Local hero: Florida hotelier Harris Rosen keeps his giving close to home
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Harris Rosen has a chain of eight hotels bearing his name in the Orlando area, but he makes most of his headlines these days for giving away his fortune. The 80-year-old entrepreneur of Rosen Hotels & Resorts, who grew up on the Lower East Side of New York, adopted the Tangelo […]
The spread of Covid-19 and attending football matches in England
The rapid spread of the Covid-19 virus meant that by mid-March 2020, the UK government had stopped outdoor sports from being played in England. Since then, football has resumed behind closed doors, and whether fans should be allowed to attend matches is now the subject of much debate. This column examines whether football matches held in England across February and March helped to spread Covid-19. It finds that attendance at matches resulted in an increase in cases and deaths and concludes that extreme caution should be applied to reopening football to spectators and that there should be close monitoring of any gradual re-opening of stadiums.
Farm product prices, redistribution, and the early Great Depression in the US
Like the current economic crisis in the US, the Great Depression led to large redistributions of income among sectors and households. Perhaps most important, falling farm product prices shifted income away from farmers. This column argues that this redistribution explains between 10% and 30% of the US output decline in 1930. Recovery from the Great Depression began in 1933 in part because farm product prices rose, reversing this redistribution.
Five keys to expanding Central Asia’s global value chains
By Minsoo Lee Central Asia’s long-term economic prosperity depends upon participation in global value chains and upgrading to higher value-added activities. Central Asia’s long-term economic vitality will depend on the ability of the region’s economies to participate in global value chains and possibly upgrade to higher value-added activities. Value chains have transformed global trade and production […]
British pianist’s velvety tones soothe Thailand’s hungry monkeys
LOPBURI, Thailand (Reuters) – While on tour in central Thailand, British musician Paul Barton has been mobbed by unruly audiences that tug his hair, steal his music and climb over his piano. Barton is a rock star to hundreds of hungry wild monkeys that he hopes his music can calm, at a time when Thailand’s […]
BHP lays down goals to cut own emissions by 30% by FY2030
MELBOURNE (Reuters) – BHP Group BHP.AX will focus on cutting its operational emissions by 30% by the 2030 financial year from 2020 levels, and will link executive bonuses to its progress, its chief executive said in a climate strategy update on Thursday. The world’s biggest listed miner will focus on using cleaner forms of power supply as […]
Surge in greenhouse gases sustained despite COVID lockdowns – U.N.
GENEVA (Reuters) – Greenhouse gas concentrations climbed to a new record in 2019 and rose again this year despite an expected drop in emissions due to COVID-19 lockdowns, the World Meteorological Organization said on Monday, warning against complacency.
UBS advises private clients to pick ‘sustainable’ investments
LONDON (Reuters) – UBS Group UBSG.S said on Thursday that it would advise private clients investing globally to choose sustainable investments over more traditional options, the first major financial institution to do so. Money has flowed into a range of sustainable investments in recent years as policymakers look to retool the financial system in the fight against […]
Sri Lankan navy tows fire-stricken tanker to sea as wind strengthens
NEW DELHI (Reuters) – The Sri Lankan navy has towed a fire-stricken supertanker further out to sea to keep it off the coast of the Indian Ocean island after the wind picked up strength and changed direction, a spokesman said on Thursday. The tanker, loaded with 2 million barrels oil, was 50 nautical miles (95 […]
Myanmar’s upcycling monk leads push to cut plastic waste
YANGON (Reuters) – When a prominent Buddhist monk in Myanmar noticed a surge in plastic waste generated by residents in his Yangon neighborhood during the pandemic, he decided to do something about it. But Abbot Ottamasara, who runs the Thabarwa meditation centre, was taken aback by the response to his request for plastic containers as […]
