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A Brief History of the Euro
Imagine for a moment that two decades ago, a newly unified Germany set out to take over the European Continent, as the previous unified Germany had tried and failed to do half a century earlier. This time it would use money, not guns, to accomplish the goal.
There is, let me hasten to note, no evidence of any such conspiracy. But if there had been, things might have played out more or less as they have.
What follows is a brief history of the euro.
Our tale begins almost 20 years ago, in the summer of 1992. Europe’s… Continue reading
Romania needs its workers to remain at home
Romania considers Britain one of our most reliable partners, friends and allies in Europe.
The cooperation between Romania and the UK is moving forward on a fast track, boosting two-way trade, business and investment, along with strengthening existing cultural and educational exchanges.
Just to give you some figures – more than €650million of British capital has been invested and more than 4,600 British companies do business in Romania. Total bilateral trade amounted to €3billion in 2012 alone, with Romania’s exports to the UK of over €1.6billion.
Come home: Romania is the 7tjh largest market in EU and there is huge… Continue reading Britain ‘isn’t safe from fallout over the Cyprus crisis’ MPs warn
problems may spread as expats told they may lose up to 80% of savings over £85k
- The island’s largest savers face losing 80% of their deposits over £85,000
- MP Douglas Carswell said the bailout would collapse the island’s economy
- Added that Britons should think carefully about where they put their money
- Residents have spoken of losing their life savings under the rescue deal
- They have dubbed the Cyprus bailout deal as ‘daylight robbery’
The Cyprus financial crisis could infect banks across Europe including Britain, MPs warned last night, as the full horror of the raid on expats bank accounts was… Continue reading
German opposition parties warn each other: don’t team up with Merkel
don’t team up with Merkel| Reuters
BERLIN (Reuters) – Germany’s two main opposition parties traded warnings on Sunday against joining forces with Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservatives after September’s election if they fail to win their own left-of-center majority.
The leaders of the Social Democrats (SPD) and Greens party issued unusually shrill messages to each others’ supporters about the risk their votes might end up going to a party that could join forces in a coalition with Merkel.
The SPD and Greens want to form a center-left government after September’s election but opinion polls show they will fall short… Continue reading
France’s President Hollande finds loophole to impose 75% tax on the rich
The 75% super-tax on the mega-rich, which was rejected by France’s constitutional court might be imposed anyway. French President Francois Hollande suggests laying the burden on businesses rather than on individuals.
In the interview with France 2 television President Hollande said he has revised his original plan to lay the massive tax on individuals earning above €1 million, which has been ruled “unfair” and rejected by the Constitutional Court and later the State Councils, leaving the President embarrassed.
France’s top administrative court ruled that any tax rate above 66% was likely to be rejected again by the Constitutional Council, the… Continue reading
Putin orders surprise Black Sea military exercises amid Georgia meet
Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered March 28 unscheduled military exercises involving thousands of troops and dozens of ships in the Black Sea region to test their battle readiness, the Kremlin said.
Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the exercises would involve 36 ships and up to 7,000 troops. Peskov indicated that the surprise order by Putin was aimed at testing out the battle readiness of the Russian armed forces and said Moscow was not obliged to warn its partners of the plan.
“We are talking about major exercises, intended as a check,” he said, adding… Continue reading
Slovenia could be next candidate for eurozone bailout
Former Yugoslav republic is struggling with troubled banking sector that threatens to bring down economy
A bank branch in Ljubljana. Slovenian banks have €7bn of bad loans on their books. Photograph: Marco Secchi/Getty Images
Slovenia – famed for not very much – is fast emerging as the latest contender for a eurozone bailout.
Nestling between Croatia and Italy, this country of almost 2 million people may be best remembered in the UK for losing to England at the last football World Cup.
With risotto from Italy, goulash from Hungary and strudel from Austria, its cuisine is heavily influenced by… Continue reading
EU to face big problems in Italy and Spain after Cyprus bailout
The eurozone could face a new heap of financial problems in Italy and Spain, as small businesses fail to repay bank loans.
While Cyprus accounts for just 0.02% of the eurozone’s economy, Italy and Spain account for 28% of it. Keeping the countries’ banks afloat is the key priority for them both to pull out of the crisis, Reuters reports.
Small and medium-sized companies provide most jobs in Italy and Spain. Their inability to repay debt would put the two countries at the heart of Europe’s economic crisis.
“You can be sure that if these companies’ bad debts rise, you’re… Continue reading
President slashes own wages as Cypriots face €300 daily cash limit
Cypriots queue for banks, which reopened after 12 days Thursday, as President Anastasiades cuts own wages by 25%. The Cypriot foreign minister promises banking restrictions will be lifted in “about a month”.
A European Central Bank (ECB) spokesman confirmed that 5 billion euros were flown into Cyprus from Germany late Wednesday in time for the reopening of the banks on Thursday,
The ECB bailout plan, which gives Cyprus a €10 billion lifeline, has meant Cypriots have had to impose financial restrictions on their own people, as part of the €5.8 billion levy they have to fund themselves to get the… Continue reading
Cyprus in last-ditch talks to avert meltdown
Cyprus’s President Nicos Anastasiades, due to arrive in Brussles for talks with EU and European Central Bank officials over a crucial bailout, is facing an uphill task to save the island’s economy, a government spokesman has said.
The unnamed spokesman, who was quoted by the Reuters news agency, said on Sunday Anastasiades had a “very difficult task to accomplish to save the Cypriot economy and avert a disorderly default if there is no final agreement on a loan accord”.
Cyprus is seeking a $13bn bailout from the “troika” of international lenders – the European Union, the European Central Bank (ECB)… Continue reading
