Before an anxiously awaited new year full of automotive highlights gathers speed, we invite you to pause and reflect: The first Automotive Insights magazine in 2014 gives you the opportunity to look back at last year's highlights and get a taste of the most important trends coming up in the next few months.

We spoke to industry and Roland Berger experts about their personal recollections of 2013 and forecasts for 2014. Besides, we interviewed Luca de Meo, management board member at Audi AG, and asked him about future sales and marketing strategies.

Another highlight in this issue is the article "Know your customer – build better cars." It analyzes the huge importance of marketing experts in product development.

As usual, the new issue covers automotive topics from around the world and one particular focus is on the flourishing emerging markets. And our experts also analyzed the opportunities and challenges in India's car industry and looked at the Chinese retail business.