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lefigaro.fr: Pay rates are eroding each year. Life insurance will she lose her place of savings product preferred French?

François Longin: This term is preferred savings often used but it is not really the case for at least two reasons. The first is financial. The product units accounts sitting on the CAC 40 have suffered from the crisis. As for funds in euro, eroding their earnings. 5%, it rose to 4.5% or 3.8% for some. But with returns that remain between 3% to 4%, life insurance remains more attractive than money market products whose performance flirts with 1%.The second reason is related to the reform of inheritance tax since 2007 has lost a little interest in life insurance.

Life insurance is it still a good product transmission?

The tax rules for the transmission of money invested in life insurance have not changed, but the reform of inheritance taken by the Government to facilitate such donations, has lost its interest in life insurance. Particularly as regards the succession between spouses. However, holders of life insurance can now pay up to 150,000 euros to each of their children, not inheritance. This allows for example a couple with two children to give each of them 300,000 euros for free.Beyond 150,000 euros, the transmission is taxed at 20%.

What issues should I consider before choosing a contract of life insurance?

Before choosing an insurance-life, we must address three key points. The profitability, risk and liquidity funds. Profitability, in other words, the compensation offered by the contract is important. It will depend on the type of support. Either you invest in a fund in euros, based on government bonds and the yield will be between 3.5% and 4.80%. Whether you choose the fund units of account, also called multichannel, whose performance is more important because you take more risks by investing in shares or funds to emerging markets. It's more risky, but the year after, people who have invested in French shares have gained 20%.

It must then linger on the liquidity of funds.The money is not actually blocked, but it is more or less detrimental to withdraw money before age 8.

Finally, we must be vigilant about fees: entry fees, which disappear on the Internet, and management fees that range between 0.6% and 1% under the contracts.

At what age is it interesting to take out life insurance?

The tax treatment of life changes during the life of the insured. Over the insured later withdrew the money invested is more interesting. Insurers therefore recommend to take a contract as soon as practicable, to date, and this even if the person is simply placing a small capital without making further payments in the first place.When young, you can also take more risk and choose unit-linked contracts account for more attractive returns.

Can we rely on contracts offered on internet?

They are good products in the sense that it has internet access to the same fund as the insurance contracts traded in the "real world", with more direct access to place orders. Other service not found with traditional life assurance: all orders have a written record, the process is to me more reliably than through an intermediary. The sites of online brokerage also offers advice and simulations. Opting for a contract on the internet, however, implies that one has some experience of financial investments.

Wall Street should open in a tone slightly negative on Friday. However, publication of results in the fourth quarter of giant Intel on Thursday night after-hours trading was better than expected. But the JP Morgan Chase established the doubt. The day before the U.S. markets have closed up slightly, despite the disappointing statistics across the Atlantic. The sectors of health and technology have supported the trend.

Earlier Friday morning, Asian stock markets closed broadly in the green. Tokyo The Nikkei ended the session up 0.68% at 10,982.10 points. The Hang Seng in Hong Kong, however, ended down 0.3% to 21,654.16 points as investors still worried about a possible tightening of Chinese monetary policy.

The Dow Jones, S & P 500 and Nasdaq retrograde by 0.2%, 0.3% and 0.16%.Shortly before they were further back but the index of industrial activity in the New York area has accelerated sharply in January, according to the Empire State index released Monday, to 15.9 points, much higher than the waiting analysts.

The President's speech yesterday, Obama did not surprise the markets. As announced by the spokesperson of the White House, a proposed tax of fifty largest banks will be presented to Congress in the coming weeks. According to the Financial Times, the U.S. Treasury would press other countries to also adopt a tax on banks.

New wave of statistical significance

Even today, the news on the economic front should shake the markets.The consumer prices in the United States rose by 0.1% in December, bringing inflation over the whole of 2009 to 2.7%, according to figures released Friday by the Labor Department. In the short term, the inflation risk sembre low.

Industrial production in the United States rose in December by 0.6%, as expected by analysts, according to official figures published Friday, but this increase was primarily allowed by having an unusually cold boosted the energy sector.

Intel and JP Morgan Chase surprised

Intel (-1.27% to 21.21 U.S. dollars) Thursday confirmed the resumption of its activities, with net income nearly tenfold in the fourth quarter of 2009, which allowed him to limit to 17% decline in annual net profit, to 4.369 billion dollars. This exceeds the expectations formulated earlier by analysts.Conversely, Microsoft (0.71% to 31.18 dollars), IBM (+0.28% to 132.68 dollars) and Cisco (+0.16% to 24.99 dollars).

Boosted by a return to growth in the fourth quarter, PC sales grew by 5.2% in 2009, according to a study by analyst firm Gartner published yesterday. Acer dethroned Dell (-2.38% to 14.35 U.S. dollars) in second place worldwide.

This Friday, JP Morgan Chase (-1.70% to 43.93 dollars) has announced having doubled its net profit in 2009 to 11.7 billion dollars. Per share, net income reached 74 cents per share in the fourth quarter, against 62 held by analysts. In the fourth quarter alone, the bank has increased by more than four net profit to 3.3 billion dollars. The bank's CEO, Jamie Dimon, welcomed the news that the bank in late 2009 enjoyed a "very strong capital ratios Tier 1 of 11.1%.But the cost of risk (failure to pay on credit) remains "high". The bank especially in its accounts last quarter to 7.3 billion dollars in reserves to cover these risks.Morgan Stanley lost 2.60% to 30.39 dollars, Goldman Sachs 1.25% to 166.42 dollars, and Bank of America 1.96% to 16.49 dollars.

Citigroup (-1.71% to 3.46 dollars) would be decided by the Financial Times, to cap the bonus at $ 100,000.

Market research firm NPD has revealed sales of video game consoles in the United States for year-end 2009 total, the three major manufacturers have passed 40 million consoles in 2009, including 20 million for the Wii Nintendo, 10 million for the Xbox 360 and 10 million for the PlayStation 3 (PS3) by Sony, thanks to an aggressive policy of lower prices.

In addition, Verizon Communications (-1.19% to 30.85 dollars) will host a conference on its wireless subsidiary, which is partly owned by Vodafone (-1.78% to 22.10 dollars).

Oil retreats, dollar strengthens

Side materials, oil slipped below the 79 dollars a barrel and connects its fifth session lower after the report of the International Atomic Energy: global consumption of oil should rebound by 1.7% in 2010 fully supported by demand from emerging countries and Asia, after falling 1.5% in 2009.

The dollar is strengthening against the euro, which is penalized by the situation in Greece after the publication of inflation. One euro is worth 1.4395 dollars.

In the Benetton family, is the financier. Chairman of Edizione Holding, Gilberto Benetton, 68, was on Wednesday in Paris. He inaugurated at the Carrousel du Louvre, the world's Restaurants. This space managed by the subsidiary Autogrill house a McDonald's already controversial. For Le Figaro, Gilberto Benetton details the strategy of the family in its various activities.

LE FIGARO .- Why invest in the Carrousel du Louvre with an area of restoration of 2 000 m²?

Gilberto BENETTON .- Le Carrousel du Louvre, nine million visitors and two million meals a year. For a group like ours, we felt it important to be there. We present in France since 1994, our largest market outside Italy, with 84 rest stops. Our fleet also teaches in seventeen stations, two major airports and hotels.We work in association with partners like French Brioche Doree and Buffalo Grill, with whom we will open soon a service area on the motorway between Marseille and Nice.

At the Carrousel du Louvre, the opening of a McDonald's restaurant has troubled the French …

We propose a range of cuisines from around the world. Among the brands represented, we can find the Spanish Mira, Meltem the Mediterranean, the Moroccan Salam, the Asian Self, Beaudevin for France and for Segafredo Italian coffee. What makes the success of our formula is to offer a wide range of services with a predominance of local products. This is a great innovation.We are already present in the world in more than fifty museums, archaeological sites and palaces of prestige as Pompeii, Versailles and the Palacio Real in Madrid or the Empire State Building in New York.

What are your development projects?

This is no time to expand in Europe, but the consolidation. That means reducing our costs, cut out the superfluous, lower our prices. In France, we are the second group of restaurants on motorways. New opportunities will arise. We will participate in bids to manage new areas on the motorways and the TGV station.

Your group is already very diverse. What activities will experience the highest growth?

Management infrastructure, be it highways or airports, is the most promising.Edizione, holding family owns 79% of Sintonia, large umbrella company infrastructure. We are ready to get up to 51%, to make way for new shareholders while retaining control. Latin America and Southeast Asia are the growth prospects strongest. Sintonia has one billion euros of liquidity. In Italy, we presented a draft of expansion of Rome airports to increase capacity from 33 to 70 million passengers per year. By the end of 2010, the new Alitalia, since its takeover by Air France-KLM will have its own terminal.

Do you regret certain investments?

Our only mistake was coming in 2001 in Telecom Italia, a 24.5% at worst as wrong when the telecommunications business was at its zenith. We have not managed directly participation.We decided today to leave. In the textile industry (Benetton Group, which owns 67% Edizione), we faced the crisis with equanimity. Turnover declined this year by about 4%, especially in the United States and Eastern Europe. The Western Europe remains substantial. Each one million more passengers is 1 000 jobs.

And Autogrill?

Autogrill will continue its development in France and Germany. In fifteen years it has grown from a turnover of 700 million euros to 5.8 billion business. It is unparalleled in the world. This seems an easy job, but it's far from true. The proof: the competitors are not legion. For ten years we have taken control of the U.S. HMSHost, the Frantour Restoration of specialist duty-free Aldeasa makes us the world leader in the specialty, Alpha Group and WDF.There would be many other channels to acquire, but not yet. We must consolidate and improve the quality of our services. From this perspective, the opening of the Carrousel du Louvre is a test and a step forward.

He had said in November he confirmed Monday. The British confectioner Cadbury rejects bid officially launched by the giant U.S. Food Kraft Foods. In a paper stock, the confectioner highlights the objectives of long-term growth above expectations to show the low supply of Kraft.

Cadbury expects organic growth of 5 to 7% per year instead of 4 to 6%. The profit margin would rise between 16 and 18% by 2013 instead of a margin of about 15% in 2011. He waits finally growth of dividend per share "double digit" from 2010. All of which explains why Cadbury's assets are worth more than 10 billion pounds (about 11 billion euros) proposed by Kraft Foods.

"Kraft Cadbury tries to buy at a discount, to provide some growth in its business model attractive to non-conglomerate low growth, irritated Roger Carr, the chairman of candy in the document.

Hershey, Nestle and Ferrero instantly

The rejection of the offer Kfrat opens an avenue to other agri-food specialists. According to CEO Todd Stitzer British group, "third parties" have actually indicated their interest but he refuses to name them yet.

The U.S. chocolate maker Hershey is in a strong position. Last month, Todd Stitzer had clearly said he would prefer a merger with the latter rather than Kraft because Hershey is already a partner of Cadbury in the United States. The Italian group Ferrero and Swiss giant Nestle are also in the race.

Friendly atmosphere in Berlin between Christine Lagarde and his German counterpart Finance, Wolfgang Schäuble, who met Monday for a preparatory meeting at the Brussels summit. Certainly, the French minister still can not correctly pronounce the name of his neighbor, but for the rest, they gave the image of a pair perfectly consistent.

"It is for us to strengthen the Franco-German base and we consult on the question of the stability pact. We have also given our views on oversight of the financial system, "said the minister, Wolfgang Schäuble before takes the floor:" I'll just translate what Ms Lagarde said earlier, "joked the former Minister of Interior of the previous government Merkel.

On the merits, the ministers argued over several issues.They first agreed to establish a "common agenda" on a range of topics (G20 finance …). They then discussed access to bank credit for SMEs. If both countries have said that there was no reason to fear a "credit crunch", they agreed to "proposals" together. To this end, France and Germany will "exchange of experts".

Public finances have also been at the heart of discussions on Monday. The replacement of the Social Democrat Peer Steinbrueck, highly appreciated by Christine Lagarde, told the good news: the country's deficit this year would be 10 billion less than expected.For Axel Weber, Bundesbank president and also present at the meeting with his French counterpart, Christian Noyer, it "could allow Germany to return in 2012 in the nails of the European stability pact."

"Semantic shift"

The France is also changing its official position on the thorny issue of public finances. There are a few more days, Prime Minister François Fillon and 2014 set the deadline back to a deficit below 3% of GDP, with an "effort to reduce more than 1% per year. On Monday, Christine Lagarde said she supported the goal of reducing the French deficit to 3% by 2013. One year before the date officially adopted by Paris so far."If the situation is bad, we can not achieve this goal, was still eager to clarify the French Minister.

It may be a "semantic shift" – dixit Bercy – compared to what was the prime minister, but the political signal sent to our European partners and the Commission is far from negligible. Last week, the Brussels executive had asked to return to France from 2013's deficit in the nails of the Stability Pact. She considered him already granted an extension from its requirements of spring, because of "the deteriorating economic situation."

Finally, the question of the Presidency of the Eurogroup, "we will discuss in the coming weeks," said Christine Lagarde.

Euro Disney reported Thursday its results in its financial year end of September. The net loss after minority interests of Euro Disney appears to 55.5 million euros against a loss of 2.8 million a year ago. Revenues fell 7% to 1.23 billion. Despite a record attendance of 15.4 million people (against 15.3 million a year earlier) through new promotions, visitor expenditures were lower because of the crisis. Thus, the rate of hotel occupancy fell amounting to 87%, which has affected sales. In the statement, Philippe Gas, chairman of Euro Disney, said that the exercise "has been marked by the economic environment more difficult in our history."

Report of several payments

Under the exercise, the group has not met its predetermined performance goals.He has deferred some debt payments subject to long term as the 25 million of license fees due to TWDC and the 15.1 million euros of interest due to the Deposit and Consignment. It also plans to defer the payment of an additional $ 5.1 million of interest due to the CDC during the first quarter of fiscal 2010.

The operators do not like. The title plunges 10.17% at 5.30 euros to 10.10 am. They fear that the company does not have sufficient cash to repay its debts.