Hot Economic News Releases

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 oil has closed lower Wednesday on the physical market in New York after the publication of the minutes of the last meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee of the Federal Reserve.

The text of the Fed shows that its members say they have to be ready to take further measures to support the economy if the climate deteriorates.

The contract on August U.S. light crude ended on a down 11 cents, or 0.14%, to 77.04 dollars a barrel.

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.

National Australia Bank is expected to introduce in the space of one week a new proposal to the Australian competition authorities on its bid of 11.5 billion dollars (9.13 billion euros) over the asset manager AXA Asia Pacific , a subsidiary of AXA, say three sources familiar with the matter.

NAB, which attempts to revive the business after losing the first time in April by the Australian Competition Commission (ACCC) would seek a further extension of its exclusivity few weeks from Axa to finalize its offer, added the sources.

The exclusive agreement between NAB and Axa expires July 15 and, in the opinion of the sources, Axa will extend it to allow time for competition authorities to assess the new proposal.

NAB and AXA AP have declined comment.

The ACCC had estimated in April that a merger between NAB and AXA would significantly reduce competition in the market for retail investment platforms.

To satisfy the commission, NAB may sell retail platforms AXA AP, North, for example.According to sources, discussions are underway on this with the fund manager IOOF Australia.

The Director General NAB Cameron Clyne said Wednesday shareholders that "NAB continues to evaluate its options for the approval of the ACCC's proposed purchase of subsidiaries in Australia and New Zealand AXA Asia Pacific" .

The opportunities are scarce for AXA, to the extent that the manager Australian PMI is also in the running but a recent decline in its share has reduced his ability to effectively make a competing offer, which it has yet received approval from the ACCC .

The Belgian bank insurer KBC sold its derivatives in Asia for about $ one billion, as part of restructuring promised in exchange for public assistance received during the crisis.

The buyer of Global Convertible Bond and Asian Equity Derivatives is Daiwa Capital Markets, the investment banking arm of Daiwa Securities of Japan.

The transaction will result in a strengthening of the capital of KBC and an increase of ten basis points from its Tier One ratio of liabilities to equity reported "hard".

The group, which received seven billion euros in state aid during the crisis, has agreed, in agreement with the European Commission to reduce its risky assets of 39 billion euros between 2008 and 2013, mainly by reducing its activities on financial markets and corporate lending internationally.

For its part, Daiwa seeks to develop its activities in Asia to take advantage of growth in the region after reducing its alliance in investment banking business with the Japanese bank Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group.

KBC also said Monday it had sold to the Australian insurer QBE Insurance Secura its reinsurance subsidiary based in Brussels for 267 million euros.

QBE has made over 75 acquisitions over the last ten years to be present in 47 countries.

In May, KBC has raised 1.35 billion euros by selling its private banking arm KBL European Private Bankers to the Indian company Hinduja Group.

KBC closed the business in Japan in March. Analysts, traders and sellers of office of KBC in Tokyo have been committed by BNP Paribas.

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).