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The new BMW i8 Spyder Concept was announced in January and now BMW has revealed that the car will go into production as the BMW i8 Roadster.
As well as the new BMW i8 Roadster there will also be a new version of the company’s i3 with a longer range than the current model, plus another vehicle, the i NEXT.
The BMW Group’s strategy will become driving reality, ushering in the next decade in the form of a revolutionary new BMW i model that will raise premium individual mobility to previously unknown levels. Under the banner of BMW iNEXT, the BMW Group brings new forms of automated driving and digital connectivity together with a new generation of electric mobility, lightweight construction and trailblazing interior design that will set new standards for the customer’s mobility experience.
“BMW iNEXT heralds the next era of mobility,” stated Krüger. “This symbol of our technology leadership will demonstrate how we will bring the future of mobility into series production.” It also underlines BMW i’s role as a driver of innovation and technological trailblazer for the company. The brand develops trendsetting technologies and services, subsequently transferring them to the BMW model range.
You can find out more details about BMW’s new i range at the link below, as soon as we get some more details on each car, we will let you guys know.
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Kalraj Mishra, Union Minister for MSME said that Khadi is the symbol of National unity and integration; hence every citizen should purchase Khadi. After inaugurating “Khadi Utsav” organised by Khadi Gramodyog Bhawan, on the occasion of Gandhi Jayanti, the Minister said that Khadi is able to compete in today’s global marketplace and to realise the vision of Gram Swaraj, it is necessary to develop village industries. He emphasised that Khadi exhibitions should be organised in every district of the country. He also stated that the visionary Prime Minister is well aware the importance of Khadi, therefore he evocated to the people to purchase Khadi.
KC Tyagi, Chairman, DRPSC on Industry in his address congratulated everyone associated with Khadi Programme. He told that Ministry of MSME is competent enough to provide employment to lakhs of people.
Meenakshi Lekhi, Hon’ble Member of Parliament congratulated everyone on Gandhi Jayanti and appealed to the people specially women to wear Khadi Saree.
Arun Kumar Jha, CEO and Commissioner KVIC told to media that the objective of “Khadi Utsav” is to revive the dormant Khadi production which was famous for its sophistication and fineness, as well as to rejuvenate various the artists, who are generally working as ‘Job Workers’ now. In the Exhibition which has been setup, the products comprising Khadi sarees, dress material and other ethnic products would be a delight for the connoisseur of fabrics and fine art.
Dr. Anup K Pujari, Secretary, MSME; SN Tripathi, Development Commissioner, MSME; BH Anil Kumar, Joint Secretary, MSME; senior officers of the Ministry and KVIC; representatives of Khadi institutions and entrepreneurs were also present at the occassion.

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Indian textile exports including cotton yarn has started feeling pinch from China. There is two way impact for Indian exporters. Exports of textile in the international market is facing challenge from depreciating Chinese currency at a time when Indian rupee is on an upward move. In that case, buyers are preferring China’s products due to price advantage as Chinese buyers have been offering their produce at competitive rates. Direct export of cotton and cotton yarn to China is getting impacted due to change in Chinese policy of selling cotton from reserves at reduced price.
China’s currency has depreciated against the dollar while to make matters worse for India, rupee has appreciated. The yuan has depreciated by 2.6% against the dollar since the start of the year calendar year to 6.21 yuan per dollar. While, the rupee has appreciated by 2.7% to Rs 60.09 per dollar.
China, being India’s competitor in textile now has an added advantage in terms of pricing as their currency has been depreciating for the last three months. India had a cost advantage compared to China where labour cost is high but now it is getting offset due to the depreciation in the currency, yuan.
Current year’s textile exports were on rise as India had gained out of China’s rising cost of production resulting in to orders shifting to India. China’s textile products were priced higher than India’s.
Now, buyers international have now started to negotiate on the price, currently, 30’s combed of cotton yarn is priced at $3.60 per kilogram, but buyers are now asking cotton yarn at $ 3.50 per kilogram. China has already cut down their prices to $ 3.50 per kg for 30’s count.
China, being a heavy importer of India’s cotton yarn has also reduced its imports of cotton yarn from India in the last three months.
“The textile industry has seen an impact as orders have already started to see an impact due to the depreciation in the yuan against the dollar, while the rupee has appreciated,” said D K Nair, chairman of confederation of Indian Textile Industries.
Orders also which have been coming in are coming for lower prices, while cotton prices are on the higher side.
“Going ahead, if the rupee keeps appreciating and the yuan keeps depreciating then it will have a bad impact on cotton yarn exports. Indian exporters may start to feel the heat going ahead,” said SP Oswal, chairman and MD of Vardhaman Group.
Shankar 6, the benchmark variety of cotton has gone up by 4% since the start of the year to Rs 11754 per quintal.
Directorate General of Foreign Trade so far has only released data till January of cotton yarn exports, which show an increase in cotton yarn exports.
Cotton yarn exports which have been registered till January according to DGFT is 143.81 million kgs compared to 117.14 million kgs in January last year.
Recently International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC) said that, uncertainty on how China will handle its large reserves of cotton next season and the significant gap between
polyester and cotton prices does not bode well for cotton consumption in China.” This indicates that to save cost, textile players there could increase use of polyester at a time when domestic economy is on a slower track. ICAC said in a statement that, “in 2013-14, the Cotlook A Index (benchmark index for cotton prices) has averaged 90 cents per pound while polyester in China averaged 73. However, in March 2014, the price of polyester in China dropped below 70 cents per pound, to about 66 cents, while the Cotlook A Index has averaged about 97 cents. Given the substantial cost difference, cotton’s share of the market is expected to continue its decline this season.” This will also pose a challenge for indian exports of cotton and yarn to China.
Source: Business Standard


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Wigan game switched to Thursday
Posted: Saturday 7th September 2019 - 8:00 AM
Castleford Tigers will now face Wigan Warriors on Thursday, 12th September in the final round of the regular season.
The fixture change was confirmed late last night by the Betfred Super League and Sky Sports, with the clash brought forward 24 hours in order to be broadcast live.
It means the Tigers and the Warriors will now be responsible for kicking off what promises to be an incredible weekend of rugby league as the race for the play-offs and the battle to avoid relegation goes down to the wire.
Following Thursday’s superb win over Hull FC, Cas will head to the DW Stadium on Thursday night knowing a victory over the second-placed Warriors would secure a place in the end-of-season play-offs. However, a draw or a defeat would hand an opportunity to the Black and Whites who would leapfrog the Tigers into the top-five should they beat league leaders St Helens on Friday night.
This week’s clash will be the third meeting between Cas and Wigan this year, with both teams each winning one of the matches so far ahead of another mouth-watering contest.
All tickets already purchased for the game will still be valid for the match.
Anyone who has bought a ticket and wishes to get a refund has until 6pm on Monday to return it to either of our retail stores, online ticket purchases can be refunded by calling our ticket office: 01977 529 264
Tickets and travel for the game are on sale now in both retail stores inside Carlton Lanes and Xscape, as well as online at www.castlefordtigers.com/tickets
Adults – £23
Over 60’s - £17
Students - £14
Under 16’s – £10
Castleford Tigers official coach travel is available at just £13 per seat. Coaches will depart from the Railway Pub in Knottingley at 4.45pm and then from the Mend-A-Hose Jungle at 5.00pm. To book coach travel please visit our retail stores at Carlton Lanes or Xscape Yorkshire.
For any ticket enquiries please contact our Ticket Office on: 01977 529 264
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HKBN, operator of Hong Kong’s second-largest fixed-line telecommunications network, plans to ramp up the bundling of services to its residential and enterprise users, as market competition intensifies amid the city’s pandemic-hit economy.
That move, which leads a series of initiatives that HKBN announced on Friday, is expected to show how much the company has evolved after completing the integration of its latest major corporate acquisition since 2013, according to a company statement.
In December, HKBN completed its HK$392 million (US$50 million) takeover of information and communications technology services firm Jardine OneSolution (JOS). That followed HKBN’s merger with fixed-line network operator WTT early last year.
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Its other acquisitions include cloud systems integrator I Consulting Group in 2018, the fixed-line broadband network and online marketing operations of New World Telephone Holdings in 2016, and wireless broadband service provider Y5Zone in 2013.
We believe that we are in the top 1 per cent of all companies in Hong Kong because we are in the right space – telecoms
Lai Ni Quiaque, HKBN co-owner and group chief executive
Hong Kong-listed HKBN on Friday reported an 85 per cent increase in revenue to HK$9.4 billion for the 12 months ended August 31, up from HK$5.1 billion in the same period last year, on the back of the increased enterprise business from its integration of WTT and JOS. As of end-August, HKBN serves more than 1 million residential users and 105 enterprise customers.
Profit, however, was down 55 per cent to HK$96.6 million from HK$214.5 million a year earlier. That was mainly because of higher network expenses, cost of sales and other operating expenditure because of the enlarged business scale and increased employee headcount.
The company, which competes against larger rival and market leader HKT in Hong Kong, expects to tackle issues such as delays in customer projects as well as prolonged collection and payments because of the economic slowdown, according to its statement.
Ahead of the firm’s annual results announcement last week, HKBN co-owner and group chief executive Lai Ni Quiaque discussed the company’s efforts to navigate the challenges in its industry with the South China Morning Post. Here are excerpts from that recent interview.
What is HKBN doing to grow business amid this recession-hit economy?
We believe that we are in the top 1 per cent of all companies in Hong Kong because we are in the right space – telecoms. Broadband services, in particular, provide a lifeline to help make the home a better place to live. When you think about it, [the new normal] is not just work from home. It’s everything from home, including learning from home and entertaining from home.
Being in this position comes with certain obligations and responsibilities. That is why a key part of our focus is on how we can give back. Under our “ToughTimesTogether” campaign, we gave away one month of free service to our entire customer base. That’s one-twelfth of our revenue. On top of that, we’ve provided 10,000 disadvantaged families with two full years of service for free.
Everything that we do, whether it’s business or social objectives, we have to have a clearly defined LUCA, which stands for legal unfair competitive advantage. So even when we’re contributing back to society, we have to do it better than anyone else.
Right now, we’re very proactive and busier than ever. If you look at our history, we had record growth during the Sars crisis. We’re also looking at record growth again today in the midst of Covid-19.
Our “Barter & Bundle” arrangement, which we see as a world’s first, has become an important strategy in the current economic environment.
How does the Barter & Bundle arrangement work?
Let’s take a large restaurant group as an example. In the past, they’ve given more business to the incumbent [HKT] even if we offered them a discount. Now we say, “We can help you transform your business, and by the way, you can pay part of your service fees to us in coupons”. Let’s say these are fast-food coupons. We take those coupons and distribute them to our residential and corporate customers as value-added bonus rewards, discount coupons or even stand-alone sales offers.
In the past, we would only talk to a company’s chief information officer regarding our telecoms services. With Barter & Bundle, we now talk to the CEO because we can provide more benefits to their business.
In Causeway Bay, we struck a barter deal with a company that had empty outdoor billboard space. They need telecoms services, but can’t afford to pay, so we took up the billboard space that we would have otherwise paid for.
That makes HKBN more than a telecoms company. We’re also a distribution company because about one in three residential households in Hong Kong have a monthly billing relationship with us. One in two active companies here have a monthly billing relationship with us.
A large part of doing business in Hong Kong involves distribution and logistics costs. We can help a company handle that large cost by going direct to our [residential customer base of ] 1 million households, in which the average household has 2.5 people. So 1 million households represent 2.5 million consumers in the city.
Has this transformation significantly changed the way HKBN operates?
We’re no longer here just to help you save money. Our selling point before as a telecoms provider was to offer a discount to whatever you paid HKT. Today, our aim is to help transform your business. Let us bring your operations to the cloud. Let us increase your digital security. Everything we sell, we eat ourselves.
So we’re focusing on areas where we have a competitive advantage. Business in this Covid-19 environment means change or die. We can help companies make that change.
Remember our big data breach in 2018 [when the personal data of some 380,000 customers were hacked]? We lost several thousands of customers and apologised for that. We have massively transformed our business since and can now help other companies avoid similar mistakes based on the lessons that we’ve learned.
The acquisitions we’ve made over the last few years enable us to do amazing things today, as an integrated telecoms and technology solutions provider, that we couldn’t have done as separate companies.
As you know, our history is strong in the mass residential market. New World was focused on medium-sized companies, WTT handled large companies, while JOS is a systems integrator with operations in Southeast Asia. So these are highly complementary operations.
How are you dealing with the costs of running a bigger operation?
We still spend around HK$700 million a year in capex, including new networks.
In terms of infrastructure, try to walk more than 75 metres without stepping on our manhole cover. If you look closely, you will either step on an HKBN, New World or WTT manhole cover around the city.
From that perspective, we have a more comprehensive network than HKT. In a lot of cases, we have developed more redundancy based on our efforts to combine several networks into one.
We are seeing a great opportunity to refinance the debt we have at lower cost. Despite the current [public health] crisis, banks are flush with cash. Financial institutions are looking for good companies like us to lend to.
So we’re looking to cut the cost of capital because the money we borrowed two or three years ago was at a higher cost. The debt issued by WTT three years ago can be refinanced much cheaper because it’s part of a larger company.
More from South China Morning Post:
This article Telecoms giant HKBN ratchets up services bundling amid Hong Kong economic slowdown first appeared on South China Morning Post


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Luxury lingerie chain Agent Provocateur will this week report a growth in underlying profits of 45%, with its international expansion a reason for growth in the economic downturn.
According to The Sunday Times, Agent Provocateur will report a 12% rise in annual sales. The company’s turnover will be £24.7m for the year to March, up from £22.1m the previous year. Earnings before tax, interest, accounting charges and one off items will see an increase of 45%, up to £1.2m.
Chief executive Garry Hogarth said: “Current trading is strong. The company is in a good place. I am confident for the future.” He added the company’s international expansion had helped beat the economic downturn experienced in Britain.
The lingerie brand, which has 51 stores worldwide, will open two further stores in New York and Beverly Hills next month. America is expected to overtake Britain as the biggest market for the business.


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NEW YORK CITY - A study by The Regeneration Roadmap - a joint project by the GlobeScan Foundation, SustainAbility, and BBMG - finds that nearly 9 in 10 consumers globally (86%) say "ingredient transparency is extremely important or very important” for companies to address as part of their products, services, or operations, including 88% of consumers in emerging markets and 84% of consumers in developed markets. However, only 57% regularly “check the list of ingredients before purchasing” products, highlighting the gap between interest and action in sustainable consumption.
According to the report – Re:Thinking Consumption: Consumers and the Future of Sustainability – ingredient transparency is also a “very important” or “important” factor in purchase decisions across key categories, such as food and beverage (82%), beauty and personal care (82%), and household products (82%). The study draws from an online survey of 6,224 consumers across Brazil, China, India, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States.
“Many consumers globally believe they have the right to know what products are made of and they want companies to ensure their products are safe and effective,” said Eric Whan, Sustainability Director at GlobeScan. “However, there’s a gap between interest and action when it comes to actually reading the list of ingredients on product packaging.”
"The overwhelming majority of consumers identifies ingredient transparency as an important consideration in making purchase decisions for food, beauty and household products,” said Raphael Bemporad, co-founder of brand innovation consultancy BBMG. “Across multiple markets and product categories, consumers are expressing interest in what goes in, on and around their bodies.”
Food and Beverage:
Beauty and Personal Care:
Developed by BBMG, GlobeScan and SustainAbility, The Regeneration Consumer Study is an in-depth online survey of consumer attitudes, motivations and behaviors relating to sustainable consumption among 6,224 respondents across six major international markets (Brazil, China, Germany, India, the United Kingdom and the United States) conducted in September and October 2012. Drawn from consumer research panels, global data are comparable to having a margin of error of +/- 1.3 percent. Analysis of country-level data reflects a margin of error of +/- 3.1 percent.
The study is part of the The Regeneration Roadmap, a collaborative and multi-faceted thought leadership initiative designed to engage the private sector in advancing sustainable development by improving sustainability strategy, increasing credibility and delivering results at greater speed and scale.
Presenting Sponsors of The Regeneration Roadmap are BMW Group and SC Johnson. Sponsors include Cisco, DuPont, Interface and Pfizer. The Regeneration Consumer Study is sponsored by Campbell Soup Company, Itau, L’Oréal, Shell and Starbucks.
TORONTO – As the debate over top earners’ pay continues, public dissatisfaction with income inequality remains high, according to new GlobeScan data from a 23-nation study released today, with fewer than half in most countries polled believing most rich people in their country deserve their wealth.
GlobeScan polled more than 12,000 adults across 23 countries about their attitudes towards economic inequality as part of the annual GlobeScan Radar global public opinion study on business and its role in society. In 12 countries over 50% of people said they did not believe that the rich deserved their wealth.
Seventeen of the countries were also asked for their attitudes towards economic inequality in a comparable 2008 study. This year’s findings reveal that only 43 per cent of people across the 17 countries surveyed in both years feel that most rich people in their country deserve their wealth. Almost half of those polled in both years (48%) disagree that rich people merit their wealth—a figure that has remained stable since 2008 (49%).
The figures show that public concern with the way wealth is divided remains almost as high as it was in the year of the Lehman Brothers collapse, when corporate practices—in the banking sector particularly—started coming in for intense scrutiny. They come in a week when new French president François Hollande has unveiled a new 75% tax on incomes above €1m, and when a prominent high earner, Barclays’ Bob Diamond, whose remuneration has been strongly criticised in the past, has been forced to resign.
In only six countries surveyed in 2012 did more than half feel that rich people deserve their wealth. The most likely nations in 2012 to feel that rich people in their country deserved their wealth were Australia (61% up from 53% 2008), Canada (58%, down from 61% in 2008) and the USA (up one point from 2008 at 58%). They contrast with much of GlobeScan’s recent polling, where Anglo-Saxon nations were among the developed countries where trust in business more generally was lower than in the developing world.
Attitudes in Europe were mixed, with 45% of Britons feeling the rich deserve their wealth, 31% of French and 35% of Germans.
Greece emerged as the country least likely to feel that its rich people deserved their wealth (with only nine per cent agreeing), but Russia (16%, down from 17%) Turkey (20%, up from 14%) and Spain (20%, up from 18%) were also profoundly sceptical.
Sam Mountford, GlobeScan’s Director of Global Insights, comments: “These figures show that citizens around the world remain far from convinced that the way wealth is divided in their country is fair. This underlying sense of economic inequity may well present a challenge to governments planning to cut and deregulate their way back to prosperity.”
A total of 12,234 adults were surveyed across Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, France, Germany, Ghana, Greece, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, Russia, South Korea, Spain, Turkey, the UK, and the USA between December 6 2011 and February 17 2012. Interviews were conducted by GlobeScan and its global partners face to face or by telephone. In six of the 23 countries, the sample was limited to major urban areas. The margin of error per country ranges from +/- 2.9 to 4.9 per cent, 19 times out of 20.
Published by The Financial Times on October 17th, 2012, this letter was written by GlobeScan Foundation President, Doug Miller, in response to an October 11th, 2012 article entitled "Companies are facing a new type of opponent”
Sir Michael Skapinker’s article “Companies are facing a new type of opponent” (October 11) builds very well on Simon Zadek’s keen observation that conflict today stems increasingly from the gulf between rich and poor within countries.
Mr. Skapinker goes on to argue quite effectively that this has created a new opposing force to free enterprise, as demonstrated by seemingly random and unexpected uprisings at mines in South Africa, at Foxconn in China and during last year’s riots in Britain (not to mention Occupy Wall Street).
This phenomenon is underscored by the poll we conducted for the BBC World Service earlier this year, which revealed that majorities in 18 of 24 countries see the economic system in their country as unfair in distributing economic benefits and costs. The fact that companies are increasingly being targeted by these “new opponents” is understandable given another finding from the same poll – that free enterprise as currently practised is progressively losing its appeal. While one in two citizens across the 24 countries believes flaws in the free market system can be fixed through reform and regulation, fully one in four now sees it as fatally flawed and that a new economic system is needed.
We would argue that the best defence to all this is a good offence. Big companies first need to manage their reputation proactively among their stakeholders to avoid being targeted; and second, they need to rediscover an authentic societal purpose at the heart of their enterprise from which to demonstrate the efficacy of free enterprise in meeting the real needs of the majority of people.
I used to joke in client presentations that those chief financial officers and other executives who continued to oppose corporate social responsibility initiatives by their companies would one day awake to discover that CSR had been replaced by something they would like even less. Well, this is it.
Read this letter on The Financial Times (Subscription Required)
LONDON - As governments prepare to meet in Mexico for the Cancun climate summit, a new global poll reveals that concern about climate change has fallen sharply across OECD countries in the past year, but that citizens in some major developing nations have become more concerned about the issue.
The 26-country poll, conducted by GlobeScan, asked a total of 13,389 people to rate the seriousness of a range of environmental problems including climate change.
Results from the 14 countries where GlobeScan has tracked opinion regularly since 1998 reveal that concern has fallen away particularly sharply on climate change. The proportion of people rating climate change as a “very serious” problem fell from 61 percent to 53 percent this year, after many years of increasing concern.
While concern about climate change fell in many industrialised nations including the UK (down from 59 percent to 43 percent “very serious”), the USA (down from 45 percent to 41 percent), and Germany (down from 61 percent to 47 percent), the findings also show that concern has risen in the last year in two major emerging economies: India (up from 45 percent to 53 percent) and Brazil (up from 86 percent to 92 percent).
GlobeScan Senior Vice-President Chris Coulter commented: “We are witnessing a North-South divide around climate change where concern is stable or growing in emerging economies while concern has declined in Europe and North America. The combined effects of economic recession, the confusing results from last year’s Copenhagen climate conference, and the controversy surrounding climate science seem to have shaken the belief of people in industrialized countries that climate change is an urgent problem that needs to be addressed, and makes it even less likely that governments will feel the pressure to reach a strong agreement in Cancun. We may, however, see stronger than expected leadership from key developing countries in response to the significant levels of concern expressed by their populations.”
American public support for the free market economy has dropped sharply in the past year, and is now lower than in China and Brazil, and equal to that in India. The GlobeScan Radar 2010 findings show that there has been a sharp fall in the number of Americans who think that the free market economy is the best economic system for the future. In 2002, four in five Americans (80%) saw the free market as the best economic system for the future—the highest level of support anywhere in the world. Support started to fall away in the following years and recovered slightly after the financial crisis in 2007/8, but has plummeted since 2009, falling 15 points in a year so that less than three in five (59%) now see free market capitalism as the best system for the future.
This finding was featured in The Economist.
Genetic modification of food crops is an issue on which public concern has increased significantly in a number of countries over the last few years. Most notably, despite the wide prevalence of GM foods available for sale in the US, this is the market where public concern about genetic modification has increased most sharply—the proportion rating GM crops as a very serious issue now stands at 41 per cent, up 16 points since 2003. Despite the high media profile in the UK and refusal by many major food retailers to stock GM foods, concern there is lower. It is highest in Mexico, where nearly two-thirds consider the issue to be serious.
Public concern about climate change has been on the up since the late 1990s. Fifteen years ago, those who saw it as a very serious environmental issue were significantly outnumbered by those who worried about more tangible and immediate environmental concerns—water pollution and air pollution among them—but by 2009 climate concern had substantially caught up with other environmental worries. Contrary to what many expected, climate concern continued to rise as recession hit, but the last year has seen a sharp fall in concern, according to the most recent GlobeScan tracking across 14 countries. The widely-perceived failure of the Copenhagen summit and the storm around the “Climategate” emails are likely to have been instrumental.
But the picture is more complex than it first appears. Concern has fallen sharply in the developed West, but is stable or rising in the BRICs. In some countries, like the USA, even if climate concern is down, worries about other environmental issues we tested are on the rise. Those who ascribe climate change to natural causes are up—but so are the numbers who blame it on human activity. All this suggests public opinion remains volatile—and may well swing again in response to the next Hurricane Katrina, tsunami or similar catastrophe, when fingers will again be pointed at the impact of the changing climate.
In a week when the stability of the global economy was once again called into question, with European political leaders meeting to seek a solution to the ongoing crisis in the Eurozone, GlobeScan’s tracking data shows that the public in many countries remains deeply pessimistic about the future of the planet.
For over ten years, GlobeScan has been monitoring the degree to which people around the globe feel that "the world is going in the right direction." On average, less than one-third of those polled have endorsed this view in recent years. This year’s findings show that there has been no rebound in optimism—and indeed that confidence in the way the world is heading has taken a further knock in many of the world’s major economies.
Less than a fifth (19%) of Americans now feel that the world is going in the right direction, compared to more than half back in 2001. Only 14 per cent of Japanese feel the same way. Just one in ten in Spain, one of the countries at the eye of the Eurozone storm, and fewer than a quarter of UK respondents are optimistic about the world’s direction—a figure that has fallen continually since 2006.
Optimism is markedly higher in emerging economies such as China, where 65% think the world is headed in the right direction, and Indonesia (43%)—but in both of these countries the trend is also downwards. Only in a few developing and middle-income countries—Peru, Russia, Turkey, and Nigeria—is optimism on the increase. With concern on many global issues very high, and trust in institutions low, it may be that the public perceives a sense of drift and absence of leadership in dealing, not only with the economic crisis, but also with such problems as climate change, the spread of disease, and terrorism.
GlobeScan’s tracking survey reveals that public concern about climate change has been volatile since the 2009 Copenhagen summit’s failure to agree to a global deal to reduce carbon emissions—but concern continues to be higher in developing than in developed countries.
This reflects our 2010 Greendex survey of 17 countries, where British, Swedish, German, and American respondents showed the lowest levels of agreement with the proposition “global warming will worsen my way of life within my own lifetime,” while Brazilian, Indian, and Chinese respondents showed high levels of agreement. This may reflect the greater potential for catastrophic events such as natural disasters to impact people’s lives in developing nations.
This decline in concern about climate change may result from increasing feelings of urgency about other social and economic issues overshadowing long-term concerns about the environment. In 2011, corruption, extreme poverty, the rising cost of food and energy, and terrorism emerge as greater preoccupations on a global level than climate change.
Particular factors that are likely to be behind the decline in the perceived seriousness of climate change in developed countries between 2000 and 2003—and again in 2010—are the impact of the September 11 attacks, the subsequent conflicts in the Middle East, and the global economic downturn. The widely publicized “Climategate” controversy is also likely to have been a factor.
France, Japan, and the USA have seen continuing decreases in the perceived seriousness of climate change over the past three years. Under the influence of the ongoing economic slowdown—and of the Fukushima disaster—climate change has lost attention in some major economies, and is slow to regain it.
Over the past year, however, climate change has recovered its position as an issue of serious concern in some developed and developing countries, particularly in Ecuador, Peru, Turkey, and Russia.
There has been a marked decline in people's sense of global citizenship in the last two years in three of the world's major economies—China, the UK, and the USA.
While GlobeScan's latest findings indicate that a sense of global citizenship is on the rise in many emerging economies across Asia, Africa, and Latin America, the ongoing economic malaise affecting the G7, the lack of progress on a new global free trade agreement, and the rekindling of doubts about the future viability of the global free market system may be among the factors that are depressing citizens' sense of belonging to the global community in these three countries. In the UK, this year's drop represents the continuation of a decline that started in 2007.
Nevertheless, the proportion of Chinese who see themselves as global citizens remains the highest of any country polled—62%. For a country that has spent much of its history seeking to isolate itself from the rest of the world, this is a striking turnaround.


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With trade talks continuing between the U.S. and China this week, Wall Street has turned its eyes to Beijing – where diplomats from both nations will be meeting to discuss a peaceful coexistence in the world economy.
Most notably for investors, however, will be the Chinese proposal on technology, and namely what Xi Jinping and co. are willing to do to become competitive in the sector again.
Without raiding American corporations, that is.
Leading up to the meetings, both sides are reportedly ready for “positive and constructive discussions”.
But if Trumps’ envoys don’t like what they hear, it could be another long year for the Asian markets, as it seems Americans have begun to realize the grass might just be greener without manufacturing dependence on the Far East.
President Trump himself expressed optimism ahead of this week’s meeting, which takes place on Monday and Tuesday, remarking that he felt good about his recent dialogue with Xi:
“I really believe they want to make a deal. The tariffs have absolutely hurt China very badly.”
He’s absolutely right about the pain inflicted by his tariffs, of course, as evidenced by a Chinese economy on the ropes and a sudden change in attitude from communist party leadership.
In the meeting, American interests will be represented by U.S. trade representative Jeffery D. Gerrish, who’s bringing officials from the agriculture, energy, commerce, and treasury departments in tow.
On the other side of the table, the Chinese are playing things much closer to the chest and have not revealed who will be attending – a tactic almost certainly intended to catch the American contingency off guard.
Despite the “good vibes” from both nations, though, the recent arrest of a Chinese tech executive (Huawei’s Meng Wanzhou) in Canada is likely to cast a slight pall over the talks. Add to that Trump’s recent tariff hike that rose levies to 25% on $250 billion of Chinese imported goods, and you’ve got a recipe for a meeting that’s anything but “positive and constructive”.
However, with the derailment of China’s “Made in China 2025” initiative (Xi’s equivalent of “Make America Great Again”) the Chinese seem ready to capitulate at some point in the near future. These talks in Beijing could be the start of that.
And while that might sound great on paper, the reality is that many U.S. corporations see things much differently.
Data gathered by UBS (Union Bank of Switzerland) and confirmed by our in-house analysts suggests that many companies (and banks) expect the trade war to escalate even further.
Need proof? 37% of the 200 manufacturers surveyed by UBS claim to have shifted business interests out of China over the last 12 months. Nearly half of the manufacturers blame their exodus from the region on tariffs, while rest cited concerns over higher costs and stricter environmental regulations.
This week’s meeting, which is seen as a “critical moment” for 2019 by many analysts, is really just a session for both the U.S. and China to hammer out technical details in the event of a trade war truce. The big decisions for the future – especially regarding the easing of tariffs – are still a way off from being made and will depend entirely upon China’s willingness to play by Trump’s rules.
Still, any signs of friendliness between the two sides will ultimately please the market, especially if hostilities over the tech sector cool even further – something that bulls have anxiously been awaiting.


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the PS4 also falls in sales, many users are reserving for the future PS5
People don’t want a PS4 (that much) either. The same issue we discussed in the case of the Xbox One has been confirmed for the PS4, which sales have dropped significantly during the last quarter of last year.
The drop has not been as steep as the Xbox One: while it fell 43% in hardware sales, the PS4 has done it 25% with respect to the results of the same period of 2018. In Microsoft users are reserved for the Xbox Series X, and in Sony the same is happening and users are also being reserved for the PS5.
The Osborne effect strikes back
In 1981 the Osborne Computer Corporation announced the Osborne 1. In 1983 the founder of the company, Adam Osborne, announced not one, but several new generation models They were just prototypes at the time, but he said they would dramatically improve the Osborne 1’s performance. What happened?
That reservations and sales of the Osborne 1 were canceled and revenues plummeted. Such was the fall that the company itself had to announce bankruptcy a few months later, in September 1983. That announcement ended up condemning the company, and it became a paradigm with its own name: the Osborne effect.
The Osborne effect has been repeated numerous times throughout history. Sega started talking about the Dreamcast when the Saturn was trying to consolidate and condemned this model. Nokia fell into the same situation when it announced that it was moving from Symbian to Windows Mobile: it is true that they were no longer competitive with products based on iOS or Android, but they continued to generate significant revenue for the firm.
The Xbox One and the PS4 are also victims of their successors
As happened a few days ago with the fiscal results of the Xbox One, history has repeated – albeit with a little less impact – on the PS4. Sony sold 6.1 million units of its console compared to the 8.1 million it sold in the same period of 2018, something that represents a fall of 25%.
Annual sales figures have also dropped notably: 14.7 million units were sold in 2019, while 17.7 million were sold in all of 2018. The fall has accelerated, since during 2018 Sony also sold less than in 2016 and 2017, when it achieved 19.4 million units sold.
A total of 14.7 million PS4 units were shipped in 2019, down from 17.7 million in 2018.
Unless there is a price cut this year, it’s likely that sales will decline sharper in 2020. pic.twitter.com/bPYzlZ4qpK
– Daniel Ahmad (@ZhugeEX) February 4, 2020
As Niko Partners analyst Daniel Ahmad explained, “Unless there are price cuts this year, sales are likely to decline more sharply in 2020“Those sales that we have already seen on the Xbox One are also being seen on the PS4 with some frequency, but it seems clear that many users are already waiting for the future PS5.
More information | Sony


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These 12 companies and startups are creating innovative green and clean technology. Find out what they’ve come up with.
We're excited to announce that Discovery and WarnerMedia have combined to become Warner Bros. Discovery. We're a premier global media and entertainment company offering audiences the world's most differentiated


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Indian Pharma Market Growth Slows In December
The pharma industry's revenue rose 5.3% year-on-year in December.
India's pharma industry's growth slowed in December, dragged down by the chronic and acute segments.
The industry revenue increased 5.3% year-on-year in December, Motilal Oswal said in a report. That compares with a 6.6% rise in November and 8.5% in December 2020, it said.
According to India Ratings and Research Pvt., volumes declined 1.5% year-on-year, price growth was at 5.4%, while new product launches were up 1.4% over the preceding year, driven by acute therapy products or drugs for short-term illnesses like respiratory ailments, cough and cold.
December, Jefferies said, also "didn't benefit from a low base effect".
India Ratings, citing All Indian Origin Chemists & Distributors' data, said:
Growth in chronic therapies for long-term ailments eased as sales of cardiac and anti-diabetic drugs rose at a slower pace of 4.1% and 1.3% year-on-year, respectively.
Central nervous system therapies grew at 7.3%.
Anti-infectives witnessed a 2.8% decline.
Sales of acute therapies such as gastro, respiratory and pain/analgesics rose 9.2%, 21.7% and 13.5%, respectively, aided by a low base.
India Ratings expects the demand for analgesics, multivitamins, and cough and cold segments to improve over the next three months, owing to seasonality and the third wave of Covid-19 infections. It sees Indian pharma market's revenue to grow over 12% year-on-year in the ongoing financial year.
According to Motilal Oswal, sales of non-Covid drugs rose 4.7% year-on-year, while that of Covid therapy drugs increased 6.4%. Vaccine sales, it said, declined 15.3% year-on-year.
Jefferies sees Indian pharma market to move to a high base from early FY23, which could pose further challenges.
The moving annual total, or 12-month rolling sales, of overall pharmaceutical products rose 14.9% in December, according to India Ratings.
According to Motilal Oswal:
Among the top corporates, IPCA Laboratories Ltd., AstraZeneca Pharma India Ltd., Merck India Pvt., Mankind Pharma Ltd., Ajanta Pharma Ltd., Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., Torrent Pharmaceuticals Ltd., Intas Pharmaceuticals Ltd., Indoco Remedies Ltd., and Eris Lifesciences Ltd. grew significantly higher than the Indian pharma market.
On a MAT basis, Wockhardt Ltd., FDC Ltd., IPCA Labs, Merck reported industry-leading volume growth. Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Ltd. posted the highest growth in new launches.
Jefferies said IPCA Labs registered the highest growth in December, while Cipla Ltd., Lupin Ltd., Cadila Healthcare Ltd., Alkem Laboratories Ltd. and Alembic Pharmaceuticals Ltd. underperformed the market.


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June trade deficit shrinks as exports climb
The Commerce Department reported Tuesday the trade imbalance dropped to $56.8 billion in June, down by 4.1 percent from a revised May deficit of $59.2 billion. It was the smallest deficit in three months and much better than the $61.5 billion deficit Wall Street had been expecting.
Exports of goods and services rose to a record of $164.4 billion, helped by the dollar's declines earlier in the year, which have made U.S. goods cheaper on overseas markets.
Imports also rose to a record of $221.2 billion, up 1.8 percent from the May level. But the increase was driven by a 14.6 percent surge in petroleum imports, which hit an all-time high of $44.5 billion as crude oil prices jumped to record levels.
The country's goods trade deficit outside of petroleum shrank to the lowest level since February 2003. Demand for a variety of consumer products from clothing to televisions and furniture has weakened, reflecting the sharp economic slowdown in the United States.
Through the first half of this year, the trade deficit is running at an annual rate of $702.8 billion, up only slightly from last year's deficit of $700.3 billion. The 2007 deficit was down 7 percent from 2006, marking the first annual improvement after five straight years of record deficits.
The Bush administration points to the falling deficits as evidence that the president's trade policies are working to open overseas markets to U.S. products.
But critics say the deficits still remain far above the levels when Bush took office. They also contend that the string of record deficits contributed to the loss of more than 3 million manufacturing jobs since 2001 as many companies moved production to low-wage countries.
The deficit in June, after adjusting for inflation, was the lowest monthly imbalance since December 2001, a month when the country was struggling to emerge from the last recession. Many economists believe the 2008 slowdown will ultimately be ruled a recession too, although the gross domestic product has yet to post back-to-back negative quarters, a traditional definition of a downturn.
The GDP expanded at an annual rate of 1.9 percent in the April-June quarter. It may have been negative during that period, however, had it not been for a sizable improvement in the trade balance, reflecting the drop in demand for imports and surging export sales.
Economists are worried that the big lift from exports could fade in coming months if economic growth in Europe and Japan, two big overseas markets for American goods, falters.
The politically sensitive deficit with China rose to $21.4 billion in June, the largest monthly imbalance since a record $25.9 billion deficit with China last October. The deficit is likely to rise further in coming months.
The Chinese reported Monday that their surplus with the world rose to the highest level in eight months in July. Its surpluses with the United States and the 27-nation European Union expanded.
Critics accuse China of unfair trade practices such as artificially depressing the value of its currency to boost the competitiveness of Chinese products. The Bush administration, led by Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, has been prodding China to move more quickly to allow its currency to rise against the dollar and head off Democratic moves in Congress to impose penalty tariffs on Chinese goods over the currency issue.
The record level of U.S. exports in June reflected big increases in sales of farm products such as soybeans, corn and wheat and gains in exports of manufactured goods. Sales of aircraft engines, electric generators and computer chips all posted big gains.
U.S. exports to Mexico, the European Union and South and Central America all hit records in June.
But America's deficit with OPEC set a record too in June as the average price of imported crude oil climbed to a record of $117.13 per barrel. Oil prices, which hit a record on the spot market of $147.27 in early July, have fallen by about 20 percent since that time, raising hopes that the oil portion of the trade deficit will start to narrow in coming months.


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The pet CBD product market is estimated to generate $629 million in sales in 2021 after racking up $426 million last year. That is one of the main findings of a new report that examines this growing market, disabusing a notion held by some that pet CBD is a passing fad. The same study projects $1.1 billion for the market by 2025.
Conducted by CBD and cannabis-focused market researcher Brightfield Group, the study found that today's pet CBD consumers are likely to be younger women living in the city who use CBD themselves. Millennials represent 53% of pet CBD consumers. Also, 46% of pet CBD consumers are city dwellers while 30% live in the suburbs.
Further, pet CBD consumers are reportedly more sophisticated than they were in 2020. As the CBD industry continues to evolve and expand, consumers are becoming educated faster on brands and products, said the report. The study found that 73% of consumers who buy pet CBD also use CBD themselves.
Here’s a significant tidbit: The number of consumers discussing CBD brands with their veterinarians more than doubled from 2020 to 2021. The study found that 70% of pet CBD buyers discussed pet CBD with their vets; however, only 5% purchased pet CBD through their vets while 13% heard of CBD first from a vet or pet care worker. And, 31% of pet CBD buyers who have spoken with their vets about pet CBD said they also discussed CBD brands.
Of the study’s findings, Jamie Schau, who leads insights at Brightfield, was especially intrigued by the influence veterinarians are wielding over the selection of pet CBD brands among consumers. This is significant because vets risk defying the Food and Drug Administration and their State Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners when they discuss possible benefits of CBD with pet parents. They cannot broach the topic of pet CBD, but they can enthusiastically express what CBD has done for other pets.
“In a space where veterinarians in their majority have their hands tied with limitations not only on recommending, but bringing up CBD, consumers have taken the wheel and started bringing it up themselves, en masse,” said Schau. “Word of mouth has always been a key driver of organic CBD marketing and growth, but a doubling of consumer-initiated conversations with vets surrounding pet CBD is significant even against that backdrop. This demonstrates that interest in this product category is immense, and when veterinarians are freed up to speak more actively about pet CBD, we expect it to spur a great deal of additional growth, especially among more hesitant pet parents.”
To order the report, click here.


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Italy and fellow European Union members have long complained about the way Facebook, Google and other internet giants collect huge profits in their countries but pay taxes of a few million euros at most.
Digital companies shift earnings to low- or no-tax locations such as Ireland and international treaties protect them against paying tax in countries where they do not have what is termed a “permanent establishment”.
“Profits have to be taxed where they are made,” Gualtieri told a parliamentary hearing.
In Rome on Tuesday to present a production partnership with Italy’s biggest commercial broadcaster Mediaset, Netflix Chief Executive and founder Reed Hastings said the U.S. video streaming service planned to open offices in Italy and pay taxes in the country.
Internet giants collect huge profits, but pay minimal taxes as they shift earnings declarations to low-tax nations
The scheme is expected to yield about 600 million euros ($660m) each year and will apply to companies with annual global revenues worth at least 750 million euros ($830m) and digital services exceeding 5.5 million euros ($6m) in Italy.
The plan is broadly in line with proposals from the Paris-based Organisation for Economic Cooperation (OECD), which last week urged governments to redraw rules for taxing global giants.
The Italian web tax will be applied to companies with annual revenues worth at least 750 million euros and digital services exceeding 5.5 million.
Rome is struggling to find resources to avoid a rise in sales tax worth some 23 billion euros ($26bn), due to kick in from January, which could hurt already weak domestic demand.


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Lucent: The Sassy Spinoff With a Lot of Luck
By SETH SCHIESEL
Published: April 13, 1997
''I THINK this breakup will go down as one of the great decisions in American corporate history.''
That was easy enough for Henry B. Schacht to say. As chairman and chief executive of Lucent Technologies, he presides over a spun-off company that has exceeded almost everybody's expectations -- even if the former parent, AT&T, is suffering from a surprisingly severe case of post-partum depression.
True, as the telecommunications equipment and network-building business of AT&T, Lucent had the advantage of starting life as one of the 50 largest companies in America. But even when AT&T said it was setting Lucent free to unlock its hidden value, few could have predicted just how much value. When Lucent's stock began trading a year and a week ago on the Big Board, who would have forecast that the value of each of those shares would nearly double -- from an initial offering price of $27 to $50.875, as of Friday?
Or that annual revenue would increase 11.1 percent, to $23.8 billion? Or that profits would rise 10.2 percent, to $1.1 billion?
Life without Lucent may be much harder than AT&T expected when it decided a year and a half ago to spin it off. But life on its own is going very well indeed for Lucent, which has emerged as a virtual case study of a company's going independent at just the right moment -- in market and regulatory climate -- and then making most of the right moves to exploit the resulting opportunities.
''Staying together would have meant a decline in our business,'' Mr. Schacht told 2,000 enthusiastic stockholders in February, at the company's first annual meeting, in Secaucus, N.J.. ''The alternative has been an explosion of growth.''
When AT&T announced in September 1995 that it meant to split into three companies -- AT&T, Lucent and the computer maker NCR -- the prevailing sense on Wall Street was that the wisest reason for the deal was freeing AT&T's management from the distracting details of manufacturing so it could focus on the business of providing telephone service.
AT&T's equipment business -- the part that would become Lucent -- had long been a solid source of profits and revenue, but it was hardly a nimble, entrepreneurial operation. Most of its money came from selling the multimillion-dollar network switches that route voice and computer-data conversations over local and long-distance telephone networks. Other products included smaller switches for office telephone systems and a broad range of semiconductors.
In addition, the operation still smacked of the days of the old Bell System monopoly that had ended more than a decade before, when local phone companies were a captive market and AT&T's equipment operation was as reliable, and as bureaucratic, as the Army Corps of Engineers.
But by the autumn of 1995, with Congress at work on a regulatory overhaul that would eventually free AT&T and the Baby Bells to compete head-to-head for one another's markets, the Bell companies were shifting more and more of their equipment purchases away from AT&T and toward companies like Northern Telecom Ltd. of Canada. Since the Baby Bells generally account for 20 percent to 25 percent of Lucent's sales, the potential damage was significant.
So, spinning off the equipment business made a great deal of sense. While AT&T girded to fight local-service and long-distance battles, Lucent, free to be neutral, could play the disinterested arms dealer who sold sophisticated weapons to all sides.
This soldier-of-fortune strategy is working better than even Mr. Schacht had imagined. From 1991 to 1994, sales of AT&T equipment to the regional Bells grew at an average of 3 percent a year. For the first nine months of 1996, Lucent increased its sales to the Bells by about 18 percent over the comparable period of 1995.
''Our relationship with Lucent has improved dramatically since the spinoff,'' said Lawrence T. Babbio Jr., the vice chairman of Bell Atlantic, which last year bought about $700 million of Lucent products. On Thursday, the two companies announced that Bell Atlantic would buy an additional $1 billion worth of Lucent switching equipment over the next five years. The deal is part of the companies' settlement of a lawsuit in which Bell Atlantic accused AT&T and Lucent of deliberately designing systems that would not work with equipment from other manufacturers.
''They've become focused on us as a customer and I think have become more competitive,'' Mr. Babbio said of Lucent.
NOT all of Lucent's growth, of course, owes to its emergence from under AT&T's wing. As more consumers order second phone lines to link into cyberspace, all the Bells are expanding investment in their networks. New wireless networks, meanwhile, are sprouting up around the country and businesses are demanding more advanced voice and data networks in their offices.
There is so much new business to go around that Northern Telecom -- the largest telecommunications equipment company in North America, after Lucent -- was able to increase its revenues in the United States last year by 28 percent, to $6.8 billion, even as Lucent was increasing its share of the Bell market at Northern Telecom's expense.


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Associated British Foods (ABF)
ABF Share PerformanceMore
|52 week high||3,201.0 10/05/16|
|52 week low||1,910.0 24/06/16|
|52 week change||-258.0 (-8.41%)|
|4 week volume||24,912,723 04/04/17|
Latest News« previous» nextMore
26/04/2017 - 10:40 StockMarketWire
Liberum Capital today reaffirms its buy investment rating on Associated British Foods PLC (LON:ABF) and raised its pric...
19/04/2017 - 16:40 StockMarketWire
The FTSE 100 slipped lower by the close on Wednesday as traders digested news MPs had voted in favour of Theresa May's...
19/04/2017 - 11:55 StockMarketWire
Chancellor Philip Hammond admitted that taxpayers could lose money as the UK government could sell its stake in Natw...
19/04/2017 - 09:31 StockMarketWire
The FTSE 100 experienced its worst performance in nearly two months as the shock snap election decision by UK Prime M...
19/04/2017 - 07:16 StockMarketWire
Associated British Foods saw excellent progress on all fronts in the 24 weeks to 4 March with statutory operating profit up ...
19/04/2017 - 07:05 RNS
RNS Number: 6354C Associated British Foods PLC 19 April 2017 19 April 2017 Associated British Foods plc Interim dividend Further to the announcement released earlier today by Associated British Foods plc (the 'Company') of its interim results for the 24 weeks ended 4 March 2017, the Company confirms that an interim dividend of 11.35 pence per share will be paid ...
19/04/2017 - 07:00 RNS
RNS Number: 6541C Associated British Foods PLC 19 April 2017 For release 19 April 2017 Associated British Foods plc announces its interim results for the 24 weeks ended 4 March 2017 Excellent progress on all fronts Financial highlights Actual Constant currency Group revenue 7,296m +19% +7% Adjusted operating profit 652m +36% +23% Adjusted profit before tax...
13/04/2017 - 12:30 StockMarketWire
Jefferies International today upgrades its investment rating on Associated British Foods PLC (LON:ABF) to buy (from hold...
|Dividend yield||1.308 %|
Latest discussion posts More
“I'm encouraged by recent rises and broker upgrades. Avg target price is #30. Interims tomorrow so let's see if they're positive and ABF can get towards that #30 in next few ...”▼
“Anyone know what happened to the poster hotolive ? seems last posted anywhere 2014.”▼
Codes & Symbols
|Symbols||ABF, LSE:ABF, ABF.L, ABF:LN, LON:ABF, XLON:ABF|


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In less than a year, the demand for a marina to accommodate large private luxury yacht charter vessels in Costa Rica will become a reality.
Golfito Marina Village, a 40-acre development and marina currently under construction in the ocean-side town of Golfito, Costa Rica, is scheduled for completion in 2017.
“Our industry has been clamoring for a deep water marina for megayachts in Costa Rica,” states Jana Sheeder, President of 1-800 Yacht Charters. “The Golfrito marina will offer the largest superyacht berths on the entire West Coast of Central America, and expose the nature-oriented tourism of Costa Rica to a whole new demographic – HNWI (high net worth individuals) who prefer the privacy and security of yacht-based accommodations while on vacation.”
Much of the main pier has been installed in phase one of construction. In the coming weeks, 52 finger piers will be completed, with berths for yachts in the 13-46 meter range. An additional four 100 meter finger piers will be installed in phase two.
“Soon, this facility will be able to accommodate two 100 meter yachts on the main pier and three or four 50 meter vessels on the finger piers,” says Sheeder. “Some of our popular vessels like (Lurssen yacht) SOLANDGE and (Abeking & Rasmussen yacht) AMARYLLIS will be able to offer eco-friendly yacht charters to our clients in the winter and spring. This will be a welcome departure from the repetitive trips many charterers take in the traditional cruising grounds of the Caribbean, like St. Martin and the Virgin Islands.”
For a great selection of yachts for your next vacation, contact 1-800 Yacht Charters at 1-800-922-4824 , 305-253-7245, or use our online contact form here.


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•According to the manufactures, the ink used by the service provider to print digital stamps poses a challenge to products with dark-coloured caps.
•KRA says it is working on an alternative ink while those willing to change their caps can go ahead.
Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) has moved to diversify excise stamps standards , an initiative that will help manufactures address huge market returns and seal revenue loss gaps.
This is under the second phase of the Excise Goods Management System (EGMS) on bottled water, juices, and non-alcoholic drinks which came into place on November 13, last year.
According to the manufactures, the ink used by the service provider to print digital stamps on soft beverages and bottled water is of a dark colour, which poses a challenge to manufacturers who have dark coloured caps for their products.
The digital stamp is not visible on such products, the Kenya Association of Manufacturers(KAM) said, resulting to huge market returns as consumers cannot see the stamps.
“We continue to propose that the service provider provides a range of digital stamps ink colours to cater for both dark and bright coloured caps,” KAM chief executive Phyllis Wakiaga said.
KRA has contracted SICPA Security Solutions (SICPA) to install excisable goods management systems incorporated in production lines to monitor throughput, production runs and usage of excise stamps by manufacturers.
KRA Deputy Commissioner Policy & Tax Advisory, Domestic Taxes Department, Caxton Masudi, said the authority is keen to address the challenges manufacturers are facing.
“We have heard that problem and what we have done is to change the ink which is able to be identified under florescent light. If the mark is not directly visible, when you introduce florescent light, you ca still see it because it glows,” Masudi told the Star.
To address this problem further, KRA is engaging two other possibilities he said, one of them being asking companies that are willing to change the colours of their caps to do so.
“Number two, we are working on an alternative ink that will be used by persons who have colours of their caps that are similar to the ink and stamps,” Masudi said.
The process for the new product started late last year and was expected to have been rolled-out in March this year, but was disrupted by Covid-19.
“We have now re-engaged and we think this will be resolved before the end of the year,” Masudi said.
KRA had given licensed manufacturers, importers, distributors, and retailers up to February 29, 2020, to clear old stock and comply with the new system, which it banked on to boost revenue collection.
Currently, over 1,000 companies have complied which includes 748 registered manufacturers and 23 importers of bottled water.
For juices, sodas and other non-alcoholic beverages, 57 manufactures and 194 importers have complied, according to KRA.
The taxman targets excise revenues of between Sh3.5 billion to Sh4 billion annually, from a previuos Sh1.4 billion.
SICPA successfully helped KRA implement EGMS on alcoholic drinks and cigarettes in 2013, which helped increase excise tax from Sh700 million to Sh5.6 billion annually.
The second phase has seen revenues from water and non-alcoholic drinks increase 11 per cent, Masudi said.
KRA is keen to increase revenue collection to help bridge budget deficits, which continue to push the government into borrowing, spiking the national debt.


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DJs and producers Alain Macklovitch, better known as A-Trak, and Nick Catchdubs founded Fool’s Gold, an independent record label, 10 years ago. At the time, they had no idea the business would evolve into a full lifestyle company that includes an apparel collection, a Beats 1 radio station on Apple Music, and an events company — Fool’s Gold is known for its one-day festival called Day Off, which takes place in multiple cities.
“I don’t think that when we first decided to start a record label we thought we would have a shop,” A-Trak said. “But we were always fans of labels that were consistent brands and the kind of labels you wanted to represent with your clothing. So everything has been a pretty natural progression.”
Super-influencer @chiaraferragni doesn't miss a beat— or a party. Last night, she inaugurated Pomellato's newest boutique on Rodeo Drive, decked out in bling from the jewelry brand. At the event, Ferragni took some time to sit down with us to discuss motherhood, being a newlywed, and the hotly-anticipated documentary she is currently filming.
Photographed by @chelsealaurenla
As the conversation around sustainability only grows stronger in fashion circles, Everlane has made a new declaration: it’s saying goodbye to virgin plastic. The company, whose ethos is all about “radical transparency,” in terms of pricing and ethical factories, plans to be completely free of virgin plastics by 2021. “We’re producing millions of units and every unit that goes out is wrapped in plastic,” said founder and CEO, Michael Preysman. “At the beginning, it was like, ‘Hey, let’s just take off all these plastic bags.’ There are a lot of complications to that. Everything you buy in the world comes wrapped in plastic when it comes out of the factory.”
Meet Flamingo. The direct-to-consumer brand is Harry’s first foray into products designed specifically for women. The line goes beyond shaving, venturing into a space that is typically relegated to darker corners of the drugstore — at-home waxing. #wwdbeauty


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Picture credit: iStockPhoto
Zenedge has announced the general availability of its latest Zenshield DOME platform with a simple goal: to protect your enterprise from what it perceives to be its weakest link.
That weakest link is a firm’s partner and supplier ecosystem, which Zenedge insists is a more likely target for hackers trying to infiltrate an enterprise in the cloud.
The product is a security platform as a service (SPaaS), and can be extended to a retailer’s partner and supplier network so organisations can oversee the entire ecosystem.
Zenedge explains how important third party security is becoming, after recent ecosystem weaknesses temporarily downed Target, Snapchat and Walmart among others.
“CISOs and hackers are discovering that the quickest path to breaking into a company’s classified data comes through remote, often inconspicuous, interconnected third parties,” said Zenedge co-founder and CTO Leon Kuperman. “It’s a reminder that networks are only as strong as their least protected link, and that all vendors need to be assessed, vetted and protected against cybersecurity risks.”
The system is self-updating, with Zenshield DOME identifying vendor access points and automatically closing ports that can expose your data. It also uses heuristic algorithms – in other words, finding a quick fix if an exact solution isn’t available – studies vendor traffic and adapts the network according to behavioural patterns.
“The IT industry has been aware of problems caused by external vendor vulnerabilities for some time,” said Rick Simpson, founder of Snow Commerce. “Seeing red flags pop up around the perimeter is one thing – being able to centrally, cooperatively act to avoid attacks against a large organisational target has so far proved more difficult.”
Zenedge has got plenty of backing from the industry, with the company pocketing $3.5m (£2.3m) in a series A funding round last month. With Black Friday and Cyber Monday just around the corner, there’s plenty of work for the Los Angeles firm to get stuck into for the time being.
Find out more about Zenedge here.


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August 1, 2008
Cost Pressures Squeeze Academe
Colleges pay more for products like heating oil, fertilizer, and ice cream
The proof that colleges and universities are virtual cities is in their budgets. Even smaller institutions have a dizzying array of spending needs.
As a result, the inflation crunch has hit colleges in many ways.
Surging oil and food prices are driving up costs of other items, economists say. In June consumer inflation reached its highest point in 17 years, with a 1.1 percent increase in that month
The Chronicle Review


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Anheuser-Busch, a leading U.S. brewer, and Convoy, the leading technology-enabled trucking service, today announced an agreement to advance Anheuser-Busch’s shipping operations and improve the livelihood of American truck drivers.
Anheuser-Busch and Convoy share a commitment to creating efficiencies in supply chain operations, enhancing lives and communities around the world, and reducing environmental impact.
After evaluating high-profile technology-based trucking solutions, Anheuser-Busch selected Convoy to be one of its partners in driving breakthrough innovation in flexible-trucking capacity, new approaches to pricing, and visibility-driven service improvements.
In addition to helping Anheuser-Busch, these improvements also help drive increased wages for truck drivers and reduce empty miles on the road.
Ties Soeters, VP, Logistics Procurement for Anheuser-Busch, said:
“Convoy’s commitment to helping the fragmented trucking industry thrive while delivering efficiencies that make the supply chain more sustainable, directly aligns with our mission to help build a Better World. Convoy’s data management platform has the potential to uncover valuable business insights for us by recording the DNA of shipments from order creation to delivery. These insights allow Anheuser-Busch to make better, data-driven decisions so that we can improve our processes across our supply chain and create better jobs for truck drivers.”
Today’s announcement is the first phase in a multi-year partnership between the two companies, in which Convoy will serve as a trucking service provider for Anheuser-Busch shipments.
Convoy is rapidly expanding its network of technology-connected carriers across all major freight hubs within the United States, representing more than 10,000 trucking companies.
Download: The Era of Digitized Trucking: Transforming the Logistics Value Chain
Using technology, Convoy optimizes the matching and pricing of available trucks with shippers that need to move freight and provides resources and tools to help both sides thrive and succeed, including real-time freight tracking, transparent pricing, and faster, automated payment processing.
Dan Lewis, Convoy co-founder, and CEO said:
“Modernizing the supply chain requires the support and forward-thinking of companies like Anheuser-Busch. Their approach to using data and technology to create more sustainable practices while improving conditions for America’s independent trucking companies directly aligns with Convoy’s vision.”
Backed by Greylock Partners, Y Combinator’s Continuity Fund, Bezos Expeditions, Salesforce.com CEO Marc Benioff and others, Convoy recently expanded its U.S. service in the Northeast and expects to be fully national soon.
In 2016 Convoy struck a four-year agreement with Unilever to connect Unilever to trucks for tens of thousands of shipments a year worth millions of dollars.
Related: Autonomous Trucking Overlooks Skilled Labor Need


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Yesterday's news that Facebook would allow users to order an Uber car to pick them up from inside its Messenger client picked up a lot of press, including here on Forbes. As always, it is the story behind the story that is worth paying attention to. This is a simple one. The messaging client is the new platform, and Facebook is pushing hard to be seen as a leader in the West.
While the definition of 'platforms' has been relatively consistent over the lifetime of the internet, where that platform resided has been in flux. For a time it was in the CPU used, or the kernel above it. Then it was the programming language used by the operating system of the compute (or perhaps the operating system itself). Maybe it even resided in the web browser, or in the subset of 'social' sites that you would browse to.
What is true that the dominant platform has moved 'up the chain' as years have passed.
We are approaching the point where the messaging client is 'the platform'. This is what makes the Facebook/Uber move interesting. It is an incredibly visual move by Facebook to make its IM client - Messenger - the default platform going forwards. The competition around Silicon Valley has a number of players, with a few of them matching the scale and reach of Facebook (I'm thinking of WhatsApp, Apple Messages and potentially Skype).
What's even more curious is that Facebook and the Valley is behind the curve on the idea of 'messaging as a platform.' Head over to the BRIC countries, especially China, and you'll find companies far ahead of Facebook's visible moves in terms of developer outreach, user education, commercial implementation and mass-market adoption. Companies such as TenCent's WeChat offer a platform which includes voice and text messaging, the ability to purchase virtual goods, pay for services, and run services on top of the messaging app to interact with customers, clients, and other businesses.
Facebook may have taken a big step with the Uber announcement, but it is a step down a road that has already been defined by the competition. The various messaging platforms coming out of Silicon Valley, including Facebook's Messenger, have one advantage. The Chinese platforms are mostly restricted to China, which leaves the rest of the world open for everyone else.
Facebook gets the advantage of being perceived as the first-mover in this space (certainly in the US), as well as the knowledge and information it can glean from the platform implementations currently running elsewhere in the world.


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The Ministry of Industrialization has called for the formation of a committee that will fast track the revival of the stalled Roret Pineapple Factory in Kericho County.
The committee to be set up in two months, will comprise of stakeholders from the national and Kericho county government as well as representatives from the factory who will iron out issues bedeviling the plant.
There has been a brewing controversy surrounding the construction of the Roret Pineapple Factory in Kericho County with some leaders being accused of squandering money and putting up a substandard building that cannot support the processing machines donated by the government to Kericho farmers.
This has delayed the operationalization of the Pineapple Factory aimed at assisting fruit farmers from Bureti sub county add value to the produce.
Currently, fruit dealers from as far as Nairobi and other major towns usually buy pineapples for less than Ksh 50 a piece from the area.
The national government through the ministry of industrialization has intervened and called for the formation of a committee to help iron out issues ailing the stalled plant.
Once the juice processing project takes off, it is expected to create job opportunities and spur the economy at the dull Roret trading center.


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Ag Canada Invests in Quebec R&D Centre
By Food in Canada staffResearch & Development Dairy Quebec R&D
A new federal complex for dairy production research has opened in Sherbrooke, Que., as a result of a $12-million investment through the Modernizing Federal Laboratories Initiative of Canada’s Economic Action Plan.
The Dairy and Swine Research and Development Centre now features a complex with leading-edge technology and research equipment, upgrades which will allow it to continue innovative scientific research and build on its reputation as a worldwide leader in the industry. The investment will also help stimulate regional economic growth and job creation.
“Through this investment, the Government of Canada is promoting the growth and consolidation of dairy production research in Canada to the benefit of producers, agricultural professionals and all consumers,” said Minister of Veterans Affairs and Minister of State (Agriculture) Jean-Pierre Blackburn during the opening ceremony.
“The Dairy Farmers of Canada (DFC) appreciate the major investments that Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada is making toward dairy production research,” added DFC president Jacques Laforge. “The new Sherbrooke research complex is a reflection of our long collaboration. We are especially proud of the new partnerships launched as part of the Canadian Agri-Science Clusters initiative, Milk and milk products: Innovations in nutrition, health and sustainable development.”
Among other issues, the science facility will focus on nutrition, physiology, immunology and molecular biology, as well as improving the quality of agri-food products, and lessening the environmental impact of dairy production.
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Bon-Ton, like a number of other retailers, is turning some of its real estate in to cash.
The department store on Monday announced an $84 million deal with a real estate investment trust in which it will sell six properties and lease them back.
Last week Darden Restaurants Inc. said that it would create a real estate investment trust and transfer about 430 owned restaurant properties to the new entity, with essentially all of them being leased back to Darden. Sears Holdings Corp. Sears is planning to sell more than 250 properties to a REIT it created.
And McDonald's told the Wall Street Journal last week that it was trying to sell its stores in Taiwan to a franchise operator.
Proceeds from Bon-Ton's agreement with CPA:17-Global, along with borrowings under a revolving credit facility, will be used to pay one of its mortgage loan facilities due in April.
Bon-Ton will lease the six properties for an initial term of 20 years, with an option to extend it for three more periods of 10 years. Three of the properties are in Milwaukee. The others are in Green Bay, Wisconsin, Fargo, North Dakota and Joliet, Illinois.
The Bon-Ton Stores Inc., with headquarters in Milwaukee and York, Pennsylvania, runs 270 stores in 26 states.


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Facebook Managing Director and Vice President (India) Ajit Mohan said for many of the products launched by the global major, India's become among the first group of countries to function as a testing ground
is not only looking at taking global its collaborative model between WhatsApp
in the e-commerce space, but is also increasing its product testing in India in a significant way. Facebook
Managing Director and Vice President (India) Ajit Mohan said for many of the products launched by the global major, India's become among the first group of countries to function as a testing ground.
One such example is the much talked about launch of ‘Instagram Reels’, a 15-second video offering, which many say is positioned to take on the possible vacuum created by global leader TikTok. The latter faces a ban in India and serious challenges in the US, where it is looking for a forced sale to Microsoft or closure.
Clarifying on the buzz that Reels was launched in India in the test stage because of the Indian ban on TikTok, Mohan said: “Its launch in India was not influenced by the government action against TikTok at all. It was always to be tested in India.”
While Mohan said it was too early to share more details on Reels’ performance as it was just a few weeks old, he said that currently one third of the posts on Instagram were videos.
“Instagram is a place where cultures are created. It gravitates towards people who follow their passion and interests. And in that context, a lot of expression leads to defining a new culture. Instagram saw that in the short form video, there was an opportunity for the product to play a productive role by creating new tools for creators,” said Mohan.
His ambition for Reels is that it becomes a global creator from India which will be able to leverage the global reach of Instagram. “We know its use will grow. But what will be impactful is when someone who is not a celebrity and is outside the traditional centres where celebrities come from, uses Reels to create a global cultural movement and a global following,” said Mohan.
But the company faces a tough challenge in the short video space. Many home-grown companies
such as Roposa, MX Taka Tak, Mitron, Chingari and music channels like Gaana have joined the bandwagon.
On the WhatsApp-JioMart
partnership, he said the model would be exported to the world “if we are able to show that it adds value to consumers and small business.’’
invested $5.7 billion for a 9.9 per cent stake in Jio Platforms, Reliance Industries' digital services arm, in April. JioMart
is Reliance Retail's e-commerce platform.
is collaborating with Jio Platforms and JioMart, which has been commercially launched to take on the might of Amazon
Sources in the know say WhatsApp
is creating a chat interface within its service for JioMart. Through this interface, consumers can order products, and kirana shops can fulfil them without either of them having to download a separate JioMart app. In one go, the interface will connect JioMart to over 400 million WhatsApp customers in the country, helping JioMart catch up with Amazon
Reliance is looking at connecting with over 20 million small retailers and restaurants, among others.
On the launch of WhatsApp Pay, Mohan said permission was expected soon. “In many ways, payment is all around the UPI stack and we hope that we can be an important vehicle in that to bring financial inclusion. We are fundamentally a platform company and we will partner with others who can leverage our scale,” he said.
On Facebook’s global restructuring, Mohan said that it took a call to treat India as a region sitting out of Asia Pacific and working directly with Facebook’s US headquarters in Menlo Park.
Mohan asserted that Facebook is not like any other streaming company or OTT channel and does not commission content. Instead, it focuses on social videos and on bringing communities together.
The business model of monetisation will remain advertising revenues. “Our monetisation will be through advertising. We believe that keeping services free helps in getting the largest number of consumers,” said Mohan.


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HTC has been making inroads into the blockchain-on-your-phone market for a while now, with a renewed focus since the original Exodus smartphone.
Phil Chen, who serves HTC with the unusual title of Decentralized Chief Officer, described the new device as a part of the company's mission to "empower the user".
We don't have many details about the handset yet, but HTC has said the phone will run as a full node - in other words, it will validate and relay Bitcoin transactions, and help keep the blockchain network running. Moreover, HTC says that the phone will be capable of acting as a full Bitcoin node; a feature that Peter Chen, CEO of HTC, says is a "really important piece of the pie" for the Bitcoin ecosystem.
As a blockchain smartphone, the Exodus 1s can store tokens and cryptographic keys of a user inside a secure enclave within the device.
It's blockchain week in NYC and according to many, one of the reasons we had this parabolic rally in Bitcoin price over the last few days. Now, the Taiwan-based smartphone company has officially announced the successor to the Exodus 1, the Exodus 1s. As well as software development kit for its Zion Vault crypto storage solution, it will allow Bitcoin enthusiasts enough space and processing power to download the whole Bitcoin blockchain and operate a full node for the network.Читайте также: Actress Felicity Huffman pleads guilty in U.S. college-admissions scandal
Speaking to CoinDesk, Chen said that the phone is " going to be a lot cheaper, it will be a lot more accessible".
"The bitcoin blockchain is about 200 [gigabytes], and it's growing about 60 gigs per year".
HTC plans to launch the device by Q3, and while the exact price has not yet been finalized, the price is expected to range between $250-$300.
Following this news, HTC marks the biggest step yet seeking to integrate mobile technology with blockchain technology and cryptocurrency. You'll just be one of the extremely cool kids with an entire Bitcoin node in your pocket. Once HTC launches the 1s, Chen expects the team to apply the experience from supporting a bitcoin node to other networks.
In saying so, the EXODUS 1s will also conduct normal smartphone operations as well, such as music, videos, pictures, apps, and dapps.При любом использовании материалов сайта и дочерних проектов, гиперссылка на обязательна.
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Consumer Anxiety About Data, Device and Online Service Security Has No Impact on Purchase Decisions: Parks Associates
Although an overwhelming majority of consumers are very concerned about the security of their personal data, smart devices and online services, that anxiety has no impact on purchase decisions, new research from Parks Associates reveals.
Even as retailers gear up for record sales of connected devices, "Consumer Fears in Connected Entertainment" finds that 77 percent of U.S. broadband households are very concerned about someone hacking their online service. Additionally, 75 percent worry about their computer being hacked, and 66 percent are concerned about their smart TV or streaming media player being compromised.
The report also finds that security fears are not having much of an impact on device purchasing, as levels of concern are virtually identical between those planning to purchase a consumer electronics (CE) device and those not intending to purchase.
“Consumer concerns about sharing data have virtually no impact on device ownership and purchase decisions,” said Craig Leslie, Senior Analyst, Parks Associates. “On average, consumers concerned with personal information security actually own more connected devices -- almost nine on average -- than consumers without concerns, who have an average of eight."
Leslie noted, however, that continued high-profile data breaches or privacy violations could reverse this trend, "so device and content companies need to work now to develop or strengthen trust with their consumers.”
As a result, consumers are far more likely to share their data if they are confident in its security, which naturally biases them toward more traditional and more established vendor types.
“Consumers are moving forward with purchases despite their concerns, which may indicate a lack of choice or resignation more than consumer preference,” Leslie said. “Companies in this space can differentiate their solutions by offering more user control options, clearer explanation of data usage, and promotion of security features ignored by other vendors. Giving consumers control over their data will build trust among users who increasingly feel powerless.”
For more information about Parks Associates’ research visit www.parksassociates.com.


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Apple’s upcoming Watch Ultra 2’s latest leak from a renowned source has noted some of the new details regarding its pricing and display changes.
Last year at the WWDC event, the company launched its new high-end and more potent watch, which is called Apple Watch Ultra, and now Apple is working on its next generation.
And this next generation of Watch Ultra is expected to be more rugged than the predecessor as it is its main priority, so let’s discuss this latest leak’s all details below.
Apple Watch Ultra 2: All Leak Details
This leak report came from DSCC (Display Supply Chain Consultants) website (via Forbes), and according to it, the next Apple Watch Ultra will retain a different display technology and a larger display, which will also impact its retail price.
Recently, many reports came out that reported; Apple is switching its iPhone, MacBook, and Watch’s display technology from OLED to MicroLED, which doesn’t require a backlight.
Besides, the report has also mentioned that there is a higher chance that Apple will go with a 2.1-inch display for this Ultra Watch series’ next generation, which will be a huge upgrade as the first generation’s screen size was 1.9 inches.
Those changes in the display of the Apple Watch Ultra 2 will require more production costs, so Apple will definitely go with increasing its retail price.
But currently, there are no hints about its pricing and how much Apple will increase as the predecessor’s starting price was $799 and with that price point, it was already the most expensive watch from Apple.
And about its release date, the DSCC mentioned that we would see Apple Watch Ultra 2’s launch in spring 2025, and this same release timeline was hinted by Mark Gurman in Bloomberg’s weekly newsletter.
While there is no official word from Apple on what the new watch will include but as these leaks and rumors came from Display Supply Chain so, there are higher chances of these implementations.


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By Daniel Hunter
NetNames has released new research demonstrating that the majority of UK businesses are failing to prepare for the changing nature of the internet and the introduction of generic Top Level Domains (gTLDs). The survey polled 100 business directors in UK enterprises (minimum turnover of £5 million) and explored their views on the value of online assets.
In its research, NetNames found 99 per cent of respondents feel domain names are important to their brand’s internet presence, reflecting the significance of maintaining a company’s visibility on the web.
A generic top-level domain (gTLD) is one of the categories of top-level domains (TLDs) maintained by the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) for use in the Domain Name System of the Internet. It is visible to Internet users as the suffix at the end of a domain name, such as com, info, net, and org domains.
However, despite domain names being rated as one of the most valuable online assets owned by a brand, the research reveals that most businesses are still unprepared for the introduction of gTLDs which signify the biggest change to the internet addressing system since its inception. One in three organisations admits to not knowing what a gTLD is, and 62 per cent of businesses have no plans to apply for a new domain name ending.
With the number of internet suffixes, such as .com, .net and .org, set to dramatically increase over the next 12 months, the survey demonstrates the need for executives to rethink domain name management before the introduction of gTLDs later this year.
When questioned about the potential benefits that new domain name extensions offer, 37 per cent of executives think gTLDs will provide a stronger online presence, 36 per cent believe they will increase revenue opportunities and 28 per cent think gTLDs will lead to greater engagement with customers. Even so, just four per cent of businesses have applied for a gTLD and only six per cent are planning to.
“The online world is about to undergo a major transformation. Once new domain endings come into effect, it will take one organisation - with a strong digital strategy and enough consumer sway - to take the lead in demonstrating the value of gTLDs and educating consumers. As a result, organisations need to develop an online policy that ensures businesses can take advantage of the opportunities that the web offers," Simon Jackson says.
“To truly benefit from the introduction of new domains, businesses need to identify the extensions that will have the greatest impact on their online footprint and be most relevant to their customer-base on a global basis. By purchasing those web addresses that provide business value and streamline domain name portfolios, savvy brands will use the introduction of gTLDs to strengthen their internet presence. However, early-preparation is key and those businesses that act early will be ahead of the game and in a much better position to defend their online brand in a competitive web environment.”
Digital Marketing moves at lightening pace and marketers need access to the latest information and advice - a new event – The Digital Marketing Show is taking place in Excel, London in November - If you want to speak or exhibit at the Digital Marketing Show visit www.digitalmarketingshow.co.uk or call Ray on 0845 5000 328
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IATA’s latest update on its plan to bring in a New Distribution Capability (NDC) says its registry of companies participating now numbers over 100, including 58 airlines. Thus it is gaining essential critical mass.
Basically, what IATA is seeking to do is introduce a standard developed to facilitate communication for travel agents and airlines. Airlines have been offering a wide variety of products and services on their websites to appeal to travellers – early boarding, preferred seating, a day pass for an airline lounge and so on. But travel management companies using the global distribution systems (GDSs) may not be aware of the full range of airline products on offer, and airlines cannot customise the offer based on who is making the request.
The new system is not expected to be fully implemented for another five years or more. By then, if all goes to plan, all airlines will use the same IATA-verified standards, which means that third-parties – GDSs, travel management companies (TMCs), procurement departments, plus new entrants – can access the same content that airlines are selling directly, and redistribute it on the airlines’ behalf.
The industry remains split on whether this will actually result in a better deal for travellers. Those trying to wade through the complexity of all the industry jargon and announcements must hope that they, too, will get a better picture of what is on offer. Commerce platform group Datalex believes that they will, and that it is their enthusiasm for online research and booking that has brought the changes.
Get the full story at EyeForTravel


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Trina Solar Limited announced that the photovoltaic manufacturer is providing 258MW monocrystalline PERC double glass modules to the private solar PV project in Vietnam. The power station, located in Phan Rang-Thap Cham, capital of Ninh Thuan Province, has received investment from leading Vietnamese investment firm Trung Nam Group. Construction is scheduled to be completed by June 30, 2019.
During the signing ceremony, an executive from Trung Nam Group said, "Given that it is the group's first PV power plant investment, Trung Nam was very careful in selecting a leader in technologies, products and raw materials as its supplier partner."
Yin Rongfang, vice president and head of global sales and marketing at Trina Solar, said, "We are honored to partner with Trung Nam in the integrated renewable power generation project that set new benchmarks in the industry in Vietnam, marking one further step in Trina Solar's commitment to emerging markets. With a deep understanding of the Vietnamese market, we have built a 1GW solar cell production facility in the country, in addition to several new projects under development."
He added that Trina Solar-branded products will become increasingly available in Vietnam, helping boost the company's sales in the APAC region.
Mr. Yin indicated that as a leading global module manufacturer, Trina Solar has built a strong overseas sales and operations team with products sold to over 100 countries and regions across the world. By the end of 2017, the company's accumulated shipments totaled 32GW, ranking the firm the first among module manufacturers worldwide.
Mr. Yin said, "In addition to the continuous growth in Europe, among other traditional markets, our products have been gaining momentum and increasing popularity in the Middle East, Latin America and APAC since the beginning of the year. With the continuing success in emerging markets, our orderbook has far exceeded expectations."