June 19, 2012
by nosemonkey
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This piece on Crooked Timber really is superb. A few highlights – but do read it in full: “the fuzzy compromise between supposedly depoliticized trans-national rules (run by the ECB), and national-level responsibility for compliance, is now increasingly problematic. Countries … Continue reading
June 14, 2012
by nosemonkey
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Good stuff from European economics think tank Bruegel: “Commentators, especially from North America, take it for granted that Greece will exit the euro area and will be followed by others… But is a Greek exit really inevitable? “…If we look … Continue reading
June 12, 2012
by nosemonkey
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Excellent teacherly putdown in this post from thinktank Bruegel’s blog:
“Europe has already expressed its intention to focus [the upcoming G20 summit] on growth and jobs; the deliverable should foreseeably be yet another ‘plan’ without specific deadlines or commitments, along the lines of previous summit discussions. Growth and jobs are obviously fine in principle, but adopting such broad focus is likely to divert attention from the immediate challenges and even more from the actions to be undertaken. It is a pity, because Europe, while being ultimately responsible for its own actions, badly needs to explain itself and convince the global community that it is doing its best to resolve its problems.”
Reads like many a school report*: “It is a pity… Must try harder… We wouldn’t mind if it were only himself this behaviour was affecting, but he’s disrupting the whole class…” (etc. etc. etc.)
* Not one of mine, obviously… *ahem*
June 12, 2012
by nosemonkey
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Once again, no one knows what’s going to happen – yet everyone knows it’s going to be bad. This from The Atlantic makes some good points amidst the “eurogeddon” worst-case scenario act – but this time from an American perspective, … Continue reading
June 11, 2012
by nosemonkey
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Oh, sure, it sounds terrifying at first: “European finance officials have discussed limiting the size of withdrawals from ATM machines, imposing border checks and introducing euro zone capital controls as a worst-case scenario should Athens decide to leave the euro” … Continue reading
June 9, 2012
by nosemonkey
2 Comments
Good pessimistic (realistic?) piece from Der Spiegel:
“The next stage in the crisis will be blatant blackmail. With their refusal to accept money from the bailout fund to recapitalize their banks, the Spanish are not far from causing the entire system to explode. They clearly figure that the Germans will lose their nerve and agree to rehabilitate their banks for them without demanding any guarantee in return that things will take a lasting turn for the better.
“The next test of the resolution of Europe’s donor nations will come from the Greeks… after the election on June 17, the Greeks will bargain with the other EU countries to see what it’s worth to them to see Greece abandon the euro. The Greeks no longer have much to lose; but their EU neighbors — and particularly the Germans — still do. This discrepancy will determine the price to be paid.
“Germans have always expected that being part of a united Europe meant that national interests would recede into the background until they eventually lost all significance. One recognizes in this hope the legacy of political romanticism.”
June 8, 2012
by nosemonkey
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Yeah – sounds like a piece of piss…
“Jörg Asmussen, a member of the European Central Bank’s executive board and a former official at the German ministry of finance, outlined what Europe needs to do.
“‘It’s very simple,’ Mr. Asmussen said. ‘We need a more integrated monetary union, because the monetary area that we have now is incomplete. And we have to complement it in a way to make it more stable. One point is a fiscal union. The second one is a financial market union with three key elements: a resolution regime; second element, a deposit guarantee insurance; and third, we need a centralized supervision for the large 25 banks in Europe.”
“‘We need a democratically legitimized political union,’ he added. ‘We need to start this speedily.’”
Well that’s alright, then. Should be doable by the end of next week, I’d say.
June 6, 2012
by nosemonkey
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As a counter to the last post, an interesting from investment banker Marshall Auerback at EconoMonitor, worth a read for a bit of history on the (evidently flawed) economic assumptions underpinning the formation of the euro and some links to … Continue reading
June 6, 2012
by nosemonkey
4 Comments
Hell, this would have been an unpopular view at most stages in the last decade and a half, even when it looked like the eurozone was doing well. So it’s a brave British politician indeed to make the argument that … Continue reading
June 5, 2012
by nosemonkey
3 Comments
New EU recovery plan, eh? It’s about bloody time, though some areas are likely to scare the usual suspects (emphasis mine)… “The proposals… are said to be focused on 4 main areas so far: structural reforms, a banking union, a fiscal union, and a political union. To gain a sufficient traction for these actions, they will be sold under a growth friendly umbrella rather than as austerity related measures”
June 5, 2012
by nosemonkey
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Paul Krugman: “If there were any villains, they were the architects of the euro”
June 4, 2012
by nosemonkey
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Three months until the euro’s past saving, eh? I’ve heard that one before… Still, very much well worth reading George Soros’ recent eurocrisis speech in full – an interesting take with much to be said for it. After recent posts … Continue reading
June 3, 2012
by nosemonkey
3 Comments
A telling paragraph in Der Spiegel which fits in neatly with my onging “blame the European Council” approach when it comes to pretty much everything that’s wrong with the way the EU works. (Emphasis mine): “European Central Bank head Mario … Continue reading
May 31, 2012
by nosemonkey
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Conor Slowey is one of the most interesting EU bloggers out there, and I agree with his take on things more often than not. He’s also Irish, which means he’s had to form a solid yes/no take on the EU’s … Continue reading