Stearns, J. & Deen, M. (2015) “Greece Asks ECB to Keep Banks Afloat, Tsipras Pitches Deal“, Bloomberg Business, 01 Φεβρουαρίου. Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras began the hunt for allies against German demands for austerity as his week-old government appealed to the European Central Bank not to shut off the money tap. Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis said his country won’t take any more aid under its existing bailout agreement …Read More
Germany has a convenient but flawed collective memory
Mitchell, B. (2015) “Germany has a convenient but flawed collective memory“, Bill Mitchell Blog, 02 Φεβρουαρίου. There is a lot of discussion at present about the historical inconsistency of the German position with regard any debt relief to the Greek government. Angela Merkel has reiterated over the weekend that there would be no further debt relief. Why she is now a spokesperson for the Troika that does not include …Read More
We already have a simple and conventional story to explain the weak recovery
Wren-Lewis, S. (2015) “We already have a simple and conventional story to explain the weak recovery“, VoxEU Organisation, 30 Ιανουαρίου. The anaemic recovery from the Global Crisis and the downward trend in real interest rates since 1980 have revived interest in the idea of secular stagnation. This column argues that if the US, UK, and Eurozone had not pursued contractionary fiscal policies from 2010 onwards, the recovery would not …Read More
Secular stagnation in the Eurozone
De Grauwe, P. (2015) “Secular stagnation in the Eurozone“, VoxEU Organisation, 30 Ιανουαρίου. Nowhere in the developed world is the secular stagnation more visible than in the Eurozone. This column explains this phenomenon with asymmetric external balances within the Eurozone. Southern counties had accumulated current-account deficits and became debtors when the Crisis hit, whereas the northern ones became creditors. The burden of the adjustments has been borne almost exclusively …Read More
Lessons from the crisis
Moring, A. (2015) “Lessons from the crisis – We Europeans face a historic choice: either we further develop Europe as a single political entity, or we recede from the limelight, The European Magazine, 30 Ιανουαρίου. In her latest op-ed, The European columnist Juliane Mendelsohn rails against the “dysfunctional euro” and the flawed European project that “the market inevitably pushed us into.” She links her arguments to the call for …Read More
Will Syriza’s Victory in Greece Mean Easing Austerity?
Wright, Τ. (2015) “Will Syriza’s Victory in Greece Mean Easing Austerity?“, Newsweek, 29 Ιανουαρίου. At the weekend, Syriza and its leader Alexis Tsipras won a clear victory in the Greek elections and have formed a coalition government with the small right-wing party Independent Greeks, which is also anti-austerity and anti-bailout. Tsipras has a clear mandate to renegotiate Greek debt and its relationship with the European Central Bank (ECB). Much …Read More
Who’s (still) exposed to Greece? – a first trace of normalisation and resume in confidence since 2013, which the present political turmoil risks to revert
Merler, S. (2015) “Who’s (still) exposed to Greece? – a first trace of normalisation and resume in confidence since 2013, which the present political turmoil risks to revert“, Bruegel Institute, 29 Ιανουαρίου. Since the start of the crisis, the structure of Greek debt has changed considerably (almost 80 percent of government financial liabilities are now accounted for by loans, against slightly less than 20 percent back in 2008). At the same …Read More
European social democracy is in danger of terminal decline unless it can reengage with its core values
Angier, T. (2015) “European social democracy is in danger of terminal decline unless it can reengage with its core values“, LSE EUROPP, 30 Ιανουαρίου. With the rise of parties on the far-right and radical left of European party systems, social democratic parties now face a challenge to retain their support base in several European countries. Tom Angier writes that the primary problem facing social democrats is that they have …Read More
Greece Turns Left, Europe Goes Right
Feldman, N. (2015) “Greece Turns Left, Europe Goes Right“, BloombergView, 30 Ιανουαρίου. Why has Greece chosen a far-left government at a time when discontented and frustrated voters elsewhere in Europe have turned to the far right? In northern Europe, the frustrated voters’ parties of choice are right wing and anti-immigrant. So how come frustrated Greeks made a sharp turn to the left, electing the near-communist Syriza party to lead …Read More
Tsipras’s Debt Plan Sends Athens Stock Market Sliding
Aldermanjan, L. (2015) “Tsipras’s Debt Plan Sends Athens Stock Market Sliding“, The New York Times – International Business, 28 Ιανουαρίου. Investors made clear on Wednesday the depth of their concerns about Greece’s new leftist-led government, driving up its borrowing costs, pushing down stock prices and highlighting the risks in the country’s banking system. Despite some soothing words from Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, who at the first meeting of his …Read More