Executive Summary

• This week’s note “From the Desk of Deborah Weinswig” discusses four key global events to watch in the first half of 2019.
• The trade group behind CES (formerly the Consumer Electronics Show), which is taking place in Las Vegas this week, forecast that U.S. consumers’ love of gadgets will increase despite growing issues around trust and privacy.
• British marketing technology company Ve Global has acquired Divvit, a Swedish e-commerce analytics platform, and has made a financial commitment to integrate Divvit’s solutions into its products.
• Toys “R” Us Asia plans to open 60 new stores in 2019, in contrast to its former U.S. parent, which filed for bankruptcy and was forced to close stores. The toy retailer plans to open three stores in Hong Kong and several more in mainland China.