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European Business News 96-07-30European Business News (EBN) Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: The European Business News Server at <http://www.ebn.co.uk/>Page last updated July 30 14:20 CETCONTENTS
[01] EU attacks Saxony's aid to VWThe European Union (E.U.) Commission attacked the German state of Saxony on Tuesday for having granted 241 million Deutsche marks in subsidies to automaker Volkswagen AG, in direct breach of an E.U. ruling.Spokesman Klaus Van der Pas said a letter had been sent to the Saxon authorities by Commission president Jacques Santer and competition chief Karel Van Miert outlining the Commission's serious problems with the development. 'It's unacceptable that an E.U. member country doesn't respect E.U. law,' he said. 'There are means to declare one's opposition, but it's not acceptable to make a unilateral decision.' The case was of an 'unusual' gravity, he said, adding that the Commission doesn't rule out the possibility of taking formal legal action. [02] EU targets Helms-Burton sanctionsThe growing dispute between the European Union (E.U.) and the U.S. over American efforts to punish companies that do business with Cuba, Iran and Libya is overshadowing trans-Atlantic trade relations, the European Commission said.In its annual report on U.S. trade barriers, the commission put the recent Helms-Burton legislation on Cuba at the top of the list of practices opposed by the E.U. During the past year, 'more problems have come onstream than we have resolved,' a commission spokesman said. 'That's probably due to Helms, Burton and D'Amato,' he added. The spokesman was referring to Republican Senators Jesse Helms and Alfonse D'Amato and Representative Dan Burton. The commission is expected to propose legislation Tuesday or Wednesday that would diminish the impact of the Helms-Burton legislation on European companies. This so-called blocking statute, which will be considered by E.U. ministers in September, could be amended to apply to a separate bill on Iran and Libya. [03] NatWest posts 65% drop in first-half pretax profitThe UK's National Westminster bank has posted a 65% drop in first half pretax profit to £302m ($468m). The earnings included a loss of £690m from the disposal of its U.S. operations. The company also said it is planning to buy back £450m of stock.[04] European Commission probes Banco di Napoli rescueThe European Commission is to announce a formal investigation into Italy's plans to restructure the loss-making Banco di Napoli. The inquiry will determine whether the bailout involves any state aid. European Union competition officials are particularly concerned about a planned cash injection of 2 trillion lire ($1.3bn). The Italian Treasury and the bank's shareholders are meeting to vote on the bailout plan and the government's plans to speed up the sale of Banco di Napoli.[05] French trade surplus triples in MayFrance's trade surplus in May jumped to 11.59 billion francs from a revised 3.42 billion in April due to a rise in exports and a drop in imports, the French customs service said Tuesday.The April figure was revised slightly from an initial estimate of 3.8 billion francs. The May surplus was larger than expected by economists, who forecast a surplus of between 6 billion and 8 billion francs. Exports in May rose to 122.3 billion francs from 117.2 billion in April, while imports fell to 110.7 billion francs from 113.7 billion. [06] BMW profits up 9.8%German automaker Bayerische Motoren Werke AG (BMW) said Tuesday its group profit after taxes in the first half of 1996 rose 9.8% to 335 million Deutsche marks, on a 7.9% rise in group sales to 25.17 billion marks.The group said higher unit sales compensated for both increases in costs and a heavy investment program. Workers at the company's German plants have benefited this year as the second stage of a two-year pay deal settled in 1995 has come into force, guaranteeing higher wages and shorter working hours. Deliveries of BMW and Rover group cars rose by some 30,000 units in the first half of 1996 from the same period last year, reaching 556,800 units in total. Car production fell a modest 2.0% to 586,800 units in the same timeframe. BMW forecast that its full-year figures for both production and sales would outstrip those of 1995, citing lively global demand for cars. It declined, however, to give a profit forecast for the whole year. [07] Report highlights wage-discrimination against womenDespite a half-century-old worldwide agreement that a woman and a man must earn equal wages for equal work, the International Labor Organization says women's pay levels still average far below men's.'Women still earn between 50 and 80 percent of men's wages worldwide,' the U.N. agency said in 'More and Better Jobs for Women,' an ILO document made public Monday. Lin Lean Lim, the paper's author, said advances have been made since 124 governments signed the equal-wages agreement in 1951, but 'progress has been neither universal nor sustained, even in countries and areas which have made explicit efforts.' The United States and other rich countries should be the first to enforce the accord, she suggested, but noted that the U.S. Senate never ratified it. American women receive an average 68-70 percent of men's pay, she estimated. U.S. Labor Secretary Robert Reich promised last month to get President Clinton to ask Senate approval of another agreement banning job discrimination including discriminatory treatment of women. That ILO agreement dates from 1958. [08] American Airlines- British Airways alliance approvedThe proposed linkup of American Airlines and British Airways won clearance from a parliamentary committee Tuesday, despite concerns they could create a monopoly that gouges passengers with higher fares.In a concession to other U.S. airlines, the House of Commons Transport Select Committee said Britain should consider lifting restrictions that U.S. carriers face at London's two biggest airports, Heathrow and Gatwick. Heathrow is the preferred destination for airlines serving Europe because it is the top choice of high-paying business travelers. Britain allows just two U.S. carriers, American and United, to fly there. The parliamentary committee's report is not binding. But its views can be influential and a majority of the lawmakers pointedly said the airline deal should not undergo scrutiny by the Monopolies and Mergers Commission. From the European Business News (EBN) Server at http://www.ebn.co.uk/European Business News (EBN) Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |
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