By The Numbers

BMW to Google: A, B, see ya, Alphabet URL

Marketplace Staff Aug 12, 2015
1.6 percent

In a surprise move, that’s how much China’s central bank devalued its currency for a second day in a row on Wednesday. As Quartz writes, the real value of the yuan may be even lower than People’s Bank of China is reporting.

7 inches

That’s how big smartphones in Asia have gotten. With rumors that the Samsung’s Galaxy Note 5 and the S6 Edge Plus will be bigger than ever when unveiled on Thursday, customers seem to be pushing for phones that resemble tablets.

4,600

That’s the number of teachers who were fired from the New Orleans public school system in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, writes Slate. Recently, the Marketplace Morning Report team headed to New Orleans to see how the city is recovering, and more specifically, to see how students have fared in the charter system that has replaced public education. They found successful students going off to college, but a teacher turnover rate that has increased dramatically.

100 companies

That’s how many companies have some form of “Alphabet” incorporated in their registered trademarks. And as Mashable writes, Google’s rebranding has hit another snag: Alphabet.com is owned by BMW, and the company is not letting go of the URL anytime soon.

There’s a lot happening in the world.  Through it all, Marketplace is here for you. 

You rely on Marketplace to break down the world’s events and tell you how it affects you in a fact-based, approachable way. We rely on your financial support to keep making that possible. 

Your donation today powers the independent journalism that you rely on. For just $5/month, you can help sustain Marketplace so we can keep reporting on the things that matter to you.