Along with work on individual companies in 2004, the Amsterdam office will focus on the following sectors in the coming year: Oil & Gas, Public Sector, Food & Drink Packaging, Garden and HorticultureICT-Telecom, Security in Printing and Software, Biotechnology, Construction & DIY. The Office is currently compiling or has on file sectoral reports, so please contact us for further details.
IT, Software and Telecoms:
As with most of Northern Europe, ITS is weak at the moment in the Netherlands. ABN Amro, ING, and KPN have all laid off approximately 8,000 staff each in the past year, with further lay offs, mergers, and consolidation expected. Growth expected by 2nd quarter 2004. The sectors in terms of importance to the Dutch market are 1) Telecoms 2) Financial Software 3) E-learning = 4) logistics/multimedia/processing/other services. The Dutch Financial sector has been characterised by large mergers over the past 10 years reducing the amount of players across all sectors fro 600 to 300 companies.
Banking:
The financial services sector in the Netherlands is highly concentrated and interwoven. In the last five years various banks have merged with each other, as a result there are now really only four large banking conglomerates: ING Group, ABN AMRO, Rabobank and Fortis. These four banks together make up 80% of the market. The financial services sector is responsible for 21.8% of the total IT expenditure in the Netherlands of which 12.7% is spent by banks alone. Of this total expenditure 53% was spent on hardware, 24% was spent on software and 23% on services.
Logistics:
Strategically located close to the main European markets, the Netherlands serves as a gateway for incoming shipments to the entire region, with a total customer base of almost 244 million consumers within a 600-mile radius. The reason why many foreign manufacturers choose the Netherlands for their European distribution location are:1. Rotterdam is the biggest port in the world, with excellent rail, road, and waterway connections to the rest of Europe.2. Due to its central location, The Netherlands has gained a reputation for being the "Gateway to Europe".3. Due to the number of transportation companies, the enormous experience in international transportation and distribution, and the competition, prices in the Netherlands in this field are relatively low and services are very efficient4. Transport and distribution companies in the Netherlands are very advanced in the use of automation and application of effective and efficient moving and storing systems.
Life Sciences:
The Dutch Biotechnology sector is considered to be amongst the best in the world and this is reflected by the number and level of publications issued and the high proportion of Dutch teams in EU projects. The Dutch Government sponsored project Biopartner, which focuses on incentives for start up companies and has had €46 million allocated towards it, will reach completion in 2005.
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