Toyota has announced it is planning to all but eliminate carbon emissions from its production processes by 2050.
The target is one of several set by Japanese automaker, which also pledged to sell 1.5 million hybrid cars a year by 2020.
Toyota said it will increase the use of renewable energy and hydrogen-based production methods at its factories.
Separately it said it plans to sell more than 30,000 hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles around or shortly after 2020.
Unveiling new environmental targets Toyota confirmed that its new Prius hybrid would be a fifth more fuel-efficient than its predecessor as the car manufacturer hopes to boost flagging sales of the environmentally friendly model amid a slump in global oil prices.
Toyota said it planned to reduce average emissions from its cars by 90% by 2050 compared with 2010 levels.
However, Toyota’s plans did not include any commitment to manufacturing electric cars.
The strategy outlined on October 14 came as Volkswagen said it would cut investment at its biggest division by €1 billion a year from 2019 and increase development of electric vehicles.
VW said on October 13 it would speed up cost cutting at its VW division and put only the latest and “best environmental technology” in diesel vehicles.
VW is facing the biggest crisis in its 78-year history after admitting last month it installed software in diesel vehicles that could deceive US environmental regulators about the true level of their toxic emissions.
Jamaican novelist Marlon James has won this year’s Man Booker Prize for A Brief History of Seven Killings, a novel inspired by the attempted assassination of Bob Marley in the 1970s.
Michael Wood, chair of the judges, described the 680-page epic was “full of surprises” as well as being “very violent” and “full of swearing”.
Marlon James, 44, was announced as the winner of the £50,000 ($80,000) prize in London on Tuesday, October 13.
He is the first Jamaican author to win the Man Booker Prize.
Receiving the award, Marlon James said a huge part of the novel had been inspired by reggae music: “The reggae singers Bob Marley and Peter Tosh were the first to recognize that the voice coming out our mouths was a legitimate voice for fiction and poetry.”
Marlon James was presented with his prize by Camilla Bowles.
Photo Getty Images
The author admitted it was “so surreal” to win and dedicated the award to his late father who had shaped his “literary sensibilities”.
Set across three decades, the novel uses the true story of the attempt on the life of Bob Marley to explore the turbulent world of Jamaican gangs and politics.
In his novel’s acknowledgements, Marlon James himself thanks his family but adds: “This time around maybe my mother should stay away from part four of the book.”
This is the second year the Man Booker prize has been open to all authors writing in English, regardless of nationality.
Marlon James, who currently lives in Minneapolis, can expect a dramatic boost in sales following his win. After A Brief History of Seven Killings was named on the Booker shortlist last month sales tripled to more than 1,000 copies a week, according to Nielsen Book Research.
2015 Man Booker Prize shortlist:
Marlon James (Jamaica), A Brief History of Seven Killings
Asian markets traded lower on Wednesday, October 14, as investors digested disappointing economic data from China.
Chinese inflation figures came in weaker than expected, and came a day after trade figures showed a steep fall in imports.
Japan’s benchmark Nikkei index closed down 1.8% at 17,907.39.
China’s main index Shanghai Composite edged up 0.2% to 3,299.51, while in Hong Kong the Hang Seng index was down 0.61% at 22,460.16.
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.56% to 5,173.80, while South Korea’s benchmark Kospi index dropped 0.55% to 2,007.72.
The latest official data from China – the world’s second largest economy – showed consumer inflation slowed to 1.6% in September from 2% in August. Wholesale inflation was 5.9%, unchanged from the month before.
The wholesale numbers were in line with expectations, but consumer inflation was expected to rise 1.8%. China’s target for consumer inflation is about 3%.
Economic data released on October 13 showed that imports in September fell by a more-than-expected 17.7% in yuan-denominated terms, while exports fell 1.1% from a year earlier.
As it continues to face a slowdown in economic growth, China is trying to move away from an export-led economy towards one led by consumer demand.
The sharp fall in imports posted on October 13 raised concerns around the world that domestic demand in China is weakening.
Over the years, Rolex, Patek Philippe, and Omega have grown to become synonymous with luxury. The three watch brands have developed over time from small businesses to large, multinational brands with worldwide recognition. Today, they continue to produce watches that combine the latest cutting-edge technology with a careful attention to craftsmanship and from the finest materials.
Check out the infographic below to learn more about the development of Rolex, Patek Philippe, and Omega below, from TrueFacet!
Brazil’s President Dilma Rousseff has accused her political opponents of seeking to oust her government by “coup-mongering”.
Speaking at a meeting of union leaders in Sao Paulo on October 13, Dilma Rousseff also said the opposition was spreading hatred and intolerance across Brazil.
Dilma Rousseff’s comments come after an audit court last week ruled that she broke the law in managing last year’s budget.
The opposition says this could pave the way for impeachment proceedings.
President Dilma Rousseff was re-elected less than a year ago but currently has record low popularity ratings.
Addressing the gathering, Dilma Rousseff accused the opposition of practicing “deliberate coup-mongering” against a “project that has successfully lifted millions of Brazilians out of poverty”.
“The artificiality of their arguments is absolute, their poisoning of people in social networks, their relentless game of <<the worse she does, the better for us>>,” she was quoted as saying by Reuters.
Dilma Rousseff’s remarks follow the ruling of the Federal Accounts Court on accusations that the government borrowed money illegally from state banks to make up for budget shortfalls.
The minister who handled the case in the court, Augusto Nardes, said the government disregarded fiscal and constitutional principles in the handling of the 2014 accounts.
The irregularities amount to more than 100 billion reais ($26 billion), according to the court.
The opposition said after the ruling it would seek impeachment proceedings in the Congress.
Also last week, Brazil’s top electoral authority said it would re-open an investigation into alleged misuse of funds during Dilma Rousseff’s re-election campaign.
The Brazilian economy has gone into recession and is expected to shrink by 3% in 2015.
The government’s popularity has fallen amid corruption scandals involving senior politicians from Dilma Rousseff’s Workers’ Party and other coalition members.
Hillary Clinton has clashed with her main rival Bernie Sanders over gun control at the first Democratic presidential debate in Las Vegas.
When asked if the Vermont senator was strong on gun control, Hillary Clinton said “no, not at all” before vowing to go after the makers of guns used in shootings.
Bernie Sanders also attacked Hillary Clinton, saying her support for a no-fly zone in Syria would create “serious problems”.
His rallies have drawn big crowds and he has challenged Hillary Clinton’s frontrunner status in some key states.
A lot of the key exchanges came between Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton, and the three other candidates on stage in Las Vegas – former Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley, former Virginia Senator Jim Webb and former Rhode Island Senator Lincoln Chafee – struggled to make headway.
One of the sharpest points of difference between the two main candidates came over gun control.
Photo EPA
The hugely divisive issue came back on the agenda after a mass shooting at a college campus in Oregon.
When Hillary Clinton said Bernie Sanders was not tough enough, she was referring to him voting in 2005 for a measure to give gun manufacturers immunity from lawsuits.
The two also argued over the merits of capitalism, with the former first lady saying it would be a “grave mistake” for the nation to reject it.
Vice-President Joe Biden is still considering a run for the White House and did not make a last-minute entry on to the stage, as his supporters hoped.
Hillary Clinton has seen her support wane amid questions about her use of a private email account when she served as secretary of state, a move she now calls a mistake.
However, she was unfazed during the debate when Lincoln Chafee questioned her credibility over it, refusing to respond when invited.
The candidates tried to draw a distinction with the two Republican debates, where candidates took a tougher stance on immigration and spent more time discussing social issues like abortion and gay marriage.
Martin O’Malley used his 90-second closing speech to say the Republican debates were lessons in intolerance.
Republican candidate Jeb Bush said he saw nothing on the Las Vegas stage to impress him.
“If you think this country is on the wrong track, Hillary Clinton just told you she has no interest in changing direction. I sure will.”
Fifteen Republicans are vying to be the party’s White House nominee in 2016.
Iowa will be the first state to choose its candidate from each party in February, then other states hold primaries in the following weeks and months.
By next summer, each party will have a presidential nominee who will do battle in the race for the White House.
Presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton is preparing for the first Democratic presidential debate, seeking to mix her mastery of policy with a more personal touch.
Meanwhile, for chief rival Bernie Sanders, the debate is a chance to reach a broader audience after months of appealing to the party’s most liberal voters.
However, unlike recent Republican debates, today’s Democratic outing is expected to be more substance than slugfest.
Analysts expect a heavy focus on economic issues like income inequality.
The three other, mostly unknown, candidates – former Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley, former Virginia Senator Jim Webb and former Rhode Island Senator Lincoln Chafee – will be seeking a standout moment after months of languishing in the polls.
Vice-President Joe Biden, who is still considering a run for the White House, will loom large despite not actually being on stage.
The debate organizers at CNN have set aside a lectern just on the off-chance Joe Biden decides to enter the fray at the last minute. The debate is set to start at 17:30 local time.
Photo USA Today
Hillary Clinton – long seen as the presumptive front-runner – has seen her support wane amid questions about her trustworthiness.
She has been criticized for using a private email account when she served as secretary of state, a move she now calls a mistake.
Some Republicans say Hillary Clinton put classified information at risk by using the private account – a charge she denies.
On October 22, Hillary Clinton will go before a Congressional panel investigating a 2012 attack on the US consulate in Benghazi, Libya. Four Americans – including the US ambassador to Libya, Chris Stevens, died in the attack.
Critics say Hillary Clinton could have done more as secretary of state to ensure their security.
Her performance in both Tuesday’s debate and the coming hearing are being closely watched as her campaign enters a key phase.
Analysts say Hillary Clinotn needs to shake off perceptions that she is too stiff and overly political by delivering spontaneity and more personal warmth.
BernieSanders, a Vermont Senator who calls himself a democratic socialist, has drawn record crowds in recent months with his message of increased economic fairness for the working class.
He is leading in early voting states of New Hampshire and Iowa and has defied expectations, raising large amounts of money from thousands of small donors.
However, Hillary Clinton maintains a substantial lead in many Southern states like South Carolina and swing states like Nevada, where today’s debate will be held.
Bernie Sanders has resonated with the party’s affluent white voters but has yet to make inroads with African Americans and Latinos – key Democratic constituencies.
Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders have mostly avoided direct criticism of each other in contrast to the raucous Republican field.
However, even if the candidates themselves practice restraint, Republican frontrunner Donald Trump promises to provide live commentary on Twitter.
The Democratic debates are between all major candidates running for President in 2016.
The Democratic National Committee has announced six sanctioned debates which will begin on October 13, 2015, in Las Vegas.
The second Democratic debate will take place on November 14 in Des Moines, Iowa.
Twitter has announced it is cutting 336 jobs, roughly 8% of its global workforce, as part of a restructuring of the business.
The job cuts will cost between $10 million and $20 million in severance pay, while the restructuring will cost between $5 million and $15 million, Twitter said.
Twitter shares rose 2% in pre-market trading following the announcement.
The move comes just days after Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey was confirmed as the company’s permanent CEO.
Jack Dorsey had served as Twitter interim CEO for three months after Dick Costolo stepped down on July 1.
Dick Costolo, who was Twitter CEO from 2010 to 2015, had been under pressure from investors unhappy with the company’s user growth.
In a letter to Twitter employees, Jack Dorsey wrote: “We have made an extremely tough decision – we plan to part ways with up to 336 people from across the company.
“We are doing this with the utmost respect for each and every person.
“Twitter will go to great lengths to take care of each individual in providing generous exit packages and help finding a new job.”
Environmentally minded Leonardo DiCaprio will produce a movie about Volkswagen’s emissions scandal following a deal with Paramount Pictures.
Leonardo DiCaprio’s production company Appian Way and Paramount Pictures have bought the rights to an as-yet-unwritten book about the scandal, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
It is not known whether Leonardo DiCaprio will star in the new movie.
Last month VW admitted 11 million of its diesel vehicles worldwide are fitted with software that beat emission tests.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) found that many VW cars being sold in America had devices in diesel engines that could detect when they were being tested, changing the performance accordingly to improve results.
The “defeat device” allows cars to pass lab testing even though they actually emit 40 times the emissions standard.
VW CEO Martin Winterkorn resigned after the scandal broke.
Volkswagen has recalled almost 500,000 cars in the US alone and it has set aside €6.5 billion to cover costs.
The book proposal about the scandal is by New York Times journalist Jack Ewing and it will reportedly explore the “more, better, faster” ethos and how it played into the scandal.
Leonardo DiCaprio has produced a number of environmental documentaries including the 2014 films Cowspiracy: The Sustainability Secret and Virunga, about the battle to save the last of the world’s mountain gorillas.
The actor’s environmental foundation has given $30 million in grants since it was founded in 1998.
In 2013, Leonardo DiCaprio announced he would enter a team in the new electric motor racing championship Formula E.
Leonardo DiCaprio, an environmental campaigner, said: “The future of our planet depends on our ability to embrace fuel-efficient, clean-energy vehicles.”
VW will cut investment by €1 billion ($1.1 billion) a year as a result of the growing scandal over cheating on emissions tests.
Volkswagen said efficiency and technology would be the company’s watchwords as it “repositioned itself for the future”.
The automaker added that all new diesel cars would be fitted with the “best environmental technology”.
There will also be greater focus on hybrid and electric cars.
“We are becoming more efficient, we are giving our product range and our core technologies a new focus, and we are creating room for forward-looking technologies by speeding up the efficiency program,” said Chairman of the Volkswagen Passenger Cars Dr. Herbert Diess.
The automaker said it would now be fitting the kinds of clean diesel technologies needed to meet stricter US standards across all its cars in both the US and Europe.
VW also revealed that its flagship Phaeton model would in the future be purely electric, capable of driving long distances on a single charge.
According to the Dutch Safety Board report, Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 crashed in Ukraine as a result of a Russian-made Buk missile.
MH17 flight crashed in Ukraine in July 2014 killing 298 people.
The missile hit the front left of the plane causing other parts break off..
The West and Ukraine say Russian-backed rebels brought down the Boeing 777, but Russia blames Ukrainian forces.
The report does not say who fired the missile, but says airspace over eastern Ukraine should have been closed.
The plane – flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur – crashed at the height of the conflict between government troops and the pro-Russian separatists.
Among the victims were 196 Dutch nationals.
The report says the three crew members in the cockpit were killed by the missile explosion instantly.
However, the report adds, it was unclear at which point the other occupants died, and the possibility of some remaining conscious for some time during the one-and-a-half minutes it took for the plane to go down could not be ruled out.
The Dutch Safety Board presented its findings first to the victims’ relatives before briefing reporters at the Gilze-Rijen military base in the Netherlands.
The board showed parts of the aircraft that had been brought back from the rebel-held Donetsk region and reconstructed.
Dutch Safety Board President Djibbe Joustra said the impact pattern on the plane showed a missile was responsible – not a meteor, air-to-air missile or internal explosion.
Djibbe Joustra said paint had been found on metal fragments within the plane that matched with missile fragments on the ground.
The evidence pointed to a 9N314M warhead, which can be fitted to a 9M38M1 missile launched by the Buk surface-to-air missile system, the report found.
Djibbe Joustra said there was sufficient reason to have closed off Ukrainian airspace to commercial traffic but Ukraine did not do that – and on the day of the crash, 160 flights flew over the area in question.
The board does not have the authority to apportion blame, under the rules governing international crash investigations.
Djibbe Joustra suggested that the aircraft is most likely to have been brought down by a Russian-made Buk surface-to-air missile – which experts say both Russian and Ukrainian armies possess.
The government in Ukraine and several Western officials have said the missile was brought from Russia and launched from the rebel-held part of Ukraine.
A separate Dutch-led criminal investigation is under way. Dutch Prosecutor Fred Westerbeke on Tuesday said a number of “persons of interest” had been identified, but there was still much to be done and the inquiry would not be finished this year.
Russian officials from Almaz-Antey – the state company which manufactures Buk missiles – once again rejected those accusations.
During a presentation timed to pre-empt the Dutch report, officials said the evidence suggested the plane was shot down by a surface-to-air Buk missile fired by Ukrainian forces.
Using video footage of their own mock-up of shrapnel hitting the fuselage of an aircraft, the officials said trajectory evidence showed the missile had been fired from Ukrainian-controlled territory. They argued the missile used was a decades-old model no longer in use in the Russian arsenal.
Russia says Dutch investigators have not taken account of its findings.
In July, Russia vetoed a draft resolution at the UN Security Council to set up an international tribunal into the MH17 air disaster.
President Vladimir Putin said at the time the establishment of such a tribunal would be “premature” and “counterproductive”.
Giant beer producer SABMiller accepted an increased takeover offer from rival Anheuser-Busch InBev.
SABMiller said it had agreed “in principle” a £44-a-share offer, after four previous attempts from AB InBev.
AB InBev’s brands include Stella Artois, Budweiser and Corona, while SABMiller produces Peroni and Grolsch.
If the deal, worth about £70 billion ($112 billion), goes ahead, the newly-created company will make about 30% of the world’s beer.
SABMiller has a workforce of close to 70,000 people in more than 80 countries, and global annual sales of more than $26 billion. AB InBev has a workforce of 155,000 and global revenues of more than $47 billion.
Photo Reuters
AB InBev had made four previous bid approaches for SABMiller – at £38, £40, £42.15, and £43.50 per share – but they had been rejected by SABMiller, which argued they undervalued the company.
In a statement, the boards of the two companies said they had now “reached agreement in principle on the key terms of a possible recommended offer”.
The two companies have not yet formally finalized the terms of an offer, but the latest development means they have extended the City deadline for a firm offer until October 28.
The latest proposal comes a day before the original deadline, by which AB InBev had to make a formal bid for SABMiller or walk away for six months.
The offer represents a premium of about 50% over and above SABMiller’s share price in mid-September, before the bid battle started.
On October 13, SabMiller’s share price rose 9% to £39.48 in London trade, while shares in AB InBev were 2.85% higher at €101.15 in trading in Brussels.
According to Israeli police, at least three Israelis have been killed and many injured in shooting and stabbing attacks in Jerusalem and central Israel.
Two were killed and 16 others were wounded when two assailants opened fire and stabbed passengers on a bus in Jerusalem.
Another died in a vehicle and knife attack elsewhere in the city.
Near-daily stabbings by Palestinians have left dozens of Israelis dead and wounded over the past two weeks.
Several attackers and at least 17 other Palestinians have been killed in the upsurge of violence.
Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu will convene an emergency session of the security cabinet on October 13 to discuss the surge in violence.
The militant Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas, which dominates the Gaza Strip, praised the “heroic operations in Jerusalem and greets the heroes who carried them out”.
In the bus attack, the two assailants shot several passengers and stabbed others after boarding the vehicle in East Talpiot, a district in East Jerusalem also known as Armon HaNetziv, police said.
A security guard was able to overpower one of them and shoot him, Israeli media said. The second assailant then reportedly locked the bus doors in an attempt to stop police from boarding it and passengers from escaping, but police opened fire from outside and shot him.
Police said one of the attackers was killed and the other seriously wounded.
Minutes later, a man ran over three people with his car at a bus station in the Geula district of West Jerusalem. He then got out of the car stabbed them with a knife, police said. The attacker, identified as a resident of East Jerusalem, was shot by police. His condition is unclear.
Earlier in the morning, a Palestinian stabbed an Israeli man, moderately wounding him, at a bus stop in Raanana, a town north of Tel Aviv, police said. The attacker was captured and reportedly beaten and seriously injured by passers-by.
Not long afterwards, at least four other people were wounded in another knife attack in Raanana, police said. The assailant fled, but was then arrested by police.
Police identified both of the attackers in Raanana as residents of East Jerusalem.
Tensions between Israelis and Palestinians have escalated since last month, fuelled by clashes at a flashpoint holy site in Jerusalem, in the West Bank, and across the Gaza border, as well as the wave of stabbings.
Asian stock markets have traded lower on October 13 following the release of disappointing Chinese trade numbers.
China’s latest economic data showed that imports in September fell by a more-than-expected 17.7% in yuan-denominated terms, while exports fell 1.1% from a year earlier.
The sharp fall in imports raised concerns on weakening domestic demand.
The Shanghai Composite ended up 0.2% at 3,293.23, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index closed down 0.6% at 22,600.46.
Japan’s benchmark Nikkei index ended down 1.1% at 18,234.74 after being closed for a public holiday on October 12.
Shares in electronics maker Sharp rose 6.5% on reports a government-backed fund may make an investment in the struggling firm.
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 closed down 0.9% at 5,202.9, dragged down by oil-related stocks following a sharp fall in crude prices on October 12.
South Korea’s benchmark Kospi finished lower by 0.13% at 2,019.05.
Donald Trump is making a splash in politics this year. The loud-mouthed reality TV star and casino mogul has rocketed to frontrunner status in the Republican primary race. Touting his business experience, Trump believes he can “make America great again”.
A cursory examination of his record proves somewhat troublesome, however. Particularly interesting is Trump’s propensity to file his businesses for bankruptcy. How can Trump call himself a successful businessman with so many bankruptcies under his belt? The answer, as you might expect, lies with “The Donald” himself. As it turns out, Donald Trump has a very different perception of bankruptcy than the general public does.
“I have used the laws of this country,” Trump told the audience at a debate, “the [bankruptcy] chapter laws, to do a great job for my company, for myself, for my employees, for my family.”
In short, Trump has used bankruptcy laws strictly to restructure his businesses, many of which he was keeping afloat with his own personal stash of cash. When you’re a business mogul like Trump, the people working under you are bound to make some poor decisions, but if anything—Trump’s dedication to doing whatever it takes to keep his projects above the water is actually somewhat admirable. Still, you can’t help but feel Mr. Trump’s success might have more to do with having a good bankruptcy attorney than business sense.
Let’s take a look at Trump’s four biggest bankruptcy blunders, and how he handled those situations.
Trump Taj Mahal, 1991
The Trump Taj Mahal is a sprawling casino and resort located in Atlantic City. When it hit hard times financially, Trump invested a lot of his own money to save it. To come up with the needed funds, he sold off his 282-foot party yacht. He also ditched his private jet, the so-called “Trump Shuttle”, which carried him between Washington D.C., New York, and Boston.
In the end, Trump gave up half of his ownership stake in the Casino. His efforts paid off, however, as the Trump Taj Mahal still stands. Funnily enough, Trump’s largest creditor at the time of the bankruptcy was Carl Icahn, who Trump says he’ll pick for secretary of Treasury if he wins the presidency.
Trump Castle Associates, 1992
Unfortunately, about a year after winning the fight for the Trump Taj Mahal, his other Atlantic City properties experienced some severe financial difficulties. The Trump Plaza Hotel in New York city was also struggling. In all, the Trump Castle Casino Resort, the Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino, and the Trump Plaza Hotel in New York (Trump sure likes to put his name on things) filed for bankruptcy.
The restructuring meant Trump had to give up half his interest in the New York Plaza Hotel to his debtor, Citibank. He was able to retain majority ownership of the casinos, however.
Photo Source: counterpunch.org
Trump Hotel & Casino Resorts, 2004
Trump managed to stay out of bankruptcy court for over ten years, but decided it was time to shed some debit in 2004. Over the course of the proceedings, Trump’s enterprises threw off some $500 million in debt. Trump once again gave up majority ownership of some of his properties but remained in control of his casinos.
Trump Entertainment Resorts, 2009
Now here’s something “The Donald” may not have been completely straightforward about during the Republican debate. He claimed he left Atlantic City due to foreseeing a future financial crisis, but he may have been forced out after his businesses again suffered financial hardship and had to file Chapter 11.
“I had the good sense, and I’ve gotten a lot of credit in the financial pages, seven years ago I left Atlantic City before it totally cratered,” he told the debate audience.
In 2009, however, Trump simply resigned from the board of his Atlantic City casino properties. Though many of them still bear his name, he gave up his remaining stake in the companies.
Now it seems Trump doesn’t want to be involved with Atlantic City at all. When two of the casinos that still bore his name again filed for bankruptcy in 2014, Trump sued them to have his name removed.
China’s imports fell a more-than-expected 17.7% in yuan-denominated terms in September 2015, while exports fell 1.1% from a year earlier, official figures show.
The new figures leave China with a trade surplus of 376.2 billion yuan ($59.4 billion).
The steep fall in imports compares with a fall of 14.3% in August and continues to reflect lower commodity prices globally.
China recently revised down its 2014 economic growth from 7.4% to 7.3%.
The revision marks its weakest growth for almost 25 years. After decades of double-digit growth, the government is expecting to see growth of about 7% in 2015.
China is attempting to shift from an export-led economy to a consumer-led one.
Exports in September held up better than expected, after some had forecast a fall of as much as 7%.
However, the significant fall in imports means domestic demand is not as strong as the government would have hoped.
China’s official trade numbers in US dollar denominated terms were reported shortly after the yuan-denominated numbers.
They showed exports fell a less-than-expected 3.7% in September, while imports slumped 20.4% from a year earlier. The numbers leave the country with a surplus of $60.34 billion for the month – which the government said was higher than expected.
Currency conversion factors based on US dollar and Chinese yuan movements over the last year mean some official numbers from the mainland are now reported in both currencies.
LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE, better known as LVMH, saw an 18% rise in revenue in the nine months to September 2015 – to €25.3 billion ($28.7 billion) – compared with the nine months prior.
The French multinational luxury goods conglomerate posted organic revenue growth of 7% for Q3 of 2015, against forecasts of about 5.5%.
Organic revenue growth strips out the effects of currency movements.
A weaker euro as well as strong wine and spirits sales boosted Q3 revenue.
LVMH noted overall growth in Europe and the US as well as an “acceleration” in Japan.
Overall revenue for Q3 of 2015 rose 16% to $9.76 billion.
LVMH is the world’s biggest luxury group.
It sells the likes of Louis Vuitton handbags, several Champagne brands, Hennessy cognac and fashion labels Fendi and Marc Jacobs. It also sells perfumes, cosmetics, watches and jewellery.
Wine and spirit sales in China, which had been hurt by the country’s anti-corruption drive, saw a “notable acceleration in the third quarter”, the firm said.
“Hennessy cognac …benefited in the third quarter from a strong rebound in shipments to China and continued excellent momentum in the United States,” it stated.
Sales in LVMH’s fashion and leather business were slower than expected.
This year’s Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel was awarded to Prof. Angus Deaton “for his analysis of consumption, poverty, and welfare”.
Angus Deaton from Princeton University said he was delighted to have won the prize.
The 69-year-old described himself as “someone who’s concerned with the poor of the world and how people behave, and what gives them a good life”.
His research focuses on health, wellbeing, and economic development.
Torsten Persson, secretary of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences award committee, said that Prof. Angus Deaton’s work has had “enormous influence”, particularly in India where the government had reshaped its measurement of poverty.
It had also been very influential in the academic community by reshaping various branches of economics, he said.
While Angus Deaton expected extreme poverty to continue decreasing, he did not want to be “blindly optimistic” because “tremendous health problems among adults and children in India” still existed.
Photo NobelPrize
Prof. Angus Deaton said that half of Indian children were still malnourished: “For many people in the world, things are very bad indeed.”
The academy said that individuals’ consumption choices must be understood before economic policy aimed at reducing poverty could be formulated.
“More than anyone else, Angus Deaton has enhanced this understanding. By linking detailed individual choices and aggregate outcomes, his research has helped transform the fields of microeconomics, macroeconomics, and development economics.”
The work for which Angus Deaton has been honored revolved around three questions: How do consumers distribute their spending among different goods? How much of society’s income is spent and how much is saved? How do we best measure and analyze welfare and poverty?
“His research has uncovered important pitfalls when comparing the extent of poverty across time and place,” the committee said.
The British academic, who had been in the running for the prize several times in past years, was previously at Cambridge and Bristol universities.
The award includes prize money of 8 million Swedish kronor ($950,000).
The economics award was not created by Alfred Nobel in 1895, but was added by Sweden’s central bank in 1968 as a memorial to the Swedish industrialist.
The Nobel prizes will be given to winners on December 10 at ceremonies in Stockholm and Oslo.
Dell has agreed a deal to buy data storage company EMC for $67 billion.
EMC shareholders will receive $33.15 per share, $24.05 of which will be in cash.
If approved by regulators, the deal would be the biggest in history between two technology companies.
Falling demand for PCs means Dell is looking to expand into more lucrative businesses, and it has identified data storage as a key growth area.
“Our new company will be exceptionally well-positioned for growth in the most strategic areas of next-generation IT ,” Michael Dell said.
EMC CEO Joe Tucci said: “The waves of change we now see in our industry are unprecedented and, to navigate this change, we must create a new company for a new era.”
Michael Dell will be chairman and chief executive of the combined group that, Dell said, would be the world’s “largest privately-controlled, integrated technology company”.
The exact cost of the deal will depend on the value of shares in VMware, the software company controlled by EMC. VMware will remain an independent, listed company.
The price per share agreed represents a 20% premium on Friday’s EMC closing share price of $27.86. EMC shares were up about 4% in pre-market trading on October 12.
The deal is expected to close some time between May and October 2016.
Two South African men who rent the house where athlete Oscar Pistorius shot dead his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp have been filmed giving a “bizarre” tour around the property.
David Scott, 33, and Kagiso Mokoape, 23, leased the house in Pretoria after it was sold by Oscar Pistorius to cover his legal bills.
In the video, the two business partners promise to hosts parties there, saying: “Oscar built this house to entertain.”
David Scott also said they intended to decorate the house “in honor of what happened here.”
Oscar Pistorius family spokeswoman Anneliese Burgess described the footage as “bizarre” to the South African press.
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David Scott and Kagiso Mokoape show the South African TV channel Netwerk24 around the house. A version of the video is still on the network’s English language website.
While apparently drinking a can of beer, David Scott told the channel: “This is definitely an entertainer’s house.”
During the video, Dvaid Scott opens the toilet door, through which Reeva Steenkamp was shot four times, to show where she died.
While in the bathroom, Kagiso Mokoape says: “I feel bad for Reeva’s parents”.
The bathroom has since been refurbished.
An online poll by the South African website IOL found that readers were closely split on whether it would be distasteful to hold a party at the house.
The South African parole board is due to decide later this week whether to release Oscar Pistorius to house arrest.
The Paralympic champion was convicted of manslaughter last year but cleared of murder.
The appeal against the double amputee’s acquittal on murder charges is to be heard next month.
Oscar Pistorius insists he mistook Reeva Steenkamp for an intruder.
American dentist Walter Palmer, who sparked an international outcry after killing Cecil the lion in Zimbabwe, will not be prosecuted because he had obtained the legal authority to hunt, officials say.
Walter Palmer, 55, admitted to killing Cecil in July but has always denied that he acted illegally.
Zimbabwe’s Environment Minister Oppah Muchinguri said Walter Palmer could not be charged as all his “papers were in order”.
Oppah Muchinguri said Zimbabwe would now review how it issues hunting licenses.
The environment minister had previously called for Walter Palmer to be extradited and face prosecution. However, it appears that Walter Palmer broke no laws when he killed the lion using a bow and arrow.
“We approached the police and then the Prosecutor General, and it turned out that [Walter] Palmer came to Zimbabwe because all the papers were in order,” Oppah Muchinguru said.
Meanwhile the trial against Walter Palmer’s Zimbabwean guide, Theo Bronkhurst, is due to continue on October 15.
Theo Bronkhurst denies the charge of “failing to prevent an illegal hunt”.
After his name was revealed by the press, Walter Palmer’s dentistry practice and home were targeted by protesters. He has now returned to work after a two-month break.
Walter Palmer is believed to have paid $50,000 to hunt the lion in Zimbabwe’s largest game reserve.
Pan has failed to reach the top of the North American box office chart on its opening weekend, despite much promotion and its $150 million cost.
The Neverland 3D-fantasy movie, starring Hugh Jackman as Blackbeard and directed by Atonement director Joe Wright, took $15.5 million and entered the chart at number three.
Pan was outshone by space thriller The Martian which held on to the top spot for a second week, taking $37 million.
Hotel Transylvania 2 stayed at No 2, making $20.3 million.
Pan‘s relative lack of success ranks it alongside The Fantastic Four and Tomorrowland as one of the year’s most disappointing big budget achievers. Pan was released over the four-day Columbus weekend, which remembers Christopher Columbus’ arrival to the Americas in 1492.
The movie’s story is an invented prequel of J.M. Barrie’s Peter Pan and Captain Hook adventure.
Levi Miller plays Peter Pan alongside Hugh Jackman’s ruthless pirate and features Rooney Mara and Kathy Burke.
Ridley Scott’s The Martian, in its second week of release, has now notched up $108.7 million at the US box office.
Hotel Transylvania 2 also showed its staying power. Now in its third week, it has takings to date of $116.8 million.
Workplace comedy The Intern, starring Robert De Niro and Anne Hathaway, earned $8.7 million and finished the weekend at number four, the same spot as last week. It has now made $49.6 million.
Sicario, starring Emily Blunt, brought in $7.4 million and came in at number five, dropping from its previous number three position. The movie has overall takings to date of $26.7 million.
Steven Tyler has asked Donald Trump to stop using Aerosmith’s song Dream On at campaign events without permission.
Attorneys for Steven Tyler have already sent a cease-and-desist letter to the Republican presidential hopeful, saying the use of the song “gives a false impression” the singer endorses Donald Trump’s presidential bid.
Donald Trump has been playing Dream On all summer, even air-drumming to it at a rally in Las Vegas.
Steven Tyler, who is a registered Republican, says it is not a “personal” issue but one of permission and copyright.
It is the third time a musician has confronted Donald Trump about using their songs to promote his presidential bid.
When Donald Trump announced his candidacy, his campaign played Neil Young’s Rockin’ in the Free World – a song that contains the lyrics “He’s just a rich old man / He never cared for anyone”.
Neil Young, a well-known liberal, demanded that Donald Trump stop using the song and declared his support for Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders instead.
Donald Trump’s campaign responded that “despite Neil’s differing political views, Mr. Trump likes Neil very much”.
The tycoon then used REM’s It’s the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine), prompting singer Michael Stipe to issue a strongly-worded statement, saying: “Do not use our music or my voice for your moronic charade of a campaign.”
Conversely, Steven Tyler is not politically opposed to Donald Trump, who is the current frontrunner in the Republican race for the White House.
Steven Tyler even attended the second GOP debate in August as Donald Trump’s guest, according to the Washington Post, but his representatives issued a legal letter to Trump’s campaign over the weekend.
“Trump for President does not have our client’s permission to use Dream On or any of our client’s other music in connection with the campaign because it gives the false impression that he is connected with or endorses Mr. Trump’s presidential bid,” the cease-and-desist letter read.
“If Trump for President does not comply with our demands, our client will be forced to pursue any and all legal or equitable remedies which our client may have against you.”
Donald Trump was initially asked to stop using Dream On, which features the refrain “dream until your dream comes true” after a rally in Alabama two months ago, but he has continued to use it on the campaign trail, reports Rolling Stone.
Politicians using songs by musicians who do not support them has been a thorny issue for decades, since Bruce Springsteen castigated President Ronald Reagan for planning to use Born in the USA as a backdrop for his 1984 re-election campaign.
Technically, copyright laws give politicians carte blanche to use recorded music at their rallies – as long as the venue has a public performance license issued through a songwriters’ association such as ASCAP or BMI.
However, there is some leeway for an artist to complain their image and reputation is being damaged by the repeated use of a song without their express permission.
