Finance topics

+%3Cp%3ESlovenia+had+its+credit+rating+lowered+one+step+to+A1+by+Moody%92s+Investors+Service+on+the+potential+need+for+the+government+to+support+its+banking+system+amid+Europe%92s+debt+crisis.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3EThe+euro-area+nation%92s+banking+industry+has+assets+that+are+about+136+percent+of+gross+domestic+product%2C+which+is+%93relatively+large+when+compared+to+other+systems+in+eastern+Europe%2C%94+Moody%92s+said+yesterday+in+a+statement.+It+assigned+a+negative+outlook+to+Slovenia%92s+credit+grade%2C+the+fifth-highest.+Standard+%26amp%3B+Poor%92s+ranks+the+nation+AA-%2C+one+level+higher.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3ESlovenia+was+downgraded+at+Moody%92s+for+the+second+time+in+three+months+as+the+euro+area+struggles+to+resolve+its+sovereign-debt+crisis%2C+prompting+stepped-up+ratings+scrutiny+for+the+region.+S%26amp%3BP+and+Fitch+ratings+said+this+month+they+may+cut+the+scores+of+15+euro-region+members+after+assessing+the+outcome+a+European+Union+summit+on+a+tighter+fiscal+pact.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3E%93Asset+quality+pressure+and+the+euro-area+debt+and+funding+crisis+have+further+exposed+significant+vulnerabilities+in+the+solvency+and+short-term+external+funding+and+overall+business+model+of+the+largest+institutions+in+Slovenia%92s+financial+sector%2C%94+Moody%92s+said.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3EThe+government+is+the+majority+owner+of+the+country%92s+two+biggest+lenders%2C+Nova+Ljubljanska+Banka+d.d.+and+%3Ca+topic_url%3D%22http%3A%2F%2Ftopics.bloomberg.com%2Fnova-kreditna-banka-maribor-dd%2F%22+href%3D%22http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bloomberg.com%2Fapps%2Fquote%3Fticker%3DKBMR%3ASV%22+density%3D%22sparse%22+title%3D%22Get+Quote%22+ticker%3D%22KBMR%3ASV%22+class%3D%22web_ticker%22%3ENova+Kreditna+Banka+Maribor+d.d.+%28KBMR%29+%3C%2Fp%3E+September+Downgrades++%3Cp%3ESlovenia%92s+rating+was+lowered+one+level+by+S%26amp%3BP%2C+Moody%92s+and+Fitch+Ratings+in+September%2C+citing+fiscal+concerns%2C+a+weak+domestic+banking+industry+and+a+poor+outlook+for+the+export-+driven+economy.+The+nation+is+rated+AA-+by+Fitch.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3EThe+former+Yugoslav+republic+needs+to+repay+1.17+billion+euros+%28%241.5+billion%29+in+bonds+next+year%2C+according+to+data+compiled+by+Bloomberg.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3E%93The+further+weakening+economic+growth+outlook+also+complicates+the+government%92s+ability+to+achieve+its+medium-term+fiscal+consolidation+plans%2C%94+Moody%92s+said.+%93The+highly+volatile+funding+conditions+on+the+euro-area+bond+markets+represent+additional+risks+even+for+a+small+issuer+like+Slovenia+in+the+event+that+the+financing+needs+exceed+the+original+estimates.%94+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3ESlovenia%92s+borrowing+costs+surged+after+voters+rejected+pension+changes+in+June+and+after+the+European+debt+turmoil+engulfed+Italy%2C+its+neighbor+to+the+west+and+the+third-biggest+trading+partner+after+Germany+and+Austria.+%3C%2Fp%3E+Rising+Yields++%3Cp%3EYields+on+Slovenia%92s+10-year+bonds+reached+a+peak+of+7.77+percent+on+Nov.+11%2C+a+level+that+had+prompted+other+nations+like+Greece%2C+Ireland+and+Portugal+to+seek+assistance+from+the+EU+and+the+International+Monetary+Fund.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3EThe+yield+on+notes+maturing+in+January+2021+has+dropped+since+and+was+at+6.66+percent+today+at+1%3A54+p.m.+in+Ljubljana+from+6.746+percent+yesterday%2C+according+to+data+compiled+by+Bloomberg.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3E%93It+was+no+surprise%2C+but+of+course+there+is+a+constant+source+of+bad+news+flow%2C%94+said+Lutz+Roehmeyer%2C+a+fund+manager+at+Landesbank+Berlin+Invest+in+Berlin+who+oversees+11.5+billion+euros+and+holds+Slovenian+bonds.+%93It+weighs+on+the+sentiment+of+investors+and+funds+with+rating+constraints+get+into+selling+pressure+depending+on+their+specific+rating+limits.%94+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3ENova+Ljubljanska+received+a+250+million-euro%2C+three-year+loan+from+the+European+Central+Bank+as+lenders+in+Europe+sought+a+record+489+billion+euros+in+financing%2C+the+Ljubljana-based+bank+said+yesterday.+The+company+wants+to+raise+400+million+euros+by+mid-2012+to+improve+its+capital+ratio+to+above+9+percent.+%3C%2Fp%3E+Bank+Ratings++%3Cp%3EMoody%92s+also+cut+the+debt+and+deposit+ratings+of+three+Slovenian+banks%2C+Nova+Ljubljanska%2C+Nova+Kreditna+and+%3Ca+topic_url%3D%22http%3A%2F%2Ftopics.bloomberg.com%2Fabanka-vipa-dd%2F%22+href%3D%22http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bloomberg.com%2Fapps%2Fquote%3Fticker%3DABKN%3ASV%22+density%3D%22sparse%22+title%3D%22Get+Quote%22+ticker%3D%22ABKN%3ASV%22+class%3D%22web_ticker%22%3EAbanka+Vipa+d.d.+%28ABKN%29%2C+it+said+in+the+statement+today.+The+rating+company+also+downgraded+the+issuer+and+senior+unsecured+ratings+of+SID+Banka%2C+a+government-owned+development+bank.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3ENLB+and+its+smaller+competitor%2C+Nova+Kreditna%2C+said+they+will+probably+report+losses+for+this+year+on+mounting+bad+loans+from+the+sinking+construction+industry+and+as+more+and+more+companies+file+for+bankruptcy+or+receivership.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3ESlovenia+%93believes+that+the+question+of+a+capital+boost+only+relates+to+the+country%92s+biggest+bank+NLB%2C%94+as+Nova+Kreditna+passed+the+recent+test+by+the+European+Banking+Authority%2C+the+Finance+Ministry+in+Ljubljana+said+today.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3E%93With+the+capital+increase+at+NLB%2C+private+investors+are+considered+the+first+option%2C+or+the+participation+of+the+government+that+wouldn%92t+increase+the+country%92s+debt%2C%94+the+ministry+said.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3EBad-loan+provisions+in+Slovenia+surged+40+percent+in+the+first+10+months+from+a+year+ago+to+706+million+euros%2C+the+central+bank+said+in+a+Dec.+7+report.+%3C%2Fp%3E+Savings+Measures++%3Cp%3ESlovenians+on+Dec.+4+elected+the+Positive+Slovenia+party+of+Ljubljana+Mayor+Zoran+Jankovic+in+snap+elections+after+the+previous+government+collapsed+in+September.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3ELawmakers+adopted+savings+measures+of+150+million+euros+by+freezing+by+freezing+public+employees%92+pay%2C+pensions+and+benefit+payments+to+allay+investor+concern+over+its+debt.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3EAll+86+lawmakers+present+voted+for+the+legislation+that+will+come+into+force+from+Jan.+1+and+will+last+until+June+next+year%2C+according+to+a+live+broadcast+by+public+broadcaster+TV+Slovenija.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3E%93I+count+on+Europe+to+take+into+account+these+efforts+and+bond+yields+could+go+lower+if+we+adopt+these+measures%2C%94+Jankovic%2C+who+is+likely+to+form+the+next+government%2C+said+before+the+vote.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3ESlovenia%2C+the+first+former+communist+country+to+adopt+the+euro%2C+is+struggling+with+the+euro+region%92s+sovereign+debt+crisis%2C+which+erodes+demand+for+its+exports.+It+risks+sliding+back+into+recession%2C+while+public+debt+may+widen+to+more+than+50+percent+next+year.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3EThe+economy+shrank+0.5+percent+in+the+third+quarter+from+a+year+before%2C+following+growth+of+0.8+percent+in+the+previous+three-month+period+and+public+debt+has+more+than+doubled+in+four+years.+%3C%2Fp%3E++%3Cp%3E%3Ca+href%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bloomberg.com%2Fnews%2F2011-12-22%2Fslovenia-ratings-cut-by-moody-s-on-concern-nation-s-banks-may-need-funding.html%27+rel%3D%27nofollow%27%3ESource%3C%2Fa%3E%3C%2Fp%3E+

Joe Reagan, president of Greater Louisville Inc., has been hired as the new president and CEO of St. Louis’ lead economic development organization.

The Regional Chamber and Growth Association announced Monday that it has hired Reagan to replace Dick Fleming, who is set to step down at year’s end. The 48-year-old Indiana native has run Louisville’s largest economic development group since 2005.

“Joe brings to the RCGA a strong professional background in successful chamber management, regional economic development, public policy development and implementation,” said Ameren Corp. CEO Tom Voss, who chairs the RCGA board. “His career accomplishments and integrity have earned him the respect of both business and governmental leaders in the greater Louisville region and throughout the nation overall.”

Reagan’s name emerged as a finalist last week, with rumors that business leaders in Louisville were raising funds to try and keep him. He was reportedly one of two finalists - the other being Rhonda Hamm-Niebruegge, director of Lambert-St. Louis International Airport.

In announcing Reagan’s hiring, RCGA pointed to a list of accomplishments in Louisville that may translate to St. Louis. Among them: Helping a two-state, 26-county region work together around economic development; boosting focus on educational attainment, entrepreneurship and industry clusters; and spearheading efforts to modernize a Ford plant to keep auto industry jobs in the region.

“Joe Reagan is, without question, one of the top chamber and economic development executives in the country,” said Danny Ludeman, ceo of Wells Fargo Advisors and RCGA’s chairman-elect.

A conversation about the role of RCGA has heated up in recent weeks, as both St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay and a study conducted for the St. Louis County Economic Council have called for significant changes to its mission and business model. But RCGA leadership have said they plan to maintain the group’s focus as both a chamber of commerce and economic development agency.

RCGA said it considered nearly 200 people during its nine-month search. Reagan is set to start Feb. 1.

“I appreciate the opportunity to serve an organization that believes that results-oriented collaboration among business, civic and elected leaders is critical in driving economic development and improving quality of life in the St. Louis bi-state region,” he said.

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ST. LOUIS COUNTY

Ashok Kokane sits amid his strawberries at Mumbai’s Crawford Market, a handwritten ledger across his knees and a fan of dirty 10 rupee notes at his hand. The lazy, dust-encrusted ceiling fans above are far past cleaning.

There is a sense of timelessness here, in the lurking cats, the shiny shrine to the fearsome Hindu goddess Durga and the cry “Porter? Porter?” sent up by skinny boys with frayed baskets on their heads. It is a tableau many fear will disappear after the government’s decision last week to give foreign big box retailers like Wal-Mart greater access to India’s huge market.

“When big man comes, small man goes,” Kokane said.

The arrival of modern retailing would hasten a cultural transformation in the way Indians shop and work. The debate now raging _ which has shut down Parliament _ hinges on competing visions of what foreign retailers will mean to agriculture and retail, India’s two largest sources of jobs.

The government argues organized retail will make food cheaper, liberate millions from medieval working conditions and put more money into the hands of desperate farmers. Others say it will deepen the inequities of Indian society and wipe out a merchant class whose values and skills have been passed from father to son for generations.

The existing retail landscape is an intricate tangle of shops and bazaars, forged by ideas that date back to India’s earliest religious texts. But, even without Wal-Mart, small, family run shops are already under threat. With the fraying of caste ties, which often determine a family’s profession, and the growing dreams of India’s youth for better paid, more prestigious jobs, retailers are finding it hard to keep the next generation in the family business.

“You have different sets of people who, because of the caste system, have been involved in the same business for many generations,” said Arvind Singhal, founder of Technopak Advisors, a New Delhi based consulting company. These days, he said, “A shopkeeper’s son may not be a shopkeeper.”

Today, organized retail accounts for just 5.5 percent of India’s $470 billion retail market, according to Technopak. Food accounts for about 70 percent of the retail market, which Technopak expects will hit $675 billion by 2016.

Existing domestic supermarkets, like Reliance’s Fresh, Godrej’s Nature’s Basket and Tata’s Westside, have struggled to succeed.

Some sell, at exorbitant prices, rotten dairy goods, pasta infested with bugs and icy $12 pints of Haagen Dazs, repeatedly thawed and refrozen.

Stocking irregularities mean those last cans of Italian plum tomatoes might not be replaced for a month. Shoppers sometimes put back items because the clerk can’t figure out how to get his computer to register the bar code.

“The traditional retailer in India can offer better value than some of the large, organized players,” Singhal said.

The best local shops are marvels of service and quality, bundled with a nice human touch. If you’re short money, you can pay next time. If you want a fistful of flat-leafed parsley or a special pan, they can get it in a day or two. Every organized urban household has a raft of phone numbers for home delivery of cat food, toilet paper, chickens and pretty much anything else.

Yet there are severe drawbacks to the system cash advance today.

India’s market and roadside stalls employ, at backbreaking rates, armies of slim men pedaling rusted bicycles stacked improbably high with eggs for delivery. They run up dark staircases offering fresh rolls wrapped in newspaper and carry cases of bottled water on their heads two and three at a time.

“No one benefits from this kind of employment,” Singhal said. “People are hardly getting money for those jobs.” Far better _ and cheaper for the retailer, he argues _ to hire one well-trained, decently paid person than five low paid workers and spur a virtuous cycle of rising productivity and increased consumption.

Many argue that retailing in India is not yet a zero-sum game: Demand is growing fast enough that big and small players can thrive side by side. The Ministry of Commerce noted that in China, more than 600 hypermarkets opened between 1996 and 2001 but the number of small stores grew too: from 1.9 million to over 2.5 million.

The ministry predicts modernization will create some 10 million new jobs in areas like food processing and transport, as well as in the new retail outlets. They say the more open policy will drive down skyrocketing food prices and help millions of farmers get more money for their crops by eliminating waste and middlemen.

Others say the changes will hurt small farmers at the backbone of India’s rural economy, pushing more of them off the land with few tools to forge a better life elsewhere.

P. Sainath, who has been writing about rural India for 18 years, believes big retail won’t heal the inequities of rural India which have driven over 250,000 farmers to kill themselves since 1995. If anything, he said, it will make them worse.

“One to 2 percent of farmers _ some possibly members of Parliament _ will make a killing. They are the giant farmers,” he said.

Big companies tend to build on existing chains of exploitation, using wholesale agents who extract low prices from unorganized, indebted farmers, whose pricing power will erode further with multinationals, he said. Many of the demonized middlemen, he added, are actually poor women, unlikely to survive the arrival of foreign retail.

“You have no idea of the chaos you are unleashing,” he said.

Reza Meghani, who runs Metro Dry Fruits _ a small stall that has been selling some of the Mumbai’s best dried fruit and nuts for 22 years _ remains confident.

Mumbai’s existing supermarkets haven’t hurt him: They have higher overhead, compromise on quality and charge too much, he said. They can’t compete with the tenderness with which he discusses the eight varieties of almonds he imports from America and Iran.

“We can compete. We will have to compromise on our margins,” said Meghani, 56, who is grooming his son to take over.

Neha Sheikh, 23, says her family has been shopping at his stall for a decade. “The salesperson is really good,” she said. “He’s going to help you out in every little thing.” She doesn’t buy nuts from supermarkets because they’re too expensive.

But if they were cheaper? “Yeah,” she said. “Why not?”

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A French official says France may propose joint bonds among the eurozone’s strongest economies as part of a package of measures to save the shared currency, despite German resistance.

The official said Tuesday that discussions over joint bonds by top-rated triple A eurozone economies is under discussion as the French government prepares for an EU summit next week.

Proponents say the proceeds of the so-called elite bonds could be used to help the eurozone’s weaker countries deal with their debts, in return for strict conditions being imposed on their budgets.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity because the sensitive, closed-door talks are still under way.

German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble dismissed reports of joint bonds Monday, saying they were “completely made up.”

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Gilead Sciences says it will spend $11 billion to buy drug developer Pharmasset at a price more than 88 percent over the stock’s latest closing price in a bet on its experimental hepatitis C treatments.

Gilead says it will pay $137 per share in cash for each Pharmasset share. That stock closed at $72.67 on Friday.

Pharmasset said earlier this month it had started late-stage clinical trials of an experimental hepatitis C drug. It also plans two other late-stage trials in 2012.

Hepatitis C is a viral infection that often has no symptoms but which can lead to life-threatening liver damage.

Gilead will pay for the deal with cash on hand, bank debt and senior unsecured notes. It expects the acquisition to close in next year’s first quarter.

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Shares of Abercrombie & Fitch Co. tumbled on Wednesday after the retailer of preppy teen apparel reported third-quarter results that missed expectations due to higher costs and a slowdown in Europe.

After losing market share to cheaper competitors during the recession, Abercrombie & Fitch has focused on expanding internationally with flashy flagship stores in places like Milan and Paris and on closing underperforming stores in the U.S.

But it is facing challenges on two fronts, higher costs and the increasingly shaky economy in Europe. In a call with analysts, CEO Mike Jefferies said the company stood by its European expansion plans.

“Our European business, while slowing somewhat during the quarter, is very robust and healthy by any objective measure,” he said. “If anyone is inclined to believe that a softening of our business in Europe this quarter in the face of severe macroeconomic headwinds is a major issue for our model, frankly, I think they are missing the forest for the trees.”

Its shares dropped more than 14 percent in late morning trading.

Abercrombie reiterated that it plans to open 40 international mall-based Hollister stores during the year. About 25 have opened as of Oct. 29. It plans to open five international flagship Abercrombie & Fitch stores in 2011. It said it would open Abercrombie & Fitch flagship stores in Amsterdam and Munich in 2012, in addition to previously announced flagships opening in Hamburg and Hong Kong.

Meanwhile, high costs pressured results. The cost of goods sold was up 34 percent during the quarter. But the company did not raise prices, in order to drive sales in its U.S. stores.

“We chose to keep our average unit retail prices down in these stores, which, combined with double-digit average unit cost increases, puts significant pressure on our gross margins,” Jeffries said.

He said the company likely would likely raise prices in the future, and not doing so “left dollars on the table,” in the third quarter.

The New Albany, Ohio-based retailer’s net income rose to $50.9 million, or 57 cents per share, for the three months ended Oct. 30. That compares with $50 million, or 56 cents per share, a year ago. Analysts polled by FactSet expected earnings of 72 cents per share.

Revenue rose nearly 22 percent to $1.08 billion from $886 million. Analysts expected revenue of $1.07 billion.

U.S. revenue rose 14 percent to $920.2 million. International sales rose 56 percent to $255.7 million.

Revenue in stores open at least one year, a key gauge of a retailer’s performance, rose 7 percent, including a 4 percent gain at Abercrombie & Fitch, a 6 percent gain at Abercrombie kids stores and an 8 percent gain at surf-themed Hollister Co.

Shares fell $8.01, or 14.4 percent, to $47.69 in late morning trading after falling as low as $46.69 earlier in the session. The stock had been down 3 percent since the beginning of the year.

Stock fell in the broader market as oil topped $100 a barrel for the first time since July and concern about Europe’s debt crisis lingered. The Dow fell 121 points in morning trading.

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Tropical Storm Sean continues to weaken after passing Bermuda and heading northeast into the Atlantic.

The U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said Friday evening that Sean had maximum sustained winds of 50 mph (80 kph). It was about 300 miles (483 kilometers) northeast of Bermuda and moving northeast at 30 mph (48 kph).

Forecasters had discontinued the tropical storm warning for Bermuda.

Little change in strength is expected before Sean is absorbed by a frontal system Friday night or Saturday.

Swells generated by the storm also are affecting Bermuda with life-threatening surf and rip currents. The swells should subside in a day or two.

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Greece’s political leaders struggled Sunday to find common ground on forming an interim government amid a political crisis that threatened the country’s ability to avoid a catastrophic bankruptcy and to retain its cherished eurozone membership.

The country’s president, Karolos Papoulias, was to convene a meeting between Prime Minister George Papandreou and the head of the main opposition conservatives, Antonis Samaras, Sunday night to try to hammer out a solution.

Faced with mounting pressure from both the opposition and his Papandreou, who survived a confidence vote in his government Saturday, has said he will step aside if agreement can be reached on the formation of an interim government that will secure a new European debt deal for Greece and the disbursement of a vital bailout loan installment without which the country will default within weeks.

“I’ve said many times, and I insist on this for the umpteenth time, that I am not interested in staying on in this new government as prime minister,” Papandreou told his ministers during an emergency Cabinet meeting Sunday. “I couldn’t have been clearer. I don’t play games and neither do I gamble the country’s fortunes.”

Samaras, who has been pressing for snap elections, has set Papandreou’s resignation as a condition for participating in any talks, saying earlier Sunday he considered the prime minister to be “dangerous” for the country.

The crisis was sparked after Papandreou’s shock announcement Monday night that he wanted to put a new European debt deal aimed at rescuing his country’s economy to a referendum. That plan caused an uproar in Europe, with the leaders of France and Germany saying any popular vote in Greece would decide whether the country would remain in the euro. European officials also said the country would not receive the vital euro8 billion euro installment of its existing euro110 billion bailout until the uncertainty in Athens was over.

Papandreou’s announcement also spooked international markets, leading stock markets to tumble and led to calls in Greece for Papandreou’s resignation _ even from among his own Socialist lawmakers and ministers _ with many saying he had endangered Greece’s bailout.

The prime minister withdrew the referendum plan on Thursday, after Samaras indicated his party would back the new debt deal, which was agreed upon after marathon negotiations in Europe on Oct. 27.

Greek officials were hoping to have a deal on a new interim government by Monday, when the country has to attend a meeting of eurozone finance ministers in Brussels instant credit reports.

“Forming a new government is not just to a question of having someone representing the country. There are very specific things to be done and we must show responsibility and send a strong message to our partners abroad that we, as a country, are ready not only to vote the agreement, but also to implement it,” Papandreou said during the Cabinet meeting, according to a transcript of his statements released by his office.

Greece has been surviving since May 2010 on its initial bailout. But its financial crisis was so severe that a second rescue was needed as the country remained locked out of international bond markets by sky-high interest rates and facing an unsustainable national debt increase.

The new European deal, agreed on by the 27-nation bloc on Oct. 27 after marathon negotiations, would give Greece an additional euro130 billion ($179 billion) in rescue loans and bank support. It would also see banks write off 50 percent of Greek debt, worth some euro100 billion ($138 billion). The goal is to reduce Greece’s debts to the point where the country is able to handle its finances without relying on constant bailouts.

Greece’s lawmakers must now approve the new rescue deal, putting intense pressure on the country’s leaders to swiftly end the political crisis so parliament can convene and put the debt agreement to a vote.

“We know that there can be no elections now,” Papandreou said during the Cabinet meeting, noting that snap polls would delay the approval of the new debt deal. “This cooperation, however, is necessary and will be beneficial for the climate in our country and internationally.”

He said the new government would focus on passing the new debt deal and ensuring the disbursement of the bailout tranche.

“In these critical moments, the two (main) parties are merely wasting time,” said lawmaker Giorgos Kontoyannis, a former New Democracy legislator who has joined splinter group Democratic Alliance. “I want to say to my former New Democracy colleagues that our responsibility to our country is individual and not bound by party allegiance.”

In return for bailout money, Greece was forced to embark on a punishing program of tax hikes and cuts in pensions and salaries that sent Papandreou’s popularity plummeting and his majority in parliament whittled down from a comfortable 10 seats to just three.

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OTTAWA