PARIS // Unions are preparing for a massive show of strength in the battle over pension rights as trouble piles up for France's embattled president, Nicolas Sarkozy.
Transport and public services are expected to plunge into strike chaos. Hospitals, schools, postal services and public transport are likely to be severely disrupted and some unions are threatening to stage repeats of the action rather than limit themselves to a 24-hour strike.
Between one million and 2.7 million demonstrators, depending on whether the police or unions made the more accurate count, took to the streets for protests this month. Opponents of the government are predicting an even bigger reaction this time against plans to increase the retirement age to 62.
The strike comes in a week that began with continued fallout from two embarrassing new books about the president's wife, Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, and the international row over French expulsion of Roma travellers.
An opinion poll suggested Mr Sarkozy's approval rating had tumbled four points to a new low of 32 per cent.
More than halfway through a presidency that began with bold promises of reform, Mr Sarkozy is running into as much resistance to change as his predecessors.
The French are deeply concerned about job security, spending power and the kind of retirement they can expect after decades of relatively prosperous living supported by a generous welfare state.
Despite repeated warnings that the country has been living hopelessly beyond its means, however, a large proportion of the electorate either sees Mr Sarkozy's remedies as an unjust attack on poorer sections of society - or feels it has the muscle to block unwelcome change.
On the lips of some, notably the vulnerable petits commerçants - shopkeepers and small business owners - there is mention of imminent social upheaval on a scale unseen since the student/worker rebellion of more than 40 years ago.
The "Paris Spring" petered out after a two-week general strike, street battles and a lot of revolutionary hot air. But its knock-on effects led to the resignation of Gen Charles de Gaulle as president a year later.
"I believe it's going to be a tumultuous autumn, 1968 all over again," said one businesswoman who has occasional professional contact with Mr Sarkozy but feels his policies have pushed the French to the brink of open revolt.
The office of Daniel Cohn-Bendit, a leader of the 1968 revolt and now joint president of the Green group in the European parliament, insisted recently that under no circumstances would he discuss or make comparisons with that period.
This week, he lowered his guard, telling Le Parisien newspaper: "In '68, at the end of the rebellion, there was hope. The horizon was clear. Today there's a feeling that enough is enough, but also lots of despair. Could it lead to a general strike with the aim of forcing a new society? I can answer neither yes nor no though it would seem more difficult."
In what critics see as an attempt to divert attention from unpopular economic measures and appeal to the conservative instincts that drive some voters to the French far Right, Mr Sarkozy has given priority to immigration and crime issues.
But even this has rebounded on him, the deportation of Romas weakening his authority in Europe and offending some of his ministers and the Roman Catholic Church. The president's declared aim on public safety also sits uneasily with ministerial acknowledgement that France is in a state of high alert over the threat of terrorist attacks.
Set against such weighty issues, gossip about Mr Sarkozy and his wife may seem trivial. But if the president wanted to concentrate on pushing through his reforms and make the streets safe, he could have done without the newly published books about his wife.
In one, Carla and the Ambitious, she is alleged to have said Michelle Obama had privately described her life as the US president's wife as "hell", a comment Mrs Obama has denied, and to have admitted using French secret services to find out who was spreading rumours about her marriage. The other book, Carla: A Secret Life, casts her as a narcissistic Marie-Antoinette figure with a cavalier approach to her charitable duties.
The Elysée has reacted angrily to both publications. But the media attention focused on their content could not have been more badly timed.
One French news website, 20minutes.fr, asked last week whether the combination of strikes, the Roma controversy, the disgrace of the French football team in South Africa and suspicions of sleaze threatened to make France "the most detested country in the world".
It may seem wildly exaggerated in a world with several candidates. But the fact that the question should even be asked offers a measure of Mr Sarkozy's plight.
He can do nothing about the football, but responsibility for solving France's other problems rests at the Elysée Palace. With the presidential elections less than two years away, one magazine, Le Point, has already run a cover story headed "Has he already lost?" and François Hollande is among Socialist opposition leaders now talking of moving on from "anti-Sarkoism" to a viable alternative of their own.
@Email:crandall@thenational.ae
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ETelr%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDubai%2C%20UAE%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ELaunch%20year%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202014%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E65%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFinTech%20and%20payments%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3Enearly%20%2430%20million%20so%20far%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The Brutalist
Director: Brady Corbet
Stars: Adrien Brody, Felicity Jones, Guy Pearce, Joe Alwyn
Rating: 3.5/5
Tax authority targets shisha levy evasion
The Federal Tax Authority will track shisha imports with electronic markers to protect customers and ensure levies have been paid.
Khalid Ali Al Bustani, director of the tax authority, on Sunday said the move is to "prevent tax evasion and support the authority’s tax collection efforts".
The scheme’s first phase, which came into effect on 1st January, 2019, covers all types of imported and domestically produced and distributed cigarettes. As of May 1, importing any type of cigarettes without the digital marks will be prohibited.
He said the latest phase will see imported and locally produced shisha tobacco tracked by the final quarter of this year.
"The FTA also maintains ongoing communication with concerned companies, to help them adapt their systems to meet our requirements and coordinate between all parties involved," he said.
As with cigarettes, shisha was hit with a 100 per cent tax in October 2017, though manufacturers and cafes absorbed some of the costs to prevent prices doubling.
Our legal consultants
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
TOUCH RULES
Touch is derived from rugby league. Teams consist of up to 14 players with a maximum of six on the field at any time.
Teams can make as many substitutions as they want during the 40 minute matches.
Similar to rugby league, the attacking team has six attempts - or touches - before possession changes over.
A touch is any contact between the player with the ball and a defender, and must be with minimum force.
After a touch the player performs a “roll-ball” - similar to the play-the-ball in league - stepping over or rolling the ball between the feet.
At the roll-ball, the defenders have to retreat a minimum of five metres.
A touchdown is scored when an attacking player places the ball on or over the score-line.
Genesis G80 2020 5.0-litre Royal Specs
Engine: 5-litre V8
Gearbox: eight-speed automatic
Power: 420hp
Torque: 505Nm
Fuel economy, combined: 12.4L/100km
Price: Dh260,500
