The Nikkei gained 0.9% or 75.42 points to 8876.59 points, while the Topix broader took 1.12% or 8.28 points to 747.16 points.

Japanese gross domestic product increased by 1% from January to March compared with the previous quarter, helped by a rebound increase in consumption. In this context, investors have taken advantage of the recent decline of 12% of the Nikkei to do some shopping on the cheap.

Values, Credit Saison ended with a gain of 3.88% to 1,658 yen. Society of consumer credit has posted an annual net profit above market expectations.

The operating company of Disneyland Paris has improved one percent of its revenue from tourism activities for the period of increased spending by visitors to its parks, despite a decline in attendance.

The group reported in a statement to a net loss of 120.9 million euros in the first half 2011-2012 (October-March) against a loss of 99.5 million, with EBITDA margin reduced to 0.3% against 4.5%. 

Its total sales down 0.9% to 552.4 million euros within the scope of the reduction in its property development activities and lower revenues from its hotels which the occupancy rate fell by 3.6 points to 79.8%.

This rise of the French bank, announced Friday by an opinion of the Financial Markets Authority (AMF), comes as the businessman Vincent Bollore could rise, according a source familiar with the matter, up 5% stake in Vivendi against 1% currently.

According to the AMF, Societe Generale said to have crossed over on April 20 the threshold of 5% of share capital and voting rights of Vivendi and Vivendi hold 98,045,823 or 7.86% of share capital and voting rights. 

This total includes a participation of 5.25% effective in custody and the balance by assimilation.

The bank was not immediately available for comment on whether share purchases had been made for herself or on behalf of a client.

Bollore announced in September 2011 a proposed sale to Vivendi of free TV channels Direct 8 Direct and Star in exchange for remuneration in Vivendi shares up of 22.4 million shares.

The source familiar with the matter, Bolloré could reach 5% stake in Vivendi by the combined effect of the implementation of this agreement and new purchases of securities on the market. 

Citing people familiar with the matter, the Bloomberg news agency reported Wednesday that the conglomerate was considering an overhaul of its structure that could lead to a dismantling of the group, which was denied by Vivendi.

According Caixin.com, citing a source close to Sinopec, the Asian oil company has found a non-binding agreement to take control of YPF for more than 15 billion dollars (11.4 billion euros).

A Sinopec spokesman declined to comment on "market rumors".

For its part, the president of Repsol Antonio Brufau said at a press conference that the tanker had received many expressions of interest from international groups to take a stake in YPF but did not comment on the information on Sinopec. 

Also according to the site Caixin.com, Sinopec estimated oil reserves of YPF in Argentina have a potential for development. The group ensures to meet the requirements of the Argentine government to accelerate the development and production.

The Argentine President Cristina Fernandez announced Monday it would ask Congress for the expropriation of 51% of YPF's energy group, immediately attracting the warnings of important trading partners and in particular a strong reaction from Spain.

The trade deficit widened substantially France in February compared with the previous month, reaching 6.398 billion euros, Customs said Friday. "In February, the surge in imports is partly attributable to energy purchases related to the cold wave, which leads to relativize the rising deficit to -6.398 billion euros, after -5593000000 in January," said Customs in a statement.  

"The cold wave that hit France and implementation of maintenance work on three French refineries led to a sharp surge in energy supply (electricity and refined petroleum products)", said the Customs. Imports amounted to 43.553 billion euros and exports 37.155 billion when adjusted for seasonal variations and the number of working days.

Exports have benefited from "buoyant manufacturing sales, while those of agricultural products and military equipment contract sharply again," commented Customs. Exports of transport equipment have found "their best", due to large supplies of satellites and a recovery in exports of motor vehicles.  

Dynamic exports to Russia and the Middle East

Customs also noted "the good performance of electronic and electrical equipment and metal products (oil and nuclear industries)." By region, exports remained nearly stable to the countries of the European Union but have been "particularly strong" to Europe outside the EU (deliveries of parts of satellites to Russia) and the Near and Middle East (aeronautics and industrial equipment). In contrast, sales to America have been reduced (fuel, after a peak in January, and chemicals).

Import side, in addition to the surge in purchases of energy products, Customs stressed that "the level of aircraft acquisitions to Germany is also occasionally very high." "Import growth also reflects the continued strength of metals purchases, pharmaceuticals, industrial machinery, household appliances and electrical products and automotive industry," the statement said.

Regions, in February, increased purchases from the EU has accelerated: from Germany for the aerospace, Spain, Belgium and Sweden for energy products. Imports also increased since the rest of Europe (Switzerland for electricity and the pharmacy, Russia for natural hydrocarbons and refined products), but shrank from the Middle East. The deficit of 12 months completed end of February stood at 70.051 billion euros. The negative balance record set by France in 2011 was also again revised up to 70.437 billion, after a first revision to 70.104 billion euros on 8 March.

"This is not a rejection of nuclear energy, just a decision on how we are investing," said Johannes Teyssen in an interview published Friday by the German newspaper Handelsblatt.

RWE and E.ON announced on Thursday to abandon their plan of 18 billion euros to build new nuclear plants in the UK, which could undermine the objective of London for renewal of the reactor pool. 

Both groups have justified this decision by the choice of Germany to break with nuclear energy, high operating costs of their joint venture and the dice Horizon ; lais required by the construction of new nuclear plants.

E.ON also said Thursday it would continue its project to build a nuclear reactor in Finland through the consortium Fennovoima, in which the German group owns 34% through its Finnish subsidiary.

France is going through a little better air hole that affects the entire euro area. After avoiding a decline in activity in the fourth quarter – unlike Germany, it should just happen to stabilize its GDP over the first three months of the year before starting to rebound slowly, according to forecasts revised upwards published Thursday by the National Institute of Statistics.  

"For France, we expect a stable activity in the first quarter, zero percent growth, and then a sluggish 0.2% in the second quarter," he told reporters Sandrine Duchene, head of the Department of conditions of INSEE. In December, INSEE had planned a short recession with contraction of economic activity in the last quarter 2011 and first quarter 2012, before there is a growth of 0.2% on October to December last year. "We had a shock on the euro area in the summer of 2011 we are coming out" and "recovery is slow," noted Ms. Duchene presenting the note of economic INSEE March. But gross domestic product (GDP) "regain its pre-crisis level in the forecast horizon," that is to say, late June, said during a press conference an analyst of the INSEE, Dorian Roucher.  

The institute has also revised sharply upwards its forecast of growth acquisition for 2012 that would be achieved by mid-year: 0% predicted in December, it would increase to 0.5%. This represents growth of GDP this year if the last two quarters remained the same as the second quarter. Ms. Duchene explains this revision by the better than expected growth in the last quarter of 2011 and the upward revision of its forecasts for the first half.

Consequently, the Minister of Economy and Finance Baroin announced an increase in the government's forecast for growth of the French economy in 2012, now expected at 0.7% against 0.5% previously.

The engines of growth remain low

Optimism, however, must be very measured. The chief economist at INSEE emphasizes that household consumption, the traditional engine of growth in France, "remains low". She would grow by 0.2% in the first quarter before stagnating in the second. And because "a 0.3% decline in purchasing power in the first half."

Several factors contribute to this weakness. Purchasing power would suffer first the relatively high level of inflation (2.2% yoy). In addition, earned income will slow due to the deteriorating labor market. This will not only result in further loss of 49,000 jobs in the first half but it will also affect wage negotiations. Finally, household incomes will be further tapped by taxes, supported by measures enacted in Finance Act which come into force in 2012.

France can not be counted as late last year on exports. Thanks to sales of Airbus, they have indeed been the main driver of growth in the fourth quarter that helped prevent the recession. But their contribution to the activity will become neutral due to weak demand in the euro area.

The context would finally have some good investment: the business outlook remains bleak, the conditions for granting loans were tightened before the massive intervention of the ECB and the margin of the companies is at an historic . Besides factors such as more timely consequences of the cold wave on construction.L business investment would decline so slightly in the first quarter 2012 (-0.4%), before rebounding in the second quarter (+0.8% ).

But the big downside of these forecasts is unemployment. INSEE entails loss of 49,000 in the market sector in the first half after a fall of 54,000 over the last six months of last year. Total employment would nevertheless be supported by intensified supported employment. Finally, the unemployment rate should continue to increase to 9.7% in France in June (10.1% including Dom).

Equity markets have recovered tone. Wall Street has lost ground with the financial crisis, is now finding its levels in late 2007 after a 11% jump in three months. For the first time in its history, its flagship index, the Dow and the Nasdaq, dominated by technology, rose this week above the psychological threshold of 13,000 points and 3,000 points, during the same session. European stock markets are pronounced the same trend, the Cac 40 in Paris even showing since mid-February a gain of 21% which allowed him to retake the course of 3600 points.

The rally in shares is not new. It has already lasted three months and we owe largely to central banks, said Benjamin Melman, Director absolute performance at Edmond de Rothschild IM. The rebound in stock prices coincided with the opening last December, to tap liquidity from the ECB or the provision of banks over 1000 billion euros of resources at low cost. This proactive reassured investors who constantly claim that the central bank acts as a lender of last resort to stem the contagion of debt. But his determined action has contributed to lower interest rates in the bond market and away along the spectrum of the credit crisis that threatened the European economy. The Fed has also facilitated the rise of the stock market by deciding to extend until 2014 its ultra accommodative monetary policy. Of course, the rescue of Greece has also helped to ease investors. Although all issues are not resolved, a page of the European crisis has turned, says Francois Chevallier, strategist at Bank economist and Leonardo.

And the good news for investors is that the rally is not over yet. Price increases in January and in February was made with very little volume, Melman says Benjamin. Many investors have been waiting patiently for several issues are resolved. They return on the market today. We assist in some way, a second wave of purchases, which explains the recent acceleration in price rises.

How long can it last? Difficult to say. Looking at the ratios of current profits, we say that most of the journey was made, says François Chevallier. However, the stock market has another engine, that of profit expectations. But they will remain well oriented in the short term due to the favorable business surveys. The ZEW index in Germany and that of the Philadelphia Fed – two leading indicators of the industry – improved further in March, says the expert. This means that the plateau expected in the industry has not yet occurred. The next ISM index, which takes the pulse of American industry, may still show an increase in early April, at the same time giving a new impetus to the market.

As of May, however, the stock market could consolidate, ie enter a phase of slower growth. Indeed, the production rates in the industry expected to slow. Moreover, the return of valuations at pre-crisis level will lead to profit taking, says Francois Chevalllier. Tensions on the bond markets – the U.S. 10-year rates rose in a few weeks from 1.8% to 2.3% – would create air holes on the stock market, adds Benjamin Melman. Volatility will brief comeback. The opportunity for investors to remember an old adage stock: sell in may and go away.

Hiring in the private sector has greatly accelerated in the United States in February, according to the monthly survey on employment of the consulting firm HR ADP released Wednesday. Private companies have created that month 216,000 more jobs than they destroyed, ADP says in a statement

The balance of hires, adjusted for seasonal variations, appears and up 25% from January and very close to that given to the median estimate of analysts (218,000 net job creation).

ADP has revised upward its estimate of 2% of hires in the previous month, to 173,000. "The increase in employment [... remained] solid "in February, and" almost all sectors of the economy created jobs, "writes ADP, noting that" the average monthly hires totaled 200,000 over the past five months "…. According to the survey

….. ADP, February was the twenty-fifth consecutive monthly rise of private employment in the United States

.

Over the whole of 2011, GDP in one of four countries in the euro area still have a "AAA" from the three major rating agencies has advanced 2.9%.