Business – Page 7

23Sep

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Business, Europe, News

Activity European Economies Cool Down

Activity in the major European economies is cooling off somewhat after the strong rebound since the corona crisis. The lower growth is partly due to problems in the supply chain. In addition, corona measures are hindering the earlier revival in the service sector, including tourism and the catering industry. According to market researcher Markit, the French and German industries, in particular, suffered from shortages of raw materials and parts. As a result, activity in those countries cooled more than expected, according to the monthly survey of purchasing managers. Growth in the German services sector also slowed significantly after a strong rebound in the summer. A combination of factors such as the floating Delta variant of the coronavirus, supply problems and a lack of capa...

Bitcoin Continues to Lose Value After Market Turmoil

21Sep

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Business, News

Bitcoin Continues to Lose Value After Market Turmoil

Cryptocurrency bitcoin has further lost value now that the financial markets are experiencing ongoing turmoil. The currency fell by almost 8 percent in early Asian trading to a level of nearly $40,000, only to bounce back after that. Investors are weighing the risks posed by Evergrande's debt crisis and the Federal Reserve's meeting of the Federal Reserve's central bank later this week. There may be more clarity about the phasing out of the corona support measures. According to CoinMarketCap, the coin was worth more than $42,000 on Tuesday morning. The website monitors various platforms on which cryptocurrencies are traded. Other coins also lost value. For example, ether dropped to under $3,000 due to more than 8 percent loss, and cardano lost about 10 percent of its value in the...

Longest-Lasting Decline in UK Retail Sales in 25 Years

17Sep

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Business, News, UK

Longest-Lasting Decline in UK Retail Sales in 25 Years

UK retail sales unexpectedly fell for the fourth month in a row in August. That is the most prolonged consecutive contraction since measurements began 25 years ago. Consumers bought less in supermarkets and department stores, for example, now that more people could go to restaurants and events again. Instead, Britons spent more on clothing and petrol-only on holiday trips and returning to the office. Economists had expected small growth across the board, but the contraction was 0.9 percent in August compared to a month earlier. The decline was 2.8 percent every month in July, 0.1 percent in June and 1.4 percent in May. Concerns about consumer spending in the United Kingdom are increasing due to sharply rising prices and an increase in the number of corona infections. Retailers a...

ECB Extends Working from Home Until Early Next Year

15Sep

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Business, Europe, News

ECB Extends Working from Home Until Early Next Year

The European Central Bank (ECB) will allow employees to work from home as much as possible until the beginning of next year due to the uncertainty about the Delta variant of the coronavirus. That said, ECB President Christine Lagarde in an interview with Bloomberg news agency. "The current solution is remote working today and probably until the end of January. We'll see after that," said Lagarde. It was actually the intention that from October, work would be partly in the office again. To gain access to the ECB's offices, employees must be vaccinated, have recovered from the virus or show a negative test. The ECB employs more than 3,500 people, mainly at its headquarters in Frankfurt. Lagarde went on to say that many employers are moving to a hybrid model, with part-office work a...

Coal is Again Germany’s Main Energy Source

13Sep

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Business, Germany, News

Coal is Again Germany’s Main Energy Source

Coal is again Germany's main energy source. The conventional energy source overtook wind as the largest energy supplier in the first six months of the year. This is happening at a time when there is a major discussion in Germany in the run-up to the elections in September about measures to combat climate change. According to calculations by the German Federal Statistical Office, 56 percent of the 258.9 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity generated in Germany during this period came from conventional sources such as coal, natural gas or nuclear power. That represented an annual increase of one fifth. By contrast, the share in the energy mix of renewable energy sources such as wind, solar energy and biogas decreased to 44 percent. This was considerably less compared to the Januar...

US Airline United Airlines Puts Unvaccinated Employees on Unpaid Leave

10Sep

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Business, News, US

US Airline United Airlines Puts Unvaccinated Employees on Unpaid Leave

Beginning October 2, United Airlines will put its unvaccinated staff on unpaid leave. The major American airline announced this on Thursday. In August, she announced that she would require her employees to be vaccinated against Covid-19. Employees could request an exception for compulsory vaccination on a medical or religious basis, but now they will also have to take unpaid leave. Those who have not been vaccinated for medical reasons will be put on temporary sick leave. It is not clear how long that leave will last. Employees who contact passengers, such as pilots, flight attendants and customer service representatives, were told they could return to work “once the pandemic has significantly receded”. However, staff who have no contact with passengers must take a corona test we...

Eurozone Economy Grew Somewhat Faster in the Second Quarter

7Sep

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Business, Europe, News

Eurozone Economy Grew Somewhat Faster in the Second Quarter

The eurozone economy grew faster in the second quarter than previously measured. Based on final figures, the European statistical office Eurostat reports a growth of 2.2 percent compared to the first three months of the year. In an earlier estimate, this was still 2 percent. The economy performed better in all areas than in the first quarter. At that time, there were still strict corona measures in many European countries. However, these were mostly relaxed in the months of April to June, which led to economic growth. In the Netherlands, the economy grew by 3.1 percent in the second quarter, which is one of the higher percentages in the eurozone. Ireland led the way with a growth of 6.3 percent. In Malta, the economy contracted by 0.5 percent. For the whole of the EU, growth wa...

Amazon Wants to Hire 55,000 People Worldwide with Mainly Technological Profiles

2Sep

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Business, News, Technology

Amazon Wants to Hire 55,000 People Worldwide with Mainly Technological Profiles

E-commerce giant Amazon is looking for 55,000 new employees worldwide. That said, the new CEO Andy Jassy in an interview with Reuters. This mainly concerns technological profiles for robotics, engineering or the satellite program Project Kuiper. The vast majority, about 40,000 jobs, are created in the United States. But the internet giant is also looking for 2,500 people in the United Kingdom. The other jobs mainly concern vacancies in Germany, India and Japan. According to the new CEO, Amazon needs the extra staff to keep up with its growth in retail, cloud computing, and advertising. In addition, there is the ambitious Project Kuiper, a competitor of Starlink (SpaceX, Elon Musk), in which satellites in space should provide better access to broadband internet. “We continue to gr...

Zoom’s Quarterly Revenue Breaks Through Billion Dollars

31Aug

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Business, News, Technology

Zoom’s Quarterly Revenue Breaks Through Billion Dollars

Video conferencing service Zoom has booked more than a billion dollars in a quarter for the first time. However, growth is beginning to slow, and investors sent shares in the United States down more than ten percent after hours. Video meetings became a regular part of the working day for many people during the corona pandemic. That did not harm players like Zoom. Zoom was still able to grow in the second quarter of this year. Turnover was more than half higher than a year ago, at 1.02 billion dollars. Net profit rose more than seventy percent to $316.9 million. Zoom lived up to expectations. But investors mainly looked to the future, as more and more people start going back to work. As a result, zoom came out with a very cautious forecast, a disappointment to some. The company ex...

Waymo Starts Self-Driving Taxis in San Francisco

25Aug

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Business, News, US

Waymo Starts Self-Driving Taxis in San Francisco

Google's sister company wants to offer self-driving taxis on a large scale in the American metropolis of San Francisco. People can drive a self-driving Jaguar I-Pace electric car around San Francisco for free when they sign up with Waymo's Trusted Tester program through an app. The users must then sign a nondisclosure agreement and provide feedback to the company. Although the taxis are fully autonomous, there will be a driver present to take over the wheel in case of an emergency. The pilot project in San Francisco is considered an important milestone for Waymo. So far, the company has only tested self-driving taxis in a Phoenix suburb, where drivers are driven without an emergency driver. But in that desert city, the weather conditions, traffic and infrastructure are much mor...