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Carrefour Friday categorically denied press reports suggesting a possible change at the head of the group.
Le Figaro wrote that the main shareholders of the supermarket group, funds Colony Capital and Groupe Arnault, have courted Plassat George, the patron of the group distribution of shoes and clothing Vivarte to replace the current CEO Lars Olofsson.
"Faced with rumors successive change of any officer of Carrefour, the Board of Directors of the Company expressly disclaims any information on this release," the group said in a statement.
No one was immediately available from Colony Capital and Groupe Arnault to comment.
Source familiar with the matter, it tells Reuters that George Plassat has been approached by the shareholders of Carrefour to take the CEO of the group but he refused the proposal this month.
"It has been proposed and he said 'no'. It was during November," said the source.
"There is still no candidate to succeed Lars Olofsson," she added.
According to Le Figaro on Friday, the board gave Lars Olofsson to the end of the year to prove itself, especially in terms of achievement of financial targets for 2011.
"(Georges Plassat) is courted for months by the main shareholders of Carrefour.
Renault said Wednesday it intends to develop in India a new car less expensive than compact Pulse, its latest launch date in the Indian market, but at a price significantly higher than the ultra low cost segment.
In its edition of Wednesday, the Tribune reported that Detourbet Gerard, head of the range low-cost Dacia Renault will take the leadership in January of a joint team to the alliance with Nissan in charge of developing a new vehicle in India for emerging countries.
A spokeswoman for Renault confirmed this information, while stressing that the price of the vehicle would be "significantly higher" in 2500 euros raised by the business daily.With its partner Nissan, the group is now seeking to attract the middle class first in the country by launching products in the mid-range and higher, before proposing then vehicles more attractive prices.
Before the Pulse, scheduled for 2012, Renault has launched this year in India Fluence sedan and 4×4 Koleos.
The proposed ultra low cost car, announced in 2008 by the CEO of Renault-Nissan at a price of 2,500 dollars (1,900 euros), for its part has still not been completed when he initially was to be launched early this year , raising doubts about its viability.
Today, the alliance gives more timing and waits for Bajaj Auto, in charge of development of the car, he presented his platform before deciding whether to give it a more industrial.
International creditors of Greece will press Saturday the country's political parties to commit in writing to support the austerity measures required for a new rescue plan and avoid bankruptcy.
Representatives of the European Commission, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) will meet with the leader of New Democracy (ND preservatives) was said openly reluctant to provide support for the treatment of austerity imposed by donors.
Values to follow Friday at the Paris Bourse, where the CAC 40 index advances 0.65% to 3084.49 points in very small volumes, however, less than 800 million have changed hands on the index as part of Euronext platforms.
* EADS (4.65%) signed the largest increase in the CAC 40, after a jump of more than 5% related to his statement of annual goals and quarterly earnings well above expectations.
In addition, according to industry sources, the Qatar Airways and Emirates airlines as well as the lessor of aircraft ALAFCO could spend significant aircraft orders at the Dubai Air Show, which begins Sunday.
* BNP PARIBAS advance of 3.38% to 31.54 euros.
* Veolia Environnement (-1.07%) continues to suffer from its new warning issued yesterday, many brokers have lowered their price targets and estimates of value.
* SOITEC jumped 14.51% after announcing that its subsidiary Soitec Solar Development had received regulatory approval from the Commission to regulate utilities in the State of California for its five power purchase agreements concluded with San Diego Gas and Electric.
TF1 * (-13.49%) shows the largest decrease in the SBF 120, the group has lowered its forecast revenue for 2011 after the graduation of net advertising revenue of its flagship channel in the third quarter.
Lloyds posted a new quarterly loss Tuesday and warned it may need to extend certain financial targets because of the current economic turbulence.
The bank, 40% owned by the British government for a public bailout granted during the credit crisis of 2008, reported a loss for the period January to September of 3.86 billion pounds (4.5 billion euros), of which 607 million for the third quarter.
The group has suffered from declining margins and funding costs rise and warned that it may not achieve some of its performance targets in the medium term until 2014.
The group, however, maintained its annual target of the margins and a reduction of its losses on bad debts, an announcement appreciated by investors.
The action Lloyds, which has lost more than half its value since the beginning of the year, gained 8.3% to 11:00 GMT.
She recorded the largest increase in the European banking sector index, just ahead of Societe Generale (+7.9%), who resigned Tuesday to pay a dividend to its shareholders for the year 2011 to strengthen its capital without public support.
Lloyds was taken aback investors last week by announcing that its chief executive Antonio Horta-Osorio was suffering from stress and taking time off, leaving a possible vacancy at the top of the first British bank details.
Already stung by the latest developments in euro area markets have also been faced with the announcement of a further slowdown in manufacturing activity in China and the United States has accentuated the negative sentiment in the markets.
Death is expensive in France
Bury or cremate their dead costs on average 3,000 euros, according to a survey of the UFC-Que Choisir. The difference between the cheapest quote (1300 euros) and the most expensive (6100 euros) shows that competition is not enough. Cemetery of Pantin, near Paris
Bury or cremate their dead is a complex and costly journey to the consumer who must deal with often exorbitant prices and specifications are difficult to obtain or abuse in an industry where competition is not. The cost of the passage from life to death can be multiplied by five, depending on the selected services and burial.A survey of UFC, released Tuesday, provides a range of 1300-6101 euros between the cheapest quotes and the highest, at an average cost of 3098 euros, almost equivalent to a burial or cremation.
These differences show that the competition is not enough, and especially since customers weakened by grief often accepts the estimate prepared by the provider first met. "Play competition, even in the case of death, it's not butt, although some operators do not hesitate to make this argument vicious" to corner the families to pay a high price, told the AFP Alain Bazot, president of the association.The "first condition" of healthy competition, he says, is a quote "transparent and legible for comparing and sorting" between mandatory services and plenty of optional services (flowers, toiletries, conservation , dressing, porters etc. ..) always available.
The price of the coffin varies from 950 to 1300 euros, care to the deceased from 90 to 150, the burial chamber from 250 to 400, and administrative procedures handled by the operator 110 to 263 euros. However, the benefits required by law, can be summarized in a coffin 22 mm – 18 mm for a cremation – a mechanical seal, four handles, an identification plate, and a vehicle authorized to transport the deceased.
Reinvigorate competition
A ministerial order intended to force since August 2010 funeral operators to establish transparent and legible quote, did not provide a satisfactory answer, according to Mr.Bazot: 97% of estimates collected by UFC does not conform to the regulatory model, 39% only partially meet the criteria, and 18% of 997 shops visited refused burial to establish a personalized quote. The constraint can not be effective if accompanied by sanctions, and this, according to Bazot, the Directorate General for Competition (DGCCRF) must become a "deterrent" in imposing penalties financial.
DGCCRF objected that "this is the field establishing PV" including crimes (in case of deception on benefits). Paid for justice to follow. DGCCRF also conducts investigations "to identify more discrete agreements between operators or abuse of dominant position". For in this local market, franchisees and independents, too often only locally, abuse of that exclusivity.
"There are ways to enhance certain operators and avoid the ill will of others," says Bazot proposing to inform consumers through brochures available in hospitals, nursing homes, and town halls. "It's not revolutionary, he says, but it can revitalize the competition."
COR-No decisions but work in Brussels
No decision will be announced following the summit of the euro area held late Sunday afternoon in Brussels, even if the work is progressing well, said Nicolas Sarkozy and Angela Merkel.
French President and German Chancellor, speaking at a joint press conference after a summit in the first twenty-seven on Sunday morning and noon, said the work "techniques" were still to be completed by the next level of the EU and the euro area on Wednesday.
"Work is progressing well on the banks of the fund and the potential use of this fund are tightening the assumptions and broad agreement is taking shape.On the issue of Greece things are progressing.
The transformation of the European Financial Stability Fund (EFSF) in the bank, which insisted on France, no longer part of the options considered by the finance ministers of the euro, has also said Angela Merkel.
Without commenting on this issue, Nicolas Sarkozy said that France was just as attached as Germany the independence of the institution in Frankfurt, which is itself hostile to the possibility of granting a banking license and Unlimited funding EFSF.
"No solution is viable if it does not have the support of all European institutions," said Nicolas Sarkozy.
The two leaders also said they urged the Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, with whom they met ahead of the summit, for it to decisively implement a program of growth and debt reduction Alps.
"I hope that decisions will be taken (…) Italy is a major economic force but Italy has a very high public debt should be reduced in a credible way in the coming years," said Angela Merkel.
Nicolas Sarkozy has outbid by saying that Paris and Berlin were "confident sense of responsibility of all the Italian authorities' political, financial and economic," said Nicolas Sarkozy.
Dexia launches finalizing its dismantling
The Board has mandated Dexia CEO Pierre Mariani to complete the dismantling of the group through the sale of the majority of its subsidiaries, said Thursday the Franco-Belgian bank in a statement.
The administrator of the banking group have also confirmed the sale of Dexia Bank Belgium to the Belgian State and the sale of Dexia Municipal Agency for Deposit and La Banque Postale.
Dexia held Wednesday evening for a board to implement the new rescue plan for the Franco-Belgian bank, bank first victim of great importance to the crisis of sovereign debt in the euro area.
Dexia has officially launched the sale of the Turkish subsidiary DenizBank, Dexia Asset Management and RBC Dexia.
The de-globalization is "reactionary" according to Michel Barnier
European Commissioner Michel Barnier to financial services has denounced the speech "against" the interests "of peasants and workers", held by Arnaud Montebourg. The EU Internal Market Commissioner Michel Barnier (here at a press conference in Brussels on 21 February 2011)
European Commissioner Michel Barnier to financial services Friday sharply criticized the "reactionary discourse" of the de-globalization held in France, saying it was "contrary" to the interests of peasants and workers. "I hear that speech that I found in France (to be) a reactionary discourse on the de-globalization", denounced Mr. Barnier, former French Minister of Agriculture and member of the majority party UMP on LCI television.
"What is it? Is protectionism? The home each and every man for himself? This is contrary to the interests of the workers is contrary to the interests of farmers who need to produce goods and export "he criticized. For the Commissioner, Europe needs a sectoral industrial policy to be "a force of production" and "not just a force of consumption." In France, the PS deputy of Saone-et-Loire, to the surprise came third in the primary Socialist, Arnaud Montebourg, notably because of the "de-globalization" a major focus of the debate politique.d