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A few weeks before the start of the tourist season in Greece, industry professionals are concerned about given the country's image abroad. The clashes that broke out between police and demonstrators, repeated strikes in public transport and the crisis affecting the economy, trade and health, greatly tarnish the reputation of "Mediterranean paradise" Greece had so far.

For Francoise Deschamps, Director of Travel Agency Profile in Athens, it is a bad trial because the country. "Violence is not the nature of the Hellenes. There are fewer demonstrations and strikes if they only last a few hours when it comes to archaeological sites. The Acropolis is always accessible to all, "protested she.  

Lower prices

While acknowledging that bookings were down this summer, Francoise Deschamps makes a point of honor to overcome stereotypes, "apart from the American Express (which is rarely accepted because traders are unwilling to pay 7% commission) you can pay everywhere with a credit card or a Visa. No need to bring cash into oneself. Distributors are always stocked, "she says.

The large luxury resort with beach, private pool and gourmet restaurant at the guesthouse, hoteliers were for the most part, forced to lower room rates and offer additional services to each reservation. "Our prices have dropped by at least 20%," says Adrian Vassilikos, director of Airotel, owns six hotels in the country. If the crisis is especially hoteliers, because of increased taxes and reduced bookings, Adrien Vassilikos remains confident: "Tourists know that Athens, like the rest of the country, is one of the most safest in the world. No risk of terrorism or crime. The crisis has not increased the number of pickpockets. To this we must add that in case of accident or illness, we have very capable hospitals, providing care free and urgency, "he said quick cash.

Of solidarity

Tourism is the second largest economic sector in the country, representing 17% of GDP, after shipping. In 2011, Greece has benefited more or less the effect of revolutions and Arab tourism, compared to the previous year, increased by 10%. This year, some professionals rely on the solidarity towards Greece, shot by the crisis. This movement is gaining ground worldwide and in all sectors. Twenty major Greek groups, as the airline Aegean or Coca-Cola Hellenic, even financed full-page newspaper ads French, German, Dutch, Belgian and British. Under the slogan "give a chance to Greece", these advertisers show a country in flux, despite its economic vicissitudes.

A bank of tourism in the study

To improve the competitiveness of the tourism sector, the Greek government uses the aid of the "task force". This working group of the European Commission, whose representatives are installed in the Greek capital, shook the tourism industry. "Being competitive yes, but then to build infrastructure for mass tourism, there is a margin," worries Francoise Deschamps, Director of Travel Agency Profile. "Greece is a country that fits the needs of every tourist. You can still find himself alone on a beach, eating in a tavern or family homestay accommodation is unique and should not destroy it for the sake of competitiveness, "she adds. Several projects are in preparation at the Ministry of Finance including the creation of a bank or tourist development projects of ancient sites, remote islands from Piraeus or agricultural areas.

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The romance between romance novels and digital media should not go unnoticed at the book fair opens its doors today. Special emphasis will indeed be given to the digital revolution, a growing market on which the various places novels in rose water have already made a place in the sun. The editors observe indeed a craze for romance in digital format. The books displayed feelings of record sales in electronic format. On the platform Numilog, the main French eDiffuseur digital books, two books of romance publisher Harlequin France top the list of the four best sellers.

Stéphane Aznar, the Chief Harlequin France asserts that "digital is a significant part of our business and our sales figures for e-books are well above the national average." The subsidiary equally owned by Hachette Livre and the Canadian publisher Harlequin expects to achieve 15% of its business in the digital within two years, where sales of e-books now represents 2-3% of national market value, according to Livres Hebdo. And a number of romance novels who observes an exponential growth in sales in digital format looks forward to continuing its development. The group that is "very early stage in an ambitious way on digital," said Stéphane Aznar, now offers downloadable titles in 1000 and is expected to multiply by three by the end of the year.

Attractive prices

Besides an abundant supply, the editor explains the success of its sales of e-books by lower prices of around 30% of his books to those papers. Now readers of romance novels are very large consumers: "Our readers read 15 to 30 novels a year," said Stephane Aznar. The price factor has a significant impact.

Even finding the United States and England where the market for e-book is much more developed than in France. Susan Edwards, Director of Operations at the U.S. publisher Ellora's Cave (house specializing in erotic novels) and evokes the "voracious appetite" for its readers to the digital format, although more discreet than the paper version. "E-books take up much less space, cost less. And no need either to move into a bookstore to get them, "she says.

The Reader mask coverage

The discomfort that many enthusiasts are having to buy songs or read stories of love also disappears in public with electronic media. Indeed, in transit, the book covers too "flaming" are hidden behind the hulls iPhone or digital reading lights. Gillian Green, editorial director of Ebury, told the Guardian that "there is such a snob vis-à-vis the genre that readers do not assume their tastes. With shelves and reading lights, they no longer have to hide. "

Everything leads us to believe that the romances in electronic format have good times ahead! The New Yorker as well as ensures the success of the ebook in the United States reflects this passion for romance novels.

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France could seek to accelerate its transition energy. In fact, the country's fuel bill has reached a new record in 2011, up from 32% to 61.4 billion euros, according to figures from the Commissioner General for Sustainable Development announced by Les Echos. The energy bill of France and represented 3.1% of GDP, last year against 2.5% in 2010.

This increase was driven by soaring oil prices. The average price per barrel of oil a year has indeed established last year to $ 111, not seen since the nineteenth century. The price of unleaded gasoline and have reached new heights last week, to 1.6211 euro on average for a liter of unleaded 95 and 1.6610 for that of 98 unleaded, according to data released yesterday by Ministry of Sustainable Development. This price is still below the record high of 1 fast cash without a hassle.4541 euro per liter recorded in May 2008.

Since late 2011, gasoline prices beat record after record in France, propelled by the combination of geopolitical factors that keep crude oil prices at very high levels, and weakening of the euro against the dollar , which amplifies the cost of black gold once its converted value in the single currency.

Nuclear energy has however enabled France to reduce its energy dependence as the country has a net electricity exports by 2.6 billion euros. The development of renewable energy has also enabled France to reduce the weight of its energy dependence.

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2011 a year full of contrasts in terms of employment. After a positive first half, payroll employment has declined significantly over the second half of the year. In the fourth quarter of 2011, the French economy has destroyed 22,600 jobs in the principally market sectors (-0.1% over the previous quarter), according to revised figures released Thursday by INSEE.

This is slightly less than the third quarter, when for the first time in two years, the statistician public records a decline in employment of 31,500 jobs (-0.2%). Gave its provisional figures until the third quarter slightly creates jobs. With a dynamic first half, 67,300 jobs have been created, however, over one year is a positive trend of 0.4%.  

The ACOSS, which accounts for job creation on a slightly different scope, in turn finds a changing "stable in the last quarter as in the previous quarter, after five consecutive quarters of increases," with 9,300 jobs created.

Temporary employment down

Over 90% of job losses announced by INSEE result of the decline in temporary employment. The trend is accelerating in the fourth quarter, with 21,100 destroyed in acting positions, against 12,900 the previous quarter. A first after nine quarters of the rise, INSEE said. This leading indicator of labor market, more sensitive to cyclical fluctuations, does not bode well from the beginning of 2012.

In detail on this last quarter, the industry, which had suffered severely from the crisis of 2008-2009 before stabilizing its workforce in mid 2011, again losing 1700 jobs, slightly less than the third quarter (5100) . Over one year, the sector recorded a negative trend of 0.1%, or 2,100 jobs destroyed. This is less than the construction, which lost 0.8% of its workforce over one year (11,900 jobs) and 0.3% in the fourth quarter (4600 positions). After a decline in service employment excluding temporary in the third quarter, the fourth, however, found a small increase (4,900 jobs).

On February 20, during the auction of the hamlet of Courbefy, located 40 km southwest of Limoges, no buyer had appeared, despite a retail price of only 300,000 euros. With the effect of media coverage, between 150 and 200 buyers from around the world are scrambling to try to acquire this highly original property, offered for sale price of a two-room Paris.

Without buyers, the entire village, 19 rustic buildings in various states, the boxes for horses, pool, tennis court, culminating in nearly 557 meters high with a beautiful view of the mountains of Chalus in the Périgord Limousin regional park, should return to Credit Agricole, creditor's last owner who could not repay the loan. Its proposed resort, launched in 2003, has never worked and went bankrupt, causing the abandonment of the site in 2008.

The news of the sale of Courbefy was first taken up by the media in France, before being scattered by the whole world, fascinated by the idea that a whole village could be sold for a price as ridiculous . "Admittedly, this is an offer very original, very unique, because the entire village is sold at once," says Mr. Paul Le Figaro Gérardin, counsel for the Credit Agricole. "It's because someone has bought one by one all the houses after the abandonment of the hamlet."

After being abandoned by its last inhabitants in the 1970s due to rural exodus, the small village of Courbefy might find occupants with a last minute deal last Thursday filed with the court registry by Limoges an American company, AHAE Press, registered in the State of New York. This entity belongs to the Korean-born American photographer Ahae, artist specializing in landscape photography and wildlife, whose exhibition "Through my window" must be presented at the Louvre in Paris from June 26 to July 23.

With its 10% deposit of the purchase price, the sale process is restarted, and new auction will take place at court of Limoges on May 21. "I'm sure will be many bidders," suggests Paul Gérardin me. "We have already responded to 150 to 200 inquiries from around the world. Initial requests are first come from the Paris region, London, Belgium, the Netherlands, Sweden and other European countries before coming the United Arab Emirates, China, U.S. and Russian. "

One potential buyers, a Dutchman, wants to use the hamlet for a reality TV show in which participants would call premises in shape.

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The riposte was swift. Hours after the publication Saturday in Le Figaro in an interview with Philippe Houze, the boss of the Galeries Lafayette, a 50% shareholder of Monoprix, Casino has been keen to dot the "i". "We have never been and we are not our vendor 50% stake in Monoprix," says a spokesman for the group Saint Etienne.

Monday afternoon, the Board should reject the casino proposal Galeries Lafayette to sell half of Monoprix to 1.35 billion euros. And refuse to buy back that share the same amount.

"If the Galeries Lafayette wish to sell their interest, as seems to be the case, the Casino is ready to buy, says the spokesperson, but at a fair price based on realistic financial assumptions taking into account economic conditions and recovery current distribution undertakings. "

Last week, the co-shareholders have made public their disagreement over the valuation of the interest in Monoprix and Galeries Lafayette: 1.95 billion euros according to the group of department stores, 700 million according to Casino. This gap abyssal puzzles many observers. "Most analysts believe that the participation of Galeries Lafayette is 1.1 to 1.2 billion euros", says one expert dossier.

The two shareholders have adopted diametrically opposed calculation bases. The Galeries Lafayette is part of the business plan for three years conducted in the fall through the management Monoprix, which provides a 40% increase in EBITDA (EBITDA) of society. Casino side, it is estimated that this plan can be the basis for an assessment and it is emphasized that the Ebitda Monoprix stagnant since 2008, a sharp increase in the coming years is not credible. With McKinsey, Casino has worked on more conservative assumptions.

"Violation of agreements"

These persistent differences complicate the work of JPMorgan, the bank chosen for the tie. According to the Galeries Lafayette, Casino would like the bank is working solely on the basis of the McKinsey report. That refutes the group St Etienne, where it is said that the Galeries Lafayette want to limit access to the leaders of JPMorgan Monoprix. Conservative, the bank does not seem ready to make its own forecasts on the evolution of the activity of Monoprix no fax payday loans.

Pointing to Pessimism, McKinsey, Philippe Houze, also president of Monoprix, Casino accused of "not believing in the future" of the sign. Reaction was seen as insulting. "It's as if we accuse of having raised prices to inflate the results of Monoprix," protested there be at Casino. The group "rejects these false accusations, confirms its commitment to Monoprix and reiterates its confidence in the management and employees of the company."

A spokesman for Casino also ensures that the decision of the Galeries Lafayette to extend by one year the mandate of Philippe Houze as head of Monoprix is ​​"a frontal violation of agreements." In the entourage of the group St Etienne, it ensures that the owners of the Galeries Lafayette, Monoprix very attached to, have long sought to Casino to abandon its purchase option, before changing his opinion in December, faced with its commitment to take control of the sign. "Then they considered they had an incentive to sell quickly, Monoprix likely to be challenged by the arrival of other signs in the city center and the site-private sale of its textile department," says a close case.

Casino, which publishes its results Tuesday 2011, should recall at this juncture that the partial withdrawal of its subsidiary Mercialys should bring him 800 to 900 million euros in the coming months. Funding for a possible takeover of 50% of Monoprix would be no impact on its debt. Such an operation could easily be done in parallel with the takeover of Pao de Acucar, the Brazilian subsidiary of Casino, on 22 June. The group will then only pay $ 10 million. Finally, if the status quo were to continue on the control of Monoprix, unable to consolidate this subsidiary in Casino's accounts in 2013 "would have only a limited impact on operating profit of the group and would not change the net minority interests, "argues an expert in Casino.

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Andy Adam, by creating the page "No refueling on March 1 in Germany!" Was a huge blip on the canvas, quickly picked up by media across the Rhine. With an average price of 1.70 euro per liter of super (against 1.55 in France), gasoline saw its flaming course in Europe since January 1. Claim of individuals joined those associations, as ADAC, powerful organization that unites over 17 million motorists across the Rhine.

Rising prices is certainly caused primarily by rising oil prices and problems in the Middle East, but the spokesman ADAC also shows the finger of responsibility oil majors: the rising price of a liter "is a matter for enterprises, which make huge profits with. The market is monopolized by five major companies, which are not competitive, "she told the daily Rheinische Post.  

A signal to policy

Calling on Facebook, even if it materializes Thursday, March 1, will not change the policies of the major oil companies: "This will have no effect," says a manager of Esso the region of Ulm in Bavaria, interviewed by Südwest Presse newspaper. "It does not annoy anyone. Right now there are even more and more people are filling up for fear that prices will rise again tomorrow. " The fuel will not be purchased on the first will be taken the next day, betting professionals.

This action and its resonance is still a strong signal to motorists to the German government, in a time when state coffers are full. The German tax authorities because it may alter several devices to reduce the cost of transportation. In addition to VAT and taxes that affect the fuel, the Ministry of Finance has the ability to play on the tax relief enjoyed by motorists. The ADAC claimed that assistance to motorists who use their cars to get to work from 30 to 40 cents per kilometer. The ministry declined for now to make a move. These are the neighboring countries who benefit: the Polish and Czech gas stations are under attack on the eve of the weekend.

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Apple promises to all iPhone users: using its Safari browser, they will escape hyperciblées advertisements on the Internet. The firm at the apple has, indeed, with his navigator, also available on Mac computers, an automatic locking mechanism that prevents the specialists in online advertising to place cookies on websites and thereby to determine an Internet user who accesses a merchant site is also a frequent visitor to a site about golf.

But a computer science researcher at Stanford University, California, has just discovered that Google has bypassed this protection system and collected data on the browsing habits of users who use Safari. The Wall Street Journal, which revealed the findings of this research, the Internet giant has "used a special computer program that leads the Safari browser software to allow tracing of many users."

"The Wall Street Journal distorts what happened, was immediately defended by the voice of Google's director of public affairs, Rachel Whetstone. We used a technical device known Safari to provide functionality that Google users logged into their accounts were activated. "It allows, for example, to store the click of a surfer on the button" 1 "or Google the "Like" Facebook as a Web content. This data is stored within a day on Google's servers payday loan.

Involuntary collection

But by putting a temporary marker to operate the "a" in Safari, Google has also opened a breach through which have slipped a variety of other markers that sought, them, to collect information on what users were on the Internet. These data are valuable to Google then to offer targeted advertising to users. Google defends itself by providing not have intended to collect these data.

From the revelation of the findings of this study, the giant search engine has disabled the technical device that has "opened the door" to the navigation information of Safari users. The group also noted that no personal data (identity of persons in particular) has been captured in this case. Apple, for its part, says "work to end" to this flaw.

But this incident is indicative of two forces that traverse the Web today: on the one hand, the giants of the Web, always seeking to target users more precisely, increasing the risks to the data they handle. The other, players such as Apple took the opportunity to surround their consumers ever higher walls.

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Football clubs are they like other entities? The question worth asking, when European football comes back to show a record deficit for its fiscal year 2010: more than 1.6 billion cumulative loss by 665 European clubs in first division. As for the debt, it reached nearly 15 billion euros, according to the latest data from the European body of football (UEFA). An aberration by some as a time when European countries are asked to clean up their finances. Besides, if football clubs were rated, they would pass the test? Not sure … There is a little over a year, research firm AT Kearney also noted that "if they were functioning as normal businesses, the championships of Spain, England and Italy would be put in bankruptcy within two years. "

Spanish and English clubs have reached an astronomical debt.

The government fiercely defends his proposed "employment tax"-a reduction in labor costs funded by an increase in VAT and the CSG on capital income. Supporting figures, experts Bercy want to show the economic virtues of the device, introduced Wednesday in the Cabinet, on behalf of "competitiveness" of France. Competitiveness that the report of the Court of Auditors, presented Wednesday, deemed necessary to strengthen.

As announced by the Head of State, effective October 1, work will never be the main source of funding for family policy. Reform is to reduce employer costs by 13.2 billion full-year (3.6 billion by 2012). The family contributions paid by employers will be removed for salaries between 1.6 and 2.1 SMIC (2290 euros net), then eased on a sliding scale up to 2.4 SMIC (2620 euros net). This rate was calculated Bercy, a gain of 40 euros per month for a minimum wage, 120 euros to 159 euros and 1.6 SMIC 2.1 for minimum wage. In all, according to the ministry, 14 million employees are affected by the measure.

International competition

This will benefit "to the sectors most exposed to international competition (80% of manufacturing jobs and 97% of jobs in agriculture are concerned)," argues the report of the Cabinet. The Department of Finance estimates that the reform will result in the creation of 100,000 jobs in 3 years. The Executive held Wednesday to register false face of opposition, who had spoken of a "gift to the banks." "This is nonsense! Wages in finance are higher than our target, "argued a ministerial adviser. Which also indicated that the device would benefit "proportionately" more for SMEs than for large groups, since they will reap 47% of its fruit, although they represent 40% of payroll in France.

To offset the cost, the government intends to increase from 19.6% to 21.2% the standard rate of VAT, also on 1 October. This measure will yield € 10.6 billion per year in stride. Given the controversy, the government ensures that it will not make up prices. First, he argues, because 60% of household consumption are exempt from VAT or enjoy a reduced rate will remain unchanged. Of the remaining 40%, three quarters of the products are manufactured in France, their prices will not rise … as long as companies pass on the reduced charges. Only imported products subject to the VAT increase, that is to say 10% of household purchases, could therefore lead to higher prices, ensures Bercy, while betting that "strong competition" will limit the inflation .

To complete the financing of the reform, the general social contribution (CSG) on capital income will be increased by two points, from 8.2% to 10.2%.

Still not convinced, the PS again spoke Wednesday of an economic mistake "that will weaken consumption and will therefore result in growth and employment". Francois Hollande warned that he would cancel the measure if they win.

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