In 2023, the apparel retailer Gap, Inc. had net sales amounting to about 14.9 billion U.S. dollars. This represents a five percent decrease compared to 15.6 billion dollars in the previous year. In 2022, the company had cited inventory delays due to global supply chain disruptions as the primary reason for the fall in net sales, as well as strategic store closures. The fiscal year end of the company is February 3, 2024. The Gap, Inc. The Gap, Inc. is an American clothing and accessories retailer based in San Francisco, California and was founded in 1969 by Donald and Doris Fisher. The Gap is a major international clothing retailer and brand. The Gap, Inc. also owns and operates the Old Navy, Banana Republic, Athleta, and Intermix brands. In 2023, The Gap, Inc. operated a total of 3,560 stores. The majority of the company’s stores are in North America, with 472 Gap stores throughout the region as of 2023. Leading Apparel Companies in the United States In terms of sales, the leading American apparel company is TJX Companies, which owns brands such as TJ Maxx, Marshalls and HomeGoods. However, when it comes to consumer favorites, the brand Levi's was the clothing brand viewed most favourably by consumers in the U.S. in 2023.

In the first quarter of Apple's financial year 2025, iPad sales generated about 11.75 billion U.S. dollars in revenue, up from 7.02 billion U.S. dollars registered in the same quarter of 2024. Apple’s iPad revenue – additional information Introduced to the consumer market in 2010, the iPad is Apple’s tablet computer. This particular device was a pioneer in the tablet market, and aims to fill a gap between smartphones and laptop computers by offering another mobile device option for consumers. The iPad uses the same operating system and multi-touch user interface as the iPhone and the iPod Touch. In the second quarter of 2024, Apple shipped around 12 million tablets worldwide, and has released multiple versions of the device. Apple’s iPad performance In FY 2023, iPad sales generated about 28 billion U.S. dollars in revenues. In the third quarter of 2013 (2Q ’13 calendar year), iPad revenue accounted for about a quarter of Apple’s total global revenue, the highest share to date. In the latest quarter, iPad sales accounted for nearly seven percent of Apple’s total global revenue. Competition With the success of the iPad over the years, Apple has established itself as the leading vendor in the tablet market. The company’s market share has been steadily decreasing over the years though, going from around 60 percent in 2011 to over 30 percent in 2024. Samsung is Apple’s main competitor in the market, while Chinese brands Lenovo and Huawei, and Amazon also have significant market shares. As competitors strengthen their presence in the market, Apple’s tablet operating system, iOS, has lost the position of leading tablet operating system in late 2012 to then regain it in 2022. As of the fourth quarter of 2023, Apple iOS was the leading tablet operating system with almost 55 percent of the share against around 45 percent of Android.

As one of the largest and most recognizable athletic brands on the planet, it is of little surprise that Nike is the leader within its industry of athletic apparel, accessories and footwear, with sales reaching almost 49 billion U.S. dollars in 2024. This was more than double that of second-placed Adidas. Top athletic brands The sports apparel industry is a lucrative one, which is forecast to grow further in the coming years. Not only is Nike one of the most prominent producers within this market worldwide, but the company also holds the honor of being ranked as one of the world's leading apparel brands. Adidas, Puma, and Under Armour are some of Nike’s main competitors, as they operate within the same markets. However, Nike’s brand value has historically been significantly higher than that of its closest competitor, adidas, and the gap has grown. Sportswear stores In 2023, there were over 1,000 Nike stores worldwide. In comparison, the number of adidas Group retail stores was roughly 2,000 in 2024. The most prominent Adidas store type was factory outlets of which there were almost 1,100 worldwide.

The global Internet of Things (IoT) market is forecast to be worth around 445.3 billion U.S. dollars in 2025, and rise to more than 934 billion U.S. dollars in 2033, tripling its revenue in ten years. Not only this, but the number of IoT connected devices worldwide is forecast to triple during this span in time. Major verticals and use cases All types of industry verticals and consumer markets use IoT devices, with the retail an wholesale segment accounting for the largest share of the IoT devices market with approximately 28 percent of the total IoT device market in 2023. This share is projected to grow over the next five years to around 38 percent. Smartphones are the most commonly used devices in the IoT consumer internet and media devices segment, acting as connectors between many smart devices. Connected vehicles, payment terminals, smart grid, building automation, CCTV, and security and fire alarms are other IoT use cases where global revenue is projected to reach, and in many cases surpass, the mark of 50 billion U.S. dollars. IoT revenue by region The region with the largest share of the IoT market is China, with North America and Europe coming in at a distant second and third in 2023. Over the next ten years, the market is forecast to lose some footing in the Greater China area, with both North America and Europe closing the gap in terms of revenue revenues.

In 2024, the combined global revenue of accounting firm EY reached over 50 billion U.S. dollars. More than one-third of this came from its assurance services. The firm’s tax and assurance service lines had the biggest year-on-year growth, increasing by 6.3 percent respectively between 2023 and 2024. Advisory services help to strengthen EY EY reported growth across three of its four service lines in 2024, which led to the overall global revenue of the firm increasing by around two billion U.S dollars on the previous year. The firm’s assurance services package – providing clients with support in the areas of auditing and financial accounting – remains a key focus and has generated the most income for a number of years. EY’s consulting line, however, continues to attract strong demand from clients and revenue from the service has more than doubled since 2012. One reason for this could be that developments in digital technology are prompting more and more clients to seek advice on topics such as data analytics and cybersecurity, helping them to build their company for the future. The titans of the accounting world EY is among the Big Four accounting firms worldwide – third after PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) and Deloitte in terms of revenue. EY’s record income contributed to the increase in combined revenue of the Big Four. Proposals and recommendations have been discussed in order to break up the market dominance of the four accounting firms and create competition within the sector, but for the time being the Big Four will continue to audit the financial records of the largest public companies worldwide.

In August 2024, the housing market in the UK saw a 20 percent increase in demand and 23 percent increase in the number of agreed sales. New inventory has also increased, with the stock of new homes for sale up by 14 percent and new supply, 12 percent. In 2023, house prices slightly declined, as the market cooled under the impact of soaring interest rates and worsened homebuyer sentiment.

The global influencer marketing market size has more than tripled since 2020. In 2025, the market was estimated to reach a record of approximately 33 billion U.S. dollars. What is influencer marketing? Influencer marketing is a form of social media marketing that involves product placements and endorsements from online creators. In today’s competitive marketing landscape, brands are collaborating with influencers more firmly than ever, as partnerships with well-known creators can open the door to large potential audiences. In 2024, influencer marketing spending in the United States was forecast to reach an all-time high of 7.1 billion U.S. dollars. Seeing that internet stars can boost brand visibility, drive engagement, and impact purchasing decisions for millions of users, it comes as no surprise that spending on influencer cooperation is expected to pick up even more speed in the future. Top influencer marketing platforms Marketers can choose from an ever-expanding list of social media platforms to bridge the gap between brands and consumers. According to a recent survey, Instagram remains the most popular platform for influencer marketing in the United States, and in 2025, the global Instagram influencer market size was estimated to surpass 22 billion dollars for the first time. Apart from the photo-sharing app, video-based platforms such as TikTok have become popular among brands and marketers. In the first half of 2024, the most successful brands earned over half a billion U.S. dollars in earned media value (EMV) with their TikTok influencer marketing campaigns.

In 2024, the Zara brand was valued at approximately 17.8 billion U.S. dollars. In comparison, the value of the H&M brand was 13.6 billion U.S. dollars that year. This widened the gap between Zara and its fast fashion counterpart. Fast fashion refers to the business model of certain companies in the fashion industry. It is based on the process of inexpensive designs which move quickly from the catwalk to stores to meet new trends.

In 2022/23 the value of tax receipts for the United Kingdom amounted to approximately 827.74 billion British pounds. This represented a net increase of over 512.1 billion pounds when compared with 2000/01. Since that year, the total value of tax receipts showed year-on-year increases in most years, except for 2008/09, 2009/10, and 2020/21 when the value declined. Tax receipts form the bulk of UK government income, based on various direct and indirect taxes. Tax revenue sources Of the revenue generation by taxation in 2023/24, over 273.27 billion of this came from Income Tax receipts, which was the main source of direct tax income for the government. After income tax, the next most substantial direct tax were contributions from National Insurance, which amounted to just over 177.74 billion pounds of tax revenue in 2023/24. The UK's main goods and services tax; Value-added Tax (VAT) amounted to 169 billion pounds, while Corporation Tax receipts added up to around 88 billion pounds. Although other smaller direct and indirect taxes produce notable income, these four sources were by far the main sources in the 2023/24 financial year. UK government finances While taxes and other sources of income raised more than one trillion pounds in 2023/24, the UK government expenditure was around 1.1 trillion pounds. This gap between revenue and expenditure was financed via government borrowing, which amounted to 107 billion pounds in 2023/24. As the UK government has been spending more than it earns for several years, this has resulted in significant government debt building up, expected to be the equivalent of 103.1 percent of GDP in 2023/24.

Consumer spending on physical music dropped considerably over the years, and amounted to roughly 311 million British pounds in 2023. Digital music spend surpassed physical spend for the first time in 2015, with the gap becoming more pronounced in the following years. By 2023 digital music spending was more than 1.8 billion British pounds.