Financial Mirror 8 - 21 August

August 8 - 21, 2012

FinancialMirror.com

2 | NEWS

Is the City of London reputation under threat?

A catalogue of calamities has befallen the City of London from the rigging of interest rates to alleged aiding of money laundering, with Standard Chartered the latest multinational bank to face allegations of sanctions busting from U.S. authorities. But is this “city within a city” under any real threat?

The New York State Department of Financial Services on Monday accused the bank of helping Iran pump at least $250 bln through the U.S. financial system in contravention of U.S. and international sanctions.

Since 2009, the U.S. Justice Department, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control and the Manhattan District Attorney’s office have targeted several major British and European banks for similar conduct, penalising them to the tune of more than $2.3 bln. The latest activity involving Standard Chartered is commonly known as wire “stripping.” It involves altering payment messages sent through the global SWIFT interbank communications network to remove references to Iran or other entities under sanction so that international transfers are not frozen or blocked by U.S. banks that process them. The foreign bank often pretends to be the originating party, hiding the identity of the true originator.

As a result, a Manhattan-based bank can unwittingly process a payment for the benefit of a prohibited party in Iran or elsewhere in violation of U.S. law.

Previous cases involving “stripping” included Lloyds TSB that agreed in January 2009 to forfeit $350 mln for stripping payments tied to Iran, Libya and Sudan between 2002 and 2007.

Barclays Plc agreed in August 2010 to forfeit $298 mln to settle U.S. prosecutors’ charges that the bank stripped wire transfer messages of key information to allow banks in Cuba, Iran, Libya, Sudan and Burma to engage in U.S. dollar transactions.

A recent U.S. Senate subcommittee report accused banking giant HSBC of engaging in similar behaviour, under investigation by a number of agencies for possible sanctions and anti-money laundering violations. The bank says it is fully cooperating with the investigations. The New York Department of Financial Services, which did not play a role in the earlier “stripping” probes, on Monday ordered Standard Chartered to appear before the department and explain why its license to operate in New York should not be revoked.

The Standard Chartered news comes fresh on the heels the LIBOR interest rate rigging scandal, which has embroiled Barclays and RBS among others. “Broader implications are (that) there is no clean bank in the UK and the UK regulatory system will be under scrutiny. You have the last of the Mohicans and if they’ve gone, this whole sector is tainted,” said Chirantan Barua, senior analyst at Sanford Bernstein.

TAX HAVEN “There is an institution with a murky history and remarkable powers that acts like a political and financial island within our island nation state. Welcome to the Square Mile and the City of London Corporation,” the New Statesman wrote in an article last year. In October 2002, an Anglican priest, William CampbellTaylor, and an English-Jewish academic, Maurice Glasman, came to the law lords to challenge a parliamentary bill. It was the start of an episode that anyone worried about tax avoidance - or, for that matter, about the fate of the NHS, economic inequality, student loans, capital flight from Africa, global financial deregulation or about the political might of the financial sector - ought to know about, the New Statesman wrote.

The bill concerned the City of London Corporation, the localgovernment authority for the 1.2-square-mile slab of prime real estate in central London that is the City of London. The corporation is an ancient, semi-alien entity lodged inside the British nation state and few people care that London has a mayor and a lord mayor - but they should: the corporation is an offshore island inside Britain, a tax haven in its own right.

The term “tax haven” is a bit of a misnomer, because such places aren’t just about tax. What they sell is escape: from the laws,

rules and taxes of jurisdictions elsewhere, usually with secrecy as their prime offering. The notion of elsewhere (hence the term “offshore”) is central. The Cayman Islands’ tax and secrecy laws are not designed for the benefit of the 50,000-odd Caymanians, but help wealthy people and corporations, mostly in the US and Europe, get around the rules of their own democratic societies.

The outcome is one set of rules for a rich elite and another for the rest of us. The City’s “elsewhere” status in Britain stems from a simple formula: over centuries, sovereigns and governments have sought City loans, and in exchange the City has extracted privileges and freedoms from rules and laws to which the rest of Britain must submit. The City does have a noble tradition of standing up for citizens’ freedoms against despotic sovereigns, but this has morphed into freedom for money.

The City Corporation is different from any other local authority. Here, hi-tech global finance melds into ancient rites and customs that underline its separateness and power with mystifying pomp. Among the City’s 108 livery companies, or trade associations, you will find the Worshipful Companies of Loriners (concerned with stirrups and other harnesses for horses) and Fletchers (arrow-makers), as well as the Worshipful Company of Tax Advisers, among whose four prime aims is “to support the Lord Mayor and the City of London Corporation”, and the Worshipful Company of International Bankers, whose heraldic “supporters” are the griffins, guardians of treasure.

SLAVERY Over the centuries, reformers in Britain have tried, and failed, to have the corporation merged into a unified London authority.

The political landscape heaved and shifted around it, but the City stood immune. As the Times noted in 1881, “The City Corporation is sacred although nothing else is.”

For much of the 20th century, the Labour Party had a pledge in its manifesto to abolish the corporation.

Clement Attlee took up the baton in 1937. “Over and over again we have seen that there is in this country another power than that which has its seat at Westminster,” he said. “Those who control money can pursue a policy at home and abroad contrary to that which has been decided by the people.” Freedom for money can lead to bondage for ordinary people. Labour never did abolish the corporation; instead, the Greater London Council was abolished in 1986 under Margaret Thatcher. In 1996, Tony Blair got Labour to replace its pledge to abolish the corporation with a promise merely to “reform” it. This was the suggestion before the law lords in 2002 - and it was an astonishing gift to the corporation.

Like any other local authority, the City of London is divided into wards. These elect candidates to serve on the Court of Common Council, the City’s principal decision-making body.

Unlike any other local authority, however, individual people are

not the only voters: businesses can vote, too.

Before 2002, the 17,000 business votes (only business partnerships and sole traders could take part) already swamped the 6,000odd residents. Blair’s reforms proposed to expand the business vote to about 32,000 and to give a say, based on the size of their workforce in the Square Mile, to international banks and other big players. Voting would reflect the wishes not of the City’s 300,000 workers, but of corporate managements. So Goldman Sachs and the People’s Bank of China would get to vote in what is arguably Britain’s most important local election.

The City called the reforms “radical change that is essential to keep a world-class financial centre”. Glasman called it the “biggest retrograde step since Magna Carta”. These workers did not have control of their own votes - the reform programme was comparable, he said, to the voting rights of chattel owners in the pre-war American South: the slavery franchise.

OFFSHORE CITY The corporation’s part-escape from Britain is just one element of the offshore story. It is no coincidence that the capital of what was once the world’s greatest empire - with the City as “governor of the imperial engine”, as the historians P J Cain and A G Hopkins put it - has become the centre of a big part of the modern global offshore system.

Nicholas Shaxson’s book “Treasure Islands” describes in detail, the Bank of England, lodged in the heart of the City (but not, it has to be said, regulated by it), in effect encouraged tax havenry in British outposts of the Caribbean and elsewhere. By the 1980s, the City was at the centre of a great, secretive financial web cast across the globe, each of whose sections - the individual havens - trapped passing money and business from nearby jurisdictions and fed them up to the City: just as a spider catches insects. So, a complex cross-border merger involving a US multinational might, say, route a lot of the transaction through Caribbean havens, whose British firms will then send much of the heavy lifting work, and profits, up to the City.

The Crown dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man, which focus heavily on European business, form the web’s inner ring. In the second quarter of 2009, Jersey alone provided 135 bln pounds in bank deposits upstreamed to the City. Jersey Finance, the tax haven’s promotional body, puts the relationship plainly: “Jersey is an extension of the City of London.”

The next ring of the web contains the British overseas territories, such as the Cayman Islands and Bermuda. Like the Crown dependencies, they have governors appointed by the Queen and are controlled by Britain in myriad ways, but with enough distance to allow Britain to say “There is nothing we can do” when it suits. The web’s outer ring contains an assortment of havens, such as Mauritius, Hong Kong and the Bahamas, which Britain does not control but which still feed billions in business to the City from around the world.

So, the corporation has two main claims to being a tax haven: first, as a semi-alien entity, floating partly free from Britain (just as the Cayman Islands are), and second, as the hub of a global network of tax havens sucking up offshore trillions from around the world and sending it, or the business of handling it, to London.

These are possibly the biggest reasons for the City’s wealth and power - yet how many Britons understand this? “Don’t tax or regulate us or we’ll move to Switzerland,” the bankers and hedgies cry; and all too often the politicians quail and cut taxes on the wealthy, deregulate finance further, and hand yet more freedoms to the City. “The City of London Corporation - this heart cut out from the body of our vibrant, multicultural metropolis - is no longer so invisible. Now we must figure out what to do about it,” added author Nicholas Shaxson.

Spyker sues GM for $3 bln on Saab bankruptcy Dutch sportscar maker Spyker NV is suing General Motors for more than $3 bln on behalf of its subsidiary Saab, accusing the U.S. carmaker of deliberately bankrupting the Swedish group by blocking a deal with a Chinese investor.

Saab Automobile, one of Sweden’s best-known brands, stopped production in May 2011 when it could no longer pay suppliers and employees. It went bust in December, less than two years after GM sold it to Spyker. GM’s efforts to kill any sale were made to

eliminate a potential rival in China, Spyker said.

“GM never intended to allow Saab to compete with it in China,” Spyker said in its complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court of Michigan.

Spyker Chief Executive Victor Muller said GM “had it coming” with regard to the lawsuit.

“They never thought we would survive,” he told Reuters. “Well, Spyker’s still here. They assumed Spyker would end up in the graveyard with Saab, and obviously that didn’t happen.”

In asking for a jury trial, Spyker is seeking at least $3 bln in compensatory damages, as well as interest and punitive damages, and legal fees.

For months, Muller tried to pull off a rescue deal with various Russian, Middle Eastern and Chinese investors, including China’s Zhejiang Youngman Lotus Automobile Co and Pang Da Automobile Trade Co Ltd. He told reporters the $3 bln claim was based on what Saab would have been worth if a deal with Chinese firm Zhejiang Youngman Lotus had gone ahead.

FinancialMirror.com

August 8 - 21, 2012

CYPRUS | 3

FSA fines Turkish Bank £294,000 for money-laundering risk

By SAMUEL AGINI The Financial Services Authority has fined Turkish Bank UK (TBUK) 294,000 pounds after the bank was found in breach of the Money Laundering Regulations 2007 (MLR) in relation to an “unacceptable risk” that TBUK could have been used to launder money.

TBUK, a subsidiary of Turkish Bank Limited based in occupied-northern Cyprus, is the first firm to be fined by the FSA in relation to money-laundering weaknesses in its correspondent banking arrangements.

The FSA has described TBUK’s breaches of the MLR as “widespread”, while also criticising TBUK for failing to take heed of previous warnings from the FSA about their anti-money-laundering (AML) controls over correspondent banking. Some of TBUK’s breaches of the MLR include a failure to keep adequate records, fail, the lack of appropriate and risk-sensitive AML policies and procedures for its correspondent banking relationships and the failure to adequately monitor its respondent banks.

“Turkish Bank fell far short of the standards we expect of firms in managing their money-laundering risks. This was despite clear warnings from the FSA that it needed to improve,” said Tracey McDermott, the acting director of the FSA’s Enforcement and Financial

Inflation ticks up to 2.2% in July

Crime Division.

Under the MLR, the provision of correspondent banking services to banks based in non-EEA states is recognised as creating a high risk of money-laundering that requires enhanced supervision. Because Turkey and occupied-northern Cyprus did not have AML requirements equivalent to those in the UK, TBUK’s correspondent banking arrangements opened the possibility of money being laundered through the UK. McDermott made it clear that any bank that exposes the UK to money-laundering will face tough action from the FSA: “Banks must have appropriate policies and procedures in place to manage these risks. Turkish Bank’s correspondent banking business made it particularly vulnerable to money-laundering risks and its failings exposed UK financial services to the possibility that money could be laundered through the UK. TBUK’s breaches of the MLR over a period extending beyond two and a half years were described by the FSA as “not deliberate or reckless” but “serious” because of previous warning made to the bank, who acted as a correspondent bank for fifteen respondent banks in both Turkey and Northern Cyprus between 15 December 2007 and 3 July 2010 The breaches of the MLR were discovered by the FSA during a visit to TBUK in July 2010 as part of a review of how banks operating in the UK were managing money-laundering risks.

Unemployment growth accelerates in July Growth of registered unemployment accelerated again in July, after a slowdown in June, according to the latest figures from the Statistical Service.

The number of registered unemployed reached 36,452 in July, marking an increase of 33.5% compared with the year earlier in July, after an increase of 26.2% in June and 31.1% in May. The main increase was in construction (1,964), wholesale and retail trade (1,907), manufacturing (1,259) and public administration (902), where people are reportedly retiring early from the public sector to avoid expected cuts in pension

entitlements. There was also an increase of 680 in accommodation and food service activities and 544 in unemployed newcomers to labour market. Unemployment also rose on a seasonally adjusted basis, rising to 37,253 from 35,780 in June.

According to Eurostat, which estimates the unemployment rate on the basis of both registered unemployment and the quarterly labour force survey, the unemployment rate reached 10.5% in June, higher than the EU27 average of 10.4%. The eurozone average in the same month was 11.2%.

Cypriot households have 2.5 cars each There were 771,861 registered vehicles in 2011 according to the annual report entitled Transport Statistics 2011. Given that there were 309,300 households in the same year according to the latest population statistics, and that 92% of businesses in Cyprus have less than 10 employees, therefore do not run a fleet of cars, this implies that every household in Cyprus has an average of 2.5 vehicles.

Perhaps not surprisingly, the report noted that the number of newly registered motor vehicles dropped by 17.6% in 2011 to 36,264 from 44,025 in 2010. Private saloon cars fell by 16.0% to 26,409 from 31,423 in 2010.

The report noted that gross output in the transport sector in Cyprus was worth EUR 1,844.8 mln (EUR 1.8 bln) in 2010. This was 5.5% higher than in 2009, when it was valued at EUR 1,748.2 mln (EUR 1.7 bln).

Value added in the sector fell, however, to EUR 877.3 mln in 2010 from EUR 888.2 mln in 2009 and accounted for 5.6% of GDP at current market prices, said Cystat.

The decline appears to have come mainly from sea transport.

In 2011, 3,319 vessels arrived at the various ports of Cyprus, down from 3,607 in 2010. Of these 2,445 or 73.7% arrived at Lemesos (Limassol) port, 666 or 20.1% at Larnaka port and 208 ships at other ports.

At the end of 2011, there were 1,840 ships on the Cyprus Register with 22,287,344 gross registered tonnage. This was lower than the 1,862 ships registered in 2010, which had a total of 22,057,525 gross registered tonnage.

Civil aircraft landings during 2011 fell slightly to 30,864 compared with 30,931 in 2010. Passenger arrivals through airports increased to 3,796,768 in 2011, however, compared with 3,653,401 in 2010.

Road accidents down The number of road accidents reported to the police fell to 1,690 in 2011 compared with 1,883 in 2010.

However, the death toll was higher. In 2011 71 people were killed compared with 60 in 2010.

There were 1,553 injuries compared with 1,762 in 2010.

Consumer price inflation ticked up again in July to 2.2%, having eased to 1.8% in June.

Annual inflation in many categories actually subsided in June.In particular there was a slight drop in the punishingly high prices of electricity, water, housing and gas, which rose by 12.8% compared with the same month of the previous year in July, from 14.2% in June.

The main reason for the overall increase, therefore, seems to have been a smaller decrease in the heavily weighted category of food and non-alcoholic beverages.

Prices of food and non-alcoholic beverages fell compared with the previous year by 1.5% in July, after a drop of 4.2% in June.

For the period January-July 2012, CPI rose by 2.8% compared with the corresponding period of 2011.

Compared with the previous month the CPI in June dropped by 1.08%.

The Statistical Service said that this was mainly owing to a fall in prices of clothing and footwear in the summer sales, as well as prices of petroleum products and certain fresh fruit.

Meanwhile, the EU-harmonised consumer price inflation rate rose to 3.8% in July, from 2.9% in June 2012 and 3.5% in July 2011. www.sapientaeconomics.com

Building permit decline eases in May One month is too early to establish a trend but the squaremetre area of building permits fell compared with the same month of the previous year by “only” 25.8% in May, compared with a drop of 39.2% in April.

The pace of decline in the value of permits authorised also eased in June. The value of permits fell by 27.0% to 126.7 mln, compared with a decline of 32.4% to EUR 106.0 mln in April.

The number of dwelling units authorised fell over the year earlier by 33.1% to 459, but this was still better than the drop of 39% in April and 57.7% in March.

The total number of building permits authorised in June fell by 10.6% year on year to 618, after a slightly sharper decline of 10.7% in April.

TENDER AT. 12/2012 Tenders are invited for:

The Supply of Ethernet Demarcation Devices The relevant tender documents will be available as from Thursday 2 August 2012 on payment of a non-refundable amount of: 1. €100 plus VAT paid in cash or by cheque per two complete hard copy sets from the following Cytashops: Lefkosia Lemesos Paphos Larnaca Ammochostos

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5 Naxou Street, Lykavitos 1 28th October Street, Engomi 89 Athinon Street 11 Grivas Dighenis Avenue 7 Zenonos Pierides Street 124 Eleftherias Αvenue, Dherynia

2. €50 plus VAT paid by credit card for tender documents in electronic form from website http://www.cyta-tenders.cytanet.com.cy A short description of the tender is available free of charge at the above website.

The sealed tenders must reach Cyta’s Tender Box at Ground Floor, Head Office Building, Telecommunications Street, Strovolos, Nicosia, by 10:00 hrs on Friday 28 September 2012.

Cyta is not bound to accept the lowest or any other tender.

August 8 - 21, 2012

FinancialMirror.com

4 | CYPRUS

Troika found economy worse than expected l

Expectations for growth low; painful adjustment measures seen

The “troika” of inspectors of the international lenders assessing Cyprus’s bailout needs found the economy in a “worse state than expected” and in need of painful adjustment in coming months, according to documents seen by Reuters.

Officials from the IMF, the European Commission and the European Central Bankhave visited the island twice since Cyprus asked for financial aid on June 25, the fifth euro zone member state to do so.

They told MPs in a closed parliamentary session on July 27 that challenges to the island’s economy did not only stem from its banking sector, which is heavily exposed to Greece, but to fiscal imbalances which needed to be addressed.

The two main banks suffered heavy losses from a writedown of Greek sovereign debt earlier this year which was backed by all EU member states, including Cyprus.

The lenders said they expected the island to be in recession in 2012 and 2013 and highlighted the need to slash an expensive state payroll. They said they did not expect a conclusion to the bailout negotiations until September at the earliest.

The comments are the first public insight into the troika’s thinking about Cyprus, whose tiny economy accounts for just 0.2% of euro zone output.

“What we have seen is that your fiscal system is worse than we expected ... prospects for growth are lower than what we expected, and as a result, there is a huge gap between your income and expenditure,” EC representative Maarten Verwey was quoted as saying at the meeting, according to a transcript published by local media over the weekend.

Verwey said “significant increase and reinforcement” of banking supervision was required.

He said any suggestion of bailout amounts was premature.

Another member of the troika, Delia Velculescu of the IMF, was quoted as saying solving the problems would be painful.

“It would have been easier to have fixed them when times were good. Today it is harder because of difficult times, and worst (days) that lie ahead,” she said.

Popular Bank and Bank of Cyprus racked up huge losses on

their holdings of Greek sovereign debt, causing a 2.3 bln euro combined shortfall in their regulatory capital they asked the state to fill.

The government turned to its EU partners for aid after having been effectively shut out of international debt markets since May 2011. It eventually sought aid elsewhere, taking a 2.5 bln euro loan from Russia and has said it may do so again for a 5 bln eruo loan.

Verwey said that for the island to regain market access, it

would need to narrow the gap between revenues and expenditure. “You cannot maintain your present lifestyle if this continues ... The government will not be able to pay salaries, so there is an urgent need for adjustment,” he was quoted as saying.

The island’s public-sector wage bill, which MPs heard was proportionately the highest in the euro zone, needed to be reduced, public benefits revamped, the COLA automatic wage indexation modified and changes made to the state pensions system.

S&P further downgrade of sovereign on refinance fears Standard and Poor’s has lowered Cyprus’ Sovereign rating by one notch to “BB” from “BB+” previously, maintaining its “negative” outlook saying that short-term financing pressures are rising and there is uncertainty over Cyprus’ ability to secure bilateral funds.

S&P added that “even with official assistance, which we view as vital if Cyprus is to avoid default, we believe the government will remain in a weak fiscal position due to a banking system that has been unable to cope without government support as a result of its exposure to Greek customers.”

S&P concluded by saying that the “CreditWatch” (negative outlook) reflects its view of the increasing short-term financing pressures on the Cypriot government, adding that it could further lower its rating if support is significantly greater than its current expectations, as this would raise public debt beyond what S&P currently estimates, or if it believes that the government will not be able to fulfil the program’s conditions.

The rating agency had suggested last month that Cyprus would need about 15 bln euros, nearly 100% of the island’s GDP and far more than the 10 bln euros the government claims it needs to bail out two banks and reduce its runaway budget deficit.

Cyprus received a 2.5 bln euro loan from Russia, based on commercial rates and is hoping to secure a second loan of 4.5-5 bln “soon”, government officials said last week.

“WE WERE RIGHT” Standard and Poor’s, as well as the other ratings agencies, in their various assessments of the Cyprus economy, either entirely or mainly repeat the element of exposure of the banking system to the Greek economy, said government spokesman Stefanos Stefanou.

“This was the main assessment of the ratings agency and it is a response to all those who want to hide the main problem facing the Cyprus economy and the problems, of course, that this key issue either enhances or causes to the Cyprus economy,” he added.

Independent commission RICS: 10.2% drop in apartments prices to review banking sector A ten-member steering committee will select an independent firm which will carry out an audit of Cypriot banks’ loan books, in a bid to assess the real recapitalisation needs of the banking sector and the amount to be sought from the EU bailout mechanism.

The government acquired 1.8 bln euros worth of shares in the Cyprus Popular Bank, while the Bank of Cyprus (BOCY) has requested state support for 500 mln to complete its recapitalisation.

The audit will cover Popular, BOCY and Hellenic Bank, the Greek subsidiaries of Eurobank and Alpha Bank operating in Cyprus, as well as a sample of the cooperative societies.

The steering committee will be composed of representatives of the Central Bank, the Finance Ministry, the Cooperatives Central Bank, the “troika” of the ECB-IMF-European Commission, the European Banking Authority and the EFSF/ESM. The mandate of the audit firm, which should conclude its findings in three months’ time, has been finalised and only the composition of the steering committee is pending.

Furthermore, the state-run Cyprus News Agency quoted a “government source” as saying that the Central Bank will finalize the composition of the group of independent experts who would investigate the Greek bond purchases by the Cypriot banks which led to high exposure to Greek sovereign debt. The investigation will cover the Greek bond purchases, the expansion of the Cypriot banks abroad and the responsibilities of the Central Bank itself as the supervisory body.

“We need to know what has gone wrong,” the source told CNA.

The eleventh edition of the RICS Cyprus quarterly Property Price Index saw significant falls across all major urban areas, with prices and rents falling in all districts. Nicosia and Limassol faired the worst, as they were the least affected markets up until the second half of 2011.

Quarter-on-quarter, residential prices for both houses and flats fell by 1.2% and 2.0%, respectively, with the biggest drop being in Limassol (3.4% for apartments and 2.3% for houses).

Values of retail properties fell by an average of 3.0%, whilst those of offices and warehouses fell by 2.1% and 3.2% respectively.

Compared to Q2 2011, prices dropped by 10.2% for apartments, 6.4% for houses, 10.8% for retail, 9.0% for office, and 12.0% for warehouses.

Across Cyprus, rental values decreased by 2.1% for apartments, 0.5% for houses, 2.7% for retail units, 3.4% for warehouses, and 2.4% for offices. Compared to Q2 2011, rents dropped by 4.7% for apartments, 3.3% for houses, 11.0% for retail, 10.1% for warehouses, and 14.2% for offices. All asset classes and geographies continue to be affected, with areas that had dropped the most early on in the property cycle now nearing the trough.

“During the second quarter of 2012, the economy bore the consequences of the political turmoil in Greece and the progressive decoupling of the local economy,” said Pavlos Loizou, MRICS. “The worsening state of our economy and the growing political and economic uncertainty across the eurozone, led to a pronounced slowdown in mortgage and corporate lending and a further rise in the rate of unemployment,” said Loizou, adding that

“the first half of 2012 saw investors postpone their decision making and look for safe havens.”

“Property, both commercial and residential, was increasingly viewed as a risky asset and one with negative prospects in the near to medium term. This led to a reduction in interest from both local and overseas buyers, resulting in low transaction turnover. Local buyers in particular were the most discerning as the increase in unemployment and the worsening prospects of the local economy led to a sharp reduction in interest”.

The survey is conducted by the Cyprus chapter of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors and the Cyprus Association of Quantity Surveyors and Construction Economists (SEEOKK) based on methodology produced by the University of Reading.

Property price fall slows down, says central bank Property prices continued to fall in the first quarter of 2012, but the rates slowed down to -1% from the previous quarter, the Central Bank of Cyprus said, adding however that recovery in the sector is far due to lack of funds in the market and austerity measures to help improve the economy.

On an annual basis, the central bank report found property prices fell 4.9% — 4.3% in the case of apartments and 5.4% in the case of houses.

The biggest fall in prices was in Paphos with an average drop of 10.6% in the first quarter – 10.2% for apartments and 9.6% for houses.

The central bank said that some regulatory issues, such as reduction of VAT for first-time buyers, helped slow down the fall in property prices. However, interest on housing loans rose to 5.4% in the first quarter of 2012 , compared to the yearearlier figure of 5%.

FinancialMirror.com

August 8 - 21, 2012

CYPRUS | 5

Zenon clinches â‚Ź800 mln deal for Larnaca port project After a delay of several years and a number of objections, the government has finally signed a contract Zenon Consortium for the joint transformation of the Larnaca port and marina to a cruise centre project worth 800 mln euros.

Communications and Works Minister Efthymios Flourentzou said the aim is to lay the foundation stone for the private-public partnership project on January 1, 2013.

He said that at its first phase, the project provides for an investment of 130 mln euros for port infrastructure and a new passenger terminal, while the second and third phases include 55 mln euros for the expansion of the port and marina. The project also includes an investment of 600 mln euros for the land-side development of an area totalling 200,000 sq.m., including 5star hotels, leisure and retail development and a promenade. The marina will have a 500-berth capacity at the first phase and will later expand to 1,000 berths.

Under the agreement, the consortium must secure funding for the project within six months from the signing of the contract while the first and second phase projects will be completed within the next three years.

Zenon was initially selected for the project in 2008 but was later turned down after an appeal and the A. Vouros Consortium bidders won in May 2009 with their 35-year build-operate-transfer (BOT) project estimated at 1 bln euros.

The Tenders Review Board heard in September 2009 that the Larnaca Zenon Joint Venture had withdrawn its objection.

According to the initial BOT development, the state would

receive 7% of all revenues, which was estimated at over 100 mln euros during the 35 years.

Louis was the biggest shareholder in Zenon Consortium, controlling 22% of the bid. Costa Cruises was also a partner with a 10% stake. Both cruise companies, already partnered in a passenger terminal in Marseilles, hoped to develop Larnaca into an eastern Mediterranean cruise hub. The others included French construction giant Bouyges Batiment International with a 17.5% stake and local builders Iacovou Brothers (17.5%), both partners in the Hermes Airports consortium that built and operate the new airports in Larnaca and Paphos.

Other Zenon partners include Amsterdam Logistics Group B.V. and Lievense Consulting Engineers (operators of Amsterdam port, 2%), Marinaman (8,5%), local fuels company Petrolina Holdings Public (17,5%) and the General Construction Company (5%).

The A. Vouros Investments consortium included Singapore Cruise Centre Pte Ltd, DP Architects Pte Ltd., Ioannou & Paraskevaides Ltd., J&P/Avax S.A, Ioannou & Paraskevaides (Overseas), Ariadne Australia Ltd. and Cybarco Plc. The third bidder for the Larnaca port and marina redevelopment was the DJ Karapatakis & Sons consortium including Camper & Nicholsons Marinas, Wimberly Allison Tong & Goo Inc, ERA, Spanopoulos Group of Companies, Parsons International, Odell International, G.A.P. Vassilopoulos Public, SFS Group Public Co., A. Panayides Contracting Public, Sigan Management and Viset Malta Plc.

June tourism arrivals leap 9.7% Outbound tourism also up Tourism arrivals leapt by 9.7% over the year earlier in June despite a fall in the number of arrivals from the UK, which remains by far the largest market.

Arrivals of tourists reached 329,977 in June 2012 compared with 300,817 in June 2011.

The Russian market continued to bound ahead, with an increase of 42.1% from 56,407 in June 2011 to 80,145 in June 2012.

Sweden was also a strong market, with a 26.2% increase from 15,375 to 19,404, while arrivals from Norway leapt by 21.2% from 9,119 to 11,050 this year.

There was a milder rise of 1.9% in arrivals from Greece (from 13,273 to 13,530).

A 2.1% fall in arrivals was recorded in arrivals from the UK, from 127,747 in June 2012 to 130,545 in June 2011, and a 7.4% decrease was recorded in arrivals from Germany, from 10,693 compared with 11,543 last year.

Meanwhile, revenue from tourism in May rose by 14.5% to EUR 214.3 mln, compared with EUR 187.1 mln in May 2010—much higher than arrivals, which rose by just 3.5%.

There was also an increase in outbound tourism in June, with the number of residents of Cyprus returning from a trip abroad rising by 4.2% to 108,617, from 104.273 in June 2012.

A large increase of 10.9% was recorded in trips of residents to Greece, to 37,133 in June 2011 from 33,469 in June 2011.

FinancialMirror.com

August 8 - 21, 2012

6 | COMMENT

Incompetence rules over meritocracy EDITORIAL The latest gaffe by the communist-led administration confirms the concerns of many that all decisions in Cyprus are based on party politics and a measure of who-you-know, as opposed to competence and merit, supposedly for the good of the nation.

The recent leak of reasons for the reappointment or replacement of semi-government board members proved President Christofias wrong, who often rambles on about equality, meritocracy, transparency and the like, with his lieutenants repeating the same, only to add that “everything

has improved with this administration” and that “compared to past administrations, we are doing a good job.”

However, when it comes to Bushisms and other ridiculous statements, no one can do it better than members of the current administration who seem to have become experts on everything from banking and finance, to energy, political strategy and international relations.

Just like a repeat of the press briefings by Comical Ali who was declaring that “we are defeating the infidels” when the NATO-led forces were crossing the Baghdad bridge behind him, the statements by government officials that “the banks are to blame for the current economic crisis” was followed by comments made by the Troika inspectors who told a closed parliamentary hearing that the situation is

worse than anticipated, and that the fiscal situation is an equal if not bigger than the banking crisis.

President missed a great opportunity to appoint nonparty people to quango boards and take the credit for doing the right thing for Cyprus. But just as he ignored the outcome of the inquiry into the Mari disaster, and just as nothing has been done to investigate any scandal surrounding the bond-buying by the banks, it is feared that the steering committee that will look into the sale of securities to unknowing depositors could be biased in order to cover up the incompetence of the current administration.

Somebody needs to drum up the courage to stand up and do whatever it takes for the good of the nation and not for the good of a few.

What Money Can Buy In an interesting recent book, What Money Can’t Buy: The Moral Limits of the Market, the Harvard philosopher Michael Sandel points to the range of things that money can buy in modern societies and gently tries to stoke our outrage at the market’s growing dominance. Is he right that we should be alarmed?

While Sandel worries about the corrupting nature of some monetized transactions (do kids really develop a love of reading if they are bribed to read books?), he is also concerned about unequal access to money, which makes trades using money inherently unequal. More generally, he fears that the expansion of anonymous monetary exchange erodes social cohesion, and argues for reducing money’s role in society.

Sandel’s concerns are not entirely new, but his examples are worth reflecting upon. In the United States, some companies pay the unemployed to stand in line for free public tickets to congressional hearings. They then sell the tickets to lobbyists and corporate lawyers who have a business interest in the hearing but are too busy to stand in line.

Clearly, public hearings are an important element of participatory democracy. All citizens should have equal access. So selling access seems to be a perversion of democratic principles.

The fundamental problem, though, is scarcity. We cannot accommodate everyone in the room who might have an interest in a particularly important hearing. So we have to “sell” entry. We can either allow people to use their time (standing in line) to bid for seats, or we can auction seats for money. The former seems fairer, because all citizens seemingly start with equal endowments of time. But is a single mother with a high-pressure job and three young children as equally endowed with spare time as a student on summer vacation? And is society better off if she, the chief legal counsel for a large corporation, spends much of her time standing in line?

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Whether it is better to sell entry tickets for time or for money thus depends on what we hope to achieve. If we want to increase society’s productive efficiency, people’s willingness to pay with money is a reasonable indicator of how much they will gain if they have access to the hearing. Auctioning seats for money makes sense – the lawyer contributes more to society by preparing briefs than by standing in line.

By RAGHURAM RAJAN Former chief economist of the IMF, is Professor of Finance at the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business and the author of Fault Lines: How Hidden Fractures Still Threaten the World

On the other hand, if it is important that young, impressionable citizens see how their democracy works, and that we build social solidarity by making corporate executives stand in line with jobless teenagers, it makes sense to force people to bid with their time and to make entry tickets non-transferable. But if we think that both objectives – efficiency and solidarity – should play some role, perhaps we should turn a blind eye to hiring the unemployed to stand in line in lieu of busy lawyers, so long as they do not corner all of the seats.

What about the sale of human organs, another example Sandel worries about? Something seems wrong when a lung or a kidney is sold for money. Yet we celebrate the kindness of a stranger who donates a kidney to a young child. So, clearly, it is not the transfer of the organ that outrages us – we do not think that the donor is misinformed about the value of a kidney or is being fooled into parting with it. Nor, I think, do we have concerns about the scruples of the person selling the organ – after all, they are parting irreversibly with something that is dear to them for a price that few of us would accept.

I think part of our discomfort has to do with the circumstances in which the transaction takes place. What kind of society do we live in if people have to sell their organs to survive?

But, while a ban on organ sales may make us feel better, does

it really make society better off? Possibly, if it makes society work harder to ensure that people are never driven to the circumstances that would make them contemplate selling a vital organ.

But possibly not, if it allows society to ignore the underlying problem, either moving the trade underground, or forcing people in such circumstances to resort to worse remedies.

Then again, part of our unease probably has to do with what we perceive as an unequal exchange. The seller is giving up part of her body in an irreversible transaction. The buyer is giving up only money – perhaps earned on a lucky stock trade or at an overpaid job. If that money had been earned by selling a portion of a lung, or represented savings painfully accumulated during years of backbreaking work, we might consider the exchange more equal.

Of course, the central virtue of money is precisely its anonymity. I need know nothing about the dollar bill I receive to be able to use it. But, because money’s anonymity obscures its provenance, it may be socially less acceptable as a medium of payment for some objects.

In both examples – congressional tickets and organ sales – Sandel suggests reducing money’s role. But money has many virtues in facilitating transactions – hence its ubiquitous use.

So, perhaps the more important message is that society’s tolerance for monetization is proportional to the legitimacy accorded to the distribution of money.

The more people believe that it is the hardworking and the deserving who have money, the more they are willing to tolerate transactions for money (though some transactions remain beyond the pale). But if people believe that the moneyed are primarily those who are well connected or crooked, their tolerance for monetary transactions falls.

Rather than focusing on prohibiting monetary transactions, perhaps a more important lesson imparted by Sandel’s examples is that we should work continuously to improve the perceived legitimacy of money’s distribution. © Project Syndicate, 2012. www.project-syndicate.org

Hospitality sales hit Olympic target Sales of hospitality packages for companies to wine and dine clients at the Olympics have defied the recession and brought in more than 100 mln pounds in sales.

London marks the first time that such high-end tickets have been made available to businesses beyond the inner circle of Games sponsors, in an innovation that is likely to be repeated.

Corporate hospitality is an integral part of business life in London, where companies are used to taking guests to cricket at Lord’s or rugby at Twickenham to build relationships in a less formal environment.

“We felt if there was anywhere this could work, it would be

London,” said Alan Gilpin, Chief Operating Officer of Prestige Ticketing, which has been hosting 3,000 people at a time in its pavilion in the Olympic Park in east London. “We set out to sell 100 million pounds’ worth and we’ve gone past that,” he added.

Asked if Prestige had returned a profit, Gilpin said: “Yes, but not as much as we set out to make.”

Explaining the shortfall, Gilpin said Prestige, which was allowed to buy around 80,000 Games tickets, had priced some of its packages conservatively and spent 9.5 mln pounds on building its temporary venue looking out on to the Olympic Stadium.

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August 8 - 21, 2012

FinancialMirror.com

COMMENT | 7

One Money, (Too) Many Markets Europe’s monetary union is screeching toward the abyss, unintentionally, but apparently inexorably. Greece will most likely not meet the criteria to receive further financial assistance from its eurozone partners and the International Monetary Fund. Europeans will then need to decide whether to let Greece go. The exit option would not improve Greece’s chances of successful adjustment, and it would come at a steep price for the eurozone: it would be “in the money” – and priced accordingly.

A Greek exit could, one hopes, be managed. The European Central Bank would contain the collateral damage by flooding Europe’s banking system with liquidity (against subpar collateral). Or it will reluctantly re-launch its purchases of public-sector debt in secondary markets, capping the other peripheral eurozone economies’ interest-rate spreads relative to the core.

Thus, dire circumstances would once again force the ECB’s hand. As the strongest European institution, it is systematically vulnerable to being taken hostage, compelled to underwrite a further lease on life for the euro. In this light, ECB President Mario Draghi’s recent vow to do “whatever it takes” to save the euro came as no surprise.

Back in 1999, it seemed that Jacques Rueff, an adviser to Charles de Gaulle, had been vindicated: L’Europe se fera par la monnaie. Eleven European countries chose to give up their national currencies (or, more technically, the nominal exchange rate).

These countries understood “one money” as a quasi-physical corollary of “one market.” Independent national monetary policies in a common market were rightly seen as infeasible, given Europeans’ preference for stable exchange rates and open financial markets. This called for a single currency – and thus shared responsibility for monetary policy.

Today, however, we may need to re-phrase Rueff’s axiom: Et l’Europe se défait par les marchés financiers, unless, that is, Europe comes up with a viable institutional design.

Given the euro’s current travails, it is instructive to recall arguments stressed in the run-up to monetary union. As the Nobel laureate economist Robert Mundell and others spelled out in the 1960’s, relinquishing nominal exchange rates emphasizes three alternative mechanisms to cushion regional adjustment: inter-regional fiscal transfers, intra-union migration, and, most importantly, labor markets capable of adapting to shocks.

Unfortunately, these mechanisms were anathema at the

time. Conveying the message that nothing would have to change appeared to be far more attractive. Thus, Mundellian arguments were not heeded when the euro’s institutional blueprint was conceived. Indeed, the Stability and Growth Pact, like Europe’s no-bail out clause, ignored the pertinent economic theory (some say any economic theory). Regional currentaccount balances were interpreted as the upshot of infallible optimizing behavior by market participants, rather than, for example, the result of a real-estate bubble in Spain and elsewhere.

By HANS-HELMUT KOTZ

Only after the fact, since the fall of 2009, has it become conventional wisdom that those intra-union current-account deficits, accumulating over a decade, were untenable. Now, given monetary union, the adjustment must be carried out by changing domestic prices relative to tradable goods – that is, by engineering a depreciation of the real exchange rate.

In view of the quite substantial overvaluation in some periphery countries, this will be a time-consuming process. (Germany needed almost a decade to adapt to a smaller property bubble in its new eastern Länder in the early 1990’s.) But it is difficult to imagine that market participants will have the required patience.

That is why supporting the euro requires forceful and credible crisis containment – whatever it takes.

But the ongoing crisis also highlights a second design flaw, unacknowledged in Mundell’s argument: the challenges arising from integrated financial markets (including those for the credibility of the no-bail out clause). Under normal circumstances, unimpeded cross-border capital flows come with all of the advertised benefits in terms of better resource allocation and higher productivity. In the wake of the crisis, however, given the shared fate of national governments and banks, a significant home-bias re-emerged. Ring-fencing became national supervisors’ default option, and monetary conditions became re-segmented along national lines.

This translates into a significant disparity in financial institu-

tions’ funding costs. The immediate upshot is a substantial divergence in firms’ cost of funds, with many small and medium-size enterprises even losing access to credit completely. As a result, capital expenditure – already a fragile proposition, given weak demand – has plummeted, triggering a vicious circle of shrinking GDP, lower tax revenues, higher expenditures, and further destabilization of public-debt positions.

The problem is not only that such heterogeneity in funding conditions renders a common monetary policy difficult to conduct. More important, given that some regions now face interest-rate spreads that are the functional equivalent of having their own currencies (without a central bank), some eurozone members might at some point wonder why they should not formalize what is de facto a reality. Market participants already do, to a degree.

None of this is inevitable. The euro was not created for purely economic reasons. If it is deemed a worthwhile project, and is viewed as mutually beneficial to all participants, the eurozone could be made viable. In order to achieve this, certain minimum conditions must be met. In addition to flexible labor markets, a viable eurozone presupposes a (minimal) fiscal insurance mechanism. And it calls for not only common financial regulation, but also for eurozone-wide supervision of financial institutions, including common deposit insurance and a shared bank-resolution scheme.

This is a tall order. And it will take time to implement. But the immediate short-run alternative – letting Greece (and potentially others) fall by the wayside – would carry a substantial price. Periphery countries would be forced to pay a significant premium to compensate investors for assuming a redenomination (partial default) risk. And, with that, the eurozone would become as vulnerable as any fixed exchange-rate system has historically proven to be.

Hans-Helmut Kotz, a senior fellow at the Center for Financial Studies, Goethe University, Frankfurt, and a resident faculty associate of Harvard University’s Center for European Studies, was a member of the board of Deutsche Bundesbank from 2002 to 2010, in charge of financial stability, markets, and statistics. © Project Syndicate, 2012. www.project-syndicate.org

Productivity at lowest due to stagnant job market Companies need to go back to basics to ensure people of all levels are delivering value, says PwC research European companies’ employee productivity levels are at a five year low, according to new research by PwC, ‘Key Trends in Human Capital 2012’ which reveals that productivity levels saw a sharp drop in 2011 following a period of relative stability between 2006 and 2010.

The PwC report suggests this drop is driven by an increase in employee costs, which have jumped 16% from 2009 to around $55,000 in 2011.

The report, which is based on data from 2,400 organisations in over 50 countries, suggests that this increase in employee costs is largely down to companies cutting back on their recruitment of lower grade employees during the downturn. This has left companies with a higher proportion of experienced workers who command greater pay, compared to younger, less experienced workers, whose pay bills will be lower. This comes at a time when companies are seeing little, or no, revenue growth.

This means Western European companies are getting a much lower return from their investment in their workforce.

The report reveals that human capital return on investment (HC ROI), an analysis of the pre-tax profit produced for every pound, euro or dollar paid out in remuneration, has fallen to 1.11 in Western Europe. This means that employers are now only getting the equivalent of $1.11 back for every $1 they invest in someone.

“The percentage of employees with less than two years’ service has fallen sharply to 22%,” said Richard Phelps, human resource services partner at PwC, explaining that “organisations across Europe have chosen experience over youth to see them through the recession, but cutting the recruitment of younger workers means they are paying out

much more for their workforce for less return.

“The difficult job market means many experienced workers are staying longer in jobs, leaving companies struggling with top heavy structures, little staff turnover and rising wage bills,” Phelps added.

PwC suggests that many companies need to go back to basics and improve their performance management processes to ensure that people of all levels are delivering value. For many companies, this will mean implementing more vigorous performance management which differentiates between higher and weaker performers and rewards them accordingly in order to understand what their employees want, what matters to them and what motivates them.

“The current low growth environment means companies

must get the most value from their investment in people,” said Phelps. “Companies could find new ways of motivating people who are staying longer in their roles and offering greater options to people nearing retirement. Companies need to ensure they get the best out of their younger workers by setting out clear development paths and offering flexible compensation packages.”

The report highlights that UK and European companies still lag behind their US and Asian counterparts when it comes to maximising profit from their investment in people.

It also shows that despite the US seeing a drop in its return on investment, for every dollar paid out in remuneration, US employers typically get 20% more pre-tax profit in return compared to UK companies.

FinancialMirror.com

August 8 - 21, 2012

8 | CΟΜΜΕΝΤ

America’s Constrained Choice l Unemployment will still be too high and half of it will be long-term joblessness The conventional wisdom about the November presidential election in the United States is only partly correct. Yes, economic issues will play a large role in determining the outcome. But the next step in the argument – that the winner of an increasingly ugly contest will have the luxury of pursuing significantly different policies from his opponent – is much more uncertain.

By the time the next presidential term starts in January 2013, and contrary to the current narratives advanced by the Obama and Romney campaigns, the incumbent will find himself with limited room for maneuver on economic policy.

Indeed, the potential differences for America are elsewhere, and have yet to be adequately understood by voters. They center on the social policies that would accompany a broadly similar set of economic measures; and, here, the differences between the candidates are consequential.

Whoever wins will face an economy growing at a sluggish 2% or less next year, with a nagging risk of stalling completely. Unemployment will still be far too high, and almost half of it will be hard-to-solve, long-term joblessness – and even more if we count (as we should) the millions of Americans who have dropped out of the labor force.

The financial side of the economy will also be a source of concern. The fiscal deficit will continue to flirt with the 10%of-GDP level, adding to worries about the country’s mediumterm debt dynamics. The banking sector will still be “de-risking,” limiting the flow of credit to small and medium-size companies and undermining hiring and investment in plant and equipment. And the household sector will be only partly through its painful de-leveraging phase.

The policy front will be equally unsettling. Having dithered and bickered for too long, the US Congress will find it increasingly difficult to postpone action on these challenges. Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve’s unusual activism, including an ever-expanding list of experimental measures, will yield fewer benefits and entail growing costs and risks.

The US economy will also be operating in a more difficult global environment. In the next few months, Europe’s debt crisis will most likely worsen. With emerging economies (including China) slowing, and with meaningful multilateral policy coordination remaining inadequate, protectionist pressures will mount as major trading powers compete for a stagnant pie.

So, whether President Barack Obama or Mitt Romney prevails in November, the next president will be constrained by the twin need for urgent economic stabilization and longerterm reforms. And, with headwinds from Europe and a synchronized global slowdown, the candidates will have no choice but to pursue, at least initially, similar economic policies to restore dynamic job creation and financial stability.

In striking the right balance between immediate economic stimulus and medium-term fiscal sustainability, the most urgent step will be to counter properly the looming fiscal cliff, as temporary tax cuts expire and deep, across-the-board spending reductions kick in automatically. Failure to do so would significantly increase the risk of an outright American recession.

By MOHAMED A. EL-ERIAN CEO and co-CIO of PIMCO, and author of When Markets Collide

Serious medium-term budget reforms are needed to deal with the legacy of repeated congressional failures. And, if provided with realistic numbers, the next president will soon recognize that the right mix of tax and spending reforms falls into a much narrower range than today’s competing political narratives suggest. It is certainly not an either/or proposition.

Fiscal reforms work best in a dynamic economy. To this end, Obama and Romney will need to lift the impediments to growth and job creation. Here again – in areas like housing, the labor market, credit intermediation, and infrastructure – there is less room for maneuver than most politicians would like us to believe.

But this does not mean that there is no scope for differences. There is, and they reflect the fact that general economic tendencies will be accompanied by multi-speed dynamics at many levels. From persistent differences in unemployment rates depending on skills and education to record-high income and wealth inequalities, each economic decision will be accompanied by the need for social judgment – whether explicit or, more likely, implicit – regarding

its distributional impact.

After an “age” of excessive leverage, debt creation, and credit entitlement that culminated in the 2008 global financial crisis, America still faces the tricky challenge of allocating cumulative losses that continuously inhibit investment, jobs, and competitiveness. Until now, Congress’s excessive political polarization has translated into an approach that has pushed more of the burden of adjustment onto those who are less able to bear it.

In an ideal world, America’s next president would rapidly embark on a two-step approach to restoring job dynamism and financial soundness. First, he would devise a comprehensive set of economic-policy initiatives that are both feasible and desirable – and, again, the scope for major differences here is limited. Second, he would accompany this with an explicit set of social policies – and here the potential differences are profound – that addresses the need for equitable burden-sharing.

This is not really an election about such hotly-debated issues as outsourcing, tax increases versus entitlement reforms, government control of production versus unfettered private sector activity, or job creators versus free riders. It is much more about the accompanying concepts of social fairness, entitlement, equality and, yes, standards of behavior for a rich and civilized society.

This is an election about social responsibility – a society’s obligation to support those who are struggling, through no fault of their own, to find jobs and make ends meet. It is about protecting the most vulnerable segments of society, including by providing them access to proper health coverage. It is about reforming an education system that fails America’s young people (and about providing appropriate retraining to those who need it). Among the numerous issues of fairness and equality, it is about the rich giving back to a system that has brought them unimaginable wealth.

It is here where the differences between Obama and Romney are important. The sooner the campaign debate pivots to this, the greater the probability that Americans will make a more informed choice and, thus, buy into the collective effort needed to escape national malaise. © Project Syndicate, 2012. www.project-syndicate.org

Romney says more Fed stimulus would not help US economy Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney said that a fresh round of monetary stimulus from the Federal Reserve would not help the fragile U.S. economy.

A stream of disappointing economic reports has underpinned expectations that the U.S. central bank will do more to stimulate growth with a third round of billions of dollars of bond purchases, also known as quantitative easing, or QE3.

“I am sure the Fed is watching, will try to encourage the economy, but I don’t think a massive new QE3 is going to help this economy,” Romney said in an interview with CNN’s “State of the Union” television program aired on Sunday.

“The Fed’s first action, quantitative easing, was effective to a certain degree. But I believe that the QE2, the second round of easing, I don’t think it had the impact that they were hoping for,” he said.

Romney, who has been stressing his business acumen and years as Massachusetts governor as experiences he would employ to help heal the economy, has vowed to create 12 mln jobs in his first four years as president were he to beat Democratic President Barack Obama in the November election.

The unemployment rate ticked up to 8.3% in July, the government’s latest jobs data showed last week, prompting Romney to tear into Obama’s handling of the economy, a key election issue.

On Wednesday, the Fed signalled that more bond buying could be on the way if the recovery does not pick up - a move that could unleash fresh attacks on the central bank.

Many prominent members of the Republican party have strongly opposed the Fed’s unconventional policy measures to sustain the recovery from the 2007-2009 economic crisis, accusing the central bank of going beyond its mandate and saying that new monetary stimulus could fuel inflation.

Foreign governments have also attacked the Fed’s previous two stimulus programs, saying they artificially weakened the U.S. dollar and hurt their exports.

In addition to pumping more money into the economy, the Fed has tried to push down long term borrowing costs with its “Operation Twist” program of replacing short-term debt it holds with longer-term securities.

Democratic National Committee Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz said on Sunday it was up to the Fed to decide whether the economy needed more stimulus, not Romney or the White House.

“The Federal Reserve is an independent financial institution,” she said on ABC’s “This Week” television program.

“It’s important that we not dictate from the White House, or certainly from candidates for president of the United States, what the Federal Reserve should be doing,” she said.

August 8 - 21, 2012

FinancialMirror.com

COMMENT | 9

The Benefits of Chinese FDI In a rare act of bipartisanship, the United States Congress recently passed legislation to encourage more inward foreign direct investment. Democrats and Republicans agree that FDI, or “insourcing,” is important to US jobs and competitiveness.

They are right.

But, even as they propose new measures to court foreign investors, many members of Congress in both parties harbor deep concerns about FDI from China, on both national-security and economic grounds. These concerns are unwarranted, and discriminatory policies to restrict such investment are illadvised.

The US government already has adequate controls in place to review and block FDI from all countries, including China, that pose anti-competitive and national-security risks.

Investments that clear these controls benefit the US economy in numerous ways and should be welcomed.

Foreign-owned firms in the US account for 5% of privatesector employment, 17% of manufacturing jobs, 21% of exports, 14% of research and development, and 17% of corporate-income taxes. Recognizing FDI’s significant contributions to the US economy, President Barack Obama’s Council on Jobs and Competitiveness endorsed the administration’s new Select USA program to coordinate government-wide efforts to promote it.

To be sure, the US remains the world’s leading destination for FDI, accounting for 15% of global flows. But its share is declining, while China, using both carrots (like tax holidays and special enterprise zones) and sticks (like explicit and implicit local-content requirements) to attract foreign companies, has become the second-largest destination.

China has remained a small source of FDI outflows, but that, too, is changing rapidly. Chinese outward FDI soared from an average of $3 billion per year before 2005 to $60 billion in 2010, catapulting China into the top five sources of FDI on a threeyear moving-average basis. Given the size of China’s economy, its growth rate, and the experience of other developing economies, FDI from China is likely to increase by $1-2 trillion by 2020.

An increase in FDI outflows is a priority in China for two reasons. First, China has an understandable interest in diversifying its substantial holdings of foreign-exchange reserves away from low-yielding US Treasuries to real productive assets with higher returns. That is why China established its sovereign-wealth fund, China Investment Corporation, and why CIC decision-

makers are seeking more FDI opportunities.

Second, China’s businesses have been encouraged to “go global” and invest abroad to find new markets, secure access to energy and raw materials, and enhance their competitiveness by acquiring new technologies, brands, and management skills.

In a recent report, the People’s Bank of China urged Chinese companies to acquire foreign firms as the first stage of a tenyear plan to ease China’s capital-market restrictions – long a goal of US policymakers.

By LAURA TYSON A former chair of the US President’s Council of Economic Advisers, is a professor at the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley

So far, China’s FDI outflows have been concentrated in developing countries and a handful of resource-rich developed countries, including Australia and Canada, and have been aimed at facilitating trade and acquiring access to natural resources. But the patterns and destinations of China’s outward FDI will change as rising wages, an appreciating real exchange rate, and the entry of new suppliers from other emerging countries erode Chinese companies’ competitiveness, motivating them to invest abroad to upgrade their technology and management capabilities, find new growth opportunities, and move up the value chain.

Currently, the US receives only about 2-3% of FDI flows from China. But China’s direct investments in the US have increased rapidly, from less than $1 billion annually in 2003-2008 to more than $5 billion per year in 2010-2011. At least 38 US states now host FDI projects from China, and competition for Chinese investment has intensified as states’ budgets have contracted.

Of course, alongside the potential economic benefits of attracting a much larger share of Chinese FDI, legitimate competitive and national-security concerns do need to be addressed. First, like all mergers and acquisitions involving both domestic and foreign investors, investments in or acquisitions of US companies by Chinese companies, whether stateowned or private, must be evaluated by the US Justice Department for their impact on market competition.

Investments with significant anti-competitive effects must be modified or blocked.

Second, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) must screen investments in or acquisitions of US companies by foreign companies, including Chinese companies, for national-security risks. Such screening is a common and justifiable practice around the world. In recent years, CFIUS has defined national security broadly to encompass not only defense activities and dual-use technologies, but also critical infrastructure, including telecommunications, energy, and transport – areas of particular interest to Chinese companies.

Many Chinese investors view the CFIUS screening process as protectionist and targeted at them, but there is no evidence of this. The United Kingdom, Canada, France, and Israel accounted for more than half of all CFIUS cases reviewed in 2008-2010, while China accounted for only about 5%. Only a small fraction of Chinese FDI in the US is subject to CFIUS review, and most of these projects, like most reviewed by CFIUS, are approved, sometimes with mitigation measures. CFIUS does not review greenfield investments, which account for about 50% of Chinese FDI in the US. But Chinese FDI, especially in sensitive sectors like energy, does often trigger Congressional hearings, ad hoc resolutions, and calls for tougher CFIUS action. As a result of high-profile Congressional opposition, China’s state-owned energy company CNOOC withdrew its bid for Unocal, an American energy company, in 2005, before a CFIUS review that most likely would have cleared the deal on national-security grounds. China still points to this episode as evidence that Chinese FDI is not welcome in the US. Feeding this perception, some members of Congress are now exhorting CFIUS to block CNOOC’s proposed acquisition of Nexen, a Canadian energy company with holdings in the Gulf of Mexico, until China resolves ongoing disputes with the US over preferential government procurement policies and barriers to FDI by US companies in China. Heeding these calls would be a costly mistake that would undermine the objective, non-discriminatory CFIUS process and encourage Chinese companies to look elsewhere at a time when Chinese FDI is poised to explode and the US economy sorely needs the jobs, capital, and trade benefits that it would bring. © Project Syndicate, 2012. www.project-syndicate.org

Iran rial sinks 5% on devaluation fears l May drop to 15,000-16,000/dollar; authorities want to protect foreign reserves Iran’s rial sank about 5% in trading against the U.S. dollar on Monday after the central bank said it would change the currency’s official exchange rate, prompting fears of another devaluation as the economy suffers from international sanctions.

The rial was trading in the free market at around 21,510 per dollar, according to the currency tracking website Mazanex, down from about 20,440 on Sunday.

Most dealers in Tehran’s major currency trading district stopped selling dollars on Monday and removed signs from windows advertising their rates, Mehr News Agency reported. It said the rial fell as low as 22,000 before partly recovering to 21,400.

Central bank governor Mahmoud Bahmani said on Sunday he would announce a change to the government’s “reference rate” of 12,260 rials to the dollar “within the next 10 days”, Iranian media reported.

He did not elaborate, but Iranian media speculated the new reference rate might be between 15,000 and 16,000 rials. Most Iranians are unable to obtain dollars at the official rate and must instead use the free market, which is far more expensive.

Iran’s economy has been hit hard in the past year by sanctions imposed over its disputed nuclear programme. The country has largely been cut off from the international banking system and the rial has lost about half its value against the dollar in the free market.

The sanctions have slashed Iran’s oil exports, which in normal times accounted for nearly four-fifths of its total exports and two-thirds of government revenues. In June, Tehran admitted its oil exports had shrunk between 20 and 30%.

In January this year, Iran announced an 8% devaluation of the rial to 12,260 against the dollar and said it would enforce a

single exchange rate, aiming to stamp out black market traders.

But that proved impossible with the sanctions cutting inflows of hard currency into the country.

Mehr quoted Hamid Safdel, deputy minister in the Ministry of Industry, Mining and Trade, as saying the new official rate would be somewhere between 12,260 and the free market rate.

RESERVES Iran’s decision to depreciate the exchange rate may indicate its foreign exchange reserves are being drained by the sanctions and that in order to conserve them, it realises it must make hard currency more expensive.

Bahmani was quoted by Mehr as saying on Sunday that the government had no problem securing foreign currencies.

At the end of last year Iran had $106 bln of official foreign reserves, enough to cover an ample 13 months of imports of

goods and services in normal times, according to the IMF. That suggests Tehran probably faces no balance of payments crisis in the near term. But with oil exports shrinking, a global economic slowdown threatening to push oil prices down further, and banking sanctions making it more expensive for Iran to import many goods, Tehran may feel a growing need to protect its reserves.

In April the IMF predicted Iran’s crude oil exports would shrink to 2.0 mln bpd this year from 2.5 mln last year, causing its current account surplus to drop from 10.7% of GDP to 6.6%.

A deeper cut in oil exports, combined with lower oil prices, could conceivably push Iran into running an external deficit.

Currency depreciation is a risky strategy to deal with this threat, however, because it could fuel inflation. Consumer prices have been rising at annual rates above 20%, becoming a political liability for the government.

FinancialMirror.com

August 8 - 21, 2012

12 | WORLD

From Resource Curse to Blessing KAMPALA – New discoveries of natural resources in several African countries – including Ghana, Uganda, Tanzania, and Mozambique – raise an important question: Will these windfalls be a blessing that brings prosperity and hope, or a political and economic curse, as has been the case in so many countries?

On average, resource-rich countries have done even more poorly than countries without resources. They have grown more slowly, and with greater inequality – just the opposite of what one would expect. After all, taxing natural resources at high rates will not cause them to disappear, which means that countries whose major source of revenue is natural resources can use them to finance education, health care, development, and redistribution.

A large literature in economics and political science has developed to explain this “resource curse,” and civil-society groups (such as Revenue Watch and the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative) have been established to try to counter it. Three of the curse’s economic ingredients are well known: l Resource-rich countries tend to have strong currencies, which impede other exports; l Because resource extraction often entails little job creation, unemployment rises; l Volatile resource prices cause growth to be unstable, aided by international banks that rush in when commodity prices are high and rush out in the downturns (reflecting the time-honored principle that bankers lend only to those who do not need their money).

Moreover, resource-rich countries often do not pursue sustainable growth strategies. They fail to recognize that if they do not reinvest their resource wealth into productive investments above ground, they are actually becoming poorer. Political dysfunction exacerbates the problem, as conflict over access to resource rents gives rise to corrupt and undemocratic governments.

There are well known antidotes to each of these problems: a low exchange rate, a stabilization fund, careful investment of resource revenues (including in the country’s people), a ban on borrowing, and transparency (so citizens can at least see the money coming in and going out). But there is a growing con-

sensus that these measures, while necessary, are insufficient.

Newly enriched countries need to take several more steps in order to increase the likelihood of a “resource blessing.”

First, these countries must do more to ensure that their citizens get the full value of the resources. There is an unavoidable conflict of interest between (usually foreign) natural-resource companies and host countries: the former want to minimize what they pay, while the latter need to maximize it. Well designed, competitive, transparent auctions can generate much

By JOSEPH E. STIGLITZ A Nobel laureate in Economics

more revenue than sweetheart deals. Contracts, too, should be transparent, and should ensure that if prices soar – as they have repeatedly – the windfall gain does not go only to the company.

Unfortunately, many countries have already signed bad contracts that give a disproportionate share of the resources’ value to private foreign companies. But there is a simple answer: renegotiate; if that is impossible, impose a windfall-profit tax.

All over the world, countries have been doing this. Of course, natural-resource companies will push back, emphasize the sanctity of contracts, and threaten to leave. But the outcome is typically otherwise. A fair renegotiation can be the basis of a better long-term relationship.

Botswana’s renegotiations of such contracts laid the foundations of its remarkable growth for the last four decades.

Moreover, it is not only developing countries, such as Bolivia and Venezuela, that renegotiate; developed countries like Israel and Australia have done so as well. Even the United States has imposed a windfall-profits tax.

Equally important, the money gained through natural resources must be used to promote development. The old colonial powers regarded Africa simply as a place from which to

extract resources. Some of the new purchasers have a similar attitude.

Infrastructure (roads, railroads, and ports) has been built with one goal in mind: getting the resources out of the country at as low a price as possible, with no effort to process the resources in the country, let alone to develop local industries based on them.

Real development requires exploring all possible linkages: training local workers, developing small and medium-size enterprises to provide inputs for mining operations and oil and gas companies, domestic processing, and integrating the natural resources into the country’s economic structure. Of course, today, these countries may not have a comparative advantage in many of these activities, and some will argue that countries should stick to their strengths. From this perspective, these countries’ comparative advantage is having other countries exploit their resources.

That is wrong. What matters is dynamic comparative advantage, or comparative advantage in the long run, which can be shaped. Forty years ago, South Korea had a comparative advantage in growing rice. Had it stuck to that strength, it would not be the industrial giant that it is today. It might be the world’s most efficient rice grower, but it would still be poor.

Companies will tell Ghana, Uganda, Tanzania, and Mozambique to act quickly, but there is good reason for them to move more deliberately. The resources will not disappear, and commodity prices have been rising. In the meantime, these countries can put in place the institutions, policies, and laws needed to ensure that the resources benefit all of their citizens.

Resources should be a blessing, not a curse. They can be, but it will not happen on its own. And it will not happen easily.

E. Stiglitz, is Professor of Economics at Columbia University. His latest book is The Price of Inequality: How Today’s Divided Society Endangers our Future. of Economics at Columbia Future. © Project Syndicate, 2012. www.project-syndicate.org

Pfizer, J&J scrap Alzheimer’s studies as drug fails l

Trial failed to help cognitive or physical function; attention now turns to similar Eli Lilly drug

Pfizer Inc and Johnson & Johnson scrapped further studies of one of the most anticipated experimental drugs for Alzheimer’s disease after it failed to help patients with the memory-robbing condition in a second high-profile clinical trial.

The companies said they would discontinue all other studies of the drug bapineuzumab in its intravenous (IV) form, including two more late stage trials and follow-up extension studies, in patients with mild to moderate Alzheimer’s.

The result marked the second such late-stage failure announced in recent weeks and was especially disappointing as bapineuzumab had been given a better chance of success in the patients studied in the second trial.

If successful, bapineuzumab would have been the first drug to fight the progression of the debilitating brain disease.

Attention will now turn to solanezumab, a similar drug being developed by Eli Lilly & Co that is also considered a long-shot to succeed, but will still carry fading hopes at least until late-stage test results are released later this year.

Shares in Pfizer, J&J and Lilly all fell in after-hours trading following news of the latest disappointment. Stock in Pfizer and J&J’s partner Elan Corp Plc also dropped more than 10% in early trade in Dublin on Tuesday.

Any successful Alzheimer’s treatment is likely to reap many billions of dollars in sales and industry analysts said many investors were holding shares in the companies as an insurance policy in case the drugs were to succeed.

ISI Group analyst Mark Schoenebaum, in a research note, said the scrapping of the drug would lower his Pfizer share price estimate by about $1.

J&J said it would take a charge of $300 mln to $400 mln in the third quarter related to discontinuation of the bapineuzumab Phase III clinical trial program, while Elan will take a writedown of $117.3 mln.

Bapineuzumab failed to improve cognitive or functional performance compared with placebo in patients who did not carry a variation of a gene called ApoE4, according to initial results of the Phase III study released late on Monday.

Pfizer on July 23 announced the failure in the first of four high-stakes trials, in patients with the ApoE4 gene variation.

That trial was considered more of a long-shot based on poor results in earlier trials, but hopes were high that the data would prove more encouraging in ApoE4 non-carriers.

EARLIER STAGE SEEN AS CRITICAL While the bapineuzumab IV program is dead, the companies said a Phase II study of a subcutaneous version of the drug would continue. There were no plans at this time to study the drug in asymptomatic patients or those with an earlier stage form of the disease, a spokeswoman for Pfizer and J&J said.

Many scientists and researchers believe any treatment to be successful must be used at a very early stage of the disease or even before it occurs in high-risk patients. Most had expected the late-stage studies of bapineuzumab would fail because they were treating patients whose brains were already damaged.

William Thies, chief scientific officer of the Alzheimer’s Association, said despite the trial failures he was anxious to

see a full analysis of the results.

“These studies are terribly important for us to learn about Alzheimer’s disease, and that part of the process is just starting as the data continues to be crunched in a variety of ways,” Thies said.

He said the results in mild to moderate patients would not necessarily exclude bapineuzumab from prevention trials, such as the Dominantly Inherited Alzheimer’s Network (DIAN) - a consortium that enrolls people who are genetically predisposed to develop the disease at an early age. The drugs to be used in that study are expected to be announced by year’s end.

“One of the strong thoughts in the field is that you really have to treat people before they become demented,” said Thies, noting that is the point of the DIAN study. “Out of hand this does not automatically exclude bapineuzumab from that study.”

WRONG APPROACH? Bapineuzumab IV is an injectable monoclonal antibody that works by attacking a protein called beta-amyloid that is believed by many researchers to be a leading cause of Alzheimer’s disease.

Alzheimer’s is the most common form of dementia and the sixth leading cause of death in the U.S. An estimated 5 mln Americans are believed to have the disease. An estimated 36 mln people worldwide are believed to have dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease.

“The probability of success in these trials was very low in the minds of most investors,” said Anthony Butler, an analyst with Barclays Capital. “The overall impact financially is negligible. But it’s a sentimental negative, for sure, and I think that’s critical.”

He said the news was likely to have a negative impact on Lilly as well since its drug works in a similar manner to bapineuzumab.

EB¢OMA¢IAIA OIKONOMIKH ¶√§π∆π∫∏ EºHMEPI¢A AÚ. 876

www.financialmirror.com

∆∂∆∞ƒ∆∏, 8 ∞À°√À™∆√À, 2012

∏ ™ÔÊÔÎÏ¤Ô˘˜ ‚Á¿˙ÂÈ «ÂÎÙfi˜» ÙËÓ §·˚΋ Οικονοµική διαφορά που για την ώρα µοιάζει µε αγεφύρωτη χωρίζει την κυπριακή κυβέρνηση και το Χρηµατιστήριο Αθηνών µε αποτέλεσµα να τίθεται σε αµφιβολία η συνέχιση τησ διαπραγµάτευσησ τησ µετοχήσ τησ Λαϊκήσ Τράπεζασ στο ταµπλÞ τησ Σοφοκλέουσ. Σύµφωνα µε ασφαλείσ πληροφορίεσ µασ το χάσµα αφορά το ποσÞ ύψουσ 2,4 εκ. ευρώ που ζητά η διοίκηση του ΧΑ απÞ την κυβέρνηση για την εισαγωγή των µετοχών ύψουσ 1,8 δισ ευρώ τησ Λαϊκήσ Τράπεζασ και στο ελληνικÞ χρηµατιστήριο. Η κυβέρνηση υποστηρίζει Þτι δεν πρέπει να δώσει ούτε ένα σεντ καθώσ οι συγκεκριµένεσ µετοχέσ µε βάση το τροποποιητικÞ διάταγµα που ενέκρινε τον προηγούµενο µήνα η Βουλή των Αντιπροσώπων θα εισαχθούν µÞνο στην ειδική κατηγορία του ΧΑΚ και Þχι του ΧΑ κάτι το οποίο δεν αποδέχεται η ελληνική πλευρά αφού θεωρεί πωσ µε τον τρÞπο αυτÞ θα ανοίξει ο ασκÞσ του ΑιÞλου και για τισ υπÞλοιπεσ τράπεζεσ που πήραν ή θα πάρουν κρατική βοήθεια µε αποτέλεσµα να απολέσει έσοδα εκατοµµυρίων. Σύµφωνα µε τισ ίδιεσ πληροφορίεσ η διοίκηση του ΧΑ απείλησε τη διοίκηση τησ Λαϊκήσ και κατ’ επέκταση την κυβέρνηση Þτι θα επιβάλει διοικητικέσ κυρώσεισ εάν δεν συµµορφωθούν προειδοποιώντασ µάλιστα πωσ ενδεχοµένωσ να βάλουν φρένο και στο dual listing δηλαδή τη διπλή διαπραγµάτευση των τίτλων τησ Τράπεζασ σε ΧΑΚ και ΧΑ.

∆· fiÏ· Ù˘ ΢‚¤ÚÓËÛ˘ Η κυβέρνηση θεωρεί πωσ δεν πρέπει το συγκεκριµένο ποσÞ να φορτωθεί στουσ ώµουσ των Κυπρίων φορολογουµένων και προβάλει ωσ ισχυρÞ επιχείρηµα το τελευταίο νοµοσχέδιο που ενέκρινε η Βουλή µε το οποίο η εισαγωγή των τίτλων θα γίνει µÞνο στο ΧΑΚ. Με τον τρÞπο αυτÞ η µετοχή τησ Τράπεζασ θα συνεχίζεται να διαπραγµατεύεται κανονικά τÞσο στο ΧΑΚ Þσο και στο ΧΑ και οι µετοχέσ τησ κυβέρνησησ µÞνο στο κυπριακÞ χρηµατιστήριο. Στην περίπτωση αυτή Þταν γίνονται αγορέσ µετοχών που κατέχει η κυβέρνηση θα µεταφέρονται απευθείασ στο µητρώο τησ Λαϊκήσ Τράπεζασ και στισ δύο χώρεσ. Ùσον αφορά το ποσÞ που θα πρέπει να καταβάλει η κυβέρνηση στο ΧΑΚ για την εισαγωγή των µετοχών αυτÞ ανέρχεται µÞλισ στισ 200.000 ευρώ, ποσÞ που απέχει απÞ το ποσÞ που ζητά το ΧΑ. Το ποσÞ αυτÞ ενδεχοµένωσ να ανέβει ακÞµη πολύ περισσÞτερο Þταν γίνει γνωστÞ το τελικÞ ποσÞ ανακεφαλαιοποίησησ τησ Λαϊκήσ Τράπεζασ στισ διαβουλεύσεισ που γίνονται µε την Τροϊκα.

§ÂÙÔ› ¯ÂÈÚÈÛÌÔ› Για το θέµα αυτÞ γίνονται για την ώρα λεπτοί χειρισµοί µε στÞχο να αποτραπεί η καταβολή οποιουδήποτε ποσού.

Εάν αυτÞ γίνει αποδεκτÞ τελικά θεωρείται πέραν απÞ βέβαιο Þτι κάτι παρÞµοιο θα πράξει και η Τράπεζα Κύπρου Þταν οριστικοποιηθεί το ποσÞ που θα λάβει µέσω τησ κρατικήσ στήριξησ. Η Κυβέρνηση να σηµειωθεί θα έπρεπε να εισάγει τισ µετοχέσ που απέκτησε στη Λαϊκή Τράπεζα µέχρι τισ 25 Ιουλίου του 2012 κάτι το οποίο δεν έπραξε λÞγω τησ διαφοράσ τησ µε το ΧΑ. Μάλιστα εάν ανατρέξει κάποιοσ στο τελευταίο διαθέσιµο µετοχολÞγιο τησ Τράπεζασ θα διαπιστώσει κάποιοσ Þτι µεγαλοµέτοχοσ τησ είναι το Dubai Financial µε 18,7% και η Μarfin Investment Group µε 9,8% οι οποίοι δεν συµµετείχαν στην τελευταία αύξηση του µετοχικού κεφαλαίου αντί η κυβέρνηση που κατέχει το 84%. Οι ισορροπίεσ αυτέσ θα αλλάξουν µÞνο Þταν η κυβέρνηση επιλύσει τη διαφορά που τη χωρίζει µε το ΧΑ

¶·Ú¿ÔÓ· Î·È ·fi ∆Ú¿Â˙· ∫‡ÚÔ˘ Αξίζει να σηµειωθεί Þτι προβλήµατα µε την τιµολογιακή πολιτική το ΧΑ εκφράζει και η Τράπεζα Κύπρου. Ùπωσ είµαστε σε θέση να γνωρίζουµε κατά την τελευταία εισαγωγή µετοχών τησ Τράπεζασ στο ΧΑ ζητήθηκε να καταβληθεί ένα ποσÞ άνω του 1 εκ. ευρώ το οποίο η Τράπεζα Κύπρου θεωρούσε ωσ εξωφρενικά υψηλÞ. Μάλιστα απέστειλε και σχετική επιστολή διαµαρτυρίασ προσ την Επιτροπή Κεφαλαιαγοράσ Κύπρου µε την οποία εξέφραζε παράπονα για την τιµολογιακή πολιτική τησ Σοφοκλέουσ. ΕκπρÞσωποσ του ΧΑ µε τον οποίο συνοµιλήσαµε για το θέµα αυτÞ σηµείωσε απλά Þτι «είναι δικαίωµα του κάθε Χρηµατιστηρίου να εφαρµÞζει την τιµολογιακή πολιτική που θέλει. Άλλη τιµολÞγηση έχει η Νέα ΥÞρκη, άλλη η Αθήνα και άλλη η Λευκωσία»,

∂ÂÓ‰˘Ù‹˜ Û¤ÚÓÂÈ ÛÙ· ‰ÈηÛÙ‹ÚÈ· ÙËÓ Laiki ∂ÏÏ¿‰Ô˜ Μήνυση εναντίον τησ CYPRUS POPULAR BANK CO LTD (Laiki Bank) στην Ελλάδα κατέθεσε ο ΠρÞεδροσ του Εθνικού Ινστιτούτου Χρηµατοπιστωτικών Ερευνών (ΕΙΧΕ), µε έδρα τισ ΗΠΑ, που αναλαµβάνει να βοηθήσει Þπωσ υπογραµµίζει, δανειολήπτεσ, ώστε να αντιµετωπίσουν τισ Τράπεζεσ, να διακÞψουν τισ πληρωµέσ τουσ προσ αυτέσ, να τισ νικήσουν στα δικαστήρια πετυχαίνοντασ ακύρωση των διαταγών πληρωµήσ - Τάκησ ΧριστοδουλÞπουλοσ. Ο κ. ΧριστοδουλÞπουλοσ στη µήνυσή του στην Εισαγγελία Πρωτοδικών Αθηνών στρέφεται εναντίον τησ CYPRUS POPULAR BANK CO LTD, η οποία έχει υποκαταστήµατα στην Ελλάδα µε την επωνυµία MARFIN ΕΓΝΑΤΙΑ ΤΡΑΠΕΖΑ, µε κατηγορίεσ, «για σύσταση και λειτουργία εγκληµατικήσ οργάνωσησ, για τη διάπραξη κακουργηµατικών πράξεων, Þπωσ τοκογλυφία, εκβίαση και απάτη, µεγάλησ έκτασησ, µαζί µε ξέπλυµα βρώµικου χρήµατοσ», προειδοποιώντασ Þτι αντίστοιχεσ κινήσεισ θα ακολουθήσουν εισ βάροσ Þλων των Τραπεζών σε Ελλάδα και Κύπρο. Η µήνυση στρέφεται εναντίον του ∆Σ τησ CYPRUS POPULAR BANK CO LTD και Þσων διετέλεσαν µέλη του απÞ το 2000 µέχρι σήµερα, των διευθυντών, τησ εταιρείασ VISA και πολλών δικηγÞρων. Για να προχωρήσει η µήνυση πρέ-

πει να υπάρξουν στοιχεία τα οποία θα πείσουν τον Εισαγγελέα στην Ελλάδα να πραγµατοποιήσει δίωξη και τα οποία θα αποδεικνύουν τισ κατηγορίεσ. Το ΕΙΧΕ , το οποίο προβάλλεται ωσ φορέασ προστασίασ καταναλωτή, χωρίσ ωστÞσο να διατηρεί σχέσεισ τη Γενική Γραµµατεία Προστασίασ Καταναλωτή ή το Συνήγορο του Πολίτη, υπÞσχεται ακÞµα να διεκδικήσει στο Þνοµα των µελών του και να κερδίσει µε αγωγέσ «µεγάλα ποσά δικαστικών αποζηµιώσεων για τισ ηθικέσ βλάβεσ απÞ τισ παρανοµίεσ που οι Τράπεζεσ και οι συνεργοί τουσ έχουν κάνει σε βάροσ των δανειοληπτών» και απÞ τισ αποζηµιώσεισ αυτέσ οι δανειολήπτεσ να µπορέσουν να εξοφλήσουν Þχι µÞνο τισ οφειλέσ τουσ αλλά και να τουσ µείνουν χρήµατα, απÞ τα ποσά που θα κερδίσουν στισ µηνύσεισ. Σε αυτÞ το κλίµα Þλο και περισσÞτερα γραφεία, δικηγÞροι, εταιρείεσ, στην Ελλάδα υπÞσχονται Þτι µε βάση και τουσ νÞµουσ που καταρτίστηκαν µε το ξέσπασµα τησ οικονοµικήσ κρίσησ για τα υπερχρεωµένα νοικοκυριά, αναλαµβάνουν υποθέσεισ δανείων και πιστωτικών καρτών, ενώ κάποιεσ εταιρείεσ υπÞσχονται και ακύρωση τησ δανειακήσ σύµβασησ, απειλώντασ τισ Τράπεζεσ µε µηνύσεισ και καταγγέλλοντασ τισ ωσ τουσ σύγχρονουσ τοκογλύφουσ.

¶·Ú¤Ì‚·ÛË Ù˘ ∂ÈÙÚÔ‹˜ ∫ÂÊ·Ï·È·ÁÔÚ¿˜ Παρέµβαση στο θέµα τησ εισαγωγήσ των µετοχών τησ Λαϊκήσ Τράπεζασ που προέκυψαν απÞ την µετατροπή των αξιογράφων έκανε χθεσ η Επιτροπή Κεφαλαιαγοράσ. Η Επιτροπή εισηγείται στην εταιρεία να εξετάσει ενδεχÞµενο καθυστέρησησ τησ εισαγωγήσ των µετοχών που προέκυψαν απÞ τη µετατροπή, για Þσα πρÞσωπα υπέβαλαν καταγγελία για τισ συνθήκεσ τησ µετατροπήσ και δεν επιθυµούν τη διαπραγµάτευση των µετοχών τουσ στο ΧΑΚ ή/και στο ΧΑ. ∆ικαιούχοι µετοχών που προέκυψαν απÞ τη µετατροπή αξιογράφων συναντήθηκαν µε την Επ. Κεφαλαιαγοράσ και ζήτησαν Þπωσ οι µετοχέσ τουσ µετατραπούν και πάλιν σε αξιÞγραφα. Σε περίπτωση µετατροπήσ των µετοχών σε αξιÞγραφα, θα διεκδικήσουν τα δικαιώµατα τουσ µαζί µε τουσ υπÞλοιπουσ κατÞχουσ αξιογράφων, των οποίων το κεφάλαιο απειλείται µε κούρεµα ή µετατροπή σε µετοχέσ λÞγω τρÞικα. Η Κεφαλαιαγορά ανοίγει την πÞρτα Þχι µÞνο στουσ 20 κατÞχουσ µετοχών που έχουν ήδη καταγγείλει στην ΕΚ Þτι εξαπατήθηκαν, αλλά και στουσ υπÞλοιπουσ, να ακολουθήσουν την προτεινÞµενη διαδικασία. Οι µέτοχοι που έκαναν καταγγελίεσ ανέφεραν Þτι εκπροσωπούν κατÞχουσ µετοχών αξίασ 3 εκ. ευρώ σε σχέση µε το σύνολο των 179 εκ. ευρώ που µετατράπηκαν απÞ αξιÞγραφα σε µετοχέσ. Στην ανακοίνωση τονίζεται Þτι η εισήγηση τησ Επιτροπήσ θα αφορά µÞνο τουσ κατÞχουσ οι οποίοι θα το αιτηθούν µε βάση τισ διαδικασίεσ που θα ορίσει η Λαϊκή Τράπεζα και δεν ισχύει για τουσ υπÞλοιπουσ κατÞχουσ.

∫Ï›ÓÂÈ 65 ˘ÔηٷÛÙ‹Ì·Ù· Μειώνονται κατά 65, έωσ το τέλοσ του 2012, τα υποκαταστήµατα τησ Λαϊκήσ Τράπεζασ σε Κύπρο και Ελλάδα, µε στÞχο τη µείωση των λειτουργικών δαπανών και την αύξηση τησ κερδοφορίασ του Οµίλου. Στο πλαίσιο τησ αναδιάρθρωσησ του Οµίλου, απÞ τα συνολικά 290, που λειτουργούν σήµερα, τα υποκαταστήµατα τησ Λαϊκήσ Τράπεζασ αναµένεται να περιοριστούν στα 225. Στην Ελλάδα θα διατηρηθούν σε λειτουργία 45 υποκαταστήµατα, κυρίωσ στα µεγάλα αστικά κέντρα. Σε εξέλιξη βρίσκεται και η διαδικασία µείωσησ µισθών και ωφεληµάτων του προσωπικού. Στην Ελλάδα, Þπου ο Ùµιλοσ απασχολεί 3.150 υπαλλήλουσ, οι περικοπέσ επηρεάζουν κυρίωσ τουσ υψηλÞµισθουσ. Στην Κύπρο, βάσει του διατάγµατοσ που ενέκρινε η Βουλή, για στήριξη τησ τράπεζασ, συνεχίζονται οι διεργασίεσ για περιορισµÞ κατά 12,5% των αποδοχών των υπαλλήλων, οι οποίοι ανέρχονται σε δυÞµισι χιλιάδεσ.

ΧΡΗΜΑ&ΑΓΟΡΑ

8 ΑΥΓΟΥΣΤOY, 2012

2/14 | ΕΙ∆ΗΣΕΙΣ

∞ÁÔÚ¿˙ÂÈ ¯ÚfiÓÔ ÙÔ Â˘ÚÒ ∆Ô fiÚÁÈÔ ÊËÌÒÓ ÁÈ· ¿ÌÂÛË ·Ú¤Ì‚·ÛË ÙˆÓ ∂˘Úˆ·˚ÎÒÓ ·Ú¯ÒÓ ÛÙËÓ ·ÁÔÚ¿ ÔÌÔÏfiÁˆÓ Û˘Ó¯›˙ÂÈ Ó· ÛÙËÚ›˙ÂÈ ÙÔ ÂÓÈ·›Ô ÓfiÌÈÛÌ· ÙÔ ÔÔ›Ô ·ÁÔÚ¿˙ÂÈ ¯ÚfiÓÔ Î·È ÂÙÔÈÌ¿˙ÂÙ·È Ó· ÊÏÂÚÙ¿ÚÂÈ Ì Ӥ· ‰ÈÌ‹ÓÔ˘ ¡π∫√™ ªπÃ∞∏§π¢∏™ Foreign Exchange Analyst

Ανοδικά κινήθηκε για δεύτερη συνεχÞµενη εβδοµάδα η ισοτιµία Ευρώ – ∆ολαρίου η οποία πλέον φλερτάρει µε αξιώσεισ να βρεθεί σε επίπεδα που δεν τα έχει δει εδώ και έξι εβδοµάδεσ. Συγκεκριµένα η ισοτιµία απÞ τα 1.2250 τησ περασµένησ εβδοµάδοσ αναρριχήθηκε µέχρι και τα 1.2440 για να υποχωρήσει στην συνέχεια κοντά στα 1.2400 Þπου και κινείται τισ τελευταίεσ ηµέρεσ. Το Þργιο φηµών που καλλιεργείται εδώ και δύο εβδοµάδεσ για άµεση συντονισµένη παρέµβαση των Ευρωπαίων αξιωµατούχων στην αγορά οµολÞγων διατηρεί την ισοτιµία σε ψηλά επίπεδα ή καλύτερα θα λέγαµε βάζει µια προσωρινή παύση στην διολίσθηση του Ευρώ. Καταρχήν την περασµένη εβδοµάδα είχαµε την τακτική συνεδρία τησ ΕΚΤ η οποία εµφανίστηκε έτοιµη να επανεκκινήσει το επίµαχο πρÞγραµµα αγοράσ οµολÞγων των κρατών τησ Ευρωζώνησ στη δευτερογενή αγορά προκειµένου να ρίξει τα “εξαιρετικά υψηλά” κÞστη δανεισµού υπερχρεωµένων χωρών, Þπωσ η Ισπανία και η Ιταλία. Μία εβδοµάδα µετά την πολυσυζητηµένη δήλωσή του πωσ “η ΕΚΤ είναι έτοιµη να κάνει τα πάντα για να σώσει το ευρώ”, ο πρÞεδροσ τησ ΕΚΤ, Mario Draghi άφησε να εννοηθεί πωσ εξετάζεται µια σειρά πρÞσθετων µη συµβατικών µέτρων µε στÞχο να διασωθεί το ευρώ και να επιτραπεί στα ιστορικά

χαµηλά επιτÞκια τησ ΕΚΤ να τροφοδοτήσουν µε καύσιµα την ευρύτερη οικονοµία. ΤαυτÞχρονα Þµωσ παραδέχτηκε Þτι η γερµανική Bundesbank εκφράζει αντιρρήσεισ για το σχέδιο αγοράσ οµολÞγων, υπονοώντασ πωσ θα χρειαστεί περαιτέρω προσπάθεια να πειστεί ο Weidmann προτού γίνει η τελική ψηφοφορία. Μπορεί οι δηλώσεισ Draghi να αποδείχτηκαν κατώτερεσ των προσδοκιών τησ αγοράσ παρÞλα αυτά Þµωσ η ισοτιµία κρατάει αφού καλλιεργείται εδώ και ηµέρεσ µια έντονη παραφιλολογία πωσ η ΕΚΤ σε συνεργασία µε τισ κυβερνήσεισ των κρατών µελών δείχνουν µια έντονη αποφασιστικÞτητα να περάσουν απÞ τα λÞγια στισ πράξεισ. Βεβαίωσ ακÞµα και αν αυτÞ υλοποιηθεί η Þλη ευφορία δεν αναµένεται να διαρκέσει παρά µÞνο λίγεσ εβδοµάδεσ αφού τα πολύ δύσκολα είναι ακÞµη µπροστά µασ. ΕντÞσ των επÞµενων 2,3 µηνών αναµένεται να κριθεί η παραµονή τησ Ελλάδασ στο Ευρώ, η προσφυγή τησ Ισπανίασ στον µηχανισµÞ στήριξησ και η απÞφαση τησ Ιταλίασ για να αιτηθεί βοήθεια. Ενώ ταυτÞχρονα έχουµε άλλεσ µικρÞτερεσ χώρεσ Þπωσ η Κύπροσ, η Σλοβενία και η Μάλτα να είναι ένα βήµα απÞ την ένταξη τουσ στον µηχανισµÞ στήριξησ. Μπορεί η αγορά οµολÞγων εάν και εφÞσον υλοποιηθεί να ηρεµήσει κάπωσ τισ αγορέσ αλλά αυτÞ σε καµία περίπτωση δεν λύνει τα τροµερά προβλήµατα τησ Ευρωζώνησ. Η Ευρωζώνη µÞνο µέσο µέτρα τÞνωσησ τησ ανάπτυξησ θα προχωρήσει µπροστά πράγµα που σίγουρα δεν τροχοδροµείται µέσω µιασ απλήσ αγοράσ οµολÞγων. Είδη ο πρÞεδροσ τησ Bundesbank, Jens Weidman καθώσ και άλλοι αξιωµατούχοι τησ ΕΚΤ κατέστησαν σαφέσ Þτι δεν

είναι έτοιµοι να συνταχθούν µε το σχέδιο αγοράσ οµολÞγων που θα βοηθήσει χώρεσ Þπωσ η Ισπανία και η Ιταλία να µειώσουν το κÞστοσ δανεισµού τουσ, εκτÞσ και αν οι χώρεσ αυτέσ αναλάβουν περαιτέρω δηµοσιονοµικέσ µεταρρυθµίσεισ. Βασικά για να συναινέσουν στην αγορά οµολÞγων απαιτούν σαν αντάλλαγµα περαιτέρω λιτÞτητα, δυστυχία και εξαθλίωση. Είναι ξεκάθαρο πλέον πωσ η Γερµανία σαν βασικÞσ «χορηγÞσ» σε κάθε πακέτο διάσωσησ, πριν προβεί στη διάσωση των περιφερειακών οφειλετών και του ευρώ θα εξασφαλίσει πρωτίστωσ πωσ η σκληρή λιτÞτητα Þχι µÞνο θα συνεχίσει αλλά θα σκληρύνει. Και Þλα αυτά συµβαίνουν επειδή η µεγάλη διαφορά τησ ΕΚΤ απÞ την FED (πέραν απÞ τα εργαλεία και τισ µεθÞδουσ) είναι Þτι, οι ενέργειεσ τησ FED έχουν την υποστήριξη τησ αµερικανικήσ κυβέρνησησ και του νοµοθετικού σώµατοσ, ενώ στην Ευρώπη, δεν υπάρχει κάποια κεντρική κυβέρνηση που να δώσει συγκατάθεση σε Þ,τι κάνει η ΕΚΤ και Þλοι τσακώνονται µεταξύ τουσ για το τι θα πρέπει να γίνει. Τεχνικά αν και η πτωτική τάση τησ ισοτιµίασ διατηρείται εντούτοισ δείχνει να χάνει momentum και ειδικά Þσο τα επίπεδα του 1,20 αποµακρύνονται. Το εβδοµαδιαίο σπάσιµο του 1,24 αναµένεται να προκαλέσει νέο ανοδικÞ ξέσπασµα τησ ισοτιµίασ µέχρι και τα 1,27 ακÞµη. Βεβαίωσ Þλα αυτά παραµένουν προσωρινέσ ανοδικέσ διορθώσεισ σε ένα περιβάλλον πολύ υψηλήσ µεταβλητÞτητασ µε τισ µακροοικονοµικέσ εξελίξεισ σαφέστατα να µεν ευνοούν το Ευρώ. Τα επίπεδα του 1,20 είναι καταδικασµένα αργά ή γρήγορα να ξαναδοκιµαστούν.

∫·È ‰Â‡ÙÂÚÔ ‰¿ÓÂÈÔ ˙‹ÙËÛÂ Ô ÃÚÈÛÙfiÊÈ·˜ ·fi ÙÔÓ ¶Ô‡ÙÈÓ ∆Ô ÙÂÏÂ˘Ù·›Ô ‰›ÌËÓÔ ÏfiÁˆ Ù˘ ·‚‚·ÈfiÙËÙ·˜ Ô˘ ˘¿Ú¯ÂÈ fiÛÔÓ ·ÊÔÚ¿ ÙȘ ·ÏÏ·Á¤˜ Ô˘ ÙÚÔ¯Ô‰ÚÔÌÔ‡ÓÙ·È ÛÙËÓ ∫‡ÚÔ ·ÚÎÂÙ¿ ƒÒÛÔÈ Â¤ÏÂÍ·Ó Ó· ·ÔÛ‡ÚÔ˘Ó ÎÂÊ¿Ï·È· ·fi ÙËÓ ∫‡ÚÔ Ô˘ ˘ÔÏÔÁ›˙ÔÓÙ·È ÛÙÔ 1,1 ‰È˜ ¢ÚÒ Προσδοκίεσ Þτι η Κύπροσ θα καταφέρει να συνάψει νέο δάνειο απÞ τη Ρωσία µε µÞνο Þρο το ύψοσ του επιτοκίου, εξέφρασε η κυβέρνηση, καλώντασ τουσ πολιτικούσ τησ αντιπάλουσ να ξεκαθαρίσουν τη θέση τουσ στο ζήτηµα. Το αίτηµα τησ Κύπρου για σύναψη νέου δανείου απÞ τη Ρωσία αποτέλεσε αντικείµενο και τησ ηµίωρησ τηλεφωνικήσ επικοινωνίασ µεταξύ του Προέδρου τησ ∆ηµοκρατίασ ∆ηµήτρη ΧριστÞφιασ µε τον οµÞλογο του τησ Ρωσικήσ Οµοσπονδίασ Βλαντιµίρ Πούτιν. Σύµφωνα µε τον αναπληρωτή ΚυβερνητικÞ ΕκπρÞσωπο, Χρίστο Χριστοφίδη, ο ΠρÞεδροσ τησ ∆ηµοκρατίασ έθεσε προσ τον κ. Πούτιν την επιθυµία τησ Κύπρου για τη σύναψη και δεύτερου δανείου απÞ τη Ρωσία. Απαντώντασ σε σχετική ερώτηση, ο αναπληρωτήσ ΚυβερνητικÞσ ΕκπρÞσωποσ δήλωσε Þτι ο διάλογοσ µεταξύ των δύο κυβερνήσεων στο θέµα του δανείου θα συνεχιστεί. Η πρÞθεση τησ Κύπρου για σύναψη δανείου απÞ τη

Ρωσία έγινε γνωστή πριν δύο µήνεσ. Αρχικά είχε δοθεί η εντύπωση Þτι το νέο ρωσικÞ δάνειο ήταν θέµα ηµερών.

H κυβέρνηση διαµήνυσε στον ΠρÞεδρο Πούτιν το αίτηµα τησ για παραχώρηση δανείου ύψουσ 5 δισ ευρώ µε τον Ρώσο ΠρÞεδρο Þµωσ µασ ανέφεραν υψηλÞβαθµεσ κυβερνητικέσ πηγέσ να µην είναι αρνητικÞσ. Η κυβέρνηση σύµφωνα µε τισ ίδιεσ πηγέσ τÞνισε στη Ρωσία Þτι θέλει την απάντηση τησ το συντοµÞτερο δυνατÞ αφού θέλει να έχει ένα ισχυρÞ Þπλο στα χέρια τησ στην προσπάθεια που καταβάλλει για Þσο το δυνατÞ πιο ήπια µέτρα στο διάλογο που γίνεται µε την ΤρÞικα.

•∂Ã∞™∞¡ ∆√¡ ™π∞ƒ§∏; Αξίζει να σηµειωθεί Þτι ο ΥπουργÞσ Οικονοµικών Βάσοσ Σιαρλή δεν έγινε κοινωνÞσ τησ επικοινωνίασ που είχε ο ΠρÞεδροσ ΧριστÞφιασ µε το Ρώσο οµÞλογο του τονίζοντασ

∞Ó·‚Ú·ÛÌfi˜ ÛÙËÓ ¶¿ÊÔ ÏfiÁˆ Ryanair Την άµεση παρέµβαση των φορέων τησ Πάφου στισ διεργασίεσ που συντελούνται σε κεντρικÞ επίπεδο για το θέµα του πτητικού προγράµµατοσ τησ Ryanair, ζητούν απÞ τουσ αρµÞδιουσ οι επιχειρηµατίεσ τησ τουριστικήσ περιοχήσ Κάτω Πάφου. Πληροφορίεσ αναφέρουν Þτι επαγγελµατίεσ τησ τουριστικήσ βιοµηχανίασ άρχισαν επαφέσ µε τουσ πολιτικούσ και οικονοµικούσ παράγοντεσ τησ Πάφου προκειµένου να παρέµβουν ώστε η Ryanair να συνεχίσει το πτητικÞ τησ πρÞγραµµα απÞ και προσ το αεροδρÞµιο Πάφου. Οι επαγγελµατίεσ τονίζουν Þτι ασχέτωσ των επιδιώξεων του αεροπορικού κολοσσού στη Λάρνακα, οι φορείσ τησ Πάφου θα πρέπει να καταβάλουν κάθε προσπάθεια για συνέχιση τησ συµφωνίασ των δύο µερών, αφού τα αποτελέσµατα τησ δροµολÞγησησ των πτήσεων τησ Ryanair στην Πάφο, αποτελούν σανίδα σωτηρίασ για τον τουρισµÞ τησ.

Για πρώτη φορά εδώ και αρκετά χρÞνια σύµφωνα µε τουριστικούσ παράγοντεσ τησ Πάφου η έλευση επισκεπτών δεν αφορά µÞνο στισ ξενοδοχειακέσ µονάδεσ, λÞγω του θεσµού του «all inclusive», αλλά Þλεσ τισ επιχειρήσεισ τησ πÞλησ. Την ίδια ώρα και παρά τα Þσα ακούστηκαν ο πρÞεδροσ του ΕΒΕ Πάφου, Γιώργοσ ΛεπτÞσ, ανέφερε πωσ οι πτήσεισ τησ Ryanair στο αεροδρÞµιο Πάφου θα συνεχισθούν απρÞσκοπτα, ανεξαρτήτωσ των Þσων γίνονται ή ακούγονται για το πτητικÞ πρÞγραµµα τησ εταιρείασ στο αεροδρÞµιο Λάρνακασ. Εκτίµησε ωστÞσο Þτι τη χειµερινή περίοδο θα υπάρξει µια µείωση των πτήσεων του ιρλανδικού αεροµεταφορέα, κάτι που χαρακτήρισε φυσιολογικÞ. Επεσήµανε Þτι η γενικÞτερη τουριστική σαιζÞν το χειµώνα προβλέπεται δύσκολη, αφού Þπωσ είπε η Κύπροσ έχει πλέον απολέσει πολλά απÞ τα πλεονεκτήµατα που είχε παλαιÞτερα ωσ χειµερινÞσ προορισµÞσ.

Þτι δεν γνωρίζει οτιδήποτε. Την ίδια ώρα πονοκέφαλο προκαλεί στα τραπεζικά επιτελεία η φυγή ρωσικών κεφαλαίων απÞ την Κύπρο. Καλά ενηµερωµένεσ πηγέσ µασ ανέφεραν Þτι το τελευταίο δίµηνο λÞγω τησ αβεβαιÞτητασ που υπάρχει Þσον αφορά τισ αλλαγέσ που τροχοδροµούνται στην Κύπρο αρκετά Ρώσοι επέλεξαν να αποσύρουν κεφάλαια απÞ την Κύπρο που υπολογίζονται στο 1,1 δισ ευρώ. Οι ίδιεσ πηγέσ επέκριναν για το θέµα αυτÞ τον ΠρÞεδρο ΧριστÞφια για τισ δηλώσεισ που κάνει συνεχώσ κατά των διοικήσεων των τραπεζών οι οποίεσ στέλνουν λανθασµένα µηνύµατα στο εξωτερικÞ.

8 ΑΥΓΟΥΣΤOY, 2012

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•¤ÓÔÈ Î·È ÊÔÚÔÏÔÁ›· ∂›Ó·È ‰Â‰Ô̤ÓÔ fiÙÈ ·fi ÙȘ ÂÚ›Ô˘ 60.000 ˆÏËı›Û˜ ÌÔÓ¿‰Â˜ Û ͤÓÔ˘˜, ¤Ó· ÌÂÁ¿ÏÔ ÔÛÔÛÙfi (¤ÛÙˆ 20% = 12.000 ÌÔÓ¿‰Â˜) ÂÓÔÈÎÈ¿˙ÂÙ·È ·fi ·˘ÙÔ‡˜ ÛÂ Û˘Ì·ÙÚÈÒÙ˜ ÙÔ˘˜ Î·È ¿ÏÏÔ˘˜ ∞¡∆ø¡∏™ §√π∑√À ∞ÓÙÒÓ˘ §Ô›˙Ô˘ F.R.I.C.S. & ™˘ÓÂÚÁ¿Ù˜ §Ù‰, ∂ÎÙÈÌËÙ¤˜ ∞ÎÈÓ‹ÙˆÓ & ¢È·¯ÂÈÚÈÛÙ¤˜ ŒÚÁˆÓ ∞Ó¿Ù˘Í˘

Αυτά τα λεγÞµενα “holiday villas” διαφηµίζονται τÞσο επί τÞπου, Þσο και διεθνώσ στο διαδίκτυο, ενώ υπάρχουν εξειδικευµένα γραφεία που χειρίζονται τέτοιεσ ενοικιάσεισ. Εάν υποθέσουµε λοιπÞν Þτι οι 12.000 ενοικιαζÞµενεσ µονάδεσ ενοικιάζονται προσ 100 ευρώ/ηµέρα για 90 ηµέρεσ τον χρÞνο, τÞτε το συνολικÞ εισÞδηµα είναι γύρω στα 108 εκ. ευρώ ΑυτÞ ισούται µε ένα διαφυγών φÞρο εισοδήµατοσ µαζί µε την άµυνα γύρω στα 22 εκ. ευρώ τον χρÞνο. ΕκτÞσ Þµωσ απÞ την φοροδιαφυγή, υπάρχει και το θέµα του άνισου ανταγωνισµού µεταξύ των ξενοδÞχων, που υπÞκεινται σε χίλιουσ-δύο περιορισµούσ σε σχέση των ελεύθερων προσ ενοικίαση τουριστικών µονάδων (holiday villas) που δεν υπÞκεινται σε κανένα περιορισµÞ. Άν και δεν αναµένουµε Þτι Þλοι οι θαµώνεσ των 12.000 µονάδων θα επισκέπτοντο τα ξενοδοχεία, έστω και µÞνο 6.000 απÞ αυτούσ να τα επισκέπτοντο, τα ξενοδοχεία θα είχαν αυξηµένα κέρδη/πληρÞτητα.

Το πιο δεν εκνευριστικÞ είναι Þτι οι ενοικιάσεισ αυτέσ απαγορεύονται βάσει του νÞµου του Κ.Ο.Τ., µια και είναι ενοικιάσεισ σε ξένουσ για περίοδο κάτω απÞ 30 ηµέρεσ (στην Ελλάδα Þπου υπάρχει παρÞµοια πρÞνοια, η καταδίκη είναι 30 ηµέρεσ φυλάκιση στον ιδιοκτήτη!!). Βέβαια η φορολÞγηση των ξένων αυτών επενδυτών θα έχει κάποιο αρνητικÞ αντίκτυπο στην προσέλκυση τουσ για αγορά προσ ενοικίαση (Buy to Let) και αυτÞ µÞνο απÞ Βρετανούσ, διÞτι οι υπÞλοιπεσ εθνικÞτητεσ δεν τα ενοικιάζουν στην ολÞτητα τουσ, αλλά σίγουρα αυτÞ δεν το κάνει ορθÞ και ούτε υπÞ τισ σηµερινέσ συνθήκεσ υπάρχει τέτοια ιδιαίτερη ζήτηση (απÞ πλευράσ αγοραστών). Μια έπαυλη µε πισίνα στην Πάφο µε 3 υπνοδωµάτια ενοικιάζεται ανά έτοσ (καλοκαιρινή περίοδο) γύρω στισ 20.000 ευρώ/ χρÞνο. Είναι λοιπÞν λογικÞ ή δίκαιο (εκτÞσ τησ παρανοµίασ που επικρατεί και αυτά κάτω απÞ τα µάτια των Αρχών) ο ιδιοκτήτησ να µην πληρώνει δεκάρα; Η απÞφαση Þµωσ για την φορολÞγηση και η επίτευξη τησ είσπραξησ, είναι δύο διαφορετικά πράγµατα. Είναι δεδοµένο Þτι ιδιαίτερα οι ξένοι δεν επιθυµούν να έχουν «προβλήµατα» µε τισ τοπικέσ αρχέσ και πιστεύουµε Þτι οι περισσÞτεροι θα συµµορφωθούν στα πιο κάτω µέτρα, ενώ χρειάζεται και η συνεργασία

των τοπικών αρχών. Στην περίοδο αυτή τησ ύφεσησ που διανύουµε, Þλεσ οι χώρεσ επιθυµούν να καλυτερεύσουν την εισπρακτική τουσ φορολογική δυνατÞτητα. Η Βρετανία διεξάγει τώρα έρευνα ποιοι πολίτεσ τησ αγÞρασαν κατοικίεσ/επενδύσεισ στο εξωτερικÞ και τι εισοδήµατα έχουν απÞ αυτέσ. Εισ µια προσπάθεια λοιπÞν είσπραξησ προσ Þφελοσ του Κράτουσ και στήριξησ των ξενοδÞχων εισηγούµεθα Þπωσ: - Κατά την ηµεροµηνία κατάθεσησ του πωλητηρίου εγγράφου ο αγοραστήσ ξένοσ να υπογράφει υπεύθυνη δήλωση Þτι εάν ενοικιάζει την µονάδα του οφείλει να το δηλώνει στον τοπικÞ φÞρο εισοδήµατοσ.

- Κατά την µεταβίβαση να υπογράφει υπεύθυνη δήλωση Þτι δεν έχει ενοικιάσει ποτέ την µονάδα, ή εάν έχει να δίδει λεπτοµέρειεσ (η ψευδήσ δήλωση στισ αρχέσ είναι σοβαρÞ θέµα).

- Να υποβάλλει στην Τοπική Αρχή κατά έτοσ εάν ενοικιάζει η Þχι την κατοικία (και πÞσα) ούτωσ ώστε η Αρχή να µπορεί να εισπράττει το τέλοσ ενοικίασησ (η Αρχή οφείλει να πληροφορεί τον ΦÞρο Εισοδήµατοσ ανάλογα).

- Οι επιχειρηµατίεσ ανάπτυξησ, κτηµατοµεσίτεσ και άλλοι που ασχολούνται µε την ενοικίαση, περιλαµβανοµένων και διαχειριστών κλπ, οφείλουν να δηλώνουν εκείνεσ τισ

µονάδεσ που ενοικιάζονται υπÞ την δική τουσ µεσιτεία/διαχείριση µε χρονιαίεσ αναφορέσ, διαφορετικά να θεωρούνται συνεργοί σε απάτη.

- Σε σχέση µε το πιο πάνω και για να υπάρχει σχετική ενθάρρυνση απÞ τουσ ενοικιαστέσ να δηλώνουν το ενοίκιο, να υπάρχει πρÞνοια Þτι, ενοικιαστέσ που παρουσιάζουν απÞδειξη µε πληρωµή ενοικίου να τουσ επιστρέφεται 5% απÞ τον φÞρο εισοδήµατοσ απÞ το σύνολο του ενοικίου, νοουµένου Þτι προηγηθεί η είσπραξη του φÞρου απÞ τον ιδιοκτήτη.

- Κλπ Έστω και εάν απÞ Þλη αυτή την διαδικασία το καθαρÞ εισÞδηµα στο Κράτοσ είναι µÞνο 2 εκ. ευρώ απÞ τα 22 εκ. ευρώ(µείον διοικητικά έξοδα) τον χρÞνο, η φορολογία αυτή θα έχει και τισ παρεµφερείσ θετικέσ του παρενέργειεσ, διÞτι θα βοηθήσει στην αύξηση τησ ζήτησησ για ξενοδοχειακέσ µονάδεσ, θα αυξήσει τα εισοδήµατα των τοπικών αρχών απÞ τα δικαιώµατα ενοικίασησ, θα περιορίσει σε κάποιο βαθµÞ την ανεξέλεγκτη ενοικίαση και την κατ’ επέκταση υποβάθµιση των µονάδων, θα περιορίσει την φοροδιαφυγή και ασφαλώσ θα αυξήσει το αίσθηµα δικαίου για τουσ υπÞλοιπουσ πολίτεσ.

™Â ÚˆÙÔÊ·Ó‹ ¯·ÌËÏ¿ Â›‰· Ù· ·Î›ÓËÙ· Ο χειρÞτεροσ µήνασ του 2012 για τον τοµέα των ακινήτων ήταν ο Ιούλιοσ αφού τÞσο σε πραγµατικούσ αριθµούσ Þσο και σε ποσοστÞ, η µείωση ήταν τεράστια. Φαίνεται πωσ η αίτηση για προσφυγή στο ΜηχανισµÞ Στήριξησ επηρέασε την αγορά η οποία κινήθηκε σε πρωτοφανή χαµηλά επίπεδα. Σύµφωνα µε τα στοιχεία του Κτηµατολογίου, κατατέθηκαν µÞλισ 408 πωλητήρια έγγραφα που ήταν ο χαµηλÞτεροσ αριθ-

µÞσ για το 2012 ενώ και σε σχέση µε πέρσι η µείωση ήταν 33% (605 Ιούλιο 2011). Η µεγάλη µείωση του µήνα οδήγησε και το σύνολο των πωλητηρίων εγγράφων για το πρώτο επτάµηνο του 2012 να καταγράψει ετήσια µείωση 2%. Συνολικά κατατέθηκαν 4118 πωλητήρια έγγραφα σε σχέση µε 4182 το 2011. Τεράστια πτώση τησ τάξησ του 47% καταγράφηκε στη Λευκωσία µε τα πωλητήρια να πέφτουν σε διψήφιο αριθµÞ (µÞλισ 87) ενδε-

10% οو ÔÈ ÙÈ̤˜ ÙˆÓ ‰È·ÌÂÚÈÛÌ¿ÙˆÓ Μείωση των τιµών ακινήτων και για το δεύτερο τρίµηνο του 2012, παρουσίασε ο ∆είκτησ Τιµών Ακινήτων του RICS Κύπρου, µε τη µέση τιµή διαµερισµάτων να µειώνεται σε διάστηµα ενÞσ έτουσ κατά 10,2% και των σπιτιών κατά 6,4%. Ο ∆είκτησ Τιµών Ακινήτων κατέγραψε σηµαντικέσ µειώσεισ σε Þλεσ τισ µεγάλεσ αστικέσ περιοχέσ στην Κύπρο, µε τισ αξίεσ και τα ενοίκια να σηµειώνουν πτώση, σύµφωνα µε τα αποτελέσµατα τησ 11ησ έκδοσησ του ∆είκτη Τιµών Ακινήτων του RICS (Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors) Κύπρου. ΕιδικÞτερα, η Λευκωσία και η ΛεµεσÞσ βρέθηκαν στη δυσµενέστερη θέση κατά το δεύτερο τρίµηνο του 2012. Παγκύπρια, οι αξίεσ των κατοικιών, τÞσο σπίτια Þσο και διαµερίσµατα, παρουσίασαν τριµηνιαία πτώση τησ τάξησ του 1,2% και 2,0%, αντίστοιχα, µε τη µεγαλύτερη µείωση να καταγράφεται στη ΛεµεσÞ (3,4% για τα διαµερίσµατα και 2,3% για τα σπίτια). Παγκύπρια οι τιµέσ των καταστηµάτων µειώθηκαν κατά µέσο Þρο 3,0%, των γραφείων κατά 2,1% και των αποθηκών κατά 3,2%. Σε σύγκριση µε το αντίστοιχο δεύτερο τρίµηνο του 2011, οι τιµέσ των διαµερισµάτων µειώθηκαν κατά 10,2%, των σπιτιών κατά 6,4%, των καταστηµάτων κατά 10,8%, των

γραφείων 9,0% και των αποθηκών κατά 12,0%. Η µέση τιµή ενοικίασησ σε ολÞκληρη την Κύπρο παρουσίασε πτώση 2,1%, στα διαµερίσµατα και 0,5% στα σπίτια, στα καταστήµατα 2,7%, στισ αποθήκεσ 3,4% και στα γραφεία 2,4%. Συγκρίνοντασ τα ενοίκια µε εκείνα του δεύτερου τριµήνου του 2011, οι τιµέσ ενοικίασησ υποχώρησαν κατά 4,7% για τα διαµερίσµατα, 3,3% για σπίτια, 11,0% για καταστήµατα, 14,2% για γραφεία και 10,1% για αποθήκεσ. Σύµφωνα µε τον Παύλο Λοΐζου τησ MRICS, «κατά το δεύτερο τρίµηνο του 2012 η κυπριακή οικονοµία επιβαρύνθηκε περαιτέρω απÞ τισ συνέπειεσ τησ πολιτικήσ αναταραχήσ στην Ελλάδα και την αβεβαιÞτητα που παρατηρείται στην τοπική οικονοµία». «Η επιδεινούµενη κατάσταση τησ οικονοµίασ στην Κύπρο και η αυξανÞµενη πολιτική και οικονοµική αστάθεια σε ολÞκληρη την ευρωζώνη οδήγησαν σε σηµαντική επιβράδυνση του δανεισµού και στην περαιτέρω αύξηση του ποσοστού ανεργίασ», σηµειώνει. Αναφέρει Þτι το πρώτο εξάµηνο του 2012 είδε τουσ επενδυτέσ να αναβάλουν τη λήψη αποφάσεων και να αναζητήσουν ασφαλή καταφύγια για τα κεφάλαια τουσ.

χοµένωσ για πρώτη φορά απÞ τÞτε που υπάρχουν στοιχεία. Πολύ µεγάλη η µείωση και στη ΛεµεσÞ µε ποσοστιαία πτώση 38% η οποία οφείλεται στην κατάθεση µÞνο 110 πωλητηρίων εγγράφων που είναι ο χαµηλÞτεροσ αριθµÞσ για Þλο το 2012. Στη Λάρνακα, η πτώση ήταν µικρή µÞλισ κατά 4% (89 πωλητήρια έγγραφα). Αντίθετα, στην ΑµµÞχωστο η µείωση απÞ τον Ιούλιο του 2011 έφτασε το 47% αφού κατατέθηκαν µÞλισ

47 πωλητήρια. ΜικρÞ το ποσοστÞ πτώσησ στην Πάφο στο 9%. Ùπωσ ήταν αναµενÞµενο και οι αγορέσ απÞ αλλοδαπούσ ήταν κατά πολύ µειωµένεσ αφού µÞλισ για 69 κατατέθηκαν πωλητήρια. Είναι η πρώτη φορά το 2012 που ο αριθµÞσ ακινήτων απÞ αλλοδαπούσ είναι διψήφιοσ.Τον Ιούλιο του 2011 κατατέθηκαν απÞ αλλοδαπούσ αγοραστέσ 122 πωλητήρια, δηλαδή µία µείωση τησ τάξησ του 43.4%.

8 ΑΥΓΟΥΣΤOY, 2012

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™ÙÔ top-10 ÙˆÓ «ÂÈΛӉ˘ÓˆÓ ÔÏÈÙÈÎÒÓ» Ô ∞Ϥ͢ ∆Û›Ú·˜ Στο top-10 των «πιο επικίνδυνων πολιτικών στην Ευρώπη» κατατάσσει τον επικεφαλήσ του ΣΥΡΙΖΑ Αλέξη Τσίπρα η ηλεκτρονική έκδοση του γερµανικού περιοδικού «Der Spiegel». Το περιοδικÞ δικαιολογεί τον χαρακτηρισµÞ του για τον ηγέτη τησ αξιωµατικήσ αντιπολίτευσησ ωσ εξήσ: «Η τελευταία του πρÞταση ήταν πωσ η ελληνική κυβέρνηση θα πρέπει απλώσ να πει Þχι στισ διαπραγµατεύσεισ µε την τρÞϊκα. Οι ιδιωτικοποιήσεισ αποτελούν έγκληµα κατά τα λεγÞµενά του. Έχει χαρακτηριστεί ‘ο πιο επικίνδυνοσ άνδρασ τησ Ευρώπησ’ απÞ τÞτε που ηγείται τησ ριζοσπαστικήσ Αριστεράσ στην Ελλάδα και έχει πάρει στο κυνήγι την κυβέρνηση. Ποιοσ να είναι ο στÞχοσ του; Ο Τσίπρασ ποντάρει στο Þτι δεν µπορεί κανείσ να εκδιώξει την Ελλάδα απÞ το ευρώ και ασκεί δοµική αντιπολίτευση». Την ίδια στιγµή πάντωσ, το περιοδικÞ κατατάσσει στην λίστα των «πιο επικίνδυνων πολιτικών στην Ευρώπη» και δύο Γερµανούσ που έχουν εκφραστεί κατά καιρούσ µε επικριτικά σχÞλια για την Ελλάδα: ΠρÞκειται για τον γενικÞ γραµµατέα των Βαυαρών χριστιανοκοινωνιστών Αλεξάντερ Ντοµπρίντ που ζητεί ανοιχτά πλέον την αποποµπή τησ Ελλάδασ απÞ την ευρωζώνη, καθώσ και τον υπουργÞ Οικονοµικών τησ Βαυαρίασ Μάρκουσ Σέντερ, ο οποίοσ σε πρÞσφατή συνέντευξή του στην εφηµερίδα Bild είχε

επίσησ ζητήσει την έξοδο τησ Ελλάδασ απÞ το ευρώ. Μάλιστα ο Σέντερ έλεγε Þτι «εδώ ισχύει ο παλαιÞσ κανÞνασ τησ ορειβασίασ: Þταν ο άλλοσ κρέµεται απÞ το σχοινί σου και κινδυνεύεισ να σε παρασύρει στον γκρεµÞ, τÞτε πρέπει να κÞψεισ το σχοινί». Και ο Σίλβιο ΜπερλουσκÞνι περιλαµβάνεται στη λίστα Κατά τα άλλα οι περισσÞτεροι «επικίνδυνοι πολιτικοί τησ Ευρώπησ» προέρχονται απÞ τον χώρο των συντηρητικών και ευρω-σκεπτικιστών, εκτιµά το γερµανικÞ περιοδικÞ. Σε περίοπτη θέση βρίσκεται ο πρώην πρωθυπουργÞσ τησ Ιταλίασ Σίλβιο ΜπερλουσκÞνι, ο οποίοσ, µε ατάκεσ εναντίον τησ Γερµανίασ και του ευρώ, ετοιµάζεται για τη «µεγάλη επιστροφή» στην εξουσία µετά το τεχνοκρατικÞ διάλειµµα τησ κυβέρνησησ ΜÞντι.Το περιοδικÞ υπενθυµίζει Þτι η εφηµερίδα Il Giornale, που πρÞσκειται στον ΜπερλουσκÞνι, κυκλοφÞρησε πρÞσφατα µε πρωτοσέλιδο «Τέταρτο Ράϊχ» και σχÞλια ανάλογου ύφουσ για τη Γερµανία. Στην ίδια λίστα περιλαµβάνεται η Μαρίν Λε Πεν, κÞρη του ιδρυτή του «Εθνικού Μετώπου» Ζαν Μαρί Λε Πεν, η οποία σήµερα ηγείται του ακροδεξιού κÞµµατοσ, ζητώντασ την επιστροφή στο γαλλικÞ φράγκο και επικρίνοντασ «την κυρία Μέρκελ και τουσ φίλουσ τησ» που θέλουν να µασ κάνουν «µία ευρωπαϊκή Σοβιετική Ένωση»,

Þπωσ υποστηρίζει. Μερικά απÞ τα υπÞλοιπα ονÞµατα τησ «λίστασ των επικίνδυνων»: Ο ΟλλανδÞσ ακροδεξιÞσ Γκέερτ Βίλντερσ «ο οποίοσ, µπροστά στισ τηλεοπτικέσ κάµερεσ, είχε χαρίσει στον Έλληνα πρεσβευτή στη Χάγη µία δραχµή», ο ΑυστριακÞσ οµοϊδεάτησ του Χάϊντσ Κρίστιαν Στράχε (πρώην συνεργάτησ και διάδοχοσ του Γιεργκ Χάϊντερ στη ηγεσία του λαϊκιστικού δεξιού κÞµµατοσ τησ

χώρασ), καθώσ και ο ευρωσκεπτικιστήσ Νάϊτζελ Φάρατζ, ηγέτησ του βρετανικού «ΚÞµµατοσ τησ Ανεξαρτησίασ», ο οποίοσ κάθε τÞσο προκαλεί γέλωτεσ στο ΕυρωπαϊκÞ Κοινοβούλιο µε τισ ρητορικέσ εξάρσεισ του υπέρ τησ Γηραιάσ Αλβιώνοσ και κατά τησ Ε.Ε. (παράδειγµα: για τον πρÞεδρο τησ Ε.Ε. είχε δηλώσει στο Στρασβούργο Þτι «έχει το χάρισµα µίασ πατσαβούρασ»).

µOC: ∞ÏÏ·Á¤˜ ÛÙËÓ ÔÚÁ·ÓˆÙÈ΋ ‰ÔÌ‹ Νέα οργανωτική δοµή µε στÞχο την πιο αποτελεσµατική διεύθυνση, υιοθέτησε το συγκρÞτηµα τησ Τράπεζασ Κύπρου λαµβάνοντασ υπÞψη τισ συνθήκεσ που επικρατούν σήµερα στο τραπεζικÞ σύστηµα τησ Κύπρου. Βασική αρχή τησ νέασ δοµήσ είναι Þπωσ Þλοι οι Ανώτεροι Γενικοί ∆ιευθυντέσ και οι Γενικοί ∆ιευθυντέσ αναφέρονται απευθείασ στον ∆ιευθύνοντα Σύµβουλο Συγκροτήµατοσ, Γ. Κυπρή, για να υπάρχει αµεσÞτητα επικοινωνίασ και για να τουσ παρέχεται η υποστήριξη και η στρατηγική κατεύθυνση που χρειάζεται το ΣυγκρÞτηµα. Εξαίρεση αποτελούν ο ΓενικÞσ ∆ιευθυντήσ Τράπεζασ Κύπρου Ελλάδασ, Γ. Σειραδάκησ, καθώσ και οι ∆ιευθύνσεισ Ρωσίασ, Ουκρανίασ και Ρουµανίασ που θα αναφέρονται στον Πρώτο Αναπληρωτή ∆ιευθύνοντα Σύµβουλο, Γ. Πεχλιβανίδη. Η νέα οργανική δοµή του Συγκροτήµατοσ έχει ωσ ακολούθωσ: α) Ανώτεροσ ΓενικÞσ ∆ιευθυντήσ Συγκροτήµατοσ, κ. Χρ. Χατζηµιτσήσ: θα έχει υπÞ την ευθύνη του την Οικονοµική

∆ιεύθυνση Συγκροτήµατοσ & Φορολογικού Σχεδιασµού, την Υπηρεσία Οικονοµικών Μελετών Συγκροτήµατοσ, την Υπηρεσία Εξαγορών & Συγχωνεύσεων και Στρατηγική Συγκροτήµατοσ, την Τράπεζα Κύπρου Ηνωµένου Βασιλείου και την Υπηρεσία Επενδυτικών Σχέσεων. β) Ανώτεροσ ΓενικÞσ ∆ιευθυντήσ Συγκροτήµατοσ, κ. Ν. Καρυδάσ: θα έχει υπÞ την ευθύνη του τον Τοµέα ∆ιεθνών Τραπεζικών Εργασιών και την Υπηρεσία Recoveries. γ) ΓενικÞσ ∆ιευθυντήσ Τράπεζα Κύπρου Ελλάδασ, κ. Γ. Σειραδάκησ: θα έχει υπÞ την

ευθύνη του τισ εργασίεσ τησ Ελλάδασ. δ) ΓενικÞσ ∆ιευθυντήσ Operations Συγκροτήµατοσ, κ. Αρ. Στυλιανού: θα έχει υπÞ την ευθύνη του τισ κεντρικοποιηµένεσ υπηρεσίεσ και τισ Εταιρίεσ Γενικέσ Ασφάλειεσ Κύπρου, EuroLife και ΚΕΡΜΙΑ. ε) ΓενικÞσ ∆ιευθυντήσ Πληροφορικήσ και Ο&Μ Συγκροτήµατοσ, κ. Λ. Εισοδίου: θα έχει υπÞ την ευθύνη του τισ εργασίεσ Πληροφορικήσ και Ο&Μ Συγκροτήµατοσ. Αγορών ζ) ΓενικÞσ ∆ιευθυντήσ Συγκροτήµατοσ, κ. Χρ. Πατσαλίδησ: θα έχει υπÞ την ευθύνη του την Κύπρου ΑΕ∆ΑΚ, την Τράπεζα Κύπρου Channel Islands, τη CISCO και την Κύπρου Χρηµατιστηριακή. η) ΓενικÞσ ∆ιευθυντήσ Λιανικήσ Τραπεζικήσ Κύπρου, κ. Χ. Πουαγκαρέ: θα έχει υπÞ την ευθύνη του το ∆ίκτυο Καταστηµάτων και Business Centres. θ) ΓενικÞσ ∆ιευθυντήσ ∆ιαχείρισησ Ανθρώπινου ∆υναµικού Συγκροτήµατοσ, κ. Γ. Χριστοδουλίδησ: θα έχει υπÞ την ευθύνη του τισ Υπηρεσίεσ Ανθρώπινου ∆υναµικού Συγκροτήµατοσ, το ΠολιτιστικÞ Ίδρυµα και το ΙστορικÞ Αρχείο. Ο ∆ιευθύνων

Σύµβουλοσ θα παραµείνει ΠρÞεδροσ στα ∆ιοικητικά Συµβούλια των δύο Ιδρυµάτων. ι) ΓενικÞσ ∆ιευθυντήσ Μεγάλων Επιχειρήσεων Κύπρου, κ. Φ. ΣτασÞπουλοσ: θα έχει υπÞ την ευθύνη του τον Τοµέα Μεγάλων Επιχειρήσεων. κ) ΓενικÞσ ∆ιευθυντήσ ∆ιαχείρισησ Κινδύνων Συγκροτήµατοσ, κ. Α. Ανδρεαδάκησ: θα έχει υπÞ την ευθύνη του ∆ιαχείρισησ Κινδύνων Τοµέα τον Συγκροτήµατοσ. λ) ΓενικÞσ Ελεγκτήσ Συγκροτήµατοσ, κ. Κ. Τσολάκκησ: θα έχει υπÞ την ευθύνη του τισ εργασίεσ Εσωτερικού Ελέγχου Συγκροτήµατοσ. Ο Ανώτεροσ ∆ιευθυντήσ Κεντρικήσ Νοµικήσ Υπηρεσίασ, κ. Φ. Ζωµενήσ, ο οποίοσ έχει ήδη διοριστεί Γραµµατέασ τησ Εταιρείασ, αναλαµβάνει και την Υπηρεσία Μετοχών και Χρεογράφων και την Εταιρική ∆ιακυβέρνηση και θα αναφέρεται στον ∆ιευθύνοντα Σύµβουλο. Το Γραφείο Τύπου και το Τµήµα Επικοινωνίασ θα αναφέρονται στον ∆ιευθύνοντα Σύµβουλο.

∂ÎÛÙÚ·Ù›· ÂÓ·ÓÙ›ÔÓ Ù˘ ÊÔÚÔ‰È·Ê˘Á‹˜ Σε εξέλιξη βρίσκεται συντονισµένη εκστρατεία τησ Υπηρεσίασ Φ.Π.Α. για την πάταξη τησ φοροδιαφυγήσ. Μετά την εκπÞνηση συγκεκριµένου έκτακτου σχεδίου δράσησ απ’ το επιτελείο στρατηγικού σχεδιασµού τησ Υπηρεσίασ, κλιµάκια αποτελούµενα απÞ δύο λειτουργούσ Φ.Π.Α., και σε παγκύπρια κλίµακα, επισκέπτονται δεκάδεσ υποστατικά επιχειρήσεων για να διαπιστωθεί κατά πÞσο τα υποκείµενα στο φÞρο πρÞσωπα, συµµορφώνονται µε τισ διατάξεισ τησ περί Φ.Π.Α. νοµοθεσίασ. Οι φορολογικοί έλεγχοι που γίνονται, εστιάζονται, µεταξύ άλλων, στην ορθή

εφαρµογή τησ Νοµοθεσίασ σε σχέση µε την υποχρεωτική έκδοση απÞδειξησ. ΣκοπÞσ τησ εκστρατείασ η οποία εµπίπτει στα πλαίσιο τησ εντατικοποίησησ των µέτρων για πάταξη τησ φοροδιαφυγήσ, είναι να ληφθούν µέτρα κατά αυτών που παραβιάζουν τη Νοµοθεσία, αλλά και να δοθούν χρήσιµεσ συµβουλέσ στα υποκείµενα στο φÞρο πρÞσωπα. Σύµφωνα µε το Σχέδιο ∆ράσησ 2012, που απορρέει απ’ το ΣτρατηγικÞ Σχέδιο 2011-2013 τησ Υπηρεσίασ Φ.Π.Α., αναµένεται Þτι θ’ ακολουθήσουν, στο άµεσο µέλλον, παρÞµοιου τύπου µέτρα για τη διασφάλιση των δηµοσίων εσÞδων.

8 AΥΓΟΥΣΤΟΥ, 2012

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ΕΙ∆ΗΣΕΙΣ | 5/17

濯ÓÔÓÙ·˜ ‰ÈÂıÓ‹ Ô›ÎÔ ÁÈ· Ù· ¯·ÚÙÔÊ˘Ï¿ÎÈ· ΕντÞσ τησ εβδοµάδασ καθορίζονται τα µέλη τησ 10µελούσ επιτροπήσ (Steering Committee) που θα επιλέξει, µέσω προσφορών, τον διεθνή οίκο, ο οποίοσ θα διεξαγάγει, κατ’ απαίτηση τησ ΤρÞικασ, τον διαγνωστικÞ έλεγχο στα δανειακά χαρτοφυλάκια των τριών κυπριακών τραπεζών, τησ Alpha Bank,τησ Eurobank και αντιπροσωπευτικήσ οµάδασ συνεργατικών πιστωτικών ιδρυµάτων ώστε να διαφανούν επακριβώσ οι κεφαλαιακέσ ανάγκεσ του τραπεζικού συστήµατοσ τησ Κύπρου. Παράλληλα, εντÞσ των ηµερών οριστικοποιείται η σύνθεση των µελών τησ οµάδασ των ανεξάρτητων εµπειρογνωµÞνων που θα πραγµατοποιήσουν έρευνα, εκ τησ Κεντρικήσ µέρουσ Τράπεζασ (ΚΤ) τησ Κύπρου, σε Þ,τι αφορά την αγορά ελληνικών κυβερνητικών οµολÞγων απÞ τισ τράπεζεσ Κύπρου και Λαϊκή, την επέκταση των τραπεζών στο εξωτερικÞ και τισ ευθύνεσ τησ ίδιασ τησ εποπτικήσ αρχήσ.

EντÞσ τησ εβδοµάδασ θα καθοριστούν τα µέλη τησ 10µελούσ επιτροπήσ (Steering Committee), η οποία θα απαρτίζεται απÞ πέντε µέλη απÞ τισ κυπριακέσ αρχέσ και πέντε µέλη απÞ την ΤρÞικα και τισ άλλεσ ευρωπαϊκέσ αρχέσ και το αργÞτερο στισ επÞµενεσ δύο εβδοµάδεσ ο οίκοσ θα πρέπει να πιάσει δουλειά για να ολοκληρώσει τον διαγνωστικÞ έλεγχο µέχρι τον Οκτώβριο έτσι ώστε να βγουν τα αποτελέσµατα για τισ κεφαλαιακέσ ανάγκεσ των τραπεζών αρχέσ Νοεµβρίου. “Αρχέσ Νοεµβρίου θα πρέπει να γνωρίζουµε επακριβώσ τισ κεφαλαιακέσ ανάγκεσ του τραπεζικού συστήµατοσ τησ Κύπρου, οι οποίεσ θα καθορίσουν και το ποσÞ του δανεισµού για τισ τράπεζεσ, εξαιρουµένου του ποσού που χρειάζεται η Κυβέρνηση για τα δηµοσιονοµικά”, δήλωσε αρµÞδια. Ο διαγνωστικÞσ έλεγχοσ θα γίνει απÞ εξωτερικÞ οίκο, τον οποίο θα καθορίσει η 10µελήσ οµάδα που θα απαρτίζεται απÞ εκπροσώπουσ του Υπουργείου Οικονοµικών, τησ Κεντρικήσ Τράπεζασ, τησ Συνεργατικήσ Κεντρικήσ Τράπεζασ, τησ ΤρÞικασ, τησ Ευρωπαϊκήσ Αρχήσ Τραπεζών και του Μηχανισµού Στήριξησ EFSF/ESM. Σύµφωνα µε την ίδια πηγή, ο οίκοσ θα προβεί “στα λεγÞµενα bottom up stress test για να εντοπίσει τισ κεφαλαιακέσ

EÓÙfi˜ Ù˘ ‚‰ÔÌ¿‰·˜ ı· ηıÔÚÈÛÙÔ‡Ó Ù· ̤ÏË Ù˘ 10ÌÂÏÔ‡˜ ÂÈÙÚÔ‹˜ (Steering Committee), Ë ÔÔ›· ı· ··ÚÙ›˙ÂÙ·È ·fi ¤ÓÙ ̤ÏË ·fi ÙȘ ΢ÚȷΤ˜ ·Ú¯¤˜ Î·È ¤ÓÙ ̤ÏË ·fi ÙËÓ ∆ÚfiÈη

ανάγκεσ” του χρηµατοπιστωτικού συστήµατοσ τησ Κύπρου και κατ΄ επέκταση το ποσÞ το οποίο πρέπει να δανειστεί η Κυπριακή ∆ηµοκρατία. Οι Þροι εντολήσ έχουν οριστικοποιηθεί και “θα περιµένουµε να συσταθεί η επιτροπή που θα παρακολουθεί τον έλεγχο και θα ζητήσει προσφορέσ απÞ ένα αριθµÞ οίκων οι οποίοι είναι σε θέση να κάνουν αυτÞ τον έλεγχο”, εξήγησε. “ΒρισκÞµαστε στο στάδιο που οι Þροι εντολήσ που θα δοθούν έχουν κατά 99,9% αποφασιστεί και παραµένει η τελική σύνθεση τησ επιτροπήσ η οποία θα αναθέσει αυτÞ τον έλεγχο απÞ τουσ διεθνείσ οίκουσ”, είπε η ίδια πηγή, εκτιµώντασ Þτι η διαδικασία η επιλογήσ

του οίκου “το πολύ να πάρει ακÞµη µια ή δύο εβδοµάδεσ το αργÞτερο”, σηµείωσε. Ανέφερε επίσησ Þτι το αργÞτερο στισ επÞµενεσ δύο εβδοµάδεσ θα δοθούν οι Þροι εντολήσ σε ένα προκαθορισµένο αριθµÞ οίκων που κρίνονται κατάλληλοι Þτι µπορούν να διεξαγάγουν αυτÞ τον εξειδικευµένο έλεγχο και θα καθοριστεί ο οίκοσ για να πιάσει δουλειά”. Ο οίκοσ που θα εµπλακεί θα είναι τύπου Black Rock και θα αφορά οίκουσ που έχουν εµπλακεί στην Ελλάδα, στην Ιρλανδία, στην Πορτογαλία και στην Ισπανία. Οσον αφορά την ειδική έρευνα που θα διεξαγάγει η Κεντρική Τράπεζα, η ίδια πηγή

είπε Þτι “βρίσκεται ακÞµη υπÞ διαµÞρφωση” η σύνθεση τησ οµάδασ των ανεξάρτητων εµπειρογνωµÞνων που θα πραγµατοποιήσουν έρευνα “για το τί πήγε στραβά” µε τισ δύο µεγάλεσ τράπεζεσ, Κύπρου και Λαϊκή, σηµειώνοντασ Þτι εντÞσ των ηµερών θα οριστικοποιηθεί η σύνθεση των µελών τησ οµάδασ. Η έρευνα θα περιλάβει την αγορά ελληνικών κυβερνητικών οµολÞγων, την επέκταση των τραπεζών στο εξωτερικÞ και τισ ευθύνεσ τησ ίδιασ τησ εποπτικήσ αρχήσ. “Ιδεωδώσ θα θέλαµε να µη διαρκέσει πέρα των τριών µηνών η έρευνα για να µην εισέλθουµε στην προεκλογική περίοδο”, σηµείωσε.

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∂ÛˆÙÂÚÈ΋ ˘ÔÙ›ÌËÛË ÌÂÙ¿ Ù· ·Î¤Ù· ‰È¿ÛˆÛ˘ Σε διαδικασία εσωτερικήσ υποτίµησησ εµφανίζονται οι χώρεσ που προωθούν προγράµµατα δηµοσιονοµικήσ προσαρµογήσ (Πορτογαλία, Ιταλία, Ιρλανδία, Ελλάδα, Ισπανία), σύµφωνα µε έρευνα τησ Grant Thornton, καθώσ παρουσιάζονται αδύναµεσ να υποτιµήσουν τα νοµίσµατά τουσ ωσ µέσο αύξησησ τησ ανταγωνιστικÞτητασ των τιµών των αγαθών και υπηρεσιών τουσ. Σύµφωνα µε την έρευνα, οι µισθοί και οι τιµέσ πώλησησ προϊÞντων στισ χώρεσ αυτέσ φαίνεται Þτι θα µειωθούν σε σχέση µε άλλεσ χώρεσ, ωσ συνέπεια των µέτρων λιτÞτητασ και των χαµηλών επιπέδων ανάπτυξησ τησ οικονοµικήσ δραστηριÞτητασ. Τα αποτελέσµατα τησ έρευνασ δείχνουν

√È ÂÂÓ‰˘Ù¤˜ ÔÌÔÏfiÁˆÓ ÂÌÈÛÙ‡ÔÓÙ·È ÙÔ Â˘ÚÒ Οι Ευρωπαίοι επενδυτέσ σταθερού εισοδήµατοσ (δηλαδή οµολÞγων) εκτιµούν στην πλειονÞτητά τουσ Þτι η Ευρωζώνη θα αντισταθεί στισ πιέσεισ που σήµερα υφίσταται και θα διατηρήσει τη συνοχή τησ, σύµφωνα µε την τακτική τριµηνιαία έρευνα του αµερικανικού οίκου πιστοληπτικήσ αξιολÞγησησ, Fitch. ΜÞνο το 5% των ερωτηθέντων στη σχετική έρευνα θεωρεί Þτι η Ευρωζώνη θα διαλυθεί. Ένα επιπλέον ποσοστÞ 9% εκτιµούν Þτι θα προκύψουν πολλαπλέσ χρεοκοπίεσ εντÞσ του ευρώ, χωρίσ ωστÞσο να προκαλέσουν την διάλυσή του. ΕπιπρÞσθετα, το 21% των ερωτηθέντων εκτιµά Þτι η Ελλάδα και πιθανÞτατα άλλη µια ή δυο ακÞµα χώρεσ ενδεχοµένωσ να βγουν απÞ το ευρώ. ΩστÞσο, η πλειοψηφία των επενδυτών αναµένει µια κίνηση τησ Ευρωζώνησ στην κατεύθυνση τησ περαιτέρω δηµοσιονοµικήσ ενοποίησησ (33%) ή απλώσ παράταση τησ σηµερινήσ κατάστασησ δίχωσ επίλυση τησ κρίσησ (31%).

™ÙËÓ ‰‡ÓË Ù˘ ‡ÊÂÛ˘ Ë πÙ·Ï›· Η οικονοµία τησ Ιταλίασ συρρικνώθηκε κατά 0,7% στη διάρκεια του δεύτερου τριµήνου του τρέχοντοσ έτουσ σε σύγκριση µε το προηγούµενο τρίµηνο, σύµφωνα µε τα προκαταρκτικά στοιχεία που δηµοσιοποίησε η στατιστική υπηρεσία τησ χώρασ Istat. Ωσ εκ τούτου, η χώρα συνεχίζει να βρίσκεται σε ύφεση απÞ το τέταρτο τρίµηνο του 2011, καταγράφοντασ υποχώρηση Ακαθάριστου Εγχωρίου ΠροϊÞντοσ κατά 0,7%, υπÞ το βάροσ τησ περιοριστικήσ πολιτικήσ που εφαρµÞζει για την αντιµετώπιση τησ κρίσησ κρατικού χρέουσ.

Standard Chartered: «∂Í·Ê·Ó›ÛÙËηӻ $16 ‰È˜ Η αξία κεφαλαιοποίησησ τησ βρετανικήσ τράπεζασ Standard Chartered στο Χρηµατιστήριο του Λονδίνου συρρικνώθηκε χθεσ κατά περίπου 16 δισ. δολάρια ωσ συνέπεια τησ βουτιάσ κατά 23,5% τησ µετοχήσ τησ, στον απÞηχο των σε βάροσ τησ ενεργειών απÞ την εισαγγελεία τησ Νέασ ΥÞρκησ. Η τελευταία κατηγÞρησε την Standard Chartered, η οποία εστιάζει τισ δραστηριÞτητέσ τησ στην Ασία, Þτι απέκρυψε συναλλαγέσ του Ιράν µέσω τησ ίδιασ η συνολική αξία των οποίων ανέρχεται στα 250 δισ. δολάρια τα τελευταία 10 χρÞνια. Η σοβαρÞτατη αυτή κατηγορία έσπειρε τον πανικÞ στουσ µετÞχουσ τησ Standard Chartered που προχώρησαν σε ξεπούληµα των τίτλων τουσ µε συνέπεια την καταβαράρθρωση τησ τιµήσ τησ µετοχήσ τησ.

Þτι, ενώ µέσα στουσ επÞµενουσ 12 µήνεσ οι επιχειρήσεισ σε άλλεσ χώρεσ θα αυξήσουν τισ τιµέσ πώλησησ αγαθών και υπηρεσιών, στισ χώρεσ αυτέσ οι µειώσεισ τιµών θα είναι περισσÞτερεσ απÞ τισ αυξήσεισ. Σε αυτέσ τισ χώρεσ, οι οποίεσ έχουν λάβει πακέτα διάσωσησ, µÞνο το -11% των επιχειρήσεων σχεδιάζουν να αυξήσουν τισ τιµέσ πώλησησ µέσα στουσ επÞµενουσ 12 µήνεσ (δηλαδή 11% των επιχειρήσεων σχεδιάζουν να µειώσουν τισ τιµέσ σε σχέση µε εκείνεσ που σχεδιάζουν να τισ αυξήσουν), σηµειώνοντασ µεγάλη πτώση απÞ το ποσοστÞ των -3% που καταγράφηκε το προηγούµενο τρίµηνο. Το αντίστοιχο ποσοστÞ παγκοσµίωσ είναι 24%.

Συγκεκριµένα, στην Ελλάδα και στην Ιρλανδία, το ποσοστÞ αυτÞ είναι -18% (σε σύγκριση µε -16% και -4% αντίστοιχα του 1ου τριµήνου), και στην Ισπανία -9% (σε σύγκριση µε 0% το 1ο τρίµηνο). Αντίθετα, κατά µέσο Þρο, το 24% των επιχειρήσεων σε παγκÞσµιο επίπεδο θα αυξήσουν τισ τιµέσ των αγαθών και των υπηρεσιών τουσ κατά τη διάρκεια των επÞµενων 12 µηνών: 36% των επιχειρήσεων στισ χώρεσ BRIC (Βραζιλία, Ρωσία, Ινδία και Κίνα), 33% στη ΒÞρεια Αµερική και 42% στη Λατινική Αµερική. Επιπλέον, σχεδÞν καµία επιχείρηση στισ χώρεσ αυτέσ (µÞλισ 1%) δεν σχεδιάζει αυξήσεισ στουσ µισθούσ πάνω απÞ τον πληθωρι-

σµÞ µέσα στουσ επÞµενουσ 12 µήνεσ. Αντιθέτωσ, το 15% των επιχειρήσεων θα µειώσουν τουσ µισθούσ και το 49% σκοπεύουν να µην προσφέρουν καµία αύξηση. ΑπÞ την άλλη πλευρά, µÞλισ 2% των επιχειρήσεων σε παγκÞσµιο επίπεδο σκοπεύουν να µειώσουν τουσ µισθούσ κατά τη διάρκεια των επÞµενων 12 µηνών, ενώ το 17% των επιχειρήσεων σχεδιάζουν αυξήσεισ πάνω απÞ τον πληθωρισµÞ. ΕιδικÞτερα, δεν υπάρχουν επιχειρήσεισ στην Ελλάδα που σκοπεύουν να προσφέρουν µισθολογικέσ αυξήσεισ τουσ επÞµενουσ 12 µήνεσ, ενώ το 36% των επιχειρήσεων σχεδιάζουν να µειώσουν τουσ µισθούσ, σύµφωνα µε την ίδια έρευνα.

™ÙȘ 11 ™ÂÙÂÌ‚Ú›Ô˘ ÔÈ ÚÔÙ¿ÛÂȘ ÂÔÙ›·˜ ÙˆÓ ÙÚ·Â˙ÒÓ Στισ 11 Σεπτεµβρίου θα παρουσιάσει η Ευρωπαϊκή Επιτροπή τισ προτάσεισ τησ για τη δηµιουργία οργάνου εποπτείασ των τραπεζών τησ Ευρωζώνησ. Η νέα Αρχή θα υπάγεται διοικητικά στην ΕΚΤ και θα λάβει αρµοδιÞτητεσ που σήµερα έχει η Ευρωπαϊκή Τραπεζική Αρχή (ΕΒΑ). Στισ Βρυξέλλεσ επιθυµούν οι σχετικέσ αποφάσεισ να ληφθούν το ταχύτερο δυνατÞ, καθώσ η δηµιουργία τησ νέασ Αρχήσ είναι προϋπÞθεση για τη στήριξη των τραπεζών απÞ τον ESM. Η δηµιουργία µιασ αρχήσ για την εποπτεία του τραπεζικού τοµέα αποφασίστηκε στη διάρκεια τησ τελευταίασ συνÞδου κορυφήσ, στα τέλη Ιουνίου. Αποτελεί προϋπÞθεση για τον απευθείασ δανεισµÞ των τραπεζικών ιδρυµάτων απÞ τον ΕυρωπαϊκÞ ΜηχανισµÞ Στήριξησ (ΕSΜ), εξέλιξη που θα σηµάνει Þτι δεν θα βαρύνεται πλέον το χρέοσ των κρατών µελών τησ ευρωζώνησ σε περιπτώσεισ τραπεζικών διασώσεων. ΠρÞκειται για µια εξέλιξη η οποία αφορά άµεσα την Ισπανία, η οποία προσδοκά να λάβει χρηµατοδοτική στήριξη ύψουσ 100 δισ. ευρώ απÞ την ευρωζώνη, ώστε να µπορέσει

να διασώσει το τραπεζικÞ τησ σύστηµα. Ο πρωθυπουργÞσ τησ Ισπανίασ Μαριάνο ΡαχÞι ζήτησε, την Παρασκευή, οι προτάσεισ για τη δηµιουργία µιασ τραπεζικήσ “ένωσησ” να τεθούν στο τραπέζι των διαπραγµατεύσεων των ηγετών των 27 τον Οκτώβριο ώστε να έχουν τύχει τελικήσ έγκρισησ έωσ το

∆εκέµβριο εφέτοσ. Το σχέδιο για την δηµιουργία Ενωσησ Τραπεζών, αν παρουσιαστεί στισ 11 Σεπτεµβρίου, θα είναι µÞλισ µία ηµέρα πριν το γερµανικÞ συνταγµατικÞ δικαστήριο αποφανθεί κατά πÞσον ο ESM είναι συµβατÞσ µε το Σύνταγµα τησ χώρασ.

Moody’s: ÃÚÂÔÎÔ›· Í·Ó¿ Η Moody’s Investor Service ανακοίνωσε Þτι οι χώρεσ που προχωρούν σε ανταλλαγή προβληµατικών οµολÞγων (distressed debt exchange), έχουν υψηλÞ ρίσκο να χρεοκοπήσουν ξανά, σύµφωνα µε την ανάλυση των ιστορικών στοιχείων εν τω µέσω έντονων πιέσεων για τα κράτη τησ ευρωζώνησ. Ο οίκοσ αξιολÞγησησ τονίζει Þτι το 37% των 30 ανταλλαγών κρατικού χρέουσ απÞ 22 εκδÞτριεσ χώρεσ, απÞ το 1997, ακολουθήθηκαν απÞ περαιτέρω χρεοκοπίεσ. «Αυτά τα υψηλά ποσοστά νέασ χρεοκο-

πίασ µετά απÞ µια ανταλλαγή προβληµατικού χρέουσ στον κρατικÞ τοµέα, είναι παρÞµοια µε την εµπειρία στον εταιρικÞ κλάδο παγκοσµίωσ και εξηγεί για ποιο λÞγο οι αξιολογήσεισ συχνά µένουν σε χαµηλÞ επίπεδο, στην κλίµα τησ Caa-C αξιολÞγησησ, ύστερα απÞ ανταλλαγέσ προβληµατικού χρέουσ», αναφέρει η Elena Duggar, συγγραφέασ του report. Η Ελλάδα προχώρησε στην µεγαλύτερη αναδιάρθρωση κρατικού χρέουσ που έχει γίνει ποτέ. Η Moody’s αποδίδει αξιολÞγηση

C στο ελληνικÞ κρατικÞ χρέοσ. Στο report ο οίκοσ επισηµαίνει Þτι ο µέσοσ Þροσ απωλειών/ζηµιών που υφίστανται οι επενδυτέσ σε τέτοιεσ ανταλλαγέσ, είναι στο 47%. Η παράταση του χρÞνου ωρίµανσησ είναι ένα πολύ πιο συνηθισµένο χαρακτηριστικÞ των αναδιαρθρώσεων απÞ το να επιβάλλονται ζηµιέσ στο principal του χρέουσ, και οι ζηµιέσ ήταν κατά κάποιο τρÞπο correlated µε την αναλογία του χρέουσ τησ χώρασ ωσ ποσοστÞ επί του ΑΕΠ, ανέφερε η Moody’s.

∏ Wall Street ÚÔÂÙÔÈÌ¿˙ÂÙ·È ÁÈ· ‰È¿Û·ÛË Προετοιµασίεσ για το ενδεχÞµενο διάσπασησ τησ Ευρωζώνησ κάνουν οι τράπεζεσ τησ Wall Street. Σύµφωνα µε δηµοσίευµα τησ Wall Street Journal, οι τράπεζεσ έχουν ήδη περιορίσει την έκθεσή τουσ στισ οικονοµίεσ τησ Ευρωζώνησ, σε µικρÞτερο ή µεγαλύτερο βαθµÞ. Μεταξύ των µεγαλυτέρων τραπεζών, τη σηµαντικÞτερη έκθεση έχει η JPMorgan (20

δισ. δολ.) και τη µικρÞτερη η Morgan Stanley (4,5 δισ. δολ.). Οι τράπεζεσ συµβουλεύουν τουσ πελάτεσ τουσ να χρησιµοποιούν µέσα αντιστάθµισησ κινδύνου (CDS) και να αναδιαρθρώσουν τισ συµβάσεισ που έχουν µε Ευρωπαίουσ «ώστε να διασφαλίσουν πωσ εάν µια χώρα εγκαταλείψει την Ευρωζώνη δεν θα χρειαστεί να λάβουν πληρωµέσ σε υποτιµηµένη δραχµή ή πεσέτα».

Οι τράπεζεσ προτείνουν οι συµβάσεισ να αντικατασταθούν µε νέεσ που θα υπÞκεινται στο βρετανικÞ δίκαιο, σύµφωνα µε το οποίο οι οφειλέσ σε ευρώ δεν µετατρέπονται στο (υποτιµηµένο) εθνικÞ νÞµισµα στην περίπτωση που µία χώρα αποχωρήσει απÞ την Ευρωζώνη. Πληροφορίεσ αναφέρουν Þτι ήδη κάποια hedge funds σταµάτησαν τισ συναλλαγέσ µε ελληνικέσ εταιρείεσ.

8 ΑΥΓΟΥΣΤOY, 2012

ΧΡΗΜΑ&ΑΓΟΡΑ

ΕΛΛΑ∆Α | 7/19

M¿¯Ë ·Ó¿ÌÂÛ· Û Alpha Î·È Eurobank ÁÈ· ÙËÓ ∂ÌÔÚÈ΋ Tελειώνει σήµερα η διορία που έχουν για να καταθέσουν τισ δεσµευτικέσ προσφορέσ τουσ οι Εθνική, Alpha και Eurobank Þσον αφορά την Emporiki. ∆ροµολογείται και η ιδιωτικοποίηση του Ταχυδροµικού Ταµιευτηρίου Τον Σεπτέµβριο αναµένεται η κυβέρνηση να πάρει τισ τελικέσ τησ αποφάσεισ για την ανακεφαλαιοποίηση των τραπεζών Οµωσ προϋπÞθεση για να προχωρήσουν οι διαδικασίεσ ανακεφαλαιοποίησησ είναι η ολοκλήρωση τησ πρώτησ φάσησ τησ συγκέντρωσησ δυνάµεων στο ελληνικÞ τραπεζικÞ σύστηµα, Þπωσ αναφέρουν κύκλοι του υπουργείου Οικονοµικών. Η εβδοµάδα που διανύουµε είναι καθοριστική για την Emporiki, καθώσ οι ενδιαφερÞµενεσ τράπεζεσ Εθνική, Alpha και Eurobank έχουν διορία να καταθέσουν δεσµευτικέσ προσφορέσ τουσ στο Ταµείο Χρηµατοπιστωτικήσ ΣταθερÞτητασ. Υπενθυµίζουµε Þτι οι τρεισ υποψήφιοι «µνηστήρεσ» τησ Εµπορικήσ, Þπωσ και η Credit Agricole, έχουν ενηµερωθεί µε επιστολή του ΤΧΣ Þτι για να προχωρήσει η διαδικασία υπάρχουν οι εξήσ δεσµεύσεισ:

H Credit Agricole θα αναλάβει την υποεπανακεφαλαιοποίησησ τησ χρέωση Εµπορικήσ Τράπεζασ (ύψουσ 2,5 δισ ευρώ) πριν προχωρήσει η εξαγορά. Η Credit Agricole θα συνεχίσει την παροχή ρευστÞτητασ στην Εµπορική, το ύψοσ τησ οποίασ ανέρχεται στα 5 δισ ευρώ. Θα διενεργηθεί έλεγχοσ (due diligence) τησ Εµπορικήσ Τράπεζασ και απÞ το Ταµείο Χρηµατοπιστωτικήσ ΣταθερÞτητασ, εκτÞσ απÞ τισ ενδιαφερÞµενεσ τράπεζεσ, ώστε να είναι πλήρωσ επικαιροποιηµένα. ΑκÞµα οι Γάλλοι θα πρέπει να παραµείνουν στη χώρα, διατηρώντασ ένα κρίσιµο ποσοστÞ στο νέο σχήµα. Ενώ θα πρέπει να υπάρχουν σαφή και αδιάσειστα στοιχεία Þτι το deal είναι επικερδέσ για τισ ελληνικέσ τράπεζεσ και, µάλιστα, να πειστεί το ΤΧΣ για τα οφέλη συγχώνευσησ τησ Þποιασ τράπεζασ προκριθεί µε την Εµπορική. Αν και οι τρεισ τράπεζεσ έχουν δηλώσει το ενδιαφέρον τουσ για την απÞκτηση τησ Εµπορικήσ, η «σκληρή µάχη» θα δοθεί ανάµεσα σε δύο: την Alpha και τη Eurobank. Μάλιστα τραπεζικοί κύκλοι σχολίαζαν πωσ «η Eurobank επιθυµεί διακαώσ την απÞκτηση

¶ÔÓÙ¿ÚÔ˘Ó ÛÙËÓ ÎÚÔ˘·˙Ȥڷ Η Εθνική Τράπεζα, στα πλαίσια των περιοδικών εκδÞσεων για κλάδουσ τησ ελληνικήσ οικονοµίασ, συνέταξε µελέτη για την κρουαζιέρα. Η ∆ιεύθυνση Στρατηγικήσ και Οικονοµικήσ Ανάλυσησ τησ Τράπεζασ, και συγκεκριµένα οι αναλύτριεσ Φραγκίσκα Βουµβάκη, Μαρία Σάββα και Αθανασία Κουτούζου, εκπÞνησαν ανάλυση που εστιάζει στη δυναµική του κλάδου σε διεθνέσ επίπεδο και τα διαρθρωτικά χαρακτηριστικά τησ ευρωπαϊκήσ αγοράσ και στα σηµαντικά οφέλη για την ελληνική οικονοµία αν εκµεταλλευτεί τα φυσικά συγκριτικά πλεονεκτήµατα τησ. ΑπÞ την έρευνα προκύπτει Þτι: α) Η διεθνήσ ζήτηση προκύπτει σε µεγάλο βαθµÞ απÞ την αγορά τησ ΒÞρειασ Αµερικήσ (Η.Π.Α. και Καναδάσ) η οποία αποτελεί χώρα προέλευσησ του 60% των επιβατών κρουαζιέρασ. ΩστÞσο, οι Ευρωπαίοι τουρίστεσ (προερχÞµενοι κυρίωσ απÞ το Ην. Βασίλειο και τη Γερµανία) κερδίζουν συνεχώσ µερίδιο αγοράσ (30% το 2011, απÞ 21% το 2000 και 14% το 1990). Επιπλέον, η Ευρώπη ωσ ήπειροσ προέλευσησ τουριστών κρουαζιέρασ έχει σηµαντικά περιθώρια περαιτέρω ανάπτυξησ, καθώσ οι επιβάτεσ κρουαζιέρασ αποτελούν περίπου το 1,5% του πληθυσµού στισ βασικέσ ευρωπαϊκέσ αγορέσ, έναντι 3,3% στην αγορά τησ ΒÞρειασ Αµερικήσ (Þπου υπάρχει µεγαλύτερη εξοικείωση µε τη συγκεκριµένη µορφή τουρισµού και συνεπώσ είναι πιο κοντά στο σηµείο κορεσµού). Επιπλέον, στο σηµείο αυτÞ είναι σηµαντικÞ να τονίσουµε Þτι οι ασιατικέσ χώρεσ (που καλύπτουν το 7% τησ διεθνούσ ζήτησησ) έχουν σηµαντικÞ περιθώριο ανάπτυξησ τα επÞµενα χρÞνια, καθώσ οι επιβάτεσ κρουαζιέρασ αποτελούν µÞνο το 0,04% του πληθυσµού. β) Εστιάζοντασ στην ευρωπαϊκή αγορά, οι χώρεσ µε τη υψηλÞτερη επισκεψιµÞτητα είναι η Ιταλία, η Ισπανία και η Ελλάδα, οι οποίεσ συγκεντρώνουν διαχρονικά το 60% των επισκέψεων ευρωπαϊκήσ κρουαζιέρασ. Συγκεκριµένα, σε καθεµία απÞ αυτέσ τισ 3 µεσογειακέσ χώρεσ αντιστοιχούν 5-6,5 εκατ. επισκέψεισ τουριστών κρουαζιέρασ ετησίωσ. Καθώσ κάθε τουρίστασ επισκέπτεται 2-3 λιµάνια ανά χώρα, η κάθε χώρα ελκύει περίπου 2-2,5 εκατ. τουρίστεσ κρουαζιέρασ.Το µέγεθοσ αυτÞ αντιστοιχεί στο 11% του συνολικού αριθµού τουριστών εξωτερικού που επισκέπτονται την Ελλάδα (2 εκατ. επιβάτεσ κρουαζιέρασ και 16 εκατ. λοιπέσ αφίξεισ). Το αντίστοιχο ποσοστÞ είναι κοντά στο 6% για την Ιταλία και στο 4%

για την Ισπανία. Αν και η Ελλάδα αποτελεί κορυφαίο προορισµÞ κρουαζιέρασ, τα έσοδα απÞ αυτÞν τον κλάδο για την ελληνική οικονοµία είναι σχετικά περιορισµένα. Τα άµεσα έσοδα που προκύπτουν απÞ τον ευρωπαϊκÞ κλάδο τησ κρουαζιέρασ έφτασαν τα ?15 δισ. το 2011 (απÞ ?8,5 δισ. το 2005). Η Ιταλία συγκεντρώνει το 30% των συγκεκριµένων εσÞδων, ενώ 9% αντιστοιχεί στην Ισπανία και µÞλισ 4% στην Ελλάδα (έσοδα τησ τάξησ των ?600 εκατ. που αντιστοιχούν στο 0,3% του ΑΕΠ και στο 5,2% τησ συνολικήσ τουριστικήσ δαπάνησ). γ) η Ελλάδα µπορεί να απορροφήσει σηµαντικÞ Þφελοσ απÞ τον κλάδο τησ κρουαζιέρασ – αυτÞ που πραγµατικά τησ αναλογεί βάσει των φυσικών συγκριτικών τησ πλεονεκτηµάτων – αν αρθούν σηµαντικέσ δοµικέσ στρεβλώσεισ. Η πλήρησ άρση του καµποτάζ και τα επενδυτικά προγράµµατα των λιµανιών (κυρίωσ του ΟΛΠ) είναι κινήσεισ προσ τη σωστή κατεύθυνση. ΩστÞσο, δεδοµένου Þτι ο διεθνήσ κλάδοσ κρουαζιέρασ ελέγχεται απÞ 4-5 µεγάλεσ εταιρείεσ οι οποίεσ προγραµµατίζουν δροµολÞγια 2-3 έτη πριν την εκτέλεσή τουσ, Þποια εµπÞδια παραµένουν είναι σηµαντικÞ να αρθούν. Συγκεκριµένα, είναι σηµαντικÞ: - να προωθηθούν οι συµβάσεισ παραχώρησησ σε ιδιώτεσ για τη διαχείριση των τερµατικών σταθµών και για την κατασκευή υποδοµών στα ελληνικά λιµάνια - να εγκατασταθεί στα ελληνικά λιµάνια σύστηµα κράτησησ θέσεων πρÞσδεσησ για τα κρουαζιερÞπλοια (Þπωσ ισχύει στα περισσÞτερα µεσογειακά λιµάνια) - να βελτιωθεί η ανταγωνιστικÞτητα σε τοµείσ Þπωσ οι επισκευέσ πλοίων και η τροφοδοσία καυσίµων ώστε τα λιµάνια εκκίνησησ να αναχθούν σε λιµάνια βάσησ των εταιρειών, και - να υλοποιηθεί πολιτική για την προσφορÞτερη άφιξη των τουριστών.

τησ Εµπορικήσ, αφού έτσι εξασφαλίζει την αυτÞνοµη πορεία τησ». Παράλληλα -προσ τα τέλη Αυγούστου- θα αρχίσουν να «τρέχουν» και οι διαδικασίεσ για την πλήρη ιδιωτικοποίηση του Ταχυδροµικού Ταµιευτηρίου. Και µÞλισ δηµιουργηθούν τα τραπεζικά σχήµατα τησ πρώτησ φάσησ- θα ξεκινήσει η ανακεφαλαιοποίηση των ελληνικών τραπεζών. Με τισ συνενώσεισ, εξάλλου, οι επτά µεγάλεσ τράπεζεσ θα είναι τέσσερισ. Σύµφωνα µε πληροφορίεσ, τον Σεπτέµβριο αναµένεται η κυβέρνηση να

πάρει τισ τελικέσ τησ αποφάσεισ, ώστε να ξεκινήσει απÞ το Ταµείο Χρηµατοπιστωτικήσ ΣταθερÞτητασ η διαδικασία τησ ανακεφαλαιοποίησησ. Οι ίδιεσ πηγέσ αναφέρουν Þτι το οικονοµικÞ επιτελείο κινείται στην κατεύθυνση παροχήσ ισχυρών κινήτρων στουσ ιδιώτεσ µετÞχουσ, ώστε να καλύψουν το 10% τησ ελάχιστησ συµµετοχήσ τουσ στισ αυξήσεισ µετοχικού κεφαλαίου, ώστε να εξασφαλιστεί η διατήρηση του ιδιωτικού management των τραπεζών. Τι προκύπτει µε βάση τα σενάρια συγχώνευσησ αν ενωθεί µε την Eθνική Tράπεζα: EνεργητικÞ: 124,8 δισ, Kαταθέσεισ: 65,6 δισ, ∆άνεια: 88,7 δισ Aν ενωθεί µε την Alpha Bank: EνεργητικÞ: 78,3 δισ, Kαταθέσεισ: 39 δισ, ∆άνεια: 66,8 δισ Aν ενωθεί µε τη Eurobank: EνεργητικÞ: 94,3 δισ, Kαταθέσεισ: 42,7 δισ, ∆άνεια: 68,5 δισ Η Eµπορική Tράπεζα διαθέτει 340 καταστήµατα στην Eλλάδα, απασχολεί περίπου 7.600 εργαζοµένουσ, έχει ενεργητικÞ 20,8 δισ ευρώ, διαθέτει χαρτοφυλάκιο δανείων 18 δισ ευρώ και χαρτοφυλάκιο καταθέσεων 11,2 δισ ευρώ

8 ΑΥΓΟΥΣΤOY, 2012

ΧΡΗΜΑ&ΑΓΟΡΑ

8/20 | ΑΓΟΡΑ

Laiki eBank, Ë “∫·Ï‡ÙÂÚË ‰È·‰ÈÎÙ˘·Î‹ ÙÚ¿Â˙·” Το διεθνούσ φήµησ περιοδικÞ Global Finance απένειµε στη Λαϊκή Τράπεζα, για δεύτερη συνεχή χρονιά, το βραβείο τησ “Καλύτερησ ∆ιαδικτυακήσ Τράπεζασ” στην Κύπρο για την εξυπηρέτηση επιχειρήσεων (Best Corporate/Institutional Internet Bank). ΤαυτÞχρονα, το περιοδικÞ Global Finance απένειµε στη Λαϊκή Τράπεζα το περιφερειακÞ βραβείο για την Ευρώπη τησ “Καλύτερησ ∆ιαδικτυακήσ Τράπεζασ” για την εξυπηρέτηση επιχειρήσεων στην υποκατηγορία “Καλύτερεσ Υπηρεσίεσ ∆ιαχείρισησ Επενδύσεων” (Regional subcategory Europe – Best Corporate/Institutional Internet Bank: Best Investment Management Services), που προσφέρονται κυρίωσ µέσω των υπηρεσιών eTrading, Global eTrading και Alerts. Μερικά κριτήρια επιλογήσ για την απονοµή των βραβείων του Global Finance είναι: - Η δυναµική τησ στρατηγικήσ για την προσέλκυση και ηλεκτρονική εξυπηρέτηση πελατών - Η επιτυχία στην αξιοποίηση των διαδικτυακών υπηρεσιών απÞ τουσ πελάτεσ - Ο ρυθµÞσ αύξησησ των πελατών και των συναλλαγών ηλεκτρονικήσ τραπεζικήσ

ŸÏ· fiÛ· Ú¤ÂÈ Ó· ͤÚÂȘ ÁÈ· ‰È·ÎÔ¤˜ ÛÙË ∫‡ÚÔ Κυκλοφορεί δωρεάν, ο νέοσ τουριστικÞσ οδηγÞσ τησ Cyta, Cyprus Holiday Guide 2012 σε Þλα τα Wi-Fi hotspots, µε Þλεσ τισ πληροφορίεσ που χρειάζονται οι ξένοι και οι ντÞπιοι τουρίστεσ για τισ διακοπέσ τουσ στην Κύπρο. Η ανανεωµένη έκδοση κυκλοφορεί για δέκατη συνεχή χρονιά, πλούσια σε φωτογραφικÞ υλικÞ και πληροφορίεσ για αξιοθέατα, µουσεία, µονοπάτια τησ φύσησ, παραλίεσ και πολιτιστικέσ εκδηλώσεισ που διοργανώνονται κατά την περίοδο τησ έκδοσησ, καθώσ και προτάσεισ και εισηγήσεισ για εκδροµέσ και ψυχαγωγία. Παράλληλα, περιλαµβάνει διευθύνσεισ και τηλέφωνα επικοινωνίασ για προϊÞντα και υπηρεσίεσ που µπορεί να φανούν χρήσιµα στον επισκέπτη κατά τη διάρκεια των διακοπών του. Ο οδηγÞσ διατίθεται κατά τη διάρκεια του καλοκαιριού σ’ Þλεσ τισ περιοχέσ µε µεγάλη τουριστική κίνηση, Þπου η Cyta παρέχει παράλληλα την υπηρεσία Wireless Zone (Wi-Fi). Για περισσÞτερεσ πληροφορίεσ, οι ενδιαφερÞµενοι µπορούν να επισκεφτούν την ιστοσελίδα www.yellow-pages.com.cy/flipbook/index.html.

Coffee Break: ∫ÂÚÓ¿ˆ ηʤ ÁÈ·Ù› ¤ÙÛÈ Û ›‰· Τεράστια είναι µέχρι στιγµήσ η αποδοχή αλλά και συµµετοχή στα διαδικτυακά παιχνίδια που έχει λανσάρει ο έτοιµοσ καφέσ Coffee Break στην ιστοσελίδα κοινωνικήσ δικτύωσησ Facebook και συγκεκριµένα στη σελίδα «Coffee Break Cy». Ο πρώτοσ διαγωνισµÞσ Coffee Break-Κερνάω Καφέ ο οποίοσ έχει ολοκληρωθεί, συγκέντρωσε µεγάλο ενδιαφέρον απÞ χιλιάδεσ χρήστεσ. Μέσα απÞ το παιχνίδι οι fans του Coffee Break στο Facebook είχαν την ευκαιρία να «κεράσουν» και να «κεραστούν» καφέ, και φυσικά να κερδίσουν 1000 Ευρώ. Νικητέσ αναδείχθηκαν οι Μάριοσ Γιαννακού, ο οποίοσ έστειλε τα περισσÞτερα coffee break και η Μαρία Ιωάννου που έλαβε τα περισσÞτερα HI5. Αυτή την περίοδο είναι σε εξέλιξη νέοσ διαγωνισµÞσ µε θέµα «Έτσι σε είδα». Μέσα απÞ τη διαδικασία, οι Fans του Coffee Break στο Facebook έχουν και πάλι την ευκαιρία να κερδίσουν 1000 Ευρώ. Οι διαγωνιζÞµενοι καλούνται να ανεβάσουν φωτογραφία των φίλων τουσ στο Facebook µέσα απÞ µια ειδική εφαρµογή το οποίο και τισ «διαµορφώσει» ευχάριστα, προσθέτοντασ µια σειρά απÞ χιουµοριστικά στοιχεία. Ο/Η χρήστησ που θα ανεβάσει τη φωτογραφία µε τα περισσÞτερα Likes θα αναδειχθεί νικητήσ! Ο διαγωνισµÞσ «Έτσι σε είδα» ολοκληρώνεται στισ 16 Σεπτεµβρίου.

µÚ·‚Â›Ô ÂȯÂÈÚËÌ·ÙÈÎfiÙËÙ·˜ ÛÙËÓ Elevate-Me Η εταιρεία Elevate-Me Promotions εξασφάλισε το πρώτο βραβείο στον Παγκύπριο ∆ιαγωνισµÞ ΕπιχειρηµατικÞτητασ (Cyprus Entrepreneurship Competition, CyEC) για το 2012. Σε σύνολο 46 συµµετοχών, η Elevate-Me συµµετείχε µε την εισαγωγή τησ τελευταίασ τησ καινοτοµίασ, που αφορά την παροχή ψηφιακών διαφηµιστικών υπηρεσιών µέσω LCD οθονών. Οι οθÞνεσ αυτέσ πρÞκειται να εγκατασταθούν µέσα στουσ ανελκυστήρεσ µεγάλων, γνωστών επαγγελµατικών πολυκατοικιών στην Κύπρο, οι οποίεσ παρουσιάζουν µεγάλη επισκεψιµÞτητα. Αυτή η υπηρεσία πολυµέσων θα δώσει στουσ διαφηµιστέσ την ικανÞτητα να προωθήσουν τα προϊÞντα και τισ υπηρεσίεσ τουσ µέσω του δικτύου τησ Elevate-Me σε ψηφιακή µορφή και θα τουσ επιτρέψει να µπορούν να αλλάζουν τα διαφηµιστικά τουσ µηνύµατα σε καθηµερινή βάση και σε πραγµατικÞ χρÞνο, µέσω του Internet. Χορηγοί και διοργανωτέσ του διαγωνισµού ήταν το: Πανεπιστήµιο Κύπρου, η Τράπεζα Αναπτύξεωσ, το Υπουργείο Εµπορίου, Βιοµηχανίασ και Τουρισµού, το ΚΕΒΕ, και το C.I.I.M. H απονοµή των βραβείων έγινε απÞ τον ΥπουργÞ Εµπορίου, Βιοµηχανίασ και Τουρισµού, κ. Νεοκλή Συλικιώτη. ΠερισσÞτερεσ πληροφορίεσ σχετικά µε την Elevate-Me Promotions και τισ υπηρεσίεσ που προσφέρει µπορείτε να βρείτε στην ιστοσελίδα: www.elevatemepromotions.com

∆ryfon Î·È ∆seriotis ÂÓÒÓÔ˘Ó ÙȘ ‰˘Ó¿ÌÂȘ ÙÔ˘˜ ∆υο ιστορικέσ εταιρίεσ στο χώρο των καταναλωτικών προϊÞντων ευρείασ διανοµήσ, η Τryfon DISTRIBUTORS και η Τseriotis CONSUMER GOODS, έχουν πάρει τη απÞφαση να ενώσουν τισ δυνάµεισ τουσ, µε στÞχο να προσφέρουν πάντα τα καλύτερα προϊÞντα και υψηλού επιπέδου υπηρεσίεσ, στην Κυπριακή αγορά.

To νέο επιχειρηµατικÞ σχήµα, µε την επωνυµία Τryfon Τseriotis LTD, θα διαχειρίζεται ένα ευρύ χαρτοφυλάκιo πολλών, διεθνώσ αναγνωρισµένων, αλλά και εγχώριων µαρκών τροφίµων, που γνωρίζουν και εµπιστεύονται οι Κύπριοι καταναλωτέσ στην καθηµερινÞτητά τουσ, εδώ και πολλά χρÞνια, Þπωσ McVities, Weetabix, Kerrygold, Kanaki, Tilda, John West, Barilla, Χρυσοδάλια κ.α. Η µακρÞχρονη, επιτυχηµένη πορεία και των δυο εταιριών – απÞ το 1899 η Τryfon DISTRIBUTORS και απÞ το 1916 η Τseriotis CONSUMER GOODS – εγγυάται την αξιοπιστία και την επιτυχία του νέου εγχειρήµατοσ. Επισηµαίνεται Þτι η έναρξη των εργασιών τησ Τryfon Tseriotis Ltd υπÞκειται στην ρητή προϋπÞθεση τησ έγκρισησ τησ σύστασήσ τησ απÞ την Επιτροπή Ελέγχου του Ανταγωνισµού, στην οποία έχει υποβληθεί σχετική αίτηση.

™˘ÓÂÚÁ·Û›· ∂˘Ú. ¶·ÓÂÈÛÙËÌ›Ô˘ Ì ÙÔ Harbin University Ένα απÞ τα κορυφαία Πανεπιστήµια τησ Κίνασ το Harbin University of Science and Technology επέλεξε στην Κύπρο για ακαδηµαϊκÞ συνεργάτη το ΕυρωπαϊκÞ Πανεπιστήµιο Κύπρου. Οι δύο ακαδηµαϊκοί Οργανισµοί υπέγραψαν πρωτÞκολλο συνεργασίασ στα πλαίσια τησ στρατηγικήσ τουσ για ανάπτυξη ερευνητικών δικτύων αλλά και πτυχιακών και µεταπτυχιακών προγραµµάτων. ΕιδικÞτερα για το ΕυρωπαϊκÞ Πανεπιστήµιο Κύπρου η συγκεκριµένη συνεργασία αποτελεί εφαλτήριο εµβάθυνσησ των ακαδηµαϊκών σχέσεων µε την Κίνα. Ùσον αφορά στο Harbin University of Science and Technology έχει ιδιαίτερη σηµασία η συνεργασία του µε ένα ακαδηµαϊκÞ Ίδρυµα στην Κύπρο αφού Þπωσ σηµειώνει και στην επίσηµη ιστοσελίδα του, το νησί µασ «βρίσκεται στο κέντρο των αξÞνων Μέσησ Ανατολήσ, Ευρώπησ και Ασίασ».

∫fi„Ù ÙÔ Î¿ÓÈÛÌ· Ì iCoach Η αντικαπνιστική εκστρατεία “Ex-smokers are Unstoppable” ή “Αν το σταµατήσεισ δεν σε σταµατάει τίποτα” τησ Ευρωπαϊκήσ Επιτροπήσ, έχει µέχρι σήµερα βοηθήσει περισσÞτερουσ απÞ 217,000 Ευρωπαίουσ πολίτεσ να αρχίσουν τη διαδικασία διακοπήσ του καπνίσµατοσ, µέσω του διαδραστικού διαδικτυακού εργαλείου iCoach, µε µεγάλο ποσοστÞ επιτυχίασ. Με βάση τα στοιχεία αυτά, 1 στουσ 600 Ευρωπαίουσ καπνιστέσ, έχει εγγραφεί σε αυτÞ το πρωτοποριακÞ διαδικτυακÞ βοήθηµα, αναζητώντασ πρακτική βοήθεια.Το iCoach είναι ένα επαναστατικÞ εργαλείο που προσφέρεται ∆ΩΡΕΑΝ σε 23 γλώσσεσ, συµπεριλαµβανοµένου τα Ελληνικά, και δεν επιβάλλει κανένα χρονικÞ περιορισµÞ για το χρήστη, πράγµα που επιτρέπει σε κάποιον να προχωρήσει µε το δικÞ του ρυθµÞ στο να πετύχει το στÞχο τησ διακοπήσ του καπνίσµατοσ. Το iCoach προσφέρει στο χρήστη µια σειρά απÞ διαδραστικέσ λειτουργίεσ, Þπωσ καθηµερινÞ ηµερολÞγιο και χρήσιµεσ συµβουλέσ, πρÞσβαση σε φÞρουµ, Þπωσ επίσησ και µικρά τεστ που δίνουν µια καλύτερη αντίληψη σχετικά µε την πρÞοδο που σηµειώνεται. Για περισσÞτερεσ πληροφορίεσ σχετικά µε την εκστρατεία “Ex-smokers are Unstoppable” και το iCoach επισκεφτείτε την ιστοσελίδα www.exsmokers.eu

8 AΥΓΟΥΣΤΟΥ, 2012

ΧΡΗΜΑ&ΑΓΟΡΑ

ΡΕΠΟΡΤΑΖ | 9/21

¢∞¡∂π™ª√™ - ∞¡∂ƒ°π∞ - º∆øÃ∂π∞ - ∞¶∂§¶π™π∞

™ÙËÓ ∂ÏÏ¿‰· Ù˘ ‚·ıÂÈ¿˜ ÎÚ›Û˘ ™Â Ì›· ¯ÒÚ·, Ô˘ ÔÈ ÙÚ¿Â˙˜ ÌÔ›Ú·˙·Ó οÚÙ˜ Î·È ‰¿ÓÂÈ· ·fi ÙÔ ÙËϤʈÓÔ, ‰ËÌÈÔ˘ÚÁÒÓÙ·˜ Ù¯ÓËÙ¿ «ı¤Ïˆ» Î·È Ï·ÛÌ·ÙÈ΋ ·›ÛıËÛË «·ÊıÔÓ›·˜» ∆ανεισµÞσ. Ανεργία. Αδιέξοδο. Φτώχεια. Απελπισία. Αυτή είναι η περιγραφή τησ Ελλάδασ τησ βαθειάσ κρίσησ, Þπωσ τη βιώνουν χιλιάδεσ οικογένειεσ εδώ και δύο χρÞνια. Σε µία χώρα, που οι τράπεζεσ µοίραζαν κάρτεσ και δάνεια απÞ το τηλέφωνο, δηµιουργώντασ τεχνητά «θέλω» και πλασµατική αίσθηση «αφθονίασ», το ξέσπασµα τησ οικονοµικήσ κρίσησ, οι µαζικέσ απολύσεισ, τα λουκέτα στην αγορά, το µαχαίρι σε µισθούσ και συντάξεισ, είχαν ωσ αποτέλεσµα το βιοτικÞ επίπεδο τησ µέσησ ελληνικήσ οικογένειασ να βρεθεί σε ελεύθερη πτώση, φέρνοντασ – στην κυριολεξία – δεκάδεσ χιλιάδεσ νοικοκυριά αντιµέτωπα µε την αδυναµία πληρωµήσ. Με παιδιά να λιποθυµούν στα σχολεία λÞγω ανεπαρκούσ διατροφήσ, τισ εισπρακτικέσ εταιρείεσ να κάνουν τον ήχο του τηλεφώνου εφιάλτη, η µέση ελληνική οικογένεια γονατίζει υπÞ το βάροσ των υποχρεώσεων και αναζητά την έξοδο κινδύνου, προκειµένου να γλιτώσει απÞ τον εφιάλτη των τραπεζών, που ζητούν χρήµατα µε τÞκουσ, που κανείσ δεν υπολÞγιζε Þταν υπέγραφε, µε τη σιγουριά τησ σταθερήσ εργασίασ και τησ «ευδαιµονίασ» των περασµένων ετών. Σύµφωνα µε τα στοιχεία τησ Ελληνικήσ Στατιστικήσ Υπηρεσίασ τα οποία φτάνουν µÞλισ µέχρι το 2010, αντιµέτωπο µε τον κίνδυνο τησ φτώχειασ και τον κοινωνικÞ αποκλεισµÞ, στην Ελλάδα, ήταν το 23,4% του πληθυσµού (οι εκτιµήσεισ τησ Eurostat, για την ίδια χρονιά υπολÞγισαν το ίδιο ποσοστÞ σε 27,7%), ενώ σε κατάσταση φτώχειασ ζούσε το 24,1% του πληθυσµού, στοιχεία τα οποία σήµερα – σύµφωνα µε τισ ενδείξεισ – είναι πολύ χειρÞτερα. Το πρώτο τρίµηνο του 2012, το 16,9% των νοικοκυριών ατÞµων ηλικίασ 18 – 60 ετών δεν είχαν κανένα εργαζÞµενο µέλοσ, ενώ ιδιαίτερα ψηλά είναι τα ποσοστά ανεργίασ. Σύµφωνα µε τα τελευταία στοιχεία τησ ΕΛΣΤΑΤ, που αφορούν το µήνα Απρίλιο του 2012 το ποσοστÞ ανεργίασ ανήλθε σε 22,5%, έναντι 16,2% τον Απρίλιο του 2011 και 22,0% το Μάρτιο του 2012. Το σύνολο των απασχολουµένων κατά τον Απρίλιο του 2012 εκτιµάται Þτι ανήλθε σε 3.813.601 άτοµα. Οι άνεργοι ανήλθαν σε 1.109.658 άτοµα, ενώ ο οικονοµικά µη ενεργÞσ πληθυσµÞσ ανήλθε σε 3.360.717 άτοµα.

AÀ∆√∫∆√¡π∂™ Σε αυτÞ το πλαίσιο στην Ελλάδα του 2012 καταγράφεται και αλµατώδησ αύξηση των αυτοκτονιών, που οφείλονται κυρίωσ σε χρέη και αντικατοπτρίζουν το οικονοµικÞ αδιέξοδο των οικογενειών. Συγκεκριµένα 507 άνθρωποι έδωσαν τέλοσ στη ζωή τουσ το 2009, 622 το 2010, ενώ το 2011 οι περιπτώσεισ αυτοκτονιών έφτασαν τισ 598. Εκτιµήσεισ αναφέρουν Þτι λÞγω τησ «ντροπήσ» που αισθάνεται η οικογένεια να δηλώσει ένα θάνατο ωσ αυτοκτονία υπάρχουν και περιπτώσεισ που καταγράφονται ωσ φυσιολογικοί θάνατοι ενώ δεν είναι.

∞¢π∂•√¢√ Άνθρωποι που µίλησαν στο ΚυπριακÞ Πρακτορείο Ειδήσεων (ανώνυµα, λÞγω των κοινωνικών προβληµάτων που προκαλεί η κρίση), για την κατάσταση στην οποία έχουν

φτάσει λÞγω των δανείων – στεγαστικών, καταναλωτικών, πιστωτικών καρτών – υπογραµµίζουν το αδιέξοδο, στο οποίο έχουν οδηγηθεί, σηµειώνοντασ Þτι νιώθουν να χάνουν πέρα απÞ τη «ζωή» τουσ, Þπωσ την ήξεραν µέχρι σήµερα, την αξιοπρέπειά τουσ ωσ άνθρωποι, αναζητώντασ απεγνωσµένα µία λύση.

µήνεσ απλήρωτοσ, απÞ τισ εργασίεσ τισ οποίεσ αναλαµβάνει. ΠρÞσφατα αποφάσισαν να καταφύγουν σε δικηγÞρο, προκειµένου να µειώσουν τισ δÞσεισ στισ τράπεζεσ και να προσπαθήσουν να πετύχουν περικοπή των τÞκων.

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Στην ερµηνεία του τι προβλέπει η ελληνική νοµοθεσία και ποιεσ είναι οι δυνατÞτητεσ των δανειοληπτών να µειώσουν τισ οφειλέσ τουσ σε τÞκουσ απÞ χρέη τα οποία έλαβαν απÞ Τράπεζεσ, εξασφαλίζοντασ Þτι δε θα χάσουν τα σπίτια τουσ, απάντησε στο ΚΥΠΕ, ο ειδικÞσ σε θέµατα τραπεζικού και δηµοσίου δικαίου, δικηγÞροσ Αθηνών Βασίλειοσ Λ. Θωµάσ, σηµειώνοντασ Þτι ολοένα αυξάνεται ο αριθµÞσ των πολιτών που αδυνατούν να εξυπηρετήσουν τισ οφειλέσ τουσ προσ τισ Τράπεζεσ, είτε αυτέσ προέρχονται απÞ προϊÞντα καταναλωτικήσ και στεγαστικήσ πίστησ, είτε απÞ προϊÞντα εµπορικήσ και επιχειρηµατικήσ πίστησ. Ùπωσ υπογραµµίζει για να επιχειρήσει κάποιοσ να ακυρώσει µια δανειακή σύµβαση που έχει υπογράψει, πρέπει να προβεί σε καταγγελία τησ, και ύστερα να προσφύγει σε διαφορετική δικαστική διαδικασία ενώπιον του αρµÞδιου Πρωτοδικείου, αλλά µε µικρέσ πιθανÞτητεσ επιτυχίασ, Þπωσ έχει αποδειχθεί απÞ σχετικέσ αποφάσεισ. Σύµφωνα µε στοιχεία τησ Γενικήσ Γραµµατείασ Προστασίασ Καταναλωτή και των Ενώσεων Προστασίασ Καταναλωτών, εκτιµάται σήµερα Þτι το 25% µε 30% των δανειοληπτών (κάποιοι ανεβάζουν το ποσοστÞ αυτÞ ακÞµη και στο 35% έωσ και 40%) αδυνατεί να καταβάλλει τισ δÞσεισ των δανείων προσ τισ Τράπεζεσ. Το πρÞβληµα των επιχειρήσεων είναι ακÞµη πιο οξύ, ιδιαίτερα αν αναλογιστεί κάποιοσ Þτι δεν υπάρχει µέχρι σήµερα νοµοθετική πρÞνοια για την ρύθµιση των χρεών των υπερχρεωµένων επιχειρήσεων και εµπÞρων, Þπωσ υπάρχει για τα υπερχρε-

Για παράδειγµα η Α. ζει στην επαρχία είναι µητέρα δύο παιδιών, στην εφηβεία. Ο σύζυγÞσ τησ ασχολείται µε αγροτικέσ δουλειέσ, ενώ παλαιÞτερα διατηρούσαν και εµπορικÞ κατάστηµα το οποίο έκλεισαν λÞγω τησ κρίσησ και πληρώνουν στεγαστικÞ δάνειο100.000 ευρώ, κάρτεσ και καταναλωτικά, που συνολικά φτάνουν µηνιαία δÞση στισ 2.500 ευρώ ενώ πλέον τα οικογενειακά εισοδήµατά τουσ µετά βίασ φτάνουν τα 2.000 ευρώ. «Έρχονται µέρεσ που δεν µπορούµε να αγοράσουµε ψωµί», αναφέρει, ενώ ο σύντροφÞσ τησ παραµένει εδώ και

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ωµένα φυσικά πρÞσωπα (νοικοκυριά).

¢∞¡∂π∞ ª∂ ∆∏¡ ™∂™√À§∞ Πάντωσ αποτελεί κοινή διαπίστωση Þτι τα τελευταία δύο χρÞνια τησ «βαθειάσ κρίσησ», µετά τισ αλλεπάλληλεσ µειώσεισ µισθών, επιδοµάτων και συντάξεων, αλλά και τισ µεγάλεσ απώλειεσ των θέσεων εργασίασ, ολοένα αυξάνεται ο αριθµÞσ των πολιτών που αδυνατούν να εξυπηρετήσουν τισ οφειλέσ τουσ προσ τισ Τράπεζεσ, είτε αυτέσ προέρχονται απÞ προϊÞντα καταναλωτικήσ και στεγαστικήσ πίστησ (στεγαστικά και καταναλωτικά δάνεια, πιστωτικέσ κάρτεσ, δάνεια αυτοκινήτου, κλπ), είτε απÞ προϊÞντα εµπορικήσ και επιχειρηµατικήσ πίστησ (κεφάλαια κίνησησ, αλληλÞχρεοι λογαριασµοί, λογαριασµοί Þψεωσ επιταγών, κλπ). Είναι επίσησ αλήθεια Þµωσ, Þτι στο χρονικÞ διάστηµα απÞ 2002 έωσ και 2008 υπήρξε µια «υπερπληθώρα» χορήγησησ δανείων απÞ τισ ελληνικέσ Τράπεζεσ, ακÞµη και σε περιπτώσεισ που δεν έπρεπε να χορηγηθούν, επειδή δεν πληρούνταν τα απαραίτητα κριτήρια για την ασφαλή αποπληρωµή τουσ (Þπωσ και αποδείχθηκε τελικά). ∆εν θα ήταν υπερβολή να υποστηρίξει κανείσ Þτι έωσ το τέλοσ του 2012, ο αριθµÞσ των εκκρεµών αιτήσεων σε Þλα τα Ειρηνοδικεία τησ Επικράτειασ, µπορεί να ανέλθει και στισ 15.000 µε 18.000, µε βάση την έωσ τώρα τάση. Ο οφειλέτησ, µε την τήρηση τησ ανωτέρω εξώδικησ και δικαστικήσ διαδικασίασ, µπορεί να επιτύχει τα εξήσ (αν πληροί τισ προϋποθέσεισ του νÞµου): «κούρεµα» του συνολικού χρέουσ του προσ τισ Τράπεζεσ (ανάλογα µε τα εισοδήµατά του, την ηλικία του, την κατάσταση τησ υγείασ του, την κατάσταση τησ περιουσίασ του κ.α.), και ρύθµιση του υπολοίπου χρέουσ του σε σταθερέσ δÞσεισ, οι οποίεσ διαρκούν για διάστηµα απÞ 4 έωσ και 20 έτη (ανάλογα µε το είδοσ των δανείων, το ύψοσ τουσ, τα έξοδα διαβίωσησ και τισ πραγµατικέσ δυνατÞτητεσ αποπληρωµήσ του οφειλέτη).

FinancialMirror.com

August 8 - 21, 2012

24 | MARKETS

European shares positive European shares rose on Tuesday, reversing early losses, as investors remained optimistic that the ECB would do what it takes to support bond markets in stricken euro zone countries and prevent the collapse of the euro.

The FTSEurofirst 300 was up 6.33 points, or 0.6%, at 1092.12, while the Euro STOXX 50 was 1.4% higher. “People are starting to reprice the Italian and Spanish risk ... it’s not over and I don’t expect the process to stop until we have an accident,” said Francois Duhen, strategist at CM-CIC Securities.

Bond yields in Italy and Spain have kept below the unsustainable 7% level, while equity markets have been in risk-on mode ever since ECB President Mario Draghi said he would do ‘whatever it takes’ to save the euro.

On Tuesday, Italy’s benchmark stock index added 1.3% and its Spanish equivalent rose 1.7%, while the STOXX50 approached the pivotal 2,400-level, which marks a 61.8% retracement of the fall which began in mid-March and ended in early June.

Denmark’s Danske Bank jumped 5.7% after it beat second-quarter profit forecasts.

InterContinental rose 4.8% after promising to return $1 bln to investors, partially funded from the planned sale of a New York hotel, and a rise in profits in the U.S. and China.

Thomson Reuters StarMine data showed that about 65 percent of Europe’s STOXX 600 companies had reported results so far, of which 51% had met or exceeded forecasts, while the rest missed the estimates.

Banking shares, which had rallied more than 12% over the previous nine days, were the main drag on European indexes, as more scandal hit the sector.

Stock futures gain; Spain, Italy 2-year notes fall Stocks rose, sending the benchmark European gauge to a four-month high, and commodities gained as the yen weakened. Standard Chartered tumbled the most since at least 1988 after a U.S. regulator said the lender may face a suspension of business activities.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index added 0.3% in New York, after falling 0.3%. Standard & Poor’s 500 Index futures advanced 0.4%.

The yen depreciated against all 16 of its major counterparts and the Dollar Index lost 0.2%. Germany’s 10year bund yield rose six basis points. Copper climbed 1.1% and soybeans rose 0.9%.

German factory orders declined more than twice as much as economists forecast in June as sales to euroarea countries slumped, and Italy’s economy contracted for a fourth straight quarter in the three months to June.

Knight gets $400 mln rescue A group of investors rescued Knight Capital Group in a $400 mln deal that keeps the embattled leader in U.S. equities market-making in business, but comes at a huge cost to existing shareholders.

There were immediate signs the Jefferies Group-led rescue gave Knight back some of the market confidence it had lost, as two large brokerages resumed routing orders through the company and new data showed volumes picking up from last week.

Blackstone Group, rival market maker Getco and financial services companies TD Ameritrade, Stifel Nicolaus, Jefferies and Stephens Inc purchased preferred shares for a 73% stake in the company.

Knight has been the largest U.S. provider of retail market-making in NYSE and Nasdaq-listed stocks, buying and selling shares for clients. As a market maker it also provides liquidity to equity markets by stepping in to buy and sell stocks, using its own capital to ensure orderly activity.

Knight shares closed down 24.2% at $3.07. Those who held Knight shares before Monday will feel the pain of the company’s rescue the most acutely. The massive dilution means their stakes are worth just a fraction of what they were days ago. Knight’s problems started last Wednesday, when a software glitch flooded the NYSE with unintended orders for dozens of stocks. That boosted some shares by more than 100% and left the company holding the shares, causing the trading loss.

The damage to Knight was swift. Whereas Knight once accounted for 20% of the market-making activity in shares of Apple Inc, by midday Friday it was the market maker for 2% of the volume.

Three shares rose for every two that declined in the Stoxx 600, with basic-resource and energy producers leading gains.

Elan Corp. sank 13% to its lowest price this year. The Irish drugmaker wrote down to zero the value of its venture with Johnson & Johnson to develop an Alzheimer’s treatment.

Soybeans gained after the Department of Agriculture said that about 39% of the U.S. crop was rated poor to very poor, up from 37% a week earlier. Oil added 0.3% to $92.48 a barrel in New York. The yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury note rose three basis points to 1.60% before the government sells $32 bln of three-year notes, the first of three auctions totalling $72 bln.

Spain’s 10-year yield dropped three basis points while its two-year rate climbed 12 basis points. The yield on Italy’s 10- year bond fell 10 basis points, and similar-maturity Portuguese debt yields declined 35 basis points.

Private equity eyes Direct Line Private equity firms have approached banks to begin financing discussions on a multi-billion-pound buyout of Royal Bank of Scotland’s insurance division Direct Line Group.

RBS has to sell at least 50% of the business by the end of 2013 under European Commission terms after it received state aid in 2008.

RBS said last week a flotation looked like offering the best value for selling Direct Line rather than a trade sale, and was looking to sell the first tranche of shares through a public offer in October.

Bankers are also questioning whether the leveraged loan market has the capacity to support a 3 to 4 bln-pound private equity sale, which would require a debt package of between 1.5 to 2 bln pounds.

AUD touches 4-month high Australia’s dollar touched its highest level in more than four months after the Reserve Bank kept interest rates unchanged and said current policy settings are “appropriate.”

The so-called Aussie rose against most major peers after RBA Governor Glenn Stevens and his board said the nation’s growth is close to trend. New Zealand’s currency maintained a three-day gain as Asian stocks extended a global rally, supporting demand for riskier assets.

Australia’s dollar touched $1.0603, the strongest level since March 20, before trading little changed at $1.0570 in Sydney. It traded at 82.73 yen from 82.70 on Monday.

New Zealand’s dollar was also little changed at 81.97 U.S. cents, after rising 1.5% over the previous three trading sessions. It bought 64.17 yen from 64.16.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index of shares rose 0.6%, after climbing 1.8% Monday.

The RBA’s decision to keep the overnight cash-rate target at 3.5%, the highest among major developed nations, was predicted by 26 of 27 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News. Central bankers lowered the benchmark rate by 1.25 percentage points from November to June.

The Aussie dollar, the world’s fifth-most traded currency, rose 8.5% versus the greenback since the RBA’s last rate cut on June 5, the biggest advance among major currencies.

FinancialMirror.com

August 8 - 21, 2012

MARKETS | 25

The Horribly Crowded Chinese Trade MARCUARD’S MARKET update by GaveKal Research China’s economy is clearly slowing both structurally (as the potential growth rate falls from 11% to 7%) and cyclically (we estimate sequential GDP growth is now a bit over 6%, thanks to weak investment spending). The question for equity investors is what impact does this downshift have for the overall market?

There is a growing consensus that investment-driven growth has reached its limits, and so capital spending must soften. This view is supported by the lack of electricity generation growth in June. But with benchmark Chinese indices down more than 20% in the last 12 months such assumptions already seem baked into the price. The more pertinent issue is differentiating performance within the Chinese equity universe. A simplified way of breaking down relative value might be the following: · Financials have been hit hard and trade at 1.4x book value due to fears of rising bad debt that must result from a pro-

nounced slow-down. Additionally, investors are just waking up to banks’ changed operating environment as the cloak of financial repression is slowly lifted. The result is a structural rise in the cost of funding that has ended a decade of sky high lending margins. · Deep cyclicals have been obvious victims of the capital spending slowdown although this group of stocks displays significant performance dispersion. Industry leaders such as Shenhua Energy have lost more than 30% over the last year while smaller operators such as Yanzhou Coal have slumped about 60%. · Consumer staples and other stable growth stocks such as healthcare have been outliers among Chinese equities.

Interestingly, the same dispersion pattern is seen across Asian equity markets. Essentially, this non-cyclical grouping is being treated as a “safe haven” by dedicated equity investors. Across Asia, such stocks trade at a rich 1.5x PE/earnings growth ratio (PEG). At such a valuation, this group is almost certain not to generate positive returns over the coming 12 months.

When a stock has limited upside potential the reason to

Brazil’s struggle to keep the Real cheap MARCUARD’S MARKET update by GaveKal Research Some emerging market policy makers may be fretting about the sell-off of EM currencies, but not in Brazil.

President Dilma Rousseff has cast the real’s -23% tumble from last year’s highs as a small victory in a global currency war that has enriched speculators at the expense of developing-world factory workers. The government has adopted highly interventionist (and arguably mercantilist) policies that aim to support manufacturing and put the country on a more “balanced” growth path. This imperative has been given impetus by economic growth sliding to an expected 1.9% this year—hardly the stuff of BRIC promoters’ dreams.

But is it reasonable to believe that commodity-rich Brazil can maintain a weak BRL in the longer term? Along with most emerging market currencies, capital outflows have forced a -16% depreciation against the dollar since March.

And yet (yield hungry) investors continue to be attracted by Brazil’s fundamentals—10 year Brazilian government USD bonds saw yields yesterday tumble from above 3% to 2.7%.

Brazilian policy makers face two key challenges in responding to capital movements and the value of the BRL: i) policies in the rest of the world; and, ii) policies in Brazil.

The heavily indebted and slow-growth economies of the US, Japan and Europe will be on Keynesian life support for the foreseeable future. In the medium term, this suggests a structural appreciation of EM currencies versus OECD equivalents. Hence, once global growth stabilizes, and assuming that China does not have a hard economic landing, we would expect flows into Brazil to resume. The next question is will Brazil accept a stronger BRL, or instead invoke currency controls. The BRL has experienced a lengthy overvaluation, which hits exports and encourages imports splurges (not to mention frequent shopping holidays to Miami).

But a (relatively) strong currency is only part of the problem. Brazil’s manufacturing sector also suffers from a

keep holding it is for downside protection. The problem with the Asian non-cyclical sector is that is unlikely to stay defensive should China’s growth take a further dive. More likely, any further downtick in Chinese data will likely cause investors to flee Chinese growth stocks, as in 2H 2008. By the same token, this group will surely underperform should Chinese growth surprise on the upside. Improving Chinese growth is the GK Dragonomics core scenario, based on a stabilization in the property sector which will then feed through to capital goods producers.

In such a “muddle through” economic growth scenario it makes better sense to buy bombed-out Chinese cyclicals which are currently trading at a 30% discount to book value.

Fundamentally, such stocks should benefit from a lower cost base and weakening input prices. Admittedly, such a trade is like catching a falling knife, but we always prefer odds that offer the potential of making money. The alternative is a deeply crowded trade in consumer staples and other growth-orientated stocks that looks increasingly like a “heads you lose, tails you lose” proposition. www.marcuardheritage.com Disclaimer: This information may not be construed as advice and in particular not as investment, legal or tax advice. Depending on your particular circumstances you must obtain advice from your respective professional advisors. Investment involves risk. The value of investments may go down as well as up. Past performance is no guarantee for future performance. Investments in foreign currencies are subject to exchange rate fluctuations. Marcuard Cyprus Ltd is regulated by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySec) under License no. 131/11.

WORLD CURRENCIES PER US DOLLAR CURRENCY

restrictive labor market, weak productivity growth, poor infrastructure and voluminous red tape. Alas, few of these structural issues will be treated by demand-stimulus, or an overtly protectionist agenda focused on import substitution.

In the past year, the government has raised import duties and adopted obstructive custom controls to dissuade imports.

The result has been to protect domestic incumbents and forestall potential productivity gains. The losers are, of course, Brazilian consumers. Such insularity is one reason why traded goods are so expensive (tariffs were recently raised on Barbie Dolls—this from a country that makes jet planes!).

Without an (unlikely) off-setting decline in fiscal spending, Brazil’s heavy-handed industrial strategy will likely spark higher inflation. Consumer prices in July rose 5.2% from a year earlier. Private sector economists have moved their year-end inflation estimates up to 5% while the government is sticking with a target of 4.5%. This will likely force the central bank into a tightening cycle. But, of course, one of the easiest ways to take the heat out of an inflationary outbreak is to allow an appreciation in the BRL. The odds are that Rousseff will need to modify her dreams of a brave new industry policy underpinned by a cheap currency.

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EUROPEAN Belarussian Ruble British Pound * Bulgarian Lev Czech Koruna Danish Krone Estonian Kroon Euro * Georgian Lari Hungarian Forint Latvian Lats Lithuanian Litas Maltese Pound * Moldavan Leu Norwegian Krone Polish Zloty Romanian Leu Russian Rouble Swedish Krona Swiss Franc Ukrainian Hryvnia

BYR GBP BGN CZK DKK EEK EUR GEL HUF LVL LTL MTL MDL NOK PLN RON RUB SEK CHF UAH

8290 1.5656 1.5731 20.178 5.9872 12.5878 1.2434 1.638 222.81 0.5595 2.7766 0.3454 12.5000 5.9165 3.2697 3.6553 31.5389 6.7029 0.9665 7.9721

AUD CAD HKD INR JPY KRW NZD SGD

1.0582 0.9972 7.7548 55.0625 78.53 1128.65 1.2189 1.2402

BHD EGP IRR ILS JOD KWD LBP OMR QAR SAR ZAR AED

0.3770 6.0753 12081.9023 3.9911 0.7072 0.2813 1502 0.3837 3.6404 3.75 8.1460 3.6727

AZN KZT TRY

0.7845 150.04 1.7835

AMERICAS & PACIFIC Australian Dollar * Canadian Dollar Hong Kong Dollar Indian Rupee Japanese Yen Korean Won New Zeland Dollar * Singapore Dollar MIDDLE EAST & AFRICA

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0-0,25% 0.50% 0.75% 0-0,1% 0-0,25%

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10yr

USD GBP EUR JPY CHF

0.24 0.55 0.09 0.14 0.02

0.33 0.60 0.15 0.16 0.03

0.44 0.72 0.24 0.20 0.05

0.72 0.98 0.55 0.33 0.16

1.05 1.45 0.87 0.55 0.37

USD GBP EUR JPY CHF

0.44 0.80 0.63 0.29 0.09

0.53 0.81 0.74 0.29 0.13

0.69 0.92 0.91 0.31 0.21

0.90 1.08 1.11 0.36 0.29

1.31 1.45 1.49 0.50 0.60

1.76 1.97 1.89 0.80 0.96

Exchange Rates

Bahrain Dinar Egyptian Pound Iranian Rial Israeli Shekel Jordanian Dinar Kuwait Dinar Lebanese Pound Omani Rial Qatar Rial Saudi Arabian Riyal South African Rand U.A.E. Dirham ASIA

Major Cross Rates CCY1\CCY2 USD EUR GBP CHF JPY

1 USD 1 EUR 1 GBP 1.2428 0.8046

Opening Rates

Weekly movement of USD

1 CHF 100 JPY

CCY\Date

10.07

17.07

24.07

31.07

07.08

CCY

Today

1.5660

1.0342

1.2734

1.2259

1.2094

1.2248

1.2359

1.2601

0.8322

1.0246

0.7903

0.7828

0.7787

0.7792

0.7928

0.6604

0.8132

USD GBP JPY CHF

1.2250 97.28

96.65

94.54

95.68

96.61

1.1962

1.1963

1.1962

1.1964

1.1966

GBP EUR JPY CHF

1.5660 1.2428 78.53 0.9669

0.6386

0.7936

0.9669

1.2017

1.5142

78.53

97.60

122.98

1.2312 81.22

Last Week %Change 1.5709 1.2263 78.22 0.9795

+0.31 -1.35 +0.40 -1.29

Azerbaijanian Manat Kazakhstan Tenge Turkish Lira

Note:

* USD per National Currency

August 8 - 21, 2012

FinancialMirror.com

26 | WORLD MARKETS

Angry Man Utd fans call for sponsor boycott over IPO

Positive momentum in face of headwinds WALL ST WEEKAHEAD To borrow from “Star Wars”, the Force is strong with this stock market.

Despite a ho-hum earnings season and central banks’ disappointing hopes for aggressive economic stimulus last week, U.S. stocks held firm.

After four days of losses, the benchmark Standard & Poor’s 500 index rallied on Friday, finishing the week in the positive for a fourth straight time and reaching three-month highs.

Sustaining momentum are valuations that make stocks attractively priced relative to other assets. To be sure, some corporate earnings have been impressive, especially in defensive stocks such as utilities.

The trigger for stocks’ surge was the Labor Department report that U.S. employers added 163,000 jobs to their payrolls in July, the most in five months. However, the unemployment rate, based on a different government survey, edged up to 8.3%.

ATTRACTIVE EQUITIES “There’s still a fair amount of pessimism, but equities are so much more attractive than bonds that the dividend on Johnson & Johnson, for example, offers a better yield than the company’s bonds,” said Bruce Zessar, managing director at Advisory Research in Chicago, which oversees about $9 bln.

An investor would do better with the stock than the bond over the next ten years even if the stock price went nowhere because of the stock dividend, he said.

Based on measures like dividends and price-to-earnings ratios, equities appear cheap compared to other assets like Treasuries where yields on the 10-year note fell to a record low this past month. Stocks are the best house in a bad neighborhood.

After the Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank did not take aggressive, immediate measures to spur growth, the market disappointment was fairly short-lived, considering how hotly the actions had been anticipated.

The S&P fell about 0.7% on Thursday following the ECB’s comments, compared with a nearly 2% rise before in anticipation of action.

MOMENTUM “ON OUR SIDE” “This indicates that there is near- and long-term momentum on our side, like Wall Street’s version of ‘May the force be with you,’” said Sam Stovall, chief investment strategist for Standard & Poor’s Equity Research Services in New York.

In another positive sign, large blocks of upside calls were apparently bought on Friday in an exchange-traded fund designed to measure equity performance in the global emerging markets.

The option flow in the iShares MSCI Emerging Markets fund “seems to express confidence that today’s global equity market rally can continue over the next seven weeks,” said WhatsTrading.com options strategist Frederic Ruffy.

For last week, the Dow Jones industrial average rose 0.2%, the Nasdaq composite index added 0.3% and the S&P rose 0.4%. It was a fourth straight week of gains for the Dow and S&P and third for the Nasdaq.

The S&P is up almost 9% from an early June bottom and is a mere 2% from its 2012 closing high.

Much of that rise has come on gains in defensive sectors like telecommunications, a sign that while investors are not ready to abandon stocks, they’re still looking to limit risk and volatility.

Telecom shares are by far the strongest performers of the year, surging 18.6%, more than double the S&P’s 8.5% gain for the year.

“It’s rare to see gains lead by defensives, but they offer such attractive yields from dividends that even though valuations are stretched, they’re likely to get stretched further,” said Brad Sorensen, director of market and sector analysis at Charles Schwab in Denver.

In a sign of near-term momentum, 87.5% of telecom shares are trading over their 50-day moving average, according to data from Bespoke. Utilities, another defensive group, has almost 98% of components above the moving average, compared to 71.8% of the S&P at large.

This comes despite an earnings season marked by weak revenue growth and companies that are more negative about their outlooks than they have been 11 years. Still, more than two-thirds of S&P components have topped profit expectations thus far, according to Thomson Reuters data.

Quarterly earnings due this week include Walt Disney Co , Priceline.com and Chesapeake Energy. Results from Macy’s Inc and J.C. Penney Co Inc should shed light on the strength of consumer spending.

Iberia adds to IAG losses The owner of British Airways and Iberia announced a wholesale restructuring of the underperforming Spanish airline next month as it tumbled to a first-half group loss and cut its full-year earnings guidance. Willie Walsh, the head of International Airlines Group, said the Iberia reorganisation would mean shedding jobs and reshaping its network.

Against a background of soaring fuel costs, Iberia made an operating loss of 263 mln euros in the first half of 2012, compared with a 13 mln euro profit at BA. Shares in IAG, Europe’s fourth-biggest airline group by market value, have fallen 10% in the last three months, valuing the group at 2.8 bln pounds.

Manchester United supporters opposed to the flotation of the English soccer club in New York called for a boycott of sponsors’ products to put pressure on the Glazer family to ditch the plan. The call risks embarrassing the club just days after it signed a record-breaking shirt sponsorship deal with General Motors. “The boycott strategy is intended to send a loud and clear message to the Glazer family and club sponsors that without the support and purchasing power of the fans - the global strength of the Manchester United brand doesn’t actually exist,” the Manchester United Supporters Trust (MUST) said in a statement.

MUST has accused the American Glazers of hurting the team’s performance by saddling it with debt in a 790 mln pound ($1.23 bln) takeover in 2005.

It has also been angered after the Glazers said they would raise up to $167 mln themselves in the flotation after initially saying all the proceeds would be used to cut the debt.

MUST, which campaigns for greater fan involvement in the ownership of English soccer’s most successful club, has around 180,000 members and has fought a high-profile campaign against the Glazers. A recent survey estimated the club had 659 mln global followers. The power of its brand was illustrated last week when it agreed the deal with GM to have the Chevrolet name on its famous red shirts from 2014.

The agreement was reportedly valued at $60-70 mln per year in a seven-year deal.

GM’s payments are more than double the current fee paid by insurance broker Aon. The agreement was announced the day after the Detroit carmaker said it was removing its global marketing chief, Joel Ewanick, because he didn’t properly report financial details about the jersey deal.

Ex-Barclays trader draws scrutiny in Libor probe A 30-year-old former Barclays Plc swaps trader in New York, who was fired from the bank in 2010, is among those drawing scrutiny from prosecutors in the deepening scandal over the manipulation of global benchmark interest rates. U.S. prosecutors in Washington, D.C. are looking at Ryan Reich’s activities while at Barclays between August 2006 and March 2010.

Reich, now a portfolio manager with New York-based hedge fund WCG Management, was dismissed from Barclays for allegedly sending inappropriate emails seeking internal bank information. Reportedly, the information Reich sought concerned how the Libor benchmark rate was going to be priced, information that could have been useful for his trading positions.

Libor, the London interbank offered rate, is used to set rates on trillions of dollars of contracts for everything from home mortgages to credit cards. The investigation has embroiled banks on both sides of the Atlantic and involves yen and euro rates as well as those for the dollar. Information released by the New York Fed shows that bank regulators in the United States and Europe knew some banks were submitting low Libor bids during the financial crisis to make institutions appear healthier than they were.

A person familiar with Reich’s dismissal Barclays said that the young trader was directed by his supervisors to send the emails and they were aware of everything he was doing.

RBS sacked staff over Libor State-controlled Royal Bank of Scotland said it has dismissed employees over an interest rate rigging scandal. Reporting a drop in first-half operating profits last week, RBS said it was co-operating with governments and regulators which are investigating the role of a number of banks in the setting of Libor and other inter-bank lending rates.

RBS said it was being investigated by regulators in the United States, Britain and Japan and by competition authorities in Europe, the U.S. and Canada. However, it was not possible to measure reliably what effect the inquiries would have, including the timing and amount of fines or settlements.

The announcement marked the first time RBS has confirmed it fired staff for misconduct in the Libor scandal, which has already cost Barclays chief Bob Diamond his job.

RBS has declined to name the dismissed staff. However sources said last month that Tan Chi Min, Paul White, Neil Danziger and investment adviser Andrew Hamilton were sacked at the end of last year. Tan, the former head of delta trading for RBS in Singapore, was fired for allegedly trying to influence the banks’ rate setters improperly. He is suing RBS for unfair dismissal, alleging the practice of traders providing input to rate setters was widely known among senior managers at the bank. RBS, which is 82%-owned by the government, reported a first-half operating profit of 1.83 bln pounds, down from 1.97 bln in the same period last year. The bank made a statutory pretax loss of 1.5 bln pounds, which included a 2.9 bln accounting loss due to a rise in the value of its own debt.

RBS said it had set aside a further 135 mln pounds to compensate customers mis-sold loan insurance and 125 mln arising from a computer systems failure in June, taking its total provision so far to 1.3 bln pounds. It also set aside 50 mln pounds for claims by small firms wrongly mis-sold interest rate hedging products, a provision which could rise higher.

FinancialMirror.com

August 8 - 21, 2012

WORLD MARKETS | 27

FinancialMirror.com

August 8 - 21, 2012

28 | WORLD MARKETS

Vivendi’s grandpa gunman loads the last bullet l Saviour in 2002, chairman Fourtou back at helm to sketch out strategy, explore asset sales Vivendi has called on 72-year-old chairman Jean-Rene Fourtou, who saved the group from bankruptcy a decade ago, for one last service: to write what could be the once-proud French telecom-to-entertainment group’s closing chapter.

Fourtou let long-time CEO Jean-Bernard Levy go in late June after disagreements over whether asset sales or a break-up were the best way to reverse a deep share slump, and the group is in no rush to find a new chief executive.

With Fourtou now firmly in charge, Vivendi is in what the chairman calls a “no taboo” era and could eventually sell off huge chunks of its six business lines, which include video games, pay-TV, music and telecoms and have failed to produce any benefits by being together.

A shrewd dealmaker and avid sportsman, Fourtou made his name as chief executive of pharmaceutical maker Aventis before he was parachuted in to run crisis-hit Vivendi in 2002, where he kept creditors at bay and oversaw about 12 bln euros in asset sales, including book publishing.

Today, shareholders are betting that Fourtou can pull something out of the hat again. Vivendi shares are up about 10% since Levy bowed out.

One shareholder who knows Fourtou said the fact that much of his family’s wealth is tied up in Vivendi shares meant he would not shirk from tough decisions. “If restoring value to shareholders involves a break-up of the business, he will do it,” said the shareholder. “He is a pragmatic man and a real business leader.”

Fourtou will rely on help from long-time allies among France’s business elite, such as Axa founder Claude Bebear, who is no longer on Vivendi’s board but is still involved, and Henri Lachmann, chairman of Schneider Electric , a veteran board member.

The three are internally dubbed the “grandpa gunmen”, according to Les Echos newspaper.

A Paris-based banker suggested Space Cowboys as a more appropriate sobriquet, after the film of that name, starring Clint Eastwood and James Garner as astronauts called out of retirement for one last mission.

NEXT STEPS In recent weeks, a parade of investment bankers has visited the company’s plush Paris headquarters to pitch to Fourtou and his lieutenants on sales of assets including games unit Activision Blizzard, Brazilian telco GVT, and Maroc Telecom.

with pay-TV unit Canal+, even though it marketed TV with its broadband and phone packages, and when SFR launched a music service it did so with an outside company instead of working with in-house Universal Music Group.

A senior banker who has advised the board said Fourtou and the management had long tried to mask that the company was more a “fund” of unrelated businesses than a cohesive whole.

“Now they’ve finally understood that they can no longer be in denial. But it’s already too late. Vivendi is now seen as a distressed company. Lack of vision, lack of anticipation, that’s a bit the story of Vivendi’s life,” he said.

The names of several candidates to become the new CEO, including ex-Goldman Sachs banker Yoel Zaoui, GE Europe head Clara Gaymard, and former Apple Europe chief Pascal Cagni, are circulating internally, according to people close to the matter.

But hiring a new CEO to lead the management committee that sits on top of Vivendi’s six business units, which each have their own bosses, is not an immediate priority. The committee itself was cut from seven to two members when Levy left, in a sign that some analysts and investors interpreted as paving the way for asset sales or a break-up.

A banker who has worked with Vivendi said Fourtou’s current priority is to redesign strategy, cut costs, focus on cash generation and debt reduction so that the group can announce disposals or other measures to please frustrated shareholders relatively soon.

“He will spend the next six coming months at least sketching out a new strategy and then find a CEO to enforce it.”

SHADOW OF 2002 Raised in southwest France in a middleclass family with a mathematics professor for a father, Fourtou earned his entry to the business elite at the country’s top engineering school L’Ecole Polytechnique, where he met Bebear. Their close friendship would shape Fourtou’s career.

It was Bebear who lured him to Vivendi in 2002 when the company, which traces its roots to a water utility founded by Napoleon III in 1853, was on the brink of bankruptcy after former CEO Jean-Marie Messier spent with

abandon in pursuit of his vision of an integrated telecoms-and-content empire.

Fourtou was known for his restructuring skills. In the 1980s-1990s as CEO of RhonePoulenc, he split up the company’s chemical and pharmaceutical businesses and later engineered a merger with a German rival to create Aventis, then Europe’s biggest drugmaker.

At Vivendi, he convinced France’s top banks not to cut off the group’s credit lines and organised fire sales of its publishing and non-French pay-TV units. He shuttled back and forth to Hollywood to untangle Messier’s ill-fated foray into entertainment, auctioning off Universal Studios and USA Networks.

But Fourtou showed he could do more than just sell. He outmanoeuvred partner Vodafone to take control of French telco SFR, just as Vodafone was trying to do the same while Vivendi was on the ropes. “Fourtou is able to take quick decisions and be where no one would expect him,” said a banker who worked with Vivendi during the period. “Buyer one day, seller the next, while always creating value. He’s capable of really bold things.”

Fourtou amassed a pile of Vivendi shares during this period and was criticised in the French press for his extravagant lifestyle and growing pay packages. He used Vivendi’s plane to fly to Morocco where he has a second home with his wife, a deputy in the European Parliament, wrote Liberation newspaper.

Yet even once the crisis was over, Fourtou and his successor as CEO Levy were never able to prove to markets that the disparate businesses were worth more together than apart.

For example, cash cow SFR rarely worked

BOLLORE AS CATALYST With shares nearing nine-year lows this spring and still no synergies in sight, investors’ patience was running thin.

Fourtou realised this and in March penned a letter to shareholders to say that all strategies to erase the dreaded conglomerate discount were now on the table.

He also welcomed the arrival of French industrialist Vincent Bollore as a Vivendi shareholder. The 60-year old corporate raider will join the board this autumn after taking Vivendi shares in exchange for two of his TV channels, sparking investor hopes that he would help with deal-making and restructuring.

For now, investors seem content to give Fourtou some time. “There is no urgent financial pressure; Vivendi’s businesses still generate strong cash,” said Marine Michel, portfolio manager at Montsegur Finance, which owned Vivendi shares as of June 30, according to Reuters data. “I think the group has the time to make the decisions that will be best for it.”

Bankers pitching for Vivendi business agreed that the group was likely to take its time figuring out what to sell and at what prices.

Goldman Sachs and Barclays recently searched for buyers for its 60% stake in Activision, worth about $8 bln, but found no takers at the price it wanted.

Vivendi also began exploring a sale of Brazilian telecom unit GVT, which could bring in around 8 bln euros, Reuters revealed in mid-July.

Jean-Rene Fourtou was not available for an interview for this story, and the company won’t talk about asset sales.

The senior banker who advised the board was more forthcoming. “The business model is dead, and the dismantling is now unavoidable. They have five years to sell everything.”

Facebook shares dive, lost half its value since IPO Facebook shares crumbled again last week, sending the once-feverishly soughtafter name below $20 for the first time as investors scrambled to get out of the way of a potential share deluge in coming weeks.

Thursday marked a five-day losing streak for the stock. Facebook has shed almost $50 bln in value since its debut — more than the total valuation of Hewlett-Packard Co or Starbucks Corp. The stock debuted at $38 and has headed south since, pummeled by growing doubts about its lofty valuation, growth prospects, high-profile departures.

Now, investors are struggling to understand the impact of the expiry on August 16 of a lockup period on insiders’ sales. That’s when the first restrictions barring employees

and early investors from selling goes away, opening a spigot to roughly 1.88 bln additional shares for trading by year’s end.

Some investors said the stock’s downward slide may actually lessen the deadline’s impact as insiders opt to wait. But at the very least, doubts about Facebook’s business permeating Wall Street will keep the shares constrained for some time.

Predicting whether Facebook insiders will sell their shares, even as the stock plumbs new lows, is a tricky. Most Facebook employees have restricted stock units but are given years to sell them.

Unlike options which become worthless if

a company’s stock price falls below a holder’s “strike price,” restricted stock units always provide a profit to the employee they were granted to - it just diminishes as the price declines.

Many Silicon Valley employees count on big paydays when their company goes public: it could mean the chance to pay off hefty college loans, or a down-payment on a first home.

Lock-up expirations in Internet stocks have a painful history for investors. Groupon Inc’s stock fell 9% on the first day that some company insiders were allowed to sell shares, while social game maker Zynga Inc saw its shares tumble 8% on the day its ini-

tial insider lock-up expired.

The imminent lock-up expiration also means Wall Street analysts who participated in the Facebook IPO will once again go quiet, for a 30-day period, potentially creating more uncertainty in a stock that has experienced one of the rockiest market debuts in memory.

Facebook — the first U.S. company to debut with a market valuation above $100 billion — has fallen out of favor on Wall Street due to worries about slowing revenue growth.

In the second quarter, Facebook reported revenue growth of 32%, down sharply from more than 100% growth it delivered at the same time last year.

FinancialMirror.com

August 8 - 21, 2012

GREECE | 29

Greece to issue T-bills to pay maturing bond l Coalition partners resume work on austerity cuts Greece will issue additional T-bills to pay a government bond that matures later this month and avoid default while it awaits a delayed tranche of aid.

Cash-strapped and behind targets agreed under a 130 bln euro financial rescue package, Athens faces a 3.2 bln euro bond maturity on August 20. The bond is held by the European Central Bank.

“There will be an announcement on Friday on the amount and details,” the official told Reuters.

The additional sale of short-term debt will come on top of a three-month T-bill auction next week to roll over a previous 1.6 bln euro issue. Shut out of bond markets, Greece issues T-bills on a monthly basis to refund maturing short-term paper.

European partners had promised they would find a way to cover Greece’s funding needs in August and German newspaper Die Welt has reported the ECB agreed last week to raise the upper limit of T-bills the Bank of Greece can accept in exchange for emergency loans.

The move will allow the Greek government to access up to 4 bln euros more of funds. The resumption of bailout funding hinges on a progress report by the troika of EU, IMF and ECB inspectors, which is not expected before September.

Key to a positive report from the troika is the finalisation of 11.5 bln euros of austerity cuts due in 2013 and 2014, which political leaders have been discussing for weeks.

Prime Minister Antonis Samaras and his allies, Socialist leader Evangelos Venizelos and Democratic Left party chief Fotis Kouvelis last week broadly agreed on the cuts, but are continuing talks to identify specific measures.

They still need to nail down measures to account for a third of the entire package, Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras said ahead of talks between the party chiefs.

“We need to push through the necessary measures to save the country,” Stournaras told reporters.

“11.5 bln euros is a significant amount and we’re not there yet. We’re missing about 3.5 to 4 bln euros.”

A second government official said the three leaders hoped to identify the savings - expected mainly from cuts to health, pension and welfare benefits - by the end of the week before sending them to the troika for approval.

Greece is wholly reliant on its lenders for money to avoid bankruptcy, which it has narrowly dodged several times over the past year.

The new government that took power in June has promised it will do all to keep Greece in the euro zone, but European policymakers have warned the country could be cut loose if it fails to implement austerity measures and pledges to reform.

Eurogroup President Jean-Claude Juncker told Germany’s WDR television that a Greek exit would not be desirable but that it would be “manageable” for the bloc.

Top banks to bid for Emporiki l Could kick-start consolidation wave National Bank of Greece and Eurobank, will bid for the struggling Greek unit of French lender Credit Agricole, banking sources told Reuters, setting up a three-way battle for the bank.

The two lenders, which had previously confirmed they were interested but had yet to decide if they would bid, join smaller rival Alpha Bank in the fight for Emporiki, which Credit Agricole has been trying to sell in a bid to cut its exposure to crisis-hit Greece.

Offers for Emporiki are due by Wednesday.

Greece’s bank support fund has told potential buyers that it will approve a sale only if the struggling lender is fully funded and recapitalised with 5 bln euros before it is sold, meaning Credit Agricole would likely have to pump money into the unit before being able to offload it.

Analysts say that a sale of Emporiki to a Greek rival could kick-start a long-awaited mergers and acquisition wave in the battered sector, with state-controlled Hellenic Postbank expected to be among the next targets. Greece’s central bank chief has defended the government’ s decision to transfer state lender ATEbank’s healthy assets to Piraeus Bank, saying ATEbank was not viable and required a capital boost to continue operating.

The ASE General index gained 2.0% on a weekly basis despite worries for the fiscal adjustment programme, mainly

driven by financial stocks. The average trading volume up to Friday remained low at 23 mln euros against the previous week’s average of 22 mln. Large cap stocks (FTSE20) rose by 2.4% while mid-caps (FTSE 40) fell by 0.9%.

The banking index advanced by 6.5% led by Alpha Bank (+16.2%) after reports that it has submitted a bid for Emporiki.

Turning to non-financial stocks, blue chips PPC/DEH (-6.5%) and OTE (-4.5%) saw material losses.

“As the talks with the Troika over the austerity package are expected to continue until early September, we expect investors to focus on developments in the banking sector and corporate results,” explained Konstantinos Manolopoulos, analyst at the Investment Bank of Greece, a Laiki Group subsidiary.

Meanwhile, the daily Kathimerini quoted EU Monetary Commissioner Oli Rehn as saying that the Commission will examine in autumn, the possibility of Greek banks being recapitalised directly via the ESM, as opposed to the current plan of the HFSF. Rehn said that this will be examined for the banks of all countries that are being under the umbrella of an EU/IMF programme and could potentially reduce Greece’ debt levels substantially by about 40-50 bln euros or up to 25% of GDP and improve its credibility and sustainability.

End of political impasse lifts mood Sentiment about the economy, now in its fifth year of recession, improved slightly in July helped by the formation of a coalition government after two rounds at the polls, the country’s leading economic institute said.

The Foundation for Economic and Industrial Research (IOBE) said its index - based on consumer confidence gauges and indexes for business expectations in manufacturing, construction, retail and services - rose to 76.1 points from 74.1 in June, still below its average level of 100 between 1996 and 2006.

“The formation of a government had a positive impact mainly on consumer confidence where there are expectations of changes in the applied economic policy,” IOBE said.

In contrast to retail trade and construction, economic sentiment deteriorated in industry with firms still pessimistic on the outlook for orders and demand. In the services sector, the reading was flat at historic lows, IOBE said.

With unemployment hitting record levels and wages squeezed by higher taxes, consumers remain the most pessimistic in Europe - followed by those in Cyprus, Portugal and Hungary - despite an improved consumer confidence reading.

The modest rise in Greece’s overall economic sentiment in July compared with a drop in the European Commission’s sentiment index reading for the euro zone in the same month to 87.9 points from 89.9 in June.

ASE results lower Hellenic Exchanges, operator of the ASE bourse, delivered a weak set of results for 2Q12, with net profits coming in at EUR 2.3mln (-69% YoY), slightly lower versus consensus estimates of EUR 2.6 mln.

The net profit came in below consensus and analyst estimates on the back of a higher effective tax rate of 31% at 1H12, due to deferred tax implications. More specifically, 2Q12 operating revenues stood at EUR 7.7 mln (-27.5% YoY, +5.1% vs. consensus), with EBITDA settling at 2.4 mln (-68.6% YoY, +4.2% vs. consensus).

Management attributed lower operating revenues to the reduction in trading activities by value in the cash market, lower share prices and reductions in the derivative pricing policy effective from January 1, 2012. It also noted that the high effective tax rate (31% at 1H12) will drop off in coming quarters.

The group implemented a 7% personnel cost reduction, effective from July 1, with the full 7% benefits applying from 2013 onwards. The group reported a net cash position of EUR 117.5 mln plus EUR 1.7 mln in financial assets (78% of its current market capitalization).

Gas firm, grid operator for sale Greece wants binding bids for its state-owned natural gas company and gas grid operator by the end of September and hopes to complete their sale in late autumn as it revives its privatisation drive.

Hoping to regain credibility with international lenders, the new conservative-led government has made speeding up privatisations a priority but has admitted delays from repeat elections in May and June.

After a meeting between political leaders and the finance minister on privatisations, the official said the government’s priorities also included the sale of betting firm OPAP, the old Hellenikon airport and buildings in Athens, Corfu and Rhodes.

“What we’re aiming for through the privatisations, apart from generating revenues, is to change the role of the state in the economy,” the official said.

He said Russian, Italian, U.S. and French companies had expressed an interest in the natural gas company DEPA and gas grid operator DESPA. Athens initially targeted privatisation proceeds of 50 bln euros by 2015 but cut the target to 19 bln euros after a making slow start on the programme.

Former privatisations chief Costas Mitropoulos, who stepped down last month after accusing the government of hindering his efforts to sell assets, estimated that Athens would not raise more than 300 mln euros from privatisations in 2012. It had targeted 3 bln euros for this year.

Other privatisation targets include the horse racing organisation ODIE, Hellenic State Lotteries, and 28 properties that will be sold and leased back to the state.

PPC/DEH and Hellenic Postbank will not be included in the privatisation list at this stage.

“The sale of state-owned assets can be seen as interesting investment opportunities for real estate developers LAMDA Development and Ellaktor Group, energy players Mytilineos and Motor Oil and gaming operators Intralot,” said Dimitris Birbos, analyst at the Investment Bank of Greece, a Laiki Group subsidiary.

August 8 - 21, 2012

FinancialMirror.com

30 | CSE PRICES CSE CODE OASIS Index performance CSE General Index FTSE/CySE 20 FTSE/XA & XAK Banking MAIN MARKET MAIN MARKET INDEX BANK OF CYPRUS CYPRUS POPULAR BANK HELLENIC BANK LOGICOM LOUIS LTD A. TSOKKOS HOTELS ORPHANIDES SECTOR TOTAL / OΛIKO PARALLEL MARKET PARALLEL MARKET INDEX WOOLWORTH (CYPRUS) PROP VASSILIKO CEMENT ERMES DEPARTMENT STORES A&P (ANDREOU&PARASKEV.) LAIKI CAPITAL PUBLIC CO K. ATHIENITIS CONTR. - DEV. G.A.P VASSILOPOULOS KANIKA HOTELS MITSIDES LIBERTY LIFE INSURANCE PHIL. ANDREOU LORDOS HOTELS HOLDINGS LORDOS UNITED PLASTIC SECTOR TOTAL / OΛIKO ALTERNATIVE MARKET ALTERNATIVE INDEX A. PANAYIDES CONTRACTING AD SHOPPING GALLERIES ALKIS HADJ. (FROU-FROU) A.L. PROCHOICE FIN. SERV. AMATHUS PUBLIC LTD ASTARTI DEVELOPMENT ATLANTIC INSURANCE FIRSTDELOS GROUP BLUE ISLAND FISH FARMING CCC TOURIST ENT. CHARILAOS APOSTOLIDES CHRIS JOANNOU LTD CLARIDGE INVESTMENTS CLR INVESTMENT FUND CONSTANTINOU BROS. CPI ENTER. DEVELOPMENT C.T.O. PUBLIC CO CYPRINT LTD. CYPRUS CEMENT CYPRUS FOREST IND. CYPRUS TRADING CORP. CYVENTURE CAPITAL DIMCO PLC DISPLAY ART LTD ELLINAS FINANCE ELMA HOLDINGS EMPIRE CAPITAL INV. EUROPROFIT CAPITAL EXELIXIS INVESTMENT FILOKTIMATIKI K & G COMPLEX KARAOLIS GROUP KARKOTIS MANUFACTURING KEO LTD KOSMOS INSURANCE KRONOS PRESS DIST. JUPITER PORTFOLIO INV. L.P. TRANSBETON LEPTOS CALYPSO HOTELS MALLOUPAS & PAPACOSTAS MINERVA INSURANCE MODESTOU SOUND & VISION NEMESIS CONSTRUCTIONS O.C. OPTIONS CHOICE PANDORA INVESTMENTS PIPIS FARM PETROLINA HOLDINGS PIERIDES HOLDINGS PRIMETEL PLC PROODOS AGROS RENOS HADJIOANNOU FARMS ROYAL HIGHGATE LTD SALAMIS TOURS SFS GROUP PUBLIC CO. STADEMOS HOTELS STARIO INVESTMENTS TOP KINISIS TRAVEL TOXOTIS INVESTMENTS UNIFAST FIN. & INV. VISION INTL PEOPLE GROUP SECTOR TOTAL / OΛIKO

ΟΑΣΗΣ

Kωδ.

Number

Nominal

Market

Shares ('000) Aριθµός µετοχών

Value euro Aξία EUR

Cap. ('000) Kεφαλ.

EUR

Book Value Price to

Profit/(Loss)

Per Share Book Value 2010 euro Times EUR ('000) Λογιστική Tιµή προς Κέρδη µετά αξία λογιστ. αξ. φορολ.

2010 BOCY CPB HB LOG LUI TSH ORF

ΤΡΚΥ ΛΑΙΚ ΕΛΗΤ ΛΟΤΖ ΛΟΥΗ ΤΣΟΚ ΟΡΦΑ

1 795 141 1 611 111 579 914 74 080 460 547 246 214 80 966

1.00 0.10 0.43 0.35 0.17 0.35 0.35

359 028 96 667 101 485 19 261 9 211 18 958 6 072 610 682

1.54 0.38 1.45 0.76 0.25 0.53 1.72 0.95

0.13 0.16 0.12 0.34 0.08 0.15 0.04 0.15

114 320 34 529 24 500 30 150 15 714 4 146 5 231 8 134 4 756 3 814 4 275 3 710 2 400 255 679

1.75 3.07 0.45 0.26 0.27 4.39 0.33 0.68 3.50 0.09 0.12 1.69 0.56 1.32

0.15 0.16 0.31 0.64 0.20 0.07 0.41 0.20 0.17 0.47 0.78 0.06 0.09 0.29

6 217 11 604 15 818 3 173 8 578 4 996 21 119 9 433 2 779 7 085 3 000 201 5 408 2 881 11 250 7 314 6 261 1 336 20 642 4 130 35 911 2 096 7 290 810 5 600 6 967 39 239 627 4 760 1 874 10 000 447 956 12 391 2 158 12 036 4 371 1 971 7 118 7 346 1 568 149 15 875 464 29 710 773 59 500 1 547 18 012 5 816 2 979 1 650 2 922 3 991 6 825 386 3 175 414 200 75 000 548 150

0.90 0.06 0.51 0.04 0.52 0.02 0.73 0.29 0.77 0.49 0.25 0.46 0.44 0.07 0.75 0.65 0.12 0.36 1.66 6.13 1.82 0.47 0.23 0.35 0.76 0.06 0.05 0.20 0.79 2.47 0.62 0.07 0.12 3.71 0.48 0.74 0.36 0.41 0.94 0.62 0.14 0.02 0.57 0.22 0.24 0.36 1.29 0.42 0.04 3.43 0.04 0.16 0.48 1.89 2.34 0.05 0.41 0.04 0.12 0.15 0.71

0.19 1.50 0.31 0.57 0.15 2.27 0.74 0.44 0.23 0.10 0.24 0.04 0.11 0.14 0.09 0.46 0.26 0.73 0.09 0.22 0.21 0.30 0.39 0.17 0.46 0.33 16.40 0.10 0.18 0.16 0.16 0.27 1.04 0.11 0.25 0.80 0.20 0.56 0.07 0.27 0.14 0.43 0.45 0.04 0.29 0.22 0.53 0.17 1.67 0.47 0.25 0.32 0.17 0.03 0.09 0.64 0.50 0.17 6.61 0.74

306 000 87 100 8 889 3 274 -10 243 -17 397 3 328 380 951

2010 FWW VCW ERME APE LI ACD GAP KAN MIT LIB PHIL LHH LPL

APC AD FBI PROP ANC AST ATL ACS BLUE CCCT CHAP CJ CLA CLL CBH CPIH CTO CYP CCC CFI CTC EXE DES DISP ELF ELMA EMP ERP EXIN PES KG KARA KARK KEO COS KRO ARI TRB LCH MPT MINE MSV NEM OPT PND PIPF PHL PGE PTL AGRO FRH ROY SAL SFS SHL STAR TOP COV UFI VIP

ΓΟΥΛ ΤΣΙΒ ΕΡΜΕ ΑΝΠΑ ΛΕΠΕ ΑΘΗΕ ΒΑΣΙ ΚΑΝΙ ΜΙΤΣ ΛΙΠΕ ΦΙΛΑ ΛΟΞΕ ΛΟΡ∆

ΑΠΑΝ ΑΘΩΣ ΦΡΟΥ ΠΡΟΠ ΑΜΑΘ ΑΣΤΑ ΑΤΑΣ ΑΒΑΚ ΜΠΛΕ ΣΙΤΟ ΧΑΡΙ ΙΟΑΝ ΚΛΑΡ ΣΛΕΠ ΚΩΝΣ ΚΕΑΕ ΣΤΟ ΣΑΙΠ ΚΕΤΣ ∆ΒΚ∆ ΣΤΣ∆ ΒΕΝΤ ΝΤΙΜ ΝΤΙΑ ΕΛΛΗ ΕΛΕΠ ΕΜ ΓΙΟΥ ΕΞΕΠ ΦΙΛΟ ΚΚΟΜ ΚΑΡΚ ΚΕΟ ΚΟΣΑ ΚΡΟΝ ΤΖΕΠ ΤΡΑΝ ΛΕΠΤ ΜΑΠΑ ΜΙΝΕ ΜΟ∆Ε ΝΕΜΕ ΟΚΑΣ ΠΑΝ∆ ΠΙΠΗ ΛΙΝΑ ΠΙΕΡ ΠΤΕΛ ΑΓΡΟ ΡΕΝΟ ΡΟΧΑ ΣΑΛΑ ΕΣΕΦ ΣΤΑ∆ ΣΤΕΠ ΤΟΚΙ ΤΟΕΠ ΦΑΣΤ ΒΙΖΝ

114 252 71 936 175 000 182 725 285 713 13 416 38 750 60 250 8 200 90 804 45 000 35 000 48 006

36 572 128 936 98 861 158 660 107 226 99 925 39 109 72 562 15 438 141 692 50 000 10 070 108 163 288 141 160 714 24 379 208 700 5 140 137 611 3 059 92 079 14 973 80 999 13 506 16 000 348 333 47 853 31 344 34 000 4 805 100 000 22 343 7 967 30 978 17 985 20 400 62 446 8 571 101 683 43 211 78 415 14 900 61 056 46 355 424 435 9 660 87 500 22 100 300 194 3 590 297 915 33 000 36 529 66 520 32 500 38 581 12 212 20 700 9 988 75 000

0.34 0.43 0.34 0.17 0.27 0.35 0.17 0.35 1.03 0.10 0.17 0.35 0.35

0.35 0.17 0.26 0.09 0.35 0.35 0.35 0.34 0.17 0.43 0.35 0.35 0.35 0.08 0.35 0.17 0.87 0.43 0.43 1.73 0.85 0.43 0.09 0.35 0.62 0.09 0.87 0.09 0.29 0.87 0.17 0.34 0.35 0.43 0.31 0.43 0.20 0.35 0.35 0.35 0.17 0.14 0.17 0.17 0.17 0.35 0.35 0.34 0.17 1.73 0.03 0.17 0.43 1.00 0.69 0.17 0.34 0.03 0.05 $ 0.10

6M 2011 EUR ('000) Kέρδη 2011

6M '11

6M 2012 EUR ('000) Kέρδη 2012

6M '12

2 904

2 697

2 904

2 697

6M '11

6M '12

Profit/(Loss)

2011 EUR ('000) Κέρδη µετά φορολ.

1 038

1 906

1 038

1 906

2010

6M '11

6M '12

2011

-5 391

-16 719

-3 664

-2 768

-2 739

-2 043

-463

-1 653

1 239

43

-111

-75

-1 396

-840

-347

-372

1 094

-1 506

-16

-133

-11 794

-26 066

373 -12 265 2 334 -2 594 -2 121 -6 400 2 306 -2 754 570 -3 519 -7 900 -375 -3 942 -7 654 -4 006 -65 -3 921 -513 -4 630 -4 127 5 693 1 104 1 604 -526 -257 -551 -212 -15 562 1 608 5 130 -2 198 -110 -3 948 -804 100 -1 392 -438 -6 299 1 345 -3 185 -281 2 076 -2 192 -16 880 -1 314 10 753 -868 -6 352 73 151 546 964 -19 100 1 577 -1 737 -689 11 -37 2 753 -110 647

Dividend Per

Dividend Yield

Share

Share 2011 Cents

%

Cents

n/a n/a n/a 5.37 n/a n/a n/a 0.17

2011 6 674 -1 174 245 4 122 -1 734 2 133 -1 600 -77 -947 -2 667 -1 333 759 -1 302 3 099

Earnings Per

Results

2011 -1 371 000 -3 650 380 -100 658 3 585 -82 674 -6 894 -8 648 -5 216 669

8 848 1 310 6 309 4 108 -47 25 987 -1 903 -703 2 574 -8 419 -1 453 456 71 37 138

1 767 -3 960 4 363 -5 724 -1 339 -11 422 4 108 -2 203 257 -6 512 1 542 -622 -3 641 -7 007 440 -157 1 211 -1 031 -6 432 568 13 270 1 157 2 183 -380 575 -5 602 -504 -980 1 048 614 -1 668 -844 -738 -3 358 -760 969 -2 094 -501 -3 469 -1 746 -4 952 -594 5 981 -9 573 -9 238 313 8 617 11 -5 231 362 14 344 131 -9 983 1 165 -1 062 -181 -25 -43 -330 -62 896

P/E ratio 2011

4.49 n/a 100.00 7.31 n/a 1.94 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 4.89 n/a 11.39

2012 Low High EUR EUR Aνώτατο Kατώτατο

Last Close EUR Kλείσιµο

Price 31/12/2011 EUR Tιµή 31/12/2011

% Change

since 31/12/2011 Ποσ. Μετ.

31/12/2011

385.85 134.85 365.45

106.68 42.14 116.68

106.68 43.54 150.63

295.94 104.60 196.84

-63.95 -58.37 -23.48

377.70 0.76 0.39 0.36 0.34 0.04 0.08 0.12

97.01 0.20 0.06 0.17 0.26 0.02 0.05 0.07

97.01 0.20 0.06 0.18 0.26 0.02 0.08 0.08

286.83 0.61 0.30 0.36 0.27 0.04 0.05 0.12

-66.18 -67.21 -79.80 -51.52 -3.35 -45.95 50.98 -38.02

Cents -76.37 -226.58 -17.36 4.84 -17.95 -2.80 -10.68

Cents

%

2.50

9.62

Cents 5.84 -1.63 0.14 2.26 -0.61 15.90 -4.13 -0.13 -11.55 -2.94 -2.96 2.17 -2.71

Cents 5.80

% 22.14

704.24 0.34 0.57 0.17 0.20 0.07 1.10 0.18 0.14 0.65 0.05 0.10 0.12 0.07

573.37 0.26 0.35 0.13 0.16 0.05 0.28 0.13 0.10 0.58 0.03 0.09 0.08 0.05

602.39 0.26 0.48 0.14 0.17 0.06 0.31 0.14 0.14 0.58 0.04 0.10 0.11 0.05

656.6 0.32 0.35 0.167 0.18 0.06 1.00 0.18 0.11 0.63 0.05 0.10 0.08 0.06

-8.26 -17.87 39.13 -16.17 -7.82 -12.70 -69.10 -25.00 22.73 -7.94 -10.64 -3.06 27.71 -16.67

Cents 1.02 -9.51 2.36 -1.63 -1.98 -6.40 5.90 -3.80 3.69 -2.48 -15.80 -3.72 -3.64 -2.66 -2.49 -0.27 -1.88 -9.98 -3.36 -134.91 6.18 7.37 1.98 -3.89 -1.61 -1.15 -0.68 -45.77 33.47 5.13 -9.84 -1.38 -12.74 -4.47 0.49 -2.23 -5.11 -6.19 3.11 -4.06 -1.89 3.40 -4.73 -3.98 -13.60 12.29 -3.93 -2.12 2.03 0.05 1.65 2.64 -28.71 4.85 -4.50 -5.64 0.05 -0.37 3.67

Cents

%

740.44

660.99

0.91

5.69

7.00

12.96

1.20

6.67

8.50

12.50

2.00

9.52

666.36 0.17 0.09 0.16 0.02 0.08 0.05 0.54 0.13 0.18 0.05 0.06 0.02 0.05 0.01 0.07 0.30 0.03 0.26 0.15 1.35 0.39 0.14 0.09 0.06 0.35 0.02 0.82 0.02 0.14 0.39 0.10 0.02 0.12 0.40 0.12 0.59 0.07 0.23 0.07 0.17 0.02 0.01 0.26 0.01 0.07 0.08 0.68 0.07 0.06 1.62 0.01 0.05 0.08 0.06 0.21 0.01 0.26 0.02 0.02 1.00

738.87 0.17 0.11 0.16 0.02 0.10 0.05 0.83 0.16 0.21 0.07 0.06 0.02 0.05 0.01 0.09 0.31 0.05 0.32 0.18 3.20 0.32 0.17 0.09 0.06 0.38 0.02 0.62 0.03 0.15 0.48 0.12 0.03 0.14 0.70 0.09 0.65 0.09 0.23 0.08 0.19 0.04 0.01 0.21 0.01 0.11 0.08 0.52 0.06 0.06 1.62 0.01 0.08 0.09 0.10 0.23 0.01 0.26 0.02 0.02 1.00

-9.81 0.00 -18.18 0.00 0.00 -20.00 0.00 -34.94 -18.75 -14.29 -28.57 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 -22.22 -3.23 -40.00 -18.75 -16.67 -57.81 21.88 -17.65 0.00 0.00 -7.89 0.00 32.26 -33.33 -6.67 -18.75 -16.67 -33.33 -14.29 -42.86 33.33 -9.23 -22.22 0.00 -12.50 -10.53 -50.00 0.00 23.81 0.00 -36.36 0.00 30.77 16.67 0.00 0.00 0.00 -37.50 -11.11 -40.00 -8.70 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

FinancialMirror.com

August 8 - 21, 2012

CSE PRICES | 31 CSE CODE OASIS

ΟΑΣΗΣ

Kωδ.

APPROVED INVESTMENTS / EΠEN∆YTIKOI OPΓAN. INVESTMENT INDEX ACTIBOND GROWTH FUND ACT ΑΚΕΠ APOLLO INVESTMENT FUND APOL ΑΠΕΠ FINIKAS AMMOCHOSTOU CONF ΚΟΕΠ CYTRUSTEES INV. PUBLIC CO CYTR ΣΑΕΠ DEMETRA INV. PUBLIC CO. DEM ∆ΗΕΠ DODONI PORTFOLIO DOD ∆ΩΕΠ HARVEST CAPITAL HCM ΧΑΕΠ INTERFUND INVESTMENTS INF ΙΝΕΠ ISCHIS INVESTMENT ISXI ΙΣΕΠ REGALLIA HOLD. & INV. REG ΡΕΕΠ TRIENA INV. INCOME TINC ΤΕΕΠ TRIENA INV. CAPITAL TCAP ΤΚΕΠ TRIENA INTERNATIONAL TINT Τ∆ΕΠ UNIGROWTH INVESTMENTS UNI ΓΙΕΠ SECTOR TOTAL / OΛIKO SHIPPING COMPANIES SECTOR SPECIAL CATEGORY / AIANTAS INVESTMENTS A. ZORBAS & SONS CEILFLOOR CYPRUS AIRWAYS D.H. CYPROTELS D&M TELEMARKETING DOME INVESTMENTS EFREMICO HOLDINGS KARYES INVESTMENTS KNOSSOS INV. K. KYTHREOTIS HOLDINGS LASER INVESTMENT GROUP LIBRA GROUP OCEAN TANKERS ROLANDOS ENTERPRISES SAFS HOLDINGS SEA STAR CAPITAL SUPHIRE HOLDINGS USB BANK SECTOR TOTAL / OΛIKO

Number

Nominal

Market

Book Value

Shares ('000) Aριθµός µετοχών

Value euro Aξία EUR

Cap. ('000) Kεφαλ.

EUR

Per Share euro Λογιστική αξία

Price to

Profit/(Loss)

2010 Book Value Times EUR ('000) Tιµή προς Κέρδη µετά λογιστ. αξ. φορολ.

NAV

Disc/Prem

0.0379 0.2721 0.0048 0.2741 0.7502 0.0174 0.0674 0.1633 0.0734 0.0320 1.0430 2.1427 0.6125 0.2500

-47.23 -63.25 316.67 -67.17 -66.68 -42.53 33.53 -69.38 -45.50 -37.50 -23.30 -6.66 -2.04 16.00

2010 58 430 56 147 49 385 44 494 200 000 282 483 14 000 56 545 11 000 20 247 2 729 2 729 1 364 13 468

0.17 0.27 0.10 0.30 0.87 0.02 0.17 0.51 0.51 0.09 0.85 0.85 0.85 0.17

1 169 5 615 988 4 004 50 000 2 825 1 260 2 827 440 405 2 183 5 458 818 3 906 81 898

-760 -3 213 -2 533 -10 875 -15 581 -5 227 -6 -12 850 -112 -195 389 -446 -7 -127 -51 543

6M 2011 EUR ('000) Kέρδη 2011

6M 2012 EUR ('000) Kέρδη 2012

6M '11 -59 -1 207 -284

6M '12 -43 -316 -705

-2 488

-1 489

-3 619

-873

-43 -7 700

-241 -3 667

6M '11

6M '12

2010 AIAS ZRP CFL CAIR DHH TLM DOME EFR KAR KNO KYTH LAS LHG OCT ROL SAFS SEAS SUP USB

ΑΙΕΠ ΖΟΡΠ ΣΙΦΛ ΚΑΕΡ ∆ΡΟΥ ΤΕΛΕ ΝΤΟ∆ ΕΦΡΕ ΚΑΕΠ ΚΝΕΠ ΚΥΘΡ ΛΕΕΠ ΛΙΠΡ ΤΑΝΚ ΡΟΛΑ ΣΑΦΣ ΣΕΑΣ ΣΑΠΦ ΤΡΑΓ

81 202 15 296 5 055 391 155 157 138 7 700 25 000 11 385 2 000 21 827 42 450 61 739 189 377 296 665 54 166 70 220 629 785 124 009 60 674

0.21 0.34 0.03 0.086 0.17 0.12 0.43 0.43 0.43 0.17 0.17 0.06 0.01 $0.20 0.17 0.17 0.04 0.09 0.57

MARKET TOTAL / OΛIKO AΓOPAΣ

812 8 872 202 23 469 1 571 385 16 250 228 540 218 5 519 8 643 1 894 5 933 5 417 702 6 298 1 240 36 404 124 598

0.1769 2.40 -0.61 -0.06 -0.20 -0.01 1.35 0.086 0.2224 0.11 0.45 0.06 -0.38 -0.27 0.29 0.000 -0.04 -0.1180 0.43

-94.35 0.24 -0.07 -1.05 -0.05 -5.00 0.48 0.23 1.21 0.09 0.29 2.47 -0.03 -0.07 0.35 33.33 -0.26 -0.08 1.40

1 621 006

-214 1 846 -1 353 232 -31 800 -335 -1 938 221 -180 774 999 -2 378 -7 100 -50 257 93 -173 -50 598 -764 -6 534 -149 459 154 191

Profit/(Loss)

2011 EUR ('000) Κέρδη µετά φορολ.

P/E ratio 2011

Dividend Per

Dividend Yield

Share

Share 2011 Cents

%

Cents

%

11.00

13.75

Results Cents

2011 -737 -4 301 -1 465 -10 771 -14 687 -6 357 -255 -9 493 -165 -150 331 -136 -36 -303 -48 525

Earnings Per

Cents -1.26 -7.66 -2.97 -24.21 -7.34 -2.25 -1.82 -16.79 -1.50 -0.74 12.13 -4.98 -2.64 -2.25

2012 High Low EUR EUR Aνώτατο Kατώτατο

555.14

441.63

0.80

0.46

0.06

0.03

Last Close EUR Kλείσιµο

Price 31/12/2011 EUR Tιµή 31/12/2011

31/12/2011 Ποσ. Μετ.

31/12/2011

545.70 0.02 0.10 0.02 0.09 0.25 0.01 0.09 0.05 0.04 0.02 0.80 2.00 0.60 0.29

454.51 0.02 0.09 0.03 0.14 0.19 0.01 0.10 0.10 0.04 0.02 0.80 2.00 0.60 0.25

20.06 0.00 11.11 -33.33 -35.71 31.58 0.00 -10.00 -50.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 16.00

0.01 0.58 0.04 0.06 0.01 0.05 0.65 0.02 0.27 0.01 0.13 0.14 0.01 0.02 0.10 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.60

0.01 0.65 0.04 0.06 0.01 0.05 0.65 0.02 0.27 0.01 0.13 0.14 0.01 0.02 0.10 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.60

-10.49 0.00 -

% Change

since

0.00

2011 `

-75

-57

369

-919

-2 708

-2 452

-3 801 -10 248

616 -7 157

-27 989 -1 856 -18 954 -9 100 -245 -701 35 -180 87 612 -2 656 -11 700 -32 272 -328 -320 -16 501 -60 -6 248 -99 425

-25 800

-32 287

-5 472 167

-4 033

-4 345

8.97

-0.03 6.47 -36.72 -4.85 -5.79 -3.18 -2.80 0.31 -9.00 0.40 1.44 -4.30 -6.18 -10.88 -0.61 -0.46 -2.62 -0.05 -10.30

1.12

1.72

source: Eurivex Ltd. PAT:Profit After Tax

NAV: Net Asset Value

Bold: Final results

EPS: Earnings per Share based on existing number of shares.

P/E: Price to Earnings ratio. Weighted P/E ratio: Calculated based on market cap weighting of profit reporting companies, Book Value: According to our estimates. N/A Indicates Not Applicable, Price 31/12/2009 is the closing price or in case of New Listings the opening price.

EMERGING MARKET (N.E.A.) FOCUS FINANCIAL SERVICES CONSTANTINOU BROS PROPERTIES CYPRUS LIMNI RESORTS & GOLF PHONE MARKETING S.A. ITTL TRADE TOURIST & LEISURE INT'L LIFE GENERAL INSURANCE SA ORCA INVESTMENT PLC P.C. SPLASH WATER PUBLIC CO. WARGAMING PUBLIC CO. ECHMI S.A. INVESTMENT CONSULTANTS EPILEKTOS ENERGY S.A. KERVERUS IT (CYPRUS) LTD C.O. CYPRUS OPPORTUNITY ENERGY TOTAL

CSE Code EXTE/EXTE ΚΩΑΜ/CBAM ΛΙΜΝΗ/LIMNI PHONE/PHONE ΙΤΤΛ/ITTL INLE ΟΡΚΑ/ORCA ΠΚΣΓ/PCSW ΓΚ/WG EXMI/ΕΗΜΙ ΕΠΙΕΝ/EPIEN ΚΕΡΒ/KERV ΓΚΑΖ/GAS

No. of Shares (000) 1 690 1 950 300 000 1 575 100 000 8 057 1 200 35 052 3 400 321 10 906 1 810 8 390

Market Cap EUR (000) 11 830 36 855 300 000 5 513 75 000 21 834 14 280 42 062 3 400 1 611 43 624 2 552 15 270 573 832

Latest price EUR 7.00 18.90 1.00 3.50 0.75 2.71 11.90 1.20 1.00 5.02 4.00 1.41 1.82

Nominal Value EUR 0.30 0.01 0.10 0.30 0.50 1.00 0.01 0.25 0.10 1.00 0.32 1.00 0.01

Listing Date 29/3/10 29/3/10 29/3/10 29/3/10 06/8/10 21/7/11 10/9/10 10/10/11 2/11/11 10/04/12 28/06/12 29/06/12 17/07/12

WARRANTS EUROPROFIT (WAR. 2005/2012) ALKIS HADJ. FROU-FROU (WAR. 2015) AMATHUS NAVIGATION (WAR.07-2013) UNIGROWTH INV (WAR.10/12) TOTAL EMERGING MARKET (N.E.A.) GreenTea SA

Ignores weighted number of shares in circulation Forecasted profits are liable to change without notice and responsibility

No. of warrants (000) 893 24831 17606 2218

Mkt Cap (00) 1 25 176 22 224

CSE Code

No. of Bonds

Exercise Period

Exercise Price euro cents

Expiry Date

41212 20-30 Jun 2001-2015 1-15 May & 1-15 Nov 07-13 1-15 Nov 2010 and 2012

8.67 173 20c or EUR 35c 29

30-10-2012 30-06-2005 15-11-2013 15/11/2012

Latest Close 0.001 0.001 0.010 0.010

GRTEA

1 040

Market Cap EUR 104 000 000

Latest price EUR 100 000

Listing Date 8 Nov 2011

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Kappasquare Ltd Nugreat Ltd Zetadynamic Ltd

KPSQ NGRT ZETA

17 000 23 000 9 000

1 700 000 2 300 000 900 000

100 100 100

30 Mar 2012 30 Mar 2012 30 Mar 2012

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Akcern Ltd

AKCN

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100

9 May 2012

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FinancialMirror.com

August 8 - 21, 2012

32 | BACK PAGE

No rabbits hidden in China’s hat this time l Poised to recover but not roar as economy rebalancing after 30 years of double-digit growth

By ALAN WHEATLEY Global Economics Correspondent, Reuters

Investors will be looking to a data deluge from China this week to give the global economy a further lift after Friday’s strong U.S. jobs report. They risk being disappointed.

Figures for July, starting on Thursday and covering everything from trade to bank loans and investment, are likely to show the world’s second-largest economy is, at best, stabilising rather than recovering briskly.

And while Beijing has both the will and the means to provide extra fiscal and monetary stimulus if growth flags, Chinawatchers rule out a repeat of the massive expansion of credit that successfully rebooted the economy after the global financial crash of late 2008.

That means China, and Asian economies increasingly tied to it, can do little to overcome the headwinds blowing in from the United States and, especially, Europe.

“The problems in Asia that are causing the slowdown come predominantly from outside the region,” said Rob Subbaraman, chief economist for Asia at Nomura in Hong Kong. “Europe is a bigger than the U.S. as an export market for most Asian countries now, and it’s a big investor in the region.”

In today’s interlocking global economy, Asia’s travails are rebounding on the rest of the world. Siemens, Europe’s biggest engineering conglomerate; BASF, the world’s top chemicals maker; U.S. blue chip United Technologies ; and Japan’s Hitachi have all recently reported the impact of lower Chinese demand.

REBALANCING ACT Asia as a whole wants to wean itself off exports and generate more domestic growth. China’s current account surplus is just a third of what it was in 2007. The process, though, is

generally slow.

“Over the next decade we will see domestic demand becoming a bigger engine of growth for China, and that will change the picture quite a lot for Asia,” said Rajiv Biswas, chief Asia-Pacific economist for IHS Global Insight in Singapore.

“But we’re not yet in a situation where the growth engine in Asia is strong enough to cruise through a recession in Europe and stagnant growth in the U.S.,” he added.

China’s economy expanded 7.6% from a year earlier in the second quarter, the slowest pace in three years. Economists expect growth to pick up moderately in coming months since Beijing has cut interest rates and is speeding up the approval of investment projects.

But this year has been remarkable so far for what has not happened in China: the ruling Communist Party has not gone flat out for growth despite the imperative to preserve economic and financial stability ahead of a once-in-a-decade leadership transition.

That is because the 2008 pump-priming has swapped one sort of dangerous imbalance for another: China’s external surplus has shrunk, but the economy has become more dependent than ever on investment, which accounts for close to 50% of GDP. Personal consumption, by contrast, is no more than 35% of GDP, half that of the United States.

Beijing wants better-balanced growth and so, to the surprise of some, it has kept in place curbs to tamp down house prices. It has also kept local government investment on a fairly tight leash.

Seen in this light, the danger from this week’s figures is not so much that growth undershoots but that, if it does, Beijing presses the panic button and puts investment spending back on the fast track.

“The risk is that you get more stimulus but it leads to a more unbalanced economy,” Nomura’s Subbaraman said.

As such, he said he would be paying particular attention

to the relative strength of July’s data on retail sales and fixedasset investment.

Economists have been paring their full-year growth forecasts for China to 8% or less. Markets would react badly to a further slowdown, but Ting Lu, Bank of America Merrill Lynch’s China economist, said even a 7% pace would not be bad given the weakness in the global economy. “We expect China to achieve a growth soft-landing if the euro zone does not break up,” Lu, who has an 8% forecast, said. “We see many risks, but the Chinese economy is still far from collapse.”

SHIFTING DOWN A GEAR Economists at Barclays Capital agreed that the overwhelming likelihood was recovery rather than relapse in China over the rest of the year as the government steps up efforts to support growth.

But they said financial markets needed to adjust their expectations to a China that grows at 8% a year and not the 10% average annual rate of the past three decades.

“Unlike post the 2008-09 crisis, China will not save the world. Political and economic constraints in China (as well as in the other economies) suggest there will be no silver bullet or panacea to quickly pull the global economy out of the doldrums, and 2012 will be a difficult year,” they said in a report.

No outside central bank watches China more closely than the Reserve Bank of Australia, given the Australian economy’s dependence on commodity exports to the Middle Kingdom.

In a quiet week for major central banks, the RBA is expected to leave interest rates unchanged at a policy meeting.

Citi expects some small upgrades to the RBA’s economic forecasts when it released its quarterly monetary policy statement on Friday.

In Britain, by contrast, the Bank of England may well revise down its forecasts for growth and inflation in 2012 and 2013 when it publishes its latest inflation report on Wednesday, according to economists at Investec.