The Internet giant strikes another blow. Google announced an update to its search engine in the U.S. who will soon be extended to the world, to refine and contextualize his responses. To make, in short, more in tune with reality, according to the ambition of the group. So you type "taj mahal"? Google offers, in a box right, to limit the results to the famous Indian monument, a singer using this pseudonym or a casino in New Jersey of the same name. Also new is learned as well as the results page of Google as the Taj Mahal is a white marble mausoleum located in Agra, India, it opened in 1648 and it is 174 meters high. Research "Taj Mahal" is associated with that of "Ustad Ahmad Lahauri," the name of the architect of the monument.

"This is not just a catalog of objects is a presentation of the relationships between them. One is understanding between these different elements is the key, "says Amit Singhal, Google's vice president. To add to these changes a lighter note, Google will also offer information on the unusual subject of research. Consequence: the user can get answers to their questions without leaving the Google page.

Behind these new features lies a technology: the "graph of knowledge," or "knowledge graph", "built to understand the real things of the world," says an official from Google, Ben Gomes payday advances. The group has worked there since the acquisition in 2010, the company specializes in managing Metaweb database of movies, books, companies or celebrities. Thus, Google has learned, and quickly: from Freebase, Wikipedia or the CIA World Factbook, the giant has registered 500 million objects, places, characters and memorized some 3.5 billion relations between them.

Update Bing last week

In parallel, the group has expanded his knowledge on user searches. Google has announced in January new privacy policy to share user accounts on all its sites (like Gmail and Youtube). A change that is controversial and will be subject, in France, a meeting with the CNIL next week to clarify the new rules.

The goal for Google is taking another step ahead to face competing search engines, starting with Bing Microsoft announced last week its largest update since its launch three years ago. Among the new Bing strengthens its integration within the social network Facebook, which Microsoft is a shareholder. According to the firm Comscore, Google has widened its lead over its competitors, concentrating 66.4% of online searches in the U.S. in April, against 65.7% a year earlier. Well ahead of the 15.3% posted by Bing and 13.7% for Yahoo!.

Medel, its official name Lucmagn, is a quiet village of 435 souls nestled at 1332 meters altitude, in the heart of the Alps, in the region of the Lukmanierpass (Grisons). Its inhabitants were just as quiet on their heights until a Swiss mining company, a subsidiary of Canadian Gold NV, may disturb their idyll. Under their feet, in fact hides a gold mine. That company then proposed to exploit this in exchange for 40 million Swiss francs, or about 33 million euros. Against all odds, the villagers declined the offer to two-thirds of the population, after a referendum held in early April.

According to Business Insider, the mine in question, located in a vast pine forest in the snowy peaks and valley Medel, to contain about 1.2 billion dollars of precious metals. The U.S. site information reports that the history of the mine clearly divided the inhabitants of the valley. Some would see a tremendous opportunity in the economic deficient, while others – mostly – highlight their concerns about the environmental impact such a project would succeed.

For its part, NV Gold in talks with the mayor of the small town, more than ever determined to steal the treasure buried by the villagers jealously refractory.

Training remains a major challenge for companies. Especially in times of crisis, where the imperatives of productivity and internationalization require the DGs and their HR managers to work on climbing skills of their teams. Which levers businesses support each day to ensure the professionalism of their staff, how do they organize relations and the division of labor between HR and business managers? This is the theme of the fourth edition of Panorama conducted by HR consulting firm BearingPoint strategy, in partnership with Le Figaro economy, Sciences Po and Ipsos

When asked "why professionalize?", HR departments respond to 43% it is necessary to "secure certain profiles and some skills" and are 35% to emphasize the obligation "to achieve gains productivity "and 30% emphasized the" major alterations "suffered by some functions. "The HRD also mention the direct benefits of this professionalization for employees, is Olivier Parent du Chatelet, a partner with BearingPoint. Valuing employees is cited by 25% of HR and development of mobility by 62%. "

Concretely how firms organize the professionalization they? "The steps of professionalization rest today on a triptych: the training path, career paths and managing a business that includes the GPEC and animation business sectors", the authors of the study.

Several levers

In detail, the Panorama HR BearingPoint emphasizes development over the past fifteen years of corporate universities, the rise of business management, although it remains to this day the "poor relation approaches deployed" , while the definition of career paths is identified by only 40% of HR as a lever for action. "However, the involvement of businesses is a key appears in the definition of career paths. Today they are virtually absent from development approaches: only 19% of the sponsoring business managers, 13% fly them, "says the study.

Another weak link of political professionalization, their low integration. "Most often, different organizational structures are the individual career management and mobility, collective management skills and training, or facilitation of business networks, said Olivier Parent du Chatelet. Split between different levels of HR and business managers or business, they manage their policies and processes without real connection. "This undermines their effectiveness.

One of the recommendations of BearingPoint is also to integrate all of these courses offer a comprehensive HR, "at a crossroads between training, career management and planning of jobs and skills." These policies should also start thinking in terms of generalization, involving both business managers and HR, with a real efficiency target business, competitiveness and employee retention.

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The decline in unemployment in the U.S. in March to 8.2% against 8.3%, not fooling anyone. The labor market has actually worsened last month. He created only 120,000 jobs, almost twice less than expected. The favorable review of the February numbers limited to just disappointment. As also those of January proved slightly worse.

According to the Labour Department, the private sector hired only 121,000 people in March, when he was recruited 233,000 people in February. The service sector is the main troublemaker with only 90,000 new jobs, against 204,000 the previous month. Yet on the increase for months, temporary jobs have vanished completely. The new posts have also declined significantly in the transport and independent professionals. In trade and distribution, staff reductions have accelerated.

Even more disturbing was the drop in unemployment is largely due to the cessation of 164,000 job seekers find work. Out of the workforce, they are no longer counted as unemployed.

Misleading effect of a mild winter

Some analysts believe that these figures, on the whole disappointing, confirming the misleading effect of the warm temperatures of winter. We have attributed the relatively strong hiring in December to cyclical factors, while the mild winter would have been an essential support activity. The explanation is not fully convincing because in the construction sector most sensitive to climatic hazards, the trend since February has not changed: the job cuts are modest between 6000 and 7000.

Wall Street will react Monday that these disappointing data, because U.S. markets are closed for Good Friday. The debate on the need for the Federal Reserve, to reconnect with exceptional measures to stimulate the supply of credit is restarted. It had been thought earlier in the week, however, that the continued expansion in industry and services in March, according to the ISM index, the Fed had converted to the wait. If job creation in April again proved mediocre, the U.S. central bank may reconsider the option to buy Treasury bonds to further lower interest rates long term.

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Jerome Chartier is UMP, a member of the Finance Committee.

LE FIGARO. – You've looked at the cost of the quinquennium. What is your assessment of this work?

Jerome Chartier. – We have a collective duty: a constant reminder that the expenses that shall be implemented after the presidential election will still have a fiscal impact after fifty years. Nicolas Sarkozy has not inherited a country virgin 30 years of debt! For example, we still have not finished paying the bill for 150,000 additional officers hired by Francois Mitterrand in 1981 and will continue to assume in the budget settlement of their pension for many years yet. A majority of the degradation of our deficit since 2007 is related to the consequences of decisions taken ten years or thirty years ago, and nobody can deny. Today, when Francois Hollande speaks to hire 60,000 more teachers, it is not an expense for five years only, to 2.5 billion euros as encrypted in its assessment. They would be hired for forty-two years, and it will then pay for their retirement. It is actually 120 billion euros of financial liabilities would weigh substantially on warrants after 2017. That's what a discourse of truth budget. And the deafening silence of Francois Hollande on this reality weighs heavily in his campaign.

Ultimately, what is the cost of this five year period?

In a book dependent, two journalists were obviously looking for a slogan, a five-year 500 billion-and then tried to justify it. This method of working alone demonstrates the total lack of seriousness with which we entered this debate. This hoax has fizzled. The Court of Auditors, in particular, has brought back to reality, which recalls that sum more than half (52%) of the current deficit is a direct legacy of past decisions. She also said that the crisis explains almost 40% of our deficit, to the extent that it has reduced our revenues sharply by almost 50 billion euros in 2009. It has spawned at the same time, like all European countries, the exceptional increase our spending in 2009 and 2010 from 46 billion to protect the French and preserve their jobs guaranteed approval cash loans.

The government's choice to do so would contribute 10% to deterioration

.

The reality is that ever a term of five years had produced so few new unfunded expenses. The economist Henry Sterdyniak, department director at the OFCE, says the same thing. A study just published it is very clear in late 2006 to late 2012, the French public debt would increase by 620 billion euros. It breaks up this way: 275 billion from interest payments, 310 billion from the economic crisis, including 30 billion stimulus policies implemented in 2009-2010, and 60 billion of tax reduction policies some of which are directly related to the crisis. He adds, and it is rare to be said, that the restrictive policies of public spending (fewer officials, non-revaluation of wages, rigorous management of social benefits …) allowed the other hand save 55 billion euros. Conclusion-and it's not me saying it-the responsibility of head of state and government in creating the deficit is greatly reduced at best to 35 billion euros. For the record, it was exactly the estimated cost of the program of the candidate in 2007! And no one can suspect of belonging to Henry Sterdyniak the campaign team of Nicolas Sarkozy.

How do you respond to those who tell you that it is 35 billion too?

35 billion that is exactly the amount of large loan, which finances the structure of French growth in the future, and promises of jobs that go with. Rarely has a presidential term has been provided the opportunity to invest in the future: higher education, research, attractiveness for industrial relocation with the removal of business tax, pension reform … Many of the decisions taken were not included in the 2007 program and the direct result of the crisis. The French now believe that they are healthy decisions for the future of France.

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Fitch upgrades Greece. After the swap of debt that was a huge success – over 80% participation – there is more good news for the country. "This exchange and losses imposed on creditors have raised the profile of debt service and reduces the risk of a repeat of its short-term repayment difficulties," said Fitch in a statement. The rating agency notes that the country-B, no longer considers Greece in default … for now. Three days ago, its American competitor, Moody's, had preferred to maintain the rating of Greece to C, the lowest in his scale. For its part, Standard & Poor's is expected to meet the CCC.

Fitch remains cautious nonetheless. She stressed that the challenges the country faces are important. The next decision that the agency will take vis-à-vis the Greek debt will be dictated by the analysis that she will do "performance of Greece in terms of the parameters set by the new EU-IMF and the ability and willingness of the sovereign State to honor its obligations related to restructured debt. '"A broad program success through maintaining significant budgetary surpluses, structural reforms and a concerted demonstrable economic recovery would put pressure bullish on the notes, "the agency says.

Troika, comprising representatives of the European Union, the European Central Bank and the IMF, concurs. She said Greece will have to make further budgetary adjustment efforts in the next two years. The report reached this conclusion based on the primary surplus target (that is to say outside debt service) Greek public finances which should reach 4.5% in 2014. Given this goal will require "an adjustment path in the short term that implies a primary deficit of 1% in 2012, followed by an adjustment of 2.75% of GDP in 2013 and then in 2014".

According to the report, "there are significant risks that the decline of the debt is interrupted or even a reversal occurs as a result of economic shocks." In a more pessimistic scenario presented in the report, the country's debt could exceed 145% of GDP in 2020. In addition, a high degree of uncertainty and the debt burden makes "the uncertain outlook for Greece to be able to return to the markets at the end of the program" help, either in 2015, the report notes.

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After Greece, out of bankruptcy risk through the release of a second bailout of 130 billion euros, it was Spain who finds himself in the crosshairs of the Eurogroup, meeting on Monday evening in Brussels. The Spanish finance minister will have to explain on the skids deficits Spanish before his peers, the European Commission and the ECB President.

The prime minister, Mariano Rajoy, had a surprise, on March 2, alongside the European Council, stating that Spain would build his 2012 budget with a deficit target of 5.8% of GDP, while that agreed with the EU was 4.4%, to reach 3% of GDP deficit in 2013.

The market reaction was not long in coming. Following this, the cost of borrowing from Spain to 10 years jumped to nearly 5% more than for the first time in months, that of Italy. Guardian of the future "fiscal pact", the European Commission ordered a "serious blunder", brandished the threat of financial sanctions and sent experts to Madrid to assess the fiscal situation. Last year, the Spanish public deficit soared more than expected to reach 8.51% of GDP in late 2011.

Threat of sanctions

"There is no questioning of objectives," says the Spanish Minister of Economy, Luis De Guindos, in an interview Sunday on ABC newspaper. "Spain is a loyal member of the EU who feels bound by the European fiscal rules," he says.

Engaged in a very severe austerity measures, faces a general strike in late March because of its reform of the labor market, Spain is weighed down by losses of its regions, which have slipped to 2.9% of GDP against only 1.3% under-the Madrid region meets its objectives, which weighs heavily on central government accounts.

Barely out of the Greek crisis, "the euro area can not afford a new speculative attack," recalls one in Brussels. The Commission will ask the government to submit a plan "credible" to bring deficits to 3% in 2013, implying a say in Brussels on the draft budget 2012 Spanish.

Monday night, finance ministers from the euro area will give the green light to launch the second program of aid to Greece. Of 130 billion euros, the IMF should be involved up to 18 billion, said Christine Lagarde.

Even the Germans say they are reassured about the situation in Greece. "I am confident that the measures taken hard by the Greek government will put the country on the road to recovery," said German Finance Minister, Wolfgang Schäuble, unwilling to speculate on a third plan to help … To parry , the European Central Bank will continue its buybacks of bonds on the secondary market, ensures Coeuré Benedict, a member of the Executive Board of the ECB to Japanese newspaper Nikkei.

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Starbucks is more determined than ever to tackle Nespresso. The U.S. coffee chain announced the launch before next summer vacation an espresso coffee machine equipped with a high pressure extraction system. The high-end system, called verismo, was designed in partnership with the German group Krüger. It will work with the Starbucks brand capsules.

Verismo will, initially, sold online, in a selection of chain restaurants and in specialized distributors, while the United States, Canada and "certain international markets." No details were given about the distribution strategy of the capsules (the Internet, in supermarkets …) and their prices.

"France is one of the markets under consideration, such as England or Germany in Europe, said Olivier de Mendez, director of marketing France. But for now, the agreement concerns only the U.S. and Canada. "

"The coffee segment fastest growing"

This launch marks a new stage in the desire for conquest driven by Howard Schultz, CEO of Starbucks, which took over the reins of the company in 2008. Recently asked by Le Figaro (our editions of March 3), he did not want hidden stick as closely to the expectations of customers, wherever they are. In town, in malls, but also "in stations, airports, restaurants, trains and hotels."

The founder will therefore also continue to their home, with this offer premium caps, a growing market. "This segment is the one with the strongest growth in the coffee sector," explains Howard Schultz. "At group level, this is an important innovation that allows people to replicate the Starbucks experience at home, says Olivier de Mendez. The machine will make espresso, latte, coffee and coffee filters lying. "" We now have the opportunity to reach millions of consumers, "commented Jeff Hansberry, in charge of developing distribution channels.

Years ago that Starbucks is trying to sell his coffee out of his own restaurants. A strategy not so easy to implement. The chain, which was allied with Kraft to sell coffee in bags in supermarkets, became angry with the giant global agribusiness and broke the partnership.

Record results last year

In March 2011, Starbucks announced an alliance with the first Keurig and Green Mountain in the machinery sector and pods. This agreement resulted in development since November Keurig machines offering drinks Starbucks in grocery stores and supermarkets. 100 million pods were sold, according to Starbucks. But Keurig machines are low pressure, which does not allow them to make espresso. They offer five different varieties of coffee, but only filter, and two teas.

The announcement of the new agreement between Starbucks and Krüger caused a plunge in stock prices from Green Mountain this weekend. The boss of Starbucks has yet assured that this partnership remained "solid". The stock market especially liked his strategy of moving upmarket. Last year, the company announced record results, and she is determined to put a boost in Europe.

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While the first three mobile operators declared war on the new entrant Free, France Telecom unveiled details of its contract with the fourth operator. The CEO of France Telecom, parent company of Orange, Stéphane Richard said in an interview with Les Echos that the roaming agreement signed with him rent for Free mobile network will report "significantly higher revenue than the original one billion euros" .  

The CEO of the operator partly owned public does not advance on a possible extension of the current contract with free-roaming covering communications for second and third generation-the new 4G standard that will provide mobile users transmission capacity comparable to cable.

Under fire from other operators who feel like Jean-Bernard Levy, CEO of Vivendi and SFR, Orange has offered "the best technological conditions" to Free Stéphane Richard replies that her group has not make gifts to the new entrant. He said that "it is not the economic conditions of homelessness that make attractive offers Free. The controller and the CEO of Iliad, do not they also said that the financial conditions of homelessness clearly incited Free Mobile to invest in its own network? "Stephane Richard also ensures that employees France Telecom is aware "that the contract with free roaming, the recipes for it (…) provides, will partly offset the negative effects of the arrival of the fourth operator in the market." Free delighted 400,000 in Orange, and all operators in a month and a half only, Free Mobile has attracted 1.5 million customers, according to estimates by Stéphane Richard, Free for now refuses to confirm.

Finally, Stephane Richard said he was "quite shocked" by the statements of the President of ARCEP, encouraging operators to draw conclusions from the arrival of Free and reduce costs. The CEO of France Telecom wonders if this is "an invitation to make redundancies, when one tries to save manufacturing jobs throughout the territory," or of "an incentive to share infrastructure. " A track he considers "paradoxical."

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