Paper's abstract

André Barilari, Creation of Value and System of Value
The notion of "creation of value" as a criterion to choose the financial markets is very narrow and shrugs off the "values" in the philosophical meaning. The creation of value must be weighted in a global sense and by doing the algebraic sum of the positive and negative elements, in particular the "collateral damages" that may derive from certain economical decisions of limited rationality centred on the immediate profit of the shareholder. Value can only be truly created inside a frame of reference, the republican values of freedom, equality and fraternity whose concrete interpretation is represented by the rule of law, which expresses the general will. Social value is also created by public services in the fields where the collective choice has been expressed so that the "common good" is managed outside of the market. But in this case, the citizen must express a strong requirement of efficiency from the public services. In addition, if a market based on the valorisation of companies is compulsory to help transmissions or restructurations and, if it is necessary to get around the obstacles in this matter, the purely speculative stock exchange movements answer no economical necessity, on the contrary they lead to serious damages. It would be desirable to make up devices tending to discourage them. The value of a company is its added value and this must be shared out between its various legitimate elements, profit for the shareholders, wages and participation for the workers and taxation for the community. The balance between these three elements is a question of political choice, only frame able to express the sovereignty of the citizen.

Key Words : market, damages, common good, citizenship
t. 46, 2002 : p. 131-138

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