The price of the MLC (Freely Convertible Currency) in Cuba has seen a recent increase after a period of stability. According to statistics from elToque, the average sales value on Monday was $290.00 CUP, which is a two-peso increase from the previous day’s rate of $288.00 CUP.
Meanwhile, both the dollar and the euro have remained steady in the last few hours, with the dollar at $360.00 CUP and the euro at $370.00 CUP, which is 10 pesos higher than the previous day.
The rise in the banked dollar has caused some tension as rumors swirl about its possible disappearance. The Cuban government has expressed intentions to address imbalances caused by the Ordinance, and the MLC’s function as a means to capture physical dollars and euros has shown weaknesses due to limited offers in stores and decreasing public confidence in the banking system.
Despite these challenges, the MLC is lagging behind the dollar and the euro in the informal currency market. It is advised to remember that elToque’s reference rates are based on announcements of purchase and sale, and should be viewed as a reference rather than completed transactions.
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BMW establishes a dedicated research base in Cheongna… “Active support for the world’s 5th largest Korean market”
BMW Group Korea opens ‘BMW Group R&D Center Korea’ in Cheongna International City, Incheon
BMW has finally completed ‘BMW Group R&D Center Korea’, a core base for developing customized products and providing services in Korea. BMW Group R&D Center Korea, which first opened in Incheon BMW Driving Center in 2015, is a research and development facility established by BMW Group in Korea.
BMW Group Korea announced on the 22nd that it has built and opened a new ‘BMW Group R&D Center Korea’ in Cheongna International City, Incheon Metropolitan City.
The new BMW Group R&D Center Korea was built in accordance with the Korean R&D Center expansion plan introduced through a presentation by key executives from BMW Group headquarters who visited Korea in 2019. To this end, BMW Group Korea signed a memorandum of understanding with Incheon City and Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority (IFEZ) in December 2021 to build a new BMW R&D Center. Construction began in the IHP Urban High-Tech Industrial Complex in Cheongna, Incheon in April 2023 and was officially completed in March 2024, about 11 months later.
At the opening ceremony of the BMW Group R&D Center Korea held on the 22nd, Jochen Gawler, BMW Group Vice Chairman of Customer, Brand and Sales, and Jean-Philippe Parant, BMW Group Senior Vice President of Asia-Pacific, Middle East, Eastern Europe and Africa, attended. In addition, Daniel Botger, BMW Group senior vice president in charge of research and development for finished vehicles, Behrend Quever, BMW Group senior vice president in charge of BMW brand, product management and connectedness, Han Sang-yoon, CEO and president of BMW Group Korea, Incheon Metropolitan City Mayor Yoo Jeong-bok, Incheon Seo-gu Lee Yong-woo, National Assembly member-elect, and Yoon Won-seok of the Incheon Economic Daily. The Chairman of the Free Zone Authority and Oh Sang-ho, Head of Cheongna Yeongjong Business Division of Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH), attended the event.
Jochen Golla, BMW Group Vice President Customer, Brand and Sales, said, “First of all, I am very happy to be able to attend the opening ceremony of the newly opened ‘BMW Group R&D Center Korea’ in Korea, and I am confident that this facility will play an even more valuable role in the future. “I look forward to it,” he said. “As Korea was the 5th largest and most important market within the group last year, BMW Group will continue to invest to provide better products and services to Korean customers.”
Daniel Botger, Senior Vice President of BMW Group Automobile Research and Development, said, “BMW Group R&D Center Korea plays a role in contributing to the improvement of products and services provided to domestic customers and the development of future technologies, as well as cooperation with BMW Group and Korean partners, and domestic ventures. “We will actively support the advancement of technologies overseas,” he said. “We hope you will pay attention to the various efforts BMW Group Korea is making for the Korean market.”
This facility was built as a single-story building with a total floor area of 2,813 m2 on a site with an area of 5,296 m2. There are test labs including office space, maintenance and testing rooms, certification testing rooms, electric vehicle charger test buildings, and research labs. The test lab is equipped with the latest facilities for vehicle certification and verification of electrification technology.
BMW Group R&D Center Korea, which is now in full operation, has a total of 50 personnel and supports certification and product development work for vehicles imported into Korea, while also collaborating with domestic companies, research facilities, and universities to develop navigation, voice recognition, and UI. They will be responsible for jointly developing prototypes, etc.
As Korea is the 5th largest market within the BMW Group, we plan to actively utilize the BMW Group R&D Center Korea for certification work to introduce more optimized vehicles. First, before launching in the domestic market, various tests will be performed to present a vehicle that fully satisfies domestic laws and regulations. We are also planning to conduct our own certification testing at the facility within the next 3 to 4 years.
In addition, product development work is also performed here. We plan to conduct research activities to expand our understanding of domestic consumer needs and markets, and collaborate with the design and engineering departments at our German headquarters to carry out higher-level localization of navigation, language, voice recognition, UI, connectivity, charging, and driver assistance systems. am.
In addition, before introducing it to the domestic market, we will establish an operation, maintenance, and management system and testing procedures for the prototype vehicle and conduct intensive testing to strengthen performance, quality, and suitability. In addition, we plan to further strengthen our cooperation system for product development with domestic suppliers.
The new BMW Group R&D Center Korea will house the ‘BMW Technology Office’, which plays a role in conceiving ideas for new cars and new technologies, experiencing innovation, and cooperating with partners in Korea. The BMW Technology Office Korea, part of the BMW Group Technology Office Asia Pacific, is responsible for designing prototypes and allowing customers to experience new technologies in a BMW way.
‘BMW Startup Garage’, which helps Korean automobile-related technologies advance overseas, will also be located at BMW Group R&D Center Korea. The BMW Group supports tech-related startups that want to develop technology or create sales channels in the automotive field through BMW Startup Garage, which is currently operating in six countries around the world, including Germany, the United States, China, Israel, Japan, and Korea.
BMW Group Korea is already introducing a variety of Korean companies related to the automobile industry, including artificial intelligence (AI), autonomous driving, new materials, and manufacturing process technologies, to BMW Group headquarters, along with various parts currently being installed on vehicles being sold.
In 2023, the BMW Group purchased parts from Korean partners worth a whopping 6.535 trillion won. The cumulative amount of parts purchases from 2010 to last year amounts to 30.78 trillion won. The BMW Group plans to continue to serve as a bridge for Korean companies to enter the global market through continued technological partnerships with domestic companies, and to strengthen new forms of social contribution and domestic investment.
Jeong Jin-su, Donga.com reporter [email protected]
Interview with Mahmoud Oudrhiri, MAMDA Deputy Managing Director: “We have observed a spectacular jump in the insured areas”
The agricultural sector in Morocco is exposed to a variety of risks, the most critical of which currently come from climate change, leading to increasingly frequent and severe periods of drought, seriously threatening the country’s agriculture. The implementation of climate multi-risk insurance, operationalized by the Mutuelle Agricole Marocaine d’Assurances (MAMDA), therefore appeared to be a lifeline for many Moroccan farmers. To tell us about the success of this product, resulting from a public-private partnership, as well as the efforts undertaken and underway to support Moroccan agriculture in the face of the effects of climate change, Mr. Mahmoud Oudrhiri, Deputy Director General of the MAMDA, agreed to answer our questions during the Casablanca Insurance Meeting.
Climate multi-risk is one of the key themes of the Casablanca Insurance Meeting this year. What is the state of affairs in Morocco?
Morocco started relatively early. Already, in 1994, it set up the first program linked to the drought hazard for cereals, in the form of a State guarantee. And then there was a very important step in terms of agricultural insurance in Morocco, in 2011, when this program was transformed into an insurance contract. Where we moved from a simple drought guarantee to a multi-risk climate policy integrating six climatic hazards, and a state guarantee to a formal insurance contract as part of a public-private partnership between the Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of Finance and MAMDA. This multi-risk climate insurance is intended for large crops, that is to say cereals, oilseeds and legumes.
Compensation occurs when the yield observed at the level of a given municipality is lower than the reference yield of said municipality.
We talk about a success story when we talk about climate multi-risk in Morocco. What are the factors of this success?
I would cite perhaps three factors. I think the first is the model chosen by Morocco. And when we benchmark internationally, I think that the Moroccan model incorporates all the good codes and all the good practices that we find in the Spanish, Canadian model, etc. IIt is important to emphasize the choice of model and its relevance, which is a key factor for me.
As a second factor, we can cite the proactive policy of the State through the Ministry of Agriculture to absolutely want to develop the resilience of farmers. The State is there, it is involved in the entire process: at the financial level but not only since it intervenes in the definition of the product, the price of the expertise… The State also shows a certain agility to develop the product. Since 2011, we are on the fifth version of the product. This agility is very important for this type of program.
Last factor, and here I am going to preach for my parish! It is the operator and all the work done by MAMDA, drawing on expertise and experience of more than 60 years put to use in this major public-private partnership project.
In terms of the figures for this success, since the transformation of the program into an insurance contract in 2011, we have observed a spectacular jump in the areas insured which went from an average of around 68,000 hectares before 2011 to 1.2 million hectares insured by the end of 2023. Furthermore, over the last eleven years, no less than 4.5 billion dirhams in compensation have been paid, with an acceleration in recent years.
Over the last five years, we have paid more than 3 billion dirhams with a balance sheet which is very much in favor of the farmer, in the sense that on average, the farmer has paid 32 dirhams per hectare per year over the period, and received in return around 420 dirhams per hectare per year.
Success can also be measured by quality of service. Because, beyond the figures, I think that the operator has put in place all the human, financial, technical and technological means to upgrade its quality of service. Particular effort has been placed on innovation and digitalization. Thus, MAMDA has become in a few years one of the leading consumers of satellite imagery in Morocco, but also of agricultural indices and parameters such as the NDVI (vegetation index) or geographic information systems, or even drones. during the expertise phases. All this to better anticipate, better evaluate and better serve the customer.
This must have implied a vast transformation also at the level of MAMDA itself.
Yes, at all levels, whether human, financial or technological resources, with a lot of innovation to be there. Moreover, during the Casablanca insurance meetings, we saw on the one hand the Spanish case which is one of the world leaders in agricultural insurance and multi-risk climate insurance and on the other hand the case Moroccan which we can consider without any chauvinism on our part as the African leader in multi-risk climate insurance on African soil. We also regularly receive several delegations from friendly African countries who come to draw inspiration from the Moroccan model.
Concerning Moroccan farmers, how do you judge their level of awareness of this need to cover themselves, and how does MAMDA work to increase this awareness?
The question is very relevant. MAMDA, through its core business, has been operating in agricultural risk for over 60 years now. It therefore has very old relationships with the world of agriculture, and unrivaled knowledge of the field. These are risks that we are trying to popularize and make known. But not in the same way as for automobile risks or others, these are not products that are sold while waiting for the customer to pass through the agency. It is absolutely necessary to make climate risk coverage known in the souks, in the douars, etc.
It is thanks to this titanic work of the MAMDA sales force and thanks to the trust and experience of 60 years in a specific market that we were able to reach all these farmers and secure more than 1.2 million hectares per year!
The amounts and risks involved in climate change raise the question of the sustainability of insurance schemes. What about in Morocco?
Indeed, there has been a worsening of the risk observed over the last 6 years, and future prospects unfortunately confirm this worsening. This is a global phenomenon, which also makes the international reinsurance market for this type of risk increasingly tense!
Faced with this situation, there are two types of avenues that we can consider: how to limit the risk and how to mitigate it?
I think that one of the most serious avenues for limiting the loss experience of climate multi-risk consists of improving the volatility of cereal yields in Morocco. We are currently recording very low levels of performance which can be improved, fortunately!
There are several state and private initiatives working towards this objective and which cover the entire cereal production cycle:
- Development and use of quality seeds that are resilient to climate change with very significant gains in yield (between 20 and 40% depending on the crops). On this point, we have everything we need in terms of research and development (thanks in particular to our research institutes like INRA, etc.) and in terms of financial incentives.
- The transition from a traditional semi to a direct semi with yield gains of around 30%. Several initiatives have been launched in this direction by the Ministry of Agriculture. The “carbon farming” initiative can also be cited as an opportunity to be seized by farmers to reduce the carbon impact of their crops, receive remuneration in return while increasing their yields.
- Improving the monitoring of production stages through good technical advice and the use of technology (weather prediction, data analysis, connected agriculture, etc.) to optimize phytosanitary treatments, fertilizers, etc.
In summary, initiatives to improve performance exist at all levels and substantial budgets are allocated to them. What we need today is to accelerate the pace of this transformation to be there as soon as possible!
The other equally important avenue is how to pool or mitigate the risk of drought for cereals with other climatic hazards such as frost and hail for arboriculture. And here I think that the Spanish case is very edifying. In Spain, the coverage rate for banana trees by multi-risk climate insurance is 100%, for apple trees 83%!
Interview conducted by Selim Benabdelkhalek
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– 2024-04-22 14:26:26
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