International research conducted at the University of South Florida has shown that caffeine affects what we buy and how much we spend on shopping.
An international team of researchers conducted three experiments in shopping malls.
Caffeine is a powerful mind and body stimulant by releasing dopamine into the brain. It can cause a surge in energy levels, making the body more irritable and reducing self-control. And as a result, being overly impulsive, people make rash purchases and spend more money than planned, explains study lead author Deepayan Biswas, a professor at the University of South Florida.
As part of the study, one coffee machine was placed near the entrance to a home goods store, the second was placed near a chain retailer in France, and the third was installed in Spain in a large shopping center. More than 300 participants in the experiment received their drink and went shopping.
After the subjects had made their purchases, they had to give all receipts to the researchers. According to the data obtained, it turned out that those who drank the caffeinated drink spent and bought more goods.
Scientists have also found that caffeine affects what people buy. Those who drank coffee were more likely to spend money on non-essential items, such as scented candles or perfumes.
The scientists conducted another experiment in the lab, only this time the participants had to shop online. 200 business school students were divided into two groups. One drank coffee with caffeine, the other without. All participants had to choose goods from the proposed list, consisting of 66 items. Those who drank caffeinated drinks were much more likely to make impulse purchases, like a neck massage machine, while others were more likely to make more practical purchases, like a laptop or a washing machine.
“Caffeine can indeed have a beneficial effect on a person’s well-being, but it can cause disappointing consequences after shopping. Anyone who wants to control their spending should limit their coffee intake before going to the store,” says Biswas.
The Qatar Fund for Development, as part of the UNITED24 initiative, donated $5 million to the Ministry of Health of Ukraine, the press service of the Ministry of Health reports.
“For the first time in two months of UNITED24’s operation, a large fund contributed to medical assistance. Such donations from foundations are critically important for us, because we understand that we can close a large need with one payment. We thank the Qatar Fund For Development for a significant contribution to saving lives We invite other organizations to cooperate so that the funds raised to help Ukrainians are used effectively and purposefully,” Minister of Health of Ukraine Viktor Lyashko emphasized.
It is noted that the funds will be used to purchase ambulances and anesthesia and respiratory apparatus for inhalation anesthesia during surgical interventions in medical institutions.
The volume of the German economy in the second quarter did not change compared to the previous three months, according to preliminary data from the German Federal Statistical Agency (Destatis).
In annual terms, GDP growth, adjusted for the number of working days, was 1.4%.
Analysts on average expected the first indicator to rise by 0.1% and the second by 1.7%, according to Trading Economics.
In the first quarter, GDP grew by 0.2% qoq and increased by 3.8% yoy.
The volume of the German economy is still 0.2% lower than in the fourth quarter of 2019 – that is, in the last quarter before the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, Destatis said.
Destatis will publish final data on the dynamics of the country’s economy in the second quarter on August 25.
At the same time, the statement of the statistical office notes that due to the ongoing COVID-19 crisis and the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the data is subject to more uncertainty than usual. This indicates the possibility of a stronger revision of the figures compared to those originally announced.
Norway has transferred 14 IVECO LAV III armored patrol vehicles to Ukraine, according to the Norwegian government website.
The Government of the country noted that armored vehicles are in demand by the Ukrainian authorities and are supplied in addition to other military equipment, such as artillery, portable anti-aircraft missile system (MANPADS) and armored personnel carriers, which Norway has already transferred to Ukraine earlier.
Armored vehicles have good mobility and protection, and belong to the same type used by Norwegian forces in Afghanistan.
“Norway continues to contribute to the struggle of Ukrainians for freedom. The government is constantly assessing how Norway can provide further support to Ukraine in protecting the country from Russia’s invasion,” Norwegian Defense Minister Bjørn Arild Gram said.
The flow to enter Ukraine through its western border for the week from July 23 to July 29 amounted to about 281 thousand, while to exit – about 262 thousand, the State Border Service reports on Facebook.
Compared with the previous week, the number of people entering Ukraine slightly increased, while the number of those leaving it slightly decreased, as a result of which net inflow into the country increased to about 19,000 from about 5,000 a week ago, according to its data.
The number of passenger cars passing through the border remained at 119,000 a week, while the number of vehicles with humanitarian cargoes registered fell to 431 against 560 a week earlier.
Such data is confirmed by the Polish border service. According to her, from July 23 to 29, 162 thousand entered Poland from Ukraine (a week earlier – 163 thousand), while from Poland to Ukraine – 173 thousand (167 thousand).
In general, since the beginning of the war, 5.130 million arrived in Poland from Ukraine, while in the opposite direction – 3.218 million.
According to the State Border Service, over the past four weeks there has been a trend when on Sunday-Tuesday, noticeably more people enter Ukraine, and on Wednesday-Friday, a little more leaves.
As reported, since May 10, the flow to enter Ukraine through its western border has steadily exceeded the flow to exit for a month. Net inflow during this period amounted to 188 thousand. In the following weeks, there was no such unambiguous trend, and net inflow over this period decreased to 60 thousand.
According to UNHCR data, as of July 26, a total of 9.927 million people have left Ukraine since the beginning of the war (excluding entry flow), of which 4.944 million went to Poland, 1.857 million to Russia, 1.042 million to Hungary, and 890.2 thousand to Romania. ., Slovakia – 627.6 thousand, Moldova – 549.3 thousand, Belarus – 16.7 thousand.
At the same time, according to the UN, from February 28 to July 26, 3.996 million people entered Ukraine (excluding data from Hungary, the Russian Federation and Belarus).
The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has amended the Basic Conditions for State Foreign Borrowing in 2022 by attracting a loan from Canada, presented by the Minister of Finance, the press service of the Ministry of Finance of Ukraine reported on Friday.
“The draft resolution was developed by the Ministry of Finance to increase the amount of a concessional loan by 0.45 billion Canadian dollars (equivalent to 0.351 billion US dollars) under a loan agreement between Ukraine and Canada, as a result of which the loan amount will be 1.45 billion Canadian dollars (equivalent to . 1.131 billion US dollars),” the message says.
It clarifies that the funds will be directed to the state budget to finance priority spending, in particular to ensure priority social and humanitarian payments.
The agency recalls that on June 17, the state budget of Ukraine received 1 billion Canadian dollars (equivalent to 0.773 billion US dollars) of a loan on preferential terms from Canada.
“These are the first funds that Ukraine received through the mechanism of the administrative account of the International Monetary Fund. The loan repayment period is 10 years, the interest rate is 1.69% per annum. The specified conditions have been preserved for additional tranches of the loan,” the Ministry of Finance summed up.
