FedEx is reported to be interested in acquiring TNT, which seems to suggest that it does not want to rely on organic growth to strengthen its position in the global express market. Although combining two of the world’s leading players would put strong pressure on the other two integrators, UPS and DHL, overall, the competitiveness of the industry looks set to remain intact.
FedEx, which reported negative results in the last quarter of its financial year and subsequently issued a pessimistic outlook, is heavily reliant on the slowing US market. As a result, it now appears to be looking for radical ways to improve its position in the global express sector. Despite the weakened US dollar, the effects of a tougher economic environment and rising fuel costs appear to have sparked FedEx’s renewed interest in the acquisition of Dutch mail and express rival TNT. Read more…
A new report, B2B Online Media Report, finds that the English-language website alibaba.com which specialises in business between international buyers trying to contact Chinese sellers retained its top spot in the top 30 Asian online B2B companies.
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Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO) is growing rapidly and has the potential to be a multi-billion dollar market, taking advantage of the trend towards single process deals in human resources outsourcing.
The report ‘Opportunities for recruitment process outsourcing in a changing HRO market’ estimates the global RPO market in 2007 to be worth $720m and forecasts it will grow by 22% in 2008 to $880m, surpassing the $1 billion level in 2009. According to the report, demand is predominately from Fortune 1000 companies in the US, but the market is growing rapidly in the UK and continental Europe and is beginning to gain traction in the Asia Pacific region.
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As announced in a detailed report into the subject area, US court has ruled that the product patent covering Prevacid in the US is valid and enforceable, leaving Teva unable to launch a generic equivalent until May 2009. Although sales of Prevacid are still expected to decrease due to strong market competition, Takeda will look to maintain its market presence by launching a follow-on product.
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According to new research, when the estate agency industry does recover, it will be dramatically different from the industry today. Given the growing power of the Internet, many industry observers believe that the industry will not bear any resemblance to the one we see today. It is expected that a period of restructuring will result in a smaller market and that more people will be selling property without using an estate agent.
Consumer research for the report reveals that 57.7% of consumers said that they would search the Internet if they wanted to move home. While slightly lower than the 2007 figure (58.4%), this confirms the importance of the Web among potential homebuyers; men and women were equally likely to take such action. Despite this, 81.2% of adults still said they would visit an estate agent’s office if they wanted to move home. Read more…
