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New trial for Yahoo!. The U.S. internet group announced Sunday it had appointed a new temporary chief executive, Ross Levinsohn, replacing Scott Thompson less than five months after the arrival thereof at the head of the company. "Scott Thompson left the company" Yahoo! justifies no further details. The group further states that Fred Amoroso has been named president of the board to replace Roy Bostock.

This change in the leadership of a pioneering Internet companies, now embattled, was announced a few hours after the release of information on the site dedicated to news reports All Things Digital. The article reported an imminent departure of former CEO in the wake of a controversy provoked by the discovery of falsification of his CV. A few days earlier, Patti Hart, director of the group, had also been forced to leave the band for the same reasons: she had embellished his CV.

According to All Things Digital, the reason for the "abrupt departure" is only due to the activism of hedge fund Third Point, a leading shareholder of Yahoo! with 5.8% stake. A shareholder who has been trying for several years to gain seats and influence within the board had asked the head of Scott Thompson on line pay day loans. And the fund has been successful. In fact, Yahoo! has agreed that the boss of Third Point, Daniel Loeb, and two persons selected by him, Harry Wilson and Michael Wolf, are seated on the board from Wednesday. The Board is pleased to announce these changes and this agreement with Third Point, and is confident they will be in the best interests of our shareholders, "we read in Yahoo! News.

The group did not, however, extends the strategy it intends to follow in the future, simply stating that "in as interim CEO, Ross Levinsohn will direct the day to day running of the company, helped by the existing team of executives from Yahoo! ". This last Sunday was up global director of the media branch of Yahoo! It is the fifth CEO to take the reins of the group in five years. The question is whether Yahoo! will manage to raise the head above water.

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These are the first quarterly figures for Mariano Rajoy, and they mark new records. 24.44% of the Spanish working population is unemployed, according to the survey of the National Statistics Institute (INE), the most comprehensive report on the subject. To find such a high percentage, we must go back to 1994. As for the number of unemployed, 5,639,500, it is unprecedented.

The detailed figures are even more dramatic. Youth unemployment has surpassed the psychological half: 52.01% of those under age 25 seeking employment. More than 1, 7 million households survive without one family member has a job. A disturbing figure, in a country where family solidarity is one of the few buoys that are still resisting the crisis.

Degradation of S & P

The increase in the unemployment rate from 22.85 to 24.44% coincides with the entry into force on 12 February, the reform of labor law prepared by the Conservative government. A set of measures that flexibilisent working conditions facilitating dismissals on behalf of … the fight against unemployment.

The deteriorating labor market could lead to further abuses. "Having one in four unemployed will increase our deficit and debt," warns Alberto Pastor, professor of economics at IESE Business School. And conversely, "the achievement of deficit targets necessarily require additional austerity measures likely to deepen the recession and therefore further deteriorate the labor market," says Jesús Castillo, Natixis. A downward spiral.

Standard & Poor's, meanwhile, did not wait for the unemployment figures to punish Spain. By Thursday evening, the agency lowered its rating two notches, from A to BBB +. A decision justified by three reasons: the economic downturn, the difficulties in reducing deficits and fears about the fragility of Spanish banks.

For despite a process of concentration and recapitalization, financial sector remains a concern. Most Spanish economists exclude the possibility of a global rescue plan. They did not rule on the other hand a refinance outside banks. "Some will be forced to appeal to European funds," and believes Santiago Nino Becerra know, professor of economics at the Ramon Llull University in Barcelona.

On Wednesday, the Minister of Economy, Luis de Guindos, admitted that Spain was "perhaps one of the hardest moments for its economy." The government does provide an out of recession next year, a return to growth in 2014 and the balance of public accounts in 2016.

The Italian Treasury has borrowed this Friday 5.95 billion euros in the medium and long term testing at an auction. The operation went well. Borrowing costs are still rising at 5.84% to 4.86% and ten years to five years, but the offer has been fully covered. "The numbers are correct. At least, there is no bad news, "said Michael Leister, rate strategist for DZ Bank. Borrowing costs in Italy have averaged 5.61% since the beginning of the year.

Secondary market, the yield spread between ten-year Italian paper and paper German reference widened by only one point e basis, to 4.08%.

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The gavel to jackhammer … Business leaders now dare to push the door of auctions. They never are all equipped at an auction conducted by volunteer auctioneers. The amount of auctions of industrial sales (excluding used vehicles) is still marginal, although they jumped 19% to 93 million euros in 2011. "The attraction already noticeable in recent years has increased as a result of the crisis," says Thierry Savy, Secretary General of the Council of voluntary sales. These, which still account for only 4% auction in France, grew two times faster than the market.

"We must be aggressive on price"

Between D and management system of family man, the stakes were driven by familiarity with this process through Internet sales, but largely through the efforts of new players such qu'AVE Auctions, Second Market or the Ritchie Bros. Canada. This group, world leader in the specialty, recorded a turnover of 42 million euros in France last year, against 29 million in 2010. "Customers are attracted to our policy of no reserve price," says Cedric Jandet, marketing director for the Eastern Europe, Ritchie Bros.

"To win public sector contracts, we must be aggressive on price, while protecting our production costs, says Florent Martoia, Martoia construction manager. We can not act on either the cost of labor nor materials. This leaves the equipment. On average, the gain at auction is 25%, but sometimes the prices vary from simple to double. "

Brokers also

And companies want more. "There are more and more participants to sales, says Xavier Godrucheau, president of XXL Auctions, however, prices do not soar." Means buyers are limited and the development of second-hand market is hampered by Banks that do not like finance material more difficult to resell. "We are witnessing a terrible credit crunch since last summer, said Eric Leprince, CEO of Agora Financial and Vice President of CGPME in Paris. Banks resort to litigation, and suddenly chains are organized. "

The world of opportunity is not just auction. Sites such as brokers or Webenchères Agriaffaires appeared on the Internet. "As the sales sites for individuals, we simply buyers and sellers together," said Arnaud Comyn, owner of Ocazoo. CEO Site interencheres.com for auctioneers, Dominique The Coent claims an annual increase of 20% of the audience and 17 million page views per month. "Given the interest of the customer, the auctioneers have understood the need to communicate," says he.

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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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Nicolas Sarkozy wants to extend to "large local governments" the principle of non-replacement of retiring in two applied to the public. According to him, modulate state grants would be "very healthy" to encourage savings.

"We will extend" the policy of non-replacement of staff on two "large to local authorities, who have quite the ability to make the same effort as the state," said the president-candidate in an interview broadcast Tuesday on the magazine's website Actors public.

"This is a very important issue: since 2007, local authorities have created 100,000 jobs, while the state removed 160,000", he said.

Nicolas Sarkozy, however, did not specify which communities that would be affected. Communities that employ the most staff are the major cities, regions and departments.

"The larger communities, which represent two thirds of local expenditures, must make the same effort that the state and they have the opportunity to reorganize, to be more efficient in their ways," Nicolas Sarkozy has insisted.

 

The distributor sells one to one of its retail stores (3 000 to 5 000 m2), all located in the shopping streets of major cities. "In most cases, assignment of lease rights or collection of an indemnity or compensation allows both reduce costs and generate an exceptional income," says one expert. However, competitors and suppliers are worried about a possible exit from the market in the wake of closures of outlets the most visible, vital to the store's reputation. Especially since Virgin sells very little through its website: only "a few percent of sales" line, according to management, against 11% for FNAC.

The Bordeaux Merignac store closed early 2011, the Carrousel du Louvre in late January, one in Saint-Denis in the beginning. The Virgin of Metz should lower the curtain end of June and the date of closing of that of Toulouse was not communicated to employees. The brand sold at Fnac location of 3000 m2 that it had reserved in the future shopping center Beaugrenelle. Last year, his competitor had already convinced Lagardère Services to undertake the small stores in stations and airports, since renamed Fnac. The future of the flagship Champs-Elysees is uncertain. Virgin charge of real estate firms to find a buyer for his lease.

A new store model

Despite this dramatic reduction in wing, Jean-Louis Raynard, CEO of Virgin Stores, assures to look for ways "to restart the sales payday loan lenders." In 2011, sales were "slightly" decreased to about 300 million euros, while the goal of returning to profitability, fixed by its shareholder, the fund Butler Capital, has not been reached. The sign is positioned on "high-growth segments, such as helmets, but their contribution is still insufficient," admitted the manager, who also spoke of "a new store model, smaller, more segmented with an offer and a greater role for digital. " Virgin had to test its new store format before summer. Since the date of presentation of this "new strategy" has been postponed twice. It is now scheduled for early May "an establishment in the first site at the end of the year." In the meantime, Virgin will open at the mall from the Gare Saint-Lazare, probably in the coming days. It will not surprise the customer by its small size (965 m2), because the offer has not been reviewed

.

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Projects are multiplying in the ultra-low-cost, became a major issue for the automobile. For proof, German Volkswagen, which earns huge sums yet with its premium brand Audi, does not intend to abandon this segment to rival Renault-Nissan. "The group has a portfolio of cars down to the Up! We lead a discussion to develop a vehicle that would be located below. It would not be proposed under the Volkswagen brand, but would a new name, "confirmed Thursday Martin Winterkorn, CEO of Volkswagen, during a press conference in Paris. The goal is to get off rates lie between EUR 5000 and EUR 7000 to meet demand in some markets. "In India and China, there is undoubtedly a potential market for cars located below the Up!" Says the boss of VW. For now, the cheapest car sold by VW Polo in India is at about 7000 euros, which is expensive for local consumers. The German previously banked on its partnership with Japan's Suzuki, leader of the Indian market – which it owns 20% – to develop an appropriate offer, but relations between the two groups became execrable.

For its part, Nissan, Renault's ally, announced Tuesday it would rise again from 2014 Datsun brand, abandoned in the 1980s. With this new brand, whose prices will be "affordable" (around 500,000 yen, euro 4600, according to Japanese press), the Japanese initially target India, Russia and Indonesia.

"Today, our entry into the Indian market, it is the Micra", sold around 6,000 euros, "or, below that price, it remains more than 40% of the market. It is necessary that we can offer something to those customers "who can not spend more, recently emphasized Gilles Normand, Nissan's vice president, referring to the creation of a true" product line " instant credit report.

For its part, Renault launched the project of a car ultra-low-cost, which aims to compete with the cheapest models in the Indian market, as the Tata Nano to 2,500 euros. Internally, we talk a car from 3500 euros, to be launched by 2016.

Logan too expensive

Renault certainly has its Logan platform, sold under the brand low-cost Dacia in Europe. She pulls the international growth, particularly in Brazil and Russia, thanks to models like the small Sandero or 4 × 4 Duster (which are not considered in these markets as low-cost). But "for countries like India," this platform is "too expensive", "therefore, we will look for cheaper platforms", called ultra-low-cost, explained last month, Carlos Ghosn, the Renault boss Nissan. This new platform will also serve to Africa or South America.

While sales are declining in Europe, the ultra-low-cost has become a vital gateway to the volume in some markets up sharply. The Indian market, which reached 2 million cars last year, could double or even triple in the coming years, according to Renault-Nissan

Indonesia (900,000 sales last year), where Nissan will more than double its production capacity to increase it to 250,000 cars per year by 2014, also represents a market full of promise.

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Global consumption of wine is finding colors in 2011. It increases from 0.7% to 241.9 million hectoliters (hl). She stopped and started a downward cycle since 2007. "It seems that the worst is behind us. This does not mean that an immediate return to pre-crisis growth is confirmed, relativizes Federico Castellucci, Director General of the International Organisation of Vine and Wine (OIV). In addition to unfavorable economic factors, changes in consumption patterns continue to see recovery in the major producing countries, such as the EU. "Indeed, European consumers now favor quality over quantity. This, however, are the Americans and Chinese who support sales.

47.4 liters per capita in France

In detail, the world's largest market, that is to say the EU wine consumption fell by nearly one million hectoliters last year, mainly due to degradation economic conditions in countries of this area and a change in customer behavior. Italian consumption shows a sharp decline of around 1.6 million hl (- 6.3%), as Spain and Britain, but to a lesser extent. Germany, meanwhile, has stagnated.

Only exception in this bleak picture: French consumption increases significantly (3.5%), almost 30 million hl. This increase is explained by massive purchases of wine last year on French territory by foreign tourists easy payday loans. But the OIV can not be quantified precisely. Single index, consumption rises officially in France to 47.4 liters per capita. Net purchases of tourism, it would be some 40 liters per person, a level close to that of Italy to 37.4 liters.

French cognac and champagne appreciated

For their part, the United States, second world market volume, estimated to have grown 0.9 hl (nearly triple the 2009 and 2010) and 28.5 Mhl approach. Americans like French cognac and champagne. Example: for the Charente house Courvoisier, "remains our largest market outside the U.S. where we sell 48.5 million bottles of brandy a year, or nearly 30% of our annual exports," said its president, Patrick Pinet.

China also exports have increased with the increasing popularity of a population easier for wine products. "Since 2001, exports of French wine and spirits increased by 3700%, three quarters of which relate to the claret and brandy," says Nicolas Ozanam, Delegate General for CFTS (Federations of exports of wines and spirits).

Result, world trade in wine in 2011 reached over $ 103.5 million hl, up 7.9%.

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"A woman absolute," "a completely different girl who really won in serenity" (agent). Words do not fail to salute the comeback of Laure Manaudou who just qualified for the Olympic Games in London. Despite a break of over two years which has enabled him to become a mom, swimmer who joined the club last fall swimmers of Marseille, confirmed her comeback to the front of the stage.

His former sponsors are silent

His performances have not gone unnoticed on the part of sponsors. Two years after being dropped by his former partners – Lancel, EDF, Arena … – Laure Manaudou has signed a two year contract with Reebok * to be for the next two years and its supplier, the Ambassador Program crossfit (fitness) that the brand sponsors. The former protected by Philippe Lucas will also sign another four-year contract with a company whose name will be announced after the championships of France. Many companies that will join Cadum (shower products) and Aubert (Juvenile) in the list of sponsors of the swimmer. "We are not on the same amounts with Lancel, Arena or EDF, but these are fine contracts that prove that Laura still interested brands," says Jean-François Salessy, his new agent since last October.

The latter even said last November in Paris-Today in France, "he could never have the money she had with Poulmaire (his former agent). I have no strategy and the economic context is no longer the same. Today, companies do not sign checks over his eyes closed. " After signing a "big" check with Lancel in 2008, its annual revenues were $ 2.5 million. "For other sponsors, I do not close any doors. Laura can not remain confined to sectors related to her status as mother or luxury, "explains Jean-François Salessy. None of his former sponsors have taken the time to contact her. Probably they are waiting to see if Laura will perform at the London Olympics. "I find it disconcerting that there are so few brands that benefit it is also inexpensive to create a" story "with her, said Gilles Dumas, co-founder of Sportlab, sports marketing specialist. Brands lack boldness. "

The French do not forget

Returned to the front of the sports scene, Laure Manaudou will however have to learn to manage his star status. She has done a lot about her on social networking yesterday after his "misadventure" on Twitter. "This is a non-event, says Jean-François Salessy. It has proved that, unlike some sports, it does not live in a bubble. Laura was certainly awkward on some terms she used. We talked about it. But it was steady and did not need a "community manager". " And Gilles Dumas added: "Brands must agree with Laure Manaudou, there will be some" jerks ", as with Eric Cantona in his time. These are the vagaries of modern sponsorship. "

Sometimes regretted not being a person "normal and anonymous," Laure Manaudou remains for many a sports icon. "Laure Manaudou will perhaps not be Olympic champion in London but the athlete is the most anticipated and one that will be the most observed," said Gilles Dumas. Which is not always easy to manage, including his agent. "It is sometimes surprised by the extent of its popularity, says Jean-François Salessy. My goal is to show a French Laure Manaudou as natural as possible and get out of his bubble "people". " In the latest ranking of favorite sporting the French published in January by The Team, swimmer Rhone ranked seventh and the second … for sport.

* Signed before the championships of France, this contract will not be broken even if Laure Manaudou had to stop swimming

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