Ireland ‘could default on debt’.

The Sunday Times (UK) ^ | February 15, 2009 | Iain Dey

[PotatoHeadMick]

FEARS are mounting that Ireland could default on its soaring national debt pile, amid continuing worries about its troubled banking sector.

The cost of buying insurance against Irish government bonds rose to record highs on Friday, having almost tripled in a week. Debt-market investors now rank Ireland as the most troubled economy in Europe.

Simon Johnson, the former chief economist of the International Monetary Fund, called for this weekend’s meeting of G7 finance ministers to put Ireland’s troubles at the top of the agenda.

Johnson said: “Don’t, please, tell me more about the basic principles of financial reform unless and until you have addressed the Irish problem. And don’t tell me the Irish have to sort this out for themselves. Eventually, the world always comes to help; check your notes on Iceland.

[blam]

"Check it out come Tuesday morning when the markets got wind of this trillion dollar ‘bonus’ the government just gave itself."

"I would not be surprised if we crashed on Tuesday."

Lingering Doubts Over Banks Weigh On Asian Stocks

By Kevin Plumberg

HONG KONG, Feb 16 (Reuters) - Asian stocks came under modest pressure on Monday, with dismal economic data and doubts about prospects for the financial industry outstripping investor relief that a U.S. economic stimulus bill had finally passed.

The British pound fell, particularly against the yen, after the Group of Seven rich nations meeting over the weekend passed without public mention of sterling's sharp weakness or the yen's persistent strength.

The yen remained firm despite a report showing Japan's economy shrank by the most since 1974 in the fourth quarter of 2008 compared with the previous three months, weighing on the Nikkei share index. The global economy fell off a cliff at the end of last year, further confirmed after a report last week showed a record contraction in the euro zone economy.

"There is negative sentiment as the U.S. and European financial sectors remain under strain. There is still a fair amount of negative news out there," said Dominic Vaughan, senior dealer at CMC Markets in Australia.

[snip]

[PotatoHeadMick]

Actually if Scotland were an independent nation now she’d be utterly bankrupt, the myth of the canny Scot is just that, a myth.

The UK’s economy has been wrecked by the actions of two Scottish banks, Royal Bank of Scotland and the Bank of Scotland both of whom have been bailed out by the UK central government to the tune of tens of billions of pounds. No surprise that this bailout by the Prime Minister, a Scot, and his Chancellor, another Scot has been met with dismay by the vast majority of English taxpayers who actually keep the UK afloat.

If Scotland had been independent it would be in a worse state than Iceland, a nation which, like the other basket case, Ireland the Scottish Nationalists wished to emulate.

Expect to hear very little about Scottish independence for the next couple of decades or so.

[autumnraine]

Thanks for that. I had a bad feeling. And being that we opened on Tuesday doesn’t bode well either because everyone is afraid to jump in the water first. And without our own markets to lead in confidence in this package, others are going to lag. If other’s lag, ours are going to be leary.

[blam]

European Shares Down In Thin Trade; Banks Fall

Mon Feb 16, 2009 7:08am EST
By Brian Gorman

LONDON, Feb 16 (Reuters) - European shares fell at midday on Monday in thin trading, after Japan's economy shrank at its fastest rate since 1974, with financial stocks suffering amid concern over losses and the potential need for more government bailouts.

At 1147 GMT, the FTSEurofirst 300 .FTEU3 index of top European shares was down 0.6 percent at 791.82 points. It fell 3.6 percent last week.

In the latest reaffirmation of the global downturn, Japan's economy shrank by 3.3 percent in the fourth quarter, marking three straight quarters of contraction and its worst result since the 1974 oil crisis, with demand for cars and electronics waning amid an unprecedented slump in exports.

[snip]

[virgil]

they can always tax the heck out of the rich and all of the american companies that are moving there. That will fix it. yeah

[April Lexington]

It seems this new breed of MBA trained "bankers" has destroyed the ancient banking culture of prudence and caution in its relentless money dance. Credit to only the most credit worthy. These bums have raped the world...

Where did the model break down? Who approved all of these crazy loans and investments ("assets") in bogus CDOs? Where were the regulators and bank examiners? This is the biggest global bank meltdown in history. How could they all think alike?