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[1/5] School teachers demonstrate for better salaries and working conditions in Lisbon, Portugal, February 11, 2023. REUTERS/Pedro NunesLISBON, Feb 11 (Reuters) - Tens of thousands of teachers took to Lisbon's streets on Saturday in one of the biggest protests in Portugal in recent years as the Socialist government faces a wave of discontent over the cost of living crisis. It was the third time in less than a month that teachers and school workers have held mass demonstrations in Portugal. Teachers on the lowest pay scale make around 1,100 euros ($1,174.25) per month but even teachers in higher bands typically earn less than 2,000 euros. House prices in Portugal rose 18.7% in 2022, the biggest increase in three decades, and rents have also increased significantly.

Disney CEO Bob Iger announced a new business structure Wednesday and further details emerged Thursday. ESPN and ESPN+ will form a separate unit, led by Jimmy Pitaro. Hollywood is already busy sharing memes about Bergman and Walden and how they will share and compete for power. As part of the cuts, Iger has directed his reports to lay off 7,000 staffers. A Thursday morning press release outlined all the shared services units that will now come under Bergman, Walden, and Pitaro.

☆ How search and rescue teams pull survivors from rubble
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

The International Search and Rescue Advisory Group (INSARAG), a network of countries and organisations under a U.N. umbrella, helps facilitate coordination between international search and rescue teams that deploy in such disasters. The survey helps to identify possible resources and hazards, as well as the main priorities for search and rescue teams. The disaster area is often then drawn into sectors to allocate command and to assign search teams. Often debris must be removed by hand to avoid crushing survivors by using heavy equipment.Below are some of the smaller types of rescue equipment that may be used by rescue teams. Search and rescue teams have worked day and night in cold, wet weather while also facing the threat of aftershocks.

☆ Shopify is trying to lure sellers away from Amazon by promising seamless shipping and VIP access on container ships
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( Emma Cosgrove | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Shopify rolled out the latest iteration of its e-commerce logistics service Thursday. Shopify Logistics is a "port to porch" logistics service for even the smallest merchants. Flexport will allow Shopify merchants to get "front of the line access," to space on container ships they'd struggle to get otherwise, Brown said. Shopify rolled the badge, a direct competitor to Amazon's Prime shipping program and its newer "Buy with Prime" feature, out last year and expanded it to all Shopify sellers Thursday. A lot of e-commerce businesses with good products "flame out" because they simply can't hack the operations, Sauceda said.

Disability Insurance Is Available at All Wage LevelsYou should opt for disability insurance if you're the sole earner in your family. Disability Insurance Can Help Parents Pay BillsWorkers with children should also consider disability insurance. Disability Insurance Is Also for Self-Employed WorkersSelf-employed workers or own small business owners may disregard the need for disability insurance. Disability Insurance Can Help with Nagging InjuriesDid you know just 14% of Americans have disability insurance? Disability insurance is one way to shield yourself financially to make wise decisions before a nagging backache becomes a permanent disability.

☆ From Nike to Nutella: Company names you have probably been mispronouncing your whole life
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-06 | by ( Hannah Ward-Glenton | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Global company names often get Anglicized or Americanized to the point where they're unrecognizable, but brands could see some benefits if their names are pronounced correctly. Allianz: al-ee-anz"Allianz " is, perhaps unsurprisingly, the German word for "alliance." It isn't pronounced like the ancient Greek herald of the gods, Hermes, unlike the U.K. delivery company of similar spelling. Moët & Chandon: mow-et ey shon-donIn contrast to typical French pronunciation, there is a hard "T" sound at the end of "Moët." Heuer is the last name of the company's founder, Edouard Heuer.

☆ New look CBDCs and cryptomarket to emerge from turmoil, top BIS official says
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-06 | by ( Marc Jones | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

LONDON, Feb 6 (Reuters) - Cryptomarkets have not been killed off by last year's turmoil, while the new wave of central bank digital currencies will face geopolitical limits, the Bank for International Settlements' new innovation head has predicted. Dubbed the central bank to the world's central bank, the BIS has long been critical of cryptocurrencies, likening bitcoin to both a ponzi scheme and market bubble in the past. Since the start of 2023, however, there has been something of a rebound, including a 40% recovery in bitcoin's price. The European Central Bank should get the go-ahead for full-scale tests. "We will never have full interconnectedness," Skingsley said, adding though that the BIS' work aimed to make CBDCs as versatile as possible.

☆ Anti-LGBTQ+ protests are at an all-time high. A Proud Boys war on drag is a big reason why.
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-04 | by ( Laura Italiano | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

Once a week on average in 2022, Proud Boys joined or led anti-LGBTQ+ protests held across the US. Proud Boys joined in seven anti-LGBTQ+ protests in September, 10 in October and 6 in November. In December, they protested at 13 anti-LGBTQ+ protests, more than in any other month last year, ACLED data shows. And the group's anti-LGBTQ+ push is continuing, said Kaufman, who tracks the Proud Boys' estimated 119 chapters in 46 states. Proud Boys are turning up these days at nearly half of all anti-LGBTQ+ activity across the country, she told Insider.

☆ Grocery consumers sue to block Kroger’s $25 bln buy of Albertsons
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-03 | by ( Mike Scarcella | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Kroger is the biggest grocer in the U.S. by revenue, and Albertsons is the second-largest supermarket chain. Nearly 5,000 grocery stores would be under one corporate umbrella if the deal, announced in October, goes through. A representative for Albertsons declined to comment on Friday, and a Kroger spokesperson did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment. Kroger operates stores under banners including Harris Teeter, Pay Less and King Soopers. U.S. antitrust law lets private consumers sue over proposed mergers and acquisitions, apart from any enforcement action brought by a state or federal agency policing competition laws.

☆ Trader Is Charged in Alleged $110 Million Crypto Manipulation Scheme
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-02 | by ( Mengqi Sun | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +3 min

He faces charges of commodities fraud, commodities market manipulation and wire fraud in connection with what prosecutors said was manipulation of Mango Markets. Mr. Eisenberg remained in police custody on Thursday and will be arraigned Feb. 14, when he would be asked to enter a plea. PREVIEWThe Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission filed parallel civil charges against Mr. Eisenberg last month. The CFTC, which regulates derivatives markets, said the enforcement action against Mr. Eisenberg was the first of its kind against an alleged manipulation scheme involving a decentralized exchange. He allegedly artificially pumped up the price of MNGO on three different digital asset exchanges that Mango Markets used to determine the value of the derivative contracts.

☆ Google CEO promises new AI features are coming to search 'very soon' amid competition from ChatGPT
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-02 | by ( Jennifer Elias | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Alphabet and Google CEO Sundar Pichai said Thursday that the company will soon add advanced AI features to its search engine. Pichai said that it will release the large language model "in the coming weeks and months" so the company can get more feedback. Weakness in the advertising business appeared in an 8% revenue decline in YouTube's advertising revenue and a 2% fall in Google's Search and Other revenue. Google's prime business is web search, and the company has long touted itself as a pioneer in AI. But generative AI products like ChatGPT could pose a threat to the entire model of internet search, as they can provide creative answers to more complicated queries.

☆ UN expert warns Myanmar's military plans to seek legitimacy in 'sham' election
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-01 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The independent U.N. special investigator on Myanmar warned Tuesday that the country's military rulers plan to seek legitimacy by orchestrating a "sham" election this year and urged all countries to reject the illegal and "farcical" vote. Tom Andrews also called for nations that support human rights and democracy to recognize the underground umbrella organization for opponents of military rule as the legitimate representative of Myanmar's people. "You cannot have a free and fair election when the opposition is arrested, detained, tortured, and executed," journalists are prohibited from doing their job, and it is a crime to criticize the military, Andrews said at a news conference. Andrews called for recognition and support for the National Unity Government, the main underground group coordinating resistance to the military. It was established by elected legislators who were barred from taking their seats when the military seized power.

☆ UK set for biggest strike action in years as teachers, civil servants walk out
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-01 | by ( Michael Holden | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

On Wednesday, about 300,000 teachers will take action, along with 100,000 civil servants from more than 120 government departments, and tens of thousands of university lecturers and rail workers. 'MOST DAYS LOST FOR 30 YEARS'Between June and November, more days were lost to industrial action than in any six months for over 30 years, according to official data. An Ipsos poll released on Wednesday suggested the public was divided on the multiple strike action, with 40% supporting the action and 38% opposed. It put the estimated impact of the teachers' strikes at about 20 million pounds a day. ($1 = 0.8130 pound)Reporting by Michael Holden, Alistair Smout and William Schomberg; editing by Jonathan OatisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ The Arnaults are betting big on K-Pop, and it shows the power of South Korea's luxury spending machine
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-31 | by ( Cheryl Teh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Experts tell Insider this is a calculated move to tap into the booming South Korean market. A targeted move to win over the South Korean marketBTS member Jimin (left) and BLACKPINK singer Rosé. "Fashion trends tend to be created and adopted in South Korea, before being diffused to other markets in Asia," Dubois said. She also said South Korea is "increasingly known" for its K-Pop stars, movies, and shows in the US — which helps with promotions stateside too. Once the COVID situation settles, it is possible that Chinese tourists, with their spending power, return to Korea," Kim said.

☆ Pakistan mosque bombing death toll rises to 87
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-31 | by ( Jibran Ahmad | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/5] Chief of Army Staff (COAS) of Pakistan Asim Munir and Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif visit an injured, after a suicide blast in a mosque, at a hospital in Peshawar, Pakistan January 30, 2023. Prime Minister's Office/Handout via REUTERSPESHAWAR, Pakistan, Jan 31 (Reuters) - The death toll in the suicide bombing that tore through a mosque in Pakistan rose to 87 on Tuesday, a hospital official said, a day after the one of the biggest attacks in the unstable South Asian nation. The attack occurred in one of the most fortified areas of the northwestern Peshawar city, which houses offices of the police and counter-terrorism departments. Hospital official Mohammad Asim said that 87 people had been killed, and that 57 people were being treated, seven of whom were in critical condition. Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), an umbrella of Sunni and sectarian Islamist groups, has denied responsibility.

“It was gorgeous, and I was so not expecting it,” said Darion Lowenstein, 41, a video game consultant, who is gay. Though Bill’s role in the game is small, and his mention of being gay brief, it did not go unnoticed by LGBTQ gamers like Bonatsakis. Roughly 10% of gamers are LGBTQ, according to a 2020 survey by Nielsen. And for many of these queer gamers, Durkee said, video games are a lifeline. She said character customization in games such as “The Sims” and “World of Warcraft” can empower queer gamers to express their identity in ways that traditional media cannot.

By announcing an inflation goal, central bankers feel they build credibility for themselves and focus the planning of households and firms in ways that help keep inflation controlled. Those decades, up to the end of the first year of the coronavirus pandemic in 2020, saw inflation largely contained. Achieving that target is just core to our overall monetary policy," Brainard said, a sentiment echoed in central bank headquarters from Frankfurt to London to Tokyo. "Let me be quite clear, there are no ifs or buts in our commitment to the 2% inflation target," Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey said last year. Should inflation prove stickier than expected, achieving the central bank's 2% inflation goal could mean even more losses.

☆ Donald Trump argues in wild court filing that New York can't sue the Trump Organization because it doesn't legally exist
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( Laura Italiano | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

NY's Attorney General sued Trump, his family and his business in September over an alleged pattern of fraud. In a response late Thursday, the defendants repeatedly claimed the Trump Organization can't be sued. 'Trump Organization' is branding shorthand, not a legal entity, they said repeatedly in 5,000 pages of response. The New York lawsuit names Donald Trump, Donald Trump, Jr., Ivanka Trump, Eric Trump, former company CFO Allen Weisselberg, its former payroll executive Jeffrey McConney, and entities under the Trump Organization umbrella. Read Donald Trump's response to the New York attorney general's massive fraud lawsuit here.

☆ With a possible recession looming, here's how to decide if you should to go back to school
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( Jessica Dickler | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Historically, enrollment in graduate school picks up amid recession as workers take the time to "skill up" or pivot to another industry with better career prospects or pay. "When the economy goes down, the interest in graduate schools goes up," said Eric Greenberg, president of Greenberg Educational Group, a New York-based consulting firm. Still, a recession may be looming, some experts say, which raises the question of whether going back to school makes more sense than trying to weather a potential period of unemployment. In 2020, nationwide enrollment in graduate school initially sank but then quickly rebounded in 2021, only to slump again in the fall of 2022. There's usually a lag time of up to a year after the economy slows before workers return to school for retraining, he said.

Power giant Orsted aims to build a huge offshore windfarm to help the country meet renewable goals. Last year the North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA), which regulates offshore energy activity, concluded that large crossovers between such ventures were unfeasible with current technology. This largely unreported clash risks undermining Britain's drive to meet its climate goals, according to the companies involved and a North Sea green transition expert. The BP-Orsted showdown could also presage similar disputes elsewhere in an increasingly crowded North Sea, the experts told Reuters. There is hope on the horizon for wind and CCS projects that share ground, say regulators and industry experts.

☆ Bullish analyst note gives troubled chipmakers a much needed boost. Here's our view
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( Zev Fima | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

In the back half of 2023, analysts expect an acceleration in capex spending in both the U.S., "and potentially in China." Also supportive of AMD shares, the analysts believe that the PC inventory glut should bottom out in the current quarter. QCOM YTD mountain Qualcomm (QCOM) YTD peformance One key driver of end market improvement is headwinds in China turning to tailwinds in the second half of the year. We continue to hold that view and note again that much of the Barclays analysts' optimism is predicated on their second-half 2023 view. (Jim Cramer's Charitable Trust is long QCOM, AMD, NVDA, EMR, CAT.

☆ I quit the big city to become a virtual assistant in the Spanish mountains. Here's how I work fewer hours and got started without personal-assistant experience.
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( Ella Hopkins | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Helen Taylor, a 40-year-old virtual assistant living in the Asturias province of Spain. But from my research, I realized that "virtual assistant" is an umbrella term for a lot of different work. Associates work for a lead virtual assistant who hands over the tasks they may not have the time or ability to complete. I started by offering clients tasks I knew I could do. I start work early so my clients in London can start at 9 a.m. with a clean inbox.

☆ Boeing's role in building NASA's new rocket
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( Jackie Wattles | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +18 min

The mobile launcher with NASA's SLS rocket and Orion spacecraft rolls out of the Vehicle Assembly Building's High Bay 3 to Launch Complex 39B on Tuesday, Aug. 16, 2022, at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. “I worked over 50 Space Shuttle launches,” Boeing SLS program manager John Shannon told CNN by phone. Though more than 1,000 companies were involved with designing and building SLS, Boeing’s work involved the largest and most expensive portion of the rocket. The SLS rocket ended up flying its first launch more than six years later than originally intended. All of the “major components” for a third SLS rocket are also completed, Shannon added.

☆ Davos 2023: What you need to know about the WEF on Thursday
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Kathryn Lurie | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

During the round-table, she and three of her fellow activists said they had presented a "cease and desist" letter to CEOs calling for a stop to new oil, gas and coal extraction. "What we've said about oil and gas is that there does need to be a transition," he said. Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson lent his support, urging allies to double down on sending military equipment to support Ukraine. Meta has been working on generative AI research, for instance tech that can convert a text prompt into a video clip. For daily Davos updates in your inbox sign up for the Reuters Daily Briefing hereEditing by Alexander SmithOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Davos 2023-Meta sees promise in generative AI, including for Instagram filters
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

DAVOS, Switzerland, Jan 19 (Reuters) - Generative artificial intelligence, the umbrella technology behind the popular chatbot ChatGPT, has interesting applications for social media, the chief product officer for Facebook parent Meta Platforms Inc (META.O) told Reuters. On the sidelines of the World Economic Forum's annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, Meta's Chris Cox said that such technology has the capability to create image filters for the likes of the company's Instagram app. Generative AI can learn from vast data to produce prose, imagery or other content in response to a simple text command. Meta has been working on generative AI research, for instance tech that can convert a text prompt into a video clip. Reporting By Jeffrey Dastin in Davos, Switzerland Editing by Tomasz JanowskiOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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