Business & Financial News

Hershey, the greatest chocolate manufacturer of the USA, is going to reduce 1 500 workplaces in its supply department within the following three years as a part of the re-structuring plan. The plan foresees manufacturing of some of Hershey’s simplest products, and construction of a new factory in Monterrey (Mexico). The company will squander $575m (£294m) on updating.
When the renovation will be completed, Hershey will approximately make 80 % of its manufacture in the USA and Canada.
Hershey has lost a share of the American market to Mars and has informed about its 10 % default in the quarterly income. The company is going to make a part of money rescued accessible on the investment into their new “sweet creations”.
Richard Lenny, the chairman and chief executive of the company, said that new marketplace gives them both problems and wonderful opportunities.
For a long time Hershey has been fighting with rigid competition, languid commercial and weak profit and has managed to increase its accent on new products, type of dark chocolate, which is the unique submission of nuts and cookies.

The European commission has confirmed today, that Cyprus has submitted the official application for joining to a European Currency Zone. Amelia Torres, the Eurocommission mass-media representative has declared that Cyprus has really forwarded the inquiry about readiness of the country to join Eurozone.
The Eurocommission and the European Central Bank are expected to inform on their decision in the middle of May. The final decision will be accepted in June.
Earlier, Michalis Sarris, Minister of Finance, has informed, that Cyprus will officially make an application on entering to the Eurozone since January, 1st, 2008. Michalis Sarris has also assured that Cyprus completely correspond to all Eurozone criteria.
As he said the budget deficit of Cyprus in 2007 will make less than 2 % of gross national product, that is 3 % below the level established for the Eurozone countries, and in 2006 inflation has made 2,2 %, that is also below the established borders.
According to Minister’s words, the official application will be directed to EU within two days. As Sarris has informed, euro should become Cyprus’s national currency since January, 1st, 2008. Thus, Cyprus expects to become the second country (after Slovenia) from among “new” members of the European Union which have entered to Eurozone.
Nowadays euro is monetary unit of 13 countries - Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Slovenia, the Netherlands, Portugal and Spain.
With euro introduction on Cyprus the Cyprian pound (it is also known as Cyprian lyre) - the currency existing since 1879 will become a part of Cyprus’s history. For inhabitants of Republic Cyprus the Cyprian pound has been associated with long-term financial stability and well-being.

Scale nationalization in Venezuela is continue to grow: on Thursday Ugo Chavez government has agreed about the repayment of 82 percent share holding of the largest private power company of country Electricidad de Caracas, belonging the American company AES Corp.
Having estimated the campaign in 900 million US dollars, the Minister of Power of Venezuela has also told that the shareholders can keep the packages or to sell the shares to the government within the limits of the transaction which is planned to be finished by April, 30th. Earlier the government promised to nationalize Electricidad de Caracas only by July.
The President Chavez, who has received emergency powers on one and a half year from the Parliament, also plans to nationalize the largest telecommunication company of the country and the basic oil actives belonging foreigners that has forced observers to expect construction in Venezuela command economy of socialist type.
AES has paid 1, 6 billion dollars for Electricidad de Caracas, and then has invested 600 million dollars more within six years in it. Nevertheless, the President of AES considers that nationalization has been lead according to laws of Venezuela and was a “fair” process.
Electricidad de Caracas, the power-spreading company serving the capital of the country, did not raise tariffs on demand of the government, despite of two-place inflation. The company also has had great losses because of the scale illegal connections to its network in the poorest areas of the city.

The Eurocommission has approved the purchase of OAO “Sual” and aluminous actives Glencore by the group EN +, which is representing interests of the shareholder of OAO “Russian Aluminium “.
Thus, the Eurocommission has approved the transaction on merge “Rusal“, “Sual” and Glencore.
 In opinion of the “Rusal” general director Alexander Bulygin, the approval by Eurocommission of creation of the incorporated company is one of key stages on a way to the transaction, which completely answers to the logic of development of the world aluminium industry and creates a good platform for successful dynamical development of the established corporation.
As it was informed earlier, the transaction on merge of “Rusal“, “Sual” and aluminous actives of the Glencore can be finished with an advancing of the schedule - in February, 2007.
In October, 2006, the commission on regulation of the financial markets of the Jersey Island has registered Rusal Limited on Jersey United Company. It is already known, that Rusal Global Management BVWill operates actives of this company. Transactions on actives translation, including “Sual“, on Rusal Global Management, registered in the Netherlands, will be approved by the shareholders in February at emergency assemblies.
Thus at present the main thing for the companies is the reception of approval from antimonopoly bodies. In the beginning of November, 2006 “Rusal“, “Sual” and Glencore submitted petitions to Federal antimonopoly service of the Russian Federation for the reception of the sanction to purchase the  “Rusal” and “Sual”’s actives by the incorporated company.
Last week the Federal antimonopoly service has declared that it will make the final decision under the transaction after consultation with a management of the Russian Federation, and also taking exhaustive measures on protection of the Russian consumers of aluminium which can contain in the instruction of antimonopoly body.
Besides the companies should meet with approval of Antimonopoly committee of Ukraine, which documents have been submitted simultaneously with the submission of documents to Eurocommission.
In Europe “Rusal” owns 56, 2 % of Italian aluminous factory EurAllumina, the other 43,8 % belong to the Swiss trader Glencore. In Ukraine “Rusal” possesses the aluminous factory in Nikolaev and “Sual” possesses the aluminium factory in Zaporozhye.

The Europe and Africa become more and more approached to each other. The case is not only in global warming of the climate. Soon it will be possible to travel by train from Spain to Morocco. The governments of two countries are seriously thinking about the construction of a tunnel near the strait of Gibraltar.  

The project of the construction is already entrusted for preparing to the Swiss engineering company. The tunnel in length about 40 kilometers will pass on the depth of 388 meters from a surface of the sea.  

The engineering decision of the Gibraltar tunnel will remind the well-known tunnel under the passage La Manche, constructed in 1994 and connecting England with the continental Europe. The new construction will be passed from the Moroccan cape Malataba to the Spanish Punto Paloma that is near Cadiz. 

The construction is supposed to be finished by 2025. Considering the fact that the continents are divided already for 5 million years, the term of construction is quite insignificant. 

The new facts of corruption in branches of the United Nations Organization have emerged. The Associated Press Agency had information on plunders of means with the purpose of the subsequent payoff. 

Source of the information was Maria Veiga’s report, the independent auditor employed by the World meteorological organization of the United Nations (WMO) in 2003. 

According to Maria’s report Sudanese Muhammad Hassan, the former worker of the organization, has appropriated and has spent nearby $3 million. According to the investigation, the most part of money has been spent for payoff of 50 members of the organization during the elections of new WMO General Secretary. Due to these means it became possible to support a nominee of Kenya’s Evans Mukolwe candidate who should take away voices from Frenchman Jean Pierre Beysson, so that a candidate Michel Jarraud has appeared the winner of the elections. For that moment Jarraud was the assistant to the chapter of the organization of Godwin Obasi who had a close communications with Hassan. The result of these swindles was the election of Jarraud as the General Secretary of the organization and he is still occupying this post. Now the Swiss authorities are engaged in the investigation of scandal. 

The world’s major commercial powers incorporated their first attempt of restoration of global trading negotiations. Unfortunately, the chance of the real promotion reached in Switzerland seems improbable. 

The representatives of the European Union, India, the United States, Brazil and approximately two dozens other states are holding their multinational meeting at the World Economic Forum, six months later after they sharply were unable to reach the agreement on clearing barriers to trade in the manufactured products and agricultural goods. 

The negotiations emphasize the increasing support of less developed countries from global business leaders, and so, the negotiations in the frames of WTO were a subject of repeated discussions of this Forum. 

While mortgages of the obligation were never under the doubt, to force the countries to open their markets to foreign competitors was a much more difficult task. 

The negotiators pointed out, that the world faces the notable collisions under subsidies and tariffs in agricultural sphere both in the rich countries, and in the poor countries. At the same time the poorer nations claim, that agricultural grants in the rich countries interfere with them to develop their economic systems. Almost continuous are the tariff conflicts between EU with 27 nations and the USA. 

Yesterday the prices for oil have risen after еру dealers have started up hearings that oil stocks focused on cold weather decrease and volumes of OPEC production are also reducing. 

The raw material originally cost more than 1 $ barrel after the American government has informed, that stocks of raw material, gasoline, and products of distillery have raised last week. Nevertheless, the market has again exceeded above 55 $ for barrel later, provoking a big jump on Tuesday which has been caused by Bush’s plan to raise a national predicament oil stock. 

According to the Energy Information Administration’s data, now the deliveries are above the average level of this season. The Energy Information Administration has also informed that for the last week US crude material stocks have risen from 700 000 barrels to 322.2 million barrels. 

The world charges on arms have recently exceeded 1, 2 billion dollars.  This information was declared by the general secretary of the United Nations Organization in his message to the participants of the Disarmament Conference.
 It is emphasized in the letter of the secretary general of the United Nations that the improbable on the size sum makes 2, 5 % from a world total product. Even if 1 % of these expenditures would be directed on the development, the purposes of the Purposes of Millennium would become much more achievable.
 The UNO general secretary has noted that safety process in the modern world is very controversial.
In his opinion, it is necessary not only to prevent nuclear distribution in the world, but it is also important to reduce the existing military arsenals. The general secretary of the United Nations has defined disarmament and non-distribution as his personal priorities, and the priorities of the whole Organization.

The Chinese stock exchange has appeared the most expensive in Asian region. Citigroup, HSBC and UBS experts are worried with this state and ask investors to avoid it for some period of time.
Shares traded on Chinese stock are almost twice higher comparing to summer 2006. Among the specialists this tendency sets more worries than optimistic hopes for gains.
Shares of the greatest Chinese insurer- China Life insurance- have doubled, as trade has begun in Shanghai on January, 9th. Its appearance in the market provoked the sale of stock, in which investors ordered in 49 times more share, as they could really buy.
The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, which is the central bank of China, has received 70 percent due to sale its shares in October 2006 in conditions of the unprecedented public offer. The demand for shares from people in China was five times more than that from the institutional investors.
The chief executive of DBS Asset Management, Lau Wing Tat said that The Chinese stock market is sending first ″alarm signals″ of its overheat.
Nevertheless, last Saturday meeting of top economic planners insisted on continuing to liberalize stock exchange markets and did not state any anxiety about the overheating in the Chinese stock exchange market and the overheating of China’s economy.
Nobody denies that Chinese stocks offer much higher profits than any other country’s China’s investment funds and options, but nobody objects off that the situation is changing for worse, becoming threatening and risky.