Moscow: President Vladimir Putin told Russians they are “invincible” when they stand together as the country on Saturday marked the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II in lockdown from the coronavirus.With cases surging and authorities urging Russians to stay in their homes,...

CARACAS: Venezuela has charged two former US soldiers with terrorism and conspiracy for allegedly taking part in a failed bid to topple President Nicolas Maduro, the attorney general said on Friday.Luke Alexander Denman, 34, and Airan Berry, 41, were among 17 people captured by the Venezuelan...

MOSCOW: President Vladimir Putin told Russians they are "invincible" when they stand together as the country on Saturday marked the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II in lockdown from the coronavirus.With cases surging and authorities urging Russians to stay in their homes, celebrations...

CAPE TOWN: South African Fredie Blom celebrated his 116th birthday on Friday unfazed by the coronavirus crisis, over 100 years since the Spanish flu pandemic killed his sister."I have lived this long because of God’s grace," said Blom, possibly one of the oldest men in the world.Lighting a...

LONDON: Britain’s coronavirus lockdown has deepened the nation’s love affair with gardening at the same time as threatening the future of traditional businesses in the sector.Some 83 percent of homes in England have some private outdoor space, according to 2016 government figures,...

NEW YORK: Little Richard, whose outrageous showmanship and lightning-fast rhythms intoxicated crowds in the 1950s with hits like "Tutti Frutti" and "Long Tall Sally," has died. He was 87 years old.Citing the rock ‘n’ roll pioneer’s son, Rolling Stone magazine said on Saturday the...

The Special Tribunal for Lebanon has delayed announcing its verdict in the case of the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, previously set for mid-May, due to the coronavirus pandemic, the court said.

The real principle of any democracy is choice, equity and inclusion; by echoing the populist-political demand for single national curriculum, standardized exams, regimented testing regimes and uniform text books, we shall sponsor a polarized nation-state and thus imposing one size fit all, which...

Islamabad: The Diabetes Centre and Islamabad Capital Territory Administration have collaborated to deliver much-needed and life-saving medicines to deserving diabetes patients free of cost under prevailing difficult circumstances after Coronavirus outbreak and lockdown.Hamza Shafqaat, Deputy...

Islamabad : Tarnol Police on Friday raided a fake beverage factory in its area and confiscated thousands of empty and filled bottles of various brands, a police spokesman said on Friday.Following directions and guidance of IGP Islamabad Muhammad Aamir Zulfiqar, the police spokesperson said that...

Islamabad : The founder of Islamabad Chamber for Small Traders and former President ICCI Shahid Rasheed Butt on Saturday lauded the decision of Prime Minister Imran Khan to restart the economy revival.The COVID-19 will affect the economy for months, maybe years, but reopening businesses cannot...

Rawalpindi : Once more, a 13-year-old rape victim has been left with no other options but to move mountains in pursuit of seeking justice against the culprits who had ruined her life and are now taking every advantage with illegal support of some police officials in twisting facts and realities in...

LAHORE: The Covid-19 is proving more lethal when it comes to male patients as compared to women virus carriers as an analysis of official data shows that 69 of its victims in Punjab were men, while the remaining 31 per cent women. Only two transpersons died from the pandemic in the province.

A senior official told Dawn that Punjab reported 1.82 per cent virus death rate, while 40pc of carriers recovered from the disease across the province so far.

Meanwhile, the Punjab government issued new guidelines for the treatment of severe and critical Covid-19 patients to keep the death toll low.

Recommended by Corona Experts Advisory Group (CEAG), the guidelines had been dispatched to all the vice-chancellors of the medical universities, principals of medical colleges and the heads of the teaching and other government hospitals, keeping in view recent surge in the death rate in Punjab.

According to an age-wise analysis, the virus proved most fatal for those in 50-60 year age bracket as such patients make 32pc of the total victims. The patients between 61 to 70 years of age were the second-most vulnerable group as 27pc of those who died from Covid-19 fall in it.

Those in 50-60 age bracket ‘most vulnerable’

Similarly, 16pc of the patients who died were between the age of 41 and 50 years, and 13pc between 71 to 80.

Interestingly, only two percent of Covid-19 patients were 80 years old or above, while 10pc of the deaths occurred among those who were 40 or below.

Another alarming factor the data analysis revealed was that most of those who died had no other disease or co-morbidity.

The gender-wise analysis further revealed that of the 31pc females who died, 66pc had no co-morbidity, while of total 69pc male victims, 67pc were having no other disorder.

Similarly, the recovery ratio among young Covid-19 patients is the highest, as compared to others.

According to the analysis, out of total patients who got recovered, 23pc were in 24-34 age group, 17pc in 35-44 group, 15pc in 18-24, 14pc in 45-54, 13pc in 55-64, eight percent in 65-74 and only one per cent of recovered patients were in 75 years and above age bracket.

The analysis was conducted by experts of the both health departments and shared in an official meeting in order to devise future strategies to curtail the pandemic, accordingly.

Meanwhile, eight more critical patients of Covid-19 died at various hospitals of the province during the last 24 hours, as per official data shared on Saturday, taking the death toll to 191 in Punjab.

Most of these deaths occurred in Lahore, Multan and Rawalpindi.

The total number of confirmed patients reached to 10,471 in Punjab, when 438 more tested positive for the virus on Saturday.

According to the official figures, 228 fresh cases were reported from Lahore, 58 from Gujranwala, 28 from Gujrat, and 11 from Rawalpindi, besides some other cities.

With the new cases, total number of confirmed patients in Lahore has jumped to 4,084, the highest in Punjab, followed by Rawalpindi 592 and Gujranwala reporting 480 cases so far.

The health department spokesperson said the number of critical virus patients in the province has jumped to 41. The number of Covid-19 critical patient in Punjab was 22 on Friday.

The spokesperson said no new case was reported from the quarantine centres housing the pilgrims returning from Iran and the Tableeghi Jamaat members.

Published in Dawn, May 10th, 2020

ISLAMABAD: The Asian Development Bank (ADB) under its ‘Supply Chain Finance Programme’ has dedicated $200 million to support companies that make and distribute medicines and other items needed to combat coronavirus in the developing member countries of the Bank.

The programme aims to stabilise the supply chain for products such as N95 marks, test kits, gloves, personal protective equipment (PPE) for healthcare providers, ventilators, hygiene items, and other critical goods.

The ADB assistance is targeted at channeling fund to manufacturers, their suppliers, and the distributors of critical goods through post-shipment post-acceptance finance, pre-shipment loans, and distributor financing.

Export bans of key materials have worsened the shortage of face masks in 22 economies, including Pakistan, Bangladesh, Canada, Czech Republic, Egypt, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Iran, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Malaysia, Poland, China, the Russian Federation, the Republic of Korea, Taipei, Thailand and Ukraine. The export bans are in place in these economies since March 18.

Pakistan among nations that faced shortage of masks due to ban on export

A $800m increase in ADB’s Trade Finance Programme will also be mobilised and along with the increase in capital comes flexibility to support domestic and cross-border trade in times of emergency. The programme is an effective crisis response vehicle because it has strong relationships with many banks, both inside developing Asia and globally, the latter particularly helpful to mobilise co-financing, involving private sector resources to leverage the impact of ADB’s direct support.

An ADB report says that surging demand, partly joined with panic buying, hoarding, and misuse of PPE amid the Covid-19 pandemic, is disrupting global supplies and putting lives at risk. Demand has surged, overwhelming global production capacity.

The dramatic rise in demand for surgical masks, goggles, gloves, and gowns has depleted stockpiles, prompted significant price increases, and led to production backlogs of 4 to 6 months in fulfilling orders.

The most significant challenge is to ensure that critical PPE products are sourced and allocated to frontline health workers and other responders in affected countries, especially those most vulnerable to the spread of coronavirus.

The global market for PPE in the health sector was estimated to be worth $2.5 billion in 2018. Gloves have the highest share of sales revenues at 25 per cent, followed by suits or coveralls at 22pc. Face masks and hats came in third with a share of 14pc.

By region, the United States had the largest market share (33pc), followed by Asia and the Pacific (28pc), and Europe (22pc) in 2018.

The PPE supply chain has not been properly functioning to meet a surge in demand due to the constraints in production and logistics. Prices of PPE products have risen dramatically since the beginning of the Covid-19 outbreak: a six-fold increase for surgical masks; threefold for respirators; and a doubling in the price of gowns.

Among the major sources of the identified backlogs in the production and distribution of PPE, with a focus on face masks, are transport and shipping constraints caused by roadblocks and quarantine measures, and lower availability of transportation and freight containers, hoarding, profiteering, and limited workforce capacity due to illness, also contribute to the shortage.

Published in Dawn, May 10th, 2020

Palo Alto, CA – Aha™ by HARMAN today announced new content available via the free Aha Radio app for Android and iOS and included in the in-vehicle infotainment system in over 40 models of cars. With the addition of self-improvement publisher Hay House, live podcast network BlogTalkRadio and leading national broadcasters American Public Media (APM) and CBC/Radio-Canada, Aha adds thousands of new programs, across a multitude of genres, extending its content library of 40,000 audio and non-audio programs to include exactly what consumers want to hear in the car, at home, and on the go.Specific offerings include APM’s business and economic news program Marketplace, AAA station The Current, Classical Minnesota Public Radio and regional news from Southern California Public Radio and Minnesota Public Radio.

Palo Alto, CA – Aha™ by HARMAN announced today that it has partnered with Fishidy and has rolled out ParkVisitor’s services, expanding its already robust content pipeline. Aha uses the HARMAN Cloud Platform to enable Web-based entertainment and information in vehicles using a radio-like format that is familiar to drivers. More than 40,000 music and non-music programs that span from live radio stations to podcasts and audiobooks from the Web are delivered straight to the car's dashboard through a seamless connection with an Aha smartphone app for iOS and Android systems.

CES 2014, LAS VEGAS – HARMAN, the premium global audio and infotainment group (NYSE:HAR), unveiled two new services for the automotive market that leverage the Aha by HARMAN Cloud Platform and HARMAN’s infotainment system design leadership to ensure safe, personalized and connected driving experiences throughout the life of the vehicle. Extending beyond the popular Aha Radio interactive content service, the new Aha Updates and Aha Analytics services take HARMAN’s expertise and investments in cloud infrastructure into new directions.

CES 2014, LAS VEGAS, NV – HARMAN announced today that its Aha Radio service has partnered with Univision Radio, the leading Hispanic radio group that owns and operates 69 broadcast radio stations in 16 of the top 25 U.S. markets, to integrate more than 65 radio stations from the Uforia digital music service into Aha-enabled vehicles and mobile apps.This partnership represents a continuing effort by Univision Radio to provide Hispanic audiences with high-quality content across all its platforms. For Aha, this is another step to further expand its content offerings and specifically, to provide high-quality content to Hispanic audiences in the U.S.

CES 2014, LAS VEGAS -- HARMAN announced today that it is working with Emmis Communications, Salem Communications and MediaTracks Communications, integrating top radio stations and digital content into its Aha Radio platform. The arrangements further expand Aha Radio content offerings to its global user base, delivering an extensive and diverse mix of terrestrial and digital radio content. Drivers outside major U.S. cities can now tune in to these top radio stations and digital content in their car through the Aha app.

Palo Alto, CA – August 12, 2014– HARMAN announced today that its Aha Radio service has integrated Radio Disney, the #1 radio network for kids, tweens and families, into today’s two million Aha-enabled vehicles. This alliance represents the continuing effort of Aha by Harman to further expand its content offerings and specifically, provide an enjoyable experience for all users, regardless of age or taste in music.

Palo Alto, CA – HARMAN announced today that its Aha Radio service will be a standard feature in all Subaru models and trims starting with the 2015 Legacy. Subaru of America, Inc. was one of the first automotive manufacturers to integrate the Aha Radio service into its vehicles. A partnership that was established through the availability of the service in 2014 Subaru Forester’s top trim levels has been consistently growing since then.

CES 2015, LAS VEGAS – HARMAN, the premium global audio, infotainment and enterprise automation group (NYSE:HAR), introduces its enhanced Harman Kardon AVR 1x1 Series with the additions of Spotify Connect in all models and HDMI 2.0 in the two top models. The AVR 1x1s series, which includes Harman Kardon® AVR 1510, AVR 1610 and AVR 1710, was released last year and stands unprecedented in its versatility, quality and efficiency. Each Harman Kardon AVR 1x1s features the brand's iconic styling and unmatched sound reproduction and offers enhanced support for streaming and external devices.

Professional sound systems like those used in performance venues such as stadiums, theaters, cinemas and night clubs need tremendous power to amplify sound to their audiences. In these instances, did you know HARMAN offers audio solutions that reduce...

With the championship race in Brooklyn, New York over the weekend of July 14-15, Harman Kardon recently wrapped a second successful season partnering with BMW i and the MS&AD Andretti Formula E team. The ABB FIA Formula E Championship began in 2014 ...

Little Richard, the self-proclaimed "architect of rock 'n' roll" who built his ground-breaking sound with a boiling blend of boogie-woogie, rhythm and blues and gospel, died on Saturday at the age of 87.

Former President Barack Obama described President Donald Trump's handling of the coronavirus pandemic as "chaotic" in a conference call with former members of his administration, a source said on Saturday.

Three senior officials guiding the U.S. response to the coronavirus pandemic were in self-quarantine on Saturday after coming into contact with someone who had tested positive for the disease, their agencies and spokesmen said.

Former President Obama, who has largely kept out of the fray even as President Trump has blamed his Democratic administration for a variety of problems related to the pandemic, described Trump's handling of the coronavirus pandemic as "chaotic" on a call, a source said. Colette Luke has more.

Little Richard, the self-proclaimed "architect of rock 'n' roll" who built his ground-breaking sound with a boiling blend of boogie-woogie, rhythm and blues and gospel, died on Saturday at the age of 87.

Along with Windows 8, Microsoft's Surface RT tablet is here. The slate uses chips that typically power smartphones but Windows runs quite well on it and the hardware is extremely well made and -- dare I say it -- sexy? See for yourself in this early look.

I tested both of Zagg's iPad mini keyboard cases and either is a nice accessory. There's a difference in typing, however, due to the two sizes. That means you'll have to figure out if you value portability or a better typing experience when choosing.

While still 68% rural, it seems India is the only exception to Democratic theory. Professor Ashutosh Varshney explains where the country's political and economic strengths lie.

Poverty and hunger are two plagues of human society that are usually synonymous with each other. Economist, Esther Duflo, is trying to change that old way of thinking about hunger. Foreign Policy magazine has ranked Duflo as one of its "Top 100 Global Thinkers," for "Poor Economics," a book she co-authored, which says that the impoverished may be suffering from hunger because of where they choose to spend their money.

Jan 19 - In an exclusive interview with Reuters Global Editor-at-Large Chrystia Freeland, GE CEO Jeffrey Immelt says a large and educated workforce is fueling China's strength and not simply a deflated yuan.

Markets are cool over Aviva’s £5.6 bln takeover of Friends Life. The scepticism over the deal is excessive says Breakingviews.

Little Richard, the self-proclaimed "architect of rock 'n' roll" who built his ground-breaking sound with a boiling blend of boogie-woogie, rhythm and blues and gospel, died on Saturday at the age of 87, Rolling Stone magazine reported. This report produced by Jillian Kitchener.

Little Richard, the self-proclaimed "architect of rock 'n' roll" who built his ground-breaking sound with a boiling blend of boogie-woogie, rhythm and blues and gospel, died on Saturday at the age of 87, Rolling Stone magazine reported. This report produced by Jillian Kitchener.

Former President Obama, who has largely kept out of the fray even as President Trump has blamed his Democratic administration for a variety of problems related to the pandemic, described Trump's handling of the coronavirus pandemic as "chaotic" on a call, a source said. Colette Luke has more.

More than 1,000 people lined up on Saturday (May 9) to receive free food parcels in Geneva, underscoring the impact of the coronavirus epidemic on the working poor and undocumented immigrants even in wealthy Switzerland. Olivia Chan reports.

The people have spoken and superheroes continue to rule the movie pack, as Captain America, Iron Man and Batman were among the top winners at the People's Choice awards on Wednesday.

Global smartphone leader Samsung Electronics Co Ltd on Thursday confirmed expectations for its first annual profit decline since 2011, although a pickup in the fourth quarter hinted that earnings may have stabilized in the short term.

Belgian publisher Roularta Media Group said it would negotiate exclusively with French businessman Patrick Drahi towards a sale of seven magazines including newsweekly L'Express.

A Maryland politician who said he would sue a newspaper if it printed his name, Kirby Delauter, has apologized after his threat garnered national attention, the targeted newspaper reported on Thursday.

Apple Inc won the dismissal on Thursday of a lawsuit accusing it of defrauding consumers by selling MacBook laptop computers that contained "logic boards" it knew were defective, and which routinely failed within two years.

Apple Inc won the dismissal on Thursday of a lawsuit accusing it of defrauding consumers by selling MacBook laptop computers that contained "logic boards" it knew were defective, and which routinely failed within two years.

A WB Games leak that has so far proved accurate suggests Injustice 3 will introduce even more extended universe characters

As the whole world was affected by the pandemic, "only three of us who were in space at the time weren't," Meir said. "That was really difficult to comprehend."

"It seems like the spotted garden eels are getting used to a non-human environment and have forgotten about people."