New danger zone!

World markets have entered a “new danger zone”, according to the president of the World Bank. Robert Zoellick,  investors had lost confidence in the economic leadership of several key countries.

“What’s happened in the past weeks is there is a convergence of some events in Europe and the United States that has led many market participants to lose confidence in economic leadership of some of the key countries,” Mr Zoellick said.

“I think those events combined with some of the other fragilities in the nature of recovery have pushed us into a new danger zone. I don’t say those words lightly.”

The eurozone faced more serious problems, he said, with a lot of member states “moving from drama to trauma”.  There are other major signs of a mounting housing crisis.  Further words of gloom and despondency, which unfortunately have been the common thread throughout this blog.  I have offered both a prognosis and a diagnosis to the current economic crisis and have tried to evaluate the current state of economics.  Urgent action is clearly now required within this societal system; but leadership, the required knowledge, or indeed the desire to radically change is sadly lacking. We continue to worship a unfettered market even thought it has abysmally failed and can only continue to fail.

For these reasons, I am concluding this blog and it’s posts to commence a fresh one offering a new economic zone.  Hope you have enjoyed at least some of the posts.  Thanks for the e-mails.                      Ivor Timson  MSc (Econ)

Banks and Bombs!

British banks, including the two that were bailed out by taxpayers, are investing hundreds of millions of pounds in companies that manufacture cluster bombs- despite a global ban outlawing the production and trade of these weapons.

The Royal Bank of Scotland, Barclays, Lloyds TSB and HSBC have all funded makers of cluster bombs, even as international opinion opposes such a weapons system that routinely maims or kills civilians and children.

Oliver Sprague, an arms expert at Amnesty International, said: “High street banks like Royal Bank of Scotland are making a mockery of UK law by shamefully investing in companies that make weapons the UK Government and 108 other countries have clearly and quite rightly banned.”

Oh dear, it really would be good to post something positive about our society and the banks. So I am taking a month off, to search for some more cheerful news. Enjoy the rest of the summer.

Could no resist adding the following words about the UK’s recent disorder:

Making poor people poorer will not make them less likely to steal. Making them, or their families, homeless will not promote respect for the law. Trying to shut down the Internet in neighbourhoods would be a major violation of civil liberties and a threat to safety, denying vital information to residents.

Britain’s urban areas need urgent attention from the Cameron government, not just punishment. His government’s wrongheaded austerity policies have meant fewer public sector jobs and social services. Young people suffer an employment rate of twenty per cent. The poor are generally more dependent on government than the affluent, so they have been hit the hardest.
What Britain’s sputtering economy really needs is a major stimulus, not more budget cutting. Unfortunately, there is no sign that Mr. Cameron has figured this out or learnt anything from the past.

Fair play is a value we should retain and be proud off!