International Headlines and Stories

EADS, the European manufacturer announced in a news release its second quarter as a significant decline in profits. With effect from April to June, the result came back 208 million euros to 82 million. At the same time, the turnover was little changed at 11.35 billion (11.73 billion for the same period last year). Over the half, earnings were 185 million against 378 million in billings from 20.308 billion. Reduced to an action, the benefit is 0.23 cents (0.47 cents to end June 2009).

Despite the marked decrease in profits, the group has revised its targets upwards for the whole year. It now expects over 44 billion ors billings. The group also announced a production rate of the A320 increased to 40 per month.

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The honor is safe: Microsoft earns more money Apple. Some were considering a transfer of power between the two giants of American computer but the Apple brand will be a little patient. Of course, Apple is now more expensive than its rival in stock: 235 billion against $ 226 billion for Microsoft. However the latter has finally achieved the title of his fourth-quarter profit of 4.518 billion dollars or 51 cents per share, well above the 46 cents expected by analysts. Apple's side recorded during its third quarter profit of 3.25 billion for a turnover of 15.70 billion savings account payday loans.

In its statement, Microsoft said it has achieved a turnover for the period April to June of 16.04 billion dollars, up 22% thanks to higher sales in all activities. This is a "record"

Over the year, net income appears to 18.760 billion dollars, up 29% and the turnover of 62.484 billion dollars, up 7%.

The group Redmond has definitively turned the page on last year, which had marked the first decline in its business since its inception.

This is the most reassuring news announced by the U.S. authorities for more than two months. According to Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen American to oversee cleanup operations in the Gulf of Mexico, BP should be able to contain 100% the gap in the well from which oil flows to by Monday. A new funnel, bigger than previous ones, is currently installed by the British oil.

This funnel, called "Top Hat Number 10", should recover up to 80,000 barrels of oil per day (12.7 million liters), against 25,000 now. The authorities are optimistic that based on their assessments, the well lost more than 60,000 barrels per day. The previous dome will be first removed. A large quantity of oil escape so well for 48 hours.But once the new funnel posed, the results will be immediate, promises Thad Allen.

Since April 20, the day of the explosion of the Deepwater Horizon platform off the coast of Louisiana, BP has increased its attempts to clogging, all unsuccessful.

No stop before August

BP was more cautious in its forecasts. Bob Dudley, responsible for managing the disaster, spoke of another scenario where difficulties in installing the new funnel could delay the time from Monday to Thursday.

But authorities are confident: "We have the climate we need," said Thad Allen. The admiral, however, required to calm the enthusiasm that followed the announcement. "I used the word 'contain' and not 'stop'," he commented. According to him, the well would not be closed as well as two-pass will not be completed.These wells, dug deep to inject cement and mud, should not be installed until mid-August. Once the leak stopped, the extensive cleaning and restoration of the ratings will continue.

Anadarko does not pay

On this last point, BP was again struck Friday denied Anadarko Petroleum. The company, which owns 25% of wells responsible for the spill, said she would not pay the $ 272 million that BP is asking her to cover their share of cleanup costs, according to U.S. law known pollution.

On June 18, the tension was raised a notch between the two partners lorsqu'Anadarko stated that the explosion of April 20 on the platform Deepwater Horizon, "was preventable and was a direct result of decisions and actions BP unthinking.

In another e-mail sent Friday, a spokesman for Anadarko, John Christiansen, however, felt that his group remained "committed to working in good faith with BP to reach a satisfactory resolution."

BP is now awaiting the response of Mitsui, which owns 10% of the wells. The British oil giant is claiming $ 112 million for cleanup costs. The company has not yet made its position.

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Societe Generale and Econom announced Thursday they entered into exclusive negotiations for the acquisition of ECS Group specializes in managing and steering systems of information, the group Econonom.

The offer of this year, specializes in the management of infrastructure and telecom companies, valuing the securities ECS 210 million, the dividend 2009. The transaction will be financed by a particular acquisition debt of 120 million euros. Following the transaction, Societe Generale will own 9% of ECS and "remain a privileged partner" the bank wrote in a statement.

The group Elitegroup Computer Systems (ECS), currently owned 100% Societe Generale, is present in 17 countries, mainly in Europe, and has 1,500 employees.In 2009, it achieved a consolidated turnover of 840 million euros and EBITDA of 28.1 million euros.

Becoming number one

The operation "is a genuinely unique opportunity to strengthen Econocom very significant position in all its markets in Europe" said Jean-Louis Bouchard, president of the economic group in a statement. "We could be the first European group of independent management of technology infrastructure manufacturers and operators with the ambition to become number 1 mobility services to businesses," said he.

With nearly 4000 employees and a turnover of 1.6 billion euros, the new entity would have "the skills and means" according to Jean-Louis Bouchard.The statement said the group would benefit from strong complementarities and the reconciliation process would be facilitated by "the cultural closeness of the teams, and ECS Econocom having the same founder, Jean-Louis Bouchard.

At the Paris Bourse, the Société Générale loses 2.70% to 33.375 euros on a market down 1.90%.

A half percentage point. This may seem insignificant, but when it comes to U.S. growth, the news is important. Between the first and the last estimate of the U.S. Department of Commerce, the number of U.S. growth will have lost 0.5 points from 3.2% in the first estimate in April to 2.7% for the third and final version broadcast Friday.

This reflects "an upward revision to imports and a downward revision to consumer spending," says the Department of Commerce. A phenomenon only partly offset by "an upward revision of exports and changes in business inventories."

"It's disappointing," Judge Inna Mufteeva, economist at Natixis U.S.."Consumer spending was revised down from 3.5% to 3% payday loan online. Shortly reassuring, while half of this increase can be attributed to the plan of Barack Obama, according to Natixis. The fact that fiscal stimulus should deflate during the second half of the year.

Also somewhat reassuring, the growth was largely supported (1.9 to 2.7%) by a motor very tentative: the recovery of businesses. Explanation: During the crisis, American companies have used their stocks. Until no longer have anything in their warehouses. In recent months, they have therefore produced and placed an order to replenish their stocks, thereby amplifying the rebound in growth. Good news is that the investment factor for structural growth, jumped 11% in the first quarter of 2010.

The possibility of staff mothers of three children to retire at any age, provided they have completed fifteen years of service, will be removed by the pension reform. 15,000 women each year experience at a cost of several hundred million euros. The purpose of this feature – contested by Brussels sees discrimination against male officers – has barely stirred the objection of the unions. They recognize a hint that these rules "natalist" dating from 1924 are no longer justifiable.

However, the method of extinguishing device is controversial. Women fulfilling the criteria required before 1 January 2012 may still benefit. But the financial conditions will be much less favorable for all those who file their application from 13 July, the day of presentation of the bill in the Council of Ministers.Article 18 provides in effect that from that date, it is the rules of retirement for the year of birth of the mother who count, not those of the year it has fulfilled the two conditions family size and length of service.

Protective provisions

Specifically, "So far, a woman born in 1962 and in 2002, had three children and fifteen years of service, could leave with the rules in force in 2002, before the reform Fillon said Brigitte Jumel (CFDT) . The amount of his pension was then strictly proportional to the number of years of contributions, divided by 37.5 years. If she filed her case on July 13 or after, these are the rules for the 1962 cohort will apply.Consider a calculation 41.25 annuities, with the reform announced last week, and especially a discount for all the missing years, as foreseen by the law Fillon.

The Secretary of State for Public Service does not deny these provisions but ensures that they are actually "protective". It is in effect six months from the filing of the application for retirement and the first payment of pension. And what are the rules valid at the time of liquidation, not when the application is submitted, that apply. That explains the entourage of the Secretary of State George Tron, without this clause "of 13 July," an official who filed his case last May, to go in November – a period when the law on pensions should be entered into force – would have been applied to the methods of calculation less favorable.It is therefore intended, provides the government to "cover" all mothers who wish to leave by the end of the year.

Danone and Russian Unimilk announced Friday the signing of an agreement to merge their dairy operations in Russia and nearby states (Ukraine, Kazakhstan and Belarus).

This merger will create a new entity that will represent a turnover of around 1.5 billion euros. With 21% market share, it will be a leader in the dairy area CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States, Ed) and especially in Russia. " They will be checked at 57.5% and 42.5 Danone by current shareholders Unimilk.

In their communique, the two companies emphasize their complementarity, including their geographical location (Danone west, east Unimilk) and their products (on the segmented health Danone and core market segments for Unimilk).Unimilk is currently the second largest private company in the Russian dairy and infant nutrition.

"Nearly twenty years after our debut in Russia, said Franck Riboud, CEO of Danone, the creation of Unimilk Danone Danone is a strategic move in a region characterized by growth for years to come."

The European Central Bank (ECB) has revised upwards on Thursday the euro zone growth for 2010, but reduced its estimates for 2011. This year, says the guardian of the euro, growth should be between 0.7% and 1.3%, against 0.4% and 1.2% previously. Exports should benefit the business area, "said ECB president Jean-Claude Trichet.

In contrast, growth should be adversely affected by weaker domestic demand in 2011 than originally planned. The ECB now expects growth understood in a very wide range from 0.2% to 2.2%, against 0.5% to 2.5% previously estimated. Probably the negative effect of harsh announced plans in recent days, including Germany and Spain.In this context, inflation is likely to remain "moderate", said Jean-Claude Trichet.

"We believe that the euro zone economy would grow at a moderate pace in an environment (…) unusually high uncertainty", said Jean-Claude Trichet. "The uncertainty and the level of growth is not writing, it also depends on us", European institutions and governments, stressed the central banker faxless pay day loans. The ECB "endeavors to be an anchor, an island of confidence."

The euro, "very credible"

The ECB president also did not comment on the fall of the euro seen in recent weeks. The single currency, he hammered a currency is "very credible".He did not give further details regarding the buyback of government bonds in place last May in order to guarantee liquidity in a market completely frozen. The ECB has bought for 16.5 billion euros of bonds the first week, 10 billion for the second week, then 5.5 billion for the third, said only Jean-Claude Trichet.

The ECB president was pressed with questions about this decision heterodox. Done rare, Axel Weber, the German member of the Governing Council of the ECB, it is even publicly opposed. Jean-Claude Trichet reiterated that there was "a currency, a central bank, a board of governors," and therefore "a decision and an explanation for this decision" .

Surprising as it may seem, the regions now pay the consequences of the reform of the pension system by SNCF, negotiated in 2007 by the government. In exchange for extending their period of contribution, the railroad has received various forms of compensation (new longevity step, time-saving account …) which, in total, cost 80 million per year from their business is up and running.

But part of that premium is now invoiced regions. These are in charge of regional express trains (TER). An activity inherently deficient, the ticket price only covers about one quarter of the charges. The regions "pay" for it so the station continues to operate these small lines. Specifically, the sign with the company elected public multi-year agreements, often over ten years, which regulate these funding issues.And it is anticipated that if, in the meantime, a law or a decree adopted at national level have an impact euro hard cash at the convention, the SNCF and the region shall, by agreement, review the financial conditions . The reform of the pension plan of the station into this framework.

In some regions, such as the Languedoc-Roussillon, the case has not yet been opened. But in others, the overhead of pensions has been included in escalation clauses when signing new contracts. Elected officials, who did not always detected these clauses are now discovering the pot to the roses. "In 2010, the bill for pensions for railroad workers is 3.3 million euros for Aquitaine," said Alain Rousset, President of PS and its Chairman of the Association of Regions of France (ARF). The magnitude is the same for Burgundy."The surcharge, which was 1 million in 2008 and 1.5 million in 2009, will reach 2 million in 2010 and 5 million per year thereafter," says Francois Patriat, Chairman PS Regional Council. The ARF has not yet calculated the total amount of the overcharge for the 22 regions. But there should be several tens of millions of euros.

Action against the State

In absolute terms, the regions where expenses exceed 26 billion could absorb this unexpected bill. Example of Burgundy, the region has an annual budget of 770 million and 200 million per year dedicated to B (50 million for the purchase of trains and 150 million of benefits). But the political context changes everything. The strained relations between local officials and the government. Nicolas Sarkozy has announced a freeze on grants paid by the state to local governments.

And since the reform of business tax, regional councils receive only the taxes they can not adjust the rate. The fact that the state refuses to compensate for the additional areas of pensions of railroad goes very badly. "This pension reform was imposed on us by the government. This would be the State to bear the consequences, "said Francois Patriat. Elected representatives decided to file an appeal before the tribunal to condemn the State. Franche-Comte has done the same. And considering the Aquitaine. "I have enough for the state to discard" protests Alain Rousset.

The success achieved by their counterparts in other departmental areas, protection of children, encourages regional representatives: general advice PS Saone-et-Loire and Seine-Saint-Denis have got the Council of State that the state is condemned for lack of funding.

It is also true that elected officials do not feel size now to renegotiate the terms with the offending station. "We are at an end of major negotiations between the government and the SNCF. The balance of power is not in our favor, "says Alain Rousset.

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Bad news for the U.S. aircraft manufacturer Boeing. The rival Airbus has struggled to meet with some of these sub-contractors, according to online edition of the Wall Street Jounal. These problems would delay delivery of that piece of the fuselage of its future long-haul B787 Dreamliner to their place of assembly in Seattle.

These delays fall to worse for the manufacturer seeking to accelerate production of its new aircraft to make up for two years behind its original schedule. The inaugural flight – postponed six times – took place last December 22.

Customers get impatient

Launched in 2004, the program has suffered numerous delays attributed to the complexity of the business. Boeing, the first American exporter, technology showcase and trade United States, wanted to reinvent the way to build a civilian aircraft.He selected composite materials to make the unit lighter. With also new engines, the B787 is expected to be nearly 20% more fuel efficient than the previous generation aircraft.

And during that time, customers get impatient. The Japanese airline ANA must be the first to receive a copy, is normally made by the end of this year. At the inaugural flight last December, many observers felt already this calendar too Ambitious for an aircraft as innovative.