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Uber will order your hot dogs at games now. Getting a ride is harder.

Uber will order your hot dogs at games now. Getting a ride is harder.
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Ride-hailing app Uber unveiled a suite of new offerings this week, from charter buses to skip-the-line food ordering at sporting events, aimed at grabbing more business in more places. Meanwhile, some riders are just hoping their cars show up without a hitch.

Take Jonah Bliss, a marketing consultant in Los Angeles. He said he called an Uber last week to take him to the airport. Before he booked, it listed the wait time as 10 minutes. Once he hit “confirm,” it shot up to 25 minutes. The switch felt disingenuous, he said.

“I work in marketing and am familiar with putting your best foot forward, but it’s hard to know when it crosses the line from being optimistic to being untrue,” he said.

Katie Pilot, who lives in the Los Angeles area and works in export logistics, prefers to take one of the ready-and-waiting yellow cabs when she’s leaving big events rather than wandering up a nearby side street to find her Uber. She still takes Ubers to the airport, but costs are creeping up, she said. Since drivers frequently cancel, she’s taken to paying the $16 fee to reserve her rides the night before. Her seven-mile trip to Los Angeles International Airport last month came in at $55.

“I’m really only using ride-share to get to the airport or around when I travel,” she said. “The rates have gotten too pricey to add on as an expense for a day or evening out.”

As some customers report paying more, Uber itself is trying to spend less. The looming economic downturn is driving the ride-hailing giant to cut costs, according to an email from CEO Dara Khosrowshahi to employees, even as its revenue bounces back from a pandemic-era dip. After a series of challenges including driver shortages and spiking gas prices, it’s hard to know where Uber’s latest product announcements fit in — and whether some elements, like autonomous sidewalk food-delivery robots, will ever come to fruition.

With gas prices soaring, Uber adds a customer surcharge to help offset fuel costs for drivers

Most of the new features Uber announced appear to be geared toward relatively small groups of customers, such as event planners, sports fans who really hate standing in line, and people who can use voice assistants without losing their minds.

“Some of these feel almost like a distraction,” Bliss said. “It’s like, ‘The thing you used Uber for doesn’t work, but now you can eat hot dogs at Dodger Stadium easier.’ ”

A spokesman for Uber said the company has more drivers in the United States now than it did at any other point during the pandemic, and that prices and reliability are improving. The number of drivers didn’t decrease in response to rising fuel prices, he said, and wait times in Los Angeles, where Bliss and Pilot live, have gone down 10 percent since this time last year.

Needy, overconfident voice assistants are wearing on their owners’ last nerves

Here’s what the company promised customers during Monday’s virtual unveiling.

  • Vouchers for events: People planning get-togethers such as weddings or conferences can give their guests voucher codes for rides or meals. (Organizers can set a maximum price, which helps with setting budgets and preventing shenanigans.)
  • Voice ordering: Uber Eats will integrate with Google Assistant, so you can say something like, “Hey Google, order me panang curry from Jitlada Thai Cuisine.” It’s available this summer in English around the world with more languages to come, the company said.
  • Travel planning: If you link your Uber and Gmail accounts, Uber will provide recommendations for ride reservations right alongside your flight, hotel or restaurant reservations, it says.
  • Charter buses: Starting this summer, you can rent those big party buses people use for bachelor parties and proms, as well as passenger vans and coach buses. Open the Uber app and tap “charter” to see when it’s available where you live.
  • Sporting events: If you want food at the stadium but don’t want to stand in line, you can use Uber Eats or Postmates (which Uber owns) to order food from concessions. When it’s ready, you get an alert and can go grab your items without the wait. It’s available at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, Angel Stadium in Anaheim, Calif., Yankee Stadium in New York, Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C., Minute Maid Park in Houston, PayPal Park in San Jose and Roazhon Park in France with “more to come.”
  • Uber Comfort Electric: Uber’s premium “comfort” option now comes with a special designation if you prefer an electric vehicle such as a Tesla or Polestar. It’s available in Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Diego in the United States, the company says, with more locations to come.
  • Autonomous delivery: If you’d prefer your food be delivered by a robotic rolling shopping cart with eyeballs instead of a human, today’s your lucky day. Uber is testing these gadgets from maker Serve Robotics in Los Angeles, it says, as well as autonomous delivery with an all-electric vehicle fleet from car company Motional. Keep in mind, though: autonomous anything is easier said than done. Both Uber and Lyft have talked a big game about autonomous vehicles before and have yet to deliver.
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WPIC: Events in Q1’22 hit platinum supply harder than demand, with previous surplus forecast for 2022 reduced to 627 koz

  • Platinum supply forecast to fall 5% in 2022, while demand to increase 2%
  • Despite unprecedented headwinds, annual automotive demand in 2022 forecast to rise 16%
  • Strong jewellery demand in Europe, North America, Japan and India unable to offset falls in pandemic-affected China
  • Strong underlying platinum industrial demand masked by reduced expansions in glass

LONDON, May 16, 2022 /CNW/ — The World Platinum Investment Council (WPIC) today publishes its Platinum Quarterly for the first quarter of 2022, with a revised full year forecast for 2022.

Unprecedented events in Q1’22 had a huge impact on both the supply of and demand for platinum, adding a layer of complexity on top of pre-existing issues, which will continue well into 2022. During the quarter, both demand (-26%) and supply (-13%) fell year-on-year leaving the market in surplus of 167 koz. However, for the full year, supply is expected to be 5% less than in 2021, yet demand to be 2% greater.

The surplus forecast for 2022 has now been reduced to 627 koz, which is also notably down on the surplus in 2021 (1,128 koz).

Constrained supply

Q1’22 saw confirmation that the processing of semi-finished inventory built up during the 2020 Anglo American platinum converter plant (ACP) shutdown had been completed. With mine production no longer receiving the one-off supply boost from the ACP inventory unwind, a clearer picture of underlying production levels emerged this quarter. South African production in Q1’22 fell 16% (-167 koz) year-on-year, to quarterly levels below those seen in 2019. Platinum mine supply in South Africa is forecast to decline 9% in 2022 (-421 koz) and is at risk of potential strike action related to three-yearly wage negotiations. Russian output also declined in Q1’22, down 11% year-on-year (-21 koz) with the operating environment in Russia becoming increasingly challenging due to the geopolitical situation and sanctions against Russia. Overall, global refined mine production is forecast to decline 7% (-425 koz) year-on-year to 5,872 koz.

Recycling supply was constrained during Q1’22 (-20% year-on-year) due to reduced volumes of end-of-life vehicles as a result of fewer new vehicles being sold – an issue that will persist yet ease throughout 2022. Full year platinum recycling supply is forecast to decline by 2% (-43 koz).

Notable automotive demand despite severe challenges

Against a backdrop of shortages of semiconductor chips and other parts, zero-COVID protocols in China, and disruption in Europe due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, total platinum automotive demand this quarter was remarkably strong. Demand was flat on Q1’21 (725 koz), and is expected to increase by 16% (+412 koz) in 2022, due to a rise in light duty vehicles produced, higher loadings due to tighter emissions regulations and continued platinum substitution to partially replace palladium in gasoline vehicle catalysts.

Jewellery demand rises in all regions except China

A jump in the number of weddings, price-led gains from gold in bridal and further growth for luxury brands saw platinum jewellery demand rise in Europe and North America in Q1’22 – a trend which is forecast to continue throughout the year. Jewellery demand also grew in Japan, albeit from a low base. In India, platinum jewellery demand rose in Q1’22, with fabrication expected to grow to a record high in 2022.

However, this could not offset a fall in jewellery demand in China, where platinum fabrication fell by 36% year-on-year in Q1’22, partly due to the negative impact of the Omicron outbreak. Sales are expected to gradually pick up in the second half of the year as the pandemic-related impact is expected to ease. Overall global platinum jewellery demand declined by 9% (-42 koz) year-on-year in Q1’22, and is forecast to decline 2% (-37 koz) to 1,886 koz in 2022.

Underlying industrial demand above 2019 levels

Petroleum demand in Q1’22 rose by 21% (+8 koz) year-on-year, especially in Europe and North America, where refining output had picked up considerably as the recovery from COVID continued. Similarly, as health service utilisation is recovering towards pre-pandemic levels, demand for platinum in the medical sector was up by 15% (+8 koz). Both sectors are forecast to see demand growth in 2022.

Meanwhile, platinum glass demand fell 56% (-179 koz) year-on-year in Q1 22 as expected. This seemingly dramatic drop was due to unusually high demand in Q1’21, as significant investment in new plant capacity was completed and plants were commissioned. This reduced requirement from the glass sector was a significant factor in overall industrial demand falling by 25% (-175 koz) in Q1’22 year-on-year, and the forecast of a 16% decline in 2022, albeit that 2022 industrial demand is still expected to be the third strongest year on record.

Investment demand affected by yen weakness and ETF liquidations

Bar and coin demand increased from 21 koz in Q1’21 to 60 koz in Q1’22. However, despite particularly strong demand in North America, global demand growth was limited by US dollar price strength sustained by a significant subsequent weakening in the yen which drove local platinum prices to their highest since May last year and which encouraged profit-taking among Japanese investors. This trend is expected to continue into the next quarter, with global bar and coin demand for the full year forecast to decline by 23%.

For ETFs, liquidations in Q1’22 stemmed primarily from one European ETF issuer and were contrary to investors’ finding hard assets attractive due to surging inflationary worries and elevated geopolitical and economic uncertainties. A modest inflow in ETF holdings over the remainder of this year is forecast, resulting in a 50 koz full-year outflow.

Paul Wilson, CEO of the World Platinum Investment Council commented:

“At the start of Q1’22, most regions were at various stages of a post-COVID economic recovery. However, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine at the end of February sent shockwaves through the markets, which will be felt for months and years to come. This new layer of complexity, on top of existing COVID-related factors and operational challenges, will add to the wider markets’ volatility.

“With the backlog of semi-finished inventory built up during the 2020 Anglo American Platinum converter plant (ACP) outages now processed, we are left with the stark reality that South African production is actually below where it was in 2019. This, combined with a massive drop in recycled material, points to constrained supply for the coming months, as demand continues to grow.

“While the cost of the tragic war in Ukraine will not be known for some time, the potential indirect impact it could have on platinum is considerable. Security-of-supply concerns, particularly for palladium have arisen in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and given Russia’s importance to the global supplies of mined palladium and, to a much lesser extent, platinum. This could increase platinum for palladium substitution efforts and modify the procurement and inventory management strategies of a wide range of market participants.

“In addition to decarbonisation, security of energy supply for all Governments is now a far greater issue than it was. The role of green hydrogen in reducing European gas imports could drive a strategic acceleration of electrolyser construction, which would benefit platinum directly but also support the infrastructure needed for broad-based commercial adoption of FCEVs. Investors looking for green opportunities are becoming increasingly aware of platinum’s key strategic role in unlocking hydrogen’s crucial contribution to achieving global net zero targets; being used in both electrolysers to produce green hydrogen and in hydrogen fuel cells.”

Disclaimer

Neither the World Platinum Investment Council nor Metals Focus is authorised by any regulatory authority to give investment advice. Nothing within this document is intended or should be construed as investment advice or offering to sell or advising to buy any securities or financial instruments and appropriate professional advice should always be sought before making any investment. For further information, please visit www.platinuminvestment.com.

SOURCE World Platinum Investment Council (WPIC)

For further information: Charlotte Raisbeck, +44 (0)7908 551605 – [email protected]