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Three of the 17 autonomous regions of Spain announced Friday that its budget deficit for 2011 were higher than the figures originally published.

The Madrid region, the second of Spain by the gross domestic product (GDP), said he finished 2011 with a deficit representing 2.2% of GDP and not 1.13% as first announced. The budget deficit of Valencia, the fourth autonomous community, stood at 4.5% instead of 3.78%.

The deficit of Castile and Leon has also been slightly above expectations.

The new figures, which were published in the areas of budget plans for 2012 are likely to weigh on the overall figure of Spain's public deficit for 2011, while the country is struggling to restore confidence in its banks and to convince investors that it meets its objectives.

The government of Mariano Rajoy promised to bring its public deficit to 5.3% of GDP in 2012, after missing its target last year, mainly due to higher spending es than expected regions. Last year the government deficit totaled 8.5% of GDP, but it should be 6%.

Thursday, the government approved the plan of the autonomous communities to reduce their spending by 13 billion euros and increase revenues of five billion.

Of the 17 Spanish regions, only one of Asturias in the northwest of the country, had its budget rejected.

The Cypriot Panicos Demetriades, a new member of the Governing Council of the European Central Bank, pleaded Saturday for a stimulation of growth when the European Commissioner for Economic and Monetary Affairs, Olli Rehn , repeated his opposition to any stimulus funding from public funds.

"A strong safety net for employment and living standards of citizens will stop the decline in state revenues and consequently an increase in deficits (budget)", has estimated the new Governor of the Central Bank of Cyprus during his first press conference in Nicosia. 

Panicos Demetriades ruled in favor of adding the European fiscal pact "a framework of measures to stimulate growth", making its contribution to the debate that has accelerated ; within the European Union since the election of French President Francois Hollande and before the EU summit of 23 May

In Tallinn, where he participated in a conference, the European Commissioner for Economic and Monetary But he reiterated his opposition to the financing of measures to support growth by more dice ; public spending. 

"We can not solve the crisis by adding debt to debt, which is already affecting our growth forecasts", argued Olli Rehn, who called Tuesday in Brussels "false debate" the opposition between consolidation and growth.

"AUSTERITY NOT ENOUGH"

"In the current economic situation, low growth and high debt, we have no choice: we must do one or the other," he explained.

"We need to continue fiscal consolidation because we suffer from a very high level of public debt, which increased on average by 60% to 90% in Europe," he insisted Saturday during his presentation.

Panicos Demetriades has said his side that fiscal austerity was not a quick fix. 

"Preserving the fiscal pact adopted by EU leaders is an important step towards restoring fiscal balance, but a recession exacerbated by austerity rity feeds a vicious circle between declining production and a heightened lack of budgetary resources, "said the member of the Governing Council of the ECB.

"We now understand, in Cyprus and in the rest of the euro area, that austerity is not enough alone to clean up the finances of a country, especially when all other countries of the EU apply the same policy, "he concluded. 

Panicos Demetriades had held before his appointment as governor of the ECB should reassess its monetary policy too focused, he says, on controlling inflation, the model the German Bundesbank.

Lafarge announced Friday an increase in its turnover and its operating income in the first quarter thanks to emerging markets and improved pricing, allowing the world's leading cement to reduce its debt.

The group, which now generates 60% of its sales in emerging economies, achieved the first three months of the year sales up 5% to € 3.35 billion, slightly above the consensus reached by the editor of Reuters estimates from eight analysts who gave $ 3.3 billion.

Ebitda rose to its share of 8% to 516 million euros while operating profit rose 28% to 267 million. 

However, net income, group share, shows a loss of 44 million euros, against -29,000,000 a year earlier, reflecting restructuring charges corresponding in particular to the 500 job cuts engaged around the world as part of the reorganization of the group. Excluding these charges, Lafarge has emerged over the period with net income of 18 million euros.

"The group continues to anticipate an increased demand for cement, and maintains its estimate of market growth between 1% and 4% in 2012 compared to 2011," the group said in a statement .

"Emerging markets remain the main driver of demand growth (…) The prices should be up on the year 2012, and cost inflation more moderate e in 2011. "

CONTINUATION OF ASSET TRANSFERS

In the first quarter, net debt of Lafarge fell 13% year on year to 12.4 billion euros. One quarter to another, it is clear, however, up 3%, a trend linked "to normal seasonal variations in working capital (working capital needs)," said Lafarge.

The group's debt, inherited largely from the acquisition of Orascom in 2008, is still expected to decline "significantly" this year, without elaborating.

As part of its debt, Lafarge intends to limit to 800 million euros investment and reduce by at least 400 million euros in 2012 its costs. The group also maintained its target of over one billion euros of asset sales over the year, of which 71 million were made during the quarter.

Both activities are the subject of rumors of transfers, the plaster in North America, last active group in a trade which it is almost released last year, and cement in South Africa . The group must also achieve significant asset sales in Britain required by the Competition Authority to give its green light to the proposed joint venture between Lafarge and Anglo American.

"It is not impossible that these divestitures can be made in 2012," said the CEO of Lafarge, Bruno Lafont, during a teleconference.

The stock closed Thursday at 29.97 euros. Since the beginning of the year, the title took about 10%, after -42% in 2011.

The Tokyo Stock Exchange ended down 0.2% Monday, erasing gains from early trading after a report that the Bank of Japan would buy bonds of longer maturities, news that has prompted investors to sell index futures to buy Japanese paper to five years.

The Nikkei lost 19.19 points to 9,542.17 and the Topix broader, yielded 2.40 points (0.3%) to 809.54.

The Nikkei rose initially in favor of the agreement on the bailout of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) totaling more than $ 430 billion and the slight rise of Chinese PMI flash, indicating a relative stabilization of the country's industrial activity. 

But the Asahi newspaper reported that the BoJ intended to extend its asset purchase program, which currently applies to sovereign bonds to two years in bonds at longer maturities, ranging up to five years.

The BoJ meets Friday and the market is expected to assouplisse yet its monetary policy by increasing its program of asset purchases – currently 65,000 billion yen (606.5 billion of euros) – the order of 5,000 or 10,000 billion yen.

Among the most traded securities on the session included Mitsui Chemicals, which lost 4.13% after reporting an explosion and fire in a factory of adhesives that have one dead and some 20 injured.

A few days before the first round, the International Monetary Fund forecasts sound like a call to order. With 0.5% growth expected in 2012 and just 1% in 2013, the flexibility is low for the successful candidate. The Fund estimates that the target of 3% deficit in 2013 will be missed. View of the Ministry of Economy and Finance at Bercy.

The International Monetary Fund will indirectly invite the presidential election, five days of the first round. By publishing its forecast of global growth, it is a reminder to candidates how their room for maneuver is narrow. Because growth in France should be lower than expected by next year's presidential favorites, said Tuesday the IMF, which could complicate the task of the future head of state to meet its commitments to reduce deficit.

The Financial Institution of Washington raised its estimate for this year, from 0.2% to 0.5%, that is to say as much as expected by the Socialist candidate Francois Hollande and not far from the goal of Past President Nicolas Sarkozy, who expects 0.7%. But that's for next year that things get complicated. The IMF growth would remain soft, with only 1%. This is slightly better than average in the euro area (0.9%) but worse than Germany (1.5%), Europe's largest economy and principal partner of France.  

However, Nicolas Sarkozy and Francois Hollande have both built their program and their path back to balance public finances on a more optimistic assumption of 1.7% growth in 2013. Beginning in 2014, they hope to even a minimum of 2% per year.

However, both candidates seem aware of the fragility of their forecasts. While the Socialist has long argued for a renegotiation of the European Pact for Fiscal Stability – also praised by the IMF – to add a growth component, the UMP candidate in now called the European Central Bank to it gives a boost to activity.

Far from the goals of deficit reduction

Former Socialist Prime Minister Laurent Fabius admitted on Tuesday that "if ever there was additional shocks" should be "obviously taken into account." For a less intense recovery is likely to complicate their task to bring the public deficit of 4.4% or 4.5% of gross domestic product (GDP) expected this year to 3% next year, as both candidates s' are engaged with the European partners of France.

The Fund also think, in his "Public Finance Monitor" also released Tuesday, the government deficit in France is forecast at 4.6% of GDP in 2012 and 3.9% in 2013, far from the 3% target set by the government. International experts estimate that the country nears the symbolic threshold of 3% in 2014. These projections mean that the next president, whoever he is, will soon adopt a new fiscal tightening after the election of May 6

For its part, the public debt of France is expected to increase next year the symbolic threshold of 90% of GDP to 90.8%, while all candidates hope to contain it to below this threshold. It would commence thereafter a slow reflux. But France is among the states where the debt stabilization could be jeopardized by any "little shock", especially if interest rates they pay for borrowing were to increase, warns IMF.

If the situation has "stabilized" since early January in the euro area and the activity sends "encouraging signs", a cover of the debt crisis remains a "major risk", stresses the Fund. It calls on members of the monetary union to strike a balance between supporting economic recovery and deficit reduction, especially as a "greater fiscal consolidation will weigh on growth in some cases." Experts point out that Paris has already made efforts on pensions, pushing the retirement age, but explain that rich countries also face the challenge of controlling public expenditure on health.

Foreign trade continues to be a real asset to the German economy. The raw data published today in fact an upward trend in exports, which should enable him to escape recession early this year. Volkswagen new models ready to exported waiting in the port of Emden in Germany

Foreign trade is a safe bet for the first European economic power. The increase in exports has enabled Germany to enhance its growth ambitions, avoiding a recession that some economists feared. The trade surplus of Germany has reached 14.7 billion euros in February, against 13.2 billion in January, according to raw data released Tuesday by the Federal Statistical Office Destatis. Exports on the other hand reached 91.3 billion euros, against 86 billion in January, still raw data, according to a statement.

In data adjusted for seasonal and calendar followed by most economists, the German trade surplus has instead declined in February compared to January, to 13.6 billion euros against 15.1 the previous month millliards . Blame it on the highest increase in imports than exports (+3.9% against +1.6%). This decline did not stop Carsten Brzeski, economist at ING, to judge that exports remain "faithful friend" of the German economy and that they had "defied the cold of February".

The statistics released Tuesday are all the more reassuring to economists that they contrast with previous indicators rather bleak, especially concerning the production and factory orders. "Finally a good number", and exclaimed Ulrike has Rondorf, bank Commerzbank. Unlike some other economists predict that in Germany a short recession, it has "the hope that the German gross domestic product in the first quarter increased, if only modestly."

Mr. Brzeski underlines that the fate of Germany depends increasingly in the hands of partners outside the euro area, which will not make the rebalancing (in EMU) easier. According to the Statistical Office, German exports accumulated since the beginning of the year to the member countries of the euro area increased 4% year on year, against an increase of 8.5% to the countries members of the European Union which have not adopted the single currency, and 14.4% to countries outside Europe.

This trend was confirmed today by President of the Federation of German Wholesale and exporters (BGA) Anton Börner: "outstanding for the year, we see again and foremost a good chance of growth in Asia South and East, Latin America, North America and the Middle East, "he said at a news conference. Despite the debt crisis and austerity plans that discourage orders in the euro zone, Mr. Börner table for 2012 on "a trade surplus of 159 billion euros against 158 ​​billion last year." Exports are expected to increase by 6% to 1.124 billion euros in 2012, and imports by 7% to 965 billion euros, while the nominal data, he said.

The social network Facebook will stop next week's trading in its shares on secondary markets as part of preparations for its IPO in May, officials said a source familiar with the matter.

The American group has recently asked the companies that manage the transactions on its capital outside regulated markets to suspend them, a decision to re ; reduce distortions of value that might disrupt the binding of its IPO price, said another source.

Facebook plans to raise five billion dollars (3.75 billion euros) in its IPO. This could add value to the $ 100 billion, which would make it the largest IPO in the history of Silicon Valley.

The possibility of such an operation in May depends on the decision of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the authority of the U.S. equity markets, the prospectus filed by the group, noted the first source.

Facebook this document amended three times since its initial filing in early February.

A Facebook spokesman declined to comment.

Some investors are challenging the group's choice of a capital consisting of two classes of shares that would give the Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg effective control of 56.9% after the company entered e stock exchange. 

Despite these criticisms, the demand for securities and promises strong action Facebook shines on secondary markets.

SharesPost Financial, a company specializing in capital transactions in unlisted companies, said Wednesday it would no longer intervene in the equity trading Aftern Facebook s Friday "to help ensure the orderly transition of society towards regulated markets".

SecondMarket, an intermediate competitor, declined to comment.

Inflation, excluding tobacco, should register at 1.8% in 2012, Bercy announcement Wednesday after the meeting of the Economic Commission of the Nation, a group of economists that advises the Minister of Economy.

The last update of the multi-year strategy of public finances envisaged inflation excluding tobacco to 1.7% this year.

"Based on an inflation forecast of 1.8% excluding tobacco for 2012 adopted by the Economic Commission of the Nation, Baroin (Minister of Economy, Ed) and Xavier Bertrand (Minister of Labour) indicate that a 2.1% revaluation of pensions will be applied from 1 April next year, "the Ministry of Economy said in a statement . 

"At the 2012 inflation forecast, is added the difference between the inflation recorded in 2011 (2.1%) and the initial forecast for 2011 (1.8%) or 0.3%. Such adjustment ensures complete the purchasing power of retirees, "it added.

Many employees who benefit from this measure have their premium reduced employment and housing tax increased. Incumbent President Nicolas Sarkozy (here in Lyon March 17, 2012)

The "work more to earn more" is again chipped, supporting figures. According to the union unified tax, the additional income from tax-free overtime is nibbled to taxpayers on low incomes who qualify for the prime pour l'emploi (PPE), mechanically reduced when they earn more.

In his "five-year fiscal balance sheet" presented Wednesday, the Union Solidarity Snui South Treasury highlights the "perverse effects" of the exemption from overtime pay, a key measure passed in 2007, and "unpleasant surprise" for recipients of PPE.  

The additional income generated is not taxed on income "but it is considered in the determination of income tax reference" for the calculation of PEP, said Vincent Drezet, national secretary of the union. In fact, when an employee works overtime, his "reference taxable income will increase" and "this translates into a premium for employment revised down," and also "a housing tax revised upwards "when it was capped, said the trade unionist.

The Budget Ministry, it is not denied but this mechanical effect, it says, "people who work overtime have always seen their incomes increase. In other words," more work "continues to earn more." From the time the person is working overtime, it is normal that the premium for employment is less important, "the ministry.  

To illustrate this, the union made its tax calculations: a single minimum wage paid to declaring taxable income of 13,000 euros and has also received 500 euros for 60 additional hours, receive a reduced PPE of 96 euros (728 euros instead of 824 euros if he had not done overtime) and the amount of its housing tax will increase by 16 euros. Finally, the 500 euro extra income "have resulted in an overall effective tax charge of 112 euros", or 22.4% of the additional on which the employee would have expected count.

PEP is a tax credit, some taxpayers with modest incomes even see their tax increase (when the premium was less than the tax). This is the case for example, according to the union, declaring for a couple of 30,000 euros and 1,500 euros of wage income from overtime: it "will pay 290 euros plus tax."  

However, the union said, "the measure is neutral for taxpayers beyond the thresholds of the EPP." PEP, as Nicolas Sarkozy intends to remove if re-elected to fund lower taxes on low wages, benefits currently to 6 million people, with an average of 450 euros.

Orders for new cars in France fell 7% in February, according to trade publication The letter VN Auto K7, promotions manufacturers to limit the damage on the car market.

The decline, calculated from one year to another, has increased from January (-1%), but still very far from the collapse of 57% recorded in December, adds the letter published Wednesday VN Auto K7 based on a survey of 34 automotive distribution groups.

"The distribution started in January with order backlogs close to absolute zero. And partial reconstruction of the portfolios remain well informed of the Month: despite the winter holidays and bad weather, customers rather attend the showrooms, "writes the monthly publication, which Reuters obtained a copy

. registrations in March, which are an order of February leading indicators, will be published Monday 2 in April. After the collapse of order in November and December, registrations had tumbled 20% year on year in January and February.

According to La Lettre VN, orders for cars fell 18% last month, Renault, after a 6% decline in January, reflecting the destocking of the network that controls less than the manufacturer.

Peugeot and Citroen are better, PSA has redirected some of its financial resources to its offerings after the commercial disappointment of the end of 2011: Orders Peugeot fell 8%, after rising 12% in January, and those of Citroen were down 7% (after 10%). 

Asked about these trends, a Renault spokesman reiterated the group's estimate of a decline of 8% to 9% of its orders in France on the first two months of the year and a contraction of 9% to 10% for all brands in February.

In early March, Peugeot evoked a rebound for his share of 7% of its orders in two months. No details on the month of February could not be obtained immediately from the two brands of PSA.

March, CRITICAL MONTH

Among volume manufacturers is that Fiat has suffered the most last month (-25%), while VW has yet pulled out of the game with an 8% increase in orders of the Volkswagen brand last month.

According to La Lettre VN, distributors of the German mark displayed a very high portfolio of over 100 days of orders, against less than a month at Renault.

Most builders know that the first quarter will be mechanically difficult since at the same time in 2011, sales were still boosted by orders placed before the end of last cash for clunkers. 

Last week at the Motor Show of Geneva, the commercial director of Renault Jerome Stoll acknowledged that the year had started less than expected in Europe. March, one of the biggest months of the year for the sector before the arrival of spring will be critical to the sales and orders for the quarter, but Jerome Stoll and now believed to that already controls all brands could drop by 20% over the first three months of the year.

"The channel monitor is strongly Corporate Sales, PC and LCV," wrote The Letter VN. "For if the registrations still resist well to date, all professionals are finding a strong wait-and deferrals of purchasing decisions and an extension of many leases."

According to the publication, a reversal has taken place in this market during the second half of February and the wait has prevailed. The Committee of French Automobile Manufacturers (CCFA) expected throughout the year down 10% of the French automotive market, after falling 2.1% in 2011 .

Registrations of light commercial vehicles, which depend directly on local economic activity and who signed in January and February their first declines for several months, are also likely to remain misdirected. According to La Lettre VN, controls VUL in France fell by 8% in February.