Essilor International on Friday confirmed its 2010 targets in the light of a first half marked by a rebound in sales and a sharp rise in net profit excluding exceptional items.
The world leader in ophthalmic optics said he was always on full year growth of 5 to 7% of its turnover and a stable operating margin over the rate of 18.2% achieved last year, excluding currency effects, acquisitions and strategic change IFRS.
"In the second half of 2010, in a context of renewed activity still fragile, Essilor will pursue the strict implementation of its strategy of growth based on new products, geographical expansion, acquisitions and organic conquer the environment range, "the company said in a statement.
Turnover rose 15.8% to 1,926.8 million euros in the first six months of the year, an increase of 5.9% excluding currency and strategic acquisitions.The Group's contribution margin – operating profit before share-based payments, restructuring costs and impairment of goodwill – came out in turn to 347.5 million (+15.2%), or 18.0% of turnover.
"This is broadly in line with my expectations, the guidance is unchanged, the activity in the U.S. looks a little worse than expected, but overall everything is online, perhaps there will he then some profit taking this morning, "said one industry analyst on condition of anonymity after the value.
The Essilor share opened down slightly from 0.22% to 48.09 euros, giving a market capitalization of about $ 10.3 billion.Since the beginning of the year, the title took 15.5%, after rising nearly 25% throughout 2009.
AN ALLOWANCE amputated NET
Essilor has continued in the first half an acquisition strategy by which it intends to strengthen in particular the emerging markets, with a total of 13 new partnerships. The period was marked in particular by integrating FGXI, a global eye preassembled "readers" and Signet Armorlite, producer and distributor of glasses of the Kodak brand, consolidated in March and April
Net income, Group share, declined by 1.3% to its 197.5 million euros, reflecting a provision of 41.5 million euros for the fine imposed by the German Competition (Bundeskartellamt) for cartel formation in optics.Essilor has filed two appeals which are suspensive payment of the fine.
Excluding this provision, the adjusted net profit stood at 238.8 million euros, an increase of 19.3% from one year to another.
Essilor has continued since the end of the semester its repurchase of shares on the market for an aggregate of 33.7 million euros. The group also conducted on July 2 at remboursemnet the balance of convertible bonds not yet converted. The bond issued in 2003 and is now mature longer listed on Euronext Paris.
The group also sold its stake August 9 history 15% in Group Sperian Honeywell, as part of the tender offer of U.S. conglomerate on the French specialist in personal protective equipment.The more consolidated capital gain, estimated at 27 million euros, will appear in the accounts of the second half.
Tokyo stocks ended virtually unchanged on Tuesday (-0.07%), caught between downward pressure related to the strength of the yen and satisfaction related to solid quarterly results and found the stronger than expected for Sales of new homes in the United States.
The Nikkei index closed at 9496.85 points while the broader TOPIX, took 0.03% to 846.12 points.
Home sales in the nine to the United States jumped from 23.6% in June is, in percentage, the stronger rebound since May 1980, reassuring investors about the risk of a relapse of the U.S. economy.
In terms of value, the manufacturer of household products Kao Corp. gained 1.1% to 2.111 yen after the announcement of an increase of 34.6% of its operating profit for the period April to June, to 26.17 billion yen (231 million euros).
In contrast, the continued strength of the yen continues to handicap the exporting groups.
The semiconductor equipment supplier Tokyo Electron, the semiconductor maker Advantest, and the carmaker Honda and decreased from 0.42 to 1.62%.
The pharmaceutical group Sanofi-Aventis, seeking a major acquisition, has approached the U.S. biotech Genzyme, we learn the source familiar with the matter.
Discussions are still in their infancy and there is no agreement expected in the immediate future, it says.Issues such as price and management have not yet been addressed, it adds.
The Wall Street Journal, which has revealed the information, officials of Genzyme, which specializes in products for the treatment of orphan diseases, are studying the amount that Sanofi would pay.
In Stock, Genzyme is 14 billion dollars (10.8 billion euros) but the group can require a significant premium given its portfolio of drugs, analysts said.
"If we take as a starting point the figure of 20 billion dollars that has been discussed before, this puts Genzyme to $ 75 (per share)," said Michael Yee, an analyst at RBC Capital Markets.
In exchange, the share of Genzyme blazed nearly 18% to 63.84 dollars at end of session.
Sanofi declined to comment.
Faced with competition from generic drugs, many pharmaceutical companies are looking for external growth.
In early July, the rumor gave Sanofi-Aventis, faces the expiration of patents on several important drugs, looking for acquisitions in the United States.
The sales of Sanofi made in the USA by its anticancer Eloxin fell sharply after the launch of generic versions, while its other cancer drugs, Taxotere, will drop its patent to the public in November in Europe and United States.
In late June, Sanofi announced the acquisition of American TargeGen for 560 million dollars (458.5 million euros) in order to strengthen the fight against cancer.
Late June-early July, the French laboratory has met its board of directors on the topic of acquisitions, had been taught to the time source familiar with the matter.
Friday, Biogen and Allergan, whose names had been mentioned as potential target for Sanofi alongside Genzyme, lost 5% and 2.5% in stock.
Wendel and his former Chief Executive Jean-Bernard Lafonta subject of proceedings before the Sanctions Committee of the Financial Markets Authority (AMF) on the climb to the capital of Saint-Gobain, writes Le Figaro.
The procedure relates the position that Wendel indirectly held in Saint-Gobain, through derivatives, where the investment firm said to have crossed the threshold of 5% stake in the building materials group in September 2007 by daily.
It would be of Wendel was whether the market informed of the existence of its position in derivatives that indirectly strengthened its position in round of Saint-Gobain.
Grievances reported several months ago by the College of the MFA will be reviewed promptly by the sanctions committee, said Le Figaro.
A spokesman declined to comment Wendel information Friday morning.
The AMF was not immediately available to provide comment.
Greece became the second most risky in terms of sovereign debt due to a deterioration of its debt in the second quarter, a survey of CMA Datavision.
Athens was still in the ninth position of the most risky in terms of sovereign debt in the first quarter, said CMA.
The cost of protecting against a default in the country five years on its debt (credit default swap) has jumped to 1,003.4 basis points (bps) in the second quarter.There is a probability of 55.6% of default of Greece in the five years.
Greece is also the countries with the worst performance in the second quarter with an increase of 190% of its CDS, followed by Belgium with the CDC have increased 168.5%.
Spain completes the podium with a jump of 129.2% of its CDS, while Portugal and France are respectively the fourth and fifth worst student with an increase in the cost of protection on debt of 129.2% and 112.3%.
In absolute terms, Venezuela, with CDS has reached 1305.7 bps remains the country's riskiest ranking made by the company study the risk of default on debts, Caracas, with a probability of default to five years' s raising to 58.7%.
Iceland and Egypt are instead left the group of the ten riskiest in the world, unlike Romania and Bulgaria which joined the top 10 at the eighth and tenth positions respectively, their banks being heavily exposed to Greece.
Among the safest countries in the world are still Norway and Finland, which continue to occupy the first and second place in the field, while the U.S. is hoisted from the tenth to third in favor of improving the credit situation in the country.
Germany, which is a reference in the euro area sovereign debt, and the Netherlands have however slipped in the rankings of the safest countries.
Germany has dropped to third from sixth place the first three months of the year and the period April-June The Netherlands has them in eighth place after being in sixth place three months earlier.
For a chart on the classification of CMA Datavision, click on:
here
Greece will overcome its fiscal crisis without having to restructure its debt, said Greek Finance Minister George Papaconstantinou in an interview published Wednesday by the German newspaper Handelsblatt.
'We still have a credibility problem, he acknowledged, adding that the country would not need to restructure its debt.
'We must not let the single currency to be destroyed by the markets overreacted.
A delegation of the European Union, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and European Central Bank (ECB) said last week that Greece put in place economic reforms, according to plan massive aid over three years 110 billion euros to save the country from bankruptcy.
"I see the end of the tunnel," said the minister.
"We hope to finish the year better than we expected, out of the recession more quickly and return to growth from the mid-2011," he said, while acknowledging that "Spain and the Portugal [were] in a much better position than Greece.
In return for IMF assistance plan / EU, Greece has promised to cut its budget deficit to 8.1% of GDP this year to comply with the requirements of Brussels and under the 3% of GDP by 2014 .
Why oil markets do not react to the catastrophe of BP in the Gulf of Mexico?
It is true that oil prices have finally been little impacted by this disaster. For two reasons. First, it was thought a few days after the disaster, the movement of tankers in the Gulf would be disrupted, which could affect the evolution of very short-term U.S. oil inventories. This was not the case. Meanwhile, outside the six-month moratorium on the exploitation of new platforms, markets await the outcome of the commission, (introduced by the Obama Administration) regarding the future development of deepwater drilling. For the moment nothing has filtered out on the progress of discussions. Yes, President, stuck in the oil slick bomb on his chest and hardens ecological discourse.But for the United States, deprive themselves of deepwater drilling and oil from the Gulf of Mexico equivalent to increasing its short-term dependence on foreign and thereby increase its imports and the movement of tankers. But from a strictly ecological point of view, the likelihood of oil spills associated with tanker accidents is much higher than that related to problems occurring on a platform …
The survival of BP is threatened?
BP is not dead but its future is very bleak. The total cost of the disaster will obviously staggering, at least about 10 billion dollars. But the slate will not pay a single blow and will be paid over several years, which does not undermine the cash short-term business.It remains, however, the cost in terms of reputation and image especially in the United States. Can you imagine, when referring to obtain from the U.S. Administration to permit new drilling in the United States that This case does not come back on the carpet. But the U.S. market is essential for BP. It represents 26% of its oil and gas worldwide, 40% of its sale of petroleum products and 56% of its refining capacity. This ecological disaster is challenging deep and lasting development of BP across the Atlantic.
The coffee burns. Around 1000 GMT (1200 Paris), Arabica for September delivery traded on the NYBOT-ICE touched 162.95 U.S. cents per pound, its highest level since early March 2008, garnering over 12% compared to Friday last. Robusta (September) traded on Liffe in London soared to 1,595 dollars per tonne, its highest since early March 2009.
"The explosion in prices is explained by fears of supply failing to keep up with demand," commented analyst at Commerzbank.
Indeed, the tight supply from Vietnam and Central America support prices, as fears about the effect expected from the ongoing harvest in Brazil, the largest producer of coffee, according to Michael Hewson, an analyst at CMC Markets.Furthermore, demand continues to strengthen in key import markets such as Europe, Japan and the United States.
"The markets are catching up after a while to take into account" the tension on the fundamentals of supply and demand, noted Kona Haque, analyst at Macquarie, to the extent that the rebound is reinforced by a renewed interest to speculative investors taking advantage of a slight weakening of the dollar.
"The supply-demand balance of the arabica market suggests another deficit in 2009/2010 season, also highlights the analyst, noting also that the European stocks of coffee have shown a decrease in April .
The greenback fell Wednesday to 1.2353 dollars per euro, its lowest level in two weeks, making them more attractive purchases of raw materials denominated in dollars for investors provided with other currencies.
