Black Friday, Thanksgiving online sales climb to record high www.reuters.com

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Black Friday and Thanksgiving online sales in the United States surged to record highs as shoppers bagged deep discounts and bought more on their mobile devices, heralding a promising start to the key holiday season, according to retail analytics firms.

U.S. retailers raked in a record $7.9 billion in online sales on Black Friday and Thanksgiving, up 17.9 percent from a year ago, according to Adobe Analytics, which measures transactions at the largest 100 U.S. web retailers, on Saturday.

Open discussion on violence against children and women held www.montsame.mn

Ulaanbaatar /MONTSAME/ At the initiative of the President of Mongolia, an open discussion themed ‘Improving Implementation of State Policies on Protection of Children and Women from Violence, Public Participation and Control’ was held on November 24 in the Citizens’ Chamber of the State House. President of Mongolia Kh.Battulga gave an address. 

Shell Joins Automakers to Offer Charging Stations Across Europe www.bloomberg.com

Royal Dutch Shell Plc is linking up with some of the world’s biggest carmakers to expand its electric-vehicle charging business in Europe as it prepares for life beyond oil.

New plant in the UK aims to transform biomass into ‘coal’ www.mining.com

Scientists and industry in the United Kingdom are joining forces to build a commercial scale facility capable of transforming biomass into next-generation solid fuels with coal-like properties. This would be the first complex of its type in the country.

HTC or Hydrothermal Carbonisation is the name of the technology being developed by researchers at the University of Nottingham who are working in partnership with the Energy Research Accelerator and CPL Industries.

According to the group of experts, HTC converts high-moisture biomass into solid fuels using moderate temperatures and high pressures. The process effectively mimics the long-term natural process of coal formation, but instead of millennia it only takes a few hours for the mineral-like material to be created.

The intention of the HTC facility is to investigate suitable replacements for fossil fuels in home-heating products, with possible future developments being the replacement of coking coal in industrial applications such as foundries and smelters.

"We will be able to look at how we can convert waste streams into value-added fuel products that have many domestic and industrial applications. Also, by using the biocoal that has been made from biowaste, we are producing a carbon-neutral fuel and reducing greenhouse gas emissions,” said in a university statement Colin Snape, Director of the Centre in Efficient Power from Fossil Energy and Carbon Capture Technologies at the University of Nottingham.

The HTC facility will be operated by solid-fuel manufacturer CPL Industries and will be located at the company's production site in Immingham, North Lincolnshire. Activities at the plant are scheduled to begin in mid-2018.

Ministers to launcgh UK's post-Brexit economy plan www.bbc.com

The government's plan to boost UK industry ahead of the country leaving the EU is due to be launched later.

The industrial strategy is aimed at lifting growth, which official forecasts suggest will slow due to the UK's poor productivity performance.
Business Secretary Greg Clark said the UK's decision to leave the EU meant the strategy was "even more important".
A deal with US healthcare giant MSD to open a UK research centre has been announced as part of the strategy.
The investment by MSD, known as Merck in the US, is worth up to £1bn and is expected to create 950 jobs.
The government said the announcement was "a huge vote of confidence" in its plans to boost the post-Brexit UK economy.The strategy comes just days after official forecasting body the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) announced an aggressive downgrade of its UK growth and productivity forecasts.
Political parties and business groups have said that the solution to creating stronger growth and higher wages is more investment.
The industrial strategy is expected to outline similar partnerships to the MSD one with other private sector firms in the construction, artificial intelligence and automotive sectors.
The deals will see the government pledge funding and policy collaboration in exchange for investment from private firms.
The government said the deals would be "strategic and long-term partnerships".
It has already pledged to invest an additional £80bn in research and development over the next decade.
The additional funding is aimed at putting the UK's investment in this area on a par with other advanced nations.
Currently the UK spends 1.7% of its gross domestic product on research and development, much lower than the 2.4% average of developed countries in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
As part of its industrial strategy, the government is also expected to outline the main global trends which it believes the UK needs to tackle to revive its flat-lining productivity.
These are expected to include artificial intelligence, clean energy such as low carbon technologies, medical care for an ageing population and future mobility such as driverless cars and drone-delivered goods.
"More decisions about our economic future will be in our own hands and it is vital that we take them," Mr Clark said.

Cryptocurrency bitcoin breaks $9,000 barrier www.rt.com

The world's most valuable digital currency has smashed another all-time high. Bitcoin has surpassed the $9,000 level on Sunday on growing signs of mainstream adoption.

The latest rise has been attributed to increased investor interest around the US Thanksgiving holiday and Black Friday shopping. "The move appears to be retail driven," said Brian Kelly, CEO of BKCM, which runs a digital assets strategy.The largest US bitcoin exchange, Coinbase, added about 100,000 accounts before the weekend — to a total of 13.1 million, according to public data available on its website.
The price of bitcoin has jumped nearly nine times in value this year amid increased interest from institutional investors. The world's largest futures exchange, CME, is planning to list bitcoin futures in December.

MBD business delegates are headed to London on Monday www.mongolianbusinessdatabase.com

MBD business delegates on mining supply, freight forwarding, transportation of mining, blasting, automotive, high education and training are going to depart to London for Mongolian British Chamber of Commerce's "Doing Business with Mongolia" seminar on Nov 30 and business program.

MPP: Congress sees transfer of power to new leadership www.montsame.mn

Ulaanbaatar /MONTSAME/ The 28th Congress of the Mongolian People’s Party closed on November 23 after convening for four days. Main results of the Congress include revision of the Party’s Rule and Action Plan, election of a new Chairman and members of the Party’s Conference and Supervisory Committee and adoption of a Communique.

On the second day, the party elected a new Chairman. MP G.Temuulen nominated D.Khayankhyarvaa, Head of the Mongolian People’s Party (MPP) Group in Parliament, whereas Ts.Nyamdorj, Minister of Justice and Home Affairs nominated Prime Minister U.Khurelsukh, who was elected the MPP’s 15th Chairman after receiving 775 votes or 63.1 percent support in a secret poll conducted among the Congress participants. D.Khayankhyarvaa secured 36.9 percent votes.

Following the announcement of the poll results, Speaker M.Enkhbold gave a speech, looking back on his chairmanship. “I took chairmanship of an opposition Party with 26 seats in Parliament, and am handing it over with 65 seats. This is the shortest report on my two terms as MPP Chairman,” he said. He also expressed his confidence in his successor U.Khurelsukh, saying the latter can ensure unity and integration within the Party.

Newly elected Chairman U.Khurelsukh addressed the Congress after receiving the Chairman’s Seal from his predecessor M.Enkhbold. “I have been listening to both criticism and appreciation from the Congress delegates for the last two days. The fate of Mongolia is inseparable from that of the MPP,” said the Chairman, acknowledging his responsibility to recover the economy. “I will highly cherish and protect the Party’s unity” he said.

“The Mongolian People’s Party is Mongolia’s oldest political party founded for the sovereignty, national security and development of this country,” remarked the Chairman, citing the Party’s crucial roles in the development of Mongolia until today. “I am taking chairmanship in a challenging time for both Mongolia and the Party. It is time to show how powerful and united the Party is,” he said. The Chairman pledged to take all possible actions and put necessary efforts in order to fulfill the Party’s promises to the Mongolian people until the 2020 General Elections.

On the third and fourth day of the Congress, nomination and election of 369 members of the Conference took place, to conclude with the forming of a new Conference. The new Rule, adopted on the first day of the Congress, reflected that the number of members of the Conference will be increased to 369 from 310, the Steering Council 29 and the Supervisory Committee 15.

The three-day conference was attended by 1,309 members of the party, 696 of whom are first-time attendees and 306 were women. The youngest delegate to the Congress was 22-year-old T.Tsend-Ayush from Dornogobi aimag whereas the oldest was 100-year-old P.Shagdarsuren, who worked as secretary to Yu.Tsedenbal.

In his closing speech, newly elected Chairman, Prime Minister U.Khurelsukh reiterated his readiness to lead the ruling Party towards unity and productivity. “The new leadership has been entrusted with a huge responsibility which we will take on with pride,” he stated.

Founded in 1921, the Mongolian People’s Party is a center-left political party with more than 200 thousand members across the country. The Party will celebrate its 100th anniversary in 2021. The MPP is a member of the Standing Committee of the International Conference of Asian Political Parties and Socialist International, where MPP member, former Prime Minister S.Batbold is a Vice President.

The Party has hosted conferences of the Progressive Alliance and Socialist International Women in Ulaanbaatar. The MPP cooperates with a number of foreign political parties in countries like the US, Germany, the UK, France, Japan, South Korea, India, Vietnam and Laos and international organizations.

China busts underground bank funneling billions out of country www.rt.com

Chinese authorities have exposed a clandestine banking scheme used by more than 10,000 people to transfer over $3 billion overseas. Beijing has recently boosted efforts to curb capital outflows and fight corruption.

According to state news agency Xinhua, Chinese police have detained seven people in the southern province of Guangdong in connection with the scheme which involved more than 20 billion yuan ($3 billion).

Singapore to use driverless buses 'from 2022' www.bbc.com

The government says they will be piloted in three new neighbourhoods which will have less-crowded roads designed to accommodate the buses.

The buses will be used to help residents travel in their communities, and to nearby train and bus stations.
Densely-populated Singapore hopes driverless technology will help the country manage its land constraints and manpower shortages.
"The autonomous vehicles will greatly enhance the accessibility and connectivity of our public transport system, particularly for the elderly, families with young children and the less mobile," the Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan said.
The autonomous buses are expected to complement existing manned bus services, and will initially operate during off-peak hours.
Additionally, the government plans to let commuters hail on-demand shuttles using their mobile phones.