...Introduction The Greek debt crisis in 2009 occurred as a result of an understated financial deficit and extreme spending. The stagnation of the Greek economy and the demotion in their debt rating did not aid their financial situation. Greece was then faced with the possibility of sovereign debt default. The failure of Greece to pay their debts required bailouts from the European Union (EU) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). While the loan bailouts have eased short term liquidity problems, Greece still remained in financial turmoil which may even deteriorate. This research paper aims to explore the history behind the Greek debt crisis, the implications it has globally and on South Africa as well as the lessons that can be learnt from the crisis. Origins of the Greek debt crisis 2.1 Historical development: 2001-2008/09 In 2001 Greece became the twelfth member to join the Euro zone and was permitted to use the Euro (€) as its currency. Greece joined the Euro zone because of the benefits associated with being part of the Euro area. These benefits were essential to the economy of Greece who had a record of unpredictable inflation (Gibson, Hall & Tavlas, 2012). In addition, after Greece changed to the Euro they had the freedom to borrow money from foreign capital markets. During 2003-2007 government records showed Greece to be growing at 4% a year which gave investors’ confidence and made Greek bonds a popular investment...
Words: 1993 - Pages: 8
...1. In Greece the banks didn’t sink the country. The country sank the banks. Discuss this view. Which are the main differences between the Greek crisis and the crisis of Ireland and Portugal? The main cause of the Greek crisis is the ongoing disclosure of statistics that were well hidden from the eyes of the public, leaving people in ignorance about their own country and the future. When the figures started to become revealed, breaking up the shocking news about the forgery that lasted for over 30 years, it left the world in wonder – how is it possible to disclose such a thing for so long, and how is it possible that such action remains unpunished? The problems caused by the global recession were compounded by revelations that national statistics had been altered in order to cover the fact that Greece, in terms of debt levels, exceeded limits set down by the EU. The country's debt is already well over 100 percent of GDP and is still rising. According to euro zone rules, total government debt should not exceed 60 percent of GDP. The country's budget deficit in 2009 was almost 13 percent of GDP, more than four times the 3 percent limit allowed in the euro zone. But beyond the debt there is more deficit. What Greeks did when they got all this borrowed money, they gave away incredible sums to citizens, raised the wages to such an extent that it created a serious budget deficit. Inefficient Government? Corrupted mentality? Call it as you like, but it caused consequences that citizens...
Words: 2957 - Pages: 12
...Brtlt20a.wpd Lesson 20a: The Victorian Novel (Day: 168-170) The Victorian reading public firmly established the novel as the dominant literary form of the era. Virtually the entire literate population consisted of novel-readers. Herbert Spencer, that rigorous apostle of science, exempted George Eliot's works works from his general condemnation of "mere" novels; Newman and Arnold were avid readers of fiction; and Darwin stated in his Autobiography that to him novels were "a wonderful relief and pleasure." Carlyle, however, dourly excluded the novelist from the category of the hero as writer. Amazingly, Tennyson compared the novel to verse drama and gave it higher rating: "I am of the opinion that if a man were endowed with such faculties as Shakespeare's, they would be more freely and effectively exercised in prose fiction with its wider capabilities than when "cribbed, cabined, and confined" in the trammels of verse." Certainly the novel may well be termed the most distinctive and lasting literary achievement of Victorian literature. At the outset of the Victorian period no one, except possibly Thackeray, considered the novel a significant art form. By 1853, however, Clough, writing in the North American Review, recognized that cultured readers had turned their attention from poetry to the novel. By the century's end the novel had completely triumphed over poetry as aesthetic and spiritual nourishment for English readers. The novel by this time claimed writing...
Words: 814 - Pages: 4
...overcome its financial crisis. At the end of 2009, the problems for Greece started emerging when the newly-elected government realised that the country was heavily in debt. In the meantime, both Greek banks and the government were graded by rating agencies as dramatically low, as the country's debt had peaked (Tseronis 2014). Furthermore, in 2010, reports concerning accounting irregularities for the statistics which the Greek government delivered to Brussels caused the media to put Greece on the spot and raised concerns about the sustainability of the Greek debt and the country's credibility (Tseronis 2014). Thus, Greece became the first EU member to activate a bailout package from the newly set up European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) and representatives of the European Commission (EC), the European Central Bank (ECB), and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), commonly referred to as the ‘troika’, in May 2010 (Gemenis & Nezi 2015; Tseronis 2014). Afterwards, Greece required a second bailout programme in February 2012 and an agreement that led to a third bailout after marathon negotiations, on 13th July 2015. The aim of this essay is not only to describe and analyse how Greece reached a third bailout but also to investigate if this programme could be the end of the Greek and euro crisis. It is divided into three main sectors: the first one is about the previous bailout programmes as well as the reasons for their failure. The second one analyses the present crisis, the new...
Words: 3251 - Pages: 14
...VICTORIOUS TEAM Countries For The Project for the Period 2011 : 1] China 2] India 3] USA Team Members and Students IDS : Nikita Bhivate A2604 ( U.S.A.) Li Jianwei A2394 ( China ) Tingting Hao A2319 ( India ) MBA 531 International Financial Management. Prof. Jayant Kanitkar. INTRODUCTION : Introduction Of China : During the period from 2007 to 2011, the whole world has been suffering from global economic recession and financial crisis. From US subprime to EU sovereign debt crisis, China, as the second largest economy in the world, experienced internal and external economic impacts. In the year of 2007, China’s economic development reached its pick. With the expectation of CNY appreciation, hot money flooded into China. As a result of this, the price of investment asset surged up sharply. The housing price tripled, and the Shanghai stock index reached to a historical level of 6300 from less than 3000 with in one year. The wealth effect from the high investment asset price stimulated consumption. Moreover, China was keeping its high net exports trading volume and fixed asset investment. The GDP growth rate exceeded 10%. However, the financial bubble broke in the US, and a chain reaction directly affected China. In 2008, all economic indictors shown that China’s development slowed down. Stock market can be regarded as the forecaster of economic. The Shanghai stock index dropped to 1900 from 6300. Affected by recession in international...
Words: 4366 - Pages: 18
...The International Monetary Fund The International Monetary Fund is an international organization that provides financial assistance and advice to member countries. This article will discuss the main functions of the organization, which has become an enduring institution integral to the creation of financial markets worldwide and to the growth of developing countries. History: The International Monetary Fund was originally laid out as a part of the Bretton Woods system exchange agreement in 1944. During the earlier Great Depression, countries sharply raised barriers to foreign trade in an attempt to improve their failing economies. This led to the devaluation of national currencies and a decline in world trade. This breakdown in international monetary co-operation created a need for oversight. The representatives of 45 governments met at the Bretton Woods Conference in the Mount Washington Hotel in the area of Bretton Woods, New Hampshire in the United States, to discuss framework for post-World War II international economic co-operation. The participating countries were concerned with the rebuilding of Europe and the global economic system after the war. There were two views on the role the IMF should assume as a global economic institution. British economist John Maynard Keynes imagined that the IMF would be a cooperative fund upon which member states could draw to maintain economic activity and employment through periodic crises. This view suggested an IMF that helped...
Words: 2456 - Pages: 10
...D December 1, 2012 International Crisis in Lending Lessons to be learned Group V Samantha Jeffrey Gabriella Stankovic Na-taisha Williams The debt crisis played a huge role in international lending. This report will discuss how economic crisis can result from many different factors such as changes in government policies which result in failure, and the cost of bank bailouts. Least developing countries also learned a lesson about how interest rates and low exports and imports played a major role in the financial crisis. These countries also tried to stabile their country's currency by fixing its exchange rate to that of the United States, which also resulted in failure. European countries also integrated their currency to Euro that caused a major crisis in lending. All are major factors that contributed to a crisis in international lending. Countries need to know what they are doing wrong before they can solve their problems. The historical events discuss will help serve as answer of how it can be resolved. Sovereign risk is the risk of lending money to the government with the risk of not being able to repay the obligation. There is always a risk in lending but the previous debt crisis and the crisis that is occurring in Europe plays a role in whether financial institutes want to lend to governments. The sovereign risk is important in international lending because many countries borrow money...
Words: 2761 - Pages: 12
...The European Economic Crisis A Paper Submitted to Webber International University In partial fulfilment for the Bachelor of Science Degree in Finance By: James Holt Date: November 26, 2013 Course: ENG112-1 Semester: Fall 2013 Instructor: Professor Nancy Davis Word Count: 2663 The European economy is in turmoil. The credit crunch in 2008 caused chaos throughout the global and European economic systems and highlighted the negligence of not only governments but also the financial systems in place. In the highly praised publication the Economist the author G. Tett writes “The European economy is in the midst of the deepest recession since the 1930s, with real GDP projected to shrink by some 4% in 2009, the sharpest contraction in the history of the European Union. Although signs of improvement have appeared recently, recovery remains uncertain and fragile” (Tett, 2013). A publication of this magnitude publishing this shows the utter chaos in the European Economy. The economy of all countries within the Euro has been greatly affected; it has also affected the surrounding countries around the Eurozone. The stronger European economies have recovered a great deal these include...
Words: 2802 - Pages: 12
...HOW THE GLOBAL DEBT CRISIS COULD AFECT YOU Reasons for selecting the article The reasons for choosing the article are that firstly, it stated that aggregates for economic consequences, GDP, recession and unemployment have greatly affected Singapore economy. The article also focused on the nation behaviour of the declining economy for US and Greece due to finance crisis which in turn affect other nations, in this case, Singapore. In fact, the article briefly explained how aggregates like national income and output have affected US and Greece economy, which in turn affected Singapore. It will be further discussed whether this mentioned global crisis will affect Singapore inflation, causing a rise in unemployment rate and the slowing of GDP growth for emerging markets. Summary of the article The article comments on how two of Singapore’s trading partners, mainly US and Greece, are hurting themselves with their debt problems and the impact of their problems on Singapore economy. It briefly describes what US debt ceiling is and the heavy borrowing of Greek government which has greatly contributed to the global debt crisis. It also explains on US debt problem and other aftershocks if the debt ceiling is not rise. Moreover, it explains the debts that Greece had incurred and what will happen if Greece defaults on its debts. Lastly, it further highlighted that the Singapore economy is affected by the two countries’ debt problems. Identify and discuss on the economics...
Words: 1253 - Pages: 6
...pResented by the society of ActuARies, the cAsuAlty ActuARiAl society And the cAnAdiAn institute of ActuARies Risk Management: The Current Financial Crisis, Lessons Learned and Future Implications Copyright 2008 by the Society of Actuaries. R I s k M a n a g e M e n T: the current financial crisis, lessons learned and future implications introduction the current financial crisis presents a case study of a “financial tsunami” (as former federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan recently called it) on what can go wrong. its ramifications are far-reaching and the lessons learned will be embedded in risk management practices for years to come. As one of the premier enterprise risk professions in practice today, the actuarial profession is sharing its substantial insight into what went wrong and the implications for the future. on behalf of the society of Actuaries, the casualty Actuarial society and the canadian institute of Actuaries, we are pleased to provide a series of essays on Risk Management: The Current Financial Crisis, Lessons Learned and Future Implications. this e-book is the result of a call for essays on the subject coordinated by the following groups: • • • • The Joint Risk Management Section of the Society of Actuaries, Casualty Actuarial Society and Canadian institute of Actuaries The Investment Section of the Society of Actuaries International Network of Actuarial Risk Managers Enterprise Risk Management Institute International ...
Words: 52470 - Pages: 210
...It is reasonable to say that the recent subprime mortgage crisis happened due to a complex combination of negligent practices by many of the multiple stakeholders directly involved in the real estate industry. That being said, the accounting profession, being the critical player that it was (and still is), played a critical role in the development of this economic crisis due to the practices that they used during the auditing process of key industry players in the market at that time. As a foundation to this argument, chapter one of the text states that, accounting is the process of identifying, measuring and communicating economic information about an organization for the purpose of making decisions and informed judgments. (Marshall-McManus-Viele). It is the accountants responsibility to identify and offer the relevant financial data necessary to make appropriate business decisions. In reading about cases such as the infamous New Century “mishap”, one gets the impression that the accounting methods used, completely misrepresented the current financial situation of the company which needed to show a strong financial situation in order to maintain it’s solid market position and continue to see a steady influx in transactions. After further review combined with KPMG’s involvement, they found themselves with inconsistencies that led to a more than significant hole in their numbers ultimately leading them to bankruptcy (along with other economic factors). Referring back...
Words: 556 - Pages: 3
...happens while unemployment and bankruptcies rates go up (Andrews, 2009). Recessions crops up when there is a general drop in expenditure. It follows the rising of an economic bubble or an unpredictable supply shock. Governments respond to recessions through implementing expansionary macroeconomic strategies. They tend to raise the government’s expenditure, increase money supply and lessen the amount of tax paid by the citizens (Andrews, 2009). In 2007, a global financial predicament rapidly metamorphosed from the bursting of the property bubble in the United States to the most horrible recession ever witnessed on the planet. This paper will research on the causes of the 2008-2009 economic predicament and the policies executed by various key people liable for saving the U.S. economy. It will also explain the task, constitutional authority, and the policy view of some current holders of key positions that set policies for saving the U.S. economy. In 2007, a worldwide economic predicament spread its gloom on the financial outcomes of several nations (Simon, 2001). It ended with what was often termed as the worst recession (Simon, 2001). Its source that originated from the sub-prime segment of the United State real estate field as an isolated turmoil matured into a complete recession in 2007. The old well-known fact that the whole world sneezes when the United States seizes flu seemed to be justified (Baker, 2007). This is because vital economies like Japan and nations in the European...
Words: 2214 - Pages: 9
...| Research Paper Prospectus | Economics Capstone | 02/12/2012 | Since the U.S. banking crisis of 2007, more than 280 banks in the United States have failed and presently continue to do so. With the closures of these banks, jobs were lost; and the economy has suffered greatly. The banking crisis of 2007 has been considered the largest since the Great Depression. Many researchers, policymakers, economists, and other individuals blame the subprime mortgage market and its collapse for triggering the U.S crisis; many also wonder how such a relatively small market as subprime could cause so much trouble around in the U.S, especially financial institutions that did not get involved with subprime lending or with investment in subprime securities. This paper analyzes financial and economic circumstances associated with the United States financial turmoil that has led to the banking crisis. Section 1 analyzes the collapse of the subprime mortgage market in the United States and outlines factors associated with it. Section 2 outlines the economic factors that led to the banking crisis in 2007. Section 3 summarizes suggestions of research about how to remedy the current crisis and possibly avoid crises in the future. Section 4 will discuss the conclusion of the research. The first signs of the subprime mortgage market collapse in the United States were very high and unusual even for subprime market delinquency and foreclosure rates for mortgages originated in 2006 and 2007. Reinhart...
Words: 2989 - Pages: 12
...Based on analysis the operating and competitive characteristics of the balance sheets and some key financial ratios of five different industries, we can make a conclusion that A is the electric utility, B is the discount general merchandise retailer, C is the upscale apparel retailer, D is the Japanese automobile manufacturer, and E indicates the automated test equipment/systems company. According to the column A, the data indicates a highest property and equipment percentages (74.5%) and lowest sales/net property & equipment ratios (0.43) among all industries which means this particular industry requires a relative high cost for the property and equipment purchase and the sale prices is relatively lower. However, if we look at the net profit/net sales ratio, we found that this industry has the higher value (10.3%) compared to other industries, which indicates that the demand of this industry is pretty high and the economic crisis didn’t affect the overall customer purchase. Based on this analysis, the electric utility is the best choice, which needs a highest cost for the equipment and property set-up but the electricity is still an indispensable product and demands for it is hardly to be shrunk even during the economic crisis year. From column B, the percentage of receivables is 3.8% and the days of inventory is 4, which are the lowest values among other industries. These two numbers indicate that customers have strong purchase power to buy products quickly and this industry...
Words: 608 - Pages: 3
...Case Study 1: Matsushita’s Culture Changes with Japan Japan suffered one of the worst economic hit in history when the economic bubble deflated steeply in the 1990s. Stock prices and real estate slumped enormously mostly due to domestic monetary policies. As a result, companies in Japan faced financial trouble which triggered the cultural change in Japan. Before the Economic crisis, employee and the company have a particularly close relationship. The company is involved in the live of the employee. For example, a lot of companies require their employee’s manager to sign before they can rent an apartment. On the other hand employees are also very loyal and obliged to their company. With the company’s guaranteed lifetime employment policy, few employees will fancy changing jobs. Moreover they work hard in response to the generous benefit by the company. However after the economic crisis, companies cannot afford to pay that many benefits to the employees so they finally had to lay them off, which they never did. This cultural change propagates to traditional value change eventually when employees see that loyalty does not guarantee anything. Since then, younger employees started to think more about individual as opposed to group. Japan is moving towards more individualism than collectivism after the economic bubble. Nonetheless, this is a good opportunity for Japan to adapt to the globalization world and be more competitive. The cultural change will lead to greater mobility...
Words: 529 - Pages: 3
