Financial Mirror 2013 08 07

FinancialMirror New challenges for the economy and banks

Is there life after a haircut of deposits?

By Makis Keravnos, CEO, HB

By Theo Panayotou, CIIM

PAGE 4

What’s next for FX? CySEC sends mixed signals with controls on non-EU trades PAGE 3

PAGE 5

FinancialMirror

years Issue No. 1044

August 7 - 27 , 2013

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Αugust 7 - 27, 2013

2 | NEWS | financialmirror.com

How Hollande plans to win his bet on jobs ANALYSIS Defying all predictions by the IMF, the European Commission and the bulk of private economists, President Francois Hollande is still banking on a turnaround in French unemployment by the end of the year.

Not only that, he has upped the stakes by making it the top political priority of his Socialist government. “I will be judged on it,” he told the nation in a Bastille Day television interview last month. It is no secret that he plans to use a variety of statesubsidised temporary jobs and training places to ease the strain on jobless claims totals that hit an all-time record of 3.28 mln in June.

The first test of his plan will come directly after France’s August summer break - when his government believes it will confound the sceptics and start to chip away at jobless totals.

“Taken together, these measures will have a major impact over the period up to the end of the year. It will make itself felt on the unemployment trend,” said a government source.

Hollande’s plan is simple. Although he insists the French economy is already pointing up after two successive quarters of slight shrinkage, he accepts that it will still not generate enough growth to create jobs until the second half of next year.

Hence the plan to stimulate the jobs market right now.

When French children return to school in September, they will be welcomed by an army of 30,000 new classroom minders and playground assistants in many cases taken straight from the dole queues. Such public sector posts are a category of jobs

whose average duration will be doubled to 12 months.

Add to these the so-called “jobs of the future” which the government will fund to help unqualified youths aged between 16 and 25 take up jobs in the health, charitable and other noncommercial sectors.

After a slow start, the government estimates 2,500 such contracts are now being signed a week and expects to get close to a year-end target of 100,000.

The third major lever will be a new tranche of training schemes aimed at matching the unemployed with the several hundred thousand job vacancies currently unfilled in France because of a skills mismatch. Hollande expects to fill 30,000 such posts this year and 70,000 more in 2014.

Finally, Hollande wants to encourage the private sector to take on 70,000 young people by giving companies financial incentives to train a young worker to replace an employee heading into retirement.

COOKING THE BOOKS? National statistics agency INSEE has forecast that unemployment will keep increasing throughout the year to hit 11.1% by year-end, just shy of the record 11.2% of 1997, with the state-subsidised jobs slowing the increase but not enough to actually cut the unemployment rate.

But some economists agree the arrival on the market of subsidised jobs could allow Hollande to win his bet by announcing a drop in unemployment from September onwards.

Others are less convinced. Marie Diron, Director of Macro

Forecasting at Oxford Economics and also among those who in June doubted that Hollande could win his bet, forecast the subsidised jobs would not be enough to turn the overall tide of the labour market.

“We are concerned about low corporate margins and we think companies will focus on restoring profitability,” she said of further expected lay-offs, forecasting that unemployment would continue rising until early 2014.

Among the factors Diron said could work against Hollande are the fact that many subsidised jobs will go to those who would have found work anyway, especially after eligibility criteria were loosened. Separately, the continued growth in the French labour supply tends to inflate jobless claims, she said.

Even if Hollande does manage to announce a statistical fall in the number of unemployed between now and the end of the year, critics will accuse him simply of cooking the books with artificially created jobs that will not last.

But Hollande is unrepentant. The second part of his wager is that a recovery will, by the middle of 2014, kick in enough to create employment by itself. Economists have tended to put that rate at 1.5%, but the government thinks otherwise.

“Unemployment can start to ease by itself in France at a growth rate of around 1%,” said a government source.

While the government expects to revise down its full-year 2014 growth forecast of 1.2%, it hopes the marginal rate will be faster than that by mid-year — not least because it will have started releasing 20 bln euros in tax breaks to businesses in return for hiring new employees.

Cameron aims to erase EU goal of “closer union” ANALYSIS Britain’s long-running political civil war over Europe is as much about symbols as it is about substance.

So advisers to Prime Minister David Cameron are looking for one or two symbolic trophies he can claim in a renegotiation of the European Union’s treaty before he asks Britons to support continued membership in a referendum promised for 2017.

According to a source familiar with the Conservative leader’s thinking, London wants to erase or amend the goal of an “ever closer union” that has featured in the preamble of EU treaties since the founding 1957 Treaty of Rome.

To many Britons, those three words stand for an inexorable one-way journey in which national sovereignty ebbs to Brussels and the undeclared final destination is a European super-state.

“Ever closer union” has long been a red rag to John Bull, the patriotic cartoon Englishman draped in a Union Jack flag who feels his country signed up to a common market in 1973 but has become entangled in ever more intrusive European governance.

“We understand and respect the right of others to maintain their commitment to this goal. But for Britain - and perhaps for others - it is not the objective,” Cameron said in January.

His aides are hoping to airbrush out the offending phrase or make clear it applies only to those, notably in the euro area, who want to pursue deeper integration.

Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy scored just such a semantic victory in 2007 when he had the term “free and unfettered competition” deleted from the EU’s core values in the Lisbon Treaty. It changed nothing in European competition law.

Another symbol in London’s sights is the concept of “European citizenship”, established by the 1992 Maastricht Treaty. To British sovereignists (and Foreign Office lawyers), Europeans are citizens of their nation state, not of the EU. BACK TO BLACK PASSPORTS? In practice, “European citizenship” confers few rights, other than an entitlement for long-term EU residents of another member state to vote in local and European Parliament elections in that country.

But it means that Britons carry burgundy-coloured passports like other EU nationals with the words European Union embossed on the cover above the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the royal coat of arms.

The source said a return to the traditional black British passport without the offending EU moniker could be another

symbolic win for Cameron.

Foreign Secretary William Hague pointed to some of the main areas where Britain wants change in the substance of EU law in a speech in Berlin in May, especially in social legislation.

Britons could not understand “why Brussels has to interfere in how long junior doctors can work or why someone from another Member State should be able to continue to claim benefits in the UK even after they have moved back to their own country,” he said.

British regulations restricting EU migrants’ welfare access has got London into legal trouble with the European Commission.

Scrapping or loosening EU rules that limit the work week to 48 hours, guarantee employees 11 hours of rest in any 24-hour period, and give temporary agency workers the same rights as permanent staff, are high priorities, British officials say.

Several other EU states, notably among the central and east European countries that joined the bloc in the last decade, also want to modify the work time legislation.

But for core countries of western Europe such as France and Germany, those rules are among the few social achievements that balance out the EU’s business-friendly economic agenda.

UK ‘bad bank’ repays £1.9 bln to taxpayers in H1 l

Mortgages more than 3 months in arrears down 17%

Britain’s “bad bank” that is running down the loans of two bailed-out lenders said it repaid 1.9 bln pounds to the government in the first six months of 2013.

UK Asset Resolution (UKAR), a state-run ‘zombie bank’ that does not take on new business, said it has now returned 6.6 bln pounds to the government. It owed 48.7 bln pounds when it was created in October 2010.

UKAR, Britain’s sixth largest mortgage lender, is winding down the loans of Northern Rock and Bradford & Bingley, the two customer-owned building societies which were nationalised in the run-up to the 2008 financial crisis.

Chief Executive Richard Banks said he still expects the process of repayment to take a decade but UKAR will continue to make

regular repayments to the Treasury and taxpayers should get all their money back.

The government is set to receive a windfall of 400 mln pounds from UKAR after the bank announced last month it had agreed to sell a portfolio of former Northern Rock loans to U.S. private equity firm J.C. Flowers and debt recovery business Marlin Financial.

The impact of that sale will be shown in UKAR’s full-year results.

Banks said there were no other sales on the horizon but UKAR was “actively looking for transactions all the time” and there were buyers in the market for such deals.

“But the important thing is we’re not going to give them away, we’re not going to sell them cheaply,” Banks added.

UKAR’s first-half underlying profit before

tax rose by almost 10% to 528.8 mln pounds in 2013 from 481.4 mln pounds a year earlier, as the number of its accounts in arrears fell.

Mortgage accounts three or more months in arrears, including possessions, dropped 17% to 21,332 since the start of 2013.

Temp PA/Exec. Secretary Experienced Personal Assistant/Executive Secretary seeks short-term employment as a temporary replacement for PAs taking maternity leave, training or other absence.

Knowledge of MS Office, English, Greek and Turkish (elementary).

Past experience includes Consular, broadcasting, advertising, retail and fashion.

Contact info@financialmirror.com for CV.

Αugust 7 - 27, 2013

financialmirror.com | CYPRUS | 3

What’s next for FX market?

* CySEC sends mixed signals with controls on non-EU trades

Within a matter of a few days, the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission, the island’s financial sector regulator, has been accused of clamping down on foreign exchange traders, then praised for safeguarding their interest, and finally criticised for backtracking on its own decisions.

In fact, CySEC issued a ruling last Thursday that basically said that any regulated Cyprus Investment Firm seeking to do business “on the ground” in a non-EU jurisdiction, needs to secure regulatory approval from that country.

However, the decree, which some argue was hastily issued and probably under duress from the Troika of international lenders that are scrutinising every aspect of the economy to ensure it does not encourage unfair competition, has become the subject of controversy which every forex trader interprets based on their own interests.

As a result, CySEC issued an explanatory note on Friday saying that it is pushing back the date of implementation to October, thus allowing FX companies time to seek legal advice about offering their services in other jurisdictions.

Some have even interpreted this as backtracking on the earlier decision and buying time to negotiate the terms.

In any case, the future of the FX market in Cyprus, currently employing well over 3,000 people in 144 CIFs, is bound to change as CySEC and other official bodies will require that forex traders comply with all the regulations already in place. While some traders may consider packing up and leaving the island, others argue that the same regulation and controls apply to all EU jurisdictions, and Cyprus should not feel threatened by rivals Malta or Luxembourg .

A senior CySEC official told the Financial Mirror that the new decree falls within the European MiFID rules and refers to Article 30 related to client solicitation.

“The circular CI144-2013-22 and 22A on the ‘Freedom to provide investment and ancillary services and or perform investment activities in a third country’ should be seen within the context of a ‘need basis’ and applies to CIFs seeking to operate ‘within’ another country,” the CySEC official explained.

Charalambos Psimolophitis, CEO of Limassol-based FxPro, was quick to defend the CySEC decree, adding that “those who live in glass houses should not throw stones.”

He said that the new regulation specified that a CIF cannot offer services within a third country, but nothing prevented the client from approaching the trader.

“Too much relaxation sometimes is harmful,” he said.

The respected website ForexMagnates.com reported that “CySEC issued a notice decreeing that all FX firms under its auspices must desist immediately from accepting non-EU business without prior authorisation, a ruling which could have an industry wide impact.”

It quoted Dr. Stelios Platis, Managing Director of MAP S.Platis which specialises in legal procedure for Cyprus based FX and binary options companies, as saying that the Association of Cyprus International Investment Firms (ACIIF) which he chairs, has already objected strongly to this.

On Friday he returned from a meeting with CySEC officials more confident of the future ability for FX brokers in Cyprus to continue their operations in a practical manner as his negotiations resulted in a suspension of the implementation date.

Dr. Platis told ForexMagnates: “CySEC has made an amendment to the implementation date, extending it to the end of October and has also agreed to accept a more practical approach to this issue as regards what is required as a proof for accepting third country clients.”

The regulator announced that it came to its attention from internal sources as well as from complaints received from third country authorities that CIFs provide investment services or perform investment activities in certain jurisdictions without seeking the necessary prior authorisation.

MALTA WON’T FOLLOW Anna Timone, a General Counsel in DIAM U.S.A. Inc, an alternative investment firm based in New York, wrote on ForexLive.com, an online forex news provider, that “the new

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ruling will have a potentially dramatic effect on how brokers in Cyprus conduct their business in the future. This 180 degree shift by CySEC, from being possibly the most flexible and inviting FX regulator to putting a ban that will clearly end most of the retail FX industry on the island, seems sudden and somewhat irrational.”

“However, it’s probably safe to say that those established firms with the highest levels of internal procedures, client identification, education and protection procedures, and risk controls will have little to fear in the face of such increased scrutiny,” she wrote.

“Is this an isolated position of a regulator in a particular jurisdiction or this is a position that other EU regulators may adopt? So far, Malta confirmed that it has no plans to emulate this initiative by CySEC as the Malta Financial Services Authority certainly understands that this would be a business killer.”

A services sector executive told the Financial Mirror that the issue arising is the fact that the initial circular was issued in such a way as if it was prohibiting the CIFs to offer their services internationally, especially those working via the Internet which have clients from all over the world, without necessarily solicitation of clients from within their country of residence or country of nationality.

“The worrying matter is the ignorance about the Investment Firm business, especially of the Internet financial business and the international business by specific members of staff of CySEC. Although the Chairwoman and Vice President as well as the Board of the Commission are putting tremendous efforts to keep the financial industry sound and strong, and attracting foreign investments which provide jobs and pay taxes, the members of the staff of CySEC are acting in a non professional manner, making assumptions on the conduct of business of the Investment Firms.

“The root of the errors come from certain CySEC staff members who take the approach that someone is guilty until proven innocent, an attitude that they reflect in their reports to the Board of the Commission, often misleading the Commission,” the executive added.

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Unemployment: maybe not as bad as it seems Registered unemployment in Cyprus rose by 11,549 compared with the same month of the previous year in July, or by 31.7%.

This was a slower pace of increase than the 37% recorded in June, but was still high by recent history.

Separately Eurostat reported that the unemployment rate reached 17.3% in June.

Yet we have tweeter @georgiemark to thank for pointing out that if you look at the monthly, seasonally adjusted data, things might not be as depressing as they seem.

Compared with the previous month, registered unemployment rose on a seasonally adjusted basis by 1.1%.

That is the slowest increase all year.

CPI down 1.46% in July The Consumer Price Index for July decreased by 1.75 units or 1.46% to 118.04 units compared to 119.79 in June, according to the Statistical Service Cystat. This is mainly due to decrease in the prices of clothing and footwear due to summer sale discounts as well as to decreases in the prices of air Summer discounts fares, electricity and certain fresh fruit and vegetables. push prices down Increases were recorded in the prices of potatoes and petroleum products. The rate of inflation for July decreased by -0.3% compared to 0.1% in June 2013 and 2.2% in July 2012. It is noted that the rate of inflation is negative for the third time in the last four months.

Also, the three-month moving average dropped to 2.6% in July from 4.4% in June, suggesting that the trend is also a good one.

This does not mean to say that unemployment, which is typically a lagging indicator, will not continue rising for a long time yet.

But along with the smaller than expected

47.5% haircut at Bank of Cyprus, a slower pace of decline in Inland Revenue Collections and, if the government is correct, a softer than expected Q2 decline to be reported next week, it is a little ray of hope in an otherwise depressing picture.

Fiona Mullen www.sapientaeconomics.com

August 7 - 27, 2013

4 CYPRUS financialmirror.com

The new challenges for the economy and banks The Cypriot economy and financial services industry are going through a crucial period, culminating with the arrival of Troika in the island for the first evaluation of the bail-out agreement implementation. There have already been developments regarding the consolidation, restructuring and recapitalisation of the financial sector, notably in the case of the Bank of Cyprus, but also with regards to the recapitalisation of Hellenic Bank and the Cooperative Credit Institutions.

The situation in the country has been significantly affected by the Eurogroup decisions and the ruthless decision it took against Cyprus on the 25th March 2013; a decision that was based on inadequate economic data, obscure intentions and wrong forecasts and estimations.

The Eurogroup decisions included amongst others a “haircut” on deposits, the closing down of one of the two biggest banks, a critical situation for the other, and a severe impact on the whole of the financial system. At the same time, the banking sector is gravely affected by the restrictions which are still in effect, on transactions and the movement of capital which concern not only the financial institutions that have been directly affected but also for all other institutions, like Hellenic Bank, which have been affected to a lesser extent.

Unfortunately, the Cypriot financial system has been entirely devastated and therefore many additional, concerted, efforts and measures should be taken so as to regain trust, confidence and security, not only in the financial sector but in the whole of the economy.

Despite, though, the progress that has been achieved as regards to the restructuring of the financial sector and the steps taken towards reducing the fiscal deficit, important ambiguities and crucial questions still remain.

Firstly, fiscal targets do take into consideration the expected contraction of the economy. However, will the targets set within the Programme framework be successfully implemented or will the Programme, in the medium-term, go off track? Undoubtedly, the achievement of the Programme’s targets will accelerate the process of restoring trust and confidence in the financial sector and the island’s economy.

Secondly, the continuous imposition of temporary restrictions

Lithuania presidency aims to boost EU credibility

Lithuania has taken over the EU Council rotating presidency for the second half of the year and has set its goals on improving the credibility of the European Union through the stabilisation of the economy, better economic governance and combating tax evasion.

Presenting his credential to President Nicos Anastasiades, Lithuania’s new ambassador to Cyprus, Alfonsas Eidintas said that his country’s presidency other priorities include growth and development through innovation, a more productive internal EU market, strengthening social welfare and boosting the EU-wide energy market.

Ambassador Eidintas added that an “Open Europe” should be achieved through a policy of good neighbourly relations, expansion of the Union and an efficient control of the EU’s external borders.

Eidintas later invited ambassadors of other EU states to a meeting at the office of Hon Consul Christis Christoforou in Nicosia where he first thanked the outgoing Irish presidency and elaborated on Lithuania’s EU presidency programme.

Photo from left: Defence Minister and Deputy Foreign Minister Photis Photiou, President Nicos Anastasiades, Amb. Alfonsas Eidintas, Panayiotis Antoniou (Director of the President’s Office), Hon. Consul Christis Christoforou.

By Makis Keravnos CEO, Hellenic Bank Group

and exchange control measures on banking institutions greatly damage both the economy and the country as a whole. Delays in the restructuring of the financial sector in combination with the restrictive measures do not seem to alleviate the current situation, but on the contrary, risks and problems are exacerbated. It is very important to send positive messages both internally and abroad, of our decisiveness to return back to normal, by fixing, once and for all, the flaws of the system as they have been widely expressed and analysed.

Thirdly, the economy is already in a vicious circle of contraction with the increase of non-performing loans and the fall of real estate prices and other collaterals, threatening the viability of the system. Such developments further undermine the banking sector and fuel worries for a prolonged recession.

The economic environment is expected to be tough, especially throughout both 2013 and 2014. On the other hand, by taking the right steps and initiatives, the economy can readjust relatively quickly and return to positive growth rates following 2014. This will depend on the recession’s duration and how intense the negative implications of the readjustment process will be.

It is evident that the financial system has been entirely devastated whilst the efforts to restore trust, confidence and security have been hardly noticeable.

We believe that the regaining of trust and confidence constitutes an essential prerequisite for the situation to stabilise and the economy to recover. The cure and complete revamping of the banking sector’s operations through recapitalisation, provision of ample liquidity coupled with the gradual lifting of the exchange control measures, will constitute the most important step towards recovery and return to normality.

As far as Hellenic Bank is concerned, the Board and Executive Management of the Group – foreseeing earlier on that the global financial crisis initially, and the Greek crisis thereafter, wouldn’t leave intact the Cyprus economy – have taken precautionary measures, early enough, acting with prudence and responsibility.

However, in view of the developments that followed the March Eurogroup meeting, with the closing down of one bank, the consolidation of the biggest bank, the PIMCO reports and the terms for the recapitalisation of the financial sector, the Bank has taken important but necessary decisions in order to further secure the Group’s capital adequacy.

Being aware of the responsibilities and crucial role the Group and more specifically the role the Bank has to play in the future recovery of the Cyprus economy, and aiming to protect shareholders and clients, the Bank has taken decisions towards strengthening the Core Tier 1 capital ratio up to at least 9% and adjusting its capital to the levels and structure set by the Central Bank of Cyprus. Such measures were based on the adverse scenario of PIMCO’s diagnostic check, in order to ensure the proper and independent running of the Bank’s operations. Taking the opportunity, it is worth noting that we, as a Bank, expressed clearly, several times the last few months, our concerns regarding the results of PIMCO’s checks, which were in essence the outcome of a process that lacked transparency and sufficient reasoning.

The Board of Directors of Hellenic Bank has determined the main terms and details of the Restructuring Plan and Increase of its Capital Base, which include: • The issue and sale or distribution of new common shares of up to €168 million.

• The voluntary exchange of current Capital Securities and Bonds of the Bank into Convertible Capital Securities of total value up to €306 million.

• The issue of CCS 2 to interested investors in order to raise more capital.

In this way, the Group aims to proceed to the restructuring and strengthening of its capital base, so as to respond to the new economic and supervisory environment whilst ensuring, in parallel, both its balance sheet strength and its strong liquidity position.

BOCY staff cut by 25% as 1,370 opt to leave The Bank of Cyprus, the island’s biggest lender that has just come out of resolution following a 8 bln euros bail-in recapitalisation by large depositors, has reduced its staff numbers by 25% and staff costs by 35%, it said on Friday.

The cost of the redundancy package was not disclosed.

The bank said that 1,370 people had taken up the voluntary retirement scheme launched a month ago, reducing its joint workforce, including former Laiki Popular staff, from 5,760 to just under 4,400.

Up until last week, only 500 had opted for the scheme as the trade union had not given the green light. A week’s extension was given and the offer on the table expired on Friday.

The bank said that salary cuts also contributed to lowering staff costs, with the restructuring plan aiming to “significantly reduce operating costs, improve efficiency and enhance profitability and thus create value for the shareholders.”

The redundancy package included one monthly salary for every two years of service and a bonus of 7 monthly wages, as well as a 50% withdrawal from staff pension funds. However, bank staff will have to pay off any debts to the bank before leaving, having enjoyed lower interest rates and other benefits.

The bank also set a cap on the payout which should not exceed 150,000 euros.

The 1,370 will also be entitled to 6 months’ state unemployment benefit that pays about 60% of the average salary of the past three years.

The bank exited the state of resolution last Wednesday after the final haircut on unsecured deposits above 100,000 euros was locked at 47.5% and will be reimbursed in new shares, with 15% of the initial deposit released to customers and the balance held in long-term fixed deposit accounts.

The conclusion of the haircut saga, created after the Eurogroup’s demand for a bail-in to pay for the rescue of the Bank of Cyprus that was burdened with the bankrupt Popular Laiki, also puts an end to uncertainty in the market that has been hampered by capital controls and cash flow in the market drying up. With a Core Tier 1 ratio at 12%, the bank said it has been reinstated as an eligible counterparty by the European Central Bank (ECB) for monetary policy operations and the ECB funding will be under improved terms, given that the rate for main refinancing operations stands at 0.5%.

The bank is expected to call its first post-resolution AGM on or about September 12, with the legacy Laiki depositors taking 18% of the new shares, other depositors 81% and the former Bank of Cyprus shareholders diluted to just 1%. The shares are expected to resume trading on the CSE on or about October 1.

AdvanFort gets DMS ship security certificate The Department of Merchant Shipping (DMS) has licensed AdvanFort, a leading provider of maritime security solutions for the commercial shipping industry, to supply the services of armed and unarmed escort guards on those of its flagged vessels transiting piracy high-risk areas.

The decision by the Cypriot authorities comes just six months following similar vetting and approval by the Panama Maritime Authority (PMA) to conduct counter-piracy operations aboard vessels flying the Panama flag.

To date, 36 companies have received the DMS Private Ship Security Co. certificate starting from November 2012.

“The increasing scrutiny by some of the most important

European Union countries, of armed guards on vessels flying their countries’ flags, is already having its effect, and we are pleased to announce that AdvanFort continues to pass with flying colors,” said William H. Watson, President of the Washington-based company.

“Coming after approval by the world’s largest flag state, our receiving the go-ahead by Cyprus—one of the European countries that is leading the movement for far greater standards and regulations for private maritime security companies—is a wonderful reflection of AdvanFort’s own rigorous quality management system.”

August 7 - 27, 2013

financialmirror.com CYPRUS

5

TAKING STOCK OF THE RESOLUTION OF THE CYPRUS BANKING CRISIS:

Is there life after a haircut of deposits?

The saga of how the two main Cypriot banks got into trouble and were bailed out, or rather resolved and bailed-in, will remain in the textbooks as a classic case of how not to do banking and how not to restore stability and trust in a failed banking system. It takes two to tango and it took the failure of both the Cyprus side to regulate its banking system and the Eurogroup to administer the right treatment at the right time, to demolish a thriving banking system. With the completion of the recapitalisation of the Bank of Cyprus and its exit from the status of consolidation, it is time to take stock of what happened and where we stand.

Popular Bank resolution: too much, too late

The CPB became insolvent two years ago and should have been liquated then, if it could not be restructured to become a going concern. The big mistake was keeping the bank artificially alive through the transfusion of billions of euros in liquidity from ELA, which was ending up in the black hole of its operations in Greece.

The ECB should have pulled the plug at least a year earlier.

The way that the Troika insisted on the resolution of the CPB was partially correct (perhaps liquidation would have been better) but it was clearly unfair to the unsuspecting depositors who kept their money at the bank assuming that our government, the Central Bank and the ECB knew what they were doing when they were lending their full support and unlimited resources to CPB for the past couple of years.

exploited to the fullest the circumstances and the worse-case scenario of PIMCO, to obtain these operations at a fire-sale price, possibly a quarter or a fifth of the likely competitive–bid price.

“Extorting” compliance through ELA

The Bank of Cyprus will be hard-pressed to survive the 9-billion-plus euros of ELA transferred from the CPB in addition to the 2 bln euros of its own ELA. We should not forget that the ELA, as emergency liquidity lending, is a short term loan which needs to be repaid right away; this obligation is now renewed every two weeks. Second, ELA, as ECB money, has the first priority on any funds recovered from the sale of land and other bank assets used as collateral.

Restructuring of ELA into a long-term loan or converting it into bonds would help make the BOC viable but it is unlikely to

Bank of Cyprus bail-in: efficient and unfair

For the BOC, technically speaking, the bail-in was the internalisation of risks to the decision makers (depositors) who are the most effective agents in containing and managing them. As such it is an efficient way of dealing with the problem: it minimises the social cost and maximises the benefit by incentivising the bankers to assess and manage risks as to avoid future bank collapses. It is also fair, since those who benefit from the bank’s high interest rates, which are usually associated with high risks, pay for the rescue of the bank.

What makes the bail-in unfair in the case of Cyprus is the way it happened, without advanced warning to the depositors of BOC, as it has done since with the depositors of all other Eurozone banks, for whom the caveat emptor “depositor be aware” was issued by the Eurogroup: in selecting a bank , depositors assume the risk of losing part or all of their deposits if the bank has been making risky loans and investments in order to afford the high deposit interest rates.

It may be argued that BOC depositors should have known that only the first 100,000 euros were insured, but like the case of the Greek bonds, the conventional wisdom was that bank deposits and sovereign debt were not subject to haircut. It is unfair that relatively small depositors lost their lifetime savings and a big part of their provident funds, when the target was big foreign depositors with suspect sourcing of their money.

Fire-sale of banking operations in Greece

The sale of the Greek operations of the troubled banks was a very bad deal, which was concluded under duress without the proper preparation and without the use of competitive procedures to maximise the sale price. While the Troika wanted Cyprus to get rid of those operations as soon as possible to limit the systemic effects of the Cyprus bail-in on the Eurozone via Greece, they did not dictate the buyer or the price. We could have called for competitive bids and sold these operations to the highest bidder within days. However, under pressure and in the confusion of those days clear thinking did not prevail. In a rush to conclude a deal we put ourselves in the hands of a wellprepared monopsonist. As the only buyer, the Bank of Piraeus,

By Dr. Theodore Panayotou

The new world of banking and finance

It is clear that the banking sector will shrink, not only in Cyprus, but throughout the Eurozone, and the role of banks in the financing of the economy will be reduced. The individualisation of responsibility and internalisation of risks and consequences to the depositors (along with the lenders and shareholders) will change the investment behaviour of the capital holders and will move funds away from banks. Reduced safety for depositors requires educating depositors and the general public about the risks they take when they choose where to put their money.

The interest rate should not be the only consideration; the risk must also be considered. For this, we need transparent indicators of risk. We also need indicators of the health of the institution, the quality of its portfolio, the capability of its management, and, the quality of its corporate governance. We also need transparent accounts and clearly understood financial statistics of both bank and host country.

Leaner, meaner banking

happen since the Troika, and especially the ECB, is holding it as a bargaining chip, or a lever to “extort” compliance to the terms of the MoU and the loan agreement or future demands. A good solution would be to take over BOC by a reliable investor with global credibility, such as a major international bank, for whom the relative size of the ELA obligation is miniscule. The chances of this happening, however, are rather small.

Can the economy survive a BOC resolution?

In the unlikely event that the BOC goes into resolution again, the ramifications for the Cyprus economy will be severe in the short to medium run. First, there would be the losses to the shareholders, the lenders and the depositors in the tens of billions of euros. Then there will be the job loss for about 4,400 bank employees and the economy will go into a tail spin because of inability to carry out business transactions and the drying up liquidity. Even more serious will be the total collapse of trust in the Cyprus banking and financial system and the credibility of the state will hit rock bottom. The BOC is not only the country’s largest bank; it is also its largest single organisation, several times the size of the country’s GNP. It is a historic and systemic bank in which virtually every citizen and business has a stake.

The economy and the country can survive a BOC resolution over the long-run but the short-to-medium implications would be devastating and every effort must be made to ensure that the bank survives as the country’s systemic bank and plays its pivotal role in mobilising and allocating financial resources for the recovery and growth of the local economy. In this regard the contemplated split of BOC into a commercial and a property or development bank should be carefully studied and well prepared as it risks further loss of trust and credibility. Only nonviable land development projects should be sold as property to repay loans while viable projects should be financed to completion by foreign investors, given the immediate need for development and jobs and the paucity of development alternatives.

The closer supervision of banks and the reduction and regulation of their pay and bonuses will make banking a less profitable activity. The requirement for increase in capital adequacy to 9%+ will further lower the profitability of the banking sector; leveraging and incessant expansion will be contained. The banks will become tighter in their lending and businesses will seek funding directly from capital markets.

New ways and new instruments of financing will emerge, e.g. corporate bonds, trade bills, commercial paper, discount instruments, investment companies, and special purpose banks such as entrepreneurship and property banks, as it is the case in the US, where under 25% of the total financing comes from banks; the rest comes from other sources and financing schemes even if it is channelled through the banks.

The banks will stop lending with the main criterion of adequacy of the collateral (usually real estate) and they will be considering more seriously the profitability, the cash flow and the ability of the borrower to service the loan. They will be requiring of their borrowers detailed and well documented (with market research) business plans, and they will acquire the expertise to scrutinise such plans. The banks will get rid of their speculative mindset and concentrate on their socio-economic role as mobilisers and allocators of funds for economic growth and development, or this is what they should do if they want to survive.

Dr. Theodore Panayotou is Professor of Economics, Ethics and Entrepreneurship and Director of the CIIM Business School (www.ciim.ac.cy) . He served as Professor of Economics and the Environmental Management at Harvard University for 25 years, as consultant to UN agencies and as advisor to governments in the U.S., China, Russia, Brazil, Mexico, Thailand, Costa Rica and Cyprus. He has published more than 100 books, monographs and peer-review articles on economic, business and environmental issues. He was recognised for his contribution to the Intergovernmental Committee on Climate Change that won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007.

Αugust 7 - 27, 2013

6 | OPINION | financialmirror.com

Privatisations, derivatives will help kick-start CSE EDITORIAL Now that the dust seems to have settled with tougher controls from the Securities and Exchange Commission regarding forex companies trading in third countries, it’s time that our stock exchange retakes the lead in efforts to revive Cyprus as a premium financial services centre.

So far, we have been subjected to harsh and often humiliating criticism from fellow EU jurisdictions that want to pounce on any opportunity for some Cyprusbashing. The banking sector is one we should not be too proud of as what befell upon us was in great part of our own doing.

CySEC has issued a new decree calling for all of the 140-or-so Cyprus Investment Firms to stop soliciting clients from other non-EU jurisdictions and ensure they apply to the local authorities if they plan

to have a presence there. Some say this is good, others call it anathema. Whatever the outcome, the forex business will continue to thrive with some operators finding ingenious ways to interpret regulations and get business from the lucrative and often unregulated markets where some big spenders are based. After all, what’s good for a Cyprus forex company is good for the economy. Isn’t it?

But we should not rest on our laurels as the forex industry is a rapidly developing one where the rules of the game change by the day if not hour or minute.

Offering stability and long-term prospects, the Cyprus Stock Exchange should come out of hibernation and look to attract major institutionals based on our reliability, clarity of regulations and simplicity in taxation.

The best and fastest way to become competitive is for the CSE to implement its plans to introduce derivatives, as soon as possible.

The competent people at the Exchange have a plan in place that could prepare the platform by November and the first derivatives listed as early as January 2014.

To begin with, the best candidate is the Bank of Cyprus, whose new stocks should be listed some time in early October. By offering Exchange-traded derivatives (ETDs) such as forwards, futures, options, binary options, warrants, swaps, etc., the CSE could join the ranks of some of the ‘big boys’ in the market, such as Korea, Eurex, Chicago that account for the lion’s share of the global turnover estimated at about 600-700 trln dollars.

Once the government also gets off its back side and moves on with the privatisation of some of its biggest state-owned utilities and enterprises, then they too could offer derivatives which would make them far more attractive to foreign investors.

So, where do we start from?

The Due Diligence List for a business appraisal

By Rakis Christoforou DIRECTOR, RC BUSINESS VALUATION & FORENSIC ACCOUNTING LTD.

Due diligence needs to be considered when dealing with business appraisals; this involves delving into the background of a business, identifying any issues that could affect the business in the future, and other related matters. It is more like performing a forensic business valuation.

There are certain tasks which should be included on any due diligence list, before applying the business valuation approaches and methods, as follows: 1. Determine seller’s motives. The business owner’s decision to sell may be motivated by any number of factors including, but not limited to, retirement, illness or death, internal disputes, inadequate capital and poor market prospects. By identifying the seller’s motives, the buyer obtains valuable information necessary to assess the risks involved in the transaction, as well as to determine an appropriate valuation for the company.

2. Review all financial records. Review of the target company’s financial records is always a key component of any due diligence investigation because it provides the principle basis for the business valuation. The financial review should include, but is not necessarily limited to, a review of the following: (a) The target companies’ income tax returns for at least five (5) years (if available); (b) Balance sheet, income and expense statements, profit

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and loss statements for at least 5 years; (c) Current operating budgets and any forecasts of future company operations; (d) The most recent schedule (ageing analysis) of accounts receivable and payable together with comparable data from previous years; (e) A schedule of all contingent liabilities such as guaranties and product or service warranties.

Often, the financial records of many small companies are extremely limited. In such a situation, the due diligence investigation should be expanded in an effort to obtain the financial information necessary for a reasonable valuation.

Limited financial data may also impact the terms of the purchase. For example, in a business that has a large number of accounts receivable, without reliable financial statements, the buyer may want to place a substantial discount on the value of these accounts, or even require the seller to guarantee that all or some of the receivables will be collected. At a minimum, the buyer will want to conduct a more thorough investigation regarding the nature of the receivables and the customers owing the debt.

3. Review of all third party contracts. The contractual obligations and rights of the target entity must be identified for a proper valuation. Therefore, the due diligence effort at a minimum should include a review of the following: (a) Franchise and licensing agreements; (b) Sales contracts or other contacts the company is a party; (c) Insurance policies; (d) Agency, distributor and advertising contracts; (e) Supply contracts; (f) Government contracts; and, (g) All other material agreements to which the target company is a party.

4. Review employment contracts. In many cases, the real value lies not in the assets, the product or customer list, but rather in the employees of the company. Therefore, the terms of all employment contracts for key employees, retirement and benefit plans, as well as employee manuals and union contracts, to name a few, are all crucial to the success of any business venture and should be reviewed as part of the due diligence effort.

5. Inspect all inventory. An inspection of company inventory is obviously central to any business valuation. Such inspection should also include an inspection of all fixed assets, motor vehicles and other assets needing a recorded conveyance or change of registration.

6. Review all leases, deeds, mortgages and loan agreements. Included here, the buyer should review the following: (a) Documents and agreements evidencing borrowings by

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the target company, including loan and credit agreements and other evidences of indebtedness; (b) Documents evidencing mortgages, security interests or loans on assets of the business; (c) Guarantees, agreements to maintain net worth and similar agreements; (d) Agreements confirming lines of credit; (e) Leases of real or personal property to which the company is a party, either as lessor or lessee; and, (f) Documents and agreements evidencing other material financing arrangements including, without limitation, letters of credit and installment purchases.

7. Review all litigation files. Information regarding pending or threatened lawsuits involving the target company must be carefully examined. Included here, the buyer should also review any administrative proceedings, governmental investigations or inquiries.

8. Review all required government filings. Various government permits and licenses are often required before a company may lawfully conduct business such as a sales or tax permit. The buyer should insure that all required permits and licenses have been appropriately maintained.

9. Review all documents establishing the legal entity for the business. The buyer should review any assumed name certificate, partnership agreement, shareholder agreement, bylaws, articles of incorporation and any other document establishing the legal structure for the target entity.

10. Evaluate all intellectual property. Lastly, the buyer should never forget to evaluate all intellectual property, including any patents, copyrights, trademarks, trade secrets and goodwill.

The Business Valuation due diligence process can be extremely complex and often requires the involvement of several legal, financial and business professionals. That’s why I often use the term Forensic Business Valuation when dealing with a Business Appraisal.

Those interested in purchasing or selling an existing business should take the prudent step of engaging appropriate professionals. There are many risks associated with the purchase/sale of an existing business, even a small one; however, with proper due diligence and financial forensic examination, these risks can be effectively minimised.

Rakis Christoforou is the first Cypriot to hold the CFF (Certified in Financial Forensics) and ABV (Accredited in Business Valuation) certifications. He is a member of many professional accounting associations including the ICPAC (Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Cyprus), and Vice Chairman of ICPAC’s Economic Crime and Forensic Accounting (ECFA) Committee. rakis@spidernet.com.cy

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August 7 - 27, 2013

financialmirror.com COMMENT

7

Whose economic reform?

Together with fiscal consolidation, structural reform is the new European mantra. International organizations and European Union bodies regard such reform as a prerequisite of economic recovery, growth, and alleviation of the unemployment plague.

Indeed, the agreement reached between the Greek government and the “troika” (the International Monetary Fund, the European Central Bank, and the European Commission) includes a 48-page list of detailed reforms. Not all countries are given such a long to-do list, but, since new EU legislation was adopted in 2010, specific recommendations are addressed to all. For example, the brief addressed to Italy includes recommendations on the efficiency of public administration, the fight against corruption, corporate governance in the banking sector, the labor market, schools, taxation, opening up the services sector, and infrastructure.

To be sure, European countries urgently need to implement deep reforms. Poor productivity growth and stubborn unemployment are evidence that their economies require comprehensive transformation. But if this observation provides the rationale for reform, it does not provide a firm enough basis for drawing up effective economic-revival plans.

The design of a reform strategy requires solving two problems. The first is one of purpose. Successful societies are a diverse lot. Some are unequal, and others are egalitarian. Some cherish large welfare states, and others starve them. Some rely on extensive collective agreements, and others exclude them altogether. Some are based on arm’s-length transactions, and others rely on recurring relationships. Scholars refer to “varieties of capitalism” to highlight the absence of a single template for success.

But if there are different models, what should the priorities for reform be? International organizations generally point out – rightly – that in most cases a country can improve economic efficiency without changing its economic model. For example, there is often ample room for achieving the same income redistribution at lower budgetary cost, or for ensuring

Jean Pisani-Ferry Professor of Economics at Université Paris-Dauphine and currently serves as Director of Economic Policy Planning for the Prime Minister of France.

that collective wage agreements take into account the interests of those without a job. So national models can be reformed while retaining arrangements that meet social preferences.

This answer, however, is somewhat facile. Countries are not only inefficient; often, they are also inconsistent. For example, they pretend to become global hubs but do not welcome foreigners, which is what prevented Japan’s emergence as a world financial center in the 1990’s; or they hope to develop as knowledge-based economies but dislike academic freedom; or they aim to nurture innovation but do not want innovators to become rich. Such inconsistency is often a major impediment to development. By contrast, the success of the United States as an innovation powerhouse relies on a high degree of consistency across fields ranging from education and immigration to taxation and the labor market.

So pro-growth reform not only requires substituting efficient arrangements for inefficient ones; it also demands confronting hard choices, which is, at bottom, a political endeavor. For this reason, it is not something that any international organization can even suggest in lieu of a country’s voters.

The second problem in designing structural reform is one of strategy. As the economist Dani Rodrik has pointed out, standard analysis generally results in a laundry list of desirable reforms that does not tell governments where to begin.

Apprehensive leaders start with the most politically expedient items, while bold leaders start with the most challenging prescriptions; but there is no guarantee that either of these approaches will deliver the expected result. Even a seemingly

rational strategy of correcting the largest inefficiencies first is not necessarily the appropriate one.

One reason is that the effectiveness of reform may depend on conditions prevailing in other sectors: good universities, for example, cannot remedy the consequences of poor secondary education. Moreover, eliminating one distortion may be ineffective or even counterproductive: in an economy plagued with rents, partial reform may simply result in shifting them across sectors and agents, rather than reducing them to the benefit of consumers.

As a result, considerable political energy may be consumed in pushing through measures that deliver very little. Instead, reform should start with the most binding constraint to performance (which one that is depends on the whole set of hindrances that confront the economy).

In addition, outcomes may depend on cyclical conditions.

Advocates of structural reform generally claim that they aim to increase output and welfare in the medium term, and that the short term does not matter. But, while some reforms – for example, those improving access to credit or eliminating rents that harm consumers – can indeed help to boost growth during a demand shortfall like the one that Europe is now experiencing, others can have the opposite effect. For example, labor-market reforms that make it easier for companies to reduce staff may weaken demand further, underscoring the importance of considering reforms’ short-term effects.

What all of this suggests is that an economic-reform agenda cannot result from a mechanical exercise. At some point, hard choices about priorities and sequencing must be made.

This is not to say that international organizations and the EU are of no help. On the contrary, these bodies can be very valuable insofar as they carry out international comparisons and point out deficiencies. But there is a line in the sand beyond which only governments can set priorities and act. That, after all, is what voters elect them to do. © Project Syndicate, 2013. www.project-syndicate.org

Europe’s fake normal Mohamed A. El-Erian August is traditionally Europe’s holiday month, with many government officials taking several weeks off. In the process, important initiatives are put on hold until the “great return” at the beginning of September.

This year, there is another reason why Europe has pressed the pause button for August. With a looming election in Germany, few wish to undermine Chancellor Angela Merkel’s likely victory.

After all, Germany is central to Europe’s well-being, and Merkel’s steady hand has allowed the continent to overcome a series of challenges over the last few years. As a result, many are eager to postpone any controversial policy decisions rather than rock the German political boat.

Some of the recent economic news has seemed to justify this approach. At the end of July, the widely watched indicator of European manufacturing activity crossed the threshold signaling expansion for only the second time in 23 months.

Adding to the sense of comforting normality, several European officials have taken to the airwaves with optimistic pronouncements. Whereas the euro and the eurozone were “under threat just nine months ago,” European Council President Herman Van Rompuy recently declared, “this isn’t the case anymore.”

All of this has underpinned a much-welcome calm in financial markets. Sovereign interest-rate spreads have been well-behaved, the euro has strengthened, and equity markets have risen robustly.

Yet no one should be fooled. This summer’s sense of normality is neither natural nor necessarily tenable in the long term. It is the result of temporary and – if Europe is not attentive – potentially reversible factors. If officials do not return quickly to addressing economic challenges in a more comprehensive manner, the current calm may give way to renewed turmoil.

The task for Europe is not just a matter of restarting and completing the economic and political initiatives, whether regional or domestic, that have been put on hold until after the German election. In fact, these top-down decisions, while admittedly complex and certainly consequential, may be the least of Europe’s challenges.

Europe must also counter and reverse micro-level challenges

that are becoming more deeply embedded in its economic and financial structure. Each day that passes complicates the design and implementation of lasting solutions to four problems in particular.

First, joblessness continues to spread. The overall unemployment rate (12%) has yet to peak, led by an alarming lack of jobs among the young (24% joblessness in the eurozone as a whole, with highs of 59% and 56% in Greece and Spain, respectively).

Second, adjustment fatigue is widespread and becoming more acute. Long-struggling European citizens – especially the longterm unemployed – have yet to gain any sustained benefit from the austerity measures to which they have been subjected. And the result is not just general disappointment and worrisome social unrest. In the last few weeks, political stability in Greece and Portugal has been threatened as governments struggle with declining credibility and a rising popular backlash.

Third, bailout fatigue is apparent. Citizens in the stronger European economies are increasingly unwilling to provide financial support to their struggling neighbors; and their elected representatives will find it hard to ignore growing resentment of repeated diversion of national tax revenues, which has yielded only disappointing outcomes. Meanwhile, high levels of past exposure and weakening creditor coordination are undermining the availability of external funding, including from the IMF. Finally, little oxygen is flowing to the private sector. While Europe has succeeded in stabilizing its sovereign-bond markets, financial intermediation for small and medium-size enterprises remains highly disrupted. With most credit pipelines already partly blocked, the shortage of corporate credit will become more severe as regulators finally force banks to embark on a proper mobilization of prudential capital and shrink balance sheets to less risky levels.

All of this adds up to a sad reality for Europe. Despite hopeful blips in an economic indicator here and there, too many countries lack both immediate growth and longer-term growth engines. As a result, debt overhangs will remain problematic. Owners of private capital that could be allocated to productive investment will remain hesitant. And societies will continue to lack the jobs and

CEO and co-CIO of PIMCO, and the author of When Markets Collide.

capital investment that are essential for durable prosperity and general well-being.

Europe’s external environment is not helping, either. On the demand side, the ongoing economic slowdown in China is starting to affect companies’ orders and revenues, adding to the challenges stemming from the persistently sluggish US economy.

Meanwhile, the euro’s recent appreciation (particularly against the Japanese yen) limits Europe’s ability to compensate for anemic global demand by capturing greater market share.

These developments point to a much larger phenomenon: because of delayed awareness of the complex challenges (and the related slow and partial policy responses) facing much of the West, the low-equilibrium growth pattern that has prevailed in recent years (what has been called the “new normal”) is becoming less stable. And Europe is a leading indicator of this.

In essence, Europe (and the West more generally) owes its recent tranquility to a series of experimental measures by central banks to offset the troubling combination of too little demand to generate sufficient job creation, inadequate structural reforms to revamp growth engines, debt overhangs that undermine productive investment, and insufficient policy coordination. Consequently, the resulting surface calm masks still-worrisome economic and financial fundamentals.

Let us hope that European policymakers return well rested from their August break. They will need all the energy and dedication they can muster to pivot quickly from Europe’s forced normality to a more durable strategy for recovery, or at least to stop drivers of renewed prosperity from slipping farther away before they can be harnessed. © Project Syndicate, 2013. www.project-syndicate.org

August 7 - 27, 2013

8 COMMENT financialmirror.com

The Federal Reserve in a time for Doves The battle is on to replace current US Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke. One might expect the Fed chairmanship – arguably the second most powerful official position in the United States, and certainly the world’s most powerful financial position – to be determined by a conclave of central bankers. In fact, the choice is largely at the discretion of the US president. So let us consider two of the leading candidates, Lawrence Summers, a former US treasury secretary, and current Fed Vice Chair Janet Yellen.

Both Summers and Yellen are brilliant scholars with extensive experience in public service. Whereas the mainstream press seems intent on exploring their candidacies as a contest of contrasting personalities, the fact is that both candidates are extremely well qualified. Moreover, both have a reputation for believing that the Fed should not place excessive weight on price stability relative to unemployment. Normally, this dovish bias would be a handicap; nowadays, it is an advantage.

The importance of technical competence in monetary policy has been proved repeatedly by central banks around the world. According to research published in 2003 by the economists Christina Romer and David Romer, the quality of monetary policy depends critically on whether central bankers have a clear and nuanced understanding of policy making and inflation. The 1920’s, 1930’s, and 1970’s are replete with examples of central bankers who did not understand the basics, and whose economies paid the price.

What this means is not just competence in setting interest rates, but also competence in regulatory policy. Some are criticizing Summers’s ardent pursuit of financial deregulation during the 1990’s, when he headed the US Treasury under President Bill Clinton. But these critics overlook his role in helping to fight that decade’s sovereign-debt crises, and his insistence that the US begin issuing inflation-indexed bonds.

In a complex and ever-changing policy setting, it is almost impossible to get every call right, and the important thing is to

learn from one’s mistakes. Winston Churchill famously regretted overseeing the United Kingdom’s catastrophic return to the gold standard in 1925, when he was Chancellor of the Exchequer. His performance, needless to say, improved in later years.

As for Yellen, it is true that she was President of the San Francisco Federal Reserve during the last years of the massive US housing bubble – which was particularly acute in her district. But Yellen’s speeches on financial risks showed more foresight than those of most of her peers.

Typically, one looks to the head of the central bank to serve as a bulwark against political pressure to push down interest rates and raise inflation. My own research in 1985 on inflation and centralbank independence showed that, in normal times, one generally wants a central banker who places greater emphasis on price sta-

By Kenneth Rogoff Former chief economist of the IMF, is Professor of Economics and Public Policy at Harvard University.

bility relative to unemployment than an ordinary informed citizen might do. Installing a “conservative” central banker helps to keep inflation expectations in check, thereby holding down long-term interest rates and mitigating upward pressure on wages and prices.

For the past 25 years, the mantra of “inflation targeting” (introduced in my 1985 paper) has served as a mechanism for containing inflation expectations by reassuring the public of the central bank’s intentions. But excessive emphasis on low inflation targets

can be counterproductive in the aftermath of the worst financial crisis in 75 years.

Rather than worrying about inflation, central bankers should focus on reflating the economy. The real problem is that they have done such a good job convincing the public that inflation is the number-one evil that it is difficult for them to persuade anyone that they are now serious about reflation. That is why appointing a “dove” would not be a bad thing at all.

Yellen has already developed a reputation as a dove within the Fed, with speeches consistently showing strong concern about today’s high unemployment. And, though many on the left regard Summers as suspiciously conservative, that is hardly the case when it comes to inflation. His 1991 paper on monetary policy is widely cited as among the first to make the case for avoiding very low inflation targets, in part to give the central bank more room to lower interest rates. Back then, Summers clearly viewed himself as a monetary-policy dove: “I would support having someone in charge of monetary policy who is more inflation-averse than I.” But now Summers’s dovishness is not a problem. In the face of downward nominal-wage rigidity, higher inflation would facilitate sectoral adjustment and achieve a small but useful impact on reducing debt burdens.

If normal times call for a conservative central banker who helps to anchor inflation expectations, now is the rare time when we need a more unorthodox central banker who will fight deflation expectations. A central-bank version of the Vatican’s papal conclave would have a hard time deciding whether to send up the fumata bianca for Yellen or for Summers – or perhaps for someone else (another former Fed vice chair, Donald Kohn, now appears to be in the mix) with similar inclinations. © Project Syndicate, 2013. www.project-syndicate.org

The changing of the monetary guard With leadership transitions at many central banks either under way or coming soon, many of those who were partly responsible for creating the global economic crisis that erupted in 2008 – before taking strong action to prevent the worst – are departing to mixed reviews. The main question now is the extent to which those reviews will influence their successors’ behavior.

Many financial-market players are grateful for the regulatory laxity that allowed them to reap enormous profits before the crisis, and for the generous bailouts that helped them to recapitalize – and often to walk off with mega-bonuses – even as they brought the global economy to near-ruin. True, easy money did help to restore equity prices, but it might also have created new asset bubbles.

Meanwhile, GDP in many European countries remains markedly below pre-crisis levels. In the United States, despite GDP growth,

By Joseph Stiglitz Nobel laureate in economics, University Professor at Columbia University. His most recent book is The Price of Inequality: How Today’s Divided Society Endangers our Future.

most citizens are worse-off today than they were before the crisis, because income gains since then have gone almost entirely to those at the top.

In short, many central bankers who served in the heady precrisis years have much to answer for. Given their excessive belief in unfettered markets, they turned a blind eye to palpable abuses, including predatory lending, and denied the existence of an obvious bubble. Instead, central bankers focused single-mindedly on price stability, though the costs of somewhat higher inflation would have been miniscule compared to the havoc wrought by the financial excesses that they allowed, if not encouraged. The world has paid dearly for their lack of understanding of the risks of securitization, and, more broadly, their failure to focus on leverage and the shadow banking system.

Of course, not all central bankers are to blame. It was no accident that countries like Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, India, and Turkey avoided financial crisis; their central bankers had learned from experience – their own or others’ – that unfettered markets are not always efficient or self-regulating.

For example, when Malaysia’s central-bank governor supported the imposition of capital controls during the East Asian crisis of 1997-1998, the policy was scorned, but the former governor has since been vindicated. Malaysia had a shorter downturn, and emerged from the crisis with a smaller legacy of debt. Even the International Monetary Fund now recognizes that capital controls may be useful, especially in times of crisis.

Such lessons are most obviously relevant to the current competition to succeed Ben Bernanke as Chair of the US Federal Reserve Board, the world’s most powerful monetary authority.

The Fed has two main responsibilities: macro-level regulation aimed at ensuring full employment, output growth, and price and financial stability; and micro-level regulation aimed at financial markets. The two are intimately connected: micro-level regulation affects the supply and allocation of credit – a crucial determinant of macroeconomic activity. The Fed’s failure to fulfill its responsibilities for micro-level regulation has much to do with its failure to meet macro-level goals.

Any serious candidate for Fed chairman should understand the importance of good regulation and the need to return the US banking system to the business of providing credit, especially to ordinary Americans and small and medium-size businesses (that is, those who cannot raise money on capital markets).

Sound economic judgment and discretion are required as well, given the need to weigh the risks of alternative policies and the ease with which financial markets can be roiled. (That said, the US cannot afford a Fed chairman who is overly supportive of the financial sector and unwilling to regulate it.)

Given the certainty of divisions among officials on the relative importance of inflation and unemployment, a successful Fed chairman must also be able to work well with people of diverse perspectives. But the next leader of the Fed should be committed to ensuring that America’s unemployment rate falls below its current unacceptably high level; an unemployment rate of 7% – or even 6%

– should not be viewed as inevitable.

Some people argue that what America needs most is a central banker who has “experienced” crises firsthand. But what matters is not just “being there” during a crisis, but showing good judgment in managing it.

Those in the US Treasury who were responsible for managing the East Asian crisis performed miserably, converting downturns into recessions and recessions into depressions. So, too, those responsible for managing the 2008 crisis cannot be credited with creating a robust, inclusive recovery. Botched efforts at mortgage restructuring, failure to restore credit to small and medium-size enterprises, and the mishandling of bank bailouts have all been well documented, as have major flaws in forecasting both output and unemployment as the economy went into free-fall.

Even more important for a central banker managing a crisis is a commitment to measures that make another crisis less likely. By contrast, a laissez-faire approach would make another crisis all but inevitable.

A top contender to succeed Bernanke is Fed Vice Chair Janet Yellen, one of my best students when I taught at Yale. She is an economist of great intellect, with a strong ability to forge consensus, and she has proved her mettle as Chair of the President’s Council of Economic Advisers, President of the San Francisco Fed, and in her current role.

Yellen brings to bear an understanding not just of financial markets and monetary policy, but also of labor markets – which is essential in an era when unemployment and wage stagnation are primary concerns. (A classic article that she co-authored remains, many years later, on my list of required reading for Ph.D. students.)

Given the fragile economic recovery and the need for continuity in policy – as well as for confidence in the Fed’s leadership and global cooperation based on mutual understanding and respect – Yellen’s steady hand is precisely what US policy making requires.

President Barack Obama is supposed to appoint senior officials with the “advice and consent” of the US Senate. Roughly one-third of Democratic senators have reportedly written to Obama in support of Yellen. He should heed their counsel. © Project Syndicate, 2013. www.project-syndicate.org

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∆∂∆∞ƒ∆∏, 7 ∞À°√À™∆√À, 2013

ºÀ™π∫√ ∞∂ƒπ√ ™Â 2 ‚‰ÔÌ¿‰Â˜ Ë ·fiÊ·ÛË ÁÈ· ÂӉȿÌÂÛË Ï‡ÛË Στα βαθιά εισέρχονται πλέον οι διαπραγµατεύσεισ µεταξύ τησ Κυπριακήσ ∆ηµοκρατίασ και τησ Noble-Delek για το τερµατικÞ υγροποίησησ φυσικού αερίου στο ΒασιλικÞ, δήλωσε χθεσ ο ΥπουργÞσ Ενέργειασ, Εµπορίου, Βιοµηχανίασ και Τουρισµού Γιώργοσ Λακκοτρύπησ. Ο κ. Λακκοτρύπησ είπε, επίσησ, Þτι έχει ήδη αρχίσει η διαδικασία αξιολÞγησησ των γεωλογικών δεδοµένων τησ επιβεβαιωτικήσ γεώτρησησ, η οποία θα διαρκέσει µερικέσ εβδοµάδεσ, ενώ σε Þ,τι αφορά την τελική απÞφαση για την ενδιάµεση λύση φυσικού αερίου είπε Þτι αυτή θα ανακοινωθεί εντÞσ δύο εβδοµάδων το αργÞτερο. Οι διαπραγµατεύσεισ για το τερµατικÞ, σηµείωσε, έχουν ξεκινήσει εδώ και ένα περίπου µήνα «και σήµερα µπαίνουµε στα βαθιά και στην ουσία», επισηµαίνοντασ Þτι η διαπραγµάτευση αφορά, µεταξύ άλλων, τη δοµή και το µετοχικÞ καθεστώσ του τερµατικού. Ο ΥπουργÞσ Ενέργειασ επεσήµανε Þτι οι διαπραγµατεύσεισ θα πρέπει να ολοκληρωθούν µέχρι το ∆εκέµβριο του 2013, οπÞταν και αναµένεται να επιτευχθεί η τελική συµφωνία, µε βάση και το ΜνηµÞνιο Συναντίληψησ που υπογράφηκε στα τέλη Ιουνίου µεταξύ τησ Κυπριακήσ ∆ηµοκρατίασ και

¢È·‚Ô˘Ï‡ÛÂȘ ÁÈ· ÙÔ 18% Ù˘ §·˚΋˜ ÛÙËÓ ∆Ú. ∫‡ÚÔ˘ Συνάντηση µε τουσ µεγαλοµετÞχουσ τησ Τράπεζασ Κύπρου πραγµατοποιήθηκε χθεσ το απÞγευµα στην Κεντρική Τράπεζα, στα πλαίσια των επαφών για το 18% τησ Λαϊκήσ στην Τράπεζα Κύπρου. Ωσ γνωστÞ η Αρχή Εξυγίανσησ, µε τη σύµφωνη γνώµη του ∆ιοικητικού Συµβουλίου τησ Κεντρικήσ Τράπεζασ τησ Κύπρου, θα προβεί σε συντονισµένεσ επαφέσ µε τα ενδιαφερÞµενα µέρη µε σκοπÞ Þπωσ ληφθούν οι βέλτιστεσ αποφάσεισ Þσον αφορά τη διαχείριση του ποσοστού που κατέχει η Λαϊκή Τράπεζα στο µετοχικÞ κεφάλαιο τησ Τράπεζασ Κύπρου. Σηµειώνεται Þτι οι µετοχέσ που έλαβε η πρώην Λαϊκή απÞ την Τράπεζα Κύπρου (καθώσ τα περιουσιακά στοιχεία που µεταφέρθηκε στην Τράπεζα Κύπρου είναι περισσÞτερα απÞ τισ υποχρεώσεισ) δεν µπορεί να αποδοθούν στουσ πιστωτέσ τησ Λαϊκήσ που υπέστησαν απώλειεσ, διÞτι η Τράπεζα δεν µπορεί να εισέλθει άµεσα σε εκκαθάριση, επειδή πρέπει πρώτα να ολοκληρωθεί η διαδικασία εκποίησησ των θυγατρικών τραπεζών που ο Þµιλοσ διαθέτει σε Ουκρανία, Ρωσία και Μάλτα. Αν η Λαϊκή Τράπεζα τεθεί σε εκκαθάριση, χωρίσ εκποίηση των θυγατρικών τησ, ενδεχοµένωσ να υπάρξουν µέτρα απÞ τισ εποπτικέσ Αρχέσ υπÞ τισ οποίεσ υπάγονται οι θυγατρικέσ αυτέσ. Ùπωσ προκύπτει σε ρÞλο παρατηρητή προσανατολίζεται να περιοριστεί η Κεντρική Τράπεζα στη διοίκηση τησ Τράπεζασ Κύπρου, µε στÞχο να διασφαλίσει την πίστωση 11 δισ ευρώ που παραχώρησε ωσ έκτακτη ρευστÞτητα (ELA). Με βάση το µνηµÞνιο, η Τράπεζα Κύπρου θα πρέπει να έχει τη γενική τησ συνέλευση για διορισµÞ νέων συµβούλων «το αργÞτερο µέχρι 12 Σεπτεµβρίου». Το νέο διοικητικÞ συµβούλιο θα κληθεί να οριστικοποιήσει το σχέδιο αναδιάρθρωσησ τησ Τρ. Κύπρου µέχρι τα µέσα Οκτωβρίου. Στο ίδιο µήκοσ κύµατοσ κινείται και ο ΣυνεργατισµÞσ, καθώσ η ανακεφαλαιοποίηση απÞ το πρÞγραµµα µε µάξιµουµ ποσÞ 1,5 δισ ευρώ δεν αναµένεται να ολοκληρωθεί πριν τον Οκτώβριο. Το πλάνο αναδιάρθρωσησ των συνεργατικών θα πρέπει να κατατεθεί µέχρι το Σεπτέµβριο, στη βάση τησ στρατηγικήσ που καταρτίστηκε µε την ΚΤ κατά την εδώ παρουσία τησ τρÞικασ. Ο στÞχοσ θα είναι η µείωση του αριθµού των συνεργατικών στα 18 µέχρι το Μάρτιο του 2014. Να σηµειωθεί ακÞµα Þτι γύρω στα 1.370 πρÞσωπα έχουν αποδεχτεί το ΠρÞγραµµα Εθελούσιασ ΕξÞδου και θα αποχωρήσουν απÞ το ΣυγκρÞτηµα τησ Τράπεζασ Κύπρου. Με τισ αποχωρήσεισ αυτέσ το προσωπικÞ του Συγκροτήµατοσ στην Κύπρο µειώνεται κατά 25% περίπου. Λαµβάνοντασ υπÞψη και τισ πρÞσφατεσ µειώσεισ µισθών, υπολογίζεται Þτι το ΣυγκρÞτηµα θα εξοικονοµήσει 35% περίπου του κÞστουσ του ετήσιου µισθολογίου στην Κύπρο.

των τριών εταιριών Noble, Delek και Avner. Ερωτηθείσ σχετικά µε την επιβεβαιωτική γεώτρηση, είπε Þτι θα πρέπει να ολοκληρωθεί η διαδικασία αξιολÞγησησ προτού ανακοινωθούν τα οριστικά αποτελέσµατα, ενώ σε ερώτηση κατά πÞσον θα χρειαστεί και 2η επιβεβαιωτική γεώτρηση, είπε Þτι αυτÞ θα διαφανεί στην πορεία.

™ÙËÓ ∫‡ÚÔ ÔÈ ÀÔ˘ÚÁÔ› ∂Ó¤ÚÁÂÈ·˜ ∂ÏÏ¿‰·˜ Î·È πÛÚ·‹Ï Εν τω µεταξύ τριµερήσ συνάντηση µεταξύ του Υπουργού Ενέργειασ, Εµπορίου, Βιοµηχανίασ και Τουρισµού Γιώργου Λακκοτρύπη, του Υπουργού Ενέργειασ και Υδάτινων ΠÞρων του Ισραήλ Silvan Shalom και του Υπουργού Περιβάλλοντοσ, Ενέργειασ και Κλιµατικήσ Αλλαγήσ τησ Ελλάδασ Γιάννη Μανιάτη, θα πραγµατοποιηθεί αύριο Πέµπτη στη Λευκωσία. Με πρωτοβουλία του κ. Λακκοτρύπη, θα συζητηθούν τα ζητήµατα τησ τριµερούσ και περιφερειακήσ συνεργασίασ στον τοµέα τησ ενέργειασ, συµπεριλαµβανοµένων τησ προ-

στασίασ του περιβάλλοντοσ απÞ υπεράκτιεσ δραστηριÞτητεσ υδρογονανθράκων και τησ ηλεκτρικήσ σύνδεσησ Ισραήλ, Κύπρου και Ελλάδασ µέσω υποθαλάσσιου καλωδίου. Παράλληλα, προγραµµατίζεται η υπογραφή Μνηµονίου Συναντίληψησ µεταξύ των τριών χωρών σε θέµατα ενέργειασ και υδάτινων πÞρων.

™Ù·˘ÚÈÓ¿Î˘: MËӇ̷ٷ ¯ˆÚ›˜ ·Ô‰¤ÎÙ˜! Ο πρώην Υποδιοικητήσ τησ Κεντρικήσ Τράπεζασ Σπύροσ Σταυρινάκησ κατέθεσε χθεσ ενώπιον τησ Ερευνητικήσ Επιτροπήσ για την οικονοµία. Κληθείσ να απαντήσει σε σχέση µε τον ELA (Emergency Liquidity Assistance) ο κ. Σταυρινάκησ εξήγησε Þτι η παροχή ELA στη Λαϊκή Τράπεζα ειδικÞτερα µετά την κρατικοποίηση τησ, συνεχίστηκε, καθώσ σύµφωνα µε τουσ κανÞνεσ ο ELA παρέχεται είτε σε τράπεζα που είναι φερέγγυα και παρουσιάζει προβλήµατα ρευστÞτητασ. Κληθείσ να σχολιάσει δήλωση του ∆ιοικητή τησ ΚΤ Þτι «βάλαµε την Λαϊκή στον αναπνευστήρα µέχρι τισ εκλογέσ», ο κ. Σταυρινάκησ είπε Þτι αυτή η δήλωση µπορεί να ερµηνευτεί Þτι η Λαϊκή Τράπεζα ψυχοµαχούσε και Þτι ήταν έτοιµη να εκπνεύσει. Είπε Þτι δεν επιθυµεί να ερµηνεύσει την απάντηση του ∆ιοικητή και πωσ µπορεί να δώσει µια δική του απάντηση. «Η ΕΚΤ αγωνιούσε για το γεγονÞσ Þτι δεν υπογραφÞταν ΜνηµÞνιο. Είχε κατέλθει η ΤρÞικα Ιούλιο του 2012 και µέχρι τον Νοέµβριο δεν υπήρχε καµία πρÞοδοσ. Η ΕΚΤ αγωνιούσε γι’ αυτÞ και ήθελε να στείλει ένα ηχηρÞ µήνυµα

προσ την Κυβέρνηση µέσω τησ ΚΤ. Είναι γι αυτÞ που είχε θέσει αρχικά ωσ προθεσµία για άρση του ELA προσ τη Λαϊκή Τράπεζα την 23η Ιανουαρίου 2013 και είχε λάβει απÞφαση πωσ αν δεν υπάρξει πρÞγραµµα στισ 23 Ιανουαρίου του 2013 θα σταµατούσε την παροχή ELA προσ τη Λαϊκή Τράπεζα. ΑυτÞ το µήνυµα είχε δοθεί προσ την Κυβέρνηση, το γνώριζε και η τÞτε αντιπολίτευση. Στισ 23 Ιανουαρίου επειδή η Κύπροσ βρισκÞταν σε προεκλογική περίοδο, η ΕΚΤ αναθεώρησε την απÞφαση τησ και έθεσε µια νέα προθεσµία για τισ 21 Μαρτίου 2013 µε στÞχο να εξασκήσει πίεση Þχι µÞνο στην απερχÞµενη κυβέρνηση αλλά και στη νέα κυβέρνηση. ΑυτÞ ήταν το µήνυµα τησ ΕΚΤ, δίνουµε ELA στη Λαϊκή. Πάντα µε την προϋπÞθεση Þτι η Κύπροσ θα υπογράψει ΜνηµÞνιο που θα επιτρέψει στη Λαϊκή να ανακεφαλαιοποιηθεί», είπε. ΠρÞσθεσε Þτι κατά την άποψη του, η δήλωση του κ. ∆ηµητριάδη «ήταν µια πολύ ατυχήσ δήλωση» και πωσ ο ∆ιοικητήσ θα µπορούσε να απαντήσει Þπωσ έκαµε και ο ίδιοσ.

ΧΡΗΜΑ&ΑΓΟΡΑ

7 ΑΥΓΟΥΣΤΟΥ, 2013

2 | ΕΙ∆ΗΣΕΙΣ | financialmirror.com

«∫·Ï¿˙ÂÈ» Ë ·ÓÂÚÁ›· ÛÙËÓ ∫‡ÚÔ ∞˘Í‹ıËÎ·Ó Î·Ù¿ 31,7% ÔÈ ¿ÓÂÚÁÔÈ Ì¤Û· Û ¤Ó· ¯ÚfiÓÔ Σε ποσοστÞ 31,7% αυξήθηκε η ανεργία τον Ιούλιο σύµφωνα µε τα τελευταία στοιχεία τησ Στατιστικήσ Υπηρεσίασ Κύπρου. Σύµφωνα µε τα στοιχεία που τηρούνται στα Επαρχιακά Γραφεία Εργασίασ, ο αριθµÞσ των εγγεγραµµένων ανέργων στο τέλοσ Ιουλίου 2013, έφτασε τα 48.001 πρÞσωπα. Με βάση τα στοιχεία διορθωµένα για εποχικέσ διακυµάνσεισ που δείχνουν την τάση τησ ανεργίασ, ο αριθµÞσ των εγγεγραµµένων ανέργων τον Ιούλιο 2013 αυξήθηκε στα 48.112 πρÞσωπα σε σύγκριση µε 47.594 τον προηγούµενο µήνα. Την ίδια ώρα σε σύγκριση µε τον Ιούλιο του 2012 σηµειώθηκε αύξηση 11.549 προσώπων ή 31,7% που αποδίδεται

κυρίωσ στουσ τοµείσ του εµπορίου (αύξηση 2.690 ανέργων), των κατασκευών (αύξηση 1.558), τησ εκπαίδευσησ (αύξηση 1.448), τησ µεταποίησησ (αύξηση 1.211), των δραστηριοτήτων υπηρεσιών παροχήσ καταλύµατοσ και υπηρεσιών εστίασησ (αύξηση 676), καθώσ επίσησ και στουσ νεοεισερχÞµενουσ στην αγορά εργασίασ Þπου σηµειώθηκε αύξηση 1.459 ανέργων. Οι άνεργοι νέοι κάτω των 25 ετών ανέρχονται σε 5.540. Ο µεγαλύτεροσ αριθµÞσ ανέργων σηµειώνεται στισ ηλικίεσ µεταξύ 30 και 39 ετών και φτάνει τα 11.401 άτοµα. Σύµφωνα µε τα στοιχεία οι γυναίκεσ αποτελούν πάνω απÞ

το µισÞ του συνολικού αριθµού ανέργων των 48.001 ατÞµων, δηλαδή 24.742. Μεγάλοσ αριθµÞσ ανέργων, 15.473, αφορά άτοµα µε ανώτατη εκπαίδευση, ενώ 18.085 του συνÞλου ανέργων έχουν τελειώσει τη µέση εκπαίδευση. Παράλληλα, απÞ το σύνολο των ανέργων, 17.881 δηλώνουν Þτι έχουν µείνει χωρίσ εργασία για διάστηµα µεταξύ 15 ηµερών και 3 µηνών. 9.711 µεταξύ 3 και 6 µηνών και 9.831 µεταξύ 6 µηνών και ενÞσ χρÞνου. ΑριθµÞσ 6.941 ατÞµων δηλώνουν Þτι είναι άνεργοι εδώ και παραπάνω απÞ ένα χρÞνο.

ƒÂÓ: ∏ ∫‡ÚÔ˜ Ú¤ÂÈ Ó· ·ÓÙÈÌÂÙˆ›ÛÂÈ ÙËÓ ÌÂÙ·Ó¿ÛÙ¢ÛË ÙˆÓ Ó¤ˆÓ Η βελτίωση των προοπτικών απασχÞλησησ και σταδιοδροµίασ, που µπορεί να επιτευχθεί αν διευκολυνθεί η επιστροφή τησ κυπριακήσ οικονοµίασ σε πορεία βιώσιµησ ανάπτυξησ µε νέεσ ευκαιρίεσ απασχÞλησησ, είναι ο καλύτεροσ τρÞποσ για να παραµείνουν οι νέοι και τα άτοµα µε υψηλά προσÞντα στην Κύπρο, υποδεικνύει ο Ευρωπαίοσ Επίτροποσ Ùλι Ρεν, σε απάντησή του προσ την Ευρωβουλευτή (∆ΗΚΟ, Σ&∆), ΑντιγÞνη Παπαδοπούλου. Σύµφωνα µε δελτίο Τύπου του Γραφείου τησ, η Κύπρια Ευρωβουλευτήσ έθεσε υπÞψη τησ ΚοµισιÞν το σοβαρÞ πρÞβληµα τησ οικονοµικήσ µετανάστευσησ των νέων, επικαλούµενη τα αποτελέσµατα έρευνασ του Κυπριακού Ινστιτούτου ΣτατιστικολÞγων, σύµφωνα µε τα οποία ποσοστÞ 28% του

πληθυσµού, ηλικίασ 18-28 ετών, Þντωσ εκφράζουν πρÞθεση µετανάστευσησ απÞ την Κύπρο, µετά την άδικη απÞφαση του Eurogroup. Ο Ùλι Ρεν σηµειώνει, σύµφωνα µε το δελτίο Τύπου, Þτι η χρηµατοπιστωτική σταθερÞτητα πρέπει να αποκατασταθεί και τα δηµÞσια οικονοµικά να εξυγιανθούν. Αναφέρει περαιτέρω πωσ η Ευρωπαϊκή Επιτροπή βοηθά την Κύπρο στισ προσπάθειέσ τησ να αναπτύξει ένα πιο διαφοροποιηµένο και βιώσιµο οικονοµικÞ µοντέλο και αντιµετωπίζει τισ ανάγκεσ του νέου πληθυσµού, αφενÞσ, µε τη συγχρηµατοδÞτηση έργων που απευθύνονται σε νέουσ ανέργουσ στο πλαίσιο του τρέχοντοσ Επιχειρησιακού Προγράµµατοσ 20072013 του Ευρωπαϊκού Κοινωνικού Ταµείου και αφετέρου µε

την προώθηση τησ βαθµιαίασ εφαρµογήσ µιασ εγγύησησ για τη νεολαία, στο πλαίσιο τησ πρωτοβουλίασ για την απασχÞληση των νέων. Επιπλέον, ο Ευρωπαίοσ Επίτροποσ αναφέρει Þτι προωθείται η επιχειρηµατικÞτητα των νέων, στο πλαίσιο του τρέχοντοσ Επιχειρησιακού Προγράµµατοσ 2007-2013 που συγχρηµατοδοτείται απÞ το ΕυρωπαϊκÞ Ταµείο Περιφερειακήσ Ανάπτυξησ. Ο κ. Ρεν, στην απάντησή του προσ την Ευρωβουλευτή, επαναλαµβάνει πωσ η ΚοµισιÞν έχει συγκροτήσει οµάδα στήριξησ, η οποία θα υποστηρίξει την Κύπρο στην προσπάθειά τησ να περιορίσει τισ επιπτώσεισ του οικονοµικού σοκ, γιατί δεν υποτιµά το βάθοσ τησ τρέχουσασ κρίσησ και τισ δύσκολεσ προκλήσεισ στην Κύπρο.

ª¤¯ÚÈ Î·È 774% ÔÈ ‰È·ÊÔÚ¤˜ ÛÙȘ ÙËÏÂʈÓÈΤ˜ ¯ÚÂÒÛÂȘ ÛÙËÓ ∂.∂ Οι χρήστεσ κινητών τηλεφώνων στην Ευρωπαϊκή Ένωση χρεώνονται για τισ ίδιεσ υπηρεσίεσ µε πολύ διαφορετικέσ τιµέσ. Η µεγαλύτερη διαφορά στισ τιµέσ παρατηρείται στισ εγχώριεσ κλήσεισ απÞ κινητά τηλέφωνα: µια διαφορά τησ τάξεωσ του 774% ανάµεσα στη Λιθουανία, τη φθηνÞτερη χώρα, και την Ολλανδία, την ακριβÞτερη. Αυτέσ οι διαφορέσ στισ τιµέσ δεν δικαιολογούνται απÞ διαφορέσ στην ποιÞτητα, το κÞστοσ παροχήσ τησ υπηρεσίασ ή την αγοραστική δύναµη των καταναλωτών στισ χώρεσ αυτέσ. Η αντιπρÞεδροσ τησ Ευρωπαϊκήσ Επιτροπήσ Νέιλι Κρουσ δήλωσε: “Οι αριθµοί αυτοί δείχνουν ξεκάθαρα Þτι οι 28 ξεχωριστέσ εθνικέσ αγορέσ τηλεπικοινωνιών στην Ευρώπη δεν δηµιουργούν για τουσ καταναλωτέσ τα οφέλη που θα δηµιουργούσε µια ενιαία αγορά. Είναι εξαιρετικά σηµαντικÞ για Þλη την Ευρωπαϊκή Ένωση να επιταχύνουµε τισ προσπάθειέσ µασ για τη δηµιουργία µιασ πραγµατικήσ ενιαίασ αγοράσ και µιασ πραγµατικά συνδεδεµένησ ηπείρου.» Σε άλλεσ κατηγορίεσ βασικών αγαθών και υπηρεσιών στην ευρωπαϊκή ενιαία αγορά οι διαφορέσ στισ τιµέσ είναι πολύ µικρÞτερεσ. Για παράδειγµα, ένα λίτρο γάλακτοσ κοστίζει απÞ 0,69 έωσ 0,99 ευρώ: υπάρχει δηλαδή µια διαφορά τησ τάξεωσ του 43%. Σποραδικέσ ή περιστασιακέσ αγορέσ, Þπωσ η αγορά ενÞσ iPad, παρουσιάζουν µÞνον 11% διαφορά ωσ προσ το κÞστοσ ανάµεσα στισ διάφορεσ χώρεσ τησ ΕΕ.

√È ˘¿ÏÏËÏÔÈ Ù˘ ∂ıÓÈ΋˜ ηÏfi˘Ó Û ‰ÈÔÚıÒÛÂȘ ÙËÓ ∂∆À∫ Σε συγκεκριµένεσ διορθώσεισ καλεί η συντεχνία των υπαλλήλων τησ Εθνικήσ Τράπεζασ Ελλάδοσ (Κύπρου) την Ένωση Τραπεζικών Υπαλλήλων Κύπρου. “Επιθυµούµε να τονίσουµε -για ακÞµα µια φορά- προσ τα στελέχη τησ ηγεσίασ τησ συντεχνίασ ΕΤΥΚ”, δηλώνει µε την τελευταία ανακοίνωση τησ η ΣΥΠΕΤΕ, “να µην παραπλανούν, αλλά να είναι ακριβείσ και συγκεκριµένοι στισ Þποιεσ γραπτέσ ή προφορικέσ αναφορέσ τουσ, που αφορούν το σύνολο των τραπεζοϋπαλλήλων”. “ΤυχÞν εισηγήσεισ ή αποφάσεισ του ∆ιοικητικού Συµβουλίου τησ ΕΤΥΚ”, συνεχίζει η ανακοίνωση, “δεν αφορούν τουσ υπαλλήλουσ τησ Εθνικήσ Τράπεζασ, αφού η µεγάλη τουσ πλειονÞτητα εκπροσωπείται εδώ και έξι έτη απÞ τη ΣΥΠΕΤΕ, η οποία υπογράφει χωριστέσ Συλλογικέσ Συµβάσεισ Εργασίασ”. “Με τη ευκαιρία, η ΣΥΠΕΤΕ καλεί την ηγεσία τησ συντεχνίασ ΕΤΥΚ να διορθώσει άµεσα και τισ εξήσ παραπλανητικέσ πληροφορίεσ που είναι αναρτηµένεσ στην ιστοσελίδα τησ”, Þπωσ αναφέρεται στην ανακοίνωση, ζητώντασ να διορθωθεί η πρώτη φράση στην κεντρική τησ ιστοσελίδα, η οποία αναφέρει Þτι “Η Ένωση Τραπεζικών Υπαλλήλων Κύπρου ιδρύθηκε το 1955 και σε αυτήν είναι οργανωµένοι Þλοι οι υπάλληλοι των τραπεζών στην Κύπρο”.

ªÂ›ˆÛË 26,6% ÛÙȘ ¿‰ÂȘ ÔÈÎÔ‰ÔÌ‹˜ Û 5 Ì‹Ó˜ Στισ 380 ανήλθε ο αριθµÞσ των αδειών οικοδοµήσ, που εκδÞθηκαν απÞ τισ δηµοτικέσ αρχέσ και τισ επαρχιακέσ διοικήσεισ κατά το Μάιο του 2013, ανακοίνωσε η Στατιστική Υπηρεσία. Την περίοδο Ιανουαρίου - Μαΐου 2013 εκδÞθηκαν 2.285 άδειεσ οικοδοµήσ, παρουσιάζοντασ µείωση 26,6% έναντι τησ αντίστοιχησ περιÞδου

του προηγούµενου έτουσ. Σε σχετική ανακοίνωση αναφέρεται Þτι η συνολική αξία των αδειών αυτών έφθασε τα 107,8 εκ. ευρώ και το συνολικÞ εµβαδÞν τισ 74,2 χιλιάδεσ τετραγωνικά µέτρα. Με τισ άδειεσ αυτέσ προβλέπεται να ανεγερθούν 308 οικιστικέσ µονάδεσ. Η συνολική αξία των αδειών την περίο-

δο Ιανουαρίου - Μαΐου 2013 µειώθηκε κατά 9,1% και το συνολικÞ εµβαδÞν κατά 20,6%. Ο αριθµÞσ των οικιστικών µονάδων παρουσίασε µείωση τησ τάξησ του 14,0%. Οι άδειεσ οικοδοµήσ συνιστούν σηµαντική ένδειξη για τη µελλοντική δραστηριÞτητα στον κατασκευαστικÞ τοµέα, καταλήγει η ανακοίνωση.

¶Ô˘ÏÏ‹˜: ¢ÂÛ̇ÙËΠÁÈ· Ù· ÔÌfiÏÔÁ· Ë ∆Ú. ∫‡ÚÔ˘ Η Τράπεζα Κύπρου είχε δεσµευθεί να σταµατήσει τισ επενδύσεισ σε οµÞλογα µετά την επιστολή τησ Κεντρικήσ Τράπεζασ την 1η Μαρτίου του 2010, σύµφωνα µε Þσα κατέθεσε στην Ερευνητική Επιτροπή για την οικονοµία ο Κώστασ Πουλλήσ, τέωσ Ανώτεροσ ∆ιευθυντήσ του Τµήµατοσ εποπτείασ και αδειοδοτήσεων τησ Κεντρικήσ Τράπεζασ. Ο κ. Πουλλήσ είπε στην Ερευνητική Επιτροπή πωσ την 1η Μαρτίου 2010 έστειλε επιστολή στην Τράπεζα Κύπρου και σε Þλεσ τισ τράπεζεσ που κατείχαν ελληνικά οµÞλο-

γα, επιδιώκοντασ, Þπωσ είπε, «να τουσ ξυπνήσουµε και να τουσ προειδοποιήσουµε». Στην επιστολή ανέφερε Þτι απάντησαν γραπτώσ Þλεσ οι τράπεζεσ πλην τησ Τράπεζασ Κύπρου. Ο κ. Πουλλήσ είπε Þτι αργÞτερα πληροφορήθηκε απÞ τον τÞτε ∆ιοικητή Αθανάσιο Ορφανίδη πωσ η Τράπεζα Κύπρου «δεσµεύτηκε να σταµατήσει την επένδυση στα οµÞλογα», ύστερα απÞ τηλεφωνική συνοµιλία που είχε µε τον Ανώτατο ΕκτελεστικÞ ∆ιευθυντή τησ Τράπεζασ Κύπρου Ανδρέα Ηλιάδη. ΠρÞσθεσε Þτι τον Ιούλιο και Αύγουστο

του 2010 οι τράπεζεσ επένδυαν σε οµÞλογα που έληγαν σε 2-3 µήνεσ. Ο κ. Πουλλήσ είπε Þτι για την απÞκτηση οµολÞγων υπήρχαν κανονισµοί οι οποίοι τηρούνταν και εξήγησε Þτι η Κεντρική Τράπεζα δεν είχε καµία νοµική εξουσία να απαγορεύσει στισ Τράπεζεσ να επενδύουν σε κυβερνητικά οµÞλογα. Υπέδειξε Þτι οι τράπεζεσ πρέπει να έχουν πολιτική διαχείρισησ κινδύνων και η Κεντρική Τράπεζα έχει την εξουσία να µελετά αυτά τα µέτρα και αν δεν ικανοποιηθεί µπορεί να ζητήσει διÞρθωση, κεφάλαια ή περισσÞτερα provisions.

™Â ıÂÙÈÎfi ¤‰·ÊÔ˜ ÙÔ Ã∞∫ Με θετικÞ πρÞσηµο έκλεισε η χρηµατιστηριακή αγορά κατά την χθεσινή συνεδρία. Ο ΓενικÞσ ∆είκτησ του ΧΑΚ σηµείωσε κέρδη τησ τάξησ του 0,18% και έκλεισε στισ 93,94 µονάδεσ. Ανοδικά κινήθηκε και ο ∆είκτησ FTSE/CySE 20, ο οποίοσ έκλεισε στισ 34,73

µονάδεσ, αυξηµένοσ κατά 0,12%. Ο ηµερήσιοσ Þγκοσ συναλλαγών διαµορφώθηκε στισ 16.810,14 ευρώ. ΑπÞ τισ µετοχέσ που έτυχαν διαπραγµάτευσησ, το µεγαλύτερο επενδυτικÞ ενδιαφέρον προσέλκυσαν οι µετοχέσ τησ Ελληνικήσ Τράπεζασ µε Þγκο 12.123 ευρώ

(τιµή 0,064 ευρώ - άνοδοσ 3,22%), τησ Πετρολίνα µε 1.743 ευρώ (τιµή 0,85 - πτώση 2,63%), τησ Cyprus Trading Corporation µε Þγκο 1.160 ευρώ (τιµή 0,232 - πτώση 1,69%), τησ Louis µε Þγκο 818 ευρώ (τιµή 0,018 άνοδοσ 5,88%).

ΧΡΗΜΑ&ΑΓΟΡΑ

7 ΑΥΓΟΥΣΤΟΥ, 2013

financialmirror.com | ΕΙ∆ΗΣΕΙΣ | 3

µÔ˘ÏÂ˘Ù¤˜ Î·È µÔËıÔ› ∞ÓÙÒÓ˘ §Ô˚˙Ô˘ ∞ÓÙÒÓ˘ §Ô›˙Ô˘ F.R.I.C.S. & ™˘ÓÂÚÁ¿Ù˜ §Ù‰, ∂ÎÙÈÌËÙ¤˜ ∞ÎÈÓ‹ÙˆÓ & ¢È·¯ÂÈÚÈÛÙ¤˜ ŒÚÁˆÓ ∞Ó¿Ù˘Í˘

Είµαστε τησ άποψησ Þτι το σχετικά πρÞσφατο µέτρο Þπου ο κάθε βουλευτήσ να έχει ένα βοηθÞ είναι πολύ ορθÞ. Ùµωσ, Þπωσ εξελίχθηκε το θέµα, ο κάθε βουλευτήσ προσλαµβάνει την κÞρη, θεία του, φίλο του κοµµατικÞ κλπ και αυτÞ δεν είναι το Þτι καλύτερο. Ωσ εκ τούτου ο βουλευτήσ θα πρέπει να επιλέξει µεν ένα βοηθÞ, αλλά ο βοηθÞσ αυτÞσ θα πρέπει να είναι επιστήµονασ καταρτισµένοσ στα θέµατα που ασχολείται ο βουλευτήσ, διαφορετικά δεν θα µπορεί να ενσκήπτει ο βουλευτήσ στισ λεπτοµέρειεσ Þλων των νοµοσχεδίων και ιδιαίτερα των θεµάτων εκείνων που ασχολείται ο βουλευτήσ, ανάλογα στισ επιτροπέσ που ανήκει. ΄Αρα ένασ βουλευτήσ θα πρέπει να προσλαµβάνει 1-3 βοηθούσ (ωσ µέγιστο) στισ επιτροπέσ που συµµετέχει. ΄Εστω, ένασ βουλευτήσ ο οποίοσ συµµετέχει σε 3-5 διαφορετικέσ επιτροπέσ, ίσωσ να µπορεί µεν να έχει 3 βοηθούσ αλλά, απÞ την άλλη, ο κάθε βοηθÞσ θα πρέπει να είναι κατάλληλα καταρτισµένοσ επί του θέµατοσ – π.χ. εάν συµµετέχει στην Επιτροπή Οικονοµικών, ένασ οικονοµολÞγοσ ωσ βοηθÞσ, ένασ δικηγÞ-

ροσ στην Επιτροπή Νοµικών κλπ. ΤαυτÞχρονα θα πρέπει ο κάθε βουλευτήσ ή ο βοηθÞσ του να ζητά απÞψεισ απÞ εξωτερικούσ π.χ. δικηγÞρουσ, άλλουσ οικονοµολÞγουσ, πανεπιστήµια κλπ επί διαφÞρων θεµάτων και ωσ εκ τούτου να µην είναι υποχρεωµένοσ ο βουλευτήσ να έχει ιδιαίτερο βοηθÞ επί Þλων των θεµάτων, αλλά και απÞ την άλλη να έχει καλύτερη συµβουλή απÞ τουσ ανεξάρτητουσ συµβούλουσ µέσω του βοηθού του. Σίγουρα αυτÞ που εισηγούµαστε θα αυξήσει το κÞστοσ στην Βουλή, αλλά απÞ την άλλη δεν θα έχουµε καλύτερη Βουλή µε ανάλογη ορθή πληροφÞρηση προσ τουσ βουλευτέσ µασ; Πωσ µπορούσε αυτή η Επιτροπή Οικονοµικών εντÞσ 15 ηµερών να µελετήσει το νοµοσχέδιο τησ ΤρÞικασ; Γιατί απορρίφθηκε το κούρεµα του 6%-9% ενώ Þλοι οι βουλευτέσ έχουν επαγγελµατικÞ σύµβουλο; Είναι τεράστιο λάθοσ να “τσιγκουνευÞµαστε” για την Βουλή επί τέτοιου θέµατοσ (νοουµένου Þτι ασφαλώσ οι βοηθοί δεν είναι µÞνο φίλοι και κοµµατικοί αλλά ανεξάρτητοι µε το σκεπτικÞ που σασ υποβάλλουµε) και ωσ εκ τούτου να προτείνονται οι βοηθοί µεν απÞ τουσ βουλευτέσ, αλλά αυτοί οι βοηθοί να τυγχάνουν τησ έγκρισησ π.χ. απÞ το Πανεπιστήµιο Κύπρου για την καταλληλÞτητα τουσ. Οποιοδήποτε και να είναι αυτÞ το επιπλέον κÞστοσ, έστω 500.000 ευρώ τον χρÞνο, θα έχουµε µια καλύτερη Βουλή, µε βουλευτέσ µε επαγγελµατικέσ γνώσεισ στα πρÞτυπα του Αµερικάνικου Κογκρέσου. Ασφαλώσ θα υπάρχουν παρεµβάσεισ απÞ τα κÞµµατα και οι “φίλοι του φίλου”, αλλά ο βουλευτήσ πλέον, δεν θα έχει το

ελεύθερο να λέει Þτι “του καπνίσει”, αλλά θα πρέπει να τεκµηριώνει την θέση του επί επιστηµονικήσ βάσησ, ιδιαίτερα εάν έχει το δικÞ του επιστηµονικÞ προσωπικÞ που του υποβάλλει τεκµηριωµένεσ εκθέσεισ. Με τον τρÞπο αυτÞ θα ξεχωρίσουν οι βουλευτέσ που νοιάζονται απÞ εκείνουσ “του καφενείου”. ΑυτÞ γίνεται αγαπητοί µασ αναγνώστεσ στην Αµερική και σε άλλεσ χώρεσ, Þπου ο κάθε βουλευτήσ παρουσιάζεται τεκµηριωµένοσ στην κάθε επιτροπή, µε έρευνα και τισ επαφέσ για τισ διάφορεσ απÞψεισ να τισ διεξάγει ο βοηθÞσ/βουλευτήσ. Είναι τÞσο δύσκολο να επιτευχθεί αυτÞσ ο στÞχοσ Þταν µάλιστα, κατά την δική µασ άποψη, µε τον τρÞπο αυτÞ θα επιταχύνονται οι συζητήσεισ των νοµοσχεδίων και η µείωση του κÞστουσ, ωσ επίσησ και ποιοτικέσ συζητήσεισ σε αυτή τη ∆ηµοκρατία; Ùπωσ έχουν σήµερα τα δεδοµένα ο κάθε βουλευτήσ είναι “ειδικÞσ” για την οικονοµία, Τράπεζα Κύπρου, ΤρÞικα, το ΓριΓρι, ακίνητα και τÞσα άλλα, ενώ ταυτÞχρονα διατηρούν και τισ δικέσ τουσ επαγγελµατικέσ εργασίεσ. Αδύνατον και πολλέσ φορέσ διερωτώµαστε που βρίσκεται Þλη αυτή η “εξειδικευµένη γνώση” των βουλευτών µασ που παρελαύνουν απÞ τα Μ.Μ.Ε. και στο τέλοσ έχουµε αυτά τα νεÞφερτα mea culpa κλπ. Ùλο αυτÞ το θέµα µασ ενÞχλησε ιδιαίτερα µε τισ τελευταίεσ εισηγήσεισ για την φορολογία των ακινήτων που η Επιτροπή Οικονοµικών υιοθέτησε τισ καταστροφικέσ πρÞνοιεσ για την οικοδοµική βιοµηχανία, ενώ δεν υπάρχει καµία δικαιολογία επί τούτου. Γνωρίζουν οι βουλευτέσ τι ψηφίζουν;

¶ÚÔ˚fiÓÙ· «Ì·˚ÌÔ‡» ·Í›·˜ 1 €‰‰È˜ ÛÙ· Â˘Úˆ·˚ο ÙÂψÓ›· Τα τελωνεία τησ ΕΕ κατακράτησαν περίπου 40 εκατοµµύρια προϊÞντα για τα οποία υπήρχαν υπÞνοιεσ Þτι παραβιάζουν τα δικαιώµατα διανοητικήσ ιδιοκτησίασ (∆∆Ι) το 2012, σύµφωνα µε την ετήσια έκθεση τησ Επιτροπήσ σχετικά µε την ανάληψη τελωνειακών ενεργειών για την επιβολή των ∆∆Ι. ΜολονÞτι το ποσÞ αυτÞ είναι κατώτερο απÞ τα στοιχεία του 2011, η αξία των κατακρατηθέντων εµπορευµάτων παραµένει υψηλή, ανερχÞµενη σε 1 δισ ευρώ περίπου, αναφέρει η Ευρωπαϊκή Επιτροπή. Τα τσιγάρα είναι απÞ τισ σηµαντικÞτερεσ κατηγορίεσ προϊÞντων που κατακρατήθηκαν (31 %), ενώ διάφορα εµπορεύµατα (π.χ. φιάλεσ, φανοί, κÞλλεσ, µπαταρίεσ, σκÞνεσ καθαρισµού) ήταν η επÞµενη κατηγορία (12 %), ακολουθούµενη απÞ τα υλικά συσκευασίασ (10 %). Τα δέµατα ταχυδρο-

µείου και ταχυµεταφορών συνέχισαν να αντιπροσωπεύουν το 70 % περίπου των τελωνειακών παρεµβάσεων το 2012, µε το 23% των κατακρατηθέντων δεµάτων να αφορούν φάρµακα. Ùσον αφορά την προέλευση των προϊÞντων αποµίµησησ/παραποίησησ, η Κίνα εξακολουθεί να είναι η κύρια πηγή. ΩστÞσο, για συγκεκριµένεσ κατηγορίεσ προϊÞντων, η πρώτη πηγή προέλευσησ ήταν άλλεσ χώρεσ, Þπωσ το ΜαρÞκο για τα τρÞφιµα, το Χονγκ Κονγκ για το CD/DVD και άλλα προϊÞντα καπνού (κυρίωσ ηλεκτρονικά τσιγάρα και υγρά υλικά γέµισήσ τουσ), και η Βουλγαρία για υλικά συσκευασίασ. Το 90% περίπου Þλων των κατακρατηθέντων προϊÞντων είτε καταστράφηκαν είτε αποτέλεσαν αντικείµενο δικαστικήσ διαδικασίασ για τον προσδιορισµÞ τησ παράβασησ.

1 ‰È˜ Ã∞∫: ∂ÈÛ·ÁˆÁ‹ ‰‡Ô ÔÌÔÏfiÁˆÓ Ù˘ µ√C ·Í›·˜ €1 Το Xρηµατιστήριο Κύπρου αποδέχθηκε χθεσ προσ εισαγωγή των δύο εγγυηµένων οµολÞγων που είχαν εκδοθεί απÞ τη Λαϊκή το 2012, για λογαριασµÞ τησ Τράπεζασ Κύπρου. Τα δύο οµÞλογα, αξίασ 500 εκ. ευρώ το καθένα, είχαν εκδοθεί µε κρατική εγγύηση το Νοέµβριο του 2012, για να τονώσουν τη ρευστÞτητα τησ Λαϊκήσ Τράπεζασ. Μετά την απÞφαση τησ ΕΚΤ να παραχωρήσει καθεστώσ αντισυµβαλλÞµενου στην Τρ. Κύπρου για πράξεισ νοµισµατικήσ πολιτικήσ, τα δύο οµÞλογα µπορούν να χρησιµοποιηθούν ωσ εξασφάλιση για λήψη συµβατικήσ ρευστÞτητασ και για µείωση του ELA. Ανακοίνωση του ΧΑΚ αναφέρει Þτι αποδέχθηκε την εισαγωγή 5.000 εγγυηµένων οµολÞγων µε ηµεροµηνία έκδοσησ 14 Νοεµβρίου 2012 και 5.000 εγγυηµένων οµολÞγων µε ηµεροµηνία έκδοσησ 27 Νοεµβρίου 2012 τησ Τράπεζασ Κύπρου. Σύµφωνα µε τη σχετική ανακοίνωση, η διάρκεια των οµολÞγων ανέρχεται στισ 364 µέρεσ, µε ονοµαστική αξία 100,000 το καθένα, και σταθερÞ ετήσιο επιτÞκιο 5%. Ο τÞκοσ θα είναι πληρωτέοσ κατά τη λήξη των οµολÞ-

ªÂ›ˆÛË 27% ÛÙȘ ·Ê›ÍÂȘ ÙÔ˘ÚÈÛÙÒÓ ÛÙÔ §›‚·ÓÔ H ανησυχία Þσον αφορά την ασφάλεια και οι ταξιδιωτικοί περιορισµοί απÞ τα αραβικά κράτη του ΚÞλπου έχουν οδηγήσει σε πτώση κατά 27% των τουριστικών αφίξεων στο Λίβανο κατά τη διάρκεια τησ τουριστικήσ περιÞδου αιχµήσ, δήλωσε ο υπηρεσιακÞσ ΥπουργÞσ Τουρισµού του Λιβάνου. Τα στοιχεία για τον τουρισµÞ είχαν ήδη σηµειώσει κατακÞρυφη πτώση πέρσι, µε 1,5 εκ. επισκέπτεσ σε σχέση µε 2 εκ. το 2010, τη χρονιά προτού να ξεσπάσει ο πÞλεµοσ στη Συρία. Η τουριστική βιοµηχανία του Λιβάνου αντιπροσώπευε σχεδÞν το ένα πέµπτο του ΑΕΠ πριν απÞ µερικά χρÞνια. Τώρα κάποια ξενοδοχεία αναφέρουν Þτι τα επίπεδα πληρÞτητασ τουσ είναι κάτω απÞ το 10% τουσ καλοκαιρινούσ µήνεσ.

γων. Σύµφωνα µε το περί τησ πώλησησ ορισµένων εργασιών τησ Cyprus Popular Bank Public Co Ltd (τροποποιητικÞ) (Αρ.

3) διάταγµα του 2013, παράγραφοι 3 και 5, η Τράπεζα Κύπρου ∆ηµÞσια Εταιρεία Λτδ αντικαθιστά τη Cyprus Popular Bank Public Co Ltd και αντιµετωπίζεται ωσ ο εκδÞτησ των οµολÞγων για τα οποία έχουν παραχωρηθεί κυβερνητικέσ εγγυήσεισ δυνάµει των περί τησ παραχώρησησ κυβερνητικών εγγυήσεων για τη σύναψη δανείων ή/και την έκδοση οµολÞγων απÞ πιστωτικά ιδρύµατα νÞµων του 2012 συµπεριλαµβανοµένων των εγγυηµένων οµολÞγων (ΛΤ∆Ε/ CPBG) και εγγυηµένων οµολÞγων (ΛΤ∆Ε2/ CPBG2) τα οποία είχαν εκδοθεί απÞ τη Cyprus Popular Bank Public Co Ltd. Τα εν λÞγω οµÞλογα έχουν ήδη διαγραφεί απÞ τo χρηµατιστήριο µετά απÞ οδηγίεσ τησ Επιτροπήσ Κεφαλαιαγοράσ και αντικαθιστώνται απÞ τα δύο πιο πάνω οµÞλογα µε εκδÞτη την Τράπεζα Κύπρου ∆ηµÞσια Εταιρεία Λτδ. Το ΧΑΚ υπενθυµίζει Þτι µε βάση απÞφαση τησ Επιτροπήσ Κεφαλαιαγοράσ, η αναστολή τησ διαπραγµάτευσησ Þλων των

τίτλων τησ εταιρείασ Τράπεζα Κύπρου ∆ηµÞσια Εταιρεία Λτδ στο Χρηµατιστήριο Αξιών Κύπρου (ΧΑΚ) συνεχίζεται µέχρι τισ 30 Οκτωβρίου 2013, σύµφωνα µε το άρθρο 127(2) των περί επενδυτικών υπηρεσιών και δραστηριοτήτων και ρυθµιζÞµενων αγορών νÞµων του 2007 έωσ 2012. Ωσ επακÞλουθο, τα πιο πάνω εγγυηµένα οµÞλογα µε την εισαγωγή τουσ στο ΧΑΚ, θα βρίσκονται σε καθεστώσ αναστολήσ διαπραγµάτευσησ µέχρι τισ 30 Οκτωβρίου 2013. Η εισαγωγή των πιο πάνω εγγυηµένων οµολÞγων έγινε χθεσ Τρίτη 6 Αυγούστου 2013 και το Χρηµατιστήριο Αξιών Κύπρου ανέλαβε την τήρηση των πιο πάνω µητρώων στο κεντρικÞ αποθετήριο/ µητρώο του ΧΑΚ. Οι αγγλικοί και ελληνικοί κωδικοί διαπραγµάτευσησ των πιο πάνω εγγυηµένων οµολÞγων καθώσ και οι κωδικοί ISIN είναι BOCYG/ ΚΥΠΡΕ, CY0143940118 για τα εγγυηµένα οµÞλογα µε ηµεροµηνία έκδοσησ 14 Νοεµβρίου 2012 και BOCYG2/ ΚΥΠΡΕ2, CY0143950117 για τα εγγυηµένα οµÞλογα µε ηµεροµηνία έκδοσησ 27 Νοεµβρίου 2012.

™ÙȘ 29 ∞˘ÁÔ‡ÛÙÔ˘ Ë ÁÈÔÚÙ‹ ÙÔ˘ ∫Ú·ÛÈÔ‡ Στισ τελική τουσ ευθεία βρίσκονται οι προετοιµασίεσ για την 52η Γιορτή του Κρασιού στη ΛεµεσÞ, η οποία θα ανοίξει τισ πύλεσ τησ στισ 29 Αυγούστου, στο ∆ηµÞσιο Κήπο τησ πÞλησ. Ùπωσ δήλωσε ο ΠολιτιστικÞσ ΛειτουργÞσ του ∆ήµου, Κλέωνασ Αλεξάνδρου, σήµερα θα γίνει στισ 10:30, η τοποθέτηση στο χώρο του εµβλήµατοσ τησ γιορτήσ, του παραδοσιακού Βρακά, θα γίνει υπÞ τισ µελωδίεσ τησ χορωδίασ “Αρίονεσ” και τη συνοδεία κρασιού. Ο κ. Αλεξάνδρου σηµείωσε ακÞµη πωσ, παρά τισ οικονοµικέσ δυσκολίεσ, ο ∆ήµοσ Λεµεσού είναι αποφασισµένοσ να κρατήσει την ποιÞτητα τησ Γιορτήσ σε υψηλά επίπεδα, στο πλαίσιο των οποίων εντάσσεται και το καλλιτεχνικÞ πρÞγραµµα των δεκαήµερων εκδηλώσεων, που θα περιλαµβάνει και συναυλία τησ Ελληνίδασ τραγουδίστριασ Κατερίνασ Κούκασ.

Ανέφερε, επίσησ, Þτι πέραν των τεσσάρων µεγάλων οινοβιοµηχανιών τησ πÞλησ και των οινοποιείων τησ Επαρχίασ Λεµεσού, για πρώτη φορά θα συµµετάσχει και οινοποιείο απÞ άλλη Επαρχία και, συγκεκριµένα, απÞ το ΣτατÞ τησ Πάφου. Κατά τη διάρκεια τησ Γιορτήσ θα λειτουργήσουν περί τα 60 περίπτερα που θα προσφέρουν παραδοσιακούσ µεζέδεσ και εδέσµατα, καθώσ και σουβενίρ, ενώ Þπωσ υπέδειξε, οι υγειονοµικοί έλεγχοι θα είναι και φέτοσ συνεχείσ και ενδελεχείσ, ώστε να µην παρουσιαστεί οποιοδήποτε πρÞβληµα. Ùσον αφορά τισ τιµέσ των εισιτηρίων και των προϊÞντων που θα διατίθενται προσ πώληση, ο κ. Αλεξάνδρου δήλωσε πωσ ο ∆ήµοσ έχει φροντίσει ώστε να διατηρηθούν σε λογικά επίπεδα. Τα εγκαίνια τησ Γιορτήσ θα τελέσει, το βράδυ τησ 29ησ Αυγούστου, ο ΥπουργÞσ Ενέργειασ, Εµπορίου, Βιοµηχανίασ και Τουρισµού, Γιώργοσ Λακκοτρύπησ.

ΧΡΗΜΑ&ΑΓΟΡΑ

7 ΑΥΓΟΥΣΤΟΥ, 2013

4 | ΕΙ∆ΗΣΕΙΣ | financialmirror.com

ƒÒÛÔÈ ÂÂÓ‰˘Ù¤˜ ÛÙËÓ ∫‡ÚÔ Αισιοδοξία για την πορεία τησ οικονοµίασ εξέφρασε ο Αρχιεπίσκοποσ Κύπρου ΧρυσÞστοµοσ ο οποίοσ ιεράρχησε την ανάπτυξη ωσ βασική παράµετρο για ανάκαµψη τησ κυπριακήσ οικονοµίασ. Αποκάλυψε παράλληλα Þτι επενδυτέσ µε τουσ οποίουσ συναντήθηκε κατά την πρÞσφατη επίσκεψη του στη ΜÞσχα θα επισκεφτούν την Κύπρο µετά τισ 15 Αυγούστου µε στÞχο να υπάρξει, Þπωσ είπε, προσέγγιση µε την Κυβέρνηση για επενδύσεισ κυρίωσ στουσ τοµείσ του τουρισµού και τησ ενέργειασ. Ο Αρχιεπίσκοποσ είπε επίσησ Þτι ο ίδιοσ ήταν και είναι πάντα αισιÞδοξοσ, γιατί, Þπωσ εξήγησε, γνωρίζει τη συµπεριφορά του κυπριακού λαού. «Είπα πολλέσ φορέσ Þτι ο λαÞσ µασ ζει και µε σπατάλεσ αλλά ξέρει να ζει και µε τα λίγα. Ξέρω Þτι έχει νεύρο, µπορεί να εργαστεί άοκνα και να βγει απÞ πάνω» δήλωσε. Εξέφρασε παράλληλα την πεποίθηση πωσ για να εξέλθει η οικονοµία απÞ την κρίση θα πρέπει να υπάρξει ανάπτυξη, διεµήνυσε ωστÞσο Þτι «η ανάπτυξη δεν είναι εύκολο πράγµα και θέλει πολλή δουλειά». Σηµείωσε Þτι το θετικÞ είναι Þτι οι ξένοι επενδυτέσ έχουν εµπιστοσύνη στην Κύπρο και στο λαÞ τησ και δεν έχουν χάσει την εµπιστοσύνη τουσ προσ την Κύπρο. «Αλλά πρέπει κι εµείσ» υπέδειξε, «να γίνουµε ευέλικτοι, πιο συστηµατικοί, πιο προγραµµατισµένοι», υποδεικνύοντασ Þτι «η ανάπτυξη θέλει

τη βοήθεια Þλων». «∆εν φτάνει να υπάρχουν επενδυτέσ» πρÞσθεσε, «πρέπει και οι δηµÞσιοι υπάλληλοι να βοηθήσουν και πρέπει να διεκπεραιώνουν Þλεσ τισ υποθέσεισ µε γρηγοράδα». Εξέφρασε ακÞµη την πεποίθηση πωσ αν συνεργαστούµε Þλοι, «και Κυβέρνηση και λαÞσ», τÞτε «πολύ σύντοµα θα βγούµε απÞ πάνω». Επανέλαβε Þτι η Εκκλησία θα κάνει το παν δίνοντασ Þλο τον καλÞ εαυτÞ τησ έτσι ώστε να υπάρξει ανάπτυξη καθώσ µÞνο έτσι θα κινηθεί η αγορά και θα επιστρέψει το χαµÞγελο στα πρÞσωπα των ανθρώπων. Ερωτηθείσ σε σχέση µε τα αποτελέσµατα τησ πρÞσφατησ επίσκεψησ του στη ΜÞσχα, ο Αρχιεπίσκοποσ είπε Þτι έχει επαφέσ τÞσο µε Ρώσουσ, Þσο επίσησ και µε Αµερικάνουσ και Ευρωπαίουσ. ΕιδικÞτερα σε Þ,τι αφορά την επίσκεψη του στη ΜÞσχα είπε Þτι οι επενδυτέσ µε τουσ οποίουσ συναντήθηκε εκεί του διεµήνυσαν Þτι θα έρθουν στην Κύπρο µετά τισ 15 Αυγούστου για επαφέσ και για να γίνει µια προσέγγιση µε την Κυβέρνηση «γιατί χρειάζεται µια καλή συνεργασία για να γίνουν αναπτύξεισ». «∆εν φτάνει να θέλουµε µÞνο εµείσ και οι επενδυτέσ, διαδραµατίζουν ένα θετικÞ ρÞλο και οι δηµÞσιοι υπάλληλοι, οι οποίοι αν δεν το πάρουν ζεστά τα πάντα µπορούν να καθυστερούν». Ερωτηθείσ σε ποιουσ τοµείσ υπάρχει ενδιαφέρον απÞ τουσ επενδυτέσ µε τουσ οποίουσ είχε επαφέσ, είπε Þτι

υπάρχει ενδιαφέρον και για τον τουρισµÞ και για την ενέργεια και για πολλούσ τοµείσ. «Εµείσ, τουσ είπα, είµαστε ανοιχτοί σε Þλα. Και σε φωτοβολταϊκά και σε ενέργεια µε αέρια και πετρέλαια. Και στα ξενοδοχεία. Έχω ρίξει την ιδέα Þτι η Κύπροσ λÞγω του κλίµατοσ τησ µπορεί να φιλοξενεί τουσ ΒÞρειουσ τησ τρίτησ ηλικίασ που είναι µέσα στα χιÞνια και στα νερά ολÞχρονα που θα ήθελα να έρθουν στην Κύπρο και να ξοδέψουν εδώ τον τίµιο ιδρώτα µιασ ολÞκληρησ ζωήσ» είπε, προσθέτοντασ ειδικά σε Þ,τι αφορά τον τουρισµÞ τρίτησ ηλικίασ, Þτι η ιδέα αντιµετωπίστηκε θετικά. Ερωτηθείσ τέλοσ αν οι επενδυτέσ προέρχονται απÞ τον χώρο τησ Εκκλησίασ, ο Αρχιεπίσκοποσ ανέφερε πωσ προέρχονται απÞ τον επιχειρηµατικÞ κÞσµο.

∂˘Î·Èڛ˜ ÁÈ· ÙÔ˘˜ ∫‡ÚÈÔ˘˜ ÂÂÓ‰˘Ù¤˜ ÚÔÛʤÚÂÈ Ë °ÂˆÚÁ›·

∂ÈÙÚ¤ÂÙ·È ÙÔ ¿ÓÔÈÁÌ· Ó¤Ô˘ ÏÔÁ·ÚÈ·ÛÌÔ‡

Οι Κύπριοι επιχειρηµατίεσ θα πρέπει να επενδύσουν στη Γεωργία, ανέφερε ο Επιτετραµµένοσ τησ Γεωργίασ στην Κύπρο Gaioz Japaridze. O κ. Japaridze είπε επίσησ Þτι οι σχέσεισ των δύο χωρών αν και ήταν πάντοτε ιστορικέσ, εντούτοισ θα πρέπει να αναπτυχθούν και µίλησε για ανταλλαγή επισκέψεων των Υπουργών Εξωτερικών. Στισ οικονοµικέσ σχέσεισ, η Κύπροσ, είπε ο κ. Japaridze παραµένει στην πρώτη δεκάδα των κρατών στισ άµεσεσ ξένεσ επενδύσεισ στην Γεωργία. «Η Γεωργία προσφέρει καλέσ δυνατÞτητεσ. Το φορολογικÞ σύστηµα είναι πολύ διαφανέσ ενώ το περιβάλλον είναι φιλικÞ προσ την προσέλκυση επιχειρήσεων. Είναι η µοναδική χώρα στην ευρύτερη περιοχή που έχει πολύ χαµηλÞ επίπεδο διαφθοράσ, το οποίο είναι σχεδÞν µηδέν, πολύ χαµηλή

Mέχρι τισ 30 Αυγούστου 2013 θα έχει ισχύ το 19ο διάταγµα για τα περιοριστικά µέτρα στισ συναλλαγέσ που εξέδωσε το Υπουργείο Οικονοµικών. Το συγκεκριµένο διάταγµα περιέχει τροποποιήσεισ και επιτρέπει το άνοιγµα νέου λογαριασµού. Με το ∆έκατο Ένατο ∆ιάταγµα γίνονται οι εξήσ τροποποιήσεισ: Επιτρέπεται το άνοιγµα νέου λογαριασµού: (i) στην περίπτωση που δηµιουργείται νέα κατάθεση προθεσµίασ µε µετρητά τουλάχιστον µέχρι 5.000 ευρώ και διάρκειασ τουλάχιστον 3 µηνών. Η κατάθεση προθεσµίασ δεν θα µπορεί να τερµατιστεί πριν τη λήξη τησ. Με την πρώτη λήξη τησ κατάθεσησ προθεσµίασ τα κεφάλαια τησ εν λÞγω κατάθεσησ δεν θα υπÞκεινται σε συγκεκριµένα περιοριστικά µέτρα που καθορίζονται στο ∆ιάταγµα. (ii) στην περίπτωση που τρεχούµενοσ λογαριασµÞσ αφορά νέο δάνειο, νοουµένου Þτι ο εν λÞγω λογαριασµÞσ θα χρησιµοποιείται αποκλειστικά για την εξυπηρέτηση του δανείου (για καµιά άλλη συναλλαγή), Þτι οι αποδεσµεύσεισ του δανείου θα µεταφέρονται σε λογαριασµÞ που θα διατηρείται στο ίδιο πιστωτικÞ ίδρυµα ή σε άλλο πιστωτικÞ ίδρυµα εντÞσ τησ ∆ηµοκρατίασ, και Þτι ο λογαριασµÞσ θα υπÞκειται στα περιοριστικά µέτρα που αφορούν τουσ τρεχούµενουσ λογαριασµούσ. Η περίοδοσ ισχύοσ του διατάγµατοσ είναι 28 µέρεσ δηλαδή µέχρι τισ 30 Αυγούστου 2013.

εγκληµατικÞτητα, χαµηλά επίπεδα γραφειοκρατίασ, τα πάντα γίνονται µέσω διαδικτύου κάτι το οποίο δεν βρίσκεται ούτε στην Αρµενία, ούτε στο Αζερµπαϊτζάν, ούτε στην Τουρκία ή Ρωσία ούτε στισ χώρεσ τησ Κεντρικήσ Ασίασ οι οποίεσ είναι πάρα πολύ πλούσιεσ», επεσήµανε ο κ. Japaridze. Η Γεωργία, σηµείωσε, προσφέρεται για εγκατάσταση επιχειρήσεων, οι οποίεσ θα µπορούν να ξεκινήσουν τισ δραστηριÞτητεσ τουσ στη Γεωργία και να επεκταθούν σε χώρεσ τησ ευρύτερησ περιοχήσ, τησ Κεντρικήσ Ασίασ, του Καύκασου. ΑυτÞ που προσφέρουµε εµείσ δεν µπορούν να το προσφέρουν άλλοι, συνέχισε. Η νοµοθεσία προωθεί την επιχειρηµατική δραστηριÞτητα και δίνει κίνητρα στουσ επιχειρηµατίεσ και τισ επιχειρήσεισ τουσ να αυξάνουν τισ δουλειέσ και αυτÞ είναι κάτι το οποίο είναι πάρα πολύ σηµαντικÞ.

20 ÂÎ. ÂÍ·ÛÊ¿ÏÈÛ ÙÔ ¶·ÓÂÈÛÙ‹ÌÈÔ ∫‡ÚÔ˘ €2 ÁÈ· ÂÚ¢ÓËÙÈο ÚÔÁÚ¿ÌÌ·Ù· ΠερισσÞτερα απÞ 20 εκατοµµύρια εξασφάλισε το Πανεπιστήµιο Κύπρου για ερευνητικά προγράµµατα απÞ το 2012 µέχρι σήµερα. Συγκεκριµένα, κατά τη διάρκεια του 2013, έχει εξασφαλίσει πέραν των 8 εκ. ευρώ απÞ το ΕυρωπαϊκÞ Συµβούλιο Έρευνασ για ερευνητικά έργα που δÞθηκαν σε ακαδηµαϊκούσ του Πανεπιστηµίου, ενώ το 2012 εξασφάλισε 13 εκ.ευρώ απÞ εξωτερικέσ ανταγωνιστικέσ χρηµατοδοτήσεισ. ΑπÞ τισ 8 ερευνητικέσ χορηγίεσ European Research Council (ERC) που έχει λάβει η Κύπροσ, οι 6 έχουν εξασφαλιστεί απÞ το Πανεπιστήµιο Κύπρου, εκ των οποίων οι 2 αφορούν ERC AdvancedGrant. Το συνολικÞ ποσÞ που έχει απορροφήσει το Πανεπιστήµιο Κύπρου απÞ τισ ερευνητικέσ χορηγίεσ ERC ανέρχεται στα 8.150.000 εκατοµµύρια ευρώ. Σηµειώνεται Þτι οι χορηγίεσ του Ευρωπαϊκού Συµβουλίου Έρευνασ (European Research Council) θεωρούνται οι πιο ανταγωνιστικέσ στον ΕυρωπαϊκÞ χώρο, καθώσ κάθε χρÞνο τίθενται υψηλά κριτήρια αξιολÞγησησ µε αποτέλεσµα να χρηµατοδοτείται µÞλισ το 8-9% των υποβαλλÞµενων προσ αξιολÞγηση προτάσεων απÞ Þλεσ τισ χώρεσ τησ Ευρώπησ. Το Πανεπιστήµιο αυτή τη στιγµή έχει ενεργά ερευνητικά προγράµµατα, οι χρηµατοδοτήσεισ των οποίων ξεπερνούν τα 39 εκ. ευρώ και εργοδοτεί πέραν των 550 νέων ερευνητών. Μεταξύ άλλων, έρευνεσ του Πανεπιστήµιο Κύπρου αποτέλεσαν ένα σηµαντικÞ βήµα προσ τον πολυπÞθητο στÞχο τησ Αναγεννητικήσ Ιατρικήσ Þσον αφορά την κατασκευή λειτουργικών οργάνων σε εργαστήριο ενώ το νεοσυσταθέν Εργαστήριο Χαρακτηρισµού ∆οµικών Υλικών «ΛΗ∆ΡΑ» συµβάλλει στην προστασία τησ πολιτιστικήσ και αρχιτεκτονικήσ µασ κληρονοµιάσ. Οι ερευνητικέσ επιτυχίεσ κατά τη διάρκεια του πρώτου εξαµήνου του 2013, έχουν ωσ ακολούθωσ: Ανεργία: Ο Καθηγητήσ Ευρωπαϊκών Σπουδών στο Πανεπιστήµιο Κύπρου και κάτοχοσ του ΝÞµπελ Οικονοµίασ ΧριστÞφοροσ Πισσαρίδησ εξασφάλισε χρηµατοδÞτηση

ύψουσ 2,2 εκατοµµυρίων ευρώ για ερευνητικÞ έργο που αφορά την απασχÞληση στην Ευρώπη. ΠρÞκειται για τη µεγαλύτερη ερευνητική χορηγία ERC Advanced Grant που δÞθηκε ποτέ στο Πανεπιστήµιο Κύπρου και την πιο υψηλή διάκριση στον τοµέα ευρωπαϊκών χορηγιών. Υγεία –Καρκίνοσ: Στην ενίσχυση τησ αποτελεσµατικÞτητασ των φαρµάκων για την καταπολέµηση του καρκίνου στοχεύει νέο ερευνητικÞ έργο του Πανεπιστηµίου Κύπρου που έλαβε χρηµατοδÞτηση ύψουσ 1.5 εκ. ευρώ απÞ το ΕυρωπαϊκÞ Συµβούλιο Έρευνασ (ERC Starting Grants). Τη xρηµατοδÞτηση εξασφάλισε o Λέκτορασ του Tµήµατοσ Μηχανικών Μηχανολογίασ και Κατασκευαστικήσ του Πανεπιστηµίου Κύπρου, Τριαντάφυλλοσ ΣτυλιανÞπουλοσ . ΩκεανογραφικÞ Kέντρο: Το ΩκεανογραφικÞ Κέντρο του Πανεπιστήµιο Κύπρου προσέλκυσε και ξεκίνησε να υλοποιεί το 2012 Ευρωπαϊκά προγράµµατα συνολικού ύψουσ 2.5 εκ. ευρώ, ενώ κατά τουσ πρώτουσ έξι µήνεσ του 2013 το Κέντρο κατάφερε να εξασφαλίσει εξωτερική χρηµατοδÞτηση ύψουσ 700,000 ευρώ µέσω νέων ερευνητικών προγραµµάτων. Υψηλή τεχνολογία: Tο ΕρευνητικÞ Κέντρο Ευφυών Συστηµάτων και ∆ικτύων «Κοίοσ» του Πανεπιστήµιου Κύπρου, στην προσπάθεια του να συνδράµει στον κοινÞ στÞχο για ανάπτυξη στον τοµέα τησ καινοτοµίασ και έρευνασ, συνεχίζει να έχει αρκετέσ και αξιÞλογεσ επιτυχίεσ στην προσέλκυση ερευνητικών προγραµµάτων. Τουσ τελευταίουσ 6 µήνεσ το «Κοίοσ» εξασφάλισε πέντε νέα ερευνητικά προγράµµατα συνολικήσ χρηµατοδÞτησησ για το Πανεπιστήµιο Κύπρου 1,3 εκ. ευρώ. Με τισ χρηµατοδοτήσεισ αυτέσ θα απασχοληθούν απÞ το Πανεπιστήµιο περίπου 15 νεαροί επιστήµονεσ οι οποίοι θα έχουν την ευκαιρία να συµµετάσχουν σε προγράµµατα υψηλήσ τεχνολογίασ σε τοµείσ µε καλέσ προοπτικέσ ανάπτυξησ. Τρία απÞ τα νέα ερευνητικά προγράµµατα χρηµατοδοτούνται απÞ την Ευρωπαϊκή Ένωση, ενώ τα άλλα δυο χρηµατοδοτούνται απÞ διεθνείσ εταιρίεσ υψηλήσ τεχνολογίασ.

™ÙÔ 0,7% Ô ÂÓ·ÚÌÔÓÈṲ̂ÓÔ˜ ÏËıˆÚÈÛÌfi˜ fi˜ πÔ˘Ï›Ô˘ Στο 0,7% διαµορφώθηκε ο εναρµονισµένοσ πληθωρισµÞσ τον Ιούλιο σε σχέση µε ρυθµÞ εναρµονισµένου πληθωρισµού 3,8% τον Ιούλιο του 2012 και 0,8% τον Ιούνιο 2013, σύµφωνα µε στοιχεία που δηµοσιοποίησε χθεσ η Στατιστική Υπηρεσία. Ùσον αφορά στα τρÞφιµα και µη αλκοολούχα ποτά ο εναρµονισµένοσ πληθωρισµÞσ αυξήθηκε κατά 3% σε σχέση µε τον Ιούλιο του περασµένου έτουσ, στα αλκοολούχα ποτά και τον καπνÞ αυξήθηκε κατά 9,1%, ενώ στισ µεταφορέσ κατά 2,5%. Μείωση σηµειώθηκε στο ρυθµÞ του εναρµονισµένου πληθωρισµού τον Ιούλιο 2013 σε σύγκριση µε τον Ιούλιο 2012 κατά 5,7% Þσον αφορά τη στέγαση, ύδρευση, ηλεκτρισµÞ και υγραέριο, 3,7% στον τοµέα τησ υγείασ, 2,7% στην ένδυση και την υπÞδηση και 1% στην αναψυχή και τον πολιτισµÞ. Ùσον αφορά στην περίοδο Ιανουαρίου - Ιουλίου 2013 σε σχέση µε την αντίστοιχη περίοδο του 2012, το ποσοστÞ µεταβολήσ του εναρµονισµένου πληθωρισµού ήταν 1%. Σηµειώθηκε αύξηση τησ τάξησ του 2,5% στα τρÞφιµα και µη αλκοολούχα ποτά, 9,6% στα αλκοολούχα ποτά και τον καπνÞ, 3% στισ µεταφορέσ και 0,9 στισ επικοινωνίεσ. Πτώση σηµειώθηκε κατά την ίδια περίοδο Þσον αφορά τον εναρµονισµένο πληθωρισµÞ στην ένδυση και την υπÞδηση (3,9%), την υγεία (2,1%) και τη στέγαση, την ύδρευση, τον ηλεκτρισµÞ και το υγραέριο (1,6%).

ΧΡΗΜΑ&ΑΓΟΡΑ

7 ΑΥΓΟΥΣΤΟΥ, 2013

financialmirror.com | ΕΙ∆ΗΣΕΙΣ | 5

Œ¯ÂÙ ÙÔ ÛˆÛÙfi PIN ÁÈ· ÙȘ ÈÛÙˆÙÈΤ˜ Û·˜ οÚÙ˜; Είναι ευρέωσ παραδεκτÞ Þτι οι περισσÞτεροι κάτοχοι χρεωστικών ή πιστωτικών καρτών χρησιµοποιούν κωδικούσ ασφαλείασ (ΡΙΝ) µε αριθµούσ που µπορούν εύκολα να τουσ αποµνηµονεύσουν ή απλώσ σηµαίνουν κάτι ιδιαίτερο για αυτούσ. ΩστÞσο, πολλέσ φορέσ αυτÞ δεν τουσ καθιστά ακριβώσ ασφαλείσ, καθώσ είναι πολύ εύκολο να «σπάσουν» σε περίπτωση κλοπήσ µίασ κάρτασ. Σύµφωνα µε το περιοδικÞ ΤΙΜΕ, κάθε χρÞνο περίπου γίνονται στÞχοσ χάκερ οι χρεωστικέσ κάρτεσ του 7% των Αµερικανών, ενώ το 10% έχουν πέσει θύµατα απάτησ µε πιστωτικέσ. Αποτέλεσµα; Πάνω απÞ 5,5 δισεκατοµµύρια δολάρια αποδίδονται σε κλοπέσ και απάτεσ µέσω καρτών. Ενα απÞ τα «σωσίβια» ανάµεσα στουσ επίδοξουσ κλέφτεσ και του τραπεζικού λογαριασµού είναι τέσσερισ µικροί αριθµοί, το γνω-

στÞ PIN. Η επιλογή των αριθµών αυτών είναι υψίστησ σηµασίασ για την προστασία των λογαριασµών, ωστÞσο αυτÞ ανατρέπεται, Þταν πολλοί απÞ τουσ κατÞχουσ χρησιµοποι-

To Wi-Fi ηٷÎÙ¿ ÙËÓ ∂˘ÚÒË Νέα µελέτη τησ ΚοµισιÞν καταδεικνύει Þτι υπάρχει σήµερα µεγάλο ενδιαφέρον για τη χρήση ασύρµατου διαδικτύου (Wi-Fi) και η τάση αυτή πρÞκειται συνεχιστεί. Το 2012, το 71% του συνÞλου τησ ασύρµατησ κυκλοφορίασ δεδοµένων στην ΕΕ έγινε µε έξυπνα τηλέφωνα και ταµπλέτεσ που χρησιµοποιούν Wi-Fi, ποσοστÞ που ενδέχεται να αυξηθεί σε 78% έωσ το 2016. Τα εντυπωσιακά αυτά αποτελέσµατα τησ µελέτησ δείχνουν πώσ το χαµηλÞτερο κÞστοσ για τουσ καταναλωτέσ απÞ τη χρήση ζωνών ασύρµατησ πρÞσβασησ αλλάζει τισ συνήθειεσ, και προτείνεται η διάθεση επιπλέον ραδιο-

φάσµατοσ σε ολÞκληρη την ΕΕ για την ικανοποίηση τησ αυτήσ τησ αυξανÞµενησ ζήτησησ. Η αντιπρÞεδροσ τησ Ευρωπαϊκήσ Επιτροπήσ Νέιλι Κρουσ δήλωσε: Þτι το Wi-Fi είναι µια τεράστια επιτυχία, καθώσ Þλοι Þσοι το χρησιµοποιούν βγαίνουν κερδισµένοι. «Θα κάνω Þ,τι είναι δυνατÞν ώστε η Ευρωπαϊκή Επιτροπή να συµβάλει στη διάδοση τησ χρήσησ Wi-Fi µέσω επιπλέον ραδιοφάσµατοσ και πιο ευέλικτων κανονιστικών ρυθµίσεων.», συνέχισε. Ùπωσ αναφέρει η ΚοµισιÞν, ενώ τα δίκτυα 3G/4G είναι απαραίτητα για µια γνήσια κινητή επικοινωνία, η αγορά δικαιωµάτων ραδιοφά-

FT: ∞ÔÌ·ÎÚ‡ÓÔÓÙ·È Ù· ÂÌfi‰È· ÁÈ· ÙËÓ ∫‡ÚÔ Αφιερωµένο στην Κύπρο ήταν το άρθρο τησ εφηµερίδασ Financial Times που δηµοσιεύτηκε την ∆ευτέρα, µε τίτλο «Η Κύπροσ προχωρά». Η βρετανική οικονοµική εφηµερίδα αναφέρεται στην οριστικοποίηση των Þρων που διέπουν τισ καταθέσεισ στην Τράπεζα Κύπρου, κάνοντασ λÞγο για αποµάκρυνση ενÞσ εµποδίου στην οικονοµική ανάκαµψη τησ χώρασ. Ζωτικήσ σηµασίασ βήµατα για έξοδο απÞ την πιστωτική κρίση που «στραγγαλίζει» την οικονοµία χαρακτηρίζονται επίσησ η ανακεφαλαιοποίηση τησ τράπεζασ και η έξοδÞσ τησ απÞ το καθεστώσ εξυγίανσησ. Κατά την εφηµερίδα, διαδοχικοί ηγέτεσ στην Κύπρο έκαναν την κρίση χειρÞτερη αναβάλλοντασ την αναπÞφευκτη αντιµετώπιση τησ πραγµατικÞτητασ, ενώ και αυτή τη φορά η κυβέρνηση προσπάθησε ανεπιτυχώσ να επιτύχει µικρÞτερεσ απώλειεσ για τισ καταθέσεισ. ΩστÞσο, θεωρεί πωσ οι πιστωτέσ τησ τρÞικασ είχαν δίκαιο να απαιτήσουν επαρκείσ ζηµιέσ για τουσ καταθέτεσ ώστε να δηµιουργηθεί σταθερή κεφαλαιακή βάση για την τράπεζα. «Παρά το τι µπορεί να σκέφτονταν οι πολιτικοί τησ, η εξέλιξη είναι προσ το συµφέρον τησ Κύπρου. Το επαρκέσ κεφάλαιο είναι η σιγουρÞτερη οδÞσ επιστροφήσ στη χρηµατοδÞτηση απÞ τισ αγορέσ για τον τραυµατισµέ-

νο κυπριακÞ τραπεζικÞ τοµέα», αναφέρει το άρθρο. Προσθέτει Þτι οι καλύτερεσ προοπτικέσ χρηµατοδÞτησησ θα επιτρέψουν στην Τράπεζα Κύπρου να παίξει καλύτερα το ρÞλο τησ στη στήριξη τησ οικονοµίασ. Στη συνέχεια η εφηµερίδα απευθύνει προειδοποίηση κατά τησ διατήρησησ των περιορισµών στην κίνηση κεφαλαίων. Ùσο συνεχίζονται, ο ρÞλοσ τησ τράπεζασ στη στήριξη τησ οικονοµίασ θα περιορίζεται. «Η ανάγκη να διατηρηθεί εντÞσ διαχειρίσιµων επιπέδων η φυγή κεφαλαίων είναι κατανοητή. Αλλά τα µέτρα που έχουν υιοθετήσει η τρÞικα και η Λευκωσία για να εµποδίσουν την έξοδο χρηµάτων απÞ τη χώρα έχουν επίσησ πατήσει υπερβολικÞ φρένο στην κυκλοφορία χρήµατοσ εντÞσ τησ εθνικήσ οικονοµίασ», παρατηρούν οι Financial Times. Προσθέτουν Þτι Þσο υπάρχει επαρκήσ χρηµατοδÞτηση απÞ τισ καταθέσεισ, δεν υπάρχει λÞγοσ να περιοριστούν οι µεταφορέσ χρήµατοσ µεταξύ Κυπρίων καταθετών, καθώσ και Þτι πρέπει να επιτραπεί η µεταφορά καταθέσεων που επιστρέφουν στο νησί προσ άλλουσ τοπικούσ τραπεζικούσ λογαριασµούσ. «Ùσο συντοµÞτερα σηκωθεί απÞ το έδαφοσ η εσωτερική οικονοµία, τÞσο συντοµÞτερα θα υποχωρήσει η απειλή τησ φυγήσ κεφαλαίου», καταλήγει το άρθρο.

√ Ó¤Ô˜ Ô‰ËÁfi˜ ‰È·ÎÔÒÓ Ù˘ Cyta Û Flipbook Ένα φρέσκο ηλεκτρονικÞ οδηγÞ διακοπών µε χρήσιµεσ πληροφορίεσ, σε µορφή ηλεκτρονικού οδηγού (flipbook), παρουσίασε η Cyta. Ο νέοσ οδηγÞσ διακοπών τησ Cyta, Cyprus Holiday Guide 2013, προτρέπει τουσ επισκέπτεσ, τÞσο ξένουσ, Þσο και ντÞπιουσ, να αγαπήσουν τον τÞπο µασ ανακαλύπτοντάσ τον. Περιλαµβάνει στισ σελίδεσ του ένα ευρύ φάσµα πληροφοριών που βοηθούν πρακτικά τον επισκέπτη και τον διευκολύνουν να γνωρίσει αξιοθέατα, µουσεία, µονοπάτια τησ

φύσησ, παραλίεσ και να έχει πρÞσβαση σε πολλαπλέσ επιλογέσ ψυχαγωγίασ. Παράλληλα, περιλαµβάνει ένα πλήρη οδηγÞ µε διευθύνσεισ και τηλέφωνα επιχειρήσεων που µπορεί να χρειαστεί ένασ επισκέπτησ κατά τη διάρκεια των διακοπών του. Η νέα έκδοση τησ Cyta ενθαρρύνει τον επισκέπτη να ζήσει την αυθεντική Κύπρο µέσα απÞ εικÞνεσ, γεύσεισ και µυρωδιέ. O σύνδεσµοσ για τον ηλεκτρονικÞ οδηγÞ βρίσκεται στην ιστοσελίδα www.cyta.com.cy

ούν κοινÞτυπουσ κωδικούσ, που τουσ καθιστούν ευάλωτουσ στουσ χάκερ. Μία νέα µελέτη τησ DataGenetics αποδεικνύει Þτι οι κλέφτεσ χρεωστικών και πιστωτικών καρτών είναι ικανοί να µαντεύουν µε ποσοστÞ επιτυχίασ άνω του 25% το ΡΙΝ απÞ τισ κλεµµένεσ κάρτεσ µέσα σε 20 προσπάθειεσ. Και γιατί είναι τÞσο εύκολο να «σπάσουν» τον κωδικÞ ασφαλείασ µε 20 µαντεψιέσ σε 10.000 πιθανούσ συνδυασµούσ; Για να απαντήσουν σε αυτÞ το ερώτηµα, οι ερευνητέσ έκαναν φύλλο και φτερÞ το διαδίκτυο για αριθµούσ λογαριασµών και ΡΙΝ που έχουν εκτεθεί σε παραβιάσεισ και µελέτησαν τουσ αριθµούσ που ο κÞσµοσ διαλέγει περισσÞτερο για κωδικούσ ασφαλείασ. Οπωσ προέκυψε, πολλοί άνθρωποι χρησιµοποιούν συνδυασµούσ Þπωσ «1234» ή «1111» για PIN, τα οποία, αν και µπορούν

εύκολα να αποµνηµονευθούν, το ίδιο εύκολα παραβιάζονται. Αλλεσ δηµοφιλείσ επιλογέσ για ΡΙΝ είναι η χρονολογία γέννησησ ή χρονολογίεσ που έχουν γίνει διάσηµεσ απÞ κινηµατογραφικέσ ταινίεσ, Þπωσ το «2012». Σύµφωνα µε τη µελέτη τησ DataGenetics οι δέκα πιο δηµοφιλείσ, αλλά και λιγÞτερο ασφαλείσ κωδικοί είναι οι εξήσ: Η µελέτη επισηµαίνει Þτι τα καλύτερα ΡΙΝ είναι τυχαίοι αριθµοί που δεν έχουν κάποια σηµειολογική αναφορά για τον κάτοχο του λογαριασµού. Για του λÞγου το αληθέσ, η DataGenetics ανακάλυψε Þτι το ΡΙΝ που έχει χρησιµοποιηθεί ελάχιστεσ φορέσ είναι το «8068», αν και ο αριθµÞσ των κατÞχων που µπορεί να χρησιµοποιήσει αυτÞν τον αριθµÞ πιθανώσ να αυξηθεί απÞ τη στιγµή τησ δηµοσίευσησ τησ µελέτησ αυτήσ.

σµατοσ που είναι αναγκαία για τη λειτουργία αυτών των δικτύων παραµένει ακριβή. Οι καταναλωτέσ καταβάλλουν ιδιαίτερα υψηλέσ τιµέσ για να χρησιµοποιούν τα δίκτυα 3G/4G (π.χ. κατά την περιαγωγή), ενώ τα δίκτυα είναι ήδη κορεσµένα σε πολλέσ περιοχέσ τησ Ευρώπησ, εξαιτίασ τησ περιορισµένησ εκχώρησησ ραδιοφάσµατοσ. «Συστήµατα κοινήσ χρήσησ του δικτύου Wi-Fi µε άλλουσ αποτελούν ένα εξαιρετικÞ παράδειγµα του πώσ µπορούµε χρησιµοποιήσουµε απÞ κοινού τουσ πÞρουσ που διαθέτουµε για να εξασφαλίσουµε ένα καλύτερο διαδίκτυο για Þλουσ. Ùλοι στην Ευρώπη πρέπει να είναι σε θέση κάνουν χρήση του διαδι-

κτύου Þταν βρίσκονται µακριά απÞ το σπίτι ή το γραφείο τουσ, δήλωσε η Νέιλι Κρουσ. Η µελέτη προτείνει: να καταστεί ευρέωσ διαθέσιµο ραδιοφάσµα απÞ 5150 MHz έωσ 5925 MHz για ασύρµατη πρÞσβαση στο διαδίκτυο (Wi Fi), να συνεχιστεί η διάθεση των ζωνών συχνοτήτων 2.6 GHz και 3.5 GHz για χρήση στην κινητή τηλεφωνία και να εξεταστεί η δυνατÞτητα για µελλοντικέσ αδειοδοτήσεισ 3.5 GHz και άλλεσ πιθανέσ νέεσ αδειοδοτηµένεσ ζώνεσ συχνοτήτων κινητών επικοινωνιών και να µειωθεί ο διοικητικÞσ φÞρτοσ που συνεπάγεται η εγκατάσταση δικτύων και υπηρεσιών αποφÞρτωσησ σε δηµÞσιουσ χώρουσ.

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7 ΑΥΓΟΥΣΤΟΥ, 2013

6 | ∆ΙΕΘΝΗ | financialmirror.com

ªÔÚ› Ó· Ù· ηٷʤÚÂÈ Ë ∆Ú¿Â˙· ∫‡ÚÔ˘; ¡›ÎÔ˜ ªÈ¯·ËÏ›‰Ë˜ Foreign Exchange Analyst Email: michailidisn@aol.com Στο 47,5% αυξάνεται η συµβολή των καταθετών τησ Τράπεζασ Κύπρου µε περισσÞτερα απÞ 100.000 ευρώ στο λογαριασµÞ τουσ, έπειτα απÞ συµφωνία τησ Κεντρικήσ Τράπεζασ Κύπρου, του υπ. Οικονοµικών και εκπροσώπων τησ τρÞικασ. ΣχεδÞν το ήµισυ των καταθέσεών τουσ χάνουν Þσοι διατηρούσαν λογαριασµÞ στην Τράπεζα Κύπρου µε ποσÞ άνω των 100.000 ευρώ. Ùπωσ ανακοίνωσε και επίσηµα η κυβέρνηση, η συµβολή των καταθετών στη διάσωση τησ τράπεζασ, η οποία συµφωνήθηκε τον περασµένο Μάρτιο µε τουσ διεθνείσ πιστωτέσ, θα ανέλθει συνολικά στο 47,5%. Η συµµετοχή των καταθετών στη διάσωση ήταν προϋπÞθεση για την ανακεφαλαιοποίηση τησ Τράπεζασ Κύπρου απÞ το Eurogroup και το ∆ιεθνέσ ΝοµισµατικÞ Ταµείο µε 10 δισεκατοµµύρια ευρώ. Η συµφωνία µε τουσ δανειστέσ προβλέπει εκτÞσ αυτού πλήρη εκκαθάριση τησ Λαϊκήσ Τράπεζασ, τησ δεύτερησ σε µέγεθοσ κυπριακήσ τράπεζασ, αλλά και µέτρα τησ κυπριακήσ κυβέρνησησ, Þπωσ µείωση των δηµοσίων δαπανών, περιορισµÞ των δηµοσίων υπαλλήλων, ιδιω-

τικοποιήσεισ και αύξηση του εταιρικού φÞρου. Βασικά στην τράπεζα υλοποιήθηκε το βασικÞ σενάριο που αναφέραµε στο τελευταίο µασ άρθρο. Η κατάληξη στο «τελικÞ» ποσοστÞ κουρέµατοσ τησ τράπεζασ Κύπρου είναι αναµφίβολα µια σηµαντική εξέλιξη που θα κρίνει το µέλλον τησ τράπεζασ αλλά πλέον εδώ αρχίζουν τα πολύ δύσκολα για την τράπεζα. Καταρχήν κανένασ εκπρÞσωποσ τησ τρÞικασ ή ευρωπαίοσ αξιωµατούχοσ δεν δεσµεύτηκε πωσ αυτÞ θα είναι το τελικÞ ποσÞ κουρέµατοσ. Εάν Þντοσ ήθελαν οι «επιστήµονεσ» των Βρυξελλών να βοηθήσουν εµπράκτωσ την Þλη κατάσταση θα µεριµνούσαν πωσ ταυτÞχρονα µε την ανακοίνωση του ποσοστού κουρέµατοσ θα απελευθέρωναν το υπÞλοιπο ποσÞ για άµεση χρήση του απÞ τουσ κουρεµένουσ καταθέτεσ. Αντιθέτωσ το µÞνο που έπραξαν είναι να απελευθερώσουν ένα πολύ µικρÞ ποσοστÞ µε τα υπÞλοιπα να παραµένουν δεσµευµένα χωρίσ οποιαδήποτε δέσµευση για εάν και εφÞσον θα ελευθερωθούν. Και ο µοναδικÞσ λÞγοσ που δεν αποδεσµεύουν τα χρήµατα είναι επειδή ξέρουν και οι ίδιοι πωσ οι αριθµοί στην τράπεζα δεν βγαίνουν και το πιο πιθανÞ είναι σε σύντοµο χρονικÞ διάστηµα η τράπεζα να χρειαστεί νέο bail-in. Με µια τράπεζα η οποία πλήγηκε «θανάσιµα» απÞ το κούρεµα του Μαρτίου και Þχι µÞνο δεν βοηθήθηκε απÞ τουσ ευρωπαίουσ αλλά τησ φÞρτωσαν και µε τον πιο απροκάλυ-

πτο τρÞπο τα κακά τησ Λαϊκήσ. Μετά την πρωτοτυπία του κουρέµατοσ καταθέσεων είχαµε την νέα πρωτοτυπία η οποία αποτελεί και παγκÞσµιο φαινÞµενο µια τράπεζα να σπάζει σε καλή και κακή και στο καλÞ µέροσ να πηγαίνουν τÞσο τα προβληµατικά δάνεια αλλά κυρίωσ η υπερβολική και εκτÞσ πραγµατικÞτητασ έκθεση τησ στον ELA. Βέβαια το µείζον θέµα στην τράπεζα Κύπρου δεν είναι να βγει απÞ το καθεστώσ εξυγίανσησ αλλά το πώσ θα γίνει λειτουργική και βιώσιµη. Και για να γίνει βιώσιµη θα πρέπει σε χρÞνο ρεκÞρ να επανακτήσει την αξιοπιστία τησ και να επανέλθουν οι καταθέσεισ που έχει απολέσει. Μια τράπεζα µε το µέγεθοσ τησ Κύπρου χωρίσ σηµαντική εισροή καταθέσεων δεν µπορεί να λειτουργήσει. ΥπÞ τισ περιστάσεισ Þχι µÞνο δεν υπάρχει η απειροελάχιστη πιθανÞτητα εισροήσ νέων καταθέσεων αλλά και αυτέσ που έχουν αποµείνει µε την πρώτη ευκαιρία θα φύγουν. Ùπωσ έχουµε ξαναπεί δεν υπάρχει προηγούµενο ανά το παγκÞσµιο τράπεζα που έβαλε χέρι στισ καταθέσεισ να κατορθώσει να κρατηθεί στην ζωή. Για να το κατορθώσει θα πρέπει να αλλάξει άρδην τÞσο η µετοχική τησ δοµή µε την είσοδο βέβαια ενÞσ αξιÞπιστου και διεθνέσ γνωστού στρατηγικού επενδυτή αλλά κυρίωσ το ∆Σ τησ τράπεζασ. Οτιδήποτε θυµίζει το αµαρτωλÞ παρελθÞν τησ τράπεζασ και την κοµµατικοοικονοµική εξάρτηση τησ που την οδήγησε στην σηµερινή τραγική κατάσταση θα πρέπει να αποκλειστεί.

∂asy ÛÔ˘ÂÚÌ¿ÚÎÂÙ ·fi ÙÔÓ ™Ù¤ÏÈÔ Ã·Ù˙ËȈ¿ÓÓÔ˘ Στην αγορά του λιανικού εµπορίου επιχειρεί να µπει ο Κύπριοσ πολυεκατοµµυριούχοσ επιχειρηµατίασ Στέλιοσ Χατζηιωάννου. Έχει ήδη στα σκαριά ένα easy, φθηνÞ σούπερµαρκετ, το οποίο είναι σχεδÞν έτοιµο να αρχίσει τη λειτουργία του µε στÞχο να αποσπάσει µερίδιο απÞ την αγορά τροφίµων τησ Βρετανίασ, Þπου γίνεται κάθε χρÞνο τζίροσ περίπου 200 δισ. ευρώ, σύµφωνα µε τουσ «Τάιµσ του Λονδίνου». Ο Στέλιοσ Χατζηιωάννου, Þπωσ ανέφερε η βρετανική εφηµερίδα, έκανε αίτηση για την κατοχύρωση τησ διεύθυνσησ easyFoodstore.com, Þπου µπορεί κανείσ να βρει τα πάντα για τισ επιχειρήσεισ του επιχειρηµατία, τα λογÞτυπα, Þπωσ τησ αεροπορικήσ easyJet, ενώ διατηρεί το παραδοσιακÞ πορτοκαλί χρώµα των υπÞλοιπων επιχειρήσεων και συµµετοχών του Στέλιου Χατζηιωάννου. Άλλεσ ανταγωνίστριεσ αλυσίδεσ σουπερµάρκετ δεν γνώριζαν για την πιθανολογούµενη είσοδο στην αγορά αυτή του Στέλιου Χατζηιωάννου µέχρι που επικοινώνησε µαζί τουσ η εφηµερίδα, ανέφερε στο σχετικÞ του άρθρο ο Ντοµινίκ Κένεντι που έχει γράψει το ρεπορτάζ. Μέχρι τώρα η πιο σηµαντική ένδειξη για το αντικείµενο δραστηριÞτητασ τησ νέασ προσπάθειασ του Στέλιου Χατζηιωάννου είναι η παραπάνω νέα διαδικτυακή διεύθυνση που καταχώρησε, η οποία παραπέµπει, µε βάση το Þνοµά τησ, σε αγορέσ τροφίµων.

Οι «Τάιµσ» αναφέρουν ακÞµη Þτι ο επιχειρηµατίασ δεν έχει αντίστοιχα κατοχυρώσει κάποιο Þνοµα για υπηρεσία παράδοσησ τροφίµων στουσ πελάτεσ Þπωσ αυτέσ που έχουν σήµερα µεγάλα σουπερµάρκετ στη Βρετανία και αλλού. Πηγή που επικαλείται η βρετανική εφηµερίδα σηµείωσε Þτι πριν απÞ χρÞνια ο Στέλιοσ Χατζηιωάννου έλαβε προειδοποίηση απÞ ειδικÞ τησ αγοράσ λιανικήσ Þτι οι υπηρεσίεσ παράδοσησ προϊÞντων που έχουν αγοραστεί απÞ τα σουπερµάρκετ είναι κατά κανÞνα ζηµιογÞνεσ. Και αυτÞ γιατί η εταιρεία πουλάει το προϊÞν στην ίδια τιµή - είτε αυτÞ αγοραστεί απÞ τα ράφια τησ είτε παραγγελθεί ηλεκτρονικά και παραδοθεί στο σπίτι του πελάτη µε δικÞ τησ φορτηγάκι. Ένδειξη πάντωσ, για τα σχέδια του Στέλιου Χατζηιωάννου ενδεχοµένωσ να είναι παλαιÞτερεσ δηλώσεισ του Þτι έχει εµπνευστεί απÞ τον τρÞπο λειτουργίασ τησ µεγάλησ αλυσίδασ λιανικών πωλήσεων των ΗΠΑ Wal-Mart, η οποία περνά στουσ καταναλωτέσ εκπτώσεισ που γίνονται απÞ µαζικέσ αγορέσ προϊÞντων. ∆εν είναι τυχαίο Þτι οι επιχειρήσεισ του Στέλιου Χατζηιωάννου βασίζονται σε σηµαντικÞ βαθµÞ στο πρÞτυπο αυτÞ. Για παράδειγµα, η εταιρεία ενοικίασησ αυτοκινήτων του αγÞρασε 7.000 ολÞιδια οχήµατα Mercedes αντί να προσφέρει επιλογή εξοπλισµού στουσ πελάτεσ τησ. Εκτιµάται Þτι το σουπερµάρκετ του θα µπορούσε ενδεχοµένωσ να προσφέρει

ºˆ˜ ÛÙÔ ÙÔ‡ÓÂÏ ÁÈ· ¤ÍÔ‰Ô ·fi ÙËÓ ‡ÊÂÛË Προ των πυλών εξÞδου τησ απÞ την ύφεση, πιθανώσ, βρίσκεται η ευρωζώνη, σύµφωνα µε έρευνεσ που δÞθηκαν στη δηµοσιÞτητα. Βάσει των ερευνών αυτών, καταγράφεται άνοδοσ τησ επενδυτικήσ εµπιστοσύνησ αλλά και ανάπτυξη του µεταποιητικού τοµέα, για πρώτη φορά τουσ τελευταίουσ 18 µήνεσ. ΩστÞσο, η δηµοσίευση των στοιχείων αυτών, τα οποία αφορούν αφενÞσ στον δείκτη υπευθύνων προµηθειών και αφετέρου σε έρευνα επενδυτικήσ εµπιστοσύνησ συνέπεσαν, σηµειώνει το ΓερµανικÞ Πρακτορείο, µε την ανακοίνωση µείωσησ στισ λιανικέσ πωλήσεισ στην ευρωζώνη, τησ τάξησ του 0,5%, κατά το µήνα Ιούνιο.

Το Μάιο η πτώση είχε διαµορφωθεί σε ποσοστιαίο επίπεδο σε 1,10%. Σε δωδεκάµηνη βάση, σύµφωνα µε την Eurostat οι λιανικέσ πωλήσεισ σηµείωσαν πτώση 0,9%. Ο σύνθετοσ δείκτησ υπευθύνων προµηθειών διαµορφώθηκε στο επίπεδο του 50,5 τον προηγούµενο µήνα έναντι 48,7 τον Ιούνιο, σπάζοντασ έτσι για πρώτη φορά το επίπεδο ορÞσηµο των 50 µονάδων απÞ τον Ιανουάριο του 2012. Επίπεδα ανώτερα των 50 µονάδων υποδηλώνουν αναπτυξιακέσ τάσεισ. Σύµφωνα µε το ΑθηναϊκÞ Πρακτορείο, ο δείκτησ θεσµικών επενδυτών που καταρτίζει η Sentix σηµείωσε άνοδο για τέταρτο κατά σειρά µήνα, κατά 7,7%, διαµορφούµενοσ σε -4,9.

στουσ πελάτεσ χαµηλÞτερη τιµή εάν αυτοί παραγγέλνουν προϊÞντα απÞ το ∆ιαδίκτυο λίγο καιρÞ πιο πριν.

¶ÂÚÈÔ˘Û›· $1 ‰È˜ Ο Χατζηιωάννου έγινε γνωστÞσ απÞ την αεροπορική εταιρεία χαµηλού κÞστουσ easyJet. Στη συνέχεια δηµιούργησε και άλλεσ επιχειρήσεισ Þπωσ την easyCar (ενοικιάσεισ αυτοκινήτων) και την easyHotel (ενοικιάσεισ δωµατίων ξενοδοχείων), οι

οποίεσ Þπωσ είχαν µικρÞτερη επιτυχία απÞ αυτή του αεροµεταφορέα. Σύµφωνα µε το περιοδικÞ «Φορµπσ» η προσωπική του περιουσία ανέρχεται σε περίπου $1 δισ. Πρώην συνεργάτησ του έχει πει γι’ αυτÞν Þτι κινητήρια δύναµη πίσω απÞ τισ προσπάθειεσ του Κύπριου επιχειρηµατία είναι να αποδείξει πωσ µπορεί να είναι το ίδιο πετυχηµένοσ ακÞµη και Þταν ασχολείται µε διαφορετικά αντικείµενα εκτÞσ απÞ τα ναυτιλιακά για τα οποία είναι γνωστή η οικογένειά του.

Google: ∂ÓÙÔ›ÛÙ ٷ ¯·Ì¤Ó· smartphone Μία νέα υπηρεσία µέσω τησ οποίασ οι κάτοχοι smartphone που «τρέχουν» Android θα µπορούν να εντοπίσουν τισ χαµένεσ συσκευέσ τουσ παρουσίασε η Google. ΠρÞκειται για το Android Device Manager, που Þχι µÞνο θα δίνει στουσ κατÞχουσ των συσκευών τη δυνατÞτητα να δουν στο χάρτη το χαµένο smartphone τουσ, αλλά και να ενεργοποιούν έναν ήχο κλήσησ σε πλήρη ένταση, ακÞµη κι αν το τηλέφωνο τουσ ήταν ρυθµισµένο στην «αθÞρυβη» λειτουργία. Σύµφωνα µε τα πρώτα στοιχεία, η υπηρεσία θα παρέχει ακÞµη τη δυνατÞτητα αλλαγήσ συνθηµατικού, κλειδώµατοσ τησ οθÞνησ, αλλά και διαγραφήσ Þλων των αποθηκευµένων δεδοµένων απÞ τη συσκευή που έχει χαθεί. Με τη νέα υπηρεσία η Google ευελπιστεί να καλύψει το «κενÞ» απÞ τισ αντίστοιχεσ υπηρεσίεσ που ήδη παρέχουν Apple και η Microsoft (Find my iPhone και Find my phone αντίστοιχα). Το Android Device Manager θα είναι διαθέσιµο εντÞσ του µήνα.

7 ΑΥΓΟΥΣΤΟΥ, 2013

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EÛ›˜ ÁÓˆÚ›˙ÂÙ·È ÙÔÓ Mr Jumbo; Μετακινείται απÞ το ένα κατάστηµά του στο άλλο µε ιδιωτικÞ ελικÞπτερο ακÞµα και µέσα στην Αθήνα, ταξιδεύει στο εξωτερικÞ τουλάχιστον µια φορά κάθε µήνα, αποκαλεί τισ συσκέψεισ τησ επιχείρησησ «συσκέψεισ χαράσ» και ενίοτε συµβάλει µε λίγη έµπνευση ακÞµα και στα ραδιοφωνικά σποτάκια τησ δικήσ του βιοµηχανίασ γέλιου, Þπωσ λέει, «Jumbo». Λίγοι τον γνωρίζουν ωσ ΑπÞστολο Βακάκη. Ùλοι Þµωσ τον γνωρίζουν ωσ «κύριο Jumbo», καθώσ είναι ο επιχειρηµατίασ που δηµιούργησε την γνωστή αλυσίδα καταστηµάτων παιχνιδιών. Ο κ. Βακάκησ αν και άγνωστοσ στο ευρύ κοινÞ είναι καθÞλα γνωστÞσ στον επιχειρηµατικÞ κÞσµο.

Nα σηµειωθεί Þτι στην δυσκολÞτερη χρονιά το 2012, για το ελληνικÞ λιανεµπÞριο ο Ùµιλοσ Jumbo, αύξησε κατά 19,39% τα καθαρά κέρδη του, µε τισ πωλήσεισ του να παραµένουν σταθερέσ. Ο Mr Jumbo είναι ίσωσ ο µοναδικÞσ επιχειρηµατίασ που εν ολίγοισ καταφέρνει απτÞητοσ να πλουτίζει εν µέσω κρίσησ, αν Þχι οικονοµικήσ κατάρρευσησ τησ χώρασ. Ùπωσ και να έχει, δεν πρÞκειται για έναν συνηθισµένο επιχειρηµατία. Ο ίδιοσ και οµάδα εργαζοµένων του επισκέπτονται σχεδÞν καθηµερινά τα καταστήµατα Jumbo ανά την Ελλάδα και δη στην Αθήνα µε ελικÞπτερο διÞτι ο χρÞνοσ είναι χρήµα! Οι περισσÞτερεσ διαδικαστικέσ λειτουργίεσ τησ επιχείρησησ µετονοµάζονται σε συσκέψεισ χαράσ ή διαδικασίεσ γέλιου προσ σεβασµÞ στα παιδιά Þπου και απευθύνεται η επιχείρηση, ενώ ο ίδιοσ αγωνιά κάθε φορά για το επÞµενο ραδιοφωνικÞ σποτάκι- τραγούδι των Jumbo. «Είµαι θιασώτησ του απλού οτιδήποτε δεν καταλαβαίνω µου δηµιουργεί νευρικÞτητα. Είµαι θιασώτησ τησ παραγωγικÞτητασ διÞτι δεν αντιλαµβάνοµαι πώσ θα διαχυθεί ο πλούτοσ στα µεσαία και τα χαµηλÞτερα στρώµατα χωρίσ να αυξηθεί η παραγωγικÞτητα. Είµαι και θιασώτησ µιασ λογικήσ που λέει Þτι δεν πρέπει να διαµαρτύρεσαι, αλλά πάντα να αντιµετωπίζεισ τισ καταστάσεισ Þπωσ έρχονται» έχει δηλώσει ο κ. Jumbo σε παλιÞτερεσ συνεντεύξεισ του εξηγώντασ Þτι ούτε ένασ πÞλεµοσ δεν θα τον φÞβιζε επιχειρηµατικά, αν και υπήρξε ο κακοµαθηµένοσ υιÞσ του µπαµπά βιοµήχανου.

∆Ô 1986 ÙÔ ÚÒÙÔ Î·Ù¿ÛÙËÌ· Ο Mr Jumbo είναι Έλληνασ τησ διασποράσ. Ο ΑπÞστολοσ Βακάκησ γεννήθηκε το 1954 στην Αλεξάνδρεια τησ Αιγύπτου. Ο πατέρασ του, βιοµήχανοσ στην Αίγυπτο, παρήγαγε διογκωµένη πολυστερίνη, που αποτελούσε το βασικÞ µονωτικÞ υλικÞ τησ εποχήσ εκείνησ για ψυγεία αλλά και για κτίρια. Οι πολιτικέσ εξελίξεισ στην Αίγυπτο υποχρέωσαν την οικογένεια Βακάκη το 1962 να έρθει στην Ελλάδα. Ùµωσ η οικονοµική

Þτι χρειαζÞταν µεγαλύτερουσ αποθηκευτικούσ χώρουσ και γι’ αυτÞ µισθώνει µια αποθήκη στα ΟινÞφυτα σχεδÞν διπλάσιου µεγέθουσ απÞ την πρώτη αποθήκη στη Νίκαια.

™ËÌ·‰È·Îfi ÙÔ 2004

κατάσταση δεν είναι καλύτερη ούτε εδώ και έτσι ο Γεώργιοσ Βακάκησ ξενιτεύεται στη γειτονική Ιταλία, Þπου πιάνει δουλειά σε µια µικρή οικοτεχνία κατασκευήσ λούτρινων ζώων και κουκλών. Τα κοσµήµατα που πρÞλαβε να πάρει µαζί τησ, φεύγοντασ απÞ την Αίγυπτο, η µητέρα του η Σοφία Βακάκη τα πούλησε στον µεγαλοβιοµήχανο τησ εποχήσ εκείνησ Μποδοσάκη. ΑυτÞ ήταν το πρώτο κεφάλαιο κίνησησ για τη δηµιουργία τησ ελληνικήσ βιοµηχανίασ παιχνιδιών, τησ El Greco. Μετά τα 20 του χρÞνια, ο ΑπÞστολοσ Βακάκησ φεύγει για σπουδέσ Λογιστικήσ και Finance στο Warwick τησ Βρετανίασ µε Þνειρο να καταλήξει στο Berkeley. ΤÞτε δέχτηκε το πρώτο χτύπηµα. Μια µεγάλη πυρκαγιά στο εργοστάσιο τησ El Greco στην Άνω Γλυφάδα υποχρέωσε τον 23χρονο ΑπÞστολο να επιστρέψει στην Ελλάδα και να προσπαθήσει να ανασυγκροτήσει τη βιοµηχανία απÞ τα αποκαΐδια µε τη βοήθεια τησ παραγωγικήσ µονάδασ στο νησί τησ Ζακύνθου. Εκεί ξεκίνησαν και οι πρώτεσ συγκρούσεισ µε τον πατέρα του, τον ιδρυτή τησ επιχείρησησ. Στο νησί έµεινε 3 χρÞνια. Το 1985 αποµακρύνει εντελώσ τον πατέρα του απÞ την επιχείρηση και αναλαµβάνει τη θέση του προέδρου τησ El Greco. Το 1990 αποφασίζει να πουλήσει την El Greco στην πολυεθνική Hasbro, ενώ συνεχίζει να διευθύνει την εταιρεία και ταυτÞχρονα συµµετέχει στη διοικούσα επιτροπή τησ Hasbro Europe. Η ιστορία των καταστηµάτων Jumbo ξεκινά µε τη λειτουργία του πρώτου καταστήµατοσ στη Γλυφάδα το 1986. Εκείνη την περίοδο ο ΑπÞστολοσ Βακάκησ αισθάνεται έτοιµοσ να περάσει το κατώφλι του Χρηµατιστηρίου Αθηνών. Ùπερ και εγένετο, αντλώντασ 2 εκ. ευρώ. Το 1998 ήταν πλέον φανερÞ

Το 1999, την εποχή που Þλη η Ελλάδα αγοράζει µετοχέσ, ο ίδιοσ επενδύει στη γη και στη δουλειά του. Τα χρÞνια που ακολουθούν βρίσκουν την εταιρεία σταθερά στην κορυφή τησ επιτυχίασ µε κορύφωση το 2004, Þταν αναλαµβάνει ύστερα απÞ πλειοδοτικÞ διαγωνισµÞ το δικαίωµα αποκλειστικήσ παραγωγήσ και εµπορίασ τησ ΜασκÞτ του 2004 για τουσ Ολυµπιακούσ Αγώνεσ. ΑπÞ τÞτε µέχρι σήµερα, ο κ. Βακάκησ βάζει τουσ επÞµενουσ στÞχουσ, τα σούπερ µάρκετ παιχνιδιών. Και Þπωσ εξηγεί, «στην Ελλάδα δεν χρειάζεται ακÞµη να «σκέφτεσαι», χάνεισ πολύτιµο χρÞνο. Σε πρώτη φάση δεν έχεισ παρά να µελετάσ και να ακολουθείσ τα βήµατα τησ εξέλιξησ στισ αναπτυγµένεσ αγορέσ του εξωτερικού. Εγώ απλώσ ακολούθησα την κυρίαρχη διεθνή τάση». Η µαγική συνταγή τησ επιτυχίασ Η «βιοµηχανία τησ χαράσ», Þπωσ αποκαλεί την επιχείρησή του, έπρεπε επίσησ να αντιµετωπίσει ένα επιπλέον στοιχείο δυσκολίασ, τη σταδιακή «µετανάστευση» των πιτσιρικάδων απÞ τα παραδοσιακά παιχνίδια στισ πιοπερίπλοκεσ τεχνολογικά επιλογέσ δώρων Þπωσ για παράδειγµα τα κινητά, τα iΡod, τα videogames, τουσ ηλεκτρονικούσ υπολογιστέσ κ.λπ. Βρήκε αµέσωσ τη λύση: η «βιοµηχανία τησ χαράσ» δεν έπρεπε να απευθύνεται στουσ µικρούσ καταναλωτέσ, αλλά στουσ ενήλικουσ αγοραστέσ. Οργάνωσε τη στρατηγική επικοινωνίασ και διαφήµισησ επιλέγοντασ µέσα και µηνύµατα που απευθύνονταν πρώτα στον ενήλικο και κατÞπιν στο παιδί. ∆εν επένδυσε πολλά στην τηλεÞραση αλλά στο κατ’ εξοχήν µέσο ενηµέρωσησ των µεγάλων που δεν έχουν χρÞνο, το ραδιÞφωνο. Με διαφηµίσεισ προκλητικέσ, σκαµπρÞζικεσ αλλά και δυναµικέσ στήριξε την εµπορική του πολιτική στουσ στενούσ οικογενειακούσ δεσµούσ που επικρατούν στην ελληνική κοινωνία. Αριθµοί που ζαλίζουν. Με 45 καταστήµατα σήµερα στην ελληνική αγορά, 3 στην Κύπρο (Λευκωσία, ΛεµεσÞ, Λάρνακα και σύντοµα στην Πάφο), και 6 στη Βουλγαρία, η αλυσίδα Jumbo δικαίωσ κρατά τα ηνία στον κλάδο του παιχνιδιού µε µερίδιο που φτάνει τα 35%. ΕιδικÞτερα, τα καθαρά κέρδη του οµίλου για το 2011 ανήλθαν σε 94,60 εκ. ευρώ έναντι 79,24 εκ. ευρώ πριν ένα χρÞνο. Ο Ùµιλοσ στο δύσκολο 2012, λειτούργησε 7 νέα υπερκαταστήµατα. Συγκεκριµένα 3 στην Ελλάδα, 1 στην Κύπρο και 3 στη Βουλγαρία. Παρά το δύσκολο οικονοµικÞ περιβάλλον ο Ùµιλοσ έχει σχεδιάσει την λειτουργία και νέων καταστηµάτων.

H McDonald’s… ̤ÓÂÈ ∂ÏÏ¿‰· Τη βούλησή τησ να παραµείνει στην Ελλάδα παρά το δυσχερέσ οικονοµικÞ περιβάλλον επανέλαβε ξανά η Premier Capital Hellas, επίσηµη Developmental Licensee τησ McDonald’s στην Ελλάδα, ύστερα απÞ τισ φήµεσ που κυκλοφÞρησαν στην αγορά περί αποχώρησήσ τησ αµερικάνικησ αλυσίδασ µαζικήσ εστίασησ, µε αφορµή το κλείσιµο του τελευταίου καταστήµατÞσ τησ στη Θεσσαλονίκη. Η εταιρεία, που ανήκει στον Μαλτέζο επιχειρηµατία, Melo Hili, σε ανακοίνωση που εξέδωσε, διευκρινίζει Þτι το συγκεκριµένο εστιατÞριο στη Θεσσαλονίκη λειτουργούσε υπÞ τη διεύθυνση ενÞσ τοπικού franchisee τησ McDonald’s και Þχι

υπÞ τον έλεγχÞ τησ και υπογραµµίζει Þτι αναζητά ήδη χώρο για τη λειτουργία ενÞσ νέου εστιατορίου McDonald’s στην πÞλη, η οποία αποτελεί βασική προτεραιÞτητα για τα αναπτυξιακά πλάνα τησ.Τονίζει ακÞµη Þτι στÞχοσ τησ είναι η περαιτέρω ενίσχυση του brand τησ McDonald’s στην χώρα, προσθέτοντασ πωσ θα συνεχίσει τισ επενδύσεισ τησ επί ελληνικού εδάφουσ, καθώσ πιστεύει στη δυναµική τησ ελληνικήσ οικονοµίασ. Σύµφωνα µε την εφηµερίδα Ηµερισία, έµπρακτη απÞδειξη τησ δέσµευσήσ τησ, αποτελούν τα πρÞσφατα εγκαίνια του ολοκαίνουριου εστιατορίου McDonald’s στην Κρήτησ, το οποίο αποτελεί το τρίτο κατά σειρά εστιατÞριο τησ εταιρείασ στο νησί. Για το άνοιγµά του η Premier Capital Hellas επένδυσε πάνω απÞ 400.000 ευρώ. Συνολικά, απÞ την έναρξη τησ δραστηριοποίησήσ τησ στη χώρα, η εταιρεία δηλώνει Þτι έχει

επενδύσει περισσÞτερα απÞ 2,2 εκ. ευρώ για την ανακαίνιση 5 εκ των 19 εστιατορίων McDonald’s σε ολÞκληρη την Ελλάδα, ενώ ειδικά για την ανακαίνιση του εστιατορίου στην πλατεία Συντάγµατοσ δαπάνησε πάνω απÞ 850,000 ευρώ. Επιπλέον, τουσ τελευταίουσ 24 µήνεσ επένδυσε περισσÞτερα απÞ 125.000 ευρώ για προγράµµατα ανάπτυξησ και εκπαίδευσησ των περίπου 440 εργαζοµένων τησ. Η Premier Capital Hellas είναι θυγατρική τησ Premier Capital plc, η οποία µε τη σειρά τησ είναι η επίσηµη Developmental Licensee τησ McDonald’s για την Εσθονία, την Ελλάδα, τη Λετονία, τη Λιθουανία και τη Μάλτα. Σήµερα λειτουργεί 59 εστιατÞρια σε πέντε χώρεσ και απασχολεί περισσÞτερουσ απÞ 2.700 εργαζοµένουσ. Για το 2012, η Premier Capital plc., ανακοίνωσε έσοδα που ξεπέρασαν τα 83 εκ. ευρώ.

∫˘ÎÏÔÊfiÚËÛÂ Ô √‰ËÁfi˜ Business ∫‡ÚÔ˘ - ∂ÏÏ¿‰·˜ ∏ ∞ı‹Ó· ‰ÂÓ Â›Ó·È Ùfi fiÛ ÛÔ ·Á·ËÙ‹ Παρά την κρίση και τα δεδοµένα που επικρατούν στισ οικονοµίεσ Κύπρου και Ελλάδασ, οι προοπτικέσ επιχειρηµατικών συνεργασιών µεταξύ των δύο χωρών συνεχίζουν να είναι καλέσ. ΑυτÞ προκύπτει απÞ δηλώσεισ Υπουργών και άλλων οικονοµικών παραγÞντων των δύο χωρών, οι οποίοι µίλησαν σε αποκλειστικέσ συνεντεύξεισ τουσ στη νέα έκδοση του ετήσιου Οδηγού Business Κύπρου-Ελλάδασ για το 2013. Ùλοι οι αρµÞδιοι τÞνισαν τισ νέεσ ευκαιρίεσ που δηµιουργεί η κρίση για στρατηγικέσ συνεργασίασ µεταξύ των δύο χωρών. Στον ΟδηγÞ δηµοσιεύονται σηµαντικέσ συνεντεύξεισ του Υπουργού Οικονοµικών κ. Χάρη Γεωργιάδη, του Υπουργού Ενέργειασ, Εµπορίου, Βιοµηχανίασ και Τουρισµού κ. Γ. Λακκοτρύπη, του Πρέσβη τησ Ελλάδασ στην Κύπρο κ. Βασίλη Παπαϊωάννου, του Προέδρου του ΚΕΒΕ κ. Φ. Πηλείδη και του Προέδρου του Επιχειρηµατικού Συνδέσµου Κύπρου-Ελλάδασ κ. Άκη Πηγασίου. Στισ σελίδεσ του Οδηγού καταγράφονται Þλεσ οι πρÞσφατεσ εξελίξεισ στισ οικονοµίεσ Κύπρου και Ελλάδασ, ενώ δηµοσιεύεται αυτούσιο το κείµενο του

Μνηµονίου Κύπρου-ΤρÞϊκασ. Επίσησ, ο ΟδηγÞσ παρουσιάζει τα σχέδια και τισ προοπτικέσ των µεγάλων επιχειρήσεων τησ Κύπρου που δραστηριοποιούνται στην Ελλάδα και αντίθετα των ελληνικών που επεκτάθηκαν στην κυπριακή αγορά. Τέλοσ, ο ΟδηγÞσ δηµοσιεύει Yellow Pages µε τα πλήρη στοιχεία Þλων των κυπριακών επιχειρήσεων στην Ελλάδα και των ελληνικών στην Κύπρο. Ο ΟδηγÞσ, που κυκλοφορεί στα περίπτερα, αποτελεί µια έκδοση τησ Εταιρείασ Επικοινωνίασ, ∆ηµοσιÞτητασ, ΕκδÞσεων, ∆ιαφηµίσεων και Συνεδρίων FMW Financial Media Way, Þπου οι ενδιαφερÞµενοι µπορούν να αποταθούν για να τον εξασφαλίσουν (τηλ. 22342005).

Γύρω στα 83 εκατοµµύρια επισκέπτεσ επισκέφτηκαν τη Γαλλία το 2012, ανεβάζοντασ τη χώρα στην πρώτη θέση ωσ δηµοφιλέστερο τουριστικÞ προορισµÞ, σύµφωνα µε στατιστικά στοιχεία για τον ΤουρισµÞ, διεθνώσ, απÞ τον ΟΗΕ. Στη συνέχεια έρχονται οι ΗΠΑ, η Κίνα και η Ισπανία και στην πέµπτη θέση η Ιταλία. Στην έκτη θέση βρίσκεται η Τουρκία, ενώ ακολουθούν η Γερµανία, η Βρετανία , η Μαλαισία και η Ρωσία. Η µελέτη του ΟΗΕ για τον παγκÞσµιο ΤουρισµÞ έδειξε, επίσησ, Þτι οι Ευρωπαίοι διαµένουν, κατά µέσο Þρο, 2-3 ηµέρεσ στον τÞπο διακοπών τουσ. Η µελέτη έδειξε ακÞµη Þτι δηµοφιλέστερη τουριστική πÞλη ήταν για το 2012 η ΜπανγκÞκ, ενώ η Αθήνα δεν βρίσκεται µέσα στισ 20 δηµοφιλέστερεσ πÞλεισ του κÞσµου για το 2012.

ΧΡΗΜΑ&ΑΓΟΡΑ

7 AΥΓΟΥΣΤΟΥ, 2013

8 | ΑΓΟΡΑ | financialmirror.com

∂. ŒÏÏËÓ·˜: ∂ÊÈÎÙfi˜ Ô ÛÙfi¯Ô˜ Ù˘ Formula 1 Ο Ευτύχιοσ Έλληνασ τÞνισε προσ τα κυπριακά ΜΜΕ Þτι ο µπορεί να αποτελέσει ο ίδιοσ τον πρώτο αθλητή τησ Κύπρου που θα λάβει µέροσ σε αγώνα τησ Formula 1. Ο ΚΟΑ άρχισε ήδη να µελετά πλάνο έτσι ώστε να στηρίξει άµεσα τον Ευτύχιο Έλληνα, ενώ ο οργανισµÞσ βρίσκεται ήδη στην τελική ευθεία για να θεσµοθετήσει νέα κατηγορία έτσι ώστε κορυφαίοι αθλητέσ εκτÞσ των παραδοσιακών πρωταθληµάτων (ολυµπιακά αθλήµατα) να µπορούν να λαµβάνουν χορηγία απÞ το κράτοσ. Ο Ευτύχιοσ, παρά το γεγονÞσ Þτι έγραψε ιστορία ωσ ο πρώτοσ Κύπριοσ πιλÞτοσ που έκανε δοκιµαστικά στη Formula 1, κράτησε χαµηλούσ τÞνουσ αφού κύριοσ στÞχοσ του για αυτή την χρÞνια είναι η κατάκτηση τησ πρώτησ θέσησ στο πρωτάθληµα του GP3. Το Þνειρο τησ συµµετοχήσ στη Formula 1 παραµένει ζωντανÞ για τον Κύπριο πιλÞτο, καθώσ η οµάδα του Marussia µετά το δοκιµαστικÞ στην πίστα του Silverstone έχει ενθουσιαστεί µε τισ δυνατÞτητεσ και το ταλέντο του.

¡ÂÚfi BLU – ∞˘ıÂÓÙÈÎfi ÂΠʇÛˆ˜ Το φυσικÞ ανθρακούχο νερÞ BLU είναι σπάνιο και αυθεντικÞ απÞ τη φύση του. ΝερÞ BLU – ΑυθεντικÞ εκ φύσεωσΗ υψηλή περιεκτικÞτητα τησ πηγήσ που εµφιαλώνεται, σε µαγνήσιο και ασβέστιο, το καθιστούν ιδιαίτερα ωφέλιµο για τον ανθρώπινο οργανισµÞ. Εµφιαλώνεται µακριά απÞ εστίεσ ρύπανσησ και παράγεται µε τισ πιο αυστηρέσ προδιαγραφέσ τησ Ευρωπαϊκήσ Ένωσησ προκειµένου να διατηρείται αναλλοίωτη η ποιÞτητά του. Για να εντυπωσιάσετε τουσ καλεσµένουσ σασ ή να προσφέρετε στον εαυτÞ σασ µια στιγµή πολυτέλειασ, δοκιµάστε να χρησιµοποιήσετε το ανθρακούχο νερÞ BLU για να φτιάξετε αλκοολούχα κοκτέιλ! Το φυσικÞ ανθρακούχο νερÞ BLU είναι διαθέσιµο στην αγορά και διανέµεται απÞ την εταιρεία Φώτοσ Φωτιάδησ ∆ιανοµείσ Λτδ. Μπορείτε να το απολαύσετε στισ συσκευασίεσ των 25cl, 75cl και στην οικονοµική πολυσυσκευασία 6x25cl.

∂Ó¤ÚÁÂÈ· ·fi ÏËÁ̤ӷ Á·Ï·ÎÙÔÎÔÌÈο Ένα ιδιαίτερα σηµαντικÞ περιβαλλοντικÞ πρÞγραµµα βρίσκεται σε εξέλιξη στην Κύπρο το οποίο επιδιώκει την ανάπτυξη µιασ βιώσιµησ λύσησ για την ολοκληρωµένη εκµετάλλευση των ληγµένων γαλακτοκοµικών προϊÞντων (ΛΓΠ) σε υφιστάµενεσ κεντρικέσ µονάδεσ αναερÞβιασ συγχώνευσησ αγροτοβιοµηχανικών αποβλήτων. ΠρÞκειται για το έργο DAIRIUS, το οποίο συγχρηµατοδοτείτε απÞ το πρÞγραµµα Life+, το χρηµατοδοτικÞ µέσο τησ Ευρωπαϊκήσ Ένωσησ για το περιβάλλον. Το έργο DAIRIUS, αναπτύχθηκε για την εύρεση τησ βέλτιστησ λύσησ σε σχέση µε τη διαχείριση των ληγµένων γαλακτοκοµικών προϊÞντων στην Κύπρο µε σκοπÞ την παραγωγή βιοαερίου, το οποίο θα αξιοποιηθεί για παραγωγή ενέργειασ. Φορείσ του Προγράµµατοσ είναι η εταιρεία ΧΑΡΑΛΑΜΠΙ∆ΗΣ ΚΡΙΣΤΗΣ, το Πανεπιστήµιο Πατρών, η εταιρεία RTD Talos, το Τµήµα Περιβάλλοντοσ του Υπουργείου Γεωργίασ, η Animalia Genetics και η Green Technologies. Για περισσÞτερεσ πληροφορίεσ σχετικά µε το πρÞγραµµα DAIRIUS µπορείτε να απευθυνθείτε στην ιστοσελίδα www.dairiusproject.com.

∂ÓÙ˘ˆÛÈ¿˙ÂÈ ÙÔ Leptos «Aphrodite» ÛÙ· ÷ÓÈ¿ Ένα Þµορφο και συνάµα εντυπωσιακÞ ΣυγκρÞτηµα εξοχικών κατοικιών “Το Aphrodite Sea-front” στολίζει την περιοχή των Χανίων και αυτÞ το καλοκαίρι. Το ΣυγκρÞτηµα έχει αναπτυχθεί δίπλα στην θάλασσα σε µια µαγευτική αµµώδη παραλία του κÞλπου των Χανίων στην ιστορική περιοχή του Μάλεµε µÞλισ 10 λεπτά απÞ την πÞλη των Χανίων και 20 λεπτά απÞ το διεθνέσ αεροδρÞµιο τησ περιοχήσ. Το Leptos “Aphrodite” διαθέτει µια µεγάλη ποικιλία µεζονετών, διαµερισµάτων, ρετιρέ, επαύλεων και καταστηµάτων. Ùπωσ ανέφερε ο ∆ιευθυντήσ πωλήσεων και Μαρκετιγκ τησ Leptos Estates στην Ελλάδα κοσ.Χάρησ Μενελάου οι πλείστοι αγοραστέσ αυτή την περίοδο προτιµούν παραθαλάσσιεσ περιουσίεσ και ειδικά στα νησιά τησ Κρήτησ,Πάρου και Σαντορίνησ. Για περισσÞτερεσ πληροφορίεσ επισκεφθήτε την ιστοσελίδα www.leptosgreece.com

To Sports Direct.com ÛÙÔ MY MALL §ÂÌÂÛÔ‡ Η SportsDirect.com, η µεγαλύτερη αλυσίδα αθλητικών ειδών στη Βρετανία και ιδιοκτήτησ πολλών φηµισµένων µαρκών αθλητικών ειδών, µÞδασ και ειδών καθηµερινÞτητασ, ανοίγει σύντοµα νέο κατάστηµα στο MY MALL Limassol. Η εταιρία, ιδρύθηκε το 1982, ωσ ένα µεµονωµένο κατάστηµα στο Maidenhead, απÞ τον Mike Ashley, πρώην περιφερειακÞ προπονητή του σκουÞσ και µεγάλωσε τÞσο, ώστε σήµερα να αποτελεί τη µεγαλύτερη αλυσίδα αθλητικών ειδών τησ Βρετανίασ. Ο Þµιλοσ SportsDirect.com διαθέτει σήµερα πάνω απÞ 500 καταστήµατα σε 13 χώρεσ. Η SportsDirect.com προσφέρει 120.000 προϊÞντα, 1.000 κατηγορίεσ και 700 µάρκεσ, ενώ απασχολεί 18.000 υπαλλήλουσ.

µÚ·‚Â˘Ì¤Ó˜ Á‡ÛÂȘ ηʤ ·fi ÙÔ Caffè Nero Σε µια ανεξάρτητη έρευνα που διεξήχθη στη Μεγάλη Βρετανία απÞ το περιοδικÞ γευσιγνωσίασ “Which?”, τα Caffè Nero κατέκτησαν την πρώτη θέση, ωσ την αλυσίδα που προσφέρει την καλύτερη γεύση καφέ. Την έρευνα διεξήγαγε ο Giles Hilton, ένασ ανεξάρτητοσ γευσιγνώστησ µε εµπειρία πάνω απÞ 30 χρÞνια στη γεύση καφέ. Στην έρευνα έλαβαν µέροσ διεθνείσ αλυσίδεσ καφέ, Starbucks, Costa Coffee, Pret and M&S café. O καφέσ Americano και Cappuccino του Caffè Nero συγκέντρωσαν την υψηλÞτερη βαθµολογία. O Πιο συγκεκριµένα, το περιοδικÞ “Which?” βαθµολÞγησε τον καφέ Americano µε 9/10 και το Cappuccino µε 8/10, βαθµολογία αρκετά υψηλÞτερη απÞ αυτή του M&S, Costa, Starbucks και Pret. Το κατάστηµα Caffè Nero στην παραλία του Μακένζυ, µασ δίνει τη δυνατÞτητα να απολαύσουµε αυτή την εµπειρία καφέ, σε έναν ολοκαίνουργιο και προσεγµένο χώρο, µε ιδιαίτερη διακÞσµηση και αισθητική, που συνθέτουν το περιβάλλον ενÞσ αυθεντικού ιταλικού καφέ, ακριβώσ δίπλα στη θάλασσα.

CNP Assurances Î·È CNP Cyprialife Û˘Ó¯›˙Ô˘Ó ‰˘Ó·ÌÈο «ΑυτÞ που άλλαξε είναι Þτι γίναµε πιο δυνατοί µε σύµµαχο το ∆ιεθνή ΑσφαλιστικÞ ΚολοσσÞ CNP ASSURANCES. ΑυτÞ που µένει ίδιο είναι Þτι είµαστε δίπλα σασ, προσφέροντασ ασφάλεια, σιγουριά και αξιοπιστία, Þποια στιγµή µασ χρειαστείτε.» ΑυτÞ το λιτÞ αλλά πολύ σηµαντικÞ µήνυµα επέλεξαν οι Ασφαλιστικέσ Εταιρείεσ CNP ΑΣΦΑΛΙΣΤΙΚΗ και CNP CYPRIALIFE για να ενηµερώσουν το ευρύτερο κοινÞ για την αλλαγή του ονÞµατÞσ τουσ, απÞ CNP Λαϊκή Ασφαλιστική και CNP Laiki Cyprialife αντίστοιχα.

CNP ΑΣΦΑΛΙΣΤΙΚΗ και CNP CYPRIALIFE συνεχίζουν να ανοίγουν νέουσ ορίζοντεσ στα ασφαλιστικά δρώµενα τησ Κύπρου µασ. Έχοντασ ωσ κύριο µέτοχο µε 50,1% το ∆ιεθνή ΓαλλικÞ ΑσφαλιστικÞ ΚολοσσÞ CNP ASSURANCES, την τεχνογνωσία, την οικονοµική ευρωστία, και ένα ευρύτατο δίκτυο επαγγελµατιών ασφαλιστικών διαµεσολαβητών.

August 7 - 27, 2013

financialmirror.com COMMENT

17

Protectionist shadows over solar power As July ended, a settlement was reached in the world’s largest anti-dumping dispute, with China agreeing to a minimum price for the solar panels that it exports to the European Union. The solution is much less severe than what had been the imminent alternative: EU tariffs on Chinese solar panels were set to rise to 47.6%, as a result of the European Commission’s “finding” that China – whose market share now stands at 80% in Europe – had been “dumping.” Nonetheless, the settlement is a bad outcome for consumers – and for the environment.

The China-EU dispute parallels a similar one between China and the United States. Last fall, the US introduced tariffs of 24-36% against Chinese solar-panel imports, after the Commerce Department determined that China had been “dumping” – which is generally defined as selling at a price below cost – into the American market. China, citing its own finding of US dumping of polysilicon – a key input in the production of solar panels – into its market, has already retaliated by imposing import tariffs that could exceed 50%.

The solar-panel disputes may sound narrow and esoteric, but they go to the heart of the long-running debate over globalization. Anti-globalization activists’ most powerful argument is that even if free trade is good for economic progress overall, it might undermine important public goods such as environmental protection. Under the well-known “race to the bottom” hypothesis, countries that are open to international trade are thought to adopt weaker environmental regulations than less open countries do.

But trade can also have beneficial environmental effects. Specialization in each country allows people to obtain more of what they want, which, especially at higher income levels, includes cleaner air and water. When trade brings down costs, it can benefit environmental goods just as much as it benefits other goods.

So, is trade globalization, on balance, better or worse for the environment? Some empirical studies of cross-country data find net beneficial effects on indicators of environmental degradation like local sulfur-dioxide air pollution. Provided that countries have effective governance institutions at the national level, trade and growth give them the means to clean their air.

But the evidence also suggests that trade and growth can exacerbate other forms of environmental degradation, particularly carbon-dioxide emissions, because CO2 is a global externality that cannot be addressed at the national level, owing to the free-

rider problem.

The solar-power industry is a perfect example of how trade can benefit air quality. Skeptics of solar power have long argued that its share in electricity generation cannot rise above a few percentage points without massive subsidies, because it is too costly compared to the alternatives. Proponents, for their part, counter that temporary moderate subsidies would expand the

By Jeffrey Frankel Professor of Capital Formation and Growth at Harvard University

industry, with economies of scale and learning-by-doing then bringing down costs sharply.

But proponents have focused too much on government subsidies and too little on the contribution of international trade, which in recent years has had a highly positive effect on the development of solar power, as the bonanza of Chinese panels held down costs. The current embrace of protectionism threatens to reverse this progress. With the loss of cheap solar panels from China, and with subsidies that helped to drive the European industry now reduced for fiscal reasons, the share of solar power in Europe will fall far short of environmentalists’ goals.

But “findings” of “dumping” into foreign markets surely warrant some response, no? Actually, no.

For starters, even those who are generally sympathetic to trade and markets often have the impression that anti-dumping laws target “predatory pricing,” a practice in which a large producer sells below cost in order to drive its competitors into bankruptcy, at which point it can raise the price and reap monopoly profits.

But that is not even the way anti-dumping laws are usually written, let alone applied. Simply put, anti-dumping measures, such as the US and EU tariffs against Chinese solar panels, are a means of reducing, not fostering, competition. So, if predatory pricing is not the producers’ motive for selling below cost in

Long live China’s boom After three decades of 9.8% average annual GDP growth, China’s economic expansion has been slowing for 13 consecutive quarters – the first such extended period of deceleration since the “reform and opening up” policy was launched in 1979. Real GDP grew at an annual rate of only 7.5% in the second quarter of this year (equal to the target actually set by the Chinese government at the beginning of this year). Many indicators point to further economic deceleration, and there is a growing bearishness among investors about the outlook for China. Will China crash?

In fact, many other rapidly growing emerging economies have suffered – and worse than China – from the drop in global demand resulting from ongoing retrenchment in high-income economies since the 2008 financial crisis. For example, GDP growth in Brazil has slowed sharply, from 7.5% in 2010 to 2.7% in 2011 and to just 0.9% in 2012, while India’s growth rate slowed from 10.5% to 3.2% over the same period.

Moreover, many high-income newly industrialized economies (NIEs) with few structural problems were not spared the effects of the 2008 crisis. South Korea’s GDP growth slowed from 6.3% in 2010 to 3.7% in 2011 and to 2% in 2012; Taiwan’s fell from 10.7% to 1.3% over this period; and Singapore’s plummeted from 14.8% to 1.3%.

Given this, China’s economic slowdown since the first quarter of 2010 has apparently been caused mainly by external and cyclical factors. Facing an external shock, the Chinese government should and can maintain a 7.5% growth rate by taking counter-cyclical and proactive fiscal-policy measures, while maintaining a prudent monetary policy. After all, China has high private and public savings, foreign reserves exceeding $3.3 trillion, and great potential for industrial upgrading and infra-

structure improvement.

Indeed, China can maintain an 8% annual GDP growth rate for many years to come, because modern economic growth is a process of continuous technological innovation and industrial upgrading. Of course, this is true for developed and developing countries alike. But developed countries differ from developing countries in an important way. Since the Industrial Revolution, developed countries have always been on the global frontier of technologies and industries, which has required them to invest in costly and risky indigenous research and development.

By contrast, technologies and existing industries in developing countries are in general well within the global frontier. As a result, they benefit from the “latecomer’s advantage”: technological innovation and industrial upgrading can be achieved by imitation, import, and/or integration of existing technologies and industries, all of which implies much lower R&D costs.

In theory, any developing country that can harness its latecomer’s advantage to achieve technological and industrial upgrading can grow faster than developed countries. How much faster is an empirical question. According to the Growth Commission led by Nobel laureate Michael Spence, 13 economies took full advantage of their latecomer status after World War II and achieved annual GDP growth rates of 7% or higher – at least twice as high as developed countries’ growth rates – for 25 years or longer.

China became one of the 13 economies after 1979. Because the country’s latecomer status explains its 33 years of rapid economic growth, the key to understanding its potential for further rapid growth in the future lies in estimating how large those advantages still are.

Per capita GDP, which reflects a country’s average labor pro-

these cases, what is?

The solar-panel industry worldwide – in China, Europe, and the US – is experiencing a glut of productive capacity. As a result, global supply and demand are balanced at a market price that is below the long-term average cost per unit, which includes a share of the cost already incurred in building the factories. But that market price is not below the short-term cost of keeping the factories running once they are built.

In other words, producers sell at prices that are “below cost,” because, having already built the factories, they would lose even more money if they charged above the competitive market price or shut down production altogether. When the US or EU finds that China is “dumping” solar panels, or when China finds that the US is “dumping” polysilicon, they are using average cost rather than marginal cost. By this criterion, dumping occurs every time a store has a clearance sale.

Some have compared the negotiated agreements to limit China’s solar-panel exports to past “voluntary export restraints” (VERs) or “orderly marketing arrangements” in the steel and consumer-electronic industries, especially those that Japan agreed to apply to its exports to the US in the 1980’s. But a more revealing precedent is Japan’s VERs on exports of autos during this period. American automakers had found it increasingly difficult to compete against smaller, more fuel-efficient Japanese imports. When free trade was eventually restored, American wallets and air quality benefited (and the US auto industry was forced to become more efficient).

Free trade in automobiles was good for the environment 30 years ago. The same is true of trade in solar equipment today.

Westerners should thank Chinese panel producers for their contribution to keeping solar power viable, not penalize them through protectionist anti-dumping measures. © Project Syndicate, 2013. www.project-syndicate.org

By Justin Yifu Lin Former chief economist and senior vice president at the World Bank, is Professor and Honorary Dean of the National School of Development, Peking University, and the founding director of the China Center for Economic Research.

ductivity and its overall technological and industrial achievement, is a useful proxy to estimate latecomer’s advantage. That is, the per capita GDP gap between China and developed countries essentially reflects the gap between them in terms of overall technological and industrial achievement.

According to the most up-to-date estimate by the late economic historian Angus Maddison, China’s per capita GDP in 2008 was $6,725 in 1990 dollars, which was 21% of per capita GDP in the United States. That is roughly the same gap that existed between the US and Japan in 1951, Singapore in 1967, Taiwan in 1975, and South Korea in 1977 – four economies that are also among the 13 successful economies studied by the Growth Commission. Harnessing their latecomer’s advantage, Japan’s average annual growth rate soared to 9.2% over the subsequent 20 years, compared to 8.6% in Singapore, 8.3% in Taiwan, and 7.6% in South Korea.

If the latecomer’s advantage implied by the income gap between the four NIEs and the US enabled the NIEs to realize average annual GDP growth rates of 7.6%-9.2% for 20 years, China’s annual growth potential should be a similar 8% for the 2008-2028 period. To realize its potential growth as a latecomer, China needs, above all, to deepen its market-oriented reforms, address various structural problems, and develop its economy according to its comparative advantages. © Project Syndicate, 2013. www.project-syndicate.org

Αugust 7 - 27, 2013

18 | WORLD MARKETS | financialmirror.com

Economy centre stage in Australia politics

By Oren Laurent President, Banc De Binary

What an exciting few weeks it has been for Australian politics! After defeating his rival Julia Gillard in a Labor party vote, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd is now seeking to capitalize on this momentum and has called an early election for September 7.

Just a few months ago, with Gillard in power, it seemed inevitable that the Conservative party would take over the reins.

Now, although the opposition leader, Tony Abbott, remains the current favorite to win, the election looks set to be a close call and fiercely contended battle. Remarkably, despite the Conservative party lead, opinion polls

reveal that Rudd is more popular as an individual among the electorate than Abbott.

For both parties, economic issues will be taking center stage, followed by refugee policy and the environment. In the last couple of years, the Australian economy has taken a severe hit from the slowdown of China’s booming growth, and the reduced resulting demand for metals and coal as we discussed in last week’s column. The Australian bank has cut interest rates to a record low and unemployment is on the rise. Just last week the government announced that the budget deficit is expected to reach a staggering $26.8 billion this fiscal year.

The election battle lines which are being drawn will look familiar to those who follow elections worldwide: the left are promoting spending versus right wing David Cameronstyle austerity measures.

Since taking office on June 26, Rudd has made a point of changing several key policy

positions and is focusing his campaign on his strong management of the country’s $1.5 trillion economy. His trump card is his earlier economic success as leader during the 2008 financial crisis, when Australia enjoyed growth at the same time as most of the developed world fell into recession. He is pledging now to diversify the economy and prioritize jobs.

Yet his strength at being a former Prime Minister is also his weakness. The public know that he was ousted by Gillard mid-2012 in a Labor contest after his unpopular and chaotic leadership style fragmented the party. He will need to prove that he is a changed man and has learnt from the error of his ways how to unite the party and improve its reputation.

Meanwhile, Abbott is arguing that he is best placed to bring the budget deficit under control moving forwards, and has vowed to abolish the mining and carbon taxes that Labor introduced in order to make Australia’s industry more competitive in the global

market. He is seeking to minimize the distinction between Rudd and his predecessor Gillard, arguing that voters must choose “more of the same” under Labor, or a fresh and positive Conservative approach.

Who can be trusted to steer the Australian economy as it transitions away from its mining boom? The Australian electorate has two strong contenders and political-economic arguments to decide between. It promises to be a short but intense election campaign. As Rudd said in an email to supporters, “We’ve got one hell of a fight on our hands.”

www.bbinary.com

Subsidies fire up London property hotspots Tony Richmount is thankful he procrastinated. A year ago, the retired engineer from Wimbledon wanted to sell his house and move to a retirement flat but got cold feet. That proved to be a stroke of luck. His three-bedroom house, valued at 600,000 pounds last summer, has just sold for 725,000 pound.

Property appreciation of 20% in a year is far from unique in parts of London like the leafy south-west neighbourhood known best for its tennis tournament.

Record-low interest rates and generous - some say fiscally dangerous - government incentives to get banks lending have lifted mortgage affordability to its highest in generations.

It has prompted talk of housing “bubbles” and questions about whether billions of pounds in stimulus for the economy is going to the right place.

Britons, many of whom who need little encouragement when it comes to borrowing, are making the most of it, leveraging up like they did before the credit crisis and helping drag the economy out of its post-recession doldrums.

Property prices are rising at their fastest pace in three years, according to Nationwide, a building society. In London, the best-performing region, prices are already 5% above their 2007 peak.

Critics accuse the government of pumping up the market to restore a feel-good factor ahead of national elections in 2015. A recovery driven by credit, they say, is unsustainable and will build problems for the future when interest rates rise.

For aspiring British homeowners, however, the lure is strong. The Bank of England has given a strong hint it might not raise rates before 2016 and the government is adamant its “Help to Buy” scheme will run for three years, rising prices or not. In the capital, cheap mortgages are changing the drivers of the market. Big price gains used to be for trophy homes snapped up for cash by super-rich foreign buyers. Now the bidding wars are breaking out in the suburbs.

Sean Purtill, managing director of Wimbledon estate agent Ellisons, says buyer interest has exploded in the last three months. In South Park Gardens, a desirable pocket of tree-lined roads near a park and good school, prices have risen 24% in a year. In the “Apostles”, a grid of Edwardian family homes, prices are up 23%.

“Just last week we had a meeting of our branch managers and everyone kept saying how incredible this market is,” he said.

“When a house comes on our books we will typically hold an open day on a Saturday, have 15 to 20 people look round it and

by Monday we’ll have five bids, mostly at the asking price.”

Sealed bids, not seen since the frothy days of 2007, are making a comeback and homes in popular areas can draw two or three offers above the asking price.

To make sure prospective buyers are serious, Ellisons require successful bidders to engage a lawyer within 48 hours and book a property survey within three weeks. Delays, Purtill explains, scupper deals: Sellers see a neighbour’s house come on the market at a higher price and wonder if they should remarket their property for more.

Gap between London and rest of country at record high LONDON LEADS A scarcity of land for development and a concentration of high earners has turbo-charged price growth in the capital.

Fewer than 12,000 homes a year have been built in Greater London in the last decade, a fraction of the 30,000 or more that experts say are needed just to keep pace with demographic shifts.

Where London leads, the rest of the country tends to follow, but the gap between the capital and less affluent regions is growing. House price growth nationally has picked up to around 4% a year but in parts of northern England prices are flat at best. In Liverpool, an industrial city in the north-west, the council has launched a project to auction derelict properties for as little as a pound. In the seaside town of Blackpool a little further north, two-bedroom properties can still be bought for 50,000 pounds, a 10th of the cost of an average house in the capital. The government touted “Help to Buy” as a scheme to help people onto the property ladder who would otherwise lack the means to do so, but its biggest impact appears to have been to drive up prices in more affluent areas by making the housing market seem a one-way bet. Indeed, the properties selling fastest are often above the scheme’s 600,000 pound price limit.

Ben Cameron, a sales negotiator at Andrew Scott Robinson, an estate agent that focuses on South-West London and further out Surrey, reckons the sweet spot is between 600,000 to 1.2 mln pounds.

A house in this bracket, particularly if near a good school and transport links, will often sell in just one or two weeks.

Nationally, the average time a property spends on the market is eight weeks.

“Buyers are coming out of rented accommodation because they are seeing prices rise. They may have missed out of previous house price rallies and want to jump on this one,” he said. “Help to Buy” is not the only way the government is subsidising the housing industry. The “Funding for Lending Scheme” launched via the Bank of England a year ago has helped lower mortgage costs and increase the availability of loans.

Before the scheme was introduced last summer, the lowest five-year fixed mortgage rates were close to 4%. Now rates can be as low as 2.49%, below the rate of inflation.

Between 2009 and 2012, the recovery was driven by overseas cash buyers looking to shelter their wealth from instability in the euro area and from political change sweeping through North Africa and the Middle East.

Most demand now, says estate agent Knight Frank’s head of residential research Liam Bailey, is from Britons buying with a mortgage.

NEW BUBBLE? There are signs that the recovery in the housing market is fuelling a recovery in the broader economy.

Rising prices typically go hand-in-hand with rising consumer spending, and the government’s “Help to Buy” scheme has given property developers the confidence to build again. The construction sector grew last month at its fastest pace in three years, with the residential sector the best performer. Supply, however, is still not keeping pace with rising demand. The International Monetary Fund, former Bank of England policymakers and Britain’s official budget watchdog have all warned that state-backed mortgage guarantees, the main plank of “Help to Buy”, will only push prices higher, putting property further out of the reach of first-time buyers.

Concern has even been voiced from within the government’s own ranks. “I did warn about it, and I am worried about the danger of getting into another housing bubble,” business minister Vince Cable said.

Mortgage payments as a percentage of average income look sustainable, but this will only hold for as long as interest rates remain at abnormally low levels. Affordability on traditional price/earnings metrics is already looking stretched.

The Bank of England faces a dilemma. If it tightens policy prematurely to put a break on property prices it could snuff out the recovery. If it leaves rates at record lows, homeowners will load up on more debt and be in more trouble when rates eventually rise.

A Bank of England report in May warned that nearly one in 10 people with a mortgage would have to take significant action - such as working longer hours or cutting back on spending if rates were to rise by just one percentage point.

August 7 - 27, 2013

financialmirror.com | MARKETS | 19

An emerging market reform wave Marcuard’s Market update

by GaveKal Research Rising bond yields have been tough on emerging market asset prices. What remains to be seen is the real economic impact that results from this changed market landscape. If Indonesia, which just reported 2Q13 GDP is an example, then we can perhaps expect an era of reform and newfound policy discipline. We have argued that a mini crisis may be just the thing a number of emerging markets need to nudge them into making painful reforms that help drive a sustainable expansion. The problem is that this adjustment will likely to be a rocky path with pitfalls for investors.

Because Indonesia runs a current account deficit of about 3% of GDP, it is exposed to shifts in investor sentiment, and so faces constraints in adopting policy responses aimed at boosting economic growth. Indonesia’s GDP growth dipped to 5.8% YoY in the three

months ended June. This was before the effects of the 75bp tightening of policy rates that came in July. With inflation flaring to 8.6% YoY in July, Indonesia’s external constraints mean that it cannot respond with easier monetary policy.

At one level Indonesia’s inflation problem is related more to a recent lowering of fuel subsides, rather than to capital outflows which have weakened the currency, and thus driven up its import bill. Inflation had been running at between 5-6% until last month’s fuel price hikes. But the broader story is related to the changed global investment backdrop associated with the Federal Reserve’s plan to taper its bond buying program. At the height of the global yield chase through 2011 and 2012, there was no imperative for policymakers in economies such as Indonesia to implement reforms such as cutting fuel subsides. With hot money chasing yield wherever it could be found, such a move would have forced tightening and with it,

invited yet more capital inflows, which in turn would have pushed asset prices even higher and caused further currency appreciation. As a result, Indonesia chose to repress inflation at the cost of a rising fuel subsidy bill.

Last month, Jakarta finally bit the bullet and hiked average fuel prices by 33%. This was a tough choice made during a difficult time.

The government did so because of a worsening fiscal situation; if fuel prices had not been raised, the deficit was predicted to have risen to 3.8% of GDP, above the legal limit of 3%.

Such ratios would have threatened Indonesia’s highly prized investment grade bond rating, only secured in the past couple of years.

During 2011 and 2012 global demand was weak but capital flows into emerging markets were strong, so it made sense for Asian policymakers to keep money rates low and boost domestic consumption.

The result was a short-term trend toward widening current account and budget deficits.

The fork thickens Marcuard’s Market update

by GaveKal Research In June, we had argued that investors had come to a major fork in the road. Either the recovery would pick up speed in the second half of the year, as preliminary data suggested, or, if not—it was game over. Years of aggressive monetary policy actions would finally be proven futile, ushering in a deflationary bust as asset prices adjusted to this reality. On the face of it, recent economic data appears to support a scenario where we get a cyclical upswing in the second and third quarter, at least in the US. Last week, the ISM survey rose to a two-year high of 55.4, initial jobless claims fell to a five-year low of 326,000 and—given the strong ADP report on private payrolls—today’s official nonfarm payroll number is likely to top 200,000. In addition, of the 373 companies in S&P 500 which have reported this season, some 73% have beat profit expectations. The markets seem to like this as the S&P 500 just broke though 1,700.

On the flipside, this is still a recovery heavily reliant on cheap money, housing and consumption. Meanwhile, investment and manufacturing are still lagging. Yes, the ISM number was very solid, but lately it seems this number has lost some of its predictive power on industrial production. Indeed, up until

mid-2010, the correlation rate between the ISM and US IP averaged about 0.8, with 3-4 months lead time. Since then, the correlation rate has dropped to 0.3 for the same lead time.

And as far as corporate earnings are concerned, the vast majority of the rise in earnings has come from financials. We are, of course, happy that investment banks are making money, but such an unbalanced picture leaves us uncomfortable and once again highlights the dependency of QE doping.

Clearly, there is still room for debate on the status of this recovery. And judging by the amount of back and forth on these issues in our own office, the question is far from settled.

The stakes are high and one way or another, a lot of titanic battles on economic theory will be resolved once the dust settles. In the meantime, we should all prepare to enjoy/suffer more opinionated discourses on the state of the economy.

But what about some of our more objective tools? What are they telling us? We have just finished compiling our monthly review of our indicators and the findings are: - Growth is positive. Looking at our battery of growth indicators, we are still seeing modest (or should we say moderate?) economic activity. This is heartening, but unfortunately the pace of expansion is slowing.

- Deflationary pressures persist. Unsu-

www.marcuardheritage.com

rprisingly, most of our price indicators are pointing to falling inflationary pressures.

Given the unprecedented monetary easing, these stubborn deflationary pressures can only be explained by a very low velocity of money.

- Risk appetite is robust. Most of our various indicators of investors’ appetite for risk are strong. Of course, these indicators are largely based on asset-market spreads, some of which are undoubtedly artificially suppressed by monetary policy.

- Equities are still better value than bonds. Even after the recent pullback in fixed income markets, our models indicate that bonds remain overvalued, although less so than in the past. On the equity side, most markets are now getting close to fair value, but still offer a much better bet than bonds, at least from a valuation perspective.

In short, recent economic data points to recovery, but to be absolutely sure which fork in the road we have taken, we need confirmation of velocity. If we start to see improved demand to borrow and willingness to lend, then the recovery will be on much better footing and deflationary pressures may fade. If velocity does not pick up, then falling prices will push up real rates to a point where this fragile recovery could be undone.

On that note, we were heartened to see that our high-frequency indicator of velocity has swung back to positive.

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.

Interest Rates LIBOR rates

Why crude will keep cruising Even though we are seeing record supplies for crude oil, and China’s growth is moderate at best, the crude market has held up fairly well over the last few weeks. So what gives? “First of all, we have unrest in Egypt once again. In addition, we are in the peak of driving season, which historically has been bullish for crude demand and oil products,” said Anthony Grisanti, founder and President of GRZ Energy Inc. Looking at the oil charts, Grisanti sees the first resistance at $105.40 to $105.55.

Above that, there is resistance at $107 to $107.50. “In terms of getting long, I would be a buyer at $103.80 to $104, with a stop about a dollar lower. If oil trades through there, I am a buyer again from $102.50 to $103. My bias does lean toward the long side for now. The only way oil trades lower from here is if equities are fairly weak, there are no storms, and the Middle East is quiet.

And if you’re asking for all three of those factors, then you’re asking for a lot!”

WORLD CURRENCIES PER US DOLLAR CURRENCY

Swap Rates

CODE

RATE

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

8880 1.5338 1.476 19.534 5.6277 11.8101 1.3247 1.657 225.6 0.53 2.6062 0.3241 12.6455 5.9298 3.1797 3.3243 32.942 6.5854 0.9292 8.12

AUD CAD HKD INR JPY KRW NZD SGD

0.8982 1.0365 7.7562 61.58 98.54 1115.35 1.2731 1.2688

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

0.3770 6.9948 24436.90 3.5510 0.7075 0.2843 1509.00 0.3850 3.6409 3.7502 9.8465 3.6728

AZN KZT TRY

0.7833 153.65 1.9321

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

The Financial Markets Base Rates

But with bond yields rising due to the Fed’s changed monetary orientation, Asian economies are being forced to tighten policy settings and reassert fiscal discipline through reforms. In the medium term, this process is to be applauded. But reform is also another way of paying for past sins. Indonesia is not the only Asian economy which dampened inflationary pressure using subsidies. Indeed, most regional economies in the coming quarters face similar tough choices: cut subsidies and raise rates, or face bond downgrades and much heftier sell-offs. The problem is that in the short run this will be tough on growth and also asset prices.

On this front, two Asian countries not as hooked on subsidies China and Philippines are in relatively better shape.

MIDDLE EAST & AFRICA

CCY USD GBP EUR JPY CHF

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

CCY/Period

1mth

2mth

3mth

6mth

1yr

CCY/Period

2yr

3yr

4yr

5yr

7yr

10yr

USD GBP EUR JPY CHF

0.19 0.49 0.08 0.12 0.00

0.23 0.50 0.11 0.14 0.01

0.27 0.51 0.15 0.16 0.02

0.40 0.59 0.26 0.23 0.08

0.67 0.87 0.47 0.41 0.25

USD GBP EUR JPY CHF

0.48 0.73 0.57 0.25 0.22

0.78 0.92 0.74 0.29 0.36

1.17 1.20 0.98 0.35 0.52

1.56 1.50 1.21 0.43 0.73

2.21 2.00 1.59 0.65 1.10

2.82 2.57 2.03 0.96 1.50

Exchange Rates Major Cross Rates CCY1\CCY2 USD EUR GBP CHF JPY

Opening Rates

1 USD 1 EUR 1 GBP 1 CHF 1.3247 0.7549

1.5338 1.1578

0.6520

0.8637

0.9292

1.2309

1.4252

98.54

130.54

151.14

1.0762

100 JPY 1.0148

0.8124

0.7661

0.7017

0.6616 0.9430

106.05

Weekly movement of USD

CCY\Date

09.07

16.07

23.07

30.07

06.08

CCY

Today

USD GBP JPY CHF

1.2809

1.3022

1.3146

1.3202

1.3209

0.8575

0.8617

0.8552

0.8612

0.8603

129.27

129.62

130.49

129.58

129.49

1.2338

1.2318

1.2274

1.2278

1.2228

GBP EUR JPY CHF

1.5338 1.3247 98.54 0.9292

Last Week %Change 1.5337 1.3265 98.25 0.9302

-0.01 +0.14 +0.30 -0.11

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 Azerbaijanian Manat Kazakhstan Tenge Turkish Lira Note:

* USD per National Currency

August 7 - 27, 2013

20 WORLD MARKETS financialmirror.com

Copper near 3-week low, poised for small gain Copper hit a near three week low last week on concerns about top consumer China’s economy, with 3-month copper on the London Metal Exchange falling to its lowest level since July 10 at $6,820 a tonne in intraday trade.

It recovered to trade at $6,846.25 a tonne, up from a last bid of $6,860 on July 20. The metal headed for a small monthly gain of 1.4% for July following losses of nearly 8% in

June.

Investors are watching for official data this week from China that gauges activity in its manufacturing sector. Last week an initial reading from HSBC showed factory activity at its slowest in 11 months in July.

China accounts for around 40% of global copper demand.

“The bigger moves over the next couple of months will probably be on the downside.

There is a risk of Chinese imports falling off again and we have a lot of new supply set to enter the market,” said Gayle Berry, an analyst at Barclays.

She added, however, «there is still a small chance of a break higher in copper because the market is very short and the fundamental copper data is better than people realise.”

Helping support copper prices was the dollar’s fall to a 5-week low against a basket

of currencies on expectations the U.S. Federal Reserve intended to keep interest rates low for some time. A weaker dollar makes dollar-priced metals cheaper for European and other non-U.S. investors. Also underpinning copper, Rio Tinto has put on hold a more than $5 bln underground expansion of its giant Oyu Tolgoi copper mine in Mongolia, after the government said parliament would need to approve financing for the project.

Copper theft ‘like an epidemic’ Copper is such a hot commodity that thieves are going after the metal anywhere they can find it: an electrical power station in Kansas or middle-class homes in New Jersey. Even on a Utah highway construction site, crooks managed to abscond with six miles of copper wire, according to a report by CNBC.com.

Those are just a handful of recent targets across the U.S. in the $1 b������������������� l������������������ n business of copper theft.

“There’s no question the theft has gotten much, much worse,” said Mike Adelizzi, president of the American Supply Association, a nonprofit group representing distributors and suppliers in the plumbing, heating, cooling and industrial pipe industries.

Stolen copper is valuable as scrap because the metal is used for so many items, from fiber optics to plumbing to anything electrical and the profits are tempting. “����������������������������������������� Copper prices have levelled since the recession, but they’re still high enough to have people steal it,” said Michael Gurka, managing director of Spectrum Asset Management, a Chicago investment firm.

“It’s also a very tangible asset and hard to

trace, and reselling it can bring in lots of money,” he added.

Ten years ago, copper futures traded at 80 cents a pound on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. By 2006, they were at $4 a pound.

They are now trading at about $3 a pound, lower than seven years ago but still 375% higher than 2003.

According to the latest statistics from the National Insurance Crime Bureau, which tracks incidents of metal theft, a total of 25,083 claims were filed from 2009 to 2012, compared with 13,861 from 2006 to 2008. Nearly 96% of the claims in the more recent period were for copper theft.

The five leading states for the thefts are Ohio, Texas, Georgia, California and Illinois, the NICB said.

The problem has been left largely to local law enforcement agencies, though the FBI has stepped in and arrested dozens of people over the last five years. On its website, the FBI says copper theft is “�������������������������������� ��������������������������������� threatening U.S. critical infrastructure by targeting electrical substations, cellular towers, telephone land lines, railroads, water wells, construction sites, and vacant homes for lucrative profits.”

In May, the agency arrested seven people in northwest Ohio for allegedly taking copper from utility power substations and selling it for

$15,000.

Authorities often go to the places where the copper burglars might attempt to unload their metal, including scrap yards.

POLICE PATROLS

“The local police used to come maybe once a month, but now it’s three or four times a month, looking for stolen copper,” said Tom Buechel, owner of Rockaway Recycling, a scrap metal outlet in Rockaway, New Jersey.

“But we only buy from licensed contractors, and we take pictures of what we buy and keep good records on sellers,” he said. “We work with the police and make sure all our buys are legal.”

Even then, “we can’t gaet enough copper,” Buechel said. “It has incredible demand.”

A major target for robbers has been the copper wiring in electrical power substations and utility poles.

“The typical theft is usually around 200 to 300 feet of copper wire,” said Kristine Snodgrass, a spokeswoman for PSE&G, an energy company in northern New Jersey. “That’s about $500 in a scrap yard.”

In March, someone took off with $68,000 worth of copper from a PSE&G substation under construction in Montgomery Township, New Jersey, making off with several 1,000-pound spools of wire.

“We now have our own dedicated investigator working with police,” Snodgrass said.

Copper wire was stolen from a substation of Kansas-based Westar Energy in April, knocking out power in south Wichita and causing more than a $150,000 in damage. Westar officials said there have been more than 50 copper thefts at area substations this year, versus four in 2012.

“The damage can be quite extensive,” said Pat VanSyoc, director of substation maintenance for Westar. “It costs anywhere from $3,000 to $5,000 for us to repair the substations, plus there’s the loss of energy for our customers.”

NO IDEA OF DANGER

VanSyoc said thieves have no idea of the danger – for themselves and the company’s repair crews – when they try to steal copper from power outlets. Police in some states, including West Virginia and Kansas, have reported deaths from suspected copper heists gone wrong, finding electrocuted victims carrying flashlights and bolt cutters next to power lines.

To stem the overwhelming tide of thefts, some utility companies like Westar are making power stations more physically secure, as well as taking other steps to make them less attractive to thieves even if they do break in.

“We’re using copperweld wiring now instead of just copper,” said VanSyoc.

“It has a steel core and copper on the outside,” he explained. “It costs us a lot to put in but It doesn’t have the same value as straight

copper wiring so we expect this to cut back on thefts.”

California, Nevada, Kansas and Washington have passed laws recently to crack down on copper theft by mandating that recycling yards keep exact customer records on copper purchases, codifying copper materials with serial numbers for tracking, while also calling for

stricter penalties for convicted thieves.

The Department of Energy says copper theft causes nearly $1 bln in losses to U.S. businesses each year.

And as long as the overseas market for copper is growing and the price of copper remains high enough for thieves to take their chances, the problem is not going away.

August 7 - 27, 2013

financialmirror.com WORLD MARKETS

21

Stelios to open EasyFood supermarket chain Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou���������������������� , chairman of the signature EasyGroup is poised to add supermarkets to his stable of low-cost businesses, which spans hotels and office rentals to car hire and pizza deliveries.

The EasyJet founder said in an announcement on Monday that he will open a supermarket in a former office block in Croydon that he is turning into a home for a number of his companies.

The supermarket, which will be under the

e���������������������������������������������� asyFoodstore banner, will seek to take on German discount grocers Aldi and Lidl with a range of non-branded tinned and packet foods, and possibly some household items such as washing powder. It is unlikely to stock much fresh and frozen food, according to a report in the Financial Times.

Stelios said his interest had also been sparked by the widespread use of food banks and his own experience with the “food from the heart” charitable program operated by his philanthropic foundation in Cyprus.

“I have a feeling that there is a gap in the food retail market – a niche below some of the current budget operators such as Aldi and Lidl,” he said.

The easyFoodstore will be on the ground floor of the former MetLife office block in Croydon, with the top three floors converted into an easyHotel, and the lower floors let as short-term office space under the easyOffice banner. There is also an option to use a further two floors for��������� ������������ an easy-

Australia’s stock market on ‘fire’ ASX up 5.5%, best gain since Nov 2012 Stellar gains in Australia’s benchmark stock index took traders by surprise last month and analysts say the market finally appears to be reacting to a weak Australian dollar, according to CNBC.com.

The S&P/ASX 200 index ended July with a gain of about 5.5%, the biggest monthly gain since November 2012. It was one of the best performing stock markets in the Asia-Pacific region in July.

«When you have the material, energy and financial sectors gaining 10��������������������� %�������������������� , 6.8% and 6.3%, respectively, and given the weights these sectors have on the broader market, you can see why the ASX is on fire,” said Chris Weston, chief markets strategist at trading firm IG. Analysts said the strong rally in Australian shares was partly explained by investors picking up cheapened stocks after a steep sell-off in May and June and a big decline in the Australian dollar.

The market outperformed most of its regional peers in July, with Japan’s Nikkei ending the month little changed and the Shanghai Composite up about 0.7%. The Hang Seng index, like the ASX 200, ended the month with gains of just over 5%.

“We were trying to sell [Australian] resource stocks because of the weaker outlook for China’s economy and we thought we were right, but got caught short,” said Ben Collet, head of Asian equities at Sunrise Brokers in Hong Kong.

“The macro environment has improved a bit for Australia, but we have been a bit confounded about why it [the ASX 200] has been hanging in there,” he added.

AUSSIE DOLLAR BOOST

The Australian dollar, known as the Aussie for short, has fallen more than 9% in the past three months, hurt by expectations for further interest rate cuts and a rally in the U.S. dollar on expectations for an unwinding of U.S. monetary stimulus.

When the Aussie fell earlier this year, stocks didn’t benefit, rather investors were spooked by the currency’s declines and pulled money out of the stock market.

But those fears have since subsided and investors are now looking for Australia’s central bank to ease rates further.

“We are now left with falls in the Australian dollar driven not just by lower terms of trade, but a central bank having to offset tight fiscal policy (at a government level) and banks keen to promote negative real rates (i.e. adjusting the cash rate for inflation),” IG’s Weston said. “The Aussie dollar should continue to trade lower and it seems this will now have positive ramifications on the local stock market.”

Other analysts expected any further stock market gains to be limited.

“The profit season coming up could be hard and there is on-going uncertainty about China, which is very important for Australia,” said Shane Oliver, head of investment strategy and chief economist at AMP Capital in Sydney. «I don’t think we’ll have a repeat of the 5% plus monthly gains and we should end the year around the 5,250 mark.”

The ASX 200 closed on Tuesday at 5,052 points, up almost 9% so far this year.

Gym. “If the pilot site shows there is a need for this offering, ����� e���� asyFoodstore could be rolled out on a wider basis from 2014 onwards using freehold retail sites – buying into the weaker real estate prices in the sector,” he said, adding that this was a “low risk experiment”.

The move comes as the hard discounters continue to gain market share – particularly from cash-strapped middle-class shoppers.

Listed by Forbes as the third most wealthy Cypriot billionaire, Stelios is easyJet’s largest single shareholder despite being at odds with the airline he set up in 1995 since he quit its board in 2010.

Only last month he opposed a plan to buy 135 new Airbus planes after investors representing 57% of its shares backed the deal.

Stelios had said he would vote against the fleet

expansion after arguing the deal would destroy shareholder value and that the money would be better spent on improving returns to investors through dividends or share buybacks.

Stelios still has a 37% stake and frequently disagrees with the airline on fleet expansion, executive pay and dividend policy.

EasyJet had defended the deal, saying it had negotiated a «very substantial» discount for the jets, which have a list price of around $12 bln.

Two thirds of the new planes will be used to replace its ageing 156-seat A319s, the bulk of its fleet, the airline said.

August 7 - 27, 2013

22 WORLD MARKETS financialmirror.com

BMW is Global Company of the Year i3 and i8 Concept, AlphaCity, DriveNow, ParkNow and i Ventures tackling mobility challenges Frost & Sullivan has recognised BMW AG with the 2013 Global Company of the Year award based on its recent analysis of the new mobility products and services market.

Cars like the BMW i3 and i8 electric vehicle concepts and services like AlphaCity, DriveNow and ParkNow represent the future of mobility designed by BMW and its partners to complement each other and mark significant strides towards a future of fully integrated mobility solutions.

“The company has displayed effective leadership in customer value with its wide range of innovative and customised solutions, ranging from integrated mobility solutions to flexible usage models,” commended Frost & Sullivan Research Analyst Shwetha Surender.

Apart from growing the traditional fleet business, BMW’s multi-make fleet division Alphabet has focused its efforts on corporate car sharing and short term rentals.

The car sharing programme DriveNow expanded into North America in August 2012 and allows customers to locate and reserve the nearest car using the DriveNow app and unlock the car using a digital key incorporated in the driver’s license. The ParkNow app allows customers to search and pay for parking spaces using their cell phones.

“The combination of online reservations and contact-less chip cards has made car sharing easy, efficient and profitable, while global system for mobile communications (GSM) facilitates efficient billing and rapid identification of vehicle location,” the Munich-based carmaker said.

Recognising the need to develop smart technology further, it������������������������������������������������������������ has also established a venture capital company - BMW i Ventures - with a corpus of $100 mln to promote mobile apps and mobile technology as part of a long term growth strategy within the new mobility products and services market.

Will Argentina pay warrants? Likely in 2013, not in 2014 ANALYSIS Argentina is on track to post strong enough economic growth in 2013 to trigger billions of dollars in bond warrant payments, but the uptick will likely prove short-lived, leaving warrant holders empty handed in 2014.

President Cristina Fernandez has prioritized economic growth ahead of an October mid-term election that will determine whether she keeps control of Congress. The 60-year-old Peronist leader promises 4.4% economic expansion in 2013 on the back of strong soy and corn harvests.To pump life into Latin America’s third largest economy, her government has used extra government spending to temporarily reverse the effects of currency and capital controls she imposed shortly after starting her second term in late 2011. Economic activity jumped 7.8% in May and 7.0% in April, well above forecasts. Even private economists, long skeptical of the veracity of Argentina’s official data, now expect official 2013 growth above the 3.22% that would require the warrant payments.

So Argentina will likely have to dip into diminishing foreign currency reserves and pay up to $3 b�������������������������� l������������������������� n in GDP-linked bond warrants in December 2014, according to seven out of ten banks and analysis firms surveyed by Reuters in the past week.

No one expects 2014 growth to merit another payment.

Private growth forecasts for next year range from 0.5 to 2.8%, a sign Fernandez’s high-spending, high-growth model will lose steam after the October 27 vote.

“The growth is not sustainable - in 2014 we will have a serious financing problem,” Rodolfo Rossi, a former director of Argentina’s central bank, said in an interview.

SPEND SPEND SPEND

A small, 1.9% expansion in 2012 put an end to a decade of galloping growth and prompted Fernandez to raise official annual public spending by 16.8% for 2013. Private estimates indicate spending will actually balloon by more than 30% this year.

Yet Fernandez, who recently raised the minimum wage, frequently tells Argentines they are better off. Consumer confidence rose in June and July according to a survey from the private Di Tella University.

“You see it in the clothes of the people coming to our events, you see it in the shoes worn by the kids, you see it in the record used car sales,” Fernandez said in a recent speech.

‘SOMETHING WILL HAVE TO BE DONE’

Government spending has surpassed income for years and escalated more recently. Argentina’s primary budget surplus, a measure of government finances before debts are serviced, fell by 30% in May compared with a year earlier.

Other pro-growth measures, like ordering banks to lend 5.0% of all deposits to small businesses, have pushed up consumer prices, forcing Fernandez to impose price controls on 500 supermarket items.

The country’s INDEC statistics agency is widely accused of under-reporting inflation and, to a lesser extent, misreporting growth data. There were suspicions the government lowered growth figures in 2012 to avoid warrant payments.

Private estimates put 12-month inflation at about 25�������� % ������ in Argentina, one of the highest rates in the world.

“The government is making no effort to solve the underlying problem of inflation,” said Fiona Mackie, an Argentina analyst for the Economist Intelligence Unit. “It will be increasingly difficult for it to engineer some sort of easy exit.”

Auto production, a key component of industrial production, indeed rose 19.8������������������������������������������������� % in ����������������������������������������������� June from a year earlier according to industry group AdeFa. Car sales jumped by 22.1 percent.

Many of those sales are desperation buys from a population that can’t access U.S. dollars due to currency controls, doesn’t trust the peso, and buys material goods as a way of saving. Farmers for example are piling up their corn and soybean reserves rather than putting pesos in the bank.

Grain exports are one of Argentina’s main sources of dollars, and higher 2013 output following last year’s drought helped the economy. The sector could take a hit if demand from topcustomer China falls, as expected.

Economists generally see growth continuing through the third quarter of this year, although below April and May levels, and slowing sharply in the fourth quarter. Industrial output missed expectations in June in a sign a cool-down may already be on the way.

At a time of waning dollar inflows, the government is spending more to import energy as its natural gas production drops and borrowing from its own foreign currency reserves. The country has been virtually locked out of capital markets since its massive 2002 sovereign debt default.

Central bank reserves are $37 bln, half the size of the central bank of Peru, a much smaller country in the region.

Goldman, LME face aluminium storage charges A U.S. class action alleging an illegal agreement to inflate aluminium prices may be just the start of aluminium buyers’ legal assault against warehouse owners such as Goldman Sachs Group Inc, lawyers with antitrust expertise said on Sunday.

Goldman, other warehouse owners and the London Metal Exchange were named as defendants in the price-fixing lawsuit filed last week alleging anticompetitive behaviour.

Customers and U.S. lawmakers have accused Goldman and other warehouse owners of artificially inflating waiting times to boost rents for warehouse owners and lift metal prices.

Criticism of banks that own commodity assets and trade raw materials has ratcheted up after the U.S. Department of Justice started what sources said was a preliminary probe into the metals warehousing industry.

Private plaintiffs such as the one who filed the class action

- aluminium-buyer Superior Extrusion Inc - generally have limited means to find out new information until their suit progresses much further. Unlike the government, they do not have subpoena power.

Legal experts have said the Justice Department would launch an official investigation only if it found evidence of true collusion or monopolistic behaviour.

‘EXTREME MONOPOLY’ ALLEGED

Superior Extrusion filed its suit on August 1 in U.S. District Court in Detroit. The suit also targets “John Does”: any other warehouse owner that may have participated in the alleged price-fixing conspiracy.

The suit said that warehouse owners realised “extraordinary

revenues from inefficiencies and deadweight restraints on the economy,” reflecting their “extreme monopoly pricing power and abusive agreements in very unreasonable restraint of trade.”

“We believe this suit is without merit and we intend to vigorously contest it,” a Goldman Sachs spokesman said. “I would also note that aluminium prices are down 40% from their peak in 2006,” he said.

Britain’s financial watchdog is also investigating the LME’s warehousing system.

Goldman tried last week to diffuse years of frustration over long waiting times and inflated prices at metals warehouses across the world, by offering immediate access to aluminium for end users holding metal at its Metro warehouses.

London Metal Exchange aluminium for three months delivery closed on Friday at $1,809 per tonne.

August 7 - 27, 2013

financialmirror.com | GREECE | 23

Greece cannot rely on bond plan to fill gap l

IMF identifies €11 bln financing gap over two years; Pressure on EU partners to find solution

Greece will not be able to return to bond markets next year to help plug an estimated EUR11 bln financing gap that will start to open up, market sources said last week, contrary to earlier suggestions from the government and its European partners.

With pressure mounting on eurozone officials to find a solution to the EUR 4.4 bln shortfall the IMF projects will kick in from August 2014, and widen by a further EUR 6.5 bln in 2015, more debt relief now seems all but inevitable for Athens.

“The troika will not likely be able to avoid new bailout discussions before the end of 2014 in order to plug the gaps, and is very likely to decide on an extension,” said Barclays in a research note.

“We do not see how Greece could possibly return to the markets next year, even if recent developments have been very positive.”

Greece’s 10-year bonds yielded over 25% at the start of last year - just before the country’s second debt restructuring before hitting a three-year low of 8.2% in May. This impressive rally prompted prime minister Antonis Samaras to announce that the country was planning to end its four-year absence from international capital markets in 2014.

He tempered his comments later, but confirmed he expected to issue a small-sized bond in the second half of next year.

EU officials – who believe the size of the gap next year is somewhat smaller at EUR 3.8 bln – see the issuance of shortterm bonds as an option to make up the shortfall, alongside utilising unused funds earmarked for bank recapitalisations and/or new loans.

Bankers, however, say the country will struggle to convince investors to buy its bonds, especially given that further restructurings are not out of the question.

“With so much uncertainty hanging over their heads, investors just wouldn’t be interested,” said one senior SSA banker in London. Barclays’ analyst Fabrice Montagne added: “It also doesn’t make sense for Greece, because at present there is a huge gap between market financing and the current programme financing.”

As a temporary solution, the country could up its treasury bill issuance, wrote JP Morgan in its Europe Economic research note. JP Morgan estimated that the remaining funds set aside for bank restructuring at present would fill almost 70% of the financing gap, while the rest could be filled by increased treasury bill issuance.

Greece has issued 4-, 13- and 26-week bills in recent months to tide itself over between bailout payments. Just last month it issued EUR 1.625 bln of bills maturing in January 2014 at a yield of 4.2%. However, it has not been able to issue longer 52-

Commission sees progress, but outlook uncertain The revised European Commission report on the second economic adjustment programme indicates that Greece continues to make overall progress, however, several important actions have been delayed, while the fiscal outlook for 2013-2014 remains subject to high uncertainty.

According to the report, the Troika mission has identified the following potential shortfalls in the implementation of the budget in 2013: a) expenditure overruns in the main health care fund EOPYY in the area of diagnostics and private clinics (0.3% of GDP); b) delays in the issuance of property tax bills because tax collection will shift in part beyond the 2013 accrual period (0.2% of GDP); c) the yield of some measures, most notably in the area of social security contributions, has been revised downwards, thereby contributing to the gap (0.2% of GDP).

These shortfalls have been partly offset by the one-off effect of a surge in capital concentration tax revenue related to the bank recapitalisation (0.1% of GDP) and higher-than-assumed proceeds from bank guarantee fees paid to the state in regard to one of the liquidity support schemes (0.2% of GDP).

A potential fiscal gap of 0.4% of GDP also emerged in 2014 as the government has decided not to implement some of the previously agreed measures for 2014, namely the special solidarity contribution for selfemployed and the application of the new wage grid for armed forces.

Although the government has identified other measures to close the 2013-2014 gap (e.g. claw-back mechanism on expenditure on diagnostics and private clinics, frontloading of luxury tax, etc.), the report concludes that the fiscal outlook for 2013-14 remains subject to high uncertainty due to the significant backloading of tax collection in the second half of 2013.

Regarding 2015-2016, the fiscal gap currently stands at 1.75% and 2.0% of GDP, respectively, while in autumn new macroeconomic and fiscal data will provide more complete information on the size of any remaining gap.

In the meantime, the report said that the application of the so-called “extraordinary” solidarity tax will extend to 2016 in order to cover part of the above gap.

The report notes that while progress has been made in preparing for privatisations, the overall speed of the process remains unsatisfactory.

The target for 2013 and 2014 privatisation receipts has been set at EUR 1.6 bln and EUR 3.5 bln, respectively, from EUR 2.6 bln and EUR 1.9 bln, previously, while cumulative receipts in the period 2013-2020 stand at EUR 22.6 bln.

According to the report, alternative methods, such as asset securitisation, are currently being assessed to potentially raise additional revenues beyond what is currently foreseen in the privatisation plan. Finally, the assessment of debt dynamics is broadly unchanged compared to the previous review.

week bills for over three years, emphasising that this cannot be seen as a sustainable debt solution to its long-term financing problems.

URGENT ATTENTION

The IMF is concerned that if the funding gap is not dealt with swiftly, it will further erode investor confidence.

“Should debt sustainability concerns prove to be weighing on investor sentiments even with the framework for debt relief now in place, European partners should consider providing relief that would entail a faster reduction in debt than currently programmed,” the IMF report said.

The IMF’s call to arms comes at an unfortunate time, however, with Greece’s largest creditor Germany preoccupied with appeasing its own electorate before elections due in September. “Chancellor Merkel will soon be actively campaigning and cannot afford to question the bailout policies.

Hence, we believe the IMF’s call may fall flat at this stage before getting more traction toward year-end or the beginning of 2014 when all parties will be in a position to discuss a new deal,” said Barclays. The IMF stated that additional financing will need to be identified by the time of the fifth review, to keep the programme fully financed on a 12-month forward basis. That review is scheduled to take place on or after September 29.

Interest rates drop in June

Overall average interest rates on new deposits dropped in June compared to May, while loan rates were slightly raised, according to the Bank of Greece. The same picture was evident on outstanding amounts, where the overall average interest rate on deposits was also down 11bps MoM at 2.67%, while the average rate on loans was up 2bps MoM at 5.75%.

With regards to new production, household overnight deposits rates dropped 8bps MoM, while the corresponding rate of household term deposits came in lower by 17bps MoM, with average deposit rates dropping also by an incremental 11bps MoM. On the asset side, consumer loan rates (without a defined maturity) were down 10bps MoM, while new business loan rates (fixed maturity up to 1 year), i.e. business loans that include companies’ working capital, came in higher by 9bps MoM. On the other hand, mortgage (floating rate or fixed up to 1 year) interest rates decreased by 4bps MoM, while the average loan interest rate came in practically flat (+1 bps MoM). The average rate of the 3-month Euribor (a benchmark for calculating loan and deposit spreads) was also flattish, up by 1bp MoM. “We expect that these trends will continue for the remainder of the year especially on term deposits,” said Konstantinos Manolopoulos, analyst at the Investment Bank of Greece.

Eurobank EGM on August 26 EFG Eurobank announced that it will hold an EGM on August 26, where shareholders will be called to approve the agreement of the bank with the state bank bailout fund HFSF for the acquisitions of the new Hellenic Postbank (TT) and New Proton Bank, as well as a new capital increase via the issuance of new shares.

Eurobank agreed to acquire 100% of TT for a total consideration of EUR 681 mln in the form of Eurobank’s new shares issued through a share capital increase, subscribed by way of contribution in kind and in particular, by the contribution of the total number of TT’s shares that HFSF owns.

As far as Proton is concerned, Eurobank will pay a cash consideration of EUR 1 for 100% of the bank while prior to the completion of the transaction, HFSF will cover Proton’s capital needs by the contribution of EUR 395 mln in in cash.

Eurobank has stated in the past that TT will operate as an autonomous network while Proton will be integrated, expecting EUR 200 mln of combined synergies a year from both transactions.

As far as the new shares are concerned, their issue price will not exceed EUR 0.48/share, implying that Eurobank will issue 35% more new shares.

August 7 - 27, 2013

24 BACK PAGE financialmirror.com

Market to shift into lower gear as earnings, data fade WALL ST WEEK AHEAD With earnings season winding down and the employment report out of the way, the U.S. stock market is likely to shift into a lower gear this week.

The earnings season so far has been largely positive with more than half of the companies that have reported beating estimates. But cuts in outlooks from a number of bellwethers, including Intel and Caterpillar, mainly due to increasing concerns over China’s growth, have raised fears about the third and fourth quarters.

“It has sort of become a trend now to go into earnings season with low expectations, so beating those expectations is not a big deal,” said Tim Ghriskey, chief investment officer of Solaris Group in Bedford Hills, New York.

“The market is starting to really look at outlook cuts and guidance more than earnings itself.”

The market is also likely to trade sideways this week after the Dow and the S&P 500 marked record closing highs for a second day on Friday.

For the year, both the Dow and the S&P 500 are up more than 19%.

The S&P 500 index has passed through two century marks this year - 1,600 and 1,700. The last time the broad market index covered more round numbers in a year was in 1998 when it touched 1,000, 1,100 and 1,200, according to Howard Silverblatt, senior index analyst at S&P Dow Jones Indices.

Of the 391 companies in the S&P 500 that have reported earnings for the second quarter, 67.8% have topped analyst expectations, in line with the average beat over the past four quarters, data from Thomson Reuters showed. About 55% have reported revenue above estimates, more

than in the past four quarters but below the historical average.

Negative outlooks for the third quarter from S&P companies have outpaced positive outlooks 3.7 to 1 so far in this earnings season, according to Thomson Reuters data. Last quarter, the ratio was 6.3 to 1, but on average since 1996, the ratio stands at 2.1 to 1.

So far this earnings season, just 75 companies have given guidance and about 50 more companies are expected to give their outlook in the coming weeks. During last quarter’s earnings season, 127 S&P companies gave guidance.

FED CONCERNS

The market will be closely watching remarks

The Financial Mirror has a combined print and digital circulation of 15,000, with more than one in every three copies sold or delivered to subscribers in the core business and financial markets.

by U.S. Federal Reserve policymakers in the coming week for more clues on when the U.S. central bank might begin to reduce bond-buying stimulus, despite mixed signals from the jobs market.

The latest jobs report on Friday showed nonfarm payrolls rose by 162,000 in July, below expectations, but the unemployment rate fell to 7.4%, its lowest since December 2008.

On Tuesday, the president of the Chicago Federal Reserve Bank, Charles Evans, is scheduled to speak at a press breakfast, while Richard Fisher, head of the Dallas Federal Reserve Bank, is to deliver a speech on the economy in Portland, Oregon.

Elsewhere, the Bank of Japan holds its monetary policy board meeting on Wednesday and

Thursday. The BoJ is expected to keep monetary policy on hold as its unprecedented quantitative easing and government stimulus gradually spread through the economy.

Among companies due to report earnings this week, CVS Caremark posts second-quarter results. McDonald’s Corp is to report July restaurant sales on Thursday. Also on Thursday, Dean Foods Co, the top U.S. dairy company, posts quarterly results.

In economic news, weekly jobless claims on Thursday could offer clues about the labour market conditions following Friday’s mixed jobs report. The Institute for Supply Management (ISM) report on the services sector is due and June trade data is expected on Tuesday.

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