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European Commission Spokesman's Briefing for 05-03-31
From: EUROPA, the European Commission Server at <http://europa.eu.int>
CONTENTS / CONTENU
[01] Commission approves acquisition of MGM by Sony, Comcast and group of
investors
[02] La Commission autorise le rachat de Novar par Honeywell, sous réserve
du respect de certaines conditions
[03] US Byrd amendment : Commission proposes sanctions on US products
[04] Banana imports : EU regrets Latin American (banana exporting)
countries request for WTO arbitration on the EU's proposed new tariff for
bananas
[05] March 2005 : economic sentiment declined in both the EU and the euro
area
[06] March 2005 : Business Climate Indicator in the euro area declined
further
[07] Flash estimate - March 2005 : Euro-zone inflation estimated at 2.1%
[08] Résultats d'une consultation sur le thème "Une société de
l'information pour tous" : prévoir des exigences en matière
d'accessibilité en ligne dans les marchés publics de biens et de services
TIC
[09] EU-Russia Permanent Partnership Council (01/04)
[10] Danuta Hübner a rencontré le Président de la Région Nord-Pas-de-
Calais
[11] Autre matériel diffusé
Midday Express of 2005-03-31
Reference: MEX/05/0331
Date: 31/03/2005
EXME05 / 31.3
MIDDAY EXPRESS
News from the Press and Communication Directorate General's midday briefing
Nouvelles du rendez-vous de midi de la Direction Général Presse etb
Communication
31/03/05
[01] Commission approves acquisition of MGM by Sony, Comcast and group of
investors
The European Commission has, under the EU Merger Regulation, cleared the
acquisition of film producer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. ("MGM") by the Sony
Corporation ("Sony"), Comcast and a group of financial investors. After
examining the operation, the Commission concluded that the transaction
would not significantly impede effective competition in the EEA or in any
substantial part of it.
[02] La Commission autorise le rachat de Novar par Honeywell, sous réserve
du respect de certaines conditions
La Commission européenne a autorisé, en vertu du règlement sur les
concentrations de l'UE, le projet d'acquisition de Novar par Honeywell
après la cession envisagée de l'activité exercée par Novar dans le
secteur des alarmes incendie en Italie. A la lumière de cet engagement, la
Commission est arrivée à la conclusion que l'opération n'entraverait pas
sensiblement une concurrence effective dans l'EEE ou une partie
substantielle de celui-ci et elle a par conséquent autorisé la
concentration.
[03] US Byrd amendment : Commission proposes sanctions on US products
In application of a WTO ruling, the European Commission has today adopted a
proposal to impose sanctions on certain products from the United States.
The Commission took this latest step in the dispute over the Byrd Amendment
in light of the continuing failure of the US to bring its legislation in
conformity with its international obligations. The Commission proposes that
an additional duty of 15% applies as of 1 May 2005 on a range of products
which include paper, agricultural, textile and machinery products. In
taking this action the Commission has acted in close coordination with
seven other co-complainants.
[04] Banana imports : EU regrets Latin American (banana exporting)
countries request for WTO arbitration on the EU's proposed new tariff for
bananas
Ecuador, Colombia, Costa Rica, Panama, Honduras and Guatemala requested
yesterday arbitration at the WTO on the level of duty proposed by the EU in
the new tariff-only system for the EU's import regime for bananas. While
the EU regrets the decision of these WTO Members to request arbitration, it
will defend its proposal before the arbitrator and remains open for
constructive engagement with interested WTO Members.
[05] March 2005 : economic sentiment declined in both the EU and the euro
area
The economic sentiment indicator (ESI) for the EU showed a marked fall of
2.4 points in March, following its decline by 1.1 points in February. For
the first time since December 2003 the indicator fell below its long-term
average. In the euro area, where the ESI had decreased by 2 points in
February, the fall in confidence was smaller, amounting to 1.4 points. For
both areas the indicator has shown a nearly continuous decline since
November 2004.
[06] March 2005 : Business Climate Indicator in the euro area declined
further
Following a significant decline in February, the Business Climate Indicator
(BCI) for the euro area fell again considerably in March. The indicator now
stands at a value of -0.08, down from 0.20. As in February, all components
of the BCI went down in March. The biggest fall in industry managers'
opinions was observed for the production trend observed in the recent past.
The assessments concerning the export order books, the total order books
and the stocks of finished products declined significantly, too. Finally,
the remaining component, production expectations, decreased more
moderately.
[07] Flash estimate - March 2005 : Euro-zone inflation estimated at 2.1%
Euro-zone annual inflation is expected to be 2.1% in March 2005 according
to a flash estimate issued by Eurostat. It was 2.1% in February. Euro-zone
inflation is measured by the Monetary Union Index of Consumer Prices
(MUICP). To compute the MUICP flash estimates, Eurostat uses early price
information relating to the reference month from Member States for which
data are available as well as early information about energy prices. The
flash estimation procedure for the MUICP combines historical information
with partial information on price developments in the most recent months to
give a total index for the euro-zone. No detailed breakdown is available.
Experience has shown the procedure to be reliable (13 times exactly
anticipating the inflation rate, 10 times differing by 0.1 and once
differing by 0.2, in January 2005, over the last two years). Further
information can be found in Eurostat News Release 113/2001 of 5 November
2001.
[08] Résultats d'une consultation sur le thème "Une société de
l'information pour tous" : prévoir des exigences en matière
d'accessibilité en ligne dans les marchés publics de biens et de services
TIC
Les marchés publics devraient prévoir des exigences visant à rendre les
biens et services liés aux technologies de l'information et des
communications (TIC) accessibles aux personnes âgées et aux handicapés.
C'est l'avis de 90% des 500 personnes interrogées (organismes publics,
fournisseurs de biens et services TIC, universités, associations
professionnelles et groupes d'utilisateurs) qui ont participé à la
consultation publique lancée en janvier 2005 par la Commission européenne
sur la nécessité de prendre des mesures relatives à l'accessibilité des
produits et services en ligne (voir IP/05/14). Les personnes interrogées
pensent également que les institutions européennes devraient être les
premières à proposer ces mesures (88%), qu'il faut renforcer
l'interopérabilité des biens et services TIC (74%) et que, à cette fin,
une harmonisation des exigences techniques s'impose à l’intérieur comme
à l'extérieur de l'UE (84%). Toutefois, le doute plane encore sur la
manière de mettre ces exigences en application. Même si beaucoup ont
plébiscité une forme de certification des produits ou un système
d'étiquetage (72%), les avis sont assez partagés entre un système
volontaire ou obligatoire et la présence ou l'absence d'une
autocertification accompagnée de contrôles. Les propositions de la
Commission seront présentées dans une communication prévue pour
septembre 2005.
[09] EU-Russia Permanent Partnership Council (01/04)
The European Commissioner for External Relations and European Neighbourhood
Policy, Benita Ferrero-Waldner, will attend the second meeting of the EU-
Russia Permanent Partnership Council meeting in Foreign Ministers format,
in Luxembourg on 1 April, together with Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean
Asselborn. The Russian Federation will be represented by Minister of
Foreign Affairs, Sergey Lavrov. The agenda will focus on current
negotiations for a package of Road Maps to create four "common spaces", in
the fields of the Economy, External Security, Freedom, Security and Justice
and Education, Research and Culture. The EU's proposals to step up co
operation on the socio-economic development of Kaliningrad and the
forthcoming Commission fact-finding mission to the northern Caucasus region
of Russia will also be discussed, as will a range of international issues
including Moldova, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan and Iran.
[10] Danuta Hübner a rencontré le Président de la Région Nord-Pas-de-
Calais
Danuta Hübner, Commissaire européenne en charge de la politique
régionale, a rencontré hier après-midi M. Daniel Percheron, Président
du Conseil Régional du Nord Pas-de-Calais, ainsi que Mme Martine Filleul,
Vice-Présidente du Conseil régional en charge des affaires européennes
et de l'apprentissage, et M. Gérard Caudron, Conseiller du Président pour
les affaires européennes. L'entretien a principalement porté sur les
perspectives à venir de la région en matière de politique de cohésion.
[11] Autre matériel diffusé
Speech by Jan Figel' : "Strong Universities for Europe" at EUA Convention
of European Higher Education Institutions (Glasgow, ! embargo 16h00 !)
From EUROPA, the European Commission Server at http://europa.eu.int/
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