Apple sells 10 million iPhone 6 smartphones in opening weekend

Apple said it sold more than 10 million iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus devices in the first three days they went on sale -- a new record for the tech giant and topping Wall Street estimates that it would move fewer than 9 million.

Moreover, according to Apple, it could have sold even more iPhone 6s if it had the inventories to meet demand. The launch led to the usual long lines at outlets around the world that have accompanied Apple's major new releases, as fans waited for hours to be among the first to get their hands on the larger-screen smartphones.

The iPhone 6 has a 4.7-inch screen and the iPhone 6 Plus has a 5.5-inch Retina HD displays, with glass that covers the entire surface and curves around the edges of the thinner devices. The smartphones also feature a 64-bit A8 chip, which Apple claimed makes graphics performance 84 times faster than the original iPhone launched in 2007.

Last week, Apple said that customers had placed more than 4 million pre-orders for the new smartphones in the first 24 hours after they went on sale at 3 a.m. ET on Sept. 12, also a company record.

Initial sales "exceeded our expectations for the launch weekend, and we couldn't be happier," Apple chief Tim Cook said in a statement. "While our team managed the manufacturing ramp better than ever before, we could have sold many more iPhones with greater supply and we are working hard to fill orders as quickly as possible."

Apple has said some online orders may not be shipping to customers until October.

The iPhone 6 models launched Sept. 19 in the U.S., Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Puerto Rico, Singapore and the U.K. The smartphones are scheduled to be available in more than 20 additional countries on Sept. 26 and are to be available in 115 countries by the end of the year.

© 2014 Variety Media, LLC, a subsidiary of Penske Business Media; Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC

23.16 | 0 komentar | Read More

US stocks move lower as China weighs on markets

NEW YORK — US stocks declined on Monday amid concerns over China's economy. Worries about slowing growth in the world's second-largest economy pushed the down the price of oil, weighing on energy stocks.

KEEPING SCORE: The Standard & Poor's 500 index dropped 14 points, or 0.7 percent, to 1,995 as of 11:03 a.m. Eastern. The Dow Jones industrial average slipped 62 points, or 0.4 percent, to 17,217. The Nasdaq composite dropped 53 points, or 1.2 percent, to 4,526.

CHINA WORRIES: Investors are nervous about China following a run of soft economic data that suggests growth in the world's second-largest economy is slowing. On Tuesday, HSBC publishes its closely watched gauge of Chinese manufacturing activity.

ENERGY: Benchmark crude oil fell 20 cents to $91.45 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Energy stocks fell 1.3 percent, the biggest drop among the 10 industry groups that make up the S&P 500 index.

HOME SALES FALL: Stocks stayed lower after a report released at 10 a.m. Eastern time showed that fewer Americans bought homes in August as investors retreated from real estate and first-time buyers remained scarce. The National Association of Realtors says sales of existing homes fell 1.8 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.05 million. That broke a four-month streak of gains. August sales fell from a July rate of 5.14 million, a figure that was revised slightly downward.

THE QUOTE: While the economy will continue to strengthens, the pace of improvement will likely remain muted, said Scott Wren, an equity strategist at Wells Fargo Advisors.

"There's a lot of hype out there right now that the economy is going to consistently accelerate at a better rate of growth," said Wren. "I'm still in the camp of modest growth and modest inflation that's not going to change anytime soon."

EUROPEAN MARKETS: Germany's DAX fell 0.4 percent to 9,762 and France's CAC-40 fell 0.4 percent to 4,444. Britain's FTSE 100 lost 0.9 percent to 6,778.

M&A CHEMISTRY: St. Louis-based chemical firm Sigma-Aldrich surged $35.33, or 34 percent, to $137.60 after agreeing to be acquired by Merck, a German drug company. Merck is paying $140 a share from Sigma-Aldrich, a premium of 37 percent over Friday's closing price.

ASIA'S DAY: The concerns over China's economy sent the Shanghai index down 1.7 percent to 2,289. Hong Kong's Hang Seng lost 1.4 percent to 23,955. Elsewhere, Tokyo's Nikkei 225 fell 0.7 percent to 16,205 while South Korea's Kospi declined 0.7 percent to 2,039.27.

CURRENCIES: The Japanese yen has been trading at six-year lows against the dollar in anticipation that the U.S. Federal Reserve will raise interest rates next year while the Bank of Japan will maintain an easy monetary policy. On Monday the dollar edged up to 109.12 yen. The euro slipped to $1.2840.

BONDS: U.S. government bond prices rose. The yield on the 10-year government bond fell to 2.57 percent from 2.58 percent.

SILVER'S FALL FROM GRACE: Silver continued its recent descent, falling to its lowest level since the summer of 2010. The price of an ounce of silver fell 1.4 percent to $17.59. Precious metals, including gold, have been pressured by the recent strength of the dollar, low global inflation and rising stock markets. Gold is trading at its lowest price since the start of the year, $1,214 an ounce.

___

Pylas reported from London.

23.16 | 0 komentar | Read More

NASA's Maven explorer arrives at Mars after a year

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — NASA's Maven spacecraft arrived at Mars late Sunday after a 442 million-mile journey that began nearly a year ago.

The robotic explorer fired its brakes and successfully slipped into orbit around the red planet, officials confirmed.

"I think my heart's about ready to start again," said Maven's chief investigator, Bruce Jakosky of the University of Colorado. "All I can say at this point is, 'We're in orbit at Mars, guys!'"

Now the real work begins for the $671 million mission, the first dedicated to studying Mars' upper atmosphere.

Flight controllers in Colorado will spend the next six weeks adjusting Maven's altitude and checking its science instruments, and observing a comet streaking by. Then in early November, Maven will start probing the upper atmosphere of Mars. The spacecraft will conduct its observations from orbit; it's not meant to land.

Scientists believe the Martian atmosphere holds clues as to how Earth's neighbor went from being warm and wet billions of years ago to cold and dry. That early wet world may have harbored microbial life, a tantalizing question yet to be answered.

NASA launched Maven last November from Cape Canaveral, the 10th U.S. mission sent to orbit the red planet. Three earlier ones failed, and until the official word came of success late Sunday night, the entire team was on edge.

"I don't have any fingernails any more, but we've made it," said Colleen Hartman, deputy director for science at Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. "It's incredible."

The spacecraft was clocking more than 10,000 mph when it hit the brakes for the so-called orbital insertion, a half-hour process. The world had to wait 12 minutes to learn the outcome, once it occurred, because of the lag in spacecraft signals given the 138 million miles between the two planets on Sunday.

"Based on observed navigation data, congratulations, Maven is now in Mars orbit," came the official announcement. Flight controllers applauded the news and shook hands; laughter filled the previously tension-filled room.

Noted NASA project manager David Mitchell: "Wow, what a night. You get one shot with Mars orbit insertion, and Maven nailed it tonight."

Maven joins three spacecraft already circling Mars, two American and one European. And the traffic jam isn't over: India's first interplanetary probe, Mangalyaan, will reach Mars in two days and also aim for orbit. Jakosky wished the team well.

Jakosky, who's with the University of Colorado's Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics in Boulder, hopes to learn where all the water on Mars went, along with the carbon dioxide that once comprised an atmosphere thick enough to hold moist clouds.

The gases may have been stripped away by the sun early in Mars' existence, escaping into the upper atmosphere and out into space. Maven's observations should be able to extrapolate back in time, Jakosky said.

Maven — short for Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution Mission — will spend at least a year collecting data. That's a full Earth year, half a Martian one. Its orbit will dip as low as 78 miles above the Martian surface as its eight instruments make measurements. The craft is as long as a school bus, from solar wingtip to tip, and as hefty as an SUV.

Maven will have a rare brush with a comet next month.

The nucleus of newly discovered Comet Siding Spring will pass 82,000 miles from Mars on Oct. 19. The risk of comet dust damaging Maven is low, officials said, and the spacecraft should be able to observe Siding Spring as a science bonus.

Lockheed Martin Corp., Maven's maker, is operating the mission from its control center at Littleton, Colorado.

This is NASA's 21st shot at Mars and the first since the Curiosity rover landed on the red planet in 2012. Just this month, Curiosity arrived at its prime science target, a mountain named Sharp, ripe for drilling. The Opportunity rover is also still active a decade after landing.

All these robotic scouts are paving the way for the human explorers that NASA hopes to send in the 2030s.

___

Online:

NASA: http://mars.nasa.gov/maven/

University of Colorado: http://lasp.colorado.edu/home/maven/

23.16 | 0 komentar | Read More

US firm in China meat scandal lays off 340 staff

BEIJING — A U.S. meat supplier said Monday it is laying off most of the workforce of a Chinese subsidiary accused of selling expired beef and chicken to McDonald's, KFC and other major restaurant chains.

Shanghai Husi Food Co. has been under investigation since a Shanghai TV station reported in July it repackaged and sold old meat. Six employees were arrested in August on suspicion of producing substandard products.

Its owner, OSI Group of Aurora, Illinois, said it will lay off 340 people at the Shanghai unit. It said a small number of employees would be kept on while the investigation is underway. The website of Shanghai Husi says it employs about 500 people.

"Over the past two months, Shanghai Husi has experienced significant financial and customer losses," said an OSI Group statement. "It is very unlikely that production will be resumed soon."

The scandal has alarmed Chinese diners and disrupted operations for fast food brands.

Product safety is unusually sensitive in China following scandals over the past decade in which infants, hospital patients and others have been killed or sickened by phony or adulterated milk powder, drugs and other goods.

KFC owner Yum Brands Inc. and McDonald's Corp. said they immediately stopped using products from Husi.

Burger King Corp., Starbucks Corp., pizza chain Papa John's International Inc. and a Dicos, a chain of sandwich shops, withdrew products with ingredients from suppliers that dealt with Husi.

OSI has announced plans for a "quality control center" in Shanghai and said it will spend 10 million yuan ($1.6 million) on a food safety education campaign.

The company announced Sept. 1 it was turning over management of a separate facility in the southern city of Guangzhou that produces vegetable and fruit products to KanPak China, owned by Golden State Foods of Irvine, California.

KFC has broken all ties with OSI Group in China, the United States and Australia.

McDonald's, which has bought meat from OSI in the United States since the 1950s, complained it felt deceived but has said it will stick with the company, possibly because Chinese food processors cannot match OSI's scale and technology.

23.16 | 0 komentar | Read More

Alaska TV news reporter quits on air to run marijuana business

Viewers of CBS affiliate KTVA-TV in Anchorage, Alaska were jolted Sunday evening during the station's newscast as reporter Charlo Greene dropped an F-bomb, disclosed that she was the owner of a cannabis club in the city and informed the audience she was quitting her TV job.

"Fuck it, I quit," Greene said with a shrug at the close of a report about efforts to decriminalize marijuana in the state, which will vote on the issue in November.

Greene disclosed that she was the owner of the Alaska Cannabis Club and that she was quitting to devote "all of my energies to fighting for for freedom and fairness, which begins with legalizing marijuana here in Alaska."

KTVA anchor Alexis Fernandez looked momentarily stunned before apologizing to viewers. On Monday morning, KTVA had an apology from news director Bert Rudman posted on its website:

"We sincerely apologize for the inappropriate language used by a KTVA reporter during her live presentation on the air tonight. The employee has been terminated."

Greene later posted an explanation of her decision on crowdfunding site Indiegogo.

© 2014 Variety Media, LLC, a subsidiary of Penske Business Media; Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC

23.16 | 0 komentar | Read More

US existing home sales fall in August

WASHINGTON — Fewer Americans bought homes in August, as investors retreated from real estate and first-time buyers remained scarce.

Sales of existing homes fell 1.8 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.05 million, the National Association of Realtors said Monday. That snaps a four-month streak of gains. August sales are down from a July rate of 5.14 million, a figure that was revised slightly downward.

Much of the decline came from the exodus of investors, who had been buying properties in the aftermath of the housing bust and recession. Investors accounted for just 12 percent of August purchases, compared to 17 percent a year earlier.

Overall, the pace of home sales has dropped 5.3 percent year-over-year.

The August figures show that real estate recovery has depended largely on investors and all-cash sales, instead of families looking to purchasing a house.

"It is apparent that much of the juice in the existing-home sales market remains centered in all-cash purchases by speculative buyers," said Joshua Shapiro, chief U.S. economist at the consulting firm MFR.

The rebound from the housing bust that triggered the recession has been painfully slow. The share of Americans who own homes has trended downward over the course of the five year recovery, as more Americans are becoming renters. The ownership rate fell to 64.7 percent through the middle of this year, down from a peak of 69.2 percent toward the end of 2004, according to the Census Bureau.

Sales were curbed by winter storms earlier in the year. They began to accelerate through the summer as mortgage rates eased back from 52-week highs. But the combination of rising home prices last year and sluggish wage growth has limited sales.

Rising prices through much of 2013 and weak income growth priced out many would-be buyers. Only 29 percent of purchases in August came from first-time buyers, well below the historical average of 40 percent.

The median sales price has risen 4.8 percent over the past 12 months to $219,800, but it slipped slightly in August compared to prices in July and June.

Sales of existing homes continue to lag last year's pace of 5.1 million. Annual sales of 5.5 million are consistent with a healthy housing market, according to analysts.

There is a 5.5 month supply of homes listed for sale. The supply has increased over the past year, yet it remains below the standard level of six months.

Sales tumbled 5.1 percent in the West and 4.2 percent in the South last month compared to July. Part of that decline was offset by rising sales in the Northeast and Midwest.

Many consider home sales to be the missing link in a solid economic recovery. Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen recently told Congress that housing has proven to be disappointing this year.

Indicators heading into the fall and winter are mixed for real estate, however.

Home construction plunged 14.4 percent in August compared with the prior month, the Commerce Department said Thursday. Much of that decline was due to a drop-off in building apartment complexes, but single-family home construction also fell 2.4 percent.

Applications for building permits, a sign of future activity, dipped 5.6 percent to an annual rate of 998,000.

Yet builders expressed more confidence. The sentiment index from the National Association of Home Builders and Wells Fargo climbed in September to 59, the highest reading since November 2005. Readings above 50 indicate more builders view sales conditions as good rather than poor.

New-home construction increased 15.7 percent in July to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.09 million homes, the Commerce Department reported Tuesday.

Home prices are also increasing at a slower clip, which should help ease affordability pressures.

Prices rose 7.4 percent in July from July 2013, according to real estate data provider CoreLogic. That was slightly below June's year-over-year increase of 7.5 percent and far below a recent peak of 11.9 percent in February.

Yet incomes remain weak, making it more taxing for would-be buyers trying to save for a down payment.

The Census Bureau said last week that median household incomes were $51,939 in 2013. Adjusting for inflation, that's 8 percent lower than in 2007, when the recession began.

And mortgage rates have begun to rise from recent lows.

Average rates for 30-year mortgages rose last week to 4.23 percent from 4.12 percent, according to mortgage company Freddie Mac. Mortgage rates are below the levels at the start of this year, yet they're up from their 52-week low of 4.1 percent.

23.16 | 0 komentar | Read More

Wall Street sit-in planned on climate crisis

NEW YORK — One day after a huge climate march in New York City, activists on Monday planned to flood Wall Street to protest what they say is corporate and economic institutions' role in the climate crisis.

The protesters, dressed in blue, scheduled a rally in Battery Park before marching to the financial district in Lower Manhattan, according to organizers of #FloodWallStreet.

Scheduled speakers at the rally include Canadian author-activist Naomi Klein, journalist Chris Hedges and San Francisco writer Rebecca Solnit. Environmentalist, activist and author Bill McKibben also was expected.

Organizers said in a press release that the sit-in aimed to disrupt business in the financial district by targeting "corporate polluters and those profiting from the fossil fuel industry."

"Two years ago, Superstorm Sandy literally flooded New York's financial district but it didn't faze Wall Street and their drive for the short term profits that flow from the cooking of the planet," Klein said in a statement. "Which is why we're going to flood them again."

Dressed in a green wig and superhero outfit, protester Jenna DeBoisblanc, an environmental activist from New Orleans, Louisiana, said at a rally in a park near Wall Street before the protest that those assembled were expecting arrests at the sit-in.

"I think arrests in particular are a very good way of conveying the gravity of an issue," she said. "If you're willing to risk arrest it certainly demonstrates that it's something very urgent."

On Sunday, tens of thousands of activists participated in the People's Climate March through Manhattan warning that climate change is destroying the Earth.

Organizers said more than 100,000 participated, including actors Mark Ruffalo and Evangeline Lilly.

It was one of many demonstrations around the world urging policymakers to take quick action.

23.16 | 0 komentar | Read More

Logan to upgrade terminal to handle large plane

BOSTON — Logan International Airport in Boston is changing its international terminal to better accommodate the Airbus A380, the world's largest passenger jet.

Massport recently approved a $30 million upgrade of Terminal E. Officials say the project includes a reconfiguration of three gates to allow for new jet bridges and additional departure level holding rooms and deplaning areas.

Several international carriers that service the airport are using the A380.

Aircraft taxi lanes also will be modified to fit the aircraft, which is about 79 feet high and 262 feet wide. By contrast, the Boeing 747 is about 62 feet high and 210 feet wide.

Massport chief executive Thomas Glynn says one of every five Logan passengers is an overseas traveler and the changes will help the airport keep up with demand.

23.16 | 0 komentar | Read More

Massachusetts gas prices drop 4 cents per gallon

BOSTON — Massachusetts motorists are getting more relief at the pump, as the cost of a gallon of gas has fallen 4 cents in the past week.

AAA Southern New England reports Monday that self-serve, regular has dropped to an average of $3.39 per gallon, a nickel higher than the national average.

Massachusetts prices are now 6 cents per gallon lower than a month ago and 14 cents lower than at this time last year.

AAA found self-serve, regular selling for as low as $3.21 per gallon and as high as $3.79.

23.16 | 0 komentar | Read More

AT&T, Chernin Group acquire control of Fullscreen

Otter Media, the online-video joint venture between the Chernin Group and AT&T, announced that it has agreed to purchase a majority stake in Fullscreen, one of the largest YouTube multichannel network operators.

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Under the agreement, Fullscreen CEO and founder George Strompolos will continue as chief exec and maintain a "material ownership" stake in the company, while the rest of the MCN's management team will all continue in their roles. Word of talks between AT&T/Chernin and Fullscreen emerged earlier this summer.

Fullscreen, founded in January 2011, works with more than 50,000 content creators -- including such YouTube stars as the Fine Bros., Connor Franta and O2L -- who have an aggregate of 450 million subscribers and generate 4 billion monthly views. The Culver City, Calif.-based company has about 200 employees worldwide.

"Fullscreen's support for content creators, its relationship with YouTube and its passion for delivering entertainment to youth audiences around the world are extremely appealing to us," Peter Chernin, chairman and CEO of Chernin Group, said in announcing the deal.

Chernin Group already was a minority shareholder in Fullscreen, along with Comcast Ventures and global ad agency WPP. Fullscreen had been in talks about an investment or acquisition with others in the last few months, including Relativity Media and Yahoo, according to sources.

"This is a huge win for Fullscreen and our creators," Strompolos said in a statement. "Peter Chernin, Jesse Jacobs and the entire team at The Chernin Group have supported our vision since day one. With AT&T as a strategic investor in Otter Media, we are well positioned to redefine youth media in today's digital-first world. We could not ask for a better opportunity."

The deal is the latest in a flurry of deal activity between traditional media companies and upstart digital-video players -- the biggest so far has been Disney's acquisition of YouTube MCN Maker Studios for $500 million plus as much as $450 million more based on performance targets.

In April, AT&T and Chernin Group announced the formation of their JV, pledging to put up to $500 million toward acquiring, investing in and launching over-the-top video services. As part of the pact, Chernin Group contributed its majority stake in Crunchyroll, an online subscription VOD service focused on anime content. In July Otter Media acquired how-to crafting video site Creativebug from Demand Media for $10 million in cash.

"We are excited to have Fullscreen as an integral part of Otter Media, as this supports our focus on youth-based content," commented Aaron Slator, AT&T's president of content development.

The companies said they expect the deal to close within the next month, subject to regulatory approval. WPP will continue as a strategic shareholder in the company.

© 2014 Variety Media, LLC, a subsidiary of Penske Business Media; Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC

23.16 | 0 komentar | Read More