December 2009 / January 2010 - Association of Dutch Businessmen

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Business news Sources: Het Financieele Dagblad and Reuters The Netherlands is out of recession The Dutch economy grew by 0.4% in the third quarter of this year, compared with the previous quarter, meaning the country is now officially out of recession. The new figures from the national statistics office CBS show the first period of economic growth in a year. On an annual basis, however, the economy contracted by 3.7%. ‘According to normal definitions, the Netherlands is now out of recession,’ the CBS said in a statement. ‘It’s nice to be able to signal the recovery but we still can’t hang out the flags,’ CBS economist Michiel Vergeer said. Consumers are still reluctant to make major purchases in particular. ‘They are keeping their hands on their cash,’ Vergeer said. Exports The recovery is still very fragile and almost entirely depends on improvements in the export market. Exports are still lower than a year ago but the decline is smaller than in the second half. The finance ministry said the news showed that government efforts to combat the recession are working. ‘The effect of the stimulus package is now visible,’ a spokesman said. New figures from the European Union statistics office Eurostat show that the eurozone as a whole is also out of the recession. Working dads’ problems in spotlight Budget deficit deadline 2013, says minister Dredger Boskalis to take over Smit Dredging company Boskalis has made a €60 a share offer for maritime services group Smit. The takeover, described as a merger, has the backing of a group of Smit shareholders who control 44% of the company. ‘Combining our companies creates a Dutch maritime player of a global scale. The merger fits excellently with our strategy aimed at reinforcing and expanding our maritime services,’ said Peter Berdowski, Boskalis CEO. The scheme is also backed by Smit’s CEO Ben Vree who last year rejected takeover attempts by Boskalis, including a €1.1bn offer. Boskalis has built up a 25% stake in Smit since those talks broke down in December 2008. Analyst Edwin de Jong from SNS Securities said Boskalis’ commitment to maintain current Smit strategy and the board job for Vree could be behind the change of heart. Family minister André Rouvoet is to start research into the problems fathers have combining their careers and caring for their children. Rouvoet said that a ‘cultural shift’ needs to be made at work, in the school playground and in board rooms to make sure fathers can spend more time with their families. The research will look at the choices working fathers feel they have to make in terms of career opportunities in order to become more involved with their children. The Netherlands still tends to see childcare as the primary task of mothers while fathers continue to work full time, the minister said. ‘The question is, is this what fathers who wish to see their children grow up and mothers who wish to develop professionally actually want?,’ Rouvoet was saying. Last month, a survey by the government’s social policy unit SCP showed most Dutch couples are happy with the 1.5 income household set-up, whereby men work full time and women work fewer hours. The European Commission will probably order the Netherlands to cut its budget deficit to below the official EU level by 2013, finance minister Wouter Bos said. Under EU rules, the budget deficit must be below 3% of gross domestic product. It also emerged France and Germany must bring their deficits back under control by 2013. ‘I do not have the impression that the Netherlands is being treated any different to other countries,’ Bos said, following a meeting of EU ministers in Brussels. The commission expects the Dutch budget deficit to reach 6% next year. Bos said it would be a ‘challenging deadline but not impossible’. The finance minister did say he was concerned about how ready some member states are to follow the commission’s instructions. France has already said it will be difficult to cut its 8.3% budget deficit in line with Brussels’ timetable. The EU’s economic affairs commissioner Joaquin Almunia will formally announce the deadlines. Ministers pledge action on early retirement Ministers have agreed to draw up proposals to encourage older workers not to take early retirement and to get employees to take on more older staff. The measures are to be combined with the increase in the state pension age from 65 to 67 and were agreed at parliamentary debate on the pension plans. CDA MP Pieter van Geel pointed out during the debate that just 38% of men aged 60 to 65 are still working, as are 18% of women. But social affairs minister Piet Hein Donner, who is in charge of steering the pension legislation through parliament, told later it is harder for young people to find a job than the over-45s. Although a majority of MPs support the planned pension age increase, there was much criticism of ministers’ proposals to help people who do ‘heavy work’. SNS Reaal moves back into profit Financial services group SNS Reaal posted net profit of €26m in the third quarter of 2009, the Utrecht-based company said in a trading update. Both the banking and insurance arms were back in the black, SNS said. SNS posted a loss over 2008 as a whole following a poor second half and made a loss in the first half of 2009 as well. SNS said its cost reduction and integration programmes are on schedule and shareholders’ equity is up ‘significantly’ compared with the end of June. The company also said it expected to take a provision in the fourth quarter to pay for its share of the savings guarantee scheme for customers of bankrupt DSB bank. SNS said its portion would be 6%. Based on the central bank’s estimate of a maximum requirement of €3.25bn, SNS could face a charge of up to €195m, news agency Reuters said. SNS has had €750m in state support to ease it through the financial crisis and will pay back €185m raised through a September share issue later this month. CEO Ronald Latenstein told a conference call there was no timetable on repaying the rest. ‘It’s a bit early to predict anything in that area. Our intention to go to full repayment is clearly there.’ 30 Vol.19 • No. 10 • December 2009 / January 2010
Business news Sources: Het Financieele Dagblad and Reuters ‘Heavy work’ focus of pension plan critique Opposition MPs launched a strong attack on the cabinet’s plans to increase the state pension age from 65 to 67 during a parliamentary debate. In particular, ministers’ decision to force employers to find other jobs for people who have done ‘heavy work’ for 30 years came under fire. The Liberals are not opposed to the pension age increase in principle. However, the coalition has made a ‘monster’ out of the plan, Liberal leader Mark Rutte said. The move will deliver savings too late, is unfair, is unworkable when it comes to people who do heavy jobs and will have a drastic effect on employers, Rutte said. Employers The cabinet has agreed to increase the state and corporate pension age from 65 to 66 in 2020 and then to 67 in 2027. They also plan to make it easier for people who do ‘heavy work’ to still retire at 65 or be given new, lighter duties by their employers. The VVD suggests that everyone who has earned at least 70% of the minimum wage for 40 years should still be allowed to retire at 65. This would get around the problem of how to cope with people who have done hard physical labour and cannot work any longer, Rutte said. Alexander Pechtold, leader of the Liberal democratic party D66, said it would probably be impossible to define the concept of ‘heavy work’. Femke Halsema, leader of the left-wing greens Groenlinks also supports the increase in principle. But she sided with the Liberals’ 40-year plan and dismissed the cabinet’s proposals as a ‘political patchwork’. Unworkable The Socialists and anti-Islam PVV both support the current 65-year retirement age. The PVV came under attack from other parties for saying an end to migration from Muslim countries would produce enough cost savings to eliminate the need to raise the state pension age. Labour’s parliamentary leader Mariette Hamer said the party is prepared to drop the heavy work clause if it proves to be unworkable. ‘ But we will come up with something else,’ she was quoted as saying. ‘ Employers must take responsibility for their workers’ careers.’ The debate is set to continue. ING moves back into profit Financial services group ING confirmed it had booked net profit of €499m and underlying profit of €778m in the third quarter of this year, reversing a year of decline. But the company gave no more details of its plans to split off its insurance activities. ING announced its third quarter figures on October 26, at the same time it broke news of the separation and a €7.5bn rights issue. The split up is part of the agreement reached with the European Commission on ING’s €10bn capital injection from the Dutch state. CEO Jan Hommen said ING has completed most of the first stage of its restructuring process but gave no more information. ‘It was not an easy decision,’ quoted him as saying. ‘But I strongly believe this is the right decision at the right moment. The financial services sector will be transformed by the crisis and the winners will be those who win back the trust of their clients.’ Half Holland’s households run financial risks Some half of the Netherlands’ seven million households are running the risk of getting into financial trouble because they don’t have enough savings, says family spending institute Nibud in a new report. Nibud says 25% of households never save and a further 25% only put money away for a rainy day when they have some left over. And four out of five households never look at what their future spending needs are likely to be. In addition, a quarter of households are overdrawn at the bank at least once a month and one third have a non mortgage-related loan, quoted Nibud as saying. Impulsive people who look for comfort and an easy life, and career-oriented people with a fondness for luxury are the most likely to get into financial difficult, the report found. 31 Vol.19 • No. 10 • December 2009 / January 2010
Page 1: December 2009 / January 2010 MITA 3
Page 4 and 5: A monthly publication of the Associ
Page 6 and 7: Business World Expo 2010 Shanghai C
Page 8 and 9: Business What does a Chinese consum
Page 10 and 11: Business Rich, Richer, Richest: Wea
Page 12 and 13: Business Building business ties By
Page 14 and 15: Business My Chinese adventure: host
Page 16 and 17: Business Under Chinese management B
Page 18 and 19: Green Page Low Carbon City Initiati
Page 20 and 21: Travel China beaches By Sara Caris
Page 22 and 23: Interview Ask4Me in Guangzhou By Fr
Page 24 and 25: Interview Doing business in China,
Page 26 and 27: Interview Vendors (ISVs) to help th
Page 28 and 29: Special Tibet, or did the 13 th Dal
Page 30 and 31: Know your tax China challenges Spec
Page 34 and 35: Event Agenda BODY WORLDS: The origi
Page 36 and 37: Conference Calendar A selection of
Page 38 and 39: Association Info New Members Anne E
Page 40: Connected Heart-to-heart Reserved F

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