ReleaseWire

Pakistan continues to present major challenges to vendors, and underperform its potential due to a myriad of economic, social and political risks. However, the large population and rising incomes means there are still opportunities for vendors. Although political and security concerns remain, the economic environment is supportive of expansion, with rising incomes, consumption growth, and encouragingly, private sector credit growth as also recovered from its recent trough. The opportunity provided by the large population and economic environment has been sufficient to attract investment from multinational consumer electronics market leaders such as LG, while others have increased presence and strengthening distribution and retail channels. Nonetheless, challenges remain, including the large grey market, poor IP protection, an unstable economic and security situation, and weak distribution channels.

Following nine straight quarters of contraction, we forecast real GDP growth in Italy to reach 0.4% and 0.7% in 2014 and 2015 respectively. With one of the highest household savings rates in Europe prior to the crisis, and among the lowest private debt burdens, private consumption has not been a strong driver of GDP growth in the past decade. We do not expect this trend to change, and forecast private consumption growth of 0.3% and 0.7% in 2014 and 2015 respectively. This has negative implications for food and drink spending, although we do expect to see an improvement in this over our forecast period.

Egypt's telecoms market is poised for a new phase of competition following the award of unified telecoms licenses to the country's telecoms service providers. Fixed-line incumbent operator Telecom Egypt is keen to enter the mobile market while mobile operators Mobinil, Vodacom and Etisalat would see the concession as an opportunity to developed converged telecoms services for business and residential customers. We expect this development to attract much needed investments in fixed and mobile network development over the next few years, but caution that investors would remain mindful of the political and economic environments in the run-up to new general elections.

The Future of the Haircare Market in Canada to 2017: Market Size, Distribution and Brand Share, Key Events and Competitive Landscape" is the result of Canadean's extensive market and company research. This report presents detailed analysis on the Haircare consumption trends in Canada, historic and forecast Haircare consumption volumes and values at market and category level. It also provides indispensable data on brand share, distribution channels, profiles of companies active in the global Haircare market along with latest industry news, in addition to mergers and acquisitions. This report brings together Canadean Intelligence's research, modeling, and analysis expertise in order to develop uniquely detailed market data. This allows domestic and foreign companies to identify the market dynamics to account for Haircare sales overall and to know which categories and segments are showing growth in the coming years.

Real estate prices in China are wavering from historic stability and curbing measures are continuing, particularly in major cities. The overriding sentiment in the country's residential and commercial real estate market is that a slowdown is underway. Many developers are struggling with liquidity issues, and the increase of shadow banking assets in infrastructure and real estate is a significant risk to construction across all three of the real estate segments featured in this report: retail, office and industrial.

GlobalData's new report, "Spain Contrast Media Injectors Market Outlook to 2020", provides key market data on the Spain Contrast Media Injectors market. The report provides value, in millions of US dollars, and volume (in units) and average price data (in US dollars), within market categories - CT Injectors, Interventional Cardiology/Angio Injectors and MRI Injectors.

This report is the result of Timetric's extensive market research covering the religious building construction industry in Qatar. It contains detailed historic and forecast market value data for the religious building construction industry, including a breakdown of the data by construction activity (new construction, repair and maintenance, refurbishment and demolition). 'Religious Building Construction in Qatar to 2017: Market Databook' provides a top-level overview and detailed insight into the operating environment of the religious building construction industry in Qatar. It is an essential tool for companies active across the Qatari construction value chain and for new players considering to enter the market.

Domestic demand remains strong in Colombia and will continue to support growth in consumer electronics spending over the coming quarters. The burgeoning middle class and private sector credit growth will stimulate household consumption, and as incomes rise an increasing share of spending will go on consumer devices. This will allow vendors to tap into the relatively low penetration rates in key device categories such as PCs, smartphones and flat-panel TVs. Additionally, the government and telecoms operators are promoting the development of wireless and wireline data network infrastructure, which will add to demand for connected devices such as tablets, smartphones and smart TVs.

This report is the result of Timetric's extensive market research covering the industrial construction market in Qatar. It contains detailed data on market dynamics along with latest industry happenings, industry players and happening projects in Qatar. "Qatar Industrial Construction: Market Update" provides a top-level overview and detailed insight into the operating environment of the industrial construction market in Qatar. It is an essential tool for companies active across Qatar construction value chain and for new players considering to enter the market.

"Spirits Market in Togo: Databook to 2017" is the result of Canadean's extensive market research covering the Spirits market in Togo.

The Future of the Soups Market in Slovakia to 2017: Market Size, Distribution and Brand Share, Key Events and Competitive Landscape" is the result of Canadean's extensive market and company research. This report presents detailed analysis on the Soups consumption trends in Slovakia, historic and forecast Soups consumption volumes and values at market and category level. It also provides indispensable data on brand share, distribution channels, profiles of companies active in the global Soups market along with latest industry news, in addition to mergers & acquisitions. This report brings together Canadean Intelligence's research, modeling, and analysis expertise in order to develop uniquely detailed market data. This allows domestic and foreign companies to identify the market dynamics to account for Soups sales overall and to know which categories and segments are showing growth in the coming years.

Egypt's huge and expanding population, together with increasing levels of disposable income, should result in a strong rise in household spending over the next few years. Consequently, the Egyptian retail sector is set to continue to grow across all subsectors. We are particularly positive about the future growth prospects for health and transport, with communications also set to grow strongly; however, we expect the highest proportion of the household budget to be spent on food & drink throughout our forecast period, with housing & utilities spending also taking a substantial share.

With the increase in the pet population and more owners looking for health and wellbeing options, pet product sales are set to continue to grow strongly in 2013. The growing demand for pet toys, dog leashes, food bowls, shampoos and pet dietary supplements and pet healthcare, boosted sales. The rising pet population and growing willingness of owners to spend more on their pets are expected to lead to a 20% increase in current value sales in 2013.

Malaysia's telecommunications sector enjoys high levels of service penetration, owing to highly focused investment in advanced broadband infrastructure and supporting services and solutions. Wireless and wireline non-voice services account for an increasingly large proportion of operators' revenues, and this is encouraging them to reinvest heavily in next-generation infrastructure, including fibre-to-the-home and 4G LTE. However, this emphasis on broadband means falling demand for traditional voice telephone services has accelerated, while operator-provided mobile voice and messaging services have come under threat from network-agnostic over-the-top (OTT) competitors. As BMI has already noted, this has hit operator financial performance. Tackling the issue will be critical for operators over the medium term.

The slow but steady recovery of the US economy caused some consumers to begin to exit their post-recessionary shell. Whilst many remained thrifty and cautious with their spending, others, who continued to see their disposable incomes grow, became more comfortable, once again relying on credit cards to help manage their big-ticket and month-to-month purchases. The gradual loosening of wallets was seen in the normalisation of debit card spending, as credit and store card spending gained momentum...

Pharmaceutical firms in India are reporting improved performance for the quarter ended December 2013. This is an early indication of a recovery in the Indian pharmaceutical industry, following the implementation of the Drug Price Control Order in May 2013. While we forecast strong growth for the sector in 2014, persisting issues such as the halting of clinical trials, low healthcare expenditure and company-specific manufacturing quality control problems will continue to pose downside risks to our outlook.

The Future of the Syrups and Spreads Market in Argentina to 2017: Market Size, Distribution and Brand Share, Key Events and Competitive Landscape" is the result of Canadean's extensive market and company research. This report presents detailed analysis on the Syrups and Spreads consumption trends in Argentina, historic and forecast Syrups and Spreads consumption volumes and values at market and category level. It also provides indispensable data on brand share, distribution channels, profiles of companies active in the global Syrups and Spreads market along with latest industry news, in addition to mergers and acquisitions. This report brings together Canadean Intelligence's research, modeling, and analysis expertise in order to develop uniquely detailed market data. This allows domestic and foreign companies to identify the market dynamics to account for Syrups and Spreads sales overall and to know which categories and segments are showing growth in the coming years.

The Ukrainian real estate sector is slowly recovering from the effects of the global economic downturn, with the office and industrial sectors faring the worst, leading to high vacancy rates and low rents. Retail, on the other hand, provides more than a glimmer of hope, with the country tipped to have the fifth fastestgrowing retail market in Europe over the next few years. But, Ukraine is still battling against poor macroeconomic conditions, with bureaucracy and reports of corruption having a knock-on effect on investor interest.

Despite the formation of a government in December 2010, we expect political progress to remain slow and stability fragile. A broken power-sharing agreement and persistent sectarian tensions present key risks.

Although consumption will remain a drag on the recovery in 2014, subtracting an estimated 0.1pp from growth (from 1.2pp in 2013), we expect the smaller deduction to reflect the private sector's progress paying down debts. On the household front however, deleveraging has only just begun. Much of the required deleveraging is an overhang from the bursting of the Spain's property bubble, where households are struggling to reduce the huge amount of mortgage debt that weighs on personal finances. This means more sluggish growth for the food and drink sector, while the lower end of the sector will continue to outperform the rest. In line with this, we believe that Dia is one of a select few Western Europe-based food retailers with good near-term growth prospects in the region.

Champion Oil, a global leader in performance motor oils, announced today a one year free subscription of Diesel Power Magazine to end-users with the purchase of either a 12 pack/quart case or a 4 gallon case of Champion Blue Flame Performance Diesel Motor Oil.

HOT ROD is the oldest magazine devoted to hot rodding having been published since 1948 by Robert E. Petersen. HOT ROD’s first editor was Wally Parks who created the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA). For over 60 years HOT ROD Magazine has been an American institution and has been at the center of the automotive performance scene delivering an unrivaled mix of commentary, technical information, trends, and of course, beautiful photography! The true “authenticator” of the American Hot Rod lifestyle, HOT ROD Magazine is one of the most recognized automotive brand names in the world. http://www.hotrod.com/

The report “Specialty Synthetic Fibers & Glass Fiber Market by Types (Para & Meta Aramids, UHMW Polyethylene, Carbon Fiber, POA, Glass Fiber & Others), Applications (Aerospace & Defence, Automotive, Wind Energy, etc.) & Geography - Global Trend & Forecast to 2018”defines and segments the specialty synthetic fibers and glass fiber market with an analysis and forecast of the volumes and values of types such as specialty synthetic fibers (Para aramids, meta aramids, UHMW Polyethylene, carbon fiber, partially oxidized polyacrylonitrile fiber, and others including PPS fiber, PBI fiber, PBO fiber, and liquid crystal polymer fiber and glass fiber), individually. Along with this, the volume & revenue of materials by forms such as application and geography are also discussed.

Diamond Vision’s Dr. Steven Stetson has announced that a portion of proceeds from iLasik surgeries performed at Diamond Vision will be donated to the charity Unite for Sight, a worldwide organization dedicated to improving eye health.

Seegrid, maker of automated guided vehicles (AGVs), was featured in AZoRobotics. The article was highlighted in the current issue of Inc.com in an article entitled, “Automated Guided Vehicles: Behind the Swift Business of a Heavy Industry.”