International News

 

China is becoming the new frontier of Dassault Aviation (whose largest shareholder is the owner of Figaro). "We set up in China where we are creating a subsidiary. By the end of 2012, will employ 25 people, "said Sunday Edelstenne, CEO of the French aircraft manufacturer, on the eve of the opening of the Fair Business Aviation (Ebace), which is held in Geneva until May 16

After opening sales offices in Shanghai and maintenance and Hong Kong two years ago in partnership with Jet Aviation and Hawker Pacific, the manufacturer of Falcon jets dope his device to enjoy a hot market. Given the regulatory constraints in China, "to establish long term, we need a subsidiary," insisted John Rosanvallon, President and CEO of Dassault Falcon. Headquartered in Beijing, will be operational this summer.

China has recently become one of the first customers of Dassault. The group plans to deliver 12 Falcon this year (out of 65 in the world) against 8 in 2011. Last year, half of its orders, or 18 devices, were placed with Chinese customers. This market looks like a pyramid upside down. Customers were immediately turned toward the high end. Dassault has already taken 20 orders of 7X, his flagship, which cost around $ 50 million.

But the market matures. "The number of new customers for our various models in the 2000S 7X is very promising," confirmed Edelstenne. The customer profile is changing China. The primary motivation for buying a jet status has long been a way to show his power and care networks. This is still true. "But the Chinese bosses are increasingly using their planes more for really professional, to save time, improve productivity, said Jean-Michel Jacob, CEO of Dassault Falcon-China. And the fact that Chinese companies increasingly go abroad reinforces this need, this awareness low fee pay day loans. "

Lack of airway

In three years, the business aircraft market has exploded in China. In 2011, "the country became the first market for all manufacturers in terms of sales," says Jean-Noel Robert, who chairs the Asian Business Aviation Association. China would be "third world market, and this share is expected to increase." The scope for growth is huge. Where there are 15,000 private jets in North America, there are fewer than 500 in Asia.

On the Hong Kong airport, the business aviation fleet is already the second and should become the first, before that of Cathay Pacific. "Asia, particularly China, is our main export market," noted Larry Flin recently, President Gulstream, recalling that its fleet, including Hong Kong, had jumped from zero in 2000 to over 80 aircraft today. For its part, Dassault Aviation now holds 30% market share in China, which should account for 20% of its production in the coming years. According to Canada's Bombardier, more than 2,300 business jets will be delivered in China by 2030, for a fleet of 150 aircraft today.

As part of its 12th five year plan, adopted last year, China has included among its objectives the development of business aviation. However, there is still the brakes, such as lack of airways, with a sky very locked and controlled by the military. But the problem is mainly lack of infrastructure and skilled staff. There are only 150 civil airports in China, 1500 against the United States. The number of airports will increase by 27% in China by 2010.

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A health insurance plan is definitely a major source of financial assistance in times of illnesses, accidents or diseases.

Presidential in major cities Paris | Leeds | Lyons | Toulouse | Leeds | Sheffield | Liverpool | Bordeaux | Lille

 

For the second time since 2009, Spain fell into recession. The Spanish economy has indeed contracted 0.3% in first quarter 2012 compared to end 2011, according to preliminary official figures released Monday. It is however slightly better than expected: the Spanish Central Bank expected a 0.4% decline in activity over the period.

After degradation of the Spanish note by Standard & Poor's, the publication of a record unemployment rate in March and fears more acute in the health of banks, the bad news accumulates in Madrid.

In the first quarter of 2012, only exports and tourism have supported activity. But their strength was more than offset by the effects of the austerity plan introduced by the center-right government of Mariano Rajoy, of unprecedented severity. Moreover, the cleanup of a long over-indebted economy, household businesses through the state, beating down domestic consumption. The proposed increase in VAT, under pressure from the International Monetary Fund, should accentuate this trend.

"The austerity trap"

So much so that the International Labor Organization (ILO), in its report published on Monday, sets up Spain as an example not to follow a policy solely focused on rigor. She stressed that "the deficit was reduced by just over 9% of GDP in 2010 to 8.5% of GDP in 2011: a very small reduction after a drastic austerity program." For 2012, the government had to moderate its deficit reduction target, it expects to either 4.4% but 5.3% of GDP, given the deteriorating situation. For the ILO, "the trap of austerity is being shut down."

The Spanish economy should continue to suffer, economists fear. "We expect an acceleration of the recession in the coming quarters, in parallel with the rise of austerity measures," said Evelyn Herrmann, economist at BNP Paribas. "Things should get worse before it gets better," says Martin van Vliet, of ING Bank.

Unemployment, already at a record level of 24.44%, should continue to climb. It should eventually reach more of an asset over four in Spain, provides the analyst consensus. Symbol of the Spanish slump, the construction industry, long time driver of the economy because of swelling of the housing bubble, should continue to lay off. It accounts for another 9% of employment, against 6% on average in the eurozone.  

Fears on banks

"The worsening situation on the labor market will have a particularly negative impact on banks," notes Ricardo Santos, an expert in Southern Europe at BNP Paribas. "The share of loans" non-performing "(that is to say, threatening never to be repaid, Ed) is expected to increase and represent 9% in late 2012." To which are added 176 billion euros inventory of buildings and land "problem", that is to say to the uncertain value, as counted from the Spanish Central Bank. Country's only hope in the short term, the "Marshall Plan" for growth in project and unveiled in Brussels on Saturday by the daily El Pais. According to him, he is expected to reach 200 billion euros, or 4% of GDP of the European Union. But Brussels has denied, insisting that these figures "had no basis."  

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Danone Nestlé pipped to the post. After months of bidding, both groups had submitted their final offers Friday the pharmaceutical company Pfizer to buy up his infant nutrition division. At a Board of Directors held this weekend, Pfizer, according to our information, preferred the Swiss giant, world leader in food, the French group.

Danone had yet put on the table just over $ 11 billion for the opportunity to strengthen its branch child nutrition (Blédina, Dumex) in Asia and Latin America. To prevail, the group led by Franck Riboud was finally does not ally with American specialist baby milk Mead Johnson, as he had been a time draft. Anxious not unsustainable debt and not having to sell its bottled water to fund this acquisition, Danone was however associated with investment funds for a portion of the acquired business to Pfizer, and intended to sell assets in infant nutrition in Europe (excluding France), Australia and New Zealand.

Three times larger than Danone, Nestle has used its war chest to win. By paying more than $ 11 billion for an activity of 2.1 billion, including the Swiss group will be able to recover some of its delay in this sector in China.

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SunPartner, a start-up of Aix-en-Provence (Bouches-du-Rhone) specializes in solar energy, has signed a partnership with the Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) to develop and build a demonstrator of the second generation of photovoltaic power plant at low concentration. SunPartner has already shown with the development by its subsidiary Wysips a transparent film photovoltaics to recharge his mobile in the sun.

The project developed by its subsidiary Axiosun with CEA and one of its laboratories, the Institute Liten, specializing in new energy and nanotechnology, will compete with conventional photovoltaic market is now taken in a squeeze between fierce competition from China and declining subsidies in France and other European countries.

"The solar modules are not the optimal solution. Concentration yields lower costs by 20% to the cost of panels Chinese "and thus become competitive, says Ludovic Deblois, the founding president of SunPartner. Photovoltaic power plants developed by Axiosun make it possible to focus with concave mirrors up to 12 times the sun's rays, which reduces the cell size implemented for the same energy. In addition, advance Ludovic Deblois, these modules retain a high yield of about 19%, despite the increase in temperature due to the concentration, whereas with the standard modules, the yield decreases by 1 or 2% per degree additional.

Reduce costs

Axiosun is positioned in the segment of small and medium power (to drive a company, a village or small town) in area to strong sunlight.

He installed the first plant at low concentration in France in Saint-Cannat near Aix-en-Provence and two in Morocco. The issue of partnership with the CEA signed for three years with a budget of 2.2 million is to improve the technology. The objective is to achieve a cost per kWh up to 40% lower than with a central ground to conventional panels. One key is the development of a manufacturing process to local costs well below Chinese costs by investing ten times lower.

The project is part of the proposed City of energies, initiated earlier this year by CEA Cadarache, near Aix-en-Provence. This platform of several dozen hectares is home to companies that CEA helps innovate and where demonstrators can be built. Axiosun going to make a pilot. Eight other partnerships have been forged by the CEA for a total of 26 million euros, including a solar desalination unit developed with Veolia.

"Our bet is that innovation makes it possible to reduce costs at all stages of production, to make solar competitive," says Pierre Joubert, head of the antenna to the direction of technological research, CEA Cadarache. "On the technology concentration, there is no viable competitors. Our goal is to develop a sector in France. "

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Ikea for 30 years would have dreamed, best advertising. But a month after the revelation of illegal policing practices of employees and customers by Chained Duck and Mediapart, the direction of Ikea France wants to show it has taken stock of the situation. Vanoverbeke Stefan, head of the French subsidiary of the Swedish furniture giant yesterday presented its action plan and its working group to improve the image of the group being undermined by the discovery of internal mails mentioning the use of private detectives and the font file. Activities that led to Ikea France sidelined several top executives, including Jean-Louis Baillot, CEO of the subsidiary at the relevant time. "An internal audit by an independent firm has established that there had been research practices of information not consistent with our values. This is unacceptable and I regret it, "said Stefan Vanoverbeke. The current owner is careful however to discuss the future of the people involved to "preserve the presumption of innocence" and leave the floor of Versailles, seized by the CFDT union, do his job. "It is up to judges to say what is illegal or not. We just want to cooperate, "he said.

A pilot initiative

And as proof of his goodwill, Ikea France, which has already seen its headquarters raided and visited by the CNIL (National Data Protection Authority) in its stores, plans to give the prosecution the findings of its internal audit. But it is mostly a working basis for a group of four managers responsible for "strengthening the values ​​and ethical standards." "It's not an excuse but it does not direct a company of 10,000 employees as a company that has only 500 easy payday loans. The findings of the survey showed us that our way of working no longer fit our size, "explains Stefan Vanoverbeke.

Ikea already had a code of conduct but the group had been working to develop a global charter. Irregularities discovered in France gave a good boost to the initiative, even if the boss of Ikea France considers that there is "no reason to believe that such practices occurred in other countries where group is established. " No investigation has been carried out elsewhere. "France will be a pilot," he says. Beginning in June, the working group should thus be able to make concrete proposals for reforming corporate governance, support managers and staff, recruitment of technical change but also monitor compliance with the group values . "We developed this action plan because we want to act quickly to give answers to our employees, social partners and customers. But we hope that these answers are of quality, "says the CEO that all employees of the group can now contact directly by e-mail. For clients, Stefan Vanoverbeke remains attentive to comments left on forums where he received "varying degrees of concern." Not enough empty stores nor sinking sales, however.

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Since formalizing his candidacy on February 15, Nicolas Sarkozy deseeded dozens of proposals, with its compiled in a campaign document, as an accurate, encrypted, presented Thursday. According to his entourage, the president candidate could submit a new "strong measure" in the social field. Earlier this week, Nicolas Sarkozy has indicated that its entire program will ask for 115 billion euros to the French effort, spending about 75 billion, 40 billion on revenue.

Nicolas Sarkozy also has his "letter to the French," in which he exhibited his "values" and his "vision of France" by the year 2017. This document, published in several million copies, will be distributed "by activist," says his entourage. On the first page of the 36-page document, is a sentence written in manuscript by Nicolas Sarkozy: "My fellow Americans, there is nothing more beautiful than the love of his country." "My goal is clear: France to build a strong enough in the next five years (…), yes reconcile France and France's failure" to the European referendum in 2005, Nicolas Sarkozy said.

• Economy and Public Finance

"" All my proposals are built around one goal: the balance of public finances in 2016, "said Nicolas Sarkozy. He confirmed in his project a French public deficit has 0% of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2016 and a surplus of 0.5% in 2017. Incumbent President states in his proposed reduction of the French public debt to 80.2% in 2017 instead of 85.8% in 2011 with European commitments.

"To achieve the deficit targets, the tax burden will increase from 43.8% of GDP in 2011 to 45.6% in 2017 in France. Nicolas Sarkozy plans in its plan to cut public spending in France to 51.9% of GDP in 2017 instead of 55.9% in 2011.

"Nicolas Sarkozy has acknowledged that 115 billion effort is needed over five years. "I have to add the 9.5 billion campaign proposals," he added. This brings the total effort of 124 billion. Three quarters will focus on reducing expenses, the remainder of the revenue, insisted the president candidate, as he had already announced.

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Times are changing. Apple also. Tim Cook, CEO of the group, visited China this week. This is the chief executive of the Apple brand to do so. Territory that Steve Jobs has ignored many years before the first open an Apple Store in 2008, but he never went. Thursday, the world's factory and especially Apple, China today is a tremendous reservoir of consumers. The Chinese world – mainland China, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan – is already the second largest brand, behind the United States.

No question of the destination then sulk. "China is very important to us and we look forward to further invest and grow here," and said Carolyn Wu, spokesman for the brand in one of the few interventions official Apple communication very stingy on the Overall the visit Tim Cook. Received with honors by the Vice-Premier Li Keqiang, tipped to succeed next year in the current prime minister, Wen Jiabao, also met with California leading operators China Unicom and China Telecom. First local operator, China Mobile still in talks with Apple to launch iPhone on its network. Moreover, an intellectual property litigation on the brand "IPAD" claimed by a Hong Kong company, slows sales of iPad in China, where the latest version has not yet been launched.

Wave of suicides at Foxconn

But the trip leader California also sought to address criticisms been rising, from around the world, on the manufacturing conditions of its high-tech products payday loans lenders. In 2010, a wave of suicides had given to Foxconn, Apple's main supplier that produces iPhone and iPad in China, a fatal reputation, yet tarnished by an explosion in a factory and workers of poisoning by chemicals.

An image so disastrous that earlier this year, the American actor Mike Daisey had no trouble getting across the Atlantic believe that Foxconn, children 12 years working in factories guarded by armed guards, before admitting that this information had been made.

No wonder Tim Cook will be split from a visit to the new Foxconn factory in Zhengzhou, south-west of Beijing, including the official photos showed smiling employees. The Apple brand is committed to improving working conditions in its factory in China, signing an agreement with Foxconn on the hiring of tens of thousands of employees, improving safety and solving the problem for hours additional illegal.

Earlier, China had the opportunity to lecture foreign companies invited by Li Keqiang to "take more care of their workers," according to comments reported by the official daily English-language China Daily.

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The French are discouraged before they even take steps to resolve a dispute. It is thought that nine out of ten surveyed by Ipsos for the first edition of the barometer Axa legal protection. Justice remains an unknown for most of them: 80% do not know who to turn to know their rights, and 97% believe that the justice system is difficult to understand.

Worse, seven out of ten French think they have no financial means to defend themselves. Godsend for the legal protection insurers, which offer information in their contracts, and if necessary support – within limits – of legal fees. According to the Ministry of Justice, the cost of resolving a dispute is on average 200 euros for the costs of bailiff, 500 euros for an amicable and 1500 euros to cover attorney fees for a procedure .

Family, an area seldom covered by insurance

The French think that the main sources of conflict are employment, housing and the Internet. In fact, the most common disputes relate primarily to the housing (25%), led by neighborhood problems and relations between landlord and tenant, and Internet purchases (24%). Relations with the employer is not a priority (23%).

Numerous disputes also affect the field of family (divorce, inheritance …). But legal protection insurers rarely venture in this field. Axa Protection legal disputes of this nature are supported only if the client has signed the contract the more upscale, costing between 140 and 300 euros per year, much higher than a domestic contract classic (63 euros per year).

The insurer, like others, offers customers a hotline: a lawyer tells them about their rights and answered their questions. This service receives 175,000 calls a year. The insurer sees submit 36,000 new claims per year, most amicably resolved.

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France could seek to accelerate its transition energy. In fact, the country's fuel bill has reached a new record in 2011, up from 32% to 61.4 billion euros, according to figures from the Commissioner General for Sustainable Development announced by Les Echos. The energy bill of France and represented 3.1% of GDP, last year against 2.5% in 2010.

This increase was driven by soaring oil prices. The average price per barrel of oil a year has indeed established last year to $ 111, not seen since the nineteenth century. The price of unleaded gasoline and have reached new heights last week, to 1.6211 euro on average for a liter of unleaded 95 and 1.6610 for that of 98 unleaded, according to data released yesterday by Ministry of Sustainable Development. This price is still below the record high of 1.4541 euro per liter recorded in May 2008.

Since late 2011, gasoline prices beat record after record in France, propelled by the combination of geopolitical factors that keep crude oil prices at very high levels, and weakening of the euro against the dollar , which amplifies the cost of black gold once its converted value in the single currency.

Nuclear energy has however enabled France to reduce its energy dependence as the country has a net electricity exports by 2.6 billion euros. The development of renewable energy has also enabled France to reduce the weight of its energy dependence. Video BFM. Sorry, this video is not available on your device.