Mish/Mike Shedlock – Prisoner’s Dilemma Game In Greece; Contagion-Spread Eurozone Breakup More Likely Now; How Will Greece NOT Pay Back €320 Billion? – 10 December 2013

This happened because demand for foreign goods collapsed in the wake of 27.3% overall unemployment and a shockingly high 57.9% youth unemployment.

The Coming Greek Default

In spite of a current account surplus, Greece’s overall debt load is unsustainable.

Here are a couple of key details: Greece has €320 billion in sovereign debt. Greece’s debt-to-GDP ratio is 174%.

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John Ward – On The Other Hand – 5 November 2013

Humorous fiction outclassed by hysterical HS2 fact

HSBC reported a 10 percent rise in third quarter profits on Monday to $5.1bn, benefitting from a sharp unpturn in the Hopelessness Index, as a consequence of which Colombian drug sales grew by 18%. The bank confirmed it was being investigated as part of a global probe into currency market trading manipulation.

Irish Times – ECB To Hold Interest Rates Steady – 8 November 2012

(Reuters) The European Central Bank is expected to leave interest rates on hold today, waiting instead to show its mettle with a new bond-purchase programme that is ready for use as soon as Spain asks for help.

The bank said last month it was ready to buy bonds of debt-strained governments such as Spain and Italy once they had signed up to a European bailout programme.

Der Spiegel – Up To Two Trillion Europe Plans To Leverage Euro-Zone Bailout Fund – 24 September 2012

Officially, the ESM permanent euro-zone bailout fund is worth 500 billion euros. That, though, might not be enough, which is why euro-zone governments are now planning to introduce levers that could mobilize up to 2trillion euros, SPIEGEL has learned. Finland, though, is skeptical of the idea.

With the launch of the permanent common-currency bailout fund, the European Stability Mechanism (ESM), just around the corner, euro-zone member states are looking into ways to leverage the €500 billion ($647 billion) available to the fund, SPIEGEL has learned. But with Finland still concerned about the leveraging plans, it is unlikely that they will be initially included when the ESM is launched on Oct. 8.

John Ward – UK Recession : Gipsy Merv Foresees A Recovery…. But Next Week Sees The Spanish Bailout – 21 September 2012

See Mervyn stare at glass globe. Hear Mervyn say things are recovering. And adding “albeit very slowly”. See Mervyn use the eurozone as a caveat. He should wear a tie like normal people. See a black cloud hanging over Merv’s parade.

John Ward – E-Zone Civil War : How The Eunatics Are Creating A Divisive Financial Control System – 16 September 2012

Banking control in one camp, fiscal control in the other. “Sorted,” say the neocons

German finance minister Schäuble sits in his little Wolfschanze this morning, a less than happy wolf-cub. Earlier this year, his boss Angela Merkel did the Grand Tour of European capitals and delivered what they both thought was a done deal: for Herr Schäuble to be the Obersturmbannführer of all things money in the new Fiskalunion being created by Berlin-am-Brussels.

John Ward – Eclusive : ‘Bankfurt And The Us Out To Stop Draghi’ – German Bankers, IMF ‘Blocking ECB Plans For Bank Union And Greek Rescue’ – 14 September 2012

 

I’ve been saying for months now that Greece ‘will not be allowed’ to leave the single currency, because Merkel and Draghi accept that the chaos would be fatal for the eurozone. I also recently noted that the ‘done-deal after a suitable period of fisticuffs’ I’d predicted was surfacing. It still is: reduced interest rates on extended periods of Greek debt repayment (plus both ECB and sovereign EU member haircuts) are now being openly discussed by officials in Berlin, Brussels, and Paris.

ZeroHedge – Tyler Durden – What Today’s Real ECB News Really Means – 24 August 2012

European Central Bank

Bloomberg has run a story, citing two anonymous central bank officials, stating the ECB may not be ready to finalise its plan to buy government bonds at the September 6th meeting. JPMorgan’s European economists note that the story cites two reasons for this: (a) The Governing Council wish to wait until they have seen the German constitutional court ruling on September 12th before proceeding; and (b) The programme is still being worked on staff may not be able to finalize it by then. Critically, JPM, like us, regard (a) as something of a smokescreen.

Mish/ Mike Shedlock – ECB Considers Interest Rate Caps; Such A Scheme Possibly Work? – 19 August 2012

Economic Times reports European Central Bank mulls caps on borrowing costs

The European Central Bank is considering buying the bonds of crisis-wracked eurozone countries to ensure borrowing costs do not rise beyond a pre-determined level, German newsweekly Der Spiegel said Sunday.

John Ward – Greece Exclusive : ‘Deal Has Been Done To Pay Off Bondholders And Forgive Residue Of Debt’ – French Diplomat Source Confirms Big New Containment Plan For Greece – 12 August 2012

Samaras…big secret, upping the pace of austerity

‘What the deal does is allow another default date to come and go with everyone pretending it hasn’t happened.’

Another day, another bonkers conspiracy theory from The Slog. Greece has done a deal to put the lid on the Greek crisis? Pah! Formation of Greek/Israeli/Cyprus/US alliance? Fiddlesticks!