In his televised speech Sunday night, Nicolas Sarkozy praised the German model of a good dozen times. The Head of State made an apology for Germany to justify its economic reforms – tax shield yesterday, the TFR reform, reinforcement of learning, social VAT, employment agreements competitiveness today and rule of budget or tomorrow. "Germany comes so often in political discourse that can be asked whether the president will not be a referendum on the German economic model," writes on his blog the deputy editor of Le Figaro Pierre Rousselin. Before voting, the French need to know what's behind the brilliant success of their neighbors across the Rhine.

Germany for the second straight year was the locomotive of the European economy in 2011, with growth of 3% after 3.7% in 2010. In comparison, France has recorded growth of 1.5% in 2010 and should reach painfully 1.7% in 2011. This strong growth has allowed Berlin to reduce its public deficit to 26.7 billion euros, or 1% of GDP. The deficit lights is five times higher. The other great success of Germany, is the dramatic decline in unemployment. The number of unemployed in Germany last year reached 2.976 million on average, the lowest level since the reunification of the country, and 263,000 fewer unemployed than in 2010. The unemployment rate in the country has crude dropped him in 2011 by 0.6 percentage points to 7.1% on average. In France, the opposite: the number of jobseekers rose by 152,000 last year and the unemployment rate is approaching 10%. At our defense, the French population is growing while that of Germany decreases.

The keys to success are known: a specialization in products where global demand remains strong (automotive, chemicals, capital goods, mechanical engineering), a significant number of medium-sized companies (between 250 and 5000 employees) called "Mittelstand" across the Rhine, a tradition and know-how in new markets, a training system in favor of including in business, the massive use of short-and a good social dialogue on wages and employment. "The secret of the German model, the industry, firm size, the co-decision and competitiveness," notes Jean-Claude Betbèze, chief economist at Credit Lyonnais, which does not hide his admiration for Economic Policy the country. Left to accept the painful counterparties.

Excessive wage compression German

For this coin has several setbacks. To restore its competitiveness, which had deteriorated sharply in the years following 1990 reunification, Germany has practiced under the leadership of the former Social Democratic Chancellor Gerhard Schröder, a moderate wage policy in the early 2000. Policy that has increased sharply in 2003 and 2005 when launched an unprecedented series of reforms to the labor market more flexible. Known as the "Hartz" reforms including creating the mini-jobs, jobs that pay can not exceed 400 euros per month, which can be exercised in parallel on welfare or in more than one job "traditional".

Their goal is to encourage theoretical maximum of the unemployed to return to the world of work. Benefit to employers: "mini-jobs" are almost completely exempt from payroll taxes. Employers have tended to replace the mini-jobs to full-time classical contracts taxed, resulting in a sharp increase in part-time and an additional downward pressure on wages. Result: While Germany has expanded its exports increased between 2000 and 2010, but wages have declined in nominal terms (they have risen less than inflation). The median net monthly salary has lost 7.4% in 10 years across the Rhine, while the average annual wage increased by 10.8% in France.

"The compression of wages granted, if it were necessary because of the low productivity of the former East Germany, has gone much too far, deplores Ferdinand Fichtner, an economist at the research institute DIW (Deutsches Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung) in Berlin. This has affected the purchasing power of households and the share of consumption in GDP has contracted. Exports jumped and much faster than imports and Germany is now too dependent on foreign trade, "said he. We saw in 2009 at the height of the global economic crisis: German GDP fell 5.1% against a decline of 2.7% in France. And this year, while the euro area – which represents 40% of German exports – is on the brink of recession, the country's GDP expected to grow by only 0.3% according to the IMF.

A growing impoverishment of the population

The other side of the coin is a very strong impoverishment of employees. During the last decade, Germany has created 2 million jobs part time (and some full-time), while France has created 2 million full-time (and very few part-time). The proportion of part-time increased by one third across the Rhine in this period, while it remained stable in France. Germany is the fourth and part-time employees, including 19% (7 million) of mini-jobbers. Yet nearly 90% of these small jobs were classified low or very low wages (less than 9.76 euros gross per hour to the west and less than 7.03 euros per hour to the is). 20% of German employees are paid an hourly minimum wage below the French and 40% have a net monthly salary of less than 1000 euros.

The unemployed – 2.9 million people – are not better off. The last law passed by Schroeder, "Hartz IV", has in fact merged the long-term unemployment benefits and social assistance. Thus, since 2005, after a year of unemployment, the unemployed no longer receive an allowance of 850 euros, including housing assistance. 70% of German unemployed and live below the poverty line. More generally, Germany has 12 million poor (less than 940 euros a month, or 15% of the population against 13.5% in France. At the other end of the scale, hold 2 825 000 Germans, 6 million euros of assets, or 1% of the population who share a quarter of the country's wealth. "The policy of wage deflation conducted in Germany has led to an increase in income inequality at a speed never seen before, even during the shock of reunification after," denounced the International Labour Organization in a report published on 24 in January.

The ILO will even say that Germany is responsible for the crisis in the eurozone. "Improving the competitiveness of German exporters are increasingly identified as the structural cause of the recent difficulties in the euro area," said the UN agency based in Geneva. "In Europe, it created the conditions for a prolonged economic slump, because other countries are increasingly a policy of wage deflation even harder as a solution to their lack of competitiveness," said she . This view is shared in part, Ferdinand Fichtner. "Germany is of course not solely responsible for the debt crisis countries in the euro area, said the German economy. But it is true that the absence of inflation in Germany, due to the contraction of wages, has led the European Central Bank to conduct monetary policy too expansionary [low interest rates, note] for Greece, Spain, Portugal or Ireland. In these countries, access to easy credit Cheap and fed an artificial increase in wages and housing bubbles. "

The German model has, in the end, the virtues of which France would be right to draw, particularly in respect of industrial specialization, the ability of firms to be exported and enter new markets or the quality of dialogue social development. But every copy would be to bring down our social model, model once touted by Nicolas Sarkozy for his ability to have cushioned the shock of the global economic crisis.

Finance Minister (Chancellor of the Exchequer), George Osborne, warned that the UK economy might slide into recession if the debt crisis was not quickly resolved.

"If the rest of Europe is heading into recession, it may be difficult to avoid in the UK," he told parliament in his address to the biannual budget.

The second part of the plan will be announced in May or June and will aim to increase employee productivity and quality of service, the newspaper said.

The Air France-KLM announced a savings plan for the first quarter 2012, when publishing its quarterly results in early November.

The group had announced on this occasion it would have lost the whole of 2011.

Berlin has been sold for 3.644 billion euros in loans to ten years against 6 billion expected, so that the Bundesbank, the German central bank, had to buy the remaining 39% to avoid failure of the operation.

The very low yields offered by the Bund have dampened the appetite of investors, already concerned about the cost that will impose on Germany a spiral of debt crisis in Europe.

"This is a complete disaster, absolute," said Marc Oswald, strategist Monument Securities in London.

In a note which had been prepared for the G20 summit held in Cannes last week, but was not published until Friday, the Fund believes that the recovery of advanced economies patina.

"Paralysis and inconsistency have exacerbated the uncertainty, loss of confidence and increased tension of the financial market," he diagnosed.

The most advanced countries should urgently propose program medium-term fiscal consolidation credible and further reform the financial sector, while the emerging edge must accelerate the appreciation of their currencies, he said.

In particular, the IMF observes, there is "considerable uncertainty" about how to achieve fiscal sustainability in the United States, Japan and some countries in the euro area.

"Dear Silvio, a new opportunity to escape with Ryanair." It is this formula that the low-cost airline has launched an advertising campaign on its website to promote its flights to 9.99 euros from Rome.

Chancellor Angela Merkel ended the discussion at a joint press conference with Nicolas Sarkozy, saying that the finance ministers of the euro area were working on two models to strengthen the capacity of the European Financial Stability Fund (EFSF).

"The two do not include the European Central Bank because the treaties do not allow it," she said.

Nicolas Sarkozy for his part said that France "is as much" the independence of the ECB as Germany and he returned not to the Heads of State and Government instruct the guarantor of stability of the euro.

France is still defended publicly on the eve of the weekend to grant a banking license in EFSF, which would have the advantage of giving unlimited access to liquidity from the ECB.

It could rely on the support of 14 of the 17 countries in the euro area, Italy, Spain and Belgium being advanced against a Germany that had only the Netherlands and Finland to its sides.

While the looming G20 summit in Cannes in early November, the United States, the major emerging countries and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) also grew in the wings for the firewall erected by Europeans to be the strongest possible and involve the institution in Frankfurt.

"The problem is not Greece, but installing an effective firewall to prevent contagion to the rest of the euro area," summarized a source close to the G20, which emphasizes the risks posed by European dithering on the global recovery.

"For this, we must size and speed (…) Only the ECB has the size and speed of action needed," the source said.

FAST ACTION

Another source said that if the French Minister of Economy, Baroin, suggested Friday night flexibility on this issue was first to open the door to possible trade-offs between different aspects of the response to crisis in which STRIPS Europeans.

Because if the Germans are opposed to the transformation of the European Financial Stability Fund (EFSF) in the bank and to leaving the ECB to become lender of last resort in Europe, the French refused to endorse them on the discount of 60% Berlin demanded that the Greek bonds.

Remains unknown: the position of the European Central Bank after Jean-Claude Trichet has left office, October 31.

The French are hostile to the evolution of double EFSF and the institution of Frankfurt but his successor, the Italian Mario Draghi, the current governor of the Bank of Italy and considered more pragmatic, there is not necessarily opposed.

"It is likely that Italy is on the side of France against the toughest positions defended by Germany and the Netherlands", do you confirm the Italian Treasury.

The arrival of the "pragmatic" Jörg Asmussen to the Board of the ECB to replace the "hawk" Jürgen Stark as the representative of Germany as well as a possible French digitally replacing Jean-Claude Trichet could also influence the position of guardian of the euro.

In the past, the ECB had similarly plot of "red lines", as its absolute refusal to buy government bonds markets or to consider a discount of Greek debt to be forced to abandon with worsening of the crisis.

Meanwhile, two solutions remain on the table to maximize the firepower of the EFSF: Germany and the ECB's call for a partial insurance mechanism sovereign debt of countries in the euro area.

The alternative would be to create a special vehicle powered by such banks as well as foreign sovereign wealth funds and resources which the Fund would be available to intervene in the secondary market.

The announcement comes as pressure intensifies on European banks to increase their own funds.

In a document addressed to the regulators, the largest bank in the euro area states want to increase its capital by about $ 1.5 billion in Santander Consumer States.

The transaction values ​​Santander Consumer United States to four billion dollars, according to estimates by the bank.

Last month, its chief executive Alfredo Saenz was, however, said the bank did not plan to raise equity.

The consortium Sponsor Auto Finance Holdings Series subscribe to the capital increase up to a billion dollars and Dundon DFS up to $ 150 million.

Santander will retain a majority share of 65% in Santander Consumer United States after the operation, Sponsor Series Auto Finance Holdings will own 25% and 10% DFS Dundon.

The consumer credit in the United States is one of the most profitable activities of Santander, analysts said, and generated a net profit of $ 455 million in 2010.

Around 8:45 GMT, taking 2.73%, outperforming the IBEX simultaneously up 1.13%. The Stoxx Europe 600 bank and earned 2.02%.

Four in ten French believe that "the euro has been quite a handicap over the last three years of financial and economic crisis," according to a survey conducted for the FIFG UMP and made public Friday. Only 26% of respondents believe the euro has been "an asset", against 40% who describe it as "handicap" and 34% for whom it was "neither one nor the other," according to the survey presented at the parliamentary days of the UMP.

In August 2010, only 34% of French people saw the euro as a handicap, according to a survey conducted then FIFG for Humanity.Similarly, 37% of respondents wish that "France gives up the euro and the franc back," against 63% for the maintenance of the euro. Last June, in another survey FIFG-L'Humanité, only 29% were in favor abandonment of the single currency.

The French are divided into two camps face almost equivalent to European integration, "given the current crisis", 51% are for "a strengthened European integration with a unique economic and fiscal policy", against 48% preferring "less European integration and economic and fiscal policies of each State "(1% undecided).

Do you agree with these opinions? Do you think the single European currency is an asset or a liability in times of crisis? A return to the franc is it possible and desirable? Give us your opinion in the comments.

Survey conducted by telephone Sept. 23 to 26 among a sample of 964 individuals, representative of the French adult population for the UMP group in the National Assembly, Senate and Parliament.

The Nikkei lost 0.4%, or 34.78 points to 8738.90 points and the Topix, larger yielded 1.56 point (0.21%) to 753.44 points.

Certain values, including Honda Motor (-2.22%), suffered greater losses, affected by the damage to their plants by flooding in Thailand.

Although investors have bought futures contracts, as well as neglected sectors recently, investors are not convinced that European leaders will address the concerns about the financial system through the measures promised by the end of the month.

"The question of how Europe will recapitalize banks remains," said Tetsuro Ii, CEO of Commons Asset Management.

The results below expectations Alcoa, attributed to slower growth, weighed on the trend.

"Those who wanted to be reassured by the U.S. results are for expenses," said Kenichi Hirano, a director at Tachibana Securities.