France's debt out of control

The Sunday Business Post ^ | 18 December 2005 | Thomas Hubert

[george76]

France's public debt is spiralling out of control, according to a report commissioned by the French government...

The debt stands at €1,117 billion, representing 66 per cent of France's GDP ...

The staggering figure encompasses the debt accumulated by the state and local authorities, as well as social and health insurance bodies, over the past few decades.

However, it does not include the upcoming time bomb of civil servants' pensions.

Over the past ten years, the French debt has increased its claim against GDP by over 10 percentage points.

France saw the worst debt evolution among the then 15 EU member states, while Ireland proved the best at reducing public debt.

The Pébereau report states that, if nothing changes, French debt will be four times the country's GDP by 2050.

French prime minister Dominique de Villepin, who received Pébereau's report last Wednesday...

said: “France spends too much ...

[beaver fever]

This particular spike is a bit opaque. Japanese dollar buying maybe just a signal for speculators to do some profit taking.

Hence the $17.00 fall back on the gold price. It will be interesting what gold does from now til February.

If Gold rebounds in the first quarter 2006 then you are looking at gold bull based on currency instability and supply side fundamentals. That is the indicator of a precious metals breakout that will be sustainable.

[beaver fever]

Sorry dollar buying should be gold buying.

Also Russia is icreasing it's gold reserves.

There seems to be a general flight from fiat currency not just the US dollar. Japanese gold buying could be a reaction the weakness in the Yen.

You know there is a problem when a country goes to gold when their own currency is devaluating.

The Rats are the first to leave a sinking ship.

[paristwelve]

Right on. The French are loathe to admit that their position towards Sadam was, "Hey, it fills the coffers".

[old republic]

Yeah, the US should probably look into seriosly getting gold to back its currency as in days of yore because of the increasing lack of faith in the dollar. Many countries are increasingly losing faith in the dollar. Earlier in the year China assessed the dollar as unstable. The increasing deficit doesn't help. The gigantic amount of US treasury bonds that is held by China and Japan may lead to a potentially dangerous situation. The US better brace itself for impact if its not careful.

[beaver fever]

There is not enough gold above or below ground to go back to the gold standard.

Too much fiat out there. But gold is becoming a hedge against currency fluctuation and equity over valuation.

Like I said on earlier threads, if you bought physical gold or gold equities four years ago you would have a nice buffer in your portfolio now.

There is still some serious upside in gold juniors with good advanced stage projects. The juniors are considerably undervalued.

[Caipirabob]

If france can no longer sell to terorists because the United States has destroyed the terrorist's underground economy, france is dead.

Let freedom ring...

[RedWhiteBlue]

It's so annoying that all the packages in the stores have french translations. Does anyone know how this got started? I mean how many people speak only french?

It's probably done that way so that the manufacturer can sell it into Canada without having to have two separate packages for the product (one for the US, another bilingual for Canada). Canada requires, by law, that all information on a package / label to be in English and French.

[RetiredArmy]

It dies there, but we are rapidly adopting it here. The socialist democrats and the nanny-to-grave liberals here want this. The refusal to work group here, give me my handout, government indoctrination school educated group want this. More play, less work, more benefits. Why work at all when the government taxes everyone into oblivion to get the handout money for these votes!

[Almondjoy]

All you will see is a falling dollar to make foreign made goods far more expensive. Thus eliminating the trade defceit and beginning a whole new expansion of factories springing back up in the US. China and Japan have alot to lose by no longer backing the US dollar. Their whole economies.

[GSlob]

Nothing new there. IIRC, French state debt has been out of control as early as the days of king Henry II, in 1550s. So here one is speaking about 450+ years of more or less continuous bankruptcy, financial, moral and otherwise. By now it must be a hallowed tradition.

[Kozak]

The Death of Eurosocialism, about to happen before our eyes. Quick, get the marshmallows. This is going to be good.

I don't think we should be too happy. It's gonna get real ugly, the jack booted marching will start again as will the murdering, and we will once again be expected to go over there and put out the fire.

[Zack Nguyen]

However, it does not include the upcoming time bomb of civil servants' pensions.

Then the picture is far worse than portrayed. France, like Germany and Japan, have unfunded liabilities in elderly pensions that will crush them in the years to come. Western Europe's experiment in socialism will come to an end, one way or the other. We will have to make similar hard choices in the years to come too.

France put its faith in government to make its lives easy and comfortable, and it is about to figure out that this faith was badly misplaced, and that socialism and the debt it incurs are cruel masters.

[Zack Nguyen]

In all candor, out situation is similar with the size of the debt and the unfunded liabilities in Social Security/Medicare that we have. However, as I understand it payroll taxes are much higher in France. Its population growth is way below ours as well. So I would say that its situation might be more dire.

[Max in Utah]

It's so annoying that all the packages in the stores have french translations. Does anyone know how this got started?

My guess: if you want to sell to le Canadiens, it has to be bilingual.

[Mad_Tom_Rackham]

[CAWats]

My guess: if you want to sell to le Canadiens, it has to be bilingual.

That's a good guess. You're probably right.

[aculeus]

Europe is dying.

[Lurker]

Let the ChiComs try to repossess....

L

[rightwingintelligentsia]

So if I understand your chart correctly, the ratio of debt to GDP was lowest under the Carter administration, when the economy sucked?

[Marine_Uncle]

"Right on. The French are loathe to admit that their position towards Sadam was, "Hey, it fills the coffers"."
Of course at the time it appeared the right thing to do. And we have to point the finger at Russia, Germany, Italy, and other EU's for also indulging. And obviously the US did business with Iraq and supported Saddam to keep Iran in check early on. No one is free from blame for giving Saddam the green light. At least the US can show it did very little to build up any of Saddam's military might.