Packaged software continues to be the fastest growing segment in Western European process manufacturing IT spending YTY, with a CAGR over the forecast period of 5.9%. IT services is the biggest segment, with a market value of $16.8 bln in 2006, and offers good growth, mainly driven by operations management services. Overall hardware growth is weak except for the networking segment, which is expected to grow strongly in the short term, with 9.2% growth in 2006. Food, beverage, and tobacco is the sub-vertical with the best opportunities over the forecast period, with a CAGR of 4.6%, followed by the pharmaceutical industry. The textile and wood products industries will continue to be weak in IT spending, with a CAGR of 2.0% over the forecast period, Manufacturing Insights reports.