National, World, Business News

The Board of Casino, unsurprisingly, on Monday rejected the proposal to buy the Galeries Lafayette Etienne distributor 50% of its Monoprix at a price of 1.35 billion euros.

Casino and Galeries Lafayette, Monoprix co-shareholders, put in the public last week disagreed on the valuation of the sign of the city center.

According to a memorandum of understanding, Galeries Lafayette can exercise an option to purchase their shares since 1 January 2012.

But department stores believe that's 50% to 1.95 billion euros, while the casino values ​​to only 700 million, a figure far removed from the evaluation of 1.225 billion euros recorded in its accounts to 31 December 2010. 

"If the Galeries Lafayette confirm their wish to sell their stake in Monoprix, Casino will acquire, in accordance with its commitments under the Protocol, at the right price of the asset," reaffirms Casino Monday.

To break the deadlock, Ginette Moulin, whose family owns 100% stake in Galeries Lafayette, offered in early February at Casino CEO, Jean-Charles Naouri, to sell its 50% price 1.35 billion, representing the average of two-or offers to buy back his hand, at this price.

This last proposal was considered by the council met to approve casino accounts of the distributor, whose annual results will be released Tuesday morning. 

Casino had already announced last Saturday that there was no seller on his part in Monoprix, a strategic asset for the group.

"The board unanimously approved the directors present or represented, except Philippe Houze, (chief executive of Galeries Lafayette and Monoprix CEO) that n did not take part in the vote (…) the position expressed as an assignment of the Casino in Monoprix would be contrary to the interests of Casino, "he said in a statement . 

The price of 1.35 billion represents 9.1 times 2011 EBITDA (excluding debt) Monoprix, Casino believes that this figure compares to a multiple of 5.7 times "for major companies listed ; are European sector "(Casino, Carrefour, Tesco, Ahold, Delhaize, Sainsbury and Marks & Spencer).

The rumor of an ouster of CEO of Veolia Environnement in favor of Mr. Frérot Borloo, after a maneuver made by the boss of EDF Proglio, close to Nicolas Sarkozy, sparked a lively debate Monday politics. The former minister and the president strongly deny. The Elysée to maneuver to place Borloo Veolia? The accusation is "absurd", according to the Sarkozy camp.

"The arrangements between friends of Fouquet's''," a president of the combined business and "" … These are some qualifications of the various political parties to protest a possible arrival of Borloo to head Veolia. Mentioned by several newspapers, the hypothesis has fueled outrage among rival Nicolas Sarkozy denouncing his intervention in the appointment. According to Le Monde, Libération and Les Echos, the operation was led by Henri Proglio, the boss of EDF remained a director of Veolia. It would "head of Antoine Frérot", his successor, and would be heard "at the beginning of last week" on its replacement by Borloo, former Minister of Ecology.

Which formally denied: "If, for many months, several national and international groups have contacted me in particular so that I bring my analysis informally on their evolution and their business – this was the case recently for Veolia, neither more nor less-everything else is just speculation, manipulation, or even a desire to harm ". The former number two in the government then said: "As I always said, my schedule today is exclusively political. I have confirmed that I have not decided to end my political career and remains focused on building a future for France. "

For its part, Proglio said that Veolia deserved better than "those waves of political rumors". Antoine Frérot, he wrote an internal letter to employees of the group, citing a "company of destabilization".

Source close to the council, seven directors Proglio support the project, seven against and three are still undecided, that seeks to convince Alain Minc, another close to Nicolas Sarkozy. Officially, everyone is silent. In its presidential campaign, all the opposition – left, center and FN together – is leapt to denounce a "conflict of interests" and "arrangements between friends of Fouquet's", the Sarkozy camp trying to extinguish the Fire minimizing simple "press rumors".

Sarkozy: "It's absurd"

"Republic How are we?", Has protested Monday Francois Hollande, the Socialist candidate for favorite presidential polls, Nicolas Sarkozy in lampooning "the candidate of confusion, arrangements". Same story for Europe Ecology Party the Greens (EELV). This is a "farce", denounced the environmentalist Eva Joly, citing a "conflict of interests rarely seen" and "contempt of the Republic". "Before leaving, Sarkozy puts his friends," added the National Front, while the modem call to "turn the page on these practices." "It is abnormal that the policy interferes in the affairs of a private group like Veolia. What credit do we give to the group to negotiate with local authorities?" Railed Deroubaix Hervé, Steward CFDT.

For his part, Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet, speaking as Minister of Ecology, denied "formally" any government involvement in the possible appointment of Jean-Louis Borloo. "Veolia is a company under private law, the government does not meddle in any way the choices made by its directors. It does not get involved now and do not mingle in it", she said to the AFP. According to Le Parisien, Proglio seek to ensure his rear in case of arrival of the Left to power in May. Nicolas Sarkozy has swept the controversy with the back of the hand. the Head of State called on Monday BFMTV "absurd" the hypothesis of an intervention by the Elysée. "The Elysee is behind a possible appointment" of Borloo to Veolia, the question does one out of his campaign headquarters, in the fifteenth district. "It's absurd," he replied.

Euler Hermes announced Thursday an increase of over 12% of its net income, thus resisting a challenging economic environment in Europe.

In a statement, the global credit insurance shows an operating profit of 471.7 million euros (consensus Thomson Reuters I / B / E / S 466 500 000 ), a net profit of 330.3 million (332.5 million consensus) based on a turnover of 2,274.9 million.

The group, a subsidiary of German group Allianz, and proposes a dividend of 4.40 euros per share, up 10% over last year (EUR 4.34 consensus). 

The net combined ratio of Euler Hermes – which measures the profitability of business written in claims costs related to premiums received – is content to 70.0% (against 68.7% in 2010), which corresponds to its target.

Regarding 2012, Euler Hermes estimates that "the world economy is on the ropes".

"The issue of sovereign debt, particularly in the eurozone, the reduction in public spending, weak growth and rising unemployment will affect consumption and investment, both public private, "the group. 

Euler Hermes, which anticipates an economic slowdown and said it had prepared for alternative scenarios, however, provides that an application for credit insurance is high and expected to increase March-May% of its premiums in 2012.

Italy will reduce by over 30% of its control hunters Joint Strike Fighter F-35 went to Lockheed Martin as part of plan to reduce expenses related to the crisis, said Wednesday the defense minister.

Italy now plans to buy only 90 fighter planes instead of 131 on which it had undertaken a decade ago, said Giampaolo Di Paola who spoke to the defense committees of the Chamber of Deputies and Senate gathered for the occasion.

"This is a significant decrease which is consistent with the need to reduce spending," said the minister.

The economy for the Italian state will amount to five billion euros on an original estimate of 15 billion. 

To clean up the public accounts to the crisis of debt in the euro area, the Council President Mario Monti has established at year end plan of 33 billion euros based relegated ; tively tax and spending cuts.

Tuesday, he refused to finance the candidacy of Rome Olympics of 2020, noting that Greece continued to pay the cost of those she held in Athens in 2004.

In addition, Italy is planning to reduce its workforce by 20% defense-related. The country uses for its defense and military 183,000 30,000 civilians whose compensation represents 70% of expenditure in the defense budget.

Italy will close or sell 30% of its logistics bases and seats of its regional centers over five years. In the navy, the number of patrol officers will be reduced from 18 to 10 and the number of submarines of 6 to 4, said Minister of Defence.

Reducing military spending, Mario Monti is based on the policies of President Barack Obama announced Monday a defense budget of 2013 provided for a reduction Pentagon spending for the first time since 1998. The Pentagon has canceled orders for 179 F-35 over five years to save $ 15.1 billion.

Barack Obama pleaded Monday for important stimulus for growth and for raising taxes on high incomes, at the presentation of his budget proposal for fiscal year 2013, the Republican camp has once strongly criticized.

President of the United States, which will run for a second term in November at the White House, plans to spend $ 350 billion (265 billion euros approximately) to programs creations jobs and 476 billion (360 billion euros) to major works, including on road and rail networks and the construction of schools. 

The budget for fiscal year 2013, which begins on October 1, further provides for allocating funds to increase staffing in the areas of education, police and firefighters, while extending tax breaks designed to boost employment.

Of revenues, Barack Obama proposes to tax the income of millionaires at 30%, main idea of ​​his speech on the state of the Union last month, and expects 4000 bn e ; economies ten years, according to the plan unveiled in September.

There are also plans to set the tax rate on dividends at the highest tax bracket, currently 35% but must be raised to nearly 40% next year. 

"We built this budget around the idea that our country has always given the best of himself when everyone had his account," Obama said during a trip to , Annandale, Virginia. "It challenges the economic policy of 'make do', which has widened the gap between rich and poor Americans."

"As our economy growing again and creating jobs at a faster pace, we must do everything we can to preserve the recovery," he added.

AID HELD IN EGYPT

The proposed budget provides the outgoing president an opportunity to present his program and to present his Republican opponents as candidates of the rich. The conservative movement denounced for his reckless spending and accuses him of wanting to increase taxation.

"The Obama budget is an insult to American taxpayers," ruled Mitt Romney, a favorite of the race for Republican nomination for the presidential election of November 6.

"This project is not at all a financing law is a platform of campaign," said his side Mitch McConnell, Republican minority leader in the Senate. "It is bad for job creation, bad for retirees and it will worsen the economic situation," he continued.

The draft budget forecasts a deficit of 901 billion dollars against 1,330 billion this year. This sum, higher than the estimates made in September by the White House, represents 5.5% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) expected in 2013, against 8.5% in 2012.

Obama pledged in 2009 to halve the budget deficit by 2013. But the White House argued that the magnitude of the recession that occurred after his arrival to the presidency dictated emergency measures and believes that it was more important to pre server growth than imposing austerity measures.

Regarding overseas, Obama proposes that the U.S. military assistance grant of $ 1.3 billion to Egypt, a level equivalent to that of previous years, despite ; tensions generated by the lawsuits against U.S. NGOs in Egypt. Some MPs had wanted the suspension of financial assistance to Cairo if the record of NGOs was not set.

Obama also proposes to release $ 800 million economic aid for countries in the "Arab spring" in the Middle East and North Africa, where authoritarian regimes have been overthrown ; s last year. The text does not stipulate how much money will be allocated to each country.

ECB expected to leave interest rates unchanged after its policy meeting Thursday but could pave the way for a decline in March, while the Eurozone recession is threatened by the fallout from the debt crisis and the situation in Greece.

If no agreement is reached by Thursday on the austerity program needed to allow the raising of the Greek State, the President of the European Central Bank, Mario Draghi, will probably be attacked questions about the possibility that the institution waives its potential profits on Greek bonds it holds.

And if an agreement is reached by then, it must explain its terms, its consequences and the precedent thus created. 

Financial markets will also be on the lookout for clues that the ECB expects its second refinancing operation three years, scheduled for 29 February.

The first such operation in late December, allowed him to inject 489 billion euros into the financial system and to push at least temporarily the pressure on the banks of the euro area.

The latest Reuters poll forecast of professional money markets, the ECB could allocate additional 400 billion to banks at the end of the month.

Regarding rates, the threat of increasing net of a relapse into recession in the euro area has increased the likelihood of an easing in March, especially as inflationary pressures have receded ;. 

THE SITUATION Degrades

The ECB has never cut its refinancing rate, the main instrument of monetary policy, under 1% and some members of the Governing Council are reluctant to make it fall below this threshold.

In March, the new forecasts for growth and inflation teams of the central bank could give additional reasons to take the plunge.

"The March forecast will be worse than December," predicts Christian Schulz, an economist at Berenberg Bank. "It can be estimated at 60% probability of a rate cut in March because their growth forecast is too high."

In December, the ECB economists predicted further growth of around 0.3% in the euro area this year.

For Padhraic Garvey, head of rates strategy at ING, the ECB can afford to wait to learn more about the changing conditions before changing its rates.

"The next fall does not need to take place in March. We think it will take place during the first half," he says, adding that the decline in Euribor interbank rates is at least as important as rates of the ECB.

"The most important is that Euribor rates are trending down. The evolution of the Euribor for a month is equivalent to an actual reduction in rates, "he says

. The three-month EURIBOR , regarded as the main barometer of the market for interbank loans, dropped 26 basis points since January 1, to return as 1.1%, the lowest in 11 months … INFLATION RISK It

……

reflux reflects the efficiency of the operation refinancing to three years of the ECB, which has become the main weapon to combat the crisis of the ECB since its purchases of government bonds are now running in slow motion

…… Mario Draghi said … expect the transaction to three years late creating demand "significant". And some bankers expect to see the ECB banks allocate an amount higher than EUR 400 billion provided for traders polled by Reuters.

Christian Schulz estimates that more than 1000 billion injection on Feb. 29 could create inflationary pressures.

"The ECB should react very vigorously, by raising rates," he adds.

On the Greek chapter, the ECB is under pressure from certain creditors of Athens who wish to see transferred to the Hellenic State will generate profits that the debt Greek it has acquired since the beginning of the crisis.

According to sources from the ECB, it spent 38 billion euros to acquire these bonds, 12 billion less than their face value. 

Retroceding in capital gains, the ECB would contribute to the restructuring of the Greek debt finance directly without a state, which prohibit its statutes.

To do this, it could sell the shares at the European Financial Stability Fund (EFSF) at their purchase price, on condition of surrendering the EFSF away in Athens.

"I do not think the ECB will try to keep its obligations at any price," said Christian Schulz. "I think it would be quite happy to get rid of."

The rating agency Moody's warned Monday about the risks posed by the rise in yields on French government bonds on the rating of sovereign debt of France in a context of uncertainty on growth.

"The sustained high funding costs amplify the fiscal challenges facing the French government in a context of deteriorating growth prospects, with negative consequences on credit", written Kockerbeck Alexander, an analyst at the agency.

Moody's announced in mid-October that it would monitor and assess the stability of the perspective of the French Aaa rating within three months.

Private sector employees in four will. And the public, who were spared, one will suffer. "In fairness", says Bercy, which hopes to save 200 million euros a year. A fourth day waiting period will be introduced for private sector employees.

A fourth day waiting period will be introduced for private sector employees on sick leave, the government said Tuesday, expecting a saving of 200 million euros for Social Security. Currently, time to which employees are compensated by health insurance is three days, often offset by the employer in large companies.

"In fairness," will also be established "one day waiting in the three public functions", announced in a joint statement the Ministers Budget Valérie Pécresse, Labour Xavier Bertrand and François Public Sauvadet.Earlier in the morning, Prime Minister Francois Fillon ruled "reasonable" before the UMP to create a day off for employees on sick leave.

If the introduction of a fourth day in the private sector is a regulatory measure, the measure for staff requires a statutory provision, the statement said. The ministers' per diem disease, representing 6.6 billion, growing at a rapid pace and difficult to justify (3.9% in 2010, after 5.1% in 2009). "

Ministers argue that "the bill initial funding of social security plans to change the replacement rate of subsistence allowances (DSA), enabling a lower expenditure of 220 million euros." Both measures are intended to achieve "an economy equivalent," explains Ms. Pécresse and MM. Bertrand and Sauvadet.

In the shadow of the Greek psychodrama, it was necessary progress on the major issues of international economic cooperation. Review of some successes and many failures G20 Cannes. Nicolas Sarkozy has ended with a G20 Cannes press conference, November 4, 2011. REUTERS / Yves Herman (FRANCE – Tags: POLITICS BUSINESS)

He wanted to make a summit unforgettable symbol of his power. But the setbacks in Europe, and the announcement of the referendum at the last minute Greek – have been abandoned, the chairman of the G20 in Cannes, Nicolas Sarkozy, in great difficulties. In the shadow of European psychodrama, the Head of State has still attempted to advance the cause of international economic cooperation. With mixed success. Balance sheet.

To read the official press release here.

Tobin Tax: A Small Step U.S.

It must have been one of the key topics of the French Presidency.Nicolas Sarkozy had even managed to convince Angela Merkel to go along with this idea of ​​a tax on financial transactions to support the development. But not surprisingly, no consensus could be found, too many countries there are still opposed. The head of state, however, has been commended for supporting Barack Obama on this theme, declaring that France and the United States "had a common analysis to help the world of finance to solving the current crisis. "

The Irish budget deficit has reduced by 4 percentage points of GDP since 2009. Corporate profitability recovered sharply. But deleveraging too fast may influence the activity against becoming productive. Pedestrians in Dublin

If Ireland is still part of PIGS, it can not be in the same category as Greece or Portugal, as progress in a few months by former Tiger European are important. The Irish budget deficit – excluding bank recapitalization needs – fell by 4 percentage points of GDP since 2009. The current account deficit turned into a small surplus. Finally, corporate profitability recovered sharply.

The experts of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) of the European Central Bank (ECB) and European Commission, who have just completed their assessment mission in Ireland, are seduced. "The ongoing adjustment is solid.The 2011 budget targets will be achieved and the ongoing structural reforms will also contribute to sanitation, "they note in their report.

However, Ireland is now entering a delicate phase. Or the risk of too rapid deleveraging weigh on activity, against becoming productive. The experts of the IMF, the ECB and the Commission to admit the hint. "Ireland will have to find a balance between the imperatives of debt reduction and limitation of the barriers to growth and job creation," they point out in their report. This sentence harmless and a bit blurry could announce a change in strategy for Ireland. The country needs it, says a recent report by Goodbody Broker.

Make concessions

Indeed, in Ireland, over-indebtedness affects both the public sector, private sector and banks.Simultaneously reducing the three is clearly a bad idea, says the report. If Ireland is determined to meet all objectives at the same time, the evolving recovery will be quickly suppressed. A risk highlighted recently by the Finance Minister Michael Noonan. Especially since the motor only turns in exports. The domestic market remains depressed by lower prices (unit labor costs fell by 15% and commercial property prices have been divided by two).

We must therefore make concessions to one side. But which one? As for households, the government can not do much. The debt reached 220% of disposable income, nearly twice the international average. And fall of financial markets could reduce household net wealth of 250 billion euros. The Irish are going to have to tighten their belts for several years.Make concessions on the public debt is also not in a financial crisis. Ireland recorded a primary deficit of 6% of GDP in 2011. This is the worst result of the euro area.

Remaining banks. They must bring their ratios to 122% loan to deposit by 2013. The challenge today is to allow banks to achieve that clean without excessively penalizing the credit. This will doubtless involve additional time but also further aid from the ECB, economists now believe. Lengthy discussion in perspective.