Amazon boss Bezos becomes world's third richest

Strong earnings from Amazon and a boost to the company's stock have made its founder, Jeff Bezos, the world's third richest person, according to Forbes. 

Mr Bezos owns 18% of Amazon's shares, which rose 2% in trading on Thursday. Forbes estimated his fortune to be $65.3bn (£49.5bn).

Amazon's revenue beat analysts' expectations, climbing 31% from last year to $30.4bn in the second quarter.

Profit for the e-commerce giant was $857m, compared with $92m in 2015.

According to Forbes estimates, Mr Bezos's fortune is only surpassed by Microsoft founder Bill Gates, worth $78bn (£59bn), and the $73.1bn (£55bn) fortune of Zara founder Amancio Ortega.

Amazon had developed a reputation for announcing little or no profit each quarter, but appeared to hit a turning point last year and has seen improving earnings since.

Amazon shares have spiked 50% since February.
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Jeff Bezos

•Born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in 1964
•Studied at Princeton University and worked on Wall Street
•Launched Amazon as online book retailer in Seattle in 1994
•Company expanded dramatically but struggled to make a profit
•A lifelong Star Trek fan, he launched Blue Origin spaceflight and aerospace firm in 2000
•Bought The Washington Post newspaper in 2013
•Reputation as a driven boss, intensely focused on customers
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Amazon's Prime membership, which offers extra services including free shipping for an annual fee, saw impressive international growth.

In June, Amazon launched Prime in India to take advantage of the country's large consumer market.

"It's been a busy few months for Amazon around the world, and particularly in India - where we launched a new [Amazon Web Services] Region, introduced Prime with unlimited free shipping, and announced that Prime Video is coming soon, offering Prime members in India exclusive access to Amazon Original Series and Movies - including original content featuring top Indian creators and talent," said Mr Bezos.

Amazon has boosted Prime membership by improving its video streaming offerings, an area in which it competes with Netflix.

Prime Day, Amazon's annual promotional shopping festival earlier this month, was the company's largest ever sales day.

 

Sales growth

Amazon does not release figures for its Prime membership, but Consumer Intelligence Research Partners estimated US membership to be close to 63 million. Members spend an average of $1,200 a year, compared with $500 by non-members, according to the research firm.

Amazon's cloud computing unit also spiked. Revenue for Amazon Web Services (AWS), climbed 58.2% to $2.89bn, beating analysts' exceptions of $2.83bn.

Sales growth for the unit in North America climbed 10% and 8% in the rest of the world.

Amazon has grown its market share in cloud computing compared with rivals such as Microsoft and Google.

It introduced a new Asia Pacific region for its cloud unit this quarter.

Amazon has also been looking to expand its presence in other areas. The company has now launched its online grocery store in the UK.

Earlier this month, it announced a partnership with US bank Wells Fargo to offer discounts on student loans for members of its Prime Student services.
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Source: BBC News

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Healthy Living: Get moving without breaking your routine

(KNOE 8 News) - One of the biggest challenges in our modern society is to find the time to be more active. The human body was not designed to sit and stay still for hours a day, so it's important to introduce healthy, more active, habits to our daily life. It can be beneficial, not only because it can make us feel better but also because it can improve our quality of life.

 Here are some tips so you can become more active without breaking your daily routine:

Tip 1: Walk More
Becoming more active doesn't mean you have to jump right into training for a 5k or a half marathon. Start easy. Use your break at work to take a walk around the building, or park the car a few spaces further away from the door. Any small changes will help.

Tip 2: Take the stairs
That's no secret. Taking the stairs at work at least once a day will help a lot. Start small. If you work on the 4th or 5th floor, start by taking the stairs from 1 to 2 for a few weeks. Then increase a floor as you start feeling less winded. When you're ready, jump to the challenge for the full staircase.

Tip 3: Stand up
Recent studies reveal that sitting for long periods of time has negatives effects on overall health and lifespan. If you work somewhere you generally sit for many hours a day, consider standing up every 15 minutes and walk to the water cooler, or just stand up and stretch your legs.

Tip 4: Drink More Water
If we do not stay hydrated, energy levels, overall physical performance, and even brain functions can suffer. Staying hydrated is key. Especially during the high heat months. Drinking eight 8-ounce glasses of water per day will help you stay energized, sleep better, and will even help you lose weight by boosting up your metabolic rate.
Source: KNOE

Peru: Pedro Pablo Kuczynski sworn in as president

Pedro Pablo Kuczynski vows to kick-start slowing economy as he takes oath of office as Peru's new leader. 

The new president was expelled from Peru in a military coup in the 1960s while serving as head of the state reserve bank [Mariana Bazo/ Reuters]

Former Wall Street banker Pedro Pablo Kuczynski has been sworn in as Peru's new president.

The conservative politician, who is known as a technocrat with a polished resume, choked up as he took the oath of office on Thursday, before donning his new red-and-white presidential sash over his pinstriped suit.

"I will seek equity, equality and fraternity among all Peruvians," he said, vowing "not just economic, but human growth".

His predecessor, Ollanta Humala, left office after a tenure marked by constant cabinet changes and an increase in crime.

As he starts his term in office, Kuczynski is hoping to to kick-start the slowing economy and unite a country deeply torn by a close election.
Source: aljazeera

 

World's tallest man has become a father

UN Chief Concerned at Turkey's Restrictions on Human Rights

UNITED NATIONS — Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is expressing concern at the Turkish government's restrictions on individual rights under the state of emergency imposed after a failed July 15 coup and "worrying reports" of mistreatment of some military detainees.

U.N. deputy spokesman Farhan Haq said Ban told Turkey's Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu in a phone call Wednesday that he expects the government to uphold its international human rights obligations including freedom of expression, movement and peaceful assembly as well as independence of the judiciary and legal profession.

Turkey has detained more than 13,000 people in the military, judiciary and other institutions in purges since the uprising and suspended tens of thousands of other state employees.

Haq said Ban hopes Turkey "will transform this moment of uncertainty into a moment of unity" that preserves democracy.

Pope falls down steps at Polish shrine

Pope Francis, apparently deep in thought, missed a step and fell to the ground Thursday as he approached an open-air altar at Poland's holiest shrine.

Priests quickly rushed over to help the 79-year-old pontiff to his feet. He then proceeded to celebrate Mass as planned before tens of thousands of faithful.

Asked if Francis suffered any ill effects from the fall, Vatican spokesman Greg Burke said “the pope is fine,” the Associated Press reported.

The Mass was celebrated at the foot of the Jasna Gora monastery in southern Poland. The shrine to the Virgin Mary holds the revered "Black Madonna of Czestochowa," a 14th century icon that many Poles credit with miracles.
USATODAY

Wikileaks posts hacked DNC voicemails

By Marshall Cohen and Tom LoBianco, CNN

Philadelphia (CNN)Wikileaks released a series of voicemails Wednesday from the Democratic National Committee hack showing donors plying top-level officials for favors, and one donor expressing outrage that Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders had won a say in the drafting of the party's platform. 

In one of the 29 voicemails released, a woman who donated $300 to Clinton called the party finance director Andrew Wright and said she was angry the party was acquiescing to Sanders by allowing liberal activist and prominent Sanders surrogate Cornel West to have one of 15 seats on the party's platform-writing panel.

"I'm furious about what you are doing for Bernie Sanders, he's getting way too much influence. I'm on a fixed income, I spent over $300, donated to Hillary, what I see is the DNC bending over backwards for Bernie and Bernie is the worst person in the world to even be running in the Democratic Party, because he's not a Democrat," said the unidentified woman in a voicemail that was sent to Wright's DNC email account.

In another voicemail, Bill Eacho, a longtime Democratic donor and former U.S. ambassador, inquired about the details of a "small dinner with President Obama." 

The voicemails are related to the batch of about 20,000 leaked emails WikiLeaks published earlier this week, which revealed that elements within the supposedly neutral DNC were in fact working to help Hillary Clinton secure the Democratic nomination.

Those emails ultimately led DNC Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz announcing her resignation.

But most of the released voicemails amount to innocuous messages from one person trying to reach someone else. A few of the messages highlight the relationships between donors looking for favors and goodies, and the party officials trying to bring in money to their coffers. 

Source: CNN

Watch comedian Sarah Silverman's full speech at the 2016 Democratic National Convention

Watch comedian Sarah Silverman's full speech at the 2016 Democratic National Convention.

Brazil forward Neymar insists he won't stop party lifestyle

Brazil star Neymar has rejected criticism of his lifestyle, asking reporters: "Why can I not go out and enjoy parties?"

Barcelona forward Neymar, 24, missed this summer's Copa America Centenario in the United States in order to take part in next month's Olympic football tournament in Rio de Janeiro.

Despite his absence from the Copa America, he headed to the United States and attracted heavy criticism for his off-field behaviour. Neymar had hosted a pool party and watched the draw with Ecuador in the company of Justin Bieber and Jamie Foxx, as well as making a controversial Instagram post telling the team's critics they could "go to hell" after Brazil's early exit.

Neymar suggested he accepted the discussion over his role in the 2015 Copa America exit, when disciplinary issues saw his tournament brought to an early end, but said his behaviour this summer was not a matter for public debate.

"You have to look at the things that I do on the pitch. Anything else is private," Neymar told reporters. "When I'm off the pitch, that's my private life. You have to judge me on the pitch. I have no problem talking about cards or sendings-off, but I have a private life. I'm 24 years old.

"I have my achievements and I have my own things outside of that. I am very quiet about these things, but of course you can criticise me. I make mistakes too. I'm not a perfect guy.

"I also like to go out and have fun with my friends. I have my family and friends. Why can I not go out and enjoy parties? I can do that and will continue to. If I'm aware of my duties the next day, I see no problem."

He added: "Imagine you're 24 years old, earning what I earn and having all that I have. Wouldn't you be the same as me?"

Brazil star Neymar says he is motivated to add a gold medal this year to the silver he earned in 2012.

Brazil, who face South Africa, Iraq and Denmark in Group A, have never won gold at the Olympic football tournament.

Neymar was part of the side that won silver at the 2012 tournament in London and said: "I am not worried about losing.

"Being afraid of losing robs you of the desire to win. If we lose, we lose with our heads high and we carry on, but if it is up to me we're going to do everything possible to win.

"I don't like to lose. Losing never crosses my mind. I want to bring that gold medal for Brazil that has been so difficult."

Source: espnfc

A priest killed in France by two IS armed men in his church...(watch the video)

A priest has been killed in an attack by two armed men on his church in a suburb of Rouen in northern France.

The attackers entered the church in Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray during Mass, taking the priest, Fr Jacques Hamel, 84, and four other people hostage.

Police later surrounded the church and French TV said shots were fired. Both hostage-takers are now dead.

The Amaq news agency, linked to so-called Islamic State, said "two IS soldiers" had carried out the attack.
President Francois Hollande said the men had claimed to be from IS.

Speaking in Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray, he said the attackers had committed a "cowardly assassination" and France would fight IS "by all means".

Pope Francis decried the "pain and horror of this absurd violence". French interior ministry spokesman, Pierre-Henri Brandet, said one of the hostages had been critically wounded.

The biggest threat to the future of the Olympic Games

Drugs scandals and Rio’s haphazard preparations have dominated the headlines but the most worrying sign for Thomas Bach and co has barely been reported – does anyone really want to host the Games any more?