Alternative News

Nigel Farage: Eurozone completely incompatible with nation-state democracy

"There has been a major political event since we last met and no one has mentioned it. Italy had an election. And 55% of the electorate voted for Eurosceptic political parties, indeed Mr Grillo's movement managed to get 26%. It is quite tough in European politics these days to tell who the comedians are. And what is absolutely clear is that Eurozone membership is completely incompatible with nation-state democracy. You can do what you like to take away the powers of national parliaments but people will go on voting, and there is a trend developing right across Europe; the Eurosceptic parties are going to get stronger and stronger." Continue reading →

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More Entrepreneurs Say “Au Revoir”, Escape France’s Confiscatory Tax Regime

"New evidence of top French executives leaving the country has emerged as President Francois Hollande battles a stalling economy and tumbling approval ratings. Two senior executives at Moet Hennessy, the champagne and cognac arm of the LVMH luxury group, are moving to London from Paris and the head of Dassault Systemes, the software arm of Dassault Aviation, said some senior managers of his company had left and he was considering following suit. …The news follows Mr Arnault’s own application for Belgian citizenship, leaked last September, which poured fuel on a fiery debate in France about entrepreneurship, patriotism and high taxes." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMore Entrepreneurs Say “Au Revoir”, Escape France’s Confiscatory Tax Regime

New anti-euro party forms in Germany

"A new party in favour of returning to the Deutsche Mark is taking shape in Germany, hoping to attract voters disillusioned by the political establishment. The new 'Alternative for Germany' party is hoping to capitalise on a growing resentment about the euro-crisis and what Germans perceive as costly bailouts for profligate southern countries. Backed by Hans-Olaf Henkel, a prominent eurosceptic and former head of the German Industry Federation (BDI), the new party is expected to have its official launch on 14 April in Berlin. A survey published Monday by TNS-Emnid showed that 26 percent of Germans would consider backing a party that campaigns for getting rid of the euro." Continue reading →

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Greece’s Futile Austerity

"The Greek situation is beyond wretched. Top earners are being pursued by helicopters and spied on by satellites over non-payment of taxes; there are regular riots in the streets and, as in Argentina a decade ago, middle-class people have been reduced in some cases to picking through garbage bins to survive. The suffering has been needless. The result is not going to be of benefit to anyone except perhaps some of Europe's largest banks, and they are getting plenty of help already. There is little money in Greece but there is plenty of anger. And Prime Minister Samaras, taking note of it, announces there will be no further austerity measures." Continue reading →

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Japanese Solution for Collapsing Portugal?

"The Portuguese population is getting older as it shrinks. The presumptive obligations of the Portuguese government to take care of its aging population will be increasingly tested within the current environment. Spain, Greece, Ireland, Portugal – gradually and in various ways the Southern half of Europe is collapsing into varying stages of violence and apathy. But if the Portuguese solution takes hold, then the damage that has been done in the past five years may extend a generation or more. Europe may gain a euro but it will lose decades of vitality and innovation as its younger generations emigrate to more hospitable regions." Continue reading →

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Kyle Bass Warns: “The ‘AIG’ Of The World Is Back”

"His single best investment idea for the next ten years is, 'Sell JPY, Buy Gold, and go to sleep,' as he warns of the current situation in markets, 'we are right back there! The brevity of financial memory is about two years.' The main thrust of the discussion is Bass' thesis on Japan's pending collapse - which we wrote in detail on here, here, and here - and while the details of this thesis should prepare most for the worst, it is the Q&A that provides some very clear insights into just what is going on in the world." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingKyle Bass Warns: “The ‘AIG’ Of The World Is Back”

Thousands rally against the Troika in Brussels

"Around 1,500 protesters rallied at the Parc du Cinquantenaire in Brussels, according to police on the scene. Although more were seen gathering close to the European Council Summit at the Place Shuman. There have reportedly been 25 arrests by police. The police banned protesters from marching past the banks and the seats of government in Brussels, to the dismay of many of the protesters. 100 of the protesters occupied the Directorate General for Economic and Financial Affairs in Brussels (DG ECFIN). The DG ECFIN provides most of the staff whose job it is to go to indebted European countries to impose austerity measures regardless of public opinion." Continue reading →

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Fed Injects Record $100 Billion Cash Into Foreign Banks Operating In The US In Past Week

"Those who have been following our exclusive series of the Fed's direct bailout of European banks (here, here, here and here), and, indirectly of Europe, will not be surprised at all to learn that in the week ended February 27, or the week in which Europe went into a however brief tailspin following the shocking defeat of Bersani in the Italian elections, and an even more shocking victory by Berlusconi and Grillo, leading to a political vacuum and a hung parliament, the Fed injected a record $99 billion of excess reserves into foreign banks." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFed Injects Record $100 Billion Cash Into Foreign Banks Operating In The US In Past Week

Which Fed Members Move the Market?

"[The chart] shows the sum of the absolute value of the impact on the ten-year Treasury yield of each member's public speeches. Chairman Bernanke tops the list with a total impact of 18 basis points. President Lockhart came in second place with an impact of 17 basis points, and President Fisher was third with about 16 basis points." Continue reading →

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Japan To Hike Utility Prices By 14-19% As Inflation Surges In All The Wrong Places

"First it was gas prices, then it was food prices, and now it is the turn of basic utilities to see costs surge by double digits. 'Japanese utilities, forced to idle their nuclear power plants over the past two years and facing higher fuel costs due to a weak yen, are now looking to push through double-digit rate hikes for their commercial customers.' This means less disposable income, less corporate profits, less monetary velocity, less growth and ultimately less 'inflation' in other things such as the much desired stock market, which was supposed to be the wealth effect offset to all staples price increases." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingJapan To Hike Utility Prices By 14-19% As Inflation Surges In All The Wrong Places