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European shares ended sharply lower Monday, falling to a low of three months while disappointing economic indicators in the eurozone and political uncertainty in France and the Netherlands are threatening to stir the sovereign debt crisis in Europe.

In Paris the CAC 40 finished down 2.83% to 3,098.37 points, its lowest level in four months. The UK FTSE lost 1.85% and 3.36% the German Dax, while the pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index lost 2.32%.

"The economic dynamics in the euro area is weakening and it will be more difficult for governments to achieve fiscal targets in an environment of low growth," said Emmanuel Cau, strategists ge at JPMorgan AM.

The sector index Stoxx 600 banks in the euro area fell by 4% to its lowest level since last November.

GDF Suez was down 2.68% despite increased performance in the first quarter thanks to Britain's International Power. It also confirmed its annual targets.

STMicroelectronics, largest decline in the CAC 40, fell 13.8% after the announcement of a further restructuring of its joint venture ST-Ericsson.

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said Monday it has presented his government's resignation to Queen Beatrix, who said she would consider it, paving the way for the e selection of a new parliament.

In France, Socialist Francois Hollande, topped Sunday, and the outgoing president, Nicolas Sarkozy, launched the campaign for the second round on May 6, whose outcome will depend part of the attitude of the voters of Marine Le Pen, the candidate of the National Front. 

On the purely economic front, the flash PMI released in the morning came out below the most pessimistic estimates and raised fears a continuing recession in the euro area.

Economists and analysts are far from unanimous on the eve of the first round of presidential elections on the possible impact of the vote in the markets and the debt of France.

This uncertainty was reflected in an excitement on the market of the French debt, whose resistance was tested Thursday on the occasion of a rumor of dice gradation of the sovereign rating of France.

"The continuation of the gap (between the French and German rates) depend on the evidence that will give the next president of the Republic of the fiscal framework that will implement , and this will depend on the coherence between the presidency and the majority it will enjoy in the Assembly, "said CM-CIC Securities in a note. 

The first round results on Sunday, to measure the influence that extremes may have on the face of the next National Assembly, while a socialist majority in the Senate and that a victory of Francois Hollande in the second round of presidential elections is seen as the most likely outcome among market professionals.

Uncertainty, they agree to say, will remain until the June parliamentary, government's announcement will come out and the decisions it will take to reduce budget deficits ; TARY. 

But, says Guillaume Menuet, an economist at Citigroup, "the markets could react negatively, especially if the candidate of the far left reaches Jean-Luc Melenchon third me, allowing his party and his Communist allies to influence policy, even at the margin ".

"DEBT RESISTS WELL"

A rate strategist at a major bank, who noted the relative stability of voting intention polls, sees no movement on the scale of market unless the two finalists are not Nicolas Sarkozy and Francois Hollande.

"There will not necessarily flow as a seller there is no flow buyer. Like right now, people will stay on the side," he said. He noted that currently, "(despite) the absence of flow buyer, the French debt up well", even as concerns over the euro area are back.

The French rate to 7 years maturity corresponding to the average of the entire French debt, varies from a low of 2.28% in early February 2.5% today, representing a decrease of 22 basis points only.

Many investors point out that the current market will continue to revolve around the financial situation of the countries 'peripheral' in the euro area, regardless of the next tenant of the Elysee. 

"We continue to believe that the first factor in the evolution of spreads will be the evolution of French spreads devices and macroeconomic prospects of the debt crisis in the eurozone" write economists and strategists from Barclays. "The elections will be a secondary factor behind Spain and Italy."

But for Robert Crossley, rates strategist at Citigroup, "the market seems serene, wrongly, on the prospect of victory in Holland. This victory is likely to result in a defeat on the economic front and market confidence "

." Mê ; myself skimming the election rhetoric, the hostility of Holland to the business world and his lack of experience in finance and bond markets begin to undermine the fragile market confidence, "he says

. He however advised to buy the debt of France to favor of widening spreads (yield spread with German debt, refer to the euro area) related to political uncertainties, this spacing to be temporary according to him. He suggests buying French bonds at 10 years and sell bonds or Austrian Belgian with the same maturity.

Meanwhile Sunday, the spread between the yield of the French loan to 10 years and its German equivalent has deviated 29 basis points (bps) since April 12, at 140 bps. The rate of the French loan to 10 years was him, stretched by 21 bps to 3.10%.

On the market very illiquid sovereign CDS, a sort of insurance policy against a default, the spread of the 5-year CDS of France rose from 177 to 210 points from 12 in April.

On the stock market, strategists advise to stay away from French values ​​facing their domestic market but to buy the CAC 40 index.

"The CAC 40 is not France," wrote Credit Suisse those that say that 66% of the turnover of the 40 companies in the benchmark index of the Paris Bourse are outside France, and 36% outside the euro area.

European shares closed sharply lower Friday, weakened by the tensions of the Spanish sovereign debt and growth of Chinese considered disappointing first quarter.

In Paris the CAC 40 lost 2.47% to 3,189.09 points, regaining its level of more than two months.

For the week, shortened because of Easter Monday, the index lost 3.94%.

The decline was accentuated in the afternoon after an indicator of U.S. consumer sentiment slightly below expectations and statements of Klaas Knot, member of the Board of Governors of the European Central Bank, hoping to avoid having to resort to new purchases of government securities. 

"After rising yesterday as investors returned to the real problems of the Spanish debt. Klaas Knot's statements have put water on the fire," said Pierre Barral, portfolio manager at Convictions AM.

Klaas Knot, at a conference in Amsterdam, said:

"The instrument has not been used for a long time but it exists. I'm glad it was not used, I hope we will never to use it. "

"I do not think we are approaching the precipice, I think the markets have overreacted a little" (for Spain).

The London Stock Exchange yielded 1.03%, 2.36% Frankfurt, Milan and Madrid 3.43% 3.58%. Of the European indices, the Euro Stoxx 50 lost 2.58% and 1.63% Eurofirst 300.

Bank stocks and cyclicals suffered the largest declines sector in Europe, with a loss of 3% for the bank and 2.6% for cars.

The euro a little more resistant than shares and lost 0.8% against the greenback around 1.3080 dollar.

Values ​​to follow Tuesday at the Paris Bourse.

* GDF SUEZ announced he would propose to its shareholders to receive shares in a portion of the dividends for 2011 and 2012 to complete the refinancing of its tender offer to minority shareholders of Britain's International Power.

* PSA Peugeot Citroën has signed with a subsidiary of Ivanhoe Cambridge real estate arm of the Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec, a sales agreement for the sale of its headquarters Avenue de la Grande Armee in Paris.

* BOLLORÉ. The mutual insurer Groupama said Monday it has sold all its shares, or 3.10% stake in the diversified group.

* AIR FRANCE has placed its short and medium haul business in the center of its turnaround plan and said that the maintenance of this activity depend on a "radical restructuring" and reduced "drastically costs ".

The countries pledged to reduce its public deficit to three points of GDP by 2012. To achieve this, the government announced tax increases and lower spending. The Spanish head of government right, Mariano Rajoy.

Brussels had requested an additional effort of 20 billion euros. Spain is best. The Spanish government on Friday approved its draft budget for 2012, which provides "over 27 billion euros' savings and new revenues, including through the wage freeze for civil servants and lower departmental budgets by 16.9% on average.

"We are facing an extreme situation," admitted the government spokesman Soraya Saenz de Santamaria after the Council of Ministers, and "our first obligation is to return to public accounts cleaned up", while the Spain pledged to cut the end of 2012 the government deficit, from 8.51% to 5.3% of GDP.  

Spain is the country with the least restated its fiscal 2011, the experts calculated at Credit Suisse. Its structural deficit (independent conditions) was reduced by 1 percentage point of GDP. A figure that is stain when compared to the effort in neighboring countries: more than 3 points in Portugal and almost 6 percentage points in Greece. To compensate for the delay in 2011, Spain had to work twice as hard. It's done. At least in part.

Most analysts expected the need for Spain to find about 50 billion euros between savings and new revenues, taking into account the recession, which should reduce the Spanish GDP by 1.7% this year. The rest of the effort must come from particular regions and municipalities, the fragile financial health since the bursting of the housing bubble in 2008.

Madrid, in any case, does not completely stifle the economy by embarking on a program of excessive rigor.

The return to a lower deficit will be "not achieved at any price," warned Soraya Saenz, stressing the need to "support those who need it most and does not block growth and job creation "In a country with record unemployment (22.85%). Thus, "we decided to keep the revaluation of pensions, freeze the salaries of civil servants rather than decrease, maintain unemployment benefits and social spending, including grants," she said. Similarly, "we will not raise VAT to not harm the consumer and the economic recovery, but we will increase the corporation tax for large companies."

Roche said Thursday it raised the price of its unsolicited offer on American society Illumina to $ 51 per share, against 44.5 dollars previously.

The new price values ​​the American specialist of gene sequencing to more than $ 6 billion (4.5 billion euros), Roche hoping to make a difference before the general meeting of the group from San Diego to be held next month.

"Based on our discussions with shareholders of Illumina, we collected the interest of accelerating the acquisition process. Accordingly, we are increasing our price to $ 51 per share, "said the Swiss pharmaceutical group Roche said in a statement

. has pre ; fied that the other terms of its offer remained the same and he still favored the opening of negotiations

. Monday, the group Basel had indicated that it was extending its offer again, without changing the price and making it run until April 20

. Roche softens its position, while its CEO Severin Schwan repeated that he did not raise its offer. But nothing says that this gesture will be enough to persuade shareholders, analysts suggesting a price of $ 60 per share, better able to convince the recalcitrant.

Illumina was adopted in late January the principle of a "poison pill" by distributing as a dividend right to purchase preferred share per share outstanding at February 6, exercisable if a shareholder reach or exceed the threshold of 15% stake.

Health spending should not increase by more than 2.9% last year. The target was held and even beyond. But if the city manages to medicine to save money, it's more difficult for the hospital. But the effort required for 2012 has been strengthened.

Good news. The national target of expenditure (ONDAM), indicator of the health expenditure control, was observed in 2011, for the second consecutive year. Savings have been achieved even, mainly due to the general practice.

"Under 2011, spending will be well below 330 million euros to the goal voted by Parliament. Specifically, spending on care city will be less than 300 million," said a joint statement ministries Budget , Health and Solidarity.

The hospital sector is more difficult to roll back its spending. "For their part, hospital expenditures do not exceed, after setting aside prudential funds, the authority of Parliament," the statement said, meaning that the ONDAM hospital has been held that using a gel certain appropriations provided by the state, primarily for public hospitals, for most of 2011.

The deficit of public and private non-profit improves slightly (0.8%) in 2011: 504 million euros against 508 million in 2010. For teaching hospitals (CHU), the largest public hospitals, the overall deficit improved by 15 to 329.4 million. Nicolas Sarkozy had hoped in 2007 a return to balanced operating accounts in public hospitals for 2012.

For the three departments 'performance' of 2011 "bodes well for the respect of ONDAM in 2012, for the third consecutive year." The goal for this year was, however hardened, precision required, and will be more difficult to hold, with a projected increase of 2.5% against 2.9% in 2010 and 2011.

The CSMF reacted to the government announcement stressed again that the bulk of the savings was realized by the general practice. "Beyond compliance ONDAM general ONDAM care is respected city for four consecutive years" and in 2011, savings totaled 612 million, "62 million more than expected," says union in a statement. He took the opportunity to claim back a "rebalancing" budget for the care of town. For 2012, the rising cost of ambulatory care was limited to 2.1% against 2.6% for hospital costs.

Privatization of tax collection, open to private hospitals, creating a single tax on companies by 15%: the leader of the Conservative party of New Democracy, Antonis Samaras, on Wednesday presented his recipes out of the crisis. The Leader of the Conservative party of New Democracy, Antonis Samaras.

The France of the ancien regime had its tax farmers to collect the tax in place of the state. Greece does go so far if the leader of the Conservative party of New Democracy, Antonis Samaras, came to power after the next election? Among his proposals to end the crisis, because it evokes a form of outsourcing privaisation or tax services.

"We advocate a single tax on companies by 15%, and at the same time we must ensure that there is not a crook in the system (tax, NDR). If necessary, we will use the type of private KPMG (audit firm, ie) to help us collect taxes, "said Mr. Samaras a delegation of journalists Spanish, Portuguese, French and Maltese visit Greece on the initiative of the European Commission. "We will use outsourcing services even if we also try to make public employees more competitive," said Mr. Samaras, whose party is leading the polls for upcoming elections in Greece, planned a priori in May

. Mr. Samaras reiterated that his party was committed to "submit to the policy "contained in" Memorandum "(the RAP of the economy) signed by Greece with its European partners in exchange for loans vital for the country. "We ask only a modification of certain policies to promote growth and stop the cycle of recession," he emphasized, however.

Greece is in recession for the fifth consecutive year. Questioned by the press on the responsibility of his party, in power between 2004 and 2009, in the current crisis in Greece, Mr. Samaras was rather minimized by rejecting most of the blame on the socialist party PASOK, with which He currently shares the power within the coalition government led by Lucas Papademos. "I do not mean that my party has no direct or indirect responsibilities in what took place

. We have not done some things we should have done, but PASOK did things he should not have done, "he said. "We have privatized Olympic Airways (…) but we have not privatized enough," he said, also refusing to recognize a liability for his party in the inflation of the country's public deficit in 2009.

Revision of deficit by the Socialists in 2010 (from 6% to 15% of GDP), which has crossed to Greece access to capital markets by triggering the IMF and the European Union (EU) for Rescue of the country, the subject of an intense political battle between New Democracy and PASOK. "To restore the credibility of Greece in this area, we did the right thing by appointing an independent person at the head of the statistics agency," said Secretary of State for Finance Yannis Mourmouras, this the meeting. "There is more political interference," he said. Moreover, on immigration, Mr. Samaras said he was "determined" that Greece "does not become a magnet for immigration" asking "a common policy in Europe" on the subject.

Barcelona and Madrid are struggling to accommodate "Eurovegas", a project that could generate 164,000 direct jobs and 97,000 indirect jobs. An employment agency in Malaga. Spain has an unemployment rate above 20%

Under the slogan "No Eurovegas", a platform to mobilize citizens to Spain to fight against the project a huge casino complex, inspired by Las Vegas and expected to provide over 260,000 jobs in a country affected by unemployment record.

"It's the return of the economic model of the building to a fault, it's not a sustainable source of employment," denounced one of his representatives, Ana Sanz, during the presentation of the platform form in Madrid on Wednesday. "This project is going back to a model that failed with the crisis," added another member of the group, Carlos Ruiz.  

"This project" is a huge complex centered around the game, which are fighting for the two largest Spanish cities, Barcelona and Madrid. "Eurovegas" as he was nicknamed, involves the construction of six casinos, 12 hotels offering 36,000 rooms, nine theaters and three golf courses, according to Spanish media. It will generate an investment of 15 to 18.8 billion euros and the creation of 164,000 direct jobs and 97,000 indirect jobs.

Its promoter: the gaming giant Las Vegas Sands, owned by American billionaire Sheldon Adelson, who is expected to announce in early summer if the giant complex will be the day or not, and if so, which of the two cities is drawn . But official data are not easily accessible and opponents denounced Wednesday "opacity" surrounding the project.

The numbers of jobs "that we are selling are not real," says Ana Sanz also. Mired in crisis, Spain in late 2011 showed a record unemployment rate of 22.85% and almost a quarter of its workforce (24.3%) should be unemployed by the end of the years, according to government forecasts. In this grim context, perspective, even fuzzy, a project expected to generate 261,000 jobs enthusiasm the political and economic leaders.

"More than half of Madrid unemployed could find work", was launched in February the President of the Madrid region, Esperanza Aguirre, saying negotiate with billionaire since 2006. "We will change all the rules need to be changed, so long as is consistent with our principles", she also promised. For its part, the president of Catalonia, Artur Mas, has said the project would drain a "quality tourism".  

In addition to a return to the worst excesses of the housing boom that fueled the Spanish economy until the bubble burst in 2008, critics of "Eurovegas" denounce them preferential treatment, and legal tax proponents have claimed. "It will be a free zone where laws will be imposed by the investor," worries Carlos Ruiz. He said Las Vegas Sands would have required such that "any request for funding, the Spanish state shall guarantee" that "the project companies do not pay VAT," a moratorium "on ten years of taxes on the game "and further that" it changes the law on money laundering ".

Smoking would be allowed in the complex, while smoking is prohibited in bars and restaurants in Spain since January 2011. "There is a risk of opening the mafia of prostitution," added another representative of the platform, Cristina Fernandez. According to the spokesman for Las Vegas Sands, Ronald Reese, "negotiations with all levels of government are very advanced." "I assure you that these are not agreements that will change the structure (legal) Madrid, Barcelona or Spain," he added last week on public television. However, without reaching to reassure his critics.

Greece does not return to growth until 2014, after four years of recession that have reduced the gross domestic product (GDP) by 17%, estimated Tuesday officials the European Union.

They added that Greece should cut another 150,000 jobs and reduce labor costs by 15% within three years.

"We believe that Greece will return to growth in 2014," said one of them to the press. "We expect a contraction of 4.5% this year and stagnate in 2013. This corresponds to a contraction of more than 17% over four years."

According to these officials, the Greek minimum wage is still higher than in Spain or Portugal. Labor costs increased by over 30% in Greece over the last decade, an unparalleled growth in the euro area, according to statistics from the European Union .

To reduce debt to 120% of GDP by 2020-in accordance with the agreement reached within the Eurogroup on the night of Monday to Tuesday, against 160% currently, Athens must raise 19 billion with 35 planned privatization from 2012 to 2014.

This amount is well below the anticipated 50 billion euros in the first bailout of 73 billion euros but it is included in the second. 

The year 2014 would be if Greece would record a primary budget surplus of 4.5% of GDP and where she could return to capital markets, officials said officials.

Unemployment will start to decline until 2014 and also its rate will be the order of 17% and 15% in 2015.