What drove the rally in iron ore prices during H1 2019? Have the 3 iron ore majors lost control over its prices in 2019?   The iron ore industry is, generally, characterized by voluntary oversupply created by the top 3 players – Vale, BHP and Rio Tinto, which in turn drive the global iron ore prices. These iron ore majors have always kept the production and...

Overview of the global video streaming industry Entry of Disney+ and comparison with other similar platforms Future outlook of the video streaming industry   Media consumption globally in recent years has undergone a revolution wherein it is being increasingly consumed through the digital format. This transition has pushed the global video streaming industry...

The online travel booking market of India Benchmarking Yatra against the largest peer The ambitious entry of Ebix in Indian market   In one of our previous Blogs on eBay investing in Paytm Mall, we discussed how the lucrative e-commerce market of India is attracting foreign investors. This Blog covers another acquisition in the e-commerce space of India in...

Overview of the semiconductor industry Current and future growth prospects of the semiconductor industry   Semiconductors, often referred to as integrated circuits (ICs) or microchips are basic building blocks that are used to create an increasing variety of electronic devices. During the past 50 years, developments in semiconductor technology have made...

Tech Unicorns facing the public market brunt the business model of High growth and high losses being relooked upon by investors WeWork postponed IPO following the lack of investor interest The Valuation slumped to nearly one-fifth in a span of nine months   Post a slew of Tech Unicorn IPO failures in the current year, including SoftBank backed Uber...

Overview of the global construction industry Emergence of Katerra, both as a company and a brand Future outlook of the construction industry   The global construction industry has been one of the last few industries where there has been no radical change in the way things operate over the past few decades. This industry, in general, is not the most active...

Nissan suffering from weak sales Nissan marred by financial misconduct allegations   At a time when the global auto-market is reeling with demand slump as well as disruption from new technology, Nissan, in particular, going through a rather tumultuous time. The automaker recently announced cutting down close to 12,500 jobs globally, or about a tenth of its...

Reliance Industries announces 20% stake sale in its OTC business Deal will help to pare RIL’s debt burden A win-win deal for perfect synergy   Reliance Industries (RIL) has announced India’s largest foreign direct investment and a game changer deal with Saudi Aramco at its AGM in August 2019. The world’s largest oil producer, Aramco, will acquire a 20% stake...

Overview of the global meat substitute industry A look into the growing number of players in the meatless industry Future outlook of the meatless industry   The meatless food industry, also known as the meat substitutes industry, (featuring seafood substitutes, lab-grown meat and insect proteins), though not an entirely new concept, has gained much traction...

Background of the UK automotive industry Deep integration between the UK & EU automotive industry Implications of Brexit on the UK automotive industry   The UK is due to leave the EU on 31st October 2019 which would essentially alter its relationship with the bloc on security, trade and migration while ending its EU membership of nearly 5 decades....

eBay’s investment in Paytm The e-commerce industry of India The future prospects of the deal   In a major positive development in the start-up ecosystem and e-commerce industry of India, the American e-commerce multinational, eBay has decided to invest in Paytm Mall. eBay is investing around USD 165 million to acquire 5.5% stake in the company. Paytm Mall is...

Oman’s economic dependency on oil revenues Measures undertaken by Oman to diversify economy- Vision 2020 & Vision 2040 plans   Oman, an economy traditionally dependent on oil and natural gas exports, is attempting to structurally diversify and strengthen its non-oil sectors. With the lowest GDP per capita amongst the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) nations,...

Overview of the global music industry Dominance and competition between Apple Music and Spotify Road ahead as streaming services takes center stage of the music industry   The global recording music industry is reported to be worth at $19.1 billion as of 2018, registering a growth rate of 9.7% from that of 2017 growing at a faster growth rate than the...

Started as a side project for internal use in a gaming company High revenue growth with recurring revenues Went Public by offering shares through the Direct Public Offering   Founded by Stewart Butterfield (previously co-founded Flickr, sold to Yahoo @ $20 million), Slack started as a side project for internal use in a gaming firm called Tiny Speck in 2009....

Current scenario in Vietnam Initiatives by the government for economic recovery Impact of automation on the manufacturing hub   Vietnam, which is a hub for low-cost manufacturing continues to attract a plethora of foreign investments. This is despite the trade war that is causing disruptions in the emerging economies, Vietnam’s economy managed to grow at...

Overview of Bernard Arnault and his business empire Growth and success of Bernard Arnault and his luxury empire LVMH   The Chairman and CEO of Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton (LVMH), Bernard Arnault, often referred as the “Pope of fashion”, has built a multi-billion dollar luxury brand empire over the last three decades. Currently, his luxury brand portfolio consists...

DuckDuckGo offering services which protect user privacy Achieved profitability in the last five years, despite non-tracking user data Privacy is increasingly becoming a concern for individuals and governments worldwide   Data is akin to a gold mine in today’s global environment and data safety has become a major concern for individuals and governments...

Facebook announced its own digital currency Libra Roadblock in Facebook’s ambitious plan   After a rough 2018, Facebook hogged the headlines in the mid-June of 2019 and unveiled a plan to launch its new digital currency Libra in 2020. Cryptos are an emerging concept in the financial ecosystem and with rising internet and smartphone users, it already has...

China rolls out the sixth stage emission standard and its repercussions Country’s car sales rise in June owing to deep discounts offered by its dealers Testing times ahead, sales of domestic manufacturers likely to be slower than JV manufacturers   China’s attempt at combating air pollution has pushed the automotive industry into a deep crisis, this is at a...

Is subscriber growth miss in Q2 2019, a big concern for Netflix investors? Will Netflix be able to revive its investors’ confidence in H2 2019?   July 17, 2019 was rather eventful for Wall Street as well as for Netflix. The world’s largest internet streaming firm shook the market when it released its Q2 2019 results, reporting a decline in its domestic paid...