Archive for the ‘economics’ Category

The tax-free donations to the descendants relaxed

June 9, 2011 - 3:20 pm Comments Off

The government hopes to facilitate donations between generations. Under the supplementary budget reforming the ISF, he filed an amendment to amend the rules for tax-free cash grants, aimed at children, or failing that, nephews and nieces.

Today, only people aged under 65 years can make a donation to a limit of 31,865 euros per child every six years, provided that the recipient is an adult. Which severely limits the use of this measure introduced in 2007 as part of the TEPA: few were those who could frequently reiterate their giving, while bringing its conditions. Now, if this amendment is passed, the age limit be raised to the donor, until age 80, currently the age limit applies to donations made to the grandchildren.

However, the government plans to extend the period of six to ten years, two tax-free donations guaranteed high risk personal loans. According to Les Echos, the amendment would increase the cost of these donations for the state of about 200,000 euros, while the expenditure had amounted to 190 million euros in 2008.

The tax on estates will also be heavier, to offset the cost incurred by the reform of the ISF. The rates for the last two installments of the tax scale progressive succession on each of five percentage points to 45% maximum. According to the supplementary budget, 1600 heirs should be affected by this weighting, a gain estimated at more than 130 million euros.

ALSO READ:

"A lower tax bill on inheritance

"Dependence-funded pensions and inheritance

"Good surprises are waiting for the telecom sector"

May 21, 2011 - 11:16 am Comments Off

lefigaro.fr – How do you explain the poor performance in the first quarter of the telecom sector, considered a defensive sector?

Yves Maillot – In general, defensive stocks have disappointed in the first quarter. Regarding telecommunications, financial markets are convinced that this is an area of ​​decay. I think that investors under-value in excess of these companies. Certainly, one should not expect to make money on the stock market with them, but a value such as France Telecom still generates a dividend of 8.5%.And even if its share price remains stable by the end of the year will be good for the group.

How do you explain the outperformance of Iliad stock exchange since the beginning of the year compared to the incumbents?

This illustrates that the market continues to appreciate Iliad as a growth stock, unlike the incumbents. Investors expect that Free (Iliad Group subsidiary) generate more growth through its new offering "Freebox Revolution." For three months the group has registered 154,000 new subscribers. Analysts expect 5% growth in turnover in 2011de its parent company, Iliad. This also confirms the good performance of small and mid-cap at the expense of larger ones.Now I think that this abuse of financial markets vis-à-vis incumbents will abate in the course of the year.

What reverse this trend?

Incumbents can not forever remain inert as financial markets anticipate. The telecom industry is back today as it was fifteen years ago, namely an activity to low growth but high profitability. He is immune to a speculative bubble, because analysts are no longer unrealistic forecasts. The risk / reward ratio is good. With this sector, investors have a "free option". In other words, an investor has nothing to lose by investing in value as France Telecom, whose price is very low (15.86 euros) and the opposite of a decade ago (220 euros).Good surprises are waiting on the telecom sector by the end of the year.

The 4G mobile is she a new growth?

It is difficult to assess the quantitative impact that 4G will have on the growth of operators. As I said earlier, analysts no longer looking like for 3G decade ago, to estimate the additional revenue that can generate these new growth.

As a result, financial markets do not believe in the potential of 4G. This explains the low valuations of the stock market operators. However, the 4G gives operators access to a historic new world of services. They still need to generate more revenue with subscriptions. And for that, more services and thus more features are needed.Traffic from the mobile broadband Internet will be increased tenfold in the next two years! These frequencies are strategic for the future.

Do you think that a fifth operator to participate in the tender that the state has launched?

There is no room for economic fifth licensee. This tender aims to give additional spectrum for existing licensees. Given the announced reserve price, I do not see what other operators – the mobile virtual network operators (MVNO) or other – could afford to participate in this tender. I see more MVNOs try to position themselves for the future and fit into the traditional grid in search of money. They seek primarily to promote their business model.

The eG8 be held on 24 and 25 May.Do you think the telecoms have their place in the G8?

This meeting is a good thing to discuss global issues in the sector and especially the arrival of new generations and new standards, at a time when the industry is looking for new growth. Whatever think the financial markets and rating agencies, telecoms evolve technologically.

RSA: Fillon criticizes the initiative of Wauquiez

May 11, 2011 - 6:32 pm Comments Off

Laurent Wauquiez expressed confidence Monday in throwing a "healthy debate". The group's European Affairs Minister in the Assembly, the "social rights" must file "within 10 days" a bill to force RSA recipients to "take" five hours a week of "social service". Also planned, capping the "accumulation of all tested benefits at 75% of SMIC," and the requirement for foreigners to have worked at least 5 years in France in order to qualify. To justify its offensive, Laurent Wauquiez denounced "abuses of welfare" as "the cancer of French society." But his proposals divide his own camp.

On Monday, the national leadership of the UMP had welcomed a "significant contribution" to the next party convention on "Social Justice", June 8According to the MP-Valérie Rosso Debord, Deputy Delegate General of the UMP, these proposals are "common sense" and "should help to maintain a link between the person seeking work and the workplace."

But Tuesday morning, Laurent Wauquiez has been reframed by François Fillon himself. During breakfast the majority, at the Elysee Palace, the prime minister criticized the release of his minister. Criticism he repeated before the UMP deputies, meeting in the Assembly: "I'm not sure we need to subject all the reforms that fate has subjected the tax shield" in the process of be removed during the tax reform."Do not destroy it strives to balance" the quinquennium of Nicolas Sarkozy and "we should not discredit the reform of RSA," Francois Fillon has called yet.

Minister Roselyne Bachelot Solidarity, François Fillon close, which recalls in a statement it is "in charge of this matter," says his side's proposal Laurent Wauquiez present "difficulties of principle and implementation . She said it had already formulated his objections to the person "at a depth interview." In response to the arguments of the Minister of European Affairs, she recalled that the device provides "an important difference exists between the RSA and the minimum wage." The minister writes that she finally submit "ideas for improving the system to the President of the Republic", while an assessment mission on the SSA must issue its findings in July.And Labour Minister, Xavier Bertrand, embarrassed, did not express.

Hirsch: "This idea does not hold water"

More severe, Marc-Philippe Daubresse centrist member of the leadership of the UMP party, said on lepoint.fr "very surprised that this proposal is a total ignorance of the reality on the ground and irresponsibility." "I am responsible (Secretary General) and the UMP in charge of a mission entrusted by the president on this issue," says the member of the North was responsible for leading, June 8, UMP convention on "social justice".

The father of RSA Martin Hirsch, former Secretary of State in the government of François Fillon, became outraged Monday night on France 2, the idea of ​​"cons RSA hours."All the moves are not allowed to face the vulnerability of people," he said after being denied the "false things" who "sow doubt among the French." "This idea does not stand a single second when one takes into account seriously," he added. "If these things were implemented, it would begin to work without pay recipients of the RSA. But then we would look for all employees, canteen staff, cleaning any part of the French and they would say, 'now working for free', or worse, your work will be taken because someone will do it free in exchange for a social allowance '. "

CFDT: Laurent Wauquiez "frieze with the extreme right" The words of Laurent Wauquiez provoked an outcry among many associations.The National Federation of reception and reintegration (Fnars) oppose a debate "corny and demagogic." "The cancer society is not the assistantship, but unemployment," replies the minister Uniopss, which includes the major associations of health and social sector. "The five hours of social work is proposed aimed at people who can work, but who first need a job, or to people who can not work and who need social support" , Bruno Grouès analysis, special advisor to the leadership of Uniopss. The national movement of the unemployed and precarious (FFDM) has accused the minister of "stigmatize an entire segment of the population." "This speech is dangerous," said Lawrence Berger, the national secretary to the CFDT.For the union, adding counterparts to take advantage of RSA is "suggest that the unemployed would be profiteers," while "these are people who are victims of the crisis and mass unemployment recurring."

Even indignation on the part of opposition parties. The Socialist Party first secretary Martine Aubry has denounced a draft "shameful." "To say that people who live on the RSA are people who have their arms dangling waiting and are very happy to be of assistance, it really does not know the reality of things," said she. PS The member of Essonne, Manuel Valls, criticizes proposals to "designate the unemployed, those who benefit from RSA as responsible as the perpetrators, as the scapegoats of the crisis."Jean-Luc Melenchon, co-chair of the Left Party, said he was "appalled" by these "measures absurd, cruel and unjust" that "aim to show people the finger" and "hunt down and say 'you want to do anything, lazy' . Communist MP for Marie-George Buffet, the government tries to "round up the electorate of the extreme right in pointing to the French who live on handouts". Judgments shared by François Hollande: "After stigmatized abroad and opened a debate on national identity, the government is now the weakest in the debate to get the votes of the Front National." Laurent Wauquiez moves to the right Marine Le Pen, "adds Cecile Duflot, national secretary of Ecology-The Greens Europe.

The FN reacted Monday, but not in the sense of Laurent Wauquiez."The French are not assisted! Crisis (child policy of Nicolas Sarkozy) and the current policy makes it essential to protect the state can make to the poorest, "writes in a statement Wallerand de Saint-Just, a member of the executive bureau of the party. While also indicating that the FN, he, would grant "more means-tested benefits to foreigners."

ALSO READ:

"RSA: Wauquiez wants a return

"INTERVIEW – Wauquiez:" UMP must be the party of the middle classes "

More than two thirds of French people prefer the greater Euro

May 10, 2011 - 11:12 am Comments Off

The French are less Eurosceptic than the Germans. According to a poll by TNS-Sofres for the political foundation and published on Monday, 67% of respondents wish that France retains the euro, against 30% who would prefer to return to the franc. For comparison, a survey conducted a few months ago in Germany gave half of citizens in Germany favor a return to the Deutsche Mark, the currency dropped during the transition to the euro in 2002. More broadly, the French are rather attached to the European Union (EU). Only 13% of respondents expressed willingness in effect to leave. Results "surprising" to Secretary of State for Europe Laurent Wauquiez: "The French are more pro-European than we think," he responded on France Inter.

The French only lip though not the European Union on all fronts.Their trial against him is even more mixed: 30% of respondents, hope is the first feeling evoked by the EU for them. But for 29%, the disappointment! For some aspects, the EU is their protective: for three quarters of respondents, it ensures peace, and for more than half, it makes France more strong against the U payday loan lenders.S. and China. But in parallel, 60% of French believe that the term unemployment "corresponds to the EU, and for more than half, it accentuates the problem of immigration.

While the conditions of the plan of aid to Greece should be discussed again, the French are also mostly favorable for financial support to countries in difficulty, "even if this represents a cost to France." Only 39% believe that France did not pay for others.Overall, respondents call for a Europe of solidarity, more involved in the fight for employment, purchasing power and welfare. "The French are not skeptics, they just want Europe to change," concludes Laurent Wauquiez Monday.

* This survey was conducted for the Foundation for Political Innovation (Fondapol) from April 15 to 21 among a nationally representative sample of 1500 people aged 18 and over (quota method).

United States: the debt crisis postponed to August 2

May 3, 2011 - 11:36 pm Comments Off

The event that would trigger a financial calamity improbable was postponed a month. Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner, has de facto given up until August 2, 30 days longer in Congress to negotiate with the White House a compromise budget cutting public spending in exchange for a higher ceiling of public debt.

Without a vote of Congress to raise the maximum amount authorized in outstanding debt today of 1429 billion, the Treasury is indeed found quickly running out of ways to prevent America falling into default.Now this event would trigger a serious crisis of confidence as the global financial system based on the principle that Uncle Sam by definition always pays his debts.

In a letter to leaders of the House of Representatives and the Senate, Tim Geithner said that in his view, there is an urgent need to raise the debt ceiling by May 16. Otherwise it is forced to take extraordinary measures to limit government bonds and earn a little time. The reason for the additional period of one month is estimated by the Treasury relatively good news: the fiscal revenues are higher than expected.

Republican obstruction

However, it is unlikely that Democrats and Republicans agree fall before May 16 on a package of budget savings.Tim Geithner is preparing to suspend certain loans made on behalf of local communities and states. The Treasury had already arrived at this end in 2006 and 2007. Even then, Congress was reluctant to raise the debt ceiling.

But at the time the Democrats were the resistance against President Bush. They called for higher taxes on the rich. Barack Obama, the Illinois senator, had even voted in 2006 against raising the ceiling. Today, it is the Republicans who are filibustering. Majority in the House of Representatives since January, they require substantial reductions of public expenditure.

Their leaders are conscious of playing with fire by letting approach the fateful date of a possible default.But they are equally sincere in saying that raising the ceiling systematic debt without cuts in spending has finally put the U.S. in an untenable financial situation. They are joined in their efforts, especially in the Senate, by many centrist Democrats. All were alarmed about the risk of loss by the U.S. of its AAA rating. That, however, three years that the U.S. budget deficit between 9 and 11% of gross domestic product (GDP). Worse, medium and long term, even with a return to sustainable growth, this deficit will not recede fast enough. At the direction of Barack Obama, Vice President Joe Biden will begin negotiations with Congress on Thursday. The White House wants them carried out independently of raising the debt ceiling. The Republicans did not intend it that way.

The war began in savings

May 2, 2011 - 7:32 am Comments Off

"Frankly, I am interested in your money": this clash of the BNP did not last long in the 1970 No bank would dare today to show his frontispiece, yet it has never been so relevant. Whether at the counter or on the home pages of online banks, retailers are currently struggling to raise cash from businesses and some 200 billion saved every year by French households. All opportunities are good. A mortgage? Some lenders offer more attractive rates if the borrower is guaranteed to leave a cushion of deposits.

Day hires at Mc Do unprecedented

April 19, 2011 - 3:28 am Comments Off

At McDonald's, it's not just hamburgers that count. There are also teams, hundreds of thousands of men and women to whom the American fast food chain offers the possibility of a long and successful career.

That's certainly the message that McDonald's wants to go, decided to end the inglorious image of the "McJob" that sticks to the skin, considered the ultimate odd jobs, poorly paid and no future. To improve its image on the labor market, the fast food chain wants to create an event by changing its recruitment patterns for the summer.

On 19 April, she organizes the United States a day of unprecedented hiring, with 50,000 jobs in the key (seasonal jobs but also injecting drug users, crew positions, but also managers with higher responsibility) fast cash loans.

By striking hard and fast, McDonald hopes to convince that "a McJob is a job that offers career development and opportunities," says Ashlee Yingling, spokesman for the chain. Hiring 50,000 people a day, often at rates higher than 8 dollars an hour, McDonalds will increase once its U.S. workforce by 7.7% to bring them to 700,000.

But McDonald's does not take risks. Each year, in fact, in anticipation of peak summer activity, the chain is expanding its teams in such proportions. "The number of contracts is similar to those of past years, provides Ashlee Yingling. But recruit 50,000 people in one day is unique. "It's certainly a good shot of the pub, but not necessarily more.

GM, champion of patents on green energy

April 17, 2011 - 9:44 am Comments Off

General Motors (GM) up big on green energy. In any case, what transpires from the study of law firm Rothenberg Farley & Mesiti Helsin, specializing in intellectual property. The latter, which compiles an annual index on the theme of clean energy, today announced that the manufacturer has registered more patents related to green energy than any other U.S. company in 2010.

In total, the manufacturer has filed 135 patents on this topic, or 14% of total 1881 patents related to green energy deposited by 700 companies or organizations. "Clearly, GM has made great efforts with a range of clean energy technologies, which puts top ranking for the first time," says Victor Cardona, an official of the firm. According to him, these patents relate to hybrid vehicles, batteries, solar energy and several improvements to existing technologies.

Reinventing the DNA of the automobile "

For the direction of the automotive group, this performance is the logic. "GM has gone to reinvent the DNA of the automobile, and this led to many innovations and technological advances," explains Alan Taub, vice president of research and development group.

GM, which has just released the Volt hybrid electric car, has bet on new technologies to raise, two years after filing for bankruptcy. Overall, the manufacturer has stepped up its efforts in R & D since a total, he filed 940 patents in 2010, placing it among the 25 U.S. companies that filed the most patents last year.

ALSO READ:

"General Motors released its first profit since 2004

"China, but also nuclear champion green energy

Facebook woos a former adviser to Barack Obama

March 30, 2011 - 1:51 am Comments Off

Prepare the re-election of Barack Obama or Facebook IPO? Cruel dilemma that faced by Robert Gibbs. The former spokesman for the White House had left his post in February to work on re-election of Barack Obama in 2012. But now he has been approached by Facebook, which wants to expand its communications team, a few months of its IPO, said the American daily New York Times. Planned during 2012, it promises to be one of the largest IPOs in history. Robert Gibbs, whose salary is in the millions of dollars, would receive shares at that time.

While negotiations are still at an early stage, the former presidential adviser would have consulted several colleagues of the White House on this proposal Facebook.This transfer echoes a previous transfer of skills between the team of Bush and that of Mark Zuckerberg: in 2008, one of the co-founders of Facebook, Chris Hughes, had defected to join the campaign team Barack Obama and fly it on the Internet, including the social network My.BarackObama.com.

The French worried about price developments

March 26, 2011 - 11:44 am Comments Off

The waltz labels worried the French. Fears about inflation have plagued the household index, which fell two points in March compared to February, is the INSEE. He found the levels of July 2008, at 83 points, well below its long term average (100).

The French duly recorded the rise in inflation is more likely to agree that it has increased in recent weeks (five points). Above all, "their views on future inflation rises sharply (15 points), reaching a level unobserved since July 1995," notes the INSEE.

Inflation expectations, in the words of economists, are largely boosted by soaring gasoline prices, which have a financial impact, but also psychologically very strong on French households. In early March, prices for unleaded 95 have beaten their record for the summer of 2008, averaging 1.50 per liter.

Fears about the decline in employment

Consequently, the French are not optimistic about their prospects for living standards (-3 percentage points from February) no fax payday advances. Similarly, public opinion about their personal future was down 4 points a month. And, logically, they feel that their ability to save will be lower in coming months. Already in 2011, households had to dip into their savings to maintain consumption.

The risk that such pessimism results in a decrease in consumption "remains the main threat hanging over growth prospects for 2011," warns Dominique Barbet, an economist at BNP Paribas.

Only fears about employment are declining. "Households are much fewer than in February to anticipate an increase in unemployment (-9 points)," INSEE reported. He is 40 points, the same level as the summer of 2008, before the crisis.

ALSO READ:

"New record prices for gasoline

»COMPUTER GRAPHICS – Modify and understand fuel prices

"The soaring price of gasoline boosts carpooling

»INFO ON DEMAND – How to fix prices of gasoline