tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18285485439702137092024-03-14T00:19:53.522-07:00GQJFTWA cynic's perspective on German politics and the economy.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17717360301386474776noreply@blogger.comBlogger165125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1828548543970213709.post-17020832385390302162013-11-22T03:32:00.001-08:002013-11-22T03:32:23.801-08:00What's happening in Germany?
Yesterday, Angela Merkel tried to defend the German trade surplus by saying this (bloomberg):
I think it would be absurd if we were to try make German
companies reduce production or cut back on quality.
Well, yes, that would absolutely be absurd, therefore nobody actually demanded anything like that. What on earth is wrong with German politicians, today? "Oh, look over there - a straw manAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17717360301386474776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1828548543970213709.post-4638594112111067912013-11-21T15:16:00.000-08:002013-11-21T15:16:03.008-08:00Immigration Up 11 Percent In The First Half Of 2013As expected, immigration into Germany was up significantly in the first six months of 2013, according to destatis. I have written about this new issue and had this to say:
Germany has changed its tactics. Beggar thy neighbor to solve domestic
economic issues is dead. Long live beggar thy neighbor to solve
demographic problems. Merkel herself stated on the issue of labor mobility within Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17717360301386474776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1828548543970213709.post-5845538239227281142013-11-21T11:29:00.000-08:002013-11-21T12:42:07.760-08:00Krugman, Weidmann And Why It Is Actually WorseKrugman isn't happy that Weidmann is against further ECB measures without offering any justification. But it is actually worse than Krugman thinks.
He wrote:
First, take the aggregate view. The euro area as a whole has record high
unemployment and record low inflation. By any normal standards, this
says that monetary policy is too tight. Yes, there’s a problem getting
traction, because the Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17717360301386474776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1828548543970213709.post-75068132978627614482013-11-21T06:15:00.001-08:002013-11-21T06:15:25.390-08:00What's Happening In Germany?
Germany will introduce a minimum wage (The Local): That was a core SPD demand and there was widespread support for such a move amongst the citizens.
SPD-Left Rapprochement: A Time Bomb in Merkel's Government (Spiegel): The SPD has until now ruled out that it would form a coalition with the left wing Die Linke. SPD, Greens, and Die Linke would have a majority in the Bundestag. Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17717360301386474776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1828548543970213709.post-65887118438107718802013-11-20T09:31:00.000-08:002013-11-20T09:31:29.333-08:00... And Justice For AllOn Monday the German Bundestag discussed the NSA revelations in a special session. It was the first opportunity for the upcoming "Grand Coalition" of CDUCSU and SPD to show of how "grand" they will be. As expected, the session yielded little to nothing. Well, the Social Democrats have already adapted to their new role of applauding CDU speakers; and the only real criticism came from the Greens Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17717360301386474776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1828548543970213709.post-85062758559407534902013-11-20T05:27:00.000-08:002013-11-20T05:27:00.754-08:00European Car Registrations In OctoberThe automotive industry in Europe is rebounding. According to ACEA, the registrations of new cars in the EU were 4.7 percent higher in October 2013 than a year earlier, reducing the gap to last years' sales over the first 10 months to "only" 3.1 percent (down from 6.6 percent for the first 6 months of the year). But make no mistake this was still the second worst October since 2003; and Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17717360301386474776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1828548543970213709.post-83856776599791478092013-11-19T09:12:00.002-08:002013-11-19T09:12:48.081-08:00Lowest Common DenominatorGermany still does not have a new government. The talks between Merkel's CDU/CSU Union and the social democrat SPD are stalling. In fact, the only real agreement seems to be on a a quota for women on corporate boards. But, the discussions about a minimum wage (the SPD wants €8.50); mothers' pension (for mothers of children born before 1992); or the toll for foreigners on the Autobahn that Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17717360301386474776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1828548543970213709.post-68665954915431737512013-11-19T02:10:00.001-08:002013-11-20T02:38:54.495-08:00The Economist Hans-Werner SinnKrugman in last Friday's op-ed wrote about the euro crisis and the German reaction to the ECB rate cut. He mentioned the reaction of economists to the decision. One of them was Hans-Werner Sinn:
The influential German economist Hans-Werner Sinn declared that Mr.
Draghi was just trying to give Italy access to low-interest loans.
Now, I am not going to defend this statement; and yes Sinn has Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17717360301386474776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1828548543970213709.post-37758682702106961162013-11-18T09:46:00.001-08:002013-11-20T02:42:45.983-08:00Further Deterioration Of The Spanish Bank Balance SheetsYou might have heard a few days ago, that Spain wanted to exit the ESM program. You might have also heard that the European officials were "fully supportive" of the decision. So all what was missing was the new Banco de Espana data showing that the banks actually did not need another bail out. I have written a few months ago, that the Spanish bank balance sheets were actually in the process of Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17717360301386474776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1828548543970213709.post-68390465550299854392013-11-18T06:07:00.001-08:002013-11-18T06:07:14.526-08:00Industry, Real Wages, And Childish ManagersThis weekend, the CEOs of several German car manufacturers decided to behave like three year old kids because they really want that chocolate bar low labor costs; and are against a minimum wage of €8.50 and for a huge amount of "temporary" workers. The CEOs of Daimler, VW, Opel and BMW were interviewed by the Bild Zeitung and Daimler CEO Zetsche even threatened Mutti* Merkel that the company Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17717360301386474776noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1828548543970213709.post-90892292633595983442013-11-14T05:25:00.002-08:002013-11-14T05:25:57.681-08:00Massive 0.1 Percent Eurozone Growth In Q3 The European Commission pretended a few months ago that the modest second quarter GDP growth in the eurozone (0.3 percent) proved them right. We have learned today that the success story continues - at an even slower pace of 0.1 percent compared to Q2. Germany "lead" the way again with a 0.3 percent (down from 0.7 percent last quarter).
But, this doesn't, yet, show the complete extent of the Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17717360301386474776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1828548543970213709.post-41941383381085501162013-11-12T04:36:00.000-08:002013-11-20T02:41:30.839-08:00Sinn, Unsinn, And The ECBPaul Krugman wrote that there are huge tensions over the ECB rate cut. German "economists" are criticising the rate cut decision. Well, that is true, but for the most part it's just stuff we've heard a hundred thousand times before.
For example, Michael Hüther head of the IW institute said that the policy is both not working in program countries (which is true) and damaging the North (which is Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17717360301386474776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1828548543970213709.post-18025814195061606452013-11-11T12:11:00.001-08:002013-11-11T12:11:50.858-08:00Reforming The Renewable Energy Law... AgainWe still don't have a coalition contract for the next government, but today we learned more about the plan to reform the Renewable Energy Law. Merkel has realized that offshore wind energy is quite expensive after, well, Merkel massively increased (from under 9 €ct/kWh to around 15 €ct/kWh - depending on location - for 12 years plus 8 more at a lower level) the subsidies in the form of an Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17717360301386474776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1828548543970213709.post-24393149113160107492013-11-06T11:08:00.001-08:002013-11-06T15:31:36.525-08:00More Surveillance In Germany?
Snowden's revelations have shown the world that the US and British governments cannot be trusted. Additionally, it is very likely that many if not all allied intelligence services aided the NSA and GCHQ; and also used similar methods though likely on a smaller scale, which is probably much more of a funding issue than anything else. Some believed that there would be a change in thinking now. Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17717360301386474776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1828548543970213709.post-25189151976960432992013-10-31T10:26:00.002-07:002013-10-31T10:26:28.167-07:00Hate To Say I Told You So
Well, that did not take long. The answers to the US criticism on the German export dependence are in and they are exactly the ones which could have been expected.
According to Spiegel, the "Bundesverband der Deutschen Industrie"said (my translation):
The export strength of Germany is the result of innovative products, which are favored and bought in the whole world.
Well, DUH! TheAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17717360301386474776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1828548543970213709.post-20561440306848030352013-10-31T04:02:00.000-07:002013-10-31T04:03:51.684-07:00Using The Right Words When Criticising German Export DependencyThis weak both the European Commission and the US Treasury Department have criticised the German export dependency. The "Report to Congress on International Economic and Exchange Rate Policies" uses untypically clear language:
Germany’s anemic pace of domestic demand growth and dependence on exports have hampered rebalancing at a time when many other euro-area countries have been under severe Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17717360301386474776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1828548543970213709.post-10631427881526658372013-10-30T16:45:00.001-07:002013-10-30T16:45:05.703-07:00Commission Slowly Realizing That The Commission Failed Miserably?When one sees a question in the heading, the answer is often: "No!" Just look at the Fox Nation homepage which often asks questions, that have little to nothing to do with the article below. But in this case the answer seems to be: "Well, kinda..."
The European Commission published a study by Jan in 't Veld which at least acknowledges the obvious:
Successive consolidations in recent years Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17717360301386474776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1828548543970213709.post-21784365921917979552013-10-30T09:13:00.002-07:002013-10-30T09:13:59.400-07:00Quotas For Women On Company BoardsMerkel's conservative CDU/CSU Union and the social democrat SPD are still working towards a coalition contract. According to Sueddeutsche, they have come closer to a agreement on quotas for women for supervisory (Aufsichtsrat) and management boards (Vorstand) of the largest German companies.
Women are clearly under-represented on the boards of German publicly traded corporations, but the Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17717360301386474776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1828548543970213709.post-6384694726293590602013-10-30T02:28:00.000-07:002013-10-30T02:28:02.949-07:00Good Policy vs Policy of Good NumbersTwo press releases one year apart covering the same subject and exactly the same time. People are at risk of poverty, if they earn less than 60 percent of the median income. Severe material deprivation is a sign of social exclusion and not poverty at least in the eyes of the EU. Those three million that disappeared are probably all millionaires, who work little and don't want to spent any of Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17717360301386474776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1828548543970213709.post-42624563120626489782013-10-28T07:35:00.000-07:002013-10-28T07:35:14.246-07:00President Obama Has Damaged US Foreign Relations Even More Than Republicans Ever CouldPresident Obama received a lot of premature praise, especially in Europe, where almost everybody was happy that Bush's successor was a democrat. He made many promises, none of those that Europeans were looking forward to were kept. And now this weekend we saw conflicting reports about Obama's knowledge of the spy programs. Bild claimed the US president learned about eavesdropping on Merkel in Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17717360301386474776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1828548543970213709.post-48197506297956396892013-10-28T04:24:00.000-07:002013-10-28T04:24:15.303-07:00Republicans Are Damaging US Foreign RelationsIt is not just economic damage that Republicans are causing. Their unbelievable arrogance combined with childish ignorance made Republicans say really stupid things on US television this weekend. On "Meet The Press" Representative Peter King not only made up stories about thousands of lives saved by NSA spying, he also felt the need to pretend that eavesdropping on Merkel was somehow excusable Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17717360301386474776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1828548543970213709.post-53994080955688468702013-10-24T15:08:00.000-07:002013-10-24T15:14:03.387-07:00Satire Lags Behind Reality(via)Once in a while newspapers get fooled by satire because it the premise of an article feels real, and the journalists do not take the time to fact check the story, and onion style stories can end up on in the news cycle. Yesterday the opposite happened. The Postillon, a German award-winning daily political satire homepage, wrote on the issue of more and more people being dependent on basic Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17717360301386474776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1828548543970213709.post-2357372300864987082013-10-23T21:37:00.000-07:002013-10-24T21:41:58.527-07:00NSA, Merkel's Phone, And HypocrisyAccording to Spiegel, Angela Merkel's private phone "might have been tapped" "for years" by US intelligence. Of course, the Bundesregierung "unequivocally disapproves". When the revelations were still about the German citizens her Minister of the Interior Friedrich called the critics "anti-American", and "naive".
Friedrich's words are coming back to haunt him. It is quite clear that the naive Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17717360301386474776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1828548543970213709.post-20870117471007675522013-10-21T17:58:00.000-07:002013-10-21T17:58:10.659-07:00EU "Shutdown"Now that the US shutdown is over, it seems to be time to create our own little budget crisis in Europe. The EU Commission, the European Parliament, and the Council of the European Union (member states) agreed on a budget for 2013 in 2012 under the assumption that all payments due for 2012 would be paid 2012, which just did not happen. Additionally, the member states decided to start reducing the Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17717360301386474776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1828548543970213709.post-48060565120242776562013-10-18T10:39:00.000-07:002013-10-18T11:51:22.656-07:00Demographic Change, Reforms, and the Commission Olli Rehn recently reiterated his sustainable growth for Europe story. I have shown that Greece has lost more than "just" a decade and talked about how the the secondary effects are now coming back to haunt us, among other things. Let's today address something else. Almost two months ago Mr. Rehn said at the European Forum in Alpbach:
This is not just to combat the current crisis! In
the Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17717360301386474776noreply@blogger.com0