LONDON/PARIS : While millions are fretting whether they can afford another $1,000 on energy this year, others are still splashing out on $10,000 Hermes handbags as soaring prices leave wealthier people relatively unscathed.\r
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A string of consumer companies, from spirits group Diageo to Birkin bag maker Hermes, have this week reported they're making money from their most expensive products and expect to continue to do so, despite a cost of living crisis that shows no signs of abating.\r
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Sharply higher interest rates, surging inflation and a prolonged energy crisis are leading to the conclusion that the global economy is headed towards recession.\r
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But millions of wealthier consumers are still sitting on a cushion of savings built up during the COVID-19 pandemic and keen to treat themselves after two years of restrictions.\r
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Hermes reported a record quarterly profit margin on Friday, as sales rose sharply amid strong growth in Europe and the United States, and a rebound in China in June.\r
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Chairman Axel Dumas said he saw no sign of a slowdown in any region, even though the company has raised prices 4 per cent this year.\r
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Carmaker Renault also said its turnaround strategy of focusing on selling fewer but more profitable cars was paying off, and upgraded its forecast for full-year margins. The most expensive Renault cars can cost over $100,000.\r
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"The surprising resilience of European consumers can also be seen in the strong results of luxury brands owner, Louis Vuitton, particularly in their fashion and leather goods, such as Fendi and Christian Dior," Rebecca Chesworth, senior equities strategist at investor State Street SPDR ETFs, said.\r
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"Consumers enjoying travel reopening have been boosting sales of wines and spirits."\r
Source: CNA

Congratulations to:sparkles: Neeraj chopra:bouquet:\r
for scripting history yet again by becoming the first Indian to win the prestigious Diamond League Trophy :heart:\r
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#neerajchopra #diamondleague #gold

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Check out Neuralink's new show about what the future holds. https://youtu.be/YreDYmXTYi4

For the first time in five years, since we began tracking Indian original content from streaming services, there were fewer originals in 2022 than what we had last year.\r
Movies that were sold to the likes of Netflix, Zee5, Disney+ Hotstar, and Amazon Prime Video went back to theatres in 2022.\r
Still, there were a few big names — legacy and new-age — who made their streaming debut in 2022, in Alia Bhatt, Deepika Padukone, Madhuri Dixit, Ranveer Singh, and Diljit Dosanjh.\r
I wonder how that will impact their combined slate once that happens.)\r
We tried to scan their (confusing) websites, but it was impossible to figure out what launched and when.\r
Lastly, the original output for Watcho and Lionsgate Play grew to 300 percent of what it was in 2021, though it's worth noting they are operating in single-digits even now.\r
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Source - Gadget360\r
#ott #orignals

The MacBook Air laptop computer at Apple Park campus in Cupertino, California.\r
Photographer: David Paul Morris/BloombergApril 10, 2023, 4:37 AM UTCApple Inc.’s personal computer shipments declined by 40.5% in the first quarter, marking a tough start to the year for PC makers still grappling with a glut of unsold inventory.\r
Shipments by all PC makers combined slumped 29% to 56.9 million units — and fell below the levels of early 2019 — as the demand surge driven by pandemic-era remote work evaporated, according to IDC’s latest report.\r
Among the market leaders, Lenovo Group Ltd. and Dell Technologies Inc. registered drops of more than 30%, while HP Inc. was down 24.2%.\r
No major brand was spared from the slowdown, with Asustek Computer Inc. rounding out the top 5 with a 30.3% fall.\r
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Source -https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-04-10/apple-s-40-plunge-leads-pc-shipments-down-as-tech-demand-sags?leadSource=uverify%20wall

All El Nino years are not bad monsoon years, the IMD said.\r
New Delhi: India will witness normal rainfall pattern during the monsoon season this year, the centre said today.\r
There is a 67-per cent probability of normal to above-normal rainfall, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.\r
On Monday, Skymet, a private weather agency, predicted below-normal monsoon rain this year due to the end of La Nina conditions and the potential for El Nino to take hold.\r
All El Nino years are not bad monsoon years," the IMD said.\r
The IOD is defined by the difference in the sea surface temperatures between the western parts of the Indian Ocean near Africa and the eastern parts of the ocean near Indonesia.\r
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Source - NDTV

The Crab Nebula, one of the well-known and enigmatic astronomical objects in space, was featured in a photo that was released by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the space agency of the United States.\r
NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope Takes Stunning Image of Uranus; Shows Dramatic Rings, Bright Features in Planet’s Atmosphere.\r
The Crab Nebula was the target of sensors that were launched in a sounding rocket for the first time in 1971, giving the just-published image a long history.\r
More of its inner workings than ever before have been disclosed’, said NASA.\r
Source: Latestly.com

All El Nino years are not bad monsoon years, the IMD said.\r
New Delhi: India will witness normal rainfall pattern during the monsoon season this year, the centre said today.\r
There is a 67-per cent probability of normal to above-normal rainfall, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.\r
On Monday, Skymet, a private weather agency, predicted below-normal monsoon rain this year due to the end of La Nina conditions and the potential for El Nino to take hold.\r
All El Nino years are not bad monsoon years," the IMD said.\r
The IOD is defined by the difference in the sea surface temperatures between the western parts of the Indian Ocean near Africa and the eastern parts of the ocean near Indonesia.\r
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Source - NDTV

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