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Coronavirus Updates

Tesla's Powerwall+ is a higher-power battery for off-grid living

  It looks like Tesla has started sending potential customers information about an upgraded Powerwall that's aptly called Powerwall+. In a post on  Reddit  spotted by  Electrek , a user posted a spec sheet for the battery, along with photos of what it would look like when installed. The upgraded version's battery capacity is still 13.5kWh, but its max power output is now 9.6kW, up from 5kW continuous and 7kW peak output. That said, that boost in power is only possible when you're in off-grid mode.    The spec sheets describes Powerwall+ as follows: "Powerwall+ is an integrated solar battery system to store energy from solar production. Its integrated design and streamlined installation allow for a simple connection to any home, and improved surge power capability brings whole home backup in a smaller package. System smart controls enable owners to customize system behavior to suit their renewable energy needs.” Tesla chief Elon Musk started talking about an upg

Eclipse Ventures has $500 million more to digitize old-line industries and bring them up to speed

  Two years ago, we talked with Lior Susan, the founder of now six-year-old Eclipse Ventures in Palo Alto, Ca. At the time, the outfit believed that the next big thing wasn't another social network but instead the remaking of old-line industries through full tech stacks -- including hardware, software and data -- capable of bring them into the 21st century. Fast forward, and nothing has changed, not inside of Eclipse anyway. While the world has gone through a dramatic transformation owing to the coronavirus pandemic -- never has the U.S.'s crumbling infrastructure been so apparent to so many - Eclipse is backing exactly the same kinds of companies that it always has and with the same size fund. Indeed, after closing its second and third funds with $500 million, the firm quietly closed its fourth vehicle earlier this month with $500 million in capital commitments from predominantly endowments. This morning, we talked with Susan about Eclipse's focus on revitalizing old i

The impact of the second wave will...............

  Packaged consumer goods maker Hindustan Unilever Ltd (HUL) said that the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic won’t hurt the company and the overall FMCG market as much as it did a year ago thanks to rural growth holding up and better preparedness on part of companies. “The rural growth has still held on and in the first two weeks of April we have seen the same momentum as we had witnessed in the March quarter,” said Sanjiv Mehta, Chairman and Managing Director of HUL, in a press conference after announcing the results for the quarter ended March. In the fourth quarter of FY21, HUL reported consolidated net profit growth of 44.8 percent from a year ago. Rural growth was strong throughout the last fiscal year as initially the virus spread was mostly in large cities. Despite the farmer protests, India is eyeing a record Rabi wheat output of 108 million tonnes, Reuters reported on Thursday. Still, there are some concerns that the pandemic spreading to rural India could derail growth

Modi govt's New Year bonanza for PF subscribers continues, takes big decision for your benefit

  New Delhi: The Modi government’s New Year bonanza to benefit crores of EPF subscribers continues, with media reports saying that it has allowed Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) and Exempted Provident Fund Trusts to invest in public sector debt ETFs (Exchange Traded Funds) like Bharat Bond ETF. As per a report in the Live Mint, a notification in this regard was pushe d on January 4.      It is worth mentioning here that ETFs are giving yields in the range of between 4.5 percent to 6.6 range. This is way less than the 8.5% interest rate declared by the  EPFO  for FY20 in December 2020.      Labour Minister Santosh Kumar Gangwar in written reply to a question in Lok Sabha in 2019 had said that  Employees’ Provident Fund Organization (EPFO)  is investing in Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) based on Nifty 50, Sensex, Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs) and Bharat 22 Indices. EPFO does not invest in shares and equities of individual companies. As of September 2019, the t