Chinese customers choose frozen meat at a Wal-Mart store in Shanghai. After years of heralding China as one of its best markets, Wal-Mart in August said its performance there was among the worst in its major countries. A management shake-up and job cuts have followed. Although the reversals seem abrupt, cracks in the foundation of Wal-Mart’s retail business in China have been developing for years, hidden by questionable accounting and unauthorized sales practices, according to employees and internal documents reviewed by Bloomberg. The practices -- including bulk sales to other retailers and some sales allegedly booked when no merchandise left the shelves -- made business appear strong even as retail transactions slowed and unsold inventory piled up, these people and documents say. Wal-Mart said in August that it was unhappy with inventory growth internationally. Stores in China continue to make bulk sales, sometimes unprofitably and without required management … [Read more...] about How Wal-Mart made its crumbling China business look so good for so long
China led grow light reviews
Social News 18/3
MoH to ensure medical services during holidays The Prime Minister asked the health ministry (MoH) to maintain regular medical services during weekends and holidays in a recent instruction. In addition, the Viet Nam Social Insurance (VSI) has been asked to make insurance payments on these occasions. The move aims to support those who have to work shifts and also to ease the work overload in certain hospitals. The Prime Minister also asked MoH and VSI to achieve the goal of 75 per cent health insurance coverage of the population by the end of 2015 and 80 per cent by the end of 2020. The focus of the universal health insurance programme is officers, non-commissioned officers, staff sergeants and professional soldiers, as well as students of universities and colleges under the ministries of defence and public security. Students are required to have health insurance. The government will provide 70 per cent of the health insurance fee for those from near-poverty-line families and 30 … [Read more...] about Social News 18/3
Slingbox 350 and 500 review: Sling Media finally upgrades its line of media streamers
It's hard to believe that the Slingbox has been around for seven years, but that only makes it harder to accept these are the first retail models that have been released since 2008. That finally changes today, though: Sling Media just introduced two new place-shifters: the Slingbox 500 and 350 (pictured). Available on October 14th for $299 and $179, respectively, these new set-top boxes replace the Solo and Pro-HD. While the 350 simply adds 1080p streaming for the same price, the 500 adds SlingProjector, a feature that lets you take photos stored on your iOS or Android device and send them to your television (video streaming will soon be supported as well). The Slingbox 500 will also soon be able to play content on USB-attached storage, but that will come in a future software update. The SlingPlayer apps get a refresh as well, adding reminders and an easier way to share your Slingbox with friends. What we set out to determine in this review -- and what you'll discover if you … [Read more...] about Slingbox 350 and 500 review: Sling Media finally upgrades its line of media streamers
BUSINESS IN BRIEF 5/10
NFSC assesses Jan-Sep economic performance Though economic indicators showed improvements, more efforts are still needed for attaining the 5.5% GDP growth target, according to the National Financial Supervisory Committee (NFSC). The NFSC reported that economic production bounced back slowly. Inventory levels of industrial manufacturing dropped sharply and industrial production index constantly rose, soaring 5.4% in September. However, import growth rates of raw materials remained modest. Total demand was relatively weak in which the January-September retail sales of goods and services increased by 12.5% against the same period last year. GDP growth pace in Q3 was higher than forecast thanks to the Government's efforts to maintain macro-economic stability and prioritize inflation curbing. Nevertheless, the economy still faces challenges including inefficient credit freeze and weak consumption demand which are hampering production. In addition, GDP growth rate relying heavily on … [Read more...] about BUSINESS IN BRIEF 5/10
BUSINESS IN BRIEF 29/9
Vietnam-EU trade to grow further The agreement, whose negotiations concluded December 2015 in Brussels, is expected to increase Vietnam’s export to the EU by 4-6 percent per year, said Tran Ngoc Quan, deputy head of the Ministry of Industry and Trade’s European Markets Department. Around 90 tariff lines applied to products of Vietnamese and EU origins will decrease to a very low level or even zero percent for some Vietnam’s exports to the EU like garment & textile, footwear, food, farm produce and seafood, he said. However, he noted that the EU attaches importance to transparency and protection of consumers’ interests via a number of protection measures. Products eligible to be shipped to the bloc must be socially responsible and environmentally friendly. Trinh Thi Thu Hien, head of the origin of goods from the ministry’s Export-Import Department, said the rule of origin is an important content of the EVFTA, helping enterprises take advantage of … [Read more...] about BUSINESS IN BRIEF 29/9