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Date: Tuesday, June 14th, 2005, 01:26
Category: Mobile Phone
Mobile giants Sony Ericsson and Nokia today unleashed a bunch of new mobile phone handsets. Sony Ericsson announced five new mobile phones and Nokia introduced seven. More on a couple of potential iPod-killers after the jump…
Mobile Giants Sony Ericsson and Nokia today unleashed a bunch of new mobile phone handsets.
Sony Ericsson announced five new phones today, the J210, Z520, K680, S600i and W600a.
PhoneMag: The new S600 features a swivel top design, a 1.3 megapixel camera, MP3 player, HTML browser, and 3D gaming with a horizontal gaming mode and a and b buttons. The S600 will also come preloaded with three games bundled on the drive including eighties classic Gauntlet.
Mobile Tracker: Sony Ericsson today announced its second Walkman branded phone, the W600a (pictured right). (The first Walkman phone was of course the W800i). Features include: 1.3 MP camera, 2 Stereo speakers with FM radio, 256MB memory (no memory card slot), Bluetooth, Infrared, and USB.
Not to be outdone, Nokia introduced seven new mobile phone models at its annual Nokia Connection 2005 event including: the 6280, 6270, 6111, 6060 and 6265.
Mobile Tracker: As part of a broad launch of new Series 40 phones, Nokia today announced the 6280 (pictured left). The 6280 is a 3G handset, with a healthy feature set: GSM/WCDMA, Series 40 3rd edition, Bluetooth, QVGA resolution display (320 x 240) with 262K colors, miniSD memory card slot, 2 megapixel main camera, and VGA camera for video calls.
Too bad the Apple/Nokia Web browser that was announced today only runs on Series 40 phones… Hmmm. (Some cool phones for Symbian’s Series 60 Platform include: the Nokia N91 which has room for up to 1,000 songs (128 kbps AAC) and a 2MP digicam. and the Lenovo P930 which includes pen input and GPS:).


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THIS is the amazing classic car graveyard that was found hidden behind a normal residential home, including a £300,000 Porsche.
The stunning collection was discovered sitting in a garden in Melbourne, Australia.
Motors enthusiasts Melb Car Spots took to TikTok to show off the stable of blasts from the past which are owned by their neighbour.
The selection includes classic Land Rovers, a BMW 3-series and a Citroen XM, which was voted 1989's most comfortable car.
The crown jewel, though, is a number of retro Porsches, including a 911 turbo model.
This year's version retails at around £145,000, while older models can still fetch around £90,000.
READ MORE MOTORS NEWS
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Even better, there is a Porsche 356 Speedster, which can sell for as much as £315,000.
Other cars are obscured by tarpaulins, so there is no knowing what else could be secreted away in the suburban back yard.
Melb Car Spots captioned the video: "Got even more too, it's so crazy."
Social media commenters went wild over the gorgeous motors.
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One wrote: "No way that's a 356."
Another added: "You've got a great neighbour."
And a third said: "Become his best friend."
It comes after a Ford Mustang with iconic 1966 decals hit auction for an eye-watering price.
Meanwhile, residents of a picturesque seaside town were left furious when a "filthy rich" driver parked his £250,000 Ferrari in a police-only bay.
Source: Read Full Article

domain: news


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It doesn’t look good for the Chinese stock market. It started with a first stop of CSI-300 Futures (Chinese Securities Index) for 15-minutes at a 5 percent level. At the point when the business sector re-opened after the makeshift suspension, offers started expanding their misfortunes.
As per Bloomberg, “Trading was halted at about 1:34 p.m. local time on Monday after the CSI 300 Index dropped 7 percent.”
The People’s Bank of China on Monday likewise cut the yuan’s worth against the US dollar, making it weaker than 6.5 without precedent for more than four-and-a-half years, as weight on the money ascends from the nation’s development log jam. The given circumstances are prone to add to an expanded exertion among financial specialists to enhance their portfolio to incorporate bitcoin. A year ago in August, the surprise one-off devaluation of the yuan by the PBoC prompted value disparity in the middle of USD and CNY trades as holders of yuan depended on bitcoin as a place of refuge. China represents 80% of the worldwide exchanging volume of bitcoin.
In the midst of an absence of solid basics, it is difficult to say with certainty if genuine financial specialists are putting their cash in the cryptocurrency. The Blockchain innovation might be seeing an immense inflow of ventures, but not the slightest bit interprets into higher interests in bitcoin.
The higher unpredictability in bitcoin is by virtue of high theoretical interest. This further makes it harder for customers to make installments in bitcoin or store it as a benefit. Financial specialists are normally averse to risk. Market fixing makes the occupation greatly hard for specialized experts also. The previously stated elements add to poor calls from the experts, presenting them to brutal feedback from the crowd. However, specialized investigation is the main device that is left with them until bitcoin has a solid basic sponsorship.
In spite of Bitcoin’s known cost unpredictability, the cryptocurrency has seen a gigantic year in 2015, one checked with cost swings, administrative difficulties, expanding appropriation and further acceptance. Standard news outlets regarded the cryptocurrency as the ‘best-performing’ money of the year, beating the U.S. dollar.
Get the latest in Asian Bitcoin news here at Coin News.


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China’s Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) published new rules this weekend that would allow it to prohibit companies’ compliance with foreign laws that stop them from trading with China. The rules were an apparent...
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The Trump administration is adding 28 Chinese entities including top AI companies and state...
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From Financial Times: China’s attraction as a fast-growing market for luxury goods needs to be counterbalanced by its lack of suitable distribution channels and various economic and political threats, say industry experts at a luxury goods conference on Monday. Stephen Roach, chief economist at Morgan Stanley , said one of the largest threats to the […]
CDT in the News
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Tesco has partnered with food sharing app and social enterprise OLIO to help reduce food waste in stores across the UK in a move which should help feed more people in crisis in the local community.
The new partnership builds on Tesco’s existing food surplus donations programme, including its Community Food Connection scheme with FareShare, which already sees it donate 2 million meals every month to food charities across the UK.
The partnership with OLIO follows a successful six month trial, which was held earlier this year, at 250 Tesco stores which had the most food surplus and which saw a high rate of pick up.
It resulted in:
- Nearly 195,000 portions of food being saved
- Nearly 4,200 people being fed
- The equivalent of 93,000 meals being saved
Anyone downloading the app will be able to see food items nearing their expiry date available to be collected in their area for free, via non-contact pick-up.
The results of our initial trial were very positive and have allowed us to further roll out the partnership in our commitment to make sure no good food goes to waste
The scheme works with the help of OLIO’s 8,000+ local volunteer ‘Food Waste Heroes’ who visit Tesco stores to collect surplus food nearing its sell-by date.
The food is taken back to their homes, with the items immediately uploaded onto the OLIO app, ready to be re-distributed free to those living nearby as well as to community groups.
OLIO app users can then pick items up, from an agreed, contact-free collection point and because of social-distancing measures needed right now food items can be left in a front garden or wall outside someone’s house.
Tesco Head of Communities, Claire De Silva said: “We are very proud of our food waste work and our Community Food Connection scheme with FareShare helps thousands of charities every week.
“Right now we want to make sure that any surplus food is being managed and people who need it have access to it.
“The results of our initial trial were very positive and have allowed us to further roll out the partnership in our commitment to make sure no good food goes to waste.”
Food waste heroes
In return for their efforts, ‘Food Waste Heroes’ are allowed to keep 10 per cent of what they collect from stores if they would like. OLIO is registered with the Food Standards Agency which ensures that all food collected is safe for human consumption.
The three-month trial which took place from December till the end of February resulted in 36 tonnes of food redistributed.
Olio Co-founder, Tessa Clarke said: “Our partnership with Tesco means that more people than ever before will be able to benefit from access to surplus food.
Our partnership with Tesco means that more people than ever before will be able to benefit from access to surplus food.
“They’ll also be joining our community of neighbours who not only support one another, but also believe that every little counts in the fight against food waste.”
Tackling food waste has been a major part of Tesco’s sustainability strategy since 2009, when it made a commitment to stop sending food products to landfill.
In 2016, Tesco launched the UK’s biggest food redistribution scheme, Community Food Connection (CFC), through which surplus food from Tesco stores is donated daily to local charities and community groups.
Olio will collect where charities are unable to or we don’t have charities available.
To date around 100 million meals have been donated to more than 7,000 charity and community groups from Tesco stores and distribution centres.
This is part of the retailer’s pledge that no food safe for human consumption will go to waste.


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Mohammad Imthiaz founded Y2CF Digital Media 2010 after leading telecom services operator Bharti Airtel’s non voice business for seven years. The Gurgaon-headquartered company’s first product, hoppr, a location-based service, was launched last May. Just a month after the service was launched, Bharti SoftBank (BSB), a joint venture between Bharti Enterprises and SoftBank Corp, picked up a 49.74 per cent stake in Y2CF with an option to increase its holding up to 60 per cent in tranches over a three-year period, according to Medianama. In the past 12 months, hoppr, says Imthiaz, has racked up more than 4.5 million users and nearly 10,000 merchants. The numbers beg the question: what’s the fuss all about?
This morning I decided to give hoppr a spin and found myself facing a mildly vexing problem. I had to decide on throwing good money after bad coffee either at a Barista or a Cafe Coffee Day outlet, both just a few steps from my home. After picking the lesser of two evils, I settled down at Barista, and dispatched an SMS saying ‘Barista’ to the toll-free shortcode 56660. This is how you ‘check in’ when you are at a restaurant or cafe or spa that has a tie-up with hoppr. I was a full 12 minutes into my coffee when I got a message from hoppr — “You checked into Barista and got 1000 pts…”.
So, here’s how hoppr works. If you are using the SMS-based service, you need to register your mobile number and then simply check in to hoppr-enabled places the way I did and accumulate points. At the end of every Sunday, users with the most points get a chance to win rewards. You can also use the same SMS service to check for special offers and redeem discount coupons on the spot. The coupon code will be delivered to you via an SMS or will be available in the coupons section if you are using the Android app.
Location-based services free of device dependency
Since its launch in May last year, hoppr has experienced 90 million check-ins across the country, says Imthiaz. “When we started out we began with the premise that we wanted to do something for brands and wanted to use mobile as the medium. The question was how one could offer relevance, information and interaction. The answer was location and that was the starting point for hoppr,” he says.
Location-based services by itself is not a new concept. Foursquare, the New York-headquartered company founded by Dennis Crowley and Naveen Selvadurai, has been around in the space since March 2009. The difference between hoppr and Foursquare is that while the latter largely focuses on smartphones and apps-based access, hoppr can be used on any kind of mobile phone because of its SMS-based feature. Given than simple feature phone still far outnumber the smart phone users in India (there are an estimated 44 million smart phone users in the country) this makes sense.
“We’re trying to build applications that actually sit on telecom networks and sniff out locations. Our service has no dependency on device. It is exactly the same whether you are using a simple feature phone or an iPhone,” explains Imthiaz. The company has ongoing partnerships with most leading telecom services operators including Vodafone, Tata Docomo, Idea and of course Airtel.
The company is not focused on revenues in a big way at present, but currently gets a share of telco revenues from discount coupons that are used by consumers at hoppr-enabled retail outlets. In the long term it expects to derive the bulk of its revenues from merchants, who currently use the service for free. As its user volumes grow, data analytics based services for merchants could become a significant revenue stream.
(c) StartupCentral 2013.


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The Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP) unveiled the 29th Annual State of U.S. Logistics report this week. The findings should be no surprise at-all, to multi-industry supply chain management teams.
What businesses and teams do need to focus on are the implications moving forward, and that business as usual is no longer an option.
The authors, A.T Kearney, themed last year’s report: “Accelerating into Uncertainty.”. This year’s theme was appropriately termed: “Steep Grade Ahead.”
Highlights of the latest annual report include the following:
U.S. business logistics costs were noted as nearly $1.5 trillion representing 7.7 percent of Nominal GDP. This 2017 number compares to a $1.4 trillion, or 7.5 percent of Nominal GDP reported for 2016. The $100 billion increase is significant and is being felt by many businesses. Last year’s report further included a revision of how the data was compiled. The authors included a redo of numbers previously reported from the last ten years with the revised calculation being roughly a half-a-percentage point on average adjustment in the numbers. Regardless, as The Wall Street Journal has noted, businesses have spent an additional $250 billion on logistics and transportation needs since 2008.
According to the authors, fueling the current increased logistics costs are a robust U.S. economy, low unemployment, resurgent consumer spending and anticipated benefits from corporate tax cuts. The report further notes that such forces show no signs of easing in 2018, and fears of a trade war coupled with tariffs cloud the outlook.
As was last year, transportation costs have led to rising business logistics costs with a reported 7 percent overall increase. These same costs increased 10 percent in 2016, thus businesses have experienced a double-digit increase in transportation costs in two years, with prospects for more increases this year. Obviously, that is not a healthy nor sustainable trend. Increased costs are either passed along in higher end-product pricing or must be offset by other cost decreases.
The authors specifically call out the motor freight sector where severe capacity constraints sparked sharp rate increases. Clearly stated is that surface trucking carriers now have pricing power with prospects for added mergers and acquisitions being ripe in order to continue such market leverage.
The continued growth of E-commerce reflected in parcel and express delivery costs reportedly increased 7 percent in 2017 to $99 billion. This same category of parcel transportation grew 10 percent in 2016, also reflecting double-digit price increases over the past two years, with further increases likely. Parcel carriers such as FedEx, UPS and others continue to increase rates and surcharges again in 2018, in order to fund necessary network investments as well as please stockholders demanding more returns from the e-commerce boom.
Strong demand for products, higher interest rates and continued inflated prices in logistics and warehouse focused real estate also lifted the cost of carrying inventory. The authors point to a 5 percent increase in inventory financing, a 4.2 percent increase in storage expenditures, and a 6-basis point increase in average capital costs.
Once again, Supply Chain Matters applauds CSCMP and A.T. Kearney for their increasing efforts in making the Annual State of Logistics Report more meaningful in presenting a balance for both logistics industry and customer business perspectives related to U.S. logistics and their implications for the economy.
Our Supply Chain Matters commentaries for the past three years have reflected on a U.S. and global logistics landscape that was anchored in “business as usual” thinking and reflected in means and methods to achieve scale in pricing power and operating efficiencies, while for the most part, postponing needed advanced technology investments to harness modern logistics concepts. The industry had traditionally had a reliance on FAX, emails, and telephone communications to exchange information with the obvious default information collection tool being spreadsheets. All of this is changing rather rapidly, but not rapidly enough.
While E-commerce and smarter logistics call for smaller, but far more agile customer responsive transportation and logistics, the industry has moved in opposite directions.
Ocean container shipping lines elected to invest large sums in new mega-ships capable of transporting significantly more containers in a single vessel, to seek a competitive cost and efficiency advantage. The problem was that multiple carriers did the same, and an industry with prior over-capacity, became even more weighted in excess shipping capacity. Carrier alliances were formed, shipping schedules were consolidated, while transit times remained slower, all to garner pricing power and added margins. The bigger ships require ports to have augmented facilities, infrastructure, and automation to unload and load such ships. It is only now that shipping lines are starting to wake-up to the need for investing in more customer-focused process technologies such as end-to-end container visibility, electronic documentation, process control and new blockchain process efficiency pilots.
U.S. railroads have the most to gain from the current explosion in surface trucking costs through leveraging their intermodal services. Yet these same railroads raised their intermodal rates, while rolling out so-termed “precision railroading” principles. The latest Cass and Broughton pricing report indicates that intermodal pricing rose 9.1 percent in May on the heels of a 6.6 percent increase in April. A recent published report from Dow Jones indicates that U.S. railroads are now operating larger freight trains, some as much as a reported 3 miles in length, with 200 cars or more. The reasons cited are achieving larger economies of scale to save on fuel and labor. The other reported reason is to appease activist investors. The result is congested rail yards and added choke points, not to mention shortages of railcars now tied-up in larger trains. Similar concept, defeating the need for faster and smarter logistics.
U.S. trucking firms point to the ELD mandate to enforce driver hours of service logging as one of the reasons for today’s capacity crisis, blaming driver resignations as a result of the mandate. Yet, from our lens, the industry continued to block any sense of a phased implementation. Instead of embracing electronic logging as an opportunity to leverage added information, it was viewed as a threat to efficiency and pricing power, not to mention hiding actual hours driven in a given period. Drivers whose compensation is based on a per-mile driven basis are naturally going to be resistant to electronic logging.
Three years ago, we predicted an industry ripe for disruption.
Today, Amazon is a new modern logistics and last-mile transportation carrier that can leverage its services among hosted Fulfilled by Amazon retailers. New trucking, logistics and transportation management start-ups now embracing advanced technology are making their presence, especially in needs to serve online commerce needs. Tesla, and Nikola were the first to introduce autonomous electrical or hydrogen powered trucks, laden with multiple technology uses. Alibaba and JD.com in China are investing billions in new, advanced global logistics capabilities, designed to embrace dynamic customer fulfillment networks and larger individual shipment volumes.
Even in the most traditional food and grocery retailing sector, Amazon -Whole Foods, Kroger-Ocado, and Walmart – Jet.com will continue to disrupt food and grocery distribution, logistics and customer fulfillment capabilities. The rest of the industry is already carefully watchful.
This latest State of U.S. Logistics report points to five trends to shape the future of logistics. One is that:
“A fully digital, connected, and flexible supply chain optimized for e-commerce and last-mile, same-day delivery will become essential.”
For supply chain and business leaders, we need to fully endorse the above statement as a given. We hasten to add that businesses need to determine which carriers, logistics services and transportation providers are best equipped to support such needs in the timeliest manner, and with a compelling customer value proposition. The answer could be different that what exists in today’s industry landscape, in certain cases, dramatically different.
In short, businesses and their respective supply chain teams will need to rethink existing strategies for logistics. Rather than focused as a cost center that must be optimized, logistics and transportation must now be viewed as an extension of the business strategy related to customer fulfillment needs, and all that that requires. Costs will always remain a concern, but enhanced capability delivered at a competitive cost, supporting a flexible supply chain are the new table stakes.
Yes- Steep Grade Ahead is the appropriate descriptor of the 2017 state of U.S. logistics. In less than three years, the dawn of the new decade, we anticipate the state descriptor to be: Industry Disrupted.
Logistics industry business as usual is no longer an option.
© Copyright 2018. The Ferrari Consulting and Research Group and the Supply Chain Matters® blog. All rights reserved.


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By 2025, Starbucks wants customers to have the option to either bring their own reusable cup or borrow one from their local store in an attempt to reduce waste.
- Customers can borrow a cup for $1 and get their money back upon returning the mug, according to CNN.
Returnable cups: On Feb. 21, Starbucks launched reusable cup programs throughout stores in the U.K. The company wanted to create a sustainable plan that was easy enough for busy residents of London to integrate into their lives.
- The plan will continue to roll out in other European cities, and eventually in Africa and the Middle East.
- “Without needing to remember to bring their own cup, customers can ask for their beverage to be served in a reusable cup when ordering at the till. Simply put down a £1 deposit when ordering, which will be fully refunded when the cup is returned,” said the Starbucks website.
- The use of a reusable cup will also give customers rewards points that they can use toward free drinks.
- Starbucks assured that with this new plan, local baristas won’t have to deal with the burden of cleaning all of the extra cups. Starbucks reported that it will outsource the cups to professional cleaning companies to be sanitized and returned to stores for reuse.
Can I still use a plastic cup? The plan isn’t to completely phase out plastic cups. Starbucks just wants to make reusable cups more available for customers.
- A spokesperson for Starbucks told CNN that the company is also planning to test a disposable cup fee.
“Greener Cup” mission: Starbucks has been testing new ways to create a more sustainable user experience since the 1980s.
- This plan is a part of the company’s “Greener Cup” timeline, where the company states its plans to reduce waste by 50% by 2030.
- Previously, Starbucks has made other developments to reduce waste and promote more sustainable products.
- In 2020 the company stocked all stores in the U.S. and Canada with strawless lids. In Germany, customers are charged a 5 cent paper cup fee in an effort to encourage use of reusable cups.


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Ayala Land, Inc. (ALI) posted a 12-percent increase in net income to PHP23.2 billion for the first 9 months of 2019 as total revenues increased by 2 percent to PHP121.7 billion for the period.
Growth was driven primarily by real estate revenues which stood at PHP119.7 billion, supported by office, commercial and industrial lot sales and further boosted by the improving performance of new leasing assets.
ALI launched PHP37.8B worth of residential projects in the third quarter alone, bringing total launches for the first nine months of the year to PHP57.3 billion.
Capital expenditures reached PHP78.2 billion for the period, supporting continued residential and leasing asset build-up with the malls and offices segments, expanding their gross leasable area (GLA) further to 2.1 million and 1.2 million square meters, respectively.
“Third-quarter financial results were in line with our expectations, following a similar pattern to what we have seen in the first half of the year. We, however, launched more developments during the period, which we anticipate will help us finish strong in 2019 and provide positive momentum in 2020,” ALI president and chief executive officer Bernard Vincent Dy said in a statement.
“Commercial leasing assets, on the other hand, continue to outperform as business and consumer activity remain robust, and as more completed assets over the last couple of years stabilize and experience high occupancy rates,” he said.
ALI’s property development revenues amounted to PHP85.4 billion with contributions from a 51-percent growth in office for sale revenues to PHP11.1 billion, and a 16-percent increase in sales of commercial and industrial lots to PHP6.5 billion.
The company’s commercial leasing business expanded with total revenues up 16 percent to PHP27.6 billion, while shopping center revenues grew 10 percent to PHP15 billion.
Revenues from office leasing also jumped 26 percent to PHP7.2 billion, while the hotels and resorts segment grew its revenues by 17 percent to PHP5.4 billion. (PR)


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TV vixen Khanyi Mbau has just been unveiled as the newest face of fashion brand Khosi Nkosi.
For the Spring 2015 Ad campaign, Mbau plays muse for the label.
Mbau turns up the heat in a crispy white longsleeve draped bodysuit.
Captured by the camera lens of photographer Refentse Sebothoma, Mbau parades her sexy body at Zoo Lake in a series of steamy snapshots.
The bodysuit Mbau is modelling is called the Bongi Bodysuit and it’s available at YDE stores for R330, in both white and candy.
Mbau follows in the footsteps of actress Nomzamo Mbatha and starlet Omuhle Gela, who have played muse for the brand in the past.


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When banks turned their back on borrowers after 2008, the pawnshops sensed an opening.
And to put it bluntly, they made a killing. I mean, pawnbrokers completely de-risk the loan by taking full collateral from the punter. And still they charge exorbitant interest rates!
Albemarle & Bond (Lon: ABM) is one of the biggest pawnbrokers in the UK. And it wants to cement its position at the top.
The only problem with that is that over the last year or so, just about every area of its business has taken a whack. With the plummeting gold price, punters aren’t rushing to cash in unwanted jewellery.
The banks have gradually started to re-open their doors to borrowers, and the payday loans business looks like it’s about to face a rather nasty regulatory shock.
To top it all, competition has been stiff – you can’t have missed the changing nature of UK high streets, with new cash lenders and pawnbrokers popping up all over the place.
ABM invested heavily in setting up new shops (and taking over others). But it now appears that the company overstretched itself. In October, it tried to raise money by way of a rights issue. A rights issue is effectively the issue of new shares to existing holders at a pre-set price – in this case, 50p. Alas, the biggest shareholder, US pawnbroker EZCorp, said it wasn’t prepared to back the issue.
What had been a steady share price decline turned into a rout.
Here’s the three-year price chart. From four quid to 19p in less than two years:
Source: Digital look
Last week, the company announced that it has resorted to melting down its gold holdings in order to meet the debt schedule. It will also shut its online payday loans operation. And the trouble hasn’t stopped there. This morning it was announced that four of the company’s directors will leave the board.
Wow! It just goes to show what a mess can be made of a business that, up until recently, was in one of the only growing sectors on the high street.
"The only financial publication I could not be without."
John Lang, Director, Tower Hill Associates Ltd
Book value or share price?
But despite all these woes, if you look at the business, you might think that the share price fall has been overdone. After all, even with debt, the book value of the business (the value of assets) amounted to some £1.74 at the time of the latest full accounts.
The main issue is of course the debt and managing the company cash flow. It’s all well and good saying that the company has £1.74 in assets. But if it hasn’t got the cash flow to keep the banks happy, then it can yet be forced into liquidation.
But there’s more to the share price fall than just cash flow. When the company abandoned a rights issue earlier, that whacked investor confidence. Not only that, but the company has delayed publishing its results until next Monday. The markets absolutely hate delayed results. That’s just another element of uncertainty that’s not needed right now.
But there’s one more thing that explains the share price fall. And it’s one every private investor must be aware of. Especially if considering buying stocks like ABM in the hope of recovery…
The poison pill
So should a brave investor consider ‘catching a falling knife’ as they say? That is, is it a good idea to buy some stock on the hope that there will be a recovery?
Provided the thing doesn’t go bust, one could certainly imagine ABM stock bouncing from the sub-20p mark to well over a pound in the coming years.
And if this company were privately owned, I wouldn’t bet against it. When it comes to privately owned businesses, owners will move heaven and earth to keep the thing afloat.
For starters, they’re less likely to get into trouble in the first place. I mean, in the case of ABM, trouble brewed from over-expansion. Those are classic powerplay antics from a management team that doesn’t actually own the business.
But secondly, even if private businesses do get into financial straits, management tend to have a few tricks up their sleeve. It may include putting their own personal wealth on the line, or finding other routes to raising finance – rich friends or bankers will often scratch a back when required.
But when it comes to publicly-owned stocks, such avenues are seldom pursued. In publicly-owned business, the solution to a funding crisis will all too often involve stiffing the ordinary shareholders.
And that, my friend, is why the share price of ABM is now below 20p.
To my mind, it is no reflection of the true value of this stock. Like I say, the book value of the business is over £1.50 – though we can’t put an exact figure on that until next Monday.
For sure, the company will not be returning to form any time soon. After all, it’s smelting much of its stock and severely constraining new business in its lending units.
That said, this is still a decent business. With a bit of streamlining (and debt management), one might expect a return to profitability after the current financial year is out. In fact, for all we know, the business could still turn in a profit for the year ending June 2013 (which is due to be reported next week).
All the company has actually said is that it has been losing money for the first five months of the current year. For the period about to be reported, analysts have pencilled in 20p in profit per share. And we know that this figure is too high – the company has said that much.
This is certainly one to watch. Will the company struggle on and just about get by? Or will it require financing – financing that comes with a sharp sting in the tale for current shareholders?
We shall see. This whole situation highlights one of the nastiest sides of stock-market investing. When it comes to refinancing businesses, ordinary shareholders find that they’re all out of friends in the right places.


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The meeting happened days after Zuckerberg denounced the idea of fake news on Facebook as 'crazy.'
Trump's war with the world of sports is also, believe it or not, an investing story. Here's a look at how everything is intertwined.
Doug Kass shares his thoughts on Facebook, Wells Faro, Top Rope Elbow Drops and Google.
Amazon's glasses are reportedly unlikely to feature a display and the company's lack of a popular smartphone OS could be a handicap.


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We usually hear all about cruise ship accidents in the news or about how 100 passengers contracted Norovirus, among other disasters, but rarely do we hear about the cruise industry doing something extremely selfless and positive for the community. Instead of focusing on profits, several cruise line employees are giving back to the community as part of a volunteer effort in South Florida.
South Florida is home to the two largest cruise ports in the world – the Port of Miami and Port Everglades. The vast majority of cruise traffic passes through these two ports and of course, undoubtedly leaves an impact on the environment. Though South Floridians may not complain of noise or pollution emitted by cruise ships the way residents of other pier communities do, we still experience the effects these massive vessels produce.
But now, over 100 employees from various cruise lines in the area are teaming up to beautify the town. As part of International Volunteer Day, Royal Caribbean International, Carnival Cruise Lines and Costa Cruises employees have joined forces to clean up the North Shore Park in Miami so locals can enjoy land-based activities as much as those onboard.
The volunteers were joined by some of the cruise industry’s local partners, including PortMiami, Intercruises, Waste Management, Lloyd’s Register, Survival Craft, MTN Satellite Communications, and HandsOn Miami. Those participating in the event did their part to restore the park throughout gardening efforts and by painting a fence that circles the perimeter of the park.
This is a great example of the industry’s efforts to make a difference for the better. We can only hope that the good example continues to efforts making cruising safer for passengers.
Our cruise ship lawyers here at Lipcon, Margulies, Alsina & Winkleman, P.A. have long discussed the many ways in which maritime safety is ignored within the industry. Though some lines have incorporated new technology that can reduce the risk of accidents and injuries on the high seas and in port, most companies have yet to show any effort in utilizing the technology at hand to protect their guests from harm.
Disney Cruise Line became the first major cruise line to introduce lifeguards a few weeks ago. Though a valiant effort that should be commended, the line is several decades late. Employing experienced lifeguards is one of the simplest ways cruise lines can reduce the rate of accidents, so then why don’t all ships have them?
The answer is money.
It costs money to hire lifeguards; but, above that, lifeguards are crewmembers which take up space aboard the cruise ship. Since there are a certain number of beds and seats on lifeboats – every crewmember brought onboard takes away from space for another potential passenger. Crewmembers cost the cruise lines money and passengers bring the cruise lines money. So, in the case of lifeguards – the cruise industry seems to have collectively decided that they will not be provided on most of the cruise ships.
Cruise lines have also failed to implement infrared radar detection technology on ships, which helps to locate passengers who have fallen overboard. The technology is optimal for saving victims, especially at night when it’s pitch black out on the open waters. Yet, the number of ships that have this technology can be counted in one hand.
Yes, it’s fantastic that cruise industry leaders want to volunteer and help out the community that has helped shape the industry into what it is today, but it’s just not enough. A valid effort must be made on each cruise line’s part to improve conditions onboard ships and to reduce accidents at sea and in port. The time spent volunteering could be spent inspecting ships for mechanical problems, setting up surveillance cameras, training crew members to handle emergency situations more effectively, and the list goes in.
Moreover, if the cruise industry wants to perceive itself as being so generous, why don’t they start by compensating victims who have been injured, assaulted or killed because of a crew member or company’s negligence? Maritime attorneys have to fight tooth and nail sometimes just to get the cruise lines to admit to wrongdoing. Perhaps the best way to give back to the community would be for cruise companies to amend their passenger ticket contracts and eliminate their liability clause so those who become victims of cruise ship negligence obtain the justice they deserve.
Will this happen? Highly doubtful, but it’s still nice to imagine a world in which the cruise industry will stop hiding behind its minimalistic “good deeds”, flags of convenience and contract clauses and provide its loyal guests with the treatment they deserve. It’s high time for the industry to stop spending money on making ships bigger and start investing in ways to make them safer.
Published on December 6, 2013
Categories: Maritime Matter of the Week


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Big Ditch Brewing Company will feature a beer than was made well before the brewery opened. The beer, “Bidwell Wild,” may be the first example of a beer produced with native yeast and bacteria purposefully collected from Western New York.
“Over a year before we opened our brewery, we had a chance to perform a homebrew demonstration at the Elmwood-Bidwell Farmers Market," said Matt Kahn, co-founder and president of Big Ditch Brewing Company. "We were promoting our yet-to-open brewery, as well as providing some education to marketgoers about the brewing process."
At the Farmers Market, Kahn and head brewer Corey Catalano conducted an experiment.
“We collected about five to six pounds of ripe, bruised fruit from farmers and used it as a source of wild yeast to kick-start fermentation," Kahn said. "Wild yeast typically lives on fruit and plants and occur naturally in the environment."
"These yeasts work similarly to brewing yeast but tend to yield a taste that is different and more complex. To be honest, I thought there would be equal chances the beer wouldn’t ferment, would turn into a vinegary diaper bomb or may be drinkable after a long, long time."
Kahn and Catalano pitched the fruit into their demonstration beer. They tossed in a mélange of peaches, blueberries, gooseberries, raspberries, pears, nectarines, plums and grapes into two batches brewed on different days.
Kahn detailed the concept for the beer in a blog post titled “Latest and Greatest," published on Aug. 27, 2013. After two days, there was evidence of growth on the surface of the beer in the form of a pellicle - a membrane that covers the surface of many naturally fermented beers. This was an indicator that Western New York wild yeast was growing and fermenting in the nascent beer.
“I tasted the beer a week after I saw activity and it was tasting like a young red wine with a lot of funk taste thrown by the wild yeast,” said Kahn.
Batch one was brewed on Aug. 3, 2013. On Sept. 21 of that same year, Kahn and Catalano returned to the Elmwood-Bidwell Farmers Market to brew batch two. “We hoped to blend the two batches and serve this beer to the farmers that provided the fruit and yeast, even if this took three years.”
Kahn and Catalano tasted the two batches about every three to six months following the initial fermentation. “After six months, the beer had a lot of character, quite fruity and funky, but still tasted sort of young, without a lot of depth,” Kahn said.
“After another year, however, the bacteria went to work and added quite a bit of acidity. We aged the two batches another six months, then blended the two batches and bottled them.”
At noon April 9, Bidwell Wild will go on sale. But don’t expect this beer to taste like Low Bridge, Hayburner, Excavator or any other Big Ditch staple. “This is a wild and sour ale, often characterized by the following terms: horsey, leathery, cheesy and acidic,” said Kahn.
“This beer is not an India pale ale. It is certainly not a lager. It is a very complex beer with a number of unique flavors. It is much more like a wine than a beer.”
“This is an experiment," Kahn continued. "That being said, it’s an experiment gone right. The biggest problem with this experiment is that we never thought it would actually work. We only brewed eight gallons of it."
Big Ditch will be selling a very limited amount of this beer. On April 9, it will have 50 16-ounce bottles for sale for $16 each. About 150 samples of Bidwell Wild will be served as 1-ounce pours for $1 each.
Big Ditch plans to brew more wild yeast experimental beers at future Elmwood-Bidwell Farmers Market events later this year.
Kevin Wise, Ph.D. is a professor of Biology at Trocaire College who maintains a blog on beer science and beer reviews and can be reached at: www.buffalobeerbiochemist.com, Twitter: @BuffaloBeerBio; Untappd: @BuffaloBeerBiochemist


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If you have been around in the Tablet models then this Samsung’s latest tablet shouldn’t be missed. In fact, with the number of choices tech enthusiasts can choose these days, it has become a lot easier for us as a customer to choose our favorite [...]
Galaxy Grand has a screen size of 5 inches with a resolution of 800 x 480 pixels.
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Requires heavenly guidance in work or romance.
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The good news for you smartphone users had Windows Phone OS. Angry Birds can now be downloaded for free.
Quoted from Ubergizmo, Thursday (2/5), Angry Birds has changed the status of being free is the original version, that is Angry Birds first.
IOS Users no longer need to envy the Android users who have been enjoying Angry Birds for free.
For the first time since it was released in 2009, as a game developer Rovio decided to change the price of being free in the App Store.
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Dior is returning to England's historic Blenheim Palace to unveil its Cruise collection.
The Milan Fashion Week men's calendar is full of holes. Zegna, Calvin Klein, Cavalli, Costume National, Ermanno Scervino and Bottega Veneta are among the fashion houses that have opted not to do runway shows in June.
Alexander Hamilton may be sitting up in his grave, knowing that his entrepreneurial spirit lives on through the latest Broadway/retail collaboration launched between Bloomingdale's and the 16-time Tony Award nominated musical "Hamilton."
Billionaires' Row: That's what New York real estate experts have dubbed a lineup of a half-dozen new superluxury skyscrapers overlooking Central Park that are home to some of the world's most expensive apartments.
The elite of the fashion world flocked to Brazil, defying an outbreak of the Zika virus, an economic meltdown and the deep political crisis afflicting the country to attend a runway show Saturday by revered French label Louis Vuitton.


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Victoria Bitter has released a new ad encouraging Aussies to get their COVID-19 vaccinations so they can get back to the pub for a cold one.
The iconic beer company's signature slogan has been reworked in the campaign, with the narrator declaring, "A hard-earned thirst comes from being all over town, not from being in lockdown".
"So if you'd like to get back to leading a band, or lending a hand, roll up your sleeves, and get the jab," the narrator continues.
"Matter of fact, I got mine now."
VB's Head of Marketing Brian Phan said in a statement the campaign was all about calling on Australians to get vaccinated so everyone could return to work and re-unite with family and friends.
"This will support hospitality and business more broadly by encouraging Aussies to get the jab so we can re-open all of Australia's pubs, clubs, construction sites, offices, shops and everywhere else you earn a hard-earned thirst," he said.
The new ad comes as NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian announced the state's roadmap out of lockdown today, with extra freedoms for the vaccinated once 70 percent of the eligible population has received a double dose.
Under the slated guidelines, hospitality venues such as pubs will be reopening with a one person per four-square-metre rule inside and one person per two- square-metres outside, with standing while drinking permitted outside.
The places 'untouched' by COVID-19 across the world


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Malaysia: Inflation inches up in July
August 21, 2013
Consumer prices rose 0.19% over the previous month in July, which was above the 0.10% increase tallied in June. The increase mainly reflected higher prices for food and non-alcoholic beverages.
Inflation increased from 1.8% in June to 2.0% in July, which was in line with market expectations. Annual average inflation remained unchanged at 1.5% for the fifth consecutive month.
FocusEconomics Consensus Forecast panellists expect inflation to accelerate in the months ahead and average 2.1% in 2013, which is down 0.1 percentage points from last month's projection. For 2014, the panel sees inflation rising to 2.5%.
Author: Carl Kelly, Economist


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Almost a third of employing businesses unable to find suitable staff
Almost a third (31 per cent) of employing businesses are having difficulty finding suitable staff, according to survey...READ MORE
A government taskforce has found that the absence of a reliable central authority for accountants to source digital advice could be hurting many of their small business clients.
Last week, the Small Business Digital Taskforce handed its final report to the government on how small businesses can make the most of digital technology.
Small Business Digital Taskforce chair Mark Bouris recommended the establishment of a new independent body to serve as a central point for information and advice on digital options for Australian small businesses and their advisers.
"The Taskforce's vision is that this independent body will provide small businesses, industry associations, the accountancy professions, and others, with tailored, up-to-date, and easily accessible information and advice on digital best practice," Mr Bouris said.
"At its centre, the new body will maintain a curated online platform which will be recognised internationally as the 'gold standard' for digital small business advice."
However, Smithink director David Smith was sceptical about creating a central authority for digital advice, saying that the digital economy is moving so fast, its information "will be always be out of date".
He said the most successful accountants would be the ones doing their own research and are fundamentally interested in the digital space.
"They're reading the articles, reading the newspapers, keeping themselves up to date and searching around on the internet to explore what's possible and use their own lateral thinking to think about how something which is emerging in the digital space could be applied to themselves or their clients," Mr Smith said.
"If you're relying on some sort of third party to garner this information, I don't think you'll be inquisitive enough to really understand and absorb it to be an effective adviser."
The report said the key message from digital service providers and vendors was that accounting providers "need to have interoperable systems that allow businesses to change, providing greater flexibility and choice, instead of locking a business in to one provider".
It also noted the role of accountants is changing from a tax and compliance expert to the broader role of a ‘trusted adviser’.
“Accountants not only use suppliers’ products to provide their small business clients with more detailed and timely information and business analytics. They also recommend various digital products to their clients,” the report said.


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Given that both iOS and Android pretty much dominate the smartphone platform scene at the moment, do we really need new entrants into the market? Well it seems that Huawei, probably best known for putting out affordable Android handsets, is interested in doing so and has confirmed that they are working on their own mobile operating system. This is despite the company having denied such rumors in the past, but we guess they must be pretty far along in their development for them to finally admit it. In an interview with Reuters
, Huawei’s CEO Wan Biao was quoted as saying, “We’re also devoting resources into coming up with a phone operating system based on our current platform in case other companies won’t let us use their system one day.”
At the moment Huawei is probably most well known for their Android phones, although Windows Phone devices are a possibility. Perhaps Wan Biao’s fears might have to do with Google’s acquisition of Motorola Mobility which had many worried for a while that Google might start making their own phones and ultimately close off Android to everyone else. Google has since allayed those fears but we guess Huawei has a backup plan of their own. No specifics were given about the operating system and we can’t help but be curious as to what it looks like and what it can do. Any ideas?
Filed in Huawei.
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An Irish pub joined forces with a US sportswear brand to create a soccer kit. Mo Chara in Dundalk, Co Louth, teamed up with New Balance to create a limited edition commemorative Mo Chara Football Kit ahead of their first annual charity match.
Lifelong friends Cillian Mulligan, Paul Kelly and Vincent Mulligan opened Mo Chara, which means "my friend" in the Irish language, in 2021. The pub offers pizzas and one of the widest ranges of craft beers in Ireland.
The friends are huge soccer fans and released the home and away kits to celebrate the pub's second year in business. All proceeds will go to local charity Head in the Game, which was founded by Dundalk and League of Ireland fans to raise awareness of the importance of mental health.
Cillian said: “We are buzzing to be collaborating with the legends from New Balance to design these one-off Mo Chara commemorative kits. New Balance were the obvious choice to collaborate with, as well as being a hugely iconic brand, they are very community-minded, and have been coming out with some banging jerseys after already taking over the shoe game.”
Josh Chapman, from The Sports Hub Group, owners of the UK New Balance teamwear license, added: “We are thrilled to be working with Mo Chara on these truly unique vintage football jerseys. New Balance and Mo Chara have a shared ethos of creating positive change and giving back to the community, so this was a perfect fit for us.”
The jersey is designed by Killian Walsh from Grandson Design Studio and features references from the cult Netherlands shirt of 1988, with a nod to Dundalk FC's 1991 league winning jersey. It features the Mo Chara mascot 'MO' illustration by Stephanie Connolly. The jerseys' bespoke vintage look also commemorates Italia 90, which was as a cultural high point in Irish football.
Mo Chara will be hosting their first annual charity football match, World Skup 23, on October 8 in the Friary Field, Dundalk, Co Louth, to celebrate the jersey's launch. The jersey costs €75 and can be shipped to the US. Jerseys can be bought here.
For the latest local news and features on Irish America, visit our homepage here.


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Need legal advice? Returning that shirt? Want to talk to a therapist?
There’s a bot for that.
Bots – short for robot – are computerized software that talk like humans, designed to help consumers with just about everything. According to the security firm Imperva, bots outnumber humans online: bots account for more than 52 percent of web traffic.
“(Bots) are in more places than you think they are,” said cyber security researcher Brannon Dorsey. “In areas they are not, they will be soon.”
While many bots are helpful – for example, chatbots, which many companies use for customer service – researchers warn that many are malicious and hard to detect.
Case in point: in the fall of 2016, attackers deployed millions of bots to shut down much of the American Internet for hours. Malicious hackers essentially directed the massive botnet to simultaneously overwhelm a web service with traffic. As a result, consumers had trouble accessing prominent websites, such as Amazon, Twitter, Spotify, Netflix and PayPal.
Also in 2016, Russian-linked, automated accounts spewed misinformation on social media, according to Facebook and Twitter executives, in an effort to create chaos ahead of the presidential election.
“It is very easy for someone to go on Twitter or Facebook and set up hundreds or thousands of fake personas with photos, bios and information,” said cyber security expert Nick Percoco. “Be aware of who are what you’re communicating with, and it’s really tough. This is not something that’s an easy answer.”
Experts said as bots become more sophisticated, it increases the chances to trick consumers.
“Bots are going to get better at evading detection,” said Dorsey. “It’s going to be a cat and mouse game.”
Social media platforms have taken steps to rein in their bot problem. Both Twitter and Facebook announced in recent months that it has undergone a massive purge of fake accounts.
In a blog post, Facebook published its first ever “Community Standards Enforcement Report,” where the company said it removed 583 million fake accounts in the first three months of this year.


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Fructose consumption may make people gain more body fat quickly, a study shows. High-fructose corn syrup is used as a sugar alternative in many foods and beverages.
Nelly, a U.S. recording artist, has his own energy-drink brand, which is coming to Europe. The brand first will be available in France and Sweden.
A Los Angeles unit of Coca-Cola Enterprises will begin distributing the Honest Tea brand in some West Coast markets. Pilot markets include Northern California, Arizona, Las Vegas, Washington and Oregon.
Reed's has added an offering to its Virgil's cola line. The company has created Virgil's Diet Real Cola, which will be available in four-packs across the U.S.
Rudy Nutrition's beverage product line Rudy Beverage will be available in the Chicago-area market. All 10 Butera Market locations will sell the drinks.
National Public Radio's Morning Edition examines the dairy industry's newest campaign linking dairy consumption with weight loss.


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United Arab Emirates, Dubai – 13 October 2019: The Emirates Airline Festival of Literature, which will be held from 4-9 February 2020, has today unveiled a limited time offer for the ultimate Weekend Pass. For the first time ever, Festival fans will have a chance to explore all the exciting general sessions*, all weekend, with one ticket, for only AED 499.
The Weekend Passes will save around 30 per cent off the individual ticket price, but for one week only can be bought with a further 20 per cent off, representing savings of 50 per cent. This 2020 offer will apply to the first 20 Passes sold before 20 October.
Ahlam Bolooki, festival director said: “We are very excited about these brand-new Passes. They offer great value and the additional early bird discount amounts to an amazing 50 per cent off the full weekend. We know that once our line-up is announced the tickets will be snapped up, so we are releasing the Passes early to give our Festival fans the chance to get ahead. It will help people make the most of their Festival experience and it is a wonderful opportunity to try something different and discover something new.”
The range of Festival Passes, which go on sale today for one week, also includes Day Passes for Friday 7 and Saturday 8 February, priced at AED 299, which represent a 15 per cent discount on the cost of individual tickets. There is also a very limited number of Pfaasses available which include lunch at the exclusive Anise restaurant at the InterContinental, Dubai Festival City, the venue for the Festival events, at an additional supplement of AED 100.
The full line-up for the Festival will be announced in mid-November, when tickets for all sessions go on sale. It is expected that more than 130 writers will be appearing at the 2020 event, which is the largest and best loved celebration of the written and spoken word in the Arab world.
The 2020 offer, which gives an additional 20 per cent off the Weekend Passes, is available for one week only from 12 noon Sunday 13 October and is only available to the first 20 purchasers of the Weekend Pass.
All passes are personal and cannot be shared. They give unlimited access to all general session for the day purchased. Workshops, Masterclasses and Special Events are not included with any pass.
Freedom Friday: AED 299
Freedom Friday with lunch: AED 399
Super Saturday: AED 299
Super Saturday with lunch: AED 399
Weekend Wonderland: AED 499
Weekend Wonderland, with lunch: AED 699
2020 Offer: Weekend Wonderland pass purchased before 20 October AED 399 excludes lunch
Launched in 2009 with 65 authors through the hard work of passionate individuals from the local community and the support of founding partners Emirates and Dubai Culture, the Emirates Airline Festival of Literature has grown rapidly. In 2019, it welcomed more than 180 authors from 40 countries around the world to entertain and engage more than 45,000 people. Recognised for the impact it has had on promoting a reading culture in the UAE, and its extensive education outreach programme, it has won many awards, including Best Festival in the Middle East three times. A cherished feature of the Festival has been the close ties it has to its diverse community; an open feedback loop means it can consider its audiences’ wishes in its programme, format and even dates and times.
*Excluding special events, workshops and masterclasses.


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Update, 06/10/09: Amazon Kindle goes international
Perhaps Sony knew something we didn't when it launched its e-book Readers in August, with rumours suggesting that the e-book industry's 500-pound gorilla, Amazon, will launch the Kindle in the UK far sooner than initially thought.
A source told The Bookseller: "The key things they needed to tie up have been tied up. The rumours I've heard are all saying next week."
The Guardian elaborates further, putting the cause of the delay down to Amazon's Whispernet, a service that is currently free in the US, which allows e-books to be easily downloaded over the mobile phone network. For the feature to work in the UK, the service would need to be modified to work on the GSM/GPRS mobile network standard used in Britain and elsewhere in Europe, rather than CDMA standard widely used in the US.
The Kindle has been a long time coming to British shores, as the Kindle made its US debut nearly two years ago, in November 2007. Whether Amazon launches the Kindle 2 or the larger, more expensive Kindle DX, remains to be seen.


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Tesla Motors Inc. (Nasdaq:TSLA), the Palo Alto-based maker of the sexy Model S electric sedan and the 2014 Model X SUV, made a considerable amount of its revenue this year not by selling electric cars, but by selling carbon credits to other automakers.
Here’s what the company said of its performance in the first three months of 2012:
Zero emission vehicle (ZEV) credits sold to other automakers amounted to approximately $68 million, or 12% of revenues.
Zero emission vehicle credits are sold to automakers concerned about new environmental regulations in several states, led by California, that mandate that at least 15 percent of sales come from zero-emission vehicles by as early as 2025. Companies can skirt the rules by buying credits from companies that are more than abiding by the rules. Tesla is a natural source since it only makes electric vehicles.
The company reported its first profit this year, of $11.2 million, so without the revenue from the credits, the company would have lost money.
"I think they're embarrassed how much money they're making on this," Adam Jonas, an auto analyst with Morgan Stanley, told CNN Money in a report posted on Tuesday. He estimated the company would make $188 million selling these credits to automakers, which have included Honda North America, Inc.
Tesla appears touchy on the subject. In its quarterly report, it insists it will meet the target 25 percent margin, “assuming zero ZEV credit revenue.”
“This may turn out to be greater than zero, but we are not counting on it,” the company said, citing declining prices for the credits and improved worldwide deliveries of their vehicles this year.
The company delivered 4,900 units in the first quarter ended March 31; it claims to currently have orders for over 20,000 units per year worldwide.


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Samsung is all set to launch its newest S23 series in February 2023, however, the company is also planning to bring the Fan Edition of Samsung Galaxy S22.
As per tipster RGcloudS, the South Korean company may unveil the Galaxy S22 FE in the US on February 1, 2023. The report suggests that the handset is a compensatory replacement of the allegedly canceled Samsung Galaxy A74 5G.
It is expected to come at a similar price as the Galaxy A phone.
Here’s what to expect from the yet-to-be-launched Samsung Galaxy S22 FE
Samsung 22 FE is expected to come powered by a new Samsung processor and a camera sensor. Though the processor hasn't been announced yet, it is expected to have an Exynos 2300 4nm chipset, which will power the Samsung Galaxy Tab 8 SE.
The smartphone is said to feature a Samsung 108MP HM6 sensor.
A previous leak suggested that the company is planning to bring Galaxy S22 FE and Galaxy Buds 2 together ahead of the Galaxy S23 series launch. While another tipster, Dohyun Kim, has further revealed that the Galaxy S23 FE does not exist.
Meanwhile, a report from 91Mobiles claimed that the Samsung Galaxy F14 will be making its India debut in the first week of January 2023.
So far, Samsung hasn't yet made any announcement on the launch of its budget Galaxy F14, but the source usually offers accurate information. If the company is planning to launch this Galaxy F series phone in India, then we should hear about the launch in the coming days. It is currently unknown whether this will be a 5G
As of now, there are no details on the specifications of the Galaxy F14. Its predecessor, the Samsung Galaxy F13 is using the company's in-house Exynos 850 chipset, which is a 4G chipset. This is also an entry-level SoC, which is why the price of the handset is less than Rs 12,000. At the moment, one will rarely find 5G handsets in this range. But, we expect the tech companies to start offering 5G phones in the ultra-affordable segment by next year. To recall, the Samsung Galaxy F13 was launched in India with a starting price of Rs 11,999.
Copyright©2023 Living Media India Limited. For reprint rights: Syndications Today


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Delphi faces an uphill climb despite a strong product portfolio and a much smaller North American work force after more than two years in bankruptcy, says Kirk Ludtke, senior vice president with CRT Capital Group LLC in Stamford, Conn.
The scaled-back sum plus the cash Delphi should be able to generate from operations will be enough for it to operate successfully, Ludtke predicts. After emerging from Chapter 11, he says, Delphi will be a mostly overseas electronics company with low costs. Most of its unprofitable commodity businesses have been divested or closed.
But if it can't get the whole $5.2 billion financing from banks and syndicates, Delphi has an ace in the hole. GM might be willing to lend Delphi the shortfall because of the supplier's importance to its production lines, Ludtke says.
Delphi, whose post-bankruptcy revenue is pegged at $20 billion, will continue to generate about 25 percent of its sales from GM.
GM already has paid most of a more than $7 billion tab for union buyouts and early retirements that will shrink Delphi's unionized U.S. work force from 34,000 at the October 2005 Chapter 11 filing to a projected level of 6,200 at emergence from Chapter 11.
GM also agreed to kick in more than $250 million to a private-equity group trying to buy Delphi's global steering business. That operation has annual revenues of $2.6 billion.
Delphi was GM's parts-making operation until it was spun off in 1999.


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Spotify Acquires Preact To Help Boost Paid Subscriptions
As Spotify's label renegotiaions have dragged on, we've heard repeatedly that boosting paid subscriptions is a top priority for rightsholders. Today's acquisition of Preact could help the music streamer accomplish that, without having to drastically alter the freemium tier that has driven strong user growth.
Spotify has acquired San Francisco based Preact to boost its efforts to convert free users into paid subscribers. Converting more freemium users to paid subscribers is essential for Spotify to both satisfy label demands and for its own long term financial stability.
Details of the deal were not revealed, but Preact has raised $12.35 million since 2012, including a $7 million venture round in 2015.
Preact helps companies acquire new subscribers and retain current customers. The Preact team, which will be joining Spotify in the music streamer's San Francisco and New York offices, specializes in predicting consumer behavior around subscription sign-ups and upgrades using analytics, behavioral science and machine learning.
“Finding the trends and behavior patterns in our data that correlate with paid subscriptions is incredibly valuable,” said Jason Richman, VP Product at Spotify. “The addition of Preact to Spotify’s team will help us design experiences that grow our premium customer base.”


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Facebook during its annual Global Partner Summit in New York City has announced new ways to help partners tackle tough marketing challenges.
To this end, Facebook Ads has launched a new tool called “Creative Compass” designed to enable businesses to measure digital ad creative effectiveness.
Facebook has network of experts in its Marketing Partners (FMP) program and in agency community capable of helping businesses tackle businesses challenges.
Through the new tool, these partners will be able to help businesses understand how likely their target audience will take action after seeing an ad on Facebook.
Creative Compass tool will evaluate digital ad creative by looking at key elements and ranking them on a scale from low impact to medium impact to high impact.
Here is a look at the Facebook Ads Creative Compass:
Some examples of key elements that will be evaluated by Creative Compass, include:
- Visual aspects
- Brand association and fit
- Message comprehension
- Information content
- Emotional reward
- Call to action
Facebook is at the moment testing this tool with select partners. The tool will become available to all marketing partners in 2019, as per the company’s plan.
Expansion of Facebook Marketing Partner Ecosystem
Facebook will be expanding its FMP program in 2019 to include more partners particularly smaller agencies that couldn’t qualify to become FMP earlier.
This pilot program called “Facebook PRO” is available to a few select agencies. It’s designed to meet the marketing needs of small and medium advertisers finding new service providers.
The test will help Facebook to standardize benefits, tools, and resources across agency partners.
We’re expanding our partner ecosystem to include new experts and agencies to meet the needs of different types of businesses.
New Facebook Marketing Consultants
Beyond agencies, Facebook is also introducing a new program created for individuals and qualified professionals. Similar to FMP they will help businesses to grow.
The program called “Facebook Marketing Consultants” is in test and connects advertisers with vetted professionals.
Through the program, Facebook aims to fulfill the demand for services for technology implementation like product catalog setup, pixel deployments and dynamic ads campaign setup.
While announcing the first round of consultants from North America, the UK, France, and Germany, Facebook also is welcoming qualified applicants at Facebook.com/FMC.


text: A fresh debate looms over property sales after Henderson Land asked potential buyers to pay a deposit before joining a ballot for private sales in a new development. The company wants prospective buyers to pay HK$100,000 to enter the ballot for flats in the Grand Waterfront project in To Kwa Wan. Those missing out on the flat of their choice would receive a refund. In all, 5,588 customers paid the deposit before the August 26 sales and were given only a price list after submitting their cheques. Henderson Land said it required the deposit to ensure only serious buyers joined the ballot and it did not break any rules as the development was not subject to the government's consent scheme. But the action was at odds with a pact reached by the Real Estate Developers' Association (Reda) in 1997 that all developments be sold under consent scheme rules. In private sales, the developer of a consent scheme project can accept a deposit of about 5 per cent of the purchase price only when the buyer signs a provisional agreement for sale and purchase. The consent scheme usually applies to developments on newly auctioned or newly developed land, while non-consent scheme projects are often in redeveloped areas, such as the To Kwa Wan site. Without naming Henderson, the Consumer Council said it was concerned about the issue. 'It is difficult for buyers to identify between consent scheme and non-consent scheme projects,' said council chief executive Pamela Chan Wong Shui. 'We noticed that there are non-consent scheme projects being sold in a different way from consent scheme ones. We have informed the government and we will call for another meeting with the Reda when necessary.' Ms Chan said the council supported the sale of new flats by ballot, but said information on available units and a price list should be issued before a deposit was paid. The sales procedures for all developments had to be unified, she added. A senior government source said officials had already been informed about the case and would look at the issue in detail. An industry source said developers preferred potential buyers to pay a deposit before buying a flat to give the developers an early indication of the market response. A spokeswoman for Henderson Land said the 1997 Reda agreement was aimed at combating speculation, which was different from the current situation. Tony Tse Wai-chuen, the company's general manager of sales, said: 'If they can register for the ballot simply with their identity card or business registration, then everyone will join.'


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Nissan trials self-driving cars in Europe
Japanese automaker Nissan has demonstrated its latest autonomous drive technology on public roads in Europe for the first time.
The demo took part in the east of London. Prior to this, the automaker has carried out public-road testing of self-driving tech in Japan and the US.
The vehicles have been equipped with autonomous driving technology which includes millimeter wave radar, laser scanners, cameras, high-speed computer chips, and a specialized HMI (Human Machine Interface).
Nissan said the sensors working in unison can operate the vehicle autonomously on both highways and city or urban roads.
The company says that Nissan Intelligent Mobility is an integrated solution to realise the challenges of climate change, traffic congestion, road fatalities and increasing air pollution.
Nissan is planning to launch a multi-lane autonomous driving technology in the US and in China markets. The technology enables to change lanes autonomously on highways and is planned for launch in 2018.
By 2020, the company plans to launch vehicles with autonomous driving on urban roads and intersections.
With Nissan Intelligent Mobility, it claims to reduce the impact of these issues by making transportation safer, smarter and more sustainable.
Nissan is also developing connected cars that can interact with humans, other cars and road infrastructure. This, it says that it can be lead to remote vehicle operation reduced traffic jams, more efficient car sharing and improved energy management.
This is apart from its investment in alternative fuel technologies such as electric, hybrid and fuel cell technologies.
Nissan Research and Advanced Engineering senior vice president Takao Asami said: "Innovation and ingenuity is at the heart of the Nissan brand and its people.
"This test of Nissan's forthcoming autonomous drive technology in the demanding conditions of London streets underlines our commitment to delivering Nissan Intelligent Mobility to our customers."
Image: Nissan LEAF with autonomous driving capabilities being tested in London. Photo: Courtesy of Nissan Motor.


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RTMC spokesperson Simon Zwane said the cars were tracked in 2017 in a mass operation that included the police’s crime intelligence, anti-corruption, and vehicle safety storage (VSS) units; the National Prosecuting Authority; and the RTMC’s own anti-corruption unit.
The operation unearthed a huge car-smuggling syndicate in which government employees, including police officers, were involved.
“The operation was launched after months of investigation and analysis of data on NaTIS [National Traffic Information System] revealing a pattern of how vehicles were fraudulently registered on the system by the Eastern Cape department of transport help desk,” said Zwane.
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A total of 17 suspects, including police officers, transport department officials and foreign nationals, were arrested.
“[The] foreign nationals are suspected to be the kingpins,” Zwane said.
“Out of the 520 vehicles, 91 were confirmed to be illegal vehicles using fraudulent licence discs purporting to be from neighbouring countries such as Malawi. Some of the vehicles used false registration plates from Cape Town and KZN as a way of misleading traffic officers into believing that the vehicles were of South African origin,” Zwane said.
Meanwhile, the 17 face a string of charges including forgery, money laundering, common law fraud, corruption, selling of illicit goods, contravention of the Customs and Excise Act and the National Road Traffic Act.
All of them are out on R2,000 bail.


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BATTLE CREEK — About seven years ago, Arcadia Brewing Co. President and Founder Tim Suprise said business was at the point where he saw a light at the end of the tunnel and thought it was an oncoming train.
But a few timely decisions later, including breaking into new markets and re-branding the company, the Battle Creek brewery is about to celebrate its 15th anniversary and launch a major expansion in Southwest Michigan.
Arcadia, which brews British-style ales, will hold its “Highland Christmas” party starting with breakfast at 9 a.m. Saturday and continuing until close. Arcadia made 603 barrels in 1996 and expects to make more than 10,000 barrels this year.
The light wasn’t as bad as Suprise originally thought.
“It was actually the light of day ... I’m thankful for having survived the difficult and lean times,” Suprise said. “This one will be a special anniversary to celebrate — an interesting ride to this point.”
The anniversary party will include food, live music, a Yard-of-Ale contest and the release of two specialty brews. Suggested donations are $3 before 4 p.m. and $5 after 4 p.m. Proceeds from admission will go to the Food Bank of South Central Michigan.
Eight years ago, Suprise took his beer into several new markets causing an increase in production numbers. Three years ago, Arcadia started a re-branding campaign that included new beer labels. Those moves have helped the brewery thrive, Suprise said.
After 50 percent growth during the past two years, he said the current brewery in downtown Battle Creek can no longer meet production demands for Arcadia beer, and he wants to build a new production facility in Southwest Michigan.
“We’re planning for an expansion in 2012, and that’s exciting,” he said.
One of the best spectator-friendly events at the party is the annual Yard-of-Ale contest where competitors will race to drink a yard of beer, or about 58 ounces. Brian Stinson holds the record at 12 seconds.
It also will mark the debut of two specialty ales for the occasion — sour ales called “XV” and “15.”
Head brewer Josh Davies took six wine barrels and six bourbon barrels and aged a brown ale with 30 pounds of Michigan cherries in each barrel for about eight or nine months. They will go on sale in 22-ounce bottles starting at noon Saturday. Bottles, which will be hand-dipped in wax, will sell for $15 each; cases also will be available, but they will be limited to one per customer. Arcadia has brewed enough for 116 cases, and bottles likely will be hard to find in stores.
“If you want this beer, you’ve got to come to the brewery to get it,” Suprise said.


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Sergio Bernales wrote:Okay, the sol is hitting 3.45 to the dollar. Looks like 3.5 is in sight. My thought is maybe it should start to stabilise around now that there has been an interest rate hike in the US, but with all the instability in the world economy, we might be looking at 3.60 or 3.70... good for US tourists and those whose income is dollars.
Interest rate hikes only make the Dollar stronger,not weaker. The real reason for Dollar strength is the lower price of oil. The lower oil goes, the higher the Dollar.
Well, of course it's true that higher interest rate usually support a currency or can push its exchange rate higher, but market sentiment often has a much bigger effect. I'd have thought the ending of quantitative easing in late 2014 was probably the single biggest factors in the dollar's rise. If you chart the dollar's exchange rate against a basket of currencies from the Fed announcement, the dollar's rise pretty much starts then. In the US, the recent interest rate rise was expected, so the dollar had already risen substantially. Its rise since interest rates went up hasn't been particularly impressive. http://www.bloombergview.com/quicktake/ ... asing-tapehttp://www.jdavidstein.com/currency-exchange.htmlhttp://money.cnn.com/2014/09/29/investi ... year-high/
If the market expects another rise in US interest rates, then the dollar will start to rise long before interest rates do, as long as investors expect the economy to grow strongly, or if they expect the rest of the world to do even worse than the States. This is another factor in dollar strength, turbulence in the world economy. As the world reserve currency, the dollar is a safe haven for difficult times. The eurozone is fragile, China is in trouble, many other emerging economies, like Brazil, South Africa, Turkey, are in trouble. So naturally investors looks for a safe place to park their money, the US, which in turn pushes up the currency.
As for the low price of oil making the dollar stronger, it can do, but the relationship is no longer causal. In effect, what happened in the past is the low price of oil made gasoline cheaper for US consumers and businesses that use a lot of fuel, such as transport, so this gave consumers more disposable income to spend on other goods and services which would then help the economy, while it also created savings for businesses that used lots of fuel, meaning they could give higher payouts to investors, or invest more. The US also imported lots of its oil, a low oil price meant spending a lot less on imports and so a virtuous circle.
However, recently there's a lot of evidence that after the financial crisis and the boom in shale oil production, the persistent low oil price could potentially seriously damage the US economy, as large chunks of US manufacturing is now involved in the oil industry. Moreover, many big banks have lent tens of billions to the industry and as so much money has been invested by business that the effect on their balance sheets could infect other areas of activity. Also as America is now a large producer of oil, the benefits of a lower price are less than for those countries that are big importers of oil, such as India, which has greatly benefited from the recent price falls. The articles below sum it up really well.
"At the start of 2015, JPMorgan, a bank, reckoned that cheap oil would boost GDP by around 0.7%—a boost to consumers’ purchasing power equivalent to 1% of GDP, offset by a smaller drag from weaker oil-industry investment. It now reckons the outcome was between a contraction of 0.3% and a boost of a measly 0.1%. Consumers may have saved more of the windfall than had seemed likely and the share of oil-related capital spending in total business investment in America, which had steadily risen for years, has fallen by half."
"As prices have tumbled, so has investment. Projects worth $380 billion have been put on hold. In America spending on fixed assets in the oil industry has fallen by half from its peak. The poison has spread: the purchasing managers’ index for December, of 48.2, registered an accelerating contraction across the whole of American manufacturing."http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/2 ... raid-cheaphttp://www.economist.com/news/briefing/ ... bal-growth


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The recent 2022 Oregon Vineyard & Winery report published by the Oregon Wine Board provides an opportunity to compare the Oregon and Washington wine industries across a series of metrics. (Also see my previous article on key takeaways.) Specifically, I looked at: number of wineries, total acreage, tons produced, price per ton, leading variety and its associated cost, cases produced, and other numbers. Here is what I found.
As I wrote recently, Oregon has now surpassed Washington to have the second most wineries of any state in the country (1,116 in Oregon in 2022 versus 1,070 in Washington in 2022). On one hand, this is surprising, given how much larger the Washington wine industry is by a number of measures.
On the other hand, going back 10 years, Oregon had more wineries than Washington at that point in time. Washington having considerably more wineries than Oregon has only dates back to 2016, when Washington had 760 wineries to Oregon’s 725. The recent surge in Oregon wineries is not surprising considering the moment in the sun Willamette Valley is having.
There are currently sizable differences in planted acreage between Washington and Oregon. As one would expect, Washington has considerably more.
However, with recent news about Ste. Michelle Wine Estates dropping 40% of its fruit contracts, there has been talk that Washington has 10,000 more planted acres than it needs. If the state were to subtract this acreage (to be clear, it is unlikely to subtract that entire amount), it would draw the two states much closer together in acreage. Planting in Oregon is also continuing at a quick clip, whereas Washington has recently leveled off somewhat.
There are also significant differences, as one would expect, in the total tons produced by the two states. Oregon produced a record crop in 2022 (137,065 tons). However, Washington’s harvest in 2022 was 75% larger (240,000 tons). It was also a good bit below the state’s record of 270,000 tons.
Oregon is currently at a point where it routinely breaks tonnage records as the industry grows. In contrast, Washington’s record tonnage dates back to 2016. More recent years have been uneven in production due to a variety of environmental and market factors.
Average price per ton
There are also dramatic differences in the average price per ton of grapes. Oregon’s average price per ton is 76% above Washington’s. This is indicative of a number of things, from the cost of land to the cost of farming, the overall demand for specific varieties, and the costs associated with those varieties.
As one would expect, the two states’ lead varieties are radically different. Oregon’s is Pinot Noir. This variety makes up a staggering 60% of planted acreage. In Washington, it is Cabernet Sauvignon, which makes up 34%.
These two varieties also have substantial differences in average prices. Oregon Pinot Noir is considerably more expensive per ton than Washington Cabernet Sauvignon.
Note that the dollar number in the table looks at Oregon as a whole. If one were to look at Willamette Valley specifically, this number would surely go up. Similarly, if one were to look at, say, Red Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon versus Washington Cabernet, those two numbers would be markedly different.
No surprise, Washington produces a lot more wine than Oregon does. Oregon makes approximately 5.7M cases of wine annually. Washington currently makes a little over two and a half times that, at 15M cases.
There are also significant differences in the size of wineries in the two states. In Oregon, 75% of producers make less than 5,000 cases annually. In Washington, they make up 95% of producers.
Bottom line, both states are dominated by small wineries. However, Washington has a much larger percentage of small producers than Oregon does.
Grapes crushed in-state versus out-of-state
One of the more interesting differences is in the percentage of fruit crushed outside of each state. According to the Washington Wine Commission, approximately 2% of Washington’s fruit is crushed outside the state. (Full disclosure: I have consulted for the Washington State Wine Commission since 2013.)
In Oregon, that number is an astounding 31.1%! According to the Oregon Wine Board, that number has gone from marginal in 2012 to 24.1% in 2018 to 31.1% now. Wow.
Although it’s not entirely clear where this fruit is going, Oregon’s huge percentage of fruit crushed outside the state likely reflects its shared border with California. Additionally, it is indicative of the current avarice for the state’s wines from producers and consumers alike.
Canada is the largest export market for both states. However, Canada makes up approximately 10% more of Oregon’s exports.
Finally, it is difficult to make direct comparisons of the amount of sustainable or organic wine grape acreage farmed. The 2022 Oregon Vineyard & Winery Report estimates that 35-40% of the state’s vineyards are certified.
Washington does not currently formally track this number. However, the Washington Wine Commission estimates that 30% of the state’s vineyards are either certified by Sustainable WA or are in the process of being certified. This certification program was launched in 2022. Of note, there are substantial differences between the various certification programs.
NOTE: Northwest Wine Report is wholly subscriber funded. The site currently has 70% of the minimum number of paid subscribers needed to be financially viable. Please subscribe to support continued independent content and reviews on this site.
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Mi 6X, which is Xiaomi’s latest upcoming smartphone, has been officially launched in China today. The company hosted an event in the city of Wuhan, and had a livestream for the event as well. Mi 6X is the new version of the older Mi 5X, which was launched as Mi A1 in India and other global markets.
Mi A1 ran stock Android, though the camera app was from Xiaomi itself. The smartphone is assured of two years of Android updates and the Mi A1 has already been upgraded to Android Oreo in India. The Mi A1 was launched at Rs 14,999 and while the phone is out of stock in India, the company insists it has not been discontinued. In contrast, the Mi 6X is already being referred to as Mi A2 in India, even though the company has not yet confirmed if it will launch the phone in India.
Mi 6X features a newer 18:9 aspect ratio display coupled with the newer Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 processor. The highest variant of the Mi 6X comes with 6GB RAM, 128GB storage and the rear camera is 12MP+20MP, while the front camera is 20MP.


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Polaris and Arctic Cat: A Snowmobile Success Story
Two U.S. snowmobile companies use new products to ride out recessionary times and grow
Story by Jerry Bassett, Photography by Jerry Bassett, Polaris, Arctic Cat, May 10, 2012
If you look at the two ‘Made in America’ snowmobile companies, Arctic Cat and Polaris, you’ll find that they are both doing quite well despite what election year politicians will characterize as tough times.
Unlike the point-the-finger of blame at the other guy politics of today, real world business leaders buckle down, strap in and figure out solutions to survival. Today’s powersport leaders could have whined and suffered. They didn’t. Heck, Polaris and Arctic Cat both gained credibility with Wall Street analysts who probably aren’t quite sure how these two companies have not only ridden out the recession but also manage to prosper. When you read a modern stock analysis of these two firms, it almost seems that the stock analyst writes with admiration.
One reason could be, for example, that shareholder return in Polaris dating from April 2007 to April 2012 was 256 percent! Wasn’t that a prime recessionary period? In fact, at the annual shareholder meeting held April 26 at Polaris’ Medina, Minn. headquarters, Polaris chief executive officer Scott Wine started the meeting by announcing that the company’s stock price had hit a new high. Not a bad way to kick off a shareholders’ meeting.
We journeyed across town from our penthouse (okay, second floor) suite in St. Paul to Polaris HQ to see for ourselves how in the world these guys were doing it. After all, the recent first quarter report had come out and sled sales — quarter to quarter — were off 48 percent year-to-year. However, in the months preceding that, Polaris allowed that its North American snowmobile market share jumped five points by the end of 2011 reflecting “…the biggest retail sales increase in six years.”
For the upcoming 2012 selling season, Polaris will be optimistic but realistic as well, expecting sales to be flat against an industry that will see a slight dip in overall sales due to the horrendous “no-snow” winter period from January to March 2012. Prior to that debacle, all sled makers were enjoying an excellent pre-season, which most likely made the losses less painful. It remains to be seen how that will impact this coming season.
Polaris and other companies acknowledge that dealers’ sled inventories are up, but “manageable.” That usually means good deals on non-current models and companies holding off on introducing a bevy of totally new sleds that would impact sales of carryover units. We have seen this at the annual photo and test sessions. There were new models, but truly new introductions were relatively modest.
Polaris snowmobiles only make up 11 percent of the company’s product mix compared to ATVs and side by sides that make up 69 percent. At Arctic Cat, snowmobiles and wheeled vehicles each represent 39 percent of the company’s business.
Arctic Cat made a major commitment to its sled side last season where 23 all new models accounted for 75 percent of the model year 2012 sled line up. Able to maintain healthy sales during this recessionary period, Arctic Cat feels that if the industry rebounds to prerecession levels the company would enjoy a wholesale sales increase of up to 65 percent.
In the U.S., snowmobile sales dropped from about 80,000 units in 2007 to less than 40,000 by 2010, but began to reflect a modest 6.6 percent growth in Arctic Cat’s 2011 fiscal year. During that time Canada showed an up tick of 8.5 percent.
You’d think that the vagaries of winter would scare off stock purchases in powersport companies like Arctic Cat and Polaris. But when a company like Polaris can demonstrate a three-year return in shareholder value of more than 500 percent, potential investors have to realize that parking money in a savings account is less effective. And when these companies demonstrate a willingness to expand and diversify into synergistic growth, well, why not.
Arctic Cat expanded its ATV and all new Wildcat side-by-side four wheeler into a unique military application, the Wildcat LT. Likewise Polaris diversified into a defense and government sales group by transforming its wheeled products and certain electric vehicles. Polaris Defense claims to hold the leading market share position in ultra-light military vehicles. This group offers defense-specific units for utility, tactical needs and even an unmanned application for mine detection.
While Polaris’ more than US$2.6 billion annual sales dwarfs Arctic Cat’s 2011 sales of US$464 million, both companies show strong growth for 2012. In the first nine months of the current fiscal year, Arctic Cat already exceeded its entire sales figures for all of 2011.
Before we wax poetic about how well both companies are doing and have done in surviving a nasty recession, it may pay us all to be realistic about the past. In point of fact, Arctic Cat may be trending upward in 2012, but that still pales to how the company was doing in the previous decade. The company’s balance sheet in 2004 showed net sales of US$649.6 million when ATV sales surpassed sled sales.
There is no getting around the fact that Arctic Cat stock hit a 52-week high of more than US$45 per share at the end of April. Compare that to March 2009 when you could buy a share for less than US$3. Stock watchers attribute the current strength to superior management as the company streamlined itself to manage more efficiencies in every aspect of its business such as better managing of dealer inventory and allowing improved ordering of some popular products.
It’s a bit amazing to think that one man, Edgar Hetteen, founded both companies in quite small northwestern Minnesota towns and that both have gone on to become not simply snowmobile industry leaders, but world powersport product leaders as well. Polaris claims number one market share in North American powersports, out selling former leader Honda.
Polaris expanded the most in the past decade, diversifying out of sleds and ATVs to products like electric vehicles, on-road motorcycles and defense products. The company now has 11 subsidiaries, 43 distributors and more than 1,000 independent dealers in 130 countries, which generated more than US$400 million in sales this past fiscal year. We doubt that Edgar Hetteen’s vision could have imagined that his companies would have grown and diversified to such a degree and that combined that they would reach sales worth more than US$3 billion annually!