Reuters (November 24)
“The German government is working hard to demonstrate the foolishness of the country’s iron-clad ban on large budget deficits.” Though it is suspending the “debt brake” for 2023, “the welcome relief is only temporary, and the harm is done. The budget crisis will cripple the economy for years to come.”
Tags: 2023, Ban, Budget deficits, Cripple, Crisis, Debt brake, Economy, Foolishness, German, Government, Harm, Iron-clad, Relief, Suspending, Temporary
Bloomberg (December 3)
Trump and Xi gave “markets the most they could have expected,” which wasn’t that much. Still, they avoided the “risk of a serious downside (an angry confrontation and a meeting ending with recriminations and no agreement).” While some may see justification for “risk on” investing, it’s worth noting that this truce is only temporary, “in the longer term, all the risks remain in place.”
Tags: Confrontation, Downside, Markets, Recriminations, Risk, Temporary, Truce, Trump, Xi
Wall Street Journal (February 4, 2014)
The Nikkei’s fall puts added pressure on Shinzo Abe’s efforts to revive Japan. The correction may prove temporary, but it is surely a sign of underlying weakness in Abenomics, which should be fortified. “Policy makers shouldn’t govern by the wishes of stock markets, but in this case Mr. Abe could take a hint. If 2013 was the year when he hyped Japan’s economic prospects, 2014 will need to be the year when he starts doing something about it.”
Tags: 2014, Abe, Abenomics, Correction, Economic prospects, Hype, Japan, Nikkei, Policy makers, Stock markets, Temporary, Weakness
