ReleaseWire

In Ukraine, vehicle production increased 83% year-on-year (y-o-y) in February, to 5,344 units. Following strong growth in January, output has increased 130.8% y-o-y over the year to date, to 8,658 units. We attribute this recent surge to extremely low base effects and resurging exports. BMI does not expect this to continue over the course of 2014, however, as trade with Russia, Ukraine's largest export destination, is likely to be curtailed in the coming months on the back of ongoing political tensions. BMI is increasingly bearish on the country's macro picture and we expect this to deteriorate further. Moreover, BMI maintains a bearish view on the country's manufacturing activity and business environment more generally, and believe this will weigh on output growth.

GlobalData's clinical trial report, "Recurrent Medulloblastoma Global Clinical Trials Review, H1, 2014" provides data on the Recurrent Medulloblastoma clinical trial scenario. This report provides elemental information and data relating to the clinical trials on Recurrent Medulloblastoma. It includes an overview of the trial numbers and their recruitment status as per the site of trial conduction across the globe. The databook offers a preliminary coverage of disease clinical trials by their phase, trial status, prominence of the sponsors and also provides briefing pertaining to the number of trials for the key drugs for treating Recurrent Medulloblastoma. This report is built using data and information sourced from proprietary databases, primary and secondary research and in-house analysis by GlobalData's team of industry experts.

Whilst supply problems are common in Venezuela, the situation worsened over the course of 2013, amidst a lack of foreign currency for the private sector to finance imports of food and hygiene and cleaning products. This resulted in an increase in the scarcity index, which measures the difficulty in getting products; in April 2013 it touched 21%, which was a five-year maximum, according to Central Bank figures. All companies are producing at maximum capacity, but the problem is that there are...

BMI maintains a cautiously optimistic stance with regards to South Africa's freight transport sector in 2014. Although there are risks to the mining sector from a potential hard landing in China, our Mining desk believes that growth will continue, which bodes well for the rail and port sectors in particular. Imports of containerised goods could struggle to maintain volumes as the rand depreciates against the dollar, though equally this could boost manufactured exports from South Africa. Nevertheless, we have made moderate downgrades to most of our forecasts for the country following the release of full-year 2013 data.

Canadean's, "Fruit Powders Market in Asia to 2019: Market Guide" provides a snapshot of the Fruit Powders consumption in Asia. The quantitative data in the report provides historic and forecast consumption data of the market by country, giving a simple overview of the Fruit Powders market trends in the region in an easy to use format.

Political instability will remain elevated as the four-party government coalition attempts to push through harsh austerity measures that will very likely prompt parliamentary tensions and social unrest.

BMI expects Sudan to set its defence budget at around USD2.4bn for 2014. For the remainder of the forecast period between 2015 and 2018, we expect Sudan to spend an average of USD3.2 annually on defence. Furthermore, we expect the defence budget to increase to USD3.7bn in 2018. In 2014, we expect the country to import USD20.3mn worth of defence equipment. However, we do expect a modest increase to USD20.4mn in 2016, and then to USD20.6mn and USD20.7mn in 2017 and 2018 respectively.

The primary issue in Indian shipping continues to be the state of the nation's ports. Investment in the 12 major state-run facilities has not kept up with the demand engendered by the rapid economic growth experienced in India over the past decade. This is leading to repeated issues of congestion in the ports, but investment is now being made. However, this may be a case of too little, too late. Further, Indian ports' troubles have been compounded by a fall in demand in the eurozone, which has contributed to a fall in container throughput at many facilities in recent months. It is hoped that the projected return to growth in the currency bloc in 2014 will result in throughput growth returning to the major Indian ports.

Euromonitor International's Industrial reports provide a 360 degree view of an industry. The Industrial market report offers a comprehensive guide to the size and shape of the Tanning and Dressing of Leather market at a national level. It provides the latest retail sales data, allowing you to identify the sectors driving growth. It identifies the leading companies, the leading brands and offers strategic analysis of key factors influencing the market - be they new product developments, packaging innovations, economic/lifestyle influences, distribution or pricing issues. Forecasts illustrate how the market is set to change.

This report is the result of Timetric's extensive market research covering the refinery building construction industry in Bahrain. It contains detailed historic and forecast market value data for the refinery building construction industry, including a breakdown of the data by construction activity (new construction, repair and maintenance, refurbishment and demolition). 'Refinery Building Construction in Bahrain to 2018: Market Databook' provides a top-level overview and detailed insight into the operating environment of the refinery building construction industry in Bahrain. It is an essential tool for companies active across the Bahraini construction value chain and for new players considering to enter the market.

In 2014, BMI forecasts that Australian demand for consumer electronics will grow by around 1.8%, as weaker economic growth is forecast to hit the market over the short-to-medium term. Vendors will look to emerging product categories such as ultrabooks, Windows 8 tablets and phones, ultra-HD, smart and 3D TV sets, and LTE smartphones as areas of growth.

Final full-year data for the UAE's tourism industry performance in 2013 were unavailable as this report was being compiled. Consequently, we leave our key tourist arrivals forecasts unchanged this quarter, although we have now extended our forecast period out to 2018 for all key tourism industry indicators.

ATM cards continued to be the most important type of financial card in the Philippines, as cash remained heavily used in day-to-day transactions due to the large unbanked population and low acceptance of financial cards in retail stores. Nonetheless, cashless payments further gained popularity due to banks', telecommunication companies' and card operators' aggressive advertising and marketing campaigns. As a result, financial cards recorded moderate growth in terms of the number of cards in...

We have upgraded our 10-year average real GDP growth from 3.8% to 4.1%, following the passage of energy sector reform, which we expect will garner significant foreign investment in the coming years. We remain optimistic toward Mexico's long-term growth outlook on the back of a booming manufacturing sector, an increasingly strong private consumer and favourable demographics.

We expect to see another positive year for the South African economy and consumer industries through 2014, as the country's economy continues to recover post-recession. We forecast real GDP growth of 2.5% in 2014, up from 1.8% the previous year. In addition, private consumption is expected to continue its growth of the past four years at a rate of 2.2% in 2014, and 2.9% in 2015. Although the economic recovery has not been without challenges and will likely remain uneven, in our view the consumer sector continues to hold up.

Standard towels without wings witnessed a further significant decline in retail volume and value sales in 2013. With both standard towels with wings and ultra-thin towels seeing ongoing innovation, standard towels without wings gradually came to be seen as outdated and, as a result, less competitive. From the perspective of manufacturers, upgrading their production lines to produce products with wings required modest investment, but provided high profit levels, which served to limit the number...

Sales of home insecticides were maintained in 2013 thanks to increasing cases of dengue fever in Venezuela. Dengue fever shows no signs of slowing down in the country. As many as 1,067 cases were reported in the period June 2-8 in 2013, according to the Epidemiology Report No. 23. As of November 2013, some 22,551 cases have been reported, almost doubling the total number of events recorded in 2012 (11,569). Meanwhile, 455 cases of haemorrhagic dengue fever have been reported by November 2013,...

In 2013, manufacturers emphasised that bleach can be user-friendly. In addition to their traditional products they emphasised the easy use of their gel innovations. Also, packaging enhancements, such as the dosage lid of Clorox Power Gel, were aimed at making the use of bleach easier. Regarding new formulations, the most recent trend was the combination with detergent, claiming more efficacy in one step.

The BRIC Life Insurance industry guide provides top-line qualitative and quantitative summary information including: market share, market size (value 2008-12, and forecast to 2017). The guide also contains descriptions of the leading companies including key financial metrics and analysis of competitive pressures within the market.

Wipes is characterised by underdevelopment and fragmentation, with per capita consumption of products in this area remaining relatively low. However, in 2013 the variety of products and brands on offer kept increasing, particularly in the larger personal wipes area. Within home care wipes and floor cleaning systems, value sales remained substantially lower than in personal wipes, although some products were present on retailers' shelves.

Despite its long existence in the Philippines, debit cards is still unknown to many because issuers commonly positioned it as an ATM card with a cashless payment function. In 2013, however, banks aggressively marketed it and used the term "debit card", as more Filipinos appreciated the efficiency of making payments using financial cards. Issuers mainly targeted the generation X and the Millennials who are more likely to adapt to the modern way of making payments - using plastic money - faster.

Consumer electronics in Romania saw a good 2012, recording moderate value sales growth. Its performance was fully in line with the gross national product growth in 2012. Growth was also positively affected by decreasing unemployment and slowly rising job security. This allowed consumers to increase their spending on electronic products.

The preeminent conference for multiple sclerosis health care professionals, the 2014 Cooperative Meeting of CMSC (Consortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers) & ACTRIMS® (Americas Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis), kicks-off each day with some of the top minds in MS diagnosis, treatment and comprehensive care. Taking place May 28-31, 2014 in Dallas, TX at the Hilton Anatole, the robust educational agenda includes headline speakers as well as panel discussions and continuing education programs for physicians, nurses, pharmacists, psychologists, and social workers.

Headed by CEO Tim Murray, New Horizons Entertainment is hoping to overturn the entertainment industry and bring film creation ability to everyone. Members will be able to submit scripts, auditions and music. They will also be able to vote on the choice of script, director, and cast. This project can really turn the entertainment world on its ears. The huge success of video hosting sites such as YouTube, where people seek fame via the internet, demonstrates audience interest in this concept. New Horizons Entertainment plans to take the process further with full audience participation and get people truly involved in the entertainment creation.

An investor, who currently holds shares of Emeritus Corporation (NYSE:ESC) filed a lawsuit in effort to halt the takeover of Emeritus Corporation by Brookdale Senior Living Inc.