International Business News

Small and medium businesses, entrepreneurs and self-family businesses, which account for most of the economic fabric of the country, paying a heavy price for the Greek crisis. The European Commission is trying to address the funding problems they suffer. In Greece, six out of ten SMEs have seen their incomes decline in 2011.

Up to a thousand individual companies will put the key under the door every week in Greece in the first half of 2012 due to the serious crisis that is sinking the country, said Friday the European Commission, which seeks to root the problem.  

"Greece is facing an economic crisis and social crisis which is reflected in the situation of small and medium enterprises: six out of ten companies have seen their incomes decline in 2011 and 150,000 jobs were lost," said the Commission in a press on the sidelines of the visit to Athens Friday the European Commissioner for Industry, Antonio Tajani. "It is estimated that during the first half of 2012, up to 1,000 small businesses have closed every week," said the statement, which does not provide estimates on the number of companies created in parallel.

The Commission therefore calls for increased aid to these companies, self-entrepreneurs and family businesses, which form the bulk of the Greek economic fabric. Since last September, the European Union through its Task Force for Greece including trying to find ways to overcome the credit crunch affecting SMEs, banks, deficit, cut off from markets and dependent on the ECB, having suspended loans. In March, a special guarantee fund, with 500 million euros, was created by the EU to promote through the European Investment Bank lending to SMEs up to a billion euros.

According to the Commission, in 2010, Greece had 742,600 very small businesses, employing a total of 2.512 million employees, over 85% of total employment in the country, a record level in the EU. These structures produce 35.3% of the value added of the country against 21.8% on average in the EU. With 14% of employees on average in Greece, against 33% in the rest of the EU, large companies they create 28% of the value added, highlighting the low productivity of small businesses in Greece, the Commission added.

The Spanish government Friday unveiled a package of measures to fight against tax evasion, as the country seeks to achieve its fiscal targets and avoid the need for economic aid external.

According to several independent economists, the economy in Spain represent almost a fifth of gross domestic product (GDP), many Spaniards at work using black and pre ; ferring cash payments.

The government proposes to ban cash payments for amounts exceeding € 2,500 and require taxpayers to report assets held by them abroad.

Violators would face fines. 

According to Cristobal Montoro, Spanish Minister of the Treasury, these measures will enable the government to increase its revenues, though he declined to quantify the expected amount.

Madrid announced on March 30 to drastic budget cuts to achieve 27 billion euros in savings and convince markets that the country is able to reduce its deficit and avoid seeking international assistance.

The limit on cash payments will not apply to individuals who are not habitually resident in Spain or to tourist spending.

"This is to encourage tourists who bring foreign currency in Spain and want to spend in Spain," explained Cristobal Montoro. 

The tourism industry represents nearly 10% of Spanish GDP and remains one of the few sectors still able to sustain an economy as moribund.

As to measures affecting property held abroad, they will target the bank accounts, life insurance policies and actions. A fine of at least 10,000 euros will hit the undeclared goods, warned the government.

The owner of Viking Ocean Cruises canceled its order for two ships passed in December shipyards in St. Nazaire, said Thursday the direction of STX France.

Both boats "high end", representing a total of 4 million hours of work needed to be delivered in spring 2014 and spring 2015.

"This decision is bad news, first for all (of) employees, as it will take several months to try to fill that hole load immediate, especially for its offices studies, whose workload will be directly and immediately affected, "writes the shipbuilding company in a statement. 

Subsidiary of Viking River Cruises, Inc. specializes in river cruises, Viking Ocean Cruises has decided to "continue discussions for the construction project with one of our competitors," said STX, which notes elsewhere "that to date no other site does was given command of ships".

The unions of the shipyards of Saint-Nazaire, the cancellation of the order is due to failure of the financial operation.

"Compared to other European countries, France is missing today in a state bank be able to mount such files," responded Marc Menager, delegate CFDT union of the company, which speaks of a "miserable failure". 

"The state must take the emergency measures imposed by the state to save sites", said for his part-Prinborgne Nathalie Durand, secretary of the Workers' Force, claiming and controlling an aircraft carrier and a fourth helicopter carrier for the French Navy.

Partial unemployment measures had already been announced a week ago by management to face the hollow charge provided on the second half of 2012. They were to receive consulting firms, especially weapons and fabrication shops.

STX France is a branch of shipbuilding group STX South Korean, in which the French state owns a 33.34%.

The company is currently completing the construction of a ship commanded by a Libyan state company, but bought last month by the Italian-Swiss owner MSC after freeze international assets of the Gaddafi regime.

The shipyards of Saint-Nazaire have also started building a small luxury liner on behalf of the German cruise line Hapag Lloyd Cruises and two helicopter carriers for the Russian Navy.

Activity in the services industry and the euro zone shrank in March for the second consecutive month, according to the PMI company Markit. A decline in private activity that reflects the current recession in Euroland. Headquarters of the European Central Bank (ECB) in Frankfurt.

The private activity has continued to contract in March in the euro area, reflecting a return to recession in the first quarter, according to a second estimate of Wednesday's PMI purchasing managers. The composite index, which summarizes the activity in the manufacturing and service sectors, rose to 49.1 points in March against 49.3 in February. This is the second consecutive month in which the activity is contracting. This figure is higher than the first estimate of the index (48.7). Above 50 points, the PMI indicates that the activity increased, while if it is below this threshold, it contracts.

"This monthly decline in activity means that the entire first quarter of 2012, economic activity declined result synonymous with a new technical recession in the euro area", said in a statement the company that publishes Markit the PMI. Apart from growth in January, the economic downturn has been ongoing since last September, continues Markit. However, large disparities remain national: Italy and Spain are firmly entrenched in a recession in March. In Germany, growth slows and displays its lowest level in three months and in France, business retreats for the first time in four months. Only Ireland is holding its own game (PMI at 52.4 points in March to a high of 11 months).  

The eurozone has taken a first step towards recession in late 2011, recording for the first time in over two years a decline in activity. It should logically register a further decline in its activity in the first quarter. The growth figures for this period will be published mid-May by the European office of statistics, Eurostat. A recession is technically two consecutive quarters of decline in activity.

The European Banking Authority (EBA) would like to see banks of the Old Continent to restructure in order to raise funds directly in the markets without relying on cash-rate cut by the Bank Central Europe (ECB) and the regulator intends to propose measures to this effect at the end of its meetings Tuesday and Wednesday.

The debt crisis weighed heavily on the financing capacity of European banks, leaving them little choice but to resort massively in recent months to two injections of liquidity to three years ECB. Spanish and Italian banks will be among those who most borrowed during these operations.

"The ABE discusses possible policy measures that could accompany this process of deleveraging and restructuring to ensure it takes place in an orderly and measured, allowing banks to maintain a regular supply of credit to the real economy, "said Chairman of the EBA, Andrea Enria, in a dossier presented to finance ministers of the European Uni ; enemies last week.

European regulators want banks such as replacing their short-term financing through funding of longer maturities, to avoid having to call too often investors. 

Such a development would also help banks prepare for the scrutiny of their business models in a new series of stress tests ("stress tests") pre ; for next year.

The EBA also seek this week to ensure that banks with 31, according to its criteria, a total need of fresh capital of 115 billion euros take the necessary steps to fill the gap by the June 30

Andrea Enria estimated last week that the recapitalization plan was "on track" but that some banks were based on "overly optimistic assumptions" about how they plan to raise capital. 

SPANISH AND ITALIAN BANKS: CAUTION, FRAGILE

In the opinion of analysts, the Italian bank Monte dei Paschi, particularly should struggle to achieve by June 30, the goal of a capital ratio "hard" 9%.

The managing director of the bank, Fabrizio Viola, said last week that Montepaschi fill nearly a third of its capital requirements – which amount to € 3.3 billion – by converting hybrid securities into shares. Italian media reported Sunday also that the bank plans to cut heavily into its portfolio of sovereign debt and close 150 branches.

Some Italian banks like to see the EBA to backtrack on its requirements for emergency funds to the crisis, citing the easing of tensions on sovereign debt markets since the two operations rations refinancing three years of the ECB.

The Governor of the Bank of Italy, Ignazio Visco, told Saturday that ABE could relax its requirements for capital. But he said it was a medium-term and that the EBA should not take any decision on this matter at its next meeting.

Spanish banks are also in sight, many are afflicted by the bursting of the housing bubble and the deterioration of the economy.

In case some institutions could achieve their own funds by the June deadline, Andrea Enria proposed that the new emergency fund in the euro area, the mechanism Europé in stability (MES) can directly inject funds to troubled banks after its introduction in July.

At this stage, the MES is designed only to assist States. 

The EBA board will also consider progress made by banks in limiting bonuses was decided in January 2011.

The EBA report is expected after Easter.

Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena suffered a net loss of 4.69 billion euros last year and said Thursday it would pay no dividend for fiscal 2011, which is tumbling the stock exchange.

The market was expecting a loss twice as heavy, according to Thomson Reuters consensus I / B / E / S was -2.13 billion.

The third Italian bank, which is restructuring and has also undertaken to reduce the size of its balance sheet, recorded in its accounts for 4.51 billion euros of writedowns in total.

The capital ratio "hard" was 8.5% at end-2011 excluding 1.9 billion euros of bonds guaranteed by the state written in 2009 to strengthen its capital.

At 10:45 GMT, the share was down 8.2% to 0.3314 Euro, by far the worst performance of the European banking sector index (-1.37%). 

The competitors UniCredit and Intesa Sanpaolo also recorded huge writedowns on their fiscal 2011.

But analysts say Montepaschi particularly vulnerable because it has to find 3.3 billion euros of capital by June to comply with new European regulatory requirements.

The German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble has admitted for the first time Monday that the initiative to introduce a tax on financial transactions in the euro area was bound to e failure.

"We simply can not do it, even in the euro area alone," said Schaeuble in Berlin, referring to the Franco-German initiative to bail out of public finances with by the financial crisis. "We will therefore try something else."

Britain and other European countries do not support this tax, commonly known as "Robin Hood Tax," he said Schäuble, adding that the establishment of such a tax n ' was conceivable that across the EU.

A working paper of the European Commission is the basis for thinking of this tax, which could raise up to 57 billion euros, mainly from London, the leading financial center of the EU.

France must introduce in the coming months its own tax, similar to stamp duty imposed on the London stock exchange transactions.

UBS has hired Andrea Orcel, head of mergers and major acquisitions at Bank of America Merrill Lynch in Europe, to co-direct its investment banking activities alongside Carsten Kengeter.

The Swiss bank said Andrea Orcel, an Italian who has orchestrated some of the largest European banking in recent years, would take up his new duties July 1.

At UBS, he worked under the supervision of one of his former colleagues from Merrill Lynch, Sergio Ermotti, now CEO of Swiss number one industry. 

Andrea Orcel, a forty who is fluent in four languages, have served more than 20 years at Merrill Lynch, where he was appointed manager in September 2009, Global Banking and Markets, a year after s acquisition by Bank of America.

The new recruit UBS is one of the celebrities from the world of investment banking. This is among others in the past occupied the Dutch takeover of ABN Amro by Royal Bank of Scotland and helped to strengthen the capital of Italian Unicredit.

In 2008, he received total compensation of nearly $ 34 million (26 million).

"It is effective, even ruthless when it comes to getting things done. There is a good chance that some of his customers leave with him (at UBS), "said one banker who has worked on several transactions in which Andrea Orcel intervened

. "It always provokes a strong reaction from customers: they either love it or they hate it."

.. …… Bank of America declined to comment

. The U.S. group will also experience the departure of another of its officials, Jonathan Moulds, president for Europe and Canada, who will retire end of June according to an internal memo that was procured Reuters

The station

. Jonathan Moulds Andrea Orcel was proposed but the latter preferred to leave at UBS, said a source familiar with the matter. 

Bank of America is currently under pressure from some shareholders who demand a better performance while four of the six quarters ended in losses and its stock price was battered last year.

BofA has cut jobs in recent weeks in its equities and securitized mortgage loans according to sources familiar with the matter.

Management should be next month how the cost reduction plan launched at the group level will affect the activities of capital markets, asset management and retail banking.

The CEO of EADS Louis Welsh, in response to criticism in Germany, said Thursday the project of his designated successor Thomas Enders to domicile more activities of the group in Toulouse , where the headquarters of Airbus.

In presenting the annual results of the group, Louis Welsh confirmed that Peter Hintze, coordinator of aeronautics and space within the German government, had written to Thomas Enders EADS domiciled claim the contrary more activities in Germany.

"This letter is certainly not appropriate and certainly not in accordance with the governance of a listed company," said Louis Welsh.

"With Thomas Enders and the executive committee, we all work without a flag on the table. EADS had also gone through a severe storm in 2006, this time due to the delay of the A380 program.

EADS, the results of 2011 have exceeded expectations, plans for a 2012 EBIT before nonrecurring items above 2.5 billion euros after have already increased last year to 1.8 billion.

"Everything is now ready for EADS took off towards increasing profitability," the group said in a statement, adding that the performance of the EBIT published depend in the future advancement of its complex programs.

EADS shares was sold for 10.78% to 29.74 euros after advertising, finishing well ahead of increases in the CAC 40. 

COMPLEXITY OF PROGRAM

A350

Reflecting a newfound confidence, EADS is also made publicly, a rare thing, the European Commission concerning the management of emissions of greenhouse gases. The group, in retaliation, China could threaten to cancel aircraft orders, with the risk of the industry in a trade war.

The first European aerospace and defense, which also emphasized macroeconomic uncertainty, highlighted the complexity of the program's long-haul A350 expected in the first half of 2014 , noting that the timetable "tightens".

The program was originally a provision of € 200 million, announced in November, but whose impact has been erased by the judgment of the A340.

Airbus is on the other hand increase the production of its A330 to 11 aircraft per month from the second quarter of 2014 to meet demand. 

When the debt crisis threatens defense budgets in Europe, Louis Welsh was also concerned about the progress of discussions with governments on the future of programs e equipment. "It is essential that these discussions, particularly in Germany, lead immediately to a favorable outcome for both parties," he said.

For 2012, EADS expects increased above 6% of its turnover, after rising 7% to 49.13 billion euros last year, sales of Airbus and Eurocopter more than offset the slight decline recorded in the cluster space division Astrium and Defence and Security Cassidian.

EADS, which was up 87% of its annual net profit to 1.033 billion euros, proposed dividend per share doubled to 0.45 euro for 2011, against 0.22 euros for 2010 . 

Analysts polled by Inquiry Financial Europe on average expected for 2011 a turnover of 48.14 billion, a net profit of 687 million and an EBIT issued 1,312,000, which stood at 1,696 million, up 38%.

Airbus had said in mid-January anticipate 600-650 aircraft gross orders in 2012, after a record 1,608 in 2011, and 570 deliveries – with about 30 super-jumbo A380 – against 534 in 2011 .

With an increase of 58% of its orders, EADS posted late 2011 a record backlog of 541 billion euros.

EADS could also indirectly benefit this year of export contracts for the Rafale from Dassault Aviation, which holds 46% stake. 

India announced in late January opening of exclusive negotiations for the purchase of 126 fighter jets, a contract valued at some 11 billion euros, while the prospect of an order for 60 units from the United Arab Emirates has recently resurfaced, with a possible interest in turn of neighbors Qatar and Kuwait.

Swatch Group posted double-digit growth in sales early this year, despite a deceleration of the very high end in China, said Thursday its director gen ; neral.

Nick Hayek, however, continues to focus on growth of 5% to 10% for the watch industry in 2012, believing that Swatch should continue to outpace the market.

"In January and February, we again had a Swatch Group at double-digit growth, but I'll be careful not to extrapolate the first two months for the entire year," Has he said at a news conference in Geneva. 

Nick Hayek, however, expects that sales growth remains strong in all regions and all segments despite a high comparison base.

Swiss watch exports reached a record in 2011 with the Asian consumer craze for watches, exceeding for the first time the bar of 19 billion francs.

The professionals, however, predict a slowdown this year, a new double-digit increase is difficult to achieve at a time when the watch face significant bottlenecks throttle at the production apparatus. 

In a recent interview with the weekly Der Sonntag, Nick Hayek, however, indicated that Swatch Group expected a figure of 8 billion francs in 2012, after posting sales of more than seven billion a year last.

The CEO of Swatch Group, however, acknowledged Thursday that the pace of sales growth in the segments of the highest range had been decelerating.

"In China, it is true that there is a slowdown on the very high end," he said, stressing however that the application had progressed so rapidly year past that the group would not have been able to track the level of production. 

"The demand is (now) than in the region of 15% to 20% and we still can not meet this demand still high," he added .

According to statistics from the Federation watch, Swiss watch exports rose 33.2% in Hong Kong and 32.2% in China in January, after surging more than 70% some months.

Nick Hayek, however, expects that the slowdown in the luxury watches is largely offset by higher volumes in other price ranges, considering that the Chinese consumer enthusiasm for Swiss watches continues unabated.

"The consumption of brands like Longines, Tissot and Swatch, and even higher in Omega segments have increased dramatically. There may be a shift to the segments of entry to mid range, "he said

. Swatch Group, the first Swiss watch manufacturer, is present in all price ranges through a portfolio of brands ranging from Swatch watches multicolored plastic whose prices start at 50 francs, up to premium brands such Breguet, which can be sold beyond a million francs

. At 16:00 GMT, had erased its gains and yielded 0.5% to 408 francs, while the European index values ​​are discretionary appreciation of 1%

.