International News

Decisive day for the mobilization against the pension reform. The objective of unions is clear: to gather more demonstrators than previous events, which led to another since the beginning of the year. On 27 May, between 395,000 and one million people (according to the police and unions respectively) took to the streets.

Since then, times have changed. The government has announced plans for pension reform last week. A text that unions have unanimously considered "unfair." Guests this Thursday on RTL, the secretary general of the CFDT, Francois Chérèque, regretted "being faced with a country that is willing to change, but change in the wrong direction." Therefore, he hopes an "exceptional mobilization" for this inter-action day.

"The hope was to surpass the one million demonstrators.I think that this figure will be exceeded is obvious, "said François Chérèque, saying that" perhaps two million people "will demonstrate this Thursday. And this, especially since "more than 200 gatherings" are already planned across France. And calls for strikes in the business (as in Saint-Gobain, Michelin, Total, Airbus, BNP Paribas, L'Oreal, France Telecom, La Poste …) have followed since the beginning of the week.

At the Post, some 19.86% of staff were on strike Thursday morning, said the Directorate in a statement against 12.80% last May 27. For its part, the direction of the station has recorded 39.8% of strikers among the railway workers in mid-morning, against 23.2% during the last day of action interprofessional.

The teachers were 31.9% to strike Thursday in schools and 10.3% in secondary schools (including 18.7% in colleges), according to figures from the Ministry of Education published in mid-morning. The schools were little affected, the degree requires organization. On the day of 23 March, the mobilization in the primary had reached 29.8% of strikers, the ministry said.

Another sector to have mobilized public broadcasting had a strong participation in the strike on Thursday. Several television and radio have been deleted throughout the morning. The directions of France Televisions and Radio France, however, had not reported figures to the mid-day. Finally, the publication of several regional newspapers has been disrupted. To major national newspapers will not seem morrow Fridays.

For the secretary general of the CGT, Bernard Thibault, the one million demonstrators should be passed this afternoon. "If that's not enough, we have the sequence of ideas, this is not the end of a cycle, only the announcement of a bill," he warned in a interview with the newspaper 20 Minutes. "I've seen governments fall as safe as this one, particularly on the subject of pensions, has finally found the union leader.

If Nicolas Sarkozy pledged on Tuesday to be "tuned" during discussions with the unions this summer, and it spoke of "possible developments" of the reform bill late last week, some key points text does not change as raising the legal age to 62 years in 2018. And, whatever the mobilization this Thursday."The mobilization will certainly strong, we expect, we do not fear," warned the Labour Minister, Eric Woerth.

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The rating agencies do not trust Japan. "Without a strong fiscal consolidation plan and credible by the Government of Japan notes will be threatened with demotion to the long term," he said Monday in Tokyo Andrew Colquhoun, director of public debt ratings for Asia-Pacific .

The warning is not innocent. It was made just hours before Prime Minister of Japan, Naoto Kan, announces an increase in the consumption tax, now one of the world's lowest, 5%, designed to rebalance country's finances, would not the day "before two or three years" paydayloans.

In the eyes of Fitch, Tokyo is obviously not fast enough, while the country's debt reaches 201% of its gross domestic product (GDP).

The world leader in chemistry, German BASF, is expected to sign Tuesday the acquisition of fellow Cognis according to the Financial Times Deutschland. Owned by Permira and Goldman Sachs, Cognis manufactures additives for cosmetics and detergents.

According to sources close to the case interviewed by the newspaper, the transaction amounted to 3.2 billion euros. In 2009, sales of Cognis representing 2.6 billion euros and EBITDA was $ 364 million. On its website, the company states employ approximately 5,600 people and be present in thirty countries.

Originally, Cognis was a subsidiary of Henkel, resold in 2004 to 2.5 billion euros. In 2006, the efforts of its new owners to sell it failed. In recent years, the company split from two of its five subsidiaries.BASF has already bought in 2009 the Swiss Ciba for 3.8 billion euros to strengthen in the mill.

Between the French listed companies and U.S. investors, the reports are looking good. Despite the crisis, Paris remains the third preferred destination after Great Britain and Germany. But this affinity could become even more intensity, if we believe a research firm Financial Dynamics on the attractiveness of companies listed on the Paris Stock Exchange with 30 institutional investors on Wall Street. Europe weighs only 13.8% of their portfolio and the size of France went a small 1.6%, which suggests the study, could grow if the managements of French companies were showing "greater transparency and if the publications were more accurate results and frequent. All these qualities, however, already claimed by large listed companies. Yet Americans remain unsatisfied.While 62% feel well informed about investment opportunities, 38% complain that they do not quite grasp the subtleties of the governance and regulation at the French. This does not prevent them from playing for high: 39% of respondents prefer large-cap, over 10 billion euros. And 23% opt for those between 5 and 9.99 billion euros.

To choose between two companies in the euro area, 53% of investors focus first on to dissect the "fundamentals", only 16% consider the prospects for growth as critical. Which is good in this day and age.

Eiffage prances at the head of the Paris stock exchange Thursday morning, climbing about 12% to 10.30. The construction group said Wednesday evening after the close of the Paris Stock Exchange that its subsidiary has signed an agreement Eiffarie with funds for the purchase 13.73% of Autoroutes Paris-Rhin-Rhone (PRPA) that they hold for a total of 854 million euros (55 euros per share). APRR is the second largest French motorway and the fourth in Europe.

Eiffarie owned by Eiffage and Australia's Macquarie have after the operation 95% of APRR. The subsidiary also plans to launch a buyout offer, that is to say that APRR would no longer be quoted on the Stock Exchange (right when the majority shareholder holds more than 95%).A project must receive the blessing of the AMF to be realized.

If this is implemented, and upon its conclusion, it remains on the securities market, these shares would then be a squeeze, which will be performed at the same price of 54.16 euros per share: 84 cents per share are restated as it is the amount of the dividend qu'Eiffarie decided to pay shareholders of APRR June 30 next.

The transaction is expected to close by the June 24 APRR listed on compartment A of Euronext, flies too, from 7.65% to 54.75 euros.

Eiffage and Macquarie have finally heard

The two shareholders of Eiffarie seemed irreconcilable. On this issue, in fact, Eiffage wanted to make a capital increase of 400 million euros in APRR, here just one year.One way to avoid a deterioration of its financial rating would increase the costs of refinancing cash advance till payday. Macquarie's refusal earlier this year.

Use markets? The CEO of Eiffage, in turn, rejects the idea. The stock market conditions are too uncertain. Another option would be to buy back its shares in Eiffarie. But Macquarie had not responded.

Investors enthusiastic

"The acquisition of the balance of APRR is positive news for Eiffage.The group can calmly deal to refinance Eiffarie 2013, "commented analyst Aurel BCG, for whom this would be" accretive by approximately 3% based on Eiffage tax integration we estimate that approximately 70 million euros.

Indeed, Eiffage will benefit from the tax integration: from 1 January 2011, interest paid on debt to acquire Eiffarie * – 3.77 billion – will be deducted from the tax base APRR, say the strategists Natixis Securities. In addition, the tax losses generated by the interest paid on this debt between 2006 and 2010 will be tax deductible APRR, they said. For them, the economy reached 314 million euros. APRR, in fact, will not pay tax according to their estimates.

* Eiffarie, had been chosen by the state in late 2005 during the privatization of Autoroutes Paris Rhin Rhone (APRR).

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Ten weeks after the arrival on the shelves of stores of its nearest competitor, Nespresso is on the offensive … judiciary. Nestle, the world leader in food and owner of Nespresso, sued Friday in front of the Tribunal de Grande Instance of Paris the U.S. Sara Lee, which sells in France for use in coffee pods Nespresso machines under the brand Gold ( coffee house).

According to our records, Casino is also covered by this assignment, as distributor caps Gold. However, neither Carrefour or Leclerc or Auchan, which also sell, have received blue paper. Nestle has obviously wanted to spare its main customers in France.

In fact, the Swiss Casino attacks because it sells, in addition to pods Gold, its own brand caps, also compatible with Nespresso machines.Available for less than one month, they were designed by CSC, a company founded by a former boss of Nespresso, which claims to have found a way around the patents by the Swiss group. The best advertising we could do that Nestle would drag us to court, "repeated John Paul Gaillard, head of CSC. The latter will have to wait to see if it will receive such a boost from his former employer.

1700 patents

Nestlé experts (engineers, mechanics, lawyers), which took ten weeks to complete their technical analysis of the capsules, however, have not yet completed its review of those Casino."This assignment is a clever shot pool with three bands, according to a avocat.Casino will prepare his defense for Gold, while avoiding having to contradict itself in any future case."

Nestle has taken the risk of him a (bad) publicity to defend its brand and its margins."We welcome fair competition, the company said, but we will take all appropriate measures to defend our intellectual property rights."

With the Nespresso coffee machines tailored to accept (in theory) that caps his coffee house and sold exclusively in a distribution network owned, Nestle has a nugget that was made last year a number of business by 1.94 billion euros (up 22%) and whose profitability, kept secret, is close to levels recorded in the luxury industry.

The 1700 patent cover both Nespresso pods, machines, and the mechanism that provides the link between the two. The assignment of Sara Lee would focus on these last two points, not the pods themselves. While those of Nespresso, aluminum, are completely sealed, those of Gold, plastic, are already holes.The panel discussion promises to be tricky. Pending the outcome of the proceedings, which could take 12-18 months (unless an agreement was reached earlier), provides Nespresso not have noticed the slowdown in its rate of growth since the arrival of new competitors. Sara Lee and sell between 1.1 and 1.5 million capsules of coffee … ten to twenty times less than Nescafe.

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This is not a surprise but the time is more than ever in a pinch. Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy will meet on Monday to prepare the European Council by the end of the week and the G20 Toronto. Discussions will focus obviously on public deficits in the euro area, including sanctions to apply against the states that are lax or new ways of coordination of economic policies. Originally scheduled on June 7 last, the interview was postponed, allowing the two leaders unveiled their own plans for savings.

French plan considered "practicable"

The plan submitted by Paris this weekend, is considered "feasible" by the Governor of the Bank of France, Christian Noyer.This has indeed said Sunday he is "perfectly possible" for France to bring its public deficit to 3% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by 2013 as foreseen in the government aims to reduce the public deficit (government, corporate accounts, local communities), 100 billion. To do this, the Governor of the Bank of France has called for "priority measures to reduce expenses."

Effort on the sources of expenditure

And that's the government's target. The Budget Minister Francois Baroin said Sunday that the objective will be achieved by making "a major effort on all sources of expenditure, the state plans to cut public spending by 45 billion euros. The Minister added that this effort on ITélé would "not less" than in Germany.In Germany, the government wants to save 80 billion by 2014, thanks to budget cuts in military spending and social.

The question remains what the market reaction. For now, a report published Sunday by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) says that the bailout of the European Union has not defused the fears of the markets. The institutions in Basel has also reaffirmed that the French and German banks are particularly exposed to the debts of Greece, Ireland, Portugal and Spain with a respective total of 493 billion and 465 billion dollars.

The countdown is triggered. If he wants to present its pension reform around the Council of Ministers on July 14, as expected, the government must balance its bill before the end of next week. Otherwise, the consultation of specific bodies (boards of funds Safely, Higher Council of Public …) required before the Council of Ministers, can not occur within time constraints. But there is no question of falling behind, not to shift the following schedule: study Social Affairs Committee of the Assembly during the week of July 19 – Can not overflow, the Palais Bourbon will work in August ! – And then in plenary on 7 September.

The final version of the bill will be known in a week.But a first draft will be unveiled Tuesday, Wednesday or later (it could have been Tuesday but the government wants to avoid being accused of incitement, while FP calls a strike on the issue of pensions that day … ). Meanwhile, the government will collect the reactions of unions. And perhaps he let go a little ground …

A quarter per year

There remain a few days to make the final arbitration. It is Nicolas Sarkozy himself who will decide, probably during the weekend, surrounded by the prime minister, Francois Fillon, Minister of Labour, Eric Woerth and Budget and Public Accounts, Baroin, and rare employees, including the social adviser at the Elysee Raymond Soubie. For now, nothing is decided. Not even the most expected: the decline of legal age. 62, 63 years? Only the pace of recovery seems likely: one quarter per year.Some – MEDEF in mind – still grow for a semester, but as Woerth Soubie consider this rate too fast to be acceptable.

Must we also announce today a further lengthening of the contribution period for a full pension? Everything depends on the horizon set. Aim Is there balance in 2020, 2025, 2030? The government will in any case to demonstrate that all of its reform can indeed balance financial accounts. This is the only way to justify the early use of a resource that is not sustainable – the Pension Reserve Fund – which now seems inevitable no faxing pay day loans. The seesaw in the medium term, a portion of unemployment contributions to pension funds, also participate in financial closure.

Pan "public" also remains to be determined.If this government has argued in favor of aligning the rate of pension pay of civil servants (7.85%) with that of private sector employees (10.55%), the head of state does not forget he was elected on the subject of purchasing power. If it was baneberry, the measure would be very gradual. She could not even apply to future employees, if this does not pose a constitutional problem of having two officers of equal status, the same post with the same gross pay but not clean … The same doubt remains maintenance of the famous method of calculating the pensions of officers for the last six months of salary. However the possibility of retiring after 15 years of service for mothers of 3 children, should not exist.

Restricted bonuses

The ages at which some officers may retire (50 years for police officers, 55 firefighters …) should be addressed alongside the legal age. And the improvements will be very limited (for example military, only time spent in theaters of operations will result in dangerous quarters "available", while yet an assessment year is given "free" every five years after 15 year career). In return, employees are entitled to the same measures of compensation for hardship than other employees.

These measures will in any case not be decided separately.The social and political acceptability of reform can be gauged as a whole.

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Since one week, the controversy raged in Britain about treatment against multiple sclerosis. The British health authority had signed an agreement in 2002 stipulating that if the drugs did not provide patients with the expected effects, manufacturers undertook to lower its price. Seven years later, the products are much less effective announced … but no reduction in tariff has been applied.

This type of program has nonetheless increased in the UK, Italy and in many other countries. In the case of the cancer drug Velcade, marketed by Janssen-Cilag Laboratory, the contract goes to the reimbursement of drugs to the UK for each patient whose health is not improving.

In the U.S., Sanofi-Aventis has proposed another novel mechanism to health insurers.If patients who use the drug cons Actonel osteoporosis fracture a bone, the laboratory shall reimburse the costs of fracture care insurers.

France is rather "timid face systems of risk sharing," said Vincent Genet, director of health business of the firm Alcimed. The Economic Committee for Health Products (CEPS) has played the game two or three times. He then granted a high price for drugs, hoping they would be more effective than was thought studies. One program, designed for type 2 diabetes, resulted in failure. Under the agreements, the laboratory (whose name is a closely held secret) then had to repay Social Security.Anyway, "the use of this method should not be necessary if the drugs have been developed properly," says Noel Renaudin, president of CEPS.

Reluctant to bet on the effectiveness of treatment, health authorities prefer to play the Hexagon on the terms of dosage and volumes online pay day loans. In hypertension, where the proper dosage may be unknown initially, and agreements set out in advance the cost of treatment … and provide for rate adjustments if it appears that the doses required are higher is believed ."More than sharing, this is to remove the risk", welcomes Christmas Renaudin.

250 million euros returned by the labs

For highly innovative products that provide a real therapeutic progress, pharmaceutical companies get selling prices relatively high, generally calibrated on prices in Britain and Germany, under certain conditions. They should be consistent with volume commitments. It follows that, if the number of boxes of medicines sold is higher than expected, laboratories pay rebates to Social Security. On average, 250 million euros and are returned annually by laboratories to Social Security.A little more even if we take into account the penalty (53 million last year) that all pharmaceutical companies must pay back if the growth in drug spending is higher than expected validated each year by Parliament.

Practices are changing slowly but surely. Laboratories justify increasingly high prices of their new products by the care savings generated. "These arguments are valid for medical devices, but rarely based on medicines," grade Christmas Renaudin. The CEPS boss finds that "if the antiulcer emptied gastrochirurgie services, they did not generate savings, by dint of being prescribed en masse. CEPS ready yet to give a high price for a drug that has demonstrated, once will not hurt, it reduces significantly the number of hospital days.

During the past several months, discussions on financial reform should be completed June 26 The Senate and House of Representatives have each passed a different version of the text. Elected officials from each chamber are now trying to work on a common version. Congress hopes to be ready for the G20, to be held on 26 and 27 June in Toronto, where regulation of the financial sector will be a central theme. The final text could be adopted just before the recess of parliament in early July. It will then be submitted to President Barack Obama for enactment.

Proposals expected in Europe in a few weeks

A desire to succeed which is felt also in Europe.On Wednesday, the President of the Republic, Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, have co-signed a letter to José Manuel Barroso, President of the European Commission, urging the agency to "accelerate its work" on "enhanced supervision" of financial markets. They attract attention of the European Commission on the issue of regulation of swaps and CDS. The naked short selling could be banned in the entire European Union.The two leaders also stressed the need for greater transparency in the global markets, that there trading stocks or bonds, sovereign bonds according to their benefit as soon as attention particular.

Proposals of measures could be presented in a few weeks.

A "circuit breaker" on Monday in the U.S.

In the U.S., initial development of markets will be set up incessantly. In its effort regulation of the financial sphere, the system of "circuit breaker" required by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) could indeed come into force next Monday. It provides for a suspension of trade in a way which would fluctuate more than 10% in less than five minutes on the market.With this rule, the Constable of financial markets hoping to avoid the stock market panic like that of May 6.

The SEC is considering extending these fuses, which concern the companies currently listed in the Standard Poor's 500, over a thousand companies.