Economy and Automotive Industry
Posted on August 29, 2010
Economy and Automotive Industry
Daily Market Commentary for November 17, 2008 from Millennium-Traders.Com
The ‘Big 3′ are still awaiting a response from the government as to whether they can expect more funds to help bail them out of the sinking automotive industry. (read more)
http://www.millennium-traders.com/news/newscommentary.aspx
Economic data released today:
Empire State Manufacturing Survey:
New York Fed November Manufacturing Index fell 25.43 versus drop by 24.62 in October; New York Fed November New Orders fell 22.21 versus drop by 20.45 in October; New York Fed November Employment fell 28.92 versus drop by 3.66 in October; New York Fed November Prices Received 6.02 versus 20.73 in October; New York Fed November Manufacturing Index Drops to record low.
Industrial Production: U.S.
October Industrial Production increased by 1.3 percent compared to consensus of an increase by 0.4 percent; U.S. October Capacity Utilization increased by 0.9 points at 76.4 percent ; compared to consensus of 76.7 percent; U.S. September Industrial Production Revised to a drop by 3.7 percent from a drop by 2.8 percent.
At the NYSE closing bell on the New York Stock Exchange, here is how the major world indices and major U.S. stock indices ended the trading session on the world markets as well as the emerging markets including the stock market closing bell price:
DOW (Dow Jones Industrial Average) triple digit loss of 223.73 points to end the trading session at 8,273.58
NYSE (New York Stock Exchange) triple digit loss of 129.27 points to end the trading session at 5,323.36
National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations (NASDAQ) loss of 34.80 points to end the trading session at 1,482.05
S&P 500 (SPX) loss of 22.54 points to end the trading session at 850.75
FTSE All-World Index data excluding U.S. (AW01UK) loss of 2.97 points to end the trading session at 139.21
FTSE RAFI 1000 loss of 89.30 points to end the trading session at 3,250.32
BEL 20 (BEL20) loss of 26.80 points to end the trading session at 2,034.28
CAC 40 (CAC40) triple digit loss of 109.44 points to end the trading session at 3,182.03
FTSE100 (UKX100) triple digit loss of 100.81 points to end the trading session at 4,132.16
NIKKEI 225 (NIK/O) gain of 60.19 points to end the trading session at 8,522.58
New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) stock market indicators for the trading session today:
Advanced stock prices 777, declined stock prices 2,408; unchanged stock prices 70; stock prices hitting new highs 1 and stock prices hitting new lows 4. NYSE quotes for volatile stocks and market trends, as well as stock quotes, stock prices and stock symbols of Day Trading Stock Picks on the New York Stock Exchange stock market for Day Trading online and active Day Trading for those who are or would like to be Day Trading for a living: ConocoPhillips Incorporated (NYSE: COP) stock price shed 0.63 points on the trading session, high on the trading session .82, low on the trading session .57 with a closing stock price at .76; Alpharma Incorporated (NYSE: ALO) stock price shed 0.04 points on the trading session, high on the trading session .03, low on the trading session .00 with a closing stock price at .71; Citigroup Incorporated (NYSE: C) stock price shed 0.63 points on the trading session, high on the trading session .81, low on the trading session .75 with a closing stock price at .89; Toyota Motor Corporation (NYSE: TM) stock price shed 0.82 points on the trading session, high on the trading session .53, low on the trading session .75 with a closing stock price at .86; Bank of America Corporation (NYSE: BAC) stock price shed 1.39 points on the trading session, high on the trading session .28, low on the trading session .98 with a closing stock price at .03; PNC Financial Services (NYSE: PNC) stock price shed 3.15 points on the trading session, high on the trading session .29, low on the trading session .01 with a closing stock price at .19; CME Group Incorporated (NYSE: CME) stock price shed 19.11 points on the trading session, high on the trading session 7.79, low on the trading session 9.82 with a closing stock price at 9.92; Fluor Corporation (NYSE: FLR) stock price shed 1.76 points on the trading session, high on the trading session .31, low on the trading session .77 with a closing stock price at .97; Ultrashort Financial ProShares Corporation (NYSE: SKF) stock price gained 15.55 points on the trading session, high on the trading session 2.68, low on the trading session 6.05 with a closing stock price at 0.54; Goldman Sachs Group Incorporated (NYSE: GS) stock price shed 4.24 points on the trading session, high on the trading session .33, low on the trading session .75 with a closing stock price at .49; Potash Corporation (NYSE: POT) stock price shed 0.66 points on the trading session, high on the trading session .50, low on the trading session .12 with a closing stock price at .15.
National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations (NASDAQ) stock market indicators for the trading session today:
Advanced stock prices 919; declined stock prices 1,951; unchanged stock prices 139; stock prices hitting new highs 3; stock prices hitting new lows 416. NASDAQ quotes, volatile stocks and market trends, as well as stock quotes, stock prices and stock symbols of Day Trading Stock Picks on the NASDAQ stock market for Day Trading online and active Day Trading for those who are or would like to be Day Trading for a living: United Therapeutics Corporation (NasdaqGS: UTHR) stock price shed 31.90 points on the trading session, high on the trading session .17; low on the trading session .29 with a closing stock price at .62; Baidu.com Incorporated (NasdaqGS: BIDU) stock price shed 37.21 points on the trading session, high on the trading session 5.00; low on the trading session 0.51 with a closing stock price at 1.68; Intuitive Surgical Incorporated (NasdaqGS: ISRG) stock price shed 17.78 points on the trading session, high on the trading session 8.44; low on the trading session 3.02 with a closing stock price at 0.63.
Market trends on the American Stock Exchange (AMEX) and stock market indicators for the trading session today:
Advanced stock prices 260; declined stock prices 564; unchanged stock prices 56; stock prices hitting new highs n/a and stock prices hitting new lows n/a.
Chicago Board of Trade Futures Market activity for the day, at time of this posting for December 2008 Contracts:
E-mini S&P 500 (ES) end of trading session price 852.50, change -9.00
E-mini NASDAQ-100 (NQ) end of trading session price 1,162.00, change 6.50
E-mini DOW (YM) end of trading session price 8,256, change -115
E-mini S&P MidCap 400 end of trading session price 489.410, change 0.00
E-mini S&P SmallCap 600 (SMP) end of trading session price 488.70, change -0.70
World Currencies for the Forex Market, for Forex Trading by active Forex Traders, at time of this posting:
Euro 0.7908 to U.S. Dollars 1.2646
Japanese Yen 96.360 to U.S. Dollars 0.0104
British Pound 0.6672 to U.S. Dollars 1.4987
Canadian Dollar 1.2229 to U.S. Dollars 0.8177
Swiss Franc 1.1980 to U.S. Dollars 0.8347
Commodity Markets:
Energy Sector: Light Crude (NYMEX: NYM) shed .09 on the trading session for a closing price of .95 a barrel ($US per barrel)
Heating Oil (NYMEX: NYM) shed .05 on the trading session for a closing price of .81 a gallon ($US per gallon)
Natural Gas (NYMEX: NYM) gained .17 on the trading session for a closing price of .64 per million BTU ($US per mmbtu.)
Unleaded Gas (NYMEX: NYM) shed .06 on the trading session for a closing price of .17 a gallon ($US per gallon)
Metals Markets:
Gold Market Price (COMEX: CMX) shed .50 on the trading session for a closing price of 2.00 ($US per Troy ounce)
Silver (COMEX: CMX) shed .16 on the trading session for a closing price of .33 ($US per Troy ounce)
Platinum (NYMEX: NYM) shed .50 on the trading session for a closing price of 0.60 ($US per Troy ounce)
Copper (COMEX: CMX) shed .05 on the trading session for a closing price of .67 ($US per pound)
Livestock and Meat Markets (cents per lb.):
Lean Hogs (Chicago Mercantile Exchange: CME) shed 0.53 on the trading session for a closing price of 62.05
Pork Bellies (Chicago Mercantile Exchange: CME) shed 0.60 on the trading session for a closing price of 84.70
Live Cattle (Chicago Mercantile Exchange: CME) shed 1.65 on the trading session for a closing price of 89.03
Feeder Cattle (Chicago Mercantile Exchange: CME) shed 1.38 on the trading session for a closing price of 93.90
Other Commodities (cents per bushel):
Corn (Chicago Board of Trade: CBT) gained 6.00 on the trading session for a closing price of 403.00
Soybeans (Chicago Board of Trade: CBT) gained 10.50 on the trading session for a closing price of 906.50
Bond Market:
2 year bond gained 1/32 on the trading session for a closing price of 100 18/32 with a Yield of 1.19, Yield Change -0.02
5 year bond gained 4/32 on the trading session for a closing price of 102 4/32 with a Yield of 2.28, Yield Change -0.03
10 year bond gained 15/32 on the trading session for a closing price of 100 20/32 with a Yield of 3.67, Yield Change -0.05
30 year bond gained 16/32 on the trading session for a closing price of 105 2/32 with a Yield of 4.19, Yield Change -0.03
Thanks for reading
Millennium-Traders.Com
http://www.millennium-traders.com
How Do Car Dealerships Determine Trade-In Value or Allowance?
Posted on August 28, 2010
How Do Car Dealerships Determine Trade-In Value or Allowance?
This article will explain the basics of how car dealerships determine the value of a trade-in. It’s based on my personal experience working in several car dealerships, however cannot be guaranteed to be the end all answer to this question.
In 99% of car dealerships:
The following factors are used to determine the ACV of a trade in. ACV stands for Actual Cash Value.
Vehicle Mileage Interior Condition Exterior Condition Tire Wear Cost of Reconditioning or “Recon” for Sale at Auction or On the Lot
Dealers used what is called the “Black Book”, which is a weekly publication that gives dealers averages of what vehicle makes and models are currently selling for at auction. Kelly Blue Book is RARELY ever used because it always shows a higher value. NADA (National Auto Dealer Association) car value guides are used in some dealerships.
99% of dealerships across the nation, the Black Book is used and is not a publication that is sold to the public. Values are based on “Clean Book”, “Average Book” and “Rough Book”… dealers use these as a guide when estimating ACV for a vehicle.
Excess mileage “deducts” are subtracted from the value. Also, dealerships rarely ever add anything to the wholesale value of a vehicle for additional options, such as Aluminum wheels, luggage racks, CD players and so forth. Although consumers would like to think that the extra add-ons that they purchased will positively impact trade-in ACV, it rarely does.
Trade In Allowance
Once the dealer has determined the ACV or Actual Cash Value of the vehicle, they then take that number and determine how much of it they will actually allow you. Sometimes, a dealer may “holdback on your trade” and offer you less for it than it is actually worth. The difference becomes profit that is credited to the new car department as it is the used car department that actually “buys” the trade-in to be resold.
Negotiating the amount that the dealer is allowing you for your trade-in can make a big difference. In many cases, a dealer will “holdback on your trade-in” one to two thousand dollars or more.
Note: It is important that you not reveal to the dealer what you owe on your trade-in before they give you a figure as to what they are going to value it at. Sometimes, if you have equity in your trade, the dealer will not be as “generous” when figuring the ACV.
What are Hybrid Automotives?
Posted on August 27, 2010
What are Hybrid Automotives?
The vehicles that use two power sources in conjunction with one another are called hybrid automotives or hybrid vehicles. The history of hybrid power technology is very old. It dates back to the time when diesel electric submarines were first used.
The idea is quite simple, use two power sources to increase the overall efficiency.
Now the question arises that why it was needed. The answer is simple, it was realized that an average person would not be able to afford gasoline in the near future. CO2 emissions will also increase similarly an average person does not require a V8, he/she just needs enough power to reach his destination in time. A V8 as well as a small vehicle can accomplish this. So the hybrid vehicle was introduced.
How it works?
The hybrid vehicle works by using electric as well as gasoline power. Diesel electric vehicles are also there but there numbers are quite low. The hybrid vehicle works by using electric power when the requirement for engine power is low for example when starting the vehicle and up to the speed of 30-40 mph as the electric source cannot run a vehicle by itself.
What is the basic idea behind Hybrid automotives?
The basic idea is to use a smaller lightweight engine to run a vehicle up to a required speed and when the car has to accelerate then the electric source can add some extra power to gain more speed. As a 1.0 liter engine can also move at 75 mph just like a V8 although the V8 has more acceleration power so why waste fuel on a muscle car when a 1.0-liter vehicle can work for you.
Types of Gasoline Hybrid Vehicles
There are two main types of gasoline hybrid vehicles: parallel hybrid car and series hybrid car. The series hybrid car uses the gasoline engine to turn a generator that can either charge the batteries or run an electric motor whereas the parallel hybrid car can combine the two power sources to give more power or the same amount of power but with a better mileage.
Body Structure of Hybrid Vehicles
Now the question arises how the hybrid vehicle can deliver these types of performances when they have such a small engine. They do so by using lightweight materials like carbon fiber composites, low-rolling resistance tires and advanced aerodynamics to reduce drag. The hybrids can even turn the gasoline engine off when not needed such as when stopping at traffic lights. Some vehicles even use the electric power to gain a speed of 30 to 40 KM/h. Some vehicles also use regenerative braking. By this method when breaks are applied, the car decreases the speed by cutting some amount of power. This power is then used by the generator to generate electric power that can be stored for later use.
The price of these vehicles start from 23000$ and they reach up to 54000$. There are some hybrid SUVs are also available in the market.
Saving our Beloved Cars and the Automotive Industry
Posted on August 26, 2010
Saving our Beloved Cars and the Automotive Industry
Once again the US automotive industry is in dire straits. It did not learn from the 1973 energy crisis. It did not learn from the Chrysler experience. It did not learn from Toyota. It continued to depend on old, worn out concepts and on CEO’s that are kept in their positions by nepotism and by boards that do not understand the automotive business.
In a joint effort the Big Three are asking the US government for a billion loan. They argue that government demands for increased fuel efficiency are too expensive to implement and require huge amounts of capital for retooling.
Let’s assume for the moment that the argument has some merit. But how can companies with worldwide manufacturing facilities fail to notice the steady increase in fuel prices and not see the warning signs hoisted by governments across the world that want to limit greenhouse gas emissions and fossil fuel consumption. This neglect is inexcusable.
Efforts of US and European governments to limit fuel consumption are misdirected, counterproductive, and coercive. A comprehensive analysis quickly reveals that we must indeed limit and eventually halt greenhouse gas emissions.
OPEC countries will continue their unstoppable increases of petroleum prices. Electric cars, CNG powered cars, and hydrogen powered cars cannot stop carbon dioxide emissions perceptibly and will not make our country independent of OPEC imports.
Automotive companies are critically dependent on the fickle and changing preferences of national and international markets. Industrial companies that follow political hype will be punished sooner or later. Governments are incapable of designing automobiles for the market place.
The world is relegated to using automobiles, trucks, trains, ships, and airplanes for the next century and will have to power most of them with liquid transportation fuels. We may be able to use less of them, we will be able to reduce energy consumption, we can use other forms of energy for some transportation, and we can produce petroleum substitutes from biomass. We can even produce biomass without competing with critically important food crops.
In order to minimize fuel consumption quickly, the auto industry is forced to deal with performance features. American drivers cannot avoid covering much longer distances than European or Japanese drivers. American drivers have less access to public transportation, have larger families, and drive on different types of roads. Automotive companies must listen to their customers. Toyota and Honda have been listening most successfully.
American and foreign car companies have developed a wide range of comfortable cars with a wide variety of utilitarian and luxury features. Sportive cars and SUV’s are attracting large numbers of buyers. All cars offer a wide selection of comfort and entertainment features. One major car component has received only peripheral attention; it is the much maligned internal combustion engine.
Many modern internal combustion engines are marvels of engineering. Materials, manufacturing processes, and especially peripheral components have progressed to unprecedented levels of performance and longevity. There is a last frontier that has escaped deserved attention. This is the highly energy efficient combustion engine. This is the type of engine that the automotive engine needs to develop, this is the engine that legislators should make mandatory. This is the engine that we need to use for at least one more century.
Long term the automotive industry has to develop an entirely new, advanced, internal combustion engine!
Average energy efficiency of the worlds inventory of combustion engines is somewhere in the lower mid-twenties. Energy efficiency cannot grow indefinitely. When approaching the 50% efficiency mark, it will be difficult and very expensive to increase efficiency by a single percent. Advanced automotive engines are operating in the mid-thirties. Large stationary engines are breaking the 45% mark. Large engines on trains and ships are getting above 40%. Looking at the total world inventory, we may still have a chance to nearly double energy efficiency and to cut energy consumption of present inventory in half.
We cannot reach this goal by legislating fuel consumption of cars only. We can achieve optimum energy efficiency only by reengineering the processes taking place within and around the internal combustion space.
We know that higher compression ratios will increase energy efficiency, we know how to produce high octane fuel, we know why Diesel engines are more efficient, we know how to minimize formation of pollutants. The automotive industry has developed a huge selection of sophisticated electronic components for single cylinder fuel injection, for precise controls of valve motion and ignition timing, and for reclaiming waste energy at the exhaust.
No company seems to have found the nerve to get a jump on the competition and develop the successor to the two more than century old engine concepts; the Otto and the Diesel engines.
If the US government decides to extend a billion loan to the automotive industry, it should attach a few conditions. The loan needs to be secured and must take precedent over shareholder equity. The loan should stipulate that the salaries of top management are tethered to salaries of other top CEO’s like that of the US President. The obscene bonuses of yesterday should be paid only after a waiting period of at least five years; in which previously agreed upon management objectives must have been met or exceeded.
We must stop the prevalent looting of cash from US manufacturing companies by unscrupulous investors. These investors do not contribute anything of lasting value. They are excessively rewarded for ruining once healthy companies. We cannot continue to let a selected few impoverish the many and ruin our country irreparably.
Buy Here Pay Here Car Dealerships
Posted on August 25, 2010
Buy Here Pay Here Car Dealerships
In any major city you will come across a buy here pay here car dealership. These dealerships allow customers with bad credit the ability to buy a car at their location and pay the weekly/monthly payments directly to them. There is no credit check and consumers with no credit or fair credit are the ones that would use this type of service.
There are some good reasons to use this type of service as well as some bad reasons. The good ones are:
· You can obtain a car when you are really in need often with little or no money down and bad credit.
· There will not be a credit inquiry done so if you are working on repairing your credit this won’t affect it.
· There isn’t any interest normally but you will pay more for the car than if you were buying it at a regular dealership. This can be both good and bad.
· If you are a student with a part time job you can still qualify for a loan which may not be the case in a traditional dealership.
Some of the reasons that you wouldn’t want to use a service like this are:
· You will definitely pay more for a car this way.
· They do not report to credit bureaus so even if you make all of your payments on time you won’t be building up your credit.
· These dealerships want lots of information on you since they are not checking your credit. They want your closest relatives, your closest friends, two to three numbers to reach you at, proof of employment, etc.
If you are in a jam and need a car and don’t have a lot of money then this service could be useful but if you are able to wait and save up a little for a down payment, using a traditional dealership will save you money and build your credit in the process.
The Ford Mustang Auto Was Not The First American Pony Muscle Car
Posted on August 24, 2010
The Ford Mustang Auto Was Not The First American Pony Muscle Car
Some auto and sports car enthusiasts will insist and swear on their life that the sports car that got it all going in America was the Mustang. After all the Ford Mustang was fast cheap and popular and got the whole “Muscle Car” era going. On top of that they may insist that if there were no mustang there would have never been any Camaro or the other whole host of “Pony Cars” It may well be true that buyer demand in the muscle car market segment had been and was created largely by the Mustang car but actually this had all started long before the Mustang ponycars arrived on the American automotive landscape.
Interest in sporty ,close-coupled compacts that could seat two comfortably as well as four in a pinch goes all the way back to 1956. That was the first year when Studebaker fielded its first “Hawks” – nimble, fast road machines that looked different and performed considerably better than the average family sedan. Then later in 1958, Ford punched out its two-seat Thunderbird out to a four-seat configuration which also introduced a radically new body design that met with overwhelming acceptance. To the response, the dominant American automotive manufacturer replied with the Pontiac Grand Prix in 1962 as well as the stunning four places Buick Riviera the following year.
Similar concepts followed in the wings such as Oldsmobile’s Tornado in 1966. The race was now fully on and underway.
Until Mustang however, four seat “personal” cars had been mainly upper-price luxury models which were not affordable by the masses of car buyers. This was especially true for young men just starting out with their work careers or working part time after school. However it was not only Ford that was eyeing and evaluating of what became the Mustang’s appreciative and enduring target market. Stylists, engineers and the marketing crew were thinking about some car product in the lower-price segment and class a good six years before the Mustang made its entry and debut in 1964. In the end the fly in the ointment of this project to bring a similar automotive product to market was a lack of real corporate interest. Talk about opportunity lost and not seeing the trees from the forest – or in case the highways and interstates from the roads.
Interestingly enough G.M. had missed the boat when it failed to notice the excitement by the general public of its accidental development of an inexpensive “Sports Car” to the American automotive market. It can be said that the first low priced “personal” car was the Chevrolet Corvair. Chevrolet had subtly introduced bucket seats to its Corvair sports coupe in the 1960 model year. Compared to its other lineups in its stable the Corvair sports coupe sold like hotcakes. The expression regarding the sales of Mustangs was they sold like donuts, Corvair sports coupes sold like hotcakes. The offering was a hot product – a real eye popper. These cars were offered in color-keyed interiors, the trademark comfortable vinyl bucket seats and in the 1961 model year the option of a fast four speed gearbox.
The marketing message may have eluded General Motors and their top executives but it sure was not lost on their competitors. Ford and Chrysler, both taking the cue rushed to equip their similar products in a similar way. For the Ford Motor Company it was time to dress up their “compact “car the Ford Falcon. In the case of Chrysler the Valiant line got the treatment.
The Mustang was not the first of the “Pony “muscle cars. Indeed Ford was even the originator of the concept. The concept and market did not originate overnight. While it took time for fruition it was Ford’s fortune of both bringing the product to market. The lessons may have been lost to others but Ford was both focused enough and nimble enough to accomplish the task. In terms of absolute cars sales the Ford Falcon based Mustang cars sold 100,000 units in their first month and a full million cars in their first year. What an auto sales record and accomplishment.
Application of Webbings in Automotive Industry
Posted on August 23, 2010
Application of Webbings in Automotive Industry
Almost all of us drive our cars everyday to work. We use all safety provisions available in the car. However, we rarely think about the use of fabrics therein. I am not talking about the seat covers or other upholstery, which are of course, an important automotive textile. Here, I am talking about other fabrics- the narrow fabrics- particularly the webbings used in cars and other transportations. These webbings provide ultimate motor vehicle safety and are indispensable components of automotive, even more for racing and sports cars. Let’s explore how webbings are used in automotive industry and in what ways they make our driving experience safe and secured.
How Webbings are Used in Cars?
Webbing is a strong, closely woven, narrow fabric. It is used more commonly as safety harness. A safety harness is a protective equipment meant for protecting people, animals or objects from injury or damage. A seat belt, over-the-shoulder restraints used on roller coaster trains, full body harness used by fighter pilots, bungee jumping ropes- all of them are the examples of safety harness. However, the following paragraphs discuss the use of webbings in cars.
Seat Belts: A seat belt is an energy absorbing equipment which is meant to protect a person’s body in the event of crash down. It keeps the load imposed on the victim’s body in such an event. It allows the wearer to move forward for about thirty centimeters at the maximum avoiding contact with any immovable parts of the car. Nylon webbings had been the choice for seat belts till sometimes ago. However, due to its higher stretchability as compared to that of polyester webbings, the scope its of application has got limited. The strong polyester webbings that have lower rate of elongation under load are now the first choice for seat belts.
HANS Device: The Head and Neck Support device, or the HANS device- as it is popularly called- is a safety equipment compulsorily installed in racing sports cars. It minimizes the chances of head and neck injuries in the event of a crash. This U-shaped device is attached only to the helmet and not to the belts, driver’s body, or seat. Attachment is done with the help of two anchors on either side, much like the Hutchens device but placed slightly back. Hutchens Device is a harness that transfers head and neck loads to the seat belts. HANS device uses webbing tethers for attaching the driver’s helmet to the collar. The Hutchens device is made almost entirely of webbing.
Window Nets: The window nets are meant for protecting the driver of a racing car whenever the speedy cars roll over during a racing event. They also prevent objects from entering the driver compartment. The driver’s upper body parts are made safe with the use of seatbelt and HANS device, his legs are also tucked down under the dash hoops and they, in fact, don’t experience much motion. Arms remain the only vulnerable part of the body and window nets effectively protect them. Mostly made of polypropylene webbings, window nets are attached to the roll cage itself, so that arms don’t get crushed between body and cage. They prevent the driver’s arms from coming out in the any unwanted event.
The above description goes to show that narrow fabrics like webbings, in spite of their smaller structure, are no less important. They provide unimaginable safety to the car occupants, proving their worth as equivalent to other fabrics.