Liquor maker skirts China’s anti-luxury drive with price cuts |
- Liquor maker skirts China’s anti-luxury drive with price cuts
- Did Tony Soprano really die?
- New Renault Twingo campaign by Kuntzel+Deygas
- Slain Iraqis ‘of no threat’ to Blackwater guards
- ‘Sexy’ women fighters in muay thai ad tempting Allah’s wrath, Isma claims
- Tokyo stocks open down 0.34pc
| Liquor maker skirts China’s anti-luxury drive with price cuts Posted: 27 Aug 2014 05:59 PM PDT
The company's fiery baijiu liquor, which outsells vodka worldwide, was the tipple of choice for China's elite, but Beijing banned it from official banquets in 2012. At over US$300 (RM940) a bottle, it was deemed too opulent for state functions Moutai has been cutting prices and its online sales and distribution deals have attracted a wider range of consumers and reduced its reliance on dwindling government spending. Those moves have helped drive the company's shares in Shanghai up 35 per cent this year compared to the benchmark CSI300 Index that has remained flat. The fate of Moutai is a potential lesson for premium product makers in China from global No.1 luxury group LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SA to cognac maker Remy Cointreau SA , who have also seen their China sales drop. "Like Moutai, I wouldn't be surprised if other mass luxury brands look at new ways to move their products in China," said Ben Cavender, principal at China Market Research Group. "We're at a stage now where brands are trying to hook in the next generation of consumers, who are very tech-savvy and are used to buying things online." Kweichow Moutai did not respond to requests for comment. The company releases its first-half results on Thursday and is expected to see a small net profit gain. Moutai narrowly avoided its weakest-ever profit growth last year and profit for 2014 is expected to rise 5.4 per cent, its slowest rate ever, according to 18 analyst polled by Reuters. Prime target In order to survive and thrive below the radar of officialdom, the former icon of opulence for China's generals and the envy of rivals for its eye-watering profits has pushed more sales online, halved its prices and boosted tie-ups with discount sellers. This has made the brand more affordable to the average buyer. The cost of Moutai's core product, Feitian 53°, dropped from around CN¥2,200 (US$358, RM1,125) in 2012 to around CN¥950 now. These moves were a major departure for a company once fined for illegally protecting its high prices. But the shift has convinced 17 of 19 analysts polled by Reuters to recommend the stock a "buy" or "strong buy". None recommended it a "sell". Baijiu makers and sellers are trying to tempt more private drinkers to move away from official spending that previously made up half of all sales, analysts said. "The government crackdown on public spending targeted officials using public funds to treat guests. It doesn't mean as an individual consumer I can't still buy Moutai," said a Zhejiang-based government official, who asked not to be named as he is not permitted to speak to the press. Premium baijiu makers like Moutai face not only the challenge of surviving the anti-luxury drive, but still contend with consumers not totally won over by the drink's pungent taste and high alcohol level. "Before Moutai was just too expensive. Now the price is okay, but I still won't buy much," said Zhang Hong, 47, a partner at a travel agency in the city of Wenzhou. "The truth is I just don't like the taste." Bar owners like Simon Dang, co-founder of Capital Spirits in Beijing, are playing host to baijiu producers and distributors eager to learn how to target younger drinkers. "It's going to take some time to change the perception of baijiu, but we're seeing that a relaxed bar setting is becoming a popular way to enjoy it," he said. — Reuters  |
| Posted: 27 Aug 2014 05:55 PM PDT
The infamous final scene, which fades to black on Soprano eating with his wife and son in a New Jersey diner, triggered a storm when it ran in 2007. Some initially thought their televisions had gone wrong. Critics said it wasn't fair to leave viewers in the lurch after six seasons, after preceding scenes showed mysterious characters milling around, and Soprano's daughter rushing to join him in the diner. What really happened—well, in unwritten fictional terms at least—remained a mystery. Until now. Series creator David Chase finally revealed all—or a key fact anyway—in an interview with online blogging site Vox.com. Asked repeatedly what happened to Soprano, chase at first became furious, asking his interviewer: "Why are we talking about this?" But he then finally gave a straight answer to the question of whether Tony Soprano was dead. "No," he said simply, according to Vox. "No, he isn't." The revelation leaves open the possibility that the series could be revived on screen. This seems highly unlikely, not least because James Gandolfini, the actor who played Soprano, died in June last year, aged 51. — AFP |
| New Renault Twingo campaign by Kuntzel+Deygas Posted: 27 Aug 2014 05:52 PM PDT
Headed up by the ad agency Publicis Conseil, the new campaign aims to strike a modern, punchy tone and is grounded in the colorful visual world of the artists Olivier Kuntzel and Florence Deygas. With the slogan "Go anywhere, go everywhere," Renault is positioning the new Twingo as a car that can squeeze through tight spots and dodge the obstacles of urban driving thanks to its optimal handling. The new campaign includes a primary two-minute video, three shorter videos on specific aspects of the car, and around 15 visuals. Kuntzel+Deygas, who specialise in animation, are known in part for having created the opening title sequence for the 2002 film "Catch Me If You Can." Unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show in March 2014, the third-generation Twingo is the first to be available as a five-door version with a rear-mounted engine. The model goes on sale from September and will be among the key attractions at Renault's stand at the Paris Motor Show in October. A city car with a rear-mounted engine Developed in partnership with Daimler, the new Twingo is based on the same architecture as the Smart forfour. Customers can customise the city car by choosing from a palette of colors for the body and for exterior elements such as the mirror caps and side guards. In the front, the model exhibits the manufacturer's latest visual identity, with a clearly visible logo on a black background flanked by the headlights and round LED daytime running lights. On the interior, the length of the cabin has been extended by 22 centimetres, reducing the external dimensions by 10 centimetres. Smart and connected, the new Twingo pairs two main multimedia features: the latest version of the R-Link tablet (Evolution) and the R&Go app, allowing users to plug a smartphone (Android or iOS) into the car's on-board system. A direct descendent of the Twin'Z and Twin'Run concepts presented in 2013, the new Twingo will be available with a choice of two engines, both rear-mounted: the naturally-aspirated SCe with 70hp and the turbo TCe with 90hp. Pricing for the new Twingo has not yet been announced, but the model is expected to sell for under the €10,000 (RM41,500) mark in France. ― AFP-Relaxnews |
| Slain Iraqis ‘of no threat’ to Blackwater guards Posted: 27 Aug 2014 05:48 PM PDT
The four, who were guarding a US diplomatic convoy when they opened fire, are accused of shooting dead the unarmed Iraqis, including women and children, who were desperately trying to flee for their lives on September 16, 2007 in Baghdad's Nisour Square. The hail of gunfire, which also wounded 18 people, exacerbated Iraqi resentment toward Americans and was seen by critics as an example of the impunity enjoyed by private security firms on the US payroll in Iraq. At the close of the two-and-a-half-month trial in a federal court in Washington, US Attorney Anthony Asuncion asked simply what had motivated the men, now former Blackwater employees, to fire on the terrified civilians. "Why fire on so many innocent people? Why? Why shoot all of these people who are running away, who are trying to get away from these (four) men? Why shoot women and children who are unarmed?" he asked. "There's no reason. What they did was criminal. "People who could laugh, who could love, were turned into bloodied, bullet-riddled corpses, people who were not legitimate targets... who were no real threat to them." After showing images of the faces of the 14 people killed and 18 wounded, the prosecutor asked the jury to find the four guilty. Paul Slough, Evan Liberty, Dustin Heard and Nicholas Slatten, who have pleaded not guilty, sat quietly dressed in suits and ties. Slatten, 32, is charged with the first-degree murder of a civilian and faces life in prison if convicted. Slough, Liberty and Heard are accused of voluntary manslaughter of the 13 other victims. Earlier in the trial, defence attorney Bill Heberlig stressed that security was facing terrible threats after the September 11 strikes on the United States. "This was not Dupont Circle (in Washington), this was Baghdad, Iraq," Heberlig said, insisting Slatten "fired under control at a limited number of legitimate threats. He acted in self-defense, he committed no crime that day." Blackwater, whose license to work in Iraq was revoked by Baghdad, was renamed Xe Services in 2009 and then Academi in 2011. The jury was expected to begin deliberations today. — AFP |
| ‘Sexy’ women fighters in muay thai ad tempting Allah’s wrath, Isma claims Posted: 27 Aug 2014 05:46 PM PDT
The group's Kedah chapter said the billboards were considered sinful because they showed the fighters garbed in "indecent" wear. "These are advertisements that would invite the wrath of Allah!" Kedah Isma chief Abdul Fisol Mohd Isa was quoted as saying in an interview with the group's website ismaalorstar.net. The billboards are promotional advertisements for the Z1 International 2014 Mentri Besar Muay Thai Tournament, which features pictures of both men and women fighters. Men muay thai fighters are usually dressed only in shorts, while the women are dressed in shorts and a sports bra that fully covers the breasts. The report said, however, that the advertisement is considered sinful because the women featured had not put on hijab (veil) or covered the "aurat". The report also appeared to suggest that the billboards would not have been installed if Kedah was still under the rule of Islamist party PAS. "These things were never present under the previous administration," it said, referring to the government of the late former Kedah PAS Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Azizan Abdul Razak. Kedah fell to Barisan Nasional (BN) during last year's 13th general election and is currently ruled by Umno's Datuk Mukhriz Mahathir. The Kedah government has yet to respond to Malay Mail Online's request for comment at the time of publication.
It regularly accuses rights movements and those who do not subscribe to their views of being proxies and agents of an alleged agenda to mislead Malays and Muslims. Isma previously claimed that "Western-style democracy" was a ruse by developed countries to colonise Muslim nations through soft power, and alleged the United Nations was an invention of the Jews. In May, Isma president Abdullah Zaik Abd Rahman wrote that the ethnic Chinese were considered intruders into Malay land, and had been brought by British colonialists to oppress Malays. He has since been charged with sedition for the remark. |
| Posted: 27 Aug 2014 05:41 PM PDT
The Nikkei 225 index was down 52.55 points at 15,482.27 at the start. "There remains a lack of trading incentives, while the dollar is meeting resistance above the 104-yen mark, which invites profit-taking," said Hiroichi Nishi, general manager of equities at SMBC Nikko Securities. The dollar fetched 103.87 yen in early Asian trade, creeping up from 103.86 yen in New York yesterday afternoon but down from 104.01 yen in Tokyo earlier yesterday. A strong yen works against Japanese exporters as it makes their products less competitive abroad and erodes profits when repatriated. The euro bought US$1.3188 and ¥136.98 today, down from US$1.3195 and 137.05 yen in US trade. Wall Street shares ended little-changed yesterday, one day after the S&P 500 closed above the 2,000 milestone for the first time. The broad-market benchmark S&P added 0.10 points — just enough to set a new high of 2,000.12. The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average edged up 0.09 per cent to 17,122.01. — AFP |
| You are subscribed to email updates from The Malay Mail Online | All To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
| Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610 | |
