France has the third largest telecoms market in Europe after Germany and the UK. The incumbent telco Orange Group is one of the world’s major players with interests in markets across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The company recently embarked on its five-year ‘Essentials 2020’ program which is focussed on emerging markets as well as on investments in super-fast broadband and LTE infrastructure within its European footprint. Despite market liberalisation, the company still dominates all sectors though increasing competition from a number of major players (notably SFR Group and Iliad) has gradually eroded this lead, prompting it to respond with a range of innovative offers and wide-ranging strategies to meet future customer needs. It is also investing in a national fibre network, largely in response to the activities of smaller players.In the broadband market subscriber growth has been bolstered by demand for high bandwidth applications, prompting considerable investment in fibre infrastructure among telcos and regional governments. The pro-competitive regulator has also promoted access to Orange’s DSL network and fibre networks for new entrants. In early 2017 the regulator considered a range of measures to improve access to Orange’s networks.

A foundry is a workshop for manufacturing metal castings. India has emerged as the third largest castings manufacturer in the world after China and the US.This report considers the calendar year 2016 to be the base year and provides data for the trailing 12 months. The values presented in the report are the actual values for 2016 and estimated values for the period 2017-2021.In this report, Technavio covers the current scenario and growth prospects of the foundry market in India for the period 2017-2021. It also presents the major vendors that are involved in the foundry market in India. In addition, it discusses the major drivers that influence the market's growth, outlines the major challenges faced by vendors and the market at large, and examines key trends that are emerging in the

market.

Governments and institutions in North America are focusing on strengthening science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education; this is driving the adoption of flipped classrooms in the region. The popularity of flipped classrooms is playing a vital role in reducing student dropout rates and improving the learning methods for these subjects. A growing number of institutions are

collaborating and working closely with vendors to develop a business ecosystem that enables the adoption of flipped learning. Factors such as continuous innovations in e-learning tools, delivery methods, advances in technology, and availability of various virtual communication tools are also expected to contribute to the growth of the flipped classroom market in North America.

The Philippines is an agrarian country, with half of its population living in the rural areas and being engaged in farming. Agriculture and forestry contributed some 8.8% to the national GDP on its own,and some 10.3% if fisheries are included, official data showed. Agriculture in the Philippines has been struggling with fragmentation and low levels of technological adoption and specialisation, as

highlighted by its flagging GVA over the 2011-2015 period. Yet the sector enjoys good fundamentals in the face of farming traditions, a large farming population and good global positions in several subsectors such as coconut and rice growing, sugar manufacturing and fisheries. Additional favourable factors include a growing population, an expanding food processing industry and a government focus on reforms.

The transportation sector plays a significant role in the Mexican economy. Besides accounting for about 6% of the country’s GDP and for 5% of the formal employment over the 2011-2015 period, the industry is an important support platform for economic activity generally. In the 2015-2016 Global Competitiveness Report, published by the World Economic Forum (WEF), Mexico ranked 65th out of 140 nations in terms of quality of overall infrastructure, having the fourth-highest score among the countries of Latin America, after Panama, Ecuador, and Chile. Between 2011 and 2015, passenger transportation by air, railways, and waterways expanded at brisk annual average rates of 9.6%, 6.3% and 6%, respectively. Nevertheless, what is typical for Mexico is the overwhelming share of road transport in terms of both assengers and cargo. In 2015, road transport accounted for 96.2% of passenger movement and for 56.1% of the cargo handled in the country.

The information and communication sector (ICT) in the Czech Republic accounted for 5.1% of the economy’s gross value added (GVA) in 2015 versus 5.2% in 2008. Employment in the ICT sector accounted for 2.6% of the total employment in the country in 2015. The subsector with the highest number of employees was computer programming, consultancy and related activities, having a share of 56.1% of the total employment in the ICT sector in 2015. It has the highest share in the ICT sector with respect to revenues and number of enterprises too.

Players such as IGNOU and state open universities that offer courses primarily through traditional offline modes, such as printed study material and periodic contact programs, dominate the distance learning market in India. However, with the proliferation of smart devices and the increase in Internet penetration across the country, it is expected that more number of institutions will start providing online

and blended distance learning programs.A major reason for the rise in demand for distance learning is the imbalance in the demand and supply of higher education in India. Vendors are emerging in the market to provide technological support through partnerships with institutions to aid higher education institutions with infrastructural drawbacks and meet the learning needs of students. These vendors not only cater to student population but also to working professionals.Another prominent trend that is expected to gain popularity in the distance learning market in India is the adoption of the small private online course (SPOC) model to deliver distance learning to assure better retention along with peer learning compared with massive open online courses (MOOCs).

The sales in department stores in Germany are declining owing to the growth of other retail formats like discount stores, shopping malls, and e-commerce websites. Players like Hertie, Horten, Wehmeyer, and Bilka that were popular among generations of German shoppers have shut down operations. Closures of more

department stores in the country are likely to occur during the forecast period. Such closures will offer opportunities for urban development and for retailers with other

successful formats like shopping malls as these stores are located at very busy and centralized locations.Online retailing is becoming increasingly popular among customers, particularly in the mid-market consumer segment. However, the in-store shopping experiences are still important for purposes of touch and feel, information collection, and purchases. Thus, omnichannel retailing is an emerging trend in the market.

Welcome to Deloitte’s annual Global Powers of Retailing report. This report marks the 20th year of identifying the 250 largest retailers around the world and analyzing their performance across geographies,sectors, and channels.Over the last 20 years we have seen a seismic shift in retail and the customers that retailers serve.Consider that in 1997, the inaugural year of this report,

today’s average Amazon Prime customer was just 16 years old, AOL was pioneering social media, and handheld virtual pets were the hottest-selling toys.Today, handheld (or wearable) digital devices are ubiquitous and a younger, social customer has come of

age. We are living in an era where customers are in the driver’s seat more than ever before and they are craving authenticity, newness, convenience, and creativity. We are living in the customer-driven economy.

The implementation of goods and service tax (GST) in 2017 will benefit a lot of industries due to the reduction in the number of indirect taxes and transparency in the system. The logistics sector will be one of the major beneficiaries owing to the reduction in taxation and less frequency of inter-state inspections. Reduced operational cost in the logistics sector will lead to increased spending on telematics systems in the logistics sector.The telematics market in India is evolving and is finding applications in many industries. The auto insurance sector has been the greatest beneficiary of increased telematics system adoption in India owing to the reduction in claim rates from telematics installed automobiles. Insurance companies have been engaging in many promotional measures to promote the use of telematics in the commercial vehicle segment.