DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

After three years of strict and suffocating anti-virus controls, China in early December abruptly abandoned its "zero COVID" policy, letting the virus run freely through its 1.4 billion population. Several experts forecast more than one million people in China will die from the disease this year. TRAVEL RUSHBeijing's main rail station has been packed with passengers leaving the capital in recent days, according to Reuters witnesses. Meanwhile, daily arrivals in the gambling hub of Macau exceeded 55,000 on Saturday, the highest daily arrivals since the pandemic began. China's transport ministry has said it expects more than 2 billion trips in the weeks around the holidays.

☆ VIDEO: Target carts that lock in place are yet another example of how anti-theft measures are leaving shoppers really frustrated
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-15 | by ( Dominick Reuter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Nearly 2 million shopping carts are stolen each year, costing retailers an estimated $800 million. Videos of shoppers battling anti-theft devices on carts in a Target parking lot have gone viral on TikTok. Whether and when a particular store gets Gatekeeper for its carts is determined on an individual store basis, a Target spokesperson told Insider. The Food Marketing Institute meanwhile estimates that 2 million shopping carts are stolen each year, costing retailers an upwards of $800 million globally. Loss-prevention remains a delicate balance for retailers as Walmart's vice president of asset protection and retail operations, David Johnston, told Insider.

☆ The EV industry is getting its first recession stress test. Will it be a bust?
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( Tim Mullaney | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

As electric-car stocks plummeted in late 2022, the rout evoked comparisons to the dot-com stock bust two decades ago. But optimists like Wedbush analyst Dan Ives think it's the right, aggressive move to jumpstart the EV transition amid macro uncertainty. "There's no stress test for a severe recession for an industry that's in its infancy." The outlook from China, home to more than half of the world's EV sales, according to Clean Technica, is at least as murky. Tesla's 2023 world is like Amazon and eBay's 2000A recession, if it happens, doesn't necessarily mean EV sales will fall.

☆ RUSADA rules figure skater Valieva did not commit doping offence - WADA
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( Steve Keating | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Jan 13 (Reuters) - The Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA) investigation into figure skater Kamila Valieva's failed drug test has ruled that the teenager was not guilty of any doping infraction, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) said on Friday. WADA said in a statement that RUSADA had determined that although Valieva had committed an anti-doping rule violation, she bore "no fault or negligence" for it. In her defence, Valieva said the positive test was the result of a mix-up with her grandfather's heart medication. CAS had cleared Valieva to continue competing at the Beijing Games in the women's singles, upholding an earlier decision by RUSADA to lift a ban on the skater. CAS had cited the fact that Valieva was a "protected person" under WADA rules as one of the "exceptional circumstances" underpinning its decision.

☆ Tesla just started an electric car price war, and it's bad news for Ford and GM
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( Nora Naughton | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Tesla has discounted its Model 3 and Model Y cars by up to 20% in a bid to goose sales. The starting price of a Model S also dropped nearly 10%, while the Model X is down 9%. Once a luxury item, Tesla's vehicles will now compete with EVs marketed to more average car buyers. Ford recently hiked the starting price on its F-150 Lightning electric truck to $56,000, up from the original starting price of $40,000. The electric car company has long resisted traditional auto industry discounts, and Musk has even criticized the practice in the past.

☆ Google's moonshot factory is coming down to Earth
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( Hugh Langley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

The project, known internally by its codename, "Valkyrie," was the typical science-fiction-sounding idea that Google's self-described "moonshot factory" was designed to dream up. But amid a lack of successful launches and a tech industry facing economic headwinds, insiders say the lab is now hitting the hard-reset button and rethinking its purpose within Alphabet, Google's parent company. X swapped standard corporate titles like "Communications Lead" and "Manager" for grander and more-nebulous names like "Factory Whisperer" and "Firestarter." Its internet-balloon unit, Google Loon, meant to bring people in rural areas online, was shuttered in January 2021. "I think the infusion of VC people is a good thing," one former senior X employee said.

☆ Google's farm-tech moonshot is becoming a full-fledged company as the unit doubles down on more commercial AI projects
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( Hugh Langley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Mineral, an agriculture-tech project inside Google's moonshot lab, X, is spinning out into a company. It's launching under the parent company, Alphabet, as X is evolving to be more commercial. Alphabet's moonshot lab, X, has announced it's turning its agriculture-technology project, Mineral, into an official company. Mineral will spin off of X and become a business under the parent company Alphabet, Mineral's CEO Elliott Grant wrote in a blog post on Tuesday. Mineral entered into a partnership last year with the berry seller Driscoll's to help farmers create tastier strawberries, Bloomberg reported at the time.

WASHINGTON, Jan 10 (Reuters) - The succession of Al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri, who was believed to have been killed in a U.S. raid last year, remains unclear, a U.S. intelligence official said on Tuesday. "The question for Al Qaeda, that it has not answered for itself, is who follows (Zawahiri)," Christine Abizaid, director of the U.S. National Counterterrorism Center, said in an event organized by the Washington Institute when asked about Al Qaeda's "center of gravity" after Zawahiri's death. Al Qaeda has not named a successor. Saif al-Adel, a mysterious, low-key former Egyptian special forces officer who is a high-ranking member of Al Qaeda, is seen by experts as the top contender. The United States is offering a reward of up to $10 million for information leading to his arrest.

☆ Factbox: The 10 biggest U.S. retail bankruptcies in 5 years
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

J.C. PenneyAssets: $7.99 billionLiabilities: $7.16 billionStores: 846After more than a century in business, the department store chain filed for bankruptcy protection in May 2020, weighed down by mounting debt. At the time, its bankruptcy was the biggest collapse of a U.S. retailer by assets since Kmart in 2002. It soon emerged from bankruptcy with much of its store base intact and $400 million in fresh financial aid. Tailored BrandsAssets: $2.48 billionLiabilities: $2.84 billionStores: Over 1,400The owner of tuxedo and business suit chain Men's Wearhouse filed for bankruptcy in August 2020. It emerged from bankruptcy just days short of a year since it filed for bankruptcy under a new name, Premier Brands.

☆ A newly-released map has sparked a treasure hunt for $19 million of Nazi loot – but US soldiers may have got their first
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-08 | by ( Bethany Dawson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A map indicating where the Nazi loot might be buried was released in The Netherlands. The trove was said to have been buried by four German soldiers in World War II and has never been found. The map indicates the treasure is buried near the town of Ommeren in the municipality of Buren, central Holland. The Buren council website warned, "Experts point out that the area is close to the frontline of the Second World War. Nothing was found, and it was suspected locals may have seen the German soldiers burying the loot and liberated it themselves.

☆ California gets brief lull after damaging ‘bomb cyclone’
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-07 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

CAPITOLA, Calif. — California weather calmed Friday but the lull was expected to be brief as more Pacific storms lined up to blast into the state, where successive powerful weather systems have knocked out power to thousands, battered the coastline, flooded streets, toppled trees and caused at least six deaths. Remnant showers from the latest storm, a “bomb cyclone,” fell around the state and dangerous surf pounded the coast despite declining wave heights, while some areas enjoyed sunshine. A Southern California pier was damaged by high surf and winds overnight and will remain closed until it is repaired, officials said. Downtown San Francisco had its wettest 10-day period since 1871 between Dec. 26 and Jan. 4 when 10.33 inches (26.24 centimeters) of rain fell. A powerful New Year’s weekend storm caused extensive flooding in Northern California’s Sacramento County and four deaths.

☆ Why Subtle, Logo-Free Handbags Will Reign in 2023
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-07 | by ( Fiorella Valdesolo | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Three versatile handbags that exude plenty of chic but no tacky flash. WHEN KRISSY JONES was choosing a handbag to put on her holiday wishlist, she thought of her friend’s enviable carryall: a Park tote from minimalist brand the Row. “It’s well-made, gets better with time—hers is five years old and looks incredible—and is inconspicuous,” said Ms. Jones, 34, the co-founder of New York’s Sky Ting yoga studio. A similar quest for quality, versatility and (crucially) anonymity is driving a new trend: the anti-It Bag. Today’s sleek, simple anti-It Bags, on the other hand, telegraph a less meretricious sort of chic.

MUMBAI, Jan 6 (Reuters) - Loss-making Indian telecom operator Vodafone Idea has sought at least 70 billion rupees ($846 million) in emergency funds from local banks, which are however reluctant to extend fresh loans, four sources familiar with the matter said. "Without that (capital injection) it looks difficult for the company to ...survive," said one top official at a state-owned bank. Vodafone Idea (VODA.NS), the telecom ministry, and State Bank of India (SBI.NS) - the country's largest lender which the company has approached for financing - did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment. A feasibility study shared by Vodafone Idea with its bankers suggested the business might need a radical restructuring in order to survive, several of the sources said. An equity conversion by the government would be expected to raise its stake in the company to beyond 30%.

☆ TikTok videos show exasperated Target shoppers battling carts that lock in place — and it shows how anti-theft measures make the shopping experience worse
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-06 | by ( Dominick Reuter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Nearly 2 million shopping carts are stolen each year, costing retailers an estimated $800 million. Videos of shoppers battling anti-theft devices on carts in a Target parking lot have gone viral on TikTok. A TikToker going by the name Taylor Ann cheerfully narrates in a video of the moment, which has amassed over 4.4 million views on TikTok. Taylor Ann acknowledges the technology has been around for years, but it can still come as a surprise when it arrives at your store. The Food Marketing Institute meanwhile estimates that 2 million shopping carts are stolen each year, costing retailers an upwards of $800 million globally.

☆ Cardi B’s NSFW advice on inflation
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-05 | by ( Jordan Valinsky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Just listen to Cardi B. “Lettuce was like $2 a couple of months ago, and now it’s like f**king $7,” Cardi B said in the minute-long video. !”“I think that sh*t is crazy,” she added, sympathizing with “middle-class people or people in the hood” about the increase in grocery prices. !”US food inflation has sparked a cost-of-living crisis. That can make it more difficult for the US government to use tactics like raising interest rates to moderate food prices.

☆ Edison CEO denies EDF planning to sell Italian company - paper
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MILAN, Jan 5 (Reuters) - Edison's (EDNn.MI) chief executive said on Thursday that rumours French power group EDF (EDF.PA) plans to sell its Italian arm are "groundless". There is not an Edison dossier at the moment", Nicola Monti was quoted as saying in an interview with Italian daily La Stampa. EDF denied an Italian media report last August that it was considering a sale of its Italian unit. Energy analysts have said a sale of Edison could help EDF reduce its debt and press ahead with an ambitious investment plan. Italian media reported in August that EDF planned to kick off a sale process for Edison in the first quarter of this year once the nationalisation process had been completed.

☆ Only 3 countries have managed to build 5th-generation fighters, but nearly a dozen are already working on 6th-gen jets
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-03 | by ( Benjamin Brimelow | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

(The recently unveiled B-21 bomber is billed as the world's first sixth-gen aircraft, but little is known about its capabilities.) Lockheed Martin, Northrup Grumman, and Boeing are believed to be competing to build the jets, and all have released illustrations of sixth-gen aircraft. FCAS/SCAFA full-scale model of the Future Combat Air System at the Paris Air Show in June 2019. An illustration of Japan's next-generation fighter aircraft concept. While China is making heavy investment in military aviation, Russia's ability to develop next-generation jets may be shrinking.

☆ Jair Bolsonaro ditched the inauguration of Brazil's new president, fleeing to the home of an MMA fighter near Disney World: report
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-02 | by ( Morgan Mcfall-Johnsen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Jair Bolsonaro was missing from the inauguration of Brazil's new president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. In Bolsonaro's place, a 33-year-old garbage collector gave Lula da Silva the presidential sash. The leftist incumbent snagged the office from the country's far-right president, Jair Bolsonaro, in a tight runoff election in October. As per tradition, Bolsonaro was supposed to pass Lula da Silva a presidential sash during Sunday's ceremony, symbolizing a peaceful transition of power. Brazil's President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (left) waves to supporters on the day of his swearing-in ceremony, in Brasilia, Brazil, January 1, 2023.

☆ Final farewell: From Sidney Poitier to Pope Emeritus Benedict a look back at the influential figures who died in 2022
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-01 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +55 min

Other world leaders who died in 2022 include former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, who died in August. The final days of 2022 saw the loss of some exceptionally notable figures, including Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI. Here is a roll call of some influential figures who died in 2022 (cause of death cited for younger people, if available):___JANUARY___Dan Reeves, 77. A Cuban-born artist whose radiant color palette and geometric paintings were overlooked for decades before the art world took notice. A prolific character actor best known for playing villains and tough guys in “The Manchurian Candidate,” “Ocean’s Eleven” and other films.

☆ Lula returns to office in a troubled, divided Brazil
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-01 | by ( Anthony Boadle | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The ceremony in Congress begins at 3 p.m. (1800GMT), after which Lula will go the Planalto palace to don the presidential sash before a crowd of 30,000 supporters, while some 300,000 are expected to gather to celebrate on Brasilia's esplanade. Now, he faces the daunting challenge of improving Brazil's stagnant economy while also uniting a country that has become painfully polarized under Bolsonaro. His supporters have protested for two months that the election was stolen and called for a military coup to stop Lula returning to office in a climate of vandalism and violence. Organizers said delegations from 50 nations and 19 heads of state and governments, including the king of Spain, have confirmed their attendance. Reporting by Maria Carolina Marcello, Ricardo Brito, Lissandra Paraguassu and Anthony Boadle; Editing by Daniel WallisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Joe Biden's biggest successes and failures in his second year in office
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-31 | by ( Nicole Gaudiano | Brent D. Griffiths | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +15 min

His second year in office was marked by historic legislative achievements despite Democrats' razor-thin majority in Congress. Here are some of the highs and lows from Biden's second year:Success: UkrainePresident Joe Biden talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy outside the White House. Conservative New York Times columnist Bret Stephens in September called the "staggering gains" by Ukrainian forces "a victory for Joe Biden, too." Universal pre-K was included in a sweeping spending plan passed by House Democrats until their Senate colleagues cut that out too. Failure: InflationPresident Joe Biden arrives for an event focused on inflation and the supply chain at the Port of Los Angeles in June.

☆ Nasdaq closes out its first four-quarter slump since dot-com crash
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-30 | by ( Ari Levy | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

The only other negative four-quarter stretch in the Nasdaq's five-decade history was in 1983-84, when the video game market crashed. watch nowOther than 2008, the only other year worse for the Nasdaq was 2000, when the dot-com bubble burst and the index sank 39%. Numerous companies went bankrupt, most notably crypto exchange FTX, which collapsed after reaching a $32 billion valuation earlier in the year. In total, Nasdaq companies have shed close to $9 trillion in value this year, according to FactSet. At its peak in 2000, Nasdaq companies were worth about $6.6 trillion in total, and proceeded to lose about $5 trillion of that by the time the market bottomed in October 2002.

☆ The Best Banks for Small Business
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-27 | by ( ) www.wsj.com time to read: +15 min

To find the best business banks, we evaluated two dozen of the biggest institutions, looking for accounts that are easy to use, with low or no fees, and that don’t require large balances. Amex is one of relatively few banks that offers a competitive interest rate on its business checking account, with a current APY of 1.3% on balances up to $500,000. If you’re on the lookout for a new business credit card, the American Express Business Gold Card is Buy Side’s pick for Best Business Credit Card. How we pickedTo pick Buy Side from WSJ’s Best Banks for Small Business, we evaluated small-business checking accounts offered by two dozen traditional and digital banking institutions. We looked for business checking accounts that offered the best combination of convenience, low fees and features that make running a business easier, like integration with other business technology platforms and the availability of (or ability to connect with) payment processing systems.

☆ ECB must be ready to take the heat and raise rates more, Schnabel says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

FRANKFURT, Dec 24 (Reuters) - The European Central Bank must be prepared to take the heat and raise interest rates further, including by more than the market expects, if that is needed to bring down inflation, ECB policymaker Isabel Schnabel said in an interview published on Saturday. The ECB raised rates for a fourth straight time last week and hinted at further hikes - jolting euro zone bond markets and triggering a backlash from the Italian government. "Whether we will still need to go higher than that will depend on the future inflation outlook," she told German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. She added that the ECB will focus on medium-term inflation expectations, rather than current readings, and saw little risk of raising borrowing costs too far at present given that real interest rates are still very low. Schnabel said the ECB should weather the pressure.

☆ Monarch butterflies made a historic rebound this year, but my photos from 'Butterfly Town, USA' are disappointing and sad
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-24 | by ( Morgan Mcfall-Johnsen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

California's monarch butterflies made a miraculous rebound from nearly disappearing in 2020. I visited Pacific Grove, AKA "Butterfly Town, USA," to see the monarch migration for the first time. Monarch butterflies fly at the Sierra Chincua butterfly sanctuary in Angangeo, Michoacan state, Mexico. Monarch butterflies fly at the Sierra Chincua butterfly sanctuary in Angangeo, Michoacan state, Mexico. When I was a child, I didn't see monarch butterflies, but they were already in decline.

Search resuls for: "Laden"

25 mentions found