Archive for the 'Economy' Category
A ‘Blockchain Bandit’ Is Guessing Private Keys and Scoring Millions
April 24th, 2019Via: Wired: In the process, and as detailed in a paper they published Tuesday, the researchers not only found that cryptocurrency users have in the last few years stored their crypto treasure with hundreds of easily guessable private keys, but also uncovered what they call a “blockchain bandit.” A single Ethereum account seems to have […]
On South America’s Largest Solar Farm, Chinese Power Radiates
April 23rd, 2019Via: Reuters: At a time when Trump is doubling down on fossil fuels and withdrawing the United States from global partnerships, Chinese President Xi Jinping’s sprawling “Belt and Road” initiative aims to put Chinese companies and innovation at the center of infrastructure development worldwide, including next-generation power sources. “It is a way of expanding China’s […]
Counties Where the American Dream May Already Be Dead
April 19th, 2019Via: USA Today: It used to be that the vast majority of children ended up earning more than their parents. Today, however, the situation is considerably different. According to recent research on intergenerational mobility, approximately 90% of those born in the 1940s earned more than their parents, while only about 50% of those born in […]
Deutsche Bank: Russian Laundromat
April 18th, 2019Via: Guardian: Germany’s troubled Deutsche Bank faces fines, legal action and the possible prosecution of “senior management” because of its role in a $20bn Russian money-laundering scheme, a confidential internal report seen by the Guardian says. The bank admits there is a high risk that regulators in the US and UK will take “significant disciplinary […]
We’re All Being Judged By a Secret ‘Trustworthiness’ Score
April 15th, 2019Via: Slashdot: Nearly everything we buy, how we buy, and where we’re buying from is secretly fed into AI-powered verification services that help companies guard against credit-card and other forms of fraud, according to the Wall Street Journal. More than 16,000 signals are analyzed by a service called Sift, which generates a “Sift score” ranging […]
Tesla and Panasonic Freeze Spending on $4.5 Billion Gigafactory
April 11th, 2019Via: Nikkei: Tesla and Panasonic are freezing plans to expand the capacity of their Gigafactory 1, the world’s largest EV battery plant, as concerns mount on Wall Street about weakening demand at Elon Musk’s car company. The partners had planned to raise capacity by 50% by next year, but financial problems have forced a rethink, […]
U.S. Budget Deficit Running 15% Higher Than a Year Ago
April 10th, 2019Via: AP: The federal government reported a $146.9 billion deficit in March, causing annual debt to rise 15% for the first half of the budget year compared to the same period in 2018. The Treasury Department said Wednesday in its monthly report that the fiscal year deficit has so far totaled $691 billion, up from […]
Walmart Is Rolling Out the Robots
April 10th, 2019Via: Wall Street Journal: Walmart Inc. is expanding its use of robots in stores to help monitor inventory, clean floors and unload trucks, part of the retail giant’s efforts to control labor costs as it spends more to raise wages and offer new services like online grocery delivery.
Retail Apocalypse: 75,000 More U.S. Stores Could Be Doomed
April 10th, 2019Via: LMT Online: Widespread closures have roiled the retail industry, but many more stores are likely to shut down in coming years to keep up with a shift to online shopping, according to a report by investment firm UBS. An estimated 75,000 stores that sell clothing, electronics and furniture will close by 2026, when online […]
United States Supply Chain Strategy for Electric Vehicles
April 8th, 2019Via: Reuters: U.S. government officials plan to meet with executives from automakers and lithium miners in early May as part of a first-of-its-kind effort to launch a national electric vehicle supply chain strategy, according to three sources familiar with the matter. While Volkswagen AG, Tesla Inc and other electric-focused automakers and battery manufacturers are expanding […]
