The mood seems to be changing!
Remarkably, after a lengthy period, the world’s stock markets are picking up. While much derided, they are often the leading indicators of recovery. Don’t forget we are now three-four years on from the 2008 nadir and have referred before to “This Time is Different”.
In the US we have seen co-ordinated and effective action; likewise in China. In Europe this has been spasmodic and disorganised, though there is, at present, a reasonable hope that the ECB (European Central Bank) is now going to manage a Greek “default” without too much collateral damage. We, in Europe, can only think positive.
The US, as previously noted, is moving forward. Employment has risen for five consecutive months; Caterpillar, Cummins, and other manufacturers are repatriating jobs from Canada and elsewhere. While the German Construction PMI has picked up slightly, The Eurozone is still expected to remain flat in the coming months as other defaults lurk in the background, even if the Greek threat is fading somewhat.
China on the other hand is expected to manage a so-called “soft landing”, but to put this in context, Europe would love to have a slowdown to just eight percent growth! Interestingly, China's copper imports are rising and crude oil imports are up at around eight percent. However, steel imports fell year on year by 14% suggesting the Chinese building boom may be slowing down.
As the shift to the East continues, we can see the major oilcos re-shaping their assets; selling direct control of activities in lesser or slower-growing markets and only retaining those in key markets and those vital to their future interests. ExxonMobil’s announcement of the decision to merge fuels and Lubes is also interesting and may presage others to follow. RPS Energy has commented on this in their latest white paper which has now been published in the OATS Lubes Resource Centre.
At actual marketing level, the need to find every opportunity for increasing marketing productivity and effectiveness from all media is reinforcing the new media options. The Internet has been a game changer. It will continue to be, with efficiencies being obtained as we move from Web 2.0 to Web 3.0 (select your own definition). The other white paper we have published this month, also from John Sargeant and Stuart Speding at RPS, provides a very clear insight into the general assessment of marketing spend.
Here at OATS, we expect further refinement of B2C and B2B applications as companies improve their understanding of the specific marketing topography for each of their key markets. The continuing need for companies to sharpen product line definition and improve marketing effectiveness is encouraging OATS to move from supplying data and information towards providing knowledge and insight to improve marketing and technical solutions.
This has been an area where OATS has been working closely with its customers in recent years. If you would like to find out more about how OATS can help your business, we would be delighted to hear from you.
As always, if would like to comment or offer content for the Lubes Resource Centre, Please contact us.
Sebastian Crawshaw
Chairman, OATS