Innholdsfortegnelse for 11/27/2020 i Newsweek International

1989 “The volume of garbage keeps growing,” Newsweek reported, “up by 80 percent since 1960, expected to mount an additional 20 percent by 2000. Not including sludge and construction wastes, Americans collectively toss out 160 million tons each year—enough to spread 30 stories high over 1,000 football fields, enough to fill a bumper-to-bumper convoy of garbage trucks halfway to the moon.” Fears grew as new landfills had to open—no one wants a landfill in their neighborhood. By 2017, Americans produced 267.8 million tons of garbage, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. 1963 “There are signs that China’s Red rulers are taking a more pragmatic view,” wrote Newsweek. China stepped back from its “bellicose stance in a nuclear world,” instead shifting to a focus on “feeding the nation’s hungry millions.” Recently,…

The endless potential of castor oil has long been recognized by Itoh Oil Chemicals Company, which has been in the business of manufacturing high-quality castor oil-based products and derivatives since 1946 and boasts Japan’s largest castor oil refinery. But only in recent years, amid increasing environmental awareness, have many industries opened their eyes to the benefits of castor oil, particularly as a substitute for fossil-fuel based oils and lubricants. Consumer trends for more environmentally friendly products has spurred increasing demand for castor oil and its derivatives in the manufacturing of everything from bio-based plastics, lubricants and specialty rubber, to paints and cosmetic products, while its medicinal properties have also prompted its rising utilization in the health and pharmaceutical industries. Such demand bodes very well for Itoh Oil Chemicals, which has…

The red carpets in Riyadh may have been rolled away due to the COVID-19 pandemic forcing this year’s G20 Leaders’ Summit in Saudi Arabia to become a high-profile virtual event rather than a glittering gathering in its modern and prosperous capital, but the kingdom will certainly look back on its presidency of the premier forum for international economic cooperation with great pride and a sense of real achievement. Through a series of focused discussions, conferences, forums, working groups and ministerial meetings, Saudi Arabia has developed a rewarding portfolio of projects and initiatives under the theme of “Realizing Opportunities of the 21st Century for All”. King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud had always expressed his unwavering confidence in his country’s G20 presidency: “We are undergoing a historic transformation under our Saudi…

The digitalization drive in Saudi Arabia continues to accelerate as increasing numbers of companies harness the speed and efficiency of state-of-the-art hardware and software, with this positive trend most evident in the banking and financial services industries. Secure and streamlined frameworks have been designed to match global fintech benchmarks, with the Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority (SAMA) taking the best components of regulations from world-class financial centers including Singapore and London. Through fully owned subsidiary Saudi Payments, SAMA had a leading role in the creation of a safe, reliable, low-cost and efficient system for financial transactions and card payments made online, through ATMs or in shops and stores. Guided by the Financial Sector Development Program, the company’s work is an important conduit for the Vision 2030 goals of a cashless society…

Saudi Arabia’s exciting journey to economic diversification offers a broad range of investment opportunities for adventurous and ambitious international enterprises, but such investors often require highly detailed knowledge of market conditions and potential pitfalls specific to individual commercial and trade sectors before committing significant sums of investment. As the world’s largest Sharia-compliant asset manager and the kingdom’s second-largest broker, NCB Capital has a wealth of industry experience and is a fully fledged investment bank that offers different kinds of asset management, brokerage and advisory services for clients. “One of the main game changers for investors are the amendments we have seen in Saudi regulations recently that have opened up options for those who want to pursue a particular business,” explains Sarah Jammaz Al Suhaimi, CEO, NCB Capital. “There are many…

“We’ve introduced things like Sakura Extract (Japanese cherry blossom extract) and Fucoxanthin (the extract of konbu and wakame, a Japanese seaweed) to the world”Hiromichi Murai, President & CEO, Oryza Oil & Fat Chemical Co., Ltd. Over the last decade or so, the growing global appetite for Japanese food has been seemingly insatiable. It is not hard to understand why, when typical Japanese dishes are not only renowned for their extraordinary flavour, but also for their relative healthiness. Japanese food’s incredible rise in popularity is also no surprise, therefore, when you consider its relatively recent ascent has coincided with an era defined by a shift in tastes toward more health-conscious eating habits. And just as this trend in healthy eating has broadened across continents as populations become more affluent, so too…

“We distinguish ourselves by making what the large companies don’t have and can’t provide”Kanzo Shimizu, President, NEION Film Coatings Corp. As Japanese SMEs look to go global, many are reorienting from the B2B towards the B2C market, developing niche technologies and products that give them a competitive edge over larger firms. One such company is NEION Film Coatings Corporation, which, for over 60 years, has been a leading manufacturer of PSA films and coating technology for several industrial fields. Drawing on its long-cultivated adhesive technologies, NEION develops products for a wide range of applications, including LCD screen-protective films for smartphones, PSA films for POP product labels, as well as advertising and signage. But with an eye on global growth, NEION has focused more priority on B2C products, including its high-performing…

IN THE WEEKS LEADING UP TO ELECTION DAY, the focus was on Pennsylvania and its 20 electoral votes as the potential fulcrum of victory in a tight race. As anticipated, the Keystone State did indeed put Joe Biden over the top. But in the end, the most consequential state of the 2020 race may turn out to be Georgia, one that most Democrats had written off. And the party largely has one person to thank for that: Stacey Abrams. The former gubernatorial candidate turned voting rights activist was a pivotal force in pushing Biden to apparent victory in Georgia, albeit by the slimmest of margins—just 14,000 votes or three-tenths of a percentage point—marking the first time since 1992 that the state has voted for a Democrat for president. (The race…

Nowhere in Saudi Arabia is the sheer scale of the kingdom’s stunning transformation into a diversified and knowledge-based economy more evident than in—as well as above— Dhahran, where the iconic King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture (Ithra) reaches high into the sky. Designed and built in just eight years, the award-winning 90-meter-tall structure is a thriving cultural hub that showcases and celebrates human potential as the greatest source of change, and focuses on accelerating that potential by encouraging creativity, inspiring minds and empowering talent among people of all ages. Inaugurated in 2016 by King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Ithra was the brainchild of energy titan Saudi Aramco and is the company’s flagship corporate social responsibility initiative. It is the largest cultural contributor to Saudi Arabia. “Ithra is housed in…

IN A ROLLING STONE INTERVIEW PUBLISHED IN 1985, Prince told writer Neal Karlen about a pivotal moment in his life: the time his father kicked him out of the house. From a pay phone, Prince pleaded with his dad to take him back: “He still said no. I sat crying at that phone booth for two hours. That’s the last time I cried.” It made for a terrific origin story: a sobbing kid—then known by his nickname Skipper—emerges from a phone booth to become Prince the star. Except it wasn’t true. As Karlen later learned, Prince’s father had never kicked him out. Karlen says, “Ken Kesey had that line: ‘The trouble with superheroes is what to do between phone booths.’ I think that Prince had that problem.” That revelation is…

It is often said that Japan’s chuken kigyo – its formidable cohort of small and medium-sized enterprises which account for more than 90% of the country’s businesses – make up the backbone of the Japanese economy. If that is true, then to extend the metaphor, the Japanese chemical industry provides a constant flow of blood that keeps the economic heart beating. The chemical industry, perhaps to the surprise of some, is the country’s second largest manufacturing sector behind transportation machinery. In its most broad definition, chemicals makes up over 14% of all output value in Japanese manufacturing and is essential to Japan’s most notable industry, automotive, which is highly dependent on raw materials provided by chemical manufacturers. “We want to concentrate more on developing specific technology to provide solutions to…

“I’m not at all hooked in any high-tech internets. I don’t even have a (cell) phone, man. I’m talking to you from on a landline.“ —KEITH RICHARDS “DO WE WANT TO WIN, DO WE WANT TO GOVERN, OR DO WE WANT TO BE INTERNET CELEBRITIES?” —HOUSE DEMOCRATIC CAUCUS CHAIR HAKEEM JEFFRIES, ON HIS PARTY’S LEFT WING “It started as just a very strange syndrome where I kept breaking into a terrible sweat. It was like a poncho of sweat, embarrassing really." —HUGH GRANT ON COVID-19 “It will definitely start a conversation. It will definitely promote comment and debate and that’s good, that’s what Mary did all her life.” —u.k. author bee rowlatt on a nude statue honoring mary wollstonecraft “WHEN YOU HAVE PUBLIC FIGURES LIKE BANNON CALLING FOR YOUR BEHEADING,…

The banking and financial services sectors have flourished under the watchful eye and steady hand of the Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority (SAMA). As the kingdom’s central bank, SAMA has spearheaded fiscal developments and programmes on behalf of the government for nearly 70 years, with its comprehensive remit including responsibility for maintaining the national currency, supervision of commercial banks, management of foreign exchange reserves, and oversight of monetary policy. “Digital innovation is one of our strong points but our focus had shifted a little bit—now, the industry is on the lookout for what we do next.”Rania M. Nashar, CEO, Samba Financial Group “Cooperation and collaboration have always been the hallmark of the G20,” says Ahmed A. Alkholifey, Governor, SAMA. “During the Saudi presidency of the G20 this year, we believe we…

Prince Warner Brothers, 1979 Prince’s second album announced the arrival of a commercial and cultural force. It gave him his first gold single (“I Wanna Be Your Lover”) and a name for his funk-pop fusion (“The Minneapolis Sound”). Around the World in a Day Warner Brothers, Paisley Park, 1985 Prince’s Purple Rain follow-up showed he was more interested in taking uncharted paths than repeating himself. Although it went double platinum, briefly hit number one, and included the Top Ten singles “Raspberry Beret” and “Pop Life,” it was deemed a flop compared to Purple Rain. Batman Warner Brothers, 1989 The soundtrack to Tim Burton’s take on the Caped Crusader gave us “Party-man” and “Batdance.” When Oprah asked what the first song he ever played was, Prince said at age seven he…