The "Earn Your Wingz" Fiery Challenge

Wing Kingz, a UK restaurant located in Canterbury, Kent, has introduced a new culinary challenge designed to test the limits of spice tolerance. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The aptly named "Earn Your Wingz" challenge requires participants to consume 15 chicken wings coated in a sauce featuring the Carolina Reaper pepper, known for its extreme heat. 

 

However, before embarking on this fiery feat, challengers must sign a waiver, a unique precaution implemented by the restaurant. This waiver acknowledges the potential for intense discomfort associated with the Carolina Reaper and protects both the restaurant and the participant. 

 

“I acknowledge that I will be engaging in the Earn Your Wingz Challenge, whereby there may be a risk of personal injury, illness or possible loss of life and damage to or loss of personal property”, according to the New York Post.

 

Another point on the waiver reads: “I agree that I am participating in the Earn Your Wingz Challenge at my own risk, and I accept that Wing Kingz, its employees or affiliates will not be held responsible for any consequences that may result from my participation”. 

 

The challenge itself is a race against time and the body's ability to handle the intense heat. Participants must finish all fifteen wings within a strict 10-minute window, followed by a 5-minute "burn time" to assess their ability to withstand the lingering effects. 

 

The Carolina Reaper (Scientific name: Capsicum chinense), a fiery red pepper which is a hybrid between red habanero and Naja Viper peppers, developed by American breeder Ed Currie, boasts a scorching heat that can reach up to 2.2 million Scoville Heat Units (SHU). To put that into perspective, it's roughly 200 times hotter than your average jalapeno!

 

This fearsome pepper held the coveted title of world's hottest pepper for an impressive period, reigning supreme from 2013 until just recently. However, its crown was snatched by another of Currie's creations, the even hotter Pepper X.

 

For those who conquer the fiery challenge, the reward is twofold: a complimentary meal and a coveted spot on the restaurant's Hall of Fame wall. This unique challenge adds a touch of excitement to Wing Kingz' menu while offering a testament to the restaurant's commitment to pushing boundaries, albeit with a focus on responsible indulgence.

 

The restaurant claims most would-be competitors don't finish the plate. Competitors are also made to wear black gloves to handle the wings and are strongly advised to keep their hands away from their eyes at all times.

The End Draws Nigh

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The situation in eastern Ukraine is dire! And the end draws nigh!

 

Already, the number and frequency of Ukrainian soldiers receiving training in US bases in Western Europe has dropped to almost zero in the last months, suggesting that Kiev is running out of men to fight Russian forces. This is according to US officials who informed the Washington Post. 

 

American instructors began training Ukrainian troops in April 2022, with drills taking place at the Grafenwoehr Training Area in Germany. Some 3,100 Ukrainian soldiers had received US training by the end of 2022. The program was expanded in January 2023 to train 12 brigades in the run-up to Kiev’s disastrous summer counteroffensive. In addition to these 12 brigades, three brigades were trained by other European nations, while American instructors taught combined arms tactics to a tank battalion and two national guard battalions. 

 

However, the last brigade trained in Germany left Grafenwoehr, the largest US ovcerseas training command, in January or February, anonymous officials told the Washington Post on Saturday. None have been trained in the months since, “suggesting a depletion of the personnel pipeline”, the newspaper paraphrased.

 

Russian forces are said to be firmly in control of the battlefield situation and are steadily pushing back the Ukrainians, said Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu two Mondays ago. According to Moscow, Kiev’s forces have lost more than 8,000 soldiers in just the past week. 

 

Aleksandr Syrsky, Ukraine's top general has even acknowledged on Sunday that Russian forces are attacking along “the entire front line”, spanning more than 1,000 kilometers (620 miles). Already, Berdychi, Semenivka, Novomikhailovka, and Bogdanovka, are the latest to have fallen to the Russians.

 

I repeat, the end draws nigh!

US Regional Bank Collapse Raises Red Flag for Big Shocks

Beleaguered Republic First Bancorp Inc. became the first US bank failure of 2024, after asset seizures reached a record high in 2023. 

 

The Pennsylvania Department of Banking and Securities closed the Philadelphia-based company's bank subsidiary April 26 and appointed the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. as receiver. The FDIC entered into an agreement in which Fulton Financial Corp. subsidiary Fulton Bank NA will assume substantially all of the deposits and purchase substantially all of the assets of Republic First Bank. As a result, Republic Bank's thirty-two branches reopened as branches of Fulton Bank starting Saturday. 

 

Republic First, which had $5.87 billion in total assets as of year-end 2023, is the sixth-largest failed bank by total assets since 2010. However, it is much smaller than the 2023 failures of Silicon Valley Bank and First Republic Bank, which were over $200 billion in assets, and Signature Bank, which was over $100 billion. [The other two banks that also collapsed were Kansas-based Heartland Tri-State Bank and Iowa-based Citizens Bank in July and November respectively].

 

While Republic First Bancorp is not a big one in the US, the bust is likely to serve as a reminder that even after the wave of bank failures witnessed last year, the US regional bank crisis may still be far from over, as long as the Fed's policy rates stay elevated at a range from 5 to 5.25 percent. 

 

Republic First Bancorp is one of the banks that have been under growing pressure from persistently high interest rates and rapidly decreasing values on commercial real estate loans. For instance, PNC Financial and M&T Bank recently reported double-digit profit declines in the first three months this year as higher interest rates eat into their profits. 

 

If anything, the plight faced by regional US banks is a microcosm of the negative impact the Fed's tightening policy has brought to the country's financial market. The Fed's high interest rate policy is supposed to tame inflation and maintain economic stability, but it has proven to be ineffective for those purposes. 

 

Now with US inflation exceeding expectations for a third month in a row, hopes for a rate cut in the short term have been dashed, highlighting the dilemma of the Fed's policy choices. More worrying, the Fed seem to have no clue about how to address the messy situation. 

 

Meanwhile, the negative spillover effect of the Fed's high interest rates on the global economy and capital markets is bound to accumulate and worsen. The longer the Fed's high interest rate policy persists, the greater the constraints on the US economy will become, not only exerting rising pressure on the domestic financial system but also on global financial markets, particularly the emerging markets. Like Malaysia!

 

In a high-rate environment, the emerging market economies have to contend with the pressure of capital flights, increased foreign debt servicing costs, and a heightened risk of currency depreciation.

A Scary New Color Because the Earth Keeps Getting Hotter

US scientists need a scary new color because the world keeps getting hotter! And they've determined it to be magenta, a purplish-red color.

 

On April 22, which is Earth Day, the National Weather Service and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention teamed up to announce a new heat risk system to better communicate the severity of hot weather. The color-coded system added magenta, a fifth-tier of heat severity, beyond red, to communicate extreme heat “rare and/or long-duration extreme heat with little to no overnight relief”, according to Associated Press. 

The new risk system also projects out extreme weather in a seven-day forecast, allowing the public to prepare for heat accordingly. The color-coded system is as follows: green means there is no heat risk, yellow and orange indicate risk to heat-sensitive individuals who lack cooling and/or hydration, red indicates a high risk for the entire population, and magenta corresponds to a very high risk for the entire population over an extended period of time.

National Weather Service director Ken Graham explained the reason for a simple color-coding system of a complex problem: "This is a way to simplify that. You've got to be able to simplify the stuff so that people actually want to look at it first of all and most importantly understand it".

Mandy Cohen, the CDC’s director said: “Heat can impact our health, but heat-related illness and death are preventable. We are releasing new heat and health tools and guidance to help people take simple steps to stay safe in the heat”.

Color me terrified.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yesterday, a James Forrest double (30, 67) restored Celtic with a three-point lead at the Scottish Premiership summit. 

Not since 2011 has there been such a tight title race. Three points is the gap between leaders Celtic and rivals Rangers with four games remaining, one of which is a potential derby decider next month.

Man Acquitted of Drink-driving After Proving His Body Creates Its Own Alcohol

Picture this: you have been charged with drink driving but the charges are dismissed on the basis that you suffer from an abnormal condition in which your body produces alcohol. Sounds bizarre, but it is not. 

 

On April 22, a 40-year-old man in Belgium’s Bruges was acquitted on charges of drink-driving after his lawyers proved that he suffers from auto-brewery syndrome (ABS), which causes carbohydrates in his stomach to be fermented, increasing ethanol levels in his blood and resulting in signs of intoxication.

 

Belgian media said in the verdict the judge emphasized that the defendant, who was not named in line with local judicial custom, did not experience symptoms of intoxication.

 

The man, who coincidentally works at a brewery, ended up in court after police in April 2022 pulled his vehicle over and registered him giving a breathalyser reading of 0.91 milligrammes of alcohol per litre, and again a month later when his breath contained 0.71 milligrammes.

 

Importantly, the legal limit in Belgium is 0.22 milligrammes per litre of air exhaled, which corresponds to a blood alcohol level of 0.5 grammes per litre. 

 

In 2019 too, he had received a fine and a driving licence suspension despite protesting that he had not drunk any alcohol. The court recognised that factors unforeseen by law applied to the man’s case and acquitted him of the charge.

 

Auto-brewery syndrome, also known as gut fermentation, is a mysterious condition that raises the levels of alcohol in the blood and produces the symptoms of alcohol intoxication in patients, even when they have had minimal or no alcohol intake.

 

People are not born with ABS but can develop it when they already have another intestine-related condition. Patients can present with symptoms consistent with alcohol intoxication such as slurred speech, stumbling, loss of motor functions, dizziness and belching.

 

ABS is a rare condition with medical experts stating only 20 people have been diagnosed with it officially. Authors of a 2019 case report in BMJ Open Gastroenterology also noted ABS was an underdiagnosed medical condition.

 

China's first homemade large passenger aircraft C919 has landed another big order from Air China. 

 

China's national carrier on Friday announced the purchase of 100 C919 jets from Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC) in a deal worth $10.8 billion, with the aircraft to be delivered in batches from 2024 to 2031. 

 

Notably, this deal marks the second relatively large-scale order for the C919 following the previous order of 100 aircraft made by China Eastern Airlines in September 2023.

The College Protests Sweeping Across the US

 

US colleges become flashpoints for protests over the genocide in Gaza. They are increasing and intensifying across campuses nationwide. 

 

And authorities are quick to clamp down, with police making arrests and been involved in clashes.

 

 

The crackdown on protests at more than 50 US college campuses shows that free speech in the Land of the Free is just a myth.

 

Yesterday, Liverpool could only manage a 2-2 draw against West Ham United. 

 

Whether we want to admit it or not, sadly, Jürgen Klopp (left) has nothing more to give. The fact is Liverpool's Premier League title hopes seem all but over. The only way to get back in the race is for both Arsenal and Manchester City to stumble. Fat chance!

Dissecting Greta Thunberg's AWS 2021 Speech

Climate activist Greta Thunberg's (right) “school strike for climate” sparked a worldwide change in climate awareness and propelled the climate issue onto the global public agenda in a way that could not be ignored. 

More importantly, at least from my POV, she discovered the power of speech and it empowered her to speak persuasively and plainly. Who can forget her epic “How dare you?” takedown of world leaders at the 2019 United Nations climate summits? 

Check out her speech that she presented at the annual Austrian World Summit 2021 and which has been described as a tour de force. Brilliantly employing a play on words (while speaking in her second language, no less), the young Swede blasted governments and corporations for responding to the climate movement’s demands by deciding to act – but only to “act like” they are taking meaningful steps, not what’s actually necessary to preserve a livable climate. 

That 7:50 speech is shared here:

Martin DeCoder (right) who has an MA in Linguistics and Media Studies, describes himself as a seeker of truth through language. 

 

He references Thunberg's speech (above) and poses two questions. Is Greta that different from the people she criticizes? How convincing are her arguments? 

 

To answer these questions, he dives into an in-depth language analysis – the next video – focusing on Thunberg's persuasion techniques and arguments and what they reveal about her. 

 

The analysis uses academic concepts such as ‘presuppositions’, ‘constitutive rhetoric’, and ‘synecdoches’ and draws comparisons to excerpts from her 2021 Youth4Climate speech and Glastonbury speech:

 

Note: As an analysis, this video is made according to the terms of ‘fair use’. The video has an educational purpose, and you can use many of the principles and concepts to decode your own daily conversations.

Shenzhou-18 is Successfully Launched

 

 

 

 

 

 

China embarked on its thirty-second mission since the initiation of the country's manned space project. The Shenzhou-18 manned spacecraft blasted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in Northwest China, atop the Long March-2F Y18 carrier rocket on Thursday, carrying taikonauts Li Guangsu, Ye Guangfu and Li Cong and fish... yes, you read it right, fish!

Zebrafish (Scientific name: Danio rerio) are the chosen ones to make it into space and are dubbed adorably by Chinese netizens as "the fourth crew member of Shenzhou-18". 

The selection of the popular aquarium fish is not just because zebrafish are beautiful, but also because they are well-known "model organisms" in the scientific community. They have advantages such as small size, short development cycle, and short experimental period. 

What's more, zebrafish eggs are transparent, making it easy for researchers to observe the process of embryonic development. More importantly, zebrafish share 87 percent genetic similarity with humans, making them suitable for studying and revealing universal principles of life forms. 

And together with hornwot (Scientific name: Ceratophyllum demersum), a free-floating water plant, they are both part of an experiment that is China's first in-orbit aquatic ecological research project.

As manned missions to Tiangong have become normalized, more than 90 experiments (besides the one mentioned above), e.g., microgravity, space materials science, space life science, aerospace medicine, and aerospace technology, are scheduled to be carried out in and outside of the space station during Shenzhou-18's six-month stay. 

 

 

Huawei launched the Pura 70 series of smartphones devices – Pura 70, Pura 70 Pro, Pura 70 Pro Plus and Pura 70 Ultra, according to Huawei’s official website – on April 18 in a bid to continue their resurgence in China and ramp up their regional challenge to Apple.

It’s the latest sign of growing confidence from Huawei, after the company last year quietly launched their Mate 60 smartphone, which sported a high-end chip. 

Huawei packed the devices with premium smartphone features. The back of the phone has a textured covering, while the Ultra version of the gear has a 6.8-inch screen. All of the new phone offerings are equipped with cameras that are a triple-lens setup, with features including long-range zoom and the ability to capture images of objects moving at speed. 

The Pura 70 series also runs HarmonyOS 4.2, Huawei’s proprietary operating system which they first released in 2019 after US sanctions cut them off from Google’s Android.

It is expected that the new phones contain more locally-sourced components than any of the company's previous phones.

Court Rules on AI Voice Rights Case

The Beijing Internet Court in China ruled on Tuesday that a software company had infringed upon a person's rights after the company used an AI-powered tool to replicate her voice, without her consent, and sold it to other platforms. 

 

This case is the first of its kind being ruled on in China, sounding an alarm for AI enterprises that they must obtain legal authorization before using a person's voice for large-model trainings and development. 

 

The plaintiff, a voice-over narrator surnamed Yin, found out in May, 2023 that her voice was being used in numerous audiobooks online without her consent. After investigating, she discovered that an AI-powered tool was being used to replicate her voice and sell it to different platforms for profit. Yin believes that it was one cultural media company, with whom she had previous business dealings, that handed over the audio recordings of her audiobooks to another software company which then processed Yin's voice using AI technology and sold it to operator of the app "Magic Sound Workshop". 

 

The court decided that the defendants – the cultural media company and the software company – are jointly responsible for compensating Yin for economic losses of 250,000 yuan ($34,507). 

 

The operator of the app and the software company are also required to issue an apology to the plaintiff within seven days of the judgment taking effect. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Beijing Internet Court remind AI companies to first obtain legal authorization from individuals for their voice rights. Their ruling stated that a natural person's voice is identified by voiceprint tone and frequency, possessing unique and stable characteristics that can evoke thoughts or emotions associated with that individual. 

 

While a natural voice may be less recognizable after artificial intelligence synthesis, it does not imply that it is not legally protected, as the technology does not always sever the link with natural human voices.

Cicadas Emerge From Underground

Emerging cicadas are so loud in one US county that residents are calling the sheriff’s office asking why they can hear sirens or a loud roar. 

 

The Newberry County Sheriff’s Office in South Carolina sent out a message on Facebook on Tuesday letting people know that the whining sound is just the male cicadas singing to attract mates after more than a decade of being dormant. Some people have even flagged down deputies to ask what the noise is all about, Newberry County Sheriff Lee Foster said.

 

Trillions of red-eyed periodical cicadas are emerging from underground in the eastern US this month. The 13-year and 17-year broods will appear together for the first time in 221 years. Just so you know, the cicadas appearing in 2024 belong to Brood XIII and Brood XIX, and are just two of the several thousand species of cicadas living around the world right now. 

 

Their collective songs can be as loud as jet engines and scientists who study them often wear earmuffs to protect their hearing. 

 

After Tuesday, Foster understands why. “Although to some, the noise is annoying, they pose no danger to humans or pets”, Foster wrote in his statement to county residents. “Unfortunately, it is the sounds of nature”.

 

The New York Court of Appeals on Thursday overturned the sex crimes conviction against Harvey Weinstein, the powerful Hollywood producer whose downfall stood as a symbol of the #MeToo movement, and ordered a new trial. 

 

The court, by a 4-3 vote, ruled the testimony of “prior bad acts” witnesses should not have been allowed because it “was unnecessary to establish defendant’s intent and served only to establish defendant’s propensity to commit the crimes charged”.

 

Seventy-two-year-old Weinstein was convicted in 2020 of first-degree criminal sexual act and third-degree rape, and he was sentenced to 23 years in prison. He has maintained his innocence and denied any nonconsensual sexual activity. 

 

It will now be up to Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, whose predecessor Cyrus Vance brought the case, to decide whether to retry Weinstein.

Boeing's Travails Aren't Over

Boeing's travails are by no means over and they have definitely not gone away!

 

On April 24, Air France flight #AF291 from Osaka, Japan to Paris, France was diverted to Baku's Heydar Aliyev International Airport in Azerbaijan, following the appearance of a heat smell in the cabin. 

 

The passengers on the Boeing 777-200ER plane safely disembarked and technical checks are being carried out. Due to difficulties in obtaining visas, they are obliged to remain in the transit zone where they are able to have meals. 

 

A new plane has been put in place by Air France departing from Paris to enable passengers to be re-routed as quickly as possible, in liaison with the local airport authorities.

 

On April 23, a Lufthansa flight #LH456 from Frankfurt, Germany performed a dramatic touch and go at Los Angeles, United States. 

 

The Boeing 747-8 bounced on the runway while making a landing attempt at Los Angeles LAX. Anyway, it landed safely on the same runway about 15 minutes later.

 

On April 21, a FlySafair Boeing 737 which was operating flight FA212 from South Africa's Johannesburg to Cape Town lost a wheel. 

 

During takeoff from the former's OR Tambo International Airport, the aircraft’s left outer main gear wheel decided to divorce. 

 

Following the separation of the wheel, the crew discontinued their climb at 22,000 feet and entered a holding pattern to burn fuel. After roughly 190 minutes airborne, air traffic control visually confirmed the missing wheel. 

 

The pilots then executed a safe emergency landing back at OR Tambo International Airport. Unfortunately, the landing resulted in further damage to the rim of the remaining wheel assembly.

 

Thankfully, there were no injuries reported among the passengers or crew on board. The incident did, however, cause delays at the airport as crews worked to clear the runway. 

 

As per the above 3 incidents, Boeing continue to experience issues with their planes. 

 

Not only that but the company must pay $443 million in compensation to airlines for the Max 9 grounding even as losses and problems mount. 

 

FYI, Boeing reported a core operating loss of $388 million in 1Q24, a slightly smaller loss compared to $440 million for the same period a year ago.

US Secretly Sends Long-range ATACMS to Ukraine

The United States previously supplied Ukraine with a mid-range version of the Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) and had been reluctant to send anything more powerful, supposedly.

 

But BBC News reported today that Ukraine has already begun using long-range ballistic missiles secretly provided by the US against Russian forces. The weapons were part of a $300 million aid package announced on March 12 and they arrived this month. US President Joe Biden was said to have given the green light to send the long-range ATACMS – which can fire missiles distances of up to 300km (186 miles) – in February.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The US elites very much want to prolong the war in Ukraine and see to it that its male population is totally wiped off the face of the earth. I reckon they hate the Ukrainians as much as they hate the Russians. Already, Ukrainian military losses since February 2022 have reached almost 500,000, as claimed by Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu on Tuesday. Biden and the hawks in Washington are not happy and so, they are demanding the Ukrainians sacrifice more. 

 

"I can confirm that the United States provided Ukraine with long-range ATACMS at the president's direct direction", state department spokesperson Vedant Patel said. The US "did not announce this at the onset in order to maintain operational security for Ukraine at their request", he added. 

 

It is not clear how many of the weapons have already been sent, but US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said Washington planned to send more.

 

The longer-range missiles were used for the first time last week to strike a Russian airfield in Crimea, Reuters news agency quoted an unnamed US official as saying. And the new missiles were also used in an attack on Russian troops in the port city of Berdyansk in Zaporizhzhia Oblast overnight on Tuesday, according to the New York Times.

 

If Everton's first Merseyside derby home win since October 2010 was not cause enough for celebration, their 2-0 triumph over Liverpool yesterday came with what they will regard as the glorious bonus of inflicting potentially irreparable damage to Jürgen Klopp's (left) men. 

 

This much was clear as Goodison Park echoed to the taunts of “You Lost The League At Goodison Park” as a leggy, lacklustre Liverpool banged their heads on the brick wall that was Everton’s excellent defence and outstanding goalkeeper Jordan Pickford.

 

Sure, Liverpool are only three points behind leaders Arsenal but their form has been put in reverse gear and besides, the Gunners’ goal difference is so superior it is effectively worth another point.

 

And champions Manchester City have two games in hand still and just one point behind the Reds.

Israel's Made-up UNRWA Story

Israel gave no evidence to support its claims that UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) staffers aided Hamas’ October 07 attack on the Jewish state, an independent review commissioned by the UN have found. 

 

The Israeli government claimed in January that a dozen UNRWA employees took part in the attack, in which the freedom fighters killed around 1,100 people in Israel and took around 250 hostages to Gaza. They had also claimed that 190 UNRWA staffers provided intelligence and logistical support to the attackers, and allowed Hamas to use the agency’s facilities as safe houses. [You may refer to my post "Western Countries Stop Funding UNRWA", published January 29, 2024]. 

 

An independent committee led by former French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna had found no evidence to support these claims, according to a report published on Monday.

 

In a separate report, three Nordic research groups assisting Colonna’s probe noted that “Israeli authorities have to date not provided any supporting evidence nor responded to letters from UNRWA in March, and again in April, requesting the names and supporting evidence that would enable UNRWA to open an investigation”. 

 

Colonna’s investigation showed that UNRWA regularly share lists of their employees with Israeli authorities, and that the latter have not raised any concerns about the agency’s staffing since 2011. 

 

UNRWA employ more than 30,000 people and provide food aid, healthcare, education, and social services to Palestinian refugees in Gaza and the West Bank, as well as those seeking asylum in neighboring countries. Over two million people “depend on it for their survival amidst one of the largest and most complex humanitarian crises in the world”, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said at a briefing in February. 

 

Despite being unsubstantiated, Israel’s accusations caused 18 donor nations to withdraw funding from UNRWA. While a majority have since resumed support for the agency, six have kept their money on hold. Among them are the US, UK, and Germany.

iPhone Sales Nosedive in China

My blog post "Apple's iPhone Sales Plummet in China by 24%", published March 06, 2024 looked at sales in the first 6 weeks of this year. 

Counterpoint Research have now reported that Apple’s smartphone sales in China in the first quarter of 2024 dropped 19% due to increased competition from local brands.

The US tech giant fell to third place in the hotly contested market amid pressure from fast-rising rival Huawei, the researcher said on Tuesday. 

Shenzhen-based Huawei saw sales of their smartphones soar a whopping 69.7% in the first quarter, making them the fourth-largest smartphone maker in China.

Overall, China’s smartphone market expanded about 1.5% year-on-year in the first quarter of 2024, marking the second quarter of positive growth for the industry. Vivo became the top smartphone vendor in China during the quarter with a 17.4% share, driven by strong sales of the Y35 Plus and Y36 models in the low-end segment and the S18 in the mid-end segment. Honor ranked second with a 16.1% share, followed by Apple with a 15.7% share.

“Apple’s sales were subdued during the quarter as Huawei’s comeback has directly impacted Apple in the premium segment”, senior Counterpoint analyst Ivan Lam explained. “Besides, the replacement demand for Apple has been slightly subdued compared to previous years”. 

The sales decline highlights the challenges Apple faces in their third-largest market, where some Chinese companies and government entities bar the use of their devices in retaliation to US restrictions on Chinese apps for supposed security reasons.

Analysts anticipate increased pressure on Apple’s sales in 2024. Research firm IDC previously warned that the US tech giant’s presence in China has been dented by rival products and limited product upgrades by Apple, which has reduced the overall attractiveness of iPhones. 

Apple, once the world’s most valuable company, have seen their shares fall 14% this year, underperforming the overall market. Their market valuation is still $2.56 trillion, second only to Microsoft Corporation.

The Russian Ministry of Economic Development have raised their 2024 forecast for the country’s growth, citing domestic consumer and investment demand. 

Gross domestic product will expand by 2.8% this year, Economy Minister Maksim Reshetnikov announced yesterday. This compares favorably with the previous forecast of 2.3% GDP for 2024. The International Monetary Fund, however, expect Russia to grow 3.2% this year (refer my post "Russia To Grow Faster Than All Advanced Economies" published April 17, 2024).

Whether 2.8% or 3.2%, Russia's wartime economy is primed to grow despite the avalanche of sanctions!

Dubai is Flooded

Torrential rains began on the night of April 15, flooding the United Arab Emirates with more than half a foot (6.26 inches) of water in 24 hours, according to the Dubai Meteorological Office and cited by ABC News. That is more than two years' worth of rain in one day, the media outlet noted.

 

Highways and malls have been flooded, schools have been closed, and flights disrupted at one of the world’s busiest airports after the country experienced what the government described as their largest amount of rainfall in 75 years. 

 

Heavy rains also drenched Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Oman.