South Korean currency Won has been volatile as it hit five-year low and recovered marginally. Won was tracking to Chinese currency Yuan as the dragon country is the major foreign market for South Korea. China's GDP rose 6.8 percent during fourth quarter marginally lower than the forecast of 6.9 percent. This disappointed the market.
Country
A 10% decrease in China air pollution noted over previous year, Greenpeace reports confirmed
Amidst intense smog, China still came out with a 10% decrease in air pollution in 2015. The numbers indicate a direct fall in the consumption of coal. However, despite the small improvement, the situation is still pretty grim as the country, which is home to a host of coal power plants, has now taken the top spot for emitting greenhouse gases. The 'red-alert' situation this winter should be a wake-up call for the government to now take drastic measures to curb the sources of air pollutants.
Research Showed Fewer Young People in U.S. Having Driver's License
A recent report showed the declining trend of people to have driver's license in United States. Research was conducted by University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute.
YouTube Censorship: Pakistan remove three-year ban after YouTube launched a localized version for the country
YouTube and Pakistani authorities agreed on some unknown terms that give partial power for the government to request the removal of offensive materials. However, the requests will be thoroughly reviewed and being accounted for. Other terms remain unknown.
FAROS Quadcopter Fights Fire In Sky Scrappers Defying Chimney Effects
KAIST, a Korean science and technology institute has developed the Fireproof Aerial RObot System (FAROS). FAROS is a sort of drone capable of locating humans’ position trapped inside a sky scrapper through its inbuilt thermal imaging camera. The research team, that invents fire fighting drone, has demonstrated the feasibility of the localization system and wall-climbing mechanism in a smoky indoor environment.
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Saudi Arabia and other Gulf nations are buying thousands of acres in the US. Recently, Fondomonte California has purchased 1,790 acres of farmland in California. Almarai bought 10,000 acres of farmland in Arizona two years back. These companies have cultivating alfalfa hay and exporting back it to feed dairy herds. Local farmers in California and Arizona are expressing concerns over drop in groundwater table.
Saudi Arabia has ruled out allegations that Iran has been targeted in the oil price war. Saudi Arabian foreign minister said that it's demand-supply situation that determines price in the global oil market. The low price is also hitting US shale oil, which involves high cost of production.
Vodafone Group is confident that as soon as 5G wave hits the world in 2020, Australia will be among the first few countries to adopt this new-age technology. The mobile operator's priority goals include customer satisfaction and customized plans, along with 5G launch. A 5G-friendly Australia will be seen as a super-speedy service that should eliminate all video buffering and enable super-fast downloads.
An unusual drop in US crude oil, below the already low $28 a barrel, created quite a stir in the market. It seems the oil prices are at a continuous plummeting spree. The current situation seems pretty bleak with supply exceeding demand to a great extent, especially after major oil exporter Iran came back into the scene.
Luxe valet parking app is partnering with Tesla. The two-year old tech startup will provide Tesla owners in New York and San Fransisco its on-demand valet parking service.
Palmer Luckey, founder of Oculus Rift company have to stand in court in a lawsuit against him. The plaintiff is Total Recall Technologies that accused the 23-year old to use its data illegally.
Cocoon Networks, a Chinese-backed venture capital group is setting up a £500 ($700) million fund in London. The fund is aimed to invest in European tech startups.
Manny Pacquiao has decided to take the final bow after one last fight with arch rival Timothy Bradley. This much-awaited bout is all set to take place in Las Vegas on April 9, marking their trilogy. The boxing champion has decided to run for senatorship in May elections after his retirement and make a difference to his country. Given his popularity, Pacquiao even hopes to run for the presidency which is scheduled to take place in 2022.
After acquiring Lyft Inc, GM has also purchased ride hailing pioneer, Sidecar. The acquired entity has been tattering in consecutive years for ever growing competitions with rivals like Uber and Lyft. With the acquiring, GM now will be able to play a more active role in relative fields with the new two subsidiaries.
