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The first five Spanish banks will have provisioned an additional EUR 15 billion to cover the risk associated with their loans, putting further pressure on their finances while Spain tries to restore confidence in its banking sector.

Friday, the Spanish government has imposed on its banks to provision 30 billion euros, in addition to the required 54 billion in February, to cover both their claims to outperform their loans risk.

The move comes as part of a reform which is the fourth bank bailout in four years of Spanish banks. These have heavy losses with the collapse of the housing market in 2008, raising fears about a possible aid to Spain.

The 30 billion euros of additional provisions weigh heavily on banks as investors worried about where the institutions will be able to find the money and if this will be sufficient.

The Spanish government said that the state provide public assistance limited to 15 billion euros, and only in the form of loans convertible into shares, the banks which lack capital.

At the Madrid Stock Exchange, banking reform has not convinced investors. The Ibex 35 fell by 2.26% at 12:30 GMT, weighed down by banking stocks. Bankia, which the state took control last week, fell by 9.42%, 5.21% of Banco Popular, BBVA 3.63%, 2.98% of Banco Santander and of Bankinter 2.31%.

The yield spread (spread) between the Spanish 10-year bonds and German bunds, which serves as a refuge, for its part, reached 485 basis points, the highest since the introduction of the euro.

PROVISIONS FOR EACH BANK

BBVA, Spain's second largest bank, said Monday it would increase supplies of some 1.8 billion euros to comply with new rules on capital announced Friday by the Government .

The new provisions will be reflected in the annual accounts and will have a net impact of around EUR 1.3 billion, the company said. 

For its part, Santander, the first credit institution in the country, will have to register in its books 2.7 billion euros in provisions, in addition to 2.3 billion euros announced in February.

Banco Popular said it would set aside 1.7 billion euros in provisions, but added that he would not need public funds to achieve this. The bank nevertheless said it would take two quarters to comply with new requirements.

Banco Popular will merge with its smaller rival Banco Pastor, which amounts to 2.3 billion euros in total amount of reserves required.

For its part, La Caixa, which is currently buying Banca Civica, will have to set aside 3.4 billion euros.

For most Spanish banks in difficulty as Bankia, the fourth largest bank in Spain following the merger of several small savings, the new provisions will constitute an additional burden. The parent of Bankia, BFA, said she needed $ 4.8 billion to meet government requirements.

Although these banks said they did not need assistance from the State to comply with new capital requirements, the need for additional reserves could change this.

Already, the increasing problems of Spanish banks and government interventions, including the safety of Bankia, have revived the wrath of public opinion in Spain, a year after the outbreak the movement of "Indignant".

Tens of thousands of Spaniards took to the streets and plan to stay until at least Tuesday. The demonstrators had planned on Monday to close their accounts at Bankia to protest against the rescue of the bank.

Higher oil prices supported the results of Repsol, which announced Thursday up 4% of its first quarter earnings, excluding the majority stake in energy group seizure YPF by the Argentine government.

On a pro forma basis, net income adjusted for exceptional items and storage costs stood at 474 million euros in the first quarter, supported by the rise in pe Petroleum and good performance in the liquefied natural gas.

Including YPF, its net profit fell 3% to 635 million euros, said the oil group.

At the Madrid Stock Exchange, the action Repsol gained 5.03% to 13.790 euros at 9:10 GMT, while the European index of oil and gas sector in Europe progressed by 0.3%. 

The title still shows a loss of 42% since the beginning of the year, heavily affected by the announcement last month of the seizure of his 51% stake in YPF in Buenos Aires.

This expropriation should result in a legal battle around the issue of compensation for Repsol.

The group, which opens new markets, to unveil his new strategy on May 29

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.

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.

The boards of directors of Dexia and the Post have agreed in principle on the folder Dexma, the subsidiary responsible for refinance loans to communities by Dexia Credit Local, have de ; clared Reuters on Friday two sources familiar with the matter.

"This has been approved," said one of these sources.

The French state and the Deposit will each take a stake of 31.67% stake in Dexia Municipal Agency (Dexma), equivalent to that retained Dexia Credit Local, while that the Post Bank, the banking subsidiary of La Poste Group, will take the balance amounting to almost 5%.

Another source added that the Post Bank would also have the option of a further climb in the coming years with a capital of Dexma, resuming participation of DCL. 

In the initial plan of dismantling, as announced last fall, the Deposit should take only 65% ​​of Dexma. But, fearing that such an operation too mobilizes capital, several French parliamentarians have liked to see the state intervene directly in the recovery of Dexma.

The recovery of Dexma, according to two sources valued at about EUR 380 million, comes as part of the decommissioning plan for the Franco-Belgian bank Dexia, a former world leader in financing local governments.

Since the collapse of Dexia, local authorities are subjected to a drying up of funding, freezing a portion of economic activity. 

To cope with this "credit crunch", the Prime Minister

Francois Fillon said on Friday the release of an envelope of two to five billion euros in loans to be paid from the savings funds managed by the Deposit.

The recovery of the loan portfolio of Dexma, estimated at 80 billion euros, is critical to local communities face a drying up of bank loans to finance their projects investment.

Many of them are now forced to postpone or abandon some projects, many banks deserting the market because of the financial crisis and new regulatory constraints. 

Estimates of Dexia Credit Local, between 10 and 12 billion euros will miss this year to local authorities to achieve their investment programs.

It is in this context that the Post Bank and the Deposit should be launched by end of June a new joint structure dedicated to financing local government.

This structure, which will take over from Dexia, will be owned 65% as provided by the Post Bank and 35% by the CDC.

Vinci said Thursday that its subsidiary had won five contracts Eurovia maintenance of road infrastructure in the UK for a cumulative value exceeding 1.7 billion euros.

The contracts, whose initial terms ranging between five and ten years, covering all aspects of road maintenance, such as routine maintenance, inspection and repair works of Art, emergency response, snow removal and street lighting, Vinci said in a statement.

Two of these contracts were won through a joint venture with the American consulting firm Jacobs.

Areva's strategic plan will not result in job cuts in France, said Tuesday the Minister of Economy, following a meeting with the CEO of French nuclear group.

The government so far ruled out job cuts, leaving the possibility of voluntary redundancies or job cuts by not replacing departures.

The president of Areva, Luc Oursel said at the meeting that the plan would result "no job cuts, no voluntary separation plan, no impact on the French sites," said Baroin reporters.

The Greek government expects a budget deficit reduced to 5.4% of GDP in 2012 assuming implementation of the proposed debt exchange expected to reduce the burden of public debt, according to the proposed final budget submitted Friday in parliament.

Excluding the impact of the debt swap (PSI), the project includes a deficit equivalent to 6.7% of gross domestic product next year after 9.0% this year.

The exchange of debt should lead to an issue of new bonds with a nominal value of EUR 70 billion and the payment to bondholders deprived of 30 billion euros in cash.

The parliamentary debate on the budget next week to begin by examining the text in committee, the plenary vote is scheduled for 8 or 9 December.

A source close to the government, China is considering investing 50 to $ 100 billion in the European Financial Stability Fund (EFSF). Nicolas Sarkozy and Hu Jintao in Beijing, April 28, 2010.

China is considering investing 100 billion dollars to help the euro area to combat the crisis of public debt, reported the Financial Times on its Web site Thursday, citing a government source. "China might be willing to contribute between 50 and 100 billion in the EFSF (European Financial Stability Fund) or to fund a new mounted under his leadership in collaboration with the IMF, according to a person familiar with the intentions of the Chinese leadership" , said the British newspaper.

"If conditions are suitable then something a little over $ 100 billion is not inconceivable," said the person at the Financial Times.

Exxon Mobil reported Thursday a 41% jump in earnings in the third quarter, slightly more than expected by Wall Street, thanks to higher oil prices and improved refining margins.

Several major oil companies like Royal Dutch Shell and Norway's Statoil, have reported in recent days of strong quarterly results due to higher oil prices.

The futures contract on crude oil traded in New York has averaged $ 90 per barrel in the quarter, up 18% over the same period in 2010, while Brent crude oil jumped 48% .

An hour after the opening of Wall Street, Exxon earned the title 0.2% to 81.17 dollars, underperforming the S & P of the energy gained 2.34%.

Exxon is investing heavily in the exploitation of shale gas, particularly in North America.

The benefit of exploration activity and production of Exxon jumped 54%, the refining of 36%. The group said that better refining margins helped boost the profit of one billion dollars.