News – Business & Economi

The weekly jobless claims rose against all odds in the United States during the week to September 10, at 428,000 against 417,000 the previous week, said Thursday the Labor Department.

Economists on average had expected 410,000 jobless.

Registration of the week to September 3 were revised up from an initial estimate of 414,000.

The moving average of four weeks stood at 419,500 against 415,500 (revised) the previous week.

The number of people receiving regular benefits rose to 3.726 million during the week to September 3 (last week for which figures are available) against 3,738,000 the previous week.

The major European stock markets rose Tuesday in the red by late morning after the announcement of an unexpected decline in economic sentiment in the euro area in August.

Around 12:25, the CAC 40 index yields 0.21% to 3147.48 points after opening up. Since the beginning of the benchmark index of the Paris market lost more than 14%.

According to stakeholders, the shares continue to consolidate, in an atmosphere of caution after the shock of bearish early August.

"It is a market without enthusiasm, which is still afraid of a correction, market pure waiting, with U.S. unemployment figures Friday in focus," said Frederic Rozier, manager at Meeschaert Private.He sees a strong resistance to the CAC 40 index to 3,260 points.

Alexander the Drogoff, technical analyst at Aurel BGC, agrees that the market could resume its downtrend after a waiting period. He does not see the CAC 40 exceed 3,400 points, before a relapse to 2890 points and its lows of 2009 and 2003 around 2450.

Other major European markets, London, which was closed Monday, gaining 2.35% while Frankfurt lost 0.49% and 0.77% Milan.The pan-European Euro Stoxx 50 index was down 0.34%.

S & P: RECESSION CAN BE AVOIDED

In addition, Standard & Poor's lowered its economic growth forecasts for the eurozone to 1.7% for 2011 and 1.5% for 2012 and believes that a spin in a recession can be avoided, even if the risk s 'increase.

Bank stocks were among the first to turn around, the Stoxx sector in the euro area losing 0.64%. Societe Generale lost 1.7% and 1.1% Credit Agricole.An article in the Financial Times reports that according to the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB), the impairment recorded by some financial institutions on their Greek sovereign bonds were not large enough.

Mining stocks, however, remains strong, the index increased 3.5%, supported by the agreement between ArcelorMittal (0.28%), Peabody Energy and Macarthur Coal on the terms of the acquisition of specialist Australian coal sprayed.

In the bond market, the auction of government bonds in Italy this morning met with a relatively low demand, despite the purchase of the European Central Bank in recent weeks, creating nervousness.

For its part, the performance of the same maturity Bunds declined to 2.17%, 2.22% against the previous day.

The euro cup against the greenback at 1.4388 / 90 dollars, against 1.4513 the previous day in the afternoon.

A barrel of U.S. light crude dropped by 0.74% to 86.63 dollars and Brent from 0.21% to 111.64 dollars.

European stock markets are expecting a strong signal on the governance of the euro area. German Chancellor has warned however that we should not expect the summit of spectacular announcements. President Nicolas Sarkozy meets with German Chancellor Angela Merkel Tuesday, August 16th at the Elysee Palace (both are here in Berlin July 20, 2011)

European shares opened slightly lower Tuesday, opting for caution before the Franco-German summit on the governance of the euro area. After three consecutive sessions of gains, Paris opened down 0.73%, 0.68% from London, Frankfurt 1.02%, Madrid and Milan by 0.65% to 0.28%. Monday, Paris won 0.78%, London 0.57%, 0.41% Frankfurt, Madrid 0.71% and 1.37% on the Swiss Exchange. New York has erased all its losses last week in garnering 1.90% for the Dow and 1.88% for the Nasdaq.

Global financial markets are also showing much more attentive Tuesday.Asian stock markets were the first very hesitant: Tokyo has ended up slightly from 0.23% after a session sawtooth and Sydney ended down slightly by 0.86%. Seoul, closed Monday, was an exception by closing up sharply from 4.83%.

All eyes are on the meeting between German Chancellor Angela Merkel and President Nicolas Sarkozy from 4:00 p.m. at the Elysee Palace in Paris. "The markets are expecting a very strong signal: Is there a pilot on the plane to govern the euro area? Will you finally speak with one voice in the Franco-German and stop to maintain the cacophony that lasts for months and madden investors? "asked a Paris-based analyst who requested anonymity.

But hopes could be quickly showered.Berlin has in fact warned that they should not expect miracles, especially not that the two largest economies in the euro zone agreed to set up Euro-bonds, which would be financially harmful to Germany .

"It seems that there is an acute attention paid to this appointment, and we believe that the margin for a big disappointment," warned analysts at MF Global. This meeting should ultimately focused on the governance of the euro area, following decisions taken by Heads of State and Government of the European end of July.

The Tokyo Stock Exchange finished Monday up%, taking in turn the path of recovery from the European and U.S. markets late last week.

The Nikkei gained 122.69 points to 9,086.41 and the Topix, broader took 8.93 points (1.16%) to 777.12.

GDP figures, published earlier today in Japan, reported a smaller than anticipated contraction in the economy, with a decline of 0.3% against -0.7% expected and 0.9% in quarter above.

As the Osaka Securities Exchange, the operator of the Osaka Securities Exchange, finished up 8.6% to 410,500 yen.The daily Yomiuri Shimbun reported on Saturday that the Tokyo Stock Exchange plans to become the purchaser via a takeover bid.

Toyota, Honda and Sony have outperformed the market by winning respectively 2.91%, 3.43% and 3.93%.

China's central bank said Friday it wanted to maintain a relatively stable exchange rate, but the announcement has not been enough to calm the speculation that Beijing would consider letting the yuan rise further to better contain the inflation.

In a quarterly report, the People's Bank of China (PBOC) announced that it would employ "many tools" including interest rates, exchange rates and bank reserve requirements to try to control rising prices.

It recalled that it would maintain the yuan's exchange rate relatively stable at a "reasonable and balanced level."

But the noise is spread in the markets, however, the PBOC preparing an intervention currency.Local newspapers related to the central government suggested including it would rely on a stronger yuan to try to curb imported inflation in China by the weak dollar.

It remains to ascertain whether the report of COPD was written before or after these press articles, published Friday.

"We will use reasonable tools (regulatory) price as interest rates adjust to the demand for capital and savings behavior, and manage our investment and inflation expectations," said the PBOC.

The monetary institution noted that it would not drop the guard against inflation, although many economists believe that it peaked in July.

"Price stabilization is not yet firm enough and the situation is not optimistic," said the PBOC.

Beijing is regularly subjected to international pressure, including from the United States and the International Monetary Fund to allow the yuan to appreciate faster.

The yuan was stabilizing Friday around 6.39 to the dollar on the spot markets, pausing after a sharp rise this week.

The Chinese currency has appreciated about 6.7% since the abandonment of its indexation to the dollar in June 2010 and 3% since the beginning of the year.

Wall Street was seized Wednesday by concerns related to the exposure of French banks to the most indebted countries in Europe and possible contagion in the U.S. banking sector.

Like the European markets, the U.S. indices fell sharply on losses to finish higher than 4%.

The Dow has plunged 4.62% or 519.83 points at 10,719.94 points, while the S & P 500 lost 4.42% or 51.77 points to 1120.76 points.

The Nasdaq meanwhile sold 4.09% (101.47 points) to 2381.05 points.

Wall Street has been greatly disturbed by the rumors of the day on the French banking sector in general and in particular, Societe Generale, which was heavily penalized in the CAC 40.

Despite the denials made by Societe Generale, the stock closed down 14.74%.

"People who did not sell fast enough during the last financial crisis stand ready for the next time to sell quickly before asking question. And they think that the next time, it is now," said Ed Crotty, chief investment officer at Davidson Investment Advisors.

Financial stocks have been severely punished.The KBW index of U.S. banks sector was unscrewed from 8.21%.

Including Bank of America lost 6.77% to 10.92 dollars.

Unlike other more conservative cities, China has reacted angrily Saturday to the lowering of the sovereign rating of the United States from Standard & Poor's, criticizing the economic policy of the "world's only superpower."

"The U.S. government must resign himself to a painful state of affairs: the good old days when all he had to borrow to get out of trouble he had himself created is over," said the official agency Xinhua particularly virulent in a comment.

As the largest creditor of Washington, China, which holds more than one.000 billion dollars of U.S. debt, "is now in its right to require the United States they face the problem of debt and ensure the structural safety of Chinese assets in dollars," the agency said.

"There is a need for international monitoring on the issue of the U.S. dollar and a new reserve currency, stable and secure, can also be an option to avoid a disaster to be caused by a single country," added Xinhua.

Russia, the third holder of gold reserves and foreign currency in the world behind China and Japan, by contrast into perspective the decision of the rating agency S & P.

"In the short term, this will not affect us," said Vice-President of the Bank of Russia Sergei Chvetsov the RIA news agency, adding that Russia did not intend to proceed in the immediate adjustments to its reserves of gold or foreign currency denominated in dollars.

The Deputy Finance Minister Sergei Storchak, 'sherpa' Russian international summits, for his part felt that the one notch downgrade of the American note was a "moderate correction can be ignored by the terms of managing long-term investment. "

"KEEP A COOL HEAD"

First state to react in Europe, France has affirmed its "full confidence" in the strength of the economy of the United States, the sovereign rating was downgraded by Standard and Poor's, and the ability of the U.S. government out of "this bad".

The French Minister of Economy and Finance, Baroin, spoke on several media to hold reassuring face to the first in the history of the United States.

"I recall that, even under (Bill) Clinton, the U.S. budget was declared in default for a few days.So do not dramatize, keep a cool head, we must look at the fundamentals, "said Baroin on iTV.

Baroin stressed the need to give time to political time.

"The time of democracy, the time for government action, the time of acceptance by the population as those plans that are difficult by definition is not the time for market participants, investors or speculators or even the time it seems a few rating agencies, "he said.

The minister and questioned the relevance of the initiative of S & P. "It begs the question of how an agency like that can make that decision based on numbers that are not consensual.So there will certainly be a debate in the United States, "he noted.

In Berlin, Norbert Barthl expert in budgetary matters to the CDU, the Christian Democrats in power, has in turn "surprised that for weeks, rating agencies have focused their attention on the situation sovereign debt in the euro zone countries without addressing the United States. "

India, an emerging major power likely to be affected by the decision of S & P, has found the situation "serious".

"We will have to be analyzed (degradation). This will take some time.The situation is serious and we have nothing to gain by making comments off the cuff, "said Indian Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee in the Indian news agency Press Trust of India.

It reached 2.5% in July against 2.7% in June and May. The ECB should not raise rates until the fall. The logo of the euro to the European Central Bank in Frankfurt.

Inflation down slightly in July in the euro area to 2.5%, according to a first estimate Friday of the EU statistics office, Eurostat. She was by 2.7% in June as the month of May Inflation appears to end slightly below expectations of analysts polled by Dow Jones Newswires, which projected to stabilize at 2.7%.

It remains for the eighth consecutive year above the threshold of 2% target over the medium term by the European Central Bank (ECB). In early July, the Mint has once again raised its key interest rate to 1.50% against 1.25% previously.Considering the economic recovery in the euro zone on track and worrisome inflation, the ECB had made its first increase in nearly three years in April.

The ECB president, Jean-Claude Trichet, suggested that a break would be made in the rate hike. Economists expect an increase before the next fall.

The government will soon close 4500 accommodation places for the benefit of emergency housing. A bad strategy as associations, however, who approve its policy of "housing first". A homeless man is housed in a center of the Samu Social de Lille.

The resignation of Emmanuelli served as trigger. Wednesday, the former secretary of state slammed the door of the Samu Social de Paris, which he founded in 1993. "The social emergency, no one believes it is more manageable," he said. In May, the government announced a 3.3% decline the funding of accommodation, to 1.204 billion euros. The association also denounced a drop of the resources allocated to marauding, the day care and the number 115. In late June, the Samu Social even had to close its only center of Paris.Directly affected by the various criticisms, the Secretary of State for Housing, Benoist Appeared, held the same evening to respond on the board of France 2.

But instead of appease stakeholders, it has rekindled the flames by announcing the elimination by the end of the year 4500 hotel accommodation places, replaced by housing. "We have families with children, single women, for whom the care places are not appropriate, because the accommodation yes," he said.

Benoist Appeared in fact follows a strategy launched in autumn 2009, the "housing first". Its principle focus on access to ordinary housing, avoiding as much as possible the transition from shelters.For the National Federation of Home and Rehabilitation (Fnars), it also amounts to saying that housing stability is a condition "prior to the required insertion", not the culmination of a long journey in accommodation, as previously envisaged.

No debate on the merits

This policy would "not necessarily fully shared by Xavier Emmanuelli," said Secretary of State for Housing. His philosophy, at least, is not affected by most organizations, aware of the economic and social costs of accommodation. "The principle of 'Housing First' is not controversial.Now everyone agrees to say yes, with support from hotel 17 euros per night per person more than 1500 euros per month for a mother and two children-hotel accommodation cost more expensive than housing, which is absurd, says Juliette Baronet, head of research expert on housing consulting firm Fors-Social Research.

But replace accommodation places for housing can not be decreed. "Today, we did not, especially in areas where the rental market is very tight as the Ile-de-France and Paris.This policy can be set up on the long term, "said Juliette Baronet.

Benoist Appeared attaches yet to replace 4500 accommodation places by the end of the year, betting mainly on "intermediation rent", to which the state will spend 30 million euros this year: association serve as a third between landlords and tenants, and the state covers the difference between the rent paid by his last and the market price. In 2010, around 5000 homes were affected, and only 1500 are now available, according to the Fondation Abbé Pierre.

Rationalisation costs

"In this context [of lack of affordable housing], it is outrageous to cut the appropriations for hotel nights," complains the executive director, Christopher Robert, interviewed by Les Echos. For several other associations, the government seeks mainly to save money.Representatives of the State "seem deflected in a logic of cost efficiency, providing temporary housing solutions and support small," the worried Fnars in April.

The shortage of accommodation places, however, leads to absurdities, and additional expenses. Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris (AP-HP) has revealed that 111 families without homes were sheltering emergency between mid-May and early July. "In the long run, their living conditions are even worse than they were at the hotel and the cost to society even more important," observes Juliette Baronet, the bureau Fors-Social Research.

The government portrays him on his positions.The budget allocated to only emergency housing, shelters and rehabilitation has increased from "670 million euros in 2007 to 933 million euros in 2011, and should be at a similar level in 2012, an increase of 39% over the five year period, "reported the firm Valérie Pécresse, the budget minister. But the needs have also exploded. More than 680,000 people still do not have a home personnel, including 133,000 homeless.

Scandinavian telecommunications group Tele2 has released Wednesday a net profit slightly above expectations for the second quarter.

The EBITDA (EBITDA) rose to 2.7 billion Swedish kronor (293 million euros) over the three months April, May and June

Consensus means established by Reuters was 2.6 billion crowns.

Tele2 has raised its targets for its activities in Russia, where he now has to increase its EBITDA margin to 38-40%, against a previous target of 36-39%.

Rival TeliaSonera, the Scandinavian telecommunications leader, has also published the results slightly above expectations and maintained its objectives.

The EBITDA before special items rose to 9.1 billion kronor (988 million), against an average wait of 9.0 billion and 9.2 billion the previous year.

TeliaSonera plans for this year increased its net sales by approximately 3% in local currencies, and also banking on a gross operating margin higher than in 2010.