The European Union throughout its history has experienced periods of Euro-optimism and periods of Euro-pessimism, with crises scattered in between. Jean Monnet, a pioneering advocate of European unity, wrote that “Europe will be forged in crises, and will be the sum of the solutions adopted for those crises.” But the recent period of Euro-pessimism has […]
Greece: a quick summary
The recent victory of the leftist party Syriza and the defiant attitude of its Government towards its lenders (EU, BCI and IMF, the so called troika) has thrust Greece into the headlines once again. Here we look at the numbers (from Eurostat, 2013), the problems and the negotiation alternatives of both sides – the Greek […]
The ECB should focus on growth, not just inflation!
The European Central Bank (ECB) plan to lower the official interest rate from 0.15% to 0.05% will not work. What’s the difference between 0.05% and 0.15%? Nothing. There will be no increase in requests or approvals for loans resulting from this 0.1% cut. In July 2012, after lowering the interest rates from 1% to 0.75%, Mario […]
Zombies: Financial and Industrial
The current crisis has brought the old word “zombie” back into fashion. Originated in some black African cultures and associated today mostly with Haitian customs, “zombie” usually designates a dead person brought back to life by means of what one calls black magic or, more precisely, its lowest form, necromancy, a time-reviled practice. Economic zombies, […]