My Opinions

The end of the franc is big to the Treasury. The latest * franc notes were redeemable at branches of the Bank of France until February 17 at midnight. Ten days after the end of the countdown, the institution is taking stock. A total of 1.5 million tickets have been reported for a total value of 378 million francs (57.6 million), from 1 September 2011 and the deadline of February 17. According to the Bank of France, there is 55 million franc banknotes in circulation, hidden under the mattress, forgotten in old bags or kept by collectors nostalgic. A nest egg estimated at 526 million euros. This balance, called "emission cap" will be donated to the state, she says.  

The countryside of the Banque de France will not have been very successful, despite his repeated reminders to the holders of francs in recent months and the creation of a dedicated website (www.jechangemesfrancs.com). Indeed, the franc banknotes still in circulation became a treasure of 602 million euros in late 2010. Yet the French had thrown at the offices of the institution's approach to the deadline. "Just under 200,000 cuts were exchanged in December 2011, but nearly 367,000 in January 2012 and 733,000 cuts on the first 17 days of February," says the Bank of France. A record was set on February 17, with 91,000 tickets reported.  

The large denomination reported mass

For latecomers or those who have not managed to get hold of these small economies too well hidden, they have "no choice but to keep their tickets as a souvenir or sell to coin collectors," warns we at the Bank of France. But beware, all tickets will not take the value. "Better to have kept the cuts of 20 francs or 50 francs Debussy Saint-Exupery," advises Michael Prior, specialist of currencies within the Compagnie Générale de Bourse (CGB.fr). Now demonetized, only small values ​​will make a "margin buxom." A lesson that apprentices numismatists have understood. "Two thirds of the reported cuts are notes of 200 francs and 500 francs," says the Bank of France, which states that "the average volume of trade amounted to 15 tickets per transaction, for an average value of 3627 francs (553 euros). "

* The range of notes that can be exchanged against euro: CHF 20 bills bearing the image of Debussy, equivalent to 3.05 euros, the "Saint-Exupery" 50 francs (7.62 euros) , the "Cezanne" of 100 francs (15.24 euros), "Gustave Eiffel" of 200 francs (30.49 euros) and the "Pierre et Marie Curie" of 500 francs (76.22 euros).

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After a slump, exports of French military hardware recovered strongly in 2011. "The total is expected to reach 6.5 billion euros, which allows France to maintain its position as the fourth largest exporter of arms," ​​said Wednesday Laurent Collet-Billon, general delegate to the Armaments (DGA).

The sale of two buildings Projection and Command (BPC) Mistral class in Russia, the contract for upgrading the Mirage 2000 in India or the sale of large 4 × 4 Aravis protected in Saudi Arabia accelerated to 27% export activity compared to 2010. Lack of large contracts, it had fallen to 5.1 billion euros last year.

Laurent Collet-Billon notes that "French exports are made up two-thirds of small contracts which constitute a solid base." More sophisticated, large contracts are part of longer timeframes. They are subject to deadlines and time consuming to negotiate very detailed, especially as the client country is no longer content to "sign a check," but hopes to capture some of the expertise of the selling country via transfer technology.

"Performance" of France is good news for 100,000 jobs, half of which direct exports that depend on contracts. But it is still far from its target of 10 billion euros in exports, a level considered ideal by the CEO because it would be equivalent in value to the national command.

Franco-British axis

In 2011, France spent 10.7 billion euros in R & D and equipment purchases for the armed forces such as NH 4 90 transport helicopters, six Tiger combat gear, more than a hundred armored (VBCI) or 4000 devices to the Felin infantry fast cash loans.

In terms of budget, continuity is crucial. We must continue its effort of R & D to prepare "defense systems" wars of the future. Among the sites are open marine robotics, cyber warfare or UAVs (unmanned aircraft). Because of defense budgets on, part of the answer lies in "pragmatic cooperation" with our European neighbors, said the DGA.

This is why France and Britain, the first two European military powers, have decided to advance by creating a UAV industry – the small tactical UAV through a viewing device and an unmanned fighter (read our editions of 17 and 18 February). This, based on their respective champions – Dassault Aviation and BAE Systems – bilaterally. With the prospect later to make the two engines of future European programs.

The French army should be equipped, like its British counterpart, Watchkeeper tactical UAV, built by Thales UK, by 2013. "In a few weeks, the DGA will ask BAE and Dassault to launch the assessment phase of the future UAV observation Male," said Laurent Collet-Billon, indicating having received "an offer last week from Dassault" about the future of UAV platform through Israeli (Heron TP).

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Soon he had to go quickly to complete this negotiation in the long term. Wednesday night, the State, the Deposit and Consignment Office (CDC), La Banque Postale (LBP) and Dexia have agreed on a "summary of conclusions" laying the foundation for a new local bank. The bodies of public institutions and Dexia must approve the scheme this Thursday – the Supervisory Board of CDC did on Wednesday night – to allow the President of the Republic to announce the creation of local associations it meets Friday. Pending the effective launching of this new bank, savings funds from the CDC will make available to local public sector, including hospitals, a budget of 3 to 5 billion euros.

In mind, this is to ensure the handover between Dexia Credit Local (DCL), a subsidiary of Dexia in difficulties and the first player in France's local government finance, and La Banque Postale, led to his entering this profession abandoned by private banks. In fact, this transfer goes through a montage of rare complexity. Moreover, it is not a new bank that will be born, but two!

Entry of the state in the loop

The assembly established by the Commissioner Rene Ricol investment, initially, and then finalized by Jean-Paul Redouin, Deputy Governor of the Bank of France, goes into effect by the creation of two banks: d On one side, which means a company will finance new production, on the other, a commercial company that will distribute loans to local authorities. To prime the pump, the CDC will make cash available to the joint venture.

The company will be owned means on one side by a holding company for the State (31.7%), CDC (31.7%) and LBP (4.9%) and the other by DCL (31, 7%). According to the agreements, LBP will aim to return from DCL, under certain conditions, by 2020. This means company will own 100% of DexMa (Dexia MA), the refinancing vehicle with MCI.

Accordance with the agreements of October, DexMa, bringing 75 billion euros in credits, will be redeemed at a price of DCL to 380 million euros. However, the CDC advised by Lazard and JP Morgan, who fought to review the terms of the transaction in terms of degradation of the euro area since the fall, won a provision to review the prices of within three years. She also gained entry to the State in the loop, which was not envisaged in the scheme in October.

This company will provide the means and the back office and the refinancing of the commercial joint venture LBP (65%) and CDC (35%) who will distribute the new loans. The joint venture will remunerate its counterpart on a package of 15 basis points. If the bill is higher, will be paid by MCI.

For its part, the subsidiary of Dexia will continue to manage so-called toxic loans granted to local elected before 2008. According to the scheme proposed by Rene Ricol, DCL will continue its core activities, short-term loans, leasing or insurance. Finally, LBP and the CDC will also direct some trades in the direction of joint venture companies.

The European Commission, the last obstacle

If the outline were arrested, it is clear that the device is not fully seated. The discussions will continue with LBP – pivot of the organization even if it is a small shareholder of the company means – to define the borders between these entities both partners and competitors: in short, what really makes for that. The fate of 1,350 employees of DCL is not set. Society means and the joint venture is expected to resume commercial teams, but nobody knows yet how much. Finally, the last obstacle and not least, the European Commission.

According to several sources, Brussels, which must approve state aid granted to Dexia by the end of March, was expressed last weekend. The Competition Directorate has written very dry emphasizing how it would be vigilant on this new scheme. Some consider unlikely that DCL is allowed to continue its core activities in light of 90 billion euros of guarantees given by France, Belgium and Luxembourg with Dexia.

The French plan also raises a new obstacle. Indeed, is the nationalization of DexMa results in a decrease in its cost of issuance, and this is probably the result of state aid. Or changes in capital does not change because the tool – as the CDC calls since the beginning – is discredited: and then this whole gas plant will be worth nothing.

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Gran Via, Saturday afternoon, thousands of Madrid overflowing sidewalks to rob the shops in the center. Plaza Santa Ana customers compete tables for a drink and some tapas … According to a recent survey, 68% of Spaniards say they are happy despite the economic depression. The Spanish crisis is a strange crisis. Five million unemployed, a growing half-mast and a debt to the edge of the alert levels, but the fiesta continues. On the surface, anyway.

The costs of the crisis, in fact, are unevenly distributed. On the one hand, those who retain their jobs. Possibly concerned about the situation, their objective situation has changed little since the crisis began, three years ago. On the other, 21.5% of those unemployed, whose number is increasing. Poorly defended, forgotten unions, their suffering is silent.As to the exhaustion of benefits, the first victims of the crisis, however, sinking slowly into exclusion.

Withdrawal into the family

Alejandro lives under the threat of expulsion. He, his brother and his mother, he unwittingly embarked in his galley. 28 years old, he had offered to help a colleague get a home loan. He signed his mother too, and they vouched. Before the crisis, Alejandro had a job as an electrician, he believed that his salary was only threatened, if by chance his friend forgot to pay a bill. When the colleague left no forwarding address, the bank asked his due: 168,000 euros of debt. "Due immediately," says the letter from the bailiff. Now unemployed, Alejandro key 340 euros compensation unemployment. His brother does not work either. Only his mother still affects a salary: 1200 euros.

Michel Madelain, CEO of Moody's Investor Services.

Increase in VAT, income tax, any revaluation of benefits: the austerity plan announced Tuesday include unpopular measures. Consideration by the Parliament, which begins Nov. 28 in the Assembly, will not be a walkover. In the majority, the New Centre Group is thus opposed to indexation on growth, less generous, family benefits and housing subsidies. "We must protect families and tenants. We propose instead to plane more strongly niches and seek extra mile to large enterprises, "says centrist MP Charles de Courson.

During questions to the Assembly, Valérie Pécresse, Minister for the Budget, on Tuesday refused any negotiations on this subject, arguing that "we can not spend more than we create wealth payday loans."

The government remains firm, but the battle could be fierce and Gilles Carrez, Rapporteur UMP budget to the Assembly, will have work to do to stay the course. "The increase in VAT will not affect consumption. The move to 7% will not be fully reflected in prices, "he says now, to counter the arguments of sectors such as housing, food, culture and hospitality. Accor claims and the elimination of the tax on hotel stays, while the union of publishing an application meeting with Francois Fillon.

Tuesday, members of the Finance Committee in examining the second part of the draft budget law for 2012, which accepts the austerity plan in August. This has resulted in collisions.

In the first five days of strike by cabin crew of Air France, the company is organized to provide as announced 80% of its flights. The company has temporarily restricted on Saturday morning to 100 passengers the ability of its medium-haul flights Orly. Consequence: passengers can wait a little and minor delays can be saved.

This management method was chosen to avoid having to put down passengers for lack of a sufficient number of hostesses and stewards. "It blocks the flights a minimum. Is completed according to the presentation of the crews as and when. But we have managed so far to complete the flight and make them go as planned, "says the director of Air France at Orly, George Daher. A strategy that annoys some customers. "We were placed on a waiting list by explaining that there was not enough staff.A rip-off in communication because all flights are available at this time, "said one man who was to fly to Toulouse.

About the airport Roissy-Charles de Gaulle, the traffic was in line with forecasts of Air France, which does not exclude any last minute cancellations. It struck ten long-haul flights planned Saturday morning, including flights to New York, Montreal, Los Angeles, Tokyo, Abu Dhabi, Douala. But passengers were warned on Friday. But according to Europe 1, delays begin to accumulate.

In Nice, the third busiest airport in France, three Air France flights were canceled to Paris. Five flights were canceled in Marseille in the direction of Roissy and Orly. In Toulouse three flights were canceled out of fifteen.

Following the European Agreement on the debt crisis and in the wake of Wall Street, the Asian financial centers continue to take the colors on Friday. The benchmark index of the Tokyo Stock Exchange gained 1.08% to 9022.85 points, the Hang Seng Index of Hong Kong 1.89% to 20,061.40 points, the CSI 300 Shanghai 1.44% to 2695.76 points, the Kospi index in Seoul 1.03% to 1941.90 points, the S & P / ASX 200 Index 0.04% 4349.90 Sydney points, the BSE Sensex 30 in Mumbai at 17,762.60 points 2.74% and the FTSE Straits Times of Singapore 1.26% to 2883.42 points.

Investors are optimistic about the effectiveness of European anti-crisis plan, to reduce the debt of Greece and the mobilization of one trillion euros to prevent any contagion to the rest of the euro area.

The euro remains stable against the dollar

In addition, Japanese industrial production fell in September, 4% on a month, the exporting firms are faced with the global economic downturn and the soaring yen, according to figures from the Ministry of Economy one hour payday loan. This is the first decline experienced since March, which recorded an unprecedented drop of 15.5%, again because of the accident at Fukushima. The production was subsequently taken up and had increased every month.

Oil prices retreated slightly on Friday morning in Asia, decision-bénécices after the flight of the day due to good numbers of U.S. growth and the Brussels agreement, analysts said. In electronic trading in the morning, a barrel of "light sweet crude" for December delivery lost 37 cents to 93.59 dollars.Barrel of Brent North Sea crude for December delivery yielded 30 cents to 111.78 dollars. For its part, the euro remains stable against the U.S. dollar, losing only 0.07% to 1.417 dollars.

Unions and senior civil service did not hide in the day Thursday, their fear of participation for the first dive vote simultaneously in all jurisdictions of the state and all hospitals (it was around 64 % in previous elections).

The former pointed to many problems: errors in the delivery of ballots in the electoral lists, complexity of the software used in e-voting Education …

The latter, without denying the difficulties, in advance have found that the federations of civil servants should take some responsibility paydayloans. "Even the great labor leaders" are engaged in the campaign, noted the Minister of Civil Service, Francis Sauvadet.

This fear seemed about to be true, in view of the first digit.Thursday late evening, less than 40% of voters, according to unions, National Education, which alone accounts for almost half of the officials.

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False, false arch-is and sources familiar with the situation in France qualify the statements of the German weekly Der Spiegel on the sale of warships to Greece. No, France does not "give" the frigates to Greece, writes the weekly in its issue this week. The information given by the newspaper are also inaccurate. The call for tenders launched by the Greek government was about six FREMM multimission, not "two to four" as the newspaper. Furthermore, if the tender has been won by France, the contract was never signed because of the financial crisis.

The newspaper asserted that France had offered to Greece to keep the Frigate for five years without pay, then pay only $ 200 million per piece instead of 300 million. But the price of a frigate in fact reached 500 million euros.If Greece could not pay his debt at that time, France had recovered from ships.

A letter of protest from ThyssenKrupp

When bidding, ThyssenKrupp, a competitor to the market, namely the Department of the shipyards, has even sent a letter to the Chancellor to complain about French methods cash advance in one hour. And above all, to denounce the financial allowing Greece to acquire these warships: "While the German arsenals do not receive any order, DCNS Greek and arsenals are funded by German money and artificially kept alive "ThyssenKrupp said in the letter quoted by Spiegel. The steel company has even asked the Chancellor to discuss this matter with Nicolas Sarkozy at the EU summit this weekend.ThyssenKrupp declined to comment officially on this subject.

Such an arrangement between France and Greece is almost impossible because it would retoqué by Brussels. Some take the pretext of military procurement by Greece to defend the interests of German taxpayers. These increasingly reluctant to pay for Greece. The majority of Germans is now, 54% favor a return to the deutsche mark according to a survey published by the magazine Stern. France is also in the crosshairs of German newspapers for some time: after the interview the boss kills the French BNP Paribas by the Handelsblatt newspaper now betting on a downgrade of France.