The Federal Trade Commission said Wednesday several private investigators who were involved in a boardroom spying case at Hewlett-Packard Co. will pay $600,000 in settlements and judgments to settle the case.
A complaint was filed last year by the FTC because the investigators allegedly illegally obtained private phone records, also called "pretexting."
The investigators were hired by Palo Alto-based HP (NYSE:HPQ) in 2005 to examine private telephone logs of journalists, board members and company employees to find the source of leaks to the media.
The FTC settlement includes a $67,000 penalty against Matthew DePante, his father, Joseph DePante, and their former company, Action Research Group Inc.
Silicon Valley / San Jose Business Journal
French nuclear manufacturer Areva says a subsidiary has signed a $2.7 billion (euro1.72 billion) deal with the U.S. Department of Energy to build and operate a nuclear fuel production facility in South Carolina.
Shaw Areva MOX Services has signed the deal to build a plant at the Savannah River site near Aiken, South Carolina.
The plant will mix leftover weapons-grade plutonium with uranium oxide to make fuel pellets called MOX, or mixed-oxide, for commercial nuclear reactors.
Areva already makes MOX fuel at a facility in France. It announced the deal Friday.
Through the agreement, the Department of Energy is exercising the construction options included in a contract signed in 1999.
A World Trade Organisation (WTO) mediator issued proposals on Monday to open up services such as telecoms and banking, as France decried last week’s negotiating texts on farming and industrial goods as a step backwards.
But EU trade chief Peter Mandelson said he had “overwhelming support” to press on with the Doha round talks to open up world trade, which are now in their seventh year.
The new services text, replacing a previous one issued in February, set no dates for revised offers or final commitments in the services negotiations.
And the document, by Mexico’s WTO ambassador, Fernando de Mateo y Venturini, who chairs the services talks, showed big differences between developed and developing countries on how to proceed.
“Members shared the view that substantial efforts were needed to reach a successful conclusion of the negotiations,” Mateo said in his report, summarizing progress in the services talks in the Doha round over the past few months.
Services account for 70 percent or more of most developed economies and 50 percent or more of many developing ones. But they account for only 19 percent of world trade.
CRUCIAL TEST
The WTO’s Doha round faces a crucial test in the next few weeks, after which the U.S. presidential election may cause years of further delays in the negotiations.
The Asian economy has shown a remarkable immunity to slowing U.S. growth, so it would be richly ironic if the region were to trip up now over a byproduct of its resilience — sky-high oil and commodity prices.
A long period of turbo-charged growth, led by China and India, has boosted global energy demand, helping to drive crude to record highs above $130 a barrel. Metals and grains, most recently rice, have also been on a tear.
Producers of natural resources have spent a chunk of their windfalls on imports from Asia, replacing demand from America that has been ebbing for more than a year as the subprime mortgage meltdown ripples through the economy.
The United States, Europe and Japan still bought just over 40 percent of Asian exports in 2007, but that was down from nearly 50 percent in 2000.
Exports to Russia, meanwhile, are growing about 60 percent a year and sales to the Middle East are rising at a 35 percent clip.
As for China, Andy Rothman with CLSA in Shanghai calculates that Africa, the Middle East and Latin America now buy more of its goods than Japan and account for 20 percent of the country’s export growth — four times more than the United States.
This is a boon to companies like Fuda Faucet Works Inc, a Chinese maker of brass bathroom fixtures that sells 85 percent of its production overseas, mainly to the emerging middle class in markets such as the Middle East, Russia and Nigeria.
“We are very confident in our business model,” Wu Yiting, the Jiangxi-based company’s chief executive, said last month as she reported a doubling of sales and profit in 2007.
ST. LOUIS–Shares of Anheuser-Busch hit an all-time high yesterday on reports from a source familiar with the situation that Europe’s InBev SA was working on a $46-billion (U.S.) bid for the St. Louis-based brewer.
Anheuser-Busch shares rose 6.7 per cent, or $3.54, to $56.12 in midday trading after reaching as high as $58. Shares closed at $56.61, up $4.03 or 7.7 per cent in New York.
The share surge followed a report on the Financial Times web site that InBev, the world’s biggest brewer by volume, may directly approach Anheuser chief executive August Busch IV. The source told Reuters an offer was not certain.
Anheuser-Busch declined comment, and messages left with InBev were not returned.
"It is our policy to not confirm, deny or speculate on rumours of potential investments, acquisitions, mergers, new business partnerships or other transactions," said W. Randolph Baker, Anheuser-Busch’s chief financial officer.
InBev makes Beck’s, Brahma, Stella Artois and Skol beer and owns Labatt Breweries of Canada. Reports of its interest in Anheuser-Busch have circulated for months.
Anheuser-Busch makes Budweiser and Bud Light and has an estimated 50.9 per cent domestic market share.
Ken Crawford, an analyst with Argent Capital of St. Louis, said the deal would make sense for Anheuser-Busch.
"We see a company that’s very, very profitable, generates a lot of cash," Crawford said of Anheuser-Busch. "The question is: Where and how do they grow? It would not be unrealistic that they look abroad either for acquisitions or to partner with someone.”
It would be just the latest deal in a consolidating beer industry. Miller Brewing Co., the second-largest beer maker in the United States, and No. 3 Molson Coors Brewing Co. plan to combine U.S. operations in a deal expected to be completed by midsummer. Miller will distribute Grolsch in the U.S. after a February takeover by SABMiller of Europe.
Crawford said the impact on consumers remains to be seen.
"We don’t know if greater purchasing power would decrease costs and control prices, or if consolidation in the industry would allow those remaining to price more aggressively," he said.
Anheuser-Busch has been a St. Louis icon since the mid-19th century.
Eberhard Anheuser acquired the Bavarian brewery in 1860 and renamed it E. Anheuser & Co. His son-in-law, Adolphus Busch, joined in 1864 and the company was eventually renamed Anheuser-Busch.
The company survived Prohibition by selling products ranging from ice cream to root beer.
Ground was broken in Newark, N.J., in 1950 for its first brewery outside of St. Louis. Today, Anheuser-Busch operates 12 breweries in the United States, with operations worldwide, including China and Mexico.
Last month, Anheuser-Busch reported profits slipped 1.4 per cent in the first quarter, as higher costs more than offset rising revenue. Sales of core brands such as Budweiser and Bud Light have also fallen as consumers increasingly opt for cocktails, wine and craft beers.
Brewers around the world have been hurt in recent months by a spike in the price of key ingredients.
InBev posted an unexpected 11 per cent drop in its first-quarter profit on May 8, also blaming rising ingredient costs as well as shipping costs and weak sales in Brazil, where it does half its business.
From the Star’s wire services
Europe's service and manufacturing industries expanded at the slowest pace in five years in May after oil prices surged, the euro appreciated to a record and banks became more reluctant to lend.
A preliminary estimate of Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc's composite index fell to 51.1 from April's 51.9, NTC Economics Ltd, which carries out the survey, reported today. Economists expected a decline to 51.5, according to the median of 16 forecasts in a Bloomberg News survey. A reading above 50 indicates expansion.
Oil reached a record $135.09 a barrel yesterday, raising costs for consumers and companies alike. Europeans are also having to cope with higher credit costs resulting from the U.S. housing slump and the euro's 17 percent appreciation against the dollar in the past year.
“All forward-looking indicators are very weak,'' said Sunil Kapadia, an economist at UBS Ltd. in London. “The economy will continue to deteriorate. Banks will continue to tighten credit. We expect real disposable income to shrink in 2008.''
The European Central Bank has refused to follow the U.S. Federal Reserve and Bank of England in paring interest rates after record food and energy prices drove inflation above 3 percent in the 15-nation euro region. The bank aims to keep inflation just below 2 percent.
“It would take a major sustained drop, or a major rise, in the index to shift the ECB away from its de facto neutral stance,'' said Holger Schmieding, chief European economist at Bank of America Corp. in London.
Stock Markets
The ECB's stance has been partly responsible for benchmark stock indexes in Germany and France underperforming shares in the U.S. and U.K. in the past six months. Banks and consumer-related companies have led the declines.
Germany's DAX Index has lost 7.1 percent since Nov. 23, while France CAC 40 slid 8.9 percent. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 is only down 1.3 percent in the same period, while the Standard & Poor's 500 Index in the U.S. slipped 3.2 percent.
Today's decline was led by services. RBS's gauge of growth in services industries such as banking and telecommunications slumped to 50.6 from 52.0, matching a 4 1/2-year low reached in January. A measure of business expectations fell to 56.1 from 58.7, the lowest since November 2001.
In the U.K., first-quarter growth in services industries was revised down to 0.5 percent from an original estimate of 0.6 percent, the country's statistics office said today.
Banks, Airlines
Credit Agricole, the French bank hardest hit by the subprime crisis, said last week it plans to raise 5.9 billion euros ($9.3 billion) in a rights offer to replenish capital after first- quarter profit fell 66 percent. Deutsche Bank AG, Germany's biggest lender, reported its first quarterly loss in five years last month.
Air France-KLM Group, Europe's largest airline, yesterday posted its first quarterly loss since 2003 and said earnings this year will drop almost 30 percent as fuel prices soar and an economic slowdown dents demand for travel.
“The change in the economic context and a doubling of fuel prices will make the current year challenging,'' Air France Chief Financial Officer Philippe Calavia said.
RBS's index of manufacturing activity declined to 50.5, the lowest since August 2005, from April's 50.7. French consumer spending on manufactured goods unexpectedly fell for a second month in April as shoppers curbed purchases of cars and clothes, a report by France's statistics office showed today.
Credit Squeeze
The U.S. housing slump has driven up the cost of credit globally. The world's biggest financial companies have posted at least $383 billion in writedowns and credit losses since the start of last year after the subprime mortgage market collapsed.
The resulting economic slowdown has prompted the Fed to lower its benchmark rate 3.25 percentage points since September to 2 percent. The Bank of England has lowered rates three times since early December, taking its benchmark to 5 percent.
The rate cuts contributed to the euro's appreciation to records against the dollar and the pound.
Profit at Infineon Technologies AG, Europe's second-largest semiconductor maker, would be cut by 120 million euros if the dollar stayed at current levels against the euro in fiscal 2009, Chief Executive Officer Wolfgang Ziebart said last month.
ECB Bank Lending Survey
The impact of the financial turmoil on credit standards in the first quarter was “especially strong'' for loans financing mergers and acquisitions and corporate restructuring, the ECB said on May 9, citing its quarterly bank lending survey.
“The effect was more limited'' for loans financing fixed investment or inventories and working capital, the bank said.
Business confidence in Germany, Europe's biggest economy, increased as companies stepped up spending on machinery and construction, the Munich-based Ifo Institute said on May 21. The country's economy expanded 1.5 percent in the first quarter, the fastest pace in 12 years.
“I still expect the European economy to grow over the rest of the year, supported by the German economy, which is holding up well,'' said Natascha Gewaltig, a London-based economist at Action Economics.
German companies have improved efficiency and benefited from booming demand for their goods in emerging economies. Private- sector labor costs rose 1 percent last year, the smallest increase in the 27-member European Union. That has helped companies remain competitive even after the euro reached a record $1.60 last month and oil prices doubled in the past year.
Not all euro-region countries are faring as well as Germany. Growth in Spain slowed to 0.3 percent in the first quarter, the worst performance in almost 13 years.
Italy avoided the fourth recession in a decade, even as a slump in consumer spending clouds the outlook for the rest of the year. Europe's fourth-biggest economy expanded 0.4 percent after contracting the same amount in the fourth quarter, Rome-based statistics office Istat said today.
ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet has said economic growth in the second quarter will be “less flattering'' than the 0.7 percent expansion achieved in the first three months.
Federal Reserve policy makers signaled that an economic contraction in the first half won't be enough to spur further interest-rate cuts because of a rising threat from inflation.
Minutes of the Federal Open Market Committee's April 29-30 meeting, released yesterday in Washington, showed many officials foresaw a contraction from January to June. At the same time, they raised their consumer-price estimates and said risks are more closely balanced between weaker growth and faster inflation.
“They will be patient,'' said Vincent Reinhart, former head of the Fed's monetary-affairs division and now a scholar at the American Enterprise Institute in Washington. “They are signaling that they will probably control the inflation risk by keeping the federal funds rate tighter than usual in 2009.''
The report indicated Chairman Ben S. Bernanke and his colleagues are increasingly concerned by public expectations for inflation that climbed to a 12-year high this month. Traders anticipate the Fed will keep its benchmark rate unchanged next month and raise it by year-end.
The April 30 decision to lower the main rate by a quarter point, to 2 percent, was a “close call'' for most FOMC members, the minutes said. The reduction capped off 2.25 percentage points of reductions this year, including cuts of 0.75 point in January and in March.
Weaker Growth
Policy makers updated economic forecasts at the meeting, estimating U.S. gross domestic product will increase by 0.3 percent to 1.2 percent this year, down from the 1.3 percent to 2 percent pace they foresaw in January.
Consumer prices, minus food and energy costs, are projected to rise by 2.2 percent to 2.4 percent, up from a range of 2 percent to 2.2 percent in the last forecast.
Stocks tumbled yesterday after the report. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index dropped 22.69, or 1.6 percent, to 1390.71. Treasury prices fell, raising yields on benchmark 10-year notes to 3.81 percent from 3.78 percent.
Yesterday's report may have raised investor concerns about stagflation, the combination of stagnant growth and high inflation seen in the 1970s, said Keith Hembre, chief economist at Minneapolis-based FAF Advisors Inc., which oversees $113 billion in assets.
“When you've got growth slowing and inflation going up, that's about the worst combination for the markets you can have,'' said Hembre, a former researcher at the Minneapolis Fed.
Volcker Warning
Former Fed Chairman Paul Volcker warned last week that “there is some resemblance to where we are now in the inflation picture to the early 1970s.'' The central bank failed to contain a pickup in prices at the time, spurring the acceleration later that decade, he said at a congressional hearing.
Two district-bank presidents dissented from the April rate cut, while Fed Governor Kevin Warsh said in a Washington speech yesterday that central bankers should be “inclined to resist'' calls for further moves “even if the economy were to weaken somewhat further.''
In their April 30 statement, officials dropped previous language referring to “downside'' risks to economic growth remaining even after lowering rates.
“The committee felt that it was no longer appropriate for the statement to emphasize the downside risks to growth,'' the minutes said yesterday. Officials judged that the risk of another round of financial disruptions hobbling the economy had “receded'' since their March meeting.
Policy makers lowered their growth projections after economic figures showed a continued decline in housing and a slump in consumer confidence to the weakest level since 1980. Employers have also cut payrolls for four consecutive months.
`To a Crawl'
“Growth in consumer spending appeared to have slowed to a crawl in recent months and consumer sentiment had fallen sharply,'' the minutes said. “The outlook for business spending remained decidedly downbeat.''
Construction of U.S. single-family houses in April dropped to the lowest level in 17 years, the Commerce Department said last week. Residential investment, a component of gross domestic product, has declined for nine consecutive quarters.
Fed officials are also contending with a surge in oil prices that has both depressed confidence and spending on other items and pushed up inflation. Crude oil surpassed $134 a barrel yesterday for the first time and has climbed about 39 percent this year.
Policy makers anticipated some pickup in the economy later this year as $117 billion in government tax rebates takes effect.
Tax Rebates
That's another reason “not to do anything'' with interest rates, said David Wyss, chief economist at Standard & Poor's in New York.
While Fed officials increased their projections for the jobless rate and inflation in 2009, they kept GDP growth forecasts little changed.
The median range of economic-growth projections for next year was 2.0 percent to 2.8 percent. The jobless rate was seen at 5.2 percent to 5.7 percent. The rate was 5 percent last month.
Inflation projections, based on the Commerce Department's personal consumption expenditures price index, rose about a quarter percentage point for 2009 and were little changed for 2010.
Economic growth should strengthen over the next 18 months as the current level of interest rates promotes growth and moderates inflation, Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Donald Kohn said today.
“Monetary policy appears to be appropriately calibrated for now to promote both rising employment and moderating inflation over the medium term,'' Kohn said in the text of remarks to the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems in New Orleans. “But a large measure of uncertainty surrounds that judgment and as the economy evolves, so will the appropriate stance of policy.''
Central bankers, having cut the benchmark interest rate by 3.25 percentage points since September, are trying to sustain economic growth without intensifying inflationary pressures caused by record prices for oil and other goods.
Kohn's remarks suggest the Fed is likely to leave the main rate unchanged at 2 percent at their two-day meeting on June 24- 25. Federal funds futures traders see a 90 percent probability that central bankers will leave the benchmark rate unchanged in June. However, Kohn didn't close the door to further cuts, noting there are large uncertainties surrounding his forecast for stronger growth in the second half of this year.
“Uncertainty about how credit conditions will evolve and how businesses and households will react to changing terms and conditions means that we can have even less confidence than usual in our economic forecasts,'' said Kohn, 65.
Low interest rates and a gradual easing of financing conditions, and tax rebate checks should boost growth over the next 18 months, Kohn said.
Economy Firms
“The most likely scenario over the next year or so is one in which economic activity firms during the second half of this year and then gathers some strength in 2009,'' Kohn said. “I expect further, but gradual, improvement in financial markets.''
The collapse of the subprime-mortgage market and the worst housing slump in a quarter century have led to reduced consumer spending and estimates by economists of just 0.1 percent growth this quarter. Financial institutions are reluctant to lend to one another, having reported $379 billion in credit losses and asset writedowns since the start of last year.
“A number of factors suggest that the recovery could be relatively moderate,'' the Fed vice chairman said.
The number of banks reporting tighter lending standards approached a record in April, according to a Fed survey. Businesses have cut jobs for five consecutive months.
The Federal Open Market Committee said “substantial'' interest rate cuts over the past 12 months “should help promote moderate growth over time'' at the conclusion of their April 30 meeting.
Prices Rose
U.S. consumer prices rose less than forecast in April, reflecting cheaper furniture and lodging costs, the Labor Department said May 14. Prices rose 3.9 percent in the 12 months ended in April, down from a 4 percent year-over-year gain in March.
Oil prices rose further in May, hitting a record today of $127.84 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Food prices rose at a 6.1 percent annual rate for the three months ending April, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Rising commodity prices add to inflation pressures and damp demand for other goods, Kohn said. “A tendency for increases in commodity prices to become a factor in ongoing pricing and wage- setting more generally would be a worrisome development that would over time tend to undermine economic welfare,'' Kohn said.
The Reuters/University of Michigan Survey of households showed inflation expectations rising to 5.2 percent over the next 12 months, the biggest jump since 1982. Five-year inflation expectations rose to 3.3 percent in the survey, the highest since August 1996.
`Moderating Inflation'
“My expectations for moderating inflation and limited spillover effects from commodity price increases depend critically on the continued stability of inflation expectations,'' Kohn said.
Construction of U.S. single-family houses in April dropped to the lowest level in 17 years. Builders broke new ground at an annual rate of 692,000 homes, the fewest since January 1991. Residential investment, a component of the gross domestic product account, has declined for nine consecutive quarters, and subtracted about a percentage point from the economy's 2.2 percent expansion last year.
“The supply of existing homes on the market also remains quite high and is likely to be augmented in coming months by rising foreclosures,'' Kohn said. “As a result, further cuts in construction appear to be in train.''
Curtail Risk
Borrowing costs have increased as financial institutions curtail risk. The central bank has increased liquidity for banks and bond dealers through three new lending tools, as well as an expansion of its existing programs. The spread between the three-month London-Interbank Offered Rate and U.S. three-month Treasury bills has narrowed to 82 basis points, the lowest since Feb. 14. The difference in yield was 203 basis points on March 19. A basis point is 0.01 percentage point.
“Improvements in financial markets are vulnerable to negative news on the economy or the extent of credit losses,'' Kohn said.
Investing in a one-product company may lead to a big payday one day, but it’s also the kind of investment that requires patience, research and high risk tolerance.
Financial experts warn that investors should think carefully before trading into such volatile stocks, and spend more time doing research than dreaming of having found the next BlackBerry maker.
"There are certain themes du jour, so to speak, that come in the market place, and there is a tendency to jump on the bandwagon and buy anything that has to do with that theme, without really taking a look at what you’re actually buying," said Gareth Watson, associate director and Canadian equity adviser at ScotiaMcLeod.
"Everyone’s thrown up words like `uranium’ – with Timminco it’s `polysilicon’ – people are throwing around the word `potash’ these days … there’s lots of people for example that will buy a uranium company that ended up not even producing uranium for five years, so what’s the point?"
Failing to understand what is being purchased is one of the greatest pitfalls of this type of investment, Watson said.
Investors should visit a company’s website and investigate their operations, read analyst research reports and examine corporate reports or filings with regulators.
But even if their research makes sense, investors need to consider an important question: Can they stomach the ups and downs betting on a company whose fortunes rise and fall with the fate of a single product?
A company like Timminco, which makes metallurgical grade silicon used in the production of solar cells, has seen its stock soar after announcing deals to supply Solar Power Industries Inc. It fell just as steeply from an all-time high amid questions – notably from a prominent New York short-seller – over whether its production method is a legitimate breakthrough.
Confronting skepticism about its solar-cell-grade silicon production process, the company announced a consultant had confirmed its validity, and set up an hour-long conference call with investors and media to explain its merits. Its shares then rose again.
Calgary’s Petrobank Energy and Resources Ltd. saw its share price drop despite solid quarterly earnings as market watchers speculated that investors may have been disappointed the company did not outline any new progress on its patented THAI oilsands technology.
The company is a key player in the Bakken oil formation in southeast Saskatchewan and has a significant exploration program in Colombia. However, its future is likely tied to whether it can commercialize its so-called toe-to-heel air injection, or THAI, process for use in oilsands operations.
Ivanhoe Energy Inc., for its part, is preparing for full-scale commercial deployment of its proprietary heavy oil upgrading technology.
"It’s different for different people, because it’s all risk-reward profile," said analyst Marvin Wolff. "What may be something that’s an attractive strategy for one person may not be for another."
Wolff, who follows Timminco, is on the record with a buy recommendation and a $50 target price over one year.
"I obviously think it’s going up from here and I obviously believe they’re executing well and will continue to execute well," Wolff said.
But, he added, with a volatile stock "you have to be able to weather the stormy days. Other people may try to trade it on a shorter-term basis, but that’s not always easy either, because volatile stocks can move quickly against your position."
A great way to protect yourself against volatility is to diversify.
Having some sort of a safety net is also important because these risky investments are often more lucrative if investors hold on to them longer term – especially if the company is still in the early development stages of its product.
Above all, experts agree, would-be investors should remain informed and avoid panicking.
"If you’ve invested in these companies without doing the research and not really knowing what you’ve gotten yourself into and they happen to go up considerably, quite frankly, all that you’ve been is lucky."
Higher fuel prices and weaker consumer confidence will keep more Americans at home during Memorial Day holiday compared with last year, according to AAA.
AAA estimates that 37.87 million Americans will travel 50 miles or more from home this holiday, a decrease of nearly 360,000 travelers, or nearly 1 percent, from last year’s total of 38.23 million.
About 83 percent of holiday travelers are expected to travel by automobile, down 1 percent from last year, while 11 percent plan to fly this holiday weekend, a decrease of 0.5 percent.
"Many Americans are feeling a financial pinch this holiday weekend from record high gasoline prices and other factors in the economy," said AAA President and Chief Executive Robert L. Darbelnet. "Despite the small decrease, we will still see a significant number of people traveling this weekend. More than 12 percent of the U.S. population will be celebrating the Memorial Day weekend away from home."
The national average for regular self-serve gasoline has reached $3.79 a gallon, compared with $3.11 a gallon a year ago. On Friday, AAA Texas said the Texas average hit a record-high $3.68 a gallon.
According to AAA’s Leisure Travel Index, air fares over the Memorial Day holiday weekend are expected to rise 8 percent over last year, with passengers paying an average $179. Car rental rates will climb significantly higher to an average of $45 per day compared to $31 a year ago, an increase of 45 percent. Hotel rates for AAA Three Diamond hotels are expected to be 7 percent less than last year with travelers spending an average of $162 per night. However, travelers planning to stay at AAA Two Diamond hotels will pay an average of $112 per night, 9 percent more than a year ago.
The greatest number of automobile travelers this Memorial Day holiday weekend will originate in the West with 7.6 million travelers, followed by the Southeast with 6.8 million; Midwest, 6.7 million; Northeast, 5.8 million; and Great Lakes, 4.8 million.
The West is expected to produce the largest number of air travelers with 1.37 million, followed by the Midwest with 1.18 million; Southeast, 870,000; Northeast, 545,000; and Great Lakes, 384,000.
Web site: www.AAA.com.
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