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This Friday, May 18th is a historic day. For Wall Street, which will host the largest IPO in history. For Facebook, too, who will submit to the test markets, namely the Nasdaq, a history that started in a college dorm. Employees of the startups are celebrating it since Thursday evening by typing lines of code all night.

They were invited to participate in one of these "hackathons" which made the reputation of Facebook for a day or more, developers gather to undo and redo services for the social network. Facebook a must which submits all new recruits to inspire a culture of hackers across the enterprise.

Facebook is an IPO eight years after its creation by Mark Zuckerberg at Harvard, assisted by Eduardo Saverin, Dustin Moskovitz, Andrew McCollum and Chris Hughes. Its value reached $ 104 billion. This is a hundred times the profit made by the social network in 2011. A ratio of crazy, but comparable to Google in its introduction in 2004. Two days before his arrival on the stock exchange, the social network has even offered the luxury of raising the price range of its activities to $ 38 and increase the volume of securities offered for sale. But after the operation, his young owner, 28 years, still retain 55.8% of the voting rights.

Many observers are questioning the possible formation of a new internet bubble payday advance low fees. Their criticisms are reminiscent of the doubts raised during the IPO of Google. The search engine was shaking up the Web with a new advertising model, the purchase of keywords that trigger ads targeted based on research conducted by Internet users. Facebook pushes him, communication. His ambition: "Connect the world." He has already managed to attract 901 million members, one of two user visits the site at least once a month. More than 526 million access it every day.

The beginning of the journey

But the service not only to connect people. It also links them to their musical tastes, their leisure, their interests. From a rogue's gallery online, Facebook has become the digital identity of nearly a billion people, evolving portrait of the social activity of its users. A gold mine of data that Facebook is trying to sell to advertisers.

On the walls of its premises, Facebook reminds its employees that only "1% of the trip was done." The site has yet to conquer China, where access to Facebook is blocked, controlling the mobile world and find revenue sources the most profitable. This is the bet on the future as Facebook will offer the stock market.

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This visit was highly anticipated. A month after announcing he was suffering from prostate cancer, multibillionaire Warren Buffett met this weekend's 40,000 shareholders of his holding company Berkshire Hathaway in Omaha, in the U.S. state of Nebraska, where he lives since 1956. Saying "in shape", he has worked hard to reassure his health. The investor of 81 years and has participated in a competition to launch newspapers in the corridors of CenturyLink Center, before pushing the song with the cheerleaders from the University of Nebraska and an ice cream with gusto low interest rate personal loans. "I have four doctors, several of which are shareholders of Berkshire Hathaway," he has said, in response to a question at the general assembly, whose key exchanges are transcribed on the site of CNBC. He reiterated that his treatment, which induce "not a single day of hospitalization," would not prevent him from working.

The investor of 81 years aparticipé a contest to launch newspapers in the corridors of CenturyLink Center.

Presidential in major cities Paris | Leeds | Lyons | Toulouse | Leeds | Sheffield | Liverpool | Bordeaux | Lille

This is one of the heaviest penalties ever imposed in France for price fixing. The Competition Authority condemned Tuesday the largest producers of bagged flour French and German in total fines totaling 242.4 million euros.

As Le Figaro had revealed (read our editions of March 29, 2011), the institution has identified two antitrust cases, one involving French millers having agreed on prices, and the other a Franco-German cartel to limit to 15,000 tons, from 2002 to 2008, German exports in the Hexagon.

Flour France, sentenced to 8.3 million euro fine, and Axiane Milling, who scoop the most severe penalty (44 million), have decided to appeal. "We have taken note of the decision, which amazed us, said a spokesman Axiane. The penalty amount is disproportionate to the activities of the company, who made last year 167 million euros in turnover which only 15% correspond to the sale of flour in bag. "… ….. A first

This is the first case of this magnitude in the food industry. The Competition Authority has estimated that 11% of the costs to consumers. Moreover, it is the second time a consumer product is concerned by this affair. Last year, a cartel of manufacturers of detergents was sentenced to 361.3 million euros in fines. In both cases, this is a leniency application made by one of the protagonists who revealed the agreement.

"The Franco-German entente has been sheltered from competition German millers French, which enabled them to segment the market and respond with one voice to calls for major retailers such as discount stores," summarizes a spokesman for the Authority's view that the distributors were not aware of these practices.

The severity of penalties is due to the unprecedented duration of the agreement. In fact, since its inception in 1965, France Flour, owner of the famous brand Francine, leader in France, was at the heart of a system of understanding that allowed him to sell the output of its seven shareholders millers. "This is a transparent system of grouping that existed openly and everybody," protests Axiane Milling, one of its shareholders.

Considered a "false nose" Flour France was dissolved in mid-January and Francine brand was sold to one of its shareholders, Nutrixo. The Competition Authority should soon make its decision in another case involving the millers. This time it concerns the sale of bulk flour to bakers.

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The end of the franc is big to the Treasury. The latest * franc notes were redeemable at branches of the Bank of France until February 17 at midnight. Ten days after the end of the countdown, the institution is taking stock. A total of 1.5 million tickets have been reported for a total value of 378 million francs (57.6 million), from 1 September 2011 and the deadline of February 17. According to the Bank of France, there is 55 million franc banknotes in circulation, hidden under the mattress, forgotten in old bags or kept by collectors nostalgic. A nest egg estimated at 526 million euros.

And this balance, called "base emission" will be donated to the State. Indeed, the notes and coins in circulation are considered a debt, on the liability side of the central bank. "To annulerla debt, the value of the tickets not presented for exchange is repaid to the State," said the Bank of France in a newsletter. All these francs lost, forgotten or become so jealously preserved revenue to the exchequer.

The countryside of the Banque de France will not have been very successful, despite his repeated reminders to the holders of francs in recent months and the creation of a dedicated website (www.jechangemesfrancs.com). The franc banknotes still in circulation became indeed a treasure of 602 million euros in late 2010. Yet the French had thrown at the offices of the institution's approach to the deadline. "Just under 200,000 cuts were exchanged in December 2011, but nearly 367,000 in January 2012 and 733,000 cuts on the first 17 days of February," says the Bank of France. A record was set on February 17, with 91,000 tickets reported.  

The large denomination reported mass

For latecomers or those who have not managed to get hold of these small economies too well hidden, they have "no choice but to keep their tickets as a souvenir or sell to coin collectors," warns we at the Bank of France. But beware, all tickets will not take the value. "Better to have kept the cuts of 20 francs or 50 francs Debussy Saint-Exupery," said Michel Prieur, specialist of currencies within the Compagnie Générale de Bourse (CGB.fr). Now demonetized, only small values ​​will make a "margin buxom." A lesson that apprentices numismatists have understood. "Two thirds of the reported cuts are notes of 200 francs and 500 francs," says the Bank of France, which states that "the average volume of trade amounted to 15 tickets per transaction, for an average value of 3627 francs (553 euros). "

* The range of notes that can be exchanged against euro: CHF 20 bills bearing the image of Debussy, equivalent to 3.05 euros, the "Saint-Exupery" 50 francs (7.62 euros) , the "Cezanne" of 100 francs (15.24 euros), "Gustave Eiffel" of 200 francs (30.49 euros) and the "Pierre et Marie Curie" of 500 francs (76.22 euros).

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The 200 high school students Guillaume Apollinaire, Thiais, Bossuet at Meaux and Turgot in Paris are attentive. They participate in the third Foundation Forum Responsible growth, on globalization and increased competitiveness of France.

Students and teachers were involved in discussions of the working group chaired by Benoît Habert, Deputy Director General of the Dassault Group. A dozen celebrities, including Denis Kessler, CEO of Scor, Jean-Louis Beffa, chairman of honor of Saint-Gobain, Michel Camdessus, former IMF chief, Henri Guaino, special adviser to the president, were interviewed . "Globalization is. It is binding on us. We must adapt, "says a student of Turgot. "Companies do not take enough young alternately. Quotas should be established, "lamented a student of Guillaume Apollinaire.

"We have focused our thinking on improving the competitiveness of the nation and the attention paid to youth. We selected ten proposals that meet three criteria: be applicable across France, presenting a highly leveraged and have a low or no cost, "explained Christian Poyau, Foundation President Responsible Growth, and Benoît Habert , Chairman of the Working Group.

The Foundation recommends that the fight against illiteracy, which affects 20% of French 15 years, a national cause. She wants to develop proficiency in English for age groups entering the labor market by 2020. She favors a reduction of social security the first two years of first use. "The charges would be eliminated in the first year and reduced by 50% the second year. This could be financed by a puncture of the tax shelter on overtime, "say members of the working group.

National Loan

Other tracks are made for improving the competitiveness of France, as the issue of a national loan of more than 100 billion euros in return for a commitment on the golden rule in 2014. The state may borrow only to invest in the economy. Responsible Growth also advocates a reduction in labor costs by funding lower payroll taxes by half for the 50% increase in the rate of VAT and half by the efficiencies of the social model.

Decided to develop links with Education, Responsible Growth Friday sign a partnership agreement with the three academies in the Ile-de-France (Paris, Versailles, Créteil) so that teachers teaching in colleges and high schools and guidance counselors can do internships in companies of all sizes and all sectors. A hundred of them, including the Figaro Group, supporting the initiative.

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The surprises could affect 100,000 to 200,000 homes. According to Le Parisien-Aujourd'hui en France, households may not be taxed so far include paying the income tax this year. The head is the second austerity plan announced by the government last November and froze the tax scale.

Previously, the tax brackets, which forms the basis for taxation, were reviewed annually to reflect inflation increases the cost of living. By freezing for at least two years tax brackets, all persons whose incomes rose in 2011 could potentially be affected by the reform if they are left with taxable income greater than 5963 euros, the threshold first tranche of 5.5%. For the government, the money will have to pay these homes will be relatively low because the IRS does not claim the tax payment when it is less than 61 euros. Le Parisien-Aujourd'hui en France underlines that the sudden imposition could have more serious consequences for households as much aid as those granted to the school canteen and transport are related to the absence of taxation. Some families might therefore lose those benefits.

Changing slice

Another mechanical effect of freezing the scale, other households may already taxed, them, cross the threshold of the top tax bracket and thus having to pay more. This extra tax is not yet visible on the view that taxpayers received early this year to pay the first third. The surprises will come in September, when paying the balance. According to calculations of national union unified tax (Snui) quoted by the newspaper, the increases will be spread from 1.17% for a wealthy couple with no children at 12.57% for a single. The government expects in any case additional EUR 1.7 billion of tax revenue for 2012 and double that for 2013.

Finally, the richer will also be affected, because the scale of the solidarity tax on wealth (ISF) has also been frozen. The government expects 44 million of additional wealth tax in 2012 and 88 million more in 2013.

* The normal situation after indexing takes into account an inflation rate estimated at 2.1% in 2011.

Creditor banks in Greece will have to accept losses "substantial" in the new bailout of the country, warned Saturday that the European Ministers of Finance. Last night, the central bankers of the euro zone had "agreed to say that we had to have a substantial increase in the contribution of banks" in the form of a depreciation of their claims, said the leader of European finance ministers, Jean-Claude Juncker.

According to diplomatic sources, the ministers agreed to effectively negotiate with the banks at a discount of "at least 50%" against a target of 21% decided on July 21 with the banking sector. They thus de facto endorsed the conclusions of an expert report which was presented by the troika of donor funds in Greece (EU, ECB and IMF).The paper believes that a discount of 50 or 60% hope to stabilize Greece without having to increase in the amount of gigantic international loans that have already been promised.

A "discount" is the term used in relation to the financial depreciation of the value of loans taken by creditors in this case private banks and investment funds that hold government debt. A discount of 50% borne by the private sector, the second program of financial support pledged July 21 to Greece, however, should be slightly revised upwards with government loans (Europe and IMF) to 114 billion euros, against 109 billion euros.To maintain the envelope of 109 billion euros unchanged, it would bring the discount to 60%, according to calculations by experts.

• Banks recapitalized to the tune of 100 billion euros

The question is whether the banks that have so far dragged its feet to give the pot, will accept a negotiated settlement does not pass through a default of Greece said "messy" serious consequences. "It's a negotiation s'entame," said Didier Reynders, Belgian Finance Minister, before a meeting with his colleagues throughout the European Union on Saturday. These discussions, held in Brussels with representatives of the Institute of International Finance (IIF), the banking lobby, "still, there is no agreement yet," said a source told AFP familiar with the matter.

In return for the effort required on the Greek claims, it is intended to recapitalize European banks to the tune of nearly 100 billion euros. The subject was Saturday in the agenda of the ministerial meeting. According to sources cited by Reuters, an agreement in principle was reached by European finance ministers on the recapitalization. European diplomats interviewed by AFP were less categorical in the late afternoon. "There is no agreement on the recapitalization, it gets stuck a little." According to one of these diplomatic sources, "Spain insists on having a comprehensive, not only on the recapitalization of banks but also on strengthening the European Financial Stability Fund (EFSF). " On the other hand, "the ministers are trying to agree on the minimum capital."

The European Banking Authority (EBA) has proposed that banks reach a level of capital of 9% by mid-2012. A diplomat acknowledged that some countries in the viewfinder of the markets, like Italy, Spain or Portugal, feared that the recapitalization will further undermine public finances.

• The Fund will not support a bank

Moreover, the French proposal to grant a banking license to the Fund support the euro area (EFSF) so he can refinance with the European Central Bank "is no longer on the table," said Minister Dutch Finance Jan Kees de Jager. Only two options are being discussed to increase the firepower of the device, he told reporters Saturday.These two tracks on the agenda now that the mechanism acts as a partial insurance of the public debt of countries in difficulty or higher participation of the IMF to the device, according to a German government source. But there is "significant differences between countries" on the issue, said Jan Kees de Jager.

How to leverage the capacity of the EFSF was the main sticking point between Berlin and Paris at the approach of the EU summit. France, worried about its budget deficit and are "triple AAA" prefer tap into the existing European funds, starting with the ECB. Germany, also sensitive to the separation of powers as inflation risks, refuses anything resembling a crisis by printing money in Europe.France was not only to advocate the involvement of the ECB, arguing that this system worked very well in the United States or Great Britain. She was supported by Spain, Italy or Belgium.

The European Relief Fund currently has a lending capacity of 440 billion euros, part of which is already committed for Ireland and Portugal. This envelope is considered insufficient to prevent contagion of the debt crisis in countries as large as Italy and Spain, increasingly in the firing line of credit rating agencies.European countries negotiate so hard for weeks on the best way, via a "leverage" to multiply by up to five response capacity of the Fund's financial debt of fragile countries.

(With agencies)

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Moody's brandishing the sword of Damocles. The rating agency, which last week confirmed the AAA rating of the French debt, is now planning to revise its position on the "stable" outlook for this post. "Over the next three months, Moody's will monitor and evaluate this perspective in the light of progress made by the government to implement the measures announced to reduce the budget deficit," she says in a statement.

If the prospect should be revised to "negative", this would imply that Moody's would likely lower the rating over the medium term, most often at a maturity of three to twelve months.And France would become the new big country, after the United States to lose its prestigious rating that allows it to borrow on the current market conditions very favorable.

A budget supervision

In reaching its decision, Moody's analyze the ability of the French government to meet its budget commitments. She stressed that if the financial strength of the French government remains very high, it "has weakened since the economic and financial crisis worldwide has led to a deterioration in its debt ratios, which are now among the lowest in AAA-rated. "In addition, "France could face a number of challenges in the coming months, such as the need for additional support to other European countries or its own banking system, which could increase significant commitments that must support the country's budget. " The remark came just after the adoption by the members of the guarantees provided by the French in the process of dismantling the Franco-Belgian bank Dexia.

Moody's said that this review is part of its annual financial statements for France and it is not yet a decision on the rating of the country. But after this warning, the marathon budget to the Assembly for consideration of the budget 2012, which begins on Tuesday, should be closely watched.France 2 last night, Prime Minister Francois Fillon warned it would take "new measures" austerity if France did not record a "minimal growth of 1.5%" in 2012 because the proposed budget is "built on a projected 1.75% growth, but it works with a minimal growth of 1.5%."

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Markets take a breather. After four sessions chained up in a row, the CAC 40 lost 0.25% to 3153.52 points. The volumes remain thin. About 2.7 billion changed hands on the great values ​​of the Paris stock exchange. Operators have benefited from the strong performance of the last day to reap a share of profits.

Lack of energy also in other major European markets, which ended in a disorganized. In London, the FTSE fell symbolically 0.06%, while in Frankfurt the Dax was up 0.30%. Of the European indices, the Euro Stoxx 50 slipped 0.50%.

Wall Street was also on the reserve. In session, the Dow fell by 0.26% and 0.35% Nasdaq clawing. Investor caution was reinforced by the expectation of several major events.In Europe and the United States.

For specialists in Barclays stock, the markets were essentially "focused on the voting Slovakia for the ratification of the European Financial Stability Fund." Slovakia is the last of 17 countries in the euro area to decide. In order for this tool, designed to help fragile countries in the euro area to work, the votes of 17 countries in the euro area is needed.

Opening of the ball results on Wall Street

Febrile, investors have minimal response to green light by the Troika, comprising the creditors of Greece, the release "early November", a new tranche of the loan in Athens, vital for the country low interest rate personal loans.

The outgoing president of the European Central Bank, Jean-Claude Trichet, also dampened investor optimism.He said that "for three weeks, things have deteriorated, the crisis has become systemic."

The launch of the quarterly earnings season in the U.S., added to the uncertainty, while the U.S. economy is idling.

As usual the aluminum giant Alcoa will open the show of these announcements after the close of Wall Street. These publications will tell more about the economic outlook of the world's largest economy, which continue to worry the markets.

Bank stocks up

In Paris, as in the rest of Europe, however, the banking sector continued its forward march.José Manuel Barroso, President of the European Commission Jose Manuel Barroso said on Wednesday that he would "proposals" concrete to the European Commission on the recapitalization of European banks.

Credit Agricole SA has gained 1.12%, BNP Paribas was up 2.96% and 5.28% Societe Generale. Operators, disoriented and obviously out of inspiration, wore special attention to the beliefs of analysts. Vallourec (-1.42%) and Aéroports de Paris (-0.85%) have seen their recommendation downgraded by JPMorgan and Essilor (-3.83%) by Morgan Stanley.

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