EUROPE
Brussels blog round
up 8 – 14 March – Europp
/ LSE
Ukraine talks, financial
transaction tax, and how can youth unemployment be solved?
Even a billionaire cannot save the EU from itself – Reuters
“Only in retrospect,”
Soros writes, did he come to see the euro zone as structurally flawed. It is
vulnerable to shocks like the crash of 2008, it lacks common fiscal or
political policies and its most powerful nation — Germany — is reluctant to
take the bold steps that could secure the currency and the EU. The ultimate
failure of the euro zone project will be Germany’s fault, he says.
Eastern European
credit crunch and foreign bank funding – voxeu.org
Eastern Europe was hit especially hard by the credit crunch during the
global financial crisis. This column presents new evidence suggesting that
reliance on foreign funding was more important than foreign bank ownership per
se in exacerbating the post-crisis credit contraction. These findings point to
the need to put more emphasis on the discussion of bank business models, regulatory
standards, and supervisory arrangements.
Drifting into
Politics Is Germany's High Court Anti-European? – Spiegel
Germany's Federal
Constitutional Court is one of the country's most formidable institutions. Yet
recently it has faced criticism for its rulings on the euro and European
unification. Have its justices crossed the line between jurisprudence and
politics?
Election or selection? – The
Economist
EUROPEAN
CENTRAL BANK
ECB needs cunning plan to join currency wars – Reuters
The euro is at
two-and-a-half-year highs, a strength that could drive ultra-low inflation even
lower. In principle, the European Central Bank is squeamish about blatantly
targeting a weaker euro. But it need have no qualms about picking policy tools
that maximise currency damage.
CRISIS
COUNTRIES
Finland
Trapped in Recession as Investment Fades: Nordic Credit – BB
UKRAINE / RUSSIA
Ukraine’s legacy of
serial oligopoly – The
Globe and Mail
On the 100th anniversary of World War I, it is tempting to compare
events in Ukraine to 1914. But the current crisis bears little resemblance to
the geopolitical situation of the time. The answers history provides are
anything but singular and absolute.
Pipe It, Gerhard: EU
Parliamentarians Shun Ex-Chancellor – Spiegel
Members of the conservatives and the Green Party in the European
Parliament want to muzzle Gerhard Schröder. As the executive of a Russian
pipeline company, they say, he should keep quiet about his views on the Ukraine
conflict.
Russian Richest Face
Margin Calls With Billions at Stake – BB
Billionaires in Russia and Ukraine risk further losses as market
volatility and the threat of Iran-style economic sanctions intensify following
Russia’s incursion into Crimea.
Will The First $3
Billion Of A Ukraine Bailout Immediately Go To Russia? – ZH
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-03-14/will-first-3-billion-ukraine-bailout-immediately-go-russia
Gazprom Chairman Sold
All His Shares Just Before Russia Invaded Crimea – ZH
Putin’s
Counter-Revolution – London
Review of Books
James Meek reports from Ukraine
Putin: During and
After Sochi – New
York Review of Books
You’ve probably never heard of Roman Khabarov—which is a pity, because
he’s potentially one of the most important opposition activists in Russia today
and he was arrested during the recent Olympics, when few would notice.
Kim Says World Bank May Speed Up $3 Billion Aid
for Ukraine – BB
World Bank President
Jim Yong Kim said the Ukrainian government’s resolve to overhaul the economy
will help the lender speed up about $3 billion in aid in areas such as health
and sanitation.
Woodrow Wilson’s Ukraine Failure Foreshadows
West’s Dilemmas – BB
Wilson went to the post-World War I peace conference
committed to “self-determination” for other parts of eastern Europe, while
keeping Ukraine tied to Moscow in the hope that a rebuilt Russian empire would reverse the Bolshevik
takeover.
Bank
Rossii's tightening to curb economic growth in Russia – Danske
Bank
Russia
and the Birth of the Eurodollar Market – Marc
to Market
Who loses most in Ukraine? – Reuters
The retreat of the Eastern partnership – Reuters
UNITED STATES
People Think We’re in
a Recession. Don’t Blame Them – NYT
FEDERAL RESERVE
Yellen Chairs First
Meeting as Guidance in Focus – BB
The first Federal Reserve monetary policy meeting chaired by Janet
Yellen will reduce the Fed’s monthly pace of asset purchases by another $10
billion, economists project.
Overshooting, once
and for all – FT
Fedspeak Cheatsheet:
What Are Fed Policymakers Saying – WSJ
FOMC Preview: More
Tapering, Change to Guidance – Calculated
Risk
Fed Chair Janet Yellen will chair her first FOMC meeting this week on
Tuesday and Wednesday, and hold her first post-FOMC press conference following the
meeting. It appears the FOMC will reduce monthly asset purchases by another $10
billion per month, from $65 billion to $55 billion. The weaker than expected
recent data will probably not derail another round of tapering, and the focus
this month will be on the change to the forward guidance.
This week marks the
first FOMC meeting with Janet Yellen as the Chair. Since there will also be an
update to forecasts, the announcement will include a press conference.
ASIA
Japan as the crisis next time – Reuters
China is shaking,
sending ripples from Perth to Peru – George
Magnus
Is the PBOC driving
up the euro? – FT
Big investment banks rush to cut China growth
forecasts – MarketWatch
China Bond Risk Exceeds Ireland as Defaults
Unavoidable – BB
China Is Prepared for Rough Economy Ahead, Li
Says – BusinessWeek
China and the Dangers
of Debt – House
of Debt
China’s banking:
March of the banks – The
Economist