The crisis at Italian agri-food giant Parmalat, described by Economy Minister Giulio Tremonti as "Europe's Enron", sent shockwaves through Italian industry
Published:
21 December 2003 y., Sunday
"The situation is very serious," Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said, announcing his government would intervene to try to salvage the agri-food giant "to restore confidence and the country's reputation".
The scandal, sparked by the discovery of a four billion-euro "hole" in its accounts, follows the recent spectacular collapse of another high-profile Italian food company, Cirio.
"The government will intervene above all to save the company and its industrial sector and to save the jobs...." Berlusconi told an end-of-year press conference in Rome.
He said Tremonti, whose "Enron" remark was reportedly made at a cabinet meeting which discussed the crisis on Friday, would submit rescue proposals to a cabinet meeting on Tuesday.
Parmalat, Italy's leading agri-food company with a workforce of more than 36,000 in 30 countries, was already struggling to cover estimated debts of 6.0 billion euros when the hole was discovered.
The Bank of America (BoA) disowned the authenticity of a document certifying that Parmalat's Cayman unit Bonlat Financing Corporation had 3.950 billion euros (4.9 billion dollars) of liquidity at December 31, 2002.
Analysts said Friday Parmalat was close to declaring bankruptcy after the discovery of the massive hole in the company's accounts. affected" by the crisis, Berlusconi said.
Šaltinis:
AFP
Copying, publishing, announcing any information from the News.lt portal without written permission of News.lt editorial office is prohibited.
The most popular articles
In European sustainable energy week 2010, new EU energy commissioner presents strategy to reduce Europe’s dependence on fossil fuel.
more »
The EBRD is launching a Project Complaint Mechanism, which is expected to enhance the accountability and transparency of the Bank’s operations.
more »
The EBRD is boosting the availability of local currency financing in Armenia with a synthetic loan in Armenian Drams (AMD) worth $4 million to FINCA UCO CJSC for on-lending to local micro and small enterprises (MSEs).
more »
This year is the UN year of biodiversity and it brings endangered species into the spotlight.
more »
The World Bank Board of Directors today approved a US$65 million project to support the recovery of Haiti’s critical infrastructure as well as the reestablishment of basic State functions following the devastating 7.0 magnitude earthquake on January 12, 2010.
more »
Haiti’s arduous reconstruction and recovery process jolted forward today following fresh commitments to help the Caribbean nation rebuild in the wake of its devastating January 12 earthquake.
more »
A mission from the African Department of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) visited Uganda during March 4-17, 2010, to conduct the seventh and final review under Uganda’s Policy Support Instrument (PSI) and reach understandings on a policy framework for a new three-year PSI to cover the period 2010 to 2013.
more »
The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC), as the first EU institution, rose to the challenge of providing a comprehensive vision for the future of the Common Agriculture Policy (CAP), in advance of the European Commission's papers on the matter, due to be issued later this year and in 2011.
more »
The outlook for primary energy supplies, heat, and electricity is questionable for the Eastern Europe and Central Asia region, despite Russia and Central Asia’s current role as a major energy supplier to both Eastern and Western Europe.
more »
The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) today approved a 36-month, SDR 513.9 million (about US$790 million) Stand-By Arrangement (SBA) for El Salvador to help the country mitigate the adverse effects of the global crisis.
more »