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EUROPE
January 22, 2004
Euro Wreckage
The doubts about the EU are growing despite the ascension of the Euro. Now, one of the major investment bank analysts, a European, has thrown down the gauntlet and proclaimed the Euro and its parent, the EMU a huge wreck. The fallacy of EMU was that it was supposed to occur as part of a top down process that created the necessary factor and product market flexibility necessary to sustain an Optimum Currency Area. That never happened, but EU policy operates as if it did. How long can the contradiction of a weak internal economy and an (overly) strong currency persist?
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March 13, 2003
Facts on the Ground
The acceleration of U.S. forces into the Middle East set off its own dynamic for both the Administration and its opposition. Is a war the only option, or does the existence of substantial forces in the region give Real Containment another chance?
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August 24, 2001
The future course of European growth is murky
but not as dreary as the worst estimates. What is lacking is enough momentum to help the U.S. much in the short run.
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May 31, 2001
The ECB is struggling to cope
with the slowdown in the European economy while staying on course in its unique experiment in institution-building. The ECB must steer between the adaptability required for successful institution-building, and a course that aligns it with its primary mandate of price stability. Can it accomplish a dual mission?
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May 12, 2001
The ECB gave us a new perspective today
on 'credibility.' Dr. Duisenberg took his cue from Humpty Dumpty
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April 26, 2001
European Macro:? Bubba Rides Again...
- "Monetary policy is no instrument of cyclical economic policymaking,"
- "The ECB differs fundamentally from the U.S. central bank, the Fed, in terms of its task and strategy."
- "In Europe we have a clear focus on a macroeconomic goal: the stability of the value of money. Price stability is the primary goal for the ECB."
- "The ECB could never argue in the way the Fed did in justifying its most recent rate cuts, by citing markets and the economy."
- "The upward risks are not as big as they were a few months ago but they have not disappeared."
Ernst Welteke, Bundesbank President - April 25,2001 quoted in Die Zeit
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