only a tentative answer:
this item is always mentioned with fonds de commerce

here is a complete explanation from a financial statement, hence my tentative answer (from Altran financial statements 2009.you can get this in google)

2.3.3 Fonds de commerce
Les fonds de commerce sont constitués :
• du coût historique des fonds acquis par les sociétés fusionnées ;
• du mali technique de fusion correspondant à la différence entre la
valeur nette des titres des sociétés absorbées fi gurant à l’actif de la
société absorbante et la valeur comptable apportée de ces sociétés.

plural of "technical malus"

Quote (source: see link)
"The business assets item consists of the technical malus stemming from the merger and associated operations. The merger malus represents the negative difference between the net assets received by the absorbing company evaluated at the book value and the book value of this holding. This merger malus consists of two items: the technical malus which corresponds to the latent capital gains from asset items after deducting liabilities which have not been entered in the accounts and the remaining malus
which may represent an additional holding depreciation. This sum is to be entered under the financial result of the absorbing company for the financial year during which the operation is completed."

Just another suggestion in this context, based on explanations provided by other contributors here.

My Ménard's Dictionnaire de Comptabillité gives mali as 'unfavourable variance' and a synonym of the more common 'écart défavorable' or 'éxart négatif'. and the following definition:

"Comptabilité de Gestion: Excédent des produits d'exploitation prévus sur les produits réels; excédent des charges réelles sur les charges prévus; excédent des coûts réels engagés sur les couûts de revient standard.

comparer avec favorable variance"

So I guess they just mean that it is technically an unfavorable variance but I don't completely understand what would cause an unfavorable variance to be technical.

I don't think I would translate it as loss, because it is just a variance and 'loss' implies something more in accounting.

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Note added at 1 hr (2011-03-28 16:39:22 GMT)
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It would not necessarily cause a loss to be made, it might just decrease income a little. They may call it 'technical' because it is in itself not a formal accounting entry, it is a calculation done on the side to test cost/expense control.

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Note added at 1 day2 hrs (2011-03-29 17:26:55 GMT)
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In case you want more confirmation that mali means 'unfavorable variance' in accounting in this context, please see http://granddictionnaire.com/btml/fra/r_motclef/index800_1.a...

français


écart défavorable

Équivalent(s)
English unfavourable variance


Définition :
Excédent des produits d'exploitation prévus sur les produits réels; excédent des charges réelles sur les charges prévues; excédent des coûts réels engagés sur les coûts de revient standard.

Sous-entrée(s) :

synonyme(s)
mali
écart négatif

I amend my confidence level after further research to a "4"/high.