The four words that define western economic policy
by“The goods and services traded on the semi-secretive website Silk Road since February 2011 with the virtual currency Bitcoins were so varied that the…
Bailout
Cyprus – oh the irony!?
bySeemingly innocuous events can portend more serious outcomes, though we recognise them only in hindsight. This is the dramatic irony of history. When a…
The inevitable death of the euro
byOn Thursday the European Central Bank’s Mario Draghi was moved to defend the euro, after Spain’s government bond yields rose dramatically through the 7%…
My big fat Greek bailout
byGreece was bailed out for the second time in four months. Or did it default? Well, a bit of both, I guess. All bondholders…
The way forward for Greece
byLast Monday night, before the US markets opened after President’s Day, bailout terms for Greece were announced. The detail is secondary to assessing whether…
Gordon Kerr critiques the Greek bailout on Bloomberg
byI was glad to see Cobden Partners’ Gordon Kerr on Bloomberg yesterday, explaining why the Greek bailout will fail: As I wrote elsewhere, the…
Splendid isolation ?
by“Clearly, Field Marshal Haig is about to make yet another gargantuan effort to move his drinks cabinet six inches closer to Berlin.” – Captain…
China and Europe: 100 years of folly
byOne can read The Daily Mail for its coverage of the royal family, snapshots of British life, or, if you are like me, the…
Bank recapitalization will make euro crisis worse
byEurozone leaders ordered their banks to raise additional capital last week to prepare for a partial Greek default. The continent’s banking industry didn’t yet…
Slovakia should refuse an increase in the size of EFSF
bySlovakia’s parliament recently voted against the proposed increase to the EFSF. The BBC’s Rob Cameron says “a second vote could be held soon and…