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NEWS COVERAGE - FRANCE

ECONOMY & BUSINESS NEWS FROM THE PAST WEEK
18th September
Business Sweden in Paris

EUROPEAN AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY ON THE RISE

15/09/2015
Worlds largest auto show held in Frankfurt this week
European automotive industry on the rise again (ACEA, Tuesday 15th)
Europe: + 8,6 % since beginning of the year, + 11,5% (781 676 sold items) only in August
France: + 5,9 % since beginning of the year
The increased demand for European automotives depends on increased consumer confidence in Europe, following
the decline in unemployment last month, as well as high demand from mainly the U.S and China
Increase in sales for French car manufacturers
PSA August: +9,2 %
Renault August: +9,8 %
(Volkswagen: + 5,7%)
The increased demand for French automotives may depend on newly launched models more fun such as SUVs
and crossovers

1,2,3,4
BUSINESS SWEDEN

18 SEPTEMBER, 2015

BLABLA CAR FRANCES NEW START-UP STAR

17/09/2015
French ridesharing group Blabla Car has received 117 million euros in its latest funding round, which makes it one of
the best funded technology start-ups in Europe.
Stockholm-based Vostok New Ventures are among the largest investors
Investors value the company to 1,4 billion euros, which makes the company count as a Unicorn start-ups valued
more than 1 billion euros (Others Unicorns: Snapchat, Airbnb, Uber)
The fundraising will allow rapid international expansion that will be focused on emerging markets
Co-founder Mr Brusson said emerging markets were proving to be a fruitful opportunity because the public transport
infrastructure in these countries was often poor
Venture captalism investments rose by 70% during the first half of 2015 in France, according to a study by EY

5,6
BUSINESS SWEDEN

18 SEPTEMBER, 2015

FRENCH GIANT ALTICE ACQUIRES CABLEVISION

17/09/2015
The multinational cable and telecommunications company Altice announced this
Thursday the acquisition Cablevision for 17,7 million dollars
About Altice:
Based in the Netherlands, present in France, Israel, Belgium, Luxembourg among others
Controlled by Franco-Israeli entrepreneur and billionaire Patrick Drahi
Operates the second largest telecom provider in France, SFR, as well as one of the
countrys largest cable operator
About Cablevision:
the 5th largest cable operator in the US
Serves about 3 million homes, primarily in New York
Motives behind the acquisition:
The group will become the 4th largest provider in the country with 4,6 million customers
spread over 20 states

Altice brands:
Orange Dominicana
SFR Carabe
Green.ch
Tricom
MCS TV
HOT
Portugal Telecom
Numericable BeLux
Numericable-SFR

Less competition on the U.S. market

Cable and telecom is a changing industry offering new opportunities within telephone,
broadband etc.
7,8,9
BUSINESS SWEDEN

18 SEPTEMBER, 2015

SOURCES
1.

http://www.lesechos.fr/industrie-services/automobile/021327481662-le-marche-auto-europeen-est-en-pleine-forme1155737.php

2.

http://www.acea.be/uploads/press_releases_files/20150915_PRPC_1508-07_FINAL.pdf

3.

http://www.acea.be/uploads/statistic_documents/Economic_and_Market_Report_Q2_2015.pdf

4.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-09-15/european-august-car-sales-rise-as-economy-helps-renault-bmw

5.

http://www.lesechos.fr/journal20150917/lec2_industrie_et_services/021331987538-levee-de-fonds-record-pourblablacar-nouvelle-star-du-web-francais-1156413.php

6.

http://www.lemonde.fr/entreprises/article/2015/09/17/levee-de-fonds-exceptionnelle-pourblablacar_4760084_1656994.html

7.

http://www.lefigaro.fr/medias/2015/09/17/20004-20150917ARTFIG00016-altice-rachete-le-numero-5-americain-ducable.php

8.

http://fortune.com/2015/09/16/altice-cablevision-takeover/

9.

http://altice.net/brands/

BUSINESS SWEDEN

18 SEPTEMBER, 2015