International & World Report

Advertising on Mediapart, illegal recordings of Liliane Bettencourt and its asset manager, Patrice de Maistre, have not finished splashing the heir to L'Oreal. Besides the suspicion of interventions Labour Minister Eric Woerth for Liliane Bettencourt, the records reveal the existence of two bank accounts based in Switzerland, which houses are owned by Liliane Bettencourt, amounting to nearly 80 million.

"I'm leaving in Switzerland just now to fix things. He does not let you be caught before Christmas, "says the richest woman in France Patrice de Maistre. The asset manager refers to the agreement on taxes in the summer of 2009 between France and Switzerland that the Swiss authorities should lift banking secrecy in cases of suspected fraud in a French taxpayer.It was originally scheduled to come into force on 1 January 2010.

To protect itself from a tax audit, Patrice de Maistre therefore plans to transfer to an account, funded to the tune of "12 to 13 million euros" in Singapore "in Singapore because they can not ask" . The same for the second account, an amount, this time, 65 million euros. "I'm planning the fact of sending in a country other than Switzerland: Hong Kong, Singapore and Uruguay advance online payday. That way you'll be quiet. [...] Many people now bring money in France, but for you, I do not believe it, "says he.

An island paradise unreported

These two accounts are not the only treasures hidden heir to L'Oreal mentioned by recordings made at the initiative of his butler.Liliane Bettencourt also owns an entire island of Seychelles, informally offered the photographer François-Marie Banier through a foundation. "I also considered the fact that you declare your island to France, then explains Patrice de Maistre. But again, I think that we should not do it because it's too complicated. I fear that the tax takes a thread.

Counsel for Mr Kiejman Liliane Bettencourt, who also filed a complaint for invasion of privacy, theft and perjury, preferred not to comment Friday on the content of such records. "On the one hand, I do not exclude that they have been tampered with.And secondly, I do not wish to comment on records obtained illegally and are therefore of a criminal nature, "today said the AFP Mr Kiejman.

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Spain, drawn into the same tub as Greece, is an emergency that Europe would have gone well. The Twenty-Seven, which are at the summit in Brussels on Thursday, hoping to overcome the crisis of the euro and the purging of public finances. Clearly, raising the horizon and talk to new growth and employment.

Not a chance for those who preach another message that the turns of the screw and the bailout: it is once again under pressure from the markets that European leaders will have to prove themselves. The "economic government", a body that lacks even a roadmap, build the first German thoroughness prior to use in French voluntarism.

Not surprisingly, the centerpiece of this one-day session will be "the strengthening of budgetary discipline," according to the draft final declaration.With incentives but also early and graduated sanctions for those who violate it. Challenging the susceptibilities of national parliaments, the political body of the EU will also confirm the introduction in the first half of 2011 a collective monitoring of budget proposals from each Member State.

To this arsenal already included in the text, could add further punishment policy, advanced Monday by Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy: the suspension of voting for the worst offenders. The rest of the EU has not yet ruled. Probably necessary, modification of treaties implies unanimity.

Question of credibility approach on the G20 in Toronto, the bloc wants to take the rut European financial regulation.Despite the effects of repeated ad since 2008, the new architecture of banking supervision remains stalled with Parliament, as the framework for hedge funds, including hedge funds.

Tax on banks

The Commission, it has not yet formulated its code for derivatives (CDS and selling). On both fronts, the summit will mark her impatience. It will push the flames of a European tax on banks and, perhaps, a tax on financial transactions desired by Paris and Berlin.

So busy filling the gaps in the past, EU leaders will find good reasons to expect with the confirmed entry of Estonia into the euro in 2011 and the opening of negotiations almost gained entry to Iceland EU.But the chapter devoted to the crisis and the real upturn in business, hoping next year is looking pretty thin.

The Twenty-Seven "finalize" the growth strategy adopted by the Commission for ten years. It assumes, for each country, employment goals, training, research, "social inclusion" and the fight against global warming. Originally called "EU 2020, this catalog has been renamed for a good cause: it is now" The new European strategy for jobs and growth ". But she does not elaborate on how to restart the machine.

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Must "act quickly". Nicolas Sarkozy and Angela Merkel, the German Chancellor, are on the same wavelength. The French President, recently returned from his trip to China, held a Saturday morning "business meeting" at the Elysee on the Greek crisis, after which, the Minister of EconomieChristine Lagarde, said that agreement on the rescue plan could take place on Sunday, even before "the start of the Eurogroup (meeting of finance ministers from the eurozone, Ed)," which takes place Sunday at 16 am in Brussels.

The total amount of support provided is "not yet determined," according to Christine Lagarde.However, it should "probably" be in the range suggested by the IMF and the Commission, who spoke of "100 and 120 billion euros," she said, adding that it is "a plan over three years, the current year, 2011 and 2012.

The French plan completed in one week

On the French side, the legislative process to unlock a maximum of 6.3 billion euros – 3.9 billion by 2010 – about 30 billion of the EU (in addition to 15 billion IMF), should be completed in the next week.

The examination in public at the National Assembly will begin Monday at 18 hours and should be adopted no later than Tuesday morning.The Senate vote in the wake the bill.

Barouin Francis, Budget Minister reiterated that the financial assistance at no cost to French taxpayers, puisquil is a loan to an interest rate of 5% "with repayment in three years to come," and which requires the Greek government to initiate a tight fiscal policy to clean up its accounts.

Stop the speculation

"The support of Member States of the euro area is to stop speculation and ensure stability in the euro area," Nicolas Sarkozy has insisted Saturday.For several weeks, the markets are panicked by the Greek cases, causing bouts of fever in the Greek long rate, which surpassed 11% this week, and that "the surge has no limits", according to economists.

Less disturbing, but nonetheless indicative of the fears on the markets, the euro fell to the rhythm of Greek concerns on the record. Today around 1.33 dollar, the euro has rebounded a bit from Tuesday it had fallen to 1.31.However, the European currency remains "at healthy levels for the economy of the Old Continent," says Pierre-Antoine Dusoulier, CEO of Saxo Bank.

Strengthening surveillance

Nicolas Sarkozy and Angela Merkel intend to take "initiatives in the coming days" for Europe to strengthen monitoring mechanisms within the euro area, expedite its work on the fight against speculation and improving the transparency of products derivatives and make further proposals on the regulation of rating agencies.

For these rating agencies, Banier Michel European Commissioner for Internal Market and Services, expressed support on Friday to create such an entity in Europe that would complement three existing credit rating agencies, all U.S., Standard & Poor's, Moody's and Fitch.

Their mission note states, businesses, communities, or financial transactions in order to give investors a comprehensive view of credit risk among market players.

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The case Goldman Sachs has taken the weekend of 24 and 25 April, a new political era with the publication by the U.S. Senate emails embarrassing for the bank, accused of having enriched in 2007 by betting on reduction of financial products that the bank had itself sometimes sold to its customers.

Larry Summers, the Obama economic adviser, declined Sunday to comment on the case Goldman Sachs, except to state: "This highlights what is at the heart of the president's vision (in the reform of finance) : the importance of transparency. "

Shocked that unpacking before the opening of public hearings Monday in Congress, Goldman Sachs categorically denies having violated the law.It maintains its role as an intermediary to serve institutional clients with differing views on the trend of the real estate market forced her to speculate for a fall on some securities to cover its risks also taken on other positions.

If they prove nothing of fraudulent e-mails made public Saturday by the Senate show that the bank on Wall Street reveled during the crisis, earn so much money, thanks to its derivatives betting on the fall of subprime housing market, while its own customers – including European banks – in poorer inverse operations.

"We will make a big pile of money!"

In July 2007, David Viniar, chief financial officer of Goldman Sachs, learning that the bank had already won $ 51 million by betting on falling subprime reacted in an email: "It gives an idea of what might happen to those who not a big short position in low fee pay day loans. "

In October 2007, while the housing market plunge, a trader from the bank sent an email to his colleague: "It seems we will make a big pile of money!" The answer: "Yes, we are well positioned … In 2007, the bank led by Lloyd Blankfein has achieved record profits of 11.6 billion dollars that enabled him to pocket a bonus record of $ 67.9 million.During the same period, rival banks, including Morgan Stanley, suffered massive devaluation of their assets.

On Monday, Lloyd Blankfein and six of his colleagues were summoned to explain himself before the Senate subcommittee charged with investigating the financial crisis. Among them, Fabrice Tourre, a French 31 years, accused of fraud by the SEC, the gendarme of the U.S. financial markets. There is theoretically no link between the two surveys. But they are on the same subject: conflicts of interest of Goldman Sachs derivatives markets of mortgages.An email signed by Fabrice Tourre in 2007 shows his pessimism about the products he elaborated: "This market is completely dead and the poor little subprime borrowers will not be long." Fabrice Tourre will even be compared to Frankenstein for creating products that will turn against their owners, by precipitating the collapse of the U.S. housing bubble and the global financial crisis.

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Toyota Recalls endless. It will now add to the list the Lexus GX 460. Having announced Thursday the suspension of sales in the world of this luxury car, the Japanese automaker said in a statement, he will remember 9400 Lexus GX 460. A figure well above the 6,000 vehicles announced by the U.S. Department of Transportation.

Toyota wants and "update program" in the system Dynamic Stability Control (VSC) of vehicles. "Our engineers have conducted tests to confirm the problems associated with VSC, raised by Consumer Reports (the magazine that criticized the reliability of the Lexus GX 460 in the turns, Ed).We are confident that this update will resolve this matter, "said Steve St.Angelo, responsible for the quality of Toyota in the U.S..

Toyota said that all Lexus dealers will have the VSC software by the end of April.

The announcement comes as Toyota has agreed to release another record fine of $ 16.4 million imposed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the "policeman of the Exchange» U.S. for its slow to reveal the existence of technical defects.

To date, Toyota has recalled more than 9 million cars worldwide because of brake problems or accelerator, including 6 million in the United States.

At the New York Stock Exchange, Toyota lost 0.39% to 79.06 dollars in a market up 0.68% at 11,094 points.

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Atypical in French capitalism, Jacques de Chateauvieux is embarking on an unprecedented operation to a contractor of the Hexagon: IPO for a Chinese company on the Shanghai market. It includes a case rate the shipyards Sinopacific Shipbuilding, a small empire that makes $ 1.8 billion in sales and whose Jaccar, the personal holding company of Jacques de Chateauvieux holds 23.5% stake.

The public offerings of the company is in the pipeline since 2007 but it met with halting introductions imposed by Chinese authorities in the wake of the global financial crisis. Today, markets are reopened. And according to our information, Sinopacific just dropped his record updated in light of its 2009 accounts, the office of Constable of the Shanghai Stock Exchange.Objective: To be listed this year 2010.

Specifically, the transaction, advised by the Chinese bank Citic, will consist of a capital increase of around 15% to 18% of the capital. It would show a valuation of about $ 1.5 billion. Not bad for a company born in 2003, only the combination of Jacques de Chateauvieux and Simon Liang, a Chinese married to a French speaking, who was educated in France and the United States. The two men met when first proposed to sell in the supermarkets of the second Vietnamese – sold for an activity – the firs … plastic.

53 boats in one year

In 2003, the two entrepreneurs are going into the adventure by buying a naval shipyard privatization in Zhejiang province, then by taking another auction facility, in bankruptcy, in Jiangsu.The addition of the two sites account for the time employees and 1 500 pound … 3 boats a year. Eight years later, Sinopacific advanced to fifth place in the Chinese shipbuilding private and delivers two types of products: large commercial vessels, including bulk shipping, and smaller specialized boats in the offshore (gas, bitumen , …). 53 buildings are out of his workshops last year.

The explosive growth of Sinopia due to several factors. It is obviously correlated with that of China. Shareholders Sinopia also significantly expanded its capabilities.

Finally, Chinese shipyards have found a regular customer to the other great asset of Jacques de Chateauvieux, the Bourbon Group, which owns a quarter Jaccar capital. The world's leading specialist marine services, especially the oil companies, is leading a fleet of 369 ships.Last year, it accounted for a quarter of the order book Sinopia.

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While Asian markets are changing this Friday morning in the wake of the rise on Wall Street Thursday night, the Paris stock exchange should follow suit to the opening, showing a slight increase. Around 8:10, futures on the CAC 40 displayed on the increase, +0.7% to 4006 points.

Thursday evening, the CAC 40 lost 1.2% and has crossed back to the lower threshold of 4000 points. The other major stock markets fell back in unison. In London the FTSE lost 0.86% while in Frankfurt the Dax has yielded 0.81% at closing.Note that the LSE has found its place in the first quarter from a number of European IPOs, according to PriceWaterhouseCoopers.

The concern of financial markets is felt continually faced with the fragility of public finances of several countries, particularly Greece.

Statistics in Europe

This Friday, INSEE published before the opening of trading, industrial production for the month of February. The same statistics institute will release the results of its monthly surveys of the European economy for March, at noon. Other indicators monitored by the markets, the index of cost of construction, and commercial rents in the fourth quarter.

In Germany, foreign trade for the month of February will be known, at 8 am No faxing pay day loans.In the United Kingdom, are the producer prices in March which will be published.

In the United States, no statistics major is expected on Friday.

France Telecom provided by the Paris court

France Info radio said the prosecutor of Paris will open a judicial inquiry after the 35 suicides by employees of France Telecom.

Air France posted a traffic increase of 4.7% for the month of March, a first for a year. The group remains to Ryanair. To also monitor the impact on the airline industry's consolidation movement that hovers now. According to the American press, U.S. Airways and United Airlines are considering a reconciliation. In addition, British Airways and Iberia have finalized their merger agreement.

The specialist luxury yacht Rodriguez returned Thursday after the stock market success of the restructuring of its debt.The share price rose yesterday by more than 138.97%.

Renault, Nissan and its Japanese partner the Italian energy group Enel signed Thursday a Memorandum of Understanding for the development in Italy of charging infrastructure for electric vehicles.

Cegid, publisher of management software, announced a 7% decline in net sales in the first quarter to 58 million euros and a gross margin of 87.9% against 87.5% a year earlier.

The tax shield prevents it really the tax exile? In 2008, when the tax shield has been lowered to 50% of revenues, 821 liable to the ISF have left France, according to figures from the Ministry of the Budget that the Figaro was purchased.

In 2007 when the shield was however 60% – only 719 taxpayers had left France and EWB! Nevertheless, the flow of exiles was more important before the introduction of the shield cash advance. Thus in 2006, 846 liable to the ISF were exiled.

In addition, 312 are expatriates tax revenues in France in 2008. It's better than 2007 when they were 246.

The mobilization will she go in this Tuesday, two days in a large loss of the right in regional elections? Six unions (CFDT, CGT, FOR, FSU, UNSA, Solidaires) called on employees of public and private to a national day of action aimed at influencing government policy on political and social. At midday, the department estimated 21% share of the striking teachers, estimated at 40% for the SNES-FSU, while 11.45% of the postal employees would have mobilized in the direction. At the station, the strike rate was estimated at 28% by management, and 32% by the CGT. At RATP, it s'l?verait to 14% depending on the direction, the CGT-RATP not yet have figures to communicate. 180 rallies are also planned throughout France.

If it comes shortly after the regional elections, the appointment union had however taken immediately after the Social Summit in February, meeting at the initiative of the Head of State to discuss, among other things, the upcoming construction of the reform pensions. Two main points today crystallize opposition from unions, following a government reshuffle.

• Pensions: major point of contention between the unions and the government, the pension reform was launched at the Social Summit in February. While the dialogue should begin early April, several union leaders have spoken about this on Tuesday, sending a warning to the government. The CFDT leader Francois Ch?r?que has called for a reform that reduces inequality."Of course we must evolve our pension system, but it does not evolve towards greater social justice, this is again a loss of confidence in politics." Therefore, it could "be the sport at a social level," he warns. Jean-Claude Mailly, secretary general of FP, for his part reiterated on Tuesday his commitment to the LCI retirement at age 60, holding "absurd" the solution of longer working hours to alleviate the funding problems induced by the lengthening of life expectancy guaranteed unsecured personal loan . "If we follow this logic, women live longer should work longer," he argued.As for Bernard Thibault, leader of the CGT, he believes "we can not impose reform on accounting criteria exclusively, also challenging the objectivity of the Advisory Committee of pensions. "This appointment will be very difficult to carry," he predicted. "Do not fall into the trap of the government, which means that we spoke only of pensions," however, warned this morning Fran?ois Ch?r?que on France 2.

• Employment: while the unemployment rate back above the 10% in the fourth quarter of 2009, the CFDT called for taking further steps to assist employees affected by the crisis. Pleading for an appeal to partial unemployment, training rather than dismissal, the leader of the CFDT has also called for financial support purchasing power and resources center for sustainable employment.The employees "have the feeling that we no longer speak of their real situation since September. An impression they would have in his Sunday expressed through the ballot box. The government must now "give strong signals, and change of method," he said. A view shared by the leader of the CGT, Bernard Thibault, who on Tuesday urged the convening of a new social summit at the Elysee. The meeting, a time desired by the head of state says he would aim to "take stock of the situation regarding employment, economic and social policy and purchasing power for practical decisions for implementing fast.

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Athens loses patience. Having established an austerity plan unprecedented more than 10 billion euros to reduce its deficits, the Greek government requested that the European Union to turn goodwill. Prime Minister Georges Papandreou requested Thursday that European leaders to reach agreement at the summit next week on a mechanism to help Greece.

The head of government, speaking before the European Parliament in Brussels, was also skeptical about the suggestion by Angela Merkel, to be able to exclude a country from the euro area. "Just punishment could not be the solution. And punish and exclude a country would be a failure not only for the country (excluded) but also for the Union "Money as a whole, he said.

Besides the penalties, "the important thing is that we must ensure that countries that have problems are also supported," he said. On this point, George Papandreou reiterated that his country "does not claim to help": "We are not asking for money from Germans, French, Italians, and other workers or taxpayers."

"What we are saying is that we need strong political support to enable us to make necessary reforms and ensure that we will not pay more than necessary to implement these reforms, he explained to MEPs, before threatening again to resort to IMF assistance. This last possibility is rejected by the European Central Bank and by France and Germany.

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