Financial mirror 2013 08 28

FinancialMirror Paying the Rent Risk Watch: By Alan Waring PAGE 5

Lehman’s morbid legacy

FinancialMirror

years Issue No. 1045

Aug 28 - Sep 3, 2013

By Mohamed A. El-Erian PAGE 17

THE TEMPEST A mid-summer storm at Bank of Cyprus

Battle heats up for board control, shareholders

PAGE 3

€1.00

Αugust 28 - September 3, 2013

2 | NEWS | financialmirror.com

Coward found guilty of theft, faces £3 mln legal bill

By Petros Mavros Martin Coward, the former IKOS chief investment officer has lost his software copyright case against the asset management company and a London court ruling has ordered him to pay 85% of IKOS’s legal costs which now amounts to a hefty 3 mln pounds.

Judge Sarah Asplin found in favour of the Cyprusbased hedge fund headed by the founder Elena Ambrosiadou.

Coward and his estranged wife have altogether filed over 40 law suits against each other in four countries, but key to these is this dispute regarding the critical IKOS software and which IKOS accused Coward of stealing.

Coward admitted in court that he did indeed download the IKOS proprietary material. Now he has been ordered by the court to return or destroy any copies made of IKOS quantitative trading software, and he is also banned from using, consulting, disclosing,

copying, communicating or publishing any part of this material.

In addition, he has undertaken with legal enforcement from a court affidavit to remove completely any part of this software currently being used in his new hedge fund company.

Alan Tooker, Director of IKOS Asset Management Limited, when asked to comment on the judgment said: “This confirms once and for all ownership by IKOS of our unique software.

For us, ownership has never in doubt and the decision by the court has finally put an end to the matter.”

“We of course will continue to be vigilant in protecting IKOS trade secrets and know-how, as we focus on the continued growth and success of the company and at the same time in this electronic world we continue to be dedicated in maintaining stability and continuity to any investment structure as these depend on the absolute security of intellectual property.” (photo: contactmusic.com)

Madonna tops Forbes 2013 list of top-earning celebs Madonna’s latest album, MDNA, was a flop. Her 12th studio album, Madonna sold fewer than 1 mln copies of MDNA and the singles, like “Give Me All Your Luvin,” failed to impress on the pop music scene.

But the tour that the Material Girl launched to go along with her new album was a spectacular success. Fans didn’t flock to stadium and spend upwards of $100 per ticket to hear Madonna’s latest stuff. They went to hear hits like “Vogue,” “Like a Virgin” and “Lucky Star.” The tour grossed $305 mln and earned her the Top Touring Award at the Billboard Music Awards. Add to that strong merchandise sales, a clothing line, fragrance and investments in companies like Vita Coco and Madonna tops our list of the Highest Earning Celebrities.

Forbes estimates the pop star brought in $125 mln between June 2012 and June 2013.

“That’s more money than Madonna has ever earned in the time we’ve been doing our Celebrity 100 list. The closest she came to $125 mln was in 2009 when she earned $110 mln,” the magazine said.

Madonna’s success, at age 55, just goes to show the incredible power of a successful music career. Many have accused Lady Gaga of copying Madonna.

The young star is certainly emulating Madonna when it comes to raking in money. Gaga ranks tenth on the Forbes list of highest-paid celebrities with $80 mln in earnings. She would have brought in even more than that if her tour hadn’t been cut short by a hip injury. Her latest single, “Applaulse,” was overshadowed last week by Katy Perry’s latest, “Roar.” But Gaga can comfort herself with the knowledge that last year at least, she earned a lot more money than Perry who brought in an estimate $39 mln.

To compile the list, Forbes talked to agents, managers, producers and other in-the-know folks to come up with estimates for each celebrity’s entertainment-related earnings between June 2012 and June 2013, the time frame for the Celebrity 100 list.

Ranking second on the list with $25 mln less than Madonna is Steven Spielberg. The director earned an estimated $100 mln

between June 2011 and June 2012. Most of that money comes from his extensive library.

Hit movies like E.T. and Jurassic Park are always playing on TV somewhere in the world. Last year’s ‘Lincoln’ was a critical and financial hit earning $275 mln on a budget of $65 mln.

Now, Spielberg’s DreamWorks is starting to show some real strength on TV. The studio’s latest show, Under the Dome, is one of the few bright spots on broadcast television.

Author E.L. James, Howard Stern and Simon Cowell all tie for third place on the Forbes list with $95 mln each.

James took the publishing world by storm with 50 Shades of Grey. The trilogy has sold 70 mln copies worldwide and a movie is now in the works at Universal Studios.

Stern still earns big from his contract with Sirius/XM (despite lawsuits) and Cowell is raking it in from the The X Factor and Got Talent formats which air in dozens of different countries. Stern and Cowell overlap with Got Talent. Stern is earning an estimated $15 mln per year as one of the judges on America’s Got Talent.

Syria worries push oil to 6-month high; stocks tumble The possibility of Western military action against the Syrian government pushed oil prices to a six-month high and sent equities worldwide substantially lower on Tuesday.

Both Brent and U.S. crude gained upward of $3 a barrel as fears mounted that Western intervention could further destabilize the Middle East, which pumps a third of the world’s oil.

Wall Street fell for a second day, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq down more than 1%.

Investor nervousness was reflected in a jump of more than 15% on the CBOE volatility

index, Wall Street’s so-called fear gauge, in the last two days.

Western sources who attended a meeting in Istanbul between envoys of an alliance opposed to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and the Syrian National Coalition said “action to deter further use of chemical weapons by the Assad regime could come as early as in the next few days.”

“This is the largest geopolitical risk since the start of the Iraq war. I am not saying it will escalate to that point, but this war of words with Russia is the first time the U.S. is pitted

OPAP set to post another weak quarter Greece’s gambling monopoly OPAP is seen posting a 77% year-on-year drop in secondquarter net profit to be released on Thursday, hurt by higher taxes and a deepening recession at its austerity-hit home market. Net profit is expected to fall to 29.3 mln euros, according to the average in a Reuters poll of six analysts, from 126 mln in the same period last year.

Behind the expected profit slump is a hefty 30% gross gaming revenue levy Greece slapped on OPAP since the start of 2013, as the debt-laden county struggles to shore up revenues.

The government completed the sale of a majority stake in OPAP to Greek-Czech investment fund Emma Delta for 652 mln euros earlier this month, kickstarting its long-delayed asset sales programme under its multi-billion international bailout.

Sales are seen down 13% to 863 mln euros amid lower turnover from OPAP’s flagships games - lottery Kino and sports betting Stihima.

against another global in a long time. That creates an uncertainty this market is not accustomed to,” said Mike O’Rourke, chief market strategist at JonesTrading in Greenwich, Connecticut.

Adding to the selloff, U.S. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew said it was essential for Congress to raise the government’s borrowing limit by mid-October or the country will face an unprecedented default.

He warned that the administration would not allow for it to be used as political leverage.

In Europe, stocks registered their biggest

daily drop in two months as the threat of a military strike against Syria prompted investors to take profit on some of this summer’s best performers and to buy insurance against future losses.

A rise in U.S. government debt prices and a stronger Swiss Japanese currencies suggested the flight to safety was gathering momentum.

The safe-haven yen and Swiss franc gained and riskier currencies like the Australian and New Zealand dollars fell as geopolitical tensions rose.

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Αugust 28 - September 3 , 2013

financialmirror.com | CYPRUS | 3

A mid-summer storm at Bank of Cyprus l

Battle heats up for board control, old vs. new shareholders

The Bank of Cyprus saga does not seem to let up. With the dust at the island’s main lender just about starting to settle and the market anxiously waiting to see an effective new management that will steer the bank and the economy back to growth, a new storm is about to blow with old and new shareholders vying for a bigger stake.

The much-awaited consolidated accounts show a 2.39 bln euro discrepancy in funds that should have been credited to old shareholders, a glitch that could mean that pre-bail-in shareholders at Bank of Cyprus would see their stake revised from a diluted 1% to nearer 40%.

This would please a lot of the old shareholders who saw their stake taken over by legacy Laiki holders who were granted a 18% stake to compensate for their loss in the resolved Popular Laiki.

Legal expert Kypros Chrysostomides and lawyers from at least four other firms have been negotiating with the Central Bank, the government and other stakeholders to ensure that their clients are fairly represented and that ordinary shareholders have the final say in the bank’s future and not politicians. Some of the new shareholders who have come out of the 8 bln euro bail-in include Russian depositors, which the New York Times said that in their desperate attempt to push Russians away from Cyprus, the Eurogroup has effectively handed over a European systemic bank on a silver plate.

A stormy meeting is expected to take place at the Hilton Park at 6pm on Thursday where former BOCY shareholders will decide what to do next, chief among the options being to take measures to postpone the bank’s AGM on September 10, which was supposed to deal only with the appointment of new board members.

KEEN TO STAY ON The existing board, appointed by the Central Bank, is keen to stay on, as is interim CEO Christos Sorotos who oversaw the

rapid restructuring and staff reduction plan. But new directors are also in play, with one report naming Evgeny Nadorshin, and another Igor Lozevsky, a former Deutsche Bank executive.

Provident funds also want to have a direct say in the running of the bank, with every interest group now coming forward to submit potential board members for election.

Even the Church of Cyprus, that used to control a 5% stake in the bank and is trying to cling on to its 25% shareholding in Hellenic Bank, wants to have a say as it has seen its deposits wiped out and revenues earned from dividends and interest shrivel to unprecedented amounts.

Already, the law firms representing BOCY shareholders have reportedly secured an interim order from the Supreme Court to postpone the AGM, while proposing names of candidates for the board should end by September 5.

In any case, 18 people will be elected to the new board, with Central Bank Governor Panicos Demetriades giving the final nod of approval.

The new share register has 110,000 shareholders, of whom about 9,000 are legal entities. Of these, 21,000 came about from the bail-in of unsecured deposits above 100,000 euros, who have seen their savings confiscated and compensated in about 45% worth of shares and the rest lock in new long-term deposits. Also, some 10,500 new shareholders are the result of the conversion of the high-risk bonds, while of the total about 21,000 shareholders are foreign, possibly as much as 50% of the share capital.

LEGAL EAGLES The law firms of Christodoulos Vasiliades, Andreas Neocleous, Skordis & Papapetrou and Nicos Anastasiades, as well as the audit firm Costas Tsielepis, representing shareholders with more than 1.5%, say their clients, who held large deposits in the resolved Laiki Popular Bank, want to be represented on the new Bank of Cyprus board.

Laiki ‘legacy’ holders, representing an 18% stake in the recapitalised Bank of Cyprus, argue that Central Bankappointed administrator Andri Antoniadou cannot vote or take decisions on behalf of the while block. Meanwhile, former BOCY board member and chairman of the Cyprus Institute of Directors (IoD) Evdokimos Xenofontos wrote to the Central Bank Governor suggesting that proxies should be given to the uninsured depositors and other ‘bad’ Laiki creditors to enable them to directly vote for the new directors.

“The proxy-holders should be entitled to nominate some other person to present himself at the General Meeting and vote on their behalf,” Xenophontos said, adding that the 18% shareholding should not be exercised as a “block” vote, because that would mean that this stake could control the Bank of Cyprus at any general meeting.

Former Attorney General Alecos Markides, representing the remaining Laiki Legacy holders, SYKALA, said that it was possible to have a common body to act on behalf of all former Laiki depositors, while SYKALA president Adonis Papaconstantinou said the aim was to have a say in future decisions.

CSE to launch derivatives by 2014?

The Cyprus Stock Exchange (CSE) is going ahead with plans to introduce a market for derivatives by the end of the year or early-2014, that will boost its revenue-earning capabilities and diversify the tools and services offered to investors based in Cyprus or elsewhere.

Already, the CSE has implemented the tools of the Market Maker, the Over the Counter Trades, etc., just as most of the other derivatives exchanges that were established in the U.S. in the 1980s and ’90s and rapidly expanded to Europe. The CSE has also prepared the framework for the operation of the Short Selling and Securities Lending facility.

Exchange officials told the Financial Mirror that in times of crisis and falling revenues the derivatives market will generate higher earnings for the CSE with growing interest for companies to list their instruments or invest

in them, due to the protection provided through hedging and dealing with futures.

Ideally, once the corporatisation of public services such as telco Cyta, power utility EAC and the Ports Authority goes ahead, as well as at the Coop banks, these will become attractive to new investors, while the most popular traded derivatives are those of commodities, such as the instruments that will come out of the development of the oil and gas industry of Cyprus.

“Derivatives products are expected to flourish in the future and the role of the CSE will be important in the mid- to long-term,” a CSE official said.

“New listings on the CSE coming out of tourism infrastructure, privatisations, etc., will relate to companies of big capitalisation and sufficient liquidity, and it is expected that derivatives products related to them, will be

introduced and supported in the market.”

What are the financial derivatives?

Financial derivatives are any type of transaction whose value depend on the value of another product. A derivative trade is an agreement to buy or sell a specific quantity of the underlying product at a predetermined price, at a certain point in the future. The subject product (underlying) can be shares, stock indices, interest rates, currencies, rates, commodities, etc.

Internationally these are two categories of products, in liquid equities or indices and more specifically, Futures and Options.

A futures contract concerns the purchase or sell of a specific pre-arranged quantity of an underlying security at an agreed future time (expiry date) and price (futures price), in the regulated market.

An options contract gives the holder the right to buy (Call Options) or sell (Put Options) an agreed quantity of a given asset, at an agreed price and future time or time leading up to it. A call option gives the holder the right

to buy an asset by a certain date for a certain price. A put option gives the holder the right to sell an asset by a certain date for a certain price.

The purpose of the creation of derivatives is none other than the guarantee or compensation for risk (hedging), from any kind of financial transaction. Trading in derivatives is intended to offset some risk.

Apart from the hedge, one can take place in the derivatives market based on estimates / projections/expectations for future market development. The speculation is an essential ingredient in all markets and facilitates the transfer of risk.

After the mushrooming of the foreign exchange (FX) traders and employment opportunities that were created, the derivatives market should also create new job opportunities with training firms joining the bandwagon of grooming candidates for certification and licensing to deal in these instruments.

August 28 - September 3, 2013

4 | CYPRUS | financialmirror.com

German tourists shun Cyprus as arrivals down 30%

Anastasiades: “With a gun to our head, we were forced to accept haircut”

The tourist industry is recording a loss this season of 6.6% in comparison to last year, with Cyprus Tourism Organisation Chairman Alecos Orountiotis saying that arrivals from Germany are down by more than 30% and from the UK by 9%, whereas the Russian market seems to be doing well and has recorded an increase of 20% since 2012.

In an interview with the Cyprus News Agency (CAN), Orountiotis said that the situation and programming has changed a great deal since the Eurogroup decision of last March that imposed harsh austerity measures as part of a 10 bln euro rescue and although the CTO was hoping that 2013 would be a good year for tourism, things went off track.

He said the 6.6% decrease is “manageable”, expressing the hope that by the end of the year, losses will be limited to the minimum.

Orountiotis added that if by the end of the year, the losses are between 2 or 3%, this would be considered a success that would enable CTO to start the new tourist year with more optimism.

Referring in particular to the losses from the German market, the CTO Chairman said that this is mainly due to the fact that there is a lack of available chartered flights from Germany and tourists were affected because of the Eurogroup decision on Cyprus.

Orountiotis said that the Russian market has contributed a lot to the recovery, pointing out that the number of Russian tourists has helped to cover the losses Cyprus has suffered from other traditional markets.

He said that the situation as regards arrivals from the UK is also manageable and although tourists have been affected, arrivals will be on the right track as of 2014.

The CTO Chairman said that bookings by Cypriots have also been affected in comparison with last year. In July and August many Cypriots chose to stay home.

He pointed out that the key to change the situation as regards the tourist market lies with the extension of the summer season and making Cyprus an all-year destination.

President Nicos Anastasiades said that Cyprus was forced to accept the haircut on deposits imposed by the Eurogroup in March in order to rescue the economy and the banking sector.

“With a gun to our head, we had to accept the haircut of deposits as part of a bailout,” he told the judicial panel investigating the demise of the island’s financial sector.

The initial bailout included a one-off levy on bank deposits to raise 5.8 bln euros, providing for 6.75% on deposits below 100,000 euro and 9.9% on deposits over this amount.

President of the Commission, Judge George Pikis, asked Anastasiades if the option

to request the opinion of the Court of Justice of the EU on the haircut of deposits was ever raised. President Anastasiades said “referring the issue to the Court would have meant more time and the pressure here was at maximum”.

He said Eurogroup leaders were trying to prevent him from returning to Cyprus to negotiate with political leaders and the expert committees set up and to evaluate the results of the meeting of the then Finance Minister Michalis Sarris with his Russian counterpart in Moscow.

“They were calling for the House of Representatives to convene on 17 March and to approve the Eurogroup’s decision,

otherwise the banks would have remained closed,” something that did happen, adding that “the pressure was unprecedented”.

To a remark by Pikis that this is seen as “putting a knife to the throat”, Anastasiades said “it was rather putting a gun to the head”.

Anastasiades said that his argument at the Eurogroup was that because of the Turkish invasion and the occupation of more than 70% of its productive resources, as well as the destruction of the island’s economy in 1974, the recovery depended, to a great extent, to its financial services and banking sector and this explained the large banking sector in relation to other EU countries.

Economic crisis worse than 1974 war-aftermath With the witnesses appearing before the judicial panel investigating the demise of the economy nearing an end, former centralbanker Athanasios Orphanides said on Friday that the present situation is worse than in 1974, when Turkey invaded and occupied the north of the island, destroying the economy.

The former Central Bank of Cyprus Governor said that he had been trying to warn former President Demetris Christofias from as far back as in 2009 when he had contacted presidential adviser Titos Christofides. He said that he faced stern resistance from Finance Ministry officials as regards austerity measures that were being taken by other eurozone member states.

Orphanides said that several months later he met with Christofias at his summer residence who was unconvincing as regards taking precautionary measures.

He added that the explosion at Mari in July 2011, that decimated the nearby Vasiliko power station and plunged the economy into darkness, would send Cyprus deeper into recession.

As regards Bank of Cyprus taking a risky investment with the

buyout of Uniastrum Bank in Russia, a deal that eventually crippled the Cypriot bank, Orphanides said that at the time it seemed like a good deal as it would open greater opportunities and that some of the problem at the subsidiary were discovered in time and remedies were in place.

Asked by president judge George Pikis about political interventions, Orphanides said that former Finance Minister Charilaos Stavrakis had pursued a more relaxed bank supervision, that he was told the central bank should avoid making comments about the economy and that the previous administration wanted to sell the gold reserves.

He said that Stavrakis’ interventions were to help a Russian bank based in Cyprus and to serve the interests of Marfin Investment Group CEO Andreas Vgenopoulos in his efforts to control Marfin Laiki Bank.

He concluded that was against banks buying Greek government bonds and that Cyprus should have applied to the European Stability Mechanism a long time ago.

Will Christofias face contempt of court?

The Attorney General will decide how to deal with former President Demetris Christofias who stormed out of a judicial inquiry investigating the downfall of the economy. Christofias, on who’s watch the services-based economy and the banking sector collapsed due to poor administration, lack of oversight and a runaway public sector debt, wanted special treatment by the three-judge panel, saying that he “is not like any other witness” and as a former chief executive of the state should be treated otherwise.

His walk-out was deemed as being in contempt of court and an insult to the judges, prompting the local media and all political forces, except his own Communist party Akel, to describe Christofias’ action as undermining democracy and the liberal judicial system that Cyprus enjoys. However, the previous administration refuses to admit any wrongdoing and in the epic 40-page statement that he was not allowed to recite in front of the panel, Christofias said that the whole crisis was due to the “greedy” local banks buying toxic Greek government bonds, and the lack of supervision by his declared arch-enemy, former centralbanker Athanasios Orphanides.

Christofias was also upset that he was not sent the judicial panel’s questions in advance so that he could reply from the comfort of his home, while expressed disdain that Orphanides would be allowed to testify after him.

Women can also help combat the financial crisis

By Shadi S. Sarieddine (CPA, MSc, BSc) MBA Candidate-University of Cyprus During this period of discussions for the appointment of the new Board of Directors of the Bank of Cyprus, names are thrown here and there without seemingly having an established, transparent process for doing so. Certainly, appointments should be made from among individuals who can positively contribute to an organisations’ wellbeing, especially so during these harsh (financial and otherwise) times.

Yet, a factor that doesn’t seem to be taken into consideration in this selection process is the board’s diversity in terms of gender and most importantly, the associated benefits of such in terms of the potential of increased profitability, diversity of thought and sustainability.

EU legislation is soon expected to be passed requiring 40% representation of women in BoD structures of publicly listed companies, an arrangement not aiming to claim human rights per se but one that makes absolute business sense. The

EU supports gender-balanced representation across board of directors of businesses having seen the associated benefits.

Not only does literature suggest so, but also the actual experiences of countries like Norway, Spain, Iceland and France.

This is a call to local authorities to initiate actions in this respect by first recognising the underlying benefits associated with such an arrangement. In other words, to promote gender diversity for the right reasons.

Government: Create/Empower Committees to undertake the effective implementation of the forthcoming EU legislation, raise awareness in this respect, aim to facilitate women progress/undertake senior responsibilities (i.e. initiate training programmes, create public databases with women wishing to undertake such positions, enforce objective recruitment criteria for board appointments etc), enact sanctions for non-compliance.

Capital Markets Committee: Enhance the Corporate Governance Code to exercise pressure to publicly listed companies to incorporate gender issues in their board

appointments.

Political Parties: Actively support gender equality and the endeavours of government in this respect/promote women representatives as role models.

Employer Organisations: Enhance Codes of Conduct to which members abide by to promote gender issues across all size of companies, not only large size, publicly traded.

But this is also a call to local corporations and the society at large.

Corporations: Incorporate gender diversity into your mission/strategy.

The benefits of adopting a gender diversity policy can be tremendous. The costs associated by ignoring it, potentially unbearable (as can also be seen by the effects of the financial crisis).

Society: Aim to combat stereotypes against women. They comprise a vast pool of talent, most remaining unexploited.

Let us all reap the benefits from all available sources in an effort to overcome the challenges of today. Women can greatly help.

August 28 - September 3, 2013

financialmirror.com CYPRUS

5

Paying the Rent The Risk Watch Column

No tenant likes paying the rent but most meet contractual obligations to the landlord and pay up on time. Some, however, do not. Non-payment is always a problem for any landlord. With residential tenants, the landlord is likely to find that the ‘system’, legally and practically, is loaded against him. It is not unknown for bad tenants to fail to pay rent for a year or more and it may cost the landlord as much as the lost rent in legal fees to even get the matter to court.

There are two contrasting rent issues in Cyprus.

effective control over the Sovereign Base Areas and that therefore the question of their cession does not arise’. On page 119, the Cypriot representatives Arch. Makarios and Dr Kücük, replied that they wished ‘to assure you that the Republic of Cyprus will not demand that the United Kingdom should relinquish their sovereignty or effective control over the Sovereign Base Areas’ unless the UK government ‘should at any time decide to divest themselves of the aforesaid sovereignty or effective control over the Sovereign Base Areas, it is understood that such sovereignty or control shall be transferred to the Republic of Cyprus’.

So, where does the mysterious popular assertion of the very

By Alan Waring specific figure of £12 mln rent for 1960-65 come from? It is probably a confused interpretation of Appendix R of the Treaty which covers Financial Assistance to the Republic of Cyprus (RoC) and is very specific in referring to monOne concerns the problem of residential tenants ies that the UK will pay as grants and aid (not rent). who refuse both to pay their rent and/or to quit the Over the period 1960 to 1965, the UK government property. The other concerns the widely circulat- agreed to pay RoC ‘by way of grant’ the sum of £12 ing view that the British government has refused mln ending on 31 March 1965. During the final 6 for some 38 years to pay its rent to the Cyprus gov- months of that period, and similarly before the end ernment for the Sovereign Base Areas (SBAs). of each succeeding 5 year period, the UK agreed to review the grant aid in conjunction with the RoC Does the UK Owe Cyprus to ‘determine the amount of financial aid to be proRent for the SBAs? vided’ to the RoC for the following 5 years. AppenA considerable number of Cypriots have ex- dix R also lists some additional grant aid of £1.34 pressed to me their great annoyance at the ‘fact’ mln for one-off infrastructure and other specified that the UK has failed since 1965 to honour its items, plus a loan if required for extension of the obligations under the Treaty of Establishment to electricity supply on the island. pay the Cyprus government rent for its military For reasons I do not know, the initial £12 mln bases. I have read many similar assertions in the grant aid for the period 1960-65 does not appear newspapers and on the internet. The sum of £12 to have been followed through with subsequent mln (some say per year, others say over 5 years) is 5-yearly agreed aid after 31 March 1965. I would often quoted. The ‘fact’ that the UK has not paid guess that agreement could not be reached so it has this supposed rent has become repeated endlessly all been in limbo since. and has long been an embedded part of modern Grant aid is what the term implies: a gift of fiCypriot folklore. The more I asked Cypriot friends nancial assistance (not a loan, not a rent and not and acquaintances about this issue the more the compensation). There may well be arguments that ‘fact’ was thrust back at me and the more I could the UK ought to have leased the base areas and see how sensitive it was. Typically, respondents ought to have paid rent for them but, as is clear asserted that the UK’s refusal to pay the rent and from the Treaty wording, such arguments have no the arrears all the way back to at least 1965 meant basis in the Treaty. Interestingly, Arch. Makarios that, with interest, the Cyprus government was who co-signed the Treaty on behalf of the Greek now owed billions (sic) and, by implication, this Cypriots seemed content in signing off on Appenhad contributed to the country’s financial crisis in dix R; there were several amendments written in as March 2013! Putting myself in their shoes, I would codicil notes from him and Dr Kücük (representprobably be very upset too. But, is the assertion of ing Turkish Cypriots) but none of these suggest in non-payment true? any way that they felt that the SBAs’ status should This intriguing question led me to put on my be leasehold or rented. forensic investigator’s hat. All the assertions I had seen or heard were linked to obligations apparently Zapping ‘Can’t Pay, included in the Treaty of Establishment between Won’t Pay’ Tenants the UK and Cyprus when the latter was granted its The SBA case is one where there is no lease and independence as the Republic of Cyprus in 1960. no rent to pay. In contrast, there are large numbers Having obtained a copy of the Treaty No 5476 of of cases in Cyprus where residential tenants refuse 12 December 1960 and its appendices, which are to pay their rent and arrears for long periods. Many all in the public domain, I was unable to detect any are adept at evading both the landlord and the law. reference either to the SBAs being leased to the UK However, the administration of justice is so pedesor to any rent to be paid. This makes sense since, trian and weak that it appears to be heavily biased if the SBAs per se had been leased or rented, then in favour of the tight-fisted tenant. As an example, they could not have been termed ‘sovereign’ – that a tenant of a house in the Larnaca district stopped would be an oxymoron. Sovereign means ‘under paying rent after he claimed to have lost his job.

Despite promising the landlord on numerous ocsole state authority or ownership’.

Reinforcing this, on page 118 of the Treaty, Sir casions that he would pay all his arrears, in fact no Hugh Foot on behalf of the UK, stated that the UK payments were received in over a year and so the does ‘not intend to relinquish their sovereignty or landlord felt obliged to take legal action. However,

this sounds easier than it is. Before the landlord can apply to the court for a hearing, he has to have three consecutive demand notices delivered and handed to the tenant in person by an official bailiff. As in many such cases, the tenant proved to be remarkably skilled at never being at home when the bailiff called. It took another year before all three notices were finally delivered. For the final notice, the landlord had to play private detective and follow the tenant covertly from his home so that the bailiff might nab him. It turned out that the ‘unemployed’ tenant was actually running his own business out of sight down a backstreet while nevertheless claiming unemployment benefit. There was also a suspicion that he was claiming his rent (that he had not actually paid) from the Social Security office and may well have been forging the landlord’s rent receipt signature. So, how can such petty criminals be stopped? Although tempting, the landlord cannot legally take unilateral action such as eviction without a court order or dispose of the tenant’s possessions in lieu of unpaid rent.

Some years ago, Iran had a situation just like in Cyprus, so much so that the rental market virtually dried up. Landlords en masse essentially withdrew their properties. The situation was so critical that

the government decided to take radical action.

This involves giving tenants only one month’s notice protection and allowing landlords to require 6 months’ rent in advance plus 6 months’ deposit.

In addition, if a tenant’s rent is overdue by even a couple of weeks the landlord can request an immediate court order for eviction and arrest and criminal prosecution of the tenant. I am told that all this has fundamentally changed the situation and the kind of abuse so rife in Cyprus is now very rare.

A model for the Cypriot authorities to learn from, perhaps?

Dr Alan Waring is an international risk management consultant with extensive experience in Europe, Asia and the Middle East with industrial, commercial and governmental clients. His latest book *Corporate Risk and Governance is at www. gowerpublishing.com/isbn/9781409448365. Contact waringa@cytanet.com.cy. ©2013 Alan Waring

Αugust 28 - September 3, 2013

6 | OPINION | financialmirror.com

Can Ashton handle the Syria crisis?

EDITORIAL Ever since the Arab Spring, where mass public revolts have been replacing dictators with extremists in northern Africa and the Middle East, the European Union has remained a silent bystander, occasionally stepping in with a mildworded statement calling for an end to conflicts.

Eurocrats in Brussels and the politicians who pull the strings have not yet realised that just because the ugly war is not literally on their doorstep, the civil wars that have torn nations apart do not concern the rest of Europe. How wrong they are.

The Middle East tensions are having an impact on markets. U.S. stock index futures are suffering from rising tension over a possible military response to a chemical weapons attack against Syrian

civilians, European shares have hit a month low, while the crisis has knocked Britain’s FTSE. On a humanitarian and social front, refugees are flocking to the European safe haven, some justified, others seeking better fortunes, straining the EU’s resources further as it tries to balance the rise in refugees with a lack of funds due to widespread austerity measures.

The creation of the post of the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy has proven to be yet another bureaucratic achievement, with Catherine Ashton seeming more like an ambassador looking after member and trans-Atlantic paymasters’ interests . In fact, since her title also calls for security policy, she should have been at the forefront of efforts to find peace in the region that, in turn, would ensure security on the outer rim of the EU and even within.

It is ironic that Ashton was appointed in a compromise after London failed to see Tony Blair take the chair of European Council President at a time when Britons want out of the EU and less EU involvement in their home, financial, defence and foreign affairs.

With few people genuinely interested in what happens in and around the Mediterranean basin, perhaps Cyprus ought to break away from the ineffective EU foreign policy that simply aims to serve the interests of the West, Turkey and some states keen on keeping the Sunni-Shiite conflict alive.

Cyprus will once again be at the forefront of dealing on its own with a major refugee crisis with hardly any fraternal support from the rest of our EU members, just as they did in March when they experimented with our banking system, simply because they had nothing else to suggest.

Corporate Governance: An absence of principles is no laughing matter

By Petros Florides

Comedian Groucho Marx famously joked “Those are my principles, and if you don’t like them... well, I have others.” A principle could be understood as a fundamental truth or proposition that serves as the foundation for a system of belief, or the motivation behind the behaviour of a group or individual.

A good reputation is one of the most important assets any person, organisation or country can possess. It mostly depends on adherence to sound principles. A bad reputation can mean disaster, as Cyprus discovered to its great cost after becoming known as a haven for tax evasion and money laundering. It could be argued this was due to an absence of commonly agreed principles to provide the right motivation and guidance.

Decades of bad governance, both in the public and private sector, has left this country in crisis. The demonstrable failure of ‘the way we do things around here’ has made the need for change obvious. This provides a golden opportunity for Cyprus to develop for itself a good reputation through exemplary governance. But to be successful, a set of foundational principles based on ethical values and moral duties is required.

Just as important, a way must be found to ensure those people with their hands on the levers of power adhere to these principles. This applies to both the public and private sector.

FinancialMirror Published every Wednesday by Financial Mirror Ltd. www.financialmirror.com Tel. 22 678 666 Fax. 22 678 664 P.O. Box 16077, CY2085 Nicosia Publisher/Managing Editor Masis der Parthogh masis@financialmirror.com Greek Section Editor Angela Komodromou angelak@financialmirror.com Editorial submissions: info@financialmirror.com Advertising inquiries: marketing@financialmirror.com Subscriptions: http://www.financialmirror.com/signup/index.html

The UK Corporate Governance Code states what it considers to be the underlying principles of all good governance, viz.: accountability, transparency, probity and sustainability. Whilst the Code applies only to listed companies, it is hoped that all organizations adopt its ethos. For central government departments, the UK has issued a Code of Good Practice that builds upon seven established principles of public life: selflessness, integrity, objectivity, accountability, openness, honesty and leadership. Furthermore, the Code of Good Practice acknowledges that whilst Government departments are not profit seeking, they still need to be “business-like and operate according to recognised precepts of good governance”, described as: leadership, effectiveness, accountability and sustainability.

The King Report on Governance in South Africa states how its philosophy revolves around leadership, sustainability and corporate citizenship. It explains how good governance is characterised by the ethical values of: fairness, accountability, responsibility and transparency. Furthermore, it states how good governance is also based on moral duties that find expression in the African concept of “Ubuntu” requiring sustainable economic, social and environmental performance.

Similar to Cyprus, both the UK and South Africa have a voluntary system of corporate governance that complements legal duties and responsibilities. The advantage of a voluntary system lies in the flexibility to apply principles in a contextually appropriate way. But the effectiveness of a voluntary system depends on shareholders’ active engagement with the company when there is divergence from recommended best practice and defined standards. It is not only in Cyprus where this has failed to happen.

For example, the UK considered it necessary to introduce the Stewardship Code following the recent financial crisis to encourage institutional shareholders to fulfil their responsibilities under the voluntary system. But since the Stewardship Code is also voluntary, its effectiveness is debatable. The phenomenon of disengaged institutional investors appears to be a general problem: the 2009 King Report on Governance in South Africa states that even though more than twenty asset managers and owners signed the United Nations Principles of Responsible Investment, few are actually voting or disclosing their votes.

For companies with an active secondary market, shareholders can exit the investment to send a clear message of dissatisfaction to management, including for reasons of diverging principles. But what about companies whose shares cannot be easily exited, especially when the board does not take account of minority shareholder concerns? Furthermore, does

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shareholder exit provide adequate protection for other stakeholders (e.g. creditors, employees, tax payers)? What about public organisations that have no shareholders?

A wide cross section of professional bodies, academia, civil society and individuals are collaborating on a new initiative under the working title “New Governance for a New Cyprus”.

This will include convening the first ever Cyprus Governance Forum later this year to try and answer such questions as posed above. It is also promoting the concept of a “Governance Charter” of ethics, values and principles to be reinforced by new laws if necessary. This Charter would apply to all organisations, whether public or private, that are considered systemically important, too big to fail, or of public interest.

Working together to improve the governance of our institutions through commonly agreed foundational principles is vital to our economic future and prosperity. Any organisation, institution or individuals interested in joining the initiative for a better Cyprus through better governance are invited to contact Petros Florides (petros_florides@wvi.org).

Petros Florides is Regional Governance Advisor for World Vision International, and Executive Officer of World Vision Cyprus. Petros is also on the board of the Institute of Directors (Cyprus), co-founder of the Cyprus National Advisory Council for the Chartered Institute for Securities & Investments, cofounder of the Institute of Risk Management Cyprus Regional Group, and a Chartered Management Accountant. The views in this article represent those of the author and not any other individual or organisation.

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August 28 - September 3, 2013

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7

End austerity now In recent weeks, talk about a budding recovery in the eurozone has gained traction, with key indices pointing to expansion in the core countries – data that many are citing as evidence that austerity is finally working. Money-market funds from the United States are returning, albeit cautiously, to resume funding of European bank debt. Even Goldman Sachs is now bullishly piling into European equities. But is a recovery really underway?

Cynics recall that a European recovery was supposed to take hold as early as the fourth quarter of 2010, and that every International Monetary Fund projection since then has predicted recovery “by the end of the year.” Instead, GDP has collapsed, with the Spanish and Italian economies expected to

By Mark Blyth

contract by close to 2% this year. Portugal’s economy is set to shrink by more than 2%, and Greece’s output will fall by more than 4%.

Moreover, unemployment in the eurozone has skyrocketed to an average rate of roughly 12%, with more than 50% youth unemployment in the periphery countries implying a longterm loss of talent and erosion of the tax base. And, despite the spike in unemployment, productivity growth in the eurozone is decidedly negative.

More significant, over the last year, the public debt/GDP ratio rose by seven percentage points in Italy, 11 in Ireland,

and 15 in Portugal and Spain. If the sine qua non of recovery via austerity is the stabilization and reduction of debt, the cynics’ case appears to have been made.

Against this background, the return of US investors to provide short-term dollar funding for European bank debt smacks of a desperate hunt for yield that relies on European Central Bank President Mario Draghi’s promise to do “whatever it takes” to save the euro. As for Goldman’s equity play, as bond-market guru Bill Blain put it, “the words ‘buy cheap, sell a bit dearer on the up, and then dump and run’ spring to mind.”

In fact, any talk of recovery is premature until the losses incurred by austerity are recouped. As it stands, every country that has implemented an austerity program without imposing losses on private creditors has more debt now than when it started. For example, according to official estimates, Spain’s public debt, which amounted to only about 36% of GDP when the crisis began, has almost tripled – and the actual figure may be much higher. More telling, the countries that cut expenditure the most experienced the largest bond-yield spikes and the most significant debt growth.

The explanation for this is simple. When a country gives up its monetary sovereignty, its banks are effectively borrowing in a foreign currency, making them exceptionally vulnerable to liquidity shocks, like that which sparked turmoil in Europe’s banking system in 2010-2011. The government, unable to print money to bail out the banks or increase export competitiveness through currency devaluation, is left with only two options: default or deflation (austerity).

Austerity’s underlying logic is that budget cuts, by reducing the debt burden and restoring confidence, ultimately enhance stability and support growth. But, when countries pursue austerity simultaneously with their main trading partners, overall demand plummets, causing all of their economies to contract and, in turn, increasing their debt/GDP ratios.

But the problem with austerity in the eurozone is more fundamental: policymakers are attempting to address a sovereign-debt crisis, though the real problem is a banking crisis. With Europe’s banking system triple the size and twice as leveraged as its US counterpart, and the ECB lacking genuine lender-of-last-resort authority, the sudden halt in capital flows to peripheral countries in 2009 created a liquidity-starved system that was too big to bail out.

As holders of euro-denominated assets recognized this situation, they turned to the ECB for insurance (which the ECB could not deliver under its previous president, Jean-Claude Trichet, whose leadership was defined by his commitment to maintaining price stability). Investors’ subsequent efforts to price in the risk of a eurozone breakup – not the volume of sovereign debt – caused bond yields to spike.

But the financial-market turmoil fueled a panic among eurozone leaders, leading them to misdiagnose the malady and prescribe the wrong medicine, which has served only to generate new symptoms. While Draghi’s promise, embodied by the ECB’s “outright monetary transactions” program – as well as its long-term refinancing operation and emergency liquidity assistance program – has bought time and lowered yields, the eurozone’s banking crisis persists.

Eurozone leaders must recognize that spending cuts will do nothing to stabilize the balance sheets of core-country banks that are over-exposed to peripheral countries’ sovereign debt.

Until Europe rejects austerity in favor of a growth-oriented approach, all signs of recovery will prove illusory.

Mark Blyth is Professor of International Political Economy at Brown University and the author of Austerity: The History of a Dangerous Idea. © Project Syndicate, 2013. www.project-syndicate.org

August 28 - September 3, 2013

8 COMMENT financialmirror.com

When inflation doves cry The Wall Street Journal recently ran a front-page article reporting that the monetary-policy “doves,” who had forecast low inflation in the United States, have gotten the better of the “hawks,” who argued that the Fed’s monthly purchases of long-term securities, or so-called quantitative easing (QE), would unleash faster price growth. The report was correct but misleading, for it failed to mention why there is so little inflation in the US today. Were the doves right, or just lucky?

The US Federal Reserve Board has pumped out trillions of dollars of reserves, but never have so many reserves produced so little monetary growth. Neither the hawks nor the doves (nor anyone else) expected that.

Monetarists insist that economies experience inflation when money-supply growth persistently exceeds output growth. That has not happened yet, so inflation has been postponed.

Instead of rejecting monetary theory and history, the army of Wall Street soothsayers should look beyond the Fed’s press releases and ask themselves: Does it make sense to throw out centuries of experience? Are we really so confident that the Fed has found a new way?

The Fed has printed new bank reserves with reckless abandon.

But almost all of the reserves sit idle on commercial banks’ balance sheets. For the 12 months ending in July, the St. Louis Fed reports that bank reserves rose 31%. During the same period, a commonly used measure of monetary growth, M2, increased by only 6.8%. No sound monetarist thinks those numbers predict current inflation.

Indeed, almost all the reserves added in the second and third rounds of QE, more than 95%, are sitting in excess reserves, neither lent nor borrowed and never used to increase money in circulation.

The Fed pays the banks 0.25% to keep them idle.

With $2 trln in excess reserves, and the prospect of as much as $85 bln added each month, banks receive $5 bln a year, and rising,

without taking any risk. For the bankers, that’s a bonanza, paid from monies that the Fed would normally pay to the US Treasury. And, adding insult to injury, about half the payment goes to branches of foreign banks.

In normal times, there are valid reasons for paying interest on excess reserves. Currently, however, it is downright counter-productive. Bank loans have started to increase, but small borrowers, new borrowers, and start-up companies are regularly refused.

Current low interest rates do not cover the risk that banks would take. To be sure, they could raise the rate for new and small borrowers; but, in the current political climate, they would stand accused of stifling economic recovery if they did.

The new Consumer Financial Protection Board is also a deterrent, as banks consider it safer to lend to the government, large corporations, and giant real-estate speculators. The banks can report record profits without much risk, rebuild capital, and pay dividends and bonuses. And the Fed can congratulate itself on the mostly unobserved way that the large banks have used taxpayers’ money.

Instead of continuing along this futile path, the Fed should end its open-ended QE3 now. It should stop paying interest on excess reserves until the US economy returns to a more normal footing. Most important, it should announce a strategy for eliminating the massive volume of such reserves.

I am puzzled, and frankly appalled, by the Fed’s failure to explain how it will restore its balance sheet to a non-inflationary level. The announcements to date simply increase uncertainty without telling the public anything useful. Selling $2 trln of reserves will take years.

It must do more than repeat that the Fed can raise interest rates paid on reserves to encourage banks to hold them. It will take a clearly stated, widely understood strategy – the kind that Paul Volcker introduced in 1979-1982 – to complete the job.

By Allan H. Meltzer

Should the end of QE come in September, December, or later?

Does it matter? Historically, the Fed has typically been slow to respond to inflation. Waiting until inflation is here, as some propose, is the usual way. But that merely fuels inflation expectations and makes the task more painful.

And how high will the Fed push up interest rates? Once rates get to 5% or 6%, assuming inflation remains dormant, the Fed can expect a backlash from Congress, the administration, unions, homebuilders, and others.

When contemplating the consequences of this, remember that 40% of US government debt comes due within two years. Rolling it over at higher rates of 4% or 5% would add more than $100 bln to the budget deficit. And that is just the first two years. The budget cost increases every year, as more of the debt rolls over – and that does not include agency debt and the large increase in the current-account deficit to pay China, Japan, and other foreign holders of US debt.

Those who believe that inflation will remain low should look more thoroughly and think more clearly. There are plenty of good textbooks that explain what too many policymakers and financialmarket participants would rather forget.

Allan H. Meltzer, University Professor of Public Policy at Carnegie Mellon University and Distinguished Visiting Fellow at the Hoover Institution, is the author of A History of the Federal Reserve. © Project Syndicate, 2013. www.project-syndicate.org

The paranoid style in economics Why do high-profile economic tussles turn so quickly to ad hominem attacks? Perhaps the most well-known recent example has been the Nobel laureate Paul Krugman’s campaign against the economists Carmen Reinhart and Kenneth Rogoff, in which he moved quickly from criticism of an error in one of their papers to charges about their commitment to academic transparency.

For those who know these two superb international macroeconomists, as I do, it is evident that these allegations should promptly be dismissed. But there is the larger question of why the paranoid style has become so prominent.

Part of the answer is that economics is an inexact science, with exceptions to almost every pattern of behavior that economists take for granted. For example, economists predict that higher prices for a good will reduce demand for it. But students of economics will no doubt remember an early encounter with “Giffen goods,” which violate the usual pattern. When tortillas become more expensive, a poor Mexican worker may eat more of them, because she now has to cut back on more expensive food like meat.

Such “violations” occur elsewhere as well. Customers often value a good more when its price goes up. One reason may be its signaling value. An expensive handcrafted mechanical watch may tell time no more accurately than a cheap quartz model; but, because few people can afford one, buying it signals that the owner is rich.

Similarly, investors flock to stocks that have appreciated, because they have “momentum. The point is that economic behavior is complex and can vary among individuals, over time, between goods, and across cultures. Physicists do not need to know the behavior of every molecule to predict how a gas will behave under pressure. Economists cannot be so sanguine. Under some conditions, individual behavioral aberrations cancel one another out, making crowds more predictable than individuals. But, under other conditions, individuals influence one another in such a way that the crowd becomes a herd, led by a few.

The difficulties for economic policymakers do not stop there.

Economic institutions can have different effects, depending on their quality. In the run-up to the 2008 financial crisis, macroeconomists tended to assume away the financial sector in their models of advanced economies. With no significant financial crisis since the Great Depression, it was convenient to take for granted that the fi-

nancial plumbing worked in the background.

Models, thus simplified, suggested policies that seemed to work – that is, until the plumbing backed up. And the plumbing malfunctioned because herd behavior – shaped by policies in ways that we are only now coming to understand – overwhelmed it.

So, why not let evidence, rather than theory, guide policy? Unfortunately, it is hard to get clear-cut evidence of causality. If high national debt is associated with slow economic growth, is it because excessive debt impedes growth, or because slow growth causes countries to accumulate more debt?

Many an econometrician’s career has been built on finding a clever way to establish the direction of causality. Unfortunately, many of these methods cannot be applied to the most important questions facing economic policymakers. So the evidence does not really tell us whether a heavily indebted country should pay down its debt or borrow and invest more.

Moreover, what seem like obvious, commonsense policy solutions all too often have unintended consequences, because a policy’s targets are not passive objects, as in physics, but active agents who react in unpredictable ways. For example, price controls, rather than lowering prices, often cause scarcity and the emergence of a black market in which controlled commodities cost significantly more.

All of this implies that economic policymakers require an enormous dose of humility, openness to various alternatives (including the possibility that they might be wrong), and a willingness to experiment.

This does not mean that our economic knowledge cannot guide us, only that what works in theory – or worked in the past or elsewhere – should be prescribed with an appropriate degree of self-doubt.

But, for economists who actively engage the public, it is hard to influence hearts and minds by qualifying one’s analysis and hedging one’s prescriptions. Better to assert one’s knowledge unequivocally, especially if past academic honors certify one’s claims of expertise.

This is not an entirely bad approach if it results in sharper public debate.

The dark side of such certitude, however, is the way it influences how these economists engage contrary opinions. How do you convince your passionate followers if other, equally credentialed, economists take the opposite view? All too often, the path to easy influence is to impugn the other side’s motives and methods, rather than

By Raghuram Rajan

recognizing and challenging an opposing argument’s points. Instead of fostering public dialogue and educating the public, the public is often left in the dark. And it discourages younger, less credentialed economists from entering the public discourse.

In their monumental research on centuries of public and sovereign debt, the normally very careful Reinhart and Rogoff made an error in one of their working papers. The error is in neither their prize-winning 2009 book nor in a subsequent widely read paper responding to the academic debate about their work.

Reinhart and Rogoff’s research broadly shows that GDP growth is slower at high levels of public debt. While there is a legitimate debate about whether this implies that high debt causes slow growth, Krugman turned to questioning their motives. He accused Reinhart and Rogoff of deliberately keeping their data out of the public domain. Reinhart and Rogoff, shocked by this charge – tantamount to an accusation of academic dishonesty – released a careful rebuttal, including online evidence that they had not been reticent about sharing their data. In fairness, given Krugman’s strong and public positions, he has been subject to immense personal criticism by many on the right. Perhaps the paranoid style in public debate, focusing on motives rather than substance, is a useful defensive tactic against rabid critics. Unfortunately, it spills over into countering more reasoned differences of opinion as well. Perhaps respectful debate in economics is possible only in academia. The public discourse is poorer for this.

Raghuram Rajan, Professor of Finance at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, is incoming Governor of the Reserve Bank of India. He is the author of Fault Lines: How Hidden Fractures Still Threaten the World Economy. © Project Syndicate, 2013. www.project-syndicate.org

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ª·˜ ¤ÛÙËÛ·Ó ÂÓ¤‰Ú· ÛÙÔ Eurogroup Ù˘ 15˘ ª·ÚÙ›Ô˘ Στη συνεδρία του Γιούρογκρουπ τησ 15ησ Μαρτίου “µασ έβαλαν το πιστÞλι στον κρÞταφο” για να αποδεχθούµε το κούρεµα των καταθέσεων, δήλωσε χθεσ ο ΠρÞεδροσ τησ ∆ηµοκρατίασ Νίκοσ Αναστασιάδησ, ενώπιον τησ Ερευνητικήσ Επιτροπήσ για την Οικονοµία. Παράλληλα σηµείωσε πωσ η ατολµία, η φοβία του πολιτικού κÞστουσ, η παραγνώριση τησ προθυµίασ τησ αντιπολίτευσησ να συµβάλει στη λήψη µέτρων, και οι ιδεολογικέσ αγκυλώσεισ τησ προηγούµενησ Κυβέρνησησ δεν επέτρεψαν τη λήψη µέτρων έγκαιρα. Ο ΠρÞεδροσ τησ ∆ηµοκρατίασ είπε, επίσησ, Þτι τα επιχειρήµατα που προέβαλε στο Γιούρογκρουπ, Þπωσ, µεταξύ άλλων, το γεγονÞσ Þτι η Κύπροσ υπέστη µείωση εισοδηµάτων απÞ την τουρκική εισβολή και Þτι ήταν µια ηµικατεχÞµενη χώρα, “ανατρέπονταν απÞ τα άριστα αποτελέσµατα που πραγµάτωσε το ελεύθερο τµήµα τησ Κυπριακήσ ∆ηµοκρατίασ” και απÞ το γεγονÞσ Þτι έγινε αποδεκτή µε θαυµαστικά στην ΕΕ και στην Ευρωζώνη, ούσα υπÞ κατοχή. “Ήταν µια προειληµµένη απÞφαση”, που άρχισε να διαµορφώνονται απÞ τισ ΣυνÞδουσ των G20 µε υιοθέτηση τησ κάποια στιγµή απÞ την ΕΕ και “δυστυχώσ λÞγω τησ µη λήψησ έγκαιρων µέτρων θεώρησαν κάποιοι Þτι ήταν η κατάλληλη στιγµή να επιβάλουν κάτι” που δεν είχε προηγουµένωσ δοκιµαστεί, πρÞσθεσε. Συνεχίζοντασ είπε πωσ µε την αναβολή απÞ την ΕΕ τησ συνάντησησ του Κύπριου ΥΠΟΙΚ µε τον Ρώσο ΥΠΟΙΚ για τισ 21 Μαρτίου, “αυτÞ το οποίο επιδίωκαν ήταν να µασ αποστερήσουν ακÞµη και το τελευταίο ανάχωµα ή εκείνο που θα µασ έδινε το δικαίωµα να ζητήσω, Þπωσ και το έπραξα, προκειµένου να έρθω στην Κύπρο, να διαβουλευθώ µε τουσ πολιτικούσ αρχηγούσ, µε τισ οµάδεσ εµπειρογνωµÞνων που είχαµε αλλά και να δούµε τα αποτελέσµατα τησ συνάντησησ του Κύπριου ΥΠΟΙΚ µε τον Ρώσο ΥΠΟΙΚ”, πρÞσθεσε.

“Ζητούσαν να συνέλθει η Βουλή την Κυριακή 17 Μαρτίου και να εγκρίνει την πρÞταση τησ Επιτροπήσ, διαφορετικά την Τρίτη οι τράπεζεσ µασ θα παρέµειναν κλειστέσ, πράγµα που έγινε”, ανέφερε και πρÞσθεσε Þτι “ασκήθηκαν χωρίσ προηγούµενο πιέσεισ”. Σε παρατήρηση του κ. Πίκη Þτι αυτÞ στη λαϊκή γλώσσα λέγεται Þτι “µασ έβαλαν στο µαχαίρι στο λαιµÞ”, ο ΠρÞεδροσ Αναστασιάδησ είπε: “Ή το πιστÞλι στον κρÞταφο”. Ο ΠρÞεδροσ τησ ∆ηµοκρατίασ ανέφερε στον ΠρÞεδρο τησ Επιτροπήσ Þτι “ήταν απÞλυτα ταυτισµένεσ µε τισ θέσεισ του ∆ΝΤ οι Γερµανία, Ολλανδία, Αυστρία, Φινλανδία και Σλοβακία”, ενώ σηµείωσε Þτι η Ελλάδα “προσπαθούσε µε κάθε τρÞπο να βοηθήσει”, αλλά ήταν και η ίδια σε δύσκολη θέση. Ο κ. Πικήσ αναφέρθηκε στην επιστολή που απέστειλε ο ΠρÞεδροσ Αναστασιάδησ στισ 20 Μαρτίου στον Γ∆ του ΥΠΟΙΚ ζητώντασ του ενηµέρωση για το ποιοσ λειτουργÞσ έδωσε εντολή στον ΓενικÞ Εισαγγελέα να ετοιµάσει νοµοσχέδιο για κούρεµα. Στην απάντηση, οι λειτουργοί του Υπουργείου ανέφεραν Þτι Þλεσ οι ενέργειεσ έγινε µετά απÞ οδηγίεσ του Υπουργού Οικονοµικών και Þτι ήταν ενήµεροσ ο ΠρÞεδροσ τησ ∆ηµοκρατίασ. ΑυτÞ, ρώτησε ο κ. Πικήσ τον ΠρÞεδρο Αναστασιάδη, δεν υποδηλώνει Þτι είχατε υπÞψη σασ, ωσ Κυβέρνηση, το ενδεχÞµενο κουρέµατοσ; Απαντώντασ, ο ΠρÞεδροσ τησ

∆ηµοκρατίασ είπε πωσ το νοµοσχέδιο δεν έχει καµιά σχέση µε την τελική απÞφαση του Eurogroup για κούρεµα και αναφέρθηκε σε µια σειρά γεγονÞτων που συνέβησαν την 15 Μαρτίου, πριν την απÞφαση. Ùπωσ ανέφερε, στισ 15 Μαρτίου πραγµατοποιήθηκε συνάντησησ µεταξύ τησ κυπριακήσ αντιπροσωπείασ, που αποτελείτο απÞ τουσ κύριουσ Α. Χαραλάµπουσ, Α. ΤρÞκκο, ∆ιευθυντέσ του Υπουργείου Οικονοµικών, Γ. Σκλάβο, ΟικονοµικÞ ΛειτουργÞ, Υπουργείο Οικονοµικών, κα Προκοπίου, Β. ∆ιευθύντρια, Κεντρικήσ Τράπεζασ, κ. Ajay Rawal τησ Alvarez & Marsal µε τον Gere Joh Koopman, Αναπληρωτή ∆ιευθυντή τησ Επιτροπήσ Ανταγωνισµού τησ ΚοµισιÞν. «Κατά τη διάρκεια τησ συνάντησησ, ο κ.

Koopman ξεκαθάρισε Þτι οι µέτοχοι και οι κάτοχοι αξιογράφων θα έπρεπε να υποστούν πλήρη αποµείωση, δηλαδή θα έχαναν το 100% των περιουσιακών τουσ στοιχείων και δεν υπήρχε οποιοδήποτε περιθώριο διαπραγµάτευσησ», είπε. Ο ΠρÞεδροσ Αναστασιάδησ συνέχισε λέγοντασ πωσ µετά τη συνάντηση και ενÞψει τησ σθεναρήσ αντίδρασησ τησ κυπριακήσ αντιπροσωπείασ, ο κ. Koopman, απέστειλε ηλεκτρονικÞ µήνυµα στον κ. ΤρÞκκο µε κοινοποίηση στον κ. Χαραλάµπουσ και στον κ.

Maarten Verwey, Αναπληρωτή Γ∆ για Οικονοµικέσ και Νοµισµατικέσ Υποθέσεισ τησ Ευρωπαϊκήσ Επιτροπήσ, σχετικά µε δική του

άτυπη εισήγηση για φορολÞγηση των τÞκων επί των καταθέσεων, προκειµένου να διασφαλιστεί η εξεύρεση επιπλέον ποσού 3 δισ για άµεση εξασφάλιση τησ αξιοπιστίασ των κυπριακών προτάσεων. Συγκεκριµένα, Þπωσ είπε ο ΠρÞεδροσ Αναστασιάδησ, ο κ. Koopman αναφέρθηκε σε επιβολή φορολογίασ, ισÞποσησ µε το 5% των καταθέσεων των εισπρακτέων τÞκων, και η οποία θα καταβαλλÞταν σε περίοδο που δεν θα υπερέβαινε τα δύο χρÞνια. Το ηλεκτρονικÞ αυτÞ µήνυµα διαβιβάστηκε στον Γεώργιο Παντελή, Ανώτερο ΛειτουργÞ του Υπουργείου Οικονοµικών απÞ τον Ανδρέα Χαραλάµπουσ. Ο κ. Παντελή, µε βάση οδηγίεσ του Υπουργού Οικονοµικών, κ. Σαρρή, άρχισε την εξέταση των νοµικών πτυχών µιασ τέτοιασ πρÞτασησ και ακολούθωσ την προετοιµασία σχετικού νοµοσχεδίου µε τη βοήθεια τησ Νοµικήσ Υπηρεσίασ, είπε ο ΠρÞεδροσ. Σηµείωσε Þτι παρά τα γεγονÞσ Þτι δεν είχε ενηµερωθεί απÞ τον κ. Σαρρή, η πρωτοβουλία του ήταν µέσα στισ προσπάθειεσ για εξεύρεση εναλλακτικών προτάσεων προσ αποφυγή των θέσεων του ∆ΝΤ. «Να τονίσω ακÞµη Þτι το νοµοσχέδιο αυτÞ δεν έχει καµιά απολύτωσ σχέση ή οµοιÞτητα µε την τελική απÞφαση του Eurogroup για την επιβολή επιβάρυνσησ επί των καταθέσεων που υιοθετήθηκε το πρωινÞ τησ 16 Μαρτίου. ∆υστυχώσ, η άτυπη πρÞταση του κ. Koopman, δεν έγινε αποδεκτή ούτε απÞ την ίδια την ΕΕ και ωσ εκ τούτου δεν προωθήθηκε περαιτέρω, λÞγω των έντονων διαφωνιών του ∆ΝΤ», είπε ο ΠρÞεδροσ Αναστασιάδησ. Σε δηλώσεισ του στουσ δηµοσιογράφουσ, µετά την ολοκλήρωση τησ κατάθεσήσ του ενώπιον τησ Ερευνητικήσ Επιτροπήσ για την Οικονοµία, ο κ. Αναστασιάδησ τÞνισε πωσ η ανάκτηση τησ αξιοπιστίασ µασ έναντι τησ κοινωνίασ και ταυτÞχρονα στο εξωτερικÞ, είναι το διαβατήριÞ µασ για ανάκαµψη τησ κυπριακήσ οικονοµίασ.

¶ÚfiÛÎÏËÛË Û ·ÏÈÔ‡˜ Î·È Ó¤Ô˘˜ ÌÂÙfi¯Ô˘˜ Ù˘ ∆Ú. ∫‡ÚÔ˘ Χωρίσ αποτέλεσµα ολοκληρώθηκε αργά χθεσ το απÞγευµα συνάντηση στην Κεντρική Τράπεζα σε σχέση µε την κατάθεση ονοµάτων απÞ τισ οµάδεσ των δικηγÞρων που εκπροσωπούν ξένουσ µετÞχουσ και τον ΣΥΚΑΛΑ (Σύνδεσµο Καταθετών Λαϊκήσ), ο οποίοσ ουσιαστικά δεν µπορεί να συµµετέχει στη µετοχική δοµή τησ τράπεζασ αφού το ποσοστÞ τουσ ελέγχεται απÞ τη διαχειρίστρια τησ Λαϊκήσ Τράπεζασ Άντρη Αντωνιάδου. Στην επικείµενη Γενική Συνέλευση τησ 10ησ Σεπτεµβρίου που θα αρχίσει στισ 4 το απÞγευµα, οι µη εξασφαλισµένοι καταθέτεσ τησ Λαϊκήσ δεν θα έχουν δικαίωµα ψήφου. Σύµφωνα µε το επικαιροποιηµένο µνηµÞνιο η πλειοψηφία των µελών του ∆Σ θα πρέπει να είναι ανεξάρτητοι ενώ οι κανονισµοί τησ τράπεζασ προβλέπουν πωσ το Συµβούλιο πρέπει να αποτελείται απÞ 10-18 άτοµα. Με αυτά τα δεδοµένα και αν τελικά στο Συµβούλιο έχουν εκπροσώπηση οι µη εξασφαλισµένοι καταθέτεσ τησ Λαϊκήσ, τησ Τράπεζασ Κύπρου, των Ταµείων Προνοίασ Τράπεζασ Κύπρου και Cyta και η διαχειρίστρια τησ Λαϊκήσ που ελέγχει το 18% γίνονται αντιληπτÞ πωσ η δηµιουργία ενÞσ µικρού και ευέλικτου σχήµατοσ θα είναι δύσκολη. Πάντωσ σηµαντικέσ εξελίξεισ σηµειώνονται αναφορικά µε τη νέα δοµή του ∆ιοικητικού Συµβουλίου τησ Τράπεζασ Κύπρου, αφού και το 50% των υπÞλοιπων µετÞχων τησ Τράπεζασ Κύπρου και το οποίο η Εκκλησία επιδιώκει να συσπειρώσει γύρω τησ Þπωσ είχε προαναγγείλει τισ τελευταίεσ µέρεσ ο Αρχιεπίσκοποσ ΧρυσÞστοµοσ, δείχνει ενδιαφέρον. Μάλιστα, οι κινήσεισ γίνονται γρήγορα µιασ και αύριο Πέµπτη 29 Αυγούστου συγκλήθηκε σύσκεψη στην οποία προσκλήθηκαν Þλοι οι παλιοί και νέοι µέτοχοι τησ Τράπεζασ Κύπρου οι οποίοι Þπωσ αναφέρει σχετική ανακοίνωση του δικηγορικού γραφείου του Κύπρου Χρυσοστοµίδη, δεν εκπροσωπούνται

απÞ τον διοικητή ή απÞ «µεγαλοδικηγÞρουσ». Στη σύσκεψη θα λάβουν µέροσ επίσησ µέλη του συνδέσµου χρηµατιστών, του συνδέσµου δηµοσίων εταιρειών, δικηγÞροι και µέτοχοι των τραπεζών Κύπρου και Λαϊκήσ. ΣτÞχοσ τησ σύσκεψησ είναι η οργάνωση και δηµιουργία συνδέσµου µετÞχων που δεν εκπροσωπούνται απÞ τον διοι-

κητή τησ ΚΤ ή απÞ «µεγαλοδικηγÞρουσ, αναφέρεται χαρακτηριστικά στην ανακοίνωση. Γίνεται αντιληπτÞ πωσ αν υπάρξει συσπείρωση γύρω απÞ αυτήν την πρωτοβουλία τÞτε δηµιουργείται ένασ πολύ ισχυρÞσ πÞλοσ ικανÞσ να υπερκαλύψει τουσ υπÞλοιπουσ που διεκδικούν ρÞλο και λÞγο στα διαδραµατιζÞµενα.

ΧΡΗΜΑ&ΑΓΟΡΑ

28 ΑΥΓΟΥΣΤΟΥ, 2013

2 | ΕΙ∆ΗΣΕΙΣ | financialmirror.com

ª›ÓÈ-ÎÚ·¯ ÛÙ· ¯ÚËÌ·ÙÈÛÙ‹ÚÈ· ÏfiÁˆ ™˘Ú›·˜ Σηµαντικέσ απώλειεσ κατέγραψαν χθεσ τα διεθνή χρηµατιστήρια, καθώσ πληθαίνουν οι ενδείξεισ άµεσησ στρατιωτικήσ επέµβασησ των ∆υτικών στη Συρία. Προοπτική που ενισχύει την αποστροφή στην ανάληψη κινδύνου απÞ τουσ επενδυτέσ, οι οποίοι έτσι κι αλλιώσ περιορίζουν την έκθεσή τουσ στισ αναδυÞµενεσ οικονοµίεσ τισ τελευταίεσ εβδοµάδεσ, προεξοφλώντασ την επιβράδυνση στην εκτύπωση δολαρίων απÞ τη Fed. Η κακή ηµέρα φάνηκε απÞ το πρωί, µε τισ περισσÞτερεσ ασιατικέσ αγορέσ να κλείνουν στο «κÞκκινο», αν και Σαγκάη, Σίδνεϊ και Σεούλ κατÞρθωσαν να κινηθούν κÞντρα στο ρεύµα. Πρωταθλητήσ τησ πτώσησ αναδείχθηκε το Χρηµατιστήριο του Ντουµπάι, Þπου ο χρηµατιστηριακÞσ δείκτησ κατέγραψε τισ µεγαλύτερεσ απώλειεσ τησ τελευταίασ 4ετίασ, υποχωρώντασ 7%. Ο συριακÞσ ιÞσ µεταδÞθηκε και στην Ευρώπη, µε τουσ χρηµατιστηριακούσ δείκτεσ σε Φρανκφούρτη, Παρίσι,

Μιλάνο και Μαδρίτη να καταγράφουν απώλειεσ τησ τάξησ του 2%. Η είδηση Þτι ο δείκτησ επιχειρηµατικήσ εµπιστοσύνησ Ifo στη Γερµανία ενισχύθηκε τον Αύγουστο -για τέταρτο συνεχÞµενο µήνα- και διαµορφώθηκε στο υψηλÞτερο επίπεδο απÞ τον Απρίλιο του 2012 δεν στάθηκε αρκετÞσ για να αναχαιτίσει τισ πιέσεισ στισ γερµανικέσ µετοχέσ. Οι ιταλικέσ αγορέσ εκτÞσ απÞ τον παράγοντα Συρία επηρεάζονται αρνητικά και απÞ τισ αµφιβολίεσ των επενδυτών για την βιωσιµÞτητα του κυβερνητικού συνασπισµού, στισ οποίεσ αποδÞθηκε η µειωµένη ζήτηση κατά την δηµοπρασία διετών οµολÞγων αρχέσ τησ εβδοµάδασ, αλλά και η αύξηση τησ απÞδοσησ των 10ετών ιταλικών οµολÞγων στο 4,41%.

Άνοδοσ στο ΧΑΚ Πάντωσ µικρή άνοδο κατέγραψε και χθεσ, για τρίτη συνεχή συνεδρία, το Χρηµατιστήριο Αξιών Κύπρου, µε τον ΓενικÞ

∆είκτη να σηµειώνει κέρδη σε ποσοστÞ 0,26%, κλείνοντασ στισ 94,34 µονάδεσ, κÞντρα στα συριακά γεγονÞτα. Ανοδικά κινήθηκε και ο ∆είκτησ FTSE/CySE 20 σε ποσοστÞ 0,40%, κλείνοντασ στισ 35,24 µονάδεσ. ΑπÞ τισ µετοχέσ που έτυχαν διαπραγµάτευσησ το µεγαλύτερο επενδυτικÞ ενδιαφέρον προσέλκυσαν οι τίτλοι τησ Ελληνικήσ Τράπεζασ , τησ ∆ήµητρα Επενδυτική και τησ Lordos United Plastics. Εξάλλου, το Συµβούλιο του ΧΑΚ ανακοίνωσε Þτι έχει αποδεχθεί σύµφωνα µε το Άρθρο 58(1) του ΝÞµου του ΧΑΚ την εισαγωγή στο Χρηµατιστήριο Αξιών Κύπρου 30.000 Γραµµατίων του ∆ηµοσίου 30 Ηµερών, 22ησ Έκδοσησ Σειράσ 2013 (28/8/2013 – 27/9/2013) ονοµαστικήσ αξίασ 1000 ευρώ το καθένα, συνολικήσ αξίασ 30 εκ. ευρώ τα οποία προέκυψαν απÞ έκδοση µέσω ιδιωτικήσ τοποθέτησησ. Η διαπραγµάτευση των εν λÞγω Γραµµατίων ∆ηµοσίου, τα οποία δεν φέρουν επιτÞκιο, θα αρχίσει σήµερα Τετάρτη, 28 Αυγούστου 2013.

∆Ú›· ÓÔÌÔÛ¯¤‰È· ÁÈ· ÙÔ €1 1,5 ‰È˜ ÙÔ˘ ™˘ÓÂÚÁ·ÙÈÛÌÔ‡ Τρία τροποποιητικά νοµοσχέδια και ένα νέο νÞµο, των οποίων η έγκριση απÞ τη Βουλή θα καταστήσει δυνατή τη µεταφορά τησ εποπτείασ των Συνεργατικών Πιστωτικών Ιδρυµάτων στην Κεντρική Τράπεζα, τέθηκαν χθεσ ενώπιον των µελών τησ Κοινοβουλευτικήσ Επιτροπήσ Οικονοµικών, η οποία συνεδρίασε εκτάκτωσ, παρουσία του Υπουργού Οικονοµικών Χάρη Γεωργιάδη και του ∆ιοικητή τησ Κεντρική Τράπεζασ Πανίκου ∆ηµητριάδη. Τα προσχέδια των νοµοσχεδίων τέθηκαν ανεπίσηµα ενώπιον των µελών τησ Επιτροπήσ, εφÞσον αναµένεται Þτι θα εγκριθούν σήµερα απÞ το ΥπουργικÞ, ενώ η Βουλή καλεί-

ται να τα ψηφίσει στην Ολοµέλεια τησ 5ησ Σεπτεµβρίου, αφού οι αλλαγέσ οι οποίεσ περιλαµβάνονται σε αυτά θεωρούνται προαπαιτούµενο για την έγκριση τησ δεύτερησ δÞσησ του κυπριακού προγράµµατοσ απÞ το Γιούρογκρουπ τησ 13ησ Σεπτεµβρίου, η οποία ανέρχεται στα 1.5 δισ ευρώ και αφορά την ανακεφαλαιοποίηση του Συνεργατισµού. Μιλώντασ στην Επιτροπή, ο ΥπουργÞσ Οικονοµικών Χάρησ Γεωργιάδησ είπε Þτι το σηµαντικÞ είναι η µεγάλη επένδυση του κράτουσ στο ΣυνεργατισµÞ να µην αποτελέσει την απαρχή νέων περιπετειών και πρÞσθετων απαιτήσεων στη συνέχεια.

Ο ∆ιοικητήσ τησ ΚΤ Πανίκοσ ∆ηµητριάδησ ανέφερε Þτι βάσει υπολογισµών που έχουν συµφωνηθεί µε την ΤρÞικα, «τα βασικά ίδια κεφάλαια του Συνεργατισµού στισ 30 Ιουλίου 2015 θα είναι 790 εκ. ευρώ και υπάρχουν απαιτούµενα κεφάλαια συνολικού ύψουσ 609 εκ. ευρώ για να ανέλθει ο δείκτησ κεφαλαιακήσ επάρκειασ στο 6%», τα οποία εάν προστεθούν ανέρχονται συνολικά στα 1,4 δισ ευρώτα οποία χρειάζεται ο ΣυνεργατισµÞσ για να ανακεφαλαιοποιηθεί. ΠρÞσθεσε Þτι µε τα 1,5 δισ. που θα πάρει ο ΣυνεργατισµÞσ θα δηµιουργηθεί ένα «µαξιλάρι ασφάλειασ» ύψουσ 101 εκ. ευρώ.

¢È·ÊˆÓ›Â˜ ÁÈ· ÙÚÈÌÂÏ‹ ·Ú¯‹ Â͢Á›·ÓÛ˘ Στην έκτακτη συνεδρία τησ Ολοµέλειασ τησ Βουλήσ αύριο Πέµπτη, απÞ τισ δύο προτάσεισ νÞµου για τροποποίηση του περί εξυγίανσησ τραπεζικών ιδρυµάτων νÞµο, θα οδηγηθεί µÞνο τροποποίηση για διεύρυνση τησ αρχήσ εξυγίανσησ, για να συµπεριλάβει τον ΥπουργÞ Οικονοµικών και το ΓενικÞ Ελεγκτή ή τον ΠρÞεδρο τησ Επιτροπήσ Κεφαλαιαγοράσ. Ο ∆ιοικητήσ τησ Κεντρικήσ Τράπεζασ Πανίκοσ ∆ηµητριάδησ στη

συνεδρία τησ Κοινοβουλευτικήσ Επιτροπήσ Οικονοµικών που συζήτησε χθεσ το θέµα, στην οποία κλήθηκε και παρευρέθηκε, εξέφρασε την άποψη Þτι η διεύρυνση σε τριµελέσ επίπεδο θα προκαλέσει προβλήµατα στη λήψη αποφάσεων. Ο ∆ΗΣΥ, Þπωσ φάνηκε απÞ τισ τοποθετήσεισ του Προέδρου του και εισηγητή τησ µίασ πρÞτασησ νÞµου, Αβέρωφ Νεοφύτου, εισηγείται τη διεύρυνση µε τη συµµετοχή

στην αρχή εξυγίανσησ τησ Γενικού Ελεγκτού. ΠαρÞλο Þτι µέσα απÞ τισ δηλώσεισ του Βουλευτή του ΑΚΕΛ Γιάννου Λαµάρη προβάλλονται αντιρρήσεισ στην τροποποίηση, η Βουλευτήσ του κÞµµατοσ Ειρήνη Χαραλαµπίδου είπε πωσ αντί για τη ΓενικÞ Ελεγκτή θα είναι πιο λογική η συµµετοχή τησ Προέδρου τησ Επιτροπήσ Κεφαλαιαγοράσ, η οποία συνιστά εποπτική αρχή.

ª·ÚΛ‰Ë˜: ¶·Ú¿ÓÔÌ· Û˘ÛÙ¿ıËÎÂ Ë ÂÚ¢ÓËÙÈ΋ ÂÈÙÚÔ‹ Παράνοµη χαρακτήρισε χθεσ τη σύσταση τησ επιτροπήσ για την οικονοµία ο τέωσ γενικÞσ εισαγγελέασ Αλέκοσ Μαρκίδησ, λίγεσ µÞλισ ώρεσ πριν την κατάθεση του Νίκου Αναστασιάδη. Ο κ. Μαρκίδησ χαρακτήρισε επίσησ ολέθριο λάθοσ το ενδεχÞµενο να κατηγορηθεί ο τέωσ πρÞεδροσ τησ δηµοκρατίασ ∆ηµήτρησ ΧριστÞφιασ για ποινικÞ αδίκηµα, µε αφορµή την αποχώρηση του απÞ την ερευνητική επιτροπή πριν καταθέσει.

Σε δηλώσεισ του χθεσ ο κ. Μαρκίδησ ξεκαθάρισε Þτι παράνοµα συστάθηκε η ερευνητική επιτροπή για την οικονοµία µε σχετική απÞφαση του υπουργικού συµβουλίου. «ΠαρασυρÞµενοι Þλοι µασ», Þπωσ τÞνισε, «απÞ την πρακτική δεκαετιών που εφαρµοζÞταν για σύσταση ερευνητικών επιτροπών απÞ το υπουργικÞ, δεν εντοπίσαµε έγκαιρα την παρανοµία». «Ο συγκεκριµένοσ νÞµοσ Þµωσ είναι καθαρÞσ. Ερευνητικέσ επιτροπέσ που ενώπιον τουσ, µεταξύ άλλων, θα τεθούν και ανώτατοι αξιωµατούχοι του κράτουσ, διορίζονται

απÞ το γενικÞ εισαγγελέα. Στην προκειµένη περίπτωση κλήθηκαν και κατέθεσαν ή θα καταθέσουν νυν και τέωσ πρÞεδροσ τησ δηµοκρατίασ και ο διοικητήσ τησ κεντρικήσ τράπεζασ». Ο κ. Μαρκίδησ επεσήµανε Þτι κάτω απÞ τισ περιστάσεισ και εξαιτίασ του γεγονÞτοσ Þτι η ερευνητική επιτροπή θα έπρεπε να διοριστεί απÞ το γενικÞ εισαγγελέα, «θα ήταν ολέθριο λάθοσ να κατηγορηθεί ο τέωσ πρÞεδροσ τησ δηµοκρατίασ ∆ηµήτρησ ΧριστÞφιασ για ποινικÞ αδίκηµα και να οδηγηθεί ενδεχοµένωσ στη φυλακή.

™‹ÌÂÚ· Ë ·fiÊ·ÛË ÁÈ· ¤ÊÂÛË ¡Ù. ªÈ¯·ËÏ›‰Ë Επτά λÞγουσ επικαλέσθηκαν και ανέλυσαν χθεσ ενώπιον του Ανωτάτου ∆ικαστηρίου οι συνήγοροι υπεράσπισησ του πρώην Υπουργού Εσωτερικών Ντίνου Μιχαηλίδη, ζητώντασ Þπωσ γίνει αποδεκτή η έφεση που καταχώρησαν για τη µη εκτέλεση του ευρωπαϊκού εντάλµατοσ σύλληψήσ του, που εκδÞθηκε απÞ το Εφετείο Αθηνών και την ακύρωση τησ πρωτÞδικησ απÞφασησ του Επαρχιακού ∆ικαστηρίου Λεµεσού.

Το ∆ικαστήριο, αφού άκουσε τισ αγορεύσεισ των δικηγÞρων αποφάσισε την αναβολή τησ συνέχισησ τησ ακροαµατικήσ διαδικασίασ για σήµερα στισ 09:00 το πρωί, προκειµένου να ακουσθεί και η άποψη τησ κατηγορούσασ Αρχήσ µε την αγÞρευση τησ Ανώτερησ ∆ικηγÞρου τησ ∆ηµοκρατίασ, Λουΐζασ Χριστοδουλίδου - Ζαννέτου και ακολούθωσ, αφού εξετάσει Þλα τα τεθέντα ενώπιÞν του στοιχεία, θα εκδώσει την απÞφασή του για την έκδοση του κ. Μιχαηλίδη στην

Ελλάδα, ο οποίοσ εξακολουθεί να τελεί υπÞ κράτηση στισ Κεντρικέσ Φυλακέσ. Πάντωσ µε ένταση ξεκίνησε χθεσ η δεύτερη µέρα απολογίασ του Ακη ΤσοχατζÞπουλου καθώσ ο πρώην υπουργÞσ επέµεινε σε αναφορέσ πολιτικών θεµάτων προκαλώντασ τον εκνευρισµÞ του προέδρου του Τριµελούσ Εφετείου Κακουργηµάτων που τον κάλεσε να µιλήσει για την ουσία τησ υπÞθεσησ.

√ÏÈ ƒÂÓ: ªÔÓÔÌÂÚ‹˜ ‰¤ÛÌ¢ÛË Ù˘ ∫‡ÚÔ˘ ÙÔ ÎÔ‡ÚÂÌ· ÙˆÓ Î·Ù·ı¤ÛÂˆÓ Το κούρεµα των καταθέσεων ήταν µονοµερήσ δέσµευση των Κυπριακών Αρχών η οποία δεν αποτελεί µέροσ του Μνηµονίου Συναντίληψησ το οποίο συνήφθη αργÞτερα, δήλωσε ο Ευρωπαίοσ Επίτροποσ Ùλι Ρεν, σε απάντηση στην Ευρωβουλευτή ΑντιγÞνη Παπαδοπούλου η οποία του υπέβαλε ερωτήµατα για τισ επιπτώσεισ, λÞγω του κουρέµατοσ των καταθέσεων στην Κύπρο. Συγκεκριµένα Þπωσ αναφέρεται σε ανακοίνωση που στάληκε απÞ το γραφείο τησ κ. Παπαδοπούλου, έθεσε στον κ. Ρεν το γεγονÞσ Þτι “οι ρυθµίσεισ του κουρέµατοσ τροποποιούν ριζικά τη µετοχική δοµή τησ µεγαλύτερησ τράπεζασ τησ Κύπρου, µε συνέπειεσ που είναι δύσκολο να προβλεφθούν”. ΕπιπρÞσθετα η Ευρωβουλευτήσ υπέβαλε το ερώτηµα , “κατά πÞσο γνώριζε η Επιτροπή, Þτι οι ενέργειέσ τησ θα άλλαζαν ριζικά την κεφαλαιακή δοµή τησ Τράπεζασ

Κύπρου και Þτι υπήρχε σοβαρÞσ κίνδυνοσ ο έλεγχοσ τησ τράπεζασ να περάσει στα χέρια των λεγÞµενων `Ρώσων ολιγαρχών`”. Σύµφωνα µε την ανακοίνωση, στην απάντησή του ο Επίτροποσ Ρεν αναφέρει πωσ η ΚοµισιÞν “ήταν ενήµερη για το γεγονÞσ Þτι η ανταλλαγή των µη ασφαλισµένων καταθέσεων µε µετοχέσ θα καθιστούσε τουσ κατÞχουσ µη ασφαλισµένων καταθέσεων κατÞχουσ µετοχών”. “Η Επιτροπή, δεν είναι σε θέση να σχολιάσει ούτε την αντίληψη που έχει σχηµατίσει το κοινÞ για αυτούσ τουσ καταθέτεσ και νυν µετÞχουσ, ούτε την προέλευση των καταθέσεων αυτών”, απάντησε ο κ. Ρεν. ΠρÞσθεσε Þτι “η συµµετοχή των µη ασφαλισµένων καταθέσεων (bail-in) στισ δύο µεγαλύτερεσ τράπεζεσ, αποτελεί µονοµερή δέσµευση των κυπριακών αρχών, η οποία δεν αποτελεί µέροσ του Μνηµονίου Συναντίληψησ το οποίο συνήφθη αργÞτερα”.

Οπωσ αναφέρει η κ. Παπαδοπούλου, σύµφωνα µε την ΚοµισιÞν, οι πολιτικέσ για τον χρηµατοπιστωτικÞ τοµέα τησ Κύπρου “αποσκοπούν στην αποκατάσταση τησ εµπιστοσύνησ στο τραπεζικÞ σύστηµα.”. Ùπωσ επισηµαίνει ο Ùλι Ρέν, οι κυπριακέσ αρχέσ έλαβαν δύσκολα αλλά απαραίτητα µέτρα για την πλήρη ανακεφαλαιοποίηση τησ Τράπεζασ Κύπρου, δίνοντάσ τησ έτσι τη δυνατÞτητα να αποφύγει τη διαδικασία εξυγίανσησ και να επιστρέψει σε κανονικέσ δραστηριÞτητεσ. «Οι αρχέσ έχουν επίσησ εκπονήσει ένα σαφέσ πρÞγραµµα για την αναδιάρθρωση και ανακεφαλαιοποίηση άλλων χρηµατοπιστωτικών ιδρυµάτων πριν απÞ το τέλοσ του έτουσ», προσθέτει ο Ευρωπαίοσ Επίτροποσ, ο οποίοσ εκφράζει την εκτίµηση Þτι αυτÞ θα ενισχύσει το αίσθηµα εµπιστοσύνησ γενικÞτερα.

ΧΡΗΜΑ&ΑΓΟΡΑ

28 ΑΥΓΟΥΣΤΟΥ, 2013

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

Μελετήσαµε µε ικανοποίηση την ανακοίνωση τησ Κυβέρνησησ Αναστασιάδη για την ενθάρρυνση των οφειλετών/χρηµατοδοτών να προβαίνουν σε ένα είδοσ επαναδιαπραγµάτευσησ και επίτευξησ κάποιου είδουσ συµβιβασµού, για να επιτευχθεί η αποπληρωµή δανείων/πληρωµή δÞσεων εντÞσ των σηµερινών δεδοµένων του κάθε οφειλέτη. Επειδή ενεργήσαµε για αριθµÞ πελατών και προσ διάφορουσ χρηµατοδÞτεσ, έχουµε διαπιστώσει Þτι: - Η διαπραγµάτευση γίνεται µε τον χρηµατοδÞτη να πιστεύει Þτι έχει το πάνω χέρι. Λέµε “να πιστεύει” διÞτι ο χρηµατοδÞτησ πρέπει να ξέρει Þτι είναι στην ίδια βάρκα µε τον οφειλέτη. Η µη αποπληρωµή του δανείου προκαλεί ισάξια προβλήµατα στον χρηµατοδÞτη µε την εισπραξιµÞτητα του χρέουσ.

- Ενώ αρκετοί χρηµατοδÞτεσ δείχνουν κατανÞηση, τουλάχιστον στα χαµηλÞτερα επίπεδα του credit-officer και ακÞµη corporate manager, η ανταπÞκριση τουσ είναι µάλλον αρνητική. Ùταν διαµαρτυρηθήκαµε στον πρÞεδρο του συγκροτήµατοσ µιασ τράπεζασ και του παραθέσαµε τα γεγονÞτα των διαπραγµατεύσεων, µασ ανέφερε “πωσ γίνεται αυτÞ, εµείσ ενθαρρύνουµε τουσ συµβιβασµούσ και µάλιστα να κλείνουν σε σύντοµο χρονικÞ διάστηµα”. ∆ιερωτÞµαστε λοιπÞν κατά πÞσο τα χαµηλÞτερα στρώµατα των χρηµατοδοτών έλαβαν το µήνυµα και εάν το έχουν αντιληφθεί και/ή κατά πÞσο η ∆ιοίκηση θα δώσει σαφείσ οδηγίεσ τι σηµαίνει διαπραγµάτευση και Þχι να εµµένουν στην αρχική τουσ θέση.

- Μέχρι τώρα το µÞνο που επιτυγχάνεται είναι η επιµήκυνση του χρÞνου αποπληρωµήσ του δανείου (και άρα µείωση τησ δÞσησ), αλλά απÞ την άλλη η αύξηση του τÞκου (τώρα κατά µέσο Þρο 7%-8%). Φαίνεται Þτι παρÞλο που ο καταθετικÞσ τÞκοσ βρίσκεται σε κατιούσα πορεία, ο τÞκοσ δανεισµού παραµένει ο ίδιοσ.

- Αντί να ενθαρρυνθεί και η άµεση καταβολή ενÞσ ποσοστού του ολικού οφειλÞµενου ποσού (έστω 85%) και να χαριστούν τα υπÞλοιπα (βασικά 2 χρÞνια τÞκοι), αλλά να εξοφληθεί ένα δάνειο, τώρα έχοντασ υπÞψη την επερχÞµενη πιο σοβαρή κρίση αντιµετωπίζουµε σκέτη άρνηση.

- Η νοοτροπία που επικρατεί σε ορισµένουσ χρηµατοδÞτεσ είναι τουλάχιστον άκρωσ επικίνδυνη. ∆εν επιτρέπεται ακÞµη η µεταβίβαση µονάδων ενÞσ έργου στουσ αγοραστέσ, διÞτι ο πωλητήσ οφείλει για ένα άλλο έργο µε τισ ανάλογεσ εξασφαλίσεισ. ΄Αρα και εκεί που ένα έργο είναι εξοφληµένο, δεν είναι σίγουρο Þτι είναι τέτοιο κατά τον χρηµατοδÞτη. Είναι αυτÞ λογικÞ; ∆εν είναι επικίνδυνο για Þλουσ;

∆Ô Ì¤ÏÏÔÓ Ù˘ ∫‡ÚÔ˘ ÁÈ· ƒˆÛÈΤ˜ ∂ȯÂÈÚ‹ÛÂȘ Η ανταγωνιστικÞτητα τησ Κύπρου ωσ κέντρου διεθνών επιχειρήσεων και οι προοπτικέσ για ρωσικέσ επιχειρήσεισ και επενδυτέσ, υπÞ το φωσ των πρÞσφατων εξελίξεων στην οικονοµία, θα απασχολήσουν συνέδριο που διοργανώνει ο Κυπρο-ΡωσικÞσ ΕπιχειρηµατικÞσ Σύνδεσµοσ (ΚΕΒΕ) στισ 19 Σεπτεµβρίου, µε τίτλο «Το µέλλον τησ Κύπρου για Ρωσικέσ Επιχειρήσεισ». Μέσω του συνεδρίου, το ΚΕΒΕ επιχειρεί να στείλει το µήνυµα Þτι παρά τισ εξελίξεισ στο χρηµατοπιστωτικÞ τοµέα, η Κύπροσ εξακολουθεί να βρίσκεται στο διεθνή επιχειρηµατικÞ χάρτη και να ανταγωνίζεται µε αξιώσεισ χώρεσ µε παρÞµοιο επιχειρηµατικÞ περιβάλλον Þπωσ η Μάλτα και το Λουξεµβούργο. Το συνέδριο θα χαιρετίσει ο ΠρÞεδροσ τησ ∆ηµοκρατίασ Νίκοσ Αναστασιάδησ και ο Πρέσβησ τησ Ρωσίασ στην Κύπρο Stanislav Osadchiy. Οργανωτέσ είναι ο Κυπρο-ΡωσικÞσ ΕπιχειρηµατικÞσ Σύνδεσµοσ (ΚΕΒΕ), το διεθνέσ δικηγορικÞ γραφείο Withers LLP (που εδρεύει στη Ζυρίχη) και το δικηγορικÞ γραφείο Χρυσαφίνησ & Πολυβίου ∆ΕΠΕ. Αναµένεται Þτι θα το παρακολουθήσει αριθµÞσ Ρώσων επιχειρηµατιών τÞσο απÞ την Κύπρο Þσο και τη Ρωσία, καθώσ και λογιστικά, δικηγορικά γραφεία απÞ την Κύπρο. Οµιλητέσ διεθνούσ κύρουσ τÞσο απÞ την Κύπρο Þσο και απÞ Ζυρίχη, Μάλτα, Λουξεµβούργο και Ρωσία, θα αναλύσουν τισ προοπτικέσ συνέχισησ τησ οικονοµικήσ συνεργασίασ Κύπρου-Ρωσίασ. Για περαιτέρω πληροφορίεσ και εγγραφή αποτείνεστε στην κυρία Σταυρούλα Χριστοδουλίδου, ΚΕΒΕ, τηλ.

22889718, e-mail stavri@ccci.org.cy.

- Η εξαγορά ενÞσ κτήµατοσ απÞ τον χρηµατοδÞτη σε παραπλήσια τιµή εκείνησ τησ τιµήσ πώλησησ είναι ακÞµη µια προσέγγιση στην προσπάθεια συµβιβασµού. Ùχι ασφαλώσ αρεστÞ απÞ τον χρηµατοδÞτη ιδιαίτερα, αλλά ίσωσ και αυτÞ να είναι στο τραπέζι τησ συζήτησησ µεταξύ των δύο µερών.

- Κλπ κλπ Πιστεύουµε Þτι διαφορετικά ξεκίνησε η Þλη προσέγγιση και διαφορετικά εξελίσσεται µε τον δανειστή βασικά να δέχεται σε κάποιο βαθµÞ την συζήτηση για ιδιωτικά δάνεια οικιστικήσ µορφήσ και Þχι επιχειρηµατικά. Η νέα προσέγγιση στο τι είναι ένα δάνειο µη εξυπηρετούµενο είναι Þτι το χειρÞτερο. ΑπÞ την άλλη τονίζει η Κεντρική Þτι δεν έχει τÞσο σηµασία η αξία του υποθηκευµένου ακινήτου έναντι του χρέουσ, Þσο η δυνατÞτητα αποπληρωµήσ του. Και άρα µια και που Þλοι γνωρίζουµε Þτι η αγορά ακινήτων για τα επÞµενα δύο χρÞνια θα είναι κατιούσα, γιατί να µην αποδέχονται οι χρηµατοδÞτεσ την ελαχιστοποίηση των δÞσεων για

τα επÞµενα δύο χρÞνια, µε κλιµακωτή αύξηση στα επÞµενα 10, ούτωσ ώστε να δώσει την ευκαιρία στον οφειλέτη να µπορεί να διαθέσει το κτήµα του προσ Þφελοσ και των δύο. Αδύνατον είναι η απάντηση απÞ τουσ πλείστουσ χρηµατοδÞτεσ. Θεωρία και πρακτική αγαπητοί µασ αναγνώστεσ. Αν και γενικεύουµε, εντούτοισ µασ πιάνει το παράπονο Þταν οι χρηµατοδÞτεσ (ορισµένοι τουλάχιστον) που συνεισέφεραν στην καταστροφή τησ Κύπρου να συµπεριφέροντε (τουλάχιστον µερικοί), ωσ οι έχοντεσ το πάνω χέρι, πιέζοντασ τουσ δύστυχουσ οφειλέτεσ να βουλιάξουν µια ώρα γρηγορÞτερα, πιστεύοντασ µε τον τρÞπο αυτÞ Þτι βοηθούν τον χρηµατοδÞτη. Τι λάθοσ!! Θα αναµένουµε το νέο µέτρο του “διαπραγµατευτή” µεταξύ χρηµατοδοτών και οφειλετών, που δυστυχώσ αν και θα έπρεπε να είναι προτεραιÞτητα, εντούτοισ είµαστε “στο περίµενε”.

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28 ΑΥΓΟΥΣΤΟΥ, 2013

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¶∞¡∂¶π™∆∏ªπ√ §∂À∫ø™π∞™

¶ÚÔÁÚ¿ÌÌ·Ù· ∫·ÈÓÔÙÔÌ›·˜, ∂ȯÂÈÚËÌ·ÙÈÎfiÙËÙ·˜ Î·È ¢ÈÔ›ÎËÛ˘ ∫·˙›ÓÔ Νέεσ ειδικÞτητεσ στην καινοτοµία και την επιχειρηµατικÞτητα εισάγει το Πανεπιστήµιο Λευκωσίασ στα προγράµµατα σπουδών τησ ∆ιοίκησησ Επιχειρήσεων, τÞσο σε πτυχιακÞ, Þσο και σε µεταπτυχιακÞ (MBA) επίπεδο. Επίσησ, στον τοµέα τησ ∆ιεύθυνσησ Ξενοδοχείων εισάγει ειδικÞτητεσ στη ∆ιοίκηση Καζίνο και τη ∆ιοίκηση Κέντρων Ευεξίασ (Spa & Wellness Centre Management). Η νέα κατεύθυνση σπουδών στην ΕπιχειρηµατικÞτητα & Καινοτοµία (Entrepreneurship & Innovation) εστιάζει στην παροχή προηγµένων γνώσεων, στην ανάδειξη δεξιοτήτων, που επιτρέπουν την αναζήτηση ‘βέλτιστων επιχειρησιακών πρακτικών’ (best business practices) απÞ υποδειγµατικέσ διεθνείσ επιχειρήσεισ, καθώσ και στην εισαγωγή καινοτοµιών και νέων µοντέλων σκέψησ και οργάνωσησ στισ εγχώ-

ριεσ επιχειρήσεισ. Οι απÞφοιτοι των προγραµµάτων αυτών θα είναι σε θέση να αποτελέσουν τουσ πυρήνεσ διάδοσησ τησ δηµιουργικÞτητασ και των αναγκαίων αλλαγών, στισ επιχειρήσεισ που θα απασχοληθούν, αλλά παράλληλα θα είναι σε θέση να ξεκινήσουν µια δική τουσ επιχειρηµατική δραστηριÞτητα. Ιδιαίτερη έµφαση δίνεται στισ νέεσ τεχνολογίεσ, τα κοινωνικά δίκτυα, το ηλεκτρονικÞ εµπÞριο κ.ο.κ. Η δηµιουργία των δύο νέων ειδικοτήτων στη ∆ιοίκηση Καζίνο και τη ∆ιοίκηση Κέντρων Ευεξίασ (Spa & Wellness Centre Management) καταδεικνύει την προσαρµογή των ακαδηµαϊκών γνώσεων και δεξιοτήτων στισ εξελισσÞµενεσ απαιτήσεισ τησ αγοράσ και τησ βιοµηχανίασ. Η απÞφαση τησ κυπριακήσ κυβέρνησησ για παροχή αδει-

ών για τη λειτουργία καζίνο, καθώσ και η ολοένα πιο διαδεδοµένη λειτουργία κέντρων ευεξίασ που εξαπλώνεται στα πολυτελή ξενοδοχεία και casino resorts, δηµιουργούν καλέσ προοπτικέσ απασχÞλησησ για τουσ αποφοίτουσ του προγράµµατοσ. Για να στεγασθούν τα νέα προγράµµατα, µαζί µε τo νέο ΠρÞγραµµα ∆ιαχείρισησ Ενεργειακών ΠÞρων/ Υδρογονανθράκων (Energy, Oil & Gas Management) που λειτούργησε απÞ πέρυσι µε µεγάλη επιτυχία, το Πανεπιστήµιο Λευκωσίασ επεκτείνει τισ εγκαταστάσεισ του, προσθέτοντασ ένα κτίριο 5500 τετραγωνικών µέτρων επί τησ ΛεωφÞρου Γρίβα ∆ιγενή. Εδώ θα στεγαστεί επίσησ και το Κέντρο Καινοτοµίασ και ΕπιχειρηµατικÞτητασ.

™ÂÌÈÓ¿ÚÈÔ ÁÈ· ·Ô¯ˆÚÔ‡ÓÙ˜ ÙÚ·Â˙ÈÎÔ‡˜ ˘·ÏÏ‹ÏÔ˘˜ Το Cyprus International Institute of Management (CIIM) θέλοντασ να βοηθήσει τουσ Τραπεζικούσ υπαλλήλουσ που αποχωρούν εθελούσια απÞ τισ κυπριακέσ τράπεζεσ, οργανώνει ένα πρωτοποριακÞ σεµινάριο µε τίτλο «ΑπÞ τη Τράπεζα σε νέο κÞσµο ευκαιριών: νέα δουλειά ή επιχείρηση;». Το σεµινάριο θα πραγµατοποιηθεί στο CIIM Λευκωσίασ, την Πέµπτη, 5 Σεπτεµβρίου και ώρα 18:00 µέχρι τισ 20:00. Οι οµιλητέσ του σεµιναρίου θα είναι ο ∆ιευθυντήσ και Καθηγητήσ Οικονοµικών και ΕπιχειρηµατικÞτητασ του CIIM, ∆ρ. ΘεÞδωροσ Παναγιώτου και ο Καθηγητήσ Χρηµατοοικονοµικών του CIIM, ∆ρ. Γιώργοσ Θεοχαρίδησ . Το σεµινάριο θα καλύψει: - ΑνασκÞπηση τησ νέασ αναδυÞµενησ οικονοµίασ - Αξιοποίηση δεξιοτήτων και πείρασ απÞ τον ΤραπεζικÞ τοµέα στην νέα οικονοµία - ΕνασχÞληση σε εναλλακτικούσ τοµείσ τησ οικονοµίασ - Brainstorming και τρÞπουσ να µετατρέπετε τισ ιδέεσ σασ σε επιχείρηση

- ΑπÞκτηση νέων δεξιοτήτων µε προοπτική - ΑτοµικÞσ οικονοµικÞσ προγραµµατισµÞσ για τα επÞµενα χρÞνια - Ανοικτή συζήτηση ΣκοπÞσ του σεµιναρίου είναι να προβληµατίσει και να βοηθήσει τουσ αποχωρούντεσ τραπεζικούσ υπαλλήλουσ να ξαναµπούν δυναµικά και στοχευµένα στην αγορά εργασίασ, κάτω απÞ τισ νέεσ οικονοµικέσ συνθήκεσ του τÞπου. Το σεµινάριο είναι ιδανικÞ για Þσουσ σκοπεύουν να συνεχίσουν την καριέρα τουσ αναζητώντασ εργοδÞτηση σε άλλο χρηµατοοικονοµικÞ ίδρυµα ή και σε εντελώσ νέο τοµέα, καθώσ και εκείνουσ που σκοπεύουν να δηµιουργήσουν την δική τησ επιχείρηση. Η συµµετοχή στο σεµινάριο είναι δωρεάν αλλά απαιτείται εγγραφή το αργÞτερο µέχρι την Τετάρτη 4 Σεπτεµβρίου 2013 µέσω τησ ιστοσελίδασ:

∏ Globaltraining ˘Ô„‹ÊÈ· ÁÈ· Â˘Úˆ·˚Îfi ÂȯÂÈÚËÌ·ÙÈÎfi ‚Ú·‚Â›Ô Η Globaltraining, οργανισµÞσ παροχήσ επαγγελµατικήσ εκπαίδευσησ, συνδεδεµένοσ µε το Πανεπιστήµιο Λευκωσίασ, θα αντιπροσωπεύσει την Κύπρο στο διαγωνισµÞ για τα Ευρωπαϊκά Επιχειρηµατικά Βραβεία (www.businessawardseurope.com), στην κατηγορία «Βραβείο Επικέντρωσησ στον Πελάτη» (“Customer Focus”). Η Globaltraining έχει επιλεγεί µεταξύ άλλων επιχειρήσεων απÞ 31 Ευρωπαϊκέσ χώρεσ, να διαγωνιστεί στον επÞµενο γύρο για το Ruban d’Honneur status. Οι τελικοί νικητέσ θα ανακοινωθούν τον Απρίλιο του 2014. Στο θεσµÞ του Ευρωπαϊκού Επιχειρηµατικού Βραβείου έχουν διακριθεί µερικέσ απÞ τισ καλύτερεσ Ευρωπαϊκέσ επιχειρήσεισ. Τα Βραβεία έχουν ωσ στÞχο την αναγνώριση οργανισµών, που διακρίνονται

σε θέµατα καινοτοµίασ, σε συνδυασµÞ µε εξαιρετικά εµπορικά αποτελέσµατα και ταυτÞχρονα ενεργούν υπεύθυνα και θετικά σε θέµατα κοινωνικού περιεχοµένου. Στον διαγωνισµÞ τησ περασµένησ χρονιάσ συµµετείχαν οργανισµοί των οποίων ο συνολικÞσ κύκλοσ εργασιών ξεπερνούσε το 1 τρισ Ευρώ, απÞ 28 Ευρωπαϊκέσ χώρεσ. Στισ επιχειρήσεισ αυτέσ εργοδοτούνται πέραν των 2.7 εκατοµµυρίων ανθρώπων. Για περισσÞτερεσ πληροφορίεσ επισκεφθείτε την ιστοσελίδα www.globaltraining.org

EÏÏËÓÈ΋: MÂȈ̤ÓÔ Î·Ù¿ 11% ÙÔ ÚÔÛˆÈÎfi Μέσα στα πλαίσια των προσπαθειών του Οµίλου για περαιτέρω µείωση του λειτουργικού κÞστουσ, η Ελληνική Τράπεζα προχώρησε στισ 19/7/2013 µε την εισαγωγή Ειδικού Σχεδίου ΠρÞωρησ Αφυπηρέτησησ Προσωπικού, το οποίο ολοκληρώθηκε στισ 2/8/2013. Το ΕιδικÞ Σχέδιο που απευθυνÞταν σε Þλο το µÞνιµο προσωπικÞ του Οµίλου στην

Κύπρο είχε τη µορφή εθελούσιασ εξÞδου. Με την ολοκλήρωση του Σχεδίου επιτεύχθηκε µείωση στον αριθµÞ του προσωπικού τησ τάξησ του 11% επιτυγχάνοντασ ταυτÞχρονα σηµαντική εξοικονÞµηση του συνολικού κÞστουσ µισθοδοσίασ, η οποία υπολογίζεται γύρω στο 14%. ΤαυτÞχρονα λαµβάνονται Þλα τα απαραίτητα µέτρα για τη διασφάλιση τησ απρÞσκοπτησ ροήσ και τησ οµαλήσ διεξαγωγήσ των εργασιών του Οµίλου. Παρά τισ αντίξοεσ οικονοµικέσ συνθήκεσ και το δυσµενέσ περιβάλλον στο οποίο λειτουργεί ο ΧρηµατοπιστωτικÞσ Τοµέασ, η Ελληνική Τράπεζα έγκαιρα και αποτελεσµατικά προβαίνει σε Þλεσ τισ απαραίτητεσ ενέργειεσ για αντιµετώπιση των πολλαπλών προκλήσεων που αντιµετωπίζει η Οικονοµία του τÞπου µασ.

http://ciim.ac.cy/news-events/entry/from-the-bank-to-anew-world-of-opportunities.html ή τηλεφωνικώσ στο 22462246. Για περισσÞτερεσ πληροφορίεσ οι ενδιαφερÞµενοι µπορούν να επικοινωνούν µε τον Κρίστη Πλαστήρα στο 22-462246. Ο Καθηγητήσ ΘεÞδωροσ Παναγιώτου είναι ∆ιευθυντήσ του Cyprus International Institute of Management (CIIM), Þπου διδάσκει Οικονοµικά, Περιβαλλοντική ∆ιοίκηση και Ηθική των επιχειρήσεων και κυβερνήσεων. Ο ∆ρ. Γιώργοσ Θεοχαρίδησ είναι Αναπληρωτήσ Καθηγητήσ στον τοµέα των Χρηµατοοικονοµικών στο Cyprus International Institute of Management (CIIM). Είναι επίσησ ο ∆ιευθυντήσ του Μεταπτυχιακού προγράµµατοσ στα Χρηµατοοικονοµικά και Τραπεζικά (MSc in Finance & Banking).

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28 ΑΥΓΟΥΣΤΟΥ, 2013

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™ËÌ·ÓÙÈο ‚‹Ì·Ù· ÛÙËÓ Û˘ÓÂÚÁ·Û›· Ì πÛÚ·‹Ï Το πρώτο σηµαντικÞ βήµα για την υλοποίηση του Μνηµονίου Συναντίληψησ Κύπρου – Ελλάδασ και Ισραήλ στουσ τοµείσ των υδάτινων πÞρων και τησ ενέργειασ επιτεύχθηκε µε τισ τελευταίεσ επαφέσ που είχε ο υπουργÞσ Γεωργίασ, Φυσικών ΠÞρων και Περιβάλλοντοσ Νίκοσ Κουγιάλησ στο Ισραήλ. Ο κ. Κουγιάλησ είχε συνάντηση µε τον υπουργÞ Ενέργειασ και Υδάτινων ΠÞρων του Ισραήλ Σιλβάν ΣαλÞµ, στο πλαίσιο διήµερησ επίσκεψήσ του στην γείτονα χώρα, µε τον οποίο συζητήθηκαν θέµατα που αφορούν στην ενεργειακή απÞδοση των αφαλατώσεων, την επεξεργασία των αστικών λυµάτων και τη χρήση ανακυκλωµένου νερού για γεωργικούσ σκοπούσ, την ασφάλεια υποδοµών, Þπωσ φραγµάτων και αφαλατώσεων, καθώσ και άλλα θέµατα που απασχολούν τισ δυο χώρεσ. Σε δηλώσεισ του ο κ. Κουγιάλησ είπε Þτι η συνάντηση αποτελεί το «εναρκτήριο λάκτισµα για την υλοποίηση του Μνηµονίου που υπογράφηκε στη Λευκωσία» και σηµείωσε Þτι οι δύο Υπουργοί εξέφρασαν τη δέσµευση Þτι θα εργαστούν εντατικά για την υλοποίηση και περαιτέρω επέκταση του Μνηµονίου και σε άλλουσ τοµείσ Þπωσ ο τουρισµÞσ, η αλιεία, η ενέργεια, το περιβάλλον και το εµπÞριο. Το ΜνηµÞνιο θεωρείται ωσ ιστορικήσ αλλά ταυτÞχρονα και µέγιστησ πολιτικήσ σηµασίασ για τρεισ βασικούσ λÞγουσ. Πρώτο, ενισχύει τη γεωπολιτική θέση τησ Κύπρου, δεύτερο, αναβαθµίζει το ρÞλο τησ χώρασ στη Νοτιοανατολική ΜεσÞγειο και τρίτο, τερµατίζει το ενεργειακÞ αδιέξοδο τÞσο τησ Κύπρου, Þσο και του Ισραήλ, θέµα για το οποίο δίδεται µεγάλη σηµασία απÞ το Ισραήλ. Σηµειώνεται ακÞµη Þτι η Κύπροσ θα έχει πολλαπλά οφέλη αφού εκτÞσ απÞ τα θέµατα ενέργειασ και υδάτινων πÞρων θα µπορεί να επωφεληθεί και σε άλλουσ τοµείσ Þπωσ ο τουρισµÞσ, το περιβάλλον, η γεωργία, η αλιεία και το εµπÞριο.

ª¤¯ÚÈ 31/8 ÔÈ ·ÈÙ‹ÛÂȘ ÁÈ· ÊÔÈÙËÙÈ΋ ¯ÔÚËÁ›· Λήγει τέλοσ του µήνα η προθεσµία για φοιτητική χορηγία, 31η ∆εκεµβρίου η προθεσµία για επίδοµα τέκνου Η Υπηρεσία Χορηγιών και Επιδοµάτων του Υπουργείου Οικονοµικών υπενθυµίζει Þτι η προθεσµία υποβολήσ αιτήσεων για φοιτητική χορηγία για το ακαδηµαϊκÞ έτοσ 2012/13 λήγει στισ 31 Αυγούστου 2013 και ωσ εκ τούτου οι ενδιαφερÞµενοι καλούνται Þπωσ υποβάλουν έγκαιρα τισ αιτήσεισ τουσ. Σε ανακοίνωση, το ΥΠΟΙΚ καλεί εξάλλου Þσεσ οικογένειεσ µε ένα, δύο ή περισσÞτερα τέκνα οι οποίεσ εµπίπτουν στισ πρÞνοιεσ τησ νοµοθεσίασ και δεν έχουν υποβάλει αίτηση για παραχώρηση επιδÞµατοσ τέκνου για το έτοσ 2013, Þπωσ την υποβάλουν το συντοµÞτερο δυνατÞ ώστε να καταστεί δυνατή η έγκαιρη εξέταση τουσ. Η ηµεροµηνία λήξησ τησ προθεσµίασ υποβολήσ αιτήσεων παροχήσ επιδÞµατοσ τέκνου είναι η 31η ∆εκεµβρίου 2013. Σηµειώνεται Þτι, οι ηµεροµηνίεσ λήξησ τησ προθεσµίασ υποβολήσ αιτήσεων, δηλαδή η 31η Αυγούστου 2013 για την παραχώρηση φοιτητικήσ χορηγίασ και η 31η ∆εκεµβρίου 2013 για την παραχώρηση επιδÞµατοσ τέκνου, θα τηρηθούν αυστηρά και οποιεσδήποτε εκπρÞθεσµεσ αιτήσεισ θα απορρίπτονται. Τα έντυπα αιτήσεων είναι διαθέσιµα απÞ τα γραφεία τησ Υπηρεσίασ, το Υπουργείο Οικονοµικών, τα Κέντρα Εξυπηρέτησησ του Πολίτη, καθώσ και απÞ την ιστοσελίδα του Υπουργείου Οικονοµικών http://www.mof.gov.cy

72 Û˘ÌÌÂÙÔ¯¤˜ Û Á¢ÛÈÁÓˆÛ›· ΢ÚÈ·ÎÒÓ ÎÚ·ÛÈÒÓ Ιδιαίτερα ικανοποιηµένη παρουσιάστηκε φέτοσ η επιτροπή αξιολÞγησησ των κυπριακών κρασιών που συµµετείχαν σε γευσιγνωσία, η οποία εντάσσεται στο πλαίσιο των εκδηλώσεων τησ Γιορτήσ του Κρασιού, που αρχίζει αύριο Πέµπτη στο ∆ηµÞσιο Κήπο Λεµεσού. Η διήµερη εκδήλωση, η οποία αποτελεί θεσµÞ τα τελευταία επτά χρÞνια, άρχισε µε γευσιγνωσία λευκών ξηρών, ροζέ και ηµίγλυκων κρασιών και ολοκληρώθηκε µε τη γευσιγνωσία των κÞκκινων κρασιών. Ùπωσ δήλωσε ο ∆ρ. Γεώργιοσ Σολέασ, Ανώτεροσ ΑντιπρÞεδροσ Ασφάλειασ και ΠοιÞτητασ του Μονοπωλίου του Καναδά και πρÞεδροσ τησ Επιτροπήσ ΑξιολÞγησησ, οι φετινέσ 72 συµµετοχέσ αποδεικνύουν πωσ έχουµε κάνει βήµατα προÞδου στην ποιÞτητα του κρασιού µασ. “Ιδιαίτερα στα κÞκκινα κρασιά έχουµε δει διάφορα, ακÞµα κι απÞ πέρσι”, είπε και εξέφρασε την ικανοποίηση, τÞσο του ιδίου Þσο και των υπÞλοιπων µελών τησ επιτροπήσ, απÞ την “πολύ καλή δουλειά που γίνεται”. Ανέφερε, ακÞµη, πωσ η επιτροπή δεν βαθµολογεί τα κρασιά αλλά εκφράζει τη γνώµη τησ και προχωρά σε εισηγήσεισ προσ τουσ οινολÞγουσ, µε στÞχο την καλύτερη δυνατή παραγωγή ποιοτικών κυπριακών κρασιών.

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28 ΑΥΓΟΥΣΤΟΥ, 2013

6 | ∆ΙΕΘΝΗ | financialmirror.com

√ ∞¶√∂§ ·›˙ÂÈ ÁÈ· Ù· €2 ÂÎ. ÙÔ˘ Europa League Σε µια περίοδο Þπου τα πάντα στην Κύπρο βρίσκονται υπÞ το βάροσ τησ χρεοκοπίασ και µε τη συντριπτική πλειοψηφία των οµάδων να ικανοποιούν τα κριτήρια τησ UEFA µε πολλέσ δυσκολίεσ, ο επαναληπτικÞσ αγώνασ του ΑΠΟΕΛ απέναντι στην Ζούλτε Βάρεγκεµ, αύριο Πέµπτη, στισ 20:00 στο ΓΣΠ, για τα play-offs του Europa League, φαντάζει σαν φλέβα χρυσού. Ο πρώτοσ αγώνασ στο Βέλγιο ολοκληρώθηκε ισÞπαλοσ 1-1 και το αποτέλεσµα αυτÞ δίνει αυξηµένεσ πιθανÞτητεσ στουσ Πρωταθλητέσ µασ για να παίξουν για πρώτη φορά στουσ οµίλουσ του Europa League και για τρίτη φορά στην ιστορία τουσ σε Þµιλο Ευρωπαϊκήσ διοργάνωσησ. Ο αγώνασ τησ Πέµπτησ έχει τεράστιεσ οικονοµικέσ προεκτάσεισ για την κυπριακή οµάδα. Ο ΑΠΟΕΛ έχει τροµερή ανάγκη τα έσοδα που συνεπάγεται η συµµετοχή στουσ οµίλουσ του Europa, αφού µÞνο έτσι θα µπορέσει να κλείσει σηµαντικά η ψαλίδα µεταξύ εξÞδων και εσÞδων. Μπορεί η διοίκηση να έδωσε ένα πανηγυρικÞ χαρακτήρα στισ πρÞσφατεσ µειώσεισ συµβολαίων αλλά ο προϋπολογισµÞσ τησ οµάδασ εξακολουθεί να παραµένει ελλειµµατικÞσ. Οι αντικειµενικέσ εκτιµήσεισ κάνουν λÞγο για µια

τρύπα που κυµαίνεται στα 4 εκ. ευρώ, αφού τα έσοδα αγγίζουν τα 5 εκ. ευρώ και τα έξοδα τα 9 εκ. ευρώ. Πλέον ποντάρει στα έσοδα που µπορεί να αποκοµίσει απÞ το Europa League. Τα εξασφαλισµένα έσοδα απÞ την UEFA για συµµετοχή µασ στουσ οµίλουσ είναι το πριµ πρÞκρισησ στουσ οµίλουσ και το γνωστÞ market pool. H πρÞκριση πριµοδοτείται µε το ποσÞ των 1.300.000 ευρώ ενώ το market pool υπολογίζεται στα 250.000 ευρώ. ΑπÞ εκεί και πέρα είναι τα έσοδα απÞ τα εισιτήρια, τα διάφορα αναµνηστικά και τυχÞν επιπλέον χορηγίεσ. Το ρεαλιστικÞ σενάριο για τα πιο πάνω είναι ένα ποσÞ τησ τάξησ των 800,000 ευρώ. Με τα πιο πάνω προκύπτει Þτι η πρÞκριση του ΑΠΟΕΛ στουσ οµίλουσ θα φέρει έσοδα τησ τάξησ των 2.300.000 ευρώ ενώ υπάρχει και η προοπτική επιπλέον εσÞδων µέσω τησ πορείασ που θα έχει η οµάδα. Η νίκη πριµοδοτείται µε το ποσÞ των 200.000 ευρώ ενώ η ισοπαλία µε 100.000 ευρώ. Πρέπει Þµωσ να τονίσουµε κάτι που ξεχνούν αρκετοί και αφορά τα έξοδα που συνεπάγεται η συµµετοχή στουσ οµίλουσ και αφορούν πριµ των παικτών, έξοδα αγώνων, µεταφορικά έξοδα, κ.α.

Αν στο τέλοσ τησ ηµέρασ ο ΑΠΟΕΛ καταφέρει να έχει καθαρά έσοδα τησ τάξησ των 2.000.000 ευρώ θα έχει καταφέρει να κλείσει ένα µεγάλο µέροσ του ελλειµµατικού προϋπολογισµού, γεγονÞσ που θα παίξει καθοριστικÞ ρÞλο στο να κυλήσει οµαλά η χρονιά και να µπορέσει να κατακτήσει το δεύτερο συνεχÞµενο πρωτάθληµα.

∂ȯÂÈÚËÌ·ÙÈ΋ ·ÔÛÙÔÏ‹ Ù˘ ∂∂ Û ·ÛÈ·ÙÈΤ˜ ¯ÒÚ˜ Επιχειρηµατική αποστολή σε τρεισ ασιατικέσ χώρεσ θα πραγµατοποιήσει η ΕΕ το Νοέµβριο. Συγκεκριµένα, στισ 12-16 Νοεµβρίου 2013, ο ΑντιπρÞεδροσ τησ Ευρωπαϊκήσ Επιτροπήσ και αρµÞδιοσ Επίτροποσ για θέµατα επιχειρήσεων ΑντÞνιο Ταγιάνι θα ηγηθεί Επιχειρηµατικήσ Αποστολήσ στο Βιετνάµ, Μιανµάρ και την Ταϊλάνδη στα πλαίσια τησ πρωτοβουλίασ «Αποστολή για την Ανάπτυξη». Κατά τη διάρκεια των επισκέψεων, ο ΙταλÞσ Επίτροποσ θα συνοδεύεται απÞ αντιπροσωπεία Ευρωπαίων επιχειρηµατιών. ΣτÞχοσ των επισκέψεων είναι να βοηθηθούν

οι ευρωπαϊκέσ επιχειρήσεισ - και κυρίωσ οι µικροµεσαίεσ επιχειρήσεισ - στη δραστηριοποίηση τουσ στην ασιατική περιφέρεια και στην προώθηση τησ ευρωπαϊκήσ βιοµηχανίασ σε συγκεκριµένουσ τοµείσ, συµµετέχοντασ σε εκδηλώσεισ µεσιτείασ (brokerage event) µε τοπικούσ επιχειρηµατίεσ. Η εκδήλωση στισ τρεισ αυτέσ χώρεσ απευθύνεται σε επιχειρήσεισ και οργανισµούσ που δραστηριοποιούνται στουσ παρακάτω επιχειρηµατικούσ τοµείσ: ΠροϊÞντα Μεταποίησησ (συµπεριλαµβανοµένων: των κλωστοϋφαντουργικών προϊÞντων, καταναλωτικών αγαθών, φαρµακευτικών, χηµικών, αυτοκινητοβιοµηχανία).

ΤουρισµÞσ (συµπεριλαµβανοµένων των: τοµέα φιλοξενίασ, τουριστικούσ πράκτορεσ, αεροπορίασ, µεταφορέσ). Αγροτικών επιχειρήσεων (συµπεριλαµβανοµένων των: αγροτική ανάπτυξη, αλιεία, βιοµηχανία δασικών, τοµέα τροφίµων και ποτών, συσκευασία) Επιπλέον, οι ακÞλουθοι τοµείσ θα έχουν ιδιαίτερη σηµασία κατά την επίσκεψη στη Μιανµάρ: Ενέργεια & υποδοµή (συµπεριλαµβανοµένων των: παροχήσ ηλεκτρικήσ ενέργειασ, φυσικών πÞρων και εξÞρυξησ µετάλλων/ορυκτών, υποδοµή µεταφορών ξηράσ/θάλασσασ και αέρα, αστική ανάπτυξη, αποχέτευση, νερÞ και διαχείριση των αποβλήτων), Υποστηρικτικέσ περιβαλλοντι-

κέσ υπηρεσίεσ προσ τισ επιχειρήσεισ (συµπεριλαµβανοµένων των: χρηµατοπιστωτικέσ υπηρεσίεσ, ασφάλειεσ, διανοµή και λιανική πώληση). Οι ενδιαφερÞµενοι καλούνται να δηλώσουν το ενδιαφέρον τουσ το αργÞτερο µέχρι τισ 30 Σεπτεµβρίου 2013, συµπληρώνοντασ την αίτηση που βρίσκεται στην ακÞλουθη ιστοσελίδα: http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/initiatives/m ission-growth/missions-for-growth/antoniotajani/asia/vietnam-myanmarthailand/registration-form_en.htm. ∆ικαίωµα εκδήλωσησ ενδιαφέροντοσ έχουν µÞνο επιχειρήσεισ και επιχειρηµατικοί Σύνδεσµοι στην Ευρωπαϊκή Ενωση.

™‡ÓÔ‰Ô˜ ∫ÔÚ˘Ê‹˜ ÙˆÓ G20 ÛÙȘ 5 - 6 ™ÂÙÂÌ‚Ú›Ô˘ Η Σύνοδοσ Κορυφήσ των χωρών τησ οµάδασ των G20 θα πραγµατοποιηθεί στισ 5 - 6 Σεπτεµβρίου στην Αγία Πετρούπολη υπÞ την προεδρία τησ Ρωσικήσ Οµοσπονδίασ. Η οµάδα των G20 αποτελείται απÞ τισ χώρεσ µε τισ µεγαλύτερεσ οικονοµίεσ του πλανήτη αλλά και απÞ τισ χώρεσ µε τισ αναδυÞµενεσ οικονοµίεσ στον κÞσµο. Εχει συνολικά 20 µέλη. Αποτελείται απÞ 19 χώρεσ µέλη

και την ΕΕ. Τα κράτη µέλη είναι η Αργεντινή, η Αυστραλία, η Βραζιλία, ο Καναδάσ, η Κίνα, η Γαλλία, η Γερµανία, η Ιταλία, η Ινδία, η Ινδονησία, η Ιαπωνία, το ΜεξικÞ, η ∆ηµοκρατία τησ Κορέασ, η Ρωσία, η Σαουδική Αραβία, η ΝÞτια Αφρική, η Τουρκία, το Ηνωµένο Βασίλειο και οι Ηνωµένεσ Πολιτείεσ. Ολα τα µέλη αντιπροσωπεύουν περίπου το 90% του παγκÞσµιου ΑΕΠ, το 80%

του παγκÞσµιου εµπορίου και τα δύο τρίτα του παγκÞσµιου πληθυσµού. Η οµάδα των G20 θεωρείται ωσ το κορυφαίο forum για την παγκÞσµια οικονοµική συνεργασία. Η ΕΕ θα εκπροσωπηθεί απÞ τον ΠρÞεδρο τησ Ευρωπαϊκήσ Επιτροπήσ Ζοζέ Μανουέλ ΜπαρÞζο και τον ΠρÞεδρο του Ευρωπαϊκού Συµβουλίου, Χέρµαν βαν Ροµπέι.

∏ ª·ÓÙfiÓ· ‚·Û›ÏÈÛÛ· Î·È ÛÙ· ¤ÛÔ‰· Η βασίλισσα τησ ποπ χρίστηκε πέρσι και βασίλισσα στα έσοδα. Σύµφωνα µε το περιοδικÞ Forbes, η ΜαντÞνα ήταν η διασηµÞτητα µε τισ υψηλÞτερεσ απολαβέσ πέρσι, ξεπερνώντασ σε έσοδα την Ùπρα Γουίνφρι και τον Στίβεν Σπίλµπεργκ. Η 55χρονη τραγουδίστρια κέρδισε περίπου 125 εκ. δολάρια, χάρη στην παγκÞσµια περιοδεία τησ µε τίτλο MDNA, στισ σειρέσ ρούχων και αρωµάτων τησ, σύµφωνα µε το Forbes. Ο σκηνοθέτησ, Στίβεν Σπίλµπεργκ βρίσκεται στη δεύτερη θέση µε 110 εκ. Τα περισσÞτερα απÞ τα κέρδη του προήλθαν απÞ ταινίεσ-επιτυχίεσ του, Þπωσ το ET, το Τζουράσικ Παρκ, το οποίο µÞλισ κυκλοφÞρησε σε 3D για τον εορτασµÞ τησ

20ησ επετείου του, καθώσ και την ταινία Λίνκολν που βραβεύτηκε πέρυσι µε Ùσκαρ. Ο σκηνοθέτησ λαµβάνει επίσησ έσοδα απÞ την πώληση εισιτήριων στα θεµατικά πάρκα τησ Universal Studios. Η τρίτη θέση µοιράστηκε σε τρία άτοµα, τη συγγραφέα των «50 αποχρώσεων του γκρι», Ε.λ. Τζέιµσ, τον Σάιµον ΚÞουελ και τον κωµικÞ Χάουαρντ Στερν, µε κέρδη 95 εκ. δολαρίων. Ο συγγραφέασ θρίλερ Τζέιµσ Πάτερσον ακολουθεί µε 91 εκ., ενώ η τηλεοπτική και ραδιοφωνική παραγωγÞσ Γκλεν Μπεκ κέρδισε 90 εκ. δολάρια. Στο top 10 περιλαµβάνονται επίσησ, ο σκηνοθέτησ των Transformers, Μάικλ Μπέι (82 εκ.) και η τραγουδίστρια Lady Gaga µε 80 εκ. δολάρια.

SPD: ∏ ∂ÏÏ¿‰· ¯ÚÂÈ¿˙ÂÙ·È €7 77 ‰È˜ ̤¯ÚÈ ÙÔ 2020 Συνολικά 77 δισ. ευρώ µέχρι το 2020 θα χρειαστεί η Ελλάδα ώστε να γίνει βιώσιµο το χρέοσ τησ, σύµφωνα µε τον κοινοβουλευτικÞ εκπρÞσωπο των Γερµανών Σοσιαλδηµοκρατών, Κάρστεν Σνάιντερ (Carsten Schnieder), ο οποίοσ µάλιστα βασίζει την εκτίµησή του σε έκθεση τησ ΤρÞικασ. Σε συνέντευξή του στην εφηµερίδα Bild, ο βουλευτήσ του κÞµµατοσ τησ γερµανικήσ αντιπολίτευσησ επεσήµανε πωσ το πραγµατικÞ ποσÞ που θα καταστήσει

βιώσιµο το ελληνικÞ χρέοσ είναι µεγαλύτερο απÞ τα ποσά που έχουν αναφερθεί απÞ διάφορεσ πηγέσ µέχρι σήµερα. «Μεταξύ του διαστήµατοσ 2015 – 2020 θα χρειαστεί ένα πολύ υψηλÞτερο ποσÞ τησ τάξεωσ των δεκάδων δισεκατοµµυρίων ευρώ», δήλωσε ο Κάρστεν Σνάιντερ, λέγοντασ πωσ η εκτίµηση για τα 77 δισ. µέχρι το 2020 προέρχεται απÞ πρÞσφατη έκθεση βιωσιµÞτητασ για το ελληνικού χρέουσ την οποία έχει εκπονήσει η ΤρÞικα.

Σηµειώνεται Þτι στισ 23 Ιουλίου 2013, µε κοινή επιστολή προσ τουσ 28 αρχηγούσ κρατών και κυβερνήσεων, οι ΠρÞεδροι ΜπαρÞζο και Ροµπέι καθÞρισαν τα βασικά θέµατα που θα τεθούν προσ συζήτηση κατά τη σύνοδο κορυφήσ των G20. Η G20 δηµιουργήθηκε το 1999 µε στÞχο την αντιµετώπιση των οικονοµικών κρίσεων που έκαναν την εµφάνισή τουσ στα τέλη τησ δεκαετίασ του 1990.

Moody’s: £· ·ÚÁ‹ÛÂÈ Ó· ·Ó·Î¿Ì„ÂÈ Ë Â˘ÚˆÂÚÈʤÚÂÈ· Οι χώρεσ τησ υπερχρεωµένησ ευρωπεριφέρειασ έχουν κάνει σηµαντική πρÞοδο για να αποκαταστήσουν την ανταγωνιστικÞτητα των οικονοµιών τουσ αλλά αυτÞ δεν φτάνει για να πετύχουν βιώσιµη ανάπτυξη, είπε ο οίκοσ Moody’s.

Oι ανισορροπίεσ στο ισοζύγιο τρεχουσών συναλλαγών σταδιακά ελαττώνονται, είπε η Moody’s. “Στα τέλη του 2012, Þλεσ οι χώρεσ τησ περιφέρειασ αποκατέστησαν το ισοζύγιο στα επίπεδα που είχαν στα µέσα τησ δεκαετίασ του 1990 (µέσοσ Þροσ -1%). Παρ’ Þλα αυτά, το ΑΕΠ των χωρών αυτών θα χρειαστεί περισσÞτερο χρÞνο για να φτάσει στα προ οικονοµικήσ κρίσησ επίπεδα απÞ Þ,τι χρειάστηκαν στο παρελθÞν άλλεσ χώρεσ που υπέστησαν παρÞµοια σοκ, είπε η Moody’s. Η επιστροφή στα προ κρίσησ επίπεδα δεν πρÞκειται να συµβεί πριν απÞ το 2016-2017, εκτίµησε ο οίκοσ στην έκθεσή του, που πραγµατεύεται τισ εξελίξεισ σε Κύπρο, Ελλάδα, Ισπανία, Ιταλία, Ιρλανδία και Πορτογαλία. “Ένασ απÞ τουσ λÞγουσ για τo µεγαλύτερο διάστηµα προσαρµογήσ είναι ενδεχοµένωσ Þτι η συµµετοχή τουσ στην Ευρωζώνη εµποδίζει τισ χώρεσ αυτέσ να προχωρήσουν σε ονοµαστική υποτίµηση των νοµισµάτων τουσ, απαιτώντασ ‘εσωτερική υποτίµηση’ για να βελτιώσoυν τη διεθνή ανταγωνιστικÞτητά τουσ”.

28 ΑΥΓΟΥΣΤΟΥ, 2013

ΧΡΗΜΑ&ΑΓΟΡΑ

financialmirror.com | ΕΛΛΑ∆Α | 7

ª·˙ÈΤ˜ ·ÁÔÚ¤˜ ηÙÔÈÎÈÒÓ ·fi ͤÓÔ˘˜ ÂÂÓ‰˘Ù¤˜ Η χορήγηση άδειασ παραµονήσ στην Ελλάδα για Þποιον ξένο επενδυτή, εκτÞσ Ε.Ε., αγοράσει ακίνητα αξίασ άνω των 250,000 ευρώ, ανοίγει τον δρÞµο για µαζικέσ αγοραπωλησίεσ σε µια κτηµαταγορά που έχει καταρρεύσει. Ενδεικτική είναι η στροφή που κάνουν οι Κινέζοι αλλά και οι Ρώσοι στισ αγορέσ τησ ΝÞτιασ Ευρώπησ, ενώ για την Ελλάδα τα πάντα θα εξαρτηθούν απÞ την πολιτική και οικονοµική κατάσταση. Σύµφωνα µε τα Þσα είδαν το φωσ τησ δηµοσιÞτητασ, στα µεγάλα µεσιτικά γραφεία και τισ κατασκευαστικέσ εταιρείεσ έχουν αρχίσει να φτάνουν προτάσεισ για αγορέσ εκατοντάδων ακινήτων στην Ελλάδα, ενώ ήδη µέσα στο καλοκαίρι έγιναν οι πρώτεσ επαφέσ ξένων θεσµικών επενδυτών αλλά και µεµονωµένων ενδιαφερÞµενων, που ψάχνουν τισ ευκαιρίεσ που κρύβει η ελληνική κτηµαταγορά. Ùπωσ προκύπτει πρÞσφατα µεγάλο αµερικανικÞ δικηγορικÞ γραφείο, που κινείται για λογαριασµÞ εταιρειών real estate και funds ακινήτων, έκανε πρÞταση σε ελληνικούσ τραπεζικούσ οµίλουσ και κατασκευαστικέσ εταιρείεσ για την απÞκτηση 1.000 κατοικιών. ΠρÞκειται για την πρώτη τέτοια επενδυτική πρÞταση που γίνεται στην Ελλάδα και µάλιστα προέρχεται απÞ τισ ΗΠΑ, που δεν είναι παραδοσιακή πηγή επενδυτών για την χώρα. Οι πληροφορίεσ αναφέ-

ρουν Þτι οι ενδιαφερÞµενοι θέλουν να αγοράσουν κατοικίεσ και εξοχικά στην Αττική και τα νησιά, που θα πουλήσουν σε Αµερικανούσ οι οποίοι θέλουν να κάνουν µÞνιµεσ διακοπέσ στην Ελλάδα και παράλληλα να έχουν τη χώρα ωσ βάση για «εξορµήσεισ» και στισ υπÞλοιπεσ χώρεσ Σένγκεν, χωρίσ να µπλέκονται σε γραφειοκρατικά γρανάζια. Μεγάλο ενδιαφέρον παρουσιάζεται για ακίνητα που βρίσκονται στο κέντρο τησ Αθήνασ και κοντά στο αεροδρÞµιο, καθώσ και άλλα µε θέα στη θάλασσα / πισίνα /κ.λπ. που βρίσκονται στα ελληνικά νησιά. Τα πάνω-κάτω στην ελληνική κτηµαταγορά φαίνεται να έφερε ο νÞµοσ 4146/2013 για τη χορήγησησ τησ «εύκολησ» βίζασ. Κάποιοι εκτιµούν Þτι µπορεί να γίνει πραγµατικÞτητα τα επÞµενα χρÞνια η διάθεση σε ξένουσ χιλιάδων εξοχικών και άλλων κατοικιών. Αρχικά είχε προταθεί η χορήγηση άδειασ παραµονήσ για αγορέσ πάνω απÞ 300 χιλιάδων ευρώ, ωστÞσο, κρίθηκε σκÞπιµο να µειωθεί κατά 250.000 ώστε να έρθουν περισσÞτεροι επενδυτέσ. Άλλωστε, οι τιµέσ των ακινήτων έχουν υποχωρήσει σηµαντικά στην Ελλάδα, εποµένωσ, υπάρχουν χιλιάδεσ ακίνητα που πωλούνται στα επίπεδα των 250300 χιλ. ευρώ. Η Ελλάδα υπερτερεί στον τοµέα αυτÞ απÞ τισ ανταγωνίστριεσ αγορέσ καθώσ στην

Πορτογαλία και την Ισπανία το Þριο αγοράσ ακινήτου µε «δώρο» τη βίζα είναι 500.000 ευρώ. Στην Κύπρο είναι 300.000 ευρώ και µε αυτÞ το ποσÞ περισσÞτεροι απÞ 1.000 αγοραστέσ ήταν Κινέζοι το 2012, οι οποίοι δείχνουν ενδιαφέρον για την Πάφο. Με δεδοµένο Þτι η Ελλάδα έχει ρίξει κατά 50.000 το Þριο για τη χορήγηση βίζασ, την καθιστά αµέσωσ καλύτερη αγορά για τουσ ξένουσ.

∂¤ÎÙ·ÛË Ù˘ Wal-Mart ÛÙËÓ ∂ÏÏ¿‰· ¶ÚfiÎÂÈÙ·È ÁÈ· ÙËÓ ÌÂÁ·Ï‡ÙÂÚË ·Ï˘Û›‰· ÛÔ‡ÂÚ Ì¿ÚÎÂÙ ÛÙÔÓ ÎfiÛÌÔ Μία αγγελία πρÞσληψησ διευθυντή ανθρώπινου δυναµικού, η οποία δηµοσιεύτηκε σε κυριακάτικη εφηµερίδα τησ Θεσσαλονίκησ, δηµιουργεί βάσιµεσ υποψίεσ πωσ πιθανÞτατα η αµερικανική αλυσίδα Wal-Mart διατηρεί την Ελλάδα στα επενδυτικά πλάνα τησ. Ùπωσ προκύπτει απÞ την αγγελία, το συγκεκριµένο διευθυντικÞ στέλεχοσ ζητείται για απασχÞληση απÞ µεγάλη αλυσίδα σούπερ µάρκετ µε έδρα τη Θεσσαλονίκη και καλούνται οι ενδιαφερÞµενοι να αποστείλουν βιογραφικά σε ηλεκτρονική διεύθυνση, η οποία φέρει το Þνοµα τησ Wal-Mart (walmartgr). Εντύπωση προκαλεί βέβαια το γεγονÞσ πωσ η µεγαλύτερη αλυσίδα λιανεµπορίου παγκοσµίωσ επιλέγει µία «ταπεινή» αγγελία για να προσλάβει ένα ανώτατο στέλεχοσ σε µία αγορά, Þπωσ η ελληνική, στην οποία µέχρι στιγµήσ δεν δραστηριοποιείται. Ùπωσ Þλα δείχνουν η µεγαλύτερη αλυσίδα λιανικού εµπορίου στον κÞσµο ετοιµάζεται να εισέλθει στην ελληνική αγορά και να αλλάξει τα δεδοµένα στη ΝΑ Ευρώπη και σε ολÞκληρη την ήπειρο γενικÞτερα. Σύµφωνα µε πληροφορίεσ οι οποίεσ δεν επιβεβαιώνονται για την είσοδÞ τησ στην ελληνική αγορά η αµερικανική αλυσίδα σούπερ µάρκετ Wal-Μart, θα συνεργαστεί µε την εταιρεία Βασιλάγασ Α.Ε.-3Β Markets ΑΕ. Με αφετηρία τη Θεσσαλονίκη η µεγαλύτερη αλυσίδα λιανικήσ του κÞσµου, σχεδιάζει την δηµιουργία 50 καταστηµάτων στη ΒÞρεια Ελλάδα µέχρι το

2015. Συγκεκριµένα, η Wal-Μart βρίσκεται στο τελικÞ στάδιο των διαπραγµατεύσεων µε την Βασιλάγασ Α.Ε.-3Β Markets ΑΕ για τη δηµιουργία joint venture 50%-50%. ΣτÞχοσ είναι η εταιρεία να διαθέτει 100 καταστήµατα µέχρι το 2025 σε Þλη την Ελλάδα (ηπειρωτική και νησιωτική Ελλάδα). Παράλληλα, στα σχέδια τησ εταιρείασ είναι η επέκταση στα Βαλκάνια µε Þχηµα την ίδια κοινοπραξία. Έτσι, για την πενταετία 2020 2025 προβλέπει το άνοιγµα των καταστηµάτων σε Αλβανία, ΠΓ∆Μ, Βουλγαρία, Σερβία και Ρουµανία.

∆Ô˘ÚΛ· - ∆Ô ÌÂÁ¿ÏÔ ÛÙÔ›¯ËÌ· Το µεγάλο στοίχηµα Þµωσ τησ Wal-Μart είναι η ταυτÞχρονη επένδυση σε Ελλάδα και Τουρκία, µε την ελληνική αγορά να έχει το προβάδισµα χρÞνου. Έτσι, µε το τέλοσ τησ πρώτησ φάσησ επέκτασησ η εταιρεία θα διαθέτει ένα δίκτυο καταστηµάτων που θα εκτείνεται απÞ την Ηγουµενίτσα έωσ την Καισάρεια. Το σχήµα αυτÞ θα οδηγήσει σε νέα δεδοµένα τÞσο την ελληνική αγορά, Þσο και την ευρύτερη αγορά λιανικού εµπορίου σε Ευρώπη και δυτική Ασία. Αρχικά λÞγω του εύρουσ τουσ δικτύου, αλλά κυρίωσ λÞγω του πολέµου τιµών που αναµένεται να ξεκινήσει η εταιρεία, καθώσ χαρακτηρίζεται απÞ την πολιτική των χαµηλών τιµών παγκοσµίωσ.

Wal-ªart Η Wal-Μart ιδρύθηκε το 1962 απÞ τον Σαµ ΓουÞλτον και έχει ωσ έδρα τησ το Μπέτονβιλ, στο Αρκάνσασ τησ Αµερικήσ. Το 1969 µπήκε στο χρηµατιστήριο τησ Νέασ ΥÞρκησ, και σήµερα διαθέτει 8.500 καταστήµατα σε Þλο τον κÞσµο. Συγκεκριµένα δραστηριοποιείται σε 15 χώρεσ, υπÞ 55 διαφορετικέσ ονοµασίεσ. Σύµφωνα µε το Fortune Global 500 έχει περισσÞτερουσ απÞ 2 εκατοµµύρια εργαζοµένουσ και είναι ο τρίτοσ µεγαλύτεροσ εργοδÞτησ παγκοσµίωσ. Στην Ευρώπη έχει παρουσία µÞνο στο Ηνωµένο Βασίλειο, καθώσ η επένδυσή τησ στη Γερµανία, απέτυχε λÞγω του µεγάλου εγχώριου ανταγωνισµού. Το 1998 ξεκίνησε την επένδυσή τησ στη Γερµανία. ΩστÞσο, το 2006 αποχώρησε µε απώλειεσ $1 δισ. Ο «αµερικάνικοσ” τρÞποσ προσέγγισησ των καταναλωτών και η εργασιακή ηθική τησ εταιρείασ ξένισε του Γερµανούσ. Άλλωστε, η γερµανική αγορά λιανικού εµπορίου είναι διαφοροποιηµένη και µε υψηλÞ ανταγωνισµÞ, µε αποτέλεσµα Þταν η Walmart εισήλθε στην αγορά, οι τιµέσ ήταν ήδη πολύ χαµηλέσ και η αµερικανική εταιρεία δεν µπÞρεσε να κάνει τη διαφορά. Τέλοσ αξίζει να αναφερθεί πωσ η εταιρεία έχει βρεθεί στο στÞχαστρο του Τύπου και τησ ∆ικαιοσύνησ εξαιτίασ του άσχηµου εργασιακού περιβάλλοντοσ και τησ πολιτικήσ τησ εταιρείασ για τουσ εργαζοµένουσ.

∏ ∂ÏÏ¿‰· ÛÙËÓ ÙÚ›ÙË ı¤ÛË ÁÈ· ÎÚÔ˘·˙ȤÚ˜ ÛÙËÓ ∂˘ÚÒË ∂¤ÎÙ·ÛË Ù˘ Aztec Money ÛÙËÓ ∫‡ÚÔ Ùλο και περισσÞτερουσ τουρίστεσ προσελκύουν τα ελληνικά λιµάνια καθώσ στον χώρο τησ κρουαζιέρασ η Ελλάδα είναι ο τρίτοσ προορισµÞσ των τουριστών στην Ευρώπη, µετά την Ισπανία και την Ιταλία. Τα ελληνικά λιµάνια µε επίκεντρο τον Πειραιά, µετά την άρση του καµποτάζ, συγκεντρώνουν Þλο και περισσÞτερουσ τουρίστεσ. Ο Πειραιάσ απÞ την αρχή του χρÞνου έωσ και τον Ιούλιο καταγράφει αύξηση 11,7% στουσ επιβάτεσ transit, ενώ την χώρα επισκέφθηκαν 1,8 εκ. τουρίστεσ έναντι 1,2 εκ. το 2012.

Οι εκτιµήσεισ είναι Þτι έωσ το τέλοσ του 2013 οι αφίξεισ θα φθάσουν τα 5,5 εκ. Σύµφωνα µε στοιχεία, κάθε τουρίστασ ξοδεύει καθηµερινά, 200 ευρώ κατά µέσο Þρο. Υπολογίζεται Þτι φέτοσ θα υπάρξουν πρÞσθετα έσοδα 1 δισ ευρώ απÞ τουσ transit επιβάτεσ και 2 δισ απÞ τουσ επιβάτεσ στα λιµάνια βάσησ. Ùµωσ αύξηση στην κρουαζιέρα καταγράφεται και στα άλλα λιµάνια τησ χώρασ. Στο Ηράκλειο η αύξηση άγγιξε το 62% αύξηση, στην Κεφαλονιά το 20,5%, στην Κέρκυρα το 23% στην Κέρκυρα και στη Σαντορίνη το 30%. Τα έσοδα θα µπορούσαν να αυξηθούν ακÞµη περισσÞτερο, µε συγκεκριµένεσ αλλαγέσ στο ωράριο λειτουργίασ των µουσείων και των αρχαιολογικών χώρων, επισηµαίνουν φορείσ του κλάδου. Την ίδια ώρα Þµωσ τα στοιχεία δείχνουν Þτι µειώθηκαν οι επιβάτεσ τησ ακτοπλοΐασ. Το πρώτο εξάµηνο η µείωση έφθασε και το 30% ενώ και τον Ιούλιο ταξίδεψαν για τα νησιά του Αιγαίου περίπου 30.000 λιγÞτεροι επιβάτεσ σε σχέση µε πέρυσι. ΩστÞσο ο Αύγουστοσ που είναι παραδοσιακά ο µήνασ των διακοπών για τουσ κατοίκουσ των πÞλεων, καταγράφει µικρή αύξηση στην κίνηση των επιβατών.

Μετά την Ελλάδα, η Aztec Money επεκτείνει τη δραστηριÞτητά τησ και στην Κύπρο, µε στÞχο την παροχή υπηρεσιών χρηµατοδÞτησησ εµπορίου. Σύµφωνα µε σχετική ανακοίνωση, η Aztec Money, που αποτελεί την εµπορική ονοµασία τησ Aztec Exchange Limited και δραστηριοποιείται ήδη σε 37 εθνικέσ αγορέσ, θα αποκτήσει παρουσία στην Κύπρο µέσα στισ επÞµενεσ εβδοµάδεσ, βασιζÞµενη στην οµάδα επιχειρηµατικήσ ανάπτυξησ τησ ελληνικήσ αγοράσ, µε υπεύθυνο, Þπωσ και στην Ελλάδα, τον κ. Ευθύµιο Γκαϊτατζή, ο οποίοσ θα παρακολουθεί και τισ δύο αγορέσ, δεδοµένου Þτι η µεταξύ τουσ εµπορική δραστηριÞτητα καταγράφεται έντονη. Μέσω µιασ διεθνούσ - καινοτÞµασ πλατφÞρµασ δηµοπρασιών, η Aztec Money θα διασφαλίσει και στην Κύπρο την ενίσχυση τησ ρευστÞτητασ των τοπικών επιχειρήσεων, µε τη διευκÞλυνση εξÞφλησησ νÞµιµων εκδιδοµένων τιµολογίων.

ΧΡΗΜΑ&ΑΓΟΡΑ

28 AΥΓΟΥΣΤΟΥ, 2013

8 | ΑΓΟΡΑ | financialmirror.com

™ÙËÓ ∫‡ÚÔ Ë ˘‚ÚȉÈ΋ Porsche Panamera Η ανανεωµένη Porsche Panamera έκανε την πρώτη παγκÞσµια τησ εµφάνιση στο φετινÞ ΣαλÞνι τησ Σαγκάησ έχοντασ στη γκάµα τησ και µια υβριδική έκδοση. Μια κίνηση που κατατάσσει τη Γερµανική εταιρεία στην κορυφή του ανταγωνισµού στην premium κατηγορία. Το µοντέλο Plug In Hybrid είναι η έκδοση που αποτελεί την υβριδική εκδοχή, η οποία µπαίνει στην πρίζα. ∆ιαθέτει ένα τρίλιτρο V6 κινητήρα και έναν ηλεκτροκινητήρα που αντλεί ενέργεια απÞ µπαταρίεσ λιθίου. Οι δύο κινητήρεσ αποδίδουν συνδυαστικά 416 ίππουσ, εξασφαλίζοντασ επιδÞσεισ 0-100 χλµ./ώρα σε µÞλισ 5,5 δευτερÞλεπτα και τελική του ταχύτητα που φτάνει έωσ τα 269 χλµ./ώρα. Η Porsche Panamera S Plug In Hybrid αναµένεται να κάνει το ντεµπούτο τησ στην Κυπριακή αγορά περί τα τέλη αυτού του µήνα.

15 ¯ÚfiÓÈ· ˙ˆ‹˜ ÁÈ· ÙÔ Pafos Aphrodite Festival ∆εκαπέντε χρÞνια αδιάκοπησ παρουσίασ στον πολιτιστικÞ χάρτη τησ Κύπρου συµπληρώνει φέτοσ ο θεσµÞσ Pafos Aphrodite Festival, παρουσιάζοντασ την κωµική Þπερα «Το ελιξίριο του Έρωτα», του Gaetano Donizetti στισ 6, 7 και 8 Σεπτεµβρίου 2013, στο ΜεσαιωνικÞ Κάστρο τησ Πάφου. Στην πάροδο των τελευταίων 15 χρÞνων η εταιρεία Pafos Aphrodite Festival Cyprus συνέβαλε τα µέγιστα στην ενδυνάµωση του πολιτιστικού τουρισµού στο νησί µασ. Για προκρατήσεισ και περισσÞτερεσ πληροφορίεσ το κοινÞ µπορεί να επικοινωνήσει µε τα Γραφεία τησ εταιρείασ Pafos Aphrodite Festival στο τηλέφωνο 26822218, στον παγκύπριο αριθµÞ χωρίσ χρέωση 8000 8005 και στην ιστοσελίδα www.pafc.com.cy. Οι τιµέσ των εισιτηρίων έχουν ωσ εξήσ: 25, 40, 50 και 70 ευρώ. Η ταυτÞχρονη οπτική µετάφραση στην ελληνική και αγγλική γλώσσα θα γίνεται µέσω υποτίτλων.

∏ Ã. ¶ËÏ·ÎÔ‡Ù·˜ ÎÔÓÙ¿ ÛÙÔ˘˜ Ó·ÚÔ‡˜ Ô‰ËÁÔ‡˜ H εταιρεία Χαράλαµποσ Πηλακούτασ Λτδ, έδωσε την ευκαιρία σε 3400 νεοσύλλεκτουσ νεαρούσ οδηγούσ να µάθουν να οδηγούν σωστά και µε ασφάλεια στουσ δρÞµουσ, κτίζοντασ µ’ αυτÞν τον τρÞπο οδική συνείδηση στην πιο ευαίσθητη ηλικιακή κατηγορία. Το «Young Drivers Roadshow», Þπωσ ονοµάστηκε η Þλη προσπάθεια, φιλοδοξεί να γίνει θεσµÞσ στα Κυπριακά δρώµενα και να ανοίξει τον δρÞµο για παρÞµοιεσ άκρωσ χρήσιµεσ για την κοινωνία πρωτοβουλίεσ. Με την ευκαιρία τησ επιτυχηµένησ ολοκλήρωσησ του «Young Drivers Roadshow», οργανώθηκε δηµοσιογραφική διάσκεψη στουσ εκθεσιακούσ χώρουσ τησ BMW στη Λευκωσία µε την παρουσία του Υπουργού Άµυνασ κύριου Φώτη Φωτίου, του Αρχηγού τησ Εθνικήσ Φρουράσ Αντιστράτηγου Στυλιανού Νάση και του ∆ιευθυντή του Τµήµατοσ Τροχαίασ κύριου ∆ηµήτρη ∆ηµήτριου, εκ µέρουσ τησ Αστυνοµίασ Κύπρου.

∂ÏÏËÓÈ΋: ∂ÍÔÈÎÔÓfiÌËÛË ¯·ÚÙÈÔ‡ Ì e-statement Γύρω στουσ 7 τÞνουσ χαρτιού εξοικονοµήθηκαν απÞ την χρήση τησ Υπηρεσίασ e-statement, τησ Ελληνικήσ Τράπεζασ, Ο Ùµιλοσ τησ Ελληνικήσ Τράπεζασ, συµβάλλοντασ στην προστασία του περιβάλλοντοσ και θέλοντασ να ευαισθητοποιήσει το κοινÞ στα περιβαλλοντικά θέµατα, προσφέρει απÞ το τέλοσ του 2011, την υπηρεσία e-Statement. Με την τεχνολογικά αναβαθµισµένη αυτή υπηρεσία επιτυγχάνεται, µεταξύ άλλων, και η εξοικονÞµηση χαρτιού και εκτυπωτικών υλικών. Βάσει ερευνών, λÞγω τησ µη χρησιµοποίησησ αυτού του χαρτιού σώθηκαν 294 δέντρα και εξοικονοµήθηκαν 607 τÞνοι νερού και 16.000 kwh ηλεκτρικήσ ενέργειασ. Η υπηρεσία e-Statement απευθύνεται σε πελάτεσ που έχουν πρÞσβαση σε ηλεκτρονικÞ ταχυδροµείο και αντικαθιστά την αποστολή τησ έντυπησ κατάστασησ µηναίων λογαριασµών (τρεχούµενων, ταµιευτηρίου, προειδοποίησησ, δανείων και πιστωτικών καρτών). Η Υπηρεσία, η οποία προσφέρεται δωρεάν. Για περισσÞτερεσ πληροφορίεσ µπορούν να αποτείνονται στα καταστήµατα τησ Ελληνικήσ Τράπεζασ, στη Γραµµή Εξυπηρέτησησ 8000 9999 και το www.hellenicbank.com.

¢È·ÓÔÌ‹ Ù˘ ÛÂÈÚ¿˜ «°·Ï·ÎÙÔˆÏ›Ի ·fi ÙËÓ Argosy H εταιρεία Argosy Trading Company Ltd, µέλοσ τησ Cyprus Trading Corporation Plc, (CTC) ανέλαβε τη διανοµή γιαουρτιού και επιδορπίων γιαουρτιού τησ Danone Γαλακτοκοµικά ΠροϊÞντα, µε το premium σήµα «Γαλακτοπωλείο». Τα νέα προϊÞντα διατίθενται στην Κυπριακή αγορά σε προσιτέσ τιµέσ θυµίζοντασ στουσ καταναλωτέσ τη γεύση µιασ «άλλησ εποχήσ». Η νέα σειρά «Γαλακτοπωλείο» περιλαµβάνει 3 υπέροχα και απολαυστικά προϊÞντα: Γιαούρτι Αγελάδοσ µε απαλή, µεστή υφή και απολαυστικά δροσερή γεύση που µασ ταξιδεύει στισ γεύσεισ των παιδικών µασ αναµνήσεων. ΣτραγγιστÞ µε ανθÞγαλα, πλούσια γεύση και υφή και ΣτραγγιστÞ 2% µε πλούσια γεύση και χαµηλά λιπαρά. Συνολικά, στον κλάδο των γαλακτοκοµικών προϊÞντων, η Danone Γαλακτοκοµικά ΠροϊÞντα Α.Ε., την περίοδο των τελευταίων 3 ετών (2010-2012) έχει επενδύσει συνολικά 18 εκ. ευρώ, µέσω τησ υποστήριξησ των προϊÞντων τησ στην Ελλάδα και στην Κύπρο.

¶·ÁˆÙ¿ REGIS Ì 0% ˙¿¯·ÚË Με την πιο µεγάλη σειρά παγωτού µε 0% ζάχαρη, η REGIS µασ δίνει τη δυνατÞτητα για ατέλειωτο παγωτÞ και απÞλαυση. Καταρρίπτοντασ τον µύθο Þτι το παγωτÞ είναι προιÞν µε υψηλή περιεκτικÞτητα σε θερµίδεσ, η REGIS είναι η εταιρεία που κατάφερε να κυριαρχήσει στα παγωτά ειδικήσ δίαιτασ, προσφέροντασ λύσεισ στουσ καταναλωτέσ που φροντίζουν τη διατροφή τουσ, ενώ ανταποκρίνεται στισ διατροφικέσ απαιτήσεισ ατÞµων µε διαβήτη. Ùλεσ οι αγαπηµένεσ γεύσεισ REGIS, το AGRINO, η ΠΛΑΚΑ, γεύσεισ Βανίλια και Σοκολάτα, αλλά και οικογενειακέσ συσκευασίεσ παγωτού, βρίσκονται στην διάθεση των καταναλωτών για ατέλειωτη απÞλαυση, χωρίσ τύψεισ. Τα προιÞντα ειδικήσ δίαιτασ τησ REGIS έχουν χαµηλή λιποπεριεκτικÞτητα, µε το λίποσ να είναι φυτικÞ., ενώ δεν περιέχουν καθÞλου ζάχαρη. Περιέχουν το συστατικÞ λακτιτÞλη που είναι φιλική για τα δÞντια και είναι κατάλληλη για διαβητικούσ.

¡¤Ô˜ ηٿÏÔÁÔ˜ π∫∂∞ 2014 ΑπÞ τισ 28 Αυγούστου αρχίζει η διανοµή του καταλÞγου ΙΚΕΑ 2014. Έχοντασ ωσ επίκεντρο το θέµα «Ζώντασ µε Παιδιά», ο κατάλογοσ θα κυκλοφορήσει σύντοµα σε Þλεσ τισ αγορέσ ΙΚΕΑ. Ο κατάλογοσ ΙΚΕΑ κυκλοφÞρησε για πρώτη φορά το 1951, κι εδώ και περισσÞτερα απÞ 60 χρÞνια αποτελεί πηγή έµπνευσησ για την επίπλωση του σπιτιού. «ΣτÞχοσ είναι ο κατάλογοσ ΙΚΕΑ να αποτελέσει σηµαντική πηγή έµπνευσησ, αλλά και εργαλείο που θα εισηγείται λύσεισ - απαντήσεισ στα Þνειρα και τισ ανάγκεσ των ανθρώπων. Φιλοδοξούµε Þτι κάθε χρÞνο αυτÞ θα γίνεται µε νέουσ και καλύτερουσ τρÞπουσ, κι ελπίζουµε Þτι θα το διαπιστώσετε στον επÞµενο κατάλογο ΙΚΕΑ», δηλώνει η Lena Simonsson-Berge, ∆ιευθύντρια Επικοινωνίασ στισ Υπηρεσίεσ Λιανικού Εµπορίου ΙΚΕΑ. Ο κατάλογοσ ΙΚΕΑ 2013 τυπώθηκε σε 30 γλώσσεσ και σε περισσÞτερα απÞ 210 εκατοµµύρια αντίτυπα µε κατ’ οίκον παραδÞσεισ σε 44 χώρεσ, χαρακτηριστικά που τον αναδεικνύουν ωσ τη µεγαλύτερη τακτική ετήσια έκδοση στον κÞσµο.

August 28 - September 3, 2013

financialmirror.com COMMENT

How to get meetings with people too busy to see you Jason, an entrepreneur I’ve known for over a decade, came out to the ranch near Stanford. He was celebrating selling his company and just beginning to think through his next moves.

Since he wasn’t from Silicon Valley, he decided to use his time up here networking

how to get meetings with people too busy to see you.

PERFECT WORLD

Silicon Valley has a “pay-it-forward” culture where we try to help each other without asking for anything in return.

It’s a culture that emerged in the 1960s semiconductor business when competitors would help each other Steve Blank solve bugs in their chip fabrication process. It continued in the 1970s with the emergence of the Homebrew Computer Club, and it continues today. Since I teach, I tend to prioritise with other meetings with VCs and company my list of meetings with first my current executives. students, then ex-students, then referrals I get several hundred emails a day, and from VC firms I’ve invested in, and then a good number of them are “I want to have others. But still with that list, and now with coffee with you to bounce an idea off.” a thousand plus ex-students, I have more Or, “I just want to pick your brain.” I meeting requests than I possibly can handle. now have a filter for which emails get my So I’ve come up with is a method to sort attention, so I was curious in hearing what out who I take meetings with.

Jason, who I think of as pretty good at networking, was asking for when he was WHAT ARE YOU OFFERING? trying to set up meetings.

I’m not an investor, and I’m really not “Oh, I ask them if I can have coffee to looking for meetings with entrepreneurs for bounce an idea off of them.”… Sigh. deal flow. I’m having these meetings because I realised most entrepreneurs don’t know someone is asking for something from me –

my time – and they think I can offer them advice.

If I’d had infinite time I’d take every one of these “can I have coffee” meetings. But I don’t. So I now prioritise meetings with a new filter: Who is offering me something in return.

No, not offering me money. Not for stock.

But who is offering to teach me something I don’t know. The meeting requests that now jump to the top of my list are the few, very smart entrepreneurs who say, “I’d like to have coffee to bounce an idea off of you and in exchange I’ll tell you all about what we learned about xx.”

This offer of teaching me something changes the agenda of the meeting from a one-way, you’re learning from me, to a twoway, we’re learning from each other.

It has another interesting consequence for those who are asking for the meeting – it forces them to think about what is it they know and what is it they have learned – and whether they can explain it to others in a way that’s both coherent and compelling.

Steve Blank is a retired serial entrepreneur-turned educator and author of The Startup Owner’s Manual. Read more posts at www.steveblank.com.

17

Gov’ts urged to help SMEs fulfil potential The failure of many small businesses to develop international trade opportunities is a major challenge for governments and business owners says the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), which has published a paper outlining the essential measures to enable them to enjoy more success.

‘Tapping into SME international potential’ has been issued by ACCA’s Global Forum for SMEs (small and medium sized enterprises) and makes recommendations for increasing SME presence in international trade. It calls on governments to recognise that the internationalisation of SMEs is not only about export, but also takes the form of import, foreign direct investment, international sub-contracting and technical cooperation, and that policies and business support networks need to reflect this.

Governments, international institutions and business associations should also work to have a better understanding of the part played by SMEs in global supply chains and encourage their activity, the paper said calling on governments to work together to remove barriers to cross-border trade to enable small firms to access international markets.

Governments should co-ordinate their efforts to create infrastructures relating to standards, intellectual property rights, financial market, dispute resolution and regulation to enhance global trade, and SME participation in it.

With research showing that the banks’ specialist export products are heavily under-used by SMEs, possibly because they do not meet their needs, and with banks not always being good at cascading information on the niche products to all managers and branches, both governments and financial institutions need to ensure that the export finance offered is relevant to SMEs, as well as being affordable.

Lehman’s morbid legacy in the last quarter of 2008 and the first quarter of 2009, too many Western economies have yet to rebound properly, let alone sustain growth rates that would make up fully for lost jobs and income. More generally, only a few have decisively overcome the trifecta of maladies that the crisis exposed: inadequate and unbalanced aggregate demand, insufficient structural resilience and agility, and persistent debt overhangs.

The net result goes beyond the weak growth, worsening income inequality, high long-term unemployment, and alarming youth joblessness of the here and now. Five years after the global financial crisis, too many countries are being Mohamed A. El-Erian held back by exhausted and out-dated growth engines. As a result, prospects for a rapid, is CEO and co-CIO of PIMCO, and the author of When Markets Collide. durable, and inclusive economic recovery remain a serious concern.

Given this harsh reality, it is not surprising that the second previously As interesting as these contributions will be, I hope that we will also see another genre: analy- unthinkable outcome concerns inadequate polses of the previously unthinkable outcomes that icy responses – namely, the large and persistent have become reality – with profound implica- imbalance between the hyperactivity of central tions for current and future generations – and banks and the frustrating passivity of other polithat our systems of governance have yet to ad- cymakers.

The big surprise here is not that central banks dress properly. With this in mind, let me offer acted decisively and boldly when financial marfour. kets froze and economic activity plummeted.

The first such outcome, and by far the most Given their relatively unrestricted access to the consequential, is the continuing difficulty that printing press and their high degree of operaWestern economies face in generating robust tional autonomy, one would expect central banks economic growth and sufficient job creation. to be active and effective first responders. And Notwithstanding the initial sharp drop in GDP they responded in an impressive and globally coAs the fifth anniversary of the disorderly collapse of the investment bank Lehman Brothers approaches, some analysts will revisit the causes of an historic global “sudden stop” that resulted in enormous economic and financial disruptions. Others will describe the consequences of an event that continues to produce considerable human suffering. And some will share personal experiences of a terrifying time for the global economy and for them personally (as policymakers, financial-market participants, and in their everyday lives).

ordinated fashion.

What is surprising is that, five years after the crisis, and four years after disrupted financial markets resumed their normal functioning, Western economies still overwhelmingly rely on central banks to avoid even worse economic performance. This has pushed central banks away from their core competencies as they have been forced to use partial and imperfect policy tools for quite a long time. This outcome reflects domestic political polarization in the United States and the complexity of regional interactions in Europe, which have blocked comprehensive and balanced policy approaches. To appreciate the extent of the problem, consider the repeated failure of the US Congress to pass an annual budget (let alone deliver medium-term reforms) or incomplete eurozone-wide initiatives at a time of alarming unemployment and residual threats of financial disruptions.

Such political dysfunction has undermined the responsiveness of other policymaking entities, including those that possess better tools than central banks. This has compelled central bankers to remain in the policy forefront, building one bridge extension after another as they wait for other policymakers to get their act together.

The result has been to expose Western economies to ever-more experimental measures, with considerable uncertainty about the longer-term impact of operating sophisticated market-based systems on the basis of artificial constructs.

The third previously unthinkable outcome relates to how developing countries have fared.

Having initially suffered from the financial crisis as much as Western countries did (indeed, more

in terms of output and trade), these historically less-robust economies staged a remarkable comeback – so much so that they became the engine of global growth. In the process, however, they slipped into an unbalanced policy mix that now threatens their continued growth and financial stability.

Renewed risks of financial instability point to the fourth and final surprise: the failure to recast major contributors to the crisis in a credible, sustainable, and socially responsible manner.

Consider large Western banks. Given their systemic importance, many were bailed out and, with continued official support, returned to profitability quite quickly. Yet they were not subject to windfall profit taxation, nor have policymakers sufficiently altered structural incentives that encourage excessive risk-taking. In the case of Europe, only now are banks being pushed to deal decisively with their capital shortfalls, leverage problems, and residual weak assets.

Call me a worrywart, but I remain concerned by the extent to which our systems of economic governance have lagged in addressing these four outcomes. The longer this unusual environment persists, the greater the risk that the disruptive ramifications of the 2008 crisis will continue to reach far and wide, including to future generations.

Mohamed A. El-Erian is CEO and co-CIO of PIMCO, and the author of When Markets Collide. © Project Syndicate, 2013. www.project-syndicate.org

August 28 - September 3, 2013

18 | WORLD MARKETS | financialmirror.com

Budget surplus in Germany - what impact on elections?

By Oren Laurent President, Banc De Binary

It’s official. In the first half of 2013, Germany recorded a budget surplus of 8.5 bln euros, 0.6% of its GDP, as was announced by the Federal Statistical Office, Destatis, on Friday. Will the good news bear any weight on the upcoming political election in September? And, looking at the bigger picture, will it impact Germany’s influence on the world stage?

The recent news indicates a strengthening of Europe’s biggest economy. In 2012, Germany had a surplus of 0.2% of its GDP. The 0.6% surplus between January and June is even more impressive in contrast to figures from the country’s fellow Eurozone members, many of whom have budget deficits well above the EU limit of 3%.

For the public, it indeed appears that Merkel’s Government has kept its promise to guide Germany through the financial crisis and emerge stronger. Unsurprisingly, the Social Democrat party in opposition is not enjoying the success in the polls that it might have hoped for. It recently accused the current leader of attempting to conceal the need for a third Greek aid program until after the election, but has not been persuasive enough so far in its arguments. In political elections, there is always a fine line between thoughtful critique of the other side’s policies and desperate attempts to slander.

Analysts are largely crediting the surplus to the 321.4 billion euros in taxes resulting from the country’s steady employment rate. The high employment results from a combination of good Government policies and a strong work ethic, with the willingness of workers to accept reduced hours in order that

more people could remain employed during the recession.

Within Germany, Chancellor Merkel is riding the tide of her economic achievements and claiming to assert influence to protect the country’s interests overseas. Telling voters at an election rally in Bonn that she will push for tighter regulation for hedge funds at next month’s G20 summit, she said that taxpayers should not be held liable for banking failures and that “It’s not enough to regulate just banks but not hedge funds and shadow banks and I’ll fight for that.”

Germany’s reputation for economic common sense, coupled with its recent successes, undoubtedly give the country reasonable clout and weight. Germany does command fiscal respect overseas, and has a track record of influence in discussions about Europe, for example the bailouts which they are instrumental in funding. And I do largely agree with Merkel’s fiscal vision, from hedge funds to concerns about Japan’s manipulation of the yen.

Yet, let’s be realistic here: the Chancellor’s words will not lead to imminent world action. Back in May 2010, she already described the lack of hedge fund regulation as a “scandal.” Clearly the problem has not yet been resolved in three years. And Japan is as strong a world superpower as Germany.

So, economically, the Christian Democrats seem to be on a winning path. Investor and consumer confidence is clearly growing, as demonstrated by firms investing in equipment and by the surge in construction and consumer spending. This will likely translate into confidence at the polls.

However, the German electorate should bear in mind that as much influence as Merkel genuinely has internationally, it is in her pre-election interests to exaggerate this. After all, even good politicians play with the facts from time to time

www.bbinary.com

Yen edges higher as Syria jitters hit risk sentiment The yen rose on Tuesday as risk sentiment took a hit on worries that the United States may be edging toward possible military action against the Syrian government over a suspected chemical weapons attack.

The United States put Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on notice on Monday that it believes he was responsible for using chemical weapons against civilians last week in what Secretary of State John Kerry called a “moral obscenity.”

The dollar fell 0.2% versus the yen to 98.27 yen, pulling away from a near threeweek high of 99.15 yen set on Friday on trading platform EBS. The dollar fell to as low as 98.04 yen earlier on Tuesday.

The yen rose broadly, with the Australian

dollar sliding 0.8% to 88.25 yen. When market sentiment toward risky assets worsens, that can bolster the perceived safe haven appeal of the yen.

market, he said. Even with the yen’s rise on Tuesday, however, the dollar was still hovering within a recent trading range versus the yen, and held above last week’s

FOREX COMMENTARY & TECHNICAL ANALYSIS

The jitters over Syria seemed to be triggering a risk-off type of market reaction, Satoshi Okagawa, senior global markets analyst for Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation told Reuters.

It is hard to tell how serious the situation might become, and that sense of uncertainty seemed to be affecting the

low of 96.91 yen set on August 20.

Jeffrey Halley, an FX trader for Saxo Capital Markets told Reuters there was some market talk of yen-buying by Japanese exporters, adding that there was also talk of stop-loss dollar offers at levels around 97.90 yen. The euro held steady versus the dollar

at $1.3372. The dollar index was parked at 81.375, with support at 81.224 and resistance around 81.719.

For any notable action, traders had to cast their eyes to emerging markets where the Mexican peso and Brazilian real came under fresh pressure, despite the drop in U.S. yields. That could bode ill for emerging market currencies in Asia, and particularly the Indonesian rupiah and Indian rupee.

Still, overshadowing everything was uncertainty about when the Fed will start tapering and at what pace it might scale back asset buying.

A sharp 7.3% drop in durable goods orders for July seemed to argue for a cautious withdrawal, and helped 10-year Treasury yields dip 3 basis points to 2.79%.

Disclaimer: The commentary appearing on this page is for indication purposes only and Eurivex does not take any responsibility for investment action taken. Nothing in this report should be considered to constitute investment advice. It is not intended, and should not be considered, as an offer, invitation, solicitation or recommendation to buy or sell any of the financial instruments described herein. Trading on leverage is very risky and may lead to losses.

August 28 - September 3, 2013

financialmirror.com | MARKETS | 19

Free money vs. growth Marcuard’s Market update

by GaveKal Research After years of near zero interest rates across the Western world, OECD growth remains both weak, and superficial. So why hasn’t “free” money fostered an economic boom?

After all, if high interest rates kill an economic expansion, low interest rates should boost an economy, right? Wrong! For a simple reason: money is an information system. And if a central bank fixes a blatantly “wrong” price for money, then entrepreneurs will have no basis on which to make any rational decisions. Look at it this way: the average entrepreneurinvestor basically borrows for two reasons: 1. Capital spending borrowing: Business is expanding, so our entrepreneur borrows to open a new plant, or hire more people, etc.

2.

Financial engineering: The entrepreneur/investor can borrow in order to purchase an existing cash-flow, or stream of income. In this case, he calculates the present value of a given income stream, and if this is higher than the cost of the debt required to own it, then the transaction makes sense.

Unfortunately, the latter type of borrowing does not lead to an increase in the stock of capital. It simply leads to a change in the ownership of the capital, with the ownership of an asset often moving away from entrepreneurs and towards financial middlemen or institutions. So instead of an increase in an economy’s capital stock, as we would have with increased borrowing for capital spending, with financial engineering, all we see is a net increase in the total amount of debt. And the higher the debt levels, the higher the system’s fragility and inability to weather shocks.

In periods with abnormally low interest rates and economic uncertainty, a country’s available savings (probably already depressed by the very low interest rates) seem to disproportionately go to the second kind of borrowing. Adjusted for the risk of failure, an entrepreneur would have to be an idiot to invest in new machine tools, while launching a takeover bid for one’s competitor, or buying back shares, promises high returns with greater visibility (look at the surge of US share buybacks of recent years as an example; between January 2009 and June 2013

buybacks amounted to US$1.4trn, or roughly the size of Spanish GDP). Unfortunately, this will leave almost no money for the capital spending kind of borrowing; the one leading to an increase in the stock of capital in the country, and higher overall economic growth.

Thus, too low a cost of capital leads to a crowding out of debt available to fund capital spending by that which is supporting financial engineering. As Charlie Munger always says: “Show me the incentives, and I will show you the results”.

The zero interest rate incentive skew leads to weak capital spending, and from there, to a fall in the productivity growth rate and a decline in the structural growth rate of the economy. Which is when the law of unintended consequences kicks in. As growth falls, ex-post returns on the “financial borrowings” are not as high as expected. If interest rates then start to rise for whatever reason (as they have lately been doing) then in a world in which the amount of debt remains fixed, falling returns combined with rising servicing costs, will mean that “somebody” will have to eat an adjustment. That somebody can either be “capital” (through a debt

Call it the Soros Effect Marcuard’s Market update

by GaveKal Research Ever since the Asian crisis of 1997, emerging market countries have built up foreign currency reserves as ammunition against speculative currency attacks. Now we can only hope they do not try to use them.

Drawing lines in the sand on currency levels, or trying to protect an exchange rate with heavy foreign-exchange interventions, only provides a target for speculators to aim at, resulting in a costly FX reserve drain. Call it the Soros effect. After George Soros’ GBP 1bln pay-off betting against sterling in 1992, investors have tended to test central banks’ attempts to defend the value of a currency.

Trying to use FX reserve firepower to prop up a flagging exchange rate is asking for trouble.

In the emerging market currency sell-off that began in May, we have not seen any official lines drawn in the sand. We have, however, heard veiled threats and seen flirting with unofficial or “whispered” targets. Indonesia and India are among the countries that have

intervened regularly in their currencies, while Brazil last week announced it is injecting US$60bn in liquidity into the foreign exchange market.

There are rare cases when intervention to support a currency can conquer the marketHong Kong left short-sell investors hurting after its 1998 intervention in stocks and the currency market. But most emerging markets don’t have this luxury.

A number of academic studies have shown that once speculators gain a critical mass, it is better for policymakers not to intervene.

In the face of potentially imminent Federal Reserve tapering, large reserves have not been a sufficient deterrent to prevent sharp currency devaluations. Since May, Turkish lira and Indonesian rupiah are down –12%, the Indian rupee has dropped nearly –21% and the Brazilian real has fallen –19%.

All these countries have seen large build-ups in their reserves in the past decade or so— but they also have the common problem of depending on continuous foreign capital flows to finance current account deficits.

www.marcuardheritage.com

Indeed, as Joyce outlined in a piece published last Friday, investors are focusing on economic fundamentals, as reflected in the current account balance or the percentage of outstanding bonds held by foreigners. We developed a risk monitor tool to measure such risk. The countries that were deemed most risky are the same ones whose currencies have been hit the hardest, falling to levels seen just after the Global Financial Crisis hit.

One interesting exception is Brazil. Its balance sheet fundamentals are not as vulnerable as the riskiest emerging market peers, yet its currency has been hit as hard.

One wonders if this partly reflects the country’s attempts to micro-manage the exchange rate in the past couple of years— first to guide it lower, then to stop it from overshooting. The Brazil operation provides substantial US dollar liquidity which may ease stress on the real at least in the near term. However, policy credibility is something that has been lacking in Brasilia of late. Brazil might be safer if it lets the real find its own level.

Marcuard Cyprus Ltd is regulated by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySec) under License no. 131/11.

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If you have received this message in error please delete it and any copies of it and notify Marcuard Cyprus immediately. Internet transmission cannot be guaranteed to be secure or error-free as information could be intercepted, corrupted, lost, destroyed, arrive late or incomplete, or contain viruses. Marcuard Cyprus therefore does not accept liability for any errors or omissions in the contents of this message which arise as a result of internet transmission. If verification is required please request a hard-copy version.

Interest Rates Base Rates

LIBOR rates

USD GBP EUR JPY CHF

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

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CCY/Period

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USD GBP EUR JPY CHF

0.18 0.49 0.08 0.12 0.00

0.23 0.50 0.11 0.14 0.01

0.26 0.51 0.15 0.16 0.02

0.39 0.59 0.27 0.22 0.08

0.67 0.88 0.48 0.41 0.25

USD GBP EUR JPY CHF

0.54 0.81 0.61 0.24 0.18

0.92 1.08 0.85 0.28 0.35

1.35 1.40 1.10 0.34 0.56

1.75 1.71 1.34 0.41 0.79

2.38 2.21 1.73 0.61 1.18

2.95 2.69 2.16 0.91 1.58

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

Opening Rates

1 USD 1 EUR 1 GBP 1 CHF 1.3339 0.7497

100 JPY

1.5514

1.0845

1.0228

1.1631

0.8130

0.7668

0.6990

0.6593

0.6446

0.8598

0.9221

1.2300

1.4305

97.77

130.42

151.68

0.9431 106.03

Weekly movement of USD

CCY\Date

30.07

06.08

13.08

20.08

27.08

CCY

Today

USD GBP JPY CHF

1.3202

1.3209

1.3257

1.3295

1.3322

0.8612

0.8603

0.8574

0.8496

0.8552

129.58

129.49

128.74

129.47

130.62

1.2278

1.2228

1.2251

1.2250

1.2253

GBP EUR JPY CHF

1.5514 1.3339 97.77 0.9221

Last Week %Change 1.5672 1.3377 97.27 0.9203

SocGen eyes 420 voluntary departures

French bank Societe Generale , which is attempting to finalize a plan to cut up to 700 mainly back-office jobs at its Paris headquarters, is targeting around 420 voluntary departures as part of the plan.

France’s No. 2 listed bank is also eyeing a transfer of staff to Romania to help save costs, union officials said in an online newsletter, as the lender begins a push to cut expenses and lift profit amid a still-uncertain recovery for the eurozone

WORLD CURRENCIES PER US DOLLAR CURRENCY

+1.01 +0.28 +0.51 +0.20

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

8950 1.5514 1.466 19.285 5.5921 11.7297 1.3339 1.656 224.94 0.52631 2.5883 0.3218 12.4182 6.0275 3.1855 3.3277 33.1844 6.5091 0.9221 8.1018

AUD CAD HKD INR JPY KRW NZD SGD

0.8955 1.0527 7.7566 66.03 97.77 1116.1 1.2854 1.2844

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

0.3770 6.9831 24431.90 3.6522 0.7077 0.2840 1512.00 0.3850 3.6415 3.7504 10.4188 3.6729

AZN KZT TRY

0.7833 152.25 2.0283

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

The Financial Markets

CCY

restructuring) though, more often than not, the first port of call will be “labor”. Financial pressures will lead to people being fired while remaining employees will be on the receiving end of what was nothing but an attempt to get rich without working, by capturing an undue rent created by the wrong cost of capital.

Excessively low real rates lead to rent seekers (those close to the issue of new money) gorging themselves by bidding on other people’s businesses and firing their employees.

This capital and labor misallocation triggers much lower growth rates, and a higher level of uncertainty for the workforce (hence a fall in consumption, consumer confidence, birth rates, etc.).

This is how well-meaning central bankers and their zero interest rate policies end up generating higher structural unemployment rates, falling median incomes, and a huge increase in part time jobs.

And as we enter the phase of the cycle in which rising rates go through the roof (fall in inflation, rise in nominal rates) with the valuation on most financial assets somewhat stretched, it is hard to imagine an immediate happy outcome to current market trends.

MIDDLE EAST & AFRICA 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 28 - September 3, 2013

20 WORLD MARKETS financialmirror.com

Brazil currency heads the other way: down Two short years������������������������������������������������� ������������������������������������������������ ago, Brazil had a terrible problem with its cur� rency - it was far too strong.

Local factories, unable to compete with Chinese imports made cheaper by the real’s appreciation, were closing their doors.

Fernando Pimentel, the trade minister and a close adviser to President Dilma Rousseff, declared that “Brazil has joined the team of countries with strong currencies” and urged industries to adapt to the new reality. Now, as global investors shed assets in emerging markets worldwide, Brazil’s problem has abruptly turned upsidedown.

The real, along with India’s rupee, has weakened more than any other major currency since May. Its tumble of 16% is forcing busi� nesses, policymakers and consumers to prepare for consequences including inflation and costlier foreign financing.

The decline has become another symbol of Brazil’s fall from grace among investors and produced a severe case of whiplash among producers who complain that the basic pillars of Latin America’s largest economy have constantly shifted under Rousseff ’s left-leaning government.

Consequences will be felt everywhere from fuel pumps in Sao Paulo to retail outlets in Miami and New York City, where Brazil� ians were such prolific shoppers during the strong-currency years that the U.S. Travel Association referred to them as “walking stimulus pack� ages” in 2012.

The depreciation, Finance Minister Guido Mantega told a São Paulo newspaper over the weekend, “isn’t good for anybody.”

Until this year, the real was on a tear.

A decade-long period of steady growth appeared to put Bra� zil on the fast track toward first-world status, attracting record amounts of foreign investment and making the real one of the most coveted currencies in the world.

Since May, when investors turned back toward developed mar� kets amid bets of a U.S. recovery, the real has tumbled, trading Monday at 2.39 per dollar.

Last week, it approached a five-year low which, compared with a peak of 1.54 per dollar in mid-2011, represents a fall of 37%.

HIGHER COSTS, HIGHER UNCERTAINTY The biggest threat of a weaker real is that of inflation, especially in a country with a long history of dramatic price increases. Annual inflation at the end of July was at 6.27%, just below the ceiling of the government’s target band.

With a weaker real, the cost of imported food, industrial sup� plies, consumer goods and other goods rises. Over the past year the price of wheat flour, a staple that is Brazil’s biggest food import, spiked 29%.

The higher costs pose operational challenges for companies with big dollar expenses and those who need affordable access to foreign capital. Airlines, who import jet fuel, are so worried that last week they asked Brazil’s government for tax breaks.

The government was surprised by the sudden fall, which could further complicate an expected re-election bid by Rousseff next year. Her approval ratings, until recently among the highest of any leader worldwide, fell sharply after mass protests in June against everything from poor public services to rising prices.

Yet economists say there is nothing behind a weaker real that should have caught anyone off-guard.

Demand for Brazil’s commodity exports, one of the drivers of the boom, slowed as growth in China and other big customers cooled. A nascent recovery in the U.S. clearly meant that the dollar, suppressed in recent years by loose monetary policy now ending, would appreciate.

SCRAMBLING That, of course, is what has Brazil scrambling.

In an effort to shore up the real and stem volatility, Brazil’s cen� tral bank last Thursday said it would intervene in foreign exchange markets with daily cash and currency swaps valued at $60 bln by the end of the year.

“I’m glad they decided to go for this, but one thing I can tell you: it’s too late,” said Lawrence Pih, chief executive of Grupo Pacifico SA, which owns Latin America’s largest wheat mill and is consider�

ing price hikes to handle the higher costs.

Many other companies have taken measures to cope, too.

Travel agencies are shrinking already small margins in order to limit the hike in air fares.

Others, including state-run energy company Petroleo Brasileiro SA, or Petrobras, have adjusted accounting methods to smooth currency fluctuations on their balance sheets.

Companies are also adopting new hedges against further volatil� ity. According to Cetip SA Mercados Organizados, Latin America’s largest securities clearinghouse, Brazilian companies increased their use of so-called non-deliverable forward contracts, which are settled in dollars, by 30% since the end of last year. The short-term pain of a weaker real could pose an opportunity in the long run.

With slower growth, rising prices and stagnant investment, Brazil could finally have to tackle long-pending tax, labor and other re� forms that business leaders argue are necessary to make the coun� try more competitive.

“The current scenario is unsustainable,” says Marcos Mendes, an economist who advises Brazil’s senate. “The way out of this is reform.”

China’s New Growth Order Between 1978 and 2012, China’s GDP grew at an average annual rate of about 10% – from $341 bln to $8.3 trln (at 2012 prices) – lifting more than 500 mln Chinese out of poverty in the process. Much of this was due to an export-led industrial� ization and urbanization strategy that opened up new oppor� tunities in the rapidly expanding cities, where labor, capital, technology, and infrastructure came together to form supply capacities for global markets. According to the McKinsey Global Institute, by 2025, 29 of the world’s 75 most dynamic cities will be in China.

But this urban-based, export-led growth model also creat� ed more challenges than it can now handle: property bubbles, traffic jams, pollution, unsustainable local government debt, land-related corruption, and social unrest related to unequal access to social welfare. As a result, a shift toward a new con� sumption-based growth model – one that emphasizes stabil� ity, inclusiveness, and sustainability – is at the top of China’s agenda. China is searching for a new “growth order” for its restlessly expanding cities.

The current economic-growth model considers the config� uration of key factors of production – land, labor, capital, and total factor productivity (a measure of efficiency). But this nar� row focus on output neglects the economy’s human dimension – that is, how growth affects ordinary Chinese citizens’ lives.

A growth order, by contrast, implies an emphasis on the configuration of sociopolitical and economic institutions – including norms, procedures, laws, and enforcement mecha� nisms – to achieve social objectives, such as improved living standards, a healthier natural environment, and a harmonious and innovative society.

The growth order’s stability will depend on institutional� ized and effective coordination between the state, the market, and society – a major challenge, given the divergent interests within and among these groups. But, more important, much of the growth order’s effectiveness will depend on the relation� ship between the central and local governments in the delivery of public services for the market.

Indeed, contrary to popular belief outside China, the Chi� nese state is not monolithic; it is a highly complex bureaucracy

with many layers of government and quasi-government insti� tutions that do not always conform to central directives. The central government is in charge of national or systemic inter� ests, deploying legal, regulatory, and broad monetary and fiscal policies to achieve its ends. But the state interacts with private enterprises, individuals, and civil society mainly through local governments and local offices of national regulatory agencies.

By Andrew Sheng and Xiao Geng

A distinctive feature of the Chinese growth order is that lo� cal governments compete actively against each other for jobs, revenue, investment, and access to fiscal and human resources.

This is because local governments’ leaders are appointed cen� trally, and, until recently, promotion has been based largely on the ability to generate GDP growth at the local level, leading to over-investment in the economy as a whole.

Hence, the interplay between local and central govern� ments is complex, particularly in terms of revenue sharing and responsibility for providing public services. Although the cen� tral government may be committed to reforms, implementa� tion at the local level can be very uneven, owing to parochial and vested interests.

For example, since 2008, when the central authorities tried to boost growth to combat the global crisis, local governments expanded their investment capacity through shadow-banking vehicles that sought to circumvent restraints on bank credit.

Because local governments receive 50% of total national fis� cal revenue, but account for 85% of total fiscal expenditure, they try to supplement their budgets through land sales. In

2012, Chinese local governments received 2.9 trln yuan ($475 bln) in revenue from land and property sales, compared with ¥6.1 trln in other local revenue.

Compared to the private sector, local governments and state-owned enterprises tend to have access to significantly cheaper funding, with the gap between official interest rates and shadow-banking borrowing costs reaching as much as ten percentage points. Cheap funding and land revenue have led to excess infrastructure and industrial capacity without ade� quate market discipline. From 2008 to 2012, fixed-asset invest� ment in China amounted to ¥136 trln, or 2.6 times more than the country’s 2012 GDP. Rebalancing the economy by shifting toward domestic con� sumption and avoiding over-investment will require major fiscal and monetary reforms, as well as structural reforms to delineate land-use rights more clearly. It will also require revis� ing the framework for revenue sharing between central and lo� cal governments, as well as transparency in local-government finance.

These reforms stand at the center of the state-market de� bate, because the private sector, caught in the complex inter� play between central-local power sharing, can easily be crowd� ed out. Thus, creating a new growth order requires the central government to align institutional structures and incentives so that local governments and the market can play to their strengths. The market must be allowed the space to innovate, while the state must implement the necessary institutional and procedural reforms. Striking the right balance between market-based product innovation and state-led institutional innovation will be the main challenge that China faces in the years ahead.

Andrew Sheng, President of the Fung Global Institute, is a former chairman of the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission, and is currently an adjunct professor at Tsinghua University in Beijing. Xiao Geng is Director of Research at the Fung Global Institute. © Project Syndicate, 2013. www.project-syndicate.org

August 28 - September 3, 2013

financialmirror.com WORLD MARKETS

21

C. Europe sheltered from EM sell-off Euro zone recovery helps its eastern neighbours; Current account balances a positive for central Europe ANALYSIS The currencies of emerging European countries such as Poland and Hungary have dodged the giant selloffs hitting other emerging markets, and their links to a steadily recovering euro zone are likely to keep them insulated.

For years, Europe’s slump and cautious monetary rules have dragged down economic growth in the region, making these countries less exciting for investors than destinations in Asia and Latin America. Now that curse is turning into a blessing.

Former investor darlings such as Brazil and India have seen currencies tumble as investors flee their stocks and bond markets in fear of a sharp growth slowdown. Their peers in central Europe, however, are largely holding steady.

Hit by the U.S. Federal Reserve’s plans to reduce the flow of cheap money it pumps into the global economy, currencies such as South Africa’s rand, India’s rupee and Brazil’s real have fallen 15-18% against the dollar this year.

By contrast, Poland’s zloty has eased 3% against the dollar since January, while Hungary’s forint, considered the riskiest regional bet because of Prime Minister Victor Orban’s unorthodox policies, is down 2%.

“This is due to a combination of a better outlook for core Europe, where the economy seems to be recovering, and an improvement in the underlying fundamentals of most of these countries,” said Thanasis Petronikolos, head of emerging debt at Baring Asset Management in London.

He said his investment portfolio was factoring in that central Europe would perform better than emerging markets in Asia and some in Latin America.

No doubt, there are some clouds on central Europe’s horizon - uncertainty about the impact of upcoming Fed measures and political instability ahead of elections next year.

But barring surprises and as long as the euro recovery stays on course, the region could stay stable for currency investors.

“We expect CEE currencies to continue to outperform other emerging markets until the end of next year,” says Commerzbank currency strategist Lutz Karpowitz.

EURO ZONE ORBIT

Germany, the powerhouse of the euro zone and the source of most of emerging Europe’s investment, posted forecastbeating business sentiment data ��������������������������� last week������������������ , leading improvements across the single currency bloc.

As the euro zone starts to emerge from recession, that translates into more growth for its central European neighbours, and therefore stable currencies.

Carmaker Daimler’s plant in Hungary, which makes the Mercedes CLA coupe, illustrates the link: it is estimated to account for nearly 1% of Hungary’s economic output, and its sales helped pull the country out of recession.

As E����������������������������������������������� U���������������������������������������������� members, Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic are bound by the bloc’s rules on fiscal consolidation. For the past several years, that has constrained their governments from running big deficits to boost growth.

But it also means countries in the region have small current account deficits, and some, like Hungary, even run a surplus.

That spares their currencies the risk of a sharp decline if flows of foreign capital needed to fund a trade imbalance were to dry up.

An example of a currency hit by a current account deficit is the Indian rupee: with a gap equal to almost 5������������� % ����������� of its economic output, the currency has fallen 15% this year, marking successive record lows in the past three months.

By comparison, Poland’s current account deficit has shrunk

to 1.9% of GDP from 5% in less than three years.

Hungary’s current account surplus acts as a counter-weight to the perceived risks of Orban’s policies, which include slapping heavy taxes on foreign banks.

“Countries with relatively good growth and few funding issues will do fine,” said Carlin Doyle, emerging markets strategist at State Street Global Investments.

“Countries like South Africa and Turkey look a bit vulnerable, but Hungary does not have funding issues.”

RISKS

Central Europe is not entirely without risk, however.

Economic recovery could be hit if foreign banks, under pressure to fix their balance sheets, keep cutting lending to the region. Many banks in these countries are fully or partly owned by western parents.

Poland faces elections in 2015 and opinion polls show Prime Minister Donald Tusk will lose. Investors see him as a guarantor of stability and predictable policies.

And while the zloty and forint have not been as sensitive to the Fed signals so far, they would not withstand a widespread market panic, analysts say, noting that even relatively “safe” assets such as the Mexican peso and Korean won have fallen prey to the storm in recent days.

Poland, with its large and liquid financial markets would be most at risk if redemptions from emerging market funds spiral.

“If the wave spreads, these countries will also get hit,” said Societe Generale strategist Guillaume Salomon. «The ������������ difference is they will sell off less than other markets.»

China’s American bailout?

The twenty-first-century economy has thus far been shaped by capital flows from China to the United States – a pattern that has suppressed global interest rates, helped to re-

By Alexander Friedman

flate the developed world’s leverage bubble, and, through its impact on the currency market, fueled China’s meteoric rise.

But these were no ordinary capital flows. Rather than being driven by direct or portfolio investment, they came primarily from the People’s Bank of China (PBOC), as it amassed $3.5 trln in foreign reserves – largely US Treasury securities.

The fact that a single institution wields so much influence over global macroeconomic trends has caused considerable anxiety, with doomsayers predicting that doubts about US debt sustainability will force China to sell off its holdings of US debt. This would drive up interest rates in the US and, ultimately, could trigger the dollar’s collapse.

But selling off US Treasury securities, it was argued, was not in China’s interest, given that it would drive up the renminbi’s exchange rate against the dollar, diminishing the domestic value of China’s reserves and undermining the export sector’s competitiveness. Indeed, a US defense department report last year on the national-security implications of China’s holdings of US debt concluded that “attempting to use US Treasury securities as a coercive tool would have limited effect and likely would do more harm to China than to the [US].”

To describe the symbiotic relationship between China’s

export-led GDP growth and America’s excessive consumption, the economic historians Niall Ferguson and Moritz Schularick coined the term “Chimerica.” The invocation of the chimera of Greek mythology – a monstrous, fire-breathing amalgam of lion, goat, and dragon – makes the term all the more appropriate, given that Chimerica has generated massive and terrifying distortions in the global economy that cannot be corrected without serious consequences.

In 2009, these distortions led Ferguson and Schularick to forecast Chimerica’s collapse – a prediction that seems to be coming true. With the reserves’ long-term effects on China’s internal economic dynamics finally taking hold, selling off foreign-exchange reserves is now in China’s interest.

Over the last decade, the vast quantities of short-term capital that were being pumped into China’s banking system drove commercial banks and other financial institutions to expand credit substantially, especially through the shadowbanking system, leading to a massive credit bubble and severe over-investment. In order to manage the resulting increase in risk, China’s new leaders are now refusing to provide further liquidity injections, as well as curbing loans to unprofitable sectors.

But these efforts could trigger a financial crisis, requiring China to initiate a major recapitalization of the banking system. In such a scenario, non-performing loans in China’s banking system would probably amount to roughly $1 trln.

The most obvious means of recapitalizing China’s banks would be to inject renminbi-denominated government debt into the banking sector. But China’s total public debt, including off-balance-sheet local-government financing vehicles, probably amounts to around 70% of GDP already. Despite debate over the details, the conclusion of Carmen Reinhart and Kenneth Rogoff – that a high debt/GDP ratio can inhibit economic growth – remains widely accepted; so it is unlikely that raising the debt ratio to 100% would be in China’s longterm interest.

Even if China’s leaders decided that they had the necessary

fiscal latitude to pursue such a strategy, they probably would not, owing to the risk of inflation, which, perhaps more than any other economic variable, tends to lead to social unrest.

Given this, in the event of a crisis, China would most likely have to begin selling off its massive store of US debt. Fortunately for China, the negative consequences of such a move would probably be far less severe than previously thought.

To be sure, an injection of US Treasuries into the banking sector, and their subsequent conversion to renminbi, would still strengthen China’s currency. But the rise would most likely be offset by capital outflows, as looser capital controls would enable savers to escape the financial crisis. Moreover, even if the renminbi became stronger in the short term, China is no longer as dependent on maintaining export competitiveness as it once was, given that, excluding assembly and reprocessing, exports now contribute less than 5% of China’s GDP. Against this background, the US Federal Reserve, rather than focusing only on “tapering” its monthly purchases of long-term securities (quantitative easing), must prepare itself for a potential sell-off of US debt. Given that a Fed-funded recapitalization of China’s banking system would negate the impact of monetary policy at home, driving up borrowing costs and impeding GDP growth, the Fed should be ready to sustain quantitative easing in the event of a Chinese financial crisis.

After spending years attempting to insulate the US economy from the upshot of its own banking crisis, the Fed may ultimately be forced to bail out China’s banks, too. This would fundamentally redefine – and, one hopes, rebalance – USChina relations.

Alexander Friedman is Global Chief Investment Officer for UBS Wealth Management. © Project Syndicate, 2013. www.project-syndicate.org

August 28 - September 3, 2013

22 WORLD MARKETS financialmirror.com

Replacing Ballmer: Eight candidates for Microsoft’s top job Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer will retire in 12 months, much to the glee of critics who say he bet Microsoft’s fu� ture on the wrong products, failed to have the company ready for the shift to mobile computing, didn’t have a good eye for design, and was a really awkward public speaker. The company’s stock price jumped more than 8������������������������������������� % ����������������������������������� on the news of his impending depar� ture, before moderating somewhat in later trading.

“Before you feel too bad that Ballmer has to suffer this humili� ation, remember that he owns 333 mln Microsoft shares,” wrote Joshua Brustein, a BusinessWeek columnist.

Of course, the lackluster chief executive you know is sometimes better than the alternative, and no one seems to know whom Microsoft will tap to succeed Ballmer. The company just went through a reorganization that seemed designed to make sure no one executive was clearly positioned as Ballmer’s No. 2. He will stay in place while a search committee headed by John Thompson, the company’s lead independent director, looks for a successor.

Bill Gates is a member of the search committee, so get ready to hear his name pointlessly floated as Ballmer’s heir given the lack of an obvious successor waiting in the wings. But more plausible speculation is likely to center on these candidates, according to BusinessWeek: Tony Bates: He’s the executive in charge of Skype, and as of this summer he also manages business development and evangelism for Microsoft. His background includes a stint at Cisco Systems.

Stephen Elop: The head of Microsoft’s business division from 2008 until 2010, Elop left to take the chief executive job at Nokia.

The struggling smartphone company has been working with Microsoft on mobile projects, which presumably will be a focus no matter who takes over.

Julie Larson-Green: She was once called Ballmer’s heir apparent, and she came out of the recent management shuffle in charge of Microsoft’s devices division. That means she’s been focused on building phones and tablets as well as working on deals with movie studios and cable operators.

Kevin Johnson: He left Microsoft to run Juniper Networks in

2008 and recently retired from that post. During his 16 years at Microsoft, Johnson ran the company’s online-services group and its Windows division.

Qi Lu: A longtime Yahoo search veteran, Lu worked on Bing for Microsoft and emerged as another winner in this summer’s shakeup. He now heads up apps and services engineering for the company.

Paul Maritz: He rose nearly to the top of Microsoft before leaving 13 years ago, and he currently runs cloud-based startup Pivotal.

Game changers for growth The recent G-20 meeting of finance ministers in Saint Peters� burg confirmed that the debate between growth and austerity is over – at least for now. With protracted recession in Europe and slowdowns in emerging markets, concern about budget deficits has given way to apprehension about growth. In July, the IMF re� vised its global growth forecast downward for the second time this year.

Both Japan and the United States stand out as bright spots in the subdued global outlook, but for different reasons. In Japan, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has unleashed a combination of aggressive monetary and fiscal expansion along with promised reforms of the labor market, corporate governance, regulation, and trade.

In response to rapid and bold stimulus measures, Japan’s econ� omy is expected to grow at a rate of around 3% this year – one of the highest rates among advanced economies – and the Nikkei index rose 80% in the six-month period ending in May of this year.

Now Abe has signaled his intention to move forward with tough structural reforms. If he delivers, his policies will be game chang� ers for Japan.

In the US, the story is one of continued recovery as the head� winds slowing growth dissipate. State- and local-government budgets are improving, the housing market is strengthening, and households are deleveraging and repairing their balance sheets.

Counterproductive and excessive fiscal austerity at the federal level has dampened growth this year, but the private sector has proved more resilient than expected. Under current law, fiscal con� traction is slated to ease next year and monetary policy is likely to remain supportive, so most forecasters predict an acceleration of growth.

But growth prospects could be undermined by another bruising political battle over the federal budget, resulting in deep spending cuts. The current Republican rhetoric in the House of Representa� tives portends additional fiscal austerity.

Earlier this year, the Congressional Budget Office warned that the potential US growth rate has declined as a result of years of subpar investment rates, the aging of the population, and smaller productivity gains. Every year of below-capacity growth means lower growth capacity in the future, owing to lost investment, ero� sion of worker skills and experience, and diminished risk-taking.

Still, there are often-overlooked reasons for optimism about America’s future potential growth. A recent McKinsey Global In� stitute study identifies five mutually reinforcing “game changers” that could have a significant effect on GDP growth, productivity, and employment in the US by 2020: shale energy, big-data analyt� ics, exports in knowledge-intensive industries, infrastructure in� vestment, and talent development. Two of these – shale energy and big-data analytics – build on ongoing technological breakthroughs in which the US has a strong lead and depend primarily on pri� vate-sector action, not macroeconomic or structural policies.

US production of shale gas and oil has been growing by more than 50% annually over the last five years. As a result of increasing supplies, US natural-gas prices have declined by two-thirds since 2008 and are likely to remain significantly lower than prices in the rest of the world at least through 2020. This price advantage will enhance America’s competitiveness as a manufacturing location, particularly for energy-intensive activities.

The US has the largest recoverable shale-gas reserves and the second-largest recoverable shale-oil reserves in the world. It also enjoys a technological lead in shale-energy technologies, and it al� ready has a vast network of pipelines, refineries, and ports in the energy sector that can be repurposed for shale gas and oil (though much more investment will be needed).

Growth in shale energy will mean more investment, produc� tion, and jobs in the energy sector itself. Lower gas prices will boost manufacturing production, particularly in downstream in� dustries like petrochemicals and primary metals that use natural gas as fuel and feedstock.

Growth in energy and energy-intensive industries will fuel ad� ditional demand, output, and employment across a wide swath of supporting activities, including transportation, construction, and professional services. Overall, McKinsey estimates that growth in shale energy could add 2-4% to annual GDP and create up to 1.7 mln jobs by 2020.

But extracting shale energy involves environmental risks and uncertainties, among them groundwater contamination, higher methane emissions, and potential seismic effects. And shale gas emits CO2 when burned, even though it has half the carbon con� tent of coal and has played a significant role in cutting US carbon

Steven Sinofsky: He once ran Windows and was seen as arguably the second-most important person in the company, but he departed suddenly last year amid reports that he didn’t get along with Ballmer. In any case, he just announced that he had taken a job at Andreessen Horowitz, the venture capital firm.

Tami Reller: She has been with Microsoft since the acquisition of of Great Plains Software in 2001. She has held various financial and marketing roles for the company, handling both responsibilities for Windows after Sinofsky’s departure. She now runs marketing for Microsoft.

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

emissions to mid-1990’s levels.

Not surprisingly, the President of the Natural Resources De� fense Council, an admired environmental group, recently re� marked that “fracking is about the most complicated thing I have encountered.” More research on the environmental risks and ben� efits of shale energy, and the development of new standards and regulations to control these risks are required.

Big data and advanced analytics are another technology-driven game changer for US growth. As more data are generated, stored, and transmitted in digital form, new data sets relevant to personal and business decisions are growing exponentially. As a result of advances in computing power, the advent of cloud computing, and new software tools, more of these data sets can be quickly analyzed and used by businesses to reduce costs, boost productivity, and create new products and services.

Big data and advanced analytics can also reduce costs and en� hance efficiency in health care and government, and can create value for consumers through greater product variety and quality, as well as enhanced convenience – benefits that are not captured in GDP statistics.

McKinsey estimates that big-data analytics could add about $325 bln, or 1.7% to annual GDP in the retail and manufacturing sectors, while generating up to $285 bln in productivity gains and cost savings in health care and government by 2020. The potential savings in health-care costs would ease pressures on government budgets and release resources to boost growth in the rest of the economy.

New information and communications technologies were game changers that boosted the potential growth rate of the US economy in the 1990’s. McKinsey’s research suggests that shale energy and big-data technologies will be game changers with similar benefits for the economy’s potential growth over the next several years. © Project Syndicate, 2013. www.project-syndicate.org

August 28 - September 3, 2013

financialmirror.com GREECE

23

A return to debt markets in late 2014?

Greece could return to debt markets to test the water in the second half of 2014 if his country returns to growth in the first half of next year and manages a primary surplus, its finance minister said in a German media interview on Monday.

“That would be a great success which would allow us to test the market with a new bond issue in the second half of 2014,” Yannis Stournaras told business daily Handelsblatt.

“Initially with a small amount, to test the market.”

Asked if it could be in the range of 3 to 5 bln euros, the minister answered: “Perhaps even less.”

Stournaras said Greece did not need a second debt haircut because it could reduce its debt burden by other means such as easier terms on its current international rescue packages.

Meanwhile, in an interview published in Proto ������������������� Thema newspa� per on Sunday, the minister said that Greece may need a further 10 bln euros in extra support from its euro zone partners but would not expect any loan to come with conditions attached.

Athens faces a funding gap of about 11 bln euros in 2014-15

after its current bailout programme ends in the first half of next year and its euro zone partners have pledged additional support until it can tap markets again.

“We are not talking about a new bailout but an economic sup� port package without new (austerity) terms...�������������������� Until ������������������� 2016 the tar� gets - our obligations - have been set and other measures or targets cannot be required.”

Speculation that Athens may need a new bailout has heated up after recent comments by German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaueble as officials lay the political groundwork for fresh aid to Greece.

Stournaras said there was no discussion about a haircut of Greece’s debt and that much would depend on whether the coun� try achieved a primary budget surplus this year, excluding debt servicing costs. Decisions by the EU regarding new funding would be based on 2013 results, he said.

Stournaras told Proto Thema he expected Greece to meet the necessary conditions for a return to the bond markets next year: a

primary surplus and positive GDP growth rate for two consecutive quarters.

T h e economy is expected to contract by 4.2% this year - though the central bank sets that figure at 4.6% - before a mild recovery sets in in 2014. The economy shrank 6.4% last year.

ECB’s Asmussen: “Press on with reforms despite pain” Greece can achieve a primary budget surplus this year and growth in 2014 if it sticks to economic reforms, but a return to bond markets will be challenging, European Central Bank Execu� tive Board member Joerg Asmussen told Sunday’s To Vima news� paper.

Asmussen was in Athens last week to meet senior government officials and take stock of the economy. His visit was overshadowed by speculation of a new bailout for Greece after comments by Ger� man Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaueble.

“Having a low but positive rate of growth next year is achiev� able, but there must be persistence with reforms,” Asmussen told the paper in an interview.

“I understand the difficult political situation and the small par�

liamentary majority, but what has been achieved with such politi� cal pain up to now must not be demolished. What’s the credible alternative solution?” he was quoted as saying.

Mired in its sixth straight year of recession, Greece has already been bailed out twice since 2010 with 240 bln euros of loans coor� dinated by the ECB, European Union and IMF. Athens faces a funding gap of about 11 bln euros in 2014-15 after its current bailout programme ends in the first half of next year and its euro zone partners have pledged additional support until it can tap markets again.

“It is true that the debt level will rise in the next years and a full access to markets will be a challenge,” Asmussen was quoted as saying.

The ECB clarified that in the English version of the interview, Asmussen said that Greece’s debt level “would be elevated for years to come”, not that it would rise.

But he said speculation of a third rescue package was prema� ture.

“Repeated talk of a debt reduction, a haircut, does not help. It distracts the attention of all stakeholders from what needs to be done under the current adjustment programme. We must make this programme work,” he told the paper.

He said the part of the bailout that dealt with the recapitalisa� tion of Greece’s top four banks was a success, helping to restore financial stability, with funds left over at the bank bailout fund as a cushion for any future needs.

Refiners to post 2Q losses

Samaras, Prince Alwaleed discuss investments

Hellenic Petroleum (ELPE) and Motor Oil, are likely to post losses for the second quarter this week, hit by lower refining mar� gins, analysts said.

Lower demand for petroleum products across crisis-struck southern Europe and higher crude costs have narrowed refining margins, the analysts said. Hellenic Petrole� um makes most of its profit in Greece, where demand for fuel has been hit by austerity measures and tax increases.

ELPE, the biggest of the two refiners, is forecast to report an adjusted net loss of 45.7 mln euros on Thursday, compared with a profit of 86 mln in the same period last year, according to the average of forecasts from

Prime Minister Antonis Samaras met Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal last week to discuss investment opportunities, as Athens pushes for foreign investment for its depressed economy.

“It was a customary visit, there is interest in investing in Greece,” said a government official.

The prince, ranked 26th on the Forbes global ranking of billionaires, owns large stakes in Citi� group, and Apple Inc., among other companies through his investment vehicle, Kingdom Hold� ing.

A nephew of Saudi King Abdullah, bin Talal is also the owner or part-owner of luxury hotels including the Plaza in New York, the Savoy in London and the George V in Paris.

four banks and brokerages.

The 35.5% state-owned refiner is due to be fully privatised as part of the country’s in� ternational bailout.

The same reasons, plus a scheduled main� tenance shutdown in April, are expected to have hurt the bottom line of Motor Oil. The company is expected to post an ad� justed net loss of 4.1 mln euros for the sec� ond quarter on Wednesday, swinging from a profit of 32.1 mln in the same period last year.

ELPE’s shares have fallen by about 2% so far this year, broadly in line with the Athens benchmark index. Motor Oil shares have dropped about 13%.

EADS, ThyssenKrupp venture raided over Greek bribes EADS, ThyssenKrupp venture raided over Greek bribes A joint venture of EADS and ThyssenKrupp and offices of Rheinmetall were raided last week in Germany on suspicion of paying bribes related to an order of submarine equipment.

The Atlas Elektronik joint venture and Rheinmetall De� fence Electronics were searched as they are suspected of pay� ing 18 mln euros in bribes and of avoiding taxes.

EADS and ThyssenKrupp both confirmed the raid on their unit, which they bought from BAE Systems. ThyssenKrupp said it had discovered the matter itself “as part of a compliance investigation” and notified the authorities in 2010 about it.

Intralot to clinch 50% in Turkish sports betting Bilyoner G��������������������������������������������������� aming systems provider Intralot, which recently ac� quired a minority stake in the Greek national lotteries, plans to acquire an additional 25% stake in its associated company Bilyoner, bringing its total stake in the Turkish betting opera� tor to a controlling 50.01%.

Bilyoner operates as an electronic agent offering the sports betting games of the state organisation “SporToto” which con� tribute the majority of its sales and the Lottery games of the state lottery “Milli Piyango” through Internet in the country.

The finali���������������������������������������������������� s��������������������������������������������������� ation of the transaction is subject to relevant ap� provals and a two-month grace period to the seller. The con� sideration for the deal will be about 10 mln euros, implying an EV/Ebitda multiple of 2.7x on 2013 financials. The com� pany has 8 mln euros in cash and is debt-free.

Greece is looking to attract investors into its asset sales programme, which includes its gas company DEPA, utility Public Power Corp.

(DEH), the Athens international airport, refiner Hellenic Petroleum and its two main ports to help chop its debt load.

Past speculation that funds would flow in from wealthy Middle East and Asian investors have so far failed to materialise, apart from Qatar Holdings’ investment in a gold mining project and Chinese operator Cosco’s investment in the port of Piraeus.

Athens is also looking for buyers for a strate� gic stake in fourth-largest lender Eurobank and real estate investors to develop the site of the old Athens airport Hellenikon.

HFSF approves Eurobank purchases Eurobank Ergasias S.A. announced that the extraor� dinary general meeting held on Monday was attended by shareholders representing 93.9% of the paid up share capital with voting rights and approved the agreement with the Hellenic Financial Stability Fund (HFSF) for the acquisition of the restructured New Hellenic Postbank S.A.’s shares owned by HFSF, as well as New Proton Bank S.A.’s shares owned by HFSF. The EGM also approved the increase of the bank’s share capital by 1,418,750,000 new ordinary shares at the offer price of 48c each, subscribed totally by way of contribution in kind by the HFSF and specifically by the contribution of the total number of shares of the New Hellenic Postbank S.A. owned by HFSF, having a total value of 681 mln euros.

August 28 - September 3, 2013

24 BACK PAGE financialmirror.com

Economic data to steer bets on Fed move WALL ST WEEK AHEAD

Wall Street just went through its weakest three-week period since November, not to mention a panicky spell when the Nasdaq stock market ground to a halt. But that doesn’t mean the pain is over.

This week is unlikely to bring much clarity to the primary issue facing markets: when and by how much will the U.S. Federal Reserve slow its accommodative monetary policy.

Uncertainty, along with what is expected to be anemic trading heading into the U.S. Labor Day holiday on September 2, could make for a volatile week.

“We’re cautious about the next few weeks, so we’re taking gains now,” said Michael Mullaney, who helps oversee about $9.5 bln as chief investment officer at Fiduciary Trust in Boston. “It’s not like we’re on the precipice of recession, but there’s not much for investors to get excited about and we’re expecting volatility to pick up.”

Traders had hoped that the Fed’s meeting minutes issued on Wednesday would provide direction about whether the Fed would begin to reduce its $85 b������������������������������������ l����������������������������������� n-a-month of bond-buying in September. Instead, the minutes painted a mixed picture, with some members advocating patience.

The mixed signals create a doubleedged sword. While the stimulus has fueled the market’s solid gains in 2013, for the Fed to continue its cheap money policy would signal the economy is too weak to advance without intervention. The CBOE Volatility index, a measure of investor anxiety, is up 16.7% over the past three weeks.

The Fed has said that the policy change depends on whether the economy meets growth targets, making markets even more sensitive than usual to financial data. This week will see a report every day.

July durable goods orders are due on Monday while the final reading for the Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan consumer sentiment index will come on Friday. Perhaps the most important will be Thursday’s latest estimate of U.S. gross domestic product for the second quarter. The data is expected to show the economy grew a revised 2.2% annualised rate last quarter compared with a 1.7%

reading last month.

While a weak report would be a bearish sign for the economy, some analysts speculated that a strong reading could have negative implications for the market.

«If GDP comes in above 2.5%, that could be problematic because

it will suggest that the Fed could take a bigger bite out of stimulus than we are currently expecting,” said Bruce Bittles, chief investment strategist at Robert W. Baird & Co in Nashville. “That would put the stock market in jeopardy.”

The S&P 500 lost 2.7% over the past three weeks, taking the benchmark index below its 50-day moving average for several sessions. The index closed above the technical measure on Friday, but the light volume may be blurring the technical signal and the S&P may find a floor in its 100-day moving average, now at 1,635.81.

“That should serve as pretty decent support,” said Douglas DePietro, managing director at Evercore Partners in New York,

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.

adding that markets would be range-bound between that level and the S&P’s all-time high of 1,709.67, reached earlier this month.

“We’ll see a lot of listless trading until the September Fed meeting,” he said. “We’re in a bit of an information void until then.

There aren’t a lot of catalysts to look forward to and most of Wall Street is on holiday.”

For last week the Dow slid 0.5%, the S&P gained 0.5% and the Nasdaq added 1.5%.

Daily trading volume has been among the lightest of the year in recent sessions, as is typical at this point in the summer.

Light volume can amplify market moves, resulting in dramatic intraday swings.

Low volume was dramatically exacerbated on Thursday after a technical issue shut down trading on all Nasdaq issues, equivalent to $5.9 trln in market capitalisation, for more than three hours.

Friday trading was smooth and the day’s gains helped the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite end a two-week losing streak, but the Dow posted its third consecutive weekly decline.

A few notable companies will report earnings this week, including Tiffany & Co, Campbell Soup Co and Joy Global Inc. Salesforce.com Inc is also due to report, and investors will scour the results to see if the maker of online sales software can justify its outsized valuation. The stock has a P/E ratio of 99.47, compared with the 15.57 ratio of its peers.

Warnings for third-quarter U.S. earnings are below secondquarter levels but are rising, Thomson Reuters data showed.

Negative outlooks are outpacing positives for the third quarter by 5.1 to 1, up from a little more than 4 to 1 a week ago. The negativeto-positive ratio for the second quarter was 6.3 to 1.

As a result, estimates for third-quarter earnings are down.

Growth is estimated at 5.1����������������������������������������� % ��������������������������������������� from a year ago, down from a July 1 estimate of 8.5% growth and close to second-quarter’s growth of 4.8%, with results in from most companies.

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