The UK manufacturing growth slowed more than expected in April, demand from the euro area has declined significantly, shows a survey released Tuesday, hinting that the recession risk to be longer than expected.
The Markit / CIPS purchasing managers (PMI) thus fell to 50.5 last month against 51.9 (revised) in March. This figure, the lowest since December, is below the expectations of economists who had expected 51.5.
It remains above the 50 mark that separates growth and contraction, in contrast to similar data in the euro area.
Official statistics released last week showed that the British economy had plunged into recession in first quarter, which could further increase the difficulties of coalition government David Cameron.
A decree published in the Official Gazette requires EDG and GDF to repay the overpayment charged to customers within 15 days of issuance of the annual bill or the subscriber's request. This obligation will come into force in 2013.
EDF and GDF will, from next year, reimburse their customers within 15 days of issuance of the annual bill or the subscriber's request, in case of overpayment exceeding 25 euros, according to a decree of April 18 published in the Official Journal (OJ). "During the contract, when the invoice based on energy consumption reveals an overpayment by the contractor less than 25 euros, the excess is carried forward to the next invoice, unless the consumer requests a refund" states that Order, which comes into force on 1 January 2013. "From this amount, the overpayment is refunded by the supplier," the statement said, adding that "the refund is made within fifteen days from the issuance of the invoice or the customer's request ".
Billing of the two suppliers is based on an estimate of consumption for customers who choose the monthly payment, with an annual bill of regularization based on actual consumption. "It has taken up several times to the plate and the publication of an official report to achieve this decree," said Bruno Lechevin, managing director of energy ombudsman, the daily Le Parisien on Friday which states that during the first quarter, 3.2% of complaints received by the Ombudsman were related to reimbursement of overpayments. "In 2011, EDF had made and pin: the utility reimbursement to amounts of less than 15 euros if the customers were demanding," said the newspaper. EDF now states on its website monthly installments if the client has paid a sum greater than its invoice regularization, the credit balance is refunded "by bank transfer within 15 days."
In May 2011, the supplier had agreed to reimburse "now" and automatically overpayments of all invoices to its customers after termination of their contract (move). The group previously had a policy not to refund overpayments of less than € 15.24 if customers were not doing the requests. Parliament passed a provision in the Law on Organization of the New Electricity Markets (Nome) of 7 December 2010 so that energy suppliers are now required to systematically repay overpayments to consumers.
The UK GDP fell 0.2% in the first quarter of 2012, after falling 0.3% in the previous quarter. British Prime Minister David Cameron
The UK has not escaped the downturn. Its economy has officially fallen into recession earlier this year following a contraction of its economy for the second consecutive quarter, a surprise for analysts and bad news for the government of David Cameron.
According to one official estimate released Wednesday, the British economy shrank by 0.2% in the first quarter of 2012, after falling 0.3% last quarter. The country is thus technically back in recession, which was released in late 2009 after five straight quarters of decline in activity during the financial crisis.
Despite very mixed economic indicators, most analysts were betting on a slight rise of 0.1% of GDP, which would have avoided the country to be in the same situation as the states of the eurozone such as Spain or Italy, also entered into a recession.
This performance-up against Prime Minister David Cameron in a difficult position: it should indeed revive criticisms about the draconian austerity policies of his government by the opposition Labor Party accused of having "killed growth" in the name of a struggle against deficits.
The pound is distributed sharply lower against the euro and the dollar after the announcement of the contraction of the UK economy. The London Stock Exchange remained, however, directed slightly up gaining 0.44% to 5,734,67 points to 0900 GMT.
The CAC 40 closed sharply lower, 2.47%, amid concerns about the situation in Spain and Italy, while the slowdown in Chinese growth is stronger than expected. Traders at the Frankfurt Stock Exchange.
The Paris Stock Exchange closed sharply lower Friday amid concerns persist about the situation in Spain and Italy, and while the slowdown in Chinese growth is stronger than expected. The CAC 40 gave 2.47%, passing under the 3200 points to 3189.09 points, in a trade volume of 3.697 billion euros.
On other European markets, Frankfurt fell 2.36% and 1.03% of London. The Eurostoxx 50 index lost 2.58% on its side. "We broke a very important technical level, that of 3200 points, this does not bode well. We will start next week in very bad disposition, "warned Frederic Rozier, manager of equities at Messchaert Private Banking Growth Slows
.
The Chinese trend has been sealed, early interactions, confirmed by the slowing of Chinese growth, which reached its lowest level in almost three years (+8.1% yoy in the first quarter). "Investors not expect a downturn as fast. It should be remembered that any slowdown in China has a strong impact on the global economy, "said Mr. Rozier. However, for Renaud Murail at Barclays Bourse," it is almost certain that stakeholders would not reacted so negatively to this statistic a few weeks ago. Currently, less bad news is amplified. "
The climate has been sealed by the blood of net borrowing rate of Italy and Spain in the bond market, yields on 10 year Spanish flirting again with 6%. Rome suffered a further decline in industrial production in February, while economists were betting on a rise, while the debt of Spanish banks to the ECB in March smashed the record already history for the previous month. "This suggests two disturbing elements: access not only of the Spanish market remains difficult, but they still have a strong need for short-term liquidity," said Alexandre Baradez at Saxo Bank.
The bank attacked very
The banking sector in the fourth largest economy in the euro area of particular concern for investors because it is very exposed to the real estate market in the doldrums in the country. In this context, anxiety, low morale of U.S. households has compounded the disappointment of stakeholders.
As for values, the banking sector has been particularly attacked, Societe Generale yielding 5.79% to 17.80 euros, BNP Paribas 5.22% to 30.40 euros and Credit Agricole 5.08% to 3.91 euros. More cyclical stocks have suffered heavily from the slowdown in China, the image of Peugeot (-5.15% to 9.84 euros), Lafarge (-4.94% to 30.88 euros) or Vinci (-4 , 21% to 34.83 euros). L'Oreal was the only value of the CAC 40 close to achieving in the green (1.15% to 92.14 euros) after the beginning of 2012 found "promising" with sales up sharply in the first quarter.
Capgemini (-5.12% to 29.92 euros) suffered from lower sales forecasts for 2012-2013 the number two Indian IT Infosys Technologies. Atos took to 2.31% to 44.37 euros, while a note from Morgan Stanley suggests the establishment of "strategic options" for the group if the title is still low. Stallergenes has granted 3.34% to 42.66 euros after confirming its annual growth target following an increase of 7% of its turnover for the first quarter. Finally, Gold by Gold unscrewed from 6.01% to 6.72 euros in its first day of trading on Euronext Paris.
The amount borrowed by the Portuguese banks to the European Central Bank increased by 18% in March compared to February to reach a record $ 56.3 billion, said Monday Lusitanian central bank.
This amount far exceeds the previous record of 49.1 billion borrowed in a month reached in August 2010, before Lisbon accepts a plan to help the IMF and the European Uni ; enemies.
According to Teresa Gil Pinheiro, chief economist at Banco BPI, the increase recorded in March was partly explained by the strong participation of Portuguese banks for refinancing proposed by the European Central Bank.
In December and February, she put on the market a total of over 1,000 billion euros.
This strong growth also reflects the reluctance of banks in the euro area, who are reluctant to lend to each other.
May 24, the Supreme Court could follow the requisitions of its Advocate General and reverse the conviction of Total to damages for environmental harm. Analysis of a possible "disaster for the ecology" with the lawyer in environmental law, Arnaud Gossement. Erika
Years of justice for nothing? Maybe so. More than 12 years after the fact, the General Counsel of the Supreme Court seeking annulment of the sentence in Total Erika shipwreck flag. Moreover, he believes that we should not refer the case on appeal. His analysis? French justice is not responsible for the sinking of a ship flying the Maltese flag outside French territorial waters. The notice of Gossement Arnaud, a lawyer specializing in environmental law.
What do you think the requisitions of the General Counsel?
Master Gossement Arnaud: This is surprising. Both courts and not the least, the First District Court of Paris (TGI) in 2008 and the Court of Appeal of Paris ruled in 2010 in the same direction. They have ruled on the application of French law and compensation for environmental damage. It was a first. Second thing, until 2008, an investigation has led to a removal order. In short, much work has been done around this case. It is therefore a surprise to make possible today a possible departure from precedent. And surprise is shared by all lawyers.
Can you reconstruct his reasoning?
We must above all be cautious. And for good reason, we do not know all of the conclusions of Advocate General, only a few arguments. According to the senior judge of the Supreme Court, there would be an issue of pure law, ie the Court of Appeal would not have applied the correct legal text. She should have, according to the magistrate, apply international law because of the location of the Erika. It was not located in French territorial waters. Then, the Advocate General points to the notion of environmental damage. In 2008 the Paris Court of First Instance is to be used with great clarity to the concept of "damages for injury to the environment." But the judge would question the possibility of convicting a person on grounds of environmental damage. Total for lawyers, this recent concept does not exist in positive law, in the texts of laws. Whether the General Counsel relies on this ground for reconsideration of the ecological damage, I do not know.
One thing is certain, the magistrate did not say that Total was irresponsible, but there is a problem of law. Over the total condemnation of the judge shows the inadequacy of the legal framework that applies to legal activities at sea It is a law vague and complex, composed of a mosaic of texts. Historically, there has been interest in the land. We just forgot that human activities would also develop at sea, whether oil activities or renewable energy production. This is since the 70s, including the trial of Montedison (the Italian company had dumped thousands of tons of toxic waste in a marine trench off Cape Corse, in Italian waters), we took awareness of the fragility of the sea We discover that the sea is not a trash can and must be protected. Erika was a turning point. There was a strong awareness.
Requisitions prosecutors are they followed by the Supreme Court?
This is what is said in general. But this is a complex matter for which miles are possible options. The Supreme Court can completely cancel the decision of the Court of Appeal, as it can do so partially. On the issue of compensation paid by Total at the time of use, the oil group said he would not call into question the compensation paid, but one can imagine the reverse. If unfortunately, the Supreme Court completely cancels the decision of the Court of Appeal, the procedure can start again. It would be a disaster not only for the plaintiffs, but also for the ecology. And for good reason, return on an affair that has lasted for 1999 is a bad signal to polluters. This is a step backwards. This is very disturbing. They may think that it does not matter because any way the court proceedings will take years to achieve. It is a discouraging message for associations and however encouraging for polluters. It should be certainty in the application of sanctions.
Wall Street has stalled Wednesday, impeded in its progress begun several months ago by declining sectors associated with macroeconomic risks, such as finance and energy.
The Dow Jones Industrial 30 yielded 0.35%, or 45.57 points, to 13,124.62. The S & P-500, wider, lost 2.63 points, or 0.19%, to 1402.89. The Nasdaq Composite Index advanced 1.17, however, points (+0.04%) to 3,075.32.
The S & P 500 benchmark index fund managers, however, retains a gain of approximately 12% since the beginning of the year.
"We reached a plateau, but basically, the deal has not changed (…) There could be a setback but I see the stock market to grow to 1,430 or 1,450 items, "said Joe Benanti, CEO of Rosenblatt Securities, referring to the level of the S & P 500.
The former real estate sales declined in February against all expectations in the U.S. and inventories of unsold homes increased, according to data released Wednesday by the National Federation of Officers Real Estate (NAR).
This statistic interrupts a recent run of good macroeconomic indicators and a reminder that the housing market, considered key to a sustainable recovery in the U.S., is still not completely out of case.
Despite rising oil prices, the S & P energy grouping values fell 1.04%. That financial stocks lost 0.43% after rising on nine of the last 10 sessions.
"Some parts make me say that we are perhaps at the beginning of a correction of up to 4%: the relative poor performance of industrial and energy , the reversal of financial, "said Seth Setrakian, co-leader of the U.S. equities department at First New York Securities.
"Investors are waiting in general the beginning of a new quarter to regain some of their beads. This can happen earlier if everyone expects the same thing. "
In a note to clients, Goldman Sachs said, however, that the prospects for equity market returns, compared to bonds, are the best in a generation
. "Given the current valuations, we think it should say" goodbye for a long time "for obligations and start" buying long "on shares," said the middle .. The title
……. Oracle fell 2.29% to 29.41 dollars after posting its quarterly results yesterday, marked s in a drop in revenue from hardware sales.
The action Hewlett-Packard for its part, yielded 2.17% to 23.46 dollars after the software giant announced the merger of its divisions PCs and printers as part of a major reorganization designed to generate savings and boost growth.
The Nasdaq Composite Index, heavily weighted in technology, however, was brought up by 2.46% to 13.72 of the action after the developer Zynga online game announced ; redeem OMGPOP, the manufacturer of the game popular "Draw Something".
The Galeries Lafayette Group saw sales rise by 4% in 2011 and operating income increased 4.8%, despite a very difficult now for consumption in France in the second half.
The group, in open conflict with Casino on the valuation of Monoprix, their joint venture, reported retail sales of 5.58 billion euros, for a consolidated sales (excluding sales concession stands) of 4.96 billion euros, up 0.7%.
Sales growth was mainly due to the performance of the department store on Boulevard Haussmann in Paris, whose sales rose 14.3% due to tourist traffic, and sales growth of Monoprix, which grew by 3.2%.
Conversely, the decline in sales has continued to BHV. The group does not specify the amount of sales of the brand in trouble for several years.
"In a difficult global environment in 2011 (…) the activity held up well," said Philippe Houze, chief executive of Galeries Lafayette.
The group says "confident" for 2012, despite the uncertainties surrounding the evolution of markets, and indicates that at the end of February, sales of the brand were Galeries Lafayette up 8.4% on a comparable and those of Monoprix up 6.2%.
Galeries Lafayette and Casino have put into the public their disagreement on the valuation of the sign of the city center, which has assumed the aspect of a showdown legal and financial.
The battle promises to be long and bitter for the nugget Monoprix. Because the chain of distribution center is completely atypical in the French landscape.
With an operating margin of 7.2%, it is by far the most profitable assets of Casino in France, where the group's profitability was 3.9% in 2010, and prances ahead its competitors.
Operating income in 2011 of the Galeries Lafayette Group rose 4.8% to 372 million euros, for a margin of 7.5% (against 7.2% in 2010) while the net excluding exceptional items remained stable at 210 million euros.
Leaded by provisions and write-downs of 153 million euros on Cofinoga, a subsidiary of consumer credit equally owned by BNP Paribas and highly weakened by the crisis, net income group share fall to 43 million euros (against 380 million euros a year earlier, including 205 million euros of capital gains).
In February, China recorded its largest trade deficit over the past decade. A sign of the deteriorating economic conditions of countries, some analysts say. China recorded in February its largest trade deficit in over a decade.
This is a record. China recorded in February its largest trade deficit in over a decade, from 31.48 billion dollars, due to a surge in imports, particularly oil, according to figures reported Saturday by China Customs.
Imports jumped 39.6% year on year to 145.96 billion dollars, while exports rose 18.4% to 114.47 billion USD, have detailed the Customs on their website.
Imports grew far beyond the expectations of economists polled by Dow Jones agency, who on average expected 26% increase, while exports are well below their forecasts, which were 28.8% increase.
The expected deficit by these economists was 8.5 billion only. This is the largest trade deficit ever recorded in a single month by China since at least 2000, according to Dow Jones agency.
Slowdown
For the first two months of the year, China has a trade deficit of 4.25 billion. In January, it had a surplus, but the volume of China's foreign trade had shrunk because of the impact of Chinese New Year celebrations. The high level of imports is mainly due to oil imports, which hit last month to a record volume of 23.64 million tons, amounting to 19.47 billion dollars.
China recorded a trade deficit frequently earlier this year, but in 2011 it had only reached $ 890 million for the first two months of the year.
The deficit in February in addition to other economic indicators released reflecting a slowdown in the second world economy.
"Overall, we see an acceleration of deteriorating economic conditions," responded Zhang Zhiwei, an economist at Nomura Securities agency quoted Dow Jones. "The slowdown occurs more rapidly than expected in the government," he said.
The record trade deficit could prompt Beijing to further relax its monetary policy to support economic activity, while Chinese exporters are suffering from the impact of the debt crisis in Europe and weak economic growth in the U.S. .
Coface, which last year refocused its activities on credit insurance, reiterated Tuesday his intention to return when the stock market but market conditions have improved.
Jean-Marc Pillu, the CEO of a subsidiary of Natixis, declined to say how soon the Coface, deregistration in 2002, envisioned a new IPO nor how much capital will be offered to investors.
"The track is always the same, this is the IPO as soon as conditions permit," he said at a news conference.
"The internal conditions are met to be placed on the market," he added. "After the second condition, it is the markets (financial, Ed). We will wait quietly, serenely they allow us to do this. "
Asked about refocusing on the Coface credit insurance ; said, he explained that the company had isolated a structure apart and owned by its parent non-core businesses it intends to transfer …
…… "These activities were in a separate structure, as Natixis, well insulated (…) but remain under the responsibility of the Directorate General of Coface at the operational level, "said Jean-Marc Pillu.
He also said that except for the German and Polish markets, factoring activities were managed for their extinction ("run off"), that is to say, they are intended to be phased out.
Due to the reorganization of its business, Coface has subsequently passed in its 2011 accounts for 49 million euros in restructuring charges after taxes.
Its CEO also said the company had raised 1.1 billion euros of financing for factoring after signing a contract with four banks of securitization.
"We are most indebted of all, we paid all our debts in the long run. I speak of parent company debt, "said Jean-Marc Pillu
. Returning to the proposed creation of a rating agency Europé ; enemies, envisaged a time before finally being abandoned in early 2011, the CEO of Coface said that the business of insurance credit scoring and no pre ; felt no synergies between them
. "It's not all the same job," he insisted .. …….
