Finanzas

La asociación Aedaf creen que la instrucción que interpretara el régimen de fraccionamientos va contra la Ley General Tributaria

Las compañías se comprometen a preservar el empleo en Estados Unidos y nuevas inversiones

La inflación de Reino Unido cierra 2016 en el 1,6%, su máximo en más de dos años

Los pasivos del conjunto de las Administraciones bajan en noviembre hasta el objetivo comprometido con Bruselas

Desde 2010 la deuda de familias y empresas se ha reducido en 482.459 millones de euros, un 48,2% del PIB

La Comisión considera que los presupuestos de este año cumplen los requisitos generales pero que España «debe estar lista para aprobar medidas adicionales» de ajuste

Los directivos españoles, entre los más optimistas del mundo para 2017

El Constitucional andorrano pone fin a 22 meses de prisión provisional de Joan Pau Miquel

GIANT, cross-border mergers in Europe have been rare in recent years. Deals fail to happen even when mid-sized companies—such as family-owned and run specialist manufacturers in northern Italy or the Mittelstand in Germany—have the chance to gain global heft. For that blame founding owner-managers, many of whom are reluctant to lose control of treasured companies. Blame too an artisanal culture, particularly in southern Europe, in which firms’ owners say they are content to remain small and relatively obscure. Occasionally, too, nationalist politicians block efforts by perfidious foreigners to snaffle prized local brands.

Now, though, one of the largest-ever mergers in Europe actually looks set to go ahead. Luxottica, an Italian maker of fancy specs that was founded in 1961—it owns brands such as Ray Ban and Oakley—is to merge with Essilor, a spiffy French producer of lenses. The joint entity is set to combine Italian style with deft French engineering. The deal is supposed to be completed by the end of the year, creating a new entity with a market value of €46bn ($49bn), 140,000 staff and annual revenues of €15bn. It will be…Continue reading

An eye-catching opportunity

IT MAY be an exaggeration to talk of French firms “colonising” corporate Italy. Some Italian business leaders nonetheless fret about expansionists from across the northern border plucking control of some of their most celebrated local firms. Family-run companies, especially, can make tempting prospects: ones that make excellent products but struggle to grow, or that face agonising succession problems, are notably juicy targets.

The latest example, announced this week, is the merger between Luxottica, an Italian maker of fancy specs, and Essilor, a spiffy French producer of lenses. Together they will produce an entity with a market value of at least €46bn ($49bn), 140,000 staff and annual revenues of €15bn. The deal, one of the largest cross-border tie-ups attempted by European firms, had long been expected by industry watchers. The idea is to produce an entity that combines Italian style and skills in marketing with deft French engineering.

The new firm will be listed on the Paris bourse (as probably its eighth-largest firm) later this year. That will mark the culmination of…Continue reading