94.125 per month and, multiplying by 12, the prediction for 2021 is a remarkable 1,130. In 2016, when I started inventing — with “deep learning” in the Claims (and achieved seven patents with a Priority Date of July 1, 2016), the total for 2016 was 39. .Join us on Twitter: @InsideBigData1 – https://twitter.com/InsideBigData1
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After consumers were forced to pay more for fewer goods as a result of a squeeze on costs of living, UK retail sales unexpectedly fell last month, capping the worst year on record.
The Office for National Statistics reported on Friday that the volume of goods purchased in stores and online decreased by 5.8% from a year earlier, marking the sharpest decline in December since records began in 1997. That was higher than the 4% drop that economists had anticipated. Sales fell 6.1% without taking into account fuel for automobiles, the most since records began in 1989.
The figures highlight the severity of inflation, which is still hovering close to its four-decade high, draining consumers’ spending power and causing the sharpest decline in real incomes in decades. In order to bring prices back under control, the Bank of England is likely to raise interest rates once more.
According to the ONS, “consumers cut back on spending due to increased prices and affordability concerns” were the primary contributors to the decline in retail sales. According to reports from supermarkets, people bought more before Christmas and reduced their purchases in December.
Heather Bovill, ONS deputy director for surveys and economic indicators, stated, “This was due to increased food prices and the rising cost of living.”
The UK’s high street is still feeling the brunt of the biggest drop in income in a generation. The unexpected drop in retail sales highlights the downside risk to this, even though we anticipated that the economy would show stagnation at the end of last year. According to Bloomberg Economics’ Niraj Shah, “We see consumer spending remaining under pressure going forward” due to the ongoing squeeze on incomes.
Before the official numbers were released, retailers had reported a mixed picture of sales.
While online clothing giant Boohoo Group Plc’s revenues decreased 13% in comparison to the same period in 2021, Next Plc reported a better-than-expected Christmas, with sales of full-price items up almost 5% year-over-year in the nine weeks to December 30.
And while Marks & Spencer Plc, J Sainsbury Plc, and Lidl Ltd. all experienced strong Christmas trading, Dr. Martens Plc, a shoe company, and Asos Plc, an online fashion store, both experienced difficulties.
Sales were 13.6% higher in value terms in December compared to levels prior to COVID, but volumes were 1.7% lower, indicating how hot inflation is reducing consumers’ spending power. As a result, consumers are paying more for less.
In the days leading up to Christmas, postal strikes pushed more people to shop in person rather than online. A half percentage point less of total sales came from e-commerce, which accounted for 25.4%.
According to Erin Brookes, managing director and head of retail in Europe at restructuring firm Alvarez & Marsal, inflation “hit consumers and retailers hard” over Christmas.
She stated, “In December, the combination of rail and postal strikes provided retail with a double whammy of disruption, limiting the number of shoppers in-store and ensuring that packages reached doorsteps in time for Christmas.”
After a 0.5% decline in November, retail sales decreased by 1% in December.
The economists had anticipated a 0.5% increase. Consumer sentiment deteriorated once more in January, according to a separate survey conducted by GfK, a market research firm. It remains well below negative territory.
Olivia Cross of Capital Economics stated, “With a renewed fall in consumers’ confidence in January, that weakness is very likely to continue as the broader economy slips into recession in 2023.” The economy appeared to lose some of its resilience toward the end of last year.
As the cost-of-living crisis squeezed incomes and consumers prepared for higher taxes and energy bills, UK retail sales fell more than anticipated in March. Prices also bit.
Public by world news spot live


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It’s about the Golden Delicious- and Granny Smith apples from the Canadian company Okanagan Specialty Fruits. The apples that have been cut stay fresh longer, thanks to a genetic adaptation. With this genetic adaptation cells that turns the apple brown will be broken by an enzyme. With this new United States approval, millions of salad bars or Happy meals could offer the apples without sprinkle them with lemon juice. The US Department of Arficulture (USDA) admitted the decision of the input of genetic apples.
The united states has been a pioneer in the field of genetic engineering. Especially crops like cotton, corn and soy are genetically modified on a very large scale. Yet, this legislation is remarkable, because this time the intended is purely for te consumer and not for the farmers as it was usually.
But not everybody agreed with this legislation. many people even disagreed with the idea of genetic apples. A quote from Mark Gedris, director of membership and communications for USApple, in a phone interview.: “Consumers haven’t asked for these traits,” he said. “As we mention in our statement, browning is a natural process. There are already natural ways to delay browning in apples.”
Those apples will still be in supermarkets at the end of 2017, because al the twenty thousand genetic modified apple trees has to be plant first an they also have to grow.
Why is this legislation a trend?
Those apples fits with the micro trend ‘Copy nature’. The nature is been copied because the apples are not coming from the nature for real. But they are genetic modified, so they won’t turn brown. That makes this apple a not nature one, but a apple that’s copied from the real nature apples.
It’s transparant because:
It’s clearly shown that the apples are genetically modified for all the consumers. That means that it is transparent how the apples are processed. Consumers can make a decision on their own, if they want to eat this genetical apples or not. But they know which apples are genetic modified an which one are not.


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One hundred and seventeen British companies joined the 300 that have already
listed profit warnings in the past nine months, Ernst & Young has
It’s the highest number of companies to concede lower than expected earnings
Numbers aside, the “tone” of the messages contained in company announcements
has darkened, EY insolvency partner Keith McGregor told The
The findings contradict recent suggestions of “green shoots” following a
survey from the Confederation of British Industry that found the effects of the
credit crunch were becoming less severe for companies.
Does Darwin's theory apply to taxation? Colin ponders...
The EC has been instructed to draft a European Union (EU) directive authorising an EU financial transaction tax, which would apply to ten of the EU’s 28 member states
Accountancy watchdog the FRC has dropped its investigation into the former chief financial officer of Tesco, nearly two years after the supermarket was engulfed in an accounting scandal
Colin imagines how Apple's logo might change in the wake of the EC's ruling over its Irish tax arrangements


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This week, Burger King found its International Women’s Day campaign under fire after its Burger King U.K. Twitter account began a thread explaining the campaign with the tweet “Women belong in the kitchen.” People who only saw the first tweet were enraged that the brand would choose a day made to honor women to make such a claim. Others were upset that the brand would stoop to using such a condescending and outdated joke to drive eyeballs to its new campaign meant to amplify women. After hours of complaints from consumers, Burger King apologized and deleted the tweet, saying it was “designed to draw attention” to the issue behind the campaign—that only a small percentage of chefs and head chefs are women.
The snafu was one of the major brand blunders of the year so far, and a prime example of the perils of using shock value in social media marketing to grab the attention of social media users, especially when the cause is not a laughing matter.
“The tactic Burger King used was obviously to shake up the internet, and mission accomplished. But where it really stung is that on a day meant to honor women, Burger King put themselves first and the wellness of women somewhere far down below that,” says Lynae Cook, a consultant and contractor who has formerly worked as a social media strategist at Starbucks.
The curse of the algorithm
The truth is that social media has crafted an environment where brands, always seeking to be in front of consumers, are resorting to ways to beat platforms’ algorithms, which fill user feeds based on high engagement and their content history. In other words, a platform prioritizes content that might be alarming, risky or appalling, but starts conversations. A brand posting significant or relevant content to their audience might not fare as well as one that is always putting their spin on a cultural moment or constantly sharing their take on the latest internet meme.
“The fear of being left behind motivates marketers to drive to the edge. More funny, more edgy, more controversial,” says Julius Geis, founder of brand strategy and consulting agency 'Āina Identity Design, which works with brands like Kia, Carlsberg Beer and Burt’s Bees. “Social media algorithms support brands that engage in this type of messaging with higher activity versus brands that say something meaningful to their followers. But fear and insecurity never create anything good.”


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'King of Glory' ─ the latest craze to engulf mobile gaming
"King of Glory," the world's most profitable mobile game to date this year, has taken China by storm and changed public perceptions about the quality of domestically produced gaming.
Launched last November by Tencent, the game raked in about 6 billion yuan (US$883 million) in the first quarter, according to CNG Games, a Chinese game data analytics platform.
With the release of the international version called "Strike of Kings" on App Store and Google Play, the game promises to become an even bigger gold mine for its creators.
“At the beginning it was just another mobile game,” says Ramon Pan, a player of the game since its release. “But suddenly, everybody is talking about it, and everyone around you is playing it.”
The multiple-player battle game is a bit like the hit “League of Legends,” which was developed by Riot Games. Players cultivate heroes to form a team and ally with other players to conquer the enemy’s team by destroying a core building on the battlefield.
People can buy heroes with in-game currency or with real cash. Each hero has a different “skin,” which gives it a better look and stronger build. Most "skins" cost real cash. That's one spinner for Tencent's money stream.
“Although the game is free to download, I have never met anyone who doesn’t spend money on it,” says Pan. “It’s not news that some people spend hundreds and thousands of bucks on it.”
“Strike of Kings” hasn't been as phenomenal as its original Chinese version, but it has had more than 1 million downloads worldwide and received four-star reviews at both App Store and Google Play.
In the international version, the heroes are mainly Chinese historical figures and the game provides a wider choice for players, including popular comic characters, such as Batman.
That's not to say the game is without glitches. While players generally like the game mode, they sometimes complain about problems with server maintenance, balance, constant lagging and downloads.
“The game crashes after every match," says Paul Giza in a comment on Google Play who gave the game a one-star rating. "It's a good game overall, but until you fix that problem, that's what you get.”
Chinese mobile games have undergone an image transformation in the past year. They used to be typically cast as copycats, with shoddy production and poor maintenance. That's why even many Chinese players preferred foreign games, such as “Clash Royale” by Supercell Oy, “Hearthstone” by Blizzard Entertainment and “Candy Crush Saga” by King Digital Entertainment.
Pan, a white-collar worker who has been playing mobile games for five years, admits that he was biased against domestically produced games until very recently.
“Many of the domestic games just ripped off content from others, including artworks, character designs and gaming features,” he says. “For a long time I sneered at most Chinese games and wouldn’t even try them.”
Tencent was on the copycat list. When it released the simulation game “National Farm” in 2014, players howled that it was a mediocre imitation of Supercell’s long-term hit game “Hay Day.”
But now, only three years on, Tencent not only has its own game on the international market but has also purchased Finland-based Supercell.
In an odd twist of industry success, Chinese companies have sometimes struck it big in overseas markets with games that didn't generate much interest at home.
Beijing-based FunPlus is one example. One of its first games, "Family Farm," was marketed internationally when webpage games were just starting to become popular on Facebook.
According to FunPlus, more than 50 million users have "planted and harvested crops," and Facebook said the game still has 500,000 active monthly users five years after it was launched.
That made FunPlus the largest multinational game company in China. Its more than 600 employees come from more than 20 countries and regions, and it has offices in both Beijing and San Francisco.
According to a report issued by Twitter this month, Japan and Saudi Arabia have become the fastest-growing international markets for Chinese mobile games.
In Japan, the card battle game “Onmyoji,” produced by NetEase, and dress role play game “Miracle Nikki” from Tencent were the two most talked-about Chinese mobile games.
Both were done in Japanese animation style and featured A-list Japanese performers voicing the characters.
Despite current trends, there are still gaps between Chinese games and top international ones, according to Twitter.
Compared with games like “Pokemon Go,” the "mention" rate of Chinese games on Twitter was less than 1 percent.
Alan Lan, general manager of Twitter for Chinese mainland, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan, said Chinese game producers need to focus on individual characteristics of overseas markets.
“For example, the Japanese usually get paid on the 25th of every month, so if you hold an in-game event on the 24th, you can’t expect many people to spend money on it,” he said. “Developers need to be more aware of how a foreign market operates.”
'King of Glory,' the despair of parents
Not everyone is cheering about the rampant popularity of “King of Glory.”
Chinese parents and teachers who lament the way young people are constantly glued to screens nowadays view “King of Glory” as their latest nightmare.
According to Tencent, nearly 60 percent of the players are aged between 11 and 20.
In Guangzhou, a 17-year-old student who played the game nonstop for 40 hours, was sent to hospital suffering from low blood supply to the brain.
There are also fears that youngsters will spend too much of their parents' money on the game, with or without their knowledge.
Media have entered the fray, publishing articles criticizing "King of Glory."
“The game is very obsessive for children to an unhealthy extent and it distorts historical figures," said an opinion piece on the website of People’s Daily.
Addressing public pressure, Tencent installed a feature in the game requiring minors to register with identity certification. Their time spent on the game will be limited to two hours a day, or one hour a day for those 12 years and younger.
But it's pretty hard to fox savvy kids nowadays.
“My son used my name and ID number to register for the game,” says Yuan Chongxiao, mother of a 15-year-old. “He told me not to worry because it wouldn't cost us anything. I was furious.”
Tencent promises to strengthen the system and said it will review the historical basis of figures used in the game.


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Beanies for meanies
by EMINE SANER, Evening Standard
It would be easier to compile a list of who doesn't shop there. Topshop's latest convert is Gwyneth Paltrow, who recently persuaded the store to open out of hours to rummage through the rails undisturbed.
She stocked up on tops, trousers and a collection of beanie hats.
She is obviously taking the indie-chick, celebrity-girlfriend look to heart - she wore one of the low-key £10 hats to watch boyfriend Chris Martin play at the Brits.
At the recent London Fashion Week, foreign fashionistas made the huge Oxford Circus store their first stop and the high street store has managed to become as cool as the designers it copies.
Celebrity customers: Gwyneth Paltrow, Kate Moss, Holly Valance, Cat Deeley, Britney Spears, Beyonce Knowles.
Even the advertising campaigns, shot by Mario Testino and starring everyone from Kate Moss and Claudia Schiffer to Heidi Klum, are super chic.
The best stores for stars are in Kensington High Street and Covent Garden, where Kate Winslet was recently spotted buying lingerie.
Celebrity customers: Victoria and David Beckham, Davina McCall, Helena Christensen, Kate Winslet.
Since the Spanish store arrived on our shores, celebrities have rushed to rifle through its catwalk copies, some of which look better than the originals.
Zara puts its success down to cutting-edge design at bargain prices.
Last summer's peasant-look flew off the rails and this winter's coats were a hit - Martine McCutcheon bought a cream one for £100.
Celebrity customers: Martine McCutcheon, Joan Collins, Amanda Holden, Jemima Khan.
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The global logistics industry was dealt a year full of surprises in 2016, and with that came challenges. For most ocean carriers, the first three quarters were extremely challenging financially. While these financial pressures have been ongoing since 2009 due to several factors, overcapacity was certainly one of the most prevalent. Ocean carriers continue to see their average operating margin dip below zero as rates fell to their lowest levels since 2009. All of this mounted to the Hanjin bankruptcy, one of the largest container shipping bankruptcies in history. This action will continue to accelerate the carrier acquisition activities in 2017. Read More…
From the Panama Canal expansion to the continuous advancement of disruptive technologies, 2016 was another eventful year in the global logistics and supply chain industry. Navigating the opportunities and challenges from an increasingly complex marketplace can be difficult. We’re here to help by delivering insights, solutions, and strategies that address your exact needs for today and tomorrow.
As we kick off the new year, here’s a quick look at our top three blog posts from 2016. While they are the most viewed posts from last year, the topics will continue to have an impact in 2017 and beyond.
Even containers don’t like to wait in line. Dwell time—the amount of time a container remains parked in a marine terminal waiting to be picked up after it’s been offloaded from a vessel—is a drag on supply chain efficiency, especially when it becomes excessive. Rising container volumes, fluctuations in demand, and the constant need for just in time inventory have increased the impact of dwell time over recent years.
It’s unlikely that the problem will disappear or even improve markedly any time soon, but there are ways to minimize the instances where a container outstays its welcome at a port.
A Call to Action: Make Supply Chain Management a Magnet for Millennials. Connect by C.H. Robinson
In last week’s blog post I highlighted how there needs to be a cross-functional approach to attracting talented professionals to the company – especially supply chain management, which is facing a talent shortage crisis.
Five Reasons Why Talent Management Should Be a Part of Everyone’s Job.Connect by C.H. Robinson
The well-known business adage that people are a company’s most important asset has taken on new significance in the supply chain industry over recent years.


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The Consumer Product Safety Commission has announced the recall of millions of Pfizer’s Nurtec ODT tablets due to a packaging issue. Pfizer said in an email to Cox Media Group’s National Content Desk “there have been no packaging-related adverse events to date.”
The orally disintegrating tablets come on a blister card containing eight tablets in a carton that shows the name of the medication, the dosage strength, the NDC number and the expiration date.
The CPSC said 4.2 million tablets are affected by the recall. But that number, according to Pfizer, is an estimate of the number of pills prescribed since late 2021. Pfizer said the company estimates there are about 300,000 units remaining available to the public.
The recalled medication is the Nurtec ODT (rimegepant) 75mg 8-unit dose blister pack with NDC number 72618-3000-2 and expiration dates through 6/2026, the CPSC said. It was sold through pharmacies nationwide from December 2021 through March 2023.
The CPSC instructs people who have the medication to secure it out of sight and reach from children and to contact Pfizer to get a child-resistant pouch to store the medication.
The medication, however, is safe to take as directed. Pfizer said in an email to Cox Media Group’s Content Desk, that the company is developing new packaging for the medication that will be compliant with child-resistant packaging rules and is instructing pharmacists to place the medication in a child-resistant vial when dispensing to patients.
For more information, consumers are being told to contact Pfizer at 800-879-3477, Monday through Friday 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. ET, or online.
©2023 Cox Media Group


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PARIS — Top executives in Europe’s major companies see the last 25 years as yielding evolutionary change.
Gilles Weil, vice president in charge of L’Oréal’s luxury products division, ticked off the high points as the evolution of active ingredients; improvement in the knowledge of skin’s properties; globalization and the need to adapt to different cultures; more sophisticated products; an evolution of textures for skin care and makeup; a wider range of customers, including younger people in Asia and more mature customers in Europe and the U.S.; the advent of treatment for men, and the consolidation of big players to three or four in the world, making for fierce competition.
He also listed the emergence of segment specialists, including makeup artists and niche brands.
Patrick Choël, president of LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton’s fragrance and beauty division, said, "The first important thing in the past 25 years in the beauty industry is the constant growth of business. Choël added that there remains strong growth potential, and that the beauty market is far from saturated. Choël described another major change as the consolidation of small independent companies like Sephora andMarionnaud. "Twenty-five years ago, there were more midsized and smaller companies than we have today, he said, adding that the third factor is product proliferation. "It is good because it shows people want variety [and quality]," he said. "What’s bad is that sometimes there is an excess and not all products are always legitimate…The level of quality has risen enormously over the past 25 years."
Chantal Roos, president and ceo of YSL Beauté, sees the greatest evolution of the last 25 years in the sophistication and satiation of consumer tastes. "Now there’s more product and the choice is so huge," said Roos, who had launched Opium and YSL’s other beauty entries, then masterminded Issey Miyake’s and Jean-Paul Gaultier’s entry into the fragrance market. "People are saturated."
Christian Courtin, president and chief executive officer at Groupe Clarins, sees the major change as the improvement in quality and effectiveness of skin care. Marketing also has improved, but "unfortunately the trend is to launch and launch and launch. There is an increasing number of me-too products with too little creativity. When I started working in this industry, there was a code of honor. People were too proud to copy products."Courtin is proud of Clarins’ role in introducing UVA sun filters and the consumer is now fully cognizant of the dangers of sun damage. He observed, "Every time we learn something new about skin, we can go in another direction for skin care."
@juicebeauty, where @gwynethpaltrow holds the title of creative director of makeup, has become one of the foremost labels in the organic beauty category –– with sales on track to hit $100 million this year. What’s behind the rapid growth the brand is experiencing right now? It all started in 2005 when the wellness movement was just getting started. Read more on WWD.com. #wwdbeauty
Stay up to do date with breaking news and trending stories with WWD’s “The Essentialist.” Our newsletter delivers the top news in fashion right to your inbox. Want more info? Link in bio. #wwdfashion (📷: @kukukuba)
"I want to tell a story that inspires people to feel good about themselves, but also I'm making a commentary about the lack of female stories and female directors and saying this should change," said @imheathergraham on her latest project "Half Magic." The comedy feature, which the actress wrote and directed, is based on her own struggles as a woman in show business. Read @andrewnodell's full interview with Graham on WWD.com. #wwdeye (📷: @jgreenery)
@meltcosmetics cofounders @lora_arellano and @danabomar built their brand on a single idea: a true matte lipstick. To set the brand apart, they said they always put their customers first –– including a personalized note in each package. #wwdsummits #wwdbeauty
@moncler unveiled its latest project, #MonclerGenius, yesterday at Milan Fashion Week. The Italian outwear maker gave show-goers a preview of the monthly collections – which were created by eight designers and creative talents including Pierpaolo Piccioli, Simone Rocha, Craig Green and more – that will start rolling out in the summer.


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The expo would connect Canada's retailers with the world's major apparel and textile manufacturers on a single platform without the time or expense travelling outside the borders of Canada.
The event would also provide a comprehensive seminar tract led by acclaimed industry and government experts covering topics likes the TPP, best practices, the changing Canadian market, tips on how to choose whom to work with overseas, and much more.
JP Communications, parent company of Manufacturer.com and TopTenwholesale.com, has been awarded the exclusive contract to produce the expo. “We are honoured to have received such a distinguished and globally significant opportunity, our brands have been connecting millions online since 2005 and now we are able to serve our growing community offline in Toronto this summer as well as with other major events we will be producing,” said Jason Prescott, CEO of TopTenWholesale.com and Manufacturer.com.
“Canada has needed a trade show where apparel and textile importers and retailers can learn about sourcing best practices while meeting international producers from around the world. The event offers an important new resource for our domestic market and we are excited to support this endeavour,” said Bob Kirke, Canadian apparel federation executive director.
Confirming China's participation in the event, Jiang Hui, chairman of CCCT said, “This event is a new project started for the promotion of global textile and apparel trade by CCCT. Based on a comprehensive analysis of the international textile and apparel market, we are convinced that the Canadian apparel and textile sourcing expo will become an efficient and convenient trade platform for the global textile and apparel industry.”
Textile and apparel companies from China, India, Bangladesh, Mexico, US, Taiwan, Vietnam, Indonesia, Mauritius, Honduras, Jordan, Peru, Burma, Myanmar, Colombia and Guatemala are expected to participate in the expo. (NA)
Fibre2fashion News Desk - India
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Shanghai Airport Lockdown due to COVID-19
Multiple logistics companies are reporting that authorities have suspended operations in a major warehouse at Shanghai Pudong International Airport because of a COVID outbreak, putting a halt to most freighter activity at China's largest cargo airport.
The timing of the closure throws another wrench in supply chains already stretched thin by ocean and airfreight capacity shortages and extensive shipping delays as the peak export season kicks into high gear for the holidays. All-cargo carriers in Shanghai have faced delays and canceled flights for more than a week because of airport staffing shortages that occurred when authorities imposed strict COVID protocols to prevent the virus from spreading.
As of midday local time in China, several positive COVID cases were discovered at the Pudong Air Cargo Terminal (PACTL), forcing a pause in all ground handling, customs, and airfreight services in Shanghai, Christos Spyrou, CEO and founder of Hong Kong-based Neutral Air Partner, told FreightWaves.
PACTL is one of two cargo terminals at the Shanghai Pudong airport.
For more see https://finance.yahoo.com/Back to news list
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- 29.06.2020 On COVID Frontier: UF Disinfecting Lamps by Airfreight from Hong Kong to USA and Russia
- 10.04.2020 OVERVIEW OF THE SITUATION IN THE AIRFREIGHT DUE to COVID-19 PANDEMIC


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BiFinance, a cryptocurrency, platform in Hong Kong and Tokyo has reaches 5,000,000 users in counting. The record shows willingness by people to accept this new means of payment that still battles its way to become legal tender.
As a result, the CEO of BiFinance, Changpeng Zhao, was interview in Blomberg TV. He argued against what the bear cyptocurrency user warren Buffet said regarding bitcoins on Blooberg. Changpeng Zhao said Warren Buffet was wrong.
He also talked about the future of BiFinance and cryptocurrency. Earlier, Warren Buffet has stated on Blomberg that cryptocurrency will come to a bad ending. While a Wall Street strategist and a bull on cryptocurrency, Tom Lee, said that Bitcoin will double in 2018.


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Covid-19 recovery is accelerating the region’s digital transformation and Economic Vision 2030 plans
TDT | Manama
The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com
The global Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated ambitious regional economic plans through the mass adoption of digital technologies across sectors, said the head of one of the most diversified financial services groups in the Middle East.
Ahmed Abdul Rahim, Ithmaar Holding Chief Executive Officer, said that these changes are creating tremendous growth opportunities for the GCC economies.
“The governments of the region, have long-recognised the importance of diversifying their economies away from oil,” said Abdul Rahim. “Over the past few years in particular, they have been encouraging investment in sectors such as tourism, business services, manufacturing, and logistics, to build robust and sustainable economies,” he said.
Bahrain’s Economic Vision 2030, for example, aims to ensure that every Bahraini household has at least twice as much disposable income in real terms by 2030.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 aims to develop the national economy, diversify its sources of income, and stimulate savings, finance and investment; and Abu Dhabi’s Economic Vision 2030 specifically prioritises the development of an open, efficient, and globally integrated business environment.
“An important driver of rapid progress across all spheres will be digitization, and the private sector has a key role to play in these ambitious initiatives.
The region’s financial services sector can support the growth of different industries by providing financing and advisory services, while promoting entrepreneurship and innovation,” he said.
Ithmaar Holding’s diversified operations Abdul Rahim’s outlook is shaped, to a degree, by the diversified nature of Ithmaar Holding’s operations which includes retail banking assets in Bahrain and Pakistan, major Takaful (Islamic insurance) assets and significant real estate assets, including a majority stake in Naseej, the region’s first fully-integrated development company created to address affordable housing development needs.
In line with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the Bahrain government emphasises the importance of digital government as a means of making government services more transparent, accessible, and inclusive to all members of the public.
Over the past year, Bahrain’s Information & eGovernment Authority (iGA) accelerated its rollout of eServices and now offers more than 500 services online.
“It falls on the private sector to follow the example set by the government,” said Abdul Rahim. “For the banking industry, this means offering comprehensive banking services through online portals and mobile applications,” he said.
“Consumers have already adopted this change and our retail banking operations in Bahrain, for example, have reported a significant 25 to 30% drop in cash-based transactions during the period from Q1 2020 to Q1 2021, indicating a large customer shift to digital banking,” said Abdul Rahim.
“Cash withdrawals from Ithmaar Bank Automated Teller Machines (ATMs), for example, dropped 26% in terms of volume and 20% in terms of value between Q1 2020 and Q1 2021, with branches reporting almost exactly the same reductions, both in terms of volume and value of cash withdrawals.
Cash deposits at the branches reduced even further during the period, with the number of transactions dropping by almost 33% and the value by 30%,” he said “This pronounced drop in cash-based transactions, both at ATMs and branches, correspond with an increase in digital banking transactions,” said Abdul Rahim.
“In the Ithmaar Bank example, customer utlisation of digital channels, including eBanking and the mobile application, increased almost 19% between Q1 2020 and Q1 2021,” he said.
Reshaping retail banking
“We have witnessed the benefits of this change firsthand within our group, both in Bahrain and Pakistan,” said Abdul Rahim.
“In Bahrain, our Islamic retail banking subsidiary, Ithmaar Bank, saw a significant uptake in demand for its digital banking services at the start of the pandemic due to the need for contactless banking and social distancing requirements; and our banking associate, BBK, reported that the pandemic served to accelerate its digital delivery and implementation as it worked to quickly meet exponential customer demand.
In Pakistan, our retail banking subsidiary, Faysal Bank Limited, with its 600 branches in 200 cities, continues to invest in its digital transformation as a key to improving its customers’ experience,” he said.
“This is likely to continue as clients are now accustomed to digital channels, being able to bank twenty-four-seven and to complete complex transactions such as applying for financing or opening investment accounts in a matter of minutes rather than days,” said Abdul Rahim. “While this shift makes banking easier and more convenient for customers, it also allows banks to reduce operational costs and divert resources towards developing more sophisticated services and a better user experience,” he said.
Abdul Rahim noted, for example, that advancements in Natural Language Processing are making chatbots sophisticated enough to communicate with customers and provide services in a fully automated way while saving billions of dollars worldwide – disrupting not just the banking industry, but also insurance, where chatbots can automate the collection of incident reports from customers and Artificial Intelligence can analyse the information.
Impact on the insurance industry
“Solidarity Group, which is part of the Ithmaar Holding portfolio and one of the largest takaful groups in the region, started to implement these technologies to reduce claim settlement times for customers and increase loyalty and satisfaction,” said Abdul Rahim. “Customer-focused, service-based offerings are being completely reimagined, effectively redefining entire industries and how they operate.
This is particularly true for retail-focused financial services like banks and insurance companies, and sets the stage for significant growth opportunities,” he said.
Shifting real-estate landscape
“During the pandemic there was a mass exodus to Dubai’s suburbs as families sought larger homes with entertainment facilities and home offices since they now spend so much time at home.
In Saudi Arabia, homeownership is on the rise, with 60% of citizens owning homes in 2020, up from 47% in 2016. In Bahrain, the Ministry of Housing aims to complete five full-fledged, self-contained residential towns by 2025: Madinat Salman, Madinat Khalifa, East Hidd, East Sitra and Al Ramli District,” said Abdul Rahim.
“This represents tremendous opportunities for the real estate market as well as for commercial banks offering home financing products,” he said.


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Washington: The constant barrage of post-holiday sales touted by web-based retailers may make it seem like online shopping is killing real-world stores, but shoppers are actually engaging in ‘web-to-store’.
A study shows this consumer behaviour has important implications for retailers. When setting in-store prices or offering price-matching guarantees, offline retailers should focus more on online retailer ratings than on offering the lowest prices.
In a research, Professor Onur Bodur investigates how offline consumer behaviour is influenced by online price comparison sites (PCSs). His results from three studies show that consumers pay careful attention to things like retailer ratings, how often a product is offered at the same price, and differing price levels.
The study has been published in Journal of Retailing. (ANI)


text: It will become harder for consumers to sue their banks or companies like Equifax... The Senate voted Tuesday night to overturn a rule the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau worked on for more than five years. The final version of the rule banned companies from putting "mandatory arbitration clauses" in their contracts, language that prohibits consumers from bringing class-action lawsuits against them. It applies to institutions that sell financial products, including bank accounts and credit cards. Consumer advocates say it's good news for companies like Wells Fargo or Equifax, which have both had class-action lawsuits filed against them, and bad news for their customers... Lisa Gilbert, the vice president of legislative affairs at Public Citizen, a nonprofit based in Washington, D.C., said the Senate vote shouldn't impact cases that are already ongoing. However, there will "certainly" be more forced arbitration clauses in contracts in the future, and fewer cases brought against companies, she said.


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He said tier-two and tier-three cities are benefiting from massive infrastructural spending, while the massive hotel expansion ahead of the 2008 Olympics saturated the Beijing market.
"What impact will the Olympics have on Beijing’s hotel market? Jones Lang LaSalle Research has been tracking the impact of the past five Olympics events and our research have revealed that host cities have historically experienced an Olympic ‘spike’ in rates during the event year with a gradual softening in the following years. In the case of Beijing, we believe the extent of any softening in rates will be mitigated by the fact that there is another major international event, i.e. the Shanghai World Expo 2010 within a relatively short time frame. The continued momentum of business that is expected to take place in the political capital Beijing and the commercial capital Shanghai will help to sustain visitors volume which should positively benefit both cities."
Summing up the current situation, Andreas Flaig said from 2006 to 2008, the number of hotel rooms doubled in Beijing and will grow another 23% through 2011. That buildout has pushed occupancy rates in Beijing to 47% for five-star hotels, and 50% in the four-star market.
He said, "Once you drop below 50% occupancy, then you start to seriously impact the profitability of a hotel. We are way off the 75-ish occupancy the city has enjoyed before."
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Global report underscores need for seamless shopping across all channels
Paris — Shoppers worldwide expect a seamless integration across online, social media, mobile and physical stores, according to a new global report released Tuesday by Capgemini.
According to "Digital Shopper Relevancy," which surveyed 16,000 digital shoppers across 16 developing and mature markets, 60% of respondents said they expect the convergence of retail channels by 2014, while more than half of those surveyed said most retailers currently are inconsistent in the way they present themselves across channels.
Key findings from the Capgemini report include:
- Websites continue to be the main digital shopping channel for shoppers in both developing and mature countries: 80% of respondents in developing markets said the Internet was "important" or "very important," while 63% in mature markets noted that the Internet was "important" or "very important" to the shopping journey. This is closely followed by e-mail interaction. However, such channels as social media, mobile applications and in-store kiosks are growing in popularity as alternative retail channels;
- The number of digital-savvy shoppers increases considerably in developing markets and they tend to "leapfrog" the traditional retail infrastructure adopted by mature markets: 72% of respondents from India and 69% from China state that they purchase more products in a single transaction online than in a physical store, compared with just 31% from the United States;
- More than half of the respondents from both developing and mature markets said they expect physical stores for increasing numbers of categories will simply become showrooms to select and order products by 2020;
- More than half of those surveyed (56%) are likely to spend more money at a physical store if they had used digital channels to research the product prior to purchase; however, 73% of respondents also expect online prices to be lower than those in physical stores;
- There is no "one" digital shopper profile as varied behavioral patterns appear across a number of factors, including age, gender, product category, journey stage and market maturity. The study did highlight that 55% of women shoppers are more engaged when using digital channels, compared with 44% of men; and
- "[It] is critical for retailers to identify who is really using these channels and essential in determining where to make digital investments and how to monetize them," Helders said. "The findings of the report are a call to action for retailers and consumer goods companies to adopt a new approach and harness the technology that’s now available."
Office Depot honored as Energy Star Leader for 2012
Boca Raton, Fla. — Office Depot announced that it has been named to the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) list of 2012 Energy Star Leaders for Leadership in Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions. Office Depot’s significant energy reduction makes the retailer the first ever retailer in the United States to be recognized for a 30% or greater improvement.
In the baseline year of 2004, Office Depot facilities emitted 381,689 metric tons of carbon dioxide. By 2011, the carbon footprint of Office Depot’s facilities was 239,319 metric tons — a reduction of over 140,000 metric tons, or 37% over the seven year period. This is equivalent to the annual greenhouse gas emissions of nearly 28,000 passenger vehicles.
"Office Depot is pleased to be recognized as an ENERGY STAR Leader for the second time,” said Edward Costa, VP construction for Office Depot. "Becoming the first retailer to achieve 30 percent or greater energy reduction further demonstrates our commitment to environmental leadership as we continue to implement a range of initiatives that uphold the company’s global environmental strategy to Buy Greener, Be Greener and Sell Greener.”
The achievement was accomplished as a result of investing in energy efficiency and green building initiatives. Such projects have included a major de-lamping effort and a change to energy efficient lamps, reflectors and ballasts; the installation of motion detectors in receiving areas; continued upgrades to building HVAC systems; and aggressive energy management controls and monitoring.
Brentwood Associates acquires majority stake in Sundance Catalog
Los Angeles — Private equity firm Brentwood Associates has acquired a majority stake in Sundance Holdings Group ("Sundance Catalog").
Sundance Catalog, founded by Robert Redford in 1989 and headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, is a multichannel direct marketer and specialty retailer of women’s apparel and accessories, jewelry and home furnishings. Selling shareholders, including ACI Capital and Webster Capital, will retain a minority ownership stake, and the business will remain under the leadership of current president and CEO Matey Erdos.
"Brentwood brings tremendous insight as we embark on the next level of growth," said Erdos. "Their experience in direct marketing and multi-channel retail, as well as their track record of building consumer brands, is extremely relevant to our future success."
Sundance Catalog is the ninth acquisition by Brentwood Associates’ latest fund, Brentwood Associates Private Equity IV, L.P.
“We see tremendous opportunity in the Sundance Catalog’s direct-to-consumer channels as management is in the early stages of leveraging a vast e-commerce toolset to more effectively serve their customers," said William Barnum, Jr., a partner at Brentwood and co-founder of the firm’s private equity effort. "Furthermore, we believe the company’s retail strategy represents a significant growth opportunity and an additional path to deeper brand penetration."


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Washington: A Pakistani man has been arrested and charged in connection with a scheme to illegally export nuclear-related materials to his home country from the United States, the Justice Department said on Wednesday.
Nadeem Akhtar, 45, of Silver Spring, Maryland, was indicted on a charge of conspiracy to illegally export restricted goods and technology to a nuclear power plant and a research commission in Pakistan.
"The indictment alleges that Nadeem Akhtar conspired to violate export regulations by selling controlled items while misrepresenting what they were and to whom they would be sold," said US Attorney Rod J Rosenstein.
Akhtar, who owns a company called Computer Communication USA, was accused of illegally exporting radiation detection devices, resins for coolant water purification and other materials.
"This arrest is the product of a vigorous, cooperative joint-agency investigation focused on denying and disrupting the illegal export of controlled nuclear technology destined for Pakistan," said Eric L Hirschhorn, Under Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Security.
Akhtar faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison for conspiracy to commit export violations and to defraud the US; a maximum of 20 years in prison for unlawful export of goods; and a maximum of 20 years in prison for conspiracy to commit money laundering.
(With PTI inputs)


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Number of warehouses Lifting Gear Hire Corp., Bridgeview, Ill., has opened in the United States, following the recent completion of a new warehouse in Columbus, Ohio. The company says the new warehouse will provide faster equipment rental turnaround times for customers in and around the Ohio Valley area.
Percentage net sales increase reported by The Toro Co., Bloomington, Minn., for the first nine months to $1.62 billion. The company’s fiscal third quarter sales increased 0.6 percent to $504.1 million. Michael Hoffman, Toro’s chairman and CEO, said the company anticipated a slowdown in the second half of the fiscal year, but “what we didn’t predict was the worst drought in over 50 years. We were still able to deliver favorable third quarter results in comparison to last year, but the combined impact of economic and weather conditions resulted in additional slowing of retail momentum and an increase in field inventory.”
Number of people needed to properly change a light bulb on portable light towers from Doosan Portable Power, Statesville, N.C. The person also should wear a pair of gloves, as grease, oil and salt — often present on hands and fingers — can adversely affect bulb life and performance. More about “How to Change a Bulb in a Doosan Portable Power Light Tower” is available online as a product video at doosanportablepower.com.
First-quarter revenue for Sunbelt Rentals, Fort Mill, S.C., up 17 percent. The company said 13 percent of the growth came from utilization of a larger fleet and 4 percent from improved rental rates.
Investment made by Caterpillar in its new state-of-the-art hydraulic excavator facility in Victoria, Texas. When operating at full capacity, the 1.1 million-sq.-ft. operation is designed to triple Caterpillar’s hydraulic excavator capacity and production in the United States.
Value of an asset-based credit facility for Acme Lift Co., Mesa, Ariz., from GE Capital, Norwalk, Conn. The loan will be used by Acme Lift to refinance existing debt and support future growth.
Percentage increase in second quarter revenues to $410.1 million for Titan Machinery, West Fargo, N.D. All four of the company’s revenue sources — equipment, parts, service and rental — contributed to the period-over-period revenue growth.


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With the coronavirus pandemic drawing attention to antimicrobial and antibacterial textiles, Nylon 6.6 manufacturer Nilit announced results that it says show its Sensil BodyFresh fabric demonstrating a significant reduction in viral activity.
The 51-year-old Israeli company said it received confirmation from Microbe Investigations AG, a microbiological testing services lab, that fabric made with Sensil BodyFresh reduced viral activity by 99.85 percent when tested according to ISO 18184:2019 criteria against Betacoronavirus 1 (OC43). The manufacturer said the additive embedded in the Sensil BodyFresh yarn provides long-lasting protection that does not deteriorate with laundering.
An enveloped, positive-sense, single-stranded RNA virus, Betacoronavirus 1 (OC43) can cause the common cold. It is different from SARS-CoV-2, which causes the disease Covid-19. Both viruses belong to the betacoronavirus genus.
“We originally developed Sensil BodyFresh with antibacterial and anti-odor properties to provide consumers with outstanding freshness,” Sagee Aran, head of global marketing at Nilit, said in a statement. “With these proven antiviral test results, our business partners can expand their Sensil BodyFresh product concepts beyond comfort and aesthetics to include enhanced protection and a positive sense of well-being.”
Sensil BodyFresh is currently used by apparel brands across many segments, including intimates and underwear, base layer, activewear and legwear. It is made at Nilit’s water- and energy-optimized facilities and meets Nilit’s Total Product Sustainability guidelines for long-lasting products.
“Consumers today appreciate long-lasting, environmentally responsible, multifunctional apparel,” Aran continued. “Sensil BodyFresh offers numerous performance factors that include sustainability and well-being attributes for today’s current climate.”
Nilit manufactures a broad portfolio of sustainable Sensil nylon products that address water preservation, energy-use reduction, pollution elimination, biodegradability and increased use of recycled inputs.
As part of its sustainability efforts, Nilit has introduced a cogeneration power plant on-site at its primary manufacturing facility in Migdal HaEmek in Israel. Using natural gas as the fuel source, the plant produces cogeneration steam. According to Nilit, this steam is able to lower the use of natural gas by up to 75 percent, while also reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 40 percent.


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US: FiatChrysler could bring "fun" cars to US
A tie-up between Chrysler and Fiat, as announced earlier this week, could "bring a whole new batch of fun to drive, fuel-efficient and environmentally friendly cars to [US] shores," according to an Edmunds.com editor.
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Apple expected to show new iPhone at event next week
Mon., Aug. 29, 2016
SAN FRANCISCO – Apple is expected to show off a new iPhone next week when the company holds its fall product launch event in San Francisco.
The tech giant announced the date for the Sept. 7 launch by sending out invitations to technology journalists and industry analysts on Monday.
Apple didn’t provide any details, in keeping with its usual practice, but it traditionally announces one or two new iPhone models at its annual September event. Apple may also show new models or features for other products like the Apple Watch or Macbook computer.
The Cupertino, California, company sold more than 214 million iPhones over the last 12 months. But sales are down from a year ago, and analysts will be watching closely to see what changes Apple has made in the newest models.
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For those interested in secure mobile data platforms, there has been a steady stream of discouraging news from this year's DEF CON security conference. Whether eavesdropping on GSM phone calls, a Google Android phone app that snags sensitive data and sends it to China, or the 14 percent of free Apple (AAPL) iPhone apps designed to gain access to a user's contact data, it's a discouraging roundup.
Combine with other news on the mobile security front, and you've got to wonder whether relying on smartphones is yet a smart move for consumers or corporations. There are too many holes that -- probably sooner than later -- will turn into some consumer security meltdown that will take a lot of trust and commerce with it.
The most glaring example was the Android wallpaper app from Jackeey Wallpaper that collects the device phone number, subscriber identifier, and voicemail number, packs it up, and sends it to some web site whose owner is in Shenzhen, China. Mobile security firm Lookout found the problem. Although Lookout says that that nothing malicious appears to have been done, it's questionable behavior.
This should be no comfort to the iPhone crowd. Not only do a lot of iPhone apps have access to users' contact data -- often with the consumers having no idea -- but there are some other problems that make the device a disaster waiting to happen. According to a number of security and iPhone developer sources, the device saves virtually everything someone enters on the keyboard for upwards of a year. According to Jonathan Zdziarski, consultant and author of iPhone Forensics, the data includes "usernames, passwords, search terms, and historical fragments of typed communication."
In theory, Apple would block any app that used the necessary internal API calls to gain access to the cache. However, a hacker could in theory find a security exploit and weave it into the code in such a way that it wouldn't be obvious to Apple. Last month, the Handy Light app, approved by Apple, turned out to offer stealth tethering on AT&T (T) without paying the carrier's $20-a-month fee.
Do I think that mobile is a big component of high tech's future? Absolutely. But it's already starting to sound like a bad day before the invention of antivirus software.
- Apple and Other Tech Firms Must Fix Customer Security Glitches
- Hackers Jail Break Apple's Security Image
- AT&T Says Oops! Hacking Becomes Mobile's Soft Underbelly
- Who Profits If Mobile Networks Have A Security Meltdown?
- iTunes Fraud Shows that Apple Is an Unsuccessful Control Freak


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Join Date: Feb 2001
Location: The Hills of North Georgia,USA
Mazda to reduce U.S. inventories to 90 days or less
Thursday, April 10, 2003
Global Automotive Report
By Detroit News staff reports, Bloomberg News and wire services
TOKYO -- Mazda Motor Corp., one-third owned by Ford Motor Co., plans to reduce its inventories in the U.S. to 90 days or less as the company offers more competitive leasing prices, Mazda President Lewis Booth said Thursday.
"We've really struggled since the back end of last year; our sales have been disappointing," said Booth in an interview. "I want to be at 90 days or below, and sooner rather than later," he said, declining to be specific on the timing.
Mazda, Japan's fifth-largest automaker, has about 105 days worth of inventories in the U.S which are mainly Mazda6 sedans, Booth said. Sales of the model, released in late December 2002, stumbled initially because the company's leasing prices weren't as competitive as those of rivals such as Honda Motor Co.'s Accord sedan and Toyota Motor Corp.'s Camry, Booth said.
Mazda, which relies on North America for more than a third of its sales and has 1.4 percent of that market, is fighting to win new customers and compete against larger rivals with its first new model in the market in two years as larger U.S.-based rivals add incentives and demand falters. Mazda's sales in the world's largest auto market have dropped 4.7 percent since January.
"High inventory leads to higher incentives, so in order for Mazda to improve quality of sales, it needs to better control its inventory levels," said Kurt Sanger, an analyst at ING Securities Japan Ltd. "We would like to see Mazda closer to the industry average (of about 60 days) over the next quarter."
Mazda's incentives in the U.S. average about $2,000 a vehicle, compared with larger rival Honda, which said it budgeted for about $200 a car in the January to March quarter.
My first car was a 67 Mustang Coupe, 2nd one was a 67 Cougar XR-7, 3rd one was a 66 Mustang Coupe. Why did I get rid of these cars for ? I know why, because I'm stupid, stupid, stupid.
My next Ford.....