European Union (Photo credit: erjkprunczyk)
By Bill Bonner
From one ragged country to another. We are on a tour of Europe’s unraveling economies. Ireland…Spain…and now France.
Spain was in the news again yesterday. Its borrowing rate rose to 7.5%…a level that everyone says in “unsustainable.” We haven’t done the math ourselves, but we will take their word for it.
Policy makers in Madrid were rattled. Naturally, they took no responsibility for the mess. Instead, they blamed…short sellers! Yes, and banned short selling for 3 months.
That ought to do it, right? Everybody knows markets go down because people sell. So make selling illegal. Problem solved!
Now our travels have brought us back to France. At the heart of Europe…and at the heart of the alliance with Germany and the whole European Union project, if France can’t keep itself together…the whole EU is doomed.
And yet, France seems to be hanging by a thread too…while Francois Hollande reaches for a pair of scissors!
The Telegraph:
The debt levels which the country has are as unsustainable as Britain’s, yet its policies are more irresponsible and its remedies more restricted. Although it is considered a core country in the eurozone, France’s economic profile now bears more resemblance to Greece’s [than] Germany’s.
Read more: Turning Into PIIGS: Why France’s Debt Crisis Could Doom the EU http://dailyreckoning.com/turning-into-piigs-why-frances-debt-crisis-could-doom-the-eu/#ixzz220e0lsvJ
Related articles
- Turning Into PIIGS: Why France’s Economic Debt Crisis Could Doom the EU (sgtreport.com)
- Spain feels debt heat, Greece way off bailout terms (ekathimerini.com)
- Eurodoom!! Forget the PIIGS, the EU as a Whole is Insolvent. (investmentwatchblog.com)
- Spain Short Selling Ban Spreads Through PIIGS and Beyond (EWP, SAN, BBVA, GREK, NBG, PT, IRE) (247wallst.com)
- Hang the Short Sellers? (businessweek.com)
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