BREAKING: Economics is witchcraft

[Scribbly]

I thought about putting this in the Financial Fuckery thread but I wasn't sure - feel free to combine it if you like.

Great video (and article) in the FT today http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/daa19912-abd1-11e0-945a-00144feabdc0.html#axzz1RsWl8dfM

The video particularly was great, with Edward Hadas essentially saying that, despite Italy being very conservative, careful and responsible ... the markets will create a crisis simply by panicking about the possibility of there being a crisis, no matter how illogical it is, or how much more logical it may be for the USA to be the target of this kind of speculation.

So there you have it. Economics - people panic because panicking is scary and panic causes everything to go wrong no matter what you've been trying to do before this! Hahah!

[Rumckle]

Requires subscription, could you quote the relevant bits?

[Scribbly]

Well, the FT specifically don't want people copy/pasting their articles and the video is internal so I can't link to youtube or similar.

Free registration gives you 10 articles a month, but I don't want to risk getting PD in trouble by copy/pasting and bringing the Wrath of Copyright down on it.

[Cain]

I can verify that something very strange is going on with the Italian economy right now.  Since November 2010, the interest rate on Italian 10 year bonds has shot right up, from 3.7% to 5.3%, and with no end in sight.

The problem is, with the "austerity" measures the Germans and French have punitively foisted on Greece (which do not include downsizing their massively bloated military - just the opposite in fact, as Greece was forced into a multibillion Euro arms deal with two aforementioned countries) is the Eurozone is now going into a race to the bottom.  Factories and other producers will move to Greece, to take advantage of the low wages, high unemployment, weak central government etc.  In order to compete with that, Italy, the UK and, yes, eventually Germany, will have to enact even harsher austerity measures and weaker regulation on business.

But taking money out of the economy makes the economy weaker, which forces up interest rates as bonds are downgraded.  Same thing is happening in Ireland too...they did everything the EU, Germany and the credit ratings agencies told them, and they're being downgraded again for their sins, because all that advice led to a weaker economy.  You literally cannot win once you are in this game.  With pressure on all the PIIGS to jump on the austerity bandwagon, expect to see similar problems arising in Spain (they've already started in Portugal).

[Rumckle]

Well, the FT specifically don't want people copy/pasting their articles and the video is internal so I can't link to youtube or similar.

Free registration gives you 10 articles a month, but I don't want to risk getting PD in trouble by copy/pasting and bringing the Wrath of Copyright down on it.

Ok, I'm just a little wary of most sign up sites.

It does paint an interesting picture though, and it seems like the EU (or at least some of its members) is screwed no matter what happens.

So there you have it. Economics - people panic because panicking is scary and panic causes everything to go wrong no matter what you've been trying to do before this! Hahah!

Not to mention that prior to this the exact opposite was happening, with people being excited with this boom that seemed as if it would last forever.

[Cain]

If it makes you feel better, the Financial Times is the best-selling newspaper in the world.

I've honestly considered paying for their content before now, and I never pay for news.

[Scribbly]

I've been trying to convince my work to pay for it for me. Though I doubt I'll get it - just the intern after all.

The 10 free articles I get monthly are great. Just getting the headlines daily into my inbox has helped a lot. Even if I am winding up with something like 20 briefings daily 

It is a pretty expensive service, but I'd be really hard pressed to say you don't get the content you pay for with it.

[Cramulus]

if anybody's gonna subscribe to that, I think I can get you a friends & family discount. hit me up via PM. (I work for the company that owns the FT)

[Cain]

I'll definitely consider it....

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-14133548

IMF urges Italy to cut spending.  See where this is going to go?

[Sano]

Yeah, what better way to avoid a crisis than by starting another? That way, that first crisis will never happen, just the one we create! Everybody wins!