My Business News

The Competition Authority said Tuesday it has imposed penalties amounting to 242.4 million euros for French and German millers for a double price fixing, limiting the production and distribution of customers in the market for the flour bag.

Following a survey of nearly three years, the competition watchdog found that French and German millers referred had concluded a "Pact of mutual non-aggression" to to limit mutual access to their respective national markets for flour in bag, says in a statement.

Thirteen companies in total, five French and German eight, were sanctioned in this aspect of the case, which covers the period 2002-2008, a total of 95.5 million euros. 

Among French companies fined include flour France, the trademark owner Francine, to 8.3 million, Grands Moulins de Paris for 11.8 million or Axiane Milling (Banette) for 19.9 million.

Meanwhile, the Competition Authority found that the millers had secured a "lock" the French market in bags of flour through joint ventures and Bach Flour France Mühle, to commercialize their production.

"Joint ventures are not prohibited in general, she says: they can be the seat of efficiencies and help streamline some segments of production or marketing of products. But in this instance, flour and France Mühle Bach had intended a real agreement on the price of flour and the allocation of customers between millers. "

This track seven millers have been punished for an amount of 146.9 million euros, including 44.0 million for Axiane Milling, Euromill 35.2 million for North and 24 , 6 million for Great Mills of Paris

. Investigations into the practices of the market for bakery continue and will result in a subsequent decision, says the Competition Authority

.

The new home sales fell 10.5% in France in 2011. A trend that continues in January. New homes are less popular.

The new home sales by developers in France fell by 10.5% in 2011, according to the Ministry of Housing. Housing starts also falling sharply for the month of January 2012 compared to the previous month.

A total of 103,300 new homes were sold by developers in 2011, a decrease of 10.5% over 2010, according to figures released by the Ministry. During the months of November and December 2011 and January 2012, the number of starts of new homes rose to 114,087, an increase of 26.6% over the same period a year earlier.

But this statistic hides a sharp decline in housing starts in January that, with a total of 29,659, is down by more than 14,000 units compared to December 2011. "This is a historic fall for the month of January compared to December. Jmais We had seen that since the creation of these statistics in the early '80s," said Michel Mouillart, professor of economics at the University of Paris West.

Over the last twelve months (February 2011-January 2012), the number of starts, with 380,209 units, an increase of 19.7% over the previous twelve months. The number of building permits has meanwhile increased by 20.6% to 121,563 units for the months between November 2011 and January 2012, compared to the same period a year earlier. Over the last 12 months (February 2011-January 2011), the number of building permits issued is 466,197, up 15.1% over the previous 12 months.

Tens of thousands of protesters gathered Sunday around the Greek Parliament and some clashed with police a few hours of the vote by MPs on a bill consisting of austerity measures such drastic and unpopular required by the EU and the IMF in exchange for a new rescue plan.

Greek Prime Minister of Greece Lucas Papademos warned against the "economic chaos" in case of rejection, while Germany has warned that Greece should stop being a "well bottomless "`.

After three days of tension and political threats, Parliament began shortly after 14:00 (12:00 GMT) to examine the bill to save 3.3 billion euros thanks to lower wages, pensions and job cuts public. 

The vote must take place before midnight (2200 GMT), said the finance minister, Evangelos Venizelos, "because on Monday morning, the banking and financial markets should have received the message that Greece can and will survive. "

"If the law is not adopted, the country will go bankrupt," warned the Minister that a Communist deputy threw the pages of the bill on the floor of the Assembly.

About twenty members of the coalition of Lucas Papademos have threatened in recent days to vote against the text and six government members submitted their resignations, but the Prime Minister will still theoretically supported by a large majority.

But the Greek population does not intend to accept the new austerity measures without saying anything. 

"The Greek people RAISE"

Tens of thousands of people gathered in the afternoon around Parliament to lobby MPs, the largest mobilization for months.

"Enough is enough!" Exclaimed Manolis Glezos, 89, a veteran of the extreme left.

"They have no idea what it means to an uprising of the Greek people. And the Greek people, ideas all political persuasions, is beginning to lift, "said the hero of the resistance to the Nazis during World War II

.

"annihilation These measures will not go", he further promised, mouth covered by a mask to protect themselves from tear gas fired by police to de pledge Syntagma Square, Parliament

. Some protesters responded by throwing stones and Molotov cocktails at police ….. At least fourteen

…. protesters injured were taken to hospital, police said, and about fifty others treated on site , mostly for choking. At least eight policemen were also injured.

"There is tear gas into the interior of the Assembly," said an MP, Panagiotis Lafazanis.

The new austerity plan is the price to pay for the release of an aid program of 130 billion euros from the EU and the IMF – the second since 2010.

Greece has to touch the money before March 20 to repay a state loan of 14.5 billion euros.

"Bottomless well"

Germany has turned up the heat a notch Sunday warning that Europe expected actions and not words.

"The promises of Greece are no longer sufficient for us," warned the German finance minister, Wolfgang Schäuble. 

Referring to the new austerity plan in which the Greek deputies must vote this Sunday, the minister said in an interview published by the Welt am Sonntag that the previous did not e ; tee implemented in their entirety.

Wolfgang Schäuble said that the Germans are largely in favor of an international aid to Greece. "But it's important to say that it can be a bottomless pit. This is why the Greeks will finally have to clog the well. Then we can put something. At least people are now beginning to realize that it will not work with a bottomless pit.

"Greece must do its homework to become competitive, it requires a new rescue plan or some other way that we do not want to (…)" he says referring to an output the euro area.

Asked if such an outcome is possible, Wolfgang Schäuble responds: "Everything is in the hands of the Greeks themselves. But even in that event, on which no table, they remain an integral part of Europe ".

"We are pleased to offer our assistance, but we should not give others the impression that they have not done enough. Each state is responsible for itself," explains he said.

The title Benetton was suspended Thursday in early trading on the Milan Stock Exchange after having risen sharply in early trade, while the Benetton family wants to buy out the minority to remove the group of ready-to-wear Italian coast. The action was set up from 19.7% to 4.85 euros, above the 4.60 euro proposed Wednesday by the family to carry out this operation. The price used represents a premium of 15.6% over the course of last Tuesday, the day the buyout of minority interests was announced. The rating action was suspended until the opening on Thursday.

China will begin a cycle of easing monetary policy next month, via a lowering of reserve requirements for banks, a sign that the country feared the consequences of the global economic downturn, according to a survey released Tuesday by Reuters.

Of 19 analysts surveyed, 10 thought that the Chinese central bank will decrease by 50 basis points in the reserve requirement ratio, currently at 21.5%, a level which, according to the bank, affects their profitability and lending capacity.

Two weeks ago, the Chinese central bank said China was ready if necessary to adjust its monetary policy.

Eight analysts believe that the lower reserve requirement ratio will occur in the first quarter 2012 and one analyst expects the second quarter.

Last week, a majority of market participants did not see any easing before the first quarter of 2012, but the worsening debt crisis in the euro zone could precipitate the decision of the Chinese monetary authorities.

Inflationary pressures have led them to meet several times the interest rates and bank reserve requirements since October 2010.

Since then, inflation has decelerated slightly to 5.5% last month, but remains above the official target of 4%.

Softbank, a telecommunications operator which is not affected by the rising yen, jumped 8.37% on first half results historic, while the electronics group Sharp and construction equipment manufacturer Komatsu gained 6 respectively, 2% and 5.58% despite the downward revision of prospects for their result.

The surge in the yen to a new record high against the dollar, however, limited the gains.

The Nikkei rose by about 4% since the beginning of the month, while the U.S. S & P has won over 13% and move towards its biggest gain in a month since October 1974.

The European Central Bank (ECB) believes that the threats have intensified to the economy of the euro area and will provide liquidity to banks to longer term to avoid a new erosion of liquidity (credit crunch).

The ECB left its rates unchanged on Thursday – its refinancing rate thus remaining at 1.5%, as expected by the markets most often – at the end of the last meeting of President Jean-Claude Trichet, who will forward the torch to his successor, Mario Draghi at the end of the month.

The Bank of England also kept the status quo, but it announced that it injected 75 billion sterling in the UK economy more.

"The economic outlook remains subject to a particularly high uncertainty and downside risks of intensified," said Jean-Claude Trichet during his traditional press conference, held this time in Berlin.

Its diagnosis is darker than last month, when he limited to detection of downside risks, and investors may well conclude that a rate cut is coming.

The ECB raised interest rates twice this year and it is possible that inflation rose to 3% last month, while its goal is to just under 2%, is prevented from reversing steam on the field.

"Inflation has remained high …and likely to remain above 2% in the coming months before declining thereafter, "observed the chairman of the central bank.

"It is likely now that the ECB is preparing a rate cut in the next four months, by March at the latest," said Holger Schmieding, economist at Berenberg Bank.

NOTHING TO DO WITH EFSF

To help banks to withstand a worsening crisis of sovereign debt in Europe and the growing tensions in the interbank market, the ECB has raised its tender for a year and a little more, this one taking place month and the other in December.

"The Governing Council decided to conduct two refinancing operations in the longer term, one with a maturity of approximately 12 months in October and the other with a maturity of approximately 13 months in December, these operations will be conducted following standard procedures of the fixed rate allocation with unlimited, "said Jean-Claude Trichet.

The tenders a year were introduced in June 2009 and the first operation of this title has generated unprecedented allocation of 442 billion.

Jean-Claude Trichet said the ECB would resume its purchases of bonds by reopening the program of 60 billion euros applied from 2009 to 2010.She will spend this time 40 billion euros to the thing over a period of 12 months from November, the transactions taking place on both the primary and secondary market.

"Providing liquidity and allocation methods for refinancing operations will always ensure that banks in the euro area are not subject to tensions with regard to liquidity," commented Jean-Claude Trichet. "All unconventional measures taken during the acute tensions in the market are, by nature, temporary."

Although qu'usant measures called unconventional, Jean-Claude Trichet has nevertheless called for a certain orthodoxy in the means of action of the ECB.He thus rejected the idea of ​​transforming the European Financial Stability (EFSF) in a financial institution may solicit funds from the bank.

"I would say (…) that the Board of Governors does not consider it appropriate that the ECB boosts the EFSF," he said.

The turmoil on Wall Street is beginning to weigh on earnings forecasts of U.S. companies and more broadly on the real economy, with increasing likelihood of a return to recession.

Market confidence was severely undermined by the problems of debt and stagnant growth in the world, and only the results of companies strong despite the crisis, came to bring some relief in recent months.

However, analysts are revising down their earnings estimates up for the rest of 2011, after a strong second quarter.

The logistics group FedEx sent an alarming signal this week by lowering its profit forecast for the year, because of high fuel costs and global economic difficulties.

FedEx, the world in its sector, is seen on Wall Street as a barometer of global economic activity.

Since July, the S & P 500 fell 15%. The forecast rise in corporate profits in the index fell 17% to 13.7%, according to Thomson Reuters data.

FINANCIAL CONTROL TECHNOLOGY

According to analysts, this estimate is too high.In recent weeks, they have lowered their earnings forecasts on all sectors except technology.Financials are the most affected.

They represent over 13% of S & P-500 and form the most influential sector in the index after the technology.

"They are clearly the Achilles heel of the market," said Robbert Van Batenburg, analyst at Louis Capital in New York.

Banks are also penalized by the prospect of possible cuts on the sovereign ratings of European countries, and lending a less profitable because of the actions of the Fed to lower interest rates over time.

Insurers are also likely to be affected by this context.

The technology sector, however, is where the prospects are rising, thanks to the locomotives such as Apple, whose title this week hit a record high.

Forecasting earnings growth of the sector in the year 2011 is 16.6% compared to 2010. In July, an increase of 13.7% was expected.

But even in this sector clearly healthy caution signs have emerged. The chip maker Xilinx has lowered its sales forecast due to weak industrial markets.

Markets await further various indicators on the housing market, industrial activity and consumer spending, among others.

The German and French banks have adequate capital to be provided Thursday in response to reports that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) considers that the European banking sector suffers from a lack of capital.

According to a European source, the IMF estimates that European banks may face an equity gap of 200 billion euros to tackle the debt crisis in the euro zone and a slowdown in growth.

Last Saturday at the annual meetings of the Federal Reserve, the IMF director Christine Lagarde had called for a recapitalization "substantial" financial institutions in Europe.

"French banks are well capitalized," said a Reuters spokesman for the French Banking Federation (FBF)."They have increased their capitalization since the crisis."

When the MEDEF Summer University in Jouy-en-Josas (Yvelines), the budget minister Valérie Pécresse also indicated that French banks had sufficient capital.

"I believe that there is no concern to be for French banks," said the minister, echoing the words of the Minister of Economy, Baroin Wednesday night on France 3.

Earlier in the morning, German banks have also found that the fears of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) regarding a possible lack of capital were not justified.

"Banks are well capitalized," said Michael Kemmer, director of the BdB, in an interview with German daily Die Welt.

The BdB represents some 210 private banks including Commerzbank and Deutsche Bank.

BACK SECURITIES BANK

"We do not understand how the IMF comes to these conclusions," he responded in turn the association of German public banks VoeB.

Christine Lagarde's statements of last weekend cause since the beginning of the week an outcry in Europe.

The European Banking Authority (EBA) in particular reported that banks in the European Union did not need to be massively re-capitalized.

Concerns about the crisis of debt in the euro area and the worsening economic climate, however, continue to weigh on European financial stocks.

The European banking index declined 0.55% Thursday to 11:15.

In Paris, Crédit Agricole and BNP Paribas, highly exposed to sovereign debt of peripheral countries in the euro area, drop respectively 3.81% and 2.29%.

German bank Deutsche Bank sells 2.89% -1.38% Italian Unicredit.

Titles EFG Eurobank and Alpha Bank temporarily suspended pending an imminent announcement of a merger, said Monday the Athens Stock Exchange.

"(…) The Athens Stock Exchange decided to suspend the trading of these shares until investors are informed of the outcome of meetings of boards of directors and the terms of the agreement."

The Boards of Directors of Eurobank and Alpha, respectively second and third banks in the country, meet on Monday to conclude a merger agreement.

The markets welcomed the prospect, especially for Eurobank, which failed in July to stress test bank.

The index of the Greek banking sector took 19.82% by 0800 GMT, outperforming the benchmark index rose 8.18%.

The agreement, which should lead to the largest bank in Europe's southeast by the assets, should enable the two facility to avoid having to use the mechanism of public provision of liquidity is likely to trigger a wave of consolidation in the sector, analysts said.

"The boards of both banks will sign the agreement and the announcement Monday morning and a press conference will take place at midday" told Reuters on Sunday had a banking source familiar with the matter.

According to an official of Eurobank, the operation, if it is approved by shareholders of both groups take the form of an exchange of shares – at a rate of five to seven EFG Alpha, according to a bank – followed by an issue of securities.

The Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) sovereign wealth fund Gulf kingdom already a shareholder in Alpha Bank, will become also a major shareholder of the new group, according to sources, one of which said that the QIA has signed an agreement Saturday .

The QIA will inject funds into the new entity through 500 million of convertible bonds, prior to an issue of 1.25 billion euros of securities.

The new entity will have 150 billion euros in assets, eight million customers and 80 billion euros in deposits, said another source.

If approved by the boards of both banks, the agreement must then be approved by their shareholders.

The fourth largest bank in Greece, Piraeus Bank, however reversed the information relayed by the Financial Times reported that rumors of merger with the leading banking group Greek NBG

"A merger agreement between Eurobank and Alpha is particularly positive for the banking sector, business and economy," said an officer of Piraeus Reuters. "With regard to Piraeus and consolidation, there is nothing in progress."