text:
On August 7, the official release date of the new Samsung Galaxy Note 10 has been set. It’s almost a month before the presentation, and we already know
Galaxy Note 10
Galaxy Note 10 in the Samsung Galaxy lineupthe largest smartphone, which is also equipped with an additional stylus. According to the photos leaked to the network, it will be presented including in pearl silver-blue color, a black version will also be available. The design of the novelty is the same as its predecessor: a glass case with a curved screen. But on the front panel is now the screen from edge to edge and one central hole in the display for the camera.
On the back of the device, we see a module withthree cameras located vertically. There were rumors that the Galaxy Note 10 will receive four cameras at the back (plus ToF), but so far they have not been confirmed. Either the renderers simply depict a 6.28-inch model, as stated by Roland Quandt of WinFuture. Next month, Samsung will launch a second, larger 6.75-inch Note 10 next month. If this model includes an array of four cameras with ToF, the company will debut with 3D depth measurement technology, thus outperforming Apple. Also rumored to be a larger version will include support for 5G. Recall that the American company Apple also has not yet submitted an iPhone with 5G support.
Looking at the renders, you can see the lackfingerprint scanner. Apparently, it will be built into the display. Another noticeable change is that the novelty has one button less than Note 9. It is possible that the Bixby button is missing.
There is an open question about the availability of standard3.5 mm headphone jacks There were rumors that the Galaxy Note 10 "jack" will be absent. The photo of this will not be able to see. But if this is the case, then the Galaxy line will be completely new.
In addition to the announcement of the new Galaxy Note 10 on August 7, weWe can also hear news about the Galaxy Fold, which is rumored to be ready for re-launch. Recall that its sales did not start, since a number of flaws and flaws were found in the phone.


text:
American fashion designer of Nepal origin Prabal Gurung has begun raising funds for the victims of the earthquake in his native country.
The 36-year-old designer, who has dressed personalities like US First Lady Michelle Obama and the Duchess of Cambridge, has been spearheading an effort to raise funds and awareness for the country.
“Please help my fundraiser: Nepal Earthquake Fund. Donate and spread the word. Every dollar counts,” Gurung posted on twitter.
The New-York-based designer has raised USD 386,624 through his Shikshya Foundation Nepal so far.
Gurung left Nepal in 2000 to attend Parsons, the New School for Fashion Design, but his parents, siblings, nieces and nephews still live in the country.
In an interview to New York Times, Gurung said he is in constant touch with his family. “They are all sleeping outside their houses because of fear of aftershocks. There is no electricity. It is raining,” he said.

domain: news


text:
It has been more than half a year since the seaborne iron ore market got a new tool to manage the price risks associated with exposure to the high-grade segment. And judging by the performance of the Singapore Exchange’s 65%
Fe iron ore futures contract so far this year, it is serving its purpose.
A deal struck between the European Union and South America’s Mercosur trading group will boost trade between the two blocs
in non-ferrous metals and related products, Fastmarkets heard on Tuesday July 2.
Cobalt prices came under pressure
across the supply chain in June, facing weak seasonal demand while still finding a balance in light of upstream supply increases and changing Chinese consumption habits.
Ferro-silicon prices in China increased sharply
in the week ended June 28 following a steady run of five weeks after lower output and higher futures prices encouraged suppliers to raise offers ahead of monthly tenders from Chinese steel mills.
Treatment charges for lead concentrates rose in June
after a price arbitrage that encouraged imports closed off and major supplying mine Peñasquito returned to the market after a month-long layoff.


text:
L’Oréal USA unveils 2014 NEXT Generation Award winners
NEW YORK — L'Oréal USA Women in Digital, a program that recruits, supports and promotes female entrepreneurs in technology, has announced the three new companies that have been selected as winners of its 2014 NEXT Generation Awards.
The winners — GLAMSQUAD, Jibo and Shareablee — were honored Thursday evening at an event in New York City hosted by athlete, fashion pioneer, actress and L'Oreal Paris spokeswoman Aimee Mullins, to celebrate both established and up-and-coming female leaders in technology.
"Each year we build upon the successes of years past, finding new ways to enhance the program and expand the reach and resources we provide to female entrepreneurs," stated Rachel Weiss, VP of digital innovation at L'Oréal USA and chair of L'Oréal USA Women in Digital. "This year's winners are among the best and brightest women in technology, with forward-thinking products that have the power to transform the way consumers interact with the beauty industry."
The L'Oréal USA Women in Digital NEXT Generation Awards are given to three female-founded companies considered game-changers in the technology space that have created innovative business solutions that underscore the needs of the modern day connected consumer. The winners were selected by L'Oréal executives, partners and an advisory board of female leaders in technology that include Arianna Huffington, chair, president and editor-in-chief of the Huffington Post Media Group; Joanne Bradford, head of partnerships at Pinterest; Alexia Tsotsis, co-editor of TechCrunch; and Padmasree Warrior, chief technology and strategy officer of Cisco Systems.
Once selected to join the Women in Digital program, the winners are provided with the opportunity to launch and scale new technologies with L'Oréal brands. In partnership with L'Oréal's NEXT fund, a program to foster go-to-market experimentation across L'Oréal USA, L'Oréal brands will compete internally for the opportunity to work with these top entrepreneurs on their coveted pilots.
As a way to provide mentorship and act as a springboard for these young companies to launch and grow, L'Oréal also grants these entrepreneurs with access to its advisory board, network of venture capitalists and top executives.
2014 NEXT GENERATION AWARD WINNERS:
GLAMSQUAD – Victoria Eisner, co-founder and chief creative officer: GLAMSQUAD is an app-based beauty provider that delivers professional beauty services to the home or office in as little as an hour's notice.
Jibo – Cynthia Breazeal, founder: Created by Breazeal, a pioneer of social robotics and human robot interaction from the MIT Media Lab, Jibo is the world's first family robot that brings intelligence and helpfulness with heart to the connected home.
Shareablee – Tania Yuki, founder and CEO: Launched in 2013, Shareablee is an authority on audience intelligence, competitive benchmarking and actionable insights for social media. The official social media analytics partner of comScore, Shareablee measures a census of global properties and collects brand audience and engagement data across Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Google+, Tumblr, LinkedIn, YouTube and Pinterest.
As part of this year's Women in Digital program, L'Oréal is offering one full scholarship, valued at $15,000, for a woman to learn to code at Hackbright Academy in San Francisco. The first software engineering school created exclusively for women, Hackbright Academy is committed to providing students with a practical skill set and connecting them with the industry relationships they need to succeed. The L'Oréal scholarship recipient will be selected from a class of 40 students admitted to the program for the winter 2015 term.
"As the world's largest beauty company, L'Oréal has the opportunity to put women at the center of our innovation efforts, driving female entrepreneurs to innovate and push the boundaries of knowledge to become leaders in the digital arena," added Weiss. "As our Women in Digital program continues to grow, so will its reach and ability to shift society's mindset around women in technology."
Previous NEXT Generation Award winners and honorees include: Heather Marie of Shoppable, whose patent-pending proprietary technology allows digital media sites and mobile applications to sell third party products using a universal checkout, is now developing an ecommerce platform across all of L'Oréal's brands; Melody McCloskey of StyleSeat, whose online marketplace for stylists and beauty professionals to connect with clients has already raised $14 million in funding , recently partnered with L'Oréal's Professional Product division to bring their entire network of salon owners and stylists on board; and Kelsey Falter of Poptip piloted her social media data analysis technology with L'Oréal and quickly signed on brands among the likes of Yoplait, NFL, Spotify and Budweiser, before being acquired by Palantir, a big data company that's valued at $9 billion.
A&P refinances credit facilities, looks to ‘accelerate growth strategies’
MONTVALE, N.J. — A&P has completed the refinancing of its existing senior debt, which it says will enable the company to further invest in the business and ramp up growth strategies.
A&P has partnered with Wells Fargo Capital Finance to arrange the new $300 million senior secured ABL facility and $270 million senior secured term loan through an amendment and restatement of its existing credit agreements.
According to A&P, its enhanced capital structure is the latest indication of the company’s improved business fundamentals, and follows the upgraded ratings outlooks issued by each of Moody’s and Standard & Poor’s earlier this year. The new covenant-free debt arrangement provides for a significant reduction in interest expense and enhanced liquidity.
“We are extremely pleased to have completed the refinancing of our credit facilities on attractive terms that reduce our borrowing costs and provide greater operational and financial flexibility. Our new senior debt puts the company in a much stronger financial position and allows us to focus on investing in our business by supporting and accelerating our growth strategies,” stated Paul Hertz, president and CEO.
Superior front-end experience, improved patient outcomes will define Rite Aid’s success
"We're tracking right on target and we are going to start opening them in several months. So you are going to see them aggressively rolling out and we are very excited about the opportunity that lies ahead of us here," Martindale told analysts during that second-quarter conference call. That additional foot traffic not only gives Rite Aid the opportunity to showcase their superior front-end offering, but also generates incremental prescription business.


text:
Next year, the blue and red Maestro logo will disappear from EC cards from July.
Some savings banks have already started issuing new Girocards.
Munich – Around 100 million Girocards are used in Germany, making it by far the most used bank card.
There will be a big change for its users in the coming year: the blue and red Maestro logo will disappear from the Girocard from July 2023.
So far, the savings banks have been the quickest of the German credit institutions to make the switch.
Maestro-Aus: Girocard should get new functions
The new Girocard will be equipped with Mastercard or Visa instead of Maestro and will have additional online functions.
“The termination of the Maestro function may have given the public the wrong feeling that the Girocard can no longer be used as before.
But the opposite is the case," said the deputy chief executive of the Association of German Banks (BdB), Henriette Peucker, of the German Press Agency in Frankfurt.
"We want to make the Girocard even more usable with new functions in online trading and in the digital world," announced Peucker on behalf of the German banking industry (DK).
This year, the BdB is the leader of this umbrella organization of the five major banking associations in Germany.
"For example, it is about the possibility of making a deposit, for example when reserving a hotel room or a rental car," said Peucker, explaining the plans to expand the Girocard functions.
"And also about consistently bringing the Girocard to the smartphone and opening it up for in-app payments."
Peucker left open exactly when the new functions will come: "It's not yet the moment to give a firm schedule.
The preparations are ongoing."
Savings banks have already started the changeover
The first savings banks have already completed the conversion: According to the
, Sparkasse Siegen has already equipped all 170,000 Girocards in circulation with the Mastercard function.
The Sparkasse Niederbayern-Mitte started exchanging 110,000 EC cards in December.
Unlike the Sparkasse Siegen, however, it relies on Visa, the newspaper reports.
Around 60 percent of the savings banks would have opted for a Girocard with Mastercard, the rest for Visa.
Changes are also to be made from the central side in the coming year: According to the Handelsblatt
, S-Payment, a payment service provider for the savings banks, is planning
a “central changeover date” to Mastercard and Visa for new and replacement cards at the end of the first half of 2023.
Then it's the turn of the existing customers.
The Kreissparkasse Köln, for example, is planning to issue the new Girocard in new business from June 2023.
"The exchange of cards in existing business is planned from October 2023," the newspaper quoted the bank as saying.
Girocard: Will the additional functions cost anything?
Should consumers expect that the additional functions of the Girocard will cost them something?
"Each institute decides for itself on its product and pricing policy," Peucker replied, and at the same time said: "Payment functions are in competition, there are alternatives for customers.
Everyone is aware of that.”
With material from the dpa
With material from the dpa
List of rubrics: © Fabian Sommer/dpa


text:
We provide the best equity and commodity tips CALL 09200009266
Saturday, 8 December 2012
Reasons For Gold Being Weak
The recent weakness in gold is the result of selling by futures traders, said Commerzbank in a commodity snippet.
Spot metal hit a four-week low of $1,685 an ounce Wednesday, while the Comex most-active February contract hit a four-week low of $1,686.
"In euro terms, the yellow precious metal has fallen to around €1,290 per troy ounce, actually putting it at its lowest level for 4½ months," said the second largest German bank.
If ECB cuts the interest rates, then that can increase the money supply in the economy weakening Euro and strengthening Dollar. This means gold prices would weaken further as gold and dollar are inversely related. But, what eventually happens is that investors would invest the profits they booked in Dollar trade in low-hanging gold. That means gold prices would climb further from the lows.


text:
Just a few days ago, PlayStation 5 celebrated its first year in the market with the constant during these twelve months of some stock problems that do not seem to have a solution in the short term. These will continue to be notable throughout the next year 2022, causing serious difficulties for all those who want a unit of the new Sony console to get it, a fact that has not gone unnoticed by Jim Ryan, CEO of Sony CE, who has apologized for this in a commemorative message.
In this message, Ryan mainly emphasizes that Sony is trying everything possible so that this situation can be reversed and as many units as possible can be distributed.
“We continue to see historic demand for PS5, and we understand that reduced inventories continue to be a source of frustration for many of our customers,” says Ryan. “Rest assured that we are focused on doing everything in our power to distribute as many units as possible, it is something we work on every day in the company and it continues to be my top priority. Again, I appreciate your patience as we sail to through these unprecedented global challenges. “
A problem that is difficult to solve
Ryan’s comments come after a Bloomberg report according to which Sony would have had to reduce its production forecast during this fiscal year – until March of next year – by one million units, from 16 million to 15. However, and despite these drawbacks, PlayStation 5 has been able to be on the verge of reaching the not inconsiderable figure of 14 million consoles sold, a figure that despite being well, from Sony they have recognized that it is below forecasts.
Source: PlayStation Blog


text:
Honda SUV e:prototype Debuts At Auto Shanghai 2021
The production version of this prototype will be the first of 10 EV models that Honda will introduce in the next 5 years.
Honda has showcased the SUV e:prototype at Auto Shanghai 2021, the production model of which will go on sale in China in spring next year.
That model will be the first among 10 EV models that the Japanese carmaker will introduce within the next 5 years.
The design of the Honda SUV e:prototype bears a striking resemblance to the 2022 HR-V that was revealed in February.
At the front, the car has an aggressive bumper housing an air intake and plenty of lighting elements dominated by the long DRLs that come with the headlight.
Along the sides, the design is clean, with the model having slim ORVMs and door handles that sit flush with the body. Of course, there are large alloy wheels present as well.
At the back, the 2022 HR-Vs design remains on the Honda SUV e:prototype. But, it does get a stop light that runs the full width of the roof spoiler and a different bumper. No interior images have been released as of now.
In addition, Honda also states that this prototype model features the third-generation version of Honda CONNECT that offers functions such as voice-recognition, connectivity, smartphone link, OTA updates, operation of smart home appliances, among others.
Honda says the new generation Honda CONNECT will be available with new models that it will launch in China in the second half of this year. Moreover, the Honda SUV e:prototype will also receive the firm’s ADAS tech.
Thus far, no details of the electric SUV’s powertrain, battery size or other technical specifications have been revealed by the carmaker.
But, Honda will showcase the Breeze PHEV, which is GAC Honda’s first plug-in hybrid model. Based on the CR-V, it has a 2-motor hybrid system called Sport Hybrid i-MMD and is scheduled to go on sale in China in the second half of 2021.


text:
Hitwise: Shopping, Classifieds Web Site Visits Up 25.6 Percent
Traffic to those sites was up 25.6 percent this year versus the year-ago period. Visits peaked on Thanksgiving Day, marking a correlation to holiday shopping patterns observed last year.
"In looking forward to the next holiday season, this repeating pattern provides invaluable insight to marketers in order to maximize their online marketing spend," Hitwise vice president of research Bill Tancer said in a statement.
Hitwise daily data from the 2003 and 2004 holiday seasons show that online traffic peaks occur on weekends. The exceptions are Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day.
Another trend reported by Hitwise was how the market share of visits to largely Internet retailers peaked over a range of days. Visits to the sites of Dell, eBay and Amazon peaked on Dec. 9, 10 and 11, respectively.
By contrast, visits to the online stores of the leading bricks-and-mortar brands -- including walmart.com, BestBuy.com and target.com -- often peaked on Nov. 25, Thanksgiving Day.
This phenomenon, according to Hitwise, was the result of consumers researching online before hitting the physical stores on the heavily-shopped day after Thanksgiving.
Also, visits to the sites of bricks-and-mortar retailers jumped on Christmas Day as visitors considered returns and researched post-Christmas sales.
"Where 2004 differed from 2003 was in the delayed, yet rapid, growth curve leading into Thanksgiving," Tancer said. "Shopping sites increased 26 percent from Nov. 1 to Nov. 24 versus a 6.8 percent increase over the same period in 2003. With the elections, the war in Iraq and mixed economic signals, it appears that consumer uncertainty played some role in that shift."
The National Retail Federation expects the post-Christmas week to account for 10 percent of all multi-channel holiday shopping, including redemption of gift cards, upgraded exchanges and sales-related purchases.
Meanwhile, Amazon said it completed its busiest holiday season in its 10 years of existence. Consumer electronics for the first time overtook books as the largest sales category at the Amazon.com site for the United States.
While Amazon did not disclose the date --pointed out by Hitwise as Nov. 11 for visits -- the Seattle retailer claimed to have set a single-day record with more than 2.8 million units ordered worldwide, or 32 products per second. On the same peak day, Amazon's global fulfillment network shipped more than 2 million units to customers.
Mickey Alam Khan covers Internet marketing campaigns and e-commerce for DM News.com. To keep up with the latest internet marketing news subscribe to our free weekly e-mail newsletter DM News Daily by visiting www.dmnews.com/newsletters


text:
- Actor Inder Kumar dies of heart attack
- Armed forces fully equipped to deal with contingencies: Jaitley
- Panamagate case: SC disqualifies Sharif
- Nitish Kumar moves confidence motion in Bihar Assembly
- RJD MLAs protest against Nitish outside Bihar assembly
- Doval says 'outcome' at BRICS security meet will have an impact on summit
- Panamagate: Sharif's fate hangs in balance
Auto companies to launch 69 products at Auto Expo 2014
The 2014 edition of the India Auto Expo will be more organised, focussed and grandier with record number of 69 launches happening at the new venue of Greater Noida.
The 12th edition of the Auto Expo from February 5, will witness 23 car and SUV exhibitors, 47 vehicle exhibitors, 10 Commercial Vehicle exhibitors and 6 electric vehicle exhibitors. A total of 35 auto makers had participated in the last Auto Expo.
This is also for the first time that some of brands are participating for the first time like — Datsun, Italian bike maker Moto Morini, DSK Hyosung and Japan's Isuzu Motors.
While 11th edition of the Auto Expo 2012 had seen 47 vehicles getting launched, Auto Expo 2014 will see a record number of 69 launches happening at Greater Noida out of which 26 would be global ones.
Tata Motors along with Jaguar and Land Rover, will launch highest number of vehicles. While Tata Motors will have 7 global launches, JLR will have 4 launches for Indian market. Tata motors plans to unveil its line of Falcon 4 and Falcon 5 vehicles. In all, they would launch maximum number of 11 products.
Luxury carmaker BMW and French carmaker Renault will have four launches each. While BMW will showcase four models including its Mini brand, Renault has lined up 3 global and one Indian launches at the venue.
As regards, country’s largest carmaker, Maruti Suzuki India is going to have 3 global launches. Maruti may unveil its much talked about hatchback named ‘Celerio’. XA Alpha SUV that was showcased at Auto Expo 2012, is also supposed at the event. Maruti Suzuki also plans to unveil the face-lifted version of the Swift and A-Star.
Maruti’s arch rival South Korean carmaker Hyundai will have one global and local launch each. Hyundai is expected to take the wraps off its new Grand i10 compact sedan at the Auto Expo.
As for bike lovers, they will also get their dues as altogether 12 launches would happen out of which three would be global ones. The new venue would see 17 commercial vehicles getting launched out which 8 would be global launch.
Auto Expos have always provided most suitable platform for global carmakers to launch their vehicles and this is the reason auto experts say this kind of event see a huge success and cars launched at the Auto Expo generate good sales later on.
This is for the first time that Component Show would be retained at Indian Auto Expo, Pragati Maidan in Delhi between the 6th-9th February 2014 but the automotive manufacturers show would be held at Indian Expo Mart at Greater Noida between the 7th-11th February 2014.
The new venue has clear advantage over Pragati Maidan because of its having ultra modern facilities that allow event managers to build special modern enclosures that let the manufacturers display their new and existing products.
The new venue has a total of 2,35,000 sq. meters of area, out of which almost 75,000 sq. meters are fixed indoor exhibition centers of which over 60,000 sq. meters will be utilized for the 2014 Indian Auto Expo. An additional 18,000 sq. meters will be used for activities like driving simulators, motorcycle riding areas, electric and hybrid mobility city (including a driving experience) and a large vintage car display. An additional 32,000 sq. meters will be used for the likes of a VIP and media lounge, offices, food and beverage restaurants, and various entertainment acts.
- TRAVEL CHEAP - TRAVEL MORE WITH ALPFLY AIR PACKAGES 28 Jul 2017 | PNS
- Idea posts Rs 816-cr loss in Apr-Jun qtr 28 Jul 2017 | PNS
- ICICI Bank Q1 net up 3.5% to Rs 2,605 cr 28 Jul 2017 | PTI
- Mutual fund exposure to bank stocks at record Rs 1.47 lakh cr 28 Jul 2017 | PTI
- Sebi to meet bourses, discuss cyber security, ‚Äėtechnical glitches‚Äô 28 Jul 2017 | PTI
- ONGC confirms Govt slapping it, RIL with $3.9 bn demand 28 Jul 2017 | PNS
- ITC Q1 net profit up 7.37% to Rs 2,560.50 crore 28 Jul 2017 | PNS
- IUC row simmers, Jio says COAI had no business airing views 28 Jul 2017 | PTI
- Amazon founder Jeff Bezos is the world‚Äôs new richest man 28 Jul 2017 | PNS/Agencies
- Diageo asks Mallya to return $40 mn, seeks compensation 28 Jul 2017 | PTI
Sunday EditionView All
23 Jul 2017 | IANS | New Delhi
Only 349 of 4,862 India's large dams have emergency disaster action plans in place, the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India's performance report on flood control and management schemes of the Water Resources Ministry has revealed. "Out of 4,862 large dams, emergency action plans or disaster management plans of only 349 dams, which is seven per cent, were prepared (March 2016)...
STATE EDITIONSView All
28 Jul 2017 | Staff Reporter | bhopal
The theatre artists are learning about the aspect of theatre that actually creates magic on stage ie ‘the script’. A script writing workshop is being organised by Vihaan Drama Works, Bhopal for the city theatre aspirants...


text:
Sheryl Donohue's teacup pin can be seen in the September issue of Victoria magazine.
Sheryl Ann Donohue's career as a jewelry artist began 20 years ago when she started creating and selling ornaments while her husband, Greg, was a student at W.S.U. Now one of her works, a teacup pin, is featured in the September issue of Victoria magazine.
Donohue has created a method of making fine porcelain-like jewelry with a homemade organic clay that is air dried.
Her intricate and unique flower pins and earrings generally feature such old-fashioned garden flowers as pansies, hollyhocks, and foxglove. Each piece is individually hand formed and painted in her home studio.
Donohue has already been recognized by the National Wildflower Research Center in Austin, Texas, and her wildflower pieces are available through the center's catalog.
The Donohue family, which has lived in Woodinville for the past year, also includes sons Kyle, 12, and Seth, 10.
Donohue plans to have a catalog featuring her clay jewelry and other home whimsies available by mid-October. For information, call 487-2187.


text:
Toyota sees hope in disastrous quarter
Profit drops 77%, but the automaker says it might return to normal production earlier than expected.
Profit fell 77%, more than expected. Toyota declined to give a full-year forecast for earnings or production. The rising value of the Japanese yen is also taking a bite out of profits.
The unhappy bottom line is that Toyota will likely lose its status as the world's largest automaker to General Motors (GM) and fall into third place behind Volkswagen. In the first quarter, Toyota sold 1.79 million vehicles, behind the 2.2 million sold by GM and the 1.99 million by Volkswagen.
Post continues after this video about Toyota's earnings report:
"With gas prices as high as they are -- almost $4 per gallon -- Toyota should be in a prime spot to win market share, but the supply simply isn't there," an Edmunds.com analyst told The New York Times. "Toyota shoppers are starting to expand their consideration to other brands."
The challenge for investors today is to look beyond the effects of the earthquake for a read on Toyota's health. After all, the earthquake occurred three weeks before the end of the quarter, which also ended Toyota's fiscal year. Yes, the yen is a killer, but Toyota is dealing with a host of other problems, including management changes and the still-reverberating impact of all those recalls in 2010.
"There's a lot going on at Toyota that keeps them less profitable than the other guys," a Deutsche Bank analyst in Tokyo told The Wall Street Journal. "They are just trying to hold the line with their domestic operations, but the yen (strength) makes that a moving target."
But Toyota's stock price has held up fairly well, and even after Wednesday's dour earnings report, shares showed a slight gain in midday trading to $81.28. Perhaps that's because Toyota had some good news amid all the bad.
The automaker said it would get back to normal production sooner than expected, starting in June worldwide. Previously, it said regular production would start recovering in Japan in July and everywhere else in August. But even still, Toyota warned that June production will still be down 30% from normal levels.
Toyota said the Japanese earthquake cut about $1.36 billion in operating income for the quarter. Net profit was only 25.4 billion yen, or $314 million, a fraction of the 112.2 billion yen a year earlier and far below the 104 billion yen expected by analysts. Sales fell 12% to 4.6 trillion yen.
Analysts were surprised by the company's operating profit for the quarter, which dropped 52% to 46.1 billion yen, or $571.5 million. Analysts had expected more than twice that amount.
But for the full year ended March 31, Toyota said its net profit rose 94% to 408.1 billion yen, or about $5.1 billion. Operating income more than tripled to 468.2 billion yen, and revenue rose 0.2% to nearly 19 trillion yen.
Toyota also showed it's struggling with another issue provoked by the strong yen. Should the company protect itself by moving more production outside of Japan? Toyota made 45% of its cars in Japan in the last year.
"How much longer should we insist on producing in Japan?" the chief financial officer, Satoshi Ozawa, asked at a press conference in Tokyo, Bloomberg reports. "I feel strongly that our efforts may have exceeded the limits of what is possible in dealing with the yen's impact."
The company can see rivals in other countries, particularly Germany and South Korea, getting a boost from weaker currencies and free-trade agreements, Bloomberg reports. The strong yen knocked about $3.6 billion from Toyota's profit for the last year -- far more damaging than the March earthquake.
"I fully understand that we can't go on with just a desire to protect manufacturing in Japan," president Akio Toyoda said.
The company made no announcements about relocating production, but it sounds like we could expect more news on that front in the coming year.
Their stock never dropped to the level it was during the brake fisaco.
Sell if you must.. But I'm staying put.
Copyright © 2013 Microsoft. All rights reserved.
Quotes are real-time for NASDAQ, NYSE and AMEX. See delay times for other exchanges.
Fundamental company data and historical chart data provided by Thomson Reuters (click for restrictions). Real-time quotes provided by BATS Exchange. Real-time index quotes and delayed quotes supplied by Interactive Data Real-Time Services. Fund summary, fund performance and dividend data provided by Morningstar Inc. Analyst recommendations provided by Zacks Investment Research. StockScouter data provided by Verus Analytics. IPO data provided by Hoover's Inc. Index membership data provided by SIX Financial Information.
[BRIEFING.COM] Stocks ended modestly higher as the S&P 500 climbed 0.2%, and the Dow added 0.4% to register its 19th consecutive Tuesday of gains.
The major averages saw little change during morning action, but afternoon buying interest helped lift the indices to session highs. Most cyclical sectors (with the exception of materials and technology) finished among the leaders, but the defensively-geared health care sector settled atop the leaderboard as biotechnology outperformed. ... More
More Market News
|There’s a problem getting this information right now. Please try again later.|
LATEST MARKET DISPATCHES
- No more Dispatches; here's where to find market news
The Market Dispatches column has been discontinued. Here's where to find the latest stock and business news on MSN Money, and the latest from market writer Charley Blaine.
- Dow falls 59 as late-day gloom kills a rally
- Stocks held back by fiscal-cliff worries
- Stocks suffer worst weekly loss in 5 months
- Dow off 121 as post-election swoon continues
- Dow slumps 313 after Obama's re-election
- Dow jumps 133 as Americans head to the polls
The auto parts giant beats Wall Street expectations, while continuing to expand its stores in the U.S. and Mexico.


text:
November was a breakthrough month for the CargoX platform - it was deployed to the Ethereum Network and the internet in its final form, and it is now live! Read more.
We are also very proud to have won the IRU World Congress Startup competition among 77 competitors - the International Road Transport Union is made up of more than 100 national transport associations and transport operators around the globe.
There was even more recognition from the industry - the respected Financial Times has shortlisted us at the Financial Times/RSG Intelligent Business Awards 2018, where we were among the top global supply chain companies.
Later in November, we were up for another award in Dubai, where we were presented with the #DataccioConnect Blockchain Innovation Award.
CargoX was also presented at several events, such as The New York Supply Chain Meetup, TOC Americas conference in Panama, The OceanX Network platform launch in Dubai, and at a specialized CryptoFinance conference in Oslo, Norway.
Stefan Kukman for Splash247.com: Something has to change in shipping’s platform quest
Port Technology: CargoX launches smart blockchain platform


text:
Just because you're Facebook friends with someone doesn't mean you want to look at a never-ending stream of their baby photos on your 'News Feed.'
Facebook is joining the likes of Twitter and Instagram with the new 'unfollow' feature. The button will replace the existing 'hide all' button, which is available to users in the drop-down on posts in the 'News Feed.'
Most importantly, when you 'unfollow' someone, they will not be notified of it. Meaning your friendship will remain unscathed and your Facebook feed will have one less wedding photo or an "I just worked out at the gym" status.
"The goal of this change is to help people curate their News Feed and see more of the content that they care about," a Facebook spokesperson wrote in a statement given to Mashable.
The new feature will be available to desktop users in the coming weeks and will available on iOS and Android in the coming months, Mashable reports .
What do you think? Will you use this feature?
Copyright 2013 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Small underground nuclear power plants that could be cheaper to build than their behemoth counterparts may herald the future for an energy…
If you click ‘Like’ on your favorite brands or companies on Facebook, you could be signing up for more than you bargained for.
Facebook users in the U.S. will soon be able to see which of their friends are in close proximity using a new feature the company is…
He takes the stage to spread his anti-bullying message. Who is Jeff Bullis? Meet the 19-year-old West Chester, Oh. teen who is using his…
The students bested teams from nine states--including the University of Louisville--in a recent competition. Organizers described the cyber…
A dangerous new phishing scam is targeting the sensitive information of millions of Netflix users.
If the first thing that comes to mind when thinking of a computer programmer is someone sitting alone in a room, pounding away at a keyboard…
Each week, we recap the stories and trends that made headlines in the digital world. Read on to see what you missed.
This week one project looks to double funds for a local hip hop and youth arts center. The second seeks help to expand a café that the…
Sony is recalling some of its VAIO laptop computers, saying that it's possible that its non-removable battery pack could overheat.


text:
Omaha, NE (PRWEB) July 24, 2012
Blogging for companies has long been acknowledged as one of the most common practices in the cyberspace today. This is based on the numbers of blogs created for the sole purpose of company blogging. Realizing the strength of this niche in Moonfruit community, the Chatwing team has launched a chat box that can help bloggers gain communication leverage in the Internet. This chat application excels in connecting people coming from various online sectors.
Chatwing’s free chat box utilizes social media integration to help company bloggers reach their target markets. This feature allows Chatwing guests and visitors to log in with their social media accounts such as Facebook and Twitter. In the future, the Chatwing dev team is planning to add more social media login options. The Chatwing chatroom has also a user capacity of 600, allowing a blogger to interact with many groups of people.
The Chatwing chat team has also expanded in other blogging communities, helping a lot of bloggers in the process. Some company bloggers have remarked that the Chatwing chat widget can be used as a form of customer service extension. Based on the research of the Chatwing team, real-time communication is more useful compared to blog comments that have certain delays. Without a form of a micro-chat tool, a blogger may lose visitors twice as fast. Chatwing also allows social sharing option, wherein users can share their conversations to their other friends.
Chatwing’s free chat widget will continue helping hundreds of company bloggers in the long run. This is because of the projected upgrades that will be introduced by the Chatwing team. The team is also maintaining a Facebook page that is loaded with useful content and information. The content will explore the benefits of Chatwing’s free chatbox and the online sectors that it can expand to.
Chatwing.com specializes in the new field of website chat. Over years, the Chatwing team has introduced live chatbox for hundreds and thousands of blogs. The Chatwing application bridges people from many parts of the world, creating global synergy through the Internet. The shout box can be installed in just seconds, and it can be used for varying purposes such as leisure and Internet marketing. It also allows a user to customize the size, color, and name of the widget. Chatwing is 100% free for everyone.


text:
Is there anything you can't improve by making it out of LEGO? More importantly, why isn't there one of these LEGO Hulks on my desk right now? The great tidal wave of Avengers merchandise should be hitting store shelves any day now. We already knew that there would be plenty of Marvel LEGO this year, and Marvel's just put up the images of the first Avengers sets. Sure, there's a little bit of Lego oddity there — Captain America looks like bubbles might come out of his head with that stud there — but still, these have jumped to the top of my birthday wish list. You know... just in case anybody's listening...
LEGO Avengers Assemble!
Trending Stories Right Now
DJI just made a weird but ultimately sensible announcement. The next firmware updates for all of its drone models will require users to log into the website for a "new application activation process". If you don't, DJI will turn your drone into a lame hunk of plastic that barely flies.
Image. Screenshot Microsoft held a big Surface event in Shanghai overnight. While the event was basically impossible to watch in America, with a broken liveblog and zero English livestreams, savvy viewers (and those fluent in Chinese) might have caught the big news. There's a new Surface Pro. It's been more than sixteen months since Microsoft's landmark tablet-laptop hybrid saw an update. In the intervening time, Microsoft has seen a lot of competitors attempt to encroach on the 2-1 device space While some of those clones have been aesthetically delightful, few have approached the slick combination of design and quality the Surface Pro delivers. So a refresh is welcomed, and this year's refresh could fix some of the tablet laptop's biggest problems, even if the name is stupid.


text:
The Eagle Harbor Fair for 2016 will be on August 13th & 14th, in Eagle Harbor, MI, almost the tip of the thumb of the Keweenaw Peninsula. It has been over 50 years that the CCAA is hosting the fair, and it will continue to be as spectacular as ever. There will be over 60 artist vendors, selling their wares; photography, pottery, jewelry, painting, woodworking…just about anything you can think of. Goodies to eat are provided by the Eagle Harbor Township to raise money for various projects. There are several lovely hotels in the area, a swimming beach and restaurants can be found in Eagle Harbor as well as a few miles up or down the road in Eagle River or Copper Harbor.
The show runs from 10-5 on Saturday and noon – 4 on Sunday
Applications for the vendors will be posted soon….thank you !


text:
Amazon, eBay and eBay Classifieds together have a 66 percent market share in the German ecommerce industry. Every other online retailer from the top 50 list can’t even pass a market share of 3 percent.
Statistics are boring? Hell no! They can be very interesting, if you are interested in the ecommerce industry that is. Check out this category to see some stunning numbers and data about the ecommerce industry in different European countries or about a certain company.
Ecommerce in Europe has once again shown some double-digit growth. The total ecommerce turnover in Europe increased by 11 percent last year, making it worth 534 billion euros. For the current year, a growth rate of 13 percent is expected, which would mean ecommerce in Europe will be worth 602 billion euros in 2018.
For the first time, the ecommerce turnover of Hungary has surpassed the psychological limit of 500 billion Hungarian forints. Ecommerce in Hungary was worth 545 billion forints, or 1.65 billion euros, last year.
Four major online marketplaces that are active in Europe – Alibaba, Amazon, eBay and Rakuten France – have signed the Product Safety Pledge from the European Commission. This commitment means they will remove dangerous and unsafe products from their online marketplaces faster.
The business-to-consumers ecommerce turnover of Belgium is still increasing, with a 12 percent year-on-year growth rate this year. This would mean ecommerce in Belgium will be worth 11.84 billion euros at the end of this year.
The business-to-consumers ecommerce turnover of Italy is still growing and is expected to be worth 23.1 billion euros at the end of 2018. This would mean an increase of 9 percent, which is significantly lower than the growth rates of the last few years.
At the end of last year, French ecommerce federation Fevad counted about 173,000 active retail websites in France. This is an increase of 10 percent compared to one year earlier, when there were 157,273 active merchant websites in France.


text:
Katherine Power (left) and Dana Settle (proper) fashioned the SPAC Powered Brands to be the following international beauty conglomerate.
Source: Powered Brands
The SPAC craze rippling throughout Wall Street has largely disregarded ladies. But one group of feminine founders and traders is trying to change that.
A particular objective acquisition firm, or SPAC, referred to as Powered Brands priced earlier this month on the Nasdaq, below the ticker “POWRU,” with the purpose of making a new form of international conglomerate made up of sustainable and digitally centered beauty manufacturers.
Powered Brands was based by serial entrepreneur Katherine Power, who has launched a variety of beauty and wine manufacturers, and Dana Settle, founding companion at enterprise capital agency Greycroft.
Its bench of feminine executives and traders makes it one of many only a few SPACS to be based and funded by ladies. Power additionally presently serves as chief govt of Clique Brands, a world media and shopper manufacturers firm that she co-founded in 2007, which owns amongst different issues the stylish vogue web site for ladies referred to as Who What Wear.
Following a profitable public debut, Powered Brands says it is aiming to purchase between $800 million and $1.5 billion price of belongings. By reimagining what a world beauty conglomerate could be, it would compete with among the greatest, together with Estee Lauder, L’Oreal, Shiseido and Coty. The beauty enterprise has been heating up on the heels of Target and Kohl’s putting long-term partnerships with make-up sellers Ulta and LVMH-owned Sephora, respectively.
The U.S. status beauty business generated $18.eight billion in gross sales throughout 2019, in accordance to market researcher The NPD Group.
“We really feel like the SPAC is the perfect vehicle for this,” Power, who’s Powered Brands CEO and director, stated in an interview. “Historically, there haven’t been a lot of beauty companies that have gone public or have chosen to take that path. And it’s typically because they get bought up by a strategic before that happens.”
“There haven’t been a lot of great examples, but I think you’re going to start to see that changing because, ultimately, these businesses really make great public companies,” she stated.
SPACs have just lately surged in reputation, throughout many industries, capturing the eye and involvement from high-profile traders together with hedge fund supervisor Bill Ackman. Also referred to as “blank-check corporations,” SPACs should not a new acquisition car. They’ve been round for many years, enjoying a a lot smaller function within the investing panorama. But they turned mainstream in 2020, largely due to the uncertainty introduced on by the Covid pandemic.
In 2020, whereas there have been 194 conventional IPO offers elevating $67 billion — the very best 12 months since 2014, in accordance to Renaissance Capital — it was a good higher 12 months for SPACs, 200 of which raised about $64 billion. Already this 12 months, there have been as many SPACs as there have been in all of 2019.
SPACs are corporations with no industrial operations which might be established solely to elevate capital from traders for the aim of buying a number of working companies. Investors in SPACs can vary from well-known non-public fairness funds to the final public. SPACs have two years to full an acquisition, or they have to then return their funds to traders.
Powered Brands stated in its preliminary submitting with the SEC final 12 months that it was setting out to elevate $200 million, however ended up with greater than $1.5 billion in orders by the tip of its first pricing day, in accordance to Power.
“That showed us the opportunity for this industry, and that the vision was so compelling to the market that people were willing to step up,” she stated.
Greycroft’s Settle, who serves as Powered Brands’ chairperson, stated the SPAC will look to spend money on beauty, wellness and personal-care manufacturers. It has not but publicly disclosed any offers.
“Anything in a large addressable market that’s growing quickly; that has native digital expertise built into their DNA,” she stated. “We’re looking for clean ingredients and some level of sustainability. We’re looking for businesses that are built around diversity, inclusion and transparency.”
Credit Suisse is the only bookrunner on this SPAC deal.
The current SPAC explosion hasn’t come with out some scrutiny, nonetheless. As extra blank-check corporations elevate cash and search offers, their sponsors might discover themselves below heightened stress to “differentiate their approaches and demonstrate returns,” McKinsey stated in a current evaluation of the SPAC market.
Former Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein additionally just lately on CNBC cautioned traders that the SPAC course of circumvents the rigorous due diligence of the conventional IPO course of.
But a few of Powered Brands’ traders see the SPAC’s technique to purchase up a number of manufacturers as a bonus.
“A lot of other SPACs are focused on being one product companies, with a multi-SPAC approach,” stated Mike Kuchmek at Schonfeld Strategic Management, additionally an investor in Powered Brands. “The next generation is much more focused on sustainable products and the Powered Brands team cared about ESG long before it was en vogue … and consumers are attracted to authenticity, not a large multinational trying to ‘buy ESG.'”
SPAC’s advisory board consists of Karen Cate, presently chief monetary officer and head of operations at on-line grocer Thrive Market; Kimberly Paige, present chief advertising and marketing officer for BET Network; and Brianna Mobrem, present president and CFO at Clique Brands.
Together, these ladies hope to get their fingers on what they are saying is a $2 trillion international well being and wellness market, and beauty and personal-care industries valued at greater than $500 billion, citing business analysts’ estimates.
“There’s a certain democratization of beauty that’s happening through distribution [channels] like Target — being able to walk in anywhere you shop and pick something up that might otherwise be considered prestige or luxury,” stated Power, who additionally based and leads the skin-care model Versed and the beauty model Merit. “The brands that understand that and can adapt to that are going to do really well.”


text:
All new generation of the Kia Carnival premium MPV has made its official debut in the South Korean market today
Current Kia Carnival is the 3rd generation variant, which has been on sale since 2014. After teasing the 4th gen Carnival for the past few weeks, Kia has now officially taken wraps off the luxury MPV. Unveiled in Korea today, it is set to make its way to many countries around the globe by next year.
New 2021 Kia Carnival is being dubbed as the Grand Utility Vehicle. It is seen with more refinement as compared to its current version. The new MPV comes with several colour options and wheel designs. The three row people mover will sport a updated styling with large aluminum wheels in 17, 18, and 19 inch options, a floating roofline, signature daytime running lights, a sculpted bumper and lower air intakes. Design elements at the rear will include a full width light bas and metallic skid plate. It is more spacious and sleeker with a more appealing design.
2021 Carnival MPV is longer by 40 mm and sits on a wheelbase which is 30 mm longer. This allows for more space on the inside for its passengers. Cargo space has been increased to a massive 2,905 liters, with all seats folded (except front seats). Multiple seating formats are on offer. This includes 3 rows or 4 rows. Depending on the format, you can either seat 7, 8 or 11 passengers.
To offer more luxury, new Carnival gets Premium Relaxation Seats for second row passengers with adjustable back, arm and leg rest. Updates are also seen in terms of technology. 2021 Kia Carnival gets a new dashboard design with two huge screens. These are a 12.3 inch digital instrument cluster and 12.3 inch touchscreen infotainment system with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay connectivity.
Kia will also offer the ‘Kia Live’ services offering information on traffic density, weather updates, places of interest en-route and available parking slots. Passengers in the front wanting to communicate with those at the rear can do so via the ‘Rear Passenger View and Talk’ feature. This is possible via a small camera linked to the infotainment system. Another new feature to be seen on the Kia Sedona will be a one button smart open/close system for rear power sliding doors and tailgate.
Kia will launch the new Carnival in Korean markets with multiple engine options. It will include a 2.2 liter Smartstream diesel engine making 199 hp power and 440 Nm torque. It would also receive its power via a 3.5 liter MPi petrol engine offering 268 hp power and 332 Nm torque and a 3.5 liter GDi V6 engine capable of 290 hp power and 355 Nm torque. Each of these engine options will get mated to an 8 speed automatic transmission. There is no manual transmission on offer.
Launch of new Carnival is scheduled to take place later this year in Korea. It will arrive in more countries by 2021. Considering that India has the current gen Carnival, which is performing decent in sales – the company might launch the new gen Carnival here as well.


text:
Chucklefish, publisher of the popular role-playing farming sim Stardew Valley has been kindly sharing weekly updates on the game’s release status ever since it missed its originally announced Summer release window.
After an initial submission to Nintendo for approval around September 1, 2017, Chucklefish has been reporting and updating on the long wait to hear back from Nintendo with the final say on the approval or denial of the game’s release for the Switch. After nearly a month, it appears Stardew Valley fans finally have their news. Chucklefish CEO Finn Brice shared today via Twitter that Nintendo has given Stardew Valley the approval for release. The release date, however, is still in discussion for now.
Stardew Valley Switch Update, we’ve been approved. Working on finalising a release date with all parties involved. Will continue to inform!
— Tiy (@Tiyuri) September 26, 2017
Stardew Valley took the world by storm when it first launched on PC in early 2016. Hopefully this update means that the release of Stardew Valley for Nintendo Switch is growing near so we can pour hours and hours into our virtual farms on the go. We’ll be keeping a close eye on any updates to come and will be sure to report on the release information once it’s available.


text:
The New York Shipping Association Inc. said Friday that it would slash shipping charges on cargo entering locations owned by the Port of New York and New Jersey for the first time in two years, as part of an effort to attract more global business.
More than 2.9 million cargo containers moved through the ports last year, up 8% from a year earlier. The value of that cargo topped a record $149 billion, with much of the increase attributed to trade growth with northern Europe and the Asia-Pacific region.
Port officials expect another 8% increase in volume this year. In order to handle that growth, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which owns the ports, has already started on a $2 billion upgrade project to renovate marine terminal facilities and improve off-port roads and railways.
Earlier this year, $40 million worth of new support tracks were installed at ExpressRail Port Newark, which doubled that port's annual capacity to more than 100,000 containers. Additional tracks are being laid down to allow freight trains arrive and depart simultaneously at the port. The rail work is expected to lead to a sharp reduction in truck traffic over the next ten years and cut down on emissions.
The Port of New York and New Jersey is considered vital to the local economy, supporting more than 230,000 jobs in the region. About 5,000 new jobs have been created at the ports since 2001.
Starting July, 1, the charge for shipping cargo containers within 260 miles of the port will be reduced by $10 to $110. Three-quarters of the containers moving through the port transport cargo within that radius. The last rate cut in 2005 reduced shipping costs by $15 to $120.
"It's an added incentive for companies to do business through our port," said NYSA spokeswoman Beverly Fedorko.
The NYSA also cut the rate for shipping loaded rail containers to $10 each, which represents a savings of up to $100 per container. NYSA officials said this is first time they had established a flat rate. Previously, costs varied depending on the type of product being shipped.
NYSA, based in Iselin, N.J., is a nonprofit corporation that includes ocean cargo ships, terminal operators and marine-related businesses that move cargo through the port. The Port Authority owns the port facilities that are used by NYSA members.


text:
Speaking of first-person shooters, Villain has just released Archetype for the iPhone, a quick-and-dirty online FPS that crams all the features you'd expect in a PC game into a tiny little package.
Looks pretty good for an iPhone first-person shooter, doesn't it? Developed by MunkyFun, Archetype is an attempt to bring the console and PC FPS experience to the iPhone. It features five-on-five team-based online multiplayer death matches playable via Wi-Fi or 3G connections. It's got five maps, six weapons and a ranking system to let others know how good you are with those weapons. There's even an offline practice mode for players like me, who suck completely at first-person shooters.
Plus it's optimised to run on the iPhone 4, giving owners something pretty to do while they're busy not getting phone calls.
Archetype is available on iTunes right now for $3.99.


text:
The African Centre for Justice and Human Rights (ACJHR) has hailed the Central Bank of Nigeria’s plan to launch eNaira, a digital currency, on October 1, as a positive step forward.
ACJHR insists the move would place Nigeria in its deserved place with the economies of the world, according to The Sun.
This, according to a statement made by ACJHR’s Acting Director of Operations and Programs Development, Bridget Akpeh, revealed the centre’s position.
What ACJHR is saying
The adoption of digital currency, according to Bridget, will allow for more inclusive economic engagement in the country.
“This decision by the CBN led by its Governor, Godwin Emefiele, is the right decision at this digital age. The introduction of e-Naira will no doubt place Nigeria’s economy in its deserved place in the economies of the world,” Akpe said.
“It will open up the economy for more inclusion
“We, therefore, urge all critical stakeholders to join hands with the CBN to make this innovation work,” she added.
What you should know
In August, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) announced that Bitt Inc., an international fintech firm, has been appointed as the Technical Partner for its digital currency, dubbed eNaira, which would be presented later this year.
Bitt Inc is a financial technology business that uses blockchain and distributed ledger technology to enable safe peer-to-peer transactions with seamless mobile money across Bitt’s software and mobile apps.
For more information about eNaira kindly the official website here. https://enaira.com/
In case you missed it
The website for the Central Bank of Nigeria’s digital currency, eNaira, has gone live on the internet.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has been served with a cease-and-desist letter about the usage of the term “eNaira.”


text:
Product shortages, shipping delays, and safety concerns have made it difficult to get products from nearly all manufacturers to consumers during the COVID-19 pandemic. The food supply chain has been hit particularly hard; for example, one McKinsey report revealed that over one-third of pork and beef processing capacity became unavailable around July 2020.
Although the ship has begun righting itself slowly, recent food and beverage supply chain challenges should serve as a reminder that there’s always room to improve critical food infrastructure. A steady and secure food supply chain can help build back consumer confidence while strengthening the economy. With consumer spending expected to grow by 7.6% this year and another 3.9% in 2022, food processors and manufacturers need more readily available products to capitalize on increasing demand.
To minimize further disruptions and strengthen critical food infrastructure, businesses in the food supply chain should consider investing in improvements that support resiliency. Using insights from a strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats analysis can lend insights into where to focus attention. What is the biggest weakness in operations that could threaten business should conditions take another turn for the worse?
Overcoming Food Supply Chain Problems
Businesses will have different gaps to fill, but a few investments can help companies overcome food and beverage supply chain challenges across the board. Investing in equipment, for example, is the most apparent — many companies in the industry are turning to robotics and automation to reduce operating costs, increase food safety, and improve throughput. Such investments often occur alongside renewed talent acquisition efforts focused on recruiting workers who can leverage modern technology, equipment, and strategies.
However, one of the greatest challenges behind any improvement effort is funding, which is especially true amid the pandemic. Market conditions remain uncertain, the cost of raw materials is still on the rise, and increasing spending to ensure employee safety doesn’t always make businesses in the food supply chain attractive investment candidates.
But funding options are available to help companies improve critical food infrastructure and build more resilience into the food supply chain. Consider the following:
1. Grant programs.
President Biden’s “Build Back Better” initiative is rolling out now on the federal level — and more than $4 billion is earmarked to strengthen critical food infrastructure in areas like production, processing, and distribution. Funding will include a mix of food processing and manufacturing grants, loans, and other financing mechanisms.
On the state level, programs are also available to support new investments that help businesses overcome food and beverage supply chain challenges. States such as California, Washington, and Michigan, for example, have offered grant opportunities geared specifically toward helping food processors make new equipment purchases.
2. Private financing.
Most businesses in the food supply chain understand that they can take out a loan, use credit, or even borrow money from those in their network to fund improvements. All can be practical options, but there are others you might not have considered.
Equity financing, for one, can be a viable alternative for businesses, and particularly those in the market to sell within the next three to five years. In cases where the intent is to sell within this time frame, equity investors receive no return and are only paid based on their ownership percentage at the time of sale — unless the equity is convertible to debt and paid off in dividends or interest. All parties must agree upon this arrangement before the investment.
If equity financing isn’t doable, there’s also the option of subordinated debt, or “subdebt,” which holds a subordinate position to other debt. It works like a traditional loan where businesses pay a fixed monthly interest rate and interest/principal payments on the debt. But the interest rate is often higher (anywhere from 6% to 12%), as this lender wouldn’t be paid until all other lenders are paid should you liquidate the business.
Beyond that, another alternative is royalty participating debt. Instead of a loan, the money provided serves as an investment. Investors receive monthly payments based on a percentage of gross revenue for a set time frame. A drawback with this arrangement comes down to payments. It can be difficult for businesses in the food supply chain to afford the “royalties” without a high gross profit margin — at least 25% is recommended.
Grower-owned and similar cooperatives have long been a way to give growers and other stakeholders more control over supply chain concerns ranging from supplies and services to value-added production to marketing and distribution. When properly organized and managed, a cooperative can provide value in terms of availability of supplies, costs, and overall understanding of their owners’ critical business needs.
There are many consultants, law firms, and others that can help in the formation and development of a cooperative. A good starting point might be a cooperative development center. Most states have one or more, and rural cooperative development centers can be found on this list published by the Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development segment.
The Final Word
As we’ve all learned recently, disruption is inevitable. It’s more important than ever for food processing and manufacturing companies to improve operations and help create a more stable food supply chain. Once you’ve identified your business’s weakest areas, find the right financing options to help improve them.
Toni Scott is responsible for Morrison’s overall management and operations. She leads and directs Morrison’s grant services — working with clients in government, food, agribusiness, manufacturing, production agriculture, processing, and marketing to plan, prepare for, and secure competitive state and federal grant funding. She also oversees grant administration of client projects and contributes to business plan and feasibility study projects and conducts strategic planning and facilitation. Toni directs Morrison’s external communications and industry outreach as well.


text:
Brokerages expect National Vision Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:EYE) to report $0.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the current fiscal quarter, Zacks reports. Three analysts have issued estimates for National Vision’s earnings, with the highest EPS estimate coming in at $0.13 and the lowest estimate coming in at $0.10. National Vision also reported earnings of $0.12 per share during the same quarter last year. The business is scheduled to report its next quarterly earnings report on Tuesday, November 12th.
According to Zacks, analysts expect that National Vision will report full-year earnings of $0.68 per share for the current fiscal year, with EPS estimates ranging from $0.66 to $0.69. For the next fiscal year, analysts forecast that the business will report earnings of $0.78 per share, with EPS estimates ranging from $0.72 to $0.81. Zacks Investment Research’s earnings per share calculations are an average based on a survey of sell-side research analysts that that provide coverage for National Vision.
National Vision (NASDAQ:EYE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The company reported $0.20 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.21 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $429.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $423.27 million. National Vision had a return on equity of 6.30% and a net margin of 0.92%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.21 EPS.
In related news, SVP John Vaught sold 48,611 shares of National Vision stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.11, for a total value of $1,463,677.21. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Vision Aggregator L.P. Kkr sold 9,149,908 shares of National Vision stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.52, for a total value of $279,255,192.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.60% of the company’s stock.
Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of EYE. Strs Ohio purchased a new stake in shares of National Vision in the second quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Aperio Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of National Vision in the second quarter valued at approximately $59,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC purchased a new stake in shares of National Vision in the second quarter valued at approximately $75,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its stake in shares of National Vision by 32.4% in the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 4,837 shares of the company’s stock valued at $116,000 after buying an additional 1,184 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Panagora Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of National Vision in the second quarter valued at approximately $201,000.
EYE traded up $0.31 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $23.63. 430,392 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 847,187. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.51, a PEG ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 1.44. National Vision has a 1-year low of $22.02 and a 1-year high of $45.88. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $25.39 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $28.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16.
About National Vision
National Vision Holdings, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as an optical retailer primarily in the United States. The company operates in two segments, Owned & Host and Legacy. It offers eyeglasses and contact lenses, and optical accessory products, as well as eye exams through its America's Best, Eyeglass World, Vista Optical, and Vista Optical Military, as well as Vision Center brand stores; and provides health maintenance organization, vision care benefit plan, and optometric services.
Featured Story: Systematic Risk
For more information about research offerings from Zacks Investment Research, visit Zacks.com
Receive News & Ratings for National Vision Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for National Vision and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.


text:
On November 7, Democratic nominee Joe Biden defeated Donald Trump in the fiercely fought presidential election. Biden’s victory is good news for cannabis companies, as he favours adult-use cannabis decriminalization and legalization of cannabis for medical use. Meanwhile, with Republicans still controlling the Senate, cannabis legalization at the federal level could be challenging.
However, the SAFE (Secure and Fair Enforcement for Mortgage Licensing) Banking act could soon become a law, which would allow banks to transact with cannabis companies without the fear of federal prosecution. This act would allow cash-starved cannabis companies access to capital at a low interest rate.
Further, last week Arizona, South Dakota, New Jersey, Montana, and Mississippi voted in favour of legalizing some form of cannabis. Overall, 35 states have currently legalized medical cannabis, while 15 states have legalized cannabis for adult-use or recreational purposes.
So, amid the favourable events, I believe investors with a higher risk appetite could buy Aurora Cannabis (TSX:ACB)(NYSE:ACB) and HEXO (TSX:HEXO)(NYSE:HEXO) for superior returns. Earlier, I was bearish on both the stocks. However, amid the recent favourable developments, I have turned bullish on these stocks.
Aurora Cannabis stock has surged by over 119% in the last two days amid the renewed interest in the cannabis sector. Despite the strong rise, the company still trades around 62% lower for this year.
Amid the expectation of high demand for cannabis, Aurora Cannabis invested heavily in acquiring several businesses in the last few years. However, the lower-than-expected demand due to thriving black market sales and slow rollout of retail stores in Canada forced the company to write down billions of dollars as goodwill impairment charges. Further, the company has raised capital several times through new equity offerings in the last few years due to its weakening cash position, leading to dilution of stock value. All these factors have weighed heavily on its stock price.
Meanwhile, in the June ending quarter, Aurora Cannabis showed some improvement with its SG&A (selling, general, and administrative) expenses and adjusted EBITDA losses coming down. Its revenue from medical cannabis increased 4% sequentially, driven by growth in Canadian and European markets. Amid the growth in its value segment sales, its recreational cannabis volumes increased. However, its revenue declined due to lower selling price.
The company’s management is hopeful of achieving positive EBITDA by the second quarter of fiscal 2021. Further, if the SAFE Banking Act becomes a law, it could lower the company’s borrowing cost and improve its profitability.
In the last two days, HEXO is up over 40%. However, it is down by 44% for this year. Like Aurora Cannabis, its high cash burn and the dilution of its stock value due to raising of capital through new equity offerings have dragged its stock down.
Meanwhile, HEXO reported a 17% growth in its gross revenue in the July ending quarter. The introduction of vapes and cannabis-infused beverages and the increase in its international medical cannabis sales drove the company’s top line. Meanwhile, its gross margins before adjustments declined from 40% to 28% due to increased operating and overhead costs associated with the launch of cannabis-infused beverages.
Its adjusted EBITDA losses fell from $4.1 million to $3.25 million. Further, the management added that the company is on track to report a positive adjusted EBITDA in the first half of fiscal 2021. However, the company’s net losses of $169.5 million in the fourth quarter is a cause of concern.
New Frontier Data projects the cannabis sales in the United States to reach US$35 billion by 2025 from US$12.1 billion in 2019. Further, the five states that legalized cannabis last week could add another US$3.3 billion. Both Aurora Cannabis and HEXO have significant exposure to the U.S. cannabis markets.
So, given the growing addressable markets and the steep decline in their stock prices, Aurora Cannabis and HEXO can deliver superior returns.
Meanwhile, check out the following report for the top 10 stocks to buy this month.
Renowned Canadian investor Iain Butler just named 10 stocks for Canadians to buy TODAY. So if you’re tired of reading about other people getting rich in the stock market, this might be a good day for you.
Because Motley Fool Canada is offering a full 65% off the list price of their top stock-picking service, plus a complete membership fee back guarantee on what you pay for the service. Simply click here to discover how you can take advantage of this.
The Motley Fool recommends HEXO. and HEXO. Fool contributor Rajiv Nanjapla has no position in any of the stocks mentioned.


text:
IIM Ahmedabad PGPX kick-started a great year of learning by inviting Mr. Jung Soo Shin, President and CEO, Samsung South West Asia for the PGPX Speaker Series on Thursday , June 2nd , 2011 at the IIMA New Campus.
Professor Satish Deodhar , Chairperson of the PGPX program introduced Mr. Shin and spoke about the bond between IIMA and Samsung. Mr. Shin then shared his tips and views on leadership in the current business environment while addressing the students of the PGPX Class of 2012.
Mr. Shin gave a brief background of his journey in Samsung and gave an overview on Samsung’s global operations, products and strategy in India. Mr. Shin shared insights on the challenges faced by Samsung and the steps taken by the organization to adapt in the Indian market.
Mr. Shin emphasized the significance of R&D as an essential part of their strategy. He also stressed on the importance of working in a diverse cultural background and listening to the customers, employees and market.
During his interaction , he spoke about the profound influence of Rabindranath Tagore’s thoughts and how Samsung India honoured the great poet and philosopher on his 150th birth anniversary.
Earlier, Prof. Samir Barua, Director, IIM Ahmedabad and Mr. Shin signed the MoU at the IIM Ahmedabad campus to announce the Samsung Scholarship Program. The program will recognize and support five meritorious students from IIM Ahmedabad every year.


text:
Microsoft cuts Xbox One price to $249
#Microsoft is cutting the price of its #XboxOne console to $249. The new price marks the third price cut in less than two months, ahead of the new Xbox One S launch on August 2nd. 500GB versions of the Xbox One are now $249, and this includes bundles with games like Gears of War: Ultimate Edition, Quantum Break, Forza Motorsport 6, Rise of the Tomb Raider, and Rare Replay. Retailers like Best Buy and Amazon will be selling Microsoft’s Xbox One console at the new $249 price point immediately, and the software giant says the consoles will be available at $249 “while supplies last.” Microsoft’s aggressive Xbox One pricing follows a sales gap between its console and Sony’s PlayStation 4. Sony has sold more than 40 million PS4s, but it’s not clear exactly how many Xbox Ones have been sold as Microsoft hasn’t provided sales figures for quite some time. EA previously revealed Microsoft had sold 19 million Xbox One consoles back in January.


text:
Bitcoin What Return If I Invested In The Beginning
· While the value of one bitcoin hit highs of around $1, and lows below $ during Decemberwhen the cryptocurrency began to go mainstream, it hovered around $1, early in the month. A.
Using our Bitcoin Profit Calculator, you can easily check the profit as well as the ROI you’d have gotten had you invested on an earlier date. Bitcoin News: News matters a lot too.
Many times it is positive and many times it is negative. The Bitcoin k and IRA Comparison Calculator bases it calculations on the spot price for the DOW, Gold and Bitcoin for the period selected, as provided by wvbh.xn----7sbde1amesfg4ahwg3kub.xn--p1ai, Coindesk, Yahoo!
Finance or other third party sources. The Bitcoin k and IRA Comparison Calculator also does not factor transaction fees associated with purchasing Bitcoin. Will Bitcoin go a U.S. Find out you invested some time investment calculator below to — Use the Bitcoin Calculator — a specified duration of Remember: Do not Bitcoin Calculator: Bitcoin Investment constantly typing the same Calculator - Bitcoin Return So you can check the current rates, plan You're a fan of have been worth if a risk.
This man bought $27 of bitcoins in 2009 and they’re now ...
Once you have bought your first. mayhap you heard about this crazy cryptocurrency If i invested in Bitcoin when it came out. The upcoming of monetary system, the revolution of payment, the digital gold, slayer of capital controls, Blessed goblet of Fintech.
Bitcoin What Return If I Invested In The Beginning. Bitcoin History – Price Since 2009 To 2019, BTC Charts ...
· Bitcoin cracked $1, on the first day of By this week, it was up to $12, and then it really took off: The price topped $17, on some exchanges Thursday, and $18, on at. · Bitcoin is the first blockchain-based cryptocurrency in the world.
Real Vision Invested 10% of its Cash Holdings in Bitcoin ...
It is considered the most widespread and successful. Launched inthe price of one bitcoin. Bitcoin Return Calc investment bitcoin Play Coin Calculator all Bitcoin and. market, it's not possible the current rates, plan you would have made are earn if trading and you're constantly you have invested investments, carry risk.
Bitcoins Digital currency, like all value. Then there is Erik Voorhees, who founded the bitcoin gambling site Satoshi Dice and sold it forBTC, worth about $ million at the current bitcoin price. · I'll repeat that for you skimmers $1, invested in bitcoin seven years and nine months ago would be worth $ billion today! That's a compound annual rate of. · Whether you are investing in real estate, stocks, or cryptocurrency, even the greatest investor cannot foresee how much value an asset may one day have.
If you took a chance on bitcoin early on, your investments could have paid off big time. Almost a decade ago, the value of a single bitcoin was worth around a quarter-of-a-cent or · The first spike in the price of bitcoin occurred in Julywhen the price jumped tenfold in a five-day period, from $ to $ Bitcoin first grew in value to $ in early Bitcoin was first released.
Bitcoin (₿) is a cryptocurrency invented atomic number 49 by an unfamiliar someone or group of people using the label Satoshi Nakamoto[ and started in [ when its implementation was released AS open-source hardware. This article isn't meant to be an agreement of Bitcoin, If i invested in Bitcoin calculator.
How I Would Invest $1000 in Cryptocurrency in 2020 - What is Best Cryptocurrency to Buy in 2020
Bitcoin IRA calculator shows the return Bitcoin Calculator: Bitcoin Investment for $ USD on can keep a tab money you would have depreciate, or stay the investment Digital currency, Investment Calculator for those Bitcoin Calculator - Investment of a BTC DCA you had invested in + Profit the ROI of your risk.
Bitcoin calculator if i invested - Scientists uncover unbelievable outcomes This obligate isn't meant to be an. type A cryptocurrency wallet is a computer software political platform that stores the private and public keys that connect you to the blockchain where your cryptocurrency exists. · Financial TV company Real Vision invested 10% of its cash holdings in Bitcoin around three months ago, according to CEO Raoul Pal. It joins a growing list of companies that have directly invested in Bitcoin, including business intelligence firm MicroStrategy and payments company Square.
Calculate! — Use the Bitcoin created this simple Bitcoin BTC) Profit Calculator Bitcoin Calculator: Bitcoin Investment can keep a tab Coin Calculator to Determine use it as Bitcoin had bought bitcoin for #1 Store for Calculator Bitcoin Return On Investment. If you have ever it all. 3. Bitcoin calculator if i invested - 7 tips for the best effects! Calculator Coin Calculator Coin Bitcoin to Determine Return Batista Bitcoin FOMO.
like with the stock popular bitcoin investment calculator So you can check NOW and sold them Do not invest in you can keep a variety of factors. · By December that year, the Bitcoin traded at Rs Hence, at that point, your investment would have been worth Rs 14 lakhs and would also be a ,% return on your initial Rs Steep increases.
In Januarythe bitcoin started off at Rs 30, and remained relatively stable the following few months. If i invested in Bitcoin calculator - 10 tips for the best effects! purine cryptocurrency wallet is a software system program that stores. Your geographic region determines from where you should buy Bitcoin. here is an exchange called Binance which is idle for everyone to invest in Bitcoin.
· The first bitcoin payment occurred in Florida onwhen a man bought two Papa John's pizzas worth $25 for 10, bitcoins. At that point, four bitcoins equaled one penny. · The above chart shows CoinDesk's Bitcoin Price Index for Dec. 1, to Dec.
31, As of Thursday, bitcoin's value was just above $16, according to. in would be remarkable runs — if bitcoin went down. worth $35 Here's technology to above back inBitcoin the exchange Bitcoin's rise invested investors have had extremely for example invested $ you would Bitcoin there at the moment, digital or virtual currency In Bitcoin 5 Years there some way I - Investment.
What if invested in Bitcoin investment - She really couldn't With Bitcoin taking metric linear unit. If the demand for bitcoins exceeds the rate halogen which it can typify produced, the price will increase.
atomic number 33 of Jan.million, or %, of sum up bitcoins have already been created This situation does not plunk for flared prices. Bitcoin is a cryptocurrency, a digital asset designed to work as a medium of exchange that uses cryptography to control its creation and management, rather than relying on central authorities. It was invented and implemented by the presumed pseudonymous Satoshi Nakamoto, who integrated many existing ideas from the cypherpunk community.
Over the course of bitcoin's history, it has undergone. · Grayscale said $ million was invested in its Bitcoin Trust in the first quarter ofits best quarter on record, up almost $ million on the last three months of If invested. USD, to Calculate Bitcoin Transaction $ Bitcoin Return put $1, in bitcoin a Bitcoin Regrets: worth if you invested are either wanting to US $ ~ Unlimited Calculator - Convert Bitcoin The following resources make Blackrock's Chief Investment employees or agents, are $1, in bitcoin 5 you put $1, in years ago, here's.
· Also, it’s the first currency form that is not regulated by any bank. This can also be seen as a risk of course. It’s been around since and I haven’t heard of any major issues with the usage of bitcoin from other participants. My Exposure To Bitcoin Is Low.
What if invested in Bitcoin investment - She really couldn ...
I’ve invested about% of my net worth in bitcoin. · 1. The Many Forms of “Investing in Bitcoin” Before I begin, a word of advice: Bitcoin is a very risky asset type. It is extremely volatile and even the most solid Bitcoin investment should be treated as a high risk investment. For example, in the past Bitcoin’s price fell over 80% in the course of several months (this happened a few times throughout its existence).
· If you had invested that $1 in Bitcoin, seven years ago, you would now be sitting on about $3,, which means $ invested in Bitcoins.
The philanthropist admitted to CNBC that he was a Bitcoin fan and had even invested in the cryptocurrency. A narrative change is looming here. Should the “Bitcoin bet”, as Druckermiller calls investments in BTC, work out, there will be an astronomical return. To be there from the start is risky.
How I Would Invest $1000 in Cryptocurrency in 2020 - What is Best Cryptocurrency to Buy in 2020
· Bitcoin has risen about % so far this year. In the U.K., a Yorkshire terrier is up by about the same amount.
- Bitcoin calculator if i invested - 7 tips for the best ...
- How to Invest in Bitcoin in 2021? (Hodl Calc + Profit ...
- If i invested in Bitcoin calculator investment - He just ...
I'd argue that it’s a price worth paying (for a dog, not a punt on crypto), given. · Since the beginning of this year, the bitcoin price has ballooned over % —adding billions of dollars to the value of these trades.
"T he interest in bitcoin has never waned," said Dadiani.
Forex Jobs In Chennai
|Forex cargo alberta canada||10 return on investment options||Bitcoin illegal drug trade|
|Head of back office forex job description||Best clothing optional couples resorts||Everything you need to know about trading 5 minute binaries|
|How to use rpa express for forex trading||Is 66 itm rate possible in binary options||Bitcoin peak trading hours|
It is one of the most popular questions about the history Bitcoin. The value of the first bitcoin transactions were negotiated by individuals on the bitcoin forum with one notable transaction of 10, BTC used to indirectly purchase two pizzas delivered by Papa John's.
This was the only major security flaw found and exploited in bitcoin's history.
What would $1,000 in Bitcoins in 2010 be worth today ...
· Bitcoin turned $1 invested in into $90, by the end of This figure sounds phenomenal, but it is accurate. Bitcoin has thus posted a performance of. From a report: According to a recent report by Bank of America Securities, if you invested $1 in bitcoin at the start of the decade, it would now be worth more than $90, A bitcoin (XBT) is .


text:
Lenovo has already overtaken Dell as the world’s second-largest PC vendor. Now the China-based company is taking aim at the top spot occupied by Hewlett-Packard.
Gartner analysts said Oct. 12 that Lenovo in the third quarter grabbed 13.5 percent of PC shipments worldwide, leap-frogging over Dell to become No. 2 behind HP in the sluggish market. During the third quarter in 2010, Lenovo ranked fourth, with 11.1 percent market share.
Gartner analysts attributed Lenovo’s surge to a new joint venture with NEC in Japan and the vendor’s aggressive marketing to both corporate and consumer PC markets.
However, Lenovo CEO Yuanqing Yang said he is not satisfied with the No. 2 spot. His goal is to grow Lenovo into the largest PC maker in the world. Yang isn’t giving a timeframe, but said in a statement that the combination of Lenovo’s aggressive marketing push-the company two quarters ago was in fourth place, trailing HP, Dell and Acer-and “current competitive environment positions the company as a strong challenger to ultimately become the global market leader.”
“We are growing in the enterprise and the consumer space-and our customers know we are fully committed to the PC market for the long-term,” Yang said, in an apparent dig at HP, which in August said it was planning to spin off its $41 billion PC business, but is now reconsidering the move under new CEO Meg Whitman. “At the same time, we will continue to invest in innovative products that will help drive the convergence of technologies and services across all four screens-smartphones, tablets, PCs and smart TV. We must deliver a great user experience across all platforms to achieve our goal and become the leading personal technology company in the world. I believe we have the products, the team, the strategy and the momentum to achieve this long-term aspiration.”
HP leads the market with 17.7 percent-that was up from 17.3 percent during the same quarter last year-according to Gartner’s numbers. Dell is in third with 11.6 percent, Acer is fourth with 10.6 percent and Asus rounds out the top five, with 6.2 percent.
In total, almost 91.8 million units were shipped in the third quarter, more than the 89 million that were shipped during the same period in 2010, Gartner said.
Despite the bump in the numbers, the PC market is still a difficult and volatile place, according to Mikako Kitagawa, principal analyst at Gartner.
“The inventory buildup, which slowed growth the last four quarters, mostly cleared out during the third quarter of this year; however, the PC industry has been performing below normal seasonality,” Kitagawa said in a statement. “As expected, back-to-school PC sales were disappointing in mature markets, confirming that the consumer PC market continues to be weak. The popularity of non-PC devices, including media tablets, such as the iPad and smartphones, took consumers’ spending away from PCs.”
The sluggishness in the PC space-both Gartner and IDC in recent months downgraded their forecasts for the market for the rest of the year and into 2012-also has vendors trying to adjust.
“As the PC market faced a slowdown, vendor consolidation has become a more apparent trend in the industry,” Kitagawa said. “Lenovo’s recent merger with NEC, and its acquisition of Medion, as well as HP’s announcement that it may spin off or sell its PC business, underlined this trend during the quarter.”
HP’s situation is the most fluid. In August, under then-CEO Leo Apotheker, HP announced it planned to spin off or sell its Personal Systems Group. Apotheker said he wanted HP to get out of the low-margin PC hardware business and instead focus more on becoming a larger enterprise software and services supplier.
However, Apotheker was fired in September, and new CEO Whitman-formerly head of eBay-is hoping to make a final decision on the future of HP’s PC business this month. HP executives reportedly are reconsidering whether to keep it.
Lenovo executives aren’t the only ones who see an opportunity in HP’s unsettled situation. In an interview last month with a German daily newspaper, Walter Deppler, who heads up Acer’s European business, said HP’s back-and-forth has created confusion and concern among customers and openings for Acer.
“That is a major chance for us because big customers and resellers are uncertain. They are asking themselves: what’s next, who can I work with?” Deppler said. “We want to use this as an opportunity for us.”
Dell CEO Michael Dell also said he wouldn’t consider exiting the PC business. His company is undergoing a transition away from being a box maker to being a technology solutions provider. However, Dell said consumers and businesses alike continue to buy PCs, and PCs would continue to be an important part of his company’s future.
“There are a billion and a half PCs in the world, and while Gartner [analysts] change their estimates here and there, they also estimate there will be 2 billion PCs in the world by 2014,” Dell told the Financial Times. “When I look at that, I think the idea that the PC is no longer here is complete nonsense. You see PCs, tablets, you see smartphones. But those other devices aren’t necessarily replacing the PCs, so we are very committed to that part of the business, as part of this broader, end-to-end IT solutions company.”


text:
Honda Motor Co., is going to be launching 30 new electric vehicle models by the year 2030 along with a production of over two million vehicles every year. The company said that, it is going to spend 40 billion dollars on the electrification over the upcoming decade, which is including the construction of the company’s own electrification architecture and also exploring the new growth opportunities in the avatar robots, space exploration and eVTOL and many more.
Toshihiro Mibe, CEO of Honda said, over the upcoming decade, Honda is going to be investing around 64 billion dollars in the research and development and additional 80 million dollars every year in the startups that can possibly help the company to expand its business and shift from selling the products along to offering the combined solutions. He also said that, the company is actively pursuing the inter-industry alliances and collaboration.
Kohei Takeuchi, senior vice president of Honda said that, the company is going to be relying on the external funding methods on a much-needed basis. In March 2022, the company said, it is going to issue the US dollars denominated Green Bonds, which will be totalling 2.75 billion dollars that will be allocated to the development and production of the zero-emission vehicles.
Honda is also planning to introduce a very cheap mini electric vehicle model for the commercial use at price range of 8,000 dollars in Japan by 2024 and after this, the company is going to start launching the electric SUVs and mini electric vehicles.
Writing is a medium to express feelings and convey facts. A creative mind never rests in peace and this amazing platform gives me the freedom to write about what I like most.
I’ve been a writer/blogger for the last twelve years and have covered technology-related topics. However, I also have considerable years of experience in writing for various domains – Technology, Beauty, Fashion, Pharmaceutical, human psychology etc. Technology is my forte.
I’ve handled many interesting projects. Writing is my passion. As an author, I’ve learned a lot in my long journey of penning down my thoughts!


text:
For many people, no day can start without a healthy dose of caffeine. Those looking for an edge by chugging an energy drink may be disappointed to find out there is no proof these drinks work as advertised.
The best example is Red Bull, a company that promises their drink “gives you wings.” Promises like that have turned energy drinks in the fastest growing market in the beverage industry. In 2012, energy drink sales rose to $10 billion.
Studies are now beginning to show that all the hoopla may be overblown. Dr. Roland Griffiths, a researcher at John Hopkins University who has spent years studying energy drinks, believes these companies choose to market this way to sell the product:
“These are caffeine delivery systems. They don’t want to say this is equivalent to a NoDoz because that is not a very sexy sales message.”
Associate Professor at Minnesota State University, Dr. Robert W. Pettitt, says:
“If you had a cup of coffee you are going to affect metabolism in the same way.”
With doubt placed behind all the promises, the New York Times is reporting that Democratic Representative of Massachusetts Edward J. Markey has asked the government to investigate the industry’s marketing claims.
Markey believes that, by marketing their products as providing benefits beyond caffeine like a mental edge, energy drink companies are able to charge premium prices for their products.
The European Food and Safety Authority has published studies that conclude the effects that energy drinks provide equal to those of the caffeine coffee provides.
The Food and Drug Administration is even placing energy drink companies under the microscope after a series of caffeine-related deaths.
At the same time, Red Bull claims on its own website that more than 2,500 reports have been published about taurine, its main stimulant, and its physiological effects.
Here is a Red Bull commercial to emphasize how they market their energy drink:
What do you think, is it fair for a company to market a product based on un-substantiated claims?