Our Mission is to keep our audience with an interrupted stream of selected financial information from different serious sources, with the objective to provide online tools with information about investments in the financial markets. We supply you, with the following information: Asia Markets Closing Report, Europe Markets Closing Report, Wall Street Market Closing Report, Market News, Commodities Daily Price Report, Daily Treasury Yields Report, EU/FX Daily Report.
Coles backs down on banning free plastic bags | Business
Naaman Zhou
Coles has reversed its decision to stop providing free plastic bags
to shoppers, saying some need more time to adjust to the switch to
reusable bags.
The supermarket banned single-use plastic bags
on 1 July and told customers they would have to pay 15c for thicker,
reusable bags. But then it began handing out the thicker bags for free
in New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland and Western Australia as it
gave customers time to adjust.
It was meant to stop providing its reusable Better Bags for free on 1
August but has now gone back on that decision and appears set to
provide them indefinitely. The thinner, single-use bags at Coles remain unavailable.
Greenpeace criticised the decision as irresponsible and
disappointing, saying that Coles is perpetuating the problem of plastic
waste by providing free bags.
“They talked the talk but haven’t walked the walk,” said a spokeswoman, Zoe Dean.
“It’s
interesting because the ban on single-use bags came as a result of
pressure from customers and people calling for companies to take
responsibility and stop using plastic bags.
“While a minority of people are struggling to cope, we know it’s just a matter of time for people to adapt to the change.”
Plastic bag ban: What are the alternatives? – video
Craig Reucassel, host of the ABC’s War on Waste, said the decision was “insane”.
“The only good part of [the ban] was the 15c charge, which would
change people’s behaviour over time. Without it, you have only brought
in thicker plastic bags.”
Craig Reucassel
(@craigreucassel)
This is insane @Coles
The only good part of this was the 15c charge, which would change
people’s behavior over time. Without it you have ONLY brought in thicker
plastic bags. https://t.co/rymIrubqpB
Many shoppers and environmental groups pointed out that the thicker
bag was more harmful to the environment and harder to break down.
Jeff Angel, the director of Total Environment Centre, said the decision would increase plastic pollution.
“These slightly thicker bags are just as bad for the environment and
will be sent to landfill and littered in dangerous numbers,” he said.
“Clearly Coles has a very weak environmental ethic and is oversensitive
to a few complaints.”
Benjamin Law
(@mrbenjaminlaw)
To recap: @Coles
has gone from giving out endless free flimsy plastic bags to giving out
ENDLESS FREE STURDY INDESTRUCTIBLE PLASTIC BAGS this is a fuckin'
disaster honestly.
This is a bad decision by Coles. Campaigns to
change behaviour need a carrot and a stick. Remove the stick (e the 15c
payment) and you won’t change the behaviour.
The bags will not be given away for free in South Australia, the
Northern Territory, the Australian Capital Territory and Tasmania,
because those states and territories have already banned lightweight
plastic bags entirely.
South Australian shoppers have lived without plastic
bags since 2009, those in the NT and ACT since 2011, and in Tasmania
since 2013.
Other supermarket chains including Aldi and Harris Farm Market have
also banned plastic bags. Aldi have never provided free single-use
plastic bags since its expansion to Australia in 2001.
In a statement, a Coles spokeswoman said the free bags “are intended to be an interim measure” but would not give a timeframe.
“We will continue to listen to our customers and our teams members on
an ongoing basis to assess when customers have become accustomed to
bringing their own bags, and will provide them with as much notice as
possible,” the spokeswoman said.
Woolworths has also banned single-use bags but it was unclear whether
it would follow Coles by relaxing its policy. It has been contacted for
comment. Australian Associated Press contributed to this report
Stocks making the biggest moves after hours: AAPL, P & more
Amelia Lucas
Getty Images
Apple CEO Tim Cook gestures on stage during an Apple special event in San Francisco, California
Check out the companies making headlines after the bell: Apple shares rose more than 3 percent during after-hours trading, following a second quarter earnings report that beat Wall Street estimates.
The tech giant reported earnings per share of $2.34, beating analysts'
expectations of $2.18 per share. It also reported strong numbers for
revenue of $53.27 billion, beating Wall Street estimates of $52.34
billion. Pandora Media
shares jumped more than 9 percent during extended-hours trading after a
smaller-than-expected loss for its second quarter earnings. The music
streaming company posted a loss of 15 cents, a cent better than the
16-cent loss expected by Wall Street. Pandora also beat analysts'
revenue estimates, reporting $385 million in revenue versus the $373
million expected. Cheesecake Factory's
stock fell more than 9 percent in after-hours trading following top and
bottom line misses for its second quarter results. The restaurant chain
reported earnings of 65 cents per share, missing analysts' earnings
expectations of 81 cents per share. Cheesecake Factory also missed Wall
Street revenue expectations of $594 million in revenue, reporting $593
million in revenue. Campbell Soup shares are up about 3 percent during extended-hours trading after Dow Jones reported that activist investor Third Point has built a stake
in the soup company of more than $300 million. The stake is worth more
than 2.5 percent of Campbell's stock, according to the report.
Additionally, the Camden, NJ-based company has tapped Deloitte for its previously announced strategic review.
Paul Manafort, Trump’s ex-campaign chairman, is accused in federal
court in Alexandria of failing to pay taxes on millions he made from his
work for a Russia-friendly Ukrainian political party, then lying to get
loans when the cash stopped coming in.
By Rachel Weiner, Justin Jouvenal, Rosalind S. Helderman and Matt Zapotosky • Read more »
The
fraud case against Trump’s onetime campaign chairman is the first trial
involving the special counsel probe into Russian interference in the
2016 election.
Before
he was Donald Trump’s campaign chairman, Paul Manafort was an adviser
to a Ukrainian strongman. After what happened in Kiev, he could spend
the rest of his life in prison.
By Dalton Bennett, Jon Gerberg and Jesse Mesner-Hage • Read more »
The
social media company said it couldn’t tie the activity to Russia, which
interfered on its platform during the 2016 presidential election. But
Facebook said the fake pages and profiles it discovered shared a pattern
of behavior with the previous Russian disinformation campaign.
President
Trump’s comments followed a weekend gathering at which top officials
affiliated with billionaire Charles Koch sought to distance the network
from Trump and his base in the Republican Party.
By Michelle Ye Hee Lee and John Wagner • Read more »
The
fire continues to rage across nearly 100,000 acres in Shasta County.
More than 1,000 structures have been destroyed or damaged along the
fire’s path. Evacuation orders have begun to lift in some areas, but
more than 5,000 structures remain under threat, and thousands of
residents are far from their homes.
By Lauren Tierney, Kate Rabinowitz and Aaron Steckelberg • Read more »
The
president's tweet came just as some state officials filed suit to block
distribution of data to make the weapons, which the State Department
allowed this summer.
An
analysis from the Wharton School earlier this year found that the move
would cut federal revenues by $100 billion over ten years, with over 80
percent of that money going to the top 1 percent of earners.
The
announcement by the retired four-star Marine Corps general quiets
speculation that he was nearing the exits because of tensions with the
president.
As
a reporter in Texas, Michael Graczyk has witnessed more than 400
executions over more than three decades. “I plead guilty to longevity
and to being in Texas, and certainly Texas does this thing more than
anyone else,” he said.
