Benefits of the Euro Failed to Materialize
The European Commission has published the results of a “grim study” that says that the creation of a single European currency has failed to deliver on the promise of boosting European economies by cutting transaction costs and exchange-rate risk:
“There is little sign that Europe’s economic decline is stopping or turning around, particularly in the large countries of continental Europe,” said the report, written for Brussels by an EU-wide team of economists.“We do not find any evidence of a pro-competitive impact of the creation of the euro area. The impact of the euro remains an open question,” concluded the Commission team, known as the European Forecasting Network….
Acknowledging that the eurozone’s Stability and Growth Pact was “in tatters”, the report said the Lisbon economic reform agenda had achieved nothing that would not have happened anyway, despite over 100 new EU directives and regulations.
“Rising unemployment has dented any enthusiasm for major change. The supply side reforms – particularly in the large countries of continental Europe – have failed to materialise. The economic reforms needed are not being implemented,” it said.
Compare and contrast with some figures from the Bush Boom:
- The strongest quarterly rise in hours worked in seven years.
- A high probability of 5% GDP growth for the third quarter (we’ll know for sure in a couple of weeks).
- Steadily increasing average hourly earnings.
- 1.69 more people working today than when W took office.
And you wonder why we British are glad that Gordon Brown won’t let Blair get us into the Euro……..!
Post-Second-Debate Morning Reads.
The Linker of Worlds (Allahpundit) has a round-up of debate responses that I’m not going to top, so I won’t try. I’ll just link it. Sounds to me like a Bush win. For the Record: The Armorer ain’t watching any…
Did they really think that creating the euro would boost the EU’s sad economy? Did they really? That’ll teach them to listen to the French take on economics.
Geez.
And I can assure you that since the euro, the cost of living has gone up in France. I’ve never had so little in return for my money since I’ve lived here.
>> 1.69 more people working today than when W took office.
Who’s the .69 of a person ?
I suppose you mean 1.69 million ..
The euro should really be called the Cargo Cult Dollar.
The US has a strong economy because of the relatively free regulatory environment, strong protection of private property, and a number of other factors, most of which are anathema to the Social Democrats (with emphasis on the “social”) running Europe. Having an easily transferrable common currency helps a lot, but we’d be almost as rich without it — recall that until the latter part of the 19th century money was issued by banks. In fact, it would be interesting, though too much trouble to be worth it, to invert the euro experiment. Have each Federal Reserve District issue its own currency, complete with different valuations and exchanges. The US would still have a stronger economy than Europe does.
But if you don’t understand (or refuse to understand) how an economy works, it can look like the single currency makes the difference, so if you’re trying to copy the successful you’ll try to establish the One True Reichsmark. Or you can build a DC-3 out of wattle and daub so the Cargo Come. It’s the same thing.
Regards,
Ric Locke
Gee, whatever happened to “OMG BUSH IS FIRST PRESIDENT TO LOSE JOBS IN 75 YEARS”?
At the end of the book Cryptonomicon, Japanese war vet and businessman Goto Dengo opines that wealth doesn’t come from gold, but from the hands and hearts of the people.
Something the liberal socialists in Europe may want to bear in mind: American hands and hearts work harder than French. We’re seeing the benefits now, and it can’t be fixed by a magical new currency.
I’d rather abolish the Federal Reserve system — the Constitution confers upon Congress the power to coin money, and doesn’t give them permission to outsource it to private, profit-minded bankers — but at the end of the day it probably doesn’t matter much whether we exchange in gold coin or FRN’s because of how wealth is generated in a free economy.
Yeah, and don`t forget that our budget deficit is growing stronger than ever thanks to Bush! Almost 400 billion $ per year, that´s more than a billion per day! We can call ourselbes lucky with such a president!
Go Bush! Go Cheney!