The lake has almost caught fire Thursday in Zurich. The traditional meeting of the shareholders of UBS has turned into a quiet but determined fight. The shareholders of the largest financial institution Swiss have strongly criticized the remuneration policy of the group, before voting 36% against it.

Lengthy explanations of President Kaspar Villiger have done anything to calm the discontented. The welcome bonus of 2 million Swiss francs (1.66 million), booked his designated successor, former Bundesbank President Axel Weber, was singled out. After the trading loss of $ 2.2 billion last fall, bonuses for market operators and their representatives also shocked. The vote is only advisory, but Kaspar Villiger was assured that the bank "takes this result seriously."

Executive Officer of UBS expected to live a difficult meeting. After four years of crisis, which results in the lowest equity valuations, bank shareholders, the U.S. and Europe are growing impatient. Everywhere, the remuneration is in sight. And for the first time, the challenge of these salaries and bonuses to seven figures than the man in the street. Driven by consulting firms or foundations, as Ethos and Actares Switzerland, institutional shareholders, insurers and large pension funds amounted to turn the tone against these huge salaries.

Last week, Credit Suisse, 31.6% of shareholders voted against the plan and executive compensation. Only 23% opposed it a year earlier. Meanwhile, the wage paid to Brady Dougan, the chief American institution, had been halved, 5.8 million Swiss francs (4.8 million) in 2011 against 12.8 million a year earlier. Over the same period, the share value has fallen by 41%. The same day, at the Royal Festival Hall in London, Barclays faced a protest vote by 26.9%, still on the part of remuneration guaranteed pay day loans.

Opposition all the more remarkable that management hoped to have cleared the situation by announcing a week before the general meeting that the executive directors and financial, Bob Diamond and Chris Lucas, would submit half of their 2011 bonuses to performance targets . Originally, Bob Diamond would receive 17.7 million pounds (nearly 22 million euros). The bank chairman, Marcus Agius, has "apologized (to shareholders) and promised that we will move differently in the future."

No vote in France

At the Citigroup, the reaction was even more severe: 55% of shareholders refused to pay $ 15 million promised to the Director, Vikram Pandit, after two years paid a salary by a dollar. This vote was, once again, not binding, the subjects of remuneration remain the prerogative of the board. But the impact in terms of image is of course considerable. Executive Officer of Citigroup has promised to "take seriously the shareholder vote and to consider carefully their remarks."

These votes on compensation plans have gradually imposed from Britain to all OECD countries. Only France is still resistance. "While employers have everything to gain by legitimizing their remuneration, French companies are now the only ones in Europe not to submit payments of their leaders to a general vote of the shareholders," said Pierre-Henri Leroy and President Proxinvest, the French agency governance analysis. The subject was asked in the presidential campaign. Nicolas Sarkozy has declared in favor of a shareholder vote on pay. Francois Hollande has not explicitly expressed on the subject.

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The export machine of South Korea is emerging. After suffering the brunt of the crisis of the euro, the Land of the Morning Calm-recorded in the first quarter its strongest growth last year, demonstrating its ability to rebound. Seoul announced Thursday a 0.9% growth, a significant increase compared to 0.3% the previous quarter, fueling hopes of an annual expansion of 3.5%, the OECD predicted.

"We're doing relatively well, given the weak global economy", says Kim Young-bae, director of the Bank of Korea. Relief is required by decision makers of the fourth largest economy in Asia, 46% of GDP depends on exports, particularly to Europe, its second largest trading partner after China. This slight increase is a lifeline ripped by large groups, such as Hyundai Motors, which recorded an increase of 31% of its revenue through increased sales in the U.S. and Europe.

But behind these numbers right, the clouds on the horizon. An OECD report, published Thursday in Seoul, tip the scale of the demographic challenge that awaits the young democracy of 50 million people and threatens its future development. With a fertility rate among the lowest in the world (1.05 children per woman), the country will suffer in the coming year accelerated aging which will impact negatively on growth.

"Marriage strike"

Followed by the specter of Japan, model and longtime rival, the path of decline. The OECD calls on Seoul to take the bull by the horns by implementing proactive measures to adapt to the demographic shock. First, by raising the birth rate by funding systems affordable child care, while most South Koreans are forced to choose between career and motherhood. If women entered heavily on the labor market, often times Stakhanovists companies make it difficult to balance work and motherhood. So, 40% in their thirties who are employed are single. This "marriage strike" is a major cause of the bust according to the Korea Development Institute (KDI).

The OECD also stresses the urgency of improving the productivity per hour, two times lower than that of advanced countries, reforming an education system where cramming is the key to success.

These measures are all the more necessary that the country is not ready for mass immigration, as evidenced by a recent survey that only 36% of South Koreans favor the coexistence of different cultures on their territories. On April 13, Jasmine Lee's election, the first member of foreign origin, has unleashed a slew of racial slurs online, highlighting the challenge.

Only a major geopolitical upheaval in Pyongyang leading to early reunification with North Korea seems able to thwart the predictions of the OECD.

Nothing works for Nokia and its new boss Stephen Elop. A week after reducing its forecasts for mobile phones in the first half of this fiscal year, the Finnish group said the extent of damage. The group, which is losing its world of telephony in favor of South Korea's Samsung, has declined by 29% of its turnover in the first quarter, to 7.35 billion euros. Nokia says it has shipped 82 million mobile phones in the first quarter, with a decline in sales in this activity by 40%.

The result remains in the red, as in the last quarter of 2011. But the operating loss increased to EUR 1.3 billion. Now the two core businesses of Nokia show losses. In mobile phones, the operating loss represents 3% of sales against 10% more profit for the same period of 2011 free credit score. In equipment for telecommunications networks, Nokia Siemens Networks' book including the mobile network of Free, the operating loss reached 5% of revenues.

Especially in the short term, the outlook remains bleak. The loss in mobile phones should be of similar magnitude in the second trimestre.Les sales of Nokia mobile also collapse in North America and Chine.La only glimmer of hope rests on smartphones equipped with a Operating from Microsoft, including the aircraft from the Lumia provided the U.S. with T-Mobile and AT & T.

The egg becomes a scarce commodity. Since the entry into force on 1 January of a European directive amending the conditions for laying hens, egg production in France fell 18% in mid-March, after falling 10% in 2011 . "About 5% of farmers have failed to comply with standards on time and no longer have the right to produce," says the National Committee for the Promotion of the egg (CNPO). At the abeyance of some poultry houses, plus the time needed for hens, very prone to stress, to adapt to their new environment and get back to spawn, the producers note. Other countries are affected, such as Spain, Italy, Germany or the UK. In total, Europe suffers from a deficit of 200 million eggs a week.

Faced with this shortage, manufacturers of biscuits, cakes and pasta are worried. They are now buying their eggs at prices 66 to 100% higher than a year ago. "Supply is a real problem," said Romain Nouffert, Managing Director of Lesieur, the French number one edible oil, which provides an increase of 5 to 6% of the price of mayonnaise. A fear shared by Philippe Godard, responsible for the development of the Business Federation of French baking and pastry (FEBPF). "The proportion of eggs in the total composition of revenues may represent 15 to 30% of the total, depending on the product," he says. "The cost may no longer be acceptable or even tolerable, if the rise continues, especially as it adds to the high price of durum wheat," is alarmed, for his part, Christine Petit, Secretary General Union of Industrial Pasta Manufacturers of France (SIFPAF), who represents Lustucru Pastacorp.  

Denouncing "the inertia of the European authorities," the industry is calling for urgent action, particularly for the import of egg products. "If the situation continues, some companies at risk of bankruptcy in four to six months," warns the FEBPF and SIFPAF, associated with the manufacturers of Biscuits and Cakes France, the Union of Bakery crispy and chewy and the Association of food companies developed (ADEPALE) poor credit personal loans. This sector includes more than 104,000 direct jobs in France for a turnover exceeding € 18.3 billion.

The French could pay the bill

The equation is further complicated for manufacturers that they can not pass on the soaring prices of the egg on the shelves, being bound by contracts with the annual distribution. "When you know that 90% of cookies are sold in supermarkets and hypermarkets, we measure the challenges of this situation," says Philippe Godard. Distribution, however, considers that this crisis is temporary. "Our goal is to preserve the purchasing power of consumers and ultimately for the entire industry, sales volumes of these products in store," says Mathieu Pecqueur, agriculture and quality director of the Federation of Commercial and distribution (FCD). "Manufacturers have certainly been integrated into the negotiations completed in late February the rising cost of egg production, we see that since the end of 2011," he adds. From last year, in fact, farmers were already experiencing an increase in wheat and corn used to feed chickens.

One day or another, however, the French should bear the brunt of this crisis of the egg. "The impact on the labels will, in theory, since the momentary during the egg will soon recede," said Charles Pernin, head of nutrition and health issues at the consumer organization CLCV. "Unfortunately, the shelf prices rarely return to normal," he adds. Ultimately, the French can always follow the latest fashion: invest in a hen to produce their own eggs and thus continue to make cakes.

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For tender in giant offshore wind, it's time for final arbitration. After a series of exchanges non-stop for 48 hours at the top of the state, the verdict is very close and although nothing has yet been formalized, EDF would be the big winner. The electrician tricolor should be assigned by the government three fields respectively in Saint-Nazaire (Loire-Atlantique), Fécamp (Seine-Maritime) and Courseulles-sur-Mer (Calvados).

A total of five fields within the scope of this tender, but the allocation of the remaining two sites – in Saint-Brieuc (Côtes d'Armor) and Tréport (Seine-Maritime) – could be called a later date. The schedule is not known but "a period of discussions should be reopened," does one advance in the entourage of the file no fax payday loans. Some background information might be reconsidered, particularly affecting the price of electricity.

If this scenario occurs, EDF would therefore gain all of the fields for which the government has decided. It would be a victory for the utility but for its main partner, Alstom, which would be commissioned to build and assemble the wind turbines. Two weeks ago, the industry group presented in Saint-Nazaire the prototype of his machine: it has a capacity of 6 megawatts (MW), making it the most powerful wind turbine market.

]]> http://sundialsnakes.com/edf-poised-to-win-the-french-offshore-wind/feed/ 0 http://sundialsnakes.com/how-to-enter-the-club-of-the-richest-1-of-france/ http://sundialsnakes.com/how-to-enter-the-club-of-the-richest-1-of-france/#comments Tue, 20 Mar 2012 11:48:08 +0000 admin http://sundialsnakes.com/how-to-enter-the-club-of-the-richest-1-of-france/  

The French beheaded their king. Do they want to behead the richest of them? One might think that it is in the order of things and words. "King" in Latin rex, and "rich" that just in Gallic rix (as Vercingetorix), share the same etymological family. Both mean "powerful". To cut down?

Francois Hollande and plans to impose 75% income in excess of one million euros, at the risk of appearing confiscatory and unconstitutional. Nicolas Sarkozy wants to tax the tax exiles, threatening implication of deprivation of nationality, and is also limited vis-à-vis the Constitution. The both are attacking a minority that is the envy. Paradoxically, the rich more concerned about public opinion that the poor in the Hexagon. Poor little rich girl, sang Claude François.

Who do we speak? In the U.S., the debate on the "1%" has become a dominant theme of the 2012 presidential campaign. It was launched by the movement Occupy Wall Street ("Wall Street deal"), with the slogan "We are the 99%" ("we are the 99%"). It is stigmatizing growing inequality. Today, 1% of the population accounts for 17% of national income, according to statistics from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), IRS. This proportion more than doubled since the early 1980s throughout the country. It even reaches 44% in the city of New York, according to the Fiscal Policy Institute, an independent body to observe the living conditions of the city.

To be part of the "top 1%" across the Atlantic, he had declared to the tax authorities .927 343 dollars of income in 2009 (before various exemptions, ie "tax loopholes"), about 265, 000 euros. In France, the club's ticket is much more modest. According to INSEE, it was enough for a single person to have a "stated income" of 88 200 euros in 2008 (latest figures available) to be among the 602 most successful French .500 (1% of the 60.250 million population metropolitan France which reports income). Paradoxically, the threshold is proportionately much lower for a couple (132 euros exactly .300), as INSEE reason in what he calls "consumption units". Example, a two-person household accounts for only 1.5 units of consumption: statisticians feel they have less to spend, if only because they share the same roof

. The rich must prove they are effective and useful

The "rich French", the "very high income" in the language of INSEE (at least 7 .350 euros per month for a single), are three times less than Americans. The main reason is that in France the club "of 1%" focuses 7% of national income annually, instead of 17% across the Atlantic, where the overall wealth of the country is also higher (by about a quarter capita) low fee payday advance. Another major difference from both sides of the Atlantic, nine-tenths of the French who are part of the "top 1%", ie 540, 000, with annual sales revenue of less than 239, 000 euros, according to INSEE. This does not allow them to figure in the American Club!

More and more observers believe the criterion of 1% insufficiently selective and that the group is too heterogeneous. It would be more appropriate to focus on the cream of the crop, "one thousandth" of the highest incomes, we believe more in the United States. We are 99.9%, "headlined last fall Paul Krugman, columnist featured in The New York Times, also Nobel Prize in Economics in 2008.

In doing so, it intends to develop two arguments. First of all this "super-elite" – whose annual revenues are on average 5.3 to 7.5 million – has seen its resources after tax increase by 400% since 1979 (increase in real terms, net of inflation and after taxes). But for the average American, who is in the exact middle of the income distribution, purchasing power has increased by just 21%.

Paul Krugman denounces especially the claim of "super-elite" to justify its gains by descréations job. "Very few of them are innovative type of Steve Jobs," he said. He noted that 18% are from finance, 12% are lawyers or real estate industry, "professions where there is no evidence of a clear link between income and contribution to the economy." The rich must prove they are effective and useful. Today more than ever when growth just to leave.

The debate is as old as time. "What the rich have they more than others?", Asked in the 1920 F. Scott Fitzgerald, author of The Great Gatsby. "Money," replied his friend Ernest Hemingway. As if the wealthy had neither merit nor talent. The opposite attitude is that of the famous parable of the talents: "The master gave five talents to one of his servants, who knew them for profit and is rewarded, while those who did not receive that one hastens to bury in the earth … "This is the origin of the word" talent ". He pointed coins, it became "the gift that is made fruitful." The ability to create jobs for example.

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"My proposals are known, I made 60, which will not prevent me to add one or two during the campaign," warned Tuesday Francois Hollande, the move in the Drôme. Indeed, the Socialist candidate has completed his list of promises last week. On the theme of the University and Research, Monday to Nancy on the family and gender, in Reims for Women's Day; for associations, Saturday and finally on low wages, on Sunday M6 , in "Capital".

At first glance, additions marginal to the program announced in late January, which accounted for 20 billion annual expenditure. Yet, according to Enterprise Institute, which projects sales of the leading candidates (www.debateco.fr assumptions and calculations), the addition is not negligible: in a week, from 3.9 to 6.5 billion of additional annual expenditure.

A real public service early childhood

The largest piece is the creation of places for young children, with the goal of "creating a true public service early childhood." The think tank is assumed between 200,000 and 400,000 people plus, half in and half manger among childminders (for reference, the 2009-2012 plan, the government provides 200,000 spaces created). Result: 1.8 to 3.7 billion spending per year by 2017.

These amounts include the provision of services for young children (Paje, paid by the family allowance funds in custody cases by a "nanny" approved), the construction of nurseries and their staff costs, tax credits on income, net of savings on benefits paid to parents on parental leave free online credit report. "This will encourage the return of parents to the labor market, with positive effects on value creation and contrasted the unemployment rate," said the Business Institute.

Second major expense: the change in calculating the minimum wage. At the current formula, based mainly on inflation, would add a "bonus" equal to half the growth rate. Companies bear most of the cost, but public finances will be affected, mainly in two ways: higher salaries for civil servants – who can not be less than the minimum wage – and reduced charges granted between 1 and 1.6 SMIC. The total estimated cost is between 1.3 and 1.6 billion euros in 2017.

"These measures, the Socialist candidate did not state financing, in addition to others in the draft (…), whose cost does not appear in the detail of spending 20 billion new release by the PS, "notes the Institute: ecological transition, valued at $ 1.8 billion for the state, very high rates over 100% of the territory (1 billion), hires employment center (0.8 to 1.2 billion), energy retrofit one million homes a year and establishment of a fifth branch of social security to fund addiction (to encrypt).

]]> http://sundialsnakes.com/the-program-gets-heavier-holland-5-billion/feed/ 0 http://sundialsnakes.com/lefigaro-fr-sign-a-record-8-8-million-visitors/ http://sundialsnakes.com/lefigaro-fr-sign-a-record-8-8-million-visitors/#comments Fri, 24 Feb 2012 14:32:16 +0000 admin http://sundialsnakes.com/lefigaro-fr-sign-a-record-8-8-million-visitors/  

Lefigaro.fr is the first news site in France in January. The study Médiamétrie / NetRatings, it was viewed by over 8.8 million unique visitors a month. A hearing is always the historic site of Figaro to a million users of the follower.

Development, the second place, occupied by Orange in December, was conquered by the Nouvel Observateur. High of 7.7 million unique monthly visitors, the site of the weekly benefits from the integration of "pure player" Rue89, bought in December.

Launched in late January, the site of the Huffington Post has also brought new visitors to the World, which brought together a total of 7.3 million Internet users in January. The web offers daily evening was nevertheless made the steal third place from the site of Le Parisien / Today in France, with nearly 7.5 million unique visitors.

January has generally drawn the hearings of the press line up. Portals and aggregators of articles edited by tech giants have, themselves, not take advantage of the French appetite for news. Orange News was relegated to sixth place in the ranking with 6.7 million unique visitors, Yahoo! News is eighth with 5.4 million visitors, MSN News and Google News are respectively the 11th and 13th.

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A first for thirty years! The U.S. utility Southern Company said Thursday it would launch the construction of two new nuclear reactors at the site of the Vogtle plant in Georgia. The U.S. nuclear watchdog, the NRC has in fact given the green light, the final stage of an administrative process that began in 2005. The award of this license comes eleven months after the nuclear disaster at Fukushima and at a time when, in the opinion of most American experts, the historically low gas prices in the U.S., thanks to the abundance of gas shale, makes uncertain the profitability of the construction and operation of a nuclear power plant. Thomas Fanning, CEO of Southern Company, hopes the two new reactors of 1,100 megawatts each will respectively be operational in 2016 and 2017. They feed one million homes. The project represents an investment of $ 14 billion (10 paperless payday loans.6 billion euros).

Southern chose the long AP1000 designed by the American Westinghouse, now controlled by the Japanese giant Toshiba. If the last U.S. nuclear power plants came online in 1996, the NRC had not awarded a license since 1978, the year before the accident at Three Mile Island in Pennsylvania, where a nuclear reactor had partially melted, causing no victims. Announced the revival of nuclear power in the 2000s has been slowed due to a combination of the accident at Fukushima in 2011 and the spectacular development of shale gas that made the United States, in the space of three years , an exporter of natural gas.

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Greece appears increasingly at an impasse. Last night, the various parties in the governing coalition failed to agree on the establishment of a new austerity plan, after five hours of discussion, and despite the urgency of the situation . Greek Prime Minister, Lucas Papademos, said the meeting would resume today. He announced advances on the magnitude of the savings (1.5 point of GDP), bank recapitalization and reforms to reduce production costs. In contrast,. Antonis Samaras, the leader of New Democracy (right), leaves little hope on the fact that a consensus could be reached soon: Troika "demand more austerity, that the country is unable to bear, I 'm fighting to prevent this, "he said last night.

The European Union and the International Monetary Fund called on Athens to make more efforts and implement a new fiscal tightening if the country wants to receive the necessary new loan of EUR 130 billion at least. And time is short because without that money the country will be unable to repay the 14.5 billion euros in loans it owes to its creditors by 20 March. Without this payment, the country will have no choice but to declare themselves insolvent.  

Saturday night, the Greek finance minister, Evangelos Venizelos, said that negotiations should be concluded on Sunday evening that Greece could ignore the threat of bankruptcy next. Similarly, the leader of the Eurogroup, Luxembourg Jean-Claude Juncker, has also increased pressure on the Saturday night party leaders Greek citing the risk of "bankruptcy" of Greece in March if required reforms were not carried out. Athens must indeed conclude negotiations as soon as possible, so that the exchange of Greek sovereign bonds held by private banks can be operated around February 13. With the key, the deletion of 100 billion euros of its debt.

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