The Guardian (February 6)
“Donald Tusk should be criticised not for his malice, but his moderation. The European council president triggered a tsunami of confected outrage from leavers today when he observed, with some justice, that there should be a special place in hell for those who promoted Brexit without a plan. But he should have said far more. He should have added that, within that special place, there should be an executive suite of sleepless torment for those politicians who promoted Brexit without ever giving a stuff about Ireland.”
Tags: Brexit, Ireland, Leavers, Malice, Moderation, Outrage, Politicians, Torment, Tusk
Reuters (October 4)
Though Ireland still expects negative impacts from Brexit, the country is busy making lemonade with what otherwise might just be lemons. “Ireland’s central bank has seen a surge in financial services firms seeking to set up or extend their operations in Ireland as a result of Brexit and is processing over 100 applications.” So far, Barclays, Legal & General Investment Management and Standard Life Aberdeen are among the companies who have chosen Dublin as a post-Brexit base.”
Tags: Applications, Barclays, Brexit, Central bank, Dublin, Financial services, Ireland, Legal & General, Negative impacts, Standard Life Aberdeen, Surge
Washington Post (April 4)
“The Treasury Department on Monday took aim at U.S. companies moving their headquarters overseas to lower their tax bills, issuing aggressive new rules intended to make such moves less profitable and throwing a potential wrench into Pfizer’s recent $160 billion proposed deal to combine with Allergen and become an Irish company.”
Tags: Allergen, Headquarters, Ireland, Overseas. Taxes, Pfizer, Rules, Treasury, U.S.
New York Times (November 24)
If successful, the planned $160 billion merger between Pfizer and Allergan will “be the biggest deal in what has been a banner year for mergers, driven in part by consolidation in the health care and pharmaceutical sectors.” It also promises to focus more attention, mostly negative, on tax inversions, the practice it will be using to lower its tax bill by relocating its post-merger tax home to Ireland.
Tags: Allergan, Consolidation, Health care, Ireland, Merger, Pfizer, Pharmaceutical sectors, Tax inversions
Washington Post (October 27)
“Not many countries would cheer about an economic growth rate of one-tenth of 1 percent, sustained for a mere three months. But for Spain, which has been mired in negative growth for two years, the tiny uptick in the third quarter of 2013 represents a kind of breakthrough.” For Europe, however, this is just the slightest hint of a “silver lining in a what is still a very dense, dark cloud hanging over Europe’s economy. Spain and its fellow euro-zone debtors — Italy, Portugal, Ireland and Greece — don’t just need a trickle of growth to bring down their unemployment rates and debt-to-gross-domestic-product ratios. They need a gusher; many consecutive months of high-single-digit growth. And there is no short-term prospect of that.”
Tags: Breakthrough, Debt, Economy, Euro zone, Europe, GDP, Greece, Growth, Ireland, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Unemployment, Uptick
Economist (April 28)
U.S. home prices have rapidly corrected, having “lost nearly all the real gains they notched up in the bubble period.” In contrast, the correction has been slower in Europe. “British, Irish and Spanish house prices are still well above their “fundamental” value, while those in America are about right.”
U.S. home prices have rapidly corrected, they “have lost nearly all the real gains they notched up in the bubble period.” In contrast, the correction has been slower in Europe. “British, Irish and Spanish house prices are still well above their “fundamental” value, while those in America are about right.”
Tags: Bubble, Correction, Housing prices, Ireland, Spain, U.S., UK
Institutional Investor (November 1)
Iceland has bounced back faster than expected. Its top three banks collapsed in 2008, leaving the country in shambles. “But Iceland fought back—and won.” While its economy remains fragile, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) now predicts Iceland will grow by 3% in 2012. “If there’s a lesson, it’s …that Iceland is in better shape than Ireland partly because it let its banks go bust.”
Economist (March 31)
A “big step forward” is how Germany’s chancellor Angela Merkel characterized the March 24-25 euro-zone summit. The Economist thinks otherwise. ”Something between a fudge and a failure would be more accurate.” Europe’s leaders must face up to the fact that Greece, Ireland and Portugal are bust and their debts need to be restructured. Delaying the inevitable only makes things worse.
A “big step forward” is how Germany’s chancellor Angela Merkel characterized the March 24-25 euro-zone summit The Economist thinks otherwise. ”Something between a fudge and a failure would be more accurate.” Europe’s leaders must face up to the fact that Greece, Ireland and Portugal are bust and their debts need to be restructured. Delaying the inevitable only makes things worse.
Tags: Debt criss, Europe, Greece, Ireland, Portugal, Restructuring
Wall Street Journal (November 24)Wall Street Journal (November 24, 2010)
Greece, Ireland, Portugal…who knows which country is next. The EU’s stabilization fund for euro-zone members was established with the hope that the €750 billion life preserver would reassure markets and never need to be used. Now, Ireland alone will cost up to €100 billion. Unless the EU helps “its member countries return to growth,” the fund may get used up very quickly.
Greece, Ireland, Portugal…who knows which country is next. The EU’s stabilization fund for euro-zone members was established with the hope that the €750 billion life preserver would reassure markets and never need to be used. Now, Ireland alone will cost up to €100 billion. Unless the EU helps “its member countries return to growth,” the fund may get used up very quickly.
Tags: Euro crisis, Growth, Ireland, Stabilization fund
