ReleaseWire

Major companies operating in irons such as Oster de Colombia SA, Rayovac Varta SA and Groupe SEB Colombia SA are consistently working to increase awareness among consumers of the disadvantages of using the very cheap low-end irons which are flooding into Colombia from the Far East.

Over the review period, the penetration rate of microwaves in Brazilian households more than doubled from 24% to 52%. In addition, the base of sales increased from 3 million units to 7 million units. Unsurprisingly, microwaves witnessed a slowdown in 2014, when volume sales grew by 8% compared to a 15% CAGR over the review period.

The biggest hindrance to growth in refrigeration appliances in 2014 was a general decline in households purchasing power, resulting from earlier tax increases and rising unemployment. Frequent price-related incentives offered by various players did not manage to counter the volume decline; a paradox which can be explained by highly thrifty households which preferred to wait for further price declines before buying, as the price index in France remains on a strong deflationary trend. The high penetration rate of fridge-freezers and a growing resort to repair-rather-than-replace also negatively impacted demand. Besides, the generally low level of innovation in the category also failed to attract interest from consumers.

The Indonesian market saw a major development in December 2014, with the deployment and launch of 4G LTE networks by the three largest mobile operators, Tel komsel, Indosat and XL Axiata. Although the outlook for the technology will be limited by the low spending power of most Indonesians and the high price of LTE tariffs and smartphones, it represents a step forward in the development of the market. 3G will be the favoured form of mobile broadband throughout our forecast period, but will continue to make up a minority of mobile subscriptions while the number of competitors remains too high, leading to a significant prominence of low-value prepaid subscribers. Moves towards tower sharing will help reduce the burden of this hyper-competitive environment, and could potentially pave the way for further consolidation. The wireline market is witnessing considerable investments in fibre - optic network infrastructure, a development that should drive the uptake of high-value converged services, including IPTV. The government is looking to encourage the expansion of fixed broadband infrastructure with incentives, however, mobile broadband will continue to remain the dominant service for internet access.

Nigeria's pharmaceutical and healthcare markets are vastly underdeveloped by Western standards as poor infrastructure, a weak regulatory system and lack of specialised facilities weaken growth potential. However, the Nigerian government's continuing efforts to expand healthcare access through national health insurance by introducing mobile registration and a community-based healthcare programme will provide revenue-earning opportunities for drug-makers. We believe developments along with new efforts to reduce the volume of counterfeit medicines in circulation will help boost pharmaceutical expenditure in the country.

Non-Life Insurance in Colombia by Mintel Market Sizes provides you with annual year-end market size data, most recently updated in 2014. This market covers motor, home, well being and other non-life insurance. Market size comprises annual gross premiums paid by consumers and commercial enterprises. Market size for Non-Life Insurance in Colombia is given in COP with a minimum of five years' historical data. Market Forecast is provided for five years. Included with this snapshot is socio-economic data for Colombia. Population, Consumer Price Index (CPI), Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Exchange Rates.

Due to the much smaller transaction base than debit cards in retail value terms, and thus a lower degree of saturation, credit card transactions continued to register dynamic growth of 31% in value terms in 2014, reaching RMB12,913 billion. The increasing sophistication of Chinese consumers regarding personal finance contributed to robust value growth during the review period, as Chinese consumers have gradually adopted the idea of consumption first and payment later. The popularity of...

During 2013, a further decline in volume sales of locally produced cigarette brands in Georgia and the seizure of volume share by imported brands took place. Due to tax and price increases (September 2013), local cigarette brands have started to compete with imported brands. The prices charged for local cigarette brands have become only slightly lower than international brands and Georgian consumers tend to prefer imported cigarettes to local alternatives due to the higher quality of imported...

Rising disposable incomes in the country, coupled with increasingly hectic lifestyles, fuelled the growth of small cooking appliances in 2014. Rice cookers, breadmakers and electric grills all saw healthy growth. These time-saving appliances answered the rising need for convenience in the country, especially with more women joining the workforce. The growth in the celebrity chef trend also encouraged consumers to experiment in the kitchen, and use appliances such as breadmakers to make home-made bread rather than buying it. Rising health awareness was also witnessed in the country in 2014, pushing the sales of some small cooking appliances, such as electric steamers and slow cookers.

Although interest in the quality of products is increasingly growing, price remains very important for most Czechs regarding yoghurt and sour milk products. The influence of price on consumers? decisions impacted the performance of yoghurt and sour milk products significantly in 2013 and a similar development is expected in 2014. Because the prices of these products are rising, consumption is falling. In other words, although the unit price increases are driving growth in value sales, they are causing a decrease in demand for these products and thus a decline in volume sales. As a result of this development, yoghurt and sour milk products is expected to register only moderate current value growth of 2% in 2014, which is a similar pace to that in the previous year.

Luxury jewellery and timepieces are set to see the fifth year with a more than marginal increase in a row in 2014. On the one hand, the category thereby was able to benefit from the on-going quite positive economic situation in Germany (with the country so far being sheltered from the crisis and recession which is seen in many other Western European countries) with a growing target group and more positive attitude towards luxury goods in general and luxury jewellery and timepieces in specific.

Within soup it is expected that the shift from dry to wet soup will continue. Dry soup products are seen by many as inferior in terms of quality and taste, while readymade wet soups are considered to be fresher, superior in terms of taste and also better for your health as many consumers think that there are more nutrients in wet soups compared to dry alternatives. Dried soups also have the image as more old-fashioned. Dehydrated soup is mostly bought by older consumers and more traditional...

Vacuum cleaners remained a limited category in Brazil due to the fact that carpets are not very common. Consumers prefer tiled floors due to the hot climate and therefore use non-electrical devices to clean their homes. Most Brazilians are accustomed to sweeping and mopping their floor tiles on a daily basis. As a result, penetration rates in Brazilian households for products within this category are still low if compared to other countries.

The report provides in-depth industry analysis, information and insights into employee benefits in Slovakia, including:

Retail volume sales of home laundry appliances contracted by 1% in 2014, mainly due to two reasons. Firstly, the new Hamon law on the extension of the minimum product life warranty from six months to two years accentuated awareness and efforts in French households in favour of responsible consumption behaviour. Households were more inclined to seek a repair rather than buying a new appliance immediately. Secondly, the high penetration rate of automatic washing machines (at 93% of households in 2014) also hindered growth.

Champagne's direct correlation to economic dynamics has historically proven to be a double-edged sword. The category mirrors the state of economies and, at the same time, its narrow focus on Western markets increases downside risks in the case of a crisis. As dark clouds of fresh financial turmoil are gathering, will champagne's sparkle shield the category from a perfect storm of extreme discounting, other sparkling wine's cannibalising advance and Western Europe's conservative traditionalism?

Growing interest in home cooking amongst consumers in Denmark remains the key driver of sales growth within large cooking appliances in Denmark during 2014. More consumers enjoy watching TV programs dealing with food preparation at home and are influenced from these shows to have proper appliances for cooking at home. In 2013 for example, according to FEHA (Danish association of manufacturers and importers of household appliances), on average there were 126 weekly hours of TV shows dealing with food, and the same number of hours more or less is reflected in 2014. More consumers are inspired by these shows and wish to own the right appliances that will allow them to practice and perform home cooking themselves. Thus, large cooking appliances enjoys this trend and the category is expected to grow in 2014 by 2% in retail volume terms.

Vacuum cleaners in Saudi Arabia registered limited growth of 2% in retail volume terms and 7% in current value terms in 2014. Value growth was mainly driven by rising unit prices triggered by the premiumisation trend, which saw consumers shift towards more sophisticated and higher-priced models. This was in line with the healthy economy and rising disposable incomes in the country. Prices also rose in line with growing raw materials and petrol costs, rendering distribution and transport costs higher.

Unlike most Western markets, where flavour sophistication is a key trend, a back-to-basics trend is gathering pace in Greece. Most Greeks opted for snacks that offered value for money and seemed unwilling to try new flavours, especially when those products were more expensive. Private label continued to gain value share in line with this trend, while there was also a trend towards products with longer expiry dates, which again tended to be cheaper than ones that claimed to have less...

Sales of consumer appliances mounted a slight recovery during 2014 after static growth was recorded during 2013 due to lower general expectations of the performance of the Colombian economy. Colombia's GDP growth towards the end of the review period was lower than previous forecasts had anticipated and this had a negative effect on consumer confidence amidst widespread fears of becoming unemployed, while events such as industrial action and ongoing peace negotiations between the Colombian...

We hold a positive view on India's agribusiness sector, as the country will remain an agricultural powerhouse and is likely to maintain high levels of self-sufficiency for major food crops. Production growth of various commodities will be driven by strong government support and robust demand for manufactured foodstuff s. We see significant growth opportunities in sub-sectors such as dairy, coffee and livestock. However, India will be increasingly vulnerable to exceptional weather phenomen a owing to climate change effects and serious water shortages. Moreover, the country will remain prone to erratic government intervention, which seriously hampers its reputation as an international provider. As such, we see the partial liberalisation of the sugar industry as a first positive step that will incentivise production growth and investment in the sector.

Cheese in South Korea by Mintel Market Sizes provides you with annual year-end market size data, most recently updated in 2014. This market covers total hard/extra hard, semi-hard, soft, spreadable/processed cheese. It excludes cottage cheese, fromage frais/quark/curd/paneer and cheese dips. Market size is based on retail and non-retail sales. Market size for Cheese in South Korea is given in KRW and tonne with a minimum of five years' historical data. Market Forecast is provided for five years. Included with this snapshot is socio-economic data for South Korea. Population, Consumer Price Index (CPI), Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Exchange Rates.

Retail value sales of apparel and footwear specialist retailers registered a relatively dynamic performance with growth of 3% in 2014. Although Czech consumers were careful with their money due to the economic situation, apparel and footwear specialist retailers was relatively successful as it did not register a drop in retail value sales over the last four years of the review period. The main reason behind this growth (albeit rather moderate) was the fact that apparel and footwear specialist retailers (especially those chained) was successful in attracting consumers with a high level of discounts and frequent special price offers. In addition, sales in 2014 also benefited from the fact that consumer mood and confidence started to improve in tandem with a more hopeful economic situation during the year. As a result, retail value growth of apparel and footwear specialist retailers was stronger in 2014 compared to that of 2013 and also to the review period value average of 1%.

Cat food recorded slower current value growth in 2013 than in the previous year, which was due to the unstable political situation in Thailand that affected consumers? confidence regarding spending; however, current value growth of cat food is expected to increase in 2014 alongside the rising popularity of cats as pets among Thais. Their increasing popularity is due to cats being easy to take care of given their attention to cleanliness. In addition, the rising number of cat cafes also stimulated consumer interest in cats towards the end of the review period.

Retailing in China by Mintel Market Sizes provides you with annual year-end market size data, most recently updated in 2014. This market covers sales to consumers through all retailers including direct from suppliers. Market value is at total sales including sales tax via stores and directly. Market size for Retailing in China is given in CNY with a minimum of five years' historical data. Market Forecast is provided for five years. Included with this snapshot is socio-economic data for China. Population, Consumer Price Index (CPI), Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Exchange Rates.