Thursday, February 19, 2015

Germany rejects Greece plea for loan extension; French inflation turns negative after five years; Walmart to raise wages

1 Germany rejects Greece plea for loan extension (Jennifer Rankin & Helena Smith in The Guardian) Germany and Greece are on a collision course ahead of crucial bailout talks on Friday after Berlin knocked back a Greek compromise proposal and insisted the country stick to its existing austerity plan.

Setting the scene for a make-or-break meeting in Brussels, the eurozone’s largest economy dismissed as “not substantive” a proposal from Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis,which appeared to have all but capitulated to creditors’ demands. The rebuff from Berlin came just hours after Greece filed a formal request to its eurozone partners to extend its loan agreement, in the hope of averting a cash crisis.

A Greek government spokesman insisted that the eurogroup had only two options: either to accept or reject the Greek request. “It will then be clear who wants to find a solution and who doesn’t.” The European commission welcomed the Greek proposal – widely seen as a climbdown on some of Greece’s key demands – as a positive sign that could pave the way for compromise.

But in a sign of divisions within the EU, Germany said the Greek plan failed to meet eurozone ministers’ demands that Greece stick to its bailout programme – a set of conditions laid out on Monday at an acrimonious meeting in Brussels that failed to end the deadlock. Greece needs unanimous backing from the other 18 eurozone finance ministers to secure a deal.


2 French inflation turns negative after five years (BBC) Inflation in France, the eurozone's second-biggest economy, turned negative in January, adding to worries over deflation in the eurozone. Prices fell 0.4% from a year earlier, with energy costs down 7.1% following the drop in global oil prices. It is the first time in more than five years that inflation in France has turned negative.

Last month, the European Central Bank announced a stimulus programme to try to boost growth and avoid deflation. Figures released last month suggested deflation in the eurozone was gathering pace, with prices across the currency bloc in January down 0.6% from a year earlier.

While falling energy costs have provided a one-off cut to prices, the worry is that weak economic growth in the eurozone will lead to deflation becoming entrenched. Falling prices can be harmful to an economy if it leads to consumers and businesses delaying spending and investment decisions in the hope of lower prices in the future. The last time annual inflation was negative in France was in October 2009, when it hit -0.2%.


3 Walmart to raise wages (Straits Times) Global retail giant Walmart, which has faced criticism over low wages and skimpy benefits for years, has announced it would raise wages for 500,000 workers in the US. The largest single employer in the US said salaries for about 40 per cent of its US staff would be lifted to at least $9 an hour in April, $1.75 above the federal minimum wage. By Feb 1, 2016, US staff will be paid at least US$10 an hour.

The company also unveiled a training and education programme that will allow employees to earn a high school degree at no cost as well as pursue higher education at more affordable prices.

There was criticism by labour unions and other groups that the company's low wages have pressured some staff to seek public assistance to make ends meet. President Barack Obama has also made the issue of low pay and a growing income gap across the country a key policy focus.

Walmart said the increased spending on wages and education would weigh on future profits. The new programme will shave 20 cents per share from earnings in fiscal 2016. Walmart projected fiscal 2015 earnings of $4.70-$5.05 a share compared with the $5.19 expected by analysts.

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