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WE ARE EXPECTING THE ECB, BUT WILL WE GET THE FED INSTEAD ?, by François Leclerc
Guest post. Translated from the French by Tim Gupwell
The U.S. Federal Reserve’s Open Market Committee is due to meet on Tuesday and Wednesday, in the context of a renewed slow-down in the country’s growth (+1.5% in the second quarter), which has been apparent since the beginning of the year. What will be…
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LAST CHANCE FOR THE EUROSYSTEM, by François Leclerc
Guest post. Translated from the French by Tim Gupwell
While the parties in the Greek Coalition government are trying to come to an agreement on a plan to make savings of 11.6 billion Euros over the coming two years, which is going to be painful even though they have to present it as…
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MARIO DRAGHI: WHAT IF IT WAS ALL A TERRIBLE MISUNDERSTANDING?
A short while ago, I was taking a siesta, sleeping with a sound conscience, when I woke up with a start, my heart beating wildly, my forehead soaked with sweat and prey to a strong emotion:…
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SURRENDER, YOU ARE SURROUNDED!, by François Leclerc
Guest post. Translated from the French by Tim Gupwell
It is not just Italy and Spain causing problems, after the decisions taken during the last summit suffered a setback, in view of the spectacle of great confusion and nervousness we have witnessed with regard to the joint press release – which wasn’t one…
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WAITING IS NO LONGER A VIABLE POLICY, by François Leclerc
Guest post. Translated from the French by Tim Gupwell
Once again, the European stock and bond markets have sounded the alarm. The fall in stock values has been accompanied by an increase in bond rates for the countries in the firing line. The capacities of the banks and of the states to fulfill…
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THE ONLY REMAINING MEANS OF SAVING THE EURO
Translated from the French by Tim Gupwell
In my articles here, I generally address myself to anyone who wants to read me, but just this once, I would like to direct my address to my fellow financial engineers, and moreover in a tone – also just this once – of provocation which is…
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SPAIN : THE MARKETS ARE EXPECTING NEW DEVELOPMENTS SOON
Translated from the French by Tim Gupwell
Exceeding 6% on 10 year debt is already dangerous. According to the terms of the balanced budget rule, this signifies that a nation will require growth of around the same amount, whereas in fact Spain has registered a negative growth since the beginning of the…
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LE POINT*, Understanding Liborgate – Friday, July 20th, 2012
Paul Jorion worked from 1998 to 2007 in the American banking sphere as a pricing specialist. Here he sets out his vision of ‘Liborgate’ which is currently shaking British banks.
Le Point.fr : What is the LIBOR rate and what is it used for?
Paul Jorion :…
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QUIET ON THE SET, AND… INACTION!, by François Leclerc
Guest post. Translated from the French by Tim Gupwell
Events are moving fast. We were expecting it of Greece, but Spain is overtaking it. Yesterday evening, a human tidal wave invaded Spanish town streets, which these days have become virtually permanent places of mini-demonstrations at midday or after work. Today, at the very…
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FIRST IT WAS THE AGENCIES, NOW ITS THE FORECASTERS’ FAULT, by François Leclerc
Guest post. Translated from the French by Tim Gupwell
“I can’t see any time soon when…the pressure will be off” replied David Cameron, the British Prime-Minister, in an interview with The Daily Telegraph. He continued, “this is a period for all countries, not just in Europe but I think you will see it…
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LIBÉRATION, “Plundering and looting must be punished”
Plundering and looting must be punished?
For the economist and anthropologist Paul Jorion, the financial system needs regulating.
The LIBOR scandal took place in 2008 against a backdrop of almost total indifference. This time there has been a huge outcry. Why?
It is a situation specific to Great-Britain. It…
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ATLANTICO.fr, The LIBOR scandal : are bankers totally untrustworthy?
The LIBOR scandal : are bankers totally untrustworthy??
Translated from the French by Tim Gupwell
Can a banker be trusted? This is indeed the question one is obliged to ask in the light of the “LIBOR affair” which broke in April 2008 and saw a dramatic turn…
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LE MONDE-ÉCONOMIE, The LIBOR affair…… a scandal postponed from 2008, Monday 16 – Tuesday 17 July 2012
My most recent column in the French daily paper Le Monde : Le scandale du Libor, c’était en 2008. Translated from the French by Tim Gupwell.
When the LIBOR affair first broke in April 2008, the press comments were laconic to say the least. Last month, when the fire that had been smouldering flared…
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PROGRESS, TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE, by François Leclerc
Guest post. Translated from the French by Tim Gupwell
When there seems no way out, and the future seems unclear, it is then that promising visions of the future seem to abound.
The Bundesbank, accompanied by all those who take their cues from it, never miss an opportunity to remind us of the…
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PERPLEXING MATTERS, by François Leclerc
Guest post. Translated from the French by Tim Gupwell
Two days ago, Christian Noyer, the Governor of the Bank of France, confidently commented on the decision taken by the BCE to put an end to all remuneration on the liquidities parked in the Eurosystem by the commercial banks. The banks prefer placing their…
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WELL SPOTTED, BRAVO!, by François Leclerc
Guest post. Translated from the French by Tim Gupwell
As already highlighted the Spanish government is already benefitting from a de facto rescue plan under another name. To save appearances, the new austerity measures put forward for vote in parliament have not been the object of a memorandum jointly signed with those providing…
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THE NEW “STEWARDSHIP OF FINANCE” CHAIR AT THE VRIJE UNIVERSITEIT BRUSSEL
The new “Stewardship of Finance” chair at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel
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TIME WILL TELL… AND MAYBE IT ALREADY HAS , by François Leclerc
Guest post. Translated from the French by Tim Gupwell
In the hope of solving the problems once and for all, Mariano Rajoy has decided to take drastic measures in Spain. Taken as a whole, he asserts that the measures that he is going to have adopted by the Cortes (the Spanish Parliament) represent…