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Vivendi said Wednesday anticipate an increase in its annual results for 2010 and maintaining its dividend to 1.40 euro for the year, after posting better than expected performance in the first half, notably at SFR and Universal Music.

The first group of European media and entertainment market capitalization said in a statement anticipating a growth in adjusted operating profit (EBITA) in 2010 – instead of a "slight" growth before.

It also provides a higher adjusted annual net income higher than the 2.585 million generated in 2009.

Vivendi has released the first-half EBITA of 3.243 million euros, up 11.9% and a turnover of 13.982 million, up 6.1%.

The 12 analysts polled by Reuters drafting average expected EBITA of EUR 3,099.5 million and a turnover of 13.833 million.

The company posted an adjusted net income biannual 1,526,000 euros, up 4.0%

SFR, which accounts for nearly half the turnover of the group reached EBITA of 1.368 million euros, against 1.302 million expected by analysts, with sales up 1.8%, more stronger than expected.

Canal + has reached an EBITA of 486 million euros, up 3.0%, against 463 million expected, but with a turnover more moderate than expected.

Lagardere announced last Thursday that he intended to complete by March 2011 the IPO of 20% of Canal + France held 80% with the balance.

UMG, the first record label world, shows a fall of 24.6% of its EBITA less than expected at 159 million euros, against 149.5 million anticipated.

Vivendi also raised the forecast of Brazilian fixed-line operator GVT, its latest acquisition and its smallest division, now anticipating increases of 34% of its turnover and 44% of its adjusted EBITDA – 29% and cons 35% previously.

GVT has done in the first half turnover of 444 million euros and an EBITA of 98 million.

The Vivendi shares closed Tuesday up 1.24% to 18.41 euros, giving a market capitalization of $ 22.8 billion. It has lost 11.5% since the beginning of the year, against an increase of 5.3% of the pan-European media index.

Coface, which announced Monday a further improvement in results due to the recovery of its performance in the insurance authorized by a decrease in claims and believes that its results any credibility to public offerings.

The credit insurer, 100% subsidiary of Natixis, the subject of strategic thinking since last February in BPCE, parent company of Natixis on his future within the banking group.

Commenting on the results of Coface published on Monday its chief executive, Jerome Cazes, said at a press conference that discussions had not been completed and that there was "no urgency".

However, he said "feel that the scenario of a public offerings in 2011 is gaining credibility with the results" the first half.

The credit insurer is considered unlikely scenario of recurrent growth under the policy followed by recovery in the United States and China and the dynamism of world trade, and expects a further improvement in claims in the second half.

"This situation (macroeconomic) can anticipate the second half a further improvement in claims, continued cost control and growth turned positive in its turnover," notes Jerome Cazes.

The company saw its second quarter results continued the recovery started in the last quarter of 2009, with operating income of 31 million euros after a loss of 76 million a year earlier and a positive result of 24 million in the first quarter of year.

PERFORMANCE ASSURANCE

Driven mainly by the insurance, which rebounded thanks to a decline in claims, despite a turnover fell 2% at constant rates to 303 million euros while the ratio claims fell to 59% in the second quarter, against 63% in the first.

Coface's objective is a loss ratio between 45% and 50% in the next 18 months as well as productivity gains three points per year.

Operating income from insurance activities has reached 31 million euros, against a loss of 126 million a year earlier and a positive result of 24 million in the first quarter of 2010.

In services, where sales fell 8% to 65 million euros, operating profit was halved to six million euros while in factoring it increased to 10 million EUR cons has a two million earlier, on sales up sharply (+21% to 29 million euros)

Net profit stood at 20 million euros, against a loss of 37 million a year earlier and a profit of 15 million in the first quarter.

Shareholders' equity improved to 1.311 million euros, signing up 21% from the end of 2009 and 11% from the end of 2007, before the outbreak of the financial crisis, mainly driven by the capital increase occurred at Natixis first quarter.

As part of its strategic plan 2010-2012, after which Coface is a net profit of 250 million euros, the group also wants to become a rating agency that specializes in financial firms.

In response to criticisms of credit insurance during the crisis, the company has introduced a free access to its insured ratings to their clients.

ABN Amro, nationalized by the Netherlands at the height of the crisis, said Thursday that most of the charges related to the integration of Fortis Bank Nederland was behind her while reporting a half year loss of nearly one billion euros.

The bank warned in May it expected to massive losses for the first half of the year due to a very high volume of loads.

It launched in June a new warning, explaining that its losses would be higher still, because of additional charges that Fortis would go for legal reasons.

On Thursday, the number one Dutch asset management and retail banking from third countries, has not yielded much information on the reasons for these provisions, but said they were "connected with international activities conducted in the past. "

The state has spent more than 26 billion euros to buy ABN Amro and support, making this rescue one of the most expensive in the world.Its managing director Gerrit Zalm said it was unlikely that the taxpayer comes one day even.

The owner of the bank said on Thursday he expected that the integration of schools is finalized by the end of 2012 and the government should find a way out for the group between 2013 and 2015.

The CFO Jan van Rutte meanwhile estimated that the costs of integration were mostly gone.The operation, however, should lead the bank to pass a new charge of 400 million euros in the second half.

Current profit stood at 325 million euros during the first half, partly due to higher net income from interest, while the impairment of assets decreased by more than half.

ABN Amro, however, reported a net loss of 968 million euros, including a charge of integration of 481 million euros and 812 million loss on assets sold to Deutsche Bank under any injunctions European competition authorities.

She also had to spend 265 million euros in additional legal expenses.

We knew the salaries of civil servants threatened by pension reform. But the government also plans to "freeze outright index point" of wages in the public service, which sets about 80% of salary for civil servants, understands the newspaper Les Echos. And until 2013.Wage negotiations, which open Friday could even jeopardize the 0.5% long planned for July 1.

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Secretary of State for Public Service, George Tron, has nevertheless delivered Tuesday, as pesonnel in favor of maintaining the increase July 1, which had been recorded during the last negotiations three years. "J 'I like Eric Woerth (Labour Minister), tend to think that when a commitment is made, it is good policy to keep it, "he said before adding that while" it is all not adjudicated "and that" several scenarios are considered.

In contrast, the gel appears to be non-negotiable for the period 2011-2013. "You can not ask a staff effort, just as all the French, and automatically catch the fly.The question of the contribution rate is not mentioned in salary discussions, this has nothing to do, "said the Secretary of State for Public Service for Echoes.

The pension reform provides for a gradual alignment of contributions from the public over the private, the rate should increase from 7.85% currently to 10.55% in 2020. An increase of 0.27% per year. Rising wages would be a way to limit or even maintenair purchasing power of public servants.Meanwhile, these leaks could fuel the action on Thursday against government plans, whose intensity could influence the final decision.

According to Les Echos, it could attempt to sweeten the pill by putting forward measures and targeted wage clause "good fortune" that would revert to freeze possible if growth better than expected.

Tuesday afternoon, the Labour Minister Eric Woerth has sought reassurance by stating that the state "will not decrease the salary of civil servants". He added: "The remuneration of an employee, not only point to the index, because they always say, X%. This is the point index," but " there is a second part of the remuneration that is the evolution of employee remuneration in a grid. It is about 2% per year, average increase of purchasing power, "he said.

If freezing point index, "the purchasing power of employees fall by nearly 7% in three years" because of the risks of higher inflation, responded Jean-Marc Canon, Secretary General CGT officials.

The Paris Bourse continued its consolidation Wednesday despite a series of good results of the CAC 40 falling in the wake of Wall Street reacted negatively to the latest figures on the eve of consumption and the U.S. real estate.

At 9:28, the CAC 40 index shows a decline of 0.38% to 3733.14 points after losing 0.12% on Tuesday.

Investors will pay attention this afternoon at the United States publication of the ADP employment survey and the ISM services.

EDF wins 4.1%, highest increase in the ACC after the announcement of an increase in electricity tariffs from 15 August.These price increases are in the top end of market expectations.

Societe Generale, which opened up 3%, gaining 0.8% after posting better than expected results for the second quarter with a decline in its provisions and a stronger than expected growth in revenues.

Nexity yields 2.3%, largest drop in the SRD. Christine Lagarde, Minister of Economy, has announced a zero-interest loan to replace the enhanced tax credit on the loan interest.

Other major European markets are also down: London and Frankfurt lost 0.8% 0.52%.As for the European indices, the EuroStoxx 50 yields 0.62% and 0.67% Eurofirst 300.

The euro is stronger after a break of recent days and is trading around 1.3205 dollars, as U.S. crude, which trades at 82.16 dollars a barrel.

BNP Paribas publishes a net profit increase of 31.2% for the second quarter, above expectations, thanks to a sharper than expected decline in provisions for bad loans, offsetting lower revenues from its market activities.

The second bank in the euro zone by market capitalization, after Spain's Santander, said in a statement that recorded a net profit of 2.105 billion euros in the quarter ended June 30, with net banking income up 11 , 8% to 11.17 billion.

His provisions for risk of loss on the credit fell by 53.9% to 1.08 billion euros.

The consensus of the writing for Reuters on average expected a net increase of only 8% to 1.7 billion euros and provisions were down 36%.

BNP Paribas also said to be "ahead" on its program of synergies from the integration of the Belgian bank Fortis acquired last year, with 402 million euros of synergies on a target of 900 million.

In corporate finance and investment, the decline in profit before tax is also less than expected at 16.4% in the second quarter against 20% expected by the market.

Elsewhere in Europe, Swiss banks UBS and Credit Suisse have also announced last week the quarterly results above market expectations.

The German group Deutsche Bank's side recorded a drop in supplies.

The European banking sector has benefited in recent days a series of good news.

The results of stress tests that have been submitted 91 banks in the European Union and the announcement by the Basel Committee that it would make its proposed regulations have indeed helped to allay investor concerns about the soundness of sector balance sheets.

Since the beginning of the year, the benchmark Stoxx 600 European banks rose 0.36%. The action of BNP Paribas has cut its losses recently but it is still in decline of 5.7% since 1 January.

Societe Generale, the second French bank by market capitalization, reports earnings on Wednesday.

Mizuho Financial Group, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group can view each more than 100 billion yen (885 million) profit for April-June period, reports the Nikkei newspaper.

The newspaper claims that large Japanese banks have grown their results for their fiscal first quarter thanks to their trading operations, while recording lower losses on bad loans through a smaller number of large bankruptcies.

Mizuho, which posted a loss of 4.4 billion yen for the period April to June 2009 due to losses on the CDS (credit default swaps) should post a profit of around 150 billion yen for the same period this year with its trading, the Nikkei wrote.

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group should in turn generate between 150 and 200 billion yen profit, against a profit of 72.7 billion last year, the newspaper said without citing sources.

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group for its part should record a profit of more than 100 billion yen, against 75.9 billion a year earlier, writes the Nikkei.

Banks are under pressure to improve their credit operations, while long term rates are at their lowest level in five years, also highlighted the daily.

The European Union announces it will appeal the conviction of the World Trade Organization (WTO) on subsidies provided to Airbus.

Airbus and Boeing accuse several years to receive public funding they deem illegitimate.

On 30 June, a panel of WTO experts found some illegal European subsidies provided to Airbus, a subsidiary of EADS, giving due in part to a U.S. complaint filed in 2004.

The appeal against this decision the EU will be filed before a special meeting of the Dispute Settlement Body of WTO, says a source close to the case.

The meeting, which started at 10:00, was convened at the request of the United States in the adoption of the June decision by the panel of experts, which would have forced the EU to end in 90 days to grant British, German and Spanish on the A380.

"This issue is too important to allow misinterpretations Group of Experts (DSB) without challenge," the EU trade commissioner Karel de Gucht, in a statement.

The call of the EU must be treated within 90 days, according to WTO rules.

In the day Wednesday, a lawyer for Boeing reported confidence in Boeing regarding this procedure.

"We are confident about the outcome of this appeal, as we were when the U.S. had opened the proceedings," said Robert Novick, a member of the firm WilmerHale.

"We are confident that the outcome of this appeal will be known by the end of the year."

A complaint against the European American aid mechanisms to Boeing would be decided on July 16, but the decision has been postponed to mid-September.

Louis Welsh, CEO of EADS, has held this postponement unfair.

The Japanese consumer confidence improved for the sixth straight month in June, reaching its highest level in almost three years, a sign of an increase in economic recovery in the archipelago.

The index measuring the sentiment of households, which reflects their views on income and employment, reached 43.5 in June, its highest since September 2007, according to figures released Tuesday by government departments. In May, the index was at 42.8.

The government has revised upwards its opinion on the mood and now believes it is oriented towards improvement.

The index remains below 50, meaning that pessimists still outnumber optimists.

Renault has confirmed Monday that it submitted a letter of intent for the acquisition of Korean carmaker Ssangyong.

A spokesman for the diamond manufacturer said by telephone that the letter of intent had been submitted jointly with Renault Samsung Motors (RSM), Renault's Korean subsidiary which it holds 80.1%, and with its Japanese partner Nissan .

Ssangyong, the smallest of South Korean car manufacturers and specialize in 4X4, is in administration since early 2009.

The group, for which a Seoul court should choose a buyer in August, said his side last week it had withheld a total of six candidates.

According to the Korean press, the transaction would be valued at between 300 and 500 million (250-400 million euros).