text:
Corri Smith and Garrett Tichy took it a step further.
Enter Support Local or Else (SLOE), a website dedicated to showcasing local businesses, deals and how to support them. Smith, founder of PR and marketing consultancy Black Wednesday, and Tichy, owner of Hygge coworking and co-owner of That’s Novel Books, created the site as a freeway for local businesses to engage with people to garner support.
“I have been stressed to the max, and I know I’m in good company,” Smith said. “Black Wednesday has lost clients, restaurants are shutting down, stores are closing. Small businesses are suffering.”
Smith said she first came up with the idea over the weekend. The name was chosen as “or else” because it has “historically been a threat, or a bad omen, meaning there will be consequences, and it’s true,” Smith said. “I, myself have a sort of offbeat character, as does Black Wednesday; so it’s a little dark, but it’s real.
“Everyone has been in his/her own crisis mode and operating in their own silos. I was trying to come up with a way to bring things into one place so people could get a bigger picture of how to help,” she said.
PROMOTION, DEAL OR WAY TO SUPPORT
Local businesses can submit a form through the site to be listed as soon as it’s received. All that’s required is that the business has a promotion, deal or way for people to support them remotely or in the future.
Smith teamed up with Tichy, her good friend, as soon as she came up with the idea on Sunday.
“I asked [Tichy] his recommendation on how to build a site. No questions asked, he had a site up within a few hours,” Smith said. “We’ve been working diligently to spread the word and, more tediously, upload the listings as they come in.”
“I like to move quickly when there’s an opportunity to do something impactful and when it’s working alongside awesome people,” Tichy said. “I’ve known Corri a long time, and she has an incredible track record for executing at 100%, so partnering up was an easy decision. Then, considering everything that’s happening, it seemed like the least we could do to support a ton of businesses through this.”
“We want this to be as robust as possible during a time when they/we/I need all the support they/we/I can get,” Smith said. “We already have brands like Sycamore, Girl Tribe, Bardo, Glory Days Apparel and UpDog Kombucha listed, with more coming in.”
Smith said local businesses are being affected by more than just a loss of sales.
“They are laying off staff, pushing loyal team members into their own dilemmas; they may lose those people forever,” she said.
On top of that, businesses will lose money, not just projected revenue, while still covering overhead costs.
“They are losing whatever savings they have, having to use liquid funds or worse, loans to backfill their resources,” Smith said. “Some businesses will close entirely, especially newer ones that haven’t hit their sweet spot of business operations and revenue-building to have funds to endure the loss of a business.”
She warns that these small businesses will feel the effects for the next 12-18 months and beyond.
So far, the feedback has been overwhelmingly positive.
“I’m grateful that people care, appreciate it and are actually using it as a resource,” Tichy said. “Building a thing isn’t difficult, but getting people to engage it can be challenging. Turns out, people are using it, which is huge.”
“Most small businesses are operating at a marketing budget of $0, so to have an additional platform in SLOE to point to them is helpful,” Smith said. “We are seeing lots of submissions, lots of traffic on the site and businesses telling us they are making money off the site. It’s so so so exciting.”
Local businesses agree.
original article via Charlotte Observer


text:
High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC), also known as H.265, promises twice the compression possible with Blu-ray’s best video compression methods. But how does it work, and is it enough to get us better-looking 4K content?
As HTC's smartphone line sputtered -- and the Beats addition did little to spur sales -- it became clear that both companies needed out.
Few budget speakers look or sound this good, says the Audiophiliac.
The H.265 video standard, aka HEVC or MPEG-5, squeezes more pixels over a network connection to support new high-resolution 4K TVs. Broadcom's chip supports both and is due to arrive in volume next year.
The next-gen video compression technology shrinks video by 40 to 45 percent compared to today's prevailing H.264. But encoding H.265 video takes a long time right now.
The Chinese company has reported a 29 per cent quarterly profit jump as it increases it share of the PC market.
Did you know that Dave Chappelle was in a "Home Improvement" spinoff sitcom in the 1990s? All of the episodes are on YouTube right now, and we'll trace its history on today's 404 episode.
In a blog post today, Tesla revealed that that under the EPA's new five-cycle testing procedure, the top-end Model S achieved a range of 265 miles.
No 3D printer is perfect yet, but the Afinia H-Series H479 3D printer is the most approachable model we've reviewed, and we'd recommend it to anyone serious about getting started with 3D printing.
Now that HTC's flagship has been unveiled, we break down the differences between the One M8 and its original One predecessor.

domain: news


text:
The rush to replace old PCs is going to drive strong sales in the global PC market for 2004, according to the latest preliminary second-quarter figures from Gartner.
The market watcher claimed more than 100 million PCs will be replaced this year, boosting worldwide unit shipments to 186.4 million, a 13.6 per cent jump from 2003. The company also forecast that 120 million PCs will be replaced in 2005.
The combined total of PCs replaced will surpass the number of systems replaced in 1998 and 1999, in the run-up to the year 2000, the research firm claimed.
Until the latter half of 2003, the PC market had been limping along as businesses repeatedly postponed upgrading their old PCs because of the economic downturn.
Now, thanks to new versions of Windows and support contracts running out on old operating systems, businesses are having no choice but to scrap their old PCs.
"Our Q1 results suggest the year 2000 replacement cycle that vendors have been anticipating for more than a year is under way," said George Shiffler, principal analyst for client platform research at Gartner.
"More than 30 per cent of installed PCs are now at least three years old. Many are using older Windows operating systems that are no longer supported or are about to lose full technical support. Expiring support will play a significant role in driving PC replacements in the future."
John Turner, business manager at Midwich, said: "There is some truth in the claim that the PC replacement cycle is boosting sales. The first three months of 2004 were very busy, but it's been much quieter in April and May. Typically these are shorter trading months, thanks to bank holidays.
June will be a big month, though. We are experiencing record notebook sales this year, which indicates some companies are replacing those old desktops with notebooks."
Infrastructure provider says international sales now make up 51 per cent of its revenue
Suzanne Chappell of TMS plans sailing venture after selling Oxfordshire-based TMS to acquisitive Chess
Withdrawal of credit insurance by some providers a 'reflection' of current challenge facing IT sector, according to MD Steve Soper
SMART's UK managing director joins Lenovo to boost SMB business


text:
Rising fuel costs is the biggest issue hauliers and logistics operators in the East Midlands believe they will face in 2018, an online survey by Route4 Solutions has found.
Thirty-one per cent of respondents cited this as their main issue in the poll, conducted by the temporary driver recruitment specialists.
Most argued that the rising price of a barrel of oil and a weaker pound as the reason why wholesale fuel costs had increased.
The survey found 'pay increases' was the second biggest issue within the sector, with 25% reporting that increased wages and increased costs of maintaining vehicles would likely lead to a less profitable financial performance.
The third most highlighted issue was a lack of drivers, with 18% saying that this had led to a decrease in the amount of deliveries they were able to make.
Mike Harris, managing director of Route4 Solutions, said: “With the rising cost of oil, it is hardly surprising to see that rising fuel costs is considered to be the biggest issue that will impact on hauliers and logistics operators.
"This issue may force businesses to start to think about how alternative fuels and electric vehicles may be able to ease the pain of a costly fuel bill.
"Switching to alternative fuels might just be the way to achieve a competitive advantage, since the price of oil isn’t predicted to depreciate any time soon.”


text:
The Belarusian Oil Company (BNK) has resumed supplies of oil products to Russia since October 1, the company’s Deputy Director General Sergei Kamornikov said on Wednesday, TASS writes.
“The supplies of Belarusian oil products to the Russian Federation have been resumed. Sales are carried out by BNK in cooperation with a subsidiary in Smolensk,” he said, as quoted by the Belarusian portal tut.by. According to him, on October 1-5 alone, Belarus sold to Russia over 25,000 tonnes of diesel fuel produced by the Mozyr Oil Refinery and Naftan.
“All adjustments (premium to international prices – TASS) are higher than those for supplies to the Ukrainian market,” Kamornikov said.
According to him, by the end of the year, BNK sees the possibility of supplying about 50,000 tonnes of oil products to Russia every month. Kamornikov explained that the relatively small volume is explained by BNK’s long-term supply obligations to Ukraine, Poland and the Baltic countries.
“In general, this is a market process, if there is demand – we are ready to supply more to Russia,” he said.
Earlier it was reported that Russia introduced a temporary ban on fuel imports from June 2 to October 1 in order to support Russian oil refiners. In 2019, Belarus exported 10.5 million tonnes of oil products.


text:
3:06 PM A Perth magistrate has been taken off a case because she Googled information about it during a trial.
Caitlin Dewey 11:32 AM If 2013 was "the year of the viral hoax," what then should we call 2014 - a year slightly older, slightly wiser, and even more full of moronic shenanigans?
Hannah Francis Telstra admits to processing errors that left some customers without landlines or internet.
Brian X. Chen A jury has decided that Apple did not use software to block songs sold by competing music stores from playing on the iPod so that it could secure a monopoly over the digital music market.
Ben Grubb Telstra has paid a penalty of $102,000 following the issue of an infringement notice by the competition regulator in relation to a recent iPhone 6 advertisement.
Ben Grubb Taxi and private hire car app Uber will offer free rides out of Sydney's CBD on Monday following criticism for charging passengers more than four times the usual rate while a siege is underway at Martin Place and the city is in lockdown.
Hannah Francis More Pirate Bay replicas pop up, but the official site is nowhere to be seen.
David Barboza Chinese manufacturers are expected to export more than 300 million e-cigarettes this year, but initial confusion over how to categorise the new products means there is virtually no regulatory oversight of a chaotic industry rife with counterfeiting.
Amy Corderoy Bedrooms are supposed to be a place of temptation. But it seems Australians are succumbing to a temptation of a different kind, with almost half of us unable to resist the urge to take laptops and other electronic devices into bed with us - setting ourselves up for a bad night's sleep.
Matthew Knott While measures can be taken against online pirates, experts warn there will be consequences.
Eric Auchard Google said it plans to close its news-linking service in Spain in response to legislation under which publishers will soon be able to force internet sites to pay for re-publishing headlines or snippets of news.
Women in tech
Hannah Francis Software engineering is about to face a serious skills shortage, and Tracy Chou knows where to find the right candidates.
Hannah Francis The Pirate Bay co-founder Peter Sunde has declared it "feels good" the site may have been shut down forever as a result of Tuesday's police raid in Sweden.
Relatively few Australians use Twitter, but the almost entirely public platform often serves as a microcosm for the conversations that are moving Australians.
Tim Biggs Changes coming to Facebook-owned photo-sharing service as Twitter finds itself under attack from all sides.
Matthew Knott, Ben Grubb The Abbott government has issued an ultimatum to internet providers to reach an agreement with film and music companies on tackling online piracy within four months.


text:
Alienware has revealed the Concept UFO at CES 2020, which is a Nintendo Switch-like portable Windows 10 PC. The Concept UFO, like the Switch, has detachable controllers as well as a dock which means it can be hooked up to a TV monitor. These detachable controllers can either be used separately or can be slide into a grid to make it a single joypad.
As revealed in a post by The Verge, the Concept UFO has USB-C ports on the top and bottom.
These can be used to either charge the device or connect it to an external monitor.
And seeing as the Alienware portable device is running Windows 10, these ports can also connect to keyboards or mouses.
The fact that the Concept UFO runs Windows 10 also opens up the portable PC to a huge library of possible games.
- Sony new 4K and 8K TVs offering something for everyone
The idea of playing graphics heavy games such as Red Dead Redemption 2 or Cyberpunk 2077 on the go sounds amazing.
But at the moment Alienware has not talked about the hardware behind the Concept UFO.
So it’s unclear whether it would have the grunt to play such games.
Games that were seen loaded up onto the Alienware Concept UFO include Mortal Kombat 11, F1 2019, World War Z and Rocket League.
Also, seeing as it’s just a concept right now, it is unclear whether the Concept UFO will end up going on sale, and if so whether there will be any big changes.
If you’re interested in the Concept UFO then Alienware are set to reveal more in a big live stream from CES.
Announcing the news the Alienware Twitter posted: “We’re always pushing what’s possible in the realm of gaming.
“Introducing our newest gaming innovation, #ConceptUFO.
“Watch the official unveiling on Jan. 7 at 10 a.m. PST. #CES2020”.
If you’re interested in watching the stream which officially unveils the Alienware Concept UFO then click here.
This Dell stream will be kicking off at 6pm UK time today.
• Stay tuned to Express.co.uk for more gaming news and reviews
Source: Read Full Article


text:
Those who wait will miss out.
The C8 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray got off to a rough start. First, there was the five-week-long UAW strike in September 2019. Once that was settled, the coronavirus pandemic struck and continues to wreak havoc to this day. The waitlist for a new C8 continues to grow and the Bowling Green, Kentucky, plant is doing its best to fulfill these orders, despite supplier issues. Many customers who've placed orders are still waiting for delivery. And if you intend to buy one for the upcoming 2022 model year, then you'd better act now.
According to the Corvette Action Center, dealers across the country are reporting they have received the first round of allocation figures. While some dealers are saying their allocation numbers are greater than expected, others are shocked at how low they are.
This initial production round is currently slated to get underway the week of September 27. Unlike for the 2020 and 2021 model years, Chevy is not basing a dealer's C8 allocation on its previous three-year Corvette sales period. Instead, the number is being calculated based on a dealer's 12-month rolling Corvette sales.
The automaker is moving to what's called an "Available Days' Supply" (ADS) allocation methodology that eliminates the need for any special allocation guides. Unfortunately, this new method could result in some dealers receiving fewer new Vettes because the formula takes into account sales figures from June 2020 through June 2021.
That 12-month period wasn't exactly the best time for dealerships due to lockdowns. Even those who were able to open could not always conduct business normally as they often had difficulty receiving Certificates of Origin from GM and getting new cars registered and insured for their customers. Sometimes this resulted in sold C8s having to sit on a dealership's lot longer than they normally would.
The bottom line here is that C8 inventory will differ from dealer to dealer, and each Chevy store surely has a waitlist. Those who don't place an order soon may have no choice but to wait until 2023.


text:
Amid all of the chaos caused by the virtual collapse of Telltale Games, the future of the company’s flagship Walking Dead series has been up in the air.
Now though, we’ve got some clarity, with a tweet by the owners of the franchise stating that they will be finishing and publishing the final season internally.
We’re SO happy to announce that we’ve reached a deal with @telltalegames that will allow Skybound to continue #TheWalkingDead: The Final Season! Let’s wrap up Clem’s story right! More details to come soon. pic.twitter.com/ShyREw65iq
— Skybound Games (@skyboundgames) October 7, 2018
Skybound Games may not be a household name, being the recently established game development arm of Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman’s company, Skybound Entertainment, but a tweet by its head of publishing Ian Howe suggested that the intention is to hire the original dev team to complete the series. “We don’t believe the game can be properly completed by anyone other than members of the original team,” he said.
It’s news that’s sure to make gamers across the world very happy, and should give recently fired Telltale staff members the chance to sign off with a flourish.
No release date was given, with Skybound Games only saying that more information would be coming soon.


text:
Nike Celebrates Oppression of Women – Promotes “Hijabi Ballers” in New Ad
Nike Toronto celebrated the oppression of women in a new ad by promoting “Hijabi Ballers.”
“Don’t change who you are. Change the world.” Nike says as it promotes Sharia law. So, enslave the entire world under Sharia law?
“By starting @HijabiBallers, it was about changing that narrative of Muslim women – celebrating their athleticism and giving opportunities to Muslim female athletes to grow as athletes and not having to give up their faith to do that.” #justdoit – Nike said in its caption with a picture of oppressed Muslim women wearing hijabs.
Hijabi Ballers is a Toronto-based non-profit organization “celebrating and increasing the involvement of Muslim females in sports.”
Who needs the Muslim Brotherhood and ISIS spreading the caliphate across the world when Nike does it for them?
Nike is openly promoting Sharia law.
Previously, Nike promoted Muslim Olympic fencer Ibtihaj Muhammad asserting, “The Nike pro hijab goes global.”
Both Nike and Sports Illustrated Swimsuit are now promoting the oppression of women in the name of “diversity.” Let that sink in.


text:
The two companies aim to carve out a piece of the market encompassing service providers that are rushing to expand their cloud architecture implementations as well as businesses pursuing the in the hosting-as-a-service models.
The non-equity joint venture, in the form of a strategic commercial agreement, will take effect on May 1. Pricing details on the products will be announced at a later date.
The partnership will bring together Foxconn’s supply chain expertise and HP server technology. Foxconn is a multinational electronics contract manufacturer best known for turning out products including BlackBerry handsets, Apple’s iPhone, iPad and iPod as well as Kindle tablets, Xbox, Playstation and Wii game consoles.
“This partnership reflects business model innovation in our server business, where the high-volume design and manufacturing expertise of Foxconn, combined with the compute and service leadership of HP, will enable us to deliver a game changing offering in infrastructure economic,” said Meg Whitman, chief executive officer of HP, in a statement.
The servers will be designed to meet the compute requirement of “the world’s largest service providers” to deliver, low cost of ownership, scale and service and support. The move towards cloud-based delivery models such as infrastructure as a service is expected to bolster 15 to 20 per cent growth in servers used for hosting between 2013 and 2018, according to latest estimates by analyst group IDC.
“Cloud computing is radically changing the entire supply chain for the server market as customers place new demands on the breath of design capability, value-oriented solutions and large-scale and global manufacturing capabilities,” said Terry Gou, founder and chairman of Foxconn.


text:
Martinez: Cruz, GOP are on the wrong side of net neutrality
It hasn’t even been two weeks, and the Republican Party is already hard at work alienating young voters. After talk of policies that would increase the cost of college and opposing major progress on global carbon reduction, the GOP is now circling the wagons against another issue our generation cares about: net neutrality. And who’s leading the charge? Our own senator, Ted Cruz.
According to the Pew Research Center, 98 percent of people under 30 years old use the Internet. It’s essential. Sure, we use it in our personal lives to keep up with friends or watch TV, but it’s also a key way to interact with the economy. From shopping online to taking online courses to creating our own startups, young people are inextricably linked to the realities of a digital age.
This is why net neutrality is so important. Net neutrality is a simple concept — everyone should have access to the same Internet, period. By doing this, the playing field has been leveled. It’s great for consumers, innovators and others who have new products and ideas. The smallest tech company can have the same access to the Internet as the largest tech behemoth. This has put technological innovation within reach of anyone who has access to a computer.
But this principal of an open, free internet is now at risk from those who want to give cable companies and big corporations an advantage over your average consumer. As anyone who’s spent a few hours on the phone with their cable company knows, Internet is provided largely by corporations. As a way to make an extra buck, these companies could provide arbitrary “fast lanes,” which would require payment of a large fee, and are always looking to think of other ways to charge for extra service.
The result would be higher costs to start many kinds of services that use the Internet, and a big leg up for huge companies to build on their existing advantages at the expense of the little guy. Big firms, with a broader set of resources, could offer services that smaller startups wouldn’t be able to afford. Small businesses, local media outlets, new startups, streaming services like Netflix, or colleges offering online courses would have to choose between raising costs on consumers like you or tolerating slower Internet speeds. By letting service providers slow down or speed up traffic to a website, we’re letting your cable company pick winners and losers.
That’s why this week President Obama and Democrats lined up to support a free and open Internet. President Obama called for the FCC to classify broadband Internet as a utility like electricity. This broader regulatory power would allow you to access any Internet content you want without fear of your cable company manipulating your access. This is both common sense and crucially important to a generation focused on innovation, solutions and making sure everyone has a fair shot to get ahead.
It should be disappointing, though not particularly surprising, that Ted Cruz and the Republican Party have come out against it. They’ve claimed they don’t want Internet to work at the speed of government – which this wouldn’t do – when really what they are advocating is for the internet to work at the mercy of your cable company. No thanks. Their opposition speaks volumes about who they’re looking out for, but perhaps the more than $50,000 that Ted Cruz has taken from Internet Service Providers speaks louder. While Democrats are focusing on making sure that everyone has a chance to take risks, innovate and get ahead in an online economy, Republicans are lining up for your cable company.
While Republicans focus on your cable company’s freedom to decide how you use the Internet and charge more fees, they’re highlighting how out of touch they are with our generation. We want a fair shot to succeed, we want to know the rules aren’t stacked against us, and we want pragmatic solutions to problems, whether they come from inside the government or outside. This is a clear example of a way to foster innovation by making sure everyone has an equal shot at success. If Republicans want to stay in the corner of big telecoms, that’s their choice. But with the GOP set to take over the Senate, it’s abundantly clear who they’re fighting for, and it’s certainly not us.


text:
The NRA reports their index is down again but operators keep spending. Buffalo Wild Wings will curtail expansion in areas with a high minimum wage. The NRA challenges New York State’s increase in minimum wage at fast food operations. McDonald’s chops menu choices to accommodate its all-day breakfast program. A dozen major chains report comparable-store sales. These stories and a whole lot more This Week in Foodservice.
The National Restaurant Association reported that the Restaurant Performance Index slid for the second month in a row in September. But the Index was down just 0.1 percent and stayed in expansion territory at 101.4. The NRA pointed out that this is the 31st consecutive month that the foodservice industry has expanded.
The Current Situation Index was down 0.1 percent to 101.3 primarily due to a decline in same-store sales. Traffic was actually up a point.
Operators’ outlook for the future remained soft with the Expectations Index dropping by 0.2 percent to 101.4. Only 35 percent of operators expect their sales to be higher in the next 6 months, which is the lowest number in 2 years.
Even with the major numbers falling operators keep spending. Sixty-six percent of those surveyed stated they had made a major expenditure for expansion, remodeling and/or equipment in the last 3 months. This is an increase over the 63 percent of operators who reported in August they had made such an investment. It is also the 12th straight month the majority of operators report they had made a capital expenditure.
As for future spending, 62 percent said they are planning expenditures for equipment, expansion or remodeling in the next 6 months. This is an increase over the August report when 60 percent were planning an investment.
While everyone in foodservice would like to see more robust growth, operators appear to remain confident enough to spend their hard earned funds to improve their businesses.
Economic News This Week
- Gross domestic product grew by 1.5 percent in the third quarter according to the Commerce Department’s advance estimate. This is a significant drop from the 3.9 percent increase in the second quarter of this year. The report shows once again how mediocre the economy is and how slow the recovery has been from the recession.
- Personal income increased 0.1 percent in September, the smallest increase since March. The Bureau of Economic Analysis also reported that personal spending increased 0.1 percent while the personal savings rate rose to 4.8 percent, up from 4.9 percent in August.
- Initial jobless claims rose just 1,000 to 260,000 in the week ending October 24 according to the Department of Labor. The 4-week moving average of claims fell by 4,000 to 259,250. This is the smallest number of claims filed since December 15, 1973.
- Durable goods orders fell 1.2 percent according to the Census Bureau’s Advance Report for September. Durable goods orders were pulled down significantly by a decline in the transportation segment. Without transportation orders, durable goods orders would have been down 0.4 percent. Without defense orders, durable goods orders would have been down 2 percent. Durable goods shipments were up 0.2 percent while unfilled orders were down 0.6 percent. New orders for capital goods – goods that are used to manufacture other goods – were down 7.6 percent excluding orders in the defense segment.
- The Chicago Business Barometer was up sharply in October rising 7.5 points to 56.2. (Any reading over 50 indicates increasing business activity.) Driving the index was an almost 20 point jump in the production index to 63.4. New orders also rose significantly.
- The Conference Board’s Consumer Confidence Index declined 5.0 points in October and now stands at 97.6. The Present Situation Index fell sharply to 112.1 from 120.3 in September while the Expectations Index edged down from 90.8 in September to 88.0 in October.
- The University of Michigan Index of Consumer Sentiment rose 2.8 Points to 90.0 in October. The index has averaged 93.1 so far this year, which is higher than any year since 2005 when the average for the year was 95.2. The Current Economic Conditions Index rose to 102.3, up from 101.2 in September while the Index of Consumer Expectations increased to 82.1 from October’s reading of 78.2. The report stated September’s rise was the result of increasing confidence among lower income households.
Foodservice News This Week
- BWW CEO says no expansion in areas with high minimum wages. Sally Smith, CEO of Buffalo Wild Wings, told the Wall Street Journal that the chain will not add locations in Seattle, San Francisco or Los Angeles, all areas that have raised their minimum wage to $15 an hour or are in the process of doing so. Ms. Smith raised the question of youth unemployment, noting that they are taking a chance on hiring a 17-year-old who has never had a job and they have to pay $15 an hour.
- The National Restaurant Association joins fight against New York State $15 an hour wage for fast food employees. In their appeal to the Industrial Board of Appeals, the NRA called the decision by the acting labor commissioner “blatant executive overreach” and pointed out that the board that passed the rule did not include a representative from the foodservice industry. Regardless of what happens with the appeal, there is a high probability that the matter will end up in court.
- McDonald’s all-day breakfast changed the company’s entire menu. McD’s dropped seven menu items to make room for all-day breakfast and is in the process of phasing out seven more. McDonald’s CEO said that other slow-moving items will probably be removed as well.
- TGI Fridays sold 49 restaurants to Gold Coast Holdings. The restaurants are in the Boston, Philadelphia, New Jersey, and Upstate New York. Fridays’ management announced that their refranchising effort is ahead of schedule and the chain is now 90 percent franchised.
- Newk’s Eatery unveiled a new design featuring neutral materials, floor details, pendant lighting, and plush upholstery. The first restaurant with the new design will be in Lafayette, Louisiana, with a second set to open in Cary, N.C., later this year.
- Del Taco will close 12 Texas locations for “financial reasons” but did not explain why the chain will leave one location open in Ft. Worth.
- The Manitowoc Company reported foodservice equipment sales rose 2.0 percent in the firm’s last quarter.
- Corporate Stirrings: Darden Restaurants has sold its corporate headquarters for $133 million, which will go toward paying down the company’s debt. While the building originally cost $152 million, the deal includes leasing the property back to Darden. Peet’s Coffee & Tea has acquired a majority stake in Intelligentsia Coffee, which operates 10 coffee bars across the US.
- Growth Chains: Johnny Rockets, driving to increase the chain’s international business, announced agreements for a total of 49 restaurants in Italy, Paraguay and Canada. Wayback Burger has signed an agreement for 6 locations in Brunei and possibly more in that country and surrounding countries. Chick-fil-A will open a restaurant in Washington D.C. with 3 to 5 more to open in the next 5 years. Dunkin’ Donut announced a multi-unit development agreement for 13 stores in North and South Carolina over the next few years. Culver’s will open 24 new units in Georgia and North Carolina.
- Comparable-store sales reports: Applebee’s down 0.5 percent, Arby’s up 9.6 percent, Buffalo Wild Wings (company-owned up 3.9 percent and franchised up 1.2 percent), Burger King up 5.3 percent, CEC Entertainment up 0.7 percent, Fiesta Restaurant Group (Pollo Tropical up 4.1 percent and Taco Cabana up 4.8 percent), IHOP up 5.8 percent, Luby’s (all concepts up 0.7 percent, Luby’s Cafeteria up 0.2 percent, Fuddrucker’s up 1.7 percent, Cheeseburger in Paradise up 2.8 percent and combo units up 2.4 percent), Panera Bread (system 2. percent, company-owned up 3.8 percent, and franchised up 1.8 percent), Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse up 3.3 percent, Starbucks up 9.0 percent, and Tim Horton’s up 4.3 percent.
For details and same-store sales of other chains, please click here for the Green Sheet.


text:
Russia has increased its oil product exports by 7 percent to 16.939m tons worth $3.484bn in the first quarter of 2003, compared to the corresponding period of 2002, the State Customs Committee reported. Some 16.427m tons of oil products totaling $3.389bn were exported outside the CIS and 512,600 tons worth $97.2m were exported to the CIS.
Gasoline exports in the reported period were 1.034m tons worth $242.9m, including 917,500 tons worth $224.3m outside the CIS, which was a 48 percent increase.
Diesel fuel exports were 7.537m tons totaling $1.875bn in the first three months of 2003. Furnace oil exports amounted to 6.596m tons worth $918.8m in the reported period.
The Armed Forces of Ukraine suffered losses while trying to land troops on the territory of the Crimean peninsula, Andrei Yusov, a spokesman for the Main Intelligence Directorate of the republic said


text:
Senators Call for Investigation into E-Cigarette Cancer Risks
Eight U.S. senators are calling on the FDA to impose stronger restrictions on electronic cigarettes, after new research suggests that some e-cigarettes can produce harmful chemicals similar to those released by traditional cigarettes.
Senators issued a letter to the FDA yesterday, asking the agency to recognize two new studies that highlight the harmful byproducts of e-cigarettes.
The letter calls on the FDA to consider the secondhand smoke dangers of e-cigarettes, which may release harmful toxins to others around the user who are not aware of the danger.
Did You Know?
Millions of Philips CPAP Machines Recalled
Philips DreamStation, CPAP and BiPAP machines sold in recent years may pose a risk of cancer, lung damage and other injuries.Learn More
The effort, spearheaded by Massachusetts Senator Edward J. Markey, was also backed by Senators Sherrod Brown, Barbara Boxer, Jeff Merkley, Jack Reed, Richard Blumenthal, Tom Harkin and Dick Durbin.
The two studies the group of senators highlight describe the many harmful chemicals which may be released in the vapor of e-cigarettes, including formaldehyde and other potential carcinogens. The studies dispel the idea that e-cigarettes contain less toxins than regular cigarettes, as a myth.
The letter urges the FDA to recognize the potential impact e-cigarettes may have on the health of users and secondhand inhalers. It also asks the agency to consider the findings of the studies when creating regulatory standards for the e-cigarette market, which has doubled in sales every year since 2010.
“These products put at risk not only adults and youth who use these devices, but potentially also those who are involuntarily exposed to secondhand vapors,” write the Senators in the letter to FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg.
Concerns Over E-Cigarette Use By Youths
The FDA recently announced its plan to begin regulating e-cigarettes, after continued indecision concerning oversight of the products by the agency. However, under the new enforcement move the FDA said it will not ban the use of flavors in the products, a highly controversial decision.
Critics say the wide array of flavors is one ploy used by e-cigarette companies to attract teen users. The range of teen friendly flavors, including cotton candy, bubble gum, peanut butter and jelly and hundreds more, has spurred the use of e-cigarettes to doubled among high school students in only one year.
A recent congressional report revealed e-cigarette makers are targeting teens with candy-like flavors and marketing campaigns using celebrities, in an effort to drive sales.
The report asserts is the aggressive campaigns are creating a new class of users who will be more likely to become addicted to traditional cigarettes.
“Makers of these products have taken advantage of a regulatory black hole by marketing these new nicotine delivery products directly to youth,” said the statement.
Currently, the limitations on smoking in public spaces does not apply universally to all e-cigarette products, including hookah pens, liquid nicotine products and e-liquids. The senators hope to spur the FDA into creating regulations which will govern the use of these products in public areas, hopefully protecting the public from harmful side effects.
A recent report released by the New York Times found heating the liquid used in e-cigarettes at high temperatures can produce vapors which carry dangerous toxins.
Some users have also taken to a new process called “dripping,” where users apply nicotine liquid directly to the heating element on the device. This intensely and rapidly heats the liquid, offering the user a nicotine rush. In the process, causing a chemical reaction which creates carcinogens similar to those present in traditional cigarettes.
“We simply cannot afford to lag behind in our complete understanding of the health consequences to the user and bystander of these and other advanced nicotine delivery products,” wrote Markey.
"*" indicates required fields
More Top Stories
With thousands of Bard hernia mesh lawsuits pending in the federal court system, a fourth bellwether trial will be held in the spring, involving allegations that defects with Bard 3DMax caused painful and permanent injuries.
A Tepezza hearing loss lawsuit accuses the manufacturer of failing to warn doctors to conduct hearing tests, which could have helped a woman avoid permanent hearing damage.
A South Dakota man has filed one of the first gastroparesis lawsuits against Ozempic manufacturers, alleging that users have not been adequately warned about the risk of severe vomiting and long-term stomach side effects.


text:
Burlington Coat Factory has leased nearly 47,000 square feet at a former Toys R Us and Babies R Us location in Union, the largest among several newly announced deals by Jeffery Realty.
A construction firm has acquired a nearly 4,500-square-foot industrial building in Englishtown, under a newly announced transaction by Bussel Realty Corp.
Pierson Commercial has promoted one of its brokers to the position of director.
Pierson Commercial has added to its list of tenant clients, picking up a well-known beauty supplies chain and a new nail salon concept.
Pierson Commercial has gained a foothold in some of New Jersey’s largest and best-known cities, fueling its growth in recent years while remaining just as active in the state’s suburbs and highway retail corridors.


text:
1. Tom Hanks is the best. Really.
Imagine waking up after a big night out… and discovering pictures of Hollywood actor and 90s room-com leading man, Tom Hanks on your iPhone. You’d think you were still drunk.
But that’s exactly what happened to the young man pictured.
Tom Hanks (as in THE actual Tom Hanks) was having a drink with a friend, when he noticed this young man passed out at a nearby table. Hanks walked over to make sure the guy was okay, and noticed his smart phone lying on the table… So he took a few happy snaps, and put the phone back into the young man’s pocket.
And that’s why you should always drink responsibly, lest you miss your chance to meet an Oscar winner… and remember it.
2. Kim Kardashian has denied binge eating and extreme dieting while pregnant. Read her side of the story here.
3. Real Housewives in Spanx war. Pre-emptive strike over elasticity of waist bands likely any day.
Sara Blakely, founder of shapewear brand Spanx, has launched a lawsuit against Heather Thomson, founder of Yummie Tummie over a slimming singlet design.
Thomson issued a ‘cease and desist’ letter against Spanx in January stating that the brand stole Yummie Mummie’s belly-slimming singlet, which is a patented design.
“We contacted Spanx by letter [through legal counsel] on Jan. 18 to notify them that they were infringing on my patent ideas and we asked them to cease and desist. Spanx then asked for a [one-month] extension to be able to do their own due diligence…They responded on Feb. 14 saying they didn’t think there was any patent infringement and requested another extension,” Thomson told Women’s Wear Daily.
Blakely responded in a statement to WWD: “Spanx was making shaping camisoles long before Yummie Tummie. We have no further comment. The papers filed in court provide our position at this time.”


text:
Photo of the Week: Ugandan Cotton Business Thrives
September 06, 2013
A cotton processor is tapping into new markets, creating hundreds of jobs and sourcing from thousands of smallholder farmers in eastern Uganda.
Moses Kwijuka is the finance manager for Mutuma Commercial Agencies Ltd., a cotton processing business in eastern Uganda that employs more than 230 people and buys cotton from 6,000 smallholder farmers. TechnoServe worked with Mutuma to identify a new market opportunity: absorbent cotton wool for the medical industry. Our business advisors helped develop a business plan that would allow Mutuma to make and sell the cotton wool at profit margins three times higher than those for cotton lint.
TechnoServe also helped farmers in the area increase their cotton yields and form farmer business groups. With a productive and organized group of suppliers, and a profitable new product line, Mutuma has become a driver of economic growth for the Kiyunga area.
Learn more about TechnoServe’s work with Mutuma.
Related Blog Posts
In the second part of our consumer spotlight series, we are highlighting coffee from Zimbabwe. Coffee is making a comeback here after a decades-long decline. Since 2017, TechnoServe has worked with Nespresso to restore Zimbabwe's coffee-growing regions.
We spoke with TechnoServe’s Africa regional agronomy advisor to learn more about his background in coffee and how he became a certified Q grader – the highest possible certification in the coffee sector.
Coffee is one of the world’s most popular beverages – but how much do you actually know about it? Take our quiz to test your coffee knowledge ahead of National Coffee Day.


text:
The DHL Stormers and DHL Western Province players as well as all of the staff at Western Province Rugby will stand together with sponsor Land Rover and their ‘Hope Boxes’ campaign which supports Red Cross charities.
In 2016 Land Rover collected 14 326 essential items in its “Hope Boxes”, with the deliveries going to Red Cross charities around South Africa.
This year, as part of its ongoing work for Land Rover’s Corporate Social Responsibility Programme : Hope Crosses Any Terrain, Land Rover will again roll out its Land Rover Hope Boxes campaign through its national dealer network – and also enlist the help of staff and Land Rover ambassadors to help change the lives of thousands of less-fortunate South Africans.
A Land Rover Hope Boxes collection drive has also been arranged at the Western Province Rugby headquarters, where Land Rover Rugby Ambassadors #MudBrothers will encourage donations from fans and other rugby sponsors.
Those wishing to donate items to this worthy cause are encouraged to drop them off at the reception area on the Fifth Floor at Newlands Terraces in Boundary road.
“The Land Rover Hope Boxes campaign is about supporting one another, which is exactly what sponsors and our faithful fans do for us,” said Western Province Rugby Group CEO, Paul Zacks. “We would like to encourage people to support this drive with the same passion they show for our teams at DHL Newlands.”
From 1 June 2017, 31 participating Land Rover dealers will each have a Red Cross Land Rover Discovery Sport fitted with a Land Rover Hope Box. This bespoke container will be used to collect donations of non-perishable foodstuffs, toiletries, children’s toys, educational items, clothing and blankets. Along with donations from dealer staff and customers, members of the public will also be able to contribute some of these essential items.
When this year’s Land Rover Hope Boxes campaign wraps up on 31 July, the collected items will be handed over to the South African Red Cross Society for distribution to its key projects.
“This campaign was incredibly successful last year and we were fortunate enough to have the opportunity to hand-deliver some of these items to one of the Red Cross Schools,” said Lisa Mallett, Marketing Director of Jaguar Land Rover South Africa and sub-Sahara Africa. “This year we plan to better last year’s number of items, and encourage the participation from our new dealers as well as Land Rover ambassadors.”
For more information on the Land Rover Hope Boxes campaign, visit http://www.landrover.co.za/experience/news/hope-crosses-any-terrain.html


text:
CLEVELAND, OH, MAY 2015 – Mazzella Companies has acquired New Tech Machinery (NTM) of Denver, CO. New Tech Machinery is one of the leading manufacturers of portable rollforming equipment in the world. To date, NTM has sold machines in over 40 countries.
NTM manufactures the finest portable rollforming equipment for the metal construction industry. “The reputation of their people and their portable roof panel and gutter machines is second to none”, says Tony Mazzella, CEO of Mazzella Companies.
This acquisition adds to Mazzella’s diverse company portfolio. “It will enhance Mazzella Companies’ international manufacturing capabilities and further solidify our position as a leader in the architectural metal roof and wall industries”.
New Tech Machinery is based in Denver, Colorado and has a manufacturing facility in Hermosillo, Mexico. New Tech employs approximately 80 people between both locations and has been in business since 1991.
“They will continue to lead the portable rollforming industry with the best equipment and continue to expand their offerings”, says Tony Mazzella.
About Mazzella Companies
Mazzella Companies employs more than 400 individuals in over 20 locations. Mazzella is one of the largest independently-owned companies in the overhead lifting and rigging industries. Mazzella’s diverse portfolio includes a full range of rigging products, the manufacturing and servicing of overhead cranes, engineered overhead lifting devices and Sheffield Metals is a manufacturer and distributor of coated bare metal products for engineered metal roof and wall systems.
21000 Aerospace Parkway
Cleveland, OH 44142


text:
There’s a lot of fake reports that Nokia will unveil their first Windows Phone 8.1 devices on MWC 2014 like Lumia 630/635,1525.1520V and 1820.
But some reliable sources like Nawzil,Tom Warren Paul Thurrot said Microsoft will not unveil Windows Phone 8.1 before BUILD 2014 so there will be less chances that Windows Phone 8.1 devices will be unveiled before build 2014 event. Tom Warren also said the same
Maybe we will see new Lumia with Lumia Black software at MWC 2014. Its almost impossible if they only talking about Nokia Normand/Nokia X at the event
here’s a tweet from tomwarren a reliable source:
So what do you think? Will Nokia/MS unveil the first device with Windows Phone 8.1 at MWC ? Let us know by commenting below 🙂


text:
Adirondack Winery LLC has opened a second tasting room, at 4971 Lake Shore Drive, Suite 2, in Bolton Landing.
The tasting room has been in “soft opening” phase since June 9, said owners Michael and Sasha Pardy. A grand opening was held July 26.
The new tasting room is across the street from Tops Market, between Palazzo’s Pizzeria and Bob’s Ice Cream. The building is owned by Robert and Dawn O’Keefe, owners of the Huddle Kitchen restaurant and bar on Lake Shore Drive.
Headquartered in Queensbury, the company’s other tasting room is on Canada Street in Lake George.
“We were intrigued immediately when we saw this space for rent on Lake Shore Drive last fall,” said Pardy. “We had been looking for space in Bolton Landing since late 2015 and when we saw this spot, the perfect size for us, located right in the heart of Bolton Landing and so close to the base of the Sagamore Resort entrance. I knew this spot had a lot of potential.”
“They’re an attraction that draws visitors and have a great reputation and wine, so we’re happy to have them,” said O’Keefe.
Pardy said Adirondack Winery has grown year after year, from a 1,000 case micro-winery in 2008 to a 13,000-case winery now with over 500 club members, shipping to 35 states and selling wines at nearly 400 liquor stores and restaurants across upstate New York.


text:
India will promote light-house tourism among domestic and international visitors getting hands around flights tickets to the country. Mumbai’s Kanhoji Angre will be among the first projects to be developed.
International tourists who are looking forward to explore everything unique during their India holidays will soon have another addition to their travel itinerary. India’s Ministry of Tourism (MoT) has given the green signal of financial assistance for the development of heritage lighthouses as tourist destinations. This means soon the country will be able to showcase yet another distinctive facet to holiday makers netting tickets on flights for Indian coastal cities like Mumbai.
Of 15 heritage lighthouses having historical significance, Kanhoji Angre light house will be taken up for development in the initial phase. The authorities plan to support construction of a boat jetty and passenger terminal at the venue. Kanhoji Angre Island is located few miles from the south of Colaba, Mumbai. Once the jetty is developed, international tourists booking flights tickets for a travel to Mumbai, India’s financial capital would have a new, interesting alternative for a day trip. Even locals who grab air tickets to the city from different parts of the country would be able to add a fabulous day excursion to their sightseeing schedule.
Concerned authorities feel that the development of heritage lighthouses will not only look after the national legacy but will also push the tourism credentials of areas like Mumbai, with more people expected to board flights to greet these fresh tourist stopovers. It is also believed that the development of light-houses will offer a thrust to growth of Cruise Tourism in India and encourage more international vacationers to opt for the cruise holidays after booking flights tickets to the nation.


text:
India has been the largest milk producer in the world for over two decades. However, milk productivity per animal is still low in comparison to the world average. Enhancing milk production has been a priority to grow farm income and the Indian dairy sector’s global competitiveness. To address this need, Cargill has opened a high-pressure hydrogenation plant in Kurkumbh, Maharashtra, to manufacture bypass fat, a health and nutrition supplement for dairy cattle. It will be launched and marketed under the global brand Carfe, which is technologically advanced, providing better digestion and more energy to the cattle.
According to Cargill, Carfe has proven to substantially improve the quality of nutrition for dairy cattle, resulting in better reproductive health and milk production, translating to improved farmers’ earnings. This product is already available in developed dairy cattle markets worldwide. It will now be locally manufactured at Cargill’s new bioindustrial plant in Kurkumbh and made available to dairy farmers and feed manufacturers in India.
Built with an investment of US$ 15 million (approximately Rs 110 crore), the plant has an annual capacity of 35000 tons, making it one of the largest facilities to manufacture bypass fats and specialty waxes in the country. This investment leverages Cargill’s global presence in the agriculture supply chain, expertise in bioindustrial manufacturing technology, and reach and market coverage in dairy nutrition in India, to bring a best in class solution for dairy farmers in India. This plant will also manufacture specialty vegetable oil-based waxes for industrial application, marketed under Agri-Pure’s brand name, which has applications in the tyre, plastic, and candle industry.
“This launch is in line with our ambitions of continuing to remain the leading supplier and trusted partners for feed millers and farmers in the country. Our long-term experience in bypass fats and specialty waxes, combined with our local insights and this investment will go a long way in demonstrating our commitment to the country, in keeping with our organizational goal of nourishing the world. It also demonstrates our commitment to supporting the local economy with the addition of 50 new manufacturing jobs,” said Keerthy Pethaiyan, regional director, Cargill Bioindustrial, India.
Cargill’s bioindustrial business has a leading presence in sustainable bio-based products, including Distilled Fatty Acids used by the paints, inks, and coatings industry in India. In 2016, Cargill set up a plant in Maharashtra simultaneously to manufacture FR3 (natural ester dielectric fluid), which is used in transformers. Today it has a strong position in the natural ester-based dielectric fluid market – with FR3 having substantial brand equity. With this investment, Cargill is further expanding its presence in the bioindustrial sector locally to fuel growth ambitions in the country, while supporting growth opportunities globally.
“India is a key growth market for Cargill and line with our commitment to the country, this marks a continuation of our investment in India. By building upon our operations at this facility, we will increase our regional footprint and enhance our local capabilities to better support the needs of our local customers as well as multi-national customers across the globe,” said Kurtis Miller, global managing director, Industrial Segment, Cargill Bioindustrial.
Cargill in India
In India, Cargill started operations in 1987. It has businesses in refined oils, food ingredients, grain and oilseeds, cotton, animal nutrition, bioindustrial, and trade structured finance. Cargill in India markets leading consumer brands of edible oils such as Nature Fresh, Gemini, Sweekar, Leonardo Olive Oil, Rath, and Sunflower brand of hydrogenated fats. It also markets wheat flour under the Nature Fresh brand name.
Cargill’s animal nutrition business provides feed, premix, additive, and animal health products and solutions for aqua, dairy, and poultry. It markets animal feed and premix under the Provimi, Purina, and EWOS brands. The Cargill’s grains and oilseeds crush business originates grains and oilseeds. Overall, the company employs more than 4,000 employees working across offices and plants and a network of offices, warehouses, and depots.


text:
Growing Protectionism Now German Companies' Main Concern, Survey Finds
For the first time, German companies doing business abroad regard growing protectionism and trade barriers as their top risk, according to a survey published Tuesday by a business group that calls on the Group of 20 leading nations to push for fair and free trade at their meeting later this week in Germany.
The survey of 4,000 German companies doing business abroad was conducted by the DIHK Chambers of Commerce in May. While it shows that a majority of 56% expect their business to grow over the next twelve months, the findings also highlight the vulnerability of the country's export-oriented economy to global developments.
"Every second company sees in economic policy conditions a risk to its business in the coming twelve months--more than ever before," said Volker Treier, who is DIHK deputy managing director.
"The main reasons for this are Brexit, trade policy comments by the U.S. government and the growing protectionism in many regions of the world."
He said nearly one in four companies sees its business activities at risk due to growing trade barriers.
World leaders meeting in Hamburg on Friday and Saturday should therefore put this issue on their agenda, Mr. Treier said.
"These warning signals shouldn't be missed," he said. "The G-20 should send a clear message in favor of free trade and fair competition at their summit in Hamburg. Clear support for closer international cross-border cooperation is now urgently needed because economic growth is no sure-fire success."
The warnings came as President Donald Trump has pursued an "America First" policy and questioned some global trade agreements that Washington believes disadvantage the U.S.
German officials expect G-20 talks in Hamburg to be tough because the U.S. has given no indication that it might relax efforts to rebalance the terms of global trade in favor of the U.S.
But German companies are also concerned that the U.K.'s decision to leave the European Union could make trade between Germany and Britain more difficult if London opted for complete departure from the EU's single market that allows restriction- and tariff-free trade between the EU and Britain.
Already, German exports to and imports from the U.K. have declined since the U.K.'s Brexit vote 12 months ago, according to DIHK.
Write to Andrea Thomas at firstname.lastname@example.org
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
July 04, 2017 03:14 ET (07:14 GMT)


text:
Facebook’s Messenger service has been nothing if not continuously improved during the past few months. A new report claims that the mobile Messenger app might soon make it available to play games within the app itself.
Information came from three inside sources which have knowledge about the company’s plans via a report from The Information. According to them, Facebook is in the stage of negotiating with developers, but a release timeline is yet to be disclosed.
Facebook’s Ilya Sukhar is the one put in charge of making this product available on Messenger’s platform, and she confirmed such plans are not only rumors.
Introducing independent games inside the app seems like the next logical step for the multibillionaire tech company, considering that it is an integrant part of Facebook’s social platform – millions of users would be engaged in an instant.
This is still a baby project, and details are limited; when rollout will approach, we should expect Facebook to surface some more facts. The report also pointed out the fact that a new service in the games business offers immense opportunities for revenue.
A Facebook spokesperson has talked to Mashable, explaining that allowing developers to add apps focused on content creation is what befits the Messenger Platform the best.
However, as a strategy part of an international creative collaboration meant the platform became open to outside developers a few weeks ago. Facebook is excited to see what they will come up with, and build on their suggestions.
Back in March, the new Messenger Platform was revealed and started accepting third-party developers as app creators for Facebook.
According to The Information, the tech giant focused on increasing user engagement on the apps already existing on the Facebook Messenger platform, but the new strategy will broaden the apps availability, soon to cover games as well.
Whatever Facebook has in the works for Messenger, more than 600 million users are watching him intently. And for good reason, as messaging apps are in a tight competition nowadays: WhatsApp, Hangouts, Viber, Skype and other popular messaging services are not lagging when it comes to building usership.
Many changes happened as Facebook tests various applications for its messaging service, such as allowing users to send money to friends.
Rumors talk about another feature in testing: voice transcription that enables users to send voice messages which come with automatically typed-out text. Facebook Messenger has received its own standalone Web version that launches from the website Messenger.com.
Image Source: Softonic


text:
Marico shares surged as much as 4.5 per cent on Monday after the maker of Parachute coconut oil and Saffola edible oil reported a 24 per cent jump in profit.
Marico posted a net profit of Rs 198 crore on sales of Rs 1,555 crore in the December quarter, led by a solid 10 per cent jump in volumes.
Marico managed to surprise analysts in a quarter in which HUL - India's biggest FMCG company - reported a 6 per cent growth in volumes.
According to the company, volume growth in Q3 was led by 17 per cent growth in Saffola and strong double digit volume growth of 21 per cent in value added hair oil franchise in India.
Deflationary environment in commodity prices boosted profitability, with EBITDA or operating margin expanding 633 basis points to 18.9 per cent in Q3.
Marico shares closed 1.96 per cent higher at Rs 226 apiece compared to 0.18 per cent fall in the broader Sensex.


text:
Summers wants legislation banning it from advertising at JobCentres overturned.
current legislation, the High Street retailer cannot place vacancies at the
JobCentres because it is deemed to be in the sex industry.
company, which employees 650 staff, is expanding, and will need up to 1,000 new
staff within the next two years, according to HR executive Gary Burgham. He
said the company wants to be on a level playing field with other retailers.
government departments do not consider the stores sex shops, and they do not
need a sex shop licence to trade.
Department of Work and Pensions said it is considering chief executive
Jacqueline Gold’s request for a reclassification.


text:
Flipkart to resume e-commerce sales of essential products
Walmart Inc’s Flipkart will resume e-commerce services for essential products after receiving federal and state government assurances on the safety of its delivery staff and a hassle-free supply chain.
Bengaluru-based Flipkart halted all shopping on its website and mobile app early on Wednesday, only hours after Prime Minister Narendra Modi ordered a 21-day nationwide lockdown to counter the spread of the coronavirus.
Though people worldwide have increasingly turned to online retailers to buy household goods, food and medicine as the crisis has deepened, there was confusion over Indian authorities’ mixed messages on e-commerce.
The confusion extended to some of those enforcing India’s lockdown, with reports of some deliveries being halted by police officers.
Announcing Flipkart’s partial resumption in services, a statement from Chief Executive Kalyan Krishnamurthy said the decision was made after it had been assured safe passage for its supplies and delivery workers by law enforcement authorities.
“(We) are resuming our grocery and essentials services later today,” Krishnamurthy said. The Flipkart Group also owns fashion portal Myntra and digital payments business PhonePe.
Amazon.com’s Indian business, Flipkart’s main rival, announced on Tuesday that it was limiting its services to the sale and delivery of essential products. On Wednesday, its Pantry grocery service was unavailable in several cities and orders for most other food or household items showed delivery dates stretching well beyond the first week of April.
Healthcare platform Medlife was among those that encountered delivery difficulties after the national lockdown.
One delivery worker was baton-charged by police officers as they tried to disperse people in a New Delhi neighbourhood and at least three others have been prevented from getting products to customers, said Chief Executive Ananth Narayanan.
“You have to enforce the lockdown with empathy, I don’t think you need to be brutal,” Narayanan said. “When somebody gets beaten up it’s very difficult to get other people to come to work.”
Alibaba-backed online grocer BigBasket said its services had also been affected.
“We are working with the local authorities for the passes and permits that allow movement of personnel and vehicles,” BigBasket said in a statement.
The company also said it was booked for the next seven days in almost all the cities in which it operates.
Albinder Dhindsa, CEO of SoftBank-backed Grofers, said the online grocer had a backlog of about 400,000 orders owing to “hiccups in our operations” over the past few days.
Grofers was working with local authorities to resume operations and will soon start accepting new orders, he added.
Enter your email to get our daily newsletter in your inbox
- The CPI (M), however, distanced itself from the incident saying a clash between two groups led to the killing.
- The theme of the tableau was the main symbols that represent the religious legacy and biodiversity of the Himalayan state. The tableau called ‘Kedarkhand’ which was displayed in the parade focussed on the Kedarnath shrine.
- Two separate flights transported 500,000 doses to Sri Lanka and 100,000 doses to Bahrain.
- The court was hearing pleas filed by Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind and Peace Party seeking action against media reports indulging in communal branding of Covid-19 pandemic in the light of Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi's Nizamuddin area. The pleas alleged discriminatory coverage by a section of media.
- In November, Bansidhar Bhagat, the BJP chief in Uttarakhand had urged Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat to dissolve development authorities as they were not fulfilling the purpose for which they had been created.


text:
Wirral Council spent £10.5m on purchasing two shopping centres in Birkenhead town centre.
The decision to buy the Pyramids and the Grange shopping centres was made at a Policy and Resources committee meeting on 27 April, subject to risk and compliance checks being carried out by council officers before going ahead with the purchase.
The purchase was completed in May but Wirral Council didn’t reveal how much it had paid for the shopping centre at the time citing commercial sensitivity.
The shopping centre was last sold for nearly £70m back in 2011 but according to a council report, £10.5m was used by the council to buy it in 2023.
The figure was in a report published ahead of an economy and regeneration committee in July. It said the figure related to a decision made by Policy and Resources on 27 April on a “recommendation by the Director of Regeneration and Place to acquire a location of strategic importance from a regeneration perspective, subject to the completion of satisfactory due diligence.”
Wirral Council purchased the shopping centre as part of its Birkenhead 2040 plan to revitalise the town. The purchase of the shopping areas includes the former Argos and Conway Street car park, Princes Pavements, Borough Pavements, and the M&S unit.
In May, Wirral Council’s Director of Regeneration and Place Dave Hughes said, “The council’s aim is to see new life breathed into central Birkenhead and we are confident that this ambition can be achieved through the Council’s local stewardship of the asset.
“Regeneration of Birkenhead Town centre and the income from the shopping centres will have wider benefits for Wirral services and regeneration of Wirral’s Left Bank area too.”
According to documentation seen by the LDRS, the gross income of the shopping centres is £3.355m with a net income of £1,155m. £1m of this income comes from ten stores but three of these leases are due to expire in 2023.
Wirral Council recently revealed it is reviewing its plans for Birkenhead Market at the old House of Fraser (Beatties) building on Grange Road following the shopping centre purchase. It is now understood to be planning a move of the market to the former Argos store within the shopping centres.
Economy and regeneration chair Cllr Tony Jones previously said, “The council remains committed to delivering a new market in the heart of Birkenhead town centre which will be sustainable and affordable.
“In May 2023 the council bought the Pyramids and Grange shopping centres which now present opportunities not previously available.
“If any changes to previous proposals are brought forward they will continue to meet the wider regeneration plans for the borough and Birkenhead, as well as undergoing full consultation, including full engagement with market traders, before any final decisions are made.”


text:
Eight senior colleagues from Blakemore Retail equalled Bear Grylls himself when they took on his ‘Survive the Wild’ charity challenge to raise funds for the NSPCC. The brave colleagues from Blakemore Retail spent two days in the Brecon Beacons in Wales with limited food and water rations and no tent, all to raise a whopping £13,428 for the children’s charity.
The senior team members included Acting Head of Blakemore Retail Matt Teague, Store Operations Director Chris Bacon, Regional Manager Paul Wiltshire, Property Development Director Alastair Haigh, Group Marketing Director Sarah Ellis, Retail Operations Support & Marketing Assistant Manager Caroline Wills and Area Managers Dave Parry and Mark Paddison, along with NSPCC Partnerships Manager Romaine Maret.
Back at stores, colleagues were encouraged to arrange fundraisers and donate money in order to become a friend or foe of the senior team, either pledging money to help a challenger gain a Veto card against a task, or joining other store staff to ensure the contender with the most money raised had to complete the worst tasks, including eating bugs.
Blakemore Retail has been in partnership with the NSPCC for 12 years, helping to raise vital funds for the organisation’s Schools Service, which visits primary schools with the charity’s ‘Speak Out. Stay Safe’ programme in order to teach children about abuse in an age-appropriate way.
Blakemore Retail colleagues have raised over £3million for the NSPCC to date.


text:
The bad news: to make really deep emissions cuts, most of us should probably go vegan.
AP PHOTO/ERIC GAY
It turns out you can drastically shrink your climate footprint without drastically changing your diet.
An analysis last month led by the World Resources Institute (WRI) found that there’s not a huge difference, in terms of reducing greenhouse-gas emissions, between cutting out about half the red meat—specifically cattle, goats, and sheep—in the average American diet and going full vegetarian.
We see these diminishing returns because a standard vegetarian diet doesn’t replace all meat with vegetables. Instead, it relies heavily on dairy, eggs, and other animal-based products that require a lot of land and produce a lot of emissions, says Tim Searchinger, a senior fellow at WRI and lead author of the report. (Going vegan would produce much deeper cuts, but the report didn’t include that analysis.)
Declines in emissions and land use from reducing consumption of ruminant meat
That’s good news if you want to switch up your diet for climate reasons but find it hard to cut out steaks and burgers altogether. In fact, you can significantly shrink your dietary footprint—which makes up about 15% of US household emissions—without eating less meat at all. Just replacing 43% of your red meat with pork and chicken would cut your dietary emissions by about 18%.
The UN provided a stark reminder today of why thinking through these choices matters a lot. A special report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, “Climate Change and Land,” concludes that the world needs to overhaul the way it produces food and manages land to rein in global warming and feed a growing population on an increasingly volatile planet.
It notes that agriculture, forestry, and other land use changes account for 23% of the world’s greenhouse-gas emissions. Dietary changes can quickly add up. A worldwide shift away from “emissions-intensive foods like beef” could cut anywhere from 0.7 billion to 8 billion metric tons of greenhouse gases per year. At the top end of the range—which would basically be if everyone went vegan—that’s nearly a fifth of all fossil-fuel-related emissions. Such a dietary shift could also free up millions of square kilometers, the report says.
But merely cutting out most red meat can make a big difference, because it comes from ruminants—including cattle, sheep, and goats—that produce an outsize share of particularly powerful greenhouse gases.
The WRI paper stresses that ruminants are “by far the most resource-intensive food,” generating 20 times more greenhouse-gas emissions per gram of protein than pulses—which include chickpeas, lentils, and beans—and four to six times more than dairy. In the average US diet as of 2010, beef contributed 3% of calories, but accounted for 43% of the land use and nearly half the emissions from food production. That, to put it scientifically, is bonkers.
The varying emissions associated with different foods
One reason is the large amount of land needed to produce these animals’ food, whether they graze or eat specially grown crops. Chopping, burning, clearing, or draining forests, peat bogs, and other lands for this purpose releases vast amounts of carbon trapped in the trees, plants, and soil.
But the other big factor is that mammals with multi-chambered stomachs emit huge levels of methane in their burps and manure. That’s one of the most potent greenhouse gases, trapping around 84 times more heat than carbon dioxide during its first two decades in the atmosphere.
But while cutting out red meat is an obvious solution, it’s a tough one. Eating meat is tightly tied up in cultural traditions, social expectations, and perceptions of worth and wealth. As nations become richer, their meat consumption rises. Plus, it tastes really good!
So how can we begin to move the numbers?
WRI’s authors provide some suggestions, including drawing on lessons from marketing, celebrity endorsements, packaging, and product display to change the cultural norms around meat. The government can also employ some powerful sticks and carrots, including taxes, subsidies, and the power to make buying decisions for schools, federal offices, and the military, the report states. MORE


text:
Roxy Gagdekar/ DNA MONEY, Saturday, 07 June , 2008
http://islamicterro rism.wordpress. com/2008/ 06/07/now- islamic-terroris ts-inve
st-in-surats- diamond-industry /
Even terrorists cannot resist the lure of diamonds. No, they are not buying
them to adorn their life-snuffing AK-47s, but are investing in Surat’s
high-yield diamond business.
After targeting stock markets as secure sites to park their funds, terror
organisations such as HuJI, Jaish-e-Mohammad, and Lashkar-e-Toiba are
reportedly trying to earn from the diamond business.
Sources in the Centre’s Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) told DNA that high
returns in the diamond market and the fickleness of the share market had
induced terror groups to turn to Surat’s most glittering trade.
The diamond industry was being scrutinised by the FIU over the past few
months and the sleuths were shocked to discover that terrorists were using
the industry to launder their blood-soaked money.
“Terrorists groups have started withdrawing money from the share market and
are investing in the prosperous diamond industry,” a source in the FIU told
DNA. Officials at the state intelligence bureau refused to comment on FIU’s
The president of the Surat Diamond Association, CT Vanani, said the market
had witnessed some suspicious activities a few months back.
“A year ago, some people from Mumbai began purchasing diamonds worth crores
of rupees. When the industry tried to trace the traders, they turned out to
be non-existent, ” said Vanani. He said proper vigilance has now curtailed
The FIU, which is also a central reception point for suspicious transaction
reports (STP), traced all foreign transactions of Surat’s diamond industry,
especially those emanating from Belgium. It found that a great deal of money
was being invested by terrorist groups.
However, the FIU refused to formally comment on its investigation. The
director of the Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies, , said
the terrorists are looking for industries that provide high returns. “Though
there are no specific reports about such investment, their presence cannot
be ruled out,” he said.
As for the modus operandi employed by terrorists to pump money into the
diamond business, an FIU official said such groups mainly infiltrated the
industry through their supporters.
Terrorist outfits use these supporters to purchase diamonds from Belguim.
The official said that at times small traders eager for quick growth also
end up helping terrorists.


text:
McDonald’s UK is trialling its first new format restaurant since introducing drive-thru outlets in the 1980s.
“McDonald’s to Go” will operate under the new name, and will offer a “reduced menu of freshly prepared products” available to take away only.
Core items such as McNuggets and Big Macs will be the point of focus, and customers will only be able to order on new, smaller touch screens.
Starting on Fleet Street
The company said the restaurant, on Fleet Street, London, has been designed with commuters and passing trade in mind, and its opening hours will “reflect the needs of that customer base.”
The restaurant will also look different to standard sites, with updated branding, and staff will wear new uniforms.
Senior vice president for development and IT at McDonald’s, Henry Trickey, said: “It’s an exciting but challenging time to be in the restaurant sector.
“Changing tastes, new technology and more competition mean we need to continue to focus on investing in what matters most to our customers.
“We know that ‘one size doesn’t fit all’ and that’s exactly why we are launching McDonald’s to Go – to allow us to trial different formats in different locations, depending on customer needs.”
Mr Trickey added: “In Fleet Street, where city workers are looking for something quick to grab on the go, it makes sense to test a smaller format – no seating and takeaway only with a reduced menu will allow us to focus on speed of service. However, the next McDonald’s to Go could look very different.”
Potential to be rolled out
While London is an obvious first step for McDonald’s as it looks to evolve, McDonald’s to Go stores won’t be confined to the capital.
A spokeswoman told i: “We’re going to see what the customer reaction is like, and it will of course depend on if this format is appropriate for different locations – but in theory, if it proves a success, then we’ll be looking at where a ‘McDonald’s to Go’ might work elsewhere.”
McDonald’s added that it remains completely committed to its original restaurant brand, which has been on British high streets now for 45 years.
The company added the new concept is only the latest phase in the business’ ongoing investment strategy as it looks to develop its “restaurant experience”.


text:
Lactalis CZ recalls 385,000 Kunín Pohár milk desserts from Czech stores.
The examination found in them a trace amount of ethylene oxide – a pesticide banned in the European Union. The news was reported by the State Veterinary Administration of the Czech Republic.
We are talking about the 150-gram desserts with chocolate, strawberry, blueberry, and apricot flavors with an expiration date of 21, 22, 23, 27, 28, and 29 July 2021.
Customers are asked to check refrigerators and return it to the place of purchase. Desserts with different flavors and expiration dates are ok, no problem found.
Ethylene oxide is largely used to sterilize materials and instruments used in surgery and for medical devices, but it is not allowed for food use in Europe. Its use as biocide was banned in Europe due to the risks from its toxicity.
It is not even approved as an active substance in plant protection products in the Union.
However, since September 2020, the European RASFF (Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed) system has notified the entry of multiple foods contaminated with ethylene oxide in European countries.
Since January 1, ethylene oxide was responsible for more than 1,000 food safety alerts. While EU countries issued the majority of recalls or alerts involving the chemical, more than half of the food safety notices indicated the country of origin was “unknown”.
This year, the top five food categories identified in food safety alerts due to ethylene oxide were:
- cereals and bakery product
- nuts and seeds
- frozen desserts,
- milk and dairy products
- prepared dishes and snack


text:
WH Group profit rises to US$1.3b
Tuesday, March 24, 2020
Mainland meat and food processor WH Group's (0288) net profit last year increased by 31.7 percent from a year ago to US$1.38 billion (HK$10.76 billion).
The group said the coronavirus pandemic had only a limited impact on sales given global demand.
The basic earnings per share last year were 9.37 US cents. The company declared a final dividend of 26.5 HK cents, for a full-year dividend of 31.5 HK cents.
Revenue climbed by 6.6 percent year-on-year to US$24.1 billion in 2019, with revenue from the packaged meats segment up by 1.5 percent to US$12.33 billion.
Revenue from operations in the United States took up 54.6 percent of total revenue last year, dropping from 58.3 in 2018.
Operating profit increased by 23.1 percent to US$2.03 billion last year.
The total number of hogs processed last year was 53,797 thousand heads, a drop of 4.1 percent from 2018, dragged down by a 19 percent decline in the number of hogs processed from its slaughtering operation in China.
Chairman, Wan Long, said 95 percent of the company's plants have resumed, so far.
Ma Xiangjie, executive director and president of the group's subsidiary Shuanghui Development, said global demand was less affected by the trade war, African swine fever virus and the new coronavirus pandemic, as the pork price spread between the mainland and the US and other market is wide.
Ma said the price spread was 12.5 times last year, and is currently 4.1 times.
He expects expecting the spread to drop to 3.5 times in the second half of this year, which still represents room for growth for exports.
He also said the company had raised the product prices six times, adding up to a 20 percent increase and there is no need to for further increases again this year.
Shares of the company jumped by 10.74 percent before the results announcement, closing at HK$6.60.


text:
As the saying goes, you’re either growing or you’re dying. In uncertain times a lot of businesses talk about “taking stock” or “consolidating”, while others push through, innovate and ultimately deliver growth. The past two years have been tough, to say the least, with many casualties. However, amid it all some companies are adapting and winning via strategies that go beyond the traditional growth path of bricks and mortar. I’m going to look at three ways companies are ripping up the rule book to follow alternative paths in pursuit of growth.
Faced by a costs headwind and saturated casual dining market it isn’t surprising to see companies look to spread their risk and trade in different occasions. The continued growth of the food-on-the-go market coupled with the lower cost base have made this the first stop for many full-service brands looking to diversify. Just this week we’ve seen Wagamama launch Mamago in Fenchurch Street, London, offering an all-day menu of grab-and-go food with an Asian twist.
YO! has taken an even bolder approach, with an array of new formats designed to take the brand from a casual dining operator to the leading Japanese food company outside Japan. These formats include its first two conveyor belt-free restaurants under the YO! Kitchen brand, in which signature dishes are joined by 40 additions, and an express format designed for customers on the go that launched recently at Manchester Piccadilly train station.
It’s not only casual dining brands diversifying either – bar operator The Alchemist created a new concept last year. Aether launched at Liverpool ONE in a bid to further build on the innovation and creativity in cocktails the brand has become famous for but in a smaller format and featuring live music.
Even heavyweight McDonald’s has been playing with its concept despite leading the world’s foodservice sector for almost 65 years. In January the company launched it’s first takeaway-only restaurant, in London’s Fleet Street, leveraging its success in digital ordering to deliver on the small-format store. Later in the year McDonald’s followed that move by opening its first dark kitchen, in Hounslow.


text:
#1: GE Keeps E-Business Turned On
Corporation set to boost IT spending 12 percent; pushes suppliers, partners to embrace the Net.Jack Welch may be gone, retired as CEO, but the hard-charging management style that earned him the title Neutron Jack lives on at General Electric Co. Only now, rather than just focusing on improving the employee gene pool by lopping off the 10 percent of workers with the lowest performance appraisalsWelchs success formulathe management mantra is to transform GE into an e-business by digitizing as many business processes as possible. A typical step: GE Global Exchange Services recently banned pen and paper in its few remaining nonvirtual meetings in favor of laptops with wireless LAN cards. The "do this or else" nature of the edict is pure Welch. Its also part of a much larger e-business drive at GE that includes digitizing as much as possible the information that flows through all of GEs key business processes. That means moving to electronic transactions for everything from finance and human resources processes to sales invoicing and reconciling. GE even imposed a Nov. 1 deadline for all invoices and payments between internal purchasing agents and suppliers to be made via digital channels. Its also moved travel requests to an online travel center, where travel approval is built into the workflow. That initiative alone is expected to save GE $200 million this year in improved efficiencies and reduced travel.
Altogether, according to executives, all GE digitization initiatives will shave off about $1.6 billion in costs for this year and up to $10 billion in coming years. Its that kind of commitment to e-business, in spite of the economic slowdown, that earned GE, based in Fairfield, Conn., the No. 1 slot on eWeeks yearly FastTrack 500 list of technology innovators.


text:
Paramedics Introduce New Battery Technology
PINELLAS COUNTY - Sunstar Paramedics in Pinellas County unveiled a prototype vehicle that is equipped with a roof-mounted solar panel that supplies energy to an auxiliary battery powering on-board chargers and replacement batteries. In low light conditions the battery system switches to power provided by the vehicle’s engine to ensure 24/7 reliability. It has the ability to maintain battery charges even after long periods in the field.
Sunstar paramedic ambulance service is known for bringing life-saving, state-of-the-art technology to every medical emergency, including power stretchers, 12-lead cardiac defibrillators, laptop computers, portable radios, GPS tracking devices and other battery operated equipment.
If the prototype is successful, Sunstar’s entire fleet will be “going green.” The solar panels would reduce the electrical demand necessary to charge hundreds of individual batteries daily.
Ambulance services nationwide are tasked with keeping their batteries operational while the trucks are in the field. Sunstar's introduction of the new technology is the first known ambulance service use of solar energy to keep batteries fully charged in the country.
Return to Current Edition


text:
Artifical Intelligence is the mantra at this year's CES currently taking place in Las Vegas, Nevada at the Las Vegas Convention Center. From numerous exhibitors to various keynotes, AI is a featured component of the show. However, a particularly interesting panel that was added to y the agenda just before the conference began was a power-packed, standing-room-only event that left many attendees impressed at not only the technology displayed but the mindset with which it is being applied. If IBM has its way, consumers are in for completely new way to experience products - and people - with greater knowledge than in any previous era.
The new CES 2018 SuperSession featured IBM executives Bridget Karlin, Chief Technology Officer & Vice President, GTS Technology, Innovation & Automation; Donna N. Dillenberger, IBM Fellow, Enterprise Solutions; and Beth Smith, General Manager, IBM Watson. Entitled Turning AI into New Ways of Doing Business the panel discussed how AI technology will better serve customers through increased engagement and accelerated research. There were major insights into how companies across all industries around the world are putting IBM Watson to work, managing workflows, data sets and insights all through And it was both a fascinating albeit frightening look at what's to come.
The audience hung on to nearly every word from Dillenberger as she spoke about three main areas on which she is working. First, IBM is not only using AI to help its customers in various ways but now working on creating actual software to ask AI how it developed the models which it is using to provide data, recommendations, and more. That's intriguing because ultimately while AI is learning more about us, so to speak, we are going to be learning more about it.
The second element is that blockchain will be viewed in a completely new way when coupled with AI via IBM Watson in that it will give consumers the power scan a product, for example, and see the entire vendor supply chain impacting that product. Dillenberger gave the use case example of the tainted baby food formula scandal that could now be essentially avoided with such technology because via IBM not only can every element in the supply chain be seen but also its origin/region as well as if any part of the blockchain has been tampered with by any of the parties that comprise the distributed network. This is a game-changer in consumer power because should any element be considered suspicious, below par, counterfeit and more, the consumer could, and probably will, withhold purchase. This will mean even greater pressure in the very near future for all parts of any manufacturing chain to maintain integrity at every nanosecond.
But the real innovative offering is the IBM Watson Verifier which is both thrilling and terrifying at the same time. Via an IBM mobile phone AI application and a special optical device that attaches to one's phone, anyone could scan anything from wine to a person in order to obtain greater information about said object/person. Is the wine you are drinking really from the region it says? Is that motor oil really the high-performing one which is mandatory for your luxury vehicle? Are there still toxins in your expensive, filtered water? Through the power of AI Dillenberger showed in real time how the image and complete reading is shown within seconds on one's mobile phone screen after scanning. The magic is based on the fact that nearly everything has a particular and specific optical signature and that signature can verify whether or not what you are being told is actually what you are getting. While such power is undoubtedly of interest to any consumer, the possibilities become a bit creepy when it was suggested that since the technology can even scan DNA that one can verify whether or not, for instance, your child is really sick when he or she tells you she is, or just wants attention. That's kind of the final frontier in verification, and the audience gasps proved it.
The main take-away from this mind-blowing panel is that authenticity is really the next big play. We are moving from mere data collection to how this data is impacting veracity. A new day is dawning, most certainly. While it was suggested by the panel that such usage of AI will help us to understand ourselves better, at what point might it also instill a default position of distrust or worse in every day interaction. Will guilty until proven innocent become the new norm? Only time will tell.


text:
The US job market is healthy. Employers continue to hire. But the economy shows a few signs that the Federal Reserve’s campaign of raising interest rates to slow growth is working. However, the report sends mixed signals on how the Federal Reserve should respond at its next meeting. Employers continue to hire despite higher interest rates and expectations of an impending recession, while wage inflation subsided moderately because more people entered the labor pool.
The highlights from the Bureau of Labor Statistic’s report, The Employment Situation – February 2023 are listed below.
Four hundred and nineteen thousand people returned to the workforce in February. The increase contributed to raising the unemployment rate to 3.6%. (The unemployment rate equals the number of people employed divided by the number of people in the workforce.) Hiring remains robust, so most of the new entrants found jobs. Payrolls increased by 311,000, slightly lower than the 343,000 average over the prior six months but well above 100,000, the number of workers most economists believe need to be added to the workforce each month to replace retiring workers and accommodate the increase in population. Available job openings continue to exceed willing workers by almost two to one. The BLS reported on Wednesday that there were 10.8 million job openings at the end of January, while the number of unemployed rose slightly to 5.9 million people. Job openings fell by 410,000 from December.
The largest payroll gains were in leisure and hospitality (+105,000), retail (+50,000), government (+46,000), professional and business services (+45,000), and health care (+44,000). Most of the job growth has been in smaller service companies that suffered from shutdowns and social distancing requirements during the pandemic. These gains have exceeded the recent layoffs among larger and more prominent tech companies, including Alphabet, Inc. (Google), Walt Disney Co, and Amazon.com, Inc.
The economy’s greatest threat remains inflation, and a strong labor market poses challenges for the Federal Reserve in its resolve to tame inflation. Higher wages have fueled demand-pull inflation by providing families additional funds to purchase goods and services. Higher labor costs have exacerbated inflation because businesses raise prices to recoup some of their added costs. Fortunately, wage increases slowed in February. The 0.2% increase was the lowest in a year, and the prior twelve-month reading has fallen from 5.7% to 4.6% since January 2022.
January’s reports sparked concern that the economy was heating up, which would hamper efforts to subdue inflation. Payrolls increased by 507,000 (revised from 514,000). The unemployment rate dipped to a 53-year low of 3.4%, and consumer spending reversed course and soared the most in a year after falling for three straight months. January’s PCE price index, the inflation measure favored by policymakers at the Federal Reserve, tripled. Many economists questioned the Fed’s wisdom of only raising its benchmark rate by 0.25%, rather than 0.5%, at their last meeting. Chairman Powell warned the Senate banking committee (see Chairman Powell’s testimony) that policymakers could opt for a larger rate hike at its next meeting if the data shows the economy is not slowing sufficiently to slow inflation. Fortunately, February’s employment report concluded that payroll increases remain too high, but they are moderating. The higher unemployment rate was healthy because it was caused by people entering the labor force, slowing wage increases.
Policymakers at the Federal Reserve will meet on March 21st and 22nd to monitor and adjust its monetary policy. This report does little to dissuade them from increasing its benchmark rate, but the increase will likely be only 0.25%. Beforehand, they will be very interested in the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ monthly publication, Consumer Price Index – February 2023, which is scheduled to be released on March 14th. Check back to HigherRockEducation.org shortly after its release for our summary and analysis.


text:
Chairman of Moldovagaz JSC Management Board Vadim Ceban put forward several proposals that, in his opinion, will help to recover from the current gas crisis quickly and without consequences.
In particular, he recommended that the government consider the possibility of increasing budget compensation to domestic consumers, considering the difference between the price of natural gas included in the tariff and the purchase price; return (reimburse) VAT to Moldovagaz JSC to avoid the growth of tariff deviations in the amount of at least $ 22 million; to connect the credit facilities of the main industrial consumers of natural gas (fuel and energy companies) through international financial institutions to pay for current gas consumption, reports noi.md
Vadim Ceban also noted that the Board of Moldovagaz JSC will appeal for support to all shareholders, including Gazprom PJSC, with a request to consider the possibility of deferring payment or providing short-term loans in the amount of financial deviations. In addition, the company will continue to optimize costs.
“It should be added that in the long term, the industry needs to be brought to the free market, where the price for domestic consumers and producers differs significantly,” Vadim Ceban said.