China Construction Bank looks to Europe for deals - FT

China's No. 2 lender, is looking for acquisition opportunities in Europe but first needs to see regulators open their doors, its chairman told the Financial Times.

CCB Chairman Wang Hongzhang told the FT in an interview published on the paper's website on Sunday that "CCB values the European market a lot."

"If we can find suitable targets and the price is suitable and we get the regulators' support, I think CCB will catch and seize the chance for mergers and acquisitions."

Wang said no deal was imminent but he had met regulators in Germany and the UK last week for informal talks about whether the bank would be welcome in the two countries.

He said he wanted to expand operations to more European countries but added: "Whether we can establish more institutions in Europe depends on European countries' regulators, their attitudes towards CCB and whether CCB is welcomed by them or not.

Sources: Reuters

China's business service sector boosts economy

China's non-manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index reached a 14-month high of 56.3 in October from 55.4 in September, suggesting a stable expansion of domestic demand.

The National Bureau of Statistics and the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing released the figure on Sunday, showing that growth in the business service sector has contributed more to the overall economy.

A reading above 50 indicates that non-manufacturing production activities are accelerating, while below 50 means they are slowing.

"Continual expansion of the non-manufacturing sector will lead to steady employment growth, which is an important foundation to stabilizing the whole economy," said Cai Jin, vice-chairman of the CFLP.

Cai said the upward momentum of the sector is expected to remain in the coming months, and the development potential of the service industry should be further realized.

A subindex of the non-manufacturing PMI that indicates entrepreneurs' future expectations rose to 60.5 in October, compared with 60.1 in September, which means they have greater confidence in the industry over the next three months, according to statistics.

Analysts said the positive signals from the non-manufacturing industry will further help to transform China's economic growth pattern to a consumption-driven model.

In 2011, the service industry overtook manufacturing as the world's second-largest source of jobs.

In October, the manufacturing PMI climbed to an 18-month high to 51.4 from September's 51.1, higher than the market expected. The growth was mainly driven by stronger output, the NBS said on Friday.

Based on the stronger leading economic indicators, UBS chief Chinese economist Wang Tao expects that "the upcoming October data will show that economic activities have remained solid".

Consumer inflation is likely to pick up further while the growth of bank leading and overall social financing may slow after the rapid increase in September, she said.

Ma Xiaoping, an economist in China at HSBC Holdings PLC, said the existing government policies to stabilize growth, such as supporting small businesses and maintaining infrastructure construction investment, will continue to work in the coming months.

"The recent acceleration of capital inflow and expansion of fiscal expenditures will help keep a relatively sufficient liquidity," Ma said.

Besides, a rebound in employment and growth of incomes can boost consumption in the future, he added.

Source: NewsOnJapan

Apple now commands a record 34% market share in Japan

Despite a not-so-stellar third quarter for Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL ) , Japan was a bright spot for the iPhone maker. Apple now commands a record 34% market share in the country once dominated by domestic brands.

It's the first time a smartphone brand has surpassed 30% market share in Japan in a decade, and Apple is poised to grab even more.Japan's smartphone market has typically been dominated by domestic companies including Sony and Sharp, and until this past quarter Apple didn't hold much sway in the country.
Apple skyrocketed from third place in Japan's mobile handset market to the top spot in part because the iPhone finally launched on NTT DoCoMo (NYSE: DCM ) , the island nation's largest wireless carrier. The move allowed Apple's iPhone 5s to become the best-selling smartphone in Japan in September, with about half a million in sales.
But it wasn't just the 5s that tipped the scales for Apple. To compete with DoCoMo, other Japanese carriers offered massive discounts and incentives on the iPhone 5, grabbing consumers who didn't want to endure the two-week wait for the 5s.
Apple is expected to maintain its new lead in Japan, and a Gartner analyst told Reuters he thinks the company could grab as much as 50% of smartphone market share in the country.
Source: NewsOnJapan

Six years following bankruptcy, Nova boosts the brand

In September, Tokyo-based Jibun Mirai Associe Co. (JMA) announced it would adopt Nova as its official corporate name - 19 months after it acquired the eikaiwa (English conversation) school chain from its previous operators, and almost six years after its well-publicized downfall.

It has been a rocky road for the school since the Oct. 26, 2007, bankruptcy announcement that put thousands of foreign-language instructors out of work (and in some cases out of apartments), even necessitating some governments to intervene and give them assistance.JMA, now called Nova Holdings Co., is hopeful that things are finally looking up.
Timing is everything. Nova is reportedly seeing an increase in children coming in for lessons, particularly from a young age.
Following the insolvency of the original Nova in October 2007, G.Communication revived the company a month later while retaining the Nova brand. Inayoshi Holdings did the same when it took over ownership in October 2010.
One highly recognizable character is the Nova usagi, a pink cartoon rabbit with a beak-like mouth. After making its debut in a TV commercial in September 2002, the Nova usagi enjoyed a high level of popularity that led to the creation of merchandise, apparel and even video games.

Source: NewsOnJapan

Abe fearing China's eclipsing Japan on Global Stage,adopts some of former's policies.

Shinzo Abe is so obsessed with China eclipsing Japan on the global stage that he's adopting some of his neighbour's policies. What else can we say about the secrecy law the prime minister's cabinet approved on October 25 - an act that would do so much to undermine and constrain his people's right to know?

Abe's Liberal Democratic Party says the move - which gives ministries the authority to classify as state secrets information on counterintelligence, counterterrorism, defence and diplomacy - is necessary to protect the nation's 126 million people from any number of risks. It claims this is a necessary step towards creating a US-style national security council and safely sharing vital intelligence with allies. And in the aftermath of the Edward Snowden/Bradley Manning leaks that have the US re-examining its secrecy policies, why shouldn't Japan do something similar?

But Abe isn't offering definitions or guidelines for what constitutes a "special secret". Compare that with the specifics about the jail terms journalists can expect for disclosing something that someone, somewhere, somehow might label national security-calibre info: as much as five years. Government officials who blow the whistle on improprieties could get as much as 10 years. But the vagueness of this law will have a further chilling effect on a national media that's already too docile. If you think it's hard to follow the state of play with the Fukushima nuclear crisis now, just wait until the law goes into effect, possibly as soon as next month.

Source: NewsOnJapan

Japan and Korea slide down gender-index ranking

The Swiss-based nonprofit World Economic Forum recently released its Gender Gap Report for 2013, in which Japan ranked 105 out of 136 countries - a plunge of 25 places from its ranking when the report was inaugurated in 2006. South Korea rates even worse, coming in at 111 in 2013, down from 92nd place in 2006.

With both Japan and Korea being in the bottom third of countries surveyed, it would seem their employment systems aren't working very well for women by any measure, as both feature a wide gender-based wage gap, glass ceilings, marginalization in the workforce and low fertility - the latter a key factor in the rapid aging of both societies.The failure to support working women is also saddling both countries with gathering fiscal problems by depressing tax revenues, pension and medical-insurance contributions and limiting economic growth.
However, it's worth bearing in mind an important clarification accompanying the WEF report, which states: "The index is designed to measure gender-based gaps in access to resources and opportunities in individual countries rather than the actual levels of the available resources and opportunities in those countries."

Source: NewsOnJapan

Hitachi starts building train factory in Britain

Japanese electronic machinery giant Hitachi is building a train factory in Britain to return high-speed rail trains to the motherland of railways.

Officials from Hitachi and the British government attended the ceremony on Friday to mark the start of construction on the 120-million dollar plant in Newton Aycliffe, in northeastern England.

Hitachi won a contract to produce 866 carriages and offer maintenance service for 27 years. The company aims to start operation in 2016, hiring 730 locals.

Source: NewsOnJapan

Glencore Sells Copper Project Stake as Mining Deals Hot up

  According to an article published on the Wall Street Journal,
"Glencore Xtrata PLC is selling its majority stake in one of the Asia-Pacific's biggest unmined copper deposits, the latest in a flurry of asset sales across the mining industry that suggests deal making may be picking up as some commodities rebound.
Australian copper-and-gold minerPanAust Ltd.  said Friday it would buy the Frieda River deposit in Papua New Guinea from Glencore for as much as US$125 .
A series of assets sales in recent months has followed a notable weak  deal making  period over the past year as miners struggled with falling commodity prices and rising costs".

"Last week, Glencore and Japan's Sumitomo Corp.agreed to buy  Rio Tinto PLC's stake in the Clermont coal mine in eastern Australia for around US$1 billion.

South African miner Gold Fields Ltd. recently agreed to buy three mines in Australia from Canadian peer Barrik Gold Corp.  for about US$300 million, while Rio Tintoagreed to sell its controlling stake in the Northparkes copper-and-gold mine in Australia to a Chinese company for US$820 million".

"According to a midyear report by Ernst & Young, there were only 350 merger-and-acquisition deals across the global mining sector in the first half of 2013, down 30% on-year.

Since then, the value of many commodities, like iron ore and copper,have rebounded as Chinese imports climbed and fears of a sharp slowdown in the world's No. 2 economy abated. Copper is up 10% since its year-to-date low in June. Gold is about 7% higher.

PanAust said it would take an 80% interest in the Frieda River project. The remaining 20% is controlled by joint-venture partner Highlands Pacific Ltd. PanAust has also agreed to take a 7.5% stake in Highlands for A$5 million (US$4.7 million). The Wall Street Journal reported in August  that the company was in talks with Glencore to purchase its stake.

PanAust is no stranger to operating mines in impoverished Southeast Asian nations lacking infrastructure and skilled workers. It has two active pits in Laos that produce copper and gold, and the Brisbane-based company accounts for about 30% of that country's exports.

"From a strategic point of view, Frieda River provides us with the basis for growing production beyond our current mine life in Laos," PanAust Managing Director Gary Stafford said in an interview. "It gives us another string to our bow."

Glencore inherited the Frieda River project through its multibillion-dollar takeover of Xstrata PLC earlier this year, but has signaled a preference for owning active mines that produce commodities it can sell through its trading arm. It has been reviewing its assets since its acquisition of Xstrata".

Beijing is going to start building six new subway lines .

Beijing is going to start building six new subway lines by the end of this year to help ease traffic congestion in the Chinese capital. But after a recent string of signal malfunctions that stranded many commuters, questions remain about their ability to provide citizens with an efficient, comfortable ride.

In search of an easier commute.On Tuesday, the Beijing metro management authority announced its decision to construct six new subway lines.

The city is notorious for its traffic congestion.

And operation snags have made things worse.

During the Monday morning rush hour, a signal malfunction delayed several trains on line 5.

It was the seventh time in October.

Yao Dongmei is an urban planning expert from the Office for Metropolitan Architecture. She agrees that better design and management are needed.

"Generally speaking, the development of Beijing’s metro system has lagged far behind the city’s urbanization. So it can’t meet the needs of the city commuters. That’s why the subway congestion problem is getting worse. We need to improve the future subway design as well as the metro management to provide people an easy and comfortable underground commute." said Yao Dongmei.

Beijing has the oldest metro system in China.

Its first line opened in 1969. Today it has 17 lines, more than 200 stations, and around 450 kilometers of track.

But it’s a major challenge to fit a modern metro system into an ancient city.

There has been a wide range of criticisms on the city’s subway system not being people-oriented enough. Now the government’s challenge going forward is to have a sound planning for future subway construction so that people can have a convenient, and more importantly, comfortable commute.

Source: CCTV

Obamacare’s Fatal Flaw. By Martin Feldstein

"Obamacare, officially known as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, is the health-insurance program enacted by US President Barack Obama and Congressional Democrats over the unanimous opposition of congressional Republicans. It was designed to cover those Americans without private or public health insurance – about 15% of the US population. 
The potentially fatal flaw in Obamacare is the very same feature that appeals most to its supporters: the ability of even those with a serious preexisting health condition to buy insurance at the standard premium.
That feature will encourage those who are not ill to become or remain uninsured until they have a potentially costly medical diagnosis. The resulting shift in enrollment away from low-cost healthy patients to those with predictably high costs will raise insurance companies’ cost per insured person, driving up the premiums that they must charge. As premiums rise, even more relatively healthy individuals will be encouraged to forego insurance until illness strikes, causing average costs and premiums to rise further.

With this in mind, Obamacare’s drafters made the purchase of insurance “mandatory.” More specifically, employers with more than 50 employees will be required after 2014 to purchase an approved insurance policy for their “full-time” employees. Individuals who do not receive insurance from their employers are required to purchase insurance on their own, with low-income buyers receiving a government subsidy.

But neither the employer mandate nor the personal requirement is likely to prove effective. Employers can avoid the mandate by reducing an employee’s workweek to less than 30 hours (which the law defines as full-time employment). But even for full-time employees, firms can opt to pay a relatively small fine rather than provide insurance. That fine is $2,000 per employee, much less than the current average premium of $16,000 for employer-provided family policies

A smart employer can pay the fine for not providing insurance and increase employees’ pay by enough so that they have more spendable cash after purchasing the subsidized insurance policy. Even after both payments, employers can be better off financially.

But the biggest danger to Obamacare’s survival is that many individuals who do not receive insurance from their employer will choose not to insure themselves and will instead pay the fine of just 1% of income (rising permanently after 2015 to 2.5%). The preferred alternative for these individuals is to wait to buy insurance until they are ill and are facing large medical bills.

That wait-to-insure strategy makes sense if the medical condition is a chronic disease like diabetes or a condition requiring surgery, like cancer or a hernia. In either case, the individual would be able to purchase insurance after he or she receives the diagnosis.

But what about conditions like a heart attack or injuries sustained in an automobile accident? In those cases, the individual would not have time to purchase the health insurance that the law allows. If they are not insured in advance, they will face major hospital bills that could cause serious financial hardship or even cause them not to receive needed care.

The “wait-to-insure” option could cause the number of insured individuals to decline rapidly as premiums rise for those who remain insured. In this scenario, the unraveling of Obamacare could lead to renewed political pressure from the left for a European-style single-payer health-care system.

But it might also provide an opportunity for a better plan: eliminate the current enormously expensive tax subsidy for employer-financed insurance and use the revenue savings to subsidize everyone to buy comprehensive private insurance policies with income-related copayments. That restructuring of insurance would simultaneously protect individuals, increase labor mobility, and help to control health-care costs".

Source: By Martin Feldstein
             Project-Syndicate

"Hybrid" eclipse visible across Africa, Europe, US.

A rare hybrid solar eclipse has swept across parts of the United States, Africa and Europe.

The total eclipse appeared fleetingly as a ring of fire over the Atlantic Ocean, and has been passing through Gabon, the Republic of Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda and Kenya. A partial eclipse has been visible from many parts of the Americas, the Caribbean, southern Greenland, southern Europe, Africa and the Middle East.

In Lagos, Nigeria, some people were gathered on a beach to witness the event. People are reminded to never look directly at the sun without specialized equipment, even during an eclipse.

Source: CCTV

Asian markets started slow on Monday

Asian markets started the week on a sluggish note on Monday as investors chose discretion over valor ahead of central bank meetings in Europe and the always-critical U.S. payrolls report.

Trading was thinned by holidays in both Japan and Singapore which kept MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan  just a fraction firmer at 480.04.

Australia's share market edged up 0.2 percent  as another domestic bank reported record profits.

Major currencies were likewise quiet with the dollar still well supported in the wake of upbeat U.S. manufacturing data that stirred speculation the Federal Reserve might scale back its bond-buying in December, rather than in March as many in the market currently anticipate.

There are no less than four Fed officials speaking on Monday, starting with Fed Bank of Dallas President Richard Fisher in Sydney. Fed Governor Jerome Powell and the heads of the St. Louis and Boston Feds all appear later in the day.

The dollar index was holding firm at 80.715.DXY having climbed to a six-week peak on Friday. It was also up on the yen at 98.73 and threatening a major chart target at 99.00.

The dollar fared best against the euro which was undermined by speculation the European Central Bank (ECB) would have to ease again given disappointing news on unemployment and a startlingly low reading of inflation.

The single currency was pinned at $1.3489 on Monday, well below its recent high of $1.3832. The ECB holds a policy meeting on Thursday and it will be under intense pressure to stimulate the economy.

"We expect the opening statement, and Q&A, to have a distinctly dovish tone," wrote analysts at RBC Capital Markets in a note to clients.

"For now, we think that the Governing Council will refrain from any immediate action, but we expect the downbeat tone of next week's meeting to lay the groundwork for a policy response over the next few months."

Source: Reuters

India throws rings of protection around divisive candidate Modi

Indian security forces are preparing for one of their most challenging assignments in decades, protecting prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi in a country with a grim history of political assassinations.

A series of small bombs killed six people at a rally the Hindu nationalist leader held in the city of Patna on October 20.

Authorities said the home-grown Indian Mujahideen (IM) group was responsible. While Modi was not in the immediate vicinity of the explosions, the message was clear.

"Narendra Modi is way above everyone else on their hit list," said an officer in the Intelligence Bureau, who declined to be identified as he is not authorized to speak to the media.

Modi will lead his Bharatiya Janata Party into a general election due by May and his enemies will almost certainly be looking for another opportunity to strike.

The militants hold Modi responsible for riots in 2002, during his first term as chief minister of Gujarat state, in which at least 1,000 people, most of them Muslims, were killed.

Modi denies any role in the riots or bias against minority Muslims.

Communal animosity has led to several high-profile assassinations in India, beginning months after independence when a Hindu fanatic gunned down Mahatma Gandhi, the leader of a non-violent struggle to throw off British rule.

Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, who was not related to Mahatma Gandhi, was killed by Sikh bodyguards in 1984 and her son, former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, was killed by an ethnic Tamil suicide bomber in 1991.

The election is shaping up to be a highly charged clash with Modi and his aggressive Hindu nationalist supporters facing off against their Congress-led rivals, who say the vote is a fight to preserve India's secular foundations.

Much of the battle will be waged at public gatherings. Even in these days of 24-hour news channels and the Internet, Indian election campaigns hinge around rallies.

Modi will address countless throngs in coming months in his race against the Congress-led coalition which is expected to put up Rajiv Gandhi's son, Rahul Gandhi, as its prime ministerial candidate.

An elite team protecting Modi has been ordered to secure all public meetings using the same tactics of the Special Protection Group that guards former and serving prime ministers and their families along the lines of the U.S. Secret Service.

Source: Reuters

German police recover 1,500 modernist masterpieces 'looted by Nazis'

About 1,500 modernist masterpieces – thought to have been looted by the Nazis – have been confiscated from the flat of an 80-year-old man from Munich, in what is being described as the biggest artistic find of the postwar era.

The artworks, which could be worth as much as €1bn (£860m), are said to include pieces by Pablo Picasso,Henri Matisse,Marc Chagall,Paul 

Klee, Max Beckmann and Emil Nolde. They had been considered lost until now, according to a report in the German news weekly Focus.

The works, which would originally have been confiscated as "degenerate art" by the Nazis or taken from Jewish collectors in the 1930s and 1940s, had made their way into the hands of a German art collector, Hildebrand Gurlitt. When Gurlitt died, the artworks were passed down to his son, Cornelius – all without the knowledge of the authorities.

Gurlitt, who had not previously been on the radar of the police, attracted the attention of the customs authorities only after a random cash check during a train journey from Switzerland to Munich in 2010, according to Focus. Further police investigations led to a raid on Gurlitt's flat in Schwabing in spring 2011. Police discovered a vast collection of masterpieces by some of the world's greatest artists.

The artworks are thought to have been stored amid juice cartons and tins of food on homemade shelves in a darkened room. Since their seizure, they have been stored in a safe customs building outside Munich, where the art historian Meike Hoffmann, from Berlin university, has been assessing their precise origin and value. When contacted by the Guardian, Hoffmann said she was under an obligation to maintain secrecy and would not be able to comment on the Focus report until Monday.

At least 300 paintings in the collection are thought to belong to a body of about 16,000 works once declared "degenerate art". Others are suspected to have been owned by fleeing Jewish collectors who had to leave belongings behind.

One Matisse painting used to belong to a French art dealer, Paul Rosenberg, whose granddaughter is Anne Sinclair, the TV journalist who is also the ex-wife of the former managing director of the International Monetary Fund Dominique Strauss-Kahn. Rosenberg was renowned for representing Picasso, Georges Braque and Matisse.

The looted art trove may help to shed light on one of the more obscure chapters in Nazi 

Germany's history. Modernist art was banned soon after the Nazis came to power, on the ground that it was "un-German" or Jewish Bolshevist in nature.

Source: theguardian

Brazil: Fiscal deficit hits record in September, and government reviews spending

The government announced Thursday that public accounts had in September the largest primary deficit for the month in the Central Bank’s historical series, started in 2001: R$9.05 billion. It was the second consecutive monthly deficit and the third worst in history. Because of this, the government is no longer ensuring the primary-surplus target of 2.3% of GDP this year, to which Finance Minister Guido Mantega had committed in July.

The commitment now is to the target of R$73 billion for the central government (Treasury, Social Security and Central Bank). To achieve this, the federal government will have to obtain a primary surplus of R$46.32 billion, equivalent to 1.32% of GDP, in only three months (October to December). To have an idea of the challenge, the central government’s surplus was of only R$26.68 billion from January to September, according to data released Thursday by the Central Bank.

What makes the task even more difficult is that tax revenues are weak, with shortfalls every month in relation to what was originally projected. Thus, meeting the fiscal target of the central government (Treasury, Social Security and Central Bank) will depend basically on the so-called extraordinary revenues. They include the signing bonus of Libra, oil field recently auctioned, and the revenue to be obtained with the reopening of Refis da Crise, a program to refinance past-due tax debts, and of two new installment plans for tax payments that benefit banks, insurers and their units.

Even then, these revenues will not be enough. With the Libra bonus, the government expects to obtain R$15 billion, and with the Refis and the two installment plans, from R$7 billion to R$12 billion, according to Federal Revenue estimates. This means that, at best, these two revenues will reach R$27 billion. So R$19.3 billion or 0.55% of GDP (R$46.32 billion minus R$27 billion) will still be missing. The government didn’t give Thursday any indication of how this amount may be obtained.

Even with low tax revenues, federal government spending continues growing at a fast pace. In the January-September period, total expenditures (including social-security benefits) grew 13.5% compared to the same period of last year. The National Treasury Secretariat (STN) informed Thursday that expenditures are increasing 4.6% above nominal GDP variation. This means they are growing as a proportion of GDP, whereas revenues show slight contraction as a proportion of GDP (-0.5%). If primary expenses grow more than primary revenues, the government only manages to make numbers add up with the reduction of the primary surplus.

The most worrying is that the reduction of the federal government’s primary surplus is not resulting in more public investment. According to the STN, investments showed a contraction of 5.2% in relation to nominal GDP expansion in the January-September period of this year, compared to the same period a year earlier.

Source: Valor International

The annual Seoul Lantern Festival has kicked off

The annual Seoul Lantern Festival has kicked off along a major waterway in the South Korean capital. Now in its fifth year, the festival is dedicated to the ancient Baekje dynasty, which enjoyed a 500 year rule on the Korean peninsula.

A giant, illuminated bird soars over the captivated crowd gathered below.

The five-meter-tall lantern in the shape of a hawk was the national bird of Korea’s ancient Baekje Dynasty, and is one of a variety of colorful lanterns on display during this year’s Seoul Lantern Festival.

Some 30,000 colorful lanterns are brightening the pathway along the Cheonggyecheon, a canal in central Seoul where the festival is held every year. Various colorful lanterns can be seen, all following the theme "One Thousand Year Old Dream of Baekje".

The ancient Kingdom is brought to life in the magnificent figures made of light, illuminating the kingdom’s history.

The outdoor festival in central Seoul gives people a chance to relax and retreat from busy urban life.

Lee Kyung-Min, College Student, said, "I wasn’t feeling that great after exams, so I came to the Cheonggye Stream to refresh myself. I feel good after seeing these very pretty lanterns and going on a date with my boyfriend for the first time in a long while. I’m going to take a lot of photos and eat good food."

The 2013 Seoul Lantern Festival will be open until November 17th.

Organizers say they expect this year’s event to attract around 3 million visitors, that’s 500-thousand more than last year.

There will also be exhibitions, lantern-making activities and performances, for people of all ages to enjoy.

Source: CCTV

Surveiller les algorithmes

De plus en plus souvent, des algorithmes décident de notre rapport au monde. Que ce soit pour nous mettre en relation avec d'autres sur des sites de rencontres ou pour estimer notre capacité de crédit, pour nous diriger dans la ville via nos GPS voir même pour nous autoriser à retirer de l'argent à un distributeur automatique... les algorithmes se sont infiltrés dans notre vie quotidienne sans notre consentement et modulent notre rapport au monde sans que nous soyons vraiment au courant de leur existence, de l'ampleur de leur action, de leur pouvoir et des critères qu'ils utilisent pour décider de nos existences à notre place. Sans que nous ayons non plus beaucoup de possibilités pour réfuter ou intervenir sur ces critères. "Trop souvent, c'est l'ordinateur qui décide !"
A chaque fois qu'on retire de l'argent, l'automate de la banque doit décider si ce retrait est autorisé, s'il est "normal". Il doit décider si c'est vraiment nous qui retirons de l'argent. Notre carte, notre code bancaire ne sont que des talismans pour en appeler à un complexe cerveau électronique résidant quelque part dans un datacenter climatisé. C'est lui le véritable gérant du guichet et c'est lui qui doit approuver ma transaction pour qu'elle soit autorisée. En fait, notre carte et notre code ne sont pas si importants que cela pour ce cerveau électronique. "Ce qu'il consulte avant tout c'est une vaste base de données d'enregistrements qui inclue ma localisation présumée, mes transactions récentes, le type de transaction que je demande, le temps qui s'est écoulé depuis ma précédente transaction, le montant que je demande, la date de cette transaction et quelques dizaines d'autres mesures dont je n'ai pas conscience. Il soupèse chacun de ces facteurs et décide si je suis vraiment celui que je prétends être. Il les soupèse et décide de me donner ou pas mon argent."
Le problème est que quand l'algorithme refuse la transaction, la machine ne nous dit jamais pourquoi. "Cela signifie que nous sommes constamment engagés dans une sorte de danse avec l'algorithme, une danse où je ne peux entendre la musique et où la seule réaction que je reçois est quand je marche sur les pieds de mon partenaire."Nous ne connaissons ni les règles des algorithmes ni quand elles sont modifiées... Notre seul repère consiste à observer par essai/erreur, afin d'apprendre ce qui ne lui convient pas. Nous apprenons en dansant !
A chaque fois qu'on retire de l'argent, l'automate de la banque doit décider si ce retrait est autorisé, s'il est "normal". Il doit décider si c'est vraiment nous qui retirons de l'argent. Notre carte, notre code bancaire ne sont que des talismans pour en appeler à un complexe cerveau électronique résidant quelque part dans un datacenter climatisé.
"Ce qu'il consulte avant tout c'est une vaste base de données d'enregistrements qui inclue ma localisation présumée, mes transactions récentes, le type de transaction que je demande, le temps qui s'est écoulé depuis ma précédente transaction, le montant que je demande, la date de cette transaction et quelques dizaines d'autres mesures dont je n'ai pas conscience. Il soupèse chacun de ces facteurs et décide si je suis vraiment celui que je prétends être. Il les soupèse et décide de me donner ou pas mon argent." En fait, ces enregistrements, aussi factuels et minimaux soient-ils, par leur accumulation, dessinent une base de données de comportements, basée sur l'analyse de ces enregistrements. L'activité est une alternative à l'identité.

Le Monde

La vérité sur les banques européennes apparaitra-t-elle sous la loupe de la BCE?

La prise en charge par la BCE de la régulation de 124 banques européennes les plus importantes comporte une condition préalable essentielle: une analyse de la santé financière de ces banques par un  cabinet d’audit britannique appointé à cet effet par la BCE. "Cette évaluation des actifs, c'est comme faire un état des lieux dans un appartement avant de s'y installer, déclare au Monde Christian Noyer, le gouverneur de la Banque de France. Il faut savoir quelle est la situation réelle des groupes bancaires et faire cette étude sur une base harmonisée, ce qui n'a jamais été fait."La liste comprend 24 banques en Allemagne, 16 en Espagne, 15 en Italie, 13 en France, 7 aux Pays-Bas, en belgique,  5 en Irlande et 4 en Grèce, à Chypre et au Portuga. Elles représentent 85% des actifs bancaires de Eurozone.
Cet exercice dont il est difficile de contester la légitimité, n’est pas du gout de tout le monde. Certains commentaires sont illustratifs de la crainte que cet exercice suscite dans le landerneau bancaire européen. Le professeur Eric Lamarque fait observer que  les stress tests de la BCE affaiblissent autant les banques européennes qu'ils ne participent à leur renforcement. C’est un peu comme si le fait qu’un malade passerait des tests pour effectuer un diagnostic de sa maladie pouvait, en soi, affaiblir ou renforcer son état de santé.  

L’évaluation comprendra trois éléments :

a) une évaluation prudentielle des risques visant à examiner, quantitativement et qualitativement, les principaux risques, y compris de liquidité, d’effet de levier et de financement ;

b) un examen de la qualité des actifs des banques afin d’accroître la transparence quant à leurs expositions. Cet examen portera notamment sur l’adéquation de la valorisation des actifs et des garanties ainsi que des provisions ;

c) un test de résistance visant à examiner la résilience du bilan des banques dans des scénarios de crise.

Comme l’a précisé Mario Draghi, certaines banques se verront confrontées a des jugements sévères et a une obligation d’agit pour rectifier la situation. Il n’est pas imaginable, en effet, que la qualité des banques européennes soit égale entre elles.

La Banque centrale européenne (BCE) va demander aux Etats européens de s'engager officiellement à recapitaliser leurs banques, en cas de nécessité en 2014, si la revue des bilans bancaires, prévue l'an prochain, fait apparaître des insuffisances de capitaux dans certains pays. Bref, je veux bien réguler, mais vous êtes priés de préparer les parachutes. Il faut dire qu’en juillet, le Commissaire avait annoncé la couleur. "Il ne sera plus possible de recourir à de l'argent public" pour ces banques, même si elles sont proches de la faillite, a tranché Joaquín Almunia dans une interview à l'hebdomadaire financier allemand VDI Nachrichten "Elles devront être démantelées, conformément aux nouvelles règles en vigueur", explique-t-il. Mais "l'aide publique sera bien sûr toujours autorisée dans le cadre de ces règles", a-t-il précisé quelques heures plus tard.  

C’est évidemment là que la BCE est dans une  situation périlleuse. Considérer que tout va bien n’est plus crédible. Affecter des coefficients de risques aux emprunts de l’Union Européenne est un exercice périlleux, pour ne pas dire une bombe politique. A la fois gardienne de la stabilité financière de l’Union européenne, et superviseur des banques, la BCE rencontre ici un de ses premier grands conflits d’intérêt.

 "Une seule évaluation globale, appliquée uniformément à toutes les banques importantes, représentant environ 85% du système bancaire de la zone euro, est une étape importante pour l'Europe et pour l'avenir de l'économie de la zone euro. La transparence sera son objectif principal » nous annonce Mario Draghi

Source: Le Monde

Rhino Shield impact-resistant smartphone screen film

It was just a month ago that we reported on Evolutive Labs' Rhino Shield, a 6-layer transparent polymer film designed to protect smartphone screens. Not only is it said to ward off scratches and fingerprints, but it's also reportedly five times more impact-resistant than Gorilla Glass 2. Evolutive recently sent me a testing kit, so I could see first-hand just how tough it is – without endangering my smartphone in the process. Here's how things turned out 
The testing kit consists of two pieces of Gorilla Glass 2, two Rhino Shield films fitted to those pieces, a block of granite (or something like it – I'm no geologist), a steel ball bearing, and a cardboard box with a built-in 15-cm (6-in)-tall "drop tower."

The idea is that you first drop the ball from the top of the tower onto an unprotected piece of the glass, which is lying on the granite. That glass should break, which is indeed what happened when I tried it. Next, you apply a Rhino Shield film to the other piece of glass, then drop the ball ontoit from the top of the tower. This time, the glass should remain intact, which mine did. So far, so good.

Rhino Shield produced a video of more or less the same setup, which we featured in our previous article. One reader commented that it wasn't really an accurate test, as the hard surface upon which the pieces of glass were tested didn't allow them to flex as much as they would if they were part of a phone. With that in mind, I repeated the experiment, this time with a sheet of rubber between the Rhino Shield-clad glass and the granite. Once again, the glass survived.

I was also curious to see if just any old thing would offer the same level of impact protection. As it turns out, two sheets of a cut-up thick Ziplock bag did. A piece of regular anti-scratch film, however, did not. Likewise, clear adhesive packing tape wasn't enough to save the glass from the steel ball.

My two pieces of Gorilla Glass both now thoroughly smashed, the experimenting came to an end.

Once applied, the Rhino Shield appeared to have no noticeable affect on the appearance of the phone's display (the polymer has a transmission rate of over 95 percent), and touchscreen functionality likewise seemed to be unchanged. Although some particularly greasy fingerprints did show up on the film's outer surface, there were certainly far less than would accumulate on an unprotected phone.

My tinkering was certainly enough to convince me that a phone with Rhino Shield on it is definitely better off than one without.

Prices range from £17.99 (US$29) for a smartphone-sized film (users can select the proper make/model when ordering) to £25 ($40) for a film that fits a tablet.

Source:Gizmag

Ghislaine Dupont et Claude Verlon, deux passionnés d'Afrique tués en reportage

Que dire ? Qu'écrire dans d'aussi tragiques circonstances ? Qu'ils étaient des professionnels aguerris, chevronnés, qu'ils n'étaient pas des têtes brûlées ? Bien sûr, Ghislaine Dupont et Claude Verlon connaissaient leur métier et les risques qu'il peut imposer, mais leur mort nous renvoie avec une violence inouïe à une question simple : les journalistes doivent-ils abandonner les régions les plus dangereuses ? Répondre par l'affirmative serait condamner ces zones à l'oubli. Pas de témoin, pas de crime.

A Radio France Internationale, leur maison, leur famille, samedi soir tout le monde avait les yeux rougis, un mauvais goût dans la bouche, l'impression d'un cauchemar qui prendra fin au petit matin. Dix ans presque jour pour jour après l'assassinat de Jean Hélène à Abidjan, voilà que Ghislaine Dupont et Claude Verlon viennent de trouver la mort à une douzaine de kilomètres de Kidal, dans des circonstances qui demandent encore à être éclaircies. Le 21 octobre 2003, la mort portait le visage d'un policier ivoirien, le cœur chauffé à blanc par une propagande haineuse contre les journalistes. Le samedi 2 novembre 2013, les ravisseurs de Ghislaine Dupont et Claude Verlon étaient enturbannés. Dès que l'horrible rumeur a été confirmée, ministres, diplomates, hommes politiques et simples citoyens du continent africain ont aussitôt appelé la rédaction, envoyé des messages pour témoigner de leur tristesse et de leur colère.

Source: Le Monde

Abdullah Gul says Syria risks becoming 'Afghanistan on the shores of the Mediterranean'

  Radicalisation of ordinary people by Islamist jihadist groups was spreading across Syria and posed a growing risk to its neighbours and the countries of Europe, Gul said in an exclusive interview with the Guardian.

But the response of the international community – including Turkey's American and British allies – to the security, humanitarian and moral challenges posed by the crisis had been "very disappointing", he said. He reiterated his view that the UN security council's performance was a "disgrace".

In a forthright and sometimes angry critique of western policy on Syria, Gul said the deaths of more than 100,000 people, mostly civilians, in fighting over the past 32 months could have been avoided. Turkish mediation efforts early on in the war were not supported and were even undermined by western powers, he complained.

With the conflict showing no sign of ending, Turkey faces extreme instability and dislocation along its 565-mile border with Syria, the prospective radicalisation of its Kurdish, Alevi and Sunni Muslim populations, the so read of infectious diseases such as polioTBand measles, and many new additions to its current total of 500,000 Syrian refugees.

Gul said that if Turkey were attacked or Turkish territory invaded his government would respond militarily "in the strongest way possible".

"If the atmosphere remains as it is, then this can lead to more radicalisation and some groups in the civil war becoming more extreme, dividing up, not being under control, and spreading across that country. Because under those circumstances, ordinary people could become much more extreme and this is something that poses a danger and threat not just for Turkey, it's an issue for everyone. I don't think anybody would tolerate the presence of something like Afghanistan on the shores of the Mediterranean.

Asked whether the US and Britain should be doing more to end the crisis, he replied: "Frankly speaking, our expectation was different, we expected more. I think it is very disappointing to see the whole discussion reduced to a discussion solely on chemical weapons."

Gul said it was important that the proposed Geneva II peace conference, scheduled for later this month, was better prepared than its forerunner. He felt last month's London Meeting of the Friends of Syria group had been helpful. But he expressed scant hope that the next Geneva meeting would achieve a breakthrough, if and when it takes places. "The country is destroyed … There really isn't in my opinion much that can be done now."

Source: theguardian

U.K.: RBS places troublesome assets worth £38bn in internal 'bad bank'

Royal Bank of Scotland warned on Friday that it was on course for a substantial loss this year, dashing any remaining hopes of a return to the private sector until after the 2015 election.

Announcing that £38bn of troublesome loans would be ringfenced within the bank, the new chief executive Ross McEwan heralded a "resetting" of the often fraught relationship with the Treasury – owner of 81% of the shares – and the Bank of England, which regulates the bank and is poised to impose tougher rules on capital.

McEwan who took the helm only a month ago after Sthephen Haster was ousted in the summer, said he wanted to end the "weariness" and "defensiveness" that had crept into RBS. He is embarking on a review of all the bank's operations – including its troublesome Ulster operations in Ireland and the already-scaled back investment bank – which will be announced in February. He will accelerate the sale of the US arm, Citizens.  

The bar for RBS is higher than for any other bank because we got saved by the UK government," said McEwan. A a highly critical report into its lending to small business found it turning away three out of every four applications for business loans and acting too aggressively towards customers in difficulty.

RBS shares were the second biggest fallers in the FTSE 100, down 7.5% at 340p – well below the 500p average price the taxpayer spent £45bn buying them for – after the bank reported a third-quarter loss of more than £600m.

The study by financial advisers Rothschild, estimated to have cost £9m, stepped back from a full break-up and creation of a "bad bank" suggested by senior figures such as former chancellor, Lord Lawson and former Bank of England governor Lord King.

Instead, about £38bn of troublesome loans – including £9bn from Ulster Bank – will be placed into a new non-core division to be known as the capital resolution division, which the bank aims to wind down in three years. This will mean writing off up to £4.5bn of problem loans in the next quarter – driving the bank to a "substantial loss" for the full year. But some £11bn of capital should be released as a result.

A watch with laser sensor to determine blood sugar levels: glucO – France

Intended for diabetics, gluCo comprises a watch equipped with a laser sensor for determining the wearer's blood sugar levels. For children, this information can be wirelessly transmitted via smartphone to a parent if high or low levels are detected, or sent to an accompanying pen that automatically prepares the correct amount of insulin to be injected.  
Advantages of this product: 

forget the disease                           
take blood sugar automatically
regulating insulin pen automatically
prevent parents in case of problems
avoid the prick
prick system preparation in box
simplify use
pen smaller length
easy storage
stock all the information diabetic
can manage the cycle test,prick
stores the insulin dose
connection to transmit information via phone by WiFi or dock on the support
sensor technology in development
detected automatically from the information on the support
avoid sting
no unpleasent sensation
notify parents if problem for children
automatic regulation with respect to the watch
preparation of unit
signalling yes or no the dose is ready
insuline capsule that can be changed at the end
insuline pen smaller,easy storage
esay recycling needles
user decides whether he wants to bite
connection between the carrier,the phone and the watch

Source: Gizmag

Brazil's Cattle Breeding

Brazil at present has the largest commercial cattle
population in the world. There are approximately
16 breeding programmes for the beef sector, of which
all but one are for Zebu cattle. Thirteen programmes
for different breeds and groups of breeds have the
objective of increasing reproductive efficiency and
growth rate in beef herds using classical breeding
techniques allied with modern biotechnologies.
The top 20 percent of the animals receive a Special
Certificate of Identification and Production (CEIP).
The Breeding Programme for Zebu Cattle (PMGZ), run
by the Brazilian Association of Zebu Breeders (ABCZ)
identifies superior animals by calculating expected
progeny differences (EPDs) for weight and weight
gain at different ages, as well as fertility traits and
reproductive efficiency. With a database of more than
1.5 million animals and 65 000 new animals entering
each year, this is a national programme for all Zebu
breeds. Another breeding programme for Zebu cattle
is GENEPLUS, which has a database of more than
700 000 animals and provides breeders with EPDs
for age at first calving, calving interval, gestation
period, service period and scrotal circumference, as
well as weights and weight gains at different ages.
PROMEBO operates a programme for beef cattle of
taurine breeds. With the aim of improving Zebu cattle,
the ABCZ also collaborates with various research
societies as well a dozen universities, offering  them
production and genealogy data.

Source: FAO

LG challenges Samsung with the G Flex curved screen smartphone

"It looks like LG and Samsung are at it again. Both companies were vying for attention at CES 2013 with simultaneous "world's first" curved OLED television announcements. LG consistently led in the race to the consumer space, and looked liked being first to move the screen format onto smartphones with the annuoncement earlier this month of its plans to mass produce flexible OLED phone displays. Samsung had other ideas, however, and the Galaxy Round was launched just a few days later. LG has now caught up with the forthcoming release of its slightly larger G Flex smartphone, featuring a curved display that follows the contour of the face.

Arcing the G Flex smartphone's display vertically brings the microphone closer to a user's mouth when held against the ear, which, according to LG, increases the volume at the mic by 3 dB (when compared to typical flat-screened phones). The company is also making similar IMAX-like immersive landscape video viewing claims to those which accompanied the release of the curved televisions.

The G Flex sports a 6-inch, 1280 x 720 resolution P-OLED display, which sees the display and panel built on plastic substrates instead of glass. Real RGB technology has been incorporated – where red, green and blue subpixels are all contained in one pixel – for a brighter and more precise onscreen image.

A 2.26 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 quad-core processor runs the show, with a 450 MHz Adreno 330 GPU, 2 GB of LPDDR3 RAM and 32 GB of eMMC storage (with a microSD slot for expansion) making up the supporting cast. The device tips the scales at 6.2 oz (177 g), and its 3,500 mAh curved battery, which was developed by sister company LG Chem, is reported to provide more than a full day's use.

The 6.3 x 3.2 x 0.31 - 0.34 in (160.5 x 81.6 x 7.9 - 8.7 mm) device features a 13 megapixel camera with LED flash at the back and a front-facing 2.1 MP webcam. The LED pulses to indicate face detection or timer countdown. The rear-key design first seen in the G2 has also been included, with a power button in the middle of a volume rocker, and the company has applied a special scratch-resistant coating on the back to help keep the device looking like new for longer.

The latest member of LG's G smartphone family runs Android 4.2.2, and features a refreshed UX that has a function called Q Theater which gives users access to content direct from the lock screen, and allows the display to be divided into two separate windows for multi-tasking.

The smartphone is LTE-capable, packs Bluetooth 4.0 and 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac Wi-Fi, and features NFC technology. It is also capable of Hi-Fi quality 24-bit/192 kHz audio playback.

The LG G Flex starts its journey into the back pockets of consumers in Korea next month, before being rolled out to other markets".

Source: Gizmag