US & World News

An American from Wisconsin was charged Thursday for selling fake Facebook actions by taking advantage of impatience about the upcoming IPO of the first global network community.

According to the complaint filed Thursday, Marianne Oleson would have claimed one million dollars in Facebook stock and have convinced several people to become the purchaser.

She was accused of 31 charges, including theft, forgery and misrepresentation.

Facebook announced Wednesday, almost eight years to the day after it was created by Mark Zuckerberg, its proposed IPO with the intention to raise $ 5 billion.

Marianne Oleson, according to the complaint, explaining that her daughter was linked to Mark Zuckerberg and had had access to titles Facebook. 

She would have paid in false actions including a contractor who performed for nearly 14,000 dollars of work on his house. The man would have also paid 10,000 dollars to buy other securities fictitious.

Another of his alleged victims, a sexagenarian, he would have four checks totaling about $ 40,000.

The IPO of Facebook, expected in May, should be the operation of this type the most anticipated of the year, and set a passing record for a spin start-up Internet.

At its IPO in 2004, Google had sold nearly two billion dollars of securities.

The Institute for International Finance (IIF) said Wednesday that the Greek government and its private creditors are close to final agreement on debt restructuring of the country, a conclusion is expected this week. "We are close to finalizing a voluntary debt exchange as part publicly exposed earlier this week by Jean-Claude Juncker in his capacity as President of the Eurogroup," have clared leaders Ifi. "We expect to conclude next week as discussions on other topics continues." Tuesday, bankers and politicians had suggested that the talks between Greece and its private creditors could come Wednesday. The prospect of such an agreement has contributed to the rise in world stock markets.

Standard & Poor's on Tuesday cut score of 15 large banking groups, mainly in Europe and the United States as a result of a major review of its rating criteria.

In total, the U.S. agency has reviewed the status of 37 major global banks. In particular, it confirmed the notes of BNP Paribas and Societe Generale."The lowering of S & P both on European and U.S. banks has undermined confidence in the markets," said Terry Pratt, IG Markets.

"This decision has overshadowed the progress made in Brussels on the issue of scaling the EFSF."

Another analyst, Guy Lebas of Janney Montgomery Scott, said that these banks will see their funding costs rise.

This month, officials from S & P indicated that they would gradually announce the ratings updated for more than 750 banking companies in the world, starting with the principal. New announcements are expected in the coming weeks.

For large banks, the rating adjustments are larger than S & P has provided for the entire industry.

BASF, the world leader in chemistry in terms of sales, announced Thursday a quarterly profit above expectations, but warned that its growth was slowing, clients sell their stocks.

"BASF's customers are more cautious, reduce inventory and postpone some of their orders in hopes of a possible drop in prices," explains the German group said in a statement.

Operating profit (EBIT) fell 11.3% to 1.96 billion euros, while analysts polled by Reuters anticipate an average of 1.89 billion euros.

The quarterly revenue was up 11.6% to 17.6 billion euros, according to consensus.

BASF has confirmed that the CAand EBIT adjusted for taxes on oil would experience a significant increase this year.

"However, growth slowed further over the first half of 2011. We expect this trend to continue in the fourth quarter," warns the group.

European shares closed higher Friday on hopes of Action of the European Central Bank and government to mitigate the effects of the crisis of sovereign debt in the euro zone and support banks.

However, caution remains the watchword.

Bank stocks recorded the highest increase in Europe with a sectoral Stoxx index which gained 3.53%.

In Paris, BNP Paribas (9.78%), Societe Generale (8.76%) and Credit Agricole (4.78%), which was this week in the eye of the storm because of their exposure to Greek and Italian debt, eventually leading to increases in the CAC 40 on market rumors paying for the government to carry out some form of recapitalization.SocGen and BNP did not wish to comment on these rumors.

The gains, however, show small-scale loss of investor confidence in the ability of governments to quickly implement practical solutions to the crisis of sovereign debt and boost savings on the brink of recession on both sides Atlantic.

This cocktail of strong concerns about the banks is causing serious losses in stock market indices.For the week, the CAC 40 dropped 7.29% in Paris and at European level the EuroStoxx 50 index dropped 6.17%.

"RAMPANT FAILURE OF GREECE"

The CAC 40 gained 1.02% Friday to 2810.111 points after touching a session in new low of 2693.21 points in the year, returning to its level in March 2009.

Risk aversion has stalled late in the session, the performance of the German government bond (Bund) and 10 years, fell in the day to a new record low at 1.64%, found its level Thursday (1.75%) at the close of stock markets.

The euro meanwhile pondered over $ 1.35 and was trading around 1.3508 dollar.

Other major European markets, London

gained 0.5%, 0.63% Frankfurt, Milan 1.36%.The pan-European Euro Stoxx 50 index has been 1.52%.

"Operation Twist (the Fed) has failed to revive stock markets. It is a terrible verdict, a confirmation that governments no longer able to stimulate the economy central banks find themselves faced with the challenge to bring to his aid, "wrote Vincent Chaigneau and Ciaran O'Hagan, rates strategist at Societe Generale in their weekly note.

"They will continue to shoot in the dark, hoping to keep away the ghost of recession.Good luck, "they said, stressing that the stress imposed on the funding of banks is" a great threat to the economy. "

Pichard for Franklin, director of Barclays Bourse France, "markets do not stop to include a default rampant in Greece (although it is true that the 'political' do nothing to speed things up) and the recapitalization of some European banks. "

Cyclical stocks such as Technip (-3.93%) and Alstom (-2.52%) recorded the largest declines the CAC 40.

Canal + has breached commitments made at the acquisition of TPS, said Wednesday the Competition Authority, which withdraws the decision to authorize the transaction and places the encrypted string in a difficult position even as the authorities are looking at its stake in the TV division of Bolloré.

Vivendi's subsidiary is accused of several violations by the Authority of the 59 commitments made in 2006, some considered "essential", what prompted the regulator to decide on the first withdrawal of authorization in its history, plus a fine of 30 million euros.

The Authority one month left to the parties concerned to inform him of the operation again, which would be studied on a new basis.

"We will put everything flat.The authorization of 2006 no longer exists.We will discuss again all under the market situation today, "said Bruno Lasserre, President of the Authority, at a press conference.

The regulator could start by redefining the characteristics of the market affected by the operation, by drawing a border more or less clearly between the segments of pay television and free.

With a dominant position in pay TV, Canal + is a relatively small player in the free.

"There is no doubt that we will do a thorough review of this matter," whose outcome is likely to be one of two options: allow the operation by asking for new commitments to Canal +, or give a green light by imposing unilateral orders, said Bruno Lasserre.

Canal +, for its part that it would initiate action against that decision, saying it "is of course not possible to challenge a merger nearly five years."

The pay-TV may request that the State Council an interim order to suspend the regulator's decision, giving the necessary time to the State Council to rule on the merits of the case.

CONCESSIONS

The regulator's decision comes as the acquisition of a 60% of Canal + in the television division of the Bolloré group – which includes the general channel Direct 8 Direct Star and music, as well as advertising – is waiting for the green light authorities.

"Channel is clearly in a dominant position in the pay and instead abused.Now he wants to go in the free, "said one media analyst who declined to be named.

"I do not think that this decision will undermine the 'deal' with the GST or cancel Bolloré, but all this will lead to new commitments by Canal in both the paid and free."

Canal + has struck a blow in early September by announcing the takeover of two DTT channels free of Bolloré, a process seen by experts as a threat to TF1 and M6, and is expected to reshuffle the cards in the French media landscape .

If it is validated, the transaction would enable Canal Plus to have a total of three free channels on DTT counting i> Télé, making par with TF1, owner of NT1 and TMC, and distancing M6, W9 holder.

The subsidiary of Vivendi, however, could be asked of concessions by regulatory authorities, because the regulations up to seven the number of possible frequencies for the TNT group. However, the acquisition of Direct 8 Direct Star and bringing to eight the total channels of Canal +, not counting its draft free channel called Canal20.

Examination of the application and Direct 8 Direct Star will be done separately from that of the GST case, but delays are likely to be concurrent, around six months, said Bruno Lasserre.The Authority, he added, has not received any notification for the time of Canal + Group for the second file.

This increase in tax rates, btisée "Buffett rule", only affect 0.3% of taxpayers, less than 450,000 people. President Barack Obama issued Tuesday, August 2, 2011 text authorizing the raising of the ceiling of U.S. debt.

President Barack Obama will propose Monday to raise taxes on millionaires so that they reach at least the same percentage of their income than that applied to middle-class taxpayers, said Saturday the New York Times.

Citing government officials, the newspaper says Obama will present a draft on this issue during a speech at the White House, he calls the "Rule Buffett", named after the multimillionaire Warren E. Buffet.It was recently pointed out that the richest Americans pay a smaller proportion of their income in federal taxes than middle-income employees.

Profits on investments – such as profits from capital, dividends or premiums paid to investors and holders of risky investments – are taxed less than wages, in fact, explains the New York Times. In addition, those receiving more than 106,800 dollars do not pay Social Security tax.

The newspaper said Obama will not show the tax rate or clear it intends to apply the amount it hoped to achieve through this measure and will not provide further details, these should be included in a program long-term deficit reduction.However, it will call savings of $ 300 billion over ten years of health insurance for the elderly and medical aid to the needy.

A joint committee of Congress is working on a bipartisan agreement on the budget to be presented in late November while the Republican representatives opposed the project of the president to tax the companies in the sectors of oil and gas and individual income above $ 200,000. The tax would only affect 0.3% millonnaires taxpayers, less than 450,000 of the 144 million returns recorded in 2010, according to The New York Times.

Wall Street closed higher Wednesday, a new set of economic indicators back feeding the hope that the Federal Reserve gave a new boost to the economy at its policy meeting in September.

But the fact is precisely that economic indicators have generally been disappointing Wall Street has been reluctant in the afternoon and the three major indexes are now spent in the red.

The Dow Jones gained 53.58 points (0.46%) to 11,613.53 points. The S & P 500 is 5.97 points (0.49%) to 1218.89 points. The Nasdaq Composite Index advances 3.35 points (0.13%) to 2579.46 points.

On the month, the Dow Jones loses 4.4%, the S & P gives 5.7% and the Nasdaq was down 6.4%.This is the worst month of the S & P since May 2010.

However, since the beginning of the year, the Dow shows a slight gain of 0.3%.The S & P 500, meanwhile, has still gained almost 9% in seven of the last eight sessions, led by sectors sensitive to the economic cycle.

The minutes of the meeting of the Fed's August 9, released Tuesday, shows that it has proposed a series of actions to support the U.S. economy at its meeting in early August, some members calling for bold action.

At annual meetings of Jackson Hole, held last week, the Fed chairman Ben Bernanke had said she would meet two days in September, instead of originally planned, to reflect on the possibilities of creating a new monetary stimulus.

In terms of statistics, job creation in the private sector in the United States were below expectations in August, according to the results of the monthly ADP released Wednesday. It was created 91,000 jobs in August, while the market was expecting 100,000.

Moreover, the index of purchasing managers in the Chicago area fell in August, slightly less than expected, while falling to the lowest since November 2009.The index published on Wednesday in August falls to 56.5 against 58.8 in July and a consensus on giving 53.5.

In contrast, industrial orders rose 2.4% in July in the United States, more than expected, driven upward by the strength of the transport sector, said Wednesday the Commerce Department.

The fact that, according to sources, the U.S. Department of Justice has hired Wednesday a procedure to block the sale of T-Mobile, U.S. subsidiary of Deutsche Telekom, AT & T, for reasons of respect for competition weighed on rating during the session.

AT & T lost 3.85% and the S & P Telecommunications 1.63%.

Some values ​​high tech weighed on the Nasdaq, which explains its low gain closure.Apple sold 1.32% and 2.7% Nvidia for example.

Good performance of industry, however, with their S & P gained 0.68%. Caterpillar is 1.3% and 1.1% Honeywell International.

Much criticized for his handling Simois since the earthquake and the nuclear accident in Fukushima, Naoto Kan throws in the towel. Naoto Kan waives his salary as prime minister of Japan as the nuclear crisis is not over.

Japanese Prime Minister, Naoto Kan, said Friday his resignation from the chairmanship of the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ, in power) and his departure next week of the government. "Today (Friday), I resigned from my position as party chairman," he told MPs the DPJ. "Once a new president is elected, I will give up right away my prime minister and my government resign."

DPJ Secretary General Katsuya Okada, confirmed that the election of the successor of Naoto Kan will take place Monday morning. The winner will be elected prime minister, probably the next day by Parliament.In Japan, the president of the majority party in the Chamber of Deputies is assured of his appointment to head the government, even with a Senate controlled, as is the case today, by the opposition.

Fifth prime minister in five years, Naoto Kan, 64, elected in June 2010, finally threw in the towel after suffering for months attacks by the Conservative opposition, but also those of his own camp, to manage considered calamitous disaster of March 11. Fell to the lowest in the opinion polls, the leader of the center-left government is criticized for his hesitation and awkwardness face of disaster caused by the massive earthquake and the giant tsunami that devastated the coasts of northeastern Japan and caused a very serious nuclear accident at the plant in Fukushima.

Finance Minister Seiji Maehara to favorite Estates

In early June, Mr.Khan had promised to leave office after the Parliament had passed three bills close to his heart. The law on a supplementary budget for reconstruction in the affected areas was passed in July, and the two other texts, on the issuance of bonds to complete the budget and the development and use of renewable energy were adopted Friday.

"Today, important laws were passed. On June 2, I thought I'd pass the baton to a younger generation. The conditions are all met," he said. Referring to his record, Naoto Kan has acknowledged that there had been "very hard times." "I think I did what I had to do in very difficult circumstances," he added.

Among the favorites to succeed him include former foreign minister, Seiji Maehara, 49, the most popular with the Japanese in the polls, and the current finance minister, Yoshihiko Noda, 54, a supporter of increased the consumption tax, currently set at 5%. If elected, Seiji Maehara, who is on the other hand opposed any tax increase, will become the youngest Japanese prime minister since the Second World War.

European banks including Societe Generale and Dexia still suffer from their bad loans, but also another evil, more discreet: their dependence on debt markets to finance their operations.

Unlike some U.S. banks such as JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo, which finance a larger share of loans with the deposits of their customers, private banks in Europe generally depend more on their loans in capital markets in the short term.

This exposes them to the whims of investors, may require a sudden interest rates higher for their money, or even remove it from the market place and the banks to thank you for a government bailout.

The sudden increases observed in recent weeks on the rates of short-term loan of some European banks in this respect revived memories of the 2008 financial crisis, when Bear Stearns and Lehman Brothers collapsed in a liquidity shortage .

The recent turmoil highlighted the need for the European banks most vulnerable, to adjust their loan commitments that can actually pay their deposits.

"The European banking system must be redesigned and re-capitalized," said one institutional investor this money markets and based in New York, speaking on condition of anonymity to avoid offending customers.

Many banks have sought since the 2008 crisis, to raise their levels of deposits, with some difficulty.

In Europe, public banks and savings banks enjoy tax benefits because they can maintain their stranglehold on the market, said Rocco Huang, a professor at the University of Michigan.

The race then draws customers to higher costs, so that some institutions are turning to overseas, such as the Franco-Belgian bank Dexia, which recently expanded its network in Turkey.

FINANCING RISK

Fears about the financial health of European banks is easily exacerbated by their lack of transparency about their cash reserves, analysts said.Lack of clear data, investors resort to inadequate instruments, such as loan-deposit ratios ("loan-to-deposit ').

Dexia loans represent 2.5 times the sum of its deposits, according to data compiled by Keefe, Bruyette and Woods.For Societe Generale, the ratio "loan-to-deposit" is 1.2.

By comparison, loans JPMorgan use only two-thirds of it are lists of deposits under its customers.

To make up the difference, European banks therefore depend heavily on capital markets, including money market short-term, which can be risky in the current environment of distrust of investors.

The credit default swaps (CDS) – which measure the cost of insurance on default of payment – General Corporation has more than doubled in less than three months, reaching 303 basis points (bps) on August 19 against 138 bps on May 31, according to Markit.

At the same time, the share of the Company generally has lost about 49% of its value.For comparison, the CDS JPMorgan rose 75 bps to 125 bps, and the action has lost 21%.

This movement took place when a strong seller that major U.S. investment funds have withdrawn money market billions of dollars they previously injected in European banks through short-term loans.

In June and July, according to Fitch Ratings, the top ten funds have pulled 70 billion dollars (48.38 billion euros) or 18.4% of the money they had lent to banks Europe.

Finance is increasingly global, many of these funds have explained to need this cash if their investors wanted their money out of fear of failure to pay the United States.

This sudden loss of funding has forced banks to seek their dollars elsewhere, taking their rising borrowing costs in a way that seemed to indicate that they were in need of funding, said Mark Pawlak, strategist and vice president of Keefe, Bruyette & Woods.

Societe Generale then attempted to allay fears about its financial strength by providing investors with details on its balance sheet during a presentation on August 3.

"The bank has no liquidity problems, its activity is healthy and its investment capabilities are intact," he said last weekend Oudéa Frederick, CEO of Societe Generale, in an interview with Journal du Dimanche.

Neither Dexia nor Societe Generale have wished to comment during this analysis.