Over the past year, there's no doubt that Europe has dominated the headlines of the world's financial news - and for good reason too. With one country after another falling victim to the "bond vigilantes," the Eurozone's very existence is being called into question. As investors small and large look for an exit, anything that smells of the region is … Continue reading Wheat in Euroland
This morning Euro Zone policymakers announced an agreement where certain private investors (mainly banks and insurance companies) would take 50% haircuts on their holdings of Greek debt. This is basically a managed default. And though it runs totally contrary to what policymakers were promising earlier this year (aka that Greece would not default), it really should have been expected. Back … Continue reading Old Euro Dogs
It was a wild week for US markets. Volatility was off the charts and on Thursday the Dow dropped 512 points - its ninth largest single-day drop in history. Stocks are down about 7% from their peak in April and are now negative for the year. Then on Friday, adding insult to injury, Standard and Poors stripped … Continue reading Here Comes the Sink
Greece has received a lot of publicity since its financial problems surfaced last year. And yet it seems like many people still don't think Greece's problems are all that important. For example, last week I heard a popular financial radio host basically ridicule the notion that Greece's financial issues could affect America. His reasoning was that Greece's economy is tiny compared to the Eurozone or the … Continue reading Big Trouble in Little Athens
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