PARIS: Europol seized more than five million potentially hazardous counterfeit toys worth more than 18 million euros ($20 million) between October 2021 and January 2022, the European Union police agency said Thursday.
The haul included “counterfeit and illegal puzzle games, videogames and related characters, board and card games, dolls and puppets from famous TV series, bricks for children and clothing and accessories from famous brands,” Europol said.
“The majority of fake toys were imported from East Asia to the EU, UK and the US,” it said.
Operation Ludus II, the second major investigation of its type, was coordinated by Europol and led by police and customs officials in Spain and Romania.
The probe involved law enforcement authorities from 21 countries — 19 European states, the United States and Ivory Coast.
It resulted in “the seizure of hazardous toys with a total value of more than 18 million euros.”
The first Operation Ludus was launched in 2020 after the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) warned about toys that did not conform to EU safety norms and were therefore dangerous to children.
Europol said the merchandise impounded after the latest investigation “harbored risks such as chemical exposure, strangulation, choking, electric shock, damage to hearing and fire hazards.”
The agency said 72 e-commerce platforms had been subject to surveillance, leading to 30 websites being shut down, 99 individuals being reported to judicial authorities and 1,459 to health or administrative authorities.
Counterfeit goods today represent 2.5 percent of all global trade.
Europol seizes five million unsafe fake toys
https://arab.news/b26qa
Europol seizes five million unsafe fake toys
- "The majority of fake toys were imported from East Asia to the EU, UK and the US," Europol said
- The probe involved law enforcement authorities from 21 countries
Some Warren Buffett wisdom on his last day leading Berkshire Hathaway
OMAHA, Nebraska: The advice that legendary investor Warren Buffett offered on investing and life over the years helped earn him legions of followers who eagerly read his annual letters and filled an arena in Omaha every year to listen to him at Berkshire Hathaway’s annual meetings.
Buffett’s last day as CEO is Wednesday after six decades of building up the Berkshire conglomerate. He’ll remain chairman, but Greg Abel will take over leadership.
Here’s a collection of some of Buffett’s most famous quotes from over the years:
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“Be fearful when others are greedy, and greedy when others are fearful.”
That’s how Buffett summed up his investing approach of buying out-of-favor stocks and companies when they were selling for less than he estimated they were worth.
He also urged investors to stick with industries they understand that fall within their “circle of competence” and offered this classic maxim: “Rule No. 1: Never lose money. Rule No. 2: Never forget Rule No. 1.”
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“After they first obey all rules, I then want employees to ask themselves whether they are willing to have any contemplated act appear the next day on the front page of their local paper to be read by their spouses, children and friends with the reporting done by an informed and critical reporter.
“If they follow this test, they need not fear my other message to them: Lose money for the firm and I will be understanding; lose a shred of reputation for the firm and I will be ruthless.”
That’s the ethical standard Buffett explained to a Congressional committee in 1991 that he would apply as he cleaned up the Wall Street investment firm Salomon Brothers. He has reiterated the newspaper test many times since over the years.
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“You only find out who is swimming naked when the tide goes out.”
Many companies might do well when times are good and the economy is growing, but Buffett told investors that a crisis always reveals whether businesses are making sound decisions.
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“Who you associate with is just enormously important. Don’t expect that you’ll make every decision right on that. But you are going to have your life progress in the general direction of the people you work with, that you admire, that become your friends.”
Buffett always told young people that they should try to hang out with people who they feel are better than them because that will help improve their lives. He said that’s especially true when choosing a spouse, which might be the most important decision in life.
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“Our unwavering conclusion: never bet against America.”
Buffett has always remained steadfast in his belief in the American capitalist system. He wrote in 2021 that “there has been no incubator for unleashing human potential like America. Despite some severe interruptions, our country’s economic progress has been breathtaking.”
