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Walmart Stores has proclaimed an agreement to raise its investment in the company, Yihaodian. The latter is a fast-expanding eCommerce website in China, in which Walmart has now acquired a stake of nearly 51%.

This move is intended to result in more fruitful exchange of ideas and marketing strategies with respect to eCommerce. Moreover, Walmart also intends to contribute to China’s eCommerce objectives in the form of domestic utility, price stability and progression in the western and middle regions.

Neil Ashe, President and CEO of Walmart Global eCommerce, cited, “This investment further enables Walmart to deliver a superb customer experience to Chinese consumers that are already connected to the world through smart phones and social media. We are on track to create the next generation of eCommerce, offering the latest in online innovations to give our customers a unique shopping experience.”

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A recent report by The NPD Group has disclosed that the U.S. consumer electronics sales reached approximately $144 billion in 2011. Almost 60 percent of all sales achieved in the year could be attributed to the top 5 categories of PCs, TVs, tablets, mobile phones and video game hardware.

Notebooks and desktops contributed to about 20 percent of sales by generating a revenue of nearly $28 billion. Though this was the highest revenue attained in 2011 for these devices, it was apparently 3 percent lesser than that of 2010. As far as tablets and e-readers were concerned, they managed to double the sales by reaching nearly $15 billion in 2011.

“U.S. hardware sales growth is becoming harder and harder to achieve at the broad industry level,” commented Stephen Baker, vice president of industry analysis at NPD. “Sales outside of the top five categories fell by 8 percent in 2011 as consumers shifted spending Read the rest of this story >>

The cars targeted at the executive class namely the 2012 Seat Exeo Saloon and ST Estate are now up for sale at UK showrooms. They are expected to satisfy estate and savvy saloon buyers as they ship in with more refinement, style and economy.

The range of vehicles features a reworked exterior with new bi-xenon headlights and LED daytime operating lights. Moreover, the new alloy wheel designs along with the refreshed interior add to the luxury of the vehicles. While the steering wheel is enhanced with improved leather, the upholstery has also been revised to create a superior veneer.

Seat UK Managing Director Peter Wyhinny commented, “The showroom arrival of the freshly upgraded Exeo range comes at a great time for SEAT. With another record year under our belt in 2011, and sales continuing their Read the rest of this story >>

According to Harris Private Bank’s March Outlook for Financial Markets, the U.S. economy is establishing control by means of additional jobs, zero interest rates, excess monetary creation and a $1.2 trillion annual budget. The U.S. financial status witnessed one of the best months of January since the last 18 years as the equity markets began. This was apparently due to the expansion of the U.S. economy and the fourth quarter earnings report that motivated investors.

The MSCI All-Country World Index progressed by 5.8%, as stated by Bloomberg. The gain achieved in January was supposedly the best start of the year, after 1994 witnessed a similar profit. Another positive sign observed in the US economy includes the zero percent overnight rates. The latter appeared to have contributed immensely in raising demand, lowering private debt and enhancing asset values.

“If investors just focused on the fundamentals and discounted Read the rest of this story >>

The newly launched Mini Highgate is the third member to follow after the release of Mini Baker Street and Mini Bayswater. This convertible touted to fare well in terms of the interior and exterior, is included in the lineup of special editions for spring of 2012.

The car is adorned with new metallic Ice Chocolate color that gels well with the customized ‘Silvertouched Truffle’ fabric roof. The truffle bonnet stripes with blue edging make it appear all the more distinct. Fans have a choice between White Silver metallic and Midnight Black metallic, with the door mirror caps donning the same shade as the exterior.

Inspired by the Union Jack flag, the ride features unique 17-inch Double Cross Turned light alloy wheels sporting a subtle aluminum color. Within the interior, the ‘Dark Truffle’ Lounge Leather seats incorporate blue piping and some distinctive stitching. The iconic Chili Pack inclusive of Bluetooth, USB connectivity, Read the rest of this story >>

Amazon recently reported its fourth quarter financial results that concluded on December 31, 2011. As per statistics, operating cash flow elevated to $3.90 billion for the trailing 12 months, which accounted for a 12% rise as compared to the previous year. Free cash flow stooped to $2.09 this year, when pitted against the $2.52 billion observed in the previous year.

Common shares approximated to 468 million on December 31, 2011, comparative to 465 million seen a year back. Cumulative sales reached $17.43 billion in Q4, which is apparently 35% higher than last year. Operating income touched $260 million in Q4, while 2010 witnessed $474 million in Q4.

“We are grateful to the millions of customers who purchased the Kindle Fire and Kindle e-reader devices this holiday season, making Kindle our bestselling product across both the U.S. and Europe. Our millions of third-party sellers had a tremendous holiday season with 65% unit growth and now represent Read the rest of this story >>

The upcoming release of the Hyundai i30 in the UK is one of the latest updates seen in the automotive terrain. This car strives to deliver a blend of style, efficacy and comfort, all under one roof.

The vehicle features Blue Drive technologies consistent with all 1.6 CRDi manuals with CO2 emissions beginning from just 97g/km and providing fuel economy of 76.3mpg. It is fueled by the budget-friendly diesel five-door hatchback that claims to offer the highest fuel economy in its sphere. This new generation vehicle offers real-world efficiency from 128PS 100g/km 1.6 CRDi, which means there is no link between power and emissions.

Tony Whitehorn, President and CEO Hyundai Motor UK, cited, “The new generation i30 represents another leap forward in terms of Hyundai’s design, refinement and build quality. Coupled with Hyundai’s Read the rest of this story >>

A recent report from Gartner has stated Apple to be the leading semiconductor customer in 2011. The team also revealed that electronic equipment manufacturers performed substantially well in the world of semiconductors last year. As per statistics, they accounted for $105.6 billion semiconductors based on design total available market.

This amounts to over 35% of the semiconductor vendors’ chip revenue on a global basis. The information presented a yearly increase of $1.8 billion that approximates to 1.8% since 2010. The team believed that the swiftly changing structure of the IT and electronics industry necessitates vendors to do much more than just inspect the needs of present market leaders. Reportedly, Apple spearheaded the market in 2011 consistent with its growth seen in the past 5 years. This is what made the company the biggest customer of semiconductor chip retailers in 2011. Apple’s position presumably elevated by 2 ranks, from the third Read the rest of this story >>

As per a fresh update from RIM, a unanimous decision has put forth Thorsten Heins as the President and Chief Executive Officer of the company. Both the appointments are to be effective on an immediate basis and have been proclaimed after optimum diligence on RIM’s side.

This announcement has been made following recommendations by the front’s Co-Chief Executive Officers to execute the succession plan that was previously submitted to the Board. The former Co-Chair and Co-CEO, Mike Lazaridis is now the Vice Chair of the Board and Chair of the Board’s recent Innovation Committee. With this designation as the Vice Chair, he will be on close terms with Heins to deliver strategic counsel as well as enable swift transitions and promotion of the BlackBerry brand globally.

Thorsten Heins, the new President and CEO commented, “Mike created a whole new way of communicating and I look forward to continuing our close collaboration.”

As Read the rest of this story >>

According to a study on the Nielsen blog, Apple sales witnessed a hike in Q4 2011, after Android dominated the sphere all throughout the year. Presumably, the launch of the Apple iPhone 4S has been responsible for the upward trend observed in sales for the company.

Reportedly, 44.5% of respondents chose the iPhone as their handset in December, as compared to 25.1% in October. Moreover, out of those figures, around 57% of iPhone owners settled for an iPhone 4S. However, Android still continued to lead in terms of the number of smartphone users. Almost 46.3% of all smartphone owners participating in the survey reportedly used an Android smartphone.

Q4 2011 also saw many individuals purchasing smartphones in the US, with the figures swiftly exceeding. Nearly 46% of those surveyed reported of owning a smartphone. Also, consumers Read the rest of this story >>