NEW YORK | By Ana Fuentes | The last huge tornado in Oklahoma could cost as much as 2 billion dollars. The center of the state has been devastated, 24 people dead, around 13,000 homes destroyed, cars and schools totally ruined. The final bill for the State, the regional government and private insurers is going to be one of the highest in US history.
The Enduring Glow of Gold
BEIJING | Caixin Magazine | A ripple of skepticism recently hit prices of the yellow metal, but gold remains the ultimate hedge on inflation, as former Morgan Stanley’s Chief Economist for Asia Pacific Andy Xie explains. The global economy has already entered into stagflation with a growth rate of 2 percent and inflation at 3 percent. The inflation rate is likely to rise above 4 percent in 18 months while the growth rate will remain stuck in the same range. With inflation twice as high as the growth rate, the global economy will slip deeper into stagflation.
EU against interchanging fees: Should we save the Euro at all costs?
The European interchange fees reduction project is very similar to the measures adopted by the Spanish Government in 2005. However, several studies show that measures adopted to reduce interchange fees have finally harmed consumers, as French site Bursorama points out. Is there any ideological agenda behind it?
May Day’s long read: Sex, Demography, and the Future of the European Union
The Fair Observer | It is easy to say that Europeans should have more sex. Demography is destiny, after all, or so it has seemed for millennia, and what could be better than sleeping your way to world power? Despite the financial crisis, a diminishing birth rates and seemingly unsustainable welfare states, Glenn Carle believes German leadership might offer a solution for structural reform in Europe.
“The eurozone must find economic growth without State aid”
MADRID | By Tania Suárez | Director of financial analysis at Profim EAFI, Jose Maria Luna Morales, argues that austerity measures in the euro zone were “necessary” but adds that “some privileges of many public institutions can still be reduced”. He also notes that although “Europe still may suffer months of stagnation”, that does not imply “a long period of stagnation’” for the EZ as a whole.
“Bitcoin makes e-commerce much easier than credit cards”
NEW YORK | An encrypted virtual currency traded over the Internet that can be purchased through online exchanges using real money. Four years ago bitcoin seemed like sci-fi but today it is already a 1-billion-dollar market. And many businesses are accepting it as a payment currency. Anthony Gallippi is CEO of BitPay, an Atlanta based Payment Service Provider (PSP) specializing in eCommerce, B2B, and enterprise solutions for virtual currencies. He explained to The Corner how BitPay enables companies to jump on the bitcoin bandwagon.
Taking the Shine off Gold
BEIJING | By Wang Yuqian and Yang Lu (Caixin Magazine) | What caused the precipitous decline in the price of the precious metal? And how do analysts in China see it? Three experts come up with different explanations, from investor panic triggered by the European debt crisis to, more bizarrely, a conspiracy theory that the U.S. government orchestrated the collapse.
Boston attacks make Obama shift into national security mode
Terrorism is back high on the US national agenda. But how much more can America spend on security? In the new budget submitted by Obama to Congress, Homeland Security would receive a total of 39 billion in discretionary funding. This is just peanuts compared to the total Defense budget, which would reach a total of 857 trillion dollars.
The (bright) Spain you won’t get in some Anglo media
NEW YORK | A group of the most important Spanish companies presented their report “Spain, land of opportunities” in New York on Wednesday. The Business Council for Competitiveness (CEC), claim to represent more than 35% of Spanish GDP and 1.7 million Spanish employees. This is their side of the story. Economic propaganda, or real data that you won’t see in the FT nor the WSJ’s front page?
Ronnie and Maggie, political soulmates devoted to deregulation
NEW YORK | Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan shared a humble background and were both committed to a conservative revolution: fight communism, dismantle government bureaucracies and deregulate key industries.
