Aug 08 2011
Paris and Berlin are mobilizing to fight crisis
The fire that ravaged the financial markets now threatens the supporting walls of the world economy. By removing the United States their "AAA" rating, the rating agency Standard & Poor's tipped on Friday night U.S. time, the debt crisis in a new dimension, even more dramatic. The decision comes into effect in times of extreme stress: over the last two weeks, the New York Stock Exchange fell by 10%, with nine consecutive sessions of decline that has never happened since 1929! The beginnings of the shock wave should hit Monday morning Western financial markets on Sunday were felt in the streets Middle East.In Tel Aviv – where trade has been interrupted for even one hour – the stock market dropped over 7%.
Now that the United States have been degraded, no other country rated "AAA" can consider itself completely immune to medium term. As for lower-rated countries, they risk having their refinancing terms to harden significantly. In the end, all governments will have to redouble our efforts to reduce their deficits. Even at the sacrifice for some growth in its infancy.
To mitigate the magnitude of the shock, the world leaders have stepped up telephone interviews during the weekend. No formal meeting not held, although, according to South Korean authorities, a conversation at the G20 may have taken place Sunday morning after the G7 Ministers and Sherpas were spoken in the night from Saturday .Sunday, late in the day, Paris and Berlin have issued a statement reaffirming their commitment to adopt before the end of September, the agreement of July 21 on the Rescue of Greece. The schedule should reassure markets that doubt. They also praised the efforts of Spain and especially those of Italy, two weak links in the euro area at present.
Whopping "Noting" the willingness of member states to accelerate fiscal consolidation, the European Central Bank, which held Sunday evening an emergency meeting, said in the wake, it would implement its Bond Buyback Program "actively". The ECB is indeed in the short term, the only institution capable of acting. As long as the agreement signed on July 21 has not been ratified, the European financial stability can not afford to intervene across the entire area.Hence the pivotal role of the bank in Frankfurt, which has been slow, however, to engage in battle.
"At its meeting on Thursday, the ECB disappointed by not announcing the acquisition of the Italian debt, says Laurence Boone, chief economist for Europe Bofa-Merrill Lynch. But the decision Friday by the Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, to accelerate by one year the return to a balanced budget should meet Jean-Claude Trichet and facilitate the intervention of the ECB on the Italian debt. " Such a move will he work? When she flew to the rescue of Portugal, Greece and Ireland, the ECB has repurchased approximately 12% of the debt of these countries, or 74 billion euros. With Spain and Portugal, the stock of debt of 2300 billion, which means that the bank in Frankfurt will need at least 240 billion on the table if it wants to weigh.A colossal sum.
The other issue that will come back, throbbing throughout the week for growth. In turn, the U.S. Federal Reserve and the Bank of England should speak on recent developments in the economy in their countries. They should take note of the proliferation of signs of slowing down. As for the euro area, it falls within the publication period of its growth figures for the second quarter ahead disappointing. France is in sight. "Given the slowdown in household consumption growth may have been zero in the second quarter, after the sharp rise in first quarter" advance Laurence Boone. What increasing pessimism and weaken even more the euro area.
Comments Off
