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.
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Saudi Arabia continues to buy farmland in US
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.
Oversupply hitting oil prices, not a secret plot: Saudi Arabia
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.
5G network one of top priorities for 2020, says Australia Vodafone
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.
US crude declined sharply below $28, recording a 12-year low mark
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.
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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.
Motorola has unveiled its Moto G3 smart phone in July 2015 and now released in the market. The concept for making budget conscious smart phones has been attracted by other mobile giants including its mother concern, Lenovo. Lenovo expects to grab the budget phone market shortly with its self developed similar products.
Lower oil price, sluggish global financial markets and weaker Loonie are impacting Canadian economy and forcing central bank to lower interest rate to zero level. Canada may move to negative interest rate in the near future, forecasts Barclays Plc. Bank of Canada is forecast to cut key interest rate by 25 basis points to 0.25 percent this week.
Amazon introduced the Dash Replenishment service on selected devices. The devices powered by Amazon Dash Replenishment program could enable customers to order everyday fundamentals automatically from Amazon.
The AC power cables linked to Microsoft’s Surface Pro tablets of selective three generations pose fire risks due to overheating. Though a limited number of overheating issues have been reported, Microsoft is taking no risks and going to recall for a global voluntary replacement. Details on replacement procedure will be furnished in the Microsoft website sometimes later this week, possibly on Friday.
The self-propelling stroller, introduced by the crowdfunder Indiegogo, is said to revolutionize the concept of a perambulator. Keeping in mind the needs of a parent, the stroller boasts of features like automatic movement controlled via sensors, built-in rocker, bottle warmer, canopies to weather different climatic conditions, to name a few. Its maker, Guillermo Morro, has also addressed all the safety concerns by assuring his audience that his highly capable team has always treated this as a top priority.
Mike Hearn, one of Bitcoin's developer wrote on his belief that the digital currency has undergone some irreparable damage and that the end is in sight. He explained some complaints about Bitcoin which he believes to have no plausible solution. Bitcoin, on the other hand, has gained popularity among internet users although the system has triggered some controversies.
The Indian currency Rupee against the US dollar rose to highest since November 2015 on increasing outflows from Indian stocks and bonds. The Chinese markets were witnessing selloff and this also resulted in further withdrawal by foreign investors in Indian markets. The net outflow from Indian markets in January so far was at $686.2 million putting more pressure on currency reserves.
U.S. Department of Transportation will be allocating $4 billion for the next 10 years in self-driving car technology. Government will boost the effort in developing autonomous vehicle to increase safety innovation.
