The Group of Twenty (G20) pledged Friday to give the International Monetary Fund (IMF) over $ 430 billion of additional resources to identify the debt crisis of the euro area.
The agreement doubles the capacity of the IMF loan, which was the goal set by its Executive Director Christine Lagarde at the opening meetings of the IMF and World Bank this weekend.
"There are firm commitments to increase resources available to the IMF more than $ 430 billion, in addition to the planned quota increase under the reform of 2010" , declared in a statement the finance ministers and central bankers from the G20, referring to the project to give emerging countries a say in the larger fund.
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Google reported Thursday a net profit of 2.89 billion dollars or 8.75 dollars per share (GAAP) in the first quarter and announced a division of its shares on a two for a.
The net sales for the first quarter, which excludes fees paid to partner sites, totaled $ 8.14 billion.
The total turnover of the quarter is 10.65 billion.
U.S. President again pleaded for taxation at 30% of annual revenues in excess of one million dollars. Rival in the White House, Republican Mitt Romney, is directly targeted: his fortune is estimated at between 190 and 250 million. U.S. President Barack Obama arrives at a rally in Florida on April 10
Barack Obama pleaded Tuesday for the "rule Buffett," a rebalancing of tax scales to charge more for the richest Americans, a way to embarrass the multimillionaire Mitt Romney, his likely opponent in the presidential election. "What hinders our entire economy is the growing gap between the super rich and everyone else," said the American president during a speech in Florida (Southeast), a crucial state on the electoral map for the presidential Nov. 6 where he is seeking a second four-year term.
"I ask you: what is the best way to strengthen our economy? Provide $ 150,000 in additional tax relief to every millionaire and billionaire? Or invest in education, research, health and our veterans? "said Obama at a university in the city of Boca Raton, facing an enthusiastic crowd, which chanted" four more years! " The president has defended the September 2011 "Buffett rule", the taxation at least 30% of annual revenues in excess of one million dollars. The chairman stressed that it is unfair that the multibillionaire Warren Buffett, are among the world's wealthiest people, is subject to a tax rate lower than his secretary employed, due to a tax code that taxes less capital income than labor. Warren Buffett himself has said he supported this measure.
The Senate, dominated by allies of Mr. Obama should make Monday a procedural vote on this device. But Republican opponents of the president have said their hostility and can block it. Obama's insistence on the "rule Buffett" seems primarily intended to put on the defensive opponent Mitt Romney, became even more conservative favorite of the primary on Tuesday with the abandonment of its main competitor Rick Santorum. The president did not mention the name of Mitt Romney, merely ironic about the presidential candidates "that should not be appointed" and that according to him are lawyers from both deficit reduction and a reduction in taxes for the rich.
Mitt Romney only pays 15% tax
Mitt Romney, a former investor whose fortune is estimated at between 190 and 250 million dollars, be admitted subject to a tax rate of 15% despite annual revenues of over $ 20 million in 2010 and 2011. It thus benefits in particular, as many wealthy Americans, niche tax changes introduced in 2001 and 2003 under the aegis of former Republican President George W. Bush. The White House says that Americans appearing in 0.1% of the highest incomes pay taxes now represent 26% of their income, against 51% in 1960, while members of the middle class have seen in the same time their tax rate from 14 to 16%.
The discount on the carpet of the "rule Buffett" comes as Americans must report their income before April 17 and may be more receptive to such a speech. The Republican camp has fired back Tuesday stressing that what they called "Buffett tax" would raise no less than 50 billion dollars in ten years, while the federal government debt exceeds 15,600 billion . And communications director for Mitt Romney, Gail Gitcho, said that "President Obama is the first president in history to openly campaign for reelection on a platform of raising taxes." Former President Bush himself on Tuesday defended the tax cuts of 2001 and 2003, during a speech in New York. "If we increase taxes, we take money from the pockets of consumers," he said in a rare foray into politics since leaving the White House in January 2009.
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.
The Tokyo Stock Exchange ended almost unchanged Monday after slight correction suffered last week, investors focusing on actions related to metals and blue chips that have underperformed ; the market lately.
The Nikkei gained 0.07% or 6.77 points, to 10,018.24. In contrast, the Topix broader, yielded 0.71 points (-0.08%) to 851.82.
This evolution of the Nikkei, helped by the decline of the yen against the dollar, was recorded in a few exchanges expanded.
"Even if the Nikkei falls below 10,000 points, Japanese institutional investors are not going to take profits because they have more net sellers in the rally (in recent months)," said Kenichi Hirano , a director at Tachibana Securities.
Technical analysts believe that the decline of last week could lead investors who missed the bull cycle in action since the beginning of the year to enter the market.
The Tokyo Stock Exchange was down 1.1% Friday, accusing its largest percentage decline in two months. But it is still up over 18% since the beginning of the year.
Ingenico is looking for growth opportunities in services and emerging markets after the forced abandonment of its proposed acquisition in the U.S., which would enable it to face the giant VeriFone.
The CEO of specialist payment terminals, Philippe Lazare, told Reuters detect "significant room for improvement" in Southeast Asia, where it is to affû ; t acquisitions.
"The past year has confirmed that emerging markets are really the primary drivers of growth and the business model with an increasing share of our service activities and transactions (compared to) our terminal activities is a strategy that works, "he argued in an interview.
Ingenico had to rethink its strategy last year after renouncing buy U.S. assets of Hypercom as a result of a decision of the department improve Rican Justice to initiate an antitrust action.
In the U.S., where the group's clients include distribution groups Wal-Mart and Home Depot, Ingenico expects much of the ongoing transition of the United States to smart cards, lead to a prompt Renewal of the terminal stores.
Ingenico, which counts among its competitors Gemalto, First Data and Heartland Payment Systems, is also betting on the transaction management services and maintenance of payment terminals, for not having to rely on its core business , manufacture and sale of terminals.
This service activity should represent 40% of turnover next year as against 32% today, said Philippe Lazare.
Ingenico announced last month reaching for the first time in 2011 the symbolic threshold of one billion euros in revenue, driven by the dynamism of emerging countries.
For 2012, the group said it expected growth of over 8% on a comparable basis of its revenues and an EBITDA margin of greater than or equal to 18.3% .
The action, which exceeded 85 euros at the height of the dotcom bubble, touched a low of 4.6 euros in 2003. The title has turned the corner since 2009 and was up 28% since the beginning of the year at nearly 36 euros.
Ingenico, whose biggest shareholder is the supplier of defense and security Safran, in 2010 had rejected an offer to 28 euros per share of U.S. conglomerate Danaher, but Philippe Lazare said his group left for sale. At the right price.
"Clearly, society has been widely appreciated since this offer," he said. "We will continue to strengthen our balance sheet and strategy and make acquisitions to grow our relevant value. After, if someone wants to buy us one day, he will be welcome provided that it will put the price ".
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).
United Parcel Services (UPS) agreed to pay nearly 5.2 billion euros to buy Dutch rival TNT Express, announced Monday the two groups, an operation that will allow the gen ; American ant-mail and logistics to gain strength in Europe.
TNT said its management board and supervisory board would support unanimously the offer of 9.50 euros per share, higher than 0.50 euro to the initial offer submitted in February.
The largest shareholder group, PostNL, which holds 29.8% stake, has also expressed support for the operation, which will create a global leader displaying 45 billion euros turnover.
The joint statement from both groups noted that the offer represents a premium of 53.7% over the closing price on February 16, the day before the announcement of the opening of discussions between the two groups.
UPS, already world number one, had long been interested in TNT in order to develop in Europe, including Britain, France and Germany.
The tender offer ends years of speculation about the future of the Dutch group, divided by PostNL, the Dutch post and the year listed separately last.
Faced with declining profits and the unfavorable business outlook for 2012, management of TNT was subjected to pressure from shareholders "activists" such as investment funds Jana Partners and Alberta Investment Management.
Friday, UPS had said further discussions "constructive" with TNT, four weeks after the latter's rejection of its initial offer to 9.00 euros per share.
The U.S. group said Monday that the purchase of TNT will have a positive impact on its financial results for the first year and is sure to get all the official permits for the conduct out.
While global stock markets fell Tuesday for fear of failing the Greek debt restructuring, the European Commissioner for Economic and Financial ensures that the operation "should proceed smoothly."
Stop the panic that gripped markets. Two days before the deadline given to private creditors of Greece to accept or not the deletion of part of the country's debt, the European Commissioner for Economic and Financial Affairs, Ollie Rehn, steps into the breach. In an interview with Le Figaro, he argues that the operation "should proceed smoothly." And adds: "From the information we collect, the debt swap should take place smoothly, as the transaction is financially attractive to the private sector"
The Finnish Commissioner was asked about whether the fact that the dreaded "credit default swaps" (CDS), these insurance contracts on default of payment to be triggered if the debt exchange operation went wrong. "It is not our preferred scenario. Instead," said Rehn, while anxiety has spread in the markets Tuesday.
European shares ended the session sharply down and banking stocks were particularly hard hit, indicating investors fears of a default of Greece as we approach the result of the restructuring of its indebtedness imposing. The rate of participation of private creditors should be at least 75% for Greece to erase part of its debt (107 of the 200 billion held by private creditors) and receive the second aid package of 130 billion approved last week in Brussels.
About a third aid plan, referred to by the German weekly Der Spiegel Sunday, "this is a hypothesis that has been circulating among Cassandra, I am not …", Rehn sweeps. "Let's focus instead on the implementation of the second rescue plan, which provides a unique erase debt," he told the BBC.
The Commissioner also stated "that the risk of explosion (the eurozone) is behind us." But "the recession is here, and unemployment is worrying," he says. "We are at a critical time in which member states must keep their budget commitments, to make the necessary structural reforms, while strengthening the firewall to anti-crisis 750 billion euros in Europe," Rehn recommends.
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 .. …….
