#hyheconomics

[hyhreligion]

Snapshot of how the Middle East is rapidly evolving

Observations:

In September 2019 Saudi Arabia opened its doors to international tourists from 49 countries for the first time ever and female visitors are permitted to  travel without a male companion. KSA expects to attract 100 million foreign and domestic visitors by 2030 and create 1 million new jobs in the tourism sector.

Since mid 2018, the abaya (full black dress robe) has no longer been a legal requirement and women can drive cars and attend sporting events

All VOIP is banned in most Gulf countries; however talk of Dubai lifting WhatsApp calls and Zoom was opened during lockdown

Mobile payment usage in the Middle East is almost double the rate than in Western markets. Middle East experienced biggest growth in mobile payment at 45% (lead by KSA and UAE). This is a long way from a few years back when KSA consumers preferred cash on delivery payment and reported the lowest percentage of payment via credit cards.

Buying behaviour is heavily influenced by social media compared to anywhere else in the world. Fashion purchases drive this at 60%, followed by Technology.

Why: The changes have been hailed as proof of a new progressive modernisation in KSA by the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman as well as increasing revenue and employment from tourism. 

-CS

[hyhnorms]

Resting Ball

Observation: A company in Seattle creates jewellery out crematory ashes by swirling them into in glass thus creating unique and beautiful designs in the process. The process only requires 1 tablespoon of ashes.

Why:  Ash jar or are slowly becoming a thing of the past and people are looking into different ways of keeping those who have passed close to them.

Future: These designs and jewellery could open a different and new market. Imagine buying a jewel piece that contains ashes of your favourite childhood actor or artist. 

-TM

[hyhnorms]

Future-Proofing - 25 dying jobs

Observation:  According to John Pugliano, author of “The Robots are Coming: A Human's Survival Guide to Profiting in the Age of Automation,” many white-collar jobs will be threatened by Automation, especially any routine job that can easily be defined by a mathematical or logic equation. Many of these jobs are US-related, but speak to the automation that will start replacing human jobs.   "Opportunity will be [there] for those that can create new produces/services or solve/fix unexpected problems."  - John Pugliano These are the jobs that are under threat:

1: Travel Agent 2: Mortgage Brokers 3: Bookkeeper 4: Lawyer 5: Broadcasters 6: Middle Managers 7: Casino Cashier 8: IT Support 9: Financial Planners 10: Floral Designers 11: Postal Workers 12: Photo Processor 13: Data Entry Clerks 14: Telephone Switchboard Operators 15: Farmers and Ranchers 16: Fast Food Cook 17: Newspaper Reporter 18: Jeweler 19: Textile Machine Workers 20: Furniture Finisher 21: Door-To-Door Salespeople 22: Print Binding and Finishing Workers 23: Detective 24: Routine Architect 25: Primary Care Physicians - BR

[hyhhealth]

Young Blood

Observation: Ambrosia, a US based company charges $8000 to fill up your veins with young blood.

Why: Jesse Karmazin, Ambrosia’s founder a Stanford graduate is hoping filling up the veins of older people with the blood from young donors would help “conquer ageing by rejuvenating the body's organs...”

Future: With beauty industry promises of never ending youth, this procedure might change the way we look at what we consider “commodities” in this instance being our blood.

-TM

[hyhpolitics]

Xi Xinping and China Exposed

Observation: Re-education camps in China have been “known” about for some time, but in a recent whistleblowing scandal, 403 official internal documents from the notoriously secretive Chinese government have been leaked, showing the full extent of these camps. Uyghur Muslims in particular, along with Kazakhs and other minority groups have been rounded up and kept in camps until the “virus” of “wrong thinking” has been eradicated “from their brains”. President Xi personally had 90 pages of internal speeches made public, in which he called for an all-out “struggle against terrorism, infiltration and separatism” using the “organs of dictatorship,” and showing “absolutely no mercy.” Why: The Chinese Government consider these people enemies of the state, and of the Communist party, and are to be “fixed”. The belief is that anyone showing signs of “Muslim-ness” are potential terrorists and need to be fixed or eliminated.  Article Future: The Future is likely to show more of this, freedom and liberty are becoming increasingly under threat, with slave islands in international waters and governments with immense power acting without fear of reprisal. The future will show as money controls the world so the freedoms of the citizens of the planet, especially those who challenge those leaders, will be under threat. - BR

[hyhpopculture]

Influencers worth more than £30 Million

Observation: In a recent high court ruling in the UK, Nike and Liverpool FC (LFC) got the green light to start their relationship after an injunction from current LFC sponsor New Balance (NB) was turned down.  NB had the right to counteroffer sponsorship proposals for the right to sponsor LFC, and with NB offering £30 Million more than Nike were, thought they had a good chance of challenging. Nike Offered £35 Million plus 20% of sales and access to Influencers Drake, Serena Williams, and Lebron James. Whereas New Balance currently pays LFC £65 Million per year.  The high court judge adjudicated that NB couldn't compete with access to such high profile sports people and denied their application, as well as the follow-up appeal. Why: Influence, is highly valued, especially in eastern nations like China, and Japan. Markets that Nike is powerful in, and LFC would like to be. - BR 

[hyhnorms]

Occupants

Obs: Our occupation holds us in a way that the work somehow defines us.

Why: Billions of migrants move away from the comfort of their home in search of greener pastures for their families, but they go back home with titles and tags. We spend 80 to 90 % of our waking time at work, some are doing what their heart desires, and some are just trying to keep the soul and flesh together. It is so unfortunate that in this day and age, the job that you do determines how people treat you and the level of respect you would get from society. So we are no longer human beings but ‘Occupations’. i.e, Lindo the videographer.

Future: In this case, if we do not reach the expertise, artificial intelligence will take over, and we will be left with nothing but the oxygen to breath.

- LN

[hyhpopculture]

Major TV station cutting Influencers

Observation:  A high-level South African TV executive has recently stated that they are no longer going to be using influencers to help promote their TV shows. Their complaint was primarily about a severe lack of professionalism from celebrities in particular, and that they are going to go back to traditional advertising and marketing. Specifics: Late delivery, incorrect hashtags, no comms, very poor grammar, not following the brief, “they act like they are doing us a favour when we are paying them hundreds of thousands of Rands”.

Why: In South Africa we are constantly talking about the lack of professionalism from influencers, particularly from more famous ones. International influencers in our experience are very professional and make life very easy by treating their work ... like work. Future:  Brands are not going to tolerate poor delivery and difficult working conditions, and will start resorting to alternatives to influencers. This provides an opportunity for truly professional influencers to stand out.  - BR