Glimmer of hope in Europe. In its report “Investing in growth: Europe's next challenge”, the consultancy firm McKinsey stresses that of all drivers of growth, private investment will be the one which is likely to recover most quickly, and more strongly than in previous crises, despite poor demand and a desperately low confidence index in the Eurozone. Consumption is expected to remain sluggish for some time, with households continuing to pay off debts. The same goes for public investment, with the states continuing their policies of scaling back debt. As for exports, these are suffering due to poor demand. Between 2007 and 2011, private investment in Europe fell by €354 billion (or four times the drop in European GDP). In 2012, private investment was still below 2007 levels: companies are remaining cautious, squirreling away impressive cash reserves (€750 billion in 2011). According to McKinsey, a few incentives are required to get them investing again, in particular scrapping all unnecessary regulations, tax and red tape. The report lists a good number of these in the sectors of construction, tourism, transport and industry in general. More specifically, it refers to obstacles of various kinds in Denmark (in retail trade), the United Kingdom (the large retail sector), Greece (in the tourism sector) and Germany (in the machine-tooling sector). Conversely, the deregulation in the telecommunications sector brought in in 1995 has helped the sector's productivity to take off. In conclusion, McKinsey recommends not focusing on a few so-called future sectors, but going through all economic sectors with a fine-tooth comb to give each one the most conducive environment to investment. (IL/transl.fl)