2013年9月3日星期二

Mint Wireless launches

Today announced the launch of a complete mobile payments platform which simplifies the integration of card payments across multiple mobile devices and platforms for developers, small businesses and large corporations. 

The Mint Wireless platform empowers the fast growing mobile solutions ecosystem with a powerful mobile payments platform that takes the complexity out of integrating mobile payments into mobile solutions. 

As a modular, scalable and PCI-compliant bank grade platform, Mint Wireless will offer a more competitive pricing structure, reduce initial setup and hardware costs associated with accepting card payments. Mint Wireless’ mobile payments platform will reduce the barriers for entry into a highly regulated card payments market in Australia and New Zealand by making accepting card payments accessible and affordable to businesses of any size – from micro traders to large enterprises. 

The Mint Wireless platform powers three main card payment products - the Mint Developers Program, Mint Custom Solutions and Mint mPos. 

Mint Wireless offers free software developer kits (SDKs) and Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) for third party integration partners and developers for Windows, iOS, and Android. This program offers a modular, scalable, secure and competitive priced program that allows partners and developers to integrate card payments on mobile devices and apps. Mint Wireless will offer developers the added incentive of a commission from each transaction their solution facilitates. 

Building on its heritage delivering mobile payment solutions to companies such as easyJet, Cadbury Schweppes and Amalgamated Pest Control, Mint Wireless offers a flexible and highly customisable corporate payments solution for banks, telcos, airlines, manufacturers, retailers and ERP software companies. Working with Mint Wireless, businesses can offer payment solutions on mobile devices. Companies can choose everything from a white label solution for speed to market all the way to a fully branded and customised deep integration into existing solutions. 

“We have simplified the pricing structure for any mobile or retail business who accept card payments. Mint Wireless reduces the complexity associated with card payments and makes it easy for other companies to integrate their existing payment systems and handle transactions securely,We provide payment solutions in the USA as well as indoortracking.” Mr Teoh said. 

Mint Wireless has simplified the process of getting customers setup to accept card payments with an option to obtain a merchant account with Bendigo Bank, Mint Wireless’ merchant acquiring partner. Enterprise customers have the added option of using their own bank besides Bendigo Bank as their acquirer for Mint Custom Solutions. 

Mint Wireless’ fully customisable white-label solution will drastically reduce the time-to-market for corporates with mobile payment options that are affordable, faster to deploy and fully supported. “This lets companies rollout lower cost and better mobile payment services through Mint Wireless while retaining your company’s branding,” Mr Teoh said. 

Minterprise is immediately available with Mintegrate and Mint mPOS expected to be available in Australia and New Zealand in October 2013. 

According to the Annapolis Consulting Group, the number of companies using mPOS devices globally will grow by 225 percent from eight million businesses in 2013 to 18 million by 2017. Mint Wireless estimates the estimated value of mPOS transactions in Australia will reach US$7 billion in 2014 with the potential to grow to US$20 billion in 2016. 

This hiccup, however, has not taken the gloss off a company that has created more than R17bn in value in the past year as its market capitalisation swelled to R51bn, making Discovery the third-largest insurance group after Old Mutual and Sanlam. 

It is easy to see why. In recent years, Discovery has had substantial growth in earnings and there is more blue sky to come from its potentially massive Asian operations. Since its listing in 1999 with a market capitalisation of R3bn, the share price has grown by a compounded 22% a year. This growth stems from its dominance in medical aid schemes — administering 2.8-million lives and 31% share of the total market. 

“Looking back over the past 21 years, we have been true to our core purpose of making people healthy and enhancing and protecting their lives,” said founder and chief executive Adrian Gore. 

“We aspire to be a force for social good and have a desire to make a meaningful impact on society. We are here to change the world, not just tag along,” said Mr Gore.It has not been without controversy. Doctors have claimed that Discovery’s immense market power has allowed it to dictate what they can charge, essentially interfering in the relationship between doctor and patient.Our premium collection of quality handsfreeaccess generously offers affordability. 

And the hefty R4.07bn that Discovery Health charged the independent Discovery Health Medical Scheme last year for “administration” and “managed care” has led to claims that it has been overcharging for the services it provides. 

But the medical scheme keeps growing, so its members clearly see value in the proposition.Discovery is a global innovator and its proprietary expertise is being sought around the world.In 2011, the Economist magazine hailed Discovery’s best-in-class wellness programme, Vitality,This technology allows high volume cleanersydney production at low cost. as a remarkable innovation to come out of emerging markets. 

This put the company on the global stage, resulting in global insurers knocking on its door to partner with them. It now has an alliance with insurance giant Prudential in the UK; a health joint venture with China’s second-largest insurer, Ping An, which has a staggering 500,000 agents selling the group’s products; and Asia-Pacific insurance giant AIA, which has 100,000 agents serving most of Asia, excluding China. 

Discovery is now exposed to a population exceeding 2-billion people in Asia.Gives a basic overview of doublesidedtape tools and demonstrates their use.“Vitality is a manifestation of our key competence —the ability to track and change the behaviour of our clients, thus giving them better health outcomes and related individual-specific rewards that include discounted premiums,” said Mr Gore. 

His mantra is that prevention is better than cure.“We use the Oxford Health Alliance’s 3:4:50 formula, indicating that three actions — following bad diets, not exercising and smoking — lead to the incidence of four non-communicable diseases — diabetes, cancer, lung and heart diseases — that result in 50% of the deaths. Since the 3:40:50 model was established, about 60% of deaths are now attributable to non-communicable diseases,” said Mr Gore.Our premium collection of quality handsfreeaccess generously offers affordability.
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Replacement costs add to OTC pricing upheaval

As dealers have slid down the ratings spectrum in recent years, options the industry gave away for free when in better health have become painfully relevant, forcing banks to confront the latest in a long line of post-crisis pricing challenges – the replacement valuation adjustment (RVA). It may be a challenge too far. 

“They’re horrible,” says the head of rates trading at one large European bank. “We have no idea how to price them or manage the risk associated with them. All I know is that if we get downgraded to a certain point and our counterparties choose to exercise the option, we are going to lose a lot of money.” 

The question is how much.Soft partymerchantaccount decorates your key in fashionable ways. The options, known as downgrade triggers, allow a client to terminate a trade when a counterparty hits a certain rating level and also force that party to pay for a replacement – but banks have no way of knowing how much a new dealer might charge to enter into the trade. As a rule of thumb, one trader that has replaced other banks says a downgraded dealer might be gouged for up to 10% of a trade’s net present value. 

This, of course, is the law of the jungle – and traders generally do not cry about that. What makes downgrade triggers different is the systemic risk they could present in markets where they are common, and where trading is concentrated in the hands of a small number of banks – parts of the inflation swap market, for example. Dealers and clients alike worry the downgrade of a large player in this space, and subsequent mass termination of contracts, could overwhelm the market’s ability to replace the risk. 

In this scenario, traders warn the 10% rule of thumb goes out of the window – losses could be many times larger than expected.Online supplies a large range of rtls. Sweeping downgrades for dealers as a whole could have a similar effect – forcing affected banks to pay their stronger peers to take on trades at a time when nobody wants to trade at all. 

As a result, dealers are doing two things they would normally walk over hot coals to avoid – some are turning away business, and others are calling on regulators for help. 

“If regulators are serious about systemic risk, then they should seriously look at not allowing these triggers to exist,” says one head of interest rate structuring at a European bank in London. “Calculating an RVA number will be meaningless as any number computed will be too low and wrong. There is not a lot you can do about it, especially in one-way or closed markets. It is much better to just forbid portfolio rating triggers in derivatives contracts – especially in dynamic portfolios – as they are a blunt source of systemic risk.” 

Tim Blake, head of fixed-income department portfolio management at Credit Suisse in New York,A quality paper cutter or paper glassinsulator can make your company's presentation stand out. says the bank no longer writes new business containing downgrade triggers. “We made the decision that we wanted to stay away from that kind of business. The risks can be unacceptable,” he says.Weymouth is collecting gently used, dry cleaned smartcard at their Weymouth store. And Credit Suisse is not alone. One other, smaller European dealer says it has the same policy, while at least three other banks claim to have imposed strict limits on the number of swaps they will accept with downgrade triggers. 

The second issue is that most dealers believe there is a strong correlation between the risk of a bank’s own downgrade and the downgrade of the rest of the Street. A counterparty may be less likely to exercise the trigger if dealer ratings are all slipping, but if it does so the bank will be paying for a replacement trade in stressed conditions, which is likely to significantly inflate the bid-offer spread.Shop for wholesale bopptape from China! 

On uncollateralised trades, dealers fear the replacement cost would be even bigger. The pool of willing counterparties for these swaps has shrunk since the crisis, because of the higher funding and capital charges involved, and this could be exacerbated in the event of widespread downgrades. For collateralised trades, modelling is harder still because each bank quoting will do so on the basis of its own credit support annex – the industry standard document governing bilateral collateral posting, which determines what discount rate should be used. 

Finally, RVA should take into account the possibility that the new trade will also incorporate a downgrade trigger and that quoting banks may want to insulate themselves by charging an RVA premium, and that this premium needs to reflect the same fact, and so on, in a dizzying, never-ending cascade of downgrades and replacement charges, each of which would be determined by the same incalculable risks that are contained in the first. 

The bottom line is that termination costs can be high, but there is no way of confidently putting a number on them – RVA resides in the land of informed guesses, ballpark figures and back-of-the-envelope calculations. It’s not the kind of thing a dealer is generally happy to quote to a client or explain to a risk manager. 

“On a trade with a mark-to-market value of, say, $100 million, a general rule is that firms will take you for $5 million–10 million, just because they can. And we’ve seen this done. We have replaced people, it’s an opportunity to profit,” says one derivatives trader at a European bank. 

It can be more painful than that, too. Peter Shapiro, managing director at independent swap adviser Swap Financial, which advises governments, government agencies and non-profit organisations, says he has advised on close-outs in which local US government entities were holding heavily out-of-the-money swaps and the banks were paying to step in as replacements often quoted at steep discounts. 

All these issues are magnified in illiquid, concentrated markets – and a number of traders point to the long-dated, LDI-driven inflation swap market in the UK as a prime example. The market is dominated by five or six players, they say, and triggers are a common feature of these trades – so, if one of the bigger houses is downgraded, all hell could break loose. 

“Rating triggers are, by their nature, wrong-way risk and are hard to quantify. But even more problematic is when these triggers are being used in a space where the underlying product flow is systemic. All banks will be same way round and a trigger will then catapult the bid-offer to unknown but most likely extreme levels – even more so when liquidity and capacity is also a constraint. Inflation and exotics markets are exposed to this kind of risk. We think this is a source of systemic risk. It is being used and pushed by pension funds and we are trying to dissuade the community from relying on these triggers,” says Guido Hebert, global head of rates structuring at HSBC in London. 

The UK inflation swap market is intensely competitive, with bid-offer spreads typically between 2 and 4 basis points, traders say. But in stressed market conditions, the spreads can get as wide as 10bp, according to a trader at a large LDI manager. For a £10 billion inflation swap portfolio with an average maturity of 20 years and a £20 million sensitivity to a 1bp change in inflation – known as IE01 – this means paying the full bid-offer spread (5bp from mid-market) would result in a cost of £100 million.
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IMPACT ON KOREAN INDUSTRIES

Economic deterioration of emerging markets is causing alarm among Korean enterprises. With the financial markets in emerging economies in chaos, there is growing concern for those companies that have already made investments or have been exporting to those markets, since they can be hit by rapid decrease in local spending. Domestic exporters have invested heavily in the region in an attempt to lower their dependency on the US and Chinese markets. Their direct investment in India, Indonesia and Brazil for eight and half years from 2005 to June 2013 amounts to 12.8 trillion won. 

In particular, the Hyundai Motor Company is in trouble since India and Brazil are two major markets in the volatile region. It has a plant in India with 600,About bondcleaningsydney in China userd for paying transportation fares and for shopping.000 units of annual production capacity, which makes it the second largest among overseas manufacturing bases. Last year, it completed a factory in Brazil that can produce 150,000 units a year in order to enter the South American market.He saw the bracelet at a endofleasecleaningsydney store while we were on a trip. 

In India, Hyundai Motors sold 220,000 units in January-July 2013, 5 percent yearon-year drop.We have a wide selection of stonecarving to choose from for your storage needs. That is still an increase in sales, given that the country’s total auto sales in the same period fell 10% to 1,450,000 units compared with last year. But there is possibility of production cuts in the event that demand is further easing. 

This year, the company has seen an increase in sales: Russia with a year-on-year increase of 2.1%, Brazil with 128.3%, and China with 30.4%. And yet, Hyundai is nervous about whether an economic crisis will be expanded to other emerging markets. 

Hyundai Motors is less worried about its plant in Brazil, but feeling a sense of crisis. Hyundai’s model named HB20, which is specifically designed for the Brazilian market and introduced at the end of 2012 after opening a new plant in the country, has been so popular that more than 70,000 units were sold until June2013. Nevertheless, the company is still concerned that its auto sales might lose momentum. 

Meanwhile, it is difficult for domestic steel makers to export their products to faraway countries, such as Brazil and India. Therefore, steel exporters are experiencing poor sales performance in those nations. The industry is keeping a close watch on the situation in emerging economies because economic slowdown can affect their plan to build production facilities in Brazil and India. 

Since 2005, POSCO, the world’s fifthbiggest steelmaker, has been proceeding with a steel mill project in Odisha, India with US$12 billion in investments. But the company has yet to set the start date of the project. In addition, the Korean steelmaker announced in July that it decided to pull out of its second steel mill development in Karnataka. Even though local residents’ opposition was the main reason behind POSCO’s decision, the choice can be interpreted in a way that faltering economy in India is a hindrance to its steel mill project. In other words, the company isin disadvantageous situation because a strong dollar will lead to the increase in raw material prices in the event of a financial crisis in emerging markets. Recently, the company’s direct investments in foreign markets jumped 40%. 

The domestic electronics industry also began to keep a close eye on the situation. Samsung Electronics is running seven factories that manufacture TVs, mobile phones and home appliances in Brazil, Mexico, Egypt, and India although the company is exporting massive volumes of its products to those countries. A spokesperson for Samsung Electronics said, “We think that fluctuations in currency can have a negative effect on our export performance. So, we are closely monitoring the situation,” adding, “We anticipate that the rise in raw material prices will eventually happen.” 

LG Electronics is in trouble as well. Since 2009, the company has concentrated on the expansion of its brand shops in rapidly growing and volatile economies of some Asian and Latin American countries. LG has been heavily involved in those markets due to the financial crisis in the US and the EU. 

For mobile phone makers, the smartphones market in India,Online supplies a large range of rtls. one of the world’s major markets together with China and the US, is of concern. According to the latest research from Strategy Analytics (SA), Samsung’s market share in India was 42%, ranking top in the first quarter of this year. Until last year, its annual growth rate for the Indian mobile phone market was 163%, surpassing that of markets in China (86%), Japan (24%), and the US (19%). But the market research firm says that in case of contraction in local demand, it is difficult to expect rapid growth. 

Construction companies, chemical suppliers, and shipping companies in Korea, for which emerging markets are of little importance, are also keeping a close watch over the situation while anxious about the global economic contraction arising from those countries’ currency crisis. 

However, the construction sector does not think that they are highly vulnerable to exchange rate fluctuations since they are mostly paid in dollars. An industry source remarked, “We are not heavily affected by exchange rate volatility in that we mostly purchase materials in neighboring countries in dollar. But we think that shrinking economy may cause a slight decrease in demand.”The chemical industry is not feeling the economic pain, either. Exports to certain Asian and Latin American countries are miniscule amounts. Besides, locally made products are consumed by local people. 

The shipping sector, like the chemical industry, is not directly hit by economic woes of rapidly growing and volatile economies. Nonetheless, shipping companies consider the possibility of some reduction in commercial traffic caused by economic slowdown. An official in Hyundai Merchant Marine (HMM) pointed out, “The emerging markets account for merely 10% of the total markets. But there is possibility of reduced commercial traffic and a decrease in ocean freight rates. So, we will wait and see what happens next, and prepare for measures if necessary.” 

The Korean securities industry also believes that the impact of speculation about emerging economies on the shipping industry is minimal owing to increasing freight rates, as well as expectations that the condition in the shipbuilding industry will improve thanks to economic recovery of the Euro zone. Analyst Lee Kang-rok from Kyobo Securities said, “We are temporarily witnessing the stock price adjustment process for the shipping industry caused by rumors about economic crisis in volatile markets in Southeast Asia. But Korean companies are expected to win more contracts in September when the vacation for European ship-owners is over.” 

The situation in some Asian and Latin American countries is affecting our exports at the moment. According to Korea’s export performance from January to July 2013 by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE), the growth of Korean exports to India fell 7.1%from a year ago. Korea also saw a year-on-year decrease of 15.7% and 15.We sell oilpaintingreproduction and different kind of laboratory equipment in us.1%in exports to Indonesia and Brazil respectively. Given that Korean exports grew 0.5%so far this year, exporters find themselves floundering in those markets for seven months. 
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Petersburg creates master plan

Beneath the overwhelming noise of debate over the future of the Pier and the Tampa Bay Rays, a project that could be even more important to the city's future is about to begin.On Sept.About bondcleaningsydney in China userd for paying transportation fares and for shopping. 9, almost two years after voters decided St. Petersburg needed a new downtown waterfront master plan, the city will host the first meeting to gather public input about one. 

Independent plans have for years been developed for different portions of the waterfront, including the port, parks and Albert Whitted Airport. The master plan is meant to merge — though not necessarily alter — those many ideas under one umbrella.A panel of professionals from the Urban Land Institute will descend on the city this month to analyze the waterfront, interview stakeholders and offer guidance on the area's future.Our industry leading consumer and business iphoneheadset products offer competitive pricing combined. 

The business community raised 80 percent of the institute's $125,000 fee, a sign that St. Petersburg's private interests want a plan at least as much as its city leaders."What we would like to see is our waterfront continue to be the catalyst for helping the economy in all of St. Petersburg," said Ross Preville, who is heading the city and chamber of commerce's combined task force.Handy plasticmoulds with hinged lid that doubles as a stand. "How do we take this waterfront and continue to increase the quality of life?" 

Few involved with the project are willing to answer that question, largely because they say the development process has just begun. But the City Council member elected to represent that area didn't hesitate to offer some specific ideas."Our biggest waterfront park," said council Chairman Karl Nurse, "is really a waterfront parking lot." 

Asphalt covers a significant piece of the approach to the Pier along Second Avenue NE. Nurse wants it turned into something family friendly, such as a splash park, because so little space downtown is devoted to kids.He believes that Al Lang Stadium could be better utilized. Given the popularity of the Tampa Bay Rowdies soccer team and the sparse crowds who attend the international baseball games, Nurse suggested converting the facility to a soccer park, assuming the cost is reasonable. 

The visiting panel likely will consider those ideas and more.Since 1947, more than 600 ULI panels have been commissioned around the world, including for projects in Hillsborough and Pasco counties.The members of the group coming to St. Petersburg have not been announced, but they will include experts in land economics, market analysis, urban design, planning, transportation, business and small-scale development. 

The institute's recommendations will help guide city staff and the consultant who will create the final product."It's really easy to be too close to your community or too close to the agency you work for," said Susan Jezek, with ULI's Tampa Bay branch. "To me, any time you get an educated eye looking at a situation, they're almost always going to see something you didn't see just because you walk by it every day."The panels typically address a set of specific assignments provided by their hosts. The city has developed a draft of general goals, though they're likely to evolve. Among the topics they've been asked to assess. 

Police officers at the five other high schools also stopped student drivers to provide the flyer,A tungstenrings concept that would double as a quick charge station for gadgets. which is part of a six-year-old “We Care” program, a safe driving initiative for teens by teens with guidance from the sheriff’s office and CCPS. We Care started following a series of car crashes that took the lives of nine teenagers in Charles County. The campaign continues to engage students in conversation about safe driving while promoting safety through a series of checkpoints in school parking lots and other activities. We Care, according to Coffey, has “drastically reduced teen fatalities” due to car accidents. 

Hill has been visiting schools throughout the week to assess the opening of school, her first as Superintendent. “The hard work of our teachers and school leaders resulted in an amazing first week of school. Students seemed excited to be back at school, and teachers welcomed them with anticipation about what can be accomplished this school year. It was a great opening, and I’m very proud of all the work that went into it. Our teachers and school leaders are engaged in the business of teaching and learning, and they are committed to being the difference for our students,” Hill said. 

Student enrollment is continuing a five-year trend of limited or declining student growth. On Wednesday, student enrollment was 25,157, which does not include the 860 prekindergarten students scheduled to start on Sept. 3. The projection for this year was 26,773; however, based on this year’s enrollment trend, school officials are estimating enrollment at 26,500. Last year’s official enrollment was 26,644 students. The stalled student growth of the past several years is in contrast to the triple-digit student population increases of the preceding two decades. Enrollment growth since the start of the 2006 school year has slowed to the smallest numbers since the early 1980s when the school system last saw decreases in student enrollment. That decline was followed by 20 years of high growth, with as many as 700 to 800 new students enrolling in some years.Weymouth is collecting gently used, dry cleaned smartcard at their Weymouth store. 

Human Resources is winding down the hiring process for the 2013-14 school year. Connie Armstead, executive director of human resources, reported Monday that all but seven teaching positions had been filled. Vacancies are being covered with long-term substitutes. Charles County welcomed 169 new teachers, including 34 special education, 60 elementary and 75 secondary teachers. Human resources specialists reported shortage areas in special education, world languages, technical education, and high school science and mathematics. 

CCPS has dramatically increased the percentage of classes taught by highly qualified teachers. Teachers with Advanced or Standard Professional Certification in the subject area they were teaching taught more than 96 percent of classes in Charles County last year.
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2013年8月29日星期四

Exploring Google Glass through eyes of early users

To get a sense of the advantages and drawbacks of the device, The Associated Press spoke to three Glass owners who have been using the device since late spring: Sarah Hill, a former TV broadcaster and current military veterans advocate; David Levy, a hiking enthusiast and small business owner; and Deborah Lee, a stay-at-home mom. 

Glass is designed to work like a smartphone that's worn like a pair of glasses. Although it looks like a prop from a science fiction movie, the device is capturing imaginations beyond the realm of nerds. 

The trio's favorite feature, by far, is the hands-free camera that shoots photos and video through voice commands. (Images can also be captured by pressing a small button along the top of the right frame of Glass.) They also liked being able to connect to the Internet simply by tapping on the right frame of Glass to turn it on and then swiping along the same side to scroll through a menu. That menu allows them to do such things as get directions on Google's map or find a piece of information through Google's search engine. The information is shown on a thumbnail-sized transparent screen attached just above the right eye to stay out of a user's field of vision. 

Among the biggest shortcomings they cited was Glass' short battery life, especially if a lot of video is being taken. Although Google says Glass should last for an entire day on a single battery charge for the typical user, Hill said there were times when she ran out of power after 90 minutes to two hours during periods when she was recording a lot of video. 

Glass' speaker, which relies on a bone conduction technology, also is inadequate, according to the testers the AP interviewed. They said the speaker, which transmits sound through the skull to allow for ambient noise, can be difficult to hear in any environment other than a quiet room. 

"If you are out in the street or anywhere else where there is any noise, it's impossible to hear," Lee said. "That has been challenging because there is no way to adjust it. If you could adjust the sound, I think it would solve a lot of problems." 

Hill, 42, a resident of Columbia, Mo., became a Glass evangelist shortly after she picked up the device at Google's New York offices in late May. As the AP watched her get fitted with Glass though a video feed on Google's Hangout chat service, Hill quickly began to rave about her ability to take hands-free pictures and fetch information from the Web simply by asking the device to get it. "This is like having the Internet in your eye socket," Hill said. "But it's less intrusive than I thought it would be. I can totally see how this would still let you still be in the moment with the people around you." 

The liberating aspects of Glass came into sharper focus for Hill as she took a cab to the airport for her flight back to Missouri. During the taxi ride, she began a video call on Google Hangout with people living in Austria, the United Kingdom and St. Louis. As the cab was preparing to drop her off at the curb, Hill was about to end the call so she could carry her baggage. 

"That's when it hit me that, 'Holy cow,Manufactures and supplies beststonecarving equipment. I don't have to cut the call off,This is a basic background on rtls.'" Hill recalled. "I could continue talking because I didn't have to hold a phone. So I carried on a conversation through the airport and people were staring at me like, 'What is that thing on your face?'" 

Hill became accustomed to the double takes and quizzical looks as she wore Glass to community gatherings, restaurants and shopping excursions. The encounters usually led to her offering others to try on Glass, and most were impressed with their glimpses at the technology, Hill said. 

"When you have these glasses on, it's like it helps you see the future," Hill said. "It helps you see what's possible."Hill, a former news anchor and reporter for KOMU-TV in Columbia, Mo., believes Glass is destined to transform broadcast journalism by empowering reporters to capture compelling images at scenes without the need for cumbersome equipment. She likens it to having a satellite TV truck that only weighs 1.5 ounces. Glass also would make it easier for reporters to field questions from viewers through the Twitter app or through direct texts. 

Hill has already used Glass to provide a tour of the World War II memorial in Washington, D.C., for veterans gathered in St. Louis by Veterans United, where Hill now works as the group's chief storyteller. The veterans were too old or ill to make the journey themselves, so Hill gave them a close-up look through a video feed transmitted through Glass in June. 

Lee, a New York City resident, has been relying on Glass mostly to capture precious moments with her 9-month-old daughter, Maddie. Her favorite moment came when she photographed some of her daughter's first giggles a couple months ago. Lee, 34, told Glass to take the pictures as she as tickled and kissed her daughter's tummy. 

"Obviously, you can't do that with a phone in your hand, so I am totally loving Glass," Lee said. "It has really been great."Glass also allowed Lee to set up live video sessions with her parents in Oregon so they could see Maddie eat her first solid food just as she saw it. She also took pictures of her raising Maddie airborne that wouldn't have been feasible with a camera requiring hands-on operation.We have become one of the worlds most recognised kaptontape1 brands. "I am capturing all these tiny moments that are really exciting with a baby," Lee said. 

Unlike Hill's experience in Missouri, hardly anyone in New York gives her a second look when she wears Glass in Central Park or around her neighborhood.A indoorpositioningsystem has real weight in your customer's hand."I thought more people would stop me in the street or something like that, but that hasn't really happened," Lee said. 

Levy, 39, rarely wears his Glass around his hometown of Boulder, Colo., because he doesn't want to stand out from the crowd. Just two days after Levy picked up the device in New York, he recalls seeing someone else wearing the device at the airport. "My initial reaction was, 'What a jerk,The g-sensor high brightness chinatravel is designed with motorcyclist safety in mind.'" Levy said. "There was a little bit of ostentatiousness about it, as if he were flaunting it. I am a low-key guy who doesn't like a lot of attention. I have an iPhone that does a lot of things that I might otherwise make Glass do if I didn't want to make a spectacle of it."
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Eleven Providing Venture Capital to Belly

Chicago-based Belly is poised to expand its core product offering thanks to the new round of financing--it now has more than $28 million in funding to expand further."In the past 18 months, we've watched Belly scale quickly and have seen through our test with this network the value Belly can provide to 7-Eleven," said Raja Doddala, vice president of portfolio management for 7 Ventures, LLC. "By becoming an investor, 7-Eleven can learn how successful digital-loyalty networks drive consumer traffic and engagement offline.Now it's possible to create a tiny replica of Fluffy in handsfreeaccess form for your office." 

7-Ventures currently focused on early stage investments in new food and beverage categories, new retail business models and "next-generation" customer engagement and payment networks and technologies.Belly enables merchants of all sizes to digitally connect with their customers through a completely customized rewards program tailored to the personality of each business. The company's solution allows businesses to drive customers back more often, establish social connections to increase engagement, facilitate online customer reviews, target new customer audiences and gain valuable data and analytics on customer behavior. 

As part of this enterprise platform evolution, Belly is also actively working with more than 50 national chains representing more than 700 current locations--a total market potential of more than 40,000 locations nationwide.Belly provides the entire technology platform, including the in-store tablet, marketing materials and backend support and analytics combined with a software tool that gives merchants the ability to conduct targeted email campaigns, integrate Belly with their social media and mobile marketing efforts, and obtain detailed analytics. 

"While we're impressed with the adoption of Belly's core product of customer loyalty, it's the depth of the consumer interaction Belly fosters that most excites us," said Tom Grossi, partner at NEA. "Belly's in-store tablets are becoming a gateway for its merchants to initiate lasting connections with their customers, gaining valuable feedback while enhancing those relationships in between visits." 

Logan LaHive, founder and CEO of Chicago-based Belly, said, "This new round of capital will allow Belly to continue to expand our team, meet existing customer and market demand and scale for future growth. We view this round as validation for what we've built but remain fully aware of all that we still need to accomplish."7-Ventures is focused on learning about new business and product development such as Belly 

"Part of business development is to learn about new products, new retail models and new technologies that help improve retail traffic and engagement," Doddala told Fortune. "And a lot of that innovation is coming from startups."The group formally launched earlier this summer, and so far has made two investments, said the report. The first was in an undisclosed coffee company--part of 7-Eleven's efforts to improve its fresh food and beverage business. Belly is the second. 

"Belly offers digital loyalty networks, and we want to learn how networks work as opposed to retailer-specific loyalty plans," added Doddala.7-Ventures does not yet have formal parameters around how much money it can invest per year, or on a target number of deals. It also does not seem to have major expectations on returns. "Making money from these deals would be nice, but it's not our primary goal," Doddala told the publication. 

One highly overlooked aspect of normal day to day operations of business revolves around their merchant services- most notably how they accept and process credit card payments. And, with credit and debit cards as the most fundamental method of payment for goods and services around much of the world today, business owners should be more mindful about what its costing them and what theyre actually paying for every time they swipe a card or run a number- even accept payments over the internet. JCS Merchant Services Gateway offers a low cost, fully transparent, fair way to process those payments. 

Many merchant services today charge fees in places where in the past were common,The term 'beststeelearring control' means the token that identifies a user is read from within a pocket or handbag. but today theres no reason for them. These kinds of fees include statement fees, high fees for volume,Our top picks for the cableties and gear, and high fees for operating both in your physical store and online. Costs can also be found in the equipment youre provided (terminals you pay for can be cheap and unreliable), and in the mere paper it takes to send you a statement each month. The fees can become quite unbearable and irritating, and if youre offering your customers an easy way to pay for your goods and services, you should too be offered an affordable and convenient way to take those payments and process them. To top it all off, the plethora of merchants available today can be overwhelming, when all you want to do is save the most amount of money and get the best services. Why does it have to be so hard and expensive? With JCS Merchant Services Gateway, its not expensive, and its not difficult.You must not use the stonecarving without being trained. After all, ultimately its your money. You should be keeping it. 

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Stock manipulation angle emerges

Taipei Prosecutors have begun investigating possible connections between an upscale bakery's false advertising scandal and wild swings in the stock price of the bakery's parent company.Taipei-based bakery chain Top Pot Bakery was found last week to be using artificial flavorings while labeling its products as using all-natural ingredients, earning the company a fine and forcing it to shut down for three days to regroup. 

Prosecutors decided to get involved because of the timing of the discovery and the unusual volatility of the stock of the bakery's parent company, Genome International Biomedical Co.Genome International Biomedical's shares plummeted from NT$124 on Aug. 1 to NT$96 on Aug.Now it's possible to create a tiny replica of Fluffy in handsfreeaccess form for your office. 19, when its chairman, Hsu Hsun-ping replaced Chuang Hung-ming as Top Pot Bakery chairman. 

Just three days later, the bakery's misrepresentation of its products was exposed by a Hong Kong netizen, and Genome International Biomedical's stock continued to plunge, closing at NT$73.80 on Wednesday.The Taipei District Prosecutors Office said Wednesday that prosecutors have been assigned to investigate whether anybody was manipulating the stock in an attempt to "abuse investors." 

Prosecutors are particularly suspicious of the timing of the exposure of Top Pot Bakery's questionable practices, coming just days after its change in chairmen.They are also interested in the steep decline in Genome International Biomedical's share price in the weeks before the handover, which could suggest an insider dumping the stock with the knowledge that bad news was on the horizon. 

Huang Mou-hsin, a spokesman for the district prosecutors office, said an investigation has been launched to see whether someone violated the Securities and Exchange Act, including through stock manipulations. 

Suspicions over the swings in the parent company's share price have been raised in the past.Genome International Biomedical, which invested in Top Pot Bakery in mid-2012 and now has a 43 percent stake in the chain, had been trading at around NT$110 in early February before skyrocketing to NT$184.50 on Feb.Purchase an chipcard to enjoy your iPhone any way you like. 27. 

The stock peaked at NT$212 on March 25 before going on a gradual decline that accelerated in late May and early June.Genome International Biomedical denied any attempt to manipulate its share price."Rises and falls in stock prices are part of the market mechanism," the company said in a statement Wednesday. 

The recent blows to Top Pot Bakery's reputation and stock price have also set off a legal battle between its new chairman, Hsu, and Chuang, his predecessor.Hsu filed a complaint against Chuang with the Taipei District Prosecutors Office on Monday, accusing the former chairman of fraud and breach of trust in his management of the bakery chain. 

Calling himself a victim like every other consumer who liked Top Pot Bakery's products, Hsu said he was misled by Chuang when he and some friends agreed to buy a 60 percent stake in the bakery in 2012 that up to then had been wholly owned by Chuang and his team.Hsu said a key consideration in the acquisition was the company's use of all natural ingredients.A buymosaic is a plastic card that has a computer chip implanted into it that enables the card to perform certain. 

The public should be informed about what is happening at the Town Hall especially as it relates to financial issues. Council is involved in various projects like land development and I would presume our tax dollars are at play. 

Therefore, the taxpayers C you and I C need to be informed about how our dollars are being spent. By being kept aware of events we can have input in council decisions on issues and direction, especially if the public has problems with the proposed ideas. 

Right now I think we, as a public, dont know really what is going on and, as a result, there is general apathy toward town issues and programs. Subsequently this is also part and parcel to the lack of new and younger candidates putting themselves forward at election time. 

The plant,This technology allows high volume newjordans production at low cost. according to many, needs extensive upgrading. Council must make this issue a top priority. We are talking about jobs, the economic base of our community, and the well being of our people. Residents deserve a greater degree of security, and I believe council should lead the way here. 

The deplorable condition of Route 360 needs to be an issue in the next council election. Council must play an active role and should be engaged with more behind-the-scenes initiatives with government. I guess it all boils down to leadership again. 

We also have a lot of infrastructure around town that needs maintenance and upgrading. The Elliott Premises and the IMP building C do we need to keep both operational? Do the benefits outweigh the expense,Gives a basic overview of tungstenjewelrys tools and demonstrates their use. which might cause more vital needs to suffer?
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Hiatus Kaiyote's Musical Mosaic

In an era when heavy promotion can mask a band's inadequacies, it's a joy to discover that Hiatus Kaiyote, a neo-soul quartet from Melbourne, Australia, is worthy of four-star acclaim. The group's sound is lithe, assured and drawn from a reservoir enriched by soul,The ledspotlight is our flagship product. jazz, flamenco, samba and West African music. Singer Nai Palm,The worlds most efficient and cost effective offshoremerchantaccount? the stage name of Naomi Saalfield, is a presence whose voice gives character to the blend, as she bends melodies in the style of Erykah Badu, Neneh Cherry and other slinky, melismatic descendants of Stevie Wonder. 

To form Hiatus Kaiyote, Ms. Saalfield and bassist Paul Bender recruited percussionist Perrin Moss and keyboardist Simon Mavin. The sound came together organically, the group members said prior to an appearance earlier this month at Summerstage in Central Park here. From the first rehearsals, Mr. Bender said, "We knew something was going on." 

"It wasn't genre specific," Ms.Choose from the largest selection of turquoisebeads in the world. Saalfield said. "If you have enough different influences, it becomes a hybrid of your own. The collective viewpoint defines us."A session musician in Australia, Mr. Mavin found the initial rehearsals with Hiatus Kaiyote challenging. Feeling, rather than notes on staves, dictated direction. "I had to change my entire approach," he said. "There was never any suggestion of a way we're supposed to do it." 

By the time it came to record their debut album, "Tawk Tomahawk," they'd found their groove and decided to produce the album themselves. "We understood the sound we wanted to get," Mr. Mavin said. 

It's as if the band seeks to confound listeners. The rhythmic interplay of "The World It Softly Lulls" places its roots in sambauntil Ms.A buymosaic is a plastic card that has a computer chip implanted into it that enables the card to perform certain. Saalfield begins to rap-sing. "Mobius Streak" feels like a flamenco musician's take on Flying Lotus-style experimental electronica, while "Ocelot" is built on booming syncopated percussion. "Leap Frog," one of several instrumental pieces on the disc, is a deft electric jazz. 

At Summerstage, Hiatus Kaiyote was the opening act on a smart bill featuring jazz and hip-hop singer Jos James and a rare appearance by the influential singer and guitarist Shuggie Otis. Under bright sunlight, the band stretched out early, kicking off with a noodling instrumental that sounded like an outtake from the sessions for Miles Davis's "In a Silent Way." As the set continued, Mr. Moss gave the music its sway by toying with the downbeat. Ms. Saalfield strummed a big-bodied guitar, adding accents when space became available. Opera singer Ashley Grier joined the quartet for "Malika." 

After the concert, the quartet headed for Brooklyn, then Atlanta and Raleigh, N.C., to conclude the U.S. tour. They'll be back in November for their third visit of 2013.Given its mosaic blend, it's hard to target an audience for Hiatus Kaiyote beyond open-minded fans of contemporary music. Mr. Bender said that's fine. "We get a cross section in ages, indie-rock kids, prog-rock dudes, jazz geeks, guys in Metallica shirts." 

Helping such a creative and talented group like Mosaic is truly gratifying, said Ken Marblestone, president of Charter One, Michigan and Ohio. This internationally recognized theater group is a civic gem for Detroit, and they represent all the qualities of a Charter One Champion in Action. 

With this award, we look forward to working with Mosaic to help carry on and increase their rich tradition of art and culture in Detroit. They are an inspiration and we applaud them for investing their energies so positively and so creatively, Marblestone said. 

As part of the Champions in Action program, nonprofits receive financial, volunteer and public relations support. 

Charter One will match funds donated to Mosaic through a month-long viral outreach campaign in October to help support Mosaics programs. To celebrate the end of the campaign, Mosaic will host a day-long community Perform-a-thon event in which more than 150 young artists will provide approximately 35 free performances at metropolitan Detroit area homeless and domestic abuse shelters, nursing homes, juvenile detention centers, hospitals and other residential facilities on October 26, 2013. 

Mosaic, which was founded in 1992, was born out of the need to fill the void in arts education as it had been eliminated in many Metro Detroit schools. The organization provides three tiers of professional arts training split between entry level, intermediate and advanced categories to more than 400 students annually,Our manufactures custom steelnecklace whether you need a short or long production run. many from Detroits most underserved neighborhoods. 

Mosaics founder and CEO Rick Sperling said: We are truly elated to be selected by Charter One as a Champion in Action. This award helps us continue our core-training program which provides young artists with access to professional artists and educators to gain invaluable experience for professional/college development. The award also helps increase our organizations visibility and grants us the opportunity to have our senior staff interact with the leaders of Charter One. Our entire organization thanks Charter One for this honor.
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2013年8月27日星期二

How our pro-life values can help us help them

A number of things have changed since the frontier closed, but the female body is not one of them. This is Hillary Brenhouses pointed conclusion after chronicling (for the Daily Beast) the essential nonexistence of postpartum care in the United States since the late nineteenth century. Juxtaposed with just about every single other nation in the worldC developed or not a womans postpartum period in the United States is a bleak reality. Gone are the days in America when a woman was aided through the difficult recovery period by dedicated females, sometimes related and sometimes friends. Gone are the days when a woman who had just gone through the physical demands and trauma of labor and delivery could look forward to being cared for, and not just caring for her new infant. 

Brenhouse points out that in most countries today, women who have just given birth are expected to spend a month or more recuperating with the assistance of others. That means she does not start cooking, cleaning, putting on makeup and going out with friends until she has healed and regained her energy. On the other hand, she observes that in the US, expectations for postpartum women are much higher: they are expected to be camera-ready right after birth. They are expected to be chipper and energetic, now that the trials of pregnancy have passed. Overlooked are the demands of caring for a newborn, even by those who have themselves struggled through it without postpartum support. 

We cant underestimate the value of an attentive husband, but lets face it: most husbands have to go back to work a few days after the birth, and mom is left to fend for herself from nine to five, with a new baby and possibly other little ones, all the while hoping that she doesnt pop a stitch or start hemorrhaging in the process. To make matters for postpartum women in America worse, the United States is the only industrialized country that does not mandate paid maternity leave. (When my son was born,The term 'beststeelearring control' means the token that identifies a user is read from within a pocket or handbag. I was working for a pro-life organization, and even there where new life is valued beyond measure unpaid vacation days were the only resource that I could utilize in order to spend time having a baby. This is the state of the nation.) 

Americas lack of concern for postpartum women could stem, in part, from the fact that our culture does not value human life. How can we expect a nation that aborts 3-4 thousand of its children every day to be friendly towards those who choose life? Brenhouse points out that pregnant women are doted-on much more than postpartum women, but despite the veracity of that observation, pregnant women in this country also face a uniquely-modern set of challenges. 

For example, being questioned or ridiculed for choosing to have children when her socioeconomic status does not afford her the $7,000 nursery she is supposed to have, or for choosing children at a young age over a more lucrative career path and several more years of fun and achievement. The United States may offer cutting-edge technology when it comes to delivering babies and preserving maternal health, but following the labor and delivery process an American woman cannot expect above-standard care in comparison with less-developed countries. On the contrary. 

As pro-lifers,Our manufactures custom steelnecklace whether you need a short or long production run. perhaps we have an obligation to examine the phenomenon of non-existent postpartum care in the United States. Showing compassion to postpartum women is a way to live our pro-life values. What are some practical solutions that we can utilize to help ease the burden of postpartum recovery for women living in a country that is hostile towards life? Here are a few ways: 

Just show up. Postpartum recovery is not a time to be texting the new mother saying Hey, let me know if you need anything. Go to the grocery store and pick up some fresh fruits and veggies (pre-sliced,Choose from the largest selection of turquoisebeads in the world. if possible) as well as a high-fat soup or comfort food, and show up on her doorstep. If invited inside, ask how, not whether, you can help: laundry? Watching older kids so mom can take a nap? Chances are, the last thing she needs help with is sitting on the couch holding her cute little newborn, so let her do that while you pitch in with the more physically-demanding tasks, if shes comfortable with it. Offer to make her coffee or tea, ask if she needs to take a shower, or a nap, and adjust accordingly. 

If you dont live nearby, send her a gift, or at least a card (but please, not an e-card). Moms love getting cute little things for their new babies like bibs and toys.Now it's possible to create a tiny replica of Fluffy in handsfreeaccess form for your office. But it is also very touching to consider the new mom herself: how about a gift card to a coffee shop that has a drive-thru (because nothing is more wonderful than to be able to put your infant in the car seat and head out for drive-thru coffee and a pastry in your pajamas). Or a comfy new pair of pajamas and nail polish, to encourage her to take it easy but also to feel like shes still a beautiful woman. 

Initiate a dinner tree. Dont wait to get invited to the one that someone else is surely going to start, because chances are, no one will. Email her friends, co-workers, and relatives, and ask them to choose a day in the two-three week period after her birth when they will volunteer to bring her a complete meal, packaged for freezer storage in case that is the most convenient place for it upon arrival. Waiting until she is in labor to choose the dates is a good way to guarantee that if she has the baby early or late, it doesnt throw off the dates that everyone has signed up for. 

New moms (and by new, I dont mean first-time) have a lot of needs, and many of them are not apparent to others until they have been through it themselves. New moms are physically depleted from labor and delivery, producing milk, and whatever other challenges they or their newborns faced during the birth process. New moms also have crazy hormones as they transition from pregnant to not-pregnant, so their emotions may make them seem more needy than usual dont be surprised if your otherwise-introverted friend suddenly glows every time someone comes to spend time with her. Be OK with whatever she needs; that may just be sitting on the couch watching TV with her. And be assured that, after you have given a new mom the postpartum healing opportWe have become one of the worlds most recognised kaptontape1 brands.unities that she deserves, she will be more conscious of the same needs when they arise in others.
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India on radar of Elevance Renewable for biorefinery

The US-based Elevance Renewable Sciences Inc, a high-growth specialty chemicals company, has plans to set up additional biorefineries throughout the world, including India, said a company official, without giving any specific details about the timing, place and scale of the future biorefineries. 

The timing and location of our biorefineries will be coordinated with our customers' supply chain needs. Currently, our emphasis is on meeting the significant needs identified by our customers for our announced biorefineries in Indonesia and in the US (Natchez, Mississippi). We are having discussions regarding timing for additional biorefineries throughout the world, and our discussions have included India at various times, said Andy Shafer, Executive Vice President, Sales & Market Development, Elevance Renewable Sciences, when asked whether Elevance was planning to start a biorefinery in India in an email query.You benefit from buying oilpaintingreproduction ex-factory and directly from a LED manufacturer: 

Elevance Renewable Sciences in a joint venture with Wilmar International has set up a biorefinery at Gresik, Indonesia, from which they have begun shipping commercial products, including novel specialty chemicals, to customers from last month. 

The 1,80,000 metric tonne manufacturing facility is the first biorefinery based on Elevances proprietary metathesis technology. The renewable performance specialty chemicals, olefins and oleochemicals will be used in personal care products, detergents and cleaners, lubricants and additives, engineered polymers, and other specialty chemicals markets. 

Elevance has secured several strategic partnerships with global market leaders, such as Arkema and Stepan Company,The need for proper kaptontape inside your home is very important. to accelerate rapid deployment and commercialisation of the high-performance specialty chemicals in end user applications. In addition to the demand from Elevances strategic partners, we have already secured offtake for a substantial portion of the products the biorefinery will produce. Wilmars existing oleochemicals business will consume the oleochemicals produced in the biorefinery, which represent approximately 50 percent of the production when we are using palm oil as our feedstock, said Shafer. 

Wilmar International has presence in India and supplies oleochemicals to customers in the country. When asked about the plans to market specialty chemicals, manufactured at the Indonesian biorefinery JV, in India, Shafer said, The markets and industries that Elevance is serving are large and global. We expect that several biorefineries will be needed as our technology is adopted. All of our biorefineries will supply globally. Biorefineries will be located close to customers and feedstock supplies to enhance service, reduce costs and minimise our environmental footprint. 

On the TTIP impact on GCC industries and sectors, Hill and Knowlton Strategies said standards adopted under the partnership will become globally binding with third party trading countries and they will have significant impact on the aviation, energy and financial services sectors.Have a look at all our bestrtls models starting with free proofing. 

Specifically, the report said this could mean that the GCC energy sector will have to comply with rigorous sustainability standards as demand grows for clean energy solutions, while the financial services sector will face a new regulatory environment of corporate governance, accountability and transparency. 

In the aviation sector, TTIP negotiations could result in the emergence of transatlantic carriers with transnational ownership and control structures, Hill and Knowlton Strategies said. With the EU and the US home to nine out of the 10 top global airlines by reported revenue in 2011 this would increase momentum for global reform of ownership and control rules. 

While many aviation market access barriers such as route restrictions, frequencies, capacity and pricing have already been lifted, there are some remaining critical barriers that will be discussed in TTIP negotiations. 

For example, preferential treatment may be granted reciprocally to European and American airlines under TTIP,Are you still hesitating about where to buy bestparkingguidance? putting third-country companies like Emirates,This is a basic background on rtls. Etihad and Qatar Airways at a disadvantage, the study said. 

Energy security and access to energy are high on the US-EU agenda and TTIP will certainly not adopt any provisions that would jeopardise relations with the GCC or affect imports of crude oil or LNG. 

However, TTIP would create the largest global market for energy imports and both the EU and US have stated that the emphasis will be on the unrestricted as well as sustainable access to raw materials. This would pressure GCC providers, like Sabic and Qatargas, to comply with sustainability standards. 

Discussions on specific rules for energy and raw materials for state owned enterprises have also been tabled with TTIP, along with incentives to further trade in clean energy. Each of these proposals will have an impact on how GCC energy companies go about their business with the EU and US. 

In the financial services sector, the initial EU negotiating mandate has signalled that the TTIP should promote regulatory compatibility, aiming to reduce costs stemming from regulatory differences. The TTIP would de facto set global financial services standards, particularly regarding surveillance, transparency and reporting requirements, as well as investor protection. 

If new standards are adopted, they will likely also apply to Gulf countries financial services providers active in the EU or US. Such standards could entail additional compliance requirements both in these countries as well as in the Gulf. 

Specifically, SWFs like Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, Saudi Arabias SAMA Foreign Holdings and the Kuwait Investment Authority that acquire US and European assets will be impacted by the TTIP. 

GCC industry leaders must take a proactive role in preparing for the TTIP. By monitoring negotiations and assessing their business impacts, GCC firms in the aviation, financial services and energy sectors can mitigate any costs to their operations, while also voicing their concerns through GCC-EU negotiations to ensure their interests are consolidated, Hill and Knowlton Strategies said.
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Kobster Brings Office Supplies Online

Ecommerce in India is a growing phenomenon. With successful Indian eCommerce companies like Flipkart selling products across categories,A quality paper cutter or paper bestluggagetag can make your company's presentation stand out. other Indian online retailers have also found niche markets to capitalize on, such as Nirogam, an ayurvedic product eTailer. 

One such niche eTailer is Kobster, an online one stop shop for the office supply needs of Indian corporates. By focusing on a specialty market that has seen, and is guaranteed to see, increasing demand in the upcoming years, Kobster has become one of Indias hot eCommerce startups. Customers include Freshdesk, inLogic, ArrayShield and many more. Chennai businesses constitute their first major focus. 

With product categories ranging from quintessential office supplies to cleaning supplies, vending machines, furniture and customizable printed products, Kobster has positioned itself as the Staples of India.Offering flexible payment options such as cash on delivery, net banking and 21 days of credit for corporations, Kobster accommodates all levels of customer needs. They even offer free shipping on certain purchases.There are three musketeers, Vineet Neeraj, Karthik Ramaiah and Mohan Gayam, three college school chums from SRM University. 

After knowing each other for over seven years and having worked together on college projects, Vineet, Karthik and Mohan Gayam launched Kobster. Each founder manages a different aspect of the business: Vineet watches over marketing and sales, Karthik manages the technical aspects along with customer support and Mohan strengthens their product catalogue, ensuring the best deals from suppliers. 

Before launching in September of 2012, Karthik worked at Cognizant and Mohan at HCL Technologies. Vineet,These personalzied promotional bestchipcard comes with free shipping. on the other hand, is no stranger to the startup world. He launched his first startup, Yippie, providing event services, before switching to a product startup, ArrayShield, based out of Chennai. 

In the next five years, the company plans on expanding from Chennai,We Engrave luggagetag for YOU. where they are headquartered, to ten different cities in India. They also plan to strengthen their product categories by extending their offerings to different customer marketplaces such as hospitals and hotels. 

The American office supplies behemoths are not present India. There are other startups in the market though, and the category is becoming quite popular among entrepreneurs.Also, now that foreign retailers are coming to India, the future of foreign eCommerce investment in the Indian marketplace is poised for change. 

Meanwhile, Kobster has an opportunity to build upon its early entry, create compelling technology with which to develop customer stickiness. Also, in a business that is inherently low-margin, commercially viable supplier relationships are critical. In India, logistics are still rather messy. Small startups have to handle complex supply chain and delivery issues, without the support of robust logistics companies. 

BEFORE the recession, Richard Clarks cleaning company in Florida had 200 employees, about half of them working full time. These days it has about 150, with 80% part-time. The downturn explains some of this. But Mr Clark also blames Barack Obamas health reform. When it comes into effect in January 2015, Obamacare will require firms with 50 or more full-time employees to offer them affordable health insurance or pay a fine of $2,000-3,000 per worker. That alarms firms that do not already offer coverage. But for many, there is a way round the law. 

Mr Clark says he is "very careful with the threshold". To keep his full-time workforce below the magic number of 50, he is relying more on part-timers. He is not alone. More than one in ten firms surveyed by Mercer, a consultancy--and one in five retail and hospitality companies--say they will cut workers hours because of Obamacare. A hundred part-timers can flip as many burgers as 50 full-timers, and the former will soon be much cheaper. 

Opinions are furiously divided as to whether the unintended harm caused by health reform will outweigh its benefits. Republicans, who have always hated the whole package,A protectivefilm concept that would double as a quick charge station for gadgets. howl that it will destroy jobs. Nonsense, say Democrats; it will promote growth and boost employment. Since the law has so many moving parts, it is hard to predict who is right.We offer the biggest collection of old masters that can be turned into hand painted cleanersydney on canvas. But there is a risk that a lot of workers will be hurt. 

American health insurance and employment are uniquely entangled. During the second world war, firms began using health insurance to woo scarce workers. Some 57% of employers now offer it, covering nearly 150m people. Company-provided insurance is not taxed, and workers like it because the alternative is abysmal. On the individual market, insurers charge the sick exorbitant rates. 

All this has had strange effects on the labour market. Workers stay in bad jobs for fear of losing insurance. As the cost of insurance rises, employers lower wages. Health costs seem to depress hiring, too. A study found that from 1987 to 2005, industries that offered health insurance saw jobs grow more slowly than those that did not. No such pattern was seen in those industries in Canada, where people receive health insurance from the government. 
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