Monthly Archives: September 2011

With so much discussion about technical terms like „default“ or „bankruptcy“ etc., here are some clarifications. A sovereign state only rarely actually repays its debt in full. Even debt reduction in nominal terms has become a rarity in today’s world. … Continue reading →

Hohe Schulden, geringes Wirtschaftswachstum – Griechenland scheint ein hoffnungsloser Fall zu sein. Doch eine Studie zeigt: Mit den richtigen Reformen gelingt dem Land ein neuer Aufschwung. Trotz aller Bemühungen wollen sich Verbesserungen in Griechenland einfach nicht einstellen. Beim Sparen kommt … Continue reading →

Here are some quick-and-dirty steps which would lead to progress in the debt negotiation with Greece. Step 1: the EU insists that Greece requires her creditors to form a Steering Committee with which one can negotiate. This is the only … Continue reading →

Schnell ein paar Schritte, die die Regelung des griechischen Schuldenproblems vorantreiben würden: Schritt 1: die EU fordert Griechenland auf, von seinen Gläubigern zu verlangen, dass sie einen Lenkungsausschuss formieren, mit dem man verhandeln kann. Nur so können die Gläubiger in … Continue reading →

The endgame has begun. Even if Greece manages to arrange the disbursement of the next tranche under Plan I and even if Plan II becomes approved by the EU, Greece has absolutely no chance to comply with the austerity requirements … Continue reading →

It is almost mind-boggling to hear these surprise announcements that recession in Greece is higher than expected and that it will continue for longer than expected! Aren’t there sensible people left, in Greece as well as at EU-levels, who remember … Continue reading →

Das Endspiel hat begonnen. Selbst wenn Griechenland die Auszahlung der nächsten Tranche aus Paket I schafft und selbst wenn Paket II bewilligt wird, kann Griechenland die Vorgaben auf Dauer nicht schaffen, weil seine Wirtschaft darnieder liegt und weil noch keinerlei … Continue reading →

Here is an interesting piece of news from the Ekathimerini of September 8th: Data released by the Hellenic Statistical Authority (ELSTAT) suggested that Greece imported 1.5 million euros’ worth of olive oil — once a staple of its agricultural production … Continue reading →

The Prime Minister is a skillful operator. He says “Greece will do all it has to do” (incidentally, Greece hasn’t nearly done all it promised to do for nearly 3 years now!). Using that kind of language and coming across … Continue reading →

A recent article in the NYT argued that Argentina’s economic turn-around in the last decade could be an example for other problem countries. It is NOT an example for Greece for the simple reason that Argentina is enormously rich in … Continue reading →