text:
Carnival cancels more 2020 cruises amid ongoing COVID-19 pandemic
Carnival Cruise Line is canceling most U.S. sailings through the end of this year, the latest sign that the cruise industry’s recovery from the coronavirus pandemic could still be many months away.
Carnival later announced it would be canceling November cruises from its home ports of Miami and Port Canaveral, Florida, after initially leaving them on the schedule.
"It has now determined that November 2020 operations will not be feasible," according to a company statement. Carnival is still evaluating options for its December cruises from these ports.
The company said earlier this month it was canceling sailings from all ports except Miami and Port Canaveral. Carnival said it would focus its initial return to operations on those two ports, but it stressed at the time that sailing plans from those ports in November and December could change.
“As we have said throughout this pause, our return to operations will be gradual and phased in,” Carnival President Christine Duffy said in a statement at the time.
Carnival’s early-October announcement came a day after the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention extended a ban on large cruises in U.S. waters through Oct. 31. The no-sail order, initially issued in March, had been set to expire on Sept. 30.
CDC 'no-sail' order extension official: Cruise ships will not sail in U.S. waters until Nov. 1
“Recent passenger voyages in foreign countries continue to have outbreaks, despite cruise ship operators having extensive health and safety protocols,” the CDC said. It noted cruise ships force people to share spaces that are more crowded than typical urban settings.
The CDC said it knows of 3,689 reported coronavirus cases and 41 deaths linked to cruises in U.S. waters between March and September. The agency said that is likely an undercount.
Even before the CDC announced its decision, the cruise industry had voluntarily suspended U.S. sailings through Oct. 31. The industry recently announced new safety plans, including COVID testing for all passengers and crew before boarding.
Carnival rival Norwegian Cruise Line said earlier this month that it hasn’t canceled any scheduled cruises and remains optimistic it can resume U.S. operations soon. Norwegian is listing November cruises from Florida to the Bahamas and New York to Bermuda on its website.
The cruise industry will implement these COVID-19 precautions: Testing, masks, ventilation, more


text:
Shiela Labao, baker and owner of Toronto’s New Pie Company, believes pies are an act of love. “I show people I care by making them food,” she says. “When someone offers you a piece of pie, it’s the ultimate form of ‘I care about you.’”
Labao launched her business as an online popup in April, offering twice-monthly drops on Instagram (@newpieco). Serving up pies with whimsical flavours, like orange honey with cardamom or birthday cake, she would sell out in under two minutes.
Now, Torontonians craving a slice have a slightly easier time scoring her sweets: the drops are twice-weekly, and her baked goods are also stocked at cafés and specialty shops around the city, including Kiss My Pans, Milky’s Coffee and Lit Espresso Bar.
Labao started getting serious about baking two years ago, and took culinary night classes at George Brown College while working a day job as an HR manager. She loved teaching friends how to bake, too, so she set up workshops in her home, selling tickets on Eventbrite. “It was a fun little experiment,” she says. “It started being kind of a community for me.”
When the pandemic hit, she switched to online classes, and realized she felt so passionate about baking, she wanted to make it a full-fledged new venture. “It’s all about pies because pies are really close to my heart. They’re the first thing I learned how to bake,” explains Labao, who recently left her day job to focus on the New Pie Company.
Her inspiration often comes from seasonal flavours, so expect to find lush, fruity fillings complemented with heaps of whipped cream, glorious-looking meringue, or surprises like caramel popcorn on top. “I like the idea of giving something super bountiful,” says Labao. “I’m pretty dramatic as a person, and it kind of translates to my pies.”
She aims to bring Filipino flavours to the forefront, too. “This is my chance to reconnect with my roots and introduce them to Toronto,” she says. A favourite she’s hoping will catch on is buko pie, made with a fresh coconut meat and cream filling, a buttery crust, and a toasted coconut crumble topping.
When Labao isn’t busy whipping up dessert, she still teaches virtual baking classes, where everyone can learn how to make classics from scratch, like chocolate caramel tarts and spiced apple pie. She’s hoping to open a brick-and-mortar space of her own next year, which will be part teaching studio and part pie shop.
Until then, you can pick up a slice at stockists around the city, order a whole pie from her website, or look out for New Pie at upcoming farmers’ markets. Labao’s goal is “just to spread as much pie as possible in the city.”

domain: news


text:
Apple changes tune on royalties after Swift complains
PALO ALTO, Calif. (AP) — Apple says it's bowing to concerns raised by pop superstar Taylor Swift. The giant tech company now plans to pay royalties to artists and record labels during a free, three-month trial of its new streaming music service.
Swift had pulled her latest album from the Apple Music service and criticized the company in an open letter to her fans on Sunday, saying it wasn't fair that artists and labels wouldn't be paid directly for the use of their music during the trial period.
Apple had already agreed to share revenue when paid subscriptions begin. But executive Eddy Cue told The Associated Press that Swift's criticism underscored complaints he'd heard from independent artists and spurred the company to change its position on payments during the free trial period.


text:
Facebook said it would split the revenue from the ads, with 55 percent going to the video creator whose content the ad was played around and 45 percent remaining with the social network.
"We're running a new suggested videos test, which helps people discover more videos similar to the ones they enjoy. Within suggested videos, we are running a monetisation test where we will show feed-style video ads and share revenue with a group of media companies and video creators," a Facebook spokesperson said in a statement.
Putting a structure in place to monetize videos gives content creators an incentive to produce items suited for Facebook. The move is a big challenge to YouTube, which has dominated the video ad market through its ability to create major stars with big followings on social media.
The Facebook ads will play intermittently, meaning that you might only see one advertisement for every three videos you watched. In that case, the 55 percent would be split with the three video creators around which the ad was played, depending on how long you watched their videos for, according to technology news provider Re/code.


text:
iOS 13.5 Includes A Tweak To Skip Face ID If Someone Is Wearing A Mask
Apple has today made the latest beta 3 build of iOS 13.5 available to developers with the new coronavirus contact tracing API built in. But there’s a change that will improve life for those who wear face masks, too. And it’s a small yet important tweak.
More and more people are wearing face masks all the time now thanks to the coronavirus pandemic and it’s obviously a problem when it comes to using Face ID. Now iOS 13.5 beta 3 has a tweak to deal with that by skipping the Face ID screen if someone is wearing a face mask.
In that case the iPhone will automatically switch to offering a passcode entry screen. And while this might not sound like such a huge change, it’s one that is important for those who wear masks all day and have to unlock devices multiple times. The more they use their device, the more important the tweak becomes.
This new change also brings the coronavirus contact tracing API, with Apple adding new notification options in the Settings app as spotted by 9to5Mac.
iPhone is using Bluetooth to securely share your random IDs with nearby devices and collect their IDs. This enables an app to notify you if you may have been exposed to COVID-19. Random IDs are deleted after 14 days.
Apps you authorize can notify you if you’re exposed to COVID-19. You can also choose to anonymously share your COVID-19 diagnosis.
While the API is now present, users will need to install an app from their local health authority in order to take advantage of it.
As pointed out by @Sonikku_a2, if you’re wearing a mask, iOS 13.5 goes straight to the passcode screen if you try to unlock with Face ID (keypad not shown because iOS hides it in screen recordings) pic.twitter.com/bQCzu5u20p


text:
QuickBooks has launched a new marketplace called Trada that “connects independent retailers with amazing brands and wholesalers,” the company said.
According to a Thursday, Aug. 11 blog post announcing the new marketplace, the platform is aimed particularly at small businesses. In terms of function and appearance, Trada’s website looks a bit like a cross between Etsy and Amazon.
Trada operates in the United States and Australia. Trada’s website says the platform “is like a trade show, but without the hassle.” The site features offerings such as novelty clothing, eco-friendly pet treats, specialty foods, and high-end paper products.
According to the announcement, Trada’s features for retailers include free membership, one-stop shopping, buyer protection; and a wide selection of “unique products at wholesale prices”. Retailers pay no commission.
For other sellers, perks include “free membership, a unique storefront, vetted buyers, and wholesale data to help run their business,” the blog says. Trada asks sellers to offer their best prices on the platform, according to Trada’s website.
QuickBooks Online users can use Trade seamlessly, according to the announcement.
Until the end of 2022, the announcement states that Trade will include free shipping for retailers and no commission for sellers.
“We know product-based businesses face challenges and opportunities in discovering customers and growing their businesses,” said Shilpa Reddy, vice president, QuickBooks Commerce at Intuit, in a prepared statement. “Trada by QuickBooks simplifies the customer and product discovery experience for retailers and wholesalers. It also automates order placement and provides rich business insights for growth. »
Among the countries where the service will apparently not be available is India, where Intuit will offer the Quickbooks service in January 2023, the Economic Times of India reported in early July. Competitors in the country include Soho and Tally.
Read more: Intuit to shut down QuickBooks in India
For all PYMNTS B2B coverage, subscribe daily B2B Newsletter.


text:
The release of Windows 11 has officially signed the death warrant for Internet Explorer. The out of fashion search engine will be disabled when users upgrade to the new operating system. In an announcement, Microsoft states that Internet Explorer will be disabled in Windows 11 as Microsoft Edge now includes the IE Mode feature.
“Internet Explorer is disabled. Microsoft Edge is the recommended replacement and includes IE Mode which may be useful in certain scenarios,” says Microsoft’s list of deprecated applications in Windows 11. The veteran web browser was released with Windows 95, and it was ingenious at the time.
Internet Explorer will no longer appear on consumer versions of Windows 10 after June 2022, Microsoft wrote in a blog.
The tech giant has been phasing out the old browser for several years, but in 2019 it had to issue an emergency path for it, for security reasons.
At that point it was estimated that around 8% of people around the world were still using it.


text:
Rose Reisman Shares Her Favourite Vitality-Boosting Health Foods
Catelli recently released a survey citing that “85 per cent of those who participated read nutrition labels before buying food products to make sure they are healthy.” That is music to nutritionist Rose Reisman’s ears. “It’s been an uphill battle throughout the 90s,” she says, adding, “but people are finally starting to get it.” We are happy that many are investing in their longevity but are we choosing the right stuff? Reisman gave us her top vitality-boosting ingredients. Check out her list and see if your grocery shopping picks are up to snuff! She’s even shared a pasta salad recipe.
Reisman insists that you can’t cut out carbs if you want to stay healthy. You just have to choose the right carbs. In this case, 100 per cent whole grains are the way to go. Reisman explains why this is her first choice. “Anything whole grain has more fibre, vitamins, more minerals in it and we know that whole grains can reduce the risk of obesity. diabetes Type 2 and lowers high blood pressure, cholesterol and the risk heart and stroke disease.”
What’s not to love about edamame? “I love edamame beans either shelled or in the shell as an appetizer. Instead of green peas, I throw them into soups, salads, pasta dishes. They are just fanastic as a vegetarian source of protein.” You can increase the protein in dish or snack with this simple swap.
Reisman suggests buying them frozen in the off-season and sprinkling them on your yogurt, dessert – anywhere! “The antioxidants help to fight free radicals. In terms of fighting cancer it is one of the key foods we should be eating. There are even correlations to Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.”
TASTE THE RAINBOW
In this case we don’t mean Skittles but all of the colourful fruits and veggies – specifically, anything orange, red or green. “Sweet potatoes, kale, spinach, red bell peppers. Anything orange, red or green are going to be filled with antioxidants. And know that bell peppers have more vitamin C than orange juice.”
This protein-filled yogurt is not just a fad. It’s here to stay due to its many health benefits. “Opposed to regular yogurt, it’s got almost double the protein. In other words, this is a vegetarian source of protein and you can start your day with that. You can use it in dressings. You can use it in cake or muffins. And Greek yogurt actually has lower lactose than regular yogurt so for those who have lactose intolerances, this might be a better way to settle any issues you have with it.
This pasta salad – developed by leading nutrition expert Rose Reisman – is a powerhouse when it comes to vitality-boosting ingredients, including whole grains, edamame beans, berries, orange veggies and Greek yogurt.
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 20 minutes
1 pkg (375 g) whole wheat rotini, such as Catelli® Healthy Harvest®
1 large red bell pepper, chopped
2 cups (500 mL) peeled and chopped sweet potato
3/4 cup (175 mL) shelled edamame beans
1 cup (250 mL) dried cranberries
3 oz (90 g) crumbled light feta cheese, about 1/2 cup (125 mL)
1/3 cup (75 mL) chopped fresh basil or parsley


text:
After 10 years in Carmel’s Old Meridian District, Meridian Music Company is moving and downsizing operations.
Ardaugh Group plans to retain its 400 workers at the Winchester plant as it invests in a major upgrade.
Granite Real Estate Investment Trust has entered Plainfield’s robust logistics and distribution market with a deal to buy two mammoth facilities and a prime plot of land.
Nine of the 16 firms who announced their plans with state officials Thursday expect to boost operations and employment in the Indianapolis area, forecasting 933 jobs.
The retailer has finalized a contract for state incentives on the 1.1 million-square-foot project, pledging to hire 303 workers by the end of 2015.
After planning a move to Westfield, Algaeon Inc. has instead leased new space in Indianapolis for a research and production facility. Planning 25 hires, it is seeking a tax break from the city on $4.9 million in new equipment.
Michigan-base Online Tech plans to open a 25-employee facility just west of Lucas Oil Stadium, serving businesses that need cloud computing.
The Caterpillar dealer is seeking to expand with new corporate offices and sales and service facilities on more than 130 acres of land near the interchange of Interstates 465 and 74.
CEO Don Brown recently told IBJ that the firm expected to hire in the neighborhood of 250 workers in 2014, and also was looking at constructing an additional building by its headquarters. An announcement is set for Thursday afternoon.
Biomet’s project calls for building renovations and adding 3-D printing and optical scanning technology. The Warsaw-based company would also upgrade an incubation center for surgeons interested in introducing a new product, technology or technique.


text:
For more viral videos
like this, as well as other news about entertainment, technology, finance, health, sports and business, visit the (http://au.
Viral Spiral exclusively represents, monetises and grows online channels with large followings and many of the world's best-known and most shared viral videos
The First Video Blog Featuring Viral Videos
Before They Go Viral
Paul McClay, Director of Media and Strategy for award-winning marketing agency, Definition 6, speaks on the concept behind one of this year's most inspiring viral videos
Viral Spiral exclusively represents the owners of many of the world's best known viral videos
and YouTube Channels, connecting them with major brands, corporations and advertising agencies and licensing their content to TV production companies, major networks and studios worldwide.
By generating a list of the top 10 viral videos
each week, this website is offering visitors the chance to see firsthand what the most popular videos on the Internet are.
It will award scholarships to the film students or video production enthusiasts who create the best viral videos
promoting safe driving.
The Pop Culture Trend Report, last published on Jan 30, 2012, includes 203 PRO trends and 1,943 examples of pop culture market research and pop culture consumer trends related to: popular culture, celebrity trends, celebrity gossip, viral videos
, Lady Gaga, Michael Jackson, celebrity news, media and pop culture trends.
html), while YouTube Product Placement gets companies to make money with the hottest YouTube viral videos
PROVO, Utah -- "Paying too much for tax preparation is a lot likeO throwing money away" is the message behind each of the viral videos
posted by FreeTaxUSA[R] on the popular video website YouTube[R].
Several viral videos
featured the hit Michael Jackson songs such as "Billie Jean" and "Thriller.
4 million hits and counting, "Quantitative Easing Explained" is one of the most successful viral videos


text:
New Driver Helps GTX 980 Ti Beat Radeon R9 Fury X in Ashes of the Singularity DX12 Benchmark
Nvidia GeForce GTX 980 Ti overthrows the AMD Radeon R9 Fury X in Ashes of the Singularity DirectX 12 test – thanks to the latest drivers.
In early tests of Ashes of the Singularity, Radeon R9 Fury X beat the GTX 980 Ti and it looked like the AMD card could benefit more from the latest API than Nvidia GeForce. But with the new drivers installed, the situation has changed in favor of Nvidia.
The folks over at the well-known Computerbase decided to compare Nvidia cards with the latest GeForce 358.50 drivers and AMD cards with their new Catalyst 15.10 drivers. The DX12 benchmark results revealed that the GTX 980 Ti performs better than the R9 Fury X, though it’s just by 0.4FPS.
From the looks of it, both NVIDIA and AMD graphics cards have got performance boost with the latest drivers. The GeForce GTX 980 Ti saw an 11% increase whereas AMD’s Radeon R9 Fury X jumped by 6%.
NVIDIA launched their latest GeForce 358.50 WHQL driver which is optimised to provide the best possible gaming experience in Star Wars Battlefront BETA. On the other side, AMD Catalyst 15.10 BETA driver is focused towards improving performance for Ashes of the Singularity game.
As for Ashes of the Singularity, it is relatively a new benchmark which according to its developer’s site “is a real-time strategy game set in the far future that redefines the possibilities of RTS with the unbelievable scale provided by Oxide Games’ groundbreaking Nitrous engine.”
The futuristic RTS game is scheduled to launch on Steam Early Access on October 22. The Early Access version will include several different planets to battle over as the Post-Human faction, in both the single-player and multiplayer.
Gohar is the lead editor at TechFrag. He has a wide range of interests when it comes to tech but he's currently spending a big chunk of his time writing about privacy, cyber security, and anything policy related.


text:
Apple has started selling iTunes gift cards in electronics retailers throughout the United Arab Emirates, according to photos posted by AbsoluteGeek.com. This is the first time these cards have been available in this market.
The change is part of a larger move into the region by Apple’s retail arm, which began hiring for an upcoming Apple Store in Dubai several months ago. Some are saying that the upcoming Dubai store could become the largest in the world as Apple continues its push into new territories.
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.


text:
Owing to the growing penetration of smartphones and the emergence of advanced technologies in the healthcare sector, there is a rise in demand for fitness apps too. The On-Demand fitness apps market is forecast to reach $14.64 billion by 2027. Digital health monitoring is now a successful business model and attracts several users to use the app too.
The fitness apps market is driven by consumer demand to manage their own health and have access to necessary information whenever they need it. These apps are being developed and adopted by the healthcare industry rapidly. Further, the startup market is also flooding with investment in fitness apps. New entrepreneurs are coming up with ways to create innovative apps and this has augmented the healthcare market. It is reported that a total of USD 7.5 billion was invested in various startups that are attempting to digitize various healthcare processes.
It is also to be noted that users get used to a particular healthcare app and they rarely change the apps if they get comfortable using one. Almost 96% of the users stick to one app once they have used it.
Fitness apps and COVID-19 – here are a few more findings:
Some of the key participants in this area include Appster, Adidas, Asics America Corporation, Fitbit, Inc., Azumio, Inc., Fitnesskeeper, Google, Fooducate, Kayla Itsines, and Nike, among others. Fitness is in demand and on-demand apps customized to your fitness requirements can be created by technology experts. It will be the future of the healthcare market and offer both ease and convenience to both customers and healthcare staff.
#covid19 #fitnessapp #ondemandfitnessapp #workoutapp


text:
Dale Coleman, VP Sales, Marketing & Creative Programming, Fairplex
REPORTING FROM POMONA, CALIF. — The L.A. County Fair in Pomona, Calif., opened to big numbers Sept. 3, welcoming 92,000 visitors opening day and almost 275,000 people over the first three days. The fair faced over 100-degree weather last Wednesday and Thursday, slowing attendance. Now they rely on new attractions and authenticity to bring out enough fairgoers to beat last year’s 1.4 million visitors.
Dale Coleman, VP Sales, Marketing & Creative Programming for the fair, said “attendance is about even right now.” Attendance was tracking up the first weekend but weather got in the way of success. “The last two days were unbelievably hot,” said Coleman, “but Wednesdays and Thursdays are usually the slowest days for a fair anyway, so hopefully we got the heat out of the way on days we could have most afforded it. “
Ray Cammack Shows is providing the carnival at L.A. County Fair for the 27th year. Director of Media Marketing Tony Fiori said that the midway had a busy first weekend but also suffered from the heat.
“The weather has been detrimental to us but, all in all, it’s been going good,” Fiori said. “We can plan for a lot of things,” he added, “but we certainly can’t plan for 108-degree weather.”
An equine competitor cools down before a race. The fair hosts horse racing each year.
One way the fair keeps visitors coming even in hot weather is through promotions. There is a promotion for each weekday, including McDonald’s Wednesdays when consumers can get entry and unlimited carnival rides for $20 by purchasing passes at the fast food franchise. Other days, unlimited carnival ride wristbands cost $50. Book Drive Thursdays offer fairgoers the opportunity to enter for free until 6 p.m. with the donation of one book — a promotion that helped during the heat wave. “Over 4,000 people took advantage of the book drive our first week,” said Coleman. Admission prices for weekdays run $12 for adults, $7 for children ages 6-12 and $9 for seniors; weekends cost $17 for adults, $12 for children ages 6-12 and $14 for seniors. General parking is $10 every day, with preferred VIP and valet options for $15-$25.
The fair’s most successful promotion is its partnership with grocery store chain Ralphs, where tickets valid any day of the week are available for $10. “Last year we sold over 100,000 tickets through Ralphs, and that promotion is already up 100 percent from this time last year,” said Coleman, who predicted that the promotion is going to “devastate the numbers that it did last year.” Season passes were a successful promotion last year, with about 30,000 units sold at $24.99.
“Years ago we sort of tried to compete with Disneyland, but they have a lot more money than us and a lot bigger brand than us. The thing you have to stop and realize is that Disneyland doesn’t draw nearly as many people as we do in the month of September. No one does. You name it, we outdraw everybody — period,” said Coleman.
Last year the fair counted almost 1.4 million visitors. “Instead of having a theme, we just try to educate and be wholesome and real,” he said.
A multitude of attractions — updated, new and familiar — drive fair traffic.
The Great White exhibit features a live shark tank.
One new attraction is the Great White Exhibit, with a live shark encounter. “The shark encounter was so unbelievably popular in the first week that the L.A. County Fire Department had to come and figure out some crowd control,” said Coleman. He said that getting the tank of sharks in building five was logistically challenging because the tank is “part of a semitruck, so it took a bit of cranking the steering wheel.”
“We have Mojo’s Jungle, which is a cute monkey and snake thing for kids; Wilderness Ridge with lumberjacks and bears; Esmerelda’s Traveling Circus, which is literally a little circus; and Pet’s Ahoy, which is a pirate-themed show with domestic animals,” listed Coleman. There is also Ray Cammack Shows with 70 rides and FairView Farms.
The “Our Body: Live Healthy” exhibit was rebranded for its second year with a focus on health. “I’ve seen many gate-within-a-gate attractions come to the fair and they never work,” said Coleman, “but this one has had unbelievable lines.” The attraction features cadavers in various stages of dissection and focuses on education. Tickets for that attraction were $8.
“The bodies exhibit has really allowed us to open up our school program to middle school kids, too,” said Coleman, who added that the fair is expecting 120,000 students this year who, he hopes, become fans of the fair for a lifetime.
The flower pavilion, featuring exhibits made out of plants, has a national parks theme this year.
“We have wine tasting and a flower pavilion; there are lots of surprises that you wouldn’t necessarily expect at a typical county fair,” Coleman added.
Fiori said that the best thing about working with the L.A. County Fair is that “they do a great job of bringing new things in that make people want to come.” He said that “you can’t see everything in one day — and that’s excellent because what we need is return customers.”
Sponsorship numbers are down this year. “Our sponsorship program is about as successful as any in the fair industry, if not the most successful,” said Coleman, “but we had a number of multiyear agreements that ended in the last year and some of them haven’t renewed and some have renewed at a lesser amount.” Sponsors still include Toyota, Ralphs, Coca-Cola, Budweiser and other large brands, of which Coleman said, “we’re very proud of our corporate representation.”
There are also 19 nights of grandstand shows, which can be challenging to book. “There is serious competition that the Indian casinos create because they’ll pay top dollar, all the acts have radius clauses and we only have a set number of days to book the talent — it’s like a jigsaw puzzle,” said Coleman. A limited number of tickets for the grandstand are available free with admission, but tickets can range from $18.50-$25 for grandstand seating and $75-$125 for floor seating.
Concert series ticket sales are tracking over 25 percent up from last year. Coleman wouldn’t reveal the talent guarantee, but said, “it’s a lot — it made me wish I had taken guitar lessons.”
Coleman said that even with the heat wave there are a lot of positive signs for the fair. “Time will tell. We’re doing fine, but 23 days is a long run. As we found out on Sept. 11, 2001, anything can happen. There are beautiful mountains to our north, but I’ve seen years that those mountains are all on fire — knock on wood that it’ll be a quiet month,” said Coleman.
The L.A. County Fair runs Sept. 3-Oct. 2.
Interviewed for this story: Dale Coleman, (909) 865-4057; Tony Fiori, (602) 763-2363


text:
Saudi Aramco had its long-awaited initial public offering (IPO) last week debuting on the Tadawul, Saudi Stock Exchange at a valuation of $1.88 trillion. Aramco’s public debut made it the world’s largest IPO ever, toppling the previous record holder Alibaba in 2014 when they raised $25 billion. When the market closed today in the capital city of Riyadh, Aramco had a market value of over $2 trillion.
This evening the world’s largest ride hailing giant, Uber will price its initial public offering just ahead of its Friday trading debut. Analysts predict the valuation of the IPO will be between $80.5 billion to $91.5 billion. Uber has stated there will be 1,676,959,021 shares outstanding after the IPO which would suggest a price range of $44 to $50 per
share. The projected valuation would make Uber the 4th highest offering of the decade behind only General Motors, Facebook, and the Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group.


text:
In 2001, the bubble had burst on technology and software stocks and the economy was heading downward.
Then terrorists attacked, sending the economy -- and the aviation industry -- into a deep slump.
At the time, Wichita's Cessna Aircraft Co. had a healthy $6 billion worth of aircraft orders on its order books. But that backlog declined rapidly as orders slowed.
Cessna "went through some tough hunkering down," Cessna chief executive and president Jack Pelton said in an interview last week.
Today, the story is much different.
With brisk orders, the company's backlog has returned to the $6 billion level.
"We are now proudly back to where we were again," Pelton said.
But the company doesn't plan to stop there.
"That's not the peak," Pelton said. He said 2006 and 2007 are "shaping up to be strong."
Cessna's marketing efforts for the most part are now focused on 2007 and beyond, company officials said recently.
"The underlying strength of this company has really improved this year," said Lewis Campbell, chief executive of Textron Inc., Cessna's parent company.
Cessna has taken orders this year for 900 single-engine airplanes. It also has taken 230 net orders for business jets, the company said last week.
Sales have been higher than expected, Pelton and Campbell said.
"This market expansion has kind of surprised all of us a little bit," Campbell said.
As Cessna increases production, it is working with suppliers to have enough product available to build aircraft. One issue is the availability of some raw materials.
Cessna also continues to hire. The planemaker wants to hire 350 workers by the end of the year, bringing the number of people employed in Wichita to about 10,000.
While the company is excited about the strong market, it also must be careful about growing at a stable, sustainable rate, Pelton said. Cessna must balance how many planes the company should deliver with what is a sustainable delivery rate, Campbell said.
And Cessna doesn't want to get too big, Pelton said.
"We don't want to grow beyond our existing footprint" in Wichita, he said.
Sustaining the momentum will involve a variety of variables, some beyond Cessna's control.
First, the economy must stay strong, Pelton said. Jet sales follow corporate profits. When they're up, so are sales.
Cessna, meanwhile, will continue to invest in programs that promote or teach flying, lobby for legislation and tax programs that support general aviation and work closely with customers to get enough data to get them into the right airplane, Pelton said.
It also will continue work on training initiatives, productivity increases and manufacturing capabilities while it invests in the research and development of new products.
"They really know how to hit the marketplace with what the marketplace wants," Campbell said.
Cessna recently said it plans to replace its current single-engine piston line of aircraft with a new family of planes. Specific details of the planes have not been decided, Pelton said, and it will likely be next year before an announcement is made.
Cessna is watching the competition and working to avoid complacency.
"The competitive landscape is getting tougher and tougher," Pelton said.
News stories provided by third parties are not edited by "Site Publication" staff. For suggestions and comments, please click the Contact link at the bottom of this page.


text:
CHICAGO, March 29 (Xinhua) -- U.S. protectionist measures of unilaterally imposing steep tariffs will not solve trade problem but risk opening a Pandora's box to backfire on its own economy, said U.S. experts.
"The recent action by U.S. President (Donald) Trump to slap tariffs on China outside of the established WTO rules ... is troubling," Tom Watkins, an advisor to Michigan-China Innovation Center, told Xinhua in a recent interview.
"While it has some short term political benefit to President Trump's political base of disenfranchised voters, it is unlikely to have any significant long-term economic benefit to working class people in America, nor address real issue of free and fair trade imbalances," Watkins said.
Many U.S. scholars echoed Watkins' view, as Trump signed a memorandum last week that could impose tariffs on up to 60 billion U.S. dollars of imports from China and place restrictions on Chinese investments in the United States.
China's Ministry of Commerce issued a warning the following day and also announced a plan for reciprocal tariffs on imported U.S. products worth about 3 billion dollars, targeting 128 categories of U.S. products including pork, wine and seamless steel tubes.
"Tariffs are not going to correct the trade deficit with China," said Khairy Tourk, a professor with the Stuart School of Business of the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago. "The reality is that the tariff burden will fall on the silent majority, the consumers. This would be difficult for the middle class and it could backfire on those responsible for the price increases."
Tourk said China's measured response shows that Beijing is not eager to start a trade war. "Obviously, if the situation is to escalate, the global economy will suffer," the expert added.
"A trade war only disadvantages our already disadvantaged populations," said William J. Carroll, president emeritus of the Benedictine University.
U.S. National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) posted a statement on its website the same day when Trump signed the memorandum, in which NPPC President Jim Heimerl said higher tariffs on imports from China will in turn harm U.S. producers and undermine the rural economy.
"No one wins in these tit-for-tat trade disputes, least of all the farmers and the consumers," said Heimerl.
U.S. pork industry exported 1.1 billion dollars of products to China in 2017. "China is a very important market for U.S. pork producers. In 2017, China was the second largest U.S. pork export market by volume and the third largest export market by value," Jim Monroe, NPPC senior communications director, told Xinhua.
Scholars said U.S. trade deficit is a problem, but not in the way Trump's administration thinks. "The deficit reflects lack of savings," said Tourk. It in fact reflects a deeper problem of imbalance in the flow of international investment.
"The best policy to increase American exports is to increase productivity," the professor said, adding this will require years to accomplish.


text:
The economy has lost momentum, but is set to recover gradually as world trade picks up and as stronger exports and improving business confidence spark a revival in business investment. The unemployment rate is projected to continue to fall, but with ample spare capacity inflation will remain subdued.
Monetary policy should therefore remain accommodative while measures to enhance financial stability and address risks linked to high household debt need to be developed further. Fiscal policy, against the backdrop of sound public finances, is set to be appropriately slightly stimulative in 2014. Efforts to avoid unemployment becoming entrenched should continue.
Note: All data definitions based on internationally comparable standards and may differ in specific cases from common national definitions.


text:
Copart Inc, a California-based online vehicle auctions company has set up its India Technology Center in Hyderabad, first such centre outside of the US. The company operates in more than 190 locations in 11 countries and has over 1,25,000 vehicles up for auction every day.
The company maintains large data base of buyers, sellers, vehicles and insurance companies and the Hyderabad centre will provide the technology support for the company’s global operations and will play a key role in its growth in India.
The $7 billion Copart Inc, which has started its operations in Hyderabad through the technology centre has hired 20 people now and will take this number to over 150 by year-end. It expects to expand between 200 and 300 employees by the end of 2018.
Inaugurating the technology centre of Copart, KT Rama Rao, Minister for IT and Industries, Government of Telangana, “Copart must bring its unique model of salvage car remarketing to India, work with the IRDA to understand the Indian regulations and work towards getting license to increase the Copart business in India.”
“We believe drawing upon the wealth of technical talent available in Hyderabad will allow us to address the software development demands created by our rapid growth and international expansion,” said Will Franklin, executive vice-president, Copart.
“Further, we see India as a market in which our skills in addressing catastrophes can be extremely beneficial to local communities in times of need and our unique position in the disposition chain of damaged can ensure compliance with environmental and end of life vehicles.” He also noted that Copart collected more than 80,000 and 55,000 cars in response to Hurricane Katrina and super-storm Sandy, respectively.
“Government is glad that Copart has chosen Hyderabad for this centre. The city is growing and provides ecosystem for companies like Copart to expand their operations further. With the Insurance Regulatory Development Authority of India operating in Hyderabad, the State government can help Copart connect with the regulator. We will also advocate on the company’s behalf the role it can play in environment protection.”
He added, “The line of business Copart operates is new for India. India as a market is not used to salvaging or refurbishing vehicles.”
Mohammed Khuddus, head and director, India Technology Center, told Telangana Today, “India is relatively a new market for Copart. There is an enormous opportunity. And the technology centre in Hyderabad will play an active role in the company’s global operations. With adequate talent available in Hyderabad, the company will scale up quickly.”
He informed, “We have entered into India market two years ago and have created a car yard that can accommodate 2,000 cars. Globally, all the yards that we have can accommodate easily about 5,000 cars. In the US, Corpat gets access to vehicles which are not functional that are put up for auction and key auto mechanics and workshops can extract the metal and automotive parts. In India, with BS-III vehicles facing ban, we are in this market at the right time. We don’t have any competition here and we have just few players in this space in the US.”
“Globally we have a budget to spend $60 million on technology and of which $10 million will be invested in the technology centre created in Hyderabad this year. We are constantly revamping technology, said,” Rama Prasad, chief technology officer, Corpat.


text:
Gates, Looney, Easterbrook -- ushered to the exit over work relationships
September 13, 2023 09:52 PM
BP's now former chief executive Bernard Looney is only the latest of a string of top business figures to be propelled through the exit door in recent years over relationships with colleagues found to be in violation of internal rules.
- Bernard Looney, BP -
BP said Tuesday that Looney was resigning with immediate effect after admitting he had not been "fully transparent" about historical relationships with colleagues.
The 53-year-old, who took up his post in 2020, said the board had reviewed allegations from an anonymous source regarding his conduct "in respect of personal relationships with company colleagues".
While he had previously disclosed "a small number of historical relationships with colleagues prior to becoming CEO" and no breach of the company's code of conduct was found, further allegations emerged and he conceded he was "not fully transparent in his previous disclosures," BP said.
- Bill Gates, Microsoft -
In May 2021, the Wall Street Journal wrote that Gates' departure from Microsoft in March 2020 was related to a relationship judged inappropriate with an employee in the early 2000s.
Gates, who founded Microsoft in 1975, said he would devote himself to his firm's foundation after stepping down as board chair of the US technology giant.
The company had found that Gates had pursued a romantic relationship with an engineer judged inappropriate after opening an investigation in 2019 following up on a written submission from the woman concerned.
- Steve Easterbrook, McDonald's -
Steve Easterbrook was ousted as CEO of McDonald's in 2019 for having a "consensual relationship" with an employee, in violation of company policy.
Easterbrook was not fired and left with a multimillion severance package but when other allegations of three other sexual relationships emerged McDonald's decided to sue to recover its $105 million.
- Brian Krzanich, Intel -
Brian Krzanich stepped down in 2018 as chief executive of US computer chip giant Intel over a "past consensual relationship" with an employee in violation with the company's non-fraternisation policy.
Intel said that an investigation had found the relationship was in violation of its 2011 statutes.
- Laurent Potdevin, Lululemon -
In 2018, Laurent Potdevin, CEO of trendy yoga clothing manufacturer Lululemon, lost his job after it was revealed he had an affair with a designer from the company. Lululemon and Potdevin entered into a separation accord and he left with a compensation deal of 33 million euros ($35 million).
- Brian Dunn, Best Buy -
In April 2012, electronics retailer BestBuy said director general Brian Dunn was resigning after coming under investigation for an "extremely close relationship" with an employee. That relationship, the company said, illustrated extremely "poor judgment and a lack of professionalism."
Dunn left Best Buy with severance of $6.6 million.
- Harry Stonecipher, Boeing -
In March 2005, Boeing CEO Harry Stonecipher, then 68, was forced to resign by the board over a relationship with vice-president Debra Peabody, two decades his junior. The relationship was found to violate the company's code of conduct.


text: The Crew 2 Shows Off Their Partnership With Harley-Davidson Motorcycles By Alex Jones, 18 Aug 2017 CommentsThe Crew 2 is a game that will allow players to travel across America via virtually any means of powered transport that it's possible to imagine. Whilst there were already several options of the two-wheeled variety, Ubisoft has now confirmed that the iconic Harley-Davidson brand of motorcycles will be appearing in the game.The first one to be announced is the Iron 883. One of the smaller bikes in the Harley-Davidson lineup, the retro-styled 883 is designed with agility and performance in mind. Further models are set to be revealed at a later date. The Crew 2 will be released in early 2018.We've got the full list of The Crew 2 achievements - check the list for guides to unlocking them.AnnouncementScreenshotsUpcoming ReleaseXbox One Written by Alex JonesHas been playing games for about 30 years, so you'd think he'd be good at them by now. Also likes films, wrestling, cars and cats, just not all at the same time.


text:
Comcast ‘surprised’ by Netflix and CBS jumping ship for online distribution says - EVP Stephen Burke
Comcast's executive vice president Stephen Burke has admitted the broadcasting-giant was caught off-guard when HBO and CBS announced they were launching exclusive streaming sites.
HBO and CBS have jumped Comcast's ship
The statement came during the third quarter results meeting after HBO and CBS announced they will be effectively cutting out the satellite TV middle-men.
Earlier this month, HBO, said it will offer consumers to option of subscribing to an exclusive streaming site - to open up its programming, including Boardwalk Empire and Game of Thrones, to viewers incapable of paying for satellite TV packages.
By making its content less expensive, HBO hoped more people would pay for access, especially after the season four finale of Game of Thrones was the most pirated TV episode ever.
Several days later. CBS also announced a new streaming service, although its offering is arguably less attractive than HBO’s.
In response to the move, Stephen Burke, executive vice president of Comcast, said, according to Seeking Alpha: “Regarding HBO and CBS selling directly I was surprised, I was surprised by both of them for different reasons.
“CBS has been such a defender of retransmission consent in the traditional ecosystem and been so successful in the broadcast business. HBO surprised me because I think it is going to be such a challenge for them to not cannibalise what is already a really good business.”
Burke added: “We are still early on in the transition to internet television that I think we are going to see a lot of surprising things. I don’t think distributing directly to consumers be the internet is an easy thing to do and I think it’s a voyage that if you are successful like Netflix can be a way to create a lot of value but it’s not an easy thing to do.”
Comcast already takes a share of programming revenue from Hulu, Netflix and Amazon as the firm owns NBC.
Notably, despite being the world's most successful content streaming site, Netflix earlier this month issued a profits warning after performing poorer than expected in the third quarter.
Content created with:
Comcast Advertising is the advertising division of Comcast Cable. As a global leader in media, technology and advertising, Comcast Advertising fosters powerful connections...Find out more
HBOFind out more
CBSFind out more


text:
Social networking gaming company Zynga has raised $15.18 million as an extension to their second round of funding. The company has 196 million users on Facebook playing their games. Zynga previously raised $40 million in venture capital from Kleiner Perkins, Avalon Ventures, Foundry Group, Institutional Venture Partners, and Union Square Ventures.
Zynga’s most recent game FarmVille is the most played game on Facebook as of today. Zynga is believed to be making $100 million in revenues this year. However the company had offers within the games that were often scams as admitted by Zynga CEO Mark Pincus.
For example, users could get more poker chips if they downloaded the Zwinky toolbar. “We did anything possible just to just get revenues so that we could grow and be a real business?So control your destiny. So that was a big lesson, controlling your business. So by the time we raised money we were profitable,” stated Pincus.


text:
Alita: Battle Angel was James Cameron’s dream project which was finally made after so many years. While the first movie did decent business, there are so many reason fans want Alita: Battle Angel 2.
The part of the Japanese anime manga movie is been in news lately, and now it looks like Alita: Battle Angel 2 is almost confirmed. Here are the new updates from the makers along with a digital release date for first Alita: Battle Angel movie.
James Cameron confirms Sequel
Alita: Battle Angel has ended his theatrical run while collecting more than $400 million worldwide. While the movie could have performed better if it had better marketing, it generated enough for a sequel.
Producer James Cameron and director Robert Rodriguez have already shared details about the Alita: Battle Angel 2 script. The sequel will pick up from where the first movie left and explore more of Zalem and feature new characters.
Sequel Release date
We might not have a fixed release date for Alita: Battle Angel 2 because of James Cameron and Avatar sequel delay. Also, the Disney Fox merger can move the schedule up or down based on how the new team handles it. All we know for sure is that Alita: Battle Angel will get many more sequels. Alita: Battle Angel can release around the year 2022 as per some rumors
Digital release date
Among the Alita: Battle Angel sequel reports, there is one good news for those who haven’t watched the first movie. The movie is finally coming out on digital media for home releases. As per the sources, Alita Battle Angel will be released on Blu-Ray and DVD soon.
The digital release date for the first film is set on July 9, followed by a physical copy release date of July 23 for Blu-Ray, DVD and 4K UHD. Alita: Battle Angel will be available for purchase on iTunes and Amazon Prime Video in the US region and the rest of the world.


text:
LiDAR Maker Innoviz Raises $132 Million
Earlier this month, Calcalist reported that the company is raising a new round of approximately $100 million
For daily updates, subscribe to our newsletter by clicking here.
Earlier this month, Calcalist reported that the company is raising a new round of around $100 million, citing one person familiar with the matter.
Founded in 2016, Innoviz develops and markets low-cost, small-size LiDAR systems designed to enable the mass commercialization of autonomous vehicles. The company has several partnerships with automakers for its systems, including with BMW for its autonomous vehicles and with Samsung’s connected car and audio technology subsidiary Harman International Industries Inc.
The funding will go towards commercialization of Innoviz's products to address growing demand from the automotive vehicle industry. It will enable the company to reach the scale required by tire 1 suppliers and automakers, according to a statement by CEO and co-founder Omer Keilaf. Innoviz also recently expanded its presence in Germany, North America, Japan, and China.


text:
Lightening Strikes Fourth Winner at BlueBirds Daily Derby Record Prize Won at Lucky Lotto Retailer
SACRAMENTO, October 7, 2002 -- Lottery officials announced that Emery Worlwide employee, Bill Copeland won more than $1 Million playing the Lottery's Daily Derby game. Copeland who was on his way to work stopped to pick-up tickets at lucky retailer Bluebird Liquors for the SuperLotto Plus jackpot. "I noticed the Daily Derby prize had gone over a million and so I bought a couple bucks worth." Copeland has been playing Daily Derby for about 3 months. Copeland said," You can't win if you don't play. I like going to the lucky retailers but I never imagined I'd win like this." When asked what his plans are for the prize of $1,007,712 paid out in a lump sum, he said he wants to paint the house, buy a motor home and give his kids money for college. "This is was a great return for my total investment of about $75."
Bluebird Liquors is a top seller ranking second in the state amongst more than 18,000 retailers and is one of the luckiest retailers having sold four prizes of over $1 million. This retailer previously sold three jackpot tickets: in 1988 for $1.2 million, in 1991 for $13 million and in 1996 for $16 million. Now Bluebird Liquors has sold the largest Daily Derby prize in the game's history for over $1 million. The retailer ranks as the third luckiest lottery retailer in California and ranks second in California Lottery sales with over $5.1 million during the 2001-2002 fiscal year. The Lottery has more than 18,000 retailers in its network.
Daily Derby is played at all retailers including SuperLotto Plus can be played at more than 18,000 retail business establishments around the state. The SuperLotto Plus draw takes place each Wednesday and Saturday night at 7:58 p.m. Players may purchase tickets until 7:45 p.m. on the night of the draw.
- # # # -


text:
There’s no shortage of early Black Friday deals for tech enthusiasts from retailers like Amazon or Best Buy, as well as device manufacturers including Samsung and Microsoft, but if you’re interested in something other than discounted hardware, you may want to visit Spotify’s official website.
Given the extremely heated competition between the dozens of music streaming apps out there, it’s certainly not unusual to see one of them offer an extended free trial or ridiculously affordable initial subscription.
Spotify however remains the clear leader of the global market, and so its discounts and promos are nowhere near as frequent as Google or Amazon’s. They’re also typically not as compelling, but first-time Spotify Premium users signing up by December 31, 2017 can get three months of unlimited, unrestricted access to 30 million songs for just $0.99.
That’s 99 cents in total, not $0.99 a month, though even the latter would have been a killer bargain, seeing as how a Spotify Premium account is normally charged $9.99 every 30 days.
To qualify for the irresistible holiday deal, you’ll need to use a credit card that’s never been linked to a Spotify membership before, and an email address on which you haven’t claimed a 30-day trial yet.
Ironically, existing subscribers are offered no holiday perk whatsoever, even though former users that deactivated their accounts before October 21 can receive three months of Spotify Premium access at a special price of their own. Namely, $9.99 instead of $29.97.


text:
India introduces licensing provision
Kathmandu, February 8
The Indian government has allowed its traders to import refined palm oil from Nepal. However, they must first acquire an import licence.
This implies that the restriction on import of palm oil from Nepal imposed by the Indian government a month ago has been lifted as Indian traders are allowed to import the commodity from Nepal after they acquire necessary licence from Indian authorities.
Baikuntha Aryal, secretary at the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies, informed The Himalayan Times about the Indian government introducing the licensing provision for its traders to import refined palm oil from Nepal. “Those Indian traders or trading firms that acquire import licence for the good from the authorities will coordinate with Nepali palm oil traders or businesses and resume the trade,” he said.
On January 8, India’s Directorate General of Foreign Trade had issued a notification stating a complete restriction on import of refined bleached deodorised palm oil and refined bleached deodorised palmolein. The restriction was aimed at taming Malaysia, but also affected Nepal, which had exported refined palm oil worth billions, making it the country’s largest export item.
The licensing provision in import of refined palm oil has been introduced to allow shipments of the product from countries, including Nepal and Indonesia, following the government’s decision to place the commodity in the restricted import list.
However, licensing norms introduced by India for palm oil import from Nepal is yet unknown.
Meanwhile, the export of refined palm oil to India is yet to be resumed.
Suman Dahal, director general at Department of Customs, said that refined palm oil from Nepal has not been cleared from different customs offices. “I too heard about the resumption of the palm oil trade with India. However, we are yet to receive any official notification from Indian authorities in this regard,” he said.
Nepali traders import crude palm oil from Malaysia and Indonesia, process and package it here, before sending it to India.
Nepal’s exports of palm oil to India had started raising eyebrows since end of last fiscal year when it became the top export item for the first time. Nepal had exported palm oil worth Rs 10.3 billion in the last fiscal from ‘zero’ export of the commodity a year before that. This jump took many by surprise because Nepal does not produce palm oil on its own.
Traders were lured towards this business as India had imposed a duty of 40 per cent on imports of palm oil from Malaysia and Indonesia, two largest producers of palm oil in the world. Nepal’s palm oil, on the other hand, was subject to a duty of just six per cent in India.


text:
Huawei has proven to be the real time technology champion in the last year with record shipment of smartContinue Reading ...
Huawei revealed its all new, magnificently best flagship smart phones, Huawei Mate 8, at an auspiciousContinue Reading ...
Recently technology markets echoed with the rumors that Huawei is going to enter into the PC market.Continue Reading ...
The leading global technology giant, Huawei, has directly responded to the Samsung’s trembling, so-calledContinue Reading ...
The global technology giant Huawei has always been endorsed by the customer here in Pakistan with affirmativeContinue Reading ...
Recently, in a glamorous event in Dubai, Huawei has launched its all new, best flagship smart phone MateContinue Reading ...
Huawei is the future champ of the technology world that is manufacturing high quality product in a wideContinue Reading ...
The leading global technology giant, Huawei, has closed 2015 as a remarkable year indeed. In the lastContinue Reading ...
Huawei, a global technology master, is advancing with an accelerated pace for the incorporation of bestContinue Reading ...
Huawei Honor 5X is next in the Honor series that Global Technology giant is going to introduce in PakistaniContinue Reading ...
Huawei brings another exciting twist to the pre-booking of its all new flagship smart phone Huawei MateContinue Reading ...
Huawei Mate 8 is a flagship smart phone device recently announced to be launched in Pakistan on 31stContinue Reading ...
Finally, the global technology master, Huawei has revealed the launch schedule of it two high technologyContinue Reading ...
Get Updates in your Email
- Rangers Released The Video to Killing PIA Worker
- Zong Launches First and Fastest 4G Internet Only SIM
- Leaked Video of Sharmila Farooqui Viral on Social Media
- Hamid Mir Did Not Allow Geo to Play the Video of Khawaja Asif
- Most Stupid Answer By Pervaiz Rasheed About General Raheel’s Question
- What Happened About Kanwal Nauman Fake News
- Kashif Abbasi Bashes Waqas Akram on Continuous Lying
- People Bashing Lahore Orange Train Project and Government Policies
- I will Quite Politics If…..Said Shahbaz Sharif
- Why Nawaz Sharif is Too Much Interested in Buying PIA?
Business— February 3, 2016
Pak-Qatar Family Takaful Ltd (PQFTL) has won the award for being the ‘Best Takaful Company in Pakistan’
Education— January 29, 2016
ACCA (Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) in collaboration with Excellence Delivered (ExD)
Entertainment— February 3, 2016
The Karachi Chapter of Entrepreneurs’ Organization (EO), a global, peer-to-peer network, recently hosted
Health— February 2, 2016
The annual Fitness Fiesta fundraiser was held at Lakeside, Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and
Life Style— February 3, 2016
Moin Khan, on his way to Karachi under the banner of “My Huawei My Pakistan” explored the city of


text:
Cycling is a fantastic way to get active, a green way to travel and loads of fun. That’s why we want to get more people pedalling and we are delighted to be in position to support Northern Ireland’s first public bike share scheme with the introduction of
We have a lot of experience supporting public cycle schemes through our investment in dublinbikes which saw the scheme double the number of docking stations and treble the number of bikes. We are also very proud of our role in helping to bring brand new schemes to the cities of Galway, Limerick and Cork.
Officially launching on 27th April 2015,
Did you know? Cycle rides under 30 minutes will be free of charge!
We want to encourage everyone to get moving; from commuters to students, shoppers to tourists. With journeys under 30 minutes costing absolutely nothing, there’s no excuse to not pick up a bike for those easy trips across town.
Announcing the sponsorship deal, Belfast Lord Mayor Nichola Mallon said: “We are very excited about launching the
"Thanks to the sponsorship, we will be able to provide this fantastic new addition to Belfast’s infrastructure at a very low cost to users. By keeping down the price of both the annual membership and the hire charges, we are hoping people in Belfast will embrace the benefits of cycling around the city to go about their day to day business. Whether it’s a quick dash to a meeting, lunch with friends or a shopping trip across town, these bikes will be a superb addition to the city's transport links and a further enhancement to its tourism offering.”
Get on your bike
Find out more about
- How the Coca-Cola Thank You Fund is helping make a big impact with young people in County Donegal
- Innovation in Japan: the exception becomes the rule
Rwanda gets new EKOCENTER site from
Coca-Colato help bring basic necessities to local communities
- The story of Maracanã Stadium and other Rio 2016 Olympic venues
Muhtar Kent reflects on his
Coca-Colajourney and legacy as company’s 15th chief executive


text:
Innogy surges as suitors close in
SHARES in Innogy, the company behind the npower household energy brand, soared to a record high as potential bidders for the business broke cover.
As it emerged that giant German multi-utility RWE, owner of Thames Water, and Scottish Power have courted Innogy in recent weeks, shares in the firm leapt 39 3/4p to 250p. That values its equity at £2.8bn and puts a tag of some £5.2bn on the group, including debt.
Innogy was spun out of the National Power generating business at 165p a share 18 months ago and has quickly become the country's biggest domestic electricity supplier with five million customers after the acquisition of the retail businesses of Yorkshire Electricity and Northern Electric. It is also Britain's second biggest domestic gas supplier, with 1.8m customers, behind British Gas group Centrica.
Scottish Power admitted it had previously been in 'preliminary' takeover discussions but added: 'Scottish Power has told Innogy it does not want to pursue conversations relating to a combination at the present time.'
The market may soon be awash with power assets as AEP of America has put £1.5bn-rated Seeboard up for sale. Traders also pointed to Scottish & Southern Energy, with around five million retail power customers, as another likely takeover target. RWE's great German rival E.On is soon to close its £10bn takeover of Powergen.
Most watched Money videos
- Mercedes-Benz shows how hands-free Drive Pilot system works
- Volkswagen reveal the first electric SUV ID 3 and 4 range
- Maserati's back! Italian brand releases first supercar for 15 years
- Porsche has given the iconic Panamera a mid-life refresh
- Rolls-Royce release new £250,000 limo called Ghost
- New £250,000 Ghost 'most technically advanced' Rolls-Royce ever
- VW launches clever new 'Caddy California' compact campervan
- Morrisons CEO reveals opportunities given to those out of work
- Blue Whale manager: Facebook is good value but not Tesla
- The Shelby SuperCar Tuatara is the world's fastest road car
- F1 star Lewis Hamilton appears in Mercedes S-Class launch video
- Renault reinvent The Lollipop Man to test for air pollution


text:
For the past several years, Retail Dive has closed out one year and welcomed the next through an interview with Doug Stephens, a consultant to many retailers with a decidedly futuristic outlook. Last year, the pandemic had scrambled many retail givens, and therefore many previous predictions for the industry. The pandemic isn't over, and new strains are threatening the recovery that many retailers experienced this year. Still, 2021 was a year of recovery, with clear signs that physical locations remain an important way to engage with customers.
But not just any stores. In this podcast, I sit down with Stephens as he goes over not only the elements of a successful store, but also the all-encompassing mindset that retailers must have in order to make a store worth running. Thanks for listening.
- How money shapes retail
- How Nike execs think through its digital ecosystem
- Retail has more — but slower — growth ahead in 2022: Moody's
Editor's note: This show was produced and edited by Caroline Jansen. The Backroom's co-host Ben Unglesbee isn't featured in this episode. But don't worry, you can catch both Ben and Daphne when The Backroom returns in 2022.


text:
MediaTek has launched its latest 7nm based 5G enabled Dimensity 700 chipset at its Executive Virtual Summit 2020 event. According to the company, this chipset is aimed at mass-market smartphones. Apart from this, the company launched its MT8195 and MT8192 chipsets for Chromebooks. It also teased that it will soon launch new high-end 5G enabled chipsets based on the 6nm process technology with ARM Cortex-A78 cores. MediaTek had earlier launched its Dimensity 720 chipset for mid-range 5G phones.
MediaTek Dimensity 700
The MediaTek Dimensity 700 chipset is quite similar to the Dimensity 720. It includes two ARM Cortex-A76 cores clocked at 2.2GHz, paired with six Cortex-A55 cores clocked at 2.0GHz. The chipset can support up to 12GB of LPDDR4x RAM at a frequency of 2,133MHz, and UFS 2.2 two-lane storage with up to 1Gbps of transfer speeds.
The processor comes with an integrated Mali-G57 MC2 GPU, which is a cost-efficient model, which helps support full HD+ display with up to 90Hz refresh rate. It can support up to 64MP primary camera sensors, and comes with artificial intelligence (AI) features like AI bokeh, AI colours and other beauty features.
It comes with support for Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, Baidu DuerOS and more. Voice over New Radio (VoNR) services are also enabled.
The chipset supports dual-5G SIM support with speeds of up to 2.77Gbps down. For power efficiency, the chip comes with MediaTek 5G UltraSave, which manages the operating mode of the 5G modem to enhance battery life.
MediaTek has announced that it will be rolling out the Dimensity 700 chipset in the first quarter of 2021 for phones under $250 (approximately Rs 18,000).
MediaTek MT8192, MT8195
MediaTek MT8192, MT8195 are chipsets aimed at Chromebooks. Laptops featuring the MT8192 will debut in the second quarter of 2021, whereas, laptops with the MT8195 chipset will be made available at a later date.
The MediaTek MT8192 is based on the 7nm process technology targetted at mainstream Chromebooks and the MT8195 is based in the 6nm process targetted at high-end Chromebooks. The MediaTek MT8192 chipset comes with an octa-core CPU paired with a five-core ARM Mali-G57 GPU. Its built-in APU 2.0 will deliver up to 2.4 tera operations per second. Whereas, the MediaTek MT8195 chipset is powered by an octa core processor paired with MediaTek’s APU 3.0 that is capable of delivering up to 4 tera operations per second.
The chipsets support up to wide quad high definition (WQHD) displays with standard 60Hz refresh rate or full-HD+ displays with up to 120Hz refresh rate. Both of them come with a dedicated audio digital signal processor (DSP), HDR image signal processor and a hardware depth engine.
Express Tech is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel (@expresstechie) and stay updated with the latest tech news.
📣 The Indian Express is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel (@indianexpress) and stay updated with the latest headlines


text:
Aldi plan wins appeal
» ALDI has won the right to build a second supermarket in Cheltenham.
In the past 14 months it has had two planning applications to create a store on land off Grovefield Way in The Reddings rejected by the borough council.
But a developer behind plans to build the shop, offices and a children’s nursery, appealed against the refusal and the Planning Inspectorate has granted planning permission.
See a more detailed story about this at gloucestershirelive.co.uk/news/.


text:
Traders jack up veggie prices under pretext of TiharPrices expected to stabilise as seasonal vegetables arrive in larger volumes
Traders have hiked prices of vegetables by up to 107 percent within a week citing increased demand during the Tihar festival.
Consumers, who have been overcharged for vegetables since the country announced a lockdown to contain Covid-19 in March, are also bearing the brunt of below-par production of vegetables in the country due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
“Demand for vegetables such as cauliflower picks up during Tihar due to which prices go up,” said Binaya Shrestha, deputy director at Kalimati Fruits and Vegetable Market Development Board. “Traders cash in on the opportunity to hike prices similar to the way they do with other essential food items that are in high demand.”
Wholesale prices of tomato (small and tunnel), cauliflower (local), eggplant (long), bottle gourd, pointed gourd, smooth gourd, okra and green leafy vegetables have soared by up to 107 percent within a week. According to the Kalimati Fruits and Vegetable Market Development Board, cauliflower, which was being sold at Rs70 per kg, now costs Rs145.
Shrestha said that vegetable production has been hit by the Covid-19 pandemic and the lockdown imposed to control its spread. “Kalimati vegetable market was receiving around 800 tonnes of vegetables everyday this time last year. But these days we are receiving only 500 tonnes,” he said.
With the end of the festival season, traders expect prices to gradually stabilise with the arrival of seasonal vegetables in the market. Resham Tamang, administrator at Balkhu Agriculture Vegetable Market, said he expects prices to decline within a few days as seasonal vegetables such as mustard and spinach leaves have started arriving in the market.
The price of okra has reached Rs95 per kg from Rs65 last week. Similarly, the prices of green leafy vegetables have crossed Rs100 per kg. That of broadleaf mustard has jumped from Rs18 per kg to Rs48. Similarly, spinach leaves now cost Rs140 per kg compared to Rs87 last week.
The wholesale price of pointed gourd (local) has been hiked to Rs115 per kg from Rs65 last week. Potatoes (red) are priced at Rs73 per kg while Indian potatoes (red) and potatoes (white) are being sold at Rs65 and Rs63 per kg respectively.
Meanwhile, the price of Indian onions has slightly declined due to competition from Chinese imports. Indian onions, which have had limited presence in the Nepali market after the southern neighbour banned its exports, now cost Rs108 per kg compared to Rs120 last week. The price of Chinese onions has also fallen from Rs103 per kg to Rs63.
According to the Nepal Rastra Bank, the country imported vegetables worth Rs2.87 billion in the first two months of the current fiscal year, an increment by 6.2 percent compared to the last fiscal year when veggies worth Rs2.71 billion were imported.


text:
Scathing editorial in today’s WSJ: The Fed’s Blunder
Eight months into the Fed’s most recent rate-cutting spree, the evidence is overwhelming that it has been a major policy mistake. Aggressive rate cutting – taking the fed funds rate to 2.25% from 5.25% last September – has had little effect on the banking crisis it was supposed to ease.
Meanwhile, the Fed’s decision to open the general monetary spigots has inspired a global commodity boom unlike any since the 1970s. Oil has climbed to nearly $119 a barrel today from $70 in late August, a 70% increase. Farm and other commodities have seen a similar surge, with corresponding increases in food prices leading to shortages and riots in Egypt and other places, and to rice hoarding even in Southern California.
The popular media explanation is that this price surge is a result of rising global demand, greedy speculators and human profligacy. All of a sudden, without warning, the world is said to be running out of food. After 30 years in intellectual hibernation, Thomas Malthus and the Age of Scarcity are back in style.
As for food prices, it’s true that government policies supporting biofuels have created new demand for corn and other grains. This and price controls in some countries have contributed to the food panic. But the price surge has been so rapid and so broad across nearly all commodities that it can’t merely be a function of supply glitches or new demand for specific grains.
I agree with almost everything here except the editors’ certainty that rising prices are caused by monetary policy alone. As with all inflationary periods, the current one is caused by some combination of two factors: rising demand and monetary policy.


text:
In a story that’s worthy of the ‘BREAKING’ tag, Massachusetts based firearms manufacturer Smith & Wesson has purchased Idaho Silencer manufacturer GEMTECH. With details slim at the moment, there are obviously a lot of unanswered questions. However, the new GEMTECH headquarters building in Meridian, Idaho is still on schedule as well as all current product development and manufacturing capabilities.
Rumors of the sale had been floating for a few weeks, but with the announcement now official, I look forward to additional information as it becomes available. GEMTECH has been a leader in the silencer industry for decades – a trend I’d personally like to see continue for years to come.
The Official Statement from Ron Martinez, CEO of GEMTECH:
Gemtech, the World’s Leader in Silencers, now has the backing of the most powerful company in the firearms industry: Smith & Wesson. Combined with the outstanding companies of American Outdoor Brands Corporation, this strengthens the decades old team that is Gemtech.
Gemini Technologies, known as Gemtech, began as a super group of already leading silencer designers with roots in the silencer business going back to 1976. With decades of experience, innovation, quality, honest business ethics and a customer first attitude, Gemtech has grown to the world’s leading silencer company.
The accomplishments of Smith & Wesson are so numerous that it is impossible to understand the history of modern handguns without first understanding the history of Smith & Wesson. Smith & Wesson was an industry leader in 1852 when it was first founded and continues to lead the world today with innovations into the 21st century.


text:
Online Eye Exam Site Makes Waves In Eye Care Industry
All sorts of health information is now a few taps away on your smartphone, from how many steps you take — to how well you sleep at night. But what if you could use your phone and a computer to test your vision? A company is doing just that — and eye care professionals are upset. Some states have even banned it.
A Chicago-based company called Opternative offers the test. The site asks some questions about your eyes and overall health; it also wants to know your shoe size to make sure you're the right distance from your computer monitor. You keep your smartphone in your hand and use the Web browser to answer questions about what you see on the computer screen.
Like a traditional eye test, there are shapes, lines and letters. It takes about 30 minutes.
"We're trying to identify how bad your vision is, so we're kind of testing your vision to failure, is the way I would describe it," says Aaron Dallek, CEO of Opternative.
Dallek co-founded the company with an optometrist, who was searching for ways to offer eye exams online.
"Me being a lifetime glasses and contact wearer, I was like 'Where do we start?' So, that was about 3 1/2 years ago, and we've been working on it ever since," Dallek says.
He says 65,000 patients have signed up for the test. It's free but costs $40 to have a doctor in the person's home state review the online results and email a prescription for glasses or contacts.
Eye care professionals, like Atlanta optometrist Minty Nguyen, have concerns. She took the test and likes that it asks patients health questions. But she says there's no substitute for going to an eye doctor.
"And again, it's not for me to make any more money as an optometrist. It just kind of encourages patients to neglect the health portion of their exam, which is key," she says. "You don't want to go blind. It's one of your most important senses."
Eye health exams look for problems like glaucoma and cataracts.
Opternative is available in at least 34 states. But the company is under scrutiny. This year, Indiana outlawed the test and Michigan sent the company a cease-and-desist order.
Earlier this month, Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal signed a law to ban the test here. The sponsor, state Rep. Earl Ehrhart, ridiculed Opternative while speaking to a House committee.
"They're required to use their computer and measure a certain distance away from their computer using their shoe. That's why the company claims for the exam to be accurate. That's fairly difficult to believe," he said. "I think our trained optometric doctors under their current protocols and our ophthalmologists go a little bit further than the shoe standard."
Dallek says the company was never meant to replace a full eye exam. But he says state lawmakers shouldn't decide who gets to take medical tests.
"We recommend patients get a comprehensive eye health exam every two years, and for some people maybe they choose to get it less often, but that's their choice. That's part of the free market, for patients to be able to kind of choose what's best for them," he says.
The American Academy of Ophthalmology says the test may be suitable for 18- to 39-year-olds who just want to update their prescription, but only as a complement to regular visits with an eye doctor.
The American Optometric Association has asked the Food and Drug Administration to pull Opternative off the market.
Copyright 2016 Georgia Public Broadcasting


text:
- Telecommunications Giant Vodafone Leaves the Libra Association
- Group of Central Banks Assesses Developing Central Bank Digital Currencies
- South Korea Might Impose 20 Percent Tax on Cryptocurrency Profits
- Report: Terrorists Increasingly Use Crypto to Raise Funds Anonymously
- Canadian Securities Administrators Subject Crypto Exchanges to Securities Laws
Cryptocurrencies and big banks have always been dubbed as rivals. Cryptocurrencies are expected to take the reigns from banks when it comes to asset holdings and transaction processing. However, the two entities might not have to be the polar opposites of each other. Many major banks have hinted at investing in the future of cryptocurrencies and blockchain. This week, a major US bank, JPMorgan, has announced the launch of its own cryptocurrency.
Nearly two years ago, JPMorgan Chase chief Jamie Dimon famously bashed Bitcoin and called it a fraud only to be launching their own alternative to the supposedly infamous cryptocurrency. The new tokens by the bank are called JPM Coin, and the tokens are currently being tested to instantly settle transactions on a small portion of payments among clients of the bank’s wholesale payment business.
“The JPM Coin isn’t money per se. It is a digital coin representing United States Dollars held in designated accounts at JPMorgan Chase … When one client sends money to another over the blockchain, JPM Coins are transferred and instantaneously redeemed for the equivalents amount of U.S. dollars, reducing the typical settlement time.”
The company said in a press release that the JPM Coin will have a fixed value redeemable for one U.S. dollar. JPMorgan also stated that it operates with the premise that the decentralized nature of crypto technology can assist in reducing costs and offer more transparency.
The banking giant also asserted that the new digital coins will be first tailored for big ‘institutional clients’ which regularly conduct business-to-business transactions and not private individuals; yet, the ensuing financial advantages would ultimately trickle down to the institutional clients’ own clients. Only over the past several months, nearly 160 international banks jumped on a new blockchain venture with JPMorgan in order to create a better, more seamless global transactions.
JPMorgan believes that because of their position as the banking option to 80 percent of the fortune 500 companies, JPM Coin has a great chance of getting adopted even if other competitors arise with their own cryptocurrencies in the coming months.
It is important to note here that soon after the announcement by JP Morgan, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse gave a statement on Twitter saying, “As predicted, banks are changing their tune on crypto. But this JPM project misses the point — introducing a closed network today is like launching AOL after Netscape’s IPO. 2 years later, and bank coins still aren’t the answer.” Mr. Garlinghouse has been a long critic of bank-backed cryptocurrencies and tokens. JPMorgan has yet to respond to his statement.


text:
QS/1 Integrates with Google’s Pointy
DME pharmacies and community pharmacies using QS/1 Pharmacy Management can now reach more local shoppers by showing them their inventory online thanks to the integration.
Independent pharmacy network RedSail Technologies, which owns QS/1, has launched a new integration with Pointy from Google and QS/1 Pharmacy Management System.
Pointy helps local pharmacies reach more customers by showing them what their store sells. With the new integration, DME pharmacies and community pharmacies using QS/1 Pharmacy Management System can download Pointy to their point-of-sale (POS) system. Once they scan their products, they are uploaded to an online catalog for their store and are then displayed on their Business Profile on Google. Their products also have a better chance of showing up in relevant product-related searches on Google.
Pointy is established in 22,000 locations, and QS/1 is one of their partners offering this service in the pharmacy industry. QS/1 customers can now take what their pharmacy offers a step further by expanding their online presence, tapping into a different market space, and appealing to a more mobile population.
“With seamless integration to QS/1’s POS, this process is very simple and will not only get the pharmacy’s items online, but the Retailer Dashboard can show which items are most popular, paid vs. organic performance, or the searches shoppers initiate to find the pharmacy,” said Justin Buckland, product manager for ancillary products at RedSail Technologies.
Other benefits include an online product catalog, image-based ads, product search results across Google surfaces, and Customer Support and Success Teams provided by Pointy.
“Facing COVID-19 and hoping to limit unnecessary trips, shoppers often check online to see if the product they need is in stock before leaving their house,” Buckland added “That’s where Pointy and QS/1 together can make a difference in supporting the health of communities.”
This new integration with Pointy is available to QS/1 customers using the POS software at no additional cost with the release of Service Pack 19.1.34.


text:
Another cannabis store has popped up in downtown Saskatoon, with a heavy focus on engaging customer curiosity about the plant to help expand their knowledge and understanding.
With 18 locations across the country already, Tweed’s new shop in Saskatoon is far from the first in the province — having already opened stores in Meadow Lake, Melville, Humboldt and Regina with another opening today in Fort Qu’Appelle.
tap here to see other videos from our team.
“(It’s exciting) being a part of this growth and being able to provide that education all for the safe cannabis variety and choices for our guests,” said Margo Mulitsa, Tweed’s district sales manager for Saskatchewan and Alberta.
And with five years in the cannabis industry, Tweed has a lot of experience to draw on. Beginning their journey in the medicinal cannabis industry at what was once a Hershey’s Chocolate factory near Ottawa, Tweed is also expanding their production capabilities into Saskatchewan with another growing facility near Yorkton.


text:
Cyber criminals aren’t letting up. Each year, high-profile data breaches dominate the headlines, and 2018 has been no different. Despite the introduction of the GDPR in May, major security breaches are still rife, as cyber criminals continue to find new and innovative ways to breach company defences, and big businesses are left reeling from the fall out.
Personal information is being traded on the web for serious money, making the economics of supply and demand straightforward, and the theft of data increasingly commonplace. According to McAfee, over 780,000 records were lost daily in 2017 and judging by the serious breaches we’ve seen in 2018, it doesn’t look like things have slowed down since then.
So while cyber-crime might not be the jolliest subject for December, as you start thinking about plans for the new year, it’s a timely reminder to do as much as possible to secure your own data and, most importantly, your customers’.
Here’s a rundown of some of the biggest and most significant breaches we’ve seen this year:
Probably the biggest incident of 2018, affecting as many as 500 million guests, this enormous breach actually dates back to 2014, when hackers were first able to access Marriott’s network via the recently acquired Starwood Hotels group. However, it wasn’t until September 2018 that the hotel chain became aware of the issue, by which time hackers had run off with a mountain of customer data, including names, addresses, passport numbers and check-in and check-out information. It hasn’t been confirmed whether the hackers were able to access credit card details, but the hotel group hasn’t ruled it out. And the fallout is so serious that Marriott is already facing numerous lawsuits in the US and has agreed to pay for new passports for many of those who’ve had their data compromised.
British Airways faced a sophisticated attack earlier this year, which compromised the personal and financial data of over 380,000 transactions. Unlike many data breaches, which are plugged as soon as they’re discovered, the British Airways website and apps were insecure for over 2 weeks, making this one of the highest-profile and most serious attacks of the year. At present, the Information Commissioner's Office is investigating, and British Airways could face a fine of up to £500 million under the GDPR regulations, which stipulates fines up to 4% of turnover.
Facebook’s reputational issues continued throughout 2018, not least when a loophole in its developer APIs was used to compromise the security of around 30 million users, revealing information including name, relationship status, religion, birthdate, workplaces, search activity, and recent location check-in. Hackers initially gained access to a series of seed accounts, which were then used to attack the accounts of friends, then friends of friends, and so on down the line, eventually amassing a group of 400,000 compromised accounts. The breach also sparked broader concerns for accounts on Facebook-owned WhatsApp and Instagram, although Facebook later said these services hadn’t been affected.
A fundamental component of the GDPR is that businesses disclose any breaches within 72 hours, something which Google categorically failed to do when it discovered a vulnerability in an API for Google+, compromising the data of nearly half a million users. The bug was very similar to that which caused so much trouble for Facebook in the Cambridge Analytica scandal, giving third-party app developers access to data not just of those who had given their permission, but also their friends. Since the problem occurred before GDPR came into effect, Google will likely be spared the higher fine, but may well face lawsuits and public backlash for the attempted coverup. And it’s an important lesson to all businesses that these things always come out in the end.
And finally, just last week, everybody’s favourite Q&A site was also hit by hackers, who managed to access the details of around 100 million users, including names, email addresses, encrypted passwords and data imported from linked networks. To their credit, Quora responded quickly and transparently to the incident, with chief executive Adam D’Angelo publishing a blog explaining the situation and apologising to users. Quora has also said that it has retained a digital forensics team to find out more about what happened and how to avoid similar issues in the future.
So yet again, it’s the brands you expect to be best at keeping the hackers at bay that end up the falling victim, showing that nobody can rest on their laurels when it comes to cyber security. It’s also a reminder that, while you can’t always stop a breach, you can control how you respond once it’s discovered. And that can make all the difference, to your reputation, potential fines, and overall financial damage that you’ll suffer as a result.
For more cyber security advice, check out our Ultimate Guide to Cyber Security. Drop us a line at firstname.lastname@example.org or give us a call on 0333 772 0759 to discuss how cyber liability cover can help.
We've made buying insurance simple. Get started.
- 15 October 20201 minute read
Cyber attacks don’t just affect large companies. Cyber security is becoming an increasing concern for individuals and small companies. Here’s how to stay safe.
- 02 October 20201 minute read
What soft skills do we need for the future of work? With fears of automation taking over jobs, and growing competition for roles, here are the 12 soft skills you need to stay ahead.


text:
Report highlights coffee’s potential role in reducing cognitive decline
Moderate coffee consumption (3-5 cups per day) may protect against age-related cognitive decline and related neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, according to a new report from the Institute for Scientific Information on Coffee (ISIC).
This research supports mounting evidence suggesting that “long-term coffee intake could be a viable strategy for reducing the risk of Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and other diseases associated with aging.”
Key highlights about coffee from the report include:
- Research published in 2016 suggests that moderate coffee consumption can reduce the risk of developing Alzheimer’s by up to 27%. Research has suggested that it is regular, long-term coffee drinking that is key to helping to reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s Disease.
- The association between coffee consumption and cognitive decline is illustrated by a ‘U-shaped’ pattern in recent meta-analyses, with the greatest protection seen at an intake of approximately 3-5 cups of coffee per day.
- Although the precise mechanisms of action behind the suggested association between coffee and age-related cognitive decline are unknown, caffeine is likely to be involved. There are many other compounds in coffee, such as antioxidants and anti-inflammatory agents, which may also play a role. Caffeic acid, for example, is a polyphenol (antioxidant) found in coffee, and research suggests that these may be associated with improved cognitive function.
Read ISIC’s statement on the latest findings, or see the full report.
Visit Coffee & Me for more information on caffeine, coffee, and cognitive health.


text:
“Cash for Clunkers” shows impressive results – in Germany
An idea that was rejected in the U.S. is working in Europe
DealersEdge Daily Headlines
In the U.S., some economists and politicians have their doubts about whether a so-called “cash for clunkers” program will work. But in Germany, the idea is a roaring success, reports the Wall Street Journal.
Germany’s $3,200 subsidy for people who scrap an old car and buy a new one has triggered a stampede to dealerships and a run on small cars. It’s also inspiring retailers of other products, from electronics to false teeth, to copy the idea.
The auto industry’s importance to Germany — where the government estimates that around one in seven jobs depends directly or indirectly on autos — led the government to introduce the old-for-new car subsidy. It took effect Jan. 27.
Since then, the program has sparked a car-buying craze in a nation notoriously reluctant to consume. Sabine Mumm, a librarian, decided last month to buy her first new car in more than a decade. It took several weeks before she found a dealer with any in stock.
“All the available cars were gone, especially the small cars,” she says. Dealerships were so full of customers, she says, “it was really hard even to get a dealer’s attention.”
To get the government check, people must scrap an existing car that’s at least nine years old and buy a new car that meets the latest emissions standards. So far, 134,000 people have applied the so-called scrap bonus, a number rising by 7,000 a day.
Other European countries, including France, Italy and Spain, have introduced “scrap bonuses” and in some cases, subsidized loans for buying cars. The trend is spreading to Eastern Europe.
“It’s a real sales boom,” says Ceyhun Tan, a Volkswagen dealer in Berlin. He says his February sales are two to three times as high as a year ago, thanks to the scrap bonus. Most of his new wave of customers, says Mr. Tan, are elderly people whose ancient autos are worth less on the used-car market than the scrap bonus.
Originally posted at www.dealersedge.com 3/2/09


text:
Registration takes less than 1 minute.
The third party logistics provider said it will launch an updated version of RapidLink, its web-based supply chain software and service solution.
Ocean carrier MSC said it will divert cargo destined for Hodeidah to the Port of Aden after airstrikes by the Saudi-led coalition caused major damage to port infrastructure.
The Port of Charleston also continued its above-market growth for containers in July.
International Container Terminal Services Inc., operator of the Manila International Container Terminal, said the Terminal Appointment Booking System is a "proactive alternative" to truck bans.
Federal grants supported engine retrofits for 10 locomotives and more are expected next year, according to Norfolk Southern.
The over 5,000 firearms and 490,000 rounds of ammunition found hidden in containers onboard the Haddad I may have been destined for ISIS forces.