Europe

Giant Sucking Sound? Emerging-Markets Fiasco To Topple European Banks

by Wolf Richter •  • Comments Off on Giant Sucking Sound? Emerging-Markets Fiasco To Topple European Banks

It’s not like Europe is out of the woods, after years of recession, lurching from bank bailout to country bailout, and sweeping remaining fetid matters under the rug. But its banks are now sinking deeper into an even greater morass: the emerging-markets fiasco.

No Wonder German Workers Drag Down Retail Sales – And Much Of The Economy

by Wolf Richter •  • Comments Off on No Wonder German Workers Drag Down Retail Sales – And Much Of The Economy

Not that 2013 was such a great year in Germany, economically speaking, with growth stalling at barely above the zero line. But it was a superb year for extracting taxes from hard-working people. And it shoved Germany deeper into two decades of retail quagmire.

Black Money In France “At The Center Of Life For Politicians”

by Contributor •  • Comments Off on Black Money In France “At The Center Of Life For Politicians”

Someone in the French government deleted 3,300 French names from a purloined list of accounts at HSBC Switzerland. Their revelation would have left the despised French “political class” red-faced and in deep trouble.

How the BBC Over-Egged UK Retail Sales … And The World Soaked Up Every Word

by Contributor •  • Comments Off on How the BBC Over-Egged UK Retail Sales … And The World Soaked Up Every Word

By John Ward, The Slog: The BCC misread and misreported UK’s so-so December retail sales as “the fastest annual sales growth in more than nine years.” It was picked up by Bloomberg, CNBC, Reuters…. everywhere. Actual retail recovery? Not so much.

Impunity and Excess, Desperation and Violence: Two Worlds Collide in Spain

by Don Quijones •  • Comments Off on Impunity and Excess, Desperation and Violence: Two Worlds Collide in Spain

By Don Quijones: Normally these two worlds co-exist relatively peaceably, barely cognizant of the other’s existence. Every now and then, their paths may intersect, only to quickly decouple. But this week they suffered a head-on clash.

German Economy Wobbles Between Shrinkage And Stagnation, Stocks Soar

by Wolf Richter •  • Comments Off on German Economy Wobbles Between Shrinkage And Stagnation, Stocks Soar

Since 2012, German economic growth has been back where it was when Germany was called the “Sick Man of Europe.” Only this time, Germany has been anointed the model economy for others to follow and admire.

Lies, Damned Lies, and Banks: Deutsche Bank’s Whitewash Of “Senior Management”

by Wolf Richter •  • Comments Off on Lies, Damned Lies, and Banks: Deutsche Bank’s Whitewash Of “Senior Management”

Germany has its own JP Morgan, mired in a swamp of sordid scandals, investigations, lawsuits, and fines. Now a letter by the banking regulator was leaked that blasts Deutsche Bank’s internal investigation of the rate rigging scandal as a senior management whitewash.

Financial Tiki-Taka: Ugly Side of the ‘Beautiful Game’ in Spain

by Don Quijones •  • Comments Off on Financial Tiki-Taka: Ugly Side of the ‘Beautiful Game’ in Spain

By Don Quijones: On the surface and on the pitch, Spanish football has never been better. The national team of once-perpetual underachievers has won two European Championships and one World Cup in the last six years, a feat unmatched by any other European nation.

The Most Despised Tax-And-Retreat French President Has ANOTHER Plan

by Wolf Richter •  • Comments Off on The Most Despised Tax-And-Retreat French President Has ANOTHER Plan

President Hollande has a solution to France’s economic quagmire, with odds like a lottery. He’d launch a “responsibility pact” – one of his many phrases to haunt him later. It would be a radical shift. When you come to the end of your bumpy road, veer to the right.