http://uebtootoosui.spoonylife.com SpoonyLife fr-FR http://uebtootoosui.spoonylife.com/what-drives-the-kids-functional-food-market-report-28040.html The children's functional food and beverage market in the US is expected to see strong growth on the back of increased interest in kids' health, with major areas of focus including obesity, hyperactivity, brain function, gut health and immunity, says a new report. Published by consultancy TSG, the report draws on different sources of market research and predicts the kid's food and beverage category will grow to $26.8bn by 2011 from $16.4bn in 2007. Growth will continue at double digit rates beyond 2012, it predicts. "As health becomes the focus of children's products, the industry will continue to move forward and mirror the high-growth functional foods category," said TSG. Key health issues With increasing obesity rates and other health problems among children, parents are starting to look towards diet as one way of addressing these. The report identifies a number of key aspects of children's health that are being addressed through diet. These are: · Obesity: The number of overweight children aged 6-11 has more than doubled in the past 20 years. Current estimates suggest that 32 percent of US children are overweight, while 16 percent are obese. · Hyperactivity: According to TSG, parents are increasingly looking at labels on food products to blame for hyperactivity in their children. And as studies start to look at ingredients such as omega-3 and omega-6 for their combative effects on hyperactivity in children, the category may soon gather speed in the food and supplement industry. · Brain function: TSG highlights that children with learning and behavior problems improve focus, concentration and school grades when given essential fatty acid supplements; and IQ scores when given multivitamins. · Gut health: According to a report by Julian Mellentin entitled 5 Key trends in Kids' Nutrition 2008, digestion and immunity are two of the biggest concerns for mothers regarding their children's health, and both of these are influenced by gut health. TSG highlights that ingredient firm ChrHansen is focusing its NPD on children's probiotics, indicative of growing interest in this market Beverages lead Beverages currently constitute the largest segment of the kids' food and beverage market, accounting for 29 percent of total sales, said TSG. www.allforinfant.com Fri, 15 Aug 2008 04:35:00 GMT http://uebtootoosui.spoonylife.com/tiffany-appeals-counterfeit-ebay-decision-28039.html Tiffany et Co. challenged Monday a federal ruling that largely absolved eBay Inc. of policing its auction site for counterfeit items, saying the judge was wrong to leave the primary burden to the jewelry maker. Monday's appeal with the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York extends a case that Tiffany filed against eBay in 2004 arguing that most items listed for sale on eBay as genuine Tiffany products were fakes. Last month, U.S. District Judge Richard Sullivan in New York ruled that trademark holders like the jewelry maker, rather than auction platforms like eBay, are responsible for policing their brands online. In an interview, Tiffany lawyer James Swire said Monday that the judge "got several important legal issues wrong." Swire contends, for instance, that trademark law doesn't put the responsibility on Tiffany for policing its own trademark. "The judge's entire analysis of what is Tiffany's responsibility with respect to the site versus eBay's starts from an incorrect basis," he said. Tiffany also believes that eBay should not need that much specific information about the sale of fakes on its sites and merchants who are selling fakes in order to take action against it, Swire said. In his ruling, Sullivan said eBay can't be held liable for trademark infringement "based solely on their generalized knowledge that trademark infringement might be occurring on their Web sites." EBay has removed listings when Tiffany notified it of suspected counterfeit goods, but it has refused to go further and pre-emptively take down suspicious listings before any such notification. Sullivan said eBay had no obligation to do so. EBay has said it spends tens of millions each year to combat counterfeiting. It suspends and blocks users who have been found selling or are suspected of selling fake goods on the site. It also runs a program that lets companies review listings and inform eBay of those they believe are for fake goods; eBay removes ones that participants flag. Tiffany has participated in this program. EBay does not hold inventory and directly sell items but merely serves as a conduit for others to sell goods. Swire said the distinction should not make a difference. "The fact of the matter is eBay has created the venue, eBay is profiting from the venue, eBay absolutely controls the venue," Swire said. "It's eBay's obligation, once it has knowledge ... to take the knowledge to investigate and stop the sale of counterfeit merchandise." In a statement, eBay spokeswoman Catherine England said "Tiffany's decision to carry this litigation on after the District Court's decision doesn't do anything to combat counterfeiting." The July decision was a welcome one for eBay, which had recently lost a different case stemming from counterfeit luxury goods. In June, a French court ordered eBay to pay more than $61 million to LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SA, which complained it was hurt by sale of knockoff bags, perfume and clothes. EBay is appealing that ruling. www.fashion-accouterment.com Fri, 15 Aug 2008 04:34:00 GMT http://uebtootoosui.spoonylife.com/svz-plant-will-aid-insight-into-fruit-veg-tastes-28038.html SVZ International has opened a new pilot plant that will allow it to supply samples of fruit and vegetable ingredients in sufficient quantities for consumer testing. The company, which is a subsidiary of Royal Cosun, already had a laboratory as part of its RetD set up in Etten-Leur, The Netherlands, that was able to supply some product samples in relatively small sizes. Art Duits, RetD manager at SVZ, told FoodNavigator.com that the new plant can handle batches of up to four tonnes, depending on the product. The decision to build the new pilot plant was largely driven by customer needs: they want a bigger sample quantities for internal process research, or for consumer research such as acceptance tests. In addition, the material samples that could be produced in the laboratory were not representative of the process used at a factory level. This could, in some cases, affect the quality of the research if the findings for lab samples were to be applied to samples for commercialisation. "Now we can use the same process," he said. SVZ has factories for the supply of commercial volumes of its fruit and veg ingredients in The Netherlands, Poland, Spain, USA and Morocco. But before they put in an order for large quantities of ingredients, consumer testing is very important for brand manufacturers; as they want to make sure that a product will be a success. "They don't want to waste advertising money on a product that doesn't work," said Duits. In terms of market trends, Duits said that red fruits are a major area of focus at the moment, as there is considerable interest in harnessing their antioxidant and health benefits. At the same time, however, red fruits are relatively expensive and in the current climate of high costs manufacturers are looking at ways to use cheaper, more traditional fruits in products. Part of SVZ's RetD work involves coming up with new product concepts that it can propose to customers to show, for example, "what is possible with certain fruits like acai and goji". Again, the first question that comes back to the company is always on price. Thus, Duit and his 16-strong RetD team have to ensure they are envisaging a suitable target market for a product. Overall, SVZ sees the juice and beverage sector as the biggest for its products. Dairy and ice cream products also make up important markets, followed, to a smaller extent, by bakery. As a direct result of healthier eating tendencies, there has been a big boost in fruit smoothies in the UK in the last five years and the trend catching on in other countries. "We see the same thing happening in Eastern Europe. People are more aware of products with sugar, water and citric acid although there will always be a market for that kind of product." As well as facilitating its customer's research, SVZ conducts its own process research on how to keep anti-oxidants non-oxidised and therefore active and to keep the vitamin C levels as high as possible. It does not investigate health benefits of antioxidants and juices per se, since that kind of clinical work is more aligned with medical research however it does keep an eye on what fruit-related research is taking place. That means it is in a position to advice its customers on what health claims could be acceptable on their products, said Duits. http://www.china-food-wholesaler.com/ Fri, 15 Aug 2008 04:34:00 GMT http://uebtootoosui.spoonylife.com/second-quarter-sales-up-22-percent-for-sarin-28037.html Diamond-technology company Sarin Technologies Ltd. experienced a 22 percent increase in sales in the second quarter of 2008, an increase fueled by emerging markets. According to financial results announced by the company earlier this week, second-quarter revenues reached $11.3 million, compared with $9.3 million for the same period in 2007, a 21.6 percent increase. This included a 24 percent jump in revenue from India, to $8.1 million, and a 504 percent increase in revenue from Africa, to $1.2 million. While revenue increased for Sarin, margins shrank. According to Sarin, gross margin for the second quarter decreased from 68.1 percent in 2007 to 64.8 percent in 2008, a drop the company attributes to increased sales of its Quazer green-laser diamond-cutting system. Looking back at the first half of the year, overall revenues for Sarin increased 17.9 percent over 2007, rising from $18.6 million to $21.9 million. Sarin Chief Executive Officer Zeev Leshem said the company continues to invest heavily in research and development, and expects to both upgrade existing products and launch new products during the second half of the year and into 2009. On tap are hardware and software upgrades for the Quazer; an upgraded version of Orchidia, the rough color-prediction system; initial testing for a new product that utilizes Galatea's technology, which is capable of fully automated evaluation of a diamond's internal features; and the launch of DiaMobile XL and Instructor, both rough-planning products. "Besides our focus on enhancing our product offering, we are also taking steps to boost sales in emerging markets like southern Africa," Leshem said in a media release. "The investments we are making in product development, paired with our increasing attention to bolstering our market share in key territories, will set the foundation for the next phase of Sarin's growth." www.fashion-accouterment.com Fri, 15 Aug 2008 04:33:00 GMT http://uebtootoosui.spoonylife.com/pilgrim-s-pride-to-idle-clinton-plant-28036.html Pilgrim's Pride Corp. says it will idle its chicken processing plant in Clinton as the company struggles with high feed costs and lower market demand. State economic officials say at last count more than 350 employees work at the Clinton facility. Officials said they didn't know how Monday's announcement would affect the work force there.Pilgrim's Pride says the idling at Clinton, coupled with stopping production at a Louisiana plant, will eliminate about 600 jobs.The company says it will help employees find other jobs and will reopen the plant once "industry margins can be sustained."www.china-food-wholesaler.com Fri, 15 Aug 2008 04:32:00 GMT http://uebtootoosui.spoonylife.com/luxury-watches-will-go-on-display-in-dubai-28035.html luxury watches are to go on display during the Dubai International Jewellery Week 2008, reports AME Info. Brands, designers, wholesales, retailers and manufacturers from 30 different countries are expected to attend the event. AME Info said there has been a rise in the demand for quality watches as evidenced by the increased spend on advertising. Last year, watch companies spent $151.9 million (£79 million) on advertising - a 16.6 per cent increase from the previous year. Mr Haissam Chamsine, senior vice-president for Watches and Jewellery at BinHendi, one of the key exhibitors, said the most popular custom-made orders his company has received over the years have included dials with names, logos or initials. He added that yellow, rose and white gold were also the most popular choices of metal for watches. The jewellery exhibition will take place between the November 11th and the 15th and will include three separate shows - Areeq Dubai, Jewellery Collections Dubai and Jewellery Trade Dubai. www.fashion-accouterment.com Fri, 15 Aug 2008 04:32:00 GMT http://uebtootoosui.spoonylife.com/jeweller-launches-gold-range-for-olympics-28034.html A luxury jeweller has created a collection of gold pieces to help fans celebrate and remember the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. In the collection from Roberto Coin is a golden sneaker which is made of high-tech 24-karat gold varnished nappa leather. To complete the look of the $31,000 (£24,654) running shoe, it comes with an 18-karat gold clasp. Boxing fans may be interested in the 18-karat white gold boxing glove from Mr Coin's Tiny Treasure collection. Along with the sporting items, the range of gold items also includes cultural objects, including an 18-karat white gold panda. Pandas are an endangered species and are often portrayed as the national animal of China where they reside in the Sichuan province. The animal was selected as one of the five symbols of good luck for the Olympics. According to Mr Coin, "the Olympic Panda symbolizes balance and coexistence of mankind with nature". The other good luck mascots include a fish, a Tibetan antelope, a swallow and the Olympic flame. www.fashion-accouterment.com Fri, 15 Aug 2008 04:31:00 GMT http://uebtootoosui.spoonylife.com/innocent-and-ag-barr-let-loose-with-juice-in-uk-health-push-28032.html Both AG Barr and smoothie maker Innocent have revealed their intentions to target juice demand through respective investment and product launches in their operations over the last week. In the UK market alone, fruit-based drinks continued to show strong growth potential despite on overall decline in the country's soft drink consumption in 2007, reflecting a wider European trend towards the segment. This potential has not gone unnoticed by major international manufacturers such as Coca-Cola and PepsiCo who have moved to expand their portfolio of soft drink brands, particularly in Eastern Europe. However, Innocent and AG Barr stress that they are committed solely to the UK market at present. Euro demand The strategy could prove to be prudent according to consumer analyst Euromonitor, which said that the country lay behind only Germany in terms of EU juice demand rates last year. Annual fruit and vegetable juice consumption within the UK during 2007 was 2.2bn litres, ahead of third placed Poland, which drank 1.49bn litres over the same period. However, Germany was found to be the largest market in Europe for juice demand, consuming 3.3bn litres of the product, the analyst said. It is in this market that AG Barr announced that it had entered into a conditional agreement to purchase the operations of exotic soft-drink maker Groupe Rubicon for £59.8m (euro76.4m). Barr, which produces the Irn Bru carbonated beverage brand, added that although this wasn't it first foray into fruit juices, should the deal go ahead, it would provide a major expansion of its presence in the UK branded beverage market. Aside from further product diversification following its recent push into energy drinks, the Scotland-based soft drink maker claimed that the acquisition would allow it to attempt a number of cost efficiency improvements in its operations. Roger White, AG Barr's chief executive said that the potential acquisition of the Rubicon beverage brand would offer a number of benefits for its own fruit juice product development "The acquisition is in line with our core strategy of developing our portfolio and increasing the scale of our business through differentiated quality brands," he stated. "At the same time it strengthens our position in the growing juice drinks category." Innocent, which has previously concentrated solely on manufacturing smoothie products, is also hoping to establish itself within the juice market by launching its own brand of natural orange juices. Unlike AG Barr, the group said that it was currently committing itself only to orange juice, which it said was a key component of its smoothie products, and not to other varieties of the product. Available either with or without orange ‘bits', Innocent claims that its orange juice, which will be sourced from various different areas throughout the year, will be preservative and additive free. Market development While the British soft drink market shows strong potential ahead for juice makers, there are also some challenges as well. The British Soft Drinks Association (BSDA) director general Jill Ardagh said that in 2007, drinks that were either naturally produced or could offer functional benefits had created new opportunities for manufacturers. "Health and wellbeing should continue to be key drivers of growth in the UK soft drinks industry," she stated. "[About] 61 per cent of soft drinks are now low calorie or no added sugar and this trend is set to continue." A key trend recorded by the association in 2007 was the growing importance of still, juice-based and 100 per cent juice drinks to the industry as a whole. Despite this growth, orange juice, the UK's favourite flavour of the product posted a further decline in market share to just 54 per cent, as consumers looked to try new flavours and varieties, the report stated www.china-food-wholesaler.com Fri, 15 Aug 2008 04:30:00 GMT http://uebtootoosui.spoonylife.com/choosing-baby-day-care-28031.html While some parents are fortunate to have family members care for their children during the day, many more parents must find a reliable, caring daycare facility to take care of their child during the working hours. How can you find a good daycare? Ask your friends and relatives who they use. This is great advice because who would you trust more than a friend or relative? If they love the baby day care facility that their child attends, then chances are you will, too! Visit several daycare centers in your area. If you have received several suggestions for competent daycare facilities, and you are having a hard time deciding which one to use, plan a visit to each of them。 Ask your pediatrician. When you think about it, this is a logical approach to finding a good daycare. Pediatricians typically see hundreds of patients, so they may know some of the ins and outs of various daycare providers. Don't hesitate to ask for your doctor's opinion。 Check with the state department in your state that governs and licenses daycare centers. Find out if there have been any violations or complaints, and research the reasons for those issues www.allforinfant.com Fri, 15 Aug 2008 04:30:00 GMT http://uebtootoosui.spoonylife.com/world-s-only-baccarat-boutique-store-opens-in-orlando-28030.html Prime Retail, a leading outlet shopping center developer, welcomes the world's only Baccarat outlet store to Prime Outlets International Orlando, the largest outlet shopping destination in the southern U.S. The premier French luxury crystal brand and creator of the most innovative of designs in the industry offers customers a grand array of crystal lighting, home decor, stemware, barware, giftware, jewelry and fashion accessories at up to 50 percent off regular retail prices. "The addition of Baccarat to our merchant mix at Prime Outlets International Orlando represents our commitment to offer shoppers the brand names they demand at the prices they desire," said Senior Vice President of Marketing Karen E. Fluharty. "We are honored to welcome Baccarat as a defining and key retailer as we advance our mission to create well-tenanted shopping destinations in the markets we serve." According to Michael Belleveau, President et CEO, Baccarat North America, "We are thrilled to have opened with Prime Retail and we are celebrating the opening of our company's only outlet boutique. Prime Outlets International Orlando is a premiere shopping destination that serves a broad tourist market and the affluent population in Orlando and we are extremely honored to have been given such a warm welcome from both Prime Retail and the Orlando community." Sharing the store location with Baccarat is famed French brand, LALIQUE, whom for more than one hundred years has been creating crystal works of art. "LALIQUE is proud to have a presence at Prime Retail International Orlando," said Maz Zouhairi, President and CEO, LALIQUE North America. "We are confident that this diverse and discerning clientele will embrace our brand as we have their city." Prime Outlets International Orlando, a 778,000 square foot outlet center, underwent a $300 million expansion in May 2008 and showcases a compelling mix of the world's leading designer and brand names. Baccarat joins merchants including BCBGMAXAZRIA Factory Store, Betsey Johnson Outlet, COACH Factory, Hickey Freeman, HUGO BOSS Factory Store, Juicy Couture, kate spade, Kenneth Cole, Michael Kors, Saks Fifth Avenue OFF 5TH, Sean John Factory Store, Tommy Hilfiger, Victoria's Secret and the only Neiman Marcus Last Call location in central Florida among many more. www.fashion-accouterment.com Fri, 15 Aug 2008 04:28:00 GMT http://uebtootoosui.spoonylife.com/wlan-bluetooth-semicon-markets-thriving-28029.html The WLAN and the Bluetooth semiconductor markets continued to post double digit growth in 2007, driven by strong demand for connected devices and new applications. In newly released forecasts for the two segments of the worldwide short-range wireless semiconductor industry, IDC indicates that wireless connectivity will remain a high growth opportunity for wireless semiconductor vendors as specifications for WLAN and Bluetooth continue to evolve."Both markets are set for another year of double-digit growth in 2008," said Ajit Deosthali, research manager, Consumer Devices and Wireless Semiconductors at IDC. "More integration will occur as WLAN will likely be combined with other radios, such as Bluetooth and GPS. Integration will likely lead to lower bill of materials (BOM) costs for the platforms and higher value proposition for the semiconductor vendors.According to IDC, the top WLAN semiconductor vendors in 2007 based on revenue were:1. Broadcom remained the market leader in the WLAN market, broadly helped by the growth in consumer PC, residential gateways and gaming segments.2. Atheros was ranked second and had a strong year thanks to the growth in residential gateways and the consumer PC segment.3. Intel ranked third and remained one of the market leaders due its WLAN solution integrated with its Centrino program.In the worldwide Bluetooth semiconductor market, IDC found that CSR and Broadcom captured over three quarters of the total market, while four companies: Texas Instruments, NXP, ST Microelectronics, and Infineon, shared the remainder of the market. Most of these companies focused on Bluetooth for mobile handsets. The top Bluetooth semiconductor vendors in 2007 based on revenue were:1. CSR maintained its market leadership position due to the strength of its Bluecore product offerings, and the high Bluetooth attach rates in mobile handsets.2. Broadcom grabbed the second highest market share with a focus on mobile phones, gaming, and the PC market.www.electronics-in-china.com Fri, 15 Aug 2008 04:27:00 GMT http://uebtootoosui.spoonylife.com/tv-sets-can-now-be-disguised-as-fine-works-of-art-28028.html There was a time when household electronics weren't that complicated. As a matter of fact, they were more like pieces of furniture. When I was a kid my grandparents had an old "television graveyard" tucked away in a dusty corner up in the attic. It contained the skeletons of a long line of broken old sets. TV sets back in those days could usually be repaired. Some of it was "do-it-yourself." You just went down to the corner drugstore and bought a replacement tube and you were good to go until another one burned out. They were sort of like light bulbs. That was until the "big tube", i.e. the picture tube, went out. These were too expensive to replace. In was in this case that the set was relegated to the "yard." Some television sets were not only fine pieces of furniture; they also sometimes served more than one function. I remember one Magnavox that we had that took up a whole living room wall. It was a 25" floor model television set as well as a stereo and an entertainment bar where you could store your drinking glasses and your bar supplies. When it finally went out it was too valuable to discard so the new set was simply placed on top of it. Eventually the electronics became smaller and lighter and were usually placed on another type of entertainment center that consisted of wood shelves and a glass cabinet. In recent years, however, with the advent of plasma and big screen TV's they are becoming more like pieces of furniture again or works of art that are designed to blend into the room's décor. According to an article in The St. Louis Post Dispatch,) flat screens can now be hung straight on the wall, incorporated into a computer system, framed, or made to look like fine pieces of art. When the TV is not on you can buy CD's and computer programs that will make your screen look like everything from a Picasso to a roaring fireplace. You can even get family pictures that constantly scroll down on the screen. Don't care for any of the above? Then you can get a set that either disappears completely into the wall or blends in so well that people won't think you even have one. www.1topsupplier.com Fri, 15 Aug 2008 04:27:00 GMT http://uebtootoosui.spoonylife.com/titan-jewelry-segment-shines-in-q1-28027.html Income from operations went up to Rs. 819.06 crore during the first quarter of the current year from Rs. 666.59 crore during the corresponding period last year and the company's profit before taxes increased to Rs. 43.95 crore compared to Rs. 25.36 crore last year. Profit after taxes went up from Rs. 17.99 crore last year to Rs. 32.22 crore during the same period in the current year. Despite high inflation, spiraling oil prices and high volatility in gold prices all the divisions of the company have performed well. Watch segment sales income increase from Rs. 168.83 crore during the first quarter of last year to Rs. 171.89 crore during the corresponding period this year. The jewelry segment sales income grew from Rs. 466.41 crore during the first quarter of last year to Rs. 615.72 crore during this year. The Company's other products segment that include Eyewear, Precision Engineering, Machine Building and Clocks grew from Rs. 22.65 crore during the first quarter of last year to Rs.23.50 crore this year. During the quarter the Company opened 29 New World of Titans, Tanishq, Eye+ and Gold Plus stores. Titan watches were launched in Pakistan and Tanishq opened its first exclusive boutique in the USA at Chicago. www.fashion-accouterment.com Fri, 15 Aug 2008 04:26:00 GMT http://uebtootoosui.spoonylife.com/security-service-monitors-wlan-intrusions-28026.html Starting now, you no longer have to buy a software application to monitor your enterprise wireless LAN. You can just rent one online. AirTight Networks this week unveiled a software-as-a-service version of its SpectraGuard Enterprise WLAN intrusion monitoring and prevention application, called SpectraGuard Online. Users still have to plug in preconfigured AirTight radio frequency sensors at their site. But the data these sensors collect is sent to servers at a hosting facility, where it's processed for the customer's network administrators. Don't Miss!Read the latest WhitePaper - Monitor the core and troubleshoot the access layer with integrated network analysis solutionsThe goal is to make WLAN intrusion prevention more affordable and easier to deploy for companies of all sizes, according to executives for the company. The basic SpectraGuard software is unchanged, but there are some coding changes to minimize delay in the wide-area connection between the hosted data center and the customer site. AirTight is one of several vendors offering enterprise software that constantly monitors the Wi-Fi spectrum, usually with a network of RF sensors, for radios trying to connect to the WLAN or to users on it. Some vendors are small specialty vendors such as AirTight and AirDefense. Other WLAN vendors, such as Aruba, often include some intrusion detection/prevention features, either their own or under license from an OEM. www.electronics-in-china.com Fri, 15 Aug 2008 04:25:00 GMT http://uebtootoosui.spoonylife.com/footwear-clothing-accessories-retail-sales-soar-in-june-28025.html The Census and Statistics Department (CetSD) released the latest figures on retail sales July 31. The value of total retail sales in June 2008, provisionally estimated at $22.2 billion, increased by 11.6% over a year earlier. After netting out the effect of price changes over the same period, the volume of total retail sales increased by 4.0% in June 2008 over a year earlier. The revised estimate of the value of total retail sales in May 2008, at $23.2 billion, increased by 13.0% over May 2007, while the volume of total retail sales increased by 5.6%. Taking the first half of 2008 together, total retail sales increased by 15.9% in value or 9.3% in volume over the same period a year earlier. Analysed by type of retail outlet and comparing June 2008 with June 2007, the volume of sales of fuels increased the most, by 18.1%. This was followed by sales of footwear, allied products and other clothing accessories (+10.0%); wearing apparel (+9.1%); furniture and fixtures (+6.6%); miscellaneous consumer durable goods (+5.9%); miscellaneous consumer goods (+5.3%); commodities in department stores (+3.1%); and jewelry, watches and clocks, and valuable gifts (+1.4%). On the other hand, the volume of sales of motor vehicles and parts and that of commodities in supermarkets decreased by 10.5% and 1.3% respectively in June 2008 compared with a year earlier, while the volume of sales of food, alcoholic drinks and tobacco remained almost unchanged. Based on the seasonally adjusted series, the volume of total retail sales decreased by 1.7% in the second quarter of 2008 compared with the preceding quarter. These retail sales statistics are primarily intended to measure the sales receipts in respect of goods sold by local retail establishments, for gauging the short-term business performance of the local retail sector. They cover consumer spending on goods but not on services. Moreover, they include spending on goods by visitors in Hong Kong but not by Hong Kong residents outside Hong Kong. Hence they should not be regarded as a comprehensive indicator of overall consumer spending. In this context, it may be noted that the share of consumer spending on services in overall consumer spending has been increasing over time. Users interested in the trend of overall consumer spending should refer to the quarterly series of private consumption expenditure (PCE), which is a major component of the Gross Domestic Product. Compiled from a wide range of data sources, PCE covers consumer spending on both goods (including goods purchased from all channels) and services by Hong Kong residents whether domestically or abroad. Commentary: A Government spokesman said that retail sales expanded at a more moderate pace recently, after a rather long period of exceptionally strong performance. Looking forward, the slowing global economic growth, strains in the financial markets, elevated inflationary pressure and international commodity prices, and consolidation in local asset prices are all likely to put a drag on the local economy and hence influence consumer sentiments. Yet, the firm labour market conditions, together with further expansion of inbound tourism, should continue to provide support to the retail trade. www.fashion-accouterment.com Fri, 15 Aug 2008 04:24:00 GMT