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Oracle wins cloud computing deal with Zoom as video calls surge

28Apr By reutersNo Comments

BUSINESS

Oracle wins cloud computing deal with Zoom as video calls surge

(Reuters), 29th April 2020 - Zoom Video Communications Inc said on Tuesday it has started using Oracle Corp’s cloud computing service to help handle the surge in online video call volumes brought on by the novel coronavirus pandemic. As corporations and schools shift to remote work and billions of people subject to stay-at-home orders seek ways to remain connected, Zoom has seen daily meeting participants rocket from 10 million in December to 300 million. But it has also experienced a backlash as the increased use exposed privacy and security flaws. Zoom set out a 90-day plan to fix the security issues, but in the meantime, the thirty-fold jump in traffic has required more computing power. The deal is a big win for Oracle, which wants to catch up with rivals such as Amazon.com and...

Amul eyes 15 percent growth in turnover despite COVID-19, Doble its Overall revenue in 5 years

27Apr By PriyankaNo Comments

BUSINESS

Amul eyes 15 percent growth in turnover despite COVID-19, Doble its Overall revenue in 5 years

New Delhi, 27th April 2020: Indian group GCMMF, which markets dairy products under Amul brand, expects its turnover to grow 15 percent this fiscal year from Rs 38,550 crore in 2019-20 despite economic slowdown caused by the nationwide lockdown to control coronavirus outbreak. The household consumption of milk and other dairy products is expected to rise and will compensate any temporary loss of sales caused by the closure of hotels, restaurants, and cafeterias (HoReCA segment) during the ongoing lockdown period, said R S Sodhi, the managing director of Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation Ltd (GCMMF). As per the company's financial data, Sales of Amul Federation and its 18-member union rose 17 percent year-on-year and crossed Rs 50,000 crore in the year ended March 31, 2020....

Samsung ends Mobile Phone production in China

12Apr By reutersNo Comments

BUSINESS

Samsung ends Mobile Phone production in China

SEOUL (Reuters)- Samsung Electronics Co Ltd has ended mobile telephone production in China, it said on Wednesday, hurt by intensifying competition from domestic rivals in the world’s biggest smartphone market. The shutdown of Samsung’s last China phone factory comes after it cut production at the plant in the southern city of Huizhou in June and suspended another factory late last year, underscoring stiff competition in the country. The South Korean tech giant’s ceased phone production in China follows other manufacturers shifting production from China due to rising labor costs and the economic slowdown. Sony also said it was closing its Beijing smartphone plant and would only make smartphones in Thailand. But Apple still makes major products in China. Samsung’s share of the...

Donald Trump backed Sanofi will donate 100 million hydroxychloroquine doses

10Apr By PriyankaNo Comments

BUSINESS

Donald Trump backed Sanofi will donate 100 million hydroxychloroquine doses

Paris, April 10, 2020 – French drug firm Sanofi has committed to donating 100 million doses of hydroxychloroquine to 50 countries around the world and has begun to progressively deliver the medicine to authorities that have requested it. In this global health emergency, Sanofi said in a press release that we are ready to assist as many countries as possible, starting with countries where its medicine is registered for currently approved indications as well as countries where there are no hydroxychloroquine suppliers or countries with underserved populations. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, Sanofi has received a growing number of requests from local governments around the world. The company is regularly evaluating its increasing supply capacity and re-assessing how best to...

TikTok pledges USD 250 mn for COVID-19 Relief

9Apr By PriyankaNo Comments

BUSINESS

TikTok pledges USD 250 mn for COVID-19 Relief

TikTok, the short video making app will contribute $250 million to coronavirus relief efforts around the world. The Chinese-based firm said the funds would be for "front line medical workers, educators, and local communities deeply affected by the global crisis." "We are committed to playing our part in that global outpouring of mutual support and giving," TikTok president Alex Zhu said in a statement."We want to magnify all we are seeing across our community and translate it into concrete relief for those most affected by this crisis." TikTok said USD 150 million of the funds would be allocated for medical staffing, supplies, and hardship relief for health care workers through the US Centers for Disease Control, World Health Organization, and agencies working to distribute suppli...

WeWork sues SoftBank for backing out of $3 billion Investment deal

7Apr By PriyankaNo Comments

BUSINESS

WeWork sues SoftBank for backing out of $3 billion Investment deal

Coworking organization WeWork sued Japan-based SoftBank after the technology investment group breached its contractual obligations by backing out of a USD 3 billion investment deal. The lawsuit filed in a US court in Delaware came just days after SoftBank said it was backing out of the plan to purchase WeWork shares to shore up the finances of the struggling sharing economy giant. WeWork's board of directors called the SoftBank action "a clear breach of its contractual obligations" under an agreement between the two firms last year as well as a breach of SoftBank's fiduciary obligations to the firm's current and former employees who were to sell their equity. The complaint alleges SoftBank yielded to pressure from "activist investors" and made the move after it had "received most ...

WeWork troubles deepen as SoftBank pulls its $3 billion tender offer

4Apr By reutersNo Comments

BUSINESS

WeWork troubles deepen as SoftBank pulls its $3 billion tender offer

Softbank said it has terminated a $3 billion tender offer for additional WeWork shares agreed last year with shareholders, drawing threats of legal action and plunging the floundering office space company further into crisis. The tech investment giant said in a statement that given its duty to its shareholders it could no longer proceed with the deal, citing criminal and civil probes into the startup, WeWork’s failure to restructure a joint venture in China and the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. A special committee of WeWork’s board said it was disappointed and is considering “all of its legal options, including litigation.” SoftBank’s decision to rescind the offer means the Japanese firm is no longer obligated to proceed with a further $1.1 billion in debt financing for WeWo...

24Mar By AnkitaNo Comments

BUSINESS

The Cost of Tokyo Olympic Postponement

The historic decision to postpone this year's Olympic Games over the coronavirus pandemic is likely to pile on the pain for Japan's economy, already expected to be roiled by the global virus outbreak, economists say. What has the Games cost Japan? At the end of 2019, organizers estimated the total cost of the Games at around 1.35 trillion yen ($12.6 billion). That is divided between the city of Tokyo, which is paying 597 billion yen, the Japanese organizing committee, which contributes 603 billion yen and the central government, which is paying 150 billion yen. But the actual costs for the country have been hotly debated, with a widely publicized audit report estimating national government spending from the bid in 2013 until 2018 at 1.06 trillion yen, nearly 10 times the bu...

IMF Warns Coronavirus Recession Could Be Worse Than 2009

23Mar By NitishNo Comments

BUSINESS

IMF Warns Coronavirus Recession Could Be Worse Than 2009

The world economy is facing "severe" economic damage from the coronavirus pandemic that could be even more costly than in 2009 and will require an unprecedented response, IMF chief Kristalina Georgieva said Monday. In comments to finance ministers from the Group of 20 nations, Georgieva called on advanced economies to provide more support to low income countries, and the IMF stands "ready to deploy all our $1 trillion lending capacity." As much of the world faces mass shutdowns, Georgieva warned the outlook for global growth in 2020 "is negative a recession at least as bad as during the global financial crisis or worse. Starting fom China, the pandemic has continued to spread globally, with the total number of infected cases reaching 358,735 and 15,433 deaths. Several ...

Saudi Oil Group Aramco Sponsors Formula One

11Mar By PriyankaNo Comments

BUSINESS

Saudi Oil Group Aramco Sponsors Formula One

Saudi oil giant Aramco has signed on as a global sponsor of Formula One, the firm said, in a move seen as part of the conservative kingdom's drive to soften its international image. "Aramco, the world's largest integrated oil and gas company, today announced a long term global sponsorship with Formula 1," the company said, announcing its first ever major sports sponsorship deal. Under the deal Aramco will have trackside branding rights at most races, title rights to the US, Spanish and Hungarian Grands Prix in 2020 as well as brand exposure through broadcast and digital platforms. Saudi Arabia, under fire over human rights abuses, has accelerated investment in glitzy sports and entertainment events in a bid to improve its reputation and boost jobs and investment in the sectors. ...

Coronavirus wipes USD 50 billion From global Exports in February

5Mar By PriyankaNo Comments

BUSINESS

Coronavirus wipes USD 50 billion From global Exports in February

UN economists announced a likely USD 50 billion drop in worldwide manufacturing exports in February alone as the extent of the damage to the global economy caused by novel coronavirus COVID-19 moved further into focus. Citing the China Manufacturing Purchasing Manager's Index (PMI), Pamela Coke-Hamilton, who heads UNCTAD's Division on International Trade and Commodities, said that it had fallen to 37.5 - a drop of about 20 points the lowest reading since 2004. This also correlates directly to exports and also implies a two per cent drop in overall exports, she said, with a resulting ripple effect worldwide to the tune of a USD 50 billion fall in exports. Because China has become the main supplier of finished products and so-called intermediate products used in countless industries...

Comviva Sells Stake in TerraPay to Prime Ventures, Partech Partners and IFC

3Mar By Press Trust of IndiaNo Comments

BUSINESS

Comviva Sells Stake in TerraPay to Prime Ventures, Partech Partners and IFC

Mobility solutions provider Comviva has sold its shares in fintech company TerraPay to a consortium of Prime Ventures, Partech Partners and IFC. The company has, however, not disclosed the value of the deal. Prime Ventures and Partech Partners are co-investing in TerraPay, along with International Finance Corporation, a member of the World Bank Group, a firm said. "Apart from acquiring Comviva shares, the investors have further invested USD 9.6 million in TerraPay to fund the company's expansion," it added. TerraPay, incubated by Comviva in 2015, provides payment infrastructure services by enabling payment service providers such as banks, mobile money operators, money transfer operators or other payment providers to instantly connect to each other at a low cost. Since 2015, ...