Poul Thomsen, the head of IMF mission in Greece, will have to recognize that slow the pace of fiscal consolidation since the recession is more severe than expected. The head of IMF mission to monitor the recovery of Greek finances, Poul Thomsen (here in Athens November 19, 2011) The head of IMF mission to monitor the recovery of Greek finances, Poul Thomsen, acknowledged errors in the control of the country for two years and called for fewer budget cuts and further liberalization, in an interview published Wednesday. "The budgetary adjustment was based on an exaggerated tax increases, we should have put more emphasis on cost containment is the one area where we could have been more convincing to the government "said the IMF representative, when asked about possible errors of the IMF by the Greek daily Khatimerini." Although much remains to be done, Greece has made good progress, "he said, claiming to understand the discomfort of the Greek opinion against criticism blaming the downturn on the country or accusing him of being unable to recover. "We should be more careful to ensure that we send a balanced message when we say that the program is off the rails," he said. But "reform and the effort required (…) have lost their momentum, we must find her," he ajouté.Poul Thomsen was recognized "worried" at the worsening of the recession-induced these measures. "We need to slow down the pace of fiscal consolidation and advance much faster in the implementation of reforms." He reiterated that among them, he supported measures to wage cuts in the private sector, as expected IMF boost the economy via a gain in competitiveness, but rejected by the Greeks as being at risk of stopping further consumption and activity. Poul Thomsen in particular called for a reduction in the minimum wage, red rag to the unions, stating that 'to 751 euros gross per month was 35% higher than that of Portugal, and from 20% to that of Spain. Despite reservations Greek on these requirements, he found that the negotiations that led to the side its counterparts Commission and European Central Bank with the government to complete the new plan for the country's recovery will be concluded "very shortly, within a few days."Target these days of sharp attacks in the Greek press as too inflexible and challenged him as in the IMF because of the failures encountered by the first bailout of Greece, Mr. Thomsen also emphasized working in full agreement with colleagues at the IMF.
PSA Peugeot Citroen expects a contraction of the European car market in 2012 although it is still too early to assess its extent, said Thursday the President of the Executive Philippe Varin.
These remarks were made while the Committee of French Automobile Manufacturers has reported a decrease of 7.6% of new car registrations in November. Data that confirmed the difficulties of PSA, whose sales fell 15.4% last month.
"We will be in Europe, probably negative growth next year.How, we do not know, it's too early, "said Philippe Varin told reporters on the occasion of the inauguration of a new production of three-cylinder engines at its facility in Trémery (Moselle) .
The annual production capacity of the new gasoline engine with smaller displacement will eventually reach 640,000 units per year.
The company said in a statement it had invested 717 million euros since the project began in 2008.
Manufacturers currently rely on the "downsizing", that is to say reducing the displacement of their engines, to reduce CO2 emissions equal power.
The first engines produced Trémery equip the future Peugeot 208 will be sold in the first quarter of 2012.
China must wait for Europe proposes a plan to end the crisis of sovereign debt feasible prior to contribute, said Friday an adviser to the People's Bank of China (COPD) but stressed that Beijing should have " some controls "on the use of funds provided.
China will study with other emerging countries, namely Brazil, Russia, India and South Africa possible initiatives to help Europe overcome the crisis of sovereign debt, said Li Daokui , a member of the Monetary Policy Committee of the Chinese central bank, speaking at a conference in Beijing.
"If we make money (the Europeans), we need some controls. We can not say we give you the money you spend as you wish.It's not fair that you keep a lavish lifestyle, "said Li told reporters.
The European Union is the largest trading partner of China and Li provides a limited contraction of the Chinese trade surplus this year to 150-160 billion yuan.
"For Europe, we can not just watch what happens and do not help," he added.
Li Daokui said that the figure of $ 100 billion to buy European sovereign debt and the media have given it was only a "theoretical figure."
Li warned that the growth of China's GDP to slow to 8.5% in 2012 from 9.2% expected in 2012, adding that China should maintain its current economic policy throughout the next year.
The revolt of the Greek people is all governments in Europe under pressure "and" this is only the beginning of a process, "he hoped.
François Bernacchi, vice president of Attac Country of Avignon, estimated that Mr. Papandreou shows "the example it is possible to have a democratic consultation." This event marked the beginning of a "people's summit" because of panel discussions and organized until Thursday in Nice, in response to the G20 Summit this weekend in Cannes, whose center is completed by strict safety device, 30 miles away.
Five arrests
In the morning, three Spaniards claiming a movement "anarcho-punk" and in possession of axes, and two Belgians equipped with steel balls, were arrested in Nice. The first three appear in court Wednesday, the two Belgians were released.
Tensions in the interbank market have an impact on the real economy. Nearly a third of French banks have tightened their criteria for business loans. And the movement should be extended.
Credit conditions for firms have tightened slightly in France in the third quarter, according to a survey by the Bank of France to the banks, which provide a greater tightening in the fourth quarter.
The balance between the institutions reporting a tightening and those seeing a relaxation reached 28.5 in the third quarter, according to data released Friday. This is the first tightening since the second quarter of 2009.
The hardening observed is almost the same for large businesses (28.8) and SMEs (28.5).The period from July to September, "the criteria for granting loans to enterprises were tightened more than expected in the previous survey," notes the Bank of France. "This hardening, attributed to both balance sheet constraints and bank financing to the rise of their risks, is reported by less than a third of them and spoke mainly in quarter-end," said the institution.
Banks and particularly given the tightening tensions they encountered to finance markets and the prospect of entry into force of the new regulatory framework Basel III said, in favor of a strict control of the size of balance sheets and thus the volume of loans. This tightening of credit conditions has been accompanied by a decline in business demand, more sensitive SMEs (balance -33.2) than large firms (-15.1).
More worrying for the economy, the banks see these two tendencies assert themselves in the fourth quarter.
The last three months of the year, the institutions surveyed foresee a further tightening (net 41.6), the strongest since the third quarter 2008, which corresponded to the financial crisis. The banks provide the same time, a further slowdown in demand for corporate credit (negative balance of 34.6).
Wall Street opened down sharply Thursday, continuing its decline started the day after the grim diagnosis of the Federal Reserve on the U.S. economy, plus a further contraction in activity in the eurozone and in China revives fears a second global recession in four years.
In early trade, the Dow Jones lost 2.6% (292 points) at 10,832 points.The Standard & Poor's, wider, yielding 2.42% (28 points) to 1138 points, while the Nasdaq composite fell by 2.5% (63 points) to 2474 points.
After ten minutes of trading, the Dow's losses widened and lost 3%.
The weekly jobless claims declined in the United States during the week to Sept. 17, at 423,000 against 432,000 the previous week, but they emerged above the consensus (420 000), which does not appease the spirits.
The Fed on Wednesday raised "significant downside risks" on the economy of the United States, before announcing an "Operation Twist" 400 billion dollars to bring down long rates, and support activity.
But Wall Street estimates that only 15% chance that the "Operation Twist" gives a real boost to the U.S. economy, according to a Reuters poll of primary dealers of Treasury.
Fears of a relapse of the global economy have intensified Thursday with the contraction in private sector activity observed in the eurozone and China.
The banking sector also sensitive to economic conditions, still suffers from the decision of Moody's downgrade of Bank of America (-4.4%), Wells Fargo (-2.7%) and Citigroup (-3.9%) on the ground the U.S. federal government may be reluctant to rush to the aid of large banking institutions in difficulty.
United Technologies lost 6.6% after announcing the acquisition of the aerospace supplier Goodrich, whose work jumped 9.8%, an operation that would be the largest acquisition of U.S. industrial giant in 10 years.
Manchester United football club's most successful in England, received the green light from the Singapore Stock Exchange for an IPO representing one billion dollars (722 million), told Reuters two sources familiar with the operation.
With the amount so raised, the club held by the U.S. Glazer family since 2005, wants to reduce a debt of nearly $ 500 million, the cost has weighed on its books in recent years.
Of 2009-2010, Manchester United has posted a record operating profit of 101 million pounds (115 million), but the level of net income, the loss was 84 million pounds due to the cost of debt.
By choosing a listing in Asia, the club hopes to increase the already very important, its supporters in the region.
Of the 330 million Manchester United fans worldwide, two thirds live in Asia.
By drawing a name as famous as that of Manchester United, Premier League title, the Singapore Exchange makes a killing in the race for IPOs brought to Hong Kong.
This leads, however, because the ball has become a destination for major international brands such as luxury goods group Prada and cosmetics manufacturer L'Occitane.
Preference Shares
The placing on the market including Manchester United should be made through the issuance of preference shares do not offer voting rights to the Glazer family does not lose control of the club, the sources said.
The choice of preference shares, which are attached a higher dividend than ordinary shares, has been criticized by investors as well as fans, they have always denied the presence of the Glazer family to head the club.
The Glazer, the club also own the Tampa Bay Buccaneers American football in the U.S., are accused by supporters to have high debt Manchester United in their takeover of the club, thus limiting its ability to recruit players.
Drasdo Duncan, general manager of "trust" supporters of Manchester United, told Reuters that the degree of control of a majority shareholder was likely to be a source of concern for minority investors seeking a return on acceptable investment.
Experts in corporate governance have criticized the Singapore Stock Exchange for allowing a form of IPO minimizing the influence of new shareholders.
Manchester United spent the last week to tour the major Asian institutional investors, including sovereign wealth fund Temasek in Singapore, according to sources.
The Tokyo Stock Exchange ended up 0.29% Friday, purchasing cheap market conservative who supported a highly anticipated speech before the President of the Federal Reserve.
The Nikkei gained 25.42 points to 8797.78 points and the Topix, broader took 4.25 points (0.57%) to 756.07 points.
Ben Bernanke is speaking from 14:00 GMT to Jackson Hole (Wyoming), a speech that investors around the world hope to gain clues about the Fed's intentions concerning the U.S. economy.
Hope to see Ben Bernanke announced a new plan to support the economy supported the equity markets early in the week, but this enthusiasm has been tempered somewhat.
"The Index (Nikkei) remains below 9.000 points, and is the level where investors buy stocks with attractive valuations, "said Hideyuki Okoshi, director of Chibagin Securities.
On small volumes, some values abused since the beginning of the month and have found favor with investors.
Elpida, the third manufacturer of DRAM, in particular, jumped 17.58% to 535 yen after losing up to 40% in one month due to the capital increase announced by the group.
The French president in whirlwind visit to Beijing to prepare for the next G20, estimates that China has "a major role" in reviving global growth. "We need the G20 summit (…) make decisions and take part in the revival of global growth. This is a major issue and China has a key role," said Nicolas Sarkozy.
The next G20 summit in Cannes will "decide" to revive the global economy, China is playing a "major role" in the process, said Thursday in Beijing Nicolas Sarkozy. The French president was greeted by his counterpart Hu Jintao at the Palace of the people of Beijing, Tiananmen Square, for a whirlwind tour of about five hours, with talks on Libya and sovereign debt crisis, and a dinner working with the Chinese president.
"As chair of the G20, I could not imagine not coming to China to talk with my Chinese friends of the great economic issues of concern to the world," said the head of the French state. "We need the G20 summit (…) make decisions and take part in the revival of global growth. This is a major issue and China has a key role," he added, to sides of the Minister of Finance Baroin came just prepare for this appointment.
The next summit of the G20 (group of rich countries and major emerging markets, currently chaired by Paris) will be held in Cannes (south-eastern France) on November 3 and 4. "That France and China strengthen their dialogue is of great importance for the success of the summit in Cannes, for strengthening international economic cooperation and to promote recovery and healthy development of the global economy," said Hu Jintao.
Paris and Beijing in phase of the post-Qadhafi
Nicolas Sarkozy is located in Beijing while the fall of the regime in Libya is not complete: the remaining pockets of resistance in Tripoli after the entry of rebel and Colonel Qaddafi is not found. But after being in Paris on Wednesday the number two of the rebellion Libya, Mahmoud Jibril, Sarkozy has proposed a conference of "Friends of Libya" on 1 September in Paris, which would go beyond the mere contact group and include the major emerging economies such as China. If China was hostile to the coalition strikes against Libya, it is however in line with Paris on the post-Qadhafi since Beijing also wants to see the UN play a "leading role" in Libya.
But the official newspaper China Daily Thursday gave a somewhat optimistic vision of the post-Gaddafi, saying "inevitable chaos and conflict emerge as the various opposition factions will fight for the political leadership." "China must maintain contact with all parties," added the newspaper.
The presidents Sarkozy and Hu should also talk about the problem of sovereign debt in Europe that undermine stock markets. The Global Times said Thursday in its Chinese version that Sarkozy "has just (in Beijing) first to get the continued support of China on the resolution of sovereign debt crisis in Europe." Considering that "26% of foreign exchange reserves of China are in euros," Ding Chun, professor at the Center for Research on Europe at the University of Fudan, Shanghai, called in the official newspaper of Europe to put the finances in order.
"The EU and Sarkozy have, while calling on China to take more responsibility in maintaining the stability of the global economy, making a decisive and courageous sacrifices (…) that developed countries must to face global challenges. " After a press statement, Mr Sarkozy will resume early in the evening fly to New Caledonia where it is to open Saturday the fourteenth game of the Pacific.
Wall Street finished the Monday session in a very small increase after four weeks of losses, closing a session with no real trend in a very fragile economic environment.
The New York Stock Exchange finished up 0.34% Monday, the Dow Jones Industrial 30 win 37 points to 10,854.65 points.
The S & P-500, wider took 0.29 point or 0.03% to 1123.82 points.
The Nasdaq Composite was up on its side of 3.54 points (0.15%) to 2345.38 points.
After four weeks in a row in the red, Wall Street has had a turbulent session, alternating folds and rebounds.
The shares have been particularly cheap buyouts, some stakeholders holding that the market had become oversold and the market turned upward late in the session in a climate of extreme volatility as fears of another recession in the United States and those of a destabilization of the European financial system remain.
In this context, investors will watch carefully for signs of possible new measures to support the Federal Reserve the U.S. economy, when its central bankers will meet Friday in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.
Values, the title took Lowe's Companies 1.139% after announcing it would spend five billion dollars to buy back shares over a period of two to three years.
Boeing took the title also 1.45%. Leaders of Delta Air Lines (0.13%) should vote this week an order for 100 Boeing 737 planes worth 8.58 billion dollars (six billion euros), Bloomberg announced News, citing two sources familiar with the matter.
Technology stocks like IBM (0.91%) or Hewlett-Packard (3.6%), are among the best performances of the day while financial still lost ground. The title of Bank of America fell 7.89%.