What China’s new move in microchip war means for world
China is due to start restricting exports of two materials key to the semiconductor industry, as the chip war with the US heats up.
Under the new controls, special licenses will be needed to export gallium and germanium from the world's second-largest economy.
The materials are used to produce chips and have military applications.
The curbs come after Washington made efforts to limit Beijing's access to advanced microprocessor technology.
China is by far the biggest player in the global supply chain of gallium and germanium. It produces 80% of the world's gallium and 60% of germanium, according to the Critical Raw Materials Alliance (CRMA) industry body.
The materials are "minor metals", meaning that they are not usually found on their own in nature, and are often the by-product of other processes.
Besides the US, both Japan and the Netherlands - which is home to key chip equipment maker ASML - have imposed chip technology export restrictions on China.
"The timing of this announcement from China is not coincidental, given chip export restrictions announced by the Netherlands amongst others," Colin Hamilton from the investment firm BMO Capital Markets told the BBC.
"Quite simply, if you won't give us chips, we won't give you the materials to make those chips," he added.
The constant tit-for-tat between the world's two biggest economies has raised concerns over the rise of so-called "resource nationalism" - when governments hoard critical materials to exert influence over other countries.
"We're seeing governments increasingly move away from the narrative of globalization," says Dr. Gavin Harper, a critical materials research fellow at the University of Birmingham.
"The idea that international markets will simply deliver materials is gone and, if you look at the picture more broadly, Western industry could be facing a bit of an existential threat."
Gallium arsenide - a compound of gallium and arsenic - is used in high-frequency computer chips, as well as in the production of light-emitting diodes (LEDs) and solar panels.
A limited number of companies around the world produce gallium arsenide at the purity needed for use in electronics, according to the CRMA.
Germanium is also used to manufacture microprocessors and solar cells. It is also used in vision goggles which are "key to the military," Mr Hamilton said.
However, Mr. Hamilton added: "There should be enough in regional supply from base metal smelters to provide alternatives. The importance of top-quality semiconductors is a harder one to solve, as China really is dominant. There will probably be some push for recycling."
Last month, a Pentagon spokesperson said the US had reserves of germanium but no stockpile of gallium.
The spokesperson added that "The [Defense] Department is proactively taking steps... to increase domestic mining and processing of critical materials for the microelectronics and space supply chain, including gallium and germanium".
Still, the Chinese export restrictions are expected to have a limited impact in the long term.
Although China is the leading exporter of gallium and germanium, there are substitutes for the materials in the production of components like computer chips, political risk consultancy Eurasia Group said.
There are also active mining and processing facilities located outside of China, it added.
The consultancy highlighted similarities to when China restricted the exports of rare earth minerals over a decade ago.
More exporters emerged and in less than a decade China's dominance of the rare earth supply chain fell from 98% to 63%, according to Eurasia's estimates.
"We can expect to see the development and exploitation of alternative sources of gallium and germanium, as well as intensified efforts to recycle these commodities and identify more readily available alternatives," Anna Ashton, Eurasia's director for China corporate affairs and US-China, told the BBC.
"That's not simply going to be a result of China's recently announced export restrictions," she added. "It's a result of expectations of growing demand, intensifying geostrategic competition and distrust, and China's documented willingness to restrict imports and exports in service to political and strategic ends."
In October, Washington announced that it would require licenses for companies exporting chips to China using US tools or software, no matter where they are made in the world.
China has frequently accused the US of "tech hegemony" in response to export controls imposed by Washington.
In recent months, Beijing has also imposed restrictions on US firms linked to the American military such as aerospace company Lockheed Martin.
Meanwhile, Western governments have spoken about the need to "de-risk" China, which means being less reliant on it for both raw materials and finished products.
However, diversifying supply chains and building up the capability to mine and then, crucially, process metals such as gallium and germanium will take years.
In the long term, mineral-rich countries, such as Australia and Canada, see the materials crisis as an opportunity.
Experts warn that weaponizing resources and technological capabilities - as the US and China have both done - will also have global consequences when it comes to the environment.
That is because important new green technologies are reliant on these kinds of materials
"This isn't a national problem. This is a problem that we face as a human race. Hopefully, policymakers can bring their best selves to the table, secure access to those critical materials that are really essential for the energy transition and we can start to tackle some of the challenges around decarbonization," said Dr. Harper.
While the impact of the latest export controls will not be catastrophic for industry or consumers, experts warn it is important to pay attention to where the trend is heading.
"The man and woman in the street cannot relate to gallium and germanium," says Dr Harper. "But equally, they care about how much their car costs or how expensive it will be to switch to green technology."
"Sometimes very abstract policies happening in faraway lands actually translate into something that has a big impact on their lives."
Source- BBC
Etsy accused of 'destroying' sellers by withholding money
Online marketplace Etsy has come under fire from sellers for putting 75% of their takings on hold for 45 days.
Hundreds of small businesses recently got an email from Etsy notifying them it was actioning its "reserve system".
Ceramics seller Rachel Collyer said Etsy was holding £899 of her money, which means she cannot afford to buy materials to keep producing.
Etsy said payment reserves were used to "keep the marketplace safe" and cover any potential refunds.
Ms. Collyer has been selling ceramics on Etsy since 2021. She said she was given only a few hours notice before her money was put on reserve.
"This is ruining my business - I can't afford to buy any clay or glazes. We might have to move house because I can't pay any bills," she said.
Etsy's payment policy states the reasons for putting money on hold include a sudden increase in sales, a shop having only made its first sale recently, the shop committing a "policy violation" or "other risk factors".
Some sellers told the BBC that two reserve periods were imposed on them consecutively.
Dan sells made-to-order wood furniture on the site and told the BBC he had no idea why his money was being held.
"Etsy is holding around £7,000 of my money, leaving us to use credit cards and family loans to try and keep our business running and keep food on the table," said the 44-year-old from Buckinghamshire.
His partner Sam said: "There is no ability to have the reserve lifted within the 90 days, you must see out the full period. It's destroyed my business."
Joanna, who ran a bespoke underwear shop on Etsy, told the BBC she too could see no reason for her funds being withheld, and so suddenly.
"I have been selling [on Etsy] for four years," she said. "I woke up to a communication... stating that my account has been put on a 90-day period of reserve whereby they will hold 75% of my sales.
"We have no cases against us, we have performed no malpractice in any way," she said, adding that her account was not restored to normal even after following the site's guidance on lifting the reserve.
The 62-year-old said she would have made £5,000 this month and cannot take out a loan while she waits for the money.
"I canceled all my on-reserve orders and put my shop on vacation. I won't trade with them. I can't afford to," she said.
And almost as suddenly as the reserve was implemented, it was lifted. She received no explanation for either decision.
Sellers on Etsy had their payments delayed earlier in the year following the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB).
Etsy used SVB to issue money to some of those that sell goods on the site.
But Etsy said only a small proportion of sellers had their pay-outs delayed as a result of the collapse.
The BBC spoke to more than 20 sellers who had similar complaints. One, a disabled seller for whom Etsy is her only source of income, said the company stated it was taking "no complaints" on the issue. Etsy told her it "isn't able to give... [a] specific reason" for withholding thousands of pounds of her takings.
Many sellers wished to remain anonymous for fear of having their shops taken off the platform. The BBC has seen complaints about the reserve system from the US and various countries in the EU.
"If you challenge them or speak out, or don't accept their terms and conditions, your account becomes disabled," one independent UK seller told us.
Etsy disputes this and says that it wouldn't retaliate against a seller for voicing their opinion. It says it takes seller feedback very seriously.
Hundreds of affected Etsy sellers are planning a "strike", or boycott and are organizing various online groups.
An Etsy spokesperson said that the vast majority of sellers receive their funds when they make a sale. They added that the reserve system was used by many online sellers.
However, Amazon's level of reserve is much lower, at around 3% for established sellers until any disputes are resolved.
The Small Business Commissioner, Liz Barclay, said Etsy's "level of reserve is new to us".
She added that while she had no remit across complaints made against non-UK companies, "there have been more complaints recently" made against the US-based firm.
Ms. Barclay said the commission was receiving reports of "many small firms owed several thousands of pounds", which was "heartbreaking at a time when people are struggling with the rising cost of living on top of huge increases in costs of business bills and materials".
"My big worry is that for hundreds of thousands of businesses, this is their only source of income. Anecdotally, we hear that many sellers are women or minority groups and they need this money to pay the bills," Ms Barclay said.
Source- BBC
Jurgen Klopp rules out Liverpool move for Paris Saint-Germain forward, Kylian Mbappe
The Merseyside club had been touted as a potential loan destination as Paris Saint-Germain and Mbappe look to find a solution for the final year of his contract.
PSG does not want to let him leave for free when his deal expires next summer although he was not interested in discussing a potential one-year move to Saudi Arabia last week after Al Hilal lodged a world-record £259m bid - and now Klopp has ruled out a move to Liverpool.
"We laugh about it," Klopp exclusively told Sky Germany. "I can say that I think he's a really good player but the financial conditions don't suit us at all. I wouldn't like to ruin the story now... but as far as I know, there's nothing to it.
"It's possible that someone else from the club is preparing something and wants to surprise me... that hasn't happened in the eight years that I've been here. That would be the first time."
Mbappe had until midnight on Monday to trigger a one-year extension to his PSG contract. It is not yet clear whether he did or did not, but he was not expected to do so and PSG was 99 percent sure he wouldn't.
Mbappe was dropped from the club's pre-season tour of Japan and South Korea and put up for sale on July 21 because PSG knew he wasn't going to renew and they wanted to sell him as quickly as possible.
They believe he has already agreed to join Real Madrid when he becomes a free agent next summer.
The big question is whether Real Madrid will make a bid for Mbappe in this window or risk losing him to another club.
PSG are expecting Real Madrid to make a half-hearted bid late in the window which they know PSG will reject. Bidding will make it look as if they tried to pay a fee for the player.
PSG has had various approaches for Mbappe in the past 10 days and has had significant interest from big European clubs involving potential player swap deals.
August 12 is the next significant date in the Mbappe saga when PSG play their first game of the season at home to Lorient. What head coach Luis Enrique decides when it comes to his squad and starting XI, plus the reaction of PSG fans to Mbappe could accelerate his departure from the club.
Mbappe is not interested in meeting representatives from Al Hilal to discuss a move to Saudi Arabia.
PSG gave Al Hilal permission to speak to Mbappe after the Saudi club made a world-record €300m (£259m) offer for the player.
Representatives of Al Hilal were in Paris last week but there was no meeting with Mbappe's camp.
PSG insiders believe Mbappe is refusing to speak to Al Hilal because he has already agreed to move to Real Madrid as a free agent next summer when his contract expires.
Source- Sky Sports
Dwayne Johnson makes 'historic' donation to charity helping striking actors
Dwayne Johnson has made a "historic" donation to the Screen Actors Guild - American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) Foundation as members of the union continue to strike.
The wrestler-turned-actor is reported to have made a seven-figure donation after the SAG-AFTRA Foundation - a charity associated with the union, but not part of it - issued a plea to its highest-earning members.
The charity organizes financial relief for the union's 160,000 members who have been on strike since 2 May after seeking higher pay and safeguards against unauthorized use of their images through artificial intelligence (AI).
SAG-AFTRA Foundation president Courtney B Vance and executive director Cyd Wilson told Variety that Johnson's donation has the potential to "aid thousands of actors".
"It's the largest single donation that we've ever received from one individual at one time," Mr. Wilson said, adding that people will be able to keep food on the table, keep their children safe and their cars running.
The exact amount that the Moana actor donated remains unknown.
On social media, the Foundation thanked Johnson for his "extraordinary generosity and historic donation", hoping that it would encourage other high-profile members to follow suit.
Having started the strike officially on Friday 14 July, there is still no end in sight.
It is the first time in 63 years, that both SAG-AFTRA and the Writers Guild of America (WGA) are on strike at the same time.
Members of the WGA have been striking for the last two months, which has already had a big impact on productions such as season five of Stranger Things, season two of The Last Of Us, season six of The Handmaid's Tale, and Game Of Thrones spinoff A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight.
On 21 July, a host of British stars led a protest in London to show their solidarity with both actors and writers on strike in the US.
SAG-AFTRA has claimed that after four weeks of intensive talks, film and TV bosses have refused to compromise on health and pension plans.
But the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) - the association representing major Hollywood studios including Walt Disney and Netflix - said earlier this month that a deal, including better pay and AI safeguards, had been offered, and accused the union of walking away from talks.
Source- Sky News
Spotify raises premium subscription price for millions
Spotify is raising the price of its single-account premium plan for the first time since 2011 and hiking other services as well.
In the UK, subscriptions will rise by £1 a month to £10.99 for an individual plan, £14.99 for a premium duo plan, and £17.99 for a family plan.
The price of a student plan remains unchanged at £5.99.
It follows other streaming services which have also increased subscription costs.
Similar price hikes also apply to the US, Canada, and 49 other territories.
In the US, the cost will go up from $9.99 to $10.99 (£8.57) for those with an individual plan.
The premium duo service will increase from $12.99 to $14.99, the family plan from $15.99 to $16.99, and the student plan from $4.99 to $5.99.
In its latest financial results, Spotify said that it beat forecasts by adding 36 million monthly active users between April and June, taking the total to 551 million. Of those, 220 million pay for subscriptions.
However, the company's pre-tax losses swelled to €241m (£207.3m) over the three months compared to a €90m loss in the same period last year. Sales rose to €3.1bn but missed analysts' expectations of €3.2bn.
Spotify's chief executive Daniel Ek said the company had a "very strong quarter", although its share price dropped by more than 11% after it revealed its results.
Mr. Ek spoke about the role that Artificial Intelligence (AI) might play in the future, such as summarising lengthy podcasts or helping to lower the cost and difficulty of producing audio advertisements.
In February, Spotify unveiled its "AI DJ", which it billed as a personalized "DJ in your pocket" that would deliver "a curated line-up of music alongside commentary".
On Monday, Spotify said it was raising prices "to help us continue to deliver value to fans and artists on our platform".
Spotify said users "will be given a one-month grace period before the new price becomes effective unless they cancel before the grace period ends".
The music giant cut 6% of staff in January, citing a need to improve efficiency.
Spotify has been reducing its reliance on the big celebrity signings and expensive original content that have weighed on its bottom line, with the Duchess of Sussex's podcast among high-profile casualties.
In 2020, Meghan and Prince Harry signed an exclusive deal reportedly worth about $20m.
That ended last month after the duke and Duchess's Archewell Audio parted ways with Spotify in what was said to be a mutual decision.
A deal with Barack and Michelle Obama's production company also ended last year.
In an April earnings call, Mr. Ek said the company would "like to raise prices in 2023".
"When the timing is right, we will raise it and that price increase will go down well because we're delivering a lot of value for our customers," Mr Ek said.
The company had already raised the prices of US family plans and UK student, duo, and family plans in 2021. Individual subscriptions were previously unaffected.
Apple Music, Peacock, Netflix, Max, and Paramount+ have also recently raised subscription prices.
The new Spotify Premium cost matches the monthly plans of competitors Apple Music and Amazon Music.
The company will continue to offer a free plan that includes advertising.
Source- BBC
China removes foreign minister after unexplained absence
China removed Qin Gang as foreign minister less than seven months after he was appointed to the post.
Mr. Qin had been seen as a close associate of President Xi Jinping. He is replaced by veteran Communist Party foreign affairs chief Wang Yi.
Mr. Qin's prolonged disappearance from public view - and official silence over it - has fuelled furious speculation.
The 57-year-old's last known public engagements were on 25 June. No reason was given for his removal.
He had been appointed by China's leader to his post last December. Just over a month ago, he met US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Beijing as the two sides sought to restore diplomatic contacts at the highest level.
His departure ends weeks of confusion but leaves many questions unanswered.
"China's top legislature voted to appoint Wang Yi as foreign minister," state news agency Xinhua said.
"Qin Gang was removed from the post of foreign minister."
The report said President Xi had signed the decree authorizing the move. Legislators also voted to replace China's outgoing Central Bank chief Yi Gang - who has reached retirement age - with economist Pan Gongsheng, Xinhua added.
Under the Chinese Communist Party system, foreign policy is formulated by a high-level official, who then directs the foreign minister to implement it.
Wang Yi, a career diplomat who speaks Japanese, is returning to a post he held between 2013 and 2022. He has been standing in for Mr. Qin and is currently in South Africa attending a Brics national security meeting.
Observers see the appointment of Mr. Wang, 69, as a move to stabilize Chinese diplomacy.
Qin Gang was one of the best-known faces of the Chinese government. His prolonged absence was scrutinized not only by diplomats and China watchers but also by ordinary Chinese people.
When he disappeared from his normal duties a month ago and failed to attend a summit in Indonesia, the very brief official explanation given was unspecified health problems.
But the lack of any detail from his ministry led to speculation that he was being punished either for political reasons or because of an extra-marital affair.
His meeting with European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, initially scheduled for 4 July, was then pushed back by China with no explanation, further fuelling rumors.
Asked about Mr. Qin's whereabouts on Tuesday before news of his demise, a ministry spokesperson repeated her earlier line that she had no information - highlighting China's secrecy and the opacity of its system of government.
Mr. Qin is one of the most high-level officials in the Chinese Communist Party to have been absent for this long.
But it is not uncommon for high-profile figures in China to go out of public view for long periods of time, only to surface later as the subject of a criminal investigation. Or they could reappear with no explanation.
Xi Jinping himself vanished for a fortnight shortly before becoming China's leader in 2012, prompting speculation about his health and possible power struggles within the party.
Mr. Qin's rise to become a foreign minister was nothing short of dramatic. He is one of the youngest appointees to the post in China's history.
After less than two years in the role of ambassador to the US, where he gained a reputation as a tough-talking diplomat, he was named foreign minister last December.
Before that, he had been a foreign ministry spokesman and had helped organize Mr. Xi's trips overseas - which gave him the opportunity to work closely with China's leader.
There has been huge interest in China in what happened to Qin Gang. The country's biggest search engine, Baidu, has seen a surge in searches for his name recently.
It is unusual for rumors about such a senior official to be discussed on the Chinese internet without complete censorship, observers say.
"The absence of censorship makes people wonder if there is any truth to rumors about power struggles, corruption, the abuse of power and positions, and romantic relationships," Ian Chong from the National University of Singapore told the BBC last week.
Source- BBC
Man who survived on ketchup for 24 days at sea to get new boat - from Heinz
A man who spent 24 days lost at sea seemed to be missing again - but he has been tracked down after a massive social media hunt instigated by Heinz.
The company, famous for its ketchup, plans to buy a new boat for the sailor who spent almost a month surviving on ketchup.
Its campaign to #FindTheKetchupBoatGuy quickly went viral and Elvis Francois was traced to Dominica.
Mr. Francois, 47, was swept out to sea by powerful currents in December while making repairs to his boat.
He had no food - only a bottle of tomato ketchup. He also found garlic granules and seasoning cubes and mixed the condiments with water to give him enough energy to survive.
After his rescue, Mr. Francois described how he had "lost hope" while adrift in the Caribbean Sea of Colombia.
He had to constantly scoop out water from the boat to stop it from sinking and tried to light a fire to send a distress signal but without success.
He was eventually spotted from the air after scrawling the word "help" on the hull of the boat.
Posting on Instagram about its search for Mr. Francois, Heinz said it received "thousands of likes, shares, and messages of kindness".
"It was an incredible group effort across six continents that led to the hundreds of articles and leads and our eventual contact with Elvis."
In a statement to Sky News, a spokesperson for Heinz said the company was able to make contact with Mr. Francois thanks to local Dominica reporters at Emonews.
They were able to "discuss the best way to help support him and his family", the spokesperson said.
They did not reveal details of the boat or when it will be delivered but said "Heinz and Elvis are working out the logistical details of gifting him his new boat".
Source- Sky News
Will PSG striker move to Saudi Arabia or Real Madrid?
The future of Kylian Mbappe has become this summer's headline transfer saga.
With the France captain having refused to sign a contract extension at Paris St-Germain, the French champions are attempting to cash in on their record goalscorer to avoid losing him for nothing next summer.
Step forward Saudi Arabian side Al-Hilal, who shocked the footballing world on Monday with an eye-watering world record bid of £259m for the World Cup winner.
But what happens now? Could he actually swap the Champions League for the Saudi Pro League? And where is the striker likely to end up?
Mbappe, who joined PSG in 2017, initially on loan from Monaco before a 180m euro (£166m) move, has scored 212 goals in 260 games.
Despite plenty of domestic success and the creation of a strikeforce including three of the world's biggest stars Mbappe, Neymar and Lionel Messi, the Qatari-owned club has failed to achieve their ultimate goal of winning the Champions League.
Mbappe has a contract until June 2024, but last month it was revealed he had told the club he will stay this season but will not extend his deal.
The fallout has become bitter, with PSG leaving him out of their pre-season tour of Japan and South Korea.
In their first game of the trip, PSG drew 0-0 with another Saudi team, Al-Nassr, in Osaka, Japan.
"Kylian Mbappe is a great player and he's not here," PSG defender Danilo Pereira said afterwards.
"That's a decision of the club, I can't comment."
PSG chairman Nasser Al-Khelaifi has made clear his determination to take a tough stance and there have been suggestions Mbappe will not be selected for an entire year if he refuses to break the current deadlock.
The French club have now given Al-Hilal, one of four clubs owned by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, permission to speak to Mbappe.
PSG are expecting European clubs to make rival bids too.
French football journalist Lisa Leroux believes the £259m offer proves Mbappe "really is a once in a generation player" but that "he won't go, for him it's more than just about the money".
If he moved to Saudi, Mbappe would likely become the highest-paid player in football, eclipsing the reported £ 177m a year earned by Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo at Al Nassr after his move from Manchester United in December.
It has been reported that Mbappe could earn close to 700m euros (£602m) a year with commercial arrangements and image rights on top of his salary.
"No player has ever been offered this salary in football, and I think even in sporting history for one year," Leroux said. "The salary that he would be getting would just be historic and out of this world.
"It would be about 59m euros a month, almost 2m euros a day."
French football expert Julien Laurens agrees and says Mbappe will not go to Saudi.
"He doesn't want to go there," Laurens told BBC Radio 5 Live. "When PSG say we have given permission to speak to Mbappe, he doesn't want to speak to them, Al-Hilal know that. It's not about money for him.
"He just wants to win every trophy possible. Right now, at 24 years old, that does not include the Saudi League."
Real Madrid are long-term admirers of the player and he was close to a move to Spain before signing his latest PSG deal last year. He says reports he wants to join Real this summer are "lies".
Chelsea, Manchester United, Tottenham, Inter Milan and Barcelona have also expressed an interest.
PSG are open to the idea of Mbappe leaving on loan this summer to see out the final year of his contract elsewhere.
This would allow him to join Real for nothing in 12 months' time, keep playing this season and generate a loan fee for PSG.
"We know for example Barcelona yesterday picked up the phone to PSG and said listen 'we can't afford any transfer fee for him, we can't even afford his wages'," said Laurens.
"Mbappe earns 72m euros gross a year, but no one can pay that so he will have to take a pay cut and he's aware of it, but Barcelona said 'How about we swap players for Mbappe, who do you want in our squad?'
"Every big club in Europe is going to try to put something together to maybe, firstly, convince PSG to sell to them, and then convince Mbappe to come to them.
"That could be from United to Liverpool, all the English clubs, maybe in Italy as well, but Real Madrid are the favourites because they have the money, that's where he wants to go, and they want him.
"As we've been saying before, they've been chasing him since he was 11 years old. Real are the big favourites but are they ready to pay the 150m euros that PSG would want, instead of waiting and getting him or nothing in 12 months' time?"
Laurens thinks Real should move for Mbappe this summer, rather than take the risk of waiting until he becomes a free agent, when they will "get into a bidding war, in terms of signing on fees and wages".
"If they sign him now then their team gets much better already. Why wait if they have the money?" he added.
"Even as a free agent, to sign him you have to give a big signing-on fee. For Real it makes sense if they can move now. It is just a matter of when the negotiations start between the two clubs, they are huge favourites to land him this summer.
"They had the money for him a year ago, when he decided, against all odds and as a big surprise, to stay in Paris for longer and not go to Real for free.
"Even after spending 103m euros on [England midfielder] Jude Bellingham there is space in the wage bill and money available for a transfer fee. If they pay £150m it would be spread over the length of the contract."
In June, four of the country's leading clubs Al-Ittihad, Al-Nassr, Al-Hilal and Al-Ahli, were taken over by the country's Public Investment Fund, which also owns Newcastle United.
Since the marquee signing of Ronaldo, the league's 18 teams have gone on a spending spree attracting some of the game's biggest names from across Europe including Karim Benzema, N'Golo Kante and Ruben Neves, while Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson has been linked with a move.
European football clubs have to adhere to financial regulations known as Financial Fair Play, to ensure clubs are not spending more than they earn.
But this does not apply to Saudi Arabia, which plays in the Asian Football Confederation, says football finance expert Kieran Maguire.
"What distinguishes the Saudi Pro League from European football is there isn't the restriction of financial fair play," he said.
"Therefore, even if Premier League clubs do offer more money, they will always be out-bid as they [the Saudi clubs] don't have any cost control restrictions."
Source- BBC
EAP REFRESHER TRAINING
The Ministry of Tourism under the technical guidance of the Department of Disaster Management and Emergencies (DDME) facilitated a half-day “Damage Assessment and Needs Analysis (DANA)” refresher training on Friday 21 July 2023 at the LIFE Center, Grand Turk for the Environment, Assessment and Planning (EAP) sub-committee. The session was the first in a series of focused gatherings that also looked at the logistics for the teams from Grand Turk and Salt Cay.
The devastation caused by natural disasters in the Turks and Caicos Islands in past years, including the most recent, Hurricane Fiona in September 2022, highlighted the critical need to accurately assess the damage caused by a hazard as well as identify the need for immediate assistance in relief and reconstruction.
Mr. Brian Been, Tourism Risk Manager, opened the session and brought greetings on behalf of the Minister of Tourism and the Committee Chairperson, Mr. Wesley Clerveaux, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Tourism. Mr. Patrick Jarrett, a member of the DANA team, delivered the invocation. The training was facilitated by Mr. Kevern A. De Bellott, Hazard Mitigation & GIS Manager, DDME. Other members of the Ministry of Tourism executive, including Deputy Secretaries, Mr. Arthur Been and Mr. Ronlee James and Head of Secretariat Mrs. Mellisa Ariza were on hand; the DDME team was also supported by Ms. Kevaun Lucas, Deputy Director and Mr. Gary McLean, Community Preparedness Officer. There was full participation from the team and the turnout was seen as a success by the organizers. The session was also streamed via Microsoft Teams for those attending in Salt Cay.
In commenting on the event, the Hon. Josephine Connolly stated, 'This is an excellent example of risk mitigation as my Ministry of Tourism is responsible for the EAP sub-committee, and our focus on efficient damage assessment, while reducing interruptions and returning to normalcy if impacted not only by storms but other hazards. Thanks to the DDME for the continual assistance to the EAP on this initiative.'
The Ministry will conduct other sessions throughout the islands as this will be a regular activity for the EAP. The Ministry encourages persons wanting to become volunteer damage assessors to register interest with the DDME or Ministry.
Sam Altman launches eyeball scanning crypto coin
A cryptocurrency project described as being "dystopian" has been launched by AI entrepreneur Sam Altman.
Worldcoin gives people digital coins in exchange for a scan of their eyeballs.
In sites around the world, thousands of people queued to gaze into silver orbs on day one of the project's full launch.
The BBC visited a scanning site in London where people received free crypto tokens after going through the process.
Mr Altman, the chief executive of Open AI which built chat bot ChatGPT says he hopes the initiative will help confirm if someone is a human or a robot.
"Worldcoin could drastically increase economic opportunity, scale a reliable solution for distinguishing humans from AI online while preserving privacy," Mr. Altman claimed in a launch letter on the company website.
Worldcoin also claims that its system could pave the way for an "AI-funded" universal basic income. But it's not clear how.
The concept of a universal basic income sees all citizens paid a set salary regardless of their means.
The first step in this crypto utopia as laid out by Worldcoin though relies on getting millions, maybe even billions, of people to scan their irises to prove they are human.
Since testing of the scanners began two years ago, Worldcoin says more than two million people have been added to the crypto database in 33 different countries.
According to the company, most sign-ups have happened in Europe, India, and southern Africa.
Despite the company's American foundation, the crypto coins are not being offered to US citizens due to regulatory concerns.
Now that the project has fully launched and the crypto tokens are available to claim and trade, it's expected to grow even more popular.
Worldcoin posted a picture online of people queuing at a site in Japan and said it plans to roll out 1,500 Orbs in locations across the globe.
The BBC went to try it out at a pop-up site in east London and found a steady stream of people turning up.
The process starts with scanning your face and iris to prove you are a person. It takes about 10 seconds to stare into the Orb's camera lens and wait for a beep to confirm it has worked. Interestingly the Orb operator says the silver ball used to talk to users - but customer feedback described it as "creepy" so they removed the voice.
The next step is that your iris scan is given a unique number which is checked against the giant database to make sure it's the first time you've done it. If so, the ball beeps again and you are now on the database along with 2.06 million other humans at the time of writing.
25 free Worldcoin tokens are awarded on completion which are currently valued at roughly $2 (£1.56) each. The BBC will sell the coins once they are received and donate any money to Children in Need.
By the time the BBC left the pop-up site, 13 people had been scanned. All were men in their 20s and 30s.
"I came after seeing Sam Altman tweeting about the launch," said 37-year-old Moses Serumaga.
"I saw that you could get some dollars for it so I thought why not? It could die like other crypto projects or it could be a big thing and go up in value. I didn't want to miss out," he said.
23-year-old Tom also scanned his eyeball but said he didn't do it for the money as he doesn't think the value of the tokens will rise.
"I don't think that amount of money is enough of an incentive unless you live in less developed nations and I don't think there's much possibility of it going up further really," he said.
The scanning process has proven controversial with reports criticizing some of the tactics used by orb operators who are paid in commission, with particular concern over those getting sign-ups in poorer nations.
Privacy experts also worry that sensitive data gathered from scanning a person's iris might get into the wrong hands, even though Worldcoin insists that no data is stored.
Vitalik Buterin, the co-founder of the cryptocurrency network Ethereum, responded to the Worldcoin launch expressing excitement about the project but also issuing a warning about its potential pitfalls.
"On the whole, despite the "dystopian vibes" of staring into an Orb and letting it scan deeply into your eyeballs, it does seem like specialized hardware systems can do quite a decent job of protecting privacy," he said.
However, he also says that relying on the specialized orbs to carry out the scans could give Worldcoin too much power and make it hard to get the world on board.
Twitter founder and crypto enthusiast Jack Dorsey tweeted an apparent criticism of the project, describing its mission as "cute", and adding the dystopian warning: "Visit the Orb or the Orb will visit you...".
Mr. Altman welcomed criticism, saying online that "haters" give his team energy. But he admitted the project was ambitious.
"Maybe it works out and maybe it doesn't, but trying stuff like this is how progress happens," he tweeted.
Source- BBC