unexpected

The commercial war between China and the US has had an unexpected injury: Starbucks

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Just a year ago we talked to Xataka of the delicate moment through Starbucks. A year later, the world’s largest coffee chain deepens the crisis of its business model, now trapped between those structural problems, which came from afar, and a new problem: Trump’s tariffs. The current situation. Starbucks accumulates five consecutive quarters of falls In sales in the United States. Only in the last quarter, transactions fell 4%, although average customer expenditure increased by 3%. It does not matter: that increase is insufficient to compensate for the loss of traffic in coffee shops if customers look for cheaper alternatives like Dunkin ‘or McDonald’s. Why is it important. The company depends on coffee imported from more than 30 countries, and with The new 10% tariffshis commitment not to raise prices in 2025 further complicates the recovery of his margins, which were already down. The context. What for years was an unstoppable growth story, tripling its premises from 2012 to exceed 40,000 in 2024, it has now become a struggle to maintain its profitability. The United States, its main market, is saturated. And China, its great growth commitment, has its own problems. The US market shows clear signs of maturity with a growth of premises that has slowed down. In China, although it has almost doubled its stores in five years, income has stagnated, with flat interannual sales (0% last quarter). The latter has a lot to do with Nationalist consumption That put local alternatives before. The threat. Beyond tariffs, Starbucks has other open fronts around its business model. Between the lines. The new CEO Brian Niccol, signing of Chipotle with music from Fanfarrias, has launched the Plan “Back to Starbucks“To recover the essence that made the company great. However, he recently recognized that “our results of the second quarter are disappointing,” although he also said he “confidence that our plan is the right strategy to turn the business.” The unexpected turn. Despite all these problems, Niccol maintains its commitment to freeze prices in 2025, a brave decision (and we will see if reckless) when their competitors will surely increase them due to the impact of tariffs. It is true that this strategy could give it competitive advantage if it manages to control its margins on other ways, but it is also that these margins are increasingly constrained. In figures. The financial situation explains the deterioration of the business: The actions almost 30% have fallen From the announcement of tariffs. Its adjusted operational margin of the last quarter was 8.2%, quite below the expected 9.5%. The benefits collapsed more than 50% compared to the previous year, to 384 million dollars. The company accumulates 23,000 million net debt, with a indebtedness ratio superior to triple. The latest. Starbucks has already implemented several measures to contain costs: Elimination of extra charges for alternative milks. Reduction of customization options. Product discontinuation. Free recharges offer for those who consume in their establishments. The question now is whether these measures will be enough in the face of an increasingly hostile economic environment, where consumption habits are changing and the experience that previously defined Starbucks no longer seems sufficient to justify their prices. In Xataka | Specialty coffee is expensive and there is something that increases it even more: to remove caffeine Outstanding image | Xataka

An unexpected buyer is turning houses, temples and abandoned factories from Japan into tourist accommodations: China

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Something is happening in Japan for a while to this part, a phenomenon that began with waves of Chinese tourists who came to the nation To stayand then extended through zones, where the proliferation of “new chinatowns” was giving rise to neighborhoods with Chinese than Japanese. The theme became something more serious when this “chinification” reached one of the national bastions: Pop culture. The latest: Beijing is buying its most traditional architecture and turning it into Resort tourist. Kyoto as shuttle. He told him Nikkei weekend In an extensive report. In a Japan where modernity threatens to eclipse centuries of tradition, the figure of Yuichi Ishikura embodies a phenomenon as unexpected as decisive: the Rescue of the architectural heritage traditional by Chinese citizens. Born in the province of Fujian and raised from adolescence in Kyoto, Ishikura found her vocation after a personal experience in a guest house during her university studies in the United States. Upon his return to Japan in 2015, with just 23 years, he acquired his first Machiya (Typical narrow and deep wood housing built since the EDO period) for just over 10 million yen. He transformed it into a tourist accommodation and, in just three years, he had recovered his investment. Since then he has renewed More than 60 properties Similar, including the Shichikutei house, near the Kyoto station, and has declared its intention to become the number one operator of Machiyas throughout Japan. The threat of the Machiya. It is not a trivial theme in Japan. The Kyo-Machiya are architectural jewelry of the old capital, and are disappearing to the alarming rhythm of about 800 a yearpressed for the high cost of its maintenance, inheritance taxes and the real estate voracity that replaces them with apartments and floors. And while the Japanese seem to resign themselves to that disappearance, foreign investors (especially of Chinese origin) They are turning that crisis into the opportunity. Here, like Nikkei explainedFigures like Lee Wendy, a native restorative of Shanghai who have rehabilitated 40 Machiya and perfectly reflect this trend. The phenomenon has grown so much that, according to a study by the city of Kyoto, a 30 % of the accommodations Under municipal license are in the hands of some 500 foreigners, many of them Chinese buyers who have converted these traditional houses in tourist accommodations without losing their aesthetic or historical value. Temples for sale. The phenomenon is not limited to houses. In rural areas such as Shiso, in Hyogo Prefecture, Buddhist temples They have also started Change hands in the absence of successors priests. One of these temples, acquired by a Chinese buyer after the death of the main priest in 2017, has generated local controversy for the informal use of the enclosure. Meanwhile, other temples have had to publicly go out to Define rumors Sales disseminated on platforms as Rednotea Chinese social network in which deceptive ads circulate that promise tax benefits for acquiring religious properties. One of the most popular cases was the Jisso-in Monzeki templewith 800 years of history, which He denied categorically Be for sale, after detecting false publications aimed at Chinese investors. The fiscal attractiveness. Behind this fever for acquiring temples, sanctuaries and Japanese traditional houses Nikkei had That there is a double attraction: on the one hand, the cultural and architectural value that represents for many Chinese citizens a difficult heritage in their native country. On the other, and equally important, the favorable fiscal conditions For religious institutions in Japan, which attract investors with commercial vision. Real estate sector executives in Osaka confirm that they have intermediate in the sale of religious properties to companies based in Hong Kong and are currently promoting other enclosures in Kyoto and Nara. And the sake. The phenomenon has gone much further. The conservation of the cultural legacy has also reached other spheres. In 2019, Zhou Chunbao, Shanghai businessman, Matsuoshuzojo acquireda historic Sake distillery in the saga prefecture that was on the verge of closing due to management problems. Motivated by their desire that the Chinese people know the Japanese culture through the Sake, Zhou revitalized the company and its production, which in 2022 reached regional recognition by winning the highest award in the Junmai Daiginjo category. Zhou’s intervention saved from oblivion a local institution whose history goes back at the end of the Edo period, at a time when the sake industry is It has drastically reducedwith a 40 % decrease in the number of distilleries and a 20 % drop of its historical volume of national sales. The “soul” of Japan. Thus, and while the tangible heritage of Japan (from traditional houses to centenary temples and ancestral distilleries) faces a slow but constant disappearance due to the lack of successors, it seems that it is a generation of Chinese investors who are willing to assume the challenge of keeping it. What for some represents a loss of cultural control, for others it becomes an unexpected form of continuity. Thus, in the face of the passivity or inability of certain local sectors, new heirs (Chinese) are arranged not only to invest capital, but also to revalue with sensitivity and pragmatism that for centuries has been the material essence of Japanese identity. Image | GIVE CRUSE In Xataka | Japan is living something unpublished in its most emblematic neighborhoods: the “chinification” of anime and video games In Xataka | A phenomenon that has already happened in New York is spreading throughout Japan: neighborhoods with younger than Japanese

The commercial war between the United States and China is having an unexpected victim: Christmas trees

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At the doors of Holy Week and with half a pending country, in Spain almost no one (Neither Abel Caballero) Think of Christmas. In China The thing is different. There the factories that are dedicated to manufacturing the ornaments and trees that decorate the US households every December should be receiving orders that do not just arrive. And in the industry there are little doubt what the reason is: the Commercial War raised 145% (If you take into account 20% applied by the export of fentanyl precursors) the rates to Chinese imports. What is less clear is … What will happen at Christmas? Where are the orders? That is the question that Chinese companies are being asked that are dedicated to manufacturing Christmas ornaments and trees. Yes, we are still in early April; but under normal conditions they should be receiving orders from their US clients. And it is not so. The news The Reuters agency advanced yesterday, which has spoken with the administrator of a Jinhua Christmas tree factory that has even seen how one of its partners on the other side of the Pacific suspended an order worth $ 400,000. And that the Chinese company has already invested $ 54,000 in materials. His great fear is now that the commission is annulled. “No request”. Jinhua is not an isolated case. Nor unique. Reuters He has spoken with other Chinese Christmas manufacturers that point in a similar direction. “We are concerned that US orders decrease,” explains the owner of another factory dedicated to Shaoxing Christmas decoration. The person responsible for a third company admits that at least the situation breaks with the experience of past years. “In mid -April all orders are usually finished, but now … it is difficult to know if any will come,” The manager tells from Jinhua. So far they have not registered “any request” from the US. And what is the cause? For China manufacturers there are few doubts. Or none. If 2025 is being an anomalous exercise for them is basically The commercial war unleashed on the other side of the ocean and that has been climbing. “Of course it is the tariffs,” assumes one of the entrepreneurs in the sector. After all, the tariff war may have intensified over the last days, after The act starring Trump in the Rosaleda de la Casa White with his already famous tariff table by countries and regions; But the word tariff (the favorite of the Republican) has been grabbing headlines for months. And one of the countries that He has always been In the focus is China, as was already happening in His first mandate. A figure: 145%. The result is that in the middle of April the Trump policy and the resurgence of the commercial war between Beijing and Washington (which has resulted in a mutual exchange of attacks and counterattacks tariffs) threatens to have an unexpected victim: Christmas. For now, Chinese merchandise to the US faces a tariff rise in the 125%percentage to which another 20% applied by the commercialization of fentanyl precursors. If we talk about Christmas ornament, USA and China maintain a more than prominent relationship. According to Reuters calculations 87% of the supply of American retailers dedicated to Christmas decoration comes from the factories of the Asian giant, which in turn half of their production to the US. “My colleagues and I depend on American orders to survive,” assumes Jessica Guo, administrator of a Christmas tree factory. Christmas decoration (and something else). At stake there is more than the Christmas ornament or that the US halls have more or less garlands, foams and artificial trees this year. That the sector goes well or badly translates into employment. And in millions of dollars. Two data arrives to get an idea. The merchandise acquired by American retailers in China reaches a value of 4,000 million of dollars. As for employment, only in Jinhua there is a factory of artificial trees of almost 11,000 m2 that normally uses 140 people, a template that can be elevated to 200 employees during the months of greater activity. Except for surprise, everything indicates that in 2025 it will not be necessary. Is there alternative? That is the other big question. And twice. Does China have an alternative market with which to compensate in a puncture of the American demand? And do the US companies have to the Asian giant to stock up on figurines and trees with lights? None will have it easy. In China, domestic demand for Christmas decoration is low and there are already businesses thinking about strengthening their efforts in Russia, Europe or Southeast Asia, which are an important part of the sales cake. Yet, days ago A local businessman shared with Reuters his “concern.” The situation in the US. The US can also look at other suppliers, but without getting rid of the elongated shadow of tariffs. Another country with some weight in the production of Christmas ornaments is Cambod 49% to imports from that country. From the sector they also question that manufacturing ends up moving to the US, as the Republican leader aspires. “There is no technology or labor market,” They recognize To the agency. Result: Ten months seen worries since those who want to decorate their houses face a price increase. Images | Frames for Your Heart (UNSPLASH), Gage Skidmore (Flickr) and Trong Khiem Nguyen (Flickr) In Xataka | In the middle of the largest commercial chaos, olive oil seems immune thanks to a factor: consumption in Spain

In the war cameras vs lidar, Tesla has a lot to learn from an unexpected product: the Chinese aspiring robot

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Light detection and ranging. Or, what is the same, detection and measurement of light. These are the words behind Lidar. This technology uses light pulses to map the environment and discover each and every corner of a stay or an open space almost in real time, as well as to recreate 3D environments with enormous precision. To understand how a lidar radar works, I recommend watching Mark Rober’s video in which it tells the differences between a car equipped with this system and its tesla, which exclusively uses cameras to detect the obstacles that you can find along its path. Beyond the controversy arising in relation to the tests that Rober does, the video explains well Why Lidar is such a complete system. In a simple way, the system takes advantage of the speed of light to emit infrared pulses. These bounce in the object in question and the system calculates how far that object is using the time that the pulse of light has taken to go and return. As light pulses have a very small size and, as we said, it takes advantage of that very high speed of light transmission, can map the objects almost in real time. In recent days, after Mark Rober’s video, the controversy of whether it is better to use an LIDAR or one system that exclusively use cameras and recreations by software is better or worse to guarantee the best behavior in terms of autonomous driving. A controversy that has left people trying launch your tesla against a wall With a road painted in the purest shyesty style. And it is a long time since it made it clear that I would bet everything on the use of cameras for manage your driving aid systems Or, in the future, completely autonomous driving with the robotaxis that wants to put in the streets. At the time, home vacuum robots also lived this moment of indecision. And along the way, Irobot who was the leading market leader has ended up giving millionaire losses and has seen how Chinese manufacturers have eaten much of the market. The secret of the latter: they use lidar instead of trusting everything to the cameras. What can you learn from a vacuum cleaner “We have substantial doubts”, with these words Irobot owners responded to the question of whether they could move forward with their operations. My partner Javier Pastor explained A few months ago when Amazon raised the purchase of Irobot in 2022 (which fell into regulatory terms) The company had a value of 1.2 billion dollars. In the third quarter of 2024, the calculation was about 200 million dollars. Shortly after, The situation has not improved a lot. In 2024, Irobot lost more than 145 million dollars. However, they had reduced their losses by 52%. The company faced a perfect storm. After spending the worst of pandemic, spending on home robots and other products (such as computers) They collapsed. That coincided with the launch of new Chinese products that were faster and faster than Irobot’s: they used the lidar sensor. This system is ideal for improving the capacities of a vacuum robot. It detects better obstacles, mapping the house more precisely and that translates into faster and more effective work. The result is especially good if it is combined with the cameras and artificial intelligence systems to discover smaller obstacles that can go unnoticed or create confusion. In recent years, that has been the trend of the market in cleaning the home. The combination of this system with a more attractive price He has triggered the sales of Chinese aspiring robots, to the detriment of an Irobot that accumulated more than 60% market share. The comparison with Tesla and the electricity car market is evident. The latter are using Lidar sensors in their cars and offer a product equal to or better than Europeans and Elon Musk’s for a fraction of their price. He Xiaomi Su7 and its wide reception He is being a good example of this. Tesla has long since defends that Lidar are not necessary to improve autonomous driving systems but studies say that, as in the case of vacuum robots, the best performance is signed When both technologies are combinedLidar and cameras. In the case of Xiaomi, the videos shown from How your total autonomous driving system operates They are impressive, with very human behavior and managing the smallest spaces very well. This is possible because, among other things, A lidar is better when calculating distances And suffer less when the light falls. Neither does the risk of the camera be dazzled, At least not intentionallygenerating Ghostly brakes. So far, everything indicates that Tesla does not seem willing to return to anything other than the “All Chamber” To save costs. At the moment it has worked but you have to demonstrate that it is as effective as more advanced systems. And there is also the largest electric car market in the world. In China, where foreigners are suffering from the local product, Tesla is hitting a good batacazo in 2025. Photo | Tesla and Irobot In Xataka | “It’s like living millions of lives”: Tesla trusts their own drivers to advance Waymo and Cruise and shoot their value

The US strategy before China’s unstoppable naval growth has an unexpected protagonist: Japan

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The United States has been lagging behind in a field that previously dominated with iron fist. Its Marina fleet (sub) has been reduced to the same time as its budget. While China, Russia or even North Korea have been developing A new type of “war” Under the sea giving special importance to the “nuclear” theme in the UUV, Washington was still paralyzed. He Arctic case It is another perfect example. Perhaps for this reason, the approach has turned radically: Japan. Japan as an example. Before the growing Maritime Power of China And the difficulties facing the naval industry of the United States, Congress is evaluating the possibility of Adopt the Japanese model of constant production of submarines. Unlike the American system, where the amount of built vessels varies annually according to the budget, Japan (next to South Korea) has maintained for decades a production rate of A submarine per yearan approach that has provided stability to its naval industry and cost efficiency. The Naval Congress Specialist, Ronald O’Rourke, presented this model at a hearing of the Subcommittee for the Projection of Forces and Maritime Power of the House of Representatives, arguing that the Japanese strategy allows to maintain an constant acquisition rate Without affecting the total size of the fleet. Instead of increasing production, Japan manages the number of submarines in service through the extension of its useful life. The success of the Japanese model. To understand the formula we must go back in time. For decades, Japan has followed this strategy for protect your maritime interestsespecially in the soybeans, Tsugu and Tsushima, key routes where Russian and Chinese ships travel. Initially, its fleet consisted of 16 operational submarines and two training, but in 2010 it extended its objective to 22 submarines without increasing productionsimply prolonging your service time from 16 to 22 years. There is another key: the Japanese system allows Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Kawasaki Heavy Industries alternate the manufacture of submarineswhich avoids fluctuations in the workload of the shipyards and guarantees the maintenance of a highly specialized workforce. This strategy has caused the Japanese naval industry to be efficient, competitive and adaptable to changes in defense needs without generating extra costs or logistic problems. In front of the US decline. On the other sidewalk we have Washington. While Japan maintains its stability in naval production, the United States Navy faces A worrying scenario. The construction of your ships has become increasingly expensive and slowand the data corroborates it, since the total cost of the 46 ships currently under construction was tripled in a single year, from 3.4 billion to 10.4 billion dollars. But there is more. The aircraft carriers, which used to take 8 years to build, now They require 11 years. Here, China is advancing on the right too, As we explain. The attack submarines, whose construction took six years in the 2000s, now take nine. Even the Navy faces the shortage of personnel, both in the shipyards and in the crews, which further aggravates delays. All challenges that make the option of adopting the Japanese approach or that of South Korea, two of the world’s largest naval builders, win traction in Washington, especially when the number of US attack submarines is on the way to decrease in the coming yearswhich could affect the balance of power in the Pacific. Japan as a strategic complement. All this leads us to the proposal of Congress. In addition, the strengthening of the Japanese underwater fleet not only reinforces Tokyo’s defense, but also benefits the United States By having a better prepared ally in the region. O’Rourke pointed out that if Japan decided to expand its fleet to 30 submarines, it could do it maintaining its current production rate and extending the useful life of their vessels at 30 years. The recent delivery of RAIGEI Submarineof the Taigei class, by Kawasaki Heavy Industries to the Japan Ministry of Defense, it is a sample of the efficiency of the system we are talking about. Mitsubishi did the same with him Jingei submarinereflecting a constant production scheme that contrasts with the problems of the American naval industry. The challenge in an uncertain political context. While the Japanese model offers clear solutions, its implementation in the United States is not so simple. The main reason? The American system depends on annual budget negotiationswhat generates fluctuations in naval production and hinders long -term planning. In addition, political and economic uncertainty, including possible commercial restrictions and Threat of new tariffs On the part of the Trump administration, they could further complicate any attempt to stabilize the industry. Thus, the things already measure that competition with China in the maritime field intensifies, the US Congress is forced to reconsider its naval construction strategy. Adopting the Japanese model could represent a viable solution to improve efficiency, reduce costs and ensure that the Navy keeps its position on the global stage. A complicated equation that would require deep structural changes In the way in which the country finances and manages its industry, a challenge that is yet to be resolved. Image | Tom Dennison In Xataka | The US Navy faces an unprecedented threat: China, Russia and North Korea are developing a new type of underwater war In Xataka | Eight Rompehielos have turned Russia into the power of the Arctic. Your secret: Nuclear force to operate all year

In the US they have realized that Covid has had an unexpected effect on its restaurants: it has triggered its production

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The Covid has not sat badly at the US bars. At least if we talk about productivity levels. Even though pandemic He hit with viciousness to the hospitality of half the world (including the Spanish), He sank the billing From the sector and condemned not a few businesses at the close, American premises reached during the health crisis a level of labor productivity by 15% greater than they had before COVID, a notable increase that has not been diluted. The explanation is very simple: express visits. The Covid heritage. That the pandemic was devastating for the hospitality and forced to close Many businesses It is clear. However, however, a group of researchers from Chicago and New York universities asked a question that goes a little further: Did Covid-19 influence the productivity of the premises? And if so, in what sense? Is that effect still maintained? Their conclusions were reflected in A study that has just published the National Bureau of Economic Resarch (NBER) with a quite eloquent title and that gives a clue to which direction its findings point to: ‘The curious increase in productivity in US restaurants’. A percentage: 15%. The team of economists has not only found that effectively the performance of restaurants seemed to increase during the years of the health crisis. Has even encrypted that increase, as they need in The conclusions Of its report: “We verify that, after being practically constant for almost 30 years, real work productivity in restaurants increased more than 15% during the Covid-19 Pandemia.” The data is interesting because it does not only reflect a specific and past reality, related to the worst years of the Coronavirus. After sliding that percentage (15%) the researchers clarify that this turn has not yet diluted its effect. “This increase has been maintained even when many conditions have returned to prepondondemic levels.” And what was the reason? Clarified and calculated the increase in productivity, the following doubt was obvious: what was the reason? What did he answer? To answer all these issues, experts examined about 100,000 restaurants distributed by the US, focusing on aspects such as sales or the number of consumers attended by each employee. They also had access to information about visits thanks to mobile phones. The sample is wide, but presents certain characteristics that should be taken into account. To start the experts set in a very specific business profile, the Limited service hospitality (LSR), the one in which the interaction between the staff and the client is minimized, as in many premises of Fast food. The study in fact that focused on three subcategories: restaurants in the style of Taco Bell or McDonald´s, buffets and coffee shops such as Starbucks. For the sample to be wide, they covered more than 600 brands. Why this choice? The study It clarifies that the LSRs represent about 45% of the employment and sales of the sector in the US already throughout the last decades its productivity has evolved in a “very similar” way to the whole of the restoration sector. In addition, limited services offered an extra advantage: economists have complete information on their visits. Combing (thousands of) data. With all that information about the table, economists began drawing conclusions. And the first were striking. “Microdatos reveal significant growth in productivity, already measured in sales per employee or even in a more basic/physical average of the total number of customers per employee,” he says The study Published by Nber, which also rules out that this rebound can be explained by economies of scale, a greater weight of the sector or changes in demand. The experts also found that if the employees sold more it was not because they spent more time in their positions. When they were proven that the average weekly hours worked between July 2022 and June 2024 was 25.1 hours, “the same”, they clarify, that from 2006 to 2008. “In fact the current hours per worker are actually a bit below the pre-covid average from 2018 to 2019”. What is the cause? The rhythm. Or rather, the duration of visits. The researchers appreciated “significant descents in the amount of time” that customers spent in restaurants, with an increase especially pronounced in the group of consumers that remained in the premises 10 or even less minutes. That phenomenon was found during the pandemic years and did not seem to dissipate once the health crisis has been overcome. “The average permanence time of customers decreased and most of the reduction was due to the increase in the percentage of visits that lasted less than 10 minutes,” says the study. Your reading It is therefore clear: the increase in the performance of the restaurants “is strongly correlated” with the reduction of the time that customers pass in business, especially with express visits, which do not reach the quarter of an hour. Beyond the minutes. The data of the minutes clarified part of the mystery about the increase in performance (shorter visits translate into the possibility of attending a greater number of customers without increasing the templates), but letting another equally important question be bumping: why? Why was that increase in fleeting visits, 10 or even less minutes? Researchers are clear: leading food. “The frequency of these carrying food clients increased during the COVID-19, even in restaurants in Fast foodand it has not decreased “, They conclude Economists. The key would therefore be Deliverythe increase in orders made by telephone or customer apps that then collect their orders to eat them at home, office or any other place. “If businesses can satisfy these fast customers, in addition to the usual ones, with the same labor, the data will reflect a clear and legitimate increase in productivity,” economists add in their article. An advance with nuances. The 15% yield increase is positive for business, but there are experts who already invite you to value it with perspective. Douglas Hoktz-Eakin, president of the US Forum of Action, I pointed After examining the study that there is … Read more

The price of oil faces a perfect storm and an unexpected country has been placed in the center: Kazakhstan

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The oil market is experiencing one of Your most unstable stagesfrom internal disputes within the OPEC+ to the production policies of great powers outside the organization. In this scenario, the role of Kazakhstan has gained great relevance, but the real danger can be what is to come if it is combined with the focus of other international actors, such as the United States. Overproduction. A month ago, Kazakhstan was news because had to accelerate its nuclear development to address your growing shortage of energy., Approveing ​​your first nuclear power plant. Now, this country that had always maintained a low profile in oil matters It has been increasing Production in recent weeks, overcoming what is estimated by OPEC+. According to A recent reportKazakhstan produced 1,767 million barrels per day (BPD) in February, a notable increase compared to 1,570 million BPD in January, and well above its quota in the organization, which It is set at 1,468 million BPD. The problems multiply. In the Tengiz deposit, operated in collaboration with Chevron, it has exceeded expectations being the largest within the OPEC+. This situation has caused a challenge in the goals of the oil organization to maintain a balance in production. In an attempt to stabilize prices, the oil organization had decided to increase gradually production after years of cuts to boost crude oil prices. However, with the price of oil collapsing, it is in need of reviewing its strategy. Russia’s threat to reverse the decision to increase production and internal disagreements about production quotas are complicating the situation even more. The imminent crisis. The price of crude has suffered a strong collapse in recent weeks, with a fall of more than 13% from the peaks reached in January. While this decrease It can be attributed to factors As the excess supply in America and a weaker demand, the Kazakhstan factor is acting as a catalyst that could deepen the crisis. Its excessive production could be an important factor for OPEC+ to not sustain its agreements and face a review of its strategy. Without significant correction, the market could face an even deeper price crisis. United States following closely. With Trump’s arrival, oil has resurfaced again in the United States. The current president has promoted a large -scale oil production policy, his famous: “Drill, Baby, Drill”. In this operation to continue producing to keep prices below $ 60 a barrel, experts They have pointed out That Trump has intensifying competition in a saturated market, affecting all crude -dependent economies. The worst is yet to come. The growing production of Kazakhstan and the United States is creating An uncertain panorama For the oil market. If the supply continues as the demand does not grow to the expected rhythm, the crude oil prices They could collapse even more, affecting both producers and oil -dependent economies. The point will be if the OPEC+ can balance these external pressures or if the market will be dragged into a price crisis. Image | Flickr Xataka | The era of the “renewable transition” has died as soon as it starts: BP leads the replication of the great oil companies

The last time that US invaded Panama did it with an unexpected strategy: Guns’n’rose as a psychological torture

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At the end of 2024, in Panama you surely breathed calmer. As soon as the new year starts, the enclave has gained an unusual geopolitical importance. While the country has stressed that “its” channel is a neutral territory, Donald Trump’s statements and China’s movements They put the focus on a space and their crossroads between two global powers. It is possible that it does not pass from rhetoric, but if finally the United States tries to “invade” the territory, history reminds us that there was already a similar event with music to every pill. Invasion to Panama: pumps and rock. In December 1989, United States launched the so -called Operation Causa Causaa massive military invasion in Panama with the aim of overthrowing the dictator Manuel Noriega. With an overwhelming demonstration of war power, Washington sent 26,000 soldiersbombarded parts of the city of Panama and finally submitted Noriega through an unpublished psychological war tactic. Context: The American friend. Noriega had been A strategic ally of the United States during the Cold Warserving as a CIA informant about drug trafficking and regional issues. Despite his links with organized crime, Washington tolerated him for years due to his usefulness in the fight against communist influence in Latin America. However, in the late 80s everything changed, and its growing autonomy and the possibility of shaking ties with the Soviet Union began to worry the White House. Although Noriega was accused of drug trafficking and electoral fraud, the murder of an American soldier for Panama’s defense forces was the perfect pretext that triggered the invasion. The administration of George Bush decided that it was time to actdespite the opposition of agencies such as the CIA and the DEA, which still saw in Noriega a valuable source of intelligence. Operation Cause. Panama’s invasion was a disproportionate force display. Panamanian defense had just 3,000 soldiers with light weaponswhile the United States deployed furtive airplanes, helicopters with artillery and thousands of marines and army troops. The American offensive devastated entire sectors of the city of Panama, with a balance of hundreds of dead and scenes of bodies shattered through the streets. Historians tell that the brutality of The invasion was influenced by the so -called Vietnam Syndromea doctrine that prioritized the use of overwhelming force to avoid long and expensive interventions such as Vietnam. To seal the capture of Noriega, the Navy destroyed her yacht and her private jet, eliminating any escape route. And the decibels arrived. After the US invasion of Panama, Noriega took refuge in the Vatican Embassy in Panama Cityrefusing to surrender despite the presence of American troops surrounding the building. As international law prevented them from entering the building, the United States Army implemented an unprecedented psychological war strategy to break their resistance: They installed speakers in military vehicles and began bombing the area with a sound wall without stopping. The repertoire, carefully selected by the military station Southern Command Network, included songs with ironic messageslike I FOUCHT THE LAW OF THE CLASH, PANAMA DE VAN HALEN, ALL I WANT IS YOU OF U2 AND IF I HAD A ROCKET LAUNCHER DE BRUCE COCKBURN. And above all, the two -band classics: Guns N ‘Roses (Welcomo to the Jungle were heard dozens of times) and The Doors. The thunderous sound was such that the Holy See formally protested against tactics, which led to music after three days without stopping. By then, Noriega (who was also an opera lover) had already undergone extreme psychological pressure. On January 3, 1990, he finally delivered. Torture or tactics? US military forces have always defended the practice, arguing that musical torture is a non -lethal technique that, like sleep deprivation, does not leave permanent physical sequels. However, former detainees have testified otherwise. I counted a while ago to the BBC Binyam Mohamedformer prisoner of Guantanamo, to have endured 20 days of music at full volume, including The Real Slim Shady by Eminem and Forgot About Dre by Dr. Dre, causing several detainees to lose their reason. Another prisoner, Haj Ali, described how he underwent the constant repetition of the Babylon phrase … Babylon … Babylon … by David Gray, until he feels that his head was going to explode. In this regard, organizations such as Amnesty International consider that musical torture is a form of inhuman and degrading abuseprohibited by the UN and the European Court of Human Rights. According to expert Sara Macneice, This technique has nothing to do with music In its traditional sense, it is a sound assault designed to intimidate and break the victim psychologically. Consequences and legacy. Yes ok The fair cause was a strategic success for the United Statesthe international community condemned the violation of Panamanian sovereignty and the brutality of the attack. The invasion left between 500 and 4,000 deadaccording to different sources, and the destruction of entire neighborhoods such as Chorrillo. Political level, Washington adopted Panama’s invasion as a model for future interventionsinfluencing the military doctrine used in Iraq, Afghanistan and the so -called war on terrorism. That said, its impact on national sovereignty and international law remains a matter of debate. It was the day that it was shown that bombs are not needed to bend the enemy, and that Even music can be an instrument of war. Image | Carlos Varela, Nara, LLS In Xataka | China and the US want the same territory of South America. China has offered an ambitious project, Trump enters by force In Xataka | Mexico plans 3,000 new kilometers of train for goods and passengers. The big question is what happens to the drug traffickers

The Plan of Spain for leading green hydrogen has been faced with an unexpected problem: Zamora

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The countdown for the passage of the H2Med corridor It is underway. The one that will be the first clean hydrogen corridor of the European Union will be underway by 2030, but, as in any project, it is not exempt from controversy, since the section that goes from Zamora (Spain) to Celorico da Beira ( Portugal) has aroused a conflict. The controversy. The Duero Hydrographic Confederation (CHD) He has authorized A INARI SOLAR SL The extraction of 117,000 cubic meters per year of groundwater of the Natural Reserve of Las Lagunas de Villafáfila. The initiative will supply a 40MW green hydrogen production plant. Located in Moreruela Granja (Zamora), the Unión del Pueblo Leonese party (UPL) has warned about environmental impact of this project in a protected wetland. For this reason, divisions between neighbors, environmentalists and politicians have not been expected, between those who support it and who fear its consequences. In addition, the controversy has reached the Unesco Through the Ramsar agreement, an international treaty for the protection of wetlands. The decarbonization process. Spain It has different green hydrogen pointsbeing Zamora one of the most strategic points for the installation of infrastructure for the production of this renewable. However, producing green hydrogen requires large amounts of water, an increasingly scarce resource in Spain. In fact, 82.5% of the water It is used for agricultureand the country Face an accelerated desertification process. For this reason, the choice of the Villafáfila aquifer as a source of supply has generated outrage. The process. The CHD granted The concession in January after a period of public information of a month that, according to the agency, was closed without allegations or reports against. The Confederation argues that the extracted water will be minimal compared to the total of the aquifer, representing only 0.1% of the available resources. In addition, the concession will be 25 years, allowing a maximum flow of 3.8 l/Sy will capture by means of a 70 -meter depth survey. However, environmentalists in action, among other organizations, He has questioned These data because they point out the devastating impact on the wetland. In addition, he has denounced the lack of transparency in the process and has pointed out that authorization has been done on a place where restrictions for agricultural irrigation. From the town. Social discomfort has grown rapidly and already circulates In Change.orgunder the motto: “#Salvemosvillafáfila! A natural treasure in danger of disappearance.” The initiative accumulates more than 7,000 signatures, denouncing that water extraction will endanger an ecosystem necessary for bird migration and the local economy. From the political sphere, and as we have pointed out above, UPL has resorted to authorization before the Junta de Castilla y León and has taken the case to Ramsar agreementwith the aim of opening the door to a possible international review. In favor. From the Popular Party, the president of the Diputación de Zamora, Javier Faúndez, He has shown Your support for green hydrogen, but Reject the choice of aquifer as a water source. In addition, he argues that there are more viable alternatives, such as the Esla River or a nearby reservoir. While from the Ministry for Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge, on which the CHD depends, has defended the concession ensuring that the regulated procedure has been followed and that the impact will be insignificant. However, the authorization must still pass the filter of the Junta de Castilla y León, which has promised a rigorous evaluation of environmental effects. Forecasts The conflict continues to climb and everything indicates that there will be citizen mobilizations in the coming weeks. The Junta de Castilla y León has the last word, so if the authorization continues, the debate could reach European instances. All this would test the compatibility between the EU climatic ambitions and the conservation of the environment. Image | Akiv and designed by Freepik Xataka A Japanese study is being able to transform methane into a clean energy source: turquorogen turquorogen

In an unexpected turn of events, Apple TV+ has reached Android. It is a necessary movement

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In an unexpected turn of events, Apple TV has officially landed on Android. Since its launch in 2021, the platform had been exclusive to Apple and, although we paid the subscription, it was only possible to reproduce the contents on Apple devices. There was only one exception: Google TV. As of today, Apple TV is available on Google Play Store, so you can download on Android devices (tablets and mobile phones). Thus, it will be possible to subscribe to the Apple TV+ service from these devices. Apple needed this movement, a lot. Available in Play Store. Apple TV in Play Store, see to believe. The app can be downloaded for free, allowing APPLE TV+subscription. It is available for all devices with Android 10 or higher, and has practically the same basic functions of the app that we find on Apple devices. The main difference is that, in Apple TV for Android, purchases or rentals that we have active through iTunes Store will not be shown. This simplifies the design of the app, optimized for tablets and mobiles. Apple needs scale, no exclusivity. Apple likes that its products are within its ecosystem but, like every company, it needs its products to generate money. Apple TV+ has been facing a few storms and temporary for years, and increasing the number of users seems essential to clean up the situation. 1,000 million a yearthis is the figure that Apple was willing to spend on films that wanted to take cinemas, Like Napoleon. Failures like ‘Argylle’ Nor did they help, an ambitious comedy blockbuster who failed to reap hubble successes. Apple TV remains a very minority platform, to the point of having less viewed a month than Netflix in one day. The translation? Production cuts, Price increases of subscriptions, and Little optimistic numbers. Bad times for streaming. The streaming economy It is broken. The current race is to maintain a audience without this platform migration, and bring Apple TV to Android is precisely Apple’s plan for users to start migrating from other platforms. Shown that The price increase is not as harmful as it could be thoughtthis movement in search of the mass public is the logical and necessary for Apple. Moment of aiming the date and starting counting until next year, to check whether or not the strategy has felt. Image | Xataka In Xataka | How to convert your normal TV to a smarttv: guide with what you need, main devices and how to choose the best for you

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