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Long as three and a half football fields (365 meters) high as a building of twenty-two floors and off over fifty meters with a capacity of carrying more than 13,800 containers: CMA CGM Christopher Columbus, called yesterday morning in the port of Le Havre, is not the largest container ships in the world, the current record is held by a vessel Maersk which displays more than 400 meters in length. In contrast, the new flagship of the third arms Marseille is the largest unit flying the French flag. "It is the first in a series of eight container vessels to be delivered by the end of 2011," explains Jacques Saade, president and founder of CMA CGM.

In service on the Europe-Asia, this container allows the new generation, thanks to its volume capacity and performance techniques, to identify "a result two times" the previous generation of the "8500 box.

A major element for the group in search of funding partners as part of "restructuring" of its capital. And on the topic, Jacques Saade has not failed once again confuse observers by announcing the end of discussions for an entry to the Qatari capital of Holdings. This decision comes as discussions were also halted last week with the fund Colony, the other nominee with whom negotiations had been initiated free credit score.Both candidates associated with the Strategic Investment Fund (ISF), proposed to provide approximately 750 million dollars in capital and become shareholders but significant minority.

The recall of ISPs

"We stopped the discussions with the Qataris since the conditions were unacceptable. We are talking with other candidates, "says Jacques Saade said yesterday that all the good he thought of the Strategic Investment Fund. At that point the ISP held recalled yesterday that he would invest only sides "of one or more outside investors" and that he did not intend to go alone.Gilles Michel, head of the ISP, called a thinly veiled way for the resumption of negotiations with the funds of the Middle East: "Our hope is that it is signed with a partner that suits the company, representing Qatar Holding a partner entirely credible and serious. "Saade The guarantee will get an agreement with an investor before the end of July. In the wise …

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The goals are ambitious but tenable after Pierre Mongin. The head of the RATP said in an interview with Les Echos on Monday he wants to improve efforts to the company's investment this year. The company expects an increase of 10% of these expenditures in 2010 to 1.4 billion euros. "In everything we want to invest 7 billion between 2009 and 2013," he says. These expenses will be allocated to the modernization of the existing network: improving customer service, extending lines, sustainability of the industrial tool. "We have the means to this ambitious policy," explains Pierre Mongin.

The boss of the RATP is excited about the upturn looming gently. In the first five months of the year, the group has recorded 30 million more trips compared to 2009."We feel a tremor on commuting," said Pierre Mongin, which emphasizes a return to positive growth for the RER, barometers of activity (+0.7% -4% against a year ago).

Take a major international

Another ambitious project: the development of Greater Paris. Connect the belt of small suburbs of Paris will require a massive investment of between 20 and 25 billion euros, mainly from local authorities. According to Peter Mangin, the project must be completed in order to "avoid economic decline" in Europe and "be able to create an endogenous growth".

Beyond France and Europe, these investments have the ambition to "bring the RATP in the top 5 worldwide transport companies," said the chief executive of the company.To do this, other acquisitions, following those of certain assets Transdev and Veolia, are possible.

RATP is a turnover of 6.2 billion euros in 2015 against 4.2 billion in 2009. Nearly 25% of these revenues should be generated by subsidiaries outside the Ile-de-France. "The strategic differentiation from our competitors lies in our engineering capabilities. This knowledge gives us advantages comparable to those of EDF Energy, "warns Pierre Mongin.

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The path loss is still far from being solved. Industrial production shows for the month of May, a sharp rise. The overall activity increased 1.7% after falling 0.5% in April.

The production of manufacturing industry (manufacturing goods) has also continued to grow, increasing 0.5% in volume, after +0.3% in April. Between March and May, production increased by 2.4% in manufacturing and 2.2% across the industry.

Manufacturing is in sharp recovery from the same three months last year (+8.2%), but remained "well below its level before the crisis," says the Institute of Statistics.

For Alexander Law, chief economist at Xerfi, there are "two heavy handicaps that are difficult to overcome." One around the restocking process being complete.Another round of unfilled orders that are substantially sdégarnis No fax payday loans. According to the economist, "the situation remains extremely fragile in France and Europe, so a decline in activity in the third quarter is not negative.

Investment timidly off again

On a year over three months (between March and May compared to the period December 2009-February 2010), the production of electrical, electronic, computer and machinery increased 3.4%. Nevertheless, the trend seems to have stalled in May with a decline of 0.2%. For Alexander Law, no cause for alarm. "It's normal. Companies must remain vigilant to the economic uncertainties.There is no question at present to engage in heavy spending and engaging knowing that demand may wane and that the whole of Europe has now begun the turn of rigor.

The stock performance does not lie. Since the beginning of the year, the Euronext Building & Construction fell 18%. Values that balance the index are battered stock market. Wednesday again, the index meant the worst performing sector in Europe. The Irish manufacturer CRH, which warned on its sales in 2010, lost nearly 9% while the French Lafarge realized the worst performance of the ACC. It also loses 28.95% since January 1. Over the same period, Saint Gobain coward 17.15%, while 11.24% abandons Vinci.

The Irish group has yet taken a cold snap in stating that its sales in 2010 would be affected more severely than expected by the consequences of fiscal consolidation in the euro area and slowing the pace of recovery in USA.

The news did not surprise analysts."The fiscal crisis has not improved the situation of the sector because governments are pushing the major works to reduce the growing deficit," said Harry Sebag, an analyst at Saxo Bank. The financial crisis has also hit the industry particularly since the latter is highly dependent on the banks with which it finances a large majority of buildings.

The figures for real estate in the U.S. are also very revealing. In June, there were only 300,000 new home sales on a new year while the consensus was expecting about 424,000 sales.

Outlook not reassuring

For the future, the industry should be very cautious. "We are in a context of sluggish growth and unemployment prevails with a high public and private debt.Certainly the infrastructure programs of national recovery plans may lead us to believe a recovery in the sector, however, this growth drivers must be qualified with the recently introduced austerity policies, "said Harry Sebag. For example, France had planned to inject four billion euros in the construction sector in 2009. But only 2.5 billion have been invested and a slowdown in public works is possible for the remaining 1.5 billion.

"Businesses have already significantly impacted margins and cut prices to gain market share over the weaker euro and higher commodity prices, driven by demand from emerging economies, clouding the outlook for the sector , "says the analyst.

There is no question of a collapse."The activity is still declining, but remained stable for the rest of the year is possible if the growth recovery by 2011," warns Harry Sebag.

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The house prices in France rose 8.48% in one year, between the first halves of 2009 and 2010, approaching the record before the 2008 crisis, according to Century 21, a leading network of real estate agencies .

"We are very concerned about the sharp rise in prices because of the risk of blocking sales volumes because we are at the upper limit of what buyers can pay," said Laurent Vimont, president of Century 21 (850 agencies), at a press conference.

The average price amounted to EUR 2,508 per m2 in the first half of 2010, an increase of 8.48% over the first six months of 2009, very close (-1.6%) the record first half 2008 before the housing crisis that followed the subprime U.S..

For the full year 2010, Century 21 provides for a price increase of 6% of existing housing compared to 2009.

In Paris, after a price hike of nearly 15% in one year, slightly more than 10% over the last six months, even beating the record with an average price of 7079 euros per m2, or 5.4 % increase over the first half of 2008.

This surge in prices in the capital, due to the demands of higher socio-professional and retired, does not affect sales volumes which recorded a 11.3% increase over one year.

Click on the thumbnail to enlarge the graphics.

The controversy swells daily. After the Europeans, it is now the boss of General Electric to accuse China of putting a spoke in the wheels of foreign companies. "I'm really worried, I am not sure that ultimately they want that we will succeed," he complained to an audience of businessmen from Italy, reported the Financial Times on Friday.

Last Tuesday was a report of the European Chamber of Commerce in Beijing, which accused China to increase the discriminatory measures. He denounced a "discretionary application of laws and regulations, the registration process unnecessarily complicated and" inconsistencies in the application of national criteria.

In Beijing, many business leaders say the word to cover: it is increasingly difficult to work in China."They understand that they can leave if they are not happy," says a corporate lawyer. Since April, the party newspaper, the China Daily, had sniffed the wind of revolt and was almost threatening."When foreign companies encounter difficulties in their projects (…) if they do nothing but complain that the foreign media and amplify the case without analyzing the merits and slandering the Chinese economy, they will end up delaying the process of improving the investment environment, "he wrote.

Funny way to appease the spirits when President Hu Jintao says it wants to "take concrete steps to reject any form of protectionism and unequivocal support free trade."

The World Trade Organization said in its latest report "Interest in China and its foreign suppliers of more rapid liberalization of China's service industries.But Beijing, which, in a gesture of goodwill, will leave July 15 rebates for export taxes on certain sensitive products, prefer to believe that foreigners "grunt" on account of wages.

Rising labor costs

Demonstration of support to employees of Foxconn, Hong Kong in June Photo credits: AFP

Off imminent. A new airline, African Oxygen, will serve the Dark Continent from late September, and this from Paris. The company has filed an application for a certificate of air from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). This card is indispensable for the operation of airlines, should be obtained in the coming weeks. Thirty pilots and a hundred flight attendants have already been recruited.

To start, the company leased two Boeing 767 with U.S. lessor International Lease Finance Corporation. The first aircraft, currently in Miami, should be delivered in Paris on July 15, the second in mid-August. According to our information, Oxygen will be a scheduled airline flights to Africa, but will not provide charter flights.The aircraft will be equipped with an economy class and business class to attract "customers high contribution," including executives of oil companies.

Five destinations are planned initially: Luanda (Angola), Abidjan (Côte d'Ivoire), Malabo (Equatorial Guinea), Conakry (Guinea) and Bamako (Mali). The company has obtained traffic rights to fly to these cities. She currently negotiate with Burkina Faso Ouagadougou to serve. By opening these destinations, Oxygen, which was established with a contribution of 25 million euros of "private European investors," said a source close to the case, addresses the most profitable destinations of Air France network. "The national airline is in a quasi-monopoly on Africa, says an analyst.Ticket prices are high due to a clientele of executives and individuals willing to pay the price for travel with Air France rather than African company. "

Lufhansa gaining momentum

Former executive of Airports of Paris, the founder of Oxygen, Steve Bokhobza, was chief of visits to several airlines. According to one of his collaborators, his intention is to recover the former Air France customers who now travel to Africa via the hubs of Lufthansa Group. The German competitor is indeed in full rise on the continent, where it already boasts so many destinations that Air France."As Lufthansa, Oxygen will offer prices 20% lower than those of Air France, said a close case, but will be direct flights from Paris." Eventually, the young company aims to operate four widebody to Africa and a dozen small devices in order to develop regional transport.

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New session in the red for the Tokyo Stock Exchange, the largest in the Asia-Pacific. On Thursday, the Nikkei index lost another 2.50% less than an hour of closing at 9147 points, its lowest level this year.

The bad behavior of Wall Street the day affects the morale of investors. Especially in the Standard & Poor's 500, which yielded 1.01% to 1031 points, and pushing the major support of 1040 points.

In Tokyo, the upward trend of the yen against the dollar and the euro affects the titles of exporting companies, prompting investors to discard.

Market participants also seem to have overlooked the results of well-oriented business confidence survey (Tankan), conducted quarterly frequency by the Bank of Japan (BoJ).The Tankan index of confidence among large manufacturers in Japan has had a positive effect in June for the first time in two years, rising 15 points over March to a point, according to the Bank of Japan (BoJ). This result confirms hopes of a return of the second world economy, whose growth is being driven for months by exports to Asian countries and emerging economies, notably China.

Crude prices were also driven lower on Thursday in electronic trading in Asia, following a rise in gasoline stocks and a slowdown in net new jobs planned for the month of June in the United States.

In morning trading, a barrel of light sweet crude for August delivery was down 77 cents at 74.86 dollars a barrel, while Brent North Sea for delivery in August, gives 50 cents to 74 $ 51.Wednesday on the New York Mercantile Exchange (Nymex), a barrel of light sweet crude for August delivery ended at 75.63 dollars, down 31 cents from the previous day.