Ansteel braced for
‘long-term struggle’: mostly due to weak demand from China and
over-capacity; but there are some pockets of growth for steel demand – such as
home appliances, vehicles and construction – that can be attributed to China’s
urbanisation and rising income levels. Regardless, still a long, painful path
ahead. [Note: add that to weak coal, what to make of it?]…Source: http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/90b29858-d0f3-11e2-be7b-00144feab7de.html#axzz2VlMLiEma
High prices are
driving more motorists to rent tires: Soaring costs for natural rubber and
petroleum used to manufacture tires have pushed up prices. The average price of
a passenger tire in the U.S. increased 57% in 2012 from 2006, according to data
from trade publication Modern Tire Dealer. The prices on some popular sizes
have more than doubled. With payments as low as $14 a week, rent-to-own — long
the province of sofa sets and flat-screen TVs — is proving irresistible for
consumers desperate for safe transportation…[Source: there has to be money here
somewhere]…Source: http://www.latimes.com/business/autos/la-fi-rent-a-tire-20130609,0,2490443,full.story
The workforce in the
cloud: outsourced jobs on like (such as translation and coding) toped $1 bn
in revenue in 2012, but only 33 bp of the estimated 300 bn spent worldwide on these
“contingent workers”. Helped by the rating system, workers on oDesk increase
their hourly rate by almost 60% on average in their first year, and by around
190% in three years. [Note: But wouldn’t any body really good at this will be
quickly hired or institutionalized? Regardless, an interesting service with a
lot of potential]…Source: http://www.economist.com/news/business/21578658-talent-exchanges-web-are-starting-transform-world-work-workforce
The May jobs report,
in charts! One thing to note: mining/logging volume since recession bounced
back big time, yet information and construction sectors never really recovered.
Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/06/07/the-may-jobs-report-in-charts/
Are coders worth it?
“Web start-up companies are like play-companies. They stand in relation to real
companies the way those cute little make-believe baking stations stand in
relation to kitchens…This cascade of invention is a miracle. But as much as I
want to thank the folks who did it all, I also want to warn them: When you make
it this easy to write and distribute software, so easy that I can do it, you
risk creating a fearsome babel of gimcrack entrepreneurship.”…Source: http://www.aeonmagazine.com/living-together/james-somers-web-developer-money/
Tatsuo Horiuchi | the
73-year old Excel spreadsheet artist: [Note: warning, this could crash your
excel]…Source: http://www.spoon-tamago.com/2013/05/28/tatsuo-horiuchi-excel-spreadsheet-artist/
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