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Swiss watchmakers say slowing growth in China won’t hurt sales this year

Visitors are seen in front of a display of Swiss watch manufacturer Patek Philippe at the Baselworld watch and jewellery fair in Basel
Visitors are seen in front of a display of Swiss watch manufacturer Patek Philippe at the Baselworld watch and jewellery fair in Basel, Switzerland March 21, 2019. REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann

March 21, 2019

BASEL, Switzerland (Reuters) – Swiss watchmakers are confident they can grow sales this year even in the face of a cooling Chinese economy, executives told Reuters at an industry fair on Thursday, as demand strengthens in other markets like the United States and Britain.

Switzerland’s watch industry, which relies heavily on Chinese customers, has seen exports – the best available indicator for demand – rise only 2.1 percent in the first two months of the year, following a 6.3 percent increase last year.

However, some are confident they will do much better this year.

“We’re aiming for double-digit growth in our watch business this year,” Jean-Christophe Babin, chief executive of LVMH’s jeweler Bulgari, said in an interview at the Baselworld show.

His comments were echoed by independent watchmaker Oris, also banking on a double-digit increase, while LVMH stablemate Hublot said it had an exceptional year in 2018 and was counting on 7-8 percent growth this year from a high basis.

Oris said sales in the United States, its biggest market, were growing strongly. That trend was confirmed by retailer Watches of Switzerland, which also reported firm UK demand, particularly for Rolex, Patek Philippe and Audemars Piguet products.

Luxury watch brand Patek Philippe, whose most affordable models cost around 14,000 Swiss francs, said it expected sales this year to be at a similar level to last year as it was again going to deliver around 62,000 pieces.

Its president, Thierry Stern, categorically denied recent speculation the family-owned company could be up for sale.

Swetha Ramachandran, who manages a luxury brands equity fund for GAM, said privately owned brands like Patek or Rolex were seeing better demand than their listed counterparts because they had not given in to the temptation of easy volume growth when Chinese demand boomed a few years ago.

That meant they have avoided the build-up of excess inventory that has hurt some rivals, while protecting the scarcity value of their brands.

“Private players are managing their business for price rather than for volume,” she told Reuters in an interview earlier this week.

She said Richemont was still one of her top 10 holdings due to its exposure to faster-growing jewelry, but she had exited Swatch Group shares.

Switzerland’s watch industry is going through a period of profound change, notably in distribution, as brands focus on developing their own boutiques — brick and mortar or online — while reducing their network of third-party retailers.

This development has led more and more brands to exit the traditional watch fairs in Basel and Geneva, which they had used to build up contacts with distributors. That was reflected in fewer exhibiting brands and much less crowded aisles at the Baselworld fair on Thursday.

Several executives said efforts to hold both watch fairs in April next year, instead of separately in January and March, were going in the right direction, but were not sufficient.

“April is too late in the year,” said Hublot CEO Ricardo Guadalupe. “At LVMH, we have not really decided what to do next year. We already signed contracts for Baselworld so we’re likely to be in Basel, but we might also organize a separate event in January to present our new models.”

(Reporting by Silke Koltrowitz; Editing by Jan Harvey)

Source: OANN

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Russia dismisses speculation about its ‘specialists’ in Venezuela

Russia's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zakharova listens during the annual news conference in Moscow
Russia's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova listens during the annual news conference of the Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (not pictured) in Moscow, Russia January 16, 2019. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

March 30, 2019

MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia has clearly stated the purpose of the “specialists” it has sent to Venezuela under a military cooperation deal, Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Saturday, dismissing U.S. concerns about their presence.

“The Russian side clearly stated the purpose of the arrival of its specialists to Caracas. This is not about any ‘military contingents’,” Zakharova said in a statement.

“Thus, the speculations about the conduct of certain ‘military operations’ by Russia in Venezuela are absolutely groundless.”

Russia has said its “specialists” pose no threat to regional stability, brushing aside a call from the United States to remove all its military personnel from Venezuela.

(Reporting by Polina Devitt; Editing by Catherine Evans)

Source: OANN

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Trump slams Democrats for campaigning on 'seductive' socialist policies

President Trump, in a new interview, tore into Democrats for campaigning on what he called “seductive” socialist policies despite potentially dire consequences.

Trump offered up the stinging rebuke during a wide-ranging interview published Monday night.

He said socialist policies are “seductive” and “easy” for politicians to campaign on, but warned about what would happen if they are put in place.

SANDERS SAYS HIS IDEAS ARE NOW BEING INVOKED BY DEM CANDIDATES 'FROM SCHOOL BOARD TO PRESIDENT'

“You always have to be very careful, because socialism is easy to campaign on but tough to govern on, because the country goes down the tubes,” Trump told conservative website Breitbart.

“But when you tell people free medical, free education, no more student loans—all of the different things that you say—it’s a great thing to campaign on, but then ten years later the country is down the tubes. It’s gone.

“So, you always have to be careful with it, because you know you talk about single-payer, it sounds very seductive—single-payer—say what you want, but it’s a very seductive thing. But it means you’re not going to have good healthcare, it means the country is not going to be able to afford it.”

The president then suggested the 2020 election could come down to a “referendum on socialism versus capitalism,” according to the website.

'PAWN STARS' HOST RICK HARRISON SLAMS SOCIALISM: 'THERE'S NO POINT IN WORKING HARD'

Trump’s remarks come shortly after Vice President Pence accused Democrats of openly advocating for socialism with far-left policies such as "Medicare-for-all" and the Green New Deal -- a system he said had “impoverished millions of people around the world.”

Speaking at the Conservative Political Action Conference earlier this month, Pence said: “Under the guise of Medicare-for-all and a Green New Deal, Democrats are embracing the same tired economic theories that have impoverished nations and stifled the liberties of millions over the past century.

“That system is socialism.”

He pointed in particular to the Democratic 2020 presidential candidates, many of whom have backed the Green New Deal and Medicare-for-all in some form, and accused them of having “papered over the failed policies of socialism with bumper-sticker slogans and slick social media campaigns.”

PELOSI SAYS SHE'S OPPOSED TO IMPEACHING TRUMP: 'HE'S JUST NOT WORTH IT'

The recent rise and dominance of a hard-left faction in the Democratic Party has opened the door for conservatives to again sound those warnings -- especially as figures such as Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., have openly embraced the label of “democratic socialism."

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The Green New Deal would seek to eliminate fossil fuels in favor of 100 percent renewable energy, as well as overhaul America’s economy with universal health care, job guarantee programs and other costly items. Meanwhile, a number have called for Medicare-for-all plans, with both Sens. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., and Sanders not backing away from the idea that their proposals would eliminate private insurance.

Fox News' Adam Shaw contributed to this report.

Source: Fox News Politics

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Protective tarps set to be installed over Notre Dame

The man in charge of the restoration of the fire-ravaged Notre Dame cathedral says he has appointed professional mountain climbers to install temporary tarps over the building to offset potential rain damage.

With showers set to hit the French capital this week, the architect-in-chief said he had to rush the installation of the protective covers.

Speaking to BFM TV station, Philippe Villeneuve said "the highest priority is to protect the cathedral from the rain to come."

He said the installation should start Tuesday.

Notre Dame isn't expected to reopen to the public for five or six years, according to its rector, although French president Emmanuel Macron is pushing for a quick reconstruction. Investigators think the fire was an accident, possibly linked to renovation work.

Source: Fox News World

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Bolsonaro seeks to revise how Brazil’s schools teach on coup

Days after celebrating the anniversary of the military coup that led to Brazil's last dictatorship, the government of far-right President Jair Bolsonaro is pushing for a revision of the history curriculum for the country's schools.

Education Minister Ricardo Velez Rodriguez says he will introduce changes in school textbooks so children will get a "true idea" of that era, describing the de facto government that took over after the coup as a "democratic regime of force."

"Brazilian history shows that March 31, 1964, was a sovereign decision of the Brazilian society. It wasn't the barracks that put Castelo Branco at the presidency," Velez Rodriguez said in an interview published Thursday in the newspaper daily Valor.

Repeating Bolsonaro's interpretation of those times, the minister denied it was a coup that removed democratically elected President Joao Goulart, saying the military acted with the support of Congress in installing Marshal Castelo Branco, head of the army, as the country's leader.

The armed forces then shut down Congress and held power for 21 years with a regime marked by censorship, political persecution, torture and death.

Velez Rodriguez argued that Brazil adopted a "democratic regime of force because it was necessary at the time" to block the rise of communism.

The administration of Bolsonaro, a former army captain who is a fervent anti-leftist, also reaffirmed its controversial reading of Brazil's past to the United Nations in a telegram, which The Associated Press had access to. It was sent in response to a comment by Fabian Salvioli, the U.N. special investigator on the promotion of truth, justice, reparations and guarantees of non-recurrence, who described the commemorations of the coup as "inadmissible."

The government's telegram said "there was not a coup d'etat but a legitimate political movement" that was supported by a majority of Brazilians to deal with "the growing threat of a communist takeover" and "terrorist organizations."

In his interview, Velez Rodriguez said there will be "progressive changes" in school material to rescue "a broader version of history."

Carlos Fico, a history professor at Rio de Janeiro Federal University who specializes in Latin American dictatorships, said the government's initiative is "a purely ideological denial attempt" that will fail.

"In the field of historiography there is no doubt, there is no debate of this kind. No one is denying that there was a coup and a dictatorship because it would be considered ridiculous," Fico said.

The government's weekend commemoration of the coup angered many Brazilians, and protests were held in cities across Brazil.

The National Truth Commission, which investigated the crimes of Brazil's dictatorship, has said at least 434 people were disappeared and there were more than 30,000 illegal detentions and cases of torture. But no one has ever been tried in Brazil for the regime's abuses, unlike in Argentina, Chile and Uruguay, which have tried people associated with their dictatorships of the same era.

"In denying history, the government tries to devalue all the struggles of Brazilian workers for their rights and wipe out the gains they still have," said Cesar Cordaro, a former Sao Paulo prosecutor who is a member of the Paulista Committee for Memory, Truth and Justice.

Source: Fox News World

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Amnesty slams Brunei's new 'vicious' Islamic criminal laws

Amnesty International has slammed plans by Brunei to implement what the rights group calls "vicious" Islamic criminal laws such as stoning to death for gay sex and amputation for theft.

Amnesty says the new penalties, which also apply to children, are provided for in new sections under Brunei's Sharia Penal Code and will come into effect April 3.

Brunei's sultan instituted the Sharia Penal Code in 2014 to bolster the influence of Islam in the tiny, oil-rich monarchy, which has long been known for conservative policies such as banning the public sale of liquor.

Amnesty on Wednesday called the new laws "cruel and inhuman" and urged the sultanate to "immediately halt its plans to implement these vicious punishments."

Source: Fox News World

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Grassley, GOP Sens Blindsided by Trump's Obamacare Move

Congressional Republicans were rattled by President Donald Trump's decision to back a complete overhaul of Obamacare, The Hill reports.

"I don't think there was any heads-up on anything that he was going to say," Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said after the Trump administration Monday told a federal appeals court  the entire Affordable Care Act must be abolished.

"It doesn't seem to make sense politically," said one Republican senator who spoke to The Hill.

Trump's move came after Attorney General William Barr on Sunday told Congress that special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation did "not establish that the president was involved" in any crime related to interference to help him win the 2016 presidential election.

"He didn't have to do it now," added House Republican Chair Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., according to Fox News.

Still, Cheney said the timing did not bother her, since Republicans want to repeal Obamacare.

One Republican senator told The Hill, starting the healthcare battle ahead of the 2020 elections was questionable.

"If you look at past history, we don't really know how to do it," the senator added, referring to broad healthcare legislation. 

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., told Trump his plan to toss out Obamacare made no sense, per Axios.

Source: NewsMax America

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FILE PHOTO: Shoppers walk past the Debenhams department store on Oxford Street in London
FILE PHOTO: Shoppers walk past the Debenhams department store on Oxford Street in London, Britain December 15, 2018. REUTERS/Simon Dawson

April 26, 2019

(Reuters) – Ailing British retailer Debenhams said two proposed company voluntary arrangements (CVA) could see all its stores remaining open during 2019, with 22 closures planned for next year, putting about 1,200 jobs at risk.

Debenhams’ lenders took control of the retailer earlier this month in a process designed to keep its shops open at the expense of shareholders.

(Reporting by Noor Zainab Hussain in Bengaluru; editing by Gopakumar Warrier)

Source: OANN

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FILE PHOTO: Xiaomi branding is seen on a carrier bag at a UK launch event in London
FILE PHOTO: Xiaomi branding is seen on a carrier bag at a UK launch event in London, Britain, November 8, 2018. REUTERS/Toby Melville

April 26, 2019

BENGALURU (Reuters) – Chinese brands controlled a record 66 percent of Indian smartphone market in the first quarter, led by Xiaomi Corp, a report showed, with volumes rising 20 percent on the back of popularity for brands like Vivo, RealMe and Oppo.

Xiaomi’s India shipments fell by 2 percent over last year, but the Beijing-based company was still the biggest smartphone brand in the country, followed by Samsung Electronics Co Ltd, according to Hong-Kong based Counterpoint Research.

Shipment volumes for Vivo jumped 119 percent, while those of Oppo rose 28 percent.

“Vivo’s expanding portfolio in the mid-tier range ($100 to $180) drove its growth along with aggressive Indian Premier League cricket campaign,” Counterpoint analysts said.

India is the world’s fastest growing market for smartphones, where affordable pricing coupled with features like “selfie” cameras and big screens have popularized Chinese brands.

Video streaming services like Netflix Inc and Hotstar, as well as heavy usage of messaging apps like Facebook Inc’s WhatsApp have further spurred demand.

“Data consumption is on the rise and users are upgrading their phones faster as compared to other regions,” Counterpoint’s Tarun Pathak said.

“As a result of this, the premium specs are now diffusing faster into the mid-tier price brands. We estimate this trend to continue leading to a competitive mid-tier segment in coming quarters.”

(Reporting By Arnab Paul in Bengaluru; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)

Source: OANN

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Good morning and welcome to Fox News First. Here’s a look at what you need to know today …

EXCLUSIVE: Trump says ‘Sleepy Joe’ Biden doesn’t have what it takes

President Trump, in a wide-ranging, exclusive phone interview with Fox News’ Sean Hannity, dismissed the launch of former Vice President Joe Biden’s presidential campaign, nicknaming him “Sleepy Joe” and saying he’s “not the brightest bulb.” Biden, the president said, has name recognition but he won’t “be able to do the job.” When asked about Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., Trump criticized his record, saying Sanders had “misguided energy” and asserted that Sanders “talks a lot” but hasn’t accomplished anything. The president referred to former U.S. Rep. Beto O’Rourke of Texas as “a fluke” who had lost much momentum and outright dismissed Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., and South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg — although he said he was “rooting” for Buttigieg. (Trump could address Biden and the other Democratic presidential candidates when he speaks today before the National Rifle Association.)

The Democratic Party’s youth movement: Biden’s biggest challenge?
Former Democratic National Committee (DNC) chair Howard Dean warned Joe Biden about the troubles he may face in his presidential campaign, especially from the “35-year-olds” who Dean says have been running the party — a clear nod to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and fellow freshmen Democrats. “This is a very different party than even the party Joe Biden ran in in 2012. Very different,” Dean continued. “A lot of people could win this race. There’s 20 people in there. I think it’s going to take $20 million to get to the starting line. If you can’t raise $20 million, you’re gone, and I think that’s going to take care of about six or eight of these folks. … But it is not the same party that it was five years ago.” A progressive political group that boosted Ocasio-Cortez’s bid for Congress last year vowed to oppose Biden and blasted him as part of the “old guard.”

More tales from the FBI texts
Text messages between former FBI officials Peter Strzok and Lisa Page indicate they discussed using briefings to the Trump team after the 2016 election to identify people they could “develop for potential relationships,” track lines of questioning and “assess” changes in “demeanor” – language one GOP lawmaker called “more evidence” of irregular conduct in the original Russia probe. Fox News has learned the texts, initially released in 2018 by a Senate committee, are under renewed scrutiny, with GOP Sen. Chuck Grassley and Homeland Security Committee chair Ron Johnson sending a letter Thursday night to Attorney General Bill Barr pushing for more information on the matter. President Trump, speaking on Fox News’ “Hannity” Thursday night, responded to this report by accusing Strzok and Page of an attempted “coup.” “They were trying to infiltrate the administration,” he said.

Kim accuses US of acting in ‘bad faith’
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, fresh off his summit with  Russian President Vladimir Putin, said the U.S. has been acting in “bad faith” since his Hanoi meeting with President Trump over the stalemated issue of North Korean denuclearization. The North Korean leader told the Korean Central News Agency that, “the situation on the Korean Peninsula and the region is now at a standstill and has reached a critical point,” the Straits Times of Singapore reported. Kim warned that the situation “may return to its original state as the U.S. took a unilateral attitude in bad faith at the recent second DPRK-US summit talks,” the Korean Central News Agency added.

NFL Draft 2019: It’s all about defense
The first round of the 2019 NFL Draft saw a run on defensive players, with eight of the top 12 picks in Nashville coming from that side of the ball. After Oklahoma quarterback Kyler Murray was taken first overall by the Arizona Cardinals, the San Francisco 49ers started a run of four straight front-seven players by taking Ohio State defensive end Nick Bosa with the second overall pick — the highest draft slot for any Buckeye since left tackle Orlando Pace went No. 1 overall to the St. Louis Rams in 1997.

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TODAY’S MUST-READS
Fox News’ Ed Henry recalls spending time with Celtics great John Havlicek.
Massachusetts judge accused of helping illegal immigrant evade ICE pleads not guilty.
Rosenstein slams Obama administration for choosing ‘not to publicize full story’ of Russia hacking.
F.H. Buckley: What Democrats have forgotten about citizenship.

MINDING YOUR BUSINESS
Amazon crushes earnings expectations, but revenue growth slows.
Low-tax states among best places to make a living in 2019.
Construction job market booming: These states are hiring.

#TheFlashback
2018: Bill Cosby is convicted of drugging and molesting Temple University employee Andrea Constand at his suburban Philadelphia mansion in 2004; it is the first big celebrity trial of the #MeToo era.
1986: An explosion and fire at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in Ukraine causes radioactive fallout to spew into the atmosphere. (Dozens of people are killed in the immediate aftermath of the disaster while the long-term death toll from radiation poisoning is believed to number in the thousands.)
1977: Notorious nightclub Studio 54 opens in New York.

SOME PARTING WORDS

Watch the “Special Report” panel take a look at former Vice President Joe Biden’s decision to run for president a third time and the battle for the “soul” of America.

Not signed up yet for Fox News First? Click here to find out what you’re missing.

CLICK HERE to find out what’s on Fox News programming today and over the weekend!

Fox News First is compiled by Fox News’ Bryan Robinson. Thank you for joining us! Have a good day and weekend! We’ll see you in your inbox first thing Monday morning.

Source: Fox News National

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Joe Biden’s brain surgeon said his former patient is “totally in the clear” as speculation over the candidate’s health — with Biden possibly becoming the oldest president in U.S. history — is likely to become a campaign issue.

The former vice president, who had been perceived by many as the strongest potential contender for the Democratic Party’s 2020 presidential nomination, formally announced his candidacy Thursday.

But Biden’s age – 76 – is expected to become a source of attacks from a younger generation of Democrats not because of obvious generational differences, but possibly for actual health concerns if Biden gets into office.

WHY THE MEDIA ARE CONVINCED JOE BIDEN WILL IMPLODE

Biden himself agreed last year that “it’s totally legitimate” for people to ask questions about his health if he decides to run for president, given his medical history — which has included brain surgery in 1988.

“I think they’re gonna judge me on my vitality,” Biden told “CBS This Morning.” “Can I still run up the steps of Air Force Two? Am I still in good shape? Am I – do I have all my faculties? Am I energetic? I think it’s totally legitimate people ask those questions.”

“I think they’re gonna judge me on my vitality. …  I think it’s totally legitimate [that] people ask those questions.”

— Joe Biden

But Dr. Neal Kassell, the neurosurgeon who operated on Biden for an aneurysm three decades ago, told the Washington Examiner that Biden appears to be “totally in the clear” — and even joked that the operation made Biden “better than how he was.”

“Joe Biden of all of the politicians in Washington is the only one that I’m certain has a brain, because I have seen it,” Kassell said. “That’s more than I can say about all the other candidates or the incumbents.”

“Joe Biden of all of the politicians in Washington is the only one that I’m certain has a brain, because I have seen it.”

— Dr. Neal Kassell

BIDEN’S CLAIM HE DIDN’T WANT OBAMA TO ENDORSE TRIGGERS MOCKERY

At the same time, however, Biden hasn’t been forthcoming about his health at least since 2008 when he released his medical records as a vice presidential candidate. The disclosure that time revealed some fairly minor issues such as an irregular heartbeat in addition to detailing previous operations, including removing a benign polyp during a colonoscopy in 1996, the outlet reported.

It remains unclear if Biden had more aneurysms. Some medical experts say that people who have had an aneurysm can have another one.

An aneurysm, or a weakening of an artery wall, can lead to a rupture and internal bleeding, potentially placing a patient’s life in jeopardy.

Biden won’t be the only Democrat grappling with old age. Sen. Bernie Sanders, another 2020 frontrunner, is currently 77 years old and agreed with Biden last year that their ages will be an issue in the race.

“It’s part of a discussion, but it has to be part of an overall view of what somebody is and what somebody has accomplished,” Sanders told Politico.

“Look, you’ve got people who are 50 years of age who are not well, right? You’ve got people who are 90 years of age who are going to work every day, doing excellent work. And obviously, age is a factor. But it depends on the overall health and wellbeing of the individual.”

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Sanders released his medical records in 2016, with a Senate physician saying in a letter that the senator was “in overall very good health.”

Source: Fox News Politics

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German carmaker Daimler endured a weak start to the year, echoing troubles at other major manufacturers, as sales in the big Chinese market stuttered.

The company said Friday that its net income fell to 2.1 billion euros ($2.3 billion) in the first quarter from 2.3 billion euros during the same period a year earlier, while revenue dipped to 39.7 billion euros from 39.8 billion euros.

Vehicle sales fell 4% to 773,800 units, with a double-digit percentage drop in China offsetting gains in other markets like the U.S. and Europe.

The company said there were also problems with high inventories and bottlenecks in the supply chain.

Chairman Dieter Zetsche said that “we cannot and will not be satisfied with this — as expected — moderate start to the year.”

Source: Fox News World

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