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Antoine Frérot, CEO of Veolia Environnement, on Wednesday defended his project of "transformation" of the group to its shareholders by ensuring that they should be measurable results within two years.

During the general assembly of giant utilities, Antoine Frérot, who escaped in February in an attempt to destabilize linked to ; its restructuring plan, acknowledged that it would be "demanding" but he promised it would allow Veolia to adapt to the "new deal" world. 

Forced to deleverage, Veolia plans to disengage from some forty countries on 77 in which he was present last year, and sell for five billion euros assets, starting with its transport activities, which met in the center Transdev cellmate with the Deposit and Consignment Office (CDC), and considered too "greedy capital ".

"Within two years, we will benefit fully from all the positive effects that should give us the size of our group," said Antoine Frérot, adding that Veolia would then have found "the weight of an athlete ; you who followed a diet and is ready for competition ". 

Antoine Frérot was destabilized in February by news reports suggesting its replacement by the former Minister of Ecology Jean-Louis Borloo, but he managed to keep the trust board and has since initiated a reform of the management team.

He said Wednesday that the redesign of the executive committee was to "create a new dynamic management team with a tight and solid." 

The group's shareholders also approved Wednesday the change in the composition of the Board: Esther Koplowitz and Jean-Francois Dehecq, former head of Sanofi lose their seats while Jacques Aschenbroich, the Director General ; General of Valeo, Maryse Aulagnon, CEO of Affine land or Nathalie Rachou, founding partner of Topiary Finance, are entering the CA.

These amendments were approved by an overwhelming majority at the AGM.

On the eve of it, Jean-Francois Dehecq had criticized the strategy of Mr. Frérot in an interview with Le Monde, accusing it of "abdicating global ambition" of the group to focus "a vision of their accounting." 

As Esther Kolplowitz, Jean-Francois Dehecq is deemed close to the positions of the former CEO of Veolia Proglio, now head of EDF.

Demand for credit from businesses and households in the euro area is expected to remain weak over the coming months, which should limit the risks of inflation, said Thursday the European Central Bank in its monthly bulletin.

Injection of more than 1,000 billion euros in three years by the ECB does not have a dramatic impact on taking credit, consumers and businesses continuing to play the card of caution because of the climate uncertainties.

"Leading indicators suggest that demand for loans to households and non-financial companies should remain low, at least during the first part of 2012," said the ECB.

She also notes that the trend that banks are tightening lending is confirmed. 

Thursday, also, Peter Praet, Executive Board Member of the ECB decided that the world economic situation remained "extremely complicated".

Spain will struggle to meet its deficit targets for 2012 and 2013 despite the austerity measures announced Friday as the country, the unemployment rate the highest European Union, is fast falling into recession.

The savings of more than 27 billion euros announced Friday at the government level, including 15 billion already announced in December through tax increases and spending cuts, were well received. The euro appreciated in stride. Brussels wants the Spanish public deficit is reduced by 3.2 percentage points this year compared to 8.5% of gross domestic product (GDP) posted in 2011.

"The central government could achieve its goal, but there is always the risk areas of the budget and Social Security," said an economist with the think tank Funcas Angel Laborda.

Regional authorities, which represent about half of the estimates, which were responsible for much of the deviation budget last year, must reduce their deficit in half this year. 

But, given the few details released Friday on how the restrictions on the central government level will affect the regions – the allocation will be specified in parliament Tuesday – no remains unclear how affected will be the 17 autonomous regions.

One thing is certain, the regions, which have control over health spending and education, will be forced to make unpopular spending cuts, which is likely to fuel public resentment, as we have seen during the general strike Thursday. 

CONTROVERSY

The tax amnesty presented Friday, which offers a reduced tax rate on income were not reported, is the single most criticized in the e ; editorials of the press Saturday. This means that for 2.5 billion euros to go into state coffers, 25 billion should be declared.

"The injustice is flagrant, it is questionable from an ethical point of view and this will affect the credibility of the government in its fight against tax evasion," the daily El Mundo de sensitivity conservative.

Government President Mariano Rajoy expressed his opposition to tax increases, including those linked to consumption such as VAT. But if the measures announced Friday did not support reducing the deficit – the objective is to reduce it to 5.3% of GDP this year and 3% next year – a new tax increases may be inevitable.

The Spanish economy is expected to contract 2.7% this year in a country where unemployment is 23% of the workforce. That rate rose to 50% for youth under 25. If taxes were to increase, there will be more difficult to revive growth.

According to El Pais, the sensitivity of the left, Mariano Rajoy was wrong to put pressure on Brussels to the accordance of a target lower than the 4.4% originally planned. It should instead request a two-year extension of the goal for 2013.

"It is very likely that the government must raise taxes again later this year. The economic recession will make it difficult. There are strategies to exit of the recession. All are risky and require a strong message of higher taxes. None of this appeared yesterday, "writes El Pais.

PSA Peugeot-Citroëna announced Friday that he was studying with General Motors, as part of their alliance, the feasibility of developments on common platforms for large segments of small sedans and minivans.

The French carmaker also announced in a statement issued at the end of a European Works Council, the offset of 7 months of the industrialization phase of the DCT gearbox whose production is envisaged on the site of Valenciennes.

"During this period, it was decided to explore cheaper ways including those offered by the alliance with GM to allow the group to have a box that kind, "said PSA. 

The suspension of a proposed C-segment car – compact type – provided on the site of Madrid is also confirmed.

PSA also said in a statement it was studying GM with the launch of a program of small cars for emerging markets, with a first potential application in Latin America , and co-development of a platform for small cars with low CO2 emissions.

The redemption price of renewable electricity in France would result in additional annual cost of 7 billion euros compared to market prices in 2020, said Wednesday Proglio, CEO of EDF.

The financing of renewable energy in France is provided by the contribution to public service of electricity (CSPE), part of the bill paid by consumers, and through tariffs redemption by EDF set by the government. 

Taking into account the objectives that France has set itself for 2020, EDF considers that the overhead of this mechanism amounts to one billion euros per year for this horizon onshore wind, two billion for offshore wind, photovoltaics for 2.5 billion, one billion for the biomass sector and 450 million for cogeneration.

"In total, all segments combined, the additional annual cost for 2020 is around seven billion euros," said Henri Proglio at a hearing before a board of interviewers ; you of the Senate on the actual cost of electricity. 

The CEO of EDF said that the rise of the CSPE did not follow recent years the pace of development of renewable energy, resulting in a deficit for the group compensation cumulative $ 3.8 billion weighing on its debt and results in financial burdens of around one billion.

"The funding mechanism must be developed (…). Funding support for new energy could be provided other than by the CSPE, "he said

." It re corresponds to the objectives of economic policy: environment, industry, employment, land and has no reason to be financed solely by electricity consumers, which is the the low-carbon energy. "

" This could be financed by a fund over a much broader base, " Proglio said

. The boss of EDF has specifically asserted that "the energies strongly emitting CO2 as gas or oil "could be tapped, implicitly targeting groups such as GDF Suez and Total

.

The rating agency has again lowered the credit rating of Greece, "C", which corresponds to an almost certain risk of default. Moody's in New York.

The U.S. rating agency Moody's said Friday night that lowered the credit rating of Greece to "Ca" to "C" to reflect the launch of the restructuring of public debt in Athens. This operation "entails expected losses of more than 70% for investors" who will participate, Moody's wrote in a statement.

Moody's assigns a "C", the lowest possible rating on its classification as it deems to borrowers on the edge of default, while a rating of "Ca" she attributed so far to the Greek public debt corresponds to the speculative issuers in which the failure seems likely. The agency says that in his view, the swap of debt proposed by the Greek government to its private sector creditors, whose success is imperative to allow "the provision [of Athens] a additional financial assistance of the euro area "will return, if completed, a" default "on" Greek government ". The agency was then referred to the new European rescue plan providing 130 billion euros of aid set in motion Thursday.

Its rival Standard & Poor's lowered the credit rating Monday of Greece to "SD", a level corresponding to "selective default", to reflect the debt erase operation launched three days earlier. S & P said it planned to raise the rating to CCC of the country, which she attributed to poor quality of issuers with a real risk of default, where such operation would have been fully completed, probably in mid- in March.

This is not the case of Moody's, which does not assign "perspective" to the Greek note, sign it refuses to speculate on what could be its evolution after the debt swap consumed. "Regarding the future, the program of the European Union and the proposed debt exchange will reduce the debt burden for Greece, but the risk of default of the country will remain high even after this exchange has been completed, "the agency wrote.  

"Moody's believes that Greece still faces challenges in the medium term solvency: the ratio of public debt to GDP is well above 100% for several years," the statement added.

Restructuring launched Feb. 24 to allow Greece to obtain a cancellation of debt of 107 billion euros. Athens proposes to give private creditors participating in the operation of securities worth less than 53.5% of those they currently hold. A quarter of those titles that creditors will receive bonds from the European Stability (EFSF), presumably with a maximum maturity of two years. The rest will consist of new Greek bonds with maturities ranging from 11 to 30 years, a period much greater than those they replace. Because interest rates that will yield these securities loss to creditors should be around 73%.

Finance ministers of the euro area, meeting in Brussels last night, finally managed to agree on a rescue plan of record 237 billion euros. Financial markets themselves remain cautious. Record bailout for Greece

The euro area has decided to forceps Tuesday a new record bailout, potentially reaching 237 billion euros for Greece in the hope of avoiding the release of the Monetary Union without allay concerns about future of the country.

The agreement came in the night after more than thirteen hours of negotiations between the Finance Ministers of the monetary union, during one of those crisis meetings in Brussels with the euro area is now used. The agreement must "secure the future of the country in the euro area," he told reporters their leader, Jean-Claude Juncker, while many economists believe the country is doomed to end to leave .

European Commissioner for Economic Affairs, Olli Rehn, told him of a "real chance to make a fresh start" and "an essential step for Greece and the euro area". The aid package includes a component from a public assistance, loans-mainly-to the tune of 130 billion euros until the end of 2014, after an initial program of support for the country decided May 2010 had already reached 110 billion euros. This has proved insufficient. The IMF should be involved, but making less than in previous aid plans. It will take a decision in March.  

The other aspect concerns a debt relief of Greece held by private creditors, banks and investment funds. They must accept a loss of 53.5% in the final on the face value of their Greek claims, is an increased effort from the original target was 50%. This should reduce the country's debt amounting to 107 billion euros, a record in world economic history. This exceeds by far the effect of debt restructuring of Argentina, which reached $ 82 billion (73 billion euros during the day) when she failed in January 2002. With this support plan, Greece should be able to cope with a maturity of 14.5 billion euros which falls on March 20 and thus avoid default. Provided however, that banks respond in sufficient numbers to call.  

Athens said he was "very satisfied" with the result. The Greek government had fulfilled its part of the paper the contract by complying with the requirements of its creditors. It adopted a new austerity plan at the cost of violent street protests and renewed political turbulence and will have to quickly firm up the first steps, in token of good will, to see the money reach him. A savings plan painful 3.3 billion euros this year was passed, providing for a reduction in the minimum wage and a limitation of pensions in particular.

Financial markets remain cautious

But if negotiations dragged on, is that the major funders of Greece have hit on a hole of several billion euros to bridge towards reducing Greece's debt to 120% of GDP by 2020. It is the goal set by the International Monetary Fund to consider that it is sustainable in the long term. In the end, the bailout will reduce the Greek debt to the tune of 120.5% by 2020. To achieve this, banks will not only make a greater effort. The government also will have to put a little more hands in their pockets, by reducing interest rates of loans already contracted to Greece and, for central banks in the euro area, by participating in the effort. Greece will in return be further strengthened supervision on the part of creditors, the European Commission in particular, to ensure it does not deviate from the targets.

The negotiations were also made difficult by the fact that many countries are skeptical, despite repeated promises, the ability of Greece to make the necessary reforms, especially as the forthcoming parliamentary elections are likely to reshuffle the cards. The country itself is undermined by the economic recession, with five consecutive years of decline in gross domestic product, and the population is increasingly difficult to accept successive budget cuts demanded by creditors.

Financial markets have reacted cautiously. The euro rose against the dollar and the Japanese yen on Tuesday. But European shares open in equilibrium. Many economists doubt that the new rescue plan is the final chapter of the Greek crisis, and therefore the debt crisis that has shaken the euro area for over two years. They regret that it is turned toward fiscal restraint and not to revive growth in a country that could, in the eyes of many, to "die healed." "The Greek plan remains fragile and vulnerable. Even with this agreement, Greece still has most of its problems ahead, not behind it," warns Sony Kapoor, Director of Studies Centre Re-Define. The head of the Bruegel Institute is even more pessimistic, believing that the plan does not doubt "that extend the deadline fatal". "Greece will not implement austerity promised and will end up ultimately having to decide to leave the euro or to be pushed to the exit," he considers.

The Greek government on Saturday approved the final version of the austerity measures demanded by the EU and the IMF to release an aid package of 130 billion euros .

The government approval was a formality after the adoption, last week, a series of measures aimed at saving 325 million euros including through reductions of wages, salaries and pensions.

"These austerity measures were approved unanimously," said one minister, who requested anonymity. 

The government during the same meeting set for March 8 opening date of the exchange of Greek sovereign bonds held by private creditors, with the hope to complete the operation before March 11, said an official source.

This exchange will result in a discount of 70% of the real value of debt held by private investors.

The Greek government hopes that these initiatives will enable the adoption of the bailout by member countries of the eurozone at their summit in Brussels on Monday.

"The Greeks did everything they could and we are committed to keeping our commitments," said Minister of Public Order, Christos Papoutsis. 

Prime Minister Lucas Papademos said in a statement regretted having to solve a new lower pensions but assured that the impact of this measure would remain limited as it only concerns a pension exceeding 1,300 euros.

"We all agree that the support of economic activity is our priority," he added, without specifying what measures he intends to eventually take to restore growth.

A poll for the Sunday newspaper Realnews, 72.7% of Greeks want a continuation of Greece in the euro area, but only half of them think it will get there.

The Greek government on Friday approved a bill involving the country in the reforms demanded by the EU and the International Monetary Fund for the implementation of a second bailout of 130 billion euros, officials said government.

"This has been approved," said a minister attending the cabinet meeting.

The bill should be voted by parliament Sunday, which would make Greece a financial solution so that Athens must pay 14.5 billion euros in bonds maturing next month. The Mediterranean country will not honor these debts without further aid.

The European Union urges the Greek government to provide details of further cuts in public spending of $ 325 million.

It also requires a clear commitment of party leaders of the coalition government to implement reforms.

"We can not let Greece go bankrupt. Our priority is to take steps to adopt the new economic program and the new loan agreement. It goes without saying that those who disagree and do not vote for the new program can not remain in government ", said Prime Minister Lucas Papademos to the Cabinet ……. Friday

.., the Greeks began a 48-hour general strike to protest the new austerity measures demanded by international creditors and that Athens can not be the economy, according to Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos, at least to leave the euro area

. Clashes

between demonstrators and security forces erupted in Constitution Square (Syntagma), before Parliament but the manifestations, followed by relatively few, have generally held ; are peaceful. 

The first police union, which accused the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the European Commission to undermine democracy and national sovereignty, expressed his desire to no longer act against his "brothers". A local newspaper also publishes a photo montage showing German Chancellor Angela Merkel in a Nazi uniform.

SACRIFICES

The four government members from the LAOS, far-right party that belongs to the governing coalition, submitted their resignations in protest against the demands of international creditors, reports news agency ANA. George Karatzaferis, leader of the movement, had previously ruled to endorse the new austerity plan.

"I told the other political leaders that I could not vote for this loan agreement," he said at a news conference. "The Greeks can not be taken hostage and enslaved. We took our dignity. We were humiliated. I can not accept "

. The LAOS has 15 MPs out of 300 of the Greek Parliament, which means that his opposition to rescue plan would not prevent its adoption

. Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Marilisa Xenogiannakopoulou, member of Socialist Party (PASOK), has also resigned, but the movement has invited elected to support the plan

…… For … Venizelos, Greece can only accept the conditions of the new aid package of 130 billion to avoid bankruptcy accounts public for looming next month.

"The time has come for us to decide. Unfortunately, we must choose between sacrifice and even greater sacrifices, "he said in Brussels

. The device provides including a 22% decrease in the minimum wage, the elimination of 150,000 jobs in the public and reduced pensions for many

. Greeks, impoverished by five years of recession, in a country where unemployment is a worker in five, when the shops close one after the other, these new measures are unacceptable. 

Lucas Papademos had torn the agreement Thursday leaders of PASOK (left), New Democracy (right) and LAOS new measures demanded by donors, but their fire Green did not convince partners Athens and release the funds to conclude the Agreement on the Private sector involvement (PSI) in public debt.

Jean-Claude Juncker, Eurogroup president, warned that no aid would be disbursed without collateral submitted by the Greek political class. "In short, no release without implementation" of measures, he summarized.

Industrial production in France fell 1.4% in December over a month. Over the full year, manufacturing grew 3.8% on average.

Industrial production in France fell 1.4% in December over the month, reversing its rebound in November (1.1%), said Friday the National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (INSEE). In the manufacturing industry alone, which excludes mining and construction, production also fell 1.4% after rising in November (1.4%), INSEE said. Over the full year, manufacturing grew 3.8% on average.

In the fourth quarter of the year, output fell in manufacturing (-0.5%), as well as throughout the industry (-0.8%), INSEE said. She fell in electrical, electronic, computer and machinery (-1.1%) and in "other industrial products" (-0.9%).

Output also fell in the agricultural and food industries (-0.9%). In contrast, manufacturing output has been increasing in the transport equipment (+1.6%) and refining (+4.6%). On December alone, production fell in the agricultural and food industries (-1.2%), in electrical, electronic, computer and machinery (-3.2%) among others. She has been a slight increase in refining (+0.6%).