Investing and Global Finance News

Tag Archives: China

Something New Brewing at Starbucks New York

The Starbucks coffee chain has announced plans to open the first Starbucks Pickup point in Penn Station.

This coffee shop is being designed as a streamlined store experience for customers who order and pay with the Starbucks app. The process of ordering involves downloading the app, selecting Pickup-Penn Station as the location, and placing an order. At the store, the order status board will guide consumers to their caffeine. Baristas will be available to help if needed, but their primary role will be to make drinks as orders come in on the app.

The Penn Station concept is similar to Starbucks Now, the recently launched coffee system in Beijing that relies on mobile orders and serves as a pickup spot for Starbucks delivery personnel. The Starbucks brand is building a portfolio of store concepts, ranging from full-sized stores for work, meetings, and hanging out, to drive-thru only stores meant for areas with high volumes of commuter business. The new Starbucks Pickup adds another facet to the collection. Given its reliance on foot traffic, the pilot location in Penn Station will be a good indicator of its value to coffee-seeking commuters.

China Wants US to Take Some Responsibility for WannaCry Cyber Attack

The recent global cyber-attack known as WannaCry infected over 300,000 computers around the world, with China among the hardest hit. As of Saturday, about 30,000 Chinese organizations were infected with a “ransomware” virus that takes advantage of weaknesses in Microsoft Corp systems. China lashed out against the United States in the wake of the damage,… Continue Reading

Pirated CDs Hurting Music Business

Even today, when most music is purchased and listened to digitally, there are still many people that take their music in hard copy, on an old-fashioned compact disc, or CD. These small metal discs, laser-etched with beautiful sounds for the customers’ listening pleasure, go for about $10 each. When created, and sold by legitimate companies,… Continue Reading

Luxury Homes in US Purchased through IM Apps by Chinese Nationals

Chinese nationals are the largest group of non-American buyers of US real estate. With an eye to diversifying their portfolios and keeping their money safe, Chinese investors are willing to pay more than all other nationalities. Enter the voice messaging app known as WeChat, introduced in 2011 by the Chinese Internet gaming giant Tencent. WeChat,… Continue Reading