On tracks throughout europe, the cars competed in disciplines including autocross, racing through formula 1 like twists and turns as fast as possible. . . . . An endurance trial through more than 20km of track to push the limits of battery management. . . . . A test of grip and downforce by. . . Basically going round in a circle as fast as possible and then there s acceleration. It s a drag race, basically, and it s this last challenge that one team, amz racing, absolutely blasted last year, going from 0 to 100km an hour in. . . Well, i ll let you know a bit later. Amz includes students from lucerne university of applied sciences and arts and eth zurich, and i dropped in on the team s swiss hq. And up here is the electronics department at amz racing. We re going to meet lara. Not that lara. For one car to excel at all of these events, it not only has to have a powerful motor, but also computers have to control the traction and fine tune the speed of each wheel individually, and someh
By 2030, and that estimate is at the conservative end of the scale. But falling birth rates and some of the highest inflation rates we ve seen in decades have created challenging conditions for manufacturers and retailers, and signal more tough times to come. While the covid pandemic boosted sales of toys and games temporarily, big name companies report that sales have started to slip back once again. Let s have a look at some of those numbers. Global toy sales reached $108] billion in 2023, a 2% drop compared to 2022, with toy companies calling it a normalisation process after that exceptional growth linked to the pandemic. But across the 612 countries, including the uk, france, germany, and spain, sales declined by 7% in 2023 compared with the previous year, but they were still 17% higher when compared to 2019, before the pandemic. I caught up with the boss of build a bear, a much loved company which allows shoppers to customise their own teddies. She s also the head of the global or
This week, we re in spain. . . . . For decades, a summer favourite of families and package holiday makers looking for some guaranteed sunshine. This month alone, around 10 million of us will have paid the country a visit. So as peak season there reaches its height, we wanted to revisit some of our adventures on the spanish mainland, starting in the southern region of andalucia, home to some eye catching names seville, cordoba, granada and the costa del sol. But amid all the recumbent sun worshippers spread out on the beaches, we found something secret hidden beneath the sands. I m meeting eddi pitcher, a writer and travel journalist who specialises in uncovering hidden places. Eddi, where are you taking me today? so we are taking the wild way to bolonia beach, and we can see that this is the way because we ve got. . . Knotted beach grass here. There are no signs. So it s. . . I said it was a wild way. I m definitely glad that eddi s here to show me the way on this one. Wow, look at t
Welcome to the journal editorial report. After ducking the press for a month, vice president kamala harris gave her first interview with the campaign to cnn on thursday sitting down with tim walz in the battleground state in georgia where she defended herself from accusations she has flipflopped on key issues including fracking and immigration. My values have not changed. You mentioned the green new deal. I have always believed and i have worked on it that the climate crisis is real, that it is an urgent matter to which we should apply metrics that include holding ourselves to deadlines around time. We did that with the inflation reduction act. My value around what to do to secure the border, that value has not changed. I spent two terms as the attorney general of california prosecuting transnational, organizations, violations of american laws regarding the illegal passage of guns, drugs and human beings across the border. Paul: let s bring in dan heninger and bill mcgurn. Did you lear
Give the toy industry a much needed boost? this time, it s not about spending on toys for children, but adults so called kidults. An emerging generation of over 18s is snapping up collectables and nostalgia brands, and they say it s good for their mental health. I m going to be discussing that and more with my guests the boss of build a bear, the stores where you can create a bespoke teddy bear, and the chief executive of the world s biggest toy company and arguably one of its most iconic brands, lego. I ll also be catching up with the president of the company behind leading toy brands barbie, hot wheels, fisher price and more that s mattel to find out how tv and movie tie ups are reviving his compa ny s fortunes. Wherever you rejoining me from around the world, once again, a big hello and a warm welcome to the programme. It s a billion dollar industry driven by creativity and innovation, with a global reach and a diverse market. The toy industry is forecast to reach $302 billi