text:
General Motors announced on Tuesday morning that its Chevrolet Volt extended-range electric car had delivered a fuel-economy rating of 230 miles a gallon — which sounds outrageous. With that kind of gas mileage, you could practically drive from Los Angeles to Las Vegas on a single gallon of gas, or for around three bucks.
But, of course, you wouldn’t be able to do that. G.M. said the 230 number is only for city driving, and it’s not based on the same measurement standard used to calculate the fuel economy of gas-engine or hybrid cars.
The rating is based on methodology drafted by the Environmental Protection Agency, and most other automakers have not revealed the mileage for the electric cars. Nissan, however, announced last week that its all-electric vehicle, the Leaf, which comes out in late 2010, would get 367 m.p.g., using the same E.P.A. standards.
Figures for highway driving and combined city and highway use have not been completed for the Volt, but G.M.’s chief executive, Fritz Henderson, told reporters and analysts at a briefing that the car is expected to get more than 100 miles a gallon in combined city and highway driving.
The Volt extended range electric vehicle (or plug-in hybrid) can travel up to 40 miles on a full battery charge, G.M. said. Beyond that electric range, a small gas engine kicks in to supply enough charge in the battery to power the electric motor. G.M. planned to release the Volt in late 2010.
We’ll have more on this news later today. In the meantime, please join the discussion below.


text:
Insurtech Braintri bags Benefia deal
Braintri’s insurance subscription platform, hiPRO Connector, is going live as part of a new agreement with Benefia, a division of Vienna Insurance Group. The launch follows a deployment of the platform with Allianz, and builds on the Polish company’s recent partnerships with PKO Bank Polski and mBank, reports David Penn at Finovate.
The platform, developed in collaboration with Polish fintech hiPRO, enables customers to pay for their car insurance in monthly installments – a relatively new option in the industry. Customers provide information such as earnings, employment type, and number of dependents. The Connector randomly selects a participating bank which then reviews the customer’s credit in real-time.
The loans are financed by a bank, rather than the insurer – in this instance, Estonia’s Inbank and Poland’s Alior Bank. Braintri CEO Wojciech Zatorski points out that this means insurers are exposed to less risk, and gives banks the ability to sell micro loans.
The platform launch will take place over several Benefia sales channels, including mobile.
Braintri’s announcement comes after a year of achievements, including the company’s merger with iCompass, announced in November.
“We entered 2019 with the feeling we achieved most of our goals,” Zatorski says. “Winning over new big brands proves that our efforts in providing the current customers with world-class IT services are noticed and appreciated.”
With a nod toward the company’s yet-to-be completed merger, as well as planned expansion internationally, Zatorski adds: “This will surely be the busiest year in Braintri’s six-year history.”
Braintri is based in Warsaw and was founded in 2013.

domain: news


text:
KOLKATA (MarketWatch) -- Global pharmaceutical companies Eli Lilly & Co. LLY, +0.43% Merck KGaA (MRK.XE) and Pfizer Inc. PFE, -0.94% plan to launch several anti-diabetes drugs through their Indian units, the Mint newspaper reported citing Kewal Handa, managing director of India's Pfizer Ltd.(500680.BY).
The report didn't detail a timeframe for the launches, which aim to tap sales worth INR12 billion in the Indian anti-diabetes drugs market, which is growing at 20%-22% a year.
Pfizer plans to launch Exubera, an insulin that can be inhaled, and has received necessary regulatory approvals, the report said.
Merck is expected to launch Januvia and Eli Lilly will launch Byetta soon, the report added.
Newspaper Web Site: http://www.livemint.com
-Edited by Marissa Chew


text:
Gold and silver
Precious metals — particularly gold and silver — have been a popular hedge against inflation and uncertainty. They can’t be printed out of thin air like fiat money and their value is largely unaffected by economic events around the world.
Kiyosaki has long been a fan of gold — he first purchased the yellow metal in 1972.
“I’m not buying gold because I like gold, I’m buying gold because I don’t trust the Fed,” he said in an interview last year.
Kiyosaki likes silver, too. In fact, he recently tweeted “Silver best investment in Oct 2022” and “Everyone can afford $20 silver.”
To be sure, precious metals aren’t immune to the sell-off that’s been going on this year. The price of gold is actually down about 4% in 2022, while silver has fallen by nearly 9%.
While there are many ways to gain exposure to gold and silver, Kiyosaki prefers to just buy the metal directly. Earlier this year, he tweeted that he only wants “real gold or silver coins” and not the ETFs.
The author also called silver “a bargain” recently. So it might be time to visit your local bullion shop.
More: Buy gold and silver directly from APMEX
Bitcoin investors have learned the hard way just how volatile it can be.
Last November, bitcoin reached a high of $68,990. Today, it’s hovering around $16,750.
But Kiyosaki points to a potential catalyst for the world’s largest cryptocurrency: pension funds.
“Pension funds are biggest investment businesses in the world,” he comments in a recent tweet while sharing a Forbes story Your State Pension Is Now Gambling On Cryptocurrency.
The article cited a 2022 study from the CFA Institute that shows 94% of state and government pension plans have invested in cryptocurrencies.
There are many ways to tap into bitcoin. You can buy the cryptocurrency directly, invest in bitcoin ETFs, or own shares of companies that have tied themselves to bitcoin.
A side hustle
While Kiyosaki likes gold, silver and bitcoin, he didn’t say they’re all the protection you need.
“Gold, silver, Bitcoin may protect your WEALTH…but not your INCOME,” he writes.
But the author also provides a solution.
“As economy crashes, stock markets go bust, pensions crash and unemployment rises a SIDE HUSTLE may provide you income.”
Side hustle is something you get paid for doing in addition to your full-time job. It allows you to earn extra income — and could even be a way of testing the entrepreneurial waters.
“Who knows? Your side hustle may grow into the next Amazon or Bitcoin,” Kiyosaki says.
Get a piece of commercial real estate
Enhance your portfolio with high-return commercial real estate
First National Realty Partners is the #1 option for accredited investors seeking superior risk-adjusted returns in the grocery-anchored necessity-based retail space.
While commercial real estate has always been reserved for a few elite investors, outperforming the S&P 500 over a 25-year period, First National Realty Partners allows you to access institutional-quality commercial real estate investments — without the leg work of finding deals yourself.


text:
UPDATE 2-Drugmaker Patheon enters Mexico with Banner acquisition
Oct 29 (Reuters) - Contract drugmaker Patheon Inc will buy Banner Pharmacaps, which focuses on gelatin-based oral drug delivery technology, for $255 million, to expand its presence in the over-the-counter market and gain a foothold in Mexico.
North Carolina-based Banner, a unit of Dutch food products company Vion NV, makes easy-to-swallow soft-gelatin capsules, tablets and chewable gels that drug firms use to coat their over-the-counter and nutritional drugs. It has labs and manufacturing plants in the Netherlands, Canada and Mexico.
"(Banner) expands our geographic presence. It gives us ... a direct-to-market business in Mexico and some of the other Latin American countries," CEO James Mullen told Reuters.
Patheon finds South America and the emerging economies more attractive and volume driven than North America and Europe, said Mullen, who took over as the CEO last February.
"We are certainly interested in India and China as well," he said from Durham, North Carolina.
Patheon, which provides contract development and manufacturing services to pharmaceutical companies, said on Monday its full-year revenue would now be between $740 million and $745 million. It had earlier forecast revenue of more than $735 million.
The deal, Patheon's first in the soft-gel drug delivery market, will also help the company cross the $1 billion revenue mark, the CEO said.
"On a pro forma basis, we will be there at the end of 2012, but certainly 2013 on a full-year basis as a combined company, we should exceed $1 billion in revenue." Continued...


text:
Some of the best advances in telecommunications have been born as a side effect of networks built for other purposes. Perhaps the most brilliant example from the past is text messaging. In 1984, engineers developed [...]
Since 2016, PILOT has presented its annual Innovation Challenge, offering awards to teams who best answer specific challenge questions. We’ve taken a slightly different approach this year in response to the pandemic’s impact on remote [...]
Many conversational artificial intelligence (AI) bots have been successfully deployed, and they are becoming quite common. Nearly everyone today has used or at least heard of Google Assistant, Alexa or Siri, for example. There are [...]
Next Gen TV (or ATSC 3) was designed to be flexible, extensible and future-proof with a plethora of new capabilities, including 4K, HDR and immersive audio. But what is exciting to me is the middleware [...]
On May 12, 2020, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) released a report on the 2019 Emergency Alert System (EAS) nationwide test. On August 7, 2019, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), in coordination with the FCC, conducted a [...]
“Innovation” is a simple word with quite a few definitions. Merriam-Webster defines innovation as “a new idea, method or device.” That definition, while simple and accurate, doesn’t seem to capture the implications behind the word. Saying “innovation” in just about any conversation focuses thoughts on new technology and creative thinking.
At least one aspect of the introduction of ATSC 3.0 requires consumers to constantly take notice of the technology, just to be able to continue watching over-the-air TV. “Where did my TV channels go?” is a question that consumers should not have to ask in the days of the latest smart TVs.


text:
Consumers that follow football news share one trait: they all cheer for their preferred teams, regardless they compete in the big or local leagues. Viewing your favorite game, no matter where you are, is critical, so there must be no limits, such as a lack of cable or an incapacity to reach the stadium on time. That’s when digital streaming live can come in handy. It allows viewers to watch the match from everywhere in the globe as long as they have access to the internet. There are several tools accessible for smartphones, tablets, Desktops, and other gadgets to keep up with the upcoming match. Below are a few benefits of viewing the football news online.
In a particular instance, Jordan missed Brian Henderson, a notable member of the Liverpool football club. He is, in fact, the sporting director in the Premier League. His thoughts on the subsequent encounter reflect those of the club’s players. He believes Liverpool will win, but he does not underestimate Everton because he has witnessed what they are susceptible to in the past 13 meetings. He is aware that these men are sporting legends. Browse all ตารางโปรแกรมลิเวอร์พูล via online football news portals.
Irrespective of the nature of events you love, you may be able to keep up with your favorite football news. The beautiful thing is that you can view it on TV or your mobile as much as you have internet access. Because the information is available both online and physically, you may find it simpler to obtain. On the internet, there are numerous observation sports news sites if you’re unemployed or laid off; watching the news will help you unwind without getting bored.
What is the significance of streaming online football news?
Involvement in sports news offers a multitude of health benefits for both the mind and the health. Viewing your favorite football news, on the other hand, provides cognitive advantages. It boosts your wellness, exposes you to new individuals, and makes you happy. Football news could boost your mood as well as assist you in keeping in shape. Below are some additional benefits of broadcasting football news digitally.
Among the most significant benefits of airing football news online appears to be that it helps customers to avoid being dependent on television. One may have a good time anywhere that is suitable for him. Every football news fan will be viable to remain proficient on the most recent football news at any time. A diverse variety of football actions may suit the needs of every spectator, even though he has extremely high aspirations. Because of the high resolution of online streaming, any fan may leap immediately into exciting contests. As a consequence, viewing football news on the internet will provide you with maximum fun.
It is inexpensive:
Saving money is among the key reasons people prefer watching football news at home. Watching a televised match may be costly, particularly if refreshments are bought. You’ll save cash when you can view as many titles at leisure as possible. If you’ve ever gone to a professional activity, you know how enticing it is to stay after the game is done. Whenever you relax at home, you don’t need to worry about wasting all of your cash.
You may view or hear internet football news more rapidly if you use a live stream:
Before saving an image, movie, or system software, it must be transferred to a laptop or other portable device. Plenty of the time, you’ll have to place it on pause as the data uploads and executes, which might take several minutes. With the exception of uploading, digital video lets you interact with the data as it is being posted. To say it a different way, you won’t have to spend hours observing your favorite football team. There is no need to be concerned about broadcasting capacity, regardless of how little storage you have.
Put stress and loneliness side:
To reduce the prevalence of sadness and solitude. Watching football news is one way to keep your feelings, excitement, and attitude under check. In other words, viewing television can be beneficial to your emotional health. Football news, on the other hand, has been proved to make viewers pleasant and cheerful. Moreover, when joined by relatives, watching football news has become a social experience and recreational activity.
Streaming online football news is handy because you can do so from any place. Numerous online football news sites are mobile-friendly, enabling you to watch live events even on the go. You may view football games and other live sporting events while traveling, lounging on the couch, or at work. You must first ensure that your mobile is suitable for the sports and leisure site in concern, then connect it to a dependable internet and watch your live football news using your favorite mobile website.
Online football news keeps them updated:
Sport is an essential aspect of human life and eight out of ten people like it. Certain sports, such as football, baseball, and hoops, are more famous than others, with billions of fans. Numerous events and shocking incidents occur on a regular basis in football in general, and we require a reputable football news website to inform us of them. We must conduct a preliminary study before deciding on the greatest football news website to watch.
Check for elements such as current news and blogs, the most recent photographs and videos of critical events in football, scheduling of forthcoming sporting events, leading player updates, personal and player accounts, organizations and player data, fantasy league suggestions, evaluations, and analyses, and so on. The information presented must be accurate and should not contain any needless false accusations that may cause confusion among followers.
Viewing football news online offers a multitude of health benefits for both the mind and the health. It boosts your wellness, exposes you to new individuals, and makes you happy. Suppose you’re unemployed or laid off; watching the news will help you unwind without getting bored. Viewing football news online helps customers to avoid being dependent on television. Every football news fan will be viable to remain proficient on the most recent football news at any time.
The high resolution of online streaming allows fans to jump immediately into exciting contests. It’s a social experience and recreational activity as well as an emotional outlet. Streaming online football news is handy because you can do so from any place.


text:
*Peripheral euro zone preferred to core- Julius Baer. LONDON, July 30- European equities enjoyed their third straight day of gains on Thursday with results from Siemens, Nokia and Safran underpinning the signs of recovery. However, concerns over China's growth and emerging markets weighed on companies, among them drinks group Anheuser-Busch InBev.» Read More
NEW YORK-- Pfizer Inc.' s advanced kidney cancer treatment Inlyta missed its main late-stage study goal when compared to another drug in patients who had not been treated for the disease.
NEW YORK-- U.S. stock futures are mixed as the market digests a new round of earnings from major U.S. corporations like Bank of America, PepsiCo, and Halliburton. The Commerce Department releases its latest housing report Wednesday and economists expect that builders started construction on more homes in September than in August.
The deal gives ExxonMobil Canada access to 649,000 acres in two shale formations, the Montney and Duvernay, as well as additional acreage in other parts of Alberta, the company said. Those include acres in the Inga area of British Columbia, the Grande Cache area of Alberta, and oil and gas properties in Karr, Alberta, the company said.
PARIS-- France is creating a new government-backed investment bank that will aim to spur economic growth by lending to small and medium-sized enterprises. Jean-Pierre Jouyet, the head of French state-owned financial institution CDC, has been named chairman of the new investment bank, known by its French intials BPI.
NEW YORK-- Social media will be a big component of a new program announced by Disney Wednesday in which the company's parks in California and Florida will feature weekly surprise themes and events.
BRUSSELS-- The European Union's farmers' union is warning that drought, cold and hail have conspired to produce the worst wine harvest for the region in up to half a century. Farmers union expert Thierry Coste said Wednesday that France's grape harvest is expected to slump by almost 20 percent compared to last year.
ST. PAUL, Minn.-- Ecolab is selling its vehicle care operations to Zep Inc. for about $120 million in cash as part of its strategy to shed non-core businesses. Zep, based in Atlanta, makes cleaning and maintenance products and services for commercial, industrial, institutional and consumer markets.
The International Olympic Committee has signed a deal with U.S. sportswear giant Nike to supply uniforms and products to members and staff. IOC members will wear Nike outfits at the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi, Russia, and 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, as well as various other meetings and events.
NEW YORK-- Halliburton Co. said Wednesday its third-quarter net income fell 12 percent as drilling activity declined and costs rose in its core North American business. Halliburton is a major provider of hydraulic fracturing, or "fracking," services that unlock oil and natural gas from underground shale deposits.
NEW YORK-- Bank of America said Wednesday that it narrowly turned a profit from July through September, good enough to beat Wall Street expectations. Profits were hurt largely because of a settlement with shareholders who accused the bank of misleading them when it decided in 2008 to purchase Merrill Lynch.
Strong corporate earnings reports and hopes that Spain may be close to requesting a bailout to alleviate its debt crisis helped oil prices move higher above $92 a barrel on Wednesday. By early afternoon in Europe, benchmark oil for November delivery was up 24 cents at $92.33 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
LISBON, Portugal-- Portugal managed to raise 1.85 billion in a debt auction Wednesday despite the country's bleak economic prospects and growing political tension over austerity policies.
NEW YORK-- PepsiCo Inc.' s net income dipped 5 percent in the third quarter, as the food and beverage maker poured more money into bolstering its flagship brands and developing new products that position it for the future.
Insurance broker Willis Group Holdings has named McKinsey& Co. senior partner Dominic Casserley its next CEO, starting Jan. 7. The London- based company also said Wednesday that Steve Hearn, 46, will serve as Willis Group deputy CEO.
JERSEY CITY, N.J.-- Knight Capital Group Inc. reported a large loss in its third quarter because of the fallout from a disastrous software glitch. The glitch in Knight Capital's trading software, which occurred in August, flooded the market with erroneous trades. Knight Capital takes orders from big brokers like TD Ameritrade and E-Trade.
AMSTERDAM-- The chief executive of Akzo Nobel, the world's largest maker of paints by sales, will return to work by the end of this year, the company says.
However, rising speculation that Spain will soon ask for help to keep its borrowing costs down continues to shore up European markets, particularly in Madrid. The surprise decision late Tuesday by Moody's to maintain its credit rating on Spain has also helped shore up sentiment.
NEW YORK-- EBay Inc. is expected to post higher third-quarter earnings and revenue Wednesday after the market closes, thanks to strength in its PayPal unit as well as its e-commerce platforms.
Spain is under pressure to tap a eurozone financial aid system that would give the European Central Bank the green light to buy the country's government bonds. That would lower Spain's borrowing rates in bond markets, relieving its financial burden.


text:
17 Jun The Retail Innovations Festival will not take place in 2020!
The 4th annual Reatil Innovations Conference 2020 will not take place in 2020, after careful consideration of all circumstances. The decision was made by the organizing committee of the event three months before the planned September date.
According to the planned dramaturgy, unique personalities from the retail world, who would definitely dominate: Markku Hautala, head of the K-Citymarket Järvenpää supermarket from Finland (IGD World Award: “Store Of The Year 2019”) or Lars, were to present themselves again in Bratislava this year. Poulsen representing the unique pop up concept of Flying Tiger. The whole program block was extremely rich, it is all the more sad that the event will not take place.
“We expect an audience of over 200 professionals. This fact alone is not particularly critical, but we believe that it is not necessary to hold a festival at any cost. More importantly, the circumstances of Covid-19 shook the retail and brought it to a whole new reality. Traders are currently dealing with many other concerns. The right time for an inspiring conference is yet to come, “explains co-founder Tibor Tabery.
Retail Innovations Conference is a chamber one-day event dedicated to retail professionals. This year, a total of 17 experts were to focus in three blocks on real working solutions supporting the thesis: “Where is the cash?”.
“This year was created with the inseparable support of our important partners. I must mention in particular the companies COOP Jednota Slovensko, Reccom and AVgast. They deserve our great thanks. Thank you!” Adds Tibor Tabery.


text:
Textual content dimension
Tesla is making an attempt to win the self-driving wars by taking a unique approach. However traders received’t hear the way it’s going—if the corporate has its approach. Tesla is requiring a few of its testers to signal nondisclosure agreements earlier than receiving the improve to its new autonomous-driving software program—known as Full Self Driving, or FSD.
Autonomous driving is a high-stakes sport of expertise improvement for each world auto maker. Higher software program and tech will result in better market share and new revenue opportunities for autonomous-driving leaders. For traders, management interprets into greater share value.
Traders are anxious to see how Tesla’s (ticker: TSLA) new autonomous-driving software program is performing within the subject. However a number of Tesla software program testers with massive followings on Twitter and YouTube informed Barron’s they received’t discuss how new software program is performing due to the nondisclosure agreements.
Tesla didn’t reply to a request for remark about why it’s utilizing NDAs. The corporate is probably going making an attempt to guard its model and doesn’t need overly optimistic or unfavourable movies and evaluations posted on social media.
Tesla is exclusive. It constructed the world’s most respected automobile firm in lower than a technology. To create self-driving vehicles, it’s utilizing solely optical camera-based vision the place others are utilizing cameras, lidar, and radar sensors. Tesla is growing its personal software program and information facilities, whereas others are collaborating with components and software program suppliers akin to
Tesla can also be making drivers earn newer variations of autonomous-driving options. Passing new ranges of protected driving actually unlocks new options, very similar to a videogame. It’s a brand new strategy to driving security that mirror the rising significance of software program in vehicles.
It’s potential Tesla may benefit from a extra organized public-relations effort on its self-driving expertise. Proper now, traders have Tesla’s quarterly security studies and feedback from CEO Elon Musk on Twitter and at occasions akin to Tuesday’s Code Conference.
As industrywide regulatory scrutiny of autonomous-driving options ramps up, which may not be sufficient. It appears like it would. Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D., Conn.), for one, has questioned Tesla’s rollout of its software program greater than as soon as.
Tesla may wish to be a part of the regulatory resolution as an alternative of getting one thing imposed on it from outdoors the corporate. That might imply Tesla speaking extra brazenly—and commonly—to traders and security authorities about autonomous-driving developments.
Up to now, Tesla’s new self-driving software program has helped its inventory. Shares are up about 11% over the previous month—a interval stuffed with self-driving information. The
is down about 3% over the identical span.
Tesla inventory is up 0.7%, at $782.93, in noon buying and selling Wednesday. The S&P 500 and
Dow Jones Industrial Average
are each up 0.5%. The market is bouncing off its dreadful Tuesday efficiency. Tesla inventory dropped 1.7% Tuesday, whereas the
dropped virtually 3%.
Write to Al Root at firstname.lastname@example.org


text:
Retail sales in the United States saw its sharpest decline on record in April, reflecting the fall in consumer spending due to the lockdown, the US Census Bureau data showed.
The volume of retail sales plummeted 16.4 percent last month, the most on records, while the previous reading was revised up from -8.7 percent to -8.3 percent. Analysts had estimated a 12 percent drop.
Core retail sales also edged down 17.2 percent from an upwardly revised of -4.0 percent. That also was worse than analysts' forecasts of 8.6 percent decrease.
From a year earlier, retail sales were 21.6 percent down, with clothing shops tumbling 89.3 percent. Yet, non-store retailers - including online stores such as Amazon – climbed 21.6 percent from last year.
The dollar index traded
slightly lower at 100.14, yet still set for its second consecutive weekly
advance, as of 13:10 GMT.


text:
Council Considers Excise Tax on E-Cigarettes
Electronic cigarettes may look like a traditional cigarette and they might be taxed in Montgomery County the same way too.
Today, Montgomery County Councilmember Tom Hucker introduced a bill that would establish an excise tax on the distribution of electronic cigarette products. If approved, Montgomery County would join other states and localities that are regulating and taxing electronic cigarettes.
Council President George Leventhal, Vice President Nancy Floreen and Councilmembers Roger Berliner, Marc Elrich, Sidney Katz, Nancy Navarro and Hans Riemer are co-sponsors of Bill 15-15. A public hearing on the bill is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. May 5. The Council staff report and bill can be found at: http://tinyurl.com/qgkoj6v .
Under current state tax law, cigarettes are taxed at $2 per pack and other tobacco products are taxed at a rate of 30 percent of the wholesale price. Electronic cigarettes are not currently subject to state tobacco taxes. The proposed tax on the distribution of electronic cigarettes would be 30 percent of the wholesale price—mirroring the state tax on other tobacco products, according to the bill.
“The goal of this legislation is to ensure our tax code keeps up with a rapidly evolving industry, and raises revenue to support our schools, first responders and other vital County programs,” Hucker said in a news release. “E-cigarettes should be treated similarly to tobacco products.”
In March, the Council enacted Bill 56-14 that will prohibit the use of electronic cigarettes in public places where traditional tobacco smoking is prohibited. That bill will go into effect on June 12. Bill 56-14 also will restrict the sale of certain liquid nicotine or liquid nicotine containers in retail outlets unless the nicotine is in a container considered child resistant packaging. The definition of electronic cigarette includes e-cigars, e-hookahs, e-pipes and vape pens.


text:
Greek woe results in cheap holidays
The ongoing financial meltdown in Greece could mean one piece of good news for Britons – a cheap holiday.
Greek Tradegy: Financial meltdown could mean cheap holidays for Brits
Travel bosses predict that the crisis could reduce the cost of a holiday to Greece, including popular British tourist destinations Crete and Corfu.
They believe that they will try and encourage visitors over for a holiday, by offering cut-price deals and value for money.
Greece has lost ground this year to holiday destination rivals Turkey and Egypt, which have offered better value for money to holidaymakers.
The debt-ridden country is on the brink of a financial meltdown with a bail-out plan in doubt and politicians in Germany calling for Greece to stop using the euro.
Although the value of the euro won't may not be affected as a result of the crisis, Greece will be keen to woo holidaymakers over with deals, travel experts believe.
Frances Tuke, of the Association of British Travel Agents, said: 'The current debt crisis will not affect the value of the euro in the short-term but holidaymakers can expect plenty of deals as the Greeks try to lure us over there to give them much-needed revenue.'
Greek Prime Minister George Papandreous has sought emergency loans of £35bn from the eurozone countries and the International Monetary Fund.
The country has been littered with riots during workers' protests over planned public spending cuts.
Tourism is an important part of the Greek economic fabric and encouraging holidaymakers to spend their cash in Greece over the summer, would be a welcome boost.
But British holiday home owners in Greece will be dealt with some bad news.
A draft bill going through Greek parliament could see them facing the prospect of paying a 20% surcharge on extensions and extra rooms they have added to their properties – if they are found to have built undeclared rooms.
Currently, Greek property taxes are based on the size of all internal rooms, but soon owners could be facing up to £600 or more for extensions.
Most watched Money videos
- Where are the best places to invest in 2018?
- A look at Nissan's electric Ecosystem for sustainable future
- Why has the FTSE hit record highs and can they continue?
- Ford show off their 50th anniversary Mustang Bullitt model
- Land Rover unveil 70th edition of it's famed Defender model
- How to find cheap shares, with value investor Alex Wright
- Big Money Questions:How can you gain wealth?Rob Moore's tips
- Buy banks, not beer: How to invest for higher inflation
- Lars Kroijer: You can't beat the market, so invest passively
- Royal London explains three options to enjoy retirement savings
- McLaren unveils the Senna boasting a turbocharged V8 power engine
- Road testing the Renault Alpine A110 sports car


text:
Xpax, Celcom Axiata Berhad’s main prepaid brand for youth, is offering customers the opportunity to win a brand new MODENAS ACE 115 HARIMAU MALAYA motorbike worth close to RM5,000, daily for a period of 30 days in its latest promotional campaign.
Held in conjunction with the Hari Raya Aidilfitri celebration, the promotional campaign is a collaboration between Xpax, MODENAS and IDOTTV, Celcom’s content provider. The motorbike assembler, MODENAS is sponsoring 12 units of the 30 ACE 115 HARIMAU MALAYA motorbikes for the campaign.
The campaign runs from 14 July to 12 August 2014 and subscribers can stand a chance to win the motorbikes by simply transferring credit with Xpax, at least twice weekly to their loved ones.
Zalman Aefendy Zainal Abidin, Chief Marketing Officer of Celcom Axiata Berhad, said, “Xpax’s latest campaign encourages our customers to regularly use our service which enables them to transfer credit easily and quickly to their loved ones via SMS. It not only helps customers to keep in touch with their family and friends during festivities but also gives them the opportunity to take home a spanking new motorbike this upcoming Hari Raya.
“The festive season is a special and joyous occasion for everyone. With Hari Raya just around the corner, we are excited to reward our customers who play an important role in supporting our service and making our campaign a success. Through our latest campaign, we hope to make this year’s Hari Raya festivity a memorable celebration for our customers,” Zalman added.
Xpax customers can transfer up to RM25 with a minimum of RM1 in one transaction. Customers simply need to type “RM<amount>” and send the SMS to “1<recipient’s prepaid number>” in ONE easy step. RM0.50 will be charged to customers for every successful transfer.
The service also allows customers to request for credit from their friends or family, register favourite numbers, and even schedule credit transfers on a weekly or monthly basis.


text:
- June 15, 2021
- Posted by: Stratford Team
- Category: Business
What started as a creative way to provide a special holiday gift has turned into a budding entrepreneurial enterprise that has combined a Rose-Hulman student’s knowledge of engineering design and love of hunting.
Killian Bailey is putting technology in the hands of today’s sportsmen and women, literally, through specialized waterfowl calls produced by his three-year-old online company Bailey’s Game Calls.
A patent-pending approach uses 3D-printing technology to manufacture affordable plastic calls that have distinctive tones, float (making them hard to lose when dropped in water) and can be crafted specifically for each hunter or as a corporate/company novelty item.
“You have to have the right call with the right tone to attract the ducks (mallards, geese, or wood ducks) and every hunter has his/her own distinct personal preference,” says Bailey, an engineering design major from Rochester,…


text:
Last February, when the rain wouldn’t stop and we were bored out of our minds, Redfin released a year of sales records indicating that our buyers on average got a better deal than customers of other brokerages, on top of the commission savings.
Mose Andre, Redfin’s compulsive stats man, has only recently recovered. Hundreds of bloggers, commenters, e-mailers and callers raged against the idea that Redfin customers got a better deal, or that our agents had any part in our customers’ success. But the data held up.
In childish, tearful rants, I defended our agents. Our CTO, Michael Young, poked his head into my office to ask, “Who cares why our customers win, if they win?” And then shrugged (he has a two year-old). Mose nearly had a nervous breakdown calculating and re-calculating the numbers, then slept for two days straight.
But ever the kinky masochist, last week Mose called me out in the hallway to ask why we hadn’t tallied up the Redfin Advantage for our listing customers.
“Too hard,” I said, turning around. “We could intentionally set a low price than claim a big mark-up. What’s the right number to compare ourselves against?”
“The assessed value,” Mose said. “The Zestimate.”
“People would question those numbers, too,” I said.
“It doesn’t even matter if the baseline number is wrong,” Mose said. “As long as it’s consistently wrong for everybody.” He was now surrounded by his math nerds, and I was all alone.
“Try explaining that in a blog post,” I said.
“Just because it’s hard to explain doesn’t mean it isn’t worth doing,” Mose said.
I started to back away. Mose smiled and said he would come back from vacation with a new way to figure out how our listing customers really did.
Well, it turns out that somebody beat him to it (hopefully Mose will realize he should never go on vacation again). A Northwestern economics professor bet his colleague that a traditional listing agent increases the price of a home, and then spent the next three years analyzing Madison, Wisconsin data from 1998 – 2004 to prove his point. Today, that professor is taking his colleague to lunch, because he was wrong. The traditional agent often doesn’t get a higher price, and consumers know what their home is worth better than anyone in traditional real estate has admitted.
According to a review of the study published in this morning’s New York Times, people in Madison, Wisconsin “who sold their homes through real estate agents typically did not get a higher sale price than people who sold their homes themselves.” In fact, the study found, the agent-sold homes actually sold for slightly less (the difference though was within the study’s margin of error).
The study pointed out one bright side for the traditional industry, reporting that Realtor-listed properties sold more quickly (105 days vs 125 days), but we’re not sure this is such a simple advantage. According to another study by Freakonomics professor Steven Levitt, when Realtors list their own properties, the properties are on the market longer because the Realtor is holding out for a better price. Perhaps Madison home-owners took the same approach.
The Northwestern study worked because Madison is a kind real estate of Neverland, where more than 10% of all the homes for sale are available on a single For-Sale-By-Owner — FSBO — site, FSBOMadison.com, which still allowed owners to offer the buyer’s agent a commission. So the data set of FSBO sales in Madison was large enough that the professors could correct for all sorts of skewing factors, like lot size, neighborhood and time of year — and compare it to Realtor-listed sales.
Everywhere else in America, FSBO marketshare has declined (14% to 12% from 2002 to 2006, scattered across many sites) at the same rate as traditional brokerages (74% to 70%), with alternative brokerages like Redfin taking up the slack. One reason for the decline is that through services like Redfin Direct and many others, consumers can now list their home in the MLS without paying their listing agent a traditional commission.
Which brings us to the final twist: we feel kind of weird promoting a FSBO study. It drives us crazy when traditional agents claim we’re a FSBO type of service. Redfin agents work with clients to price and promote their homes, to negotiate a deal and to handle all the paperwork associated with the sale. So it cheered us to see one of the study’s authors, Aviv Nevo, acknowledge that you do of course want to pay a listing agent for the work he does, so long as you don’t give him a piece of the action based instead on the value of your house. Which is how we’ve paid Redfin agents all along.


text:
Airtel has offered to give 2 percent bonus airtime to all its prepaid customers for all recharges following the government’s announcement on the reduction of the Value Added Tax (VAT) from 16% to 14%.
Prepaid customers can use the bonus to purchase airtime for voice, data, SMS or bundle purchases while postpaid customers will have the benefit of the 2 per cent tax relief reflected on their monthly bills.
The bonus will automatically reflect on customer accounts upon every recharge from the various options including recharge vouchers, E-PINS, Airtel Money & Pin-less top ups.
Chief Executive Prasanta Das Sarma expressed his gratitude to the government for the tax relief and assured customers that Airtel will keep offering products and services that will help reduce their burdens during this unpredictable period.
“Airtel continues to extend a helping hand since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic in Kenya starting with its partnership with Longhorn Publishers to offer free internet access on its network to allow continuous learning through the latter’s e-learning platform that enables students to study and revise online,” said Mr. Das Sarma.
The company has also offered further discounts on some of its products such as the 4G pocket WIFI and 4G smart box as it seeks to capitalise on the demand for internet which is at its highest at the moment.
Airtel’s new offering is as a result of measures introduced by the government last week to cushion a virus hit economy bracing itself for the very worst.
Airtel on The Offensive
With different players enhacing their internet offering each day, Airtel has moved to cement its subscriber base and bring more customers on board.
Telkom is set to expand its reach to marginalised areas after its business partner, Loon an affiliate of American blue-chip company Alphabet was granted permission to fly its baloons in the country.
According to latest Communications Authority of Kenya (CA), Airtel currrently boasts of 25.9% of the mobile subscriptions market share compared to perennial competitor Safaricom which commands 64.8% of the mobile population. Telkom recorded 6.2% of the market share.
CA’ s data shows that Airtel has 14.1 million subscribers- 14 million of them being pre-paid customers and 97,050 postpaid against Safaricom’s 35.3 million subscribers- 34.1 million pre-paid and 1.1 million post paid.
This latest initiative is likely to lure more subscribers to Airtel’s corner, adding to to the impressive gain it recorded in q4 2019 by being the only telco to gain subscribers.


text:
Even though the purchase happened almost half a year ago, it’s not completely finished. Since such a large part of the gaming industry is going under one company, there are different governmental agencies that will need to look at this deal before Microsoft can officially own Activision Blizzard. We all mostly expected the American government to get involved, but this deal has caught the attention of governments across the Atlantic. The UK is now looking into this deal.
One of the largest acquisitions in the history of video games was made by Microsoft earlier this year. Since then, a lot of speculative discussion has been going on over what this might mean for the game business. It appears that the UK is interested in commenting on Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard. Activision Blizzard’s planned acquisition by Microsoft was first reported in January of this year. This was an enormous deal that eclipsed Take-$12.7 Two’s billion purchase of Zynga. Activision Blizzard was acquired by Microsoft for a staggering $68.7 billion.
The UK’s Competition and Marketing Agency is now putting this massive acquisition under its magnifying glass. The agency wants to investigate whether this purchase would lead to a “substantial lessening of competition”. This is the theme surrounding any agency that would look into the purchase. Microsoft really bought a massive section of the gaming market. If this deal completely goes through, Microsoft will have increased its player base by over 400 million monthly players.
There will be a lot of different games under Microsoft’s rule, so people on other platforms won’t be able to play them. After a while, PlayStation players won’t be able to any Call of Duty games because that franchise is under Microsoft. There are other franchises like World of Warcraft, Diablo, Overwatch, Starcraft, and many more small franchises under Microsoft. The UK could send a probe to look into the deal as early as September. This means that Microsoft still has more time to wait on the deal.


text:
Stakeholders in the maritime industry and across the supply chain need to better understand safe packaging and container loading processes if a disaster similar to the fire on the X-Press Pearl is to be avoided in the future, according to maritime insurance specialists TT Club.
In a statement following reports that the vessel had started sinking off the coast of Sri Lanka, TT Club said the “appalling events” underline the problem of ship fires “caused by the mishandling of dangerous goods”.
Peregrine Storrs-Fox, Risk Management Director, TT Club, said there needs to be greater understanding by all actors in the supply chain of “safe packaging, packing loading and unloading of containers”.
There also needs to be greater awareness of the need of “detailed, accurate information of the cargo’s attributes and any potentially hazardous reactions to any eventuality occurring through the entire transit”.
“Above all truth, trust and transparency must guide involved,” Storrs-Fox said.
The fire began on the 20 May 2021 in the cargo hold of the X-Press Pearl shortly after leaving India. The vessel started sinking outside the Port of Colombo, Sri Lanka, on 3 June, causing fears of a possible environmental and economic disaster for the region.
Early reports suggest that the fire was caused by a leak in a container carrying nitric acid which was properly declared but badly packaged.
“While supply chains are complex and the hazards numerous, relevant knowledge and guidance are critical, within a control environment that must include effective inspection and enforcement regimes,” Storrs-Fox explained.
TT Club said it has been campaigning to reduce “life-threatening, cargo and ship damaging, environmentally impactful and highly costly events”.
It said this has included promoting awareness and wider use of the IMO/ILO/UNECE Code of Practice for Packing of Cargo Transport Units and seeking changes in regulatory requirements to “improve the clarity, application, implementation and enforcement of mandatory regulations”.
However, speaking to PTI on 28 May, Kris Kosmala, Strategic Advisor, BunkerMetric, said there was little regulatory authorities could do to prevent similar incidents happening again.


text:
On April 13, CHINAPLAS 2021 International Rubber and Plastics Exhibition was held in Shenzhen International Convention and Exhibition Center. This forum focused on the industry future including innovative technologies and sustainable development solutions such as biodegradable plastics, recycling technology, and outlined a blueprint for the practitioners.
As a leading player in China's plastic recycling industry and an important participant in the circular economy, Veolia Huafei combined its industrial advantages and technology to showcase its plastic recycling performance and recycled products on the booth. Veolia Huafei Plastic Recycling Project not only has the Global Recycled Standard system certification, European EuCertPlast certification, and FDA food-grade certification, but also has a product traceability system to make the source of materials transparent, while ensuring quality traceability. Equipped with automatic equipment and strict control, the purity of the recycled plastics produced is over 99%, and the quality remains the industry leader.
At the forum of the Exhibition, Estelle Lyu, Director of Plastics Recycling of Veolia China, shared her points on the diversified application of recycled plastics, as well as Veolia's solutions and outstanding performance in plastic recycling.


text:
From: Aaron Oelger
MidwayUSA, a catalog and Internet retailer offering Just About Everything
? for Shooting, Reloading, Gunsmithing and Hunting, is excited to announce the launch of a new website design and online shopping experience. Specifically, these updates improve the navigation, search and overall product finding features of midwayusa.com.
“I’m extremely proud of what the team was able to accomplish with this new website homepage,” said Adam Ray, Vice President of eCommerce. “Through studying Customer feedback, eCommerce best practices and implementing industry-leading technologies, it’s now a lot easier for Customers to find products and ultimately enjoy their hobbies.”
A major improvement is the site navigation for browsing and narrowing product results. A larger number of product categories are presented at the top level to put Customers closer to the products from the start, then results can be refined by brand, new or sale status, availability, price range and more. The new design even includes an enlarged, persistent footer providing easy-access links to company information, order tracking and knowledge content.
Since 1977, MidwayUSA has been improving the shopping experience. Visit midwayusa.com and take advantage of this fast, feature-rich and user-friendly shopping experience.
For more information about MidwayUSA, please visit www.midwayusa.com or call 1-800-243-3220.


text:
Email Newsletters: Register for email newsletters and get up-to-date news, directly to your inbox, from Convenience Store
Christmas gives shoppers the perfect reason to party so expect soft drinks sales to bubble over
PepsiCo and Britvic have joined forces for their first-ever UK cross-category…
Soft drinks shoppers looking for value are increasingly turning to squash to keep both themselves and their kids hydrated. Tracy West reports
Coca-Cola European Partners is helping football fans enjoy a matchday experience at home by offering them the chance to win their favourite Premier League team’s new club shirt, as part of its latest on-pack promotion.
Bacardí has relaunched its ready-to-drink cocktail cans to the UK market.
Imperial Tobacco has announced the launch of a new Crushball Cigarillo variant to its JPS Players brand which is designed to help retailers cater for consumers seeking out new nicotine solutions in the wake of the Menthol Ban.
Site powered by Webvision Cloud


text:
ZAGREB, 7 September 2021 – Michelin has awarded three more restaurants in Croatia with prestigious Michelin stars.
Nebo in Rijeka, which is part of the new Hilton Rijeka Costabella Beach Resort & Spa, Alfred Keller in Mali Lošinj on the island of Lošinj and Agli Amici in Rovinj were each awarded one Michelin star on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, Pelegrini in Šibenik, 360º in Dubrovnik, Monte in Rovinj, Noel in Zagreb, Draga di Lovrana in Lovran, Boškinac in Novalja and LD Terrace on the island of Korčula all kept their stars.
“For the entire Croatian gastronomic scene, the awarding of the prestigious Michelin labels in the circumstances of the global coronavirus pandemic is an exceptional success. This is very important for Croatian tourism because our country now has a total of 10 restaurants with a Michelin star, and a total of 79 restaurants with some of the labels of this prestigious gastronomic guide. This is a confirmation of the quality of Croatian gastronomy, our overall tourist offer in this segment, which is one of the main motives for coming for many travel enthusiasts around the world. The presence of our country in Michelin guides represents for us additional promotion and visibility, but also motivation in our efforts to make Croatia a prominent and internationally recognised eno-gastronomic destination,” said the director of the Croatian Tourist Board Kristjan Staničić, congratulating all the awarded and selected restaurants .
View this post on Instagram
“Croatia is a particularly interesting destination that allows travellers and gourmets to enjoy authentic and diverse gastronomic experiences. The country offers local chefs local products of exceptional quality, which makes them surpass themselves day by day,” said Gwendal Poullennec, International Director of Michelin. “The last few months have been difficult for your country, not only because of the health crisis, but also because of the earthquake. Despite all the challenges, the Croatian culinary scene is growing, especially on the coast and in the capital. Our inspectors were able to find professionals who are passionate and committed to their country,” Poullennec added.
In addition to the above, the list of Bib Gourmand includes seven more restaurants – Konoba Mate (Pupnat, Korčula), Dunav (Ilok), Konoba Fetivi (Split), Izakaya by Time (Zagreb), Vuglec Breg (Krapina), Konoba Malo Selo (Buje) and Alla Beccaccia (Valbandon). Thus, Croatia today boasts a total of 13 restaurants with this Michelin label, which is awarded to restaurants that offer quality menus at affordable prices.
“Enjoying food and drink is one of the most important parts of the tourist experience, and Croatia, as a country of extremely diverse gastronomy and rich gastronomic tradition, which is also on the lists of intangible cultural heritage, must systematically invest in its promotion and development in the future. Numerous awards from world-famous guides, such as Michelin, are a great recognition for all those who continuously work on improving the quality of preparation, presentation and the creation of the entire gastronomic experience. In the years ahead, we want to position Croatia as a new gastronomic icon of Europe through a system of entrepreneurial and stimulating management of local products, which reflect the authenticity of regional gastronomic identities and foods as well as through the interpretation of tradition through an innovative and sustainable approach. The Ministry of Tourism and Sports will address this important topic through the Strategy for the Development of Sustainable Tourism until 2030,” concluded Croatia’s Minister of Tourism and Sports Nikolina Brnjac.
The new edition of the Michelin guide for Croatia for 2021 includes the new Michelin Green Star label, which has been awarded to Zinfandel’s restaurant in Zagreb. It is a label awarded to restaurants that are especially dedicated to gastronomy that is sustainable and environmentally friendly.
The new labels are the result of a secret tour of Croatian restaurants by Michelin’s professional inspectors, the globally most important and most recognised guide for restaurants.


text:
As traditional automakers adapt their vehicles for an electric, self-driving future, a wave of startups is hoping to cut in line. Last year, Faraday Future wowed the crowds with its gorgeous FF91, a car that’s no closer to release today than it was back then. This year, it’s Byton, a Chinese-based company, that unveiled its first vehicle on Sunday at CES.
On the outside, the Byton Concept could be mistaken for an ordinary gas-guzzler. The front looks a bit like an Acura NSX while the back has hints of Porche Panamera—a combo that’s more appealing in theory than in practice. Then there’s what Byton calls “commenting lights”—those strange wires cutting across the front grille and rear—which are supposed to interact with the driver, but we’re not convinced they’re worth the aesthetic hit.
The whole package is undoubtedly sleek but not as futuristic as Byton were going for. It’s on the inside where the car really stands out.
In fact, the Byton is essentially a frame for every 2018 tech trend you could possibly think of. 5G wireless? It’ll be compatible when the next-gen network launches, with estimated speeds of 100 gigabits per second. Voice recognition? Check. Like every other gadget at CES, Amazon Alexa comes built-in. It even has facial recognition for controlling its user interface.
The car’s most impressive feature is a gigantic 49-inch display that spreads across the entire dashboard, from one door to the next. It may seem Byton is showing off by placing a display larger than most people’s home TVs inside their car, but this is much more than that. As autonomous technology becomes more sophisticated, vehicles will shift from simple modes of transportation to entertainment hubs. So why not try to make them as comfortable as your living room?
Of course, it will also offer level 3 autonomy, or “conditional automation,” at launch, which means the car will manage most situations but a driver is still needed. Level 4 is expected to arrive in 2020, but there’s no word yet on the holy grail of self-driving: full autonomy, or Level 5.
Other tech in the Byton Concept that you won’t find in your current car includes cameras that replace rear-view mirrors. In fact, it doesn’t have a single mirror. It also has sensors that monitor a passenger’s health. This allows it to adjust when it senses a change in the driver’s vitals. If, for example, your blood oxygen levels decline, the car may reroute you to the hospital.
Despite all this tech, the Byton SUV is rather ordinary as an electric vehicle. It gets an estimated 250-mile range and is compatible with fast charging: 20 minutes for 120 miles. That’s good, not great. It has 272 horsepower. Again, a respectable result. The one spec we love looking at with electric vehicles—the 0 to 60 time—hasn’t been announced just yet.
The company expects to sell its maiden vehicle for “around $45,000.” All things considered, that seems reasonable, or perhaps too good to be true. A surprisingly affordable fully electric car packed with tech is exactly what the industry needs, but we have our reservations. For one, other very similar startups, including Faraday Future and Lucid, have hit some roadblocks as they try to compete with the industry giants. Even Tesla is struggling to produce enough vehicles. Also, Byton isn’t shy about calling its SUV a “concept,” which doesn’t instill confidence in it ever being released.
If you’re already sold by the gorgeous interior and massive 49-inch display, you can try your luck and register to purchase the SUV on Byton’s website or app. It’s expected to ship in China in late 2019 and in the U.S. and Europe in 2020.


text:
Tristan Kieva, vice president of marketing for Los Angeles-based Sun Pacific Shippers, says California clementine production could triple within three years.
“My personal feeling is that at first, and possibly for the next year or so, there will be a complementary effect of the domestic crop that will increase awareness of the item and overall consumption,” said Mike Kostick, citrus category manager of The Oppenheimer Group, Vancouver, British Columbia. “That likely will then turn into a cannibalization of the import sector as the years go on.”
Kostick’s comments followed the Spanish Citrus Management Commission’s recommendation in late November that exporters take a hard look at the U.S. market and the potential threat posed by California.
It would not be the first time that European exporters lost U.S. market share to increased North American supply.
Fried De Schouwer, vice president of sales and marketing for Greenhouse Produce Co. LLC, Mission, Texas, said European greenhouse shippers lost about 95% of their U.S. markets during a 10-year period because of increased competition from North American producers.
“It takes a while,” De Schouwer said. “You have the research stage, the development stage and the commodity stage. Once you get things in full swing, there’s no stopping it.”
California’s clementine crop is in that third stage and is growing.
Tristan Kieva, vice president of marketing for Los Angeles-based Sun Pacific Shippers, said the state’s production could triple within the next three years.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture does not track domestic clementine production, but numbers provided by the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service California Field Office show that there were more than 1,000 acres of clementines planted in each of the past three years and four of the past six. According to NASS, there were 2,695 acres of clementines in production in California last year and 5,285 nonbearing acres.
Doug Sankey, sales manager for Sunwest Fruit Co. Inc., Parlier, Calif., said the company’s clementine sales are growing at a rate of 15% a year, and he expects that rate to hold for at least the next five years.


text:
Gleneagles hotel suffered a loss of £780,000, according to its most recent accounts for the year to last June.
That increases the operating loss from the previous year by £226,000.
The five-star golf resort suffered from a sharp downturn in luxury leisure spending, along with a fall in corporate conferences and entertaining.
Management at the Perthshire hotel, which is owned by the drinks company Diageo, said revenue had fallen by 5% to £33.6m.
But it stressed that it was committed to maintaining long-term brand reputation, and was unwilling to cut costs to lower the levels of front-line service.
That includes continuing a full, year-round operation, however, costs have been cut behind the scenes.
Having hosted the G8 conference in 2005, Gleneagles is the venue for golf's Ryder Cup in 2014.
It is refurbishing its Dormy golf clubhouse at a cost of £2.5m, which is due to open this month.
Patrick Emslie, the hotel chief executive, said: "As economic confidence returns, we are confident that growth will be restored as we build towards 2014".
Despite rising losses, senior directors' pay at Gleneagles has risen by more than 50%.
Mr Emslie said this was because bonuses were based on new targets, which were changed to reflect the economic downturn, and which also reflect improved cashflow in the year to last June.


text:
After the first edition of Qatar’s only nationwide shopping festival, fischerAppelt was tasked to manage also the second edition for the Qatar Tourism Authority. The retail-oriented festival was held from 7th January until 7th February in more than 15 different venues all over Qatar including 13 malls and retail centers, hotels and other venues.
Pop-up shops at Mall of Qatar
The festival included key elements and activations:
Shop Qatar 2018 was inaugurated with a high-profile VIP opening ceremony held on 7th January 2018 at Alhazm. The ceremony which was attended by over 250 invited guests and VVIPs featured a custom-made international cultural performance and highlighted the upcoming elements and calendar of the festival.
Opening Ceremony at Alhazm
Fireworks over Alhazm at the Opening Ceremony
Among other elements and activations, three major fashion shows were celebrated highlights of the 2018 calendar. The fashion shows were themed and included international star designers such as Yousef Al Jasmi (Jasmiko) and Manish Malhotra, among many others. All fashion shows were held at the Mondrian Doha Hotel.
Arabic Fashion Show
Bollywood Fashion Show
International Fashion Show
On 7th February 2018, Shop Qatar closed its activities with a closing ceremony held at Doha Festival City which featured a concert by Lebanese pop star Ramy Ayach.
Shop Qatar 2018 was managed by fischerAppelt as a turnkey project for the second year.


text:
BANGOR, Maine — To people driving by Saturday it looked like a yard sale, but actually it was the eighth annual Big Fat Clothing Swap for plus-size women.
“You can be healthy at any size,” organizer Deanna Partridge said while hanging up size 18 and larger clothing on a rack set up in her Fern Street driveway.
The event is organized by Partridge and Jo Anne Dauphinee, who are members the Greater Bangor National Organization for Women Chapter.
After eight years, the annual event has taken on a life of its own, Partridge said in a statement.
“Every spring garbage bags of beautiful, good condition, plus-sized clothes just begin showing up on my sun porch,” she said. “Sometimes with notes asking for a call about the swap date, but more often than not, just dropped off.”
As people entered the clothing-lined driveway, they walked by literature regarding the weight-loss industry, the dangers of dieting, and resources promoting healthful alternatives and positive body acceptance. Fat-liberation buttons and bumper stickers also were on sale.
The big message is “accept yourself and be happy and be healthy,” Dauphinee said. “We did other NOW events like scale smashing and talks on size discrimination. We’re the reality-based group.”
The clothing exchange is held each May in honor of International No Diet Day, which is held annually on May 6.
“Skinny people have a fake sense of security that they’re healthy,” Dauphinee said. “In the American diet there are a lot of bad things. We’re trying to tell people to eat healthy — not diet.”


text:
Having sold off its handset business to Microsoft, Nokia gets into the tablet game with the new N1.
The arrival of the Galaxy Tab 4 Nook effectively ends Barnes & Noble's ill-fated foray into hardware design. But what's in it for Samsung?
Google's 10-year run as Firefox's default search engine in the US is over. Yahoo wants more search traffic, and a deal with Mozilla will bring it.
As part of the bookseller's Discovery Weekend, you'll be able to pick up its Nook-branded Samsung tablets for $50 or $100 less.
In its latest quarter, the bookseller narrows its adjusted losses in its struggling Nook digital division by $50 million.
A Cheapskate exclusive and an awesome gift, the InkFusion comes in a huge assortment of themes and designs -- everything from sports to sci-fi.
Having the subscription music service preloaded onto devices, as the Financial Times says is planned, gives Apple a leg up over competitors such as Spotify.
The presentation will detail the companies' efforts in tablets, including their first device -- the Galaxy Tab 4 Nook -- which they discussed in June.
We're tracking all the tech deals you'll want to know about for Black Friday this year. Keep coming back to this page to see the latest discounts you'll be able to snag.
Kind of like a Chromebook, but with Windows 8.1, this is perhaps the best laptop deal I've seen all year.


text:
Every time Taco Bell comes out with a new menu item, opinions start to fly. Whether based on flavor, gimmick execution, price, or something else, no fast food chain can truly get away from fervor about their experimentation. Taco Bell’s latest pitfall has arrived with the rollout of the Double Chalupa, which should reasonably have approximately double the meat and toppings that the basic Chalupa option flaunted.
Yep, that’s how Taco Bell was marketing the new item, and if that was the cause then there would be no reason for customers who to feel let down. But it isn’t the case, and devotees of the chain who expected a ton of meat and a mountain of toppings in their chalupa are outraged at what they received when they ordered the meal. Which, based on the social media responses, is an entirely logical way to react since the final product is definitely not as it was promoted.
Just in case the claims aren’t believable without photographic evidence, some of the Twitter complaints come complete with proof that what they got is not what they ordered:
— Stephen Patterson (@SPattersonFSM) June 25, 2017
— Nick (@nickynick516) June 23, 2017
— Ryan Crowson (@clawhamm3r) June 23, 2017
Taco Bell’s response has included the reasoning that the larger shell makes it hard to tell whether there’s actually double the meat or double the toppings, as well as the more standard line that customer support is on the case to figure out how things can be made better. But based on some these photos it looks less like a single serving of meat and no meat at all (at least that’s what one of the pictures looked like; we’re not starting anything!). Try to explain that one, T-Bell.


text:
ARM on Monday rolled out a new series of Mali graphics processor units designed to cover a wider range of mobile devices, conserve power and deliver enough core diversity so partners can tailor devices to specific use cases.
The company's latest graphics capabilities are better equipped to handle mobile gaming, new user interfaces and video all while preserving power.
According to Trina Watt, vice president of solutions marketing in ARM's media processing group, said that the segmentations between devices are becoming blurred. As a result, ARM's processors need to cover everything from entry level tablets to midrange smartphones to the border of high-end devices.
"Subsegmentations give us opportunities for diversification and multiple partners," said Watt. "The goal was to take Mali to the next level and scale up to the premium space while focusing on higher volume. Opening up innovation in the mainstream space has a great deal of potential."
ARM's new lineup, which will start appearing devices in late 2015 and beyond, covers the following:
- Mali-T860 GPU: The processor and architecture is designed to run all the way to the premium category. The T860 is designed to deliver the best performance with the lowest energy consumption.
- Mali-T830 GPU: A midrange GPU that aims to deliver performance with a minimal silicon footprint.
- Mali-T820 GPU: A low-end GPU with the smallest silicon area.
In addition, ARM launched the Mali-V550 multi-standard codec to encode and decode video on one core. There's also the Mali-DP550 co-processor interface that preserves power and bandwidth consumption while enabling third party customization of displays.


text:
Warner Bros.’ Looney Tunes brand is harnessing its ‘take action’ message to extend its licensed and direct-to-retail food and beverage program around the globe.
Rainbow has announced plans for a second season of “Mia and me" and new icensing agents for the brand.
Halfbrick has appointed CBD Promotions as its sub-agent in Australia, Dubai, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.
Turner CN Enterprises and D3Publisher are planning two new video games for “Adventure Time” and “Regular Show.”
Rainbow has added a slew of new licensing agents for its top brands including Winx Club, PopPixie, Huntik and Mia and me.
Hoho Rights and Haven Licensing have added new licensees in Australia and New Zealand for the preschool property Cloudbabies.
FremantleMedia has signed new broadcast and licensing deals in Australia and New Zealand for Tree Fu Tom.
American Greetings Properties has extended the contracts of many of its licensing agents around the world.
Animaccord Animation Studios and Perfetti Van Melle have teamed up for a new line of “Masha and the Bear” chocolate.
Turner Broadcasting’s LazyTown brand has renewed a number of licensing partnerships in Australia.
Muhammad Ali Enterprises has teamed up with Double D, Adidas licensee for combat sports, for a line of boxing performance products.
Viacom has teamed up with Globe International for a skater capsule collection featuring MTV’s Beavis and Butt-head.
Dimensional Branding Group has appointed two new sub-agents for the app property Temple Run in China and Australia.
The Australian public broadcaster ABC TV has picked up 30 hours of Zodiak Kids programming.
The new video game “Barbie Dreamhouse Party” is now available across Europe and Australasia, and will arrive in the U.S. in January.
41 Entertainment has appointed Legend Holdings as the textile licensee for its new Pac-Man series in Australia and New Zealand.
Wild Pumpkin Licensing has signed on to represent Bubble Gum Interactive’s online kids’ world “Space Heroes Universe!.”
Zodiak Kids has teamed up with Showtime Attractions to create live events for the preschool brands Tickety Toc and Mister Maker.
Despite the conclusion of Doctor Who’s 50th anniversary, licensees in Australia and New Zealand are continuing the celebration.
©2013 ADVANSTAR COMMUNICATIONS INC. All rights reserved.


text:
The official Facebook app for Android has its fair share of bugs and unfortunately this has caused the user experience to be less than stellar, thus forcing Android owners to turn to alternative Facebook apps for their social networking needs. The good news is that thanks to these leaked screenshots above, it appears that Facebook is working at an update called “Katana”.
This update is expected to bring the current version of the app up to version 1.8 and will feature updated navigation, menu and search functionality. There’s even a standalone “Nearby” app as you can see in the right portion of the screenshot above. Could it have something to do with Facebook’s recent acquisition of Gowalla? That’s a bit hard to say for now, but what do you guys think of the new Facebook app redesign for Android?
No word on when this app will be ready for download, but hopefully the guys at Facebook have managed to sort out all the bugs (or as many as possible) and provide a better Facebook experience for Android users out there.


text: To those of you who grumbled about SW's $59 fare sale, they were fined $200k for the deceptive ads. They had a $59 sale but no seats were available at that price from certain cities. https://news.yahoo.com/southwest-fined-200-000-deceptive-tv-ads-211048277.html;_ylt=A0SO80O6C45T4mEApz9XNyoA;_ylu=X3oDMTE0MTg1YjE2BHNlYwNzcgRwb3MDMTAEY29sbwNncTEEdnRpZANTTUU1MzhfMQ-- "Southwest Airlines is being fined $200,000 for advertising a fare sale too good to be true. The U.S. Department of Transportation said Thursday that in TV ads last October the airline promised flights from Atlanta to New York, Chicago and Los Angeles for just $59 — but didn't make any seats available at that price. The government said that Southwest's ads were deceptive and violated rules on advertising of airline fares. Southwest was also required to pay an extra $100,000 that had been suspended after a similar offense last year". Nah, $200k is a drop in the bucket to them. And the $59 special wasn't available from most cities IMHO. :Þ They keep having these $59 sales but you hardly see $59 rates during the "sale".


text:
The focus of the January-to-June ABCs has been on the various titles launched into the market. Would the enormous marketing budgets backing the new titles translate into big sales? And would the revamp of established magazines stave off the attack from the newcomers?
In most cases, it looks like the launch risk and expense have paid dividends.
The majority of new titles have met or exceeded their targets and instead of stealing share from elsewhere, the new titles have grown the market.
The industry as a whole was up in terms of volume for the sixth consecutive year. Total sales rose 5.5 per cent year on year and the number of copies actively purchased was up 6.4 per cent.
The Periodical Publishers' Assoc-iation's director of marketing, Phil Cutts, says: "Consumer expenditure on magazines has grown in real terms every year for the past five years - more than £2 billion per annum for the first time, according to the Advertising Association. Consumers' appetite for magazines continues."
IPC Media's Nuts and Emap's Zoo continued to hog the limelight in the men's lifestyle market. This time, Nuts has gained on its rival, edging over the 300,000 mark.
In the women's market, Emap's weekly glossy, Grazia, and Conde Nast's Easy Living made an impact. Northern & Shell's launch of Happy failed to make such an impression. It hasn't posted an ABC and falling sales mean it is already dropping issues.
Aggressive pricing strategies affected the weeklies and with new, low-price entrants expected later this year, publishers are concerned that a price war could undervalue their products.
Customer magazines remain buoyant. The AA and Prudential have launches planned and pitches for Apple and the Post Office suggest companies are still willing to invest. Existing titles were stable, with BSkyB's Sky: the magazine and Asda Magazine marginally up .
IPC Media, the UK's number-one publisher by volume, has had a fruitful six months. Launches and organic growth have helped it grow by 9 per cent and its new titles have walked effortlessly into their categories.
Pick Me Up made its debut with a figure of more than half-a-million and TV Easy's 340,018 sales make it the number five in its market. Both titles have done well to grow sectors largely untouched for several years.
Loaded was IPC's other successful project. Its April relaunch with the 90 pence price cut contributed to a 7 per cent circulation boost.
Sylvia Auton, IPC's chief executive, says: "IPC has been revitalised in the past two years and now has a world-class launch capability. We've launched three mass-market weeklies in 18 months."
Some of IPC's established titles suffered from the focus on new projects, and the weeklies Now and Chat were both down. Essentials and Family Circle suffered double-digit drops and Marie Claire also dipped slightly.
Three of Emap's seven divisions grew strongly. The lifestyle group benefited from Zoo's continuing success and the launch of Grazia. The new weekly has exceeded expectations to record a solid debut ABC of 155,157.
Paul Keenan, Emap Consumer Media's chief executive, says: "We are satisfied with Grazia. We've already achieved the upscale audience we set out to. It's the start of a revolution."
The weeklies did stormingly well in an increasingly saturated market and both Heat and Closer were up. Arena and Top Sante also performed well but New Woman continued to struggle and was down 7 per cent on the year.
All of Emap Automotive's titles took severe year-on-year knocks.
BBC Magazines had a quiet January to June. There have been no further sales of titles unrelated to BBC programming (as necessitated by the upcoming Charter Review) and it has also been quiet on the launch front. Only a couple of new titles have emanated from its Bristol-based Origin operation this year.
A change in frequency of some of its magazines contributed to an overall 0.9 per cent year-on-year decline but Peter Phippen, the managing director of BBC Magazines, is unfazed. "In our core markets we have done well. We will launch new magazines and are well-placed for growth," he says.
The publisher's main stable of titles enjoyed good results and BBC Top Gear, Good Homes and Olive were all up. The BBC's Origin magazines had muted success but its titles were up 8.3 per cent overall, year on year.
The National Magazine Company's joint ventures began to bear fruit in this period. In its ACP-Natmag division, Reveal leapt 13.9 per cent and NatMag Rodale's Men's Health was also up.
In its main business, the success story was Good Housekeeping. It was up by double digits, overtaking its sister magazine Cosmopolitan. However, other flagship titles including Esquire, Cosmopolitan and She all suffered.
The publisher hopes that the relaunch of the latter title in October will help stem its terminal decline.
Duncan Edwards, NatMags' chief executive, says: "Results on most of our major businesses have been outstanding and Reveal is growing fast and in line with our plans."
Conde Nast had strong results and only two of its nine titles declined.
For once, Glamour let the side down with a slight dip in circulation.
The publisher's attentions were clearly on its new entrant to the women's lifestyle market, Easy Living.
Nicholas Coleridge, the managing director of Conde Nast, is pleased with its debut ABC, saying: "With Easy Living, we set ourselves a steep target of 150,000 and have beaten it by 21,000 copies. It's a strong start."
Other titles including Vogue and Tatler were up. GQ remained flat.
Six of Hachette Filipacchi UK's seven magazines saw increases. Its flagship titles, Elle and Red, were both up, despite more competition in their markets. B was up double digits year on year. The publisher is now turning its attention to its first launch in the UK, Psychologies.
Kevin Hand, Hachette's chairman, says: "We continue to build our portfolio with further acquisitions and launches."
Another deluge of launches looks likely for the next six months, continuing the climate of growth and innovation of the past 18 months. With Emap's weekly glossy format proving successful, expect competitors in this market.
And with more launches into the thirtysomething market, there could well be some casualties.
- 'We will continue to launch ground-breaking magazines such as Grazia and Closer and reinvent established ones, as we have with Heat and Empire.' - Paul Keenan, chief executive, Emap Consumer Media
- 'We have acknowledged the challenges in the thirtysomething market by launching an entirely new version of She in October.' - Duncan Edwards, chief executive, NatMags
- 'Actively purchased copy sales across our portfolio have grown by 4.8 per cent year on year and we now sell one title every two seconds.' - Kevin Hand, chairman, Hachette Filipacchi UK.
- 'The investments and launch activity that we have been making across our entire portfolio will ensure that we continue to experience growth.' - Peter Phippen, managing director, BBC Magazines
- 'At a time of enormous launch activity, virtually all our titles are once again up in circulation. It's a strong time for quality publishing.' - Nicholas Coleridge, managing director, Conde Nast
'We are 100 per cent committed to continuing to lead the market through publishing both innovative and inspiring magazines.' - Sylvia Auton, chief executive, IPC Media
PUBLISHERS PUBLISHER Total ABC Period-on-period Year-on-year % change % change IPC Media 8,284,153 9.6 9.1 Emap 5,406,881 4.9 5.9 BBC Magazines 3,885,111 -0.3 -0.9 H Bauer 3,800,307 -1.8 -0.5 NatMags 3,493,465 2.1 7.4 Conde Nast 1,586,630 11.4 12.4 Hachette Filipacchi 1,203,790 1.0 4.3 Northern & Shell 1,088,275 -4.2 13.6 Future 977,543 -7.6 -1.0 Dennis Publishing 749,199 -4.6 11.7 Haymarket 606,522 -2.1 -1.8 Highbury 327,072 -5.9 -16.7 Source Audit Bureau of Circulations, January-June 2005.


text:
Auckland, 1 November 2016: Getty Images, the world’s leader in visual communications, has today announced the launch of a new commercial assignments venture, >Verbatimverbatimphoto.com
Getty Images Reportage can be found at reportagebygettyimages.com/
About Getty Images:
Getty Images is the most trusted and esteemed source of visual content in the world, with over 200 million assets available through its industry-leading sites http://www.gettyimages.co.nz and www.istock.com. The Getty Images website serves creative, business and media customers in almost 200 countries and is the first place people turn to discover, purchase and share powerful content from the world’s best photographers and videographers. Getty Images works with over 200,000 contributors and hundreds of image partners to provide comprehensive coverage of more than 130,000 news, sport and entertainment events, impactful creative imagery to communicate any commercial concept and the world’s deepest digital archive of historic photography.
Visit Getty Images at http://www.gettyimages.co.nz to learn more about how the company is advancing the unique role of still and moving imagery in communication and business, and enabling creative ideas to come to life. For company news and announcements, visit our Press Room, and for the stories and inspiration behind our content, visit Stories & Trends. Find Getty Images on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest and Tumblr, or download the Getty Images app where you can explore, save and share the world’s best imagery.


text:
Wall Street trading is volatile after worst day of the year.
Stocks were unsteady on Tuesday as Wall Street attempted a rebound from its sharpest drop since the outbreak of the coronavirus while investors waited for Washington lawmakers to protect the economy from a recession that may have already begun.
After early gains faded, the S&P 500 rose again and was up more than 3 percent at 11 a.m. in New York. Stock benchmarks in Europe were mostly higher Tuesday.
The S&P 500 had fallen 12 percent on Monday in what was also its biggest decline since the stock market crash of 1987.
Financial markets have been reeling as investors sharply ratchet down their expectations for the economy and look to the White House and Congress to help businesses and workers threatened by efforts to contain the pandemic.
There are few historical parallels for the shock waves created by the outbreak. From still-closed factories in China, to Western nations where millions of people are living in a state of semi-house arrest, most of the engines that keep the global economy aloft have simultaneously sputtered to a halt.
So far, the biggest measures have come from the Federal Reserve, which has slashed interest rates to near zero and announced other emergency measures to ensure the financial system keeps functioning. On Tuesday, the central bank said it would use its emergency lending powers to try to keep credit flowing to households and businesses by buying up commercial paper, short-term promissory notes companies use to fund themselves.
But the Fed hasn’t calmed investors’ nerves, and Washington has yet to authorize a large-scale plan to help.
“The Fed has a lot of tools in its tool kit. A vaccine isn’t one of them,” said Rick Rieder, chief investment officer of global fixed income at BlackRock. “And I think the markets are realizing that it’s going to be uncertain for a period of time.”
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin is expected to make a pitch to Republican senators for additional fiscal firepower on Tuesday, with the Trump administration preparing to ask for about $850 billion in additional stimulus to support the economy.
The Fed unveils an emergency lending program.
The Federal Reserve announced Tuesday that it will try to keep credit flowing to households and businesses by buying up commercial paper, short term promissory notes companies use to fund themselves.
The program, enacted using the Fed’s emergency lending powers, pulls a page from the central bank’s financial crisis playbook. Putting it into action required the signoff of Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Treasury will provide $10 billion of credit protection to the Fed, using Treasury’s Exchange Stabilization Fund.
“Commercial paper markets directly finance a wide range of economic activity,” the Fed said in a statement, noting that it supplies “credit and funding for auto loans and mortgages as well as liquidity to meet the operational needs of a range of companies.”
The program will use a special vehicle to buy unsecured and asset-backed commercial paper from eligible companies, according to the release.
Senators pitch cash assistance to counter the slowdown.
A group of Senate Democrats, led by Michael Bennet of Colorado, Cory Booker of New Jersey and Sherrod Brown of Ohio, is proposing legislation to send as much as $4,500 to nearly every adult and child in the United States this year, as part of a sustained government income-support program to counter the economic slowdown from coronavirus.
The plan would start with a $2,000 payment to individuals that would be made as quickly as possible, phasing down for only the highest-income taxpayers. Each individual would receive another payment of $1,500 in July and further payments in October if the virus was continuing to hurt the economy, as measured by the unemployment rate or by declarations from the Treasury and Health and Human Services Departments.
Senators in both parties have rapidly coalesced in recent days around the idea of direct cash assistance to help Americans weather the shutdowns spurred by the spread of the virus. On Monday, Senator Mitt Romney, Republican of Utah, proposed an immediate $1,000 payment to individuals.
Global airline bailouts could cost as much as $200 billion.
Airlines around the world are facing an unprecedented cash crunch and are in desperate need of government aid, the International Air Transport Association said Tuesday.
“We are in a very, very tough liquidity crisis, so we ask the governments to act urgently,” Alexandre de Juniac, the chief executive of the group, said.
While a few large carriers stand out, the typical airline started the year with about two months of cash on hand and many could face near-term bankruptcies, the group warned. To save the industry, governments may need to spend between $150 billion and $200 billion on airline bailouts, Mr. de Juniac estimated.
In the United States, all four major airlines have taken out sizable loans in recent weeks, with Southwest Airlines announcing a $1 billion loan on Monday. A domestic industry group, Airlines for America, has called for more than $50 billion in grants, loans and tax relief, for U.S. carriers, a request for which the Trump administration has expressed support.
The speed and severity of the economic downturn means other industries are likely to follow in asking for bailouts, argues today’s DealBook newsletter.
Amazon will hire more workers and raise pay as delivery orders surge.
Amazon said it would hire 100,000 new workers and raise pay by $2 an hour for many employees in response to a surge in delivery orders from people staying at home to combat the spread of the coronavirus.
Amazon said the new jobs would include both full and part-time positions across the United States to staff its warehouses and make deliveries. The company encouraged people who lost work as a result of coronavirus-related shutdowns and cancellations to apply.
“We also know many people have been economically impacted as jobs in areas like hospitality, restaurants, and travel are lost or furloughed as part of this crisis,” the company said in a news release. “We want those people to know we welcome them on our teams until things return to normal and their past employer is able to bring them back.”
Amazon said it would also spend $350 million to raise pay by $2 or more an hour for workers staffing its enormous logistics operation in the United States, Britain and parts of Europe. The raises would last at least through April. In the United States, such workers start at $15 an hour.
Food distributor plans to hire displaced workers.
Companies that power the supply chain are taking steps to make sure food keeps flowing to Americans in the coming weeks and months.
United Natural Foods Inc., one of the nation’s largest distributors of food to supermarkets, is planning to hire potentially thousands of out-of-work warehouse workers to staff its 59 distribution centers, the company’s chief executive, Steven L. Spinner, said.
The distributor has been crushed by demand from grocery stores, but other food distributors like US Foods and Sysco, which supply restaurants and schools, are likely to experience significant layoffs as cities and states shut down public places.
UNFI, as the company is known, is making plans to hire the displaced workers to help relieve its employees, many of whom have been working 60 to 70 hours a week to keep up with the panic buying in supermarkets across the country. The hiring could take place as soon as next week.
Catch up: Here’s what else is happening.
Facebook announced a $100 million grant program for small businesses around the world that are impacted by the coronavirus outbreak. The company said in a blog post that it would begin accepting applications in the coming weeks.
Nordstrom said on Monday evening that it planned to temporarily close its stores — including Nordstrom Rack and Trunk Club — for two weeks starting on Tuesday. It will provide pay and benefits for store employees during that time. Sephora also said that it would close its retail stores in the U.S. and Canada through April 3, and pay employees for their scheduled shifts.
Volkswagen said Tuesday it would close most of its European factories because of the coronavirus. The aircraft manufacturer Airbus also said Tuesday it would suspend manufacturing in France and Spain for the next four days while it takes measures to prevent the spread of the virus.
The Philippine Stock Exchange on Tuesday became the first market to close over the coronavirus. In a memorandum on its website, it said trading would stop until further notice.
Laura Ashley, the British brand known for feminine prints and home furnishings inspired by the English countryside, has filed for administration, a form of bankruptcy protection. The company blamed the coronavirus pandemic.
Alexandra Stevenson, Jack Ewing, Jeanna Smialek, Jim Tankersley, Niraj Chokshi, Sapna Maheshwari, Liz Alderman, Michael Corkery, Jack Nicas, Daniel Victor, Kevin Granville and Carlos Tejada contributed reporting.


text:
Despite calculated efforts such as the CBK’s 2013 new prudential guidelines and the proposed Financial Markets Conduct Bill introduced earlier this year to ensure consumer protection and transparency in the financial services sector, little is known about the trends and affordability for financial services especially for low income earners.
A study by the FSD ‘The Price of being banked in Kenya’ says that comparing costs between banks is the most challenging part while actual costs of products and services are not well clarified.
While conducting the study the researchers found it difficult to obtain bank pricing data and that market information is still opaque.
“The bank staff tends to know the cost of routine transactions such as withdrawal fees but not for others such as bank-to-mobile transfers, salary-processing fees and intra-bank versus inter-bank transfers, etc. This information is surprisingly difficult to get.” Says the report.
Even though Banks are required by the Central Bank of Kenya to publish tarrif guides accompanied by fees and charges, the reports notes that the guides were either outdated, incomplete or lacking account specific information.
Lack of standardized tarrif information and how should it should be organized and presented posed a challenge to customers with some banks giving different costs for the same transaction complicated by complex tarrif structures that may result in waiving charges, retain others or apply rebates.
“All this obscurity is reflected in the tariff guides in banking halls that don’t reflect the exact charges for a transaction but rather give blanket figures.” the report reads further.
The report notes that bank staff pose as marketing/ sales people by recommending certain accounts based on a customer’s income rather than recommend an account based on customer needs. Additionally, the staff are quick to recommend an account that attracts charges even in cases where a different charge free account was available.
“The most striking finding was that bank staffs have been incentivized to sell particular products regardless of customer needs, in some cases even recommending more expensive or inappropriate accounts that were being pushed by marketing campaigns.” says FSD.
To collect data, researchers visited multiple bank branches posing as customers, as well as customer service call-lines and web searches to triangulate data. The report is quick to note that there are very few banks with up-to-date and accessible tariff guides.


text:
Tim Cook has been staunchly outspoken in his belief that it’s only a matter of time before China overtakes the U.S. as Apple’s biggest customer.
According to a new report from app analytics company App Annie, that benchmark has now been passed when it comes to app downloads — with China leading the way in the first quarter of 2015.
But which country is winning in the all-important revenue generating category?
Interestingly, here China shrinks back to the number three spot — behind both the United States and the much-smaller Japan, which has a population of just 127.3 million versus China’s 1.357 billion.
While China saw strong growth in iOS revenue during the year’s first quarter, it was not enough to reclaim its lead in the download category.
Since pre-orders of the exclusive gold Apple Watch Edition sold out within one hour of their going on sale in China, and iPhone market share in the country has never been higher, Apple is having no problem selling hardware to Chinese customers. But when it comes to software, today’s report suggests that far, far fewer people are willing to pay for it.
Given that Apple makes the lion’s share of its revenue from selling physical products that’s not exactly a troubling trend, but it’s certainly something to take on board as Apple continues to market and more heavily toward a Chinese audience.
Source: App Annie


text:
Omny Studio announced the launch of Apple Podcast Consumption Analytics, which was first announced in a webinar with RAIN News in August. This service is now out of beta testing and is available to enterprise customers. Clients using the analytics will be able to track and report consumption data from streamed plays of podcast episodes listened to on the Apple Podcasts app. The data reflects where the audience tuned in, and where they skipped or stopped, within 30 seconds accuracy.
“Reporting quartiles of streamed listens from podcast apps has been around for awhile, but an insight at this granular level of detail is not currently available for Apple’s app anywhere else,” Omny Studio CEO Sharon Taylor said. “Previously we could only get consumption insights if we controlled the player, so being able to see this for the Apple Podcasts app is a breakthrough. Not only could this help to verify host-read ad plays, it will also help from a content perspective, to lift the curtain on podcast audience’s listening habits.” She added that these data and measurement capabilities could help boost confidence in podcast advertising over the longer term.
The beta phase included testing by Omny Studio broadcasters such as South Africa’s Primedia and Australia’s Macquarie. According to results from the testing, roughly 30% of all Apple Podcast plays can be tracked. The .gif below shows the tool in action.
I remember a lot of nay-sayers when this was announced. What do they say now it’s in action?
Comments are closed.