World and National News

The bank earned less money, but his boss is rewarded by higher wages. The Board of Directors of Goldman Sachs, Wall Street flagship, has decided to triple the salary of executive director, Lloyd Blankfein. His pay increases and 600,000 to 2 million (1.47 million).

The generosity of the investment bank does not stop there. It awarded a bonus of $ 12.6 million (92.5 million) to his boss, an increase of 3.6 million. A level still far from its pre-crisis, receiving at the time Blankfein $ 68.5 million bonus, said the New York Times. In the midst of the crisis of 2009, the payment of 9,000,000 stock options to the boss had raised a rare wave of indignation among the public.

The increase in pay Lloyd Blankfein may seem paradoxical, given the year laborious journey by Goldman Sachs.His reputation took a severe blow when the U.S. stock market watchdog, the SEC accused it of misleading customers on certain complex financial products. The bank chose to pay $ 550 million (404 million) to close the case.

The results presented by Lloyd Blankfein has not been brilliant. Earnings fell 37% compared to 2009, to 8.35 billion dollars (6.13 billion euros). But the bank has done relatively better than its competitors who have recovered fast from the financial crisis.

"Cutting bonus

Another reason cited by U.S. media to explain the increase in fat, the mode of remuneration of pundits on Wall Street is changing."Regulators and legislators are pushing financial institutions to raise wages and reduce bonus indexed to their immediate results," says the Wall Street Journal. "They hope it will encourage employees to focus on long-term performance." The strategy of stratospheric bonus is accused of having encouraged traders and bankers to take excessive risks that caused the financial collapse in 2008 and 2009 .

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The Dow is approaching slowly but surely from the 12,000 points mark. At the opening, the U.S. stock index gained 0.07%.

Wednesday and Thursday after mixed statistics, the Dow Jones had closed slightly below the symbolic 12,000 points, after having crossed that threshold several times during the meeting. Thursday evening, he was awarded as just 0.04% at 11 989.8 points, while the S & P 500 gained 0.2% more frankly, it fails just below the 1,300 points level that Yet he had crossed briefly just before closing. Since Wednesday, the Nasdaq has the best performance of the three major indexes with a gain of 0.6%, 755.3 points 2.

Growth and consumer sentiment on the menu

The macroeconomic calendar is loaded on Friday. Investors first learned of the first estimate of U.S. GDP in the fourth quarter.The U.S. economy grew by 3.2% in the fourth quarter, much lower than expected, but this increase was sufficient to allow the U.S. GDP of 2.9% gain in 2010 and thus fill its losses the crisis, according to official figures published Friday.

From 3:55 p.m., will follow another statistic of importance: the second estimate of the index of consumer sentiment for January.

On the currency side, the dollar regained ground against ra to the euro by mid-afternoon in Paris, the single currency was trading at 1.3688 dollar.

The ball goes quarterly

Corporate side, the ball of results announcements of fourth quarter continues, including Chevron Corp. and Ford Motor Co and Honeywell.

Ford lost 3.1% in electronic trading before the market opening. The group has a profit annocer 2010 which has more than doubled to 6.6 billion.But earnings per share fourth quarter was $ 0.05 against 0.25 a year ago due to a charge of $ 960 million related to the completion of a conversion of debt. The turnover of the 4th quarter reached $ 32.5 billion. The consensus was $ 0.48 for earnings per share and 30.39 billion dollars.

Honeywell International announced, meanwhile, increased its profits for the fourth quarter of 2010 and raised its forecast for 2011 due to higher demand for products produced by all its units. The industrial group posted a net profit of 369 million over the period, or $ 0 no fax payday loans.47 per share, against 150 million ($ 0.20 per share) a year ago. Honeywell raised its forecast of 10 cents earnings per share for 2011, now seen in the range 3.60 to $ 3.80.

As for Chevron, the group recorded a 81% increase in earnings in 2010 to 19.1 billion.

The e-commerce giant Amazon.com for its part should be very guarded on Friday, after posting yesterday after market close, the results showing strong sales but margins disappointing. All indicators are green on the year-end sales on the Internet and the action of the group posted an increase of 50% yoy and 4% on the previous day, before the publication of results that the have reduced by 9.4% in electronic trading after closing. The group announced a profit of $ 416 million, or 91 cents per share against 384 million last year. Sales are up 36% to 12.95 billion dollars.That's their strongest growth since 2000.

Microsoft surprised everyone involved on Thursday night, unveiling its results 15 minutes before the close of Wall Street. Results marked by the success of Office 2010 and KINECTS, but disappointing sales of Windows 7. This gives the arrival of mixed results. Profits are down 5% to 6.63 billion, or 77 cents per share against 68 cents expected. Turnover was up 5% at $ 19.95 billion against $ 19.2 billion expected by analysts.

On the other hand, the American group of FMCG Sara Leevi clarify this Friday's market strategy, after having rejected, according to press reports, two tender offers. Sara Lee has invited investors and journalists to participate in a conference call at 15:00 Paris time.Inform the direction of its "strategic initiatives" and its outlook for the year end.

In addition, LinkedIn, the social network for professionals, announced Thursday his intention to go public in 2011, an operation that should measure the appetite of investors for a possible listing on Facebook. This is the first social network to enter the stock market and on Wall Street. But the market is expected to mainly derive an omen for Facebook, the world leader in the industry, whose value is estimated at 50 billion dollars (36.5 billion euros), and other websites may make their entry offering, or as Zynga Groupon.

The crisis is no longer relevant to the Davos World Economic Forum which opened today's debate (from 26 to 30 January). Beyond the optimistic forecasts of the IMF, which recently revised upwards its growth scenario for 2011 (4.4%), Nouriel Roubini, famous for having predicted in 2007, here in Davos, the U.S. housing crisis, saw fit to renew his message. It now seems that exclude the U.S. economy and even Europe may fall into another recession, a real change from "Doctor Doom" (Cassandra).

Roubini, who now manages a business analysis of Global Economics, strong one hundred employees, does not mean that growth is higher than current forecasts in the United States, which he said "the strength of company accounts and the return of confidence. "It is more dubious vis-à-vis the eurozone, which it hopes it will survive only as "a political response" to clear a form of economic and political union.

He is particularly troubled by the situation in Spain "too big to fail and to save" (too important to be dropped but also to easily and be saved!). He recommends that Europe is committed to both a more abundant distribution of cash and "orderly restructuring" of certain public debts ". It will be expected to discuss his ideas with Jean-Claude Trichet, ECB president, during a special seminar devoted to "strengthening of the euro".

Inequality: a subject river

If the panic that had dominated the 2009 Forum is a bad memory, the time of trial may well have sounded."We can not let inequalities grow," commented Zhu Min, the special advisor to the IMF (and its number three), namely, citing differences of wealth in the United States, while stating that these inequalities "are everywhere no fax needed payday loans. Including China.

In the short term these inequalities are a danger with the rioting in North Africa caused by soaring food, a subject that is in every conversation.

And more fundamentally it is globalization itself is debatable. "Globalisation has increased world levels of life. But inequality, social barriers and the resurgence of nationalism has revived the specter of protectionism "summarizes a note of the Forum on the increase in risk.

The scourge of unemployment blamed by the Americans

Noting the spike in unemployment among U.S. and Europe, Philip Jennings, general secretary of the World Union of Unions in Geneva, stigmatize "a rotten business model (sic) which has developed economies to its knees." One criticism that American economists virtually the only ones allowed in the Forum of Davos have trouble admitting, even when they are at rather left, as Laura Tyson. This former adviser to Bill Clinton continues to award unemployment mainly to the lack of "training and education" of Americans and reasons "cyclical weakness in demand in the United States."

Neither Barack Obama nor his Chinese counterpart Hu Jintao, nor Dominique Strauss Kahn, have seen fit to come to Davos to discuss these issues in Davos.Nor Dominique Strauss-Kahn, yet very present last year. Some interpret this lack here for political reasons, not to show today with the "masters of the world, in a proceeding known for its ultra-liberalism.

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Fear and anxiety on the front of the British economy. The gross domestic product (GDP) of the United Kingdom fell by 0.5% over the last three months of 2010, according to preliminary official figures. After robust growth of 0.7% in the third quarter, observers expect average GDP growth of 0.4% in the fourth.

"The third quarter GDP was clearly affected by the extremely bad weather in December," said the Office for National Statistics UK (ONS). "The weather effect" has cost 0.5 percentage point growth in the country, he calculated. "This estimate (…) is the best we can achieve now, but it is still marked by uncertainties," acknowledged the British statisticians. December the coldest of the century has penalized heavily in construction (+0.1%). But these are services that are most leaden growth (-0.4%).Single industry, driven by exports, posted a rise in its activity by 0.9%.

"Hard to believe"

Some are skeptical of the figures as bad. "The ONS calculations imply underlying growth of 0%, after 0.7% the previous quarter. Hard to believe, "critic Brian Hilliard, economist at Societe Generale CIB. "We expect a strong rebound in activity in early 2010, which will also no more representative of the actual situation of the British economy", for reasons of statistical calculations fast cash advance.

Still, the weather does not explain everything. "The fall in GDP suggests that the first measures of austerity and budget cuts the government already beginning to feel their negative effect on growth", Adele Renaux, economist at Natixis.Conservative Prime Minister James Cameron has launched the most severe austerity of the European Union in 2010.

Austerity

The slowdown caused the fourth quarter of 2010 is just the beginning. Rigor hit the economy full in 2011, according to Adele Renaux: VAT in January has increased, taxes were raised, the government spending heavily reduced. Not enough to expect much of the consumption side. For 2011, "the British economy has lost considerable support in public spending," said the economist. Single engine on which the economy can handle the overseas count: exports from the dynamism of emerging countries such as China or Brazil.

In this context, the Bank of England (BoE), keeper of the pound sterling will probably wait before increasing interest rates on hold despite inflation above 3%, and the institute believe Natixis Markit.In early January, the BoE decided to leave its main rate unchanged at 0.5%.

The World does succeed in finding a new director? For now, the issue remains unresolved. According to the Journal du Dimanche, the Society of Editors (SRM) would have removed Saturday night negotiations underway with the trio of shareholders Pierre Berge, Xavier Niel and Matthew Pigasse in the process of appointing the next director of daily.

The names of the dozen candidates to succeed Eric Fottorino normally be announced Monday. But the discussions appear to be blocked. The mail traffic on Saturday night, drawn by the SRM refers to "differences of point of views with other participants." MRS accuses the trio of shareholders to seek to impose its list.A second e-mail, released later in the evening, referred to a meeting of shareholders and the RS without asserting that it will restore the designation process.

Meanwhile, hearings of the candidates have taken place in recent days. The trio of shareholders looking for a journalist "without political commitment, internal or external, without preconceptions."

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Customers were satisfied with the TGV Friday leaving the meeting at the headquarters of the station, with the director of the outline, Barbara Dalibar. Exasperated by the repeated delays, the subscribers of the Paris-Le Mans line led a strike for three weeks of travel tickets, joined earlier this week by those lines and Paris-Tours Paris-Lille.

After an initial proposal for the station, they had declined, they were daily users of the TGV Friday feeling of being heard. The 10,000 subscribers daily TGV will thus obtain, under the difficulties encountered in 2010, a compensation of 200 euros. In addition, Barbara Dalibar assured them of the gel increases the package price for 2011. On the merits, to solve the problems of regularity, committees lines combining collective leadership of subscribers and will be implemented on all axes.

Last appearance, at the request of subscribers Tours-Paris, SNCF will establish a system for future compensation for delays of less than 30 minutes, as far a partial refund is provided until half an hour late.

This new system specifically for subscribers owning a package might work in the form of a monthly calculation of delays, giving rise to a bonus for users. "We decided to stop our movement against these advances," said after the meeting Pascal Mignot, president of the group of subscribers Le Mans-Paris, joined by the subscribers Paris-Tours and Northern lines Pas-de-Calais, including Lille and Arras-Paris. An upcoming national meeting will be held in six months.

Lateness

Remains a downside to this size by SNCF management of the crisis of daily users of its high-speed lines.Users of regional express trains (TER), also present at this meeting, came out very angry. The association of users Avuc called for a national strike of tickets in ESTs. According to the association, regional networks are forgotten in the improvement plan announced by the company. His spokesman, Colin Wily, launched "a slogan of strike presentation of tickets from Monday on the entire network TER France," adding that "all discussions focus on the TGV network, ESTs are forgotten when the problems are of equal concern. "

The association claims 10,000 signatures to petition against delays. Would that that Ile-de-France, subscribers of ESTs is much higher. Lines such as Chartres-Paris also complain of repeated delays.Friday, Barbara Dalibar said the problem concerned regions, transport authorities of these lines. Suffice to say that the movement, if it is managed like the TGV, could well grow.

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While Barack Obama gets his Chinese counterpart, Hu Jintao, to discuss including the yuan, China publishes a series of statistics that confirm the good health of the country. In particular, gross domestic product (GDP) of China grew faster than expected last quarter of 2010, with an increase of 9.8% annual rate. Over the whole year, Chinese growth was 10.3%.

Great concern of the authorities, inflation has moderated somewhat in late with an index of consumer prices up 4.8% in December against 5.1% in November. It reached 3.3% throughout the year écoulée.Soit a little more than the 3% target previously set by Beijing.Furthermore, the jump of 23.8% of fixed investment shows that the rebalancing of the economy, too driven by investment to the detriment of the consumer is not yet on the agenda.

And despite the restrictive measures of the government which fears a bubble on the front real estate, investments in stone continued to increase, by 33.2%. However, Beijing still has recently tightened the screws on credit, but an article in China Daily Economic 21st Century Business Herald revealed yesterday that Chinese banks had already lent $ 113 billion since the beginning of the year, again a figure well above government targets central.Pourtant after advertising the Asian stock indices retreated: the Shanghai Stock Exchange lost 1.3% in mid-session, down close to the Nikkei.

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Rigor to reduce the deficit or raise for a fragile recovery? Barack Obama will officiate at the presentation of its budget in 2012, early February. But the rating agencies come lend a hand to Republicans opposed to the "mismanagement" in Washington. After Moody's, Standard & Poor's has again warned the U.S. that they could not continue to let them slip deficit.

"Our stable outlook on the notes 'AAA' U.S. assumes that the government will soon reveal a credible plan to tighten fiscal policy to enable the debt-GDP ratio to stabilize and then reduce to medium term" said Davis Wyss, chief economist of the agency of record.

Ceiling of 14,300 billion

This call to order came as the Republicans refuse to raise the statutory debt limit at the request of federal governing Democrat. Currently set to 14,300 billion dollars (10.6 billion euros), it will prevent the Treasury from late March to repay credit lines due to investors. If the state is now cornered, it's because of budget deficits of past years.

The Republicans know that blocking the cap does not reduce the debt.They seek to educate the public about it for "gain bargaining power when the budget debate begins in 2012" during the second week of February, Davis Wyss analysis. "This is the game of the sissy, and they hope to force Democrats to give up first. The risk with this kind of bet is that neither party will yield to time. "

Layoffs

In this case, the government could put two million federal employees laid off due to delay of payment default. This action, a "shutdown", has already been done twice in 1995 and 1996 by Bill Clinton when he was in power cash till payday. Worried by this turn of events, Moody's had threatened to degrade the American note. But, ultimately, the White House had won his showdown against Republicans.

In the coming weeks if the situation worsens and the Treasury can not pay its creditors, however, the consequences would be disastrous. Investors, worried, could ask for higher interest rates. The 10-year rate is currently at a relatively low at 3.37%. The cost of all federal debt increasingly heavy and above the cost of money in the entire U.S. economy would grow. Enough to undermine the recovery. "We live in the coming months, a period of political uncertainty that poses some unusual risks for U.S. Treasury securities," as economists warn Societe Generale.

Debt levels above that of France

This could trigger even though the probability remains low, according to Societe Generale, a debt crisis along the lines of what is happening now in the eurozone.The fiscal position of the American state is not really improved: gross debt represents 101% of GDP in 2012, according to the OECD. A level higher than that of France. Even if the United States is protected by a dollar and a must experience a higher growth (3.1% according to OECD), these levels could eventually worry credit rating agencies and investors.

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Tour operators rely on the map of prudence in Tunisia. Rene-Marc Chikli, president of the Association of French tour operators (CETO), announced on Monday that flights to the country affected by violence will remain frozen until next Sunday, January 23. The carts were originally from Tunisia resume Monday.

This Friday, the Quai d'Orsay has advised all non-emergency travel to Tunisia. For customers who are not parties, proposals to postpone travel, without charge, at a later date on Tunisia or wherever made.The events in Tunisia under the case of "force majeure", professionals find themselves "freed from their traditional obligations to people traveling or refund if there is a change," told AFP Emmanuelle Llop, Lawyer specialized.

"They do not offer refunds spontaneously because they do not always this possibility, including travel agents who have more funds," she says.

Acceleration of return of French blocked in Tunisia this weekend

The return of French tourists stranded in Tunisia began on Saturday and picked up Sunday with the chartering of twelve additional aircraft by tour operators to repatriate most of the vacationers who want the end of the weekend."Much effort has been made by tour operators with twelve additional flights" in addition to regularly scheduled rotations, told AFP Rene-Marc Chikli, president of the association of tour operators Ceto.

Saturday morning, Rene-Marc Chikli believed that these early returns would spill over the weekend several days, considering the logistical problems faced by tour operators, between keeping the curfew in Tunisia and difficulties to find aircraft, crews and slots flights. Finally, the situation has released over the hours, especially in the afternoon. "Basically, 100% of customers will be back Sunday night for most major tour operators, subject to external events," he said Saturday evening saving account pay day loan."Substantially all" of French tourists stranded in Tunisia will be returned Monday, said Sunday the National Union of Travel Agents (SNAV).

Travel agencies have thus repatriate by Sunday evening the two-thirds of their 8,000 clients present Friday in Tunisia, according to figures from the State Secretariat of Tourism. For those who want to stay, said Rene-Marc Chikli, "we did sign a waiver."

A logistical nightmare

Repatriate as much guests simultaneously request to establish a well-oiled logistics, routing passengers from their hotel on arrival in France. "We do not start with an airplane like a car. It is not enough to go to the garage and put the key in the ignition, "says Jean-Pierre Mas, co-president of the network of travel agencies" AS Travel (Afat and Selectour), which has 1,500 customers Tunisia.

Thomas Cook France (700 customers), Fram (1600 customers), New Frontiers (200), Marmara (790 customers) have confirmed their aim was to repatriate passengers Sunday night unless unexpected. "If flights do not land in France in the airport of departure we will organize post-delivery" by bus or train, said Marmara. Club Med, which has only one village open right now, has finally found airline seats for its 130 customers and 35 "GO" Europe of 91 that the operator has decided to repatriate. "For the French, who bought a flight, travel agents are mobilized to locate them …which is not easy with the difficulties of mobile telephony in Tunisia, "says Jean-Pierre Mas.

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(With AFP)

All Tunisian airports are reopened to air traffic, said Saturday the Tunisian Civil Aviation communiqué.La in a closure of the airspace was announced Friday by an airport source when former President Zine In Abidin was preparing to flee the country.

"The Tunisian airspace and air national airports are open to air traffic," said the agency in a statement released by the official news agency TAP.

Defer non-urgent travel

The office has however urged travelers to check with airlines to avoid clutter which would be linked àl'annulation or delayed flights. On Friday, the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs recommended "strongly" to "defer all travel which would not urgent" flights to Tunisia.The CETO (Association of Tour Operators) also recommended to suspend departures to Tunisia until Monday included because of "recent developments of the situation" in the country. The agency said the tour operators strengthened their support to their customers stuck in place and develop solutions for their return. He stated however that the tourists are in resort areas and had received no request for return.

German tourists returning

Several thousand German tourists were, however, be repatriated on Saturday, said the German tour operators. The TUI provides for departures from Monastir and Djerba. Buses are currently en route to the hotels where the guests stay for transfer to the airport.So far the tour operator headquartered in Hanover (northwest) had indicated that none of her guests did not want to return to Germany despite the offer that had been made in this direction. "We are in full preparations for a quick evacuation," said Ulrich Heuer who heads the Crisis Group said in a statement. In addition to flights normally scheduled for this Saturday, special flights operated by airlines German TUIfly and Nouvelair Tunisia, should be put in place, the source said. They repatriate tourists to Hannover, Frankfurt, Munich, Nuremberg and Stuttgart, said the spokesman. TUI decided to cancel all his trips to Tunisia until 24 January inclusive.

The tour operator Thomas Cook expects to repatriate this Saturday's 1800 holiday still in Tunisia. They spent a quiet night in their hotel in Monastir and Djerba, said a spokesman, Mathias Brandes.Some 230 holidaymakers had been evacuated Friday night in Dusseldorf, Berlin and Vienna, as the 100% subsidiary of the British group of the same name. Thomas Cook has canceled all its trips to Tunisia lundi.Le Lufthansa flight to Frankfurt Tunis planned this Saturday was also canceled.

(With agencies)

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