Flash floods in southwest and northwest China have left at least a dozen dead and put thousands of others in harm's way.

In the southwestern province of Sichuan, at least six people have died and another 12 are missing after torrential rain triggered flash floods, state-owned news outlet CGTN reported on Sunday. 

Some 1,300 people had been evacuated as of Saturday, the report said.

Meanwhile, in Longnan city in the northwestern province of Gansu, another six deaths were reported and 3,000 people have been evacuated, state broadcaster CCTV said.

Rainfall in 1 1/2 day was as much as 98.9 millimetres (3.9 inches) in the worst affected areas, almost double the July average.

The rains come amid a heatwave in parts of the country including eastern Zhejiang province and the city of Shanghai, with temperatures soaring as high as 42 degrees Celsius (107 Fahrenheit) last week.

Climate change

Experts say such extreme weather events are becoming more likely because of climate change. Warmer air can store more water, leading to bigger cloudbursts when it’s released.

The flooding adds to economic woes brought on partly by stringent “zero-Covid” measures restricting travel and disrupting supply chains.

China is not the only country experiencing extreme weather this summer. 

In Germany, low water levels in the Rhine due to droughts have disrupted the supply chain for commodities into the country. 

Heatwaves have also hit the southern part of the US, with temperatures expected to soar over 38 C (100 F) in the coming days./agencies

Togo’s army said Thursday it was responsible for a blast that killed seven civilians and injured two more, after mistaking them for jihadists.

The explosion happened Saturday in the northern Tone prefecture near the border with Burkina Faso, where militants linked to the Islamic State group and Al-Qaeda are active.

Togo’s troops are deployed in the area to try and contain a spillover of the threat towards coastal West Africa.

The army said Sunday it had opened an investigation “to determine the circumstances of this explosion and identify the perpetrators”.

On Thursday, Togo’s armed forces chief of staff General Dadja Maganawe concluded an aircraft had wrongly targeted the civilians in the village of Margba, in Tone prefecture.

General Maganawe said in a statement the army had previously received “intelligence” indicating a threat of “infiltration by armed gangs wanting to conduct terrorist attacks” against local communities.

“Because of the imminent danger,” he said the commander leading an operation code-named Koundjoare “reinforced surveillance as well as ground and aerial control in the area”.

“It was during those operations that an aircraft patrolling at night unfortunately targeted a group of people it had mistakenly identified as jihadists on the move,” Maganawe said.

“The Togolese armed forces express their profound regret in the face of this tragedy, and renew their sincere condolences to the families of those affected, and once more, wishes a prompt recovery to those injured.”

He added that “everything possible” would be done “to prevent this sort of tragedy from happening again”.

Togo last month declared a state of emergency in its northern prefectures over the threat of Islamist militant attacks.

Eight Togolese soldiers were killed in May in an attack in the region.

(AFP)

Most of the retail companies have moved their sales activities from traditional stores to the Internet in response to the effects of the pandemic. This shift towards the digital world was accompanied by the emergence of strong opportunities in the field of e-marketing, especially marketing through social media, reports Al-Anba daily. Over the past few years the social media has increasingly played a vital role in the retail sector. In fact, sources believe in one in ten purchase their needs via social media, demonstrating the decline of the traditional retail site in front of the modern digital point of purchase. The results of the “Connected Consumer” report revealed that 55% of consumers prefer digital channels in order to interact with brands, and this percentage has jumped to 65% among young consumers of Generation Z.

Online revenue
Social media has allowed companies of all sizes to reach new audiences, increase their following and increase their online revenue. This trend will maintain its momentum, as 61% of dealers and consumers plan to shop more via social media over the next three years, according to the results of the fifth report from ‘Salesforce’ on the status of the “connected consumer.” Moreover, the report showed that 56 percent of consumers shop more today on social media than last year. This shift in shopping habits highlights the importance of social media as a growing source of shopper traffic and revenue for online businesses, as these media have become widely used as tools to increase profits.

Terry Nicholl, Vice President, Middle East, Africa and Europe at Salesforce, believes that forward-looking retail companies should make sure to boost their investments in social media to ensure that their businesses can keep pace with the future, but about 45% of trade managers feel unprepared. To move forward on the path of leveraging emerging digital channels such as metaverse, tik tok and modern online social storefronts. The question for many is, where does the road begin? In order to target the right audience, companies first need to know where they are located. Determining the location of the audience that is shopping through digital channels is only the first step, as companies then need to identify the platforms used by the target audience and the places they are likely to buy from, while making sure that the company’s brand, its communication messages and services are consistent across other digital channels.

Commerce strategy
AI tools that allow companies to identify where and how audiences shop is indispensable to ensuring that money isn’t wasted on marketing efforts in the wrong places. Data can be a powerful tool for understanding which channels can deliver the best returns on investment, allowing retailers to develop a commerce strategy. Successful on social media. Targeting the audience with customized content that meets their tastes and requirements is essential. In a world where millions of social media users come out with content every day, companies need to grab consumer attention, fast.

Here, content customization ensures that brands remain relevant to their target audiences and is an effective way to differentiate themselves from competitors. In order to achieve this goal, companies have access to AI tools that analyze ad performance and enhance product discovery campaigns better, so that companies can attract customers more easily than ever before with the use of advanced AI systems that can learn quickly and match ads more Efficiency and better identification of appropriate audiences for retargeting. The process of capturing and maintaining audience interest requires a lot of work and innovation in light of the spread of millions of clips of content every day on social media. A successful commerce strategy through social media is based on the principle of enhancing interaction with the audience. Social media began as platforms for communication and conversation, not to annoy the audience with sales content.

Innovative tactics
Therefore, communicating by creating a two-way conversation with the audience is essential that brands need to build trust and establish their image online. Some examples of how brands have succeeded in attracting and growing followers include innovative tactics such as launching surveys, giving gifts, displaying user-generated content, conducting question-and-answer sessions, and interacting with customer feedback. In the digital world, brands need to be present wherever their customers are. The boundaries of commerce should therefore extend beyond any one digital channel, and data should flow into all other channels in a way that enables companies to effectively deliver connected experiences./Kuwait Times

Dramatic oil and mineral price spikes following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine have distracted investors from the lasting and more dangerous impact of food inflation, BlackRock founder Larry Fink has warned.

“The one thing I worry about that we don’t talk about enough is food,” he told the Financial Times. “It’s not just about inflation. There are also geopolitical concerns that flow from it.

Prices for energy, gasoline and oil-based agricultural inputs soared earlier this year when Western nations imposed sanctions on Russia after the invasion. Grain and edible oil costs were also hit hard as Ukraine is a major exporter.

Oil began to slide back to pre-invasion levels this week as traders brace for a sharp drop in consumption. But food price inflation remains stubbornly high. U.S. Consumer Price Index figures for June show the price of chicken parts and flour each rose nearly 20% year-on-year and margarine jumped 34%.

“We talk a lot about gas prices because that’s what’s affecting Americans, but the bigger issue is food,” Fink said. “There has been a huge destruction of arable land in Ukraine…Globally, the cost of fertilizers has increased by almost 100% and this additional cost is reducing the amount of fertilizer used in agriculture. This affects the quality of the harvest all over the world.

Larry Fink: “It’s not just an inflation problem. There are also geopolitical concerns that flow from it » © Bloomberg

Although lower oil prices have started to affect the price at the pump for motorists, consumer goods companies continue to see high input costs. Any decline in fertilizer prices will likely come too late to boost this year’s food harvests.

The World Bank predicted after the invasion that global food prices would rise by 20% this year, far exceeding raw materials.

The impact is particularly severe in Africa, which generally imports grain from Ukraine and produces its own food. Fertilizer prices there have risen by 300% and the continent faces a shortage of 2 million metric tons, according to the African Development Bank. He has approved a $1.5 billion program to help farmers make up the shortfall, but warns total production could fall by 20% this year.

Janet Yellen, the US Treasury Secretary, said on Friday the world was facing “extremely challenging times for global food security” and urged the group of leading G20 countries to end stockpiling and restrictions on export of food and to provide additional financial assistance to countries and people facing food insecurity.

Bill Gates, the philanthropist and co-founder of Microsoft, flagged similar concerns this week, saying reduced supplies of wheat, edible oils and other foods caused by the war in Ukraine were “spiking food prices.” , which will increase malnutrition and instability”. in low-income countries. He noted in a blog post that improving agricultural productivity in Africa requires “much more investment”./agencies

Southwest Europe baked under sweltering temperatures on July 15 for a fifth day, with the heat sparking devastating wildfires, forcing the evacuations of thousands and ruining holidays.

Armies of firefighters battled blazes in France, Portugal and Spain as Britain braced for "extreme heat" in coming days and even Irish forecasters predicted a taste of blistering Mediterranean-style summer temperatures.
As French President Emmanuel Macron vowed authorities would do everything to mobilise resources to fight the fallout, the Bordeaux public prosecutor indicated a "criminal" origin was its main line of inquiry for at least one fire near the southwestern city.

The furnace engulfing swathes of southwest Europe is the second in weeks, with scientists blaming climate change and predicting more frequent and intense episodes of extreme weather.
In Portugal, five regions in the centre and north -- where temperatures hit a July record 47 Celsius on Thursday before dropping back -- were on red alert again Friday as more than 2,000 firefighters tackled four major blazes.
A plane that was battling forest fires in the Braganca region crashed on Friday near Vila Nova de Foz Coa in northern Portugal, killing its pilot, the civil defence said.
As of late Thursday, the fires had killed one person and injured around 60. Nearly 900 people had been evacuated and several dozen homes damaged or destroyed, authorities said.
Wildfires have destroyed 30,000 hectares (75,000 acres) of land this year, the largest area since Portugal’s horrific summer of 2017 when around 100 people died.

In neighbouring Spain, where temperatures were as high as 37C by 7:00 am, a fire that broke out Thursday near the Monfrague National Park, a protected area renowned for wildlife in the Extremadura region, continued to blaze.
Spanish authorities reported close to 20 fires still raging out of control with one near Mijas in the deep south, inland from regional capital Malaga, forcing some 2,300 people to evacuate their homes.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez tweeted he was "closely following the evolution of active fires" posing an "extreme risk".

The mercury reached 45.4C in Spain on Thursday, shy of the all-time high of 47.4C registered in August last year.
In southwestern France, flames have destroyed some 7,700 hectares since Tuesday and forced the evacuation of 11,000 people -- including many holidaymakers who decided to abandon their vacation rather than remain in makeshift shelters set up by local authorities.
Southern France, battling temperatures around 40C on Friday, is bracing for more heat next week with 16 departments already on orange, a severe alert.
Across the Mediterranean, authorities said one person was found dead in northern Morocco as forest fires raged. Authorities also evacuated hundreds of people from more than a dozen villages in northwestern Morocco.

One fire was raging in pine forests near France’s Dune du Pilat, Europe’s tallest sand dune and a magnet for tourists.
"I’ve never seen this before and you get the feeling that it’s post-apocalyptic," said resident Karyn on Thursday shortly before the preventative evacuation order at Cazaux village near the dune.
Fire commander Laurent Dellac spoke of "tunnels of fire" around Teste-de-Buch, in the middle of the Landes forest to Bordeaux’s southwest -- although nobody was reported hurt.
"The blazes are still not under control, and unfortunately conditions are windy again," firefighter spokesman Matthieu Jomain told AFP.
Britain’s meteorological agency meanwhile issued its first ever "red" warning for exceptional heat with nights exceptionally warm.
The Met Office said there was a 50 percent chance on Monday or Tuesday of temperatures topping 40C for the first time, and an 80 percent chance that the country’s previous record of 38.7C set in 2019 will be exceeded.

UK hospitals have warned of a surge in heat-related admissions and train operators have told passengers to expect cancellations.
The Irish meteorological office issued a weather warning for Sunday, Monday and Tuesday with "exceptionally warm weather".
A high of 32C was possible on Monday, Met Eireann said, just short of Ireland’s record high 33.3C set in 1887.
Belgian authorities said they expected much higher temperatures next week, with a high of 38C in parts of the country forecast for Tuesday.
Scientists blame the increasing regularity of heatwaves on global warming.
"Climate change is driving this heatwave, just as it is driving every heatwave now," said Friederike Otto, senior lecturer in climate science at the Grantham Institute at Imperial College London.
"Greenhouse gas emissions, from burning fossil fuels like coal, gas and oil, are making heatwaves hotter, longer-lasting and more frequent," she said./agencies