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Andrew[MG]
2,401 posts
67 months
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The £ is still at its highest level for over 3.5 years
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Andy Zarse
8,055 posts
116 months
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Andrew[MG] said: The Euro took a real battering against the £ yesterday. At least this might compensate against the failed crops we're having this summer and keep food inflation from taking another massive leap. From the little evidence I have, food prices are set to soar. I was talking to a neighbouring farmer who I saw in his field of brewers barley next to ours. The crop had a superb start and yields looked very promising. The once magnificent specimens are now drooping and mildew is starting to set in, and weeds are rampant. It should be just about ripe for harvest about now and he implored me to test it. Rubbing a handful to release the grains, I tested it for hardness between my teeth. It's still as soft as butter. Unless we get some sun over the coming days to harden it, it will be fit only for animal feed. As a hobby pig farmer, I have decided not to do any more this year as it's simply not viable. I don't mind raising porkers and breaking even as the meat is far better than at Tesco. But I can't currently do it to the standards I like for much less than £7 per kilo, which is taking the piss a bit. And the prospect of feed prices going through the roof this winter means it's really a non-starter. So no more Zarsages for brekky  How the commercial boys are going to cope with this prospect without big price increases to the end consumer I have no idea. Unless of course the EU increases the subsidy... 
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Ozzie Osmond
12,113 posts
115 months
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Andrew[MG] said: The £ is still at its highest level for over 3.5 years That should help exports along nicely then....  UK is in the can with everybody else.
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HundredthIdiot
4,353 posts
153 months
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£ vs Euro = Cesspit vs clusterfúck.
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Andrew[MG]
2,401 posts
67 months
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Ozzie Osmond said: Andrew[MG] said: The £ is still at its highest level for over 3.5 years That should help exports along nicely then.... UK is in the can with everybody else. We're still sinking against all the other currencies
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Blib
20,661 posts
66 months
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BBC reports Spanish PM Rajoy has announced he is going back on his election promises and wiil raise taxes, including 3% on VAT.
"Conditions have changed." He said.
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Steffan
6,190 posts
97 months
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Blib said: BBC reports Spanish PM Rajoy has announced he is going back on his election promises and wiil raise taxes, including 3% on VAT.
"Conditions have changed." He said. Well there is a surprise. Within the first year of being elected to office, an EU leader has completely reneged on his promises to the electorate. Disgraceful, though this is, it is also, sadly not unexpected. Honour and honesty, left European politics, some years ago and the EU politicians have no intention of allowing it to return, to get in the way of their big pay checks.and expenses claims, tax free bonuses, Self aggrandisment and the essential accumulation of personal wealth, must continue. Promise anything, agree anything, make any deal you can, break all the rules, do not concern yourself with consequences, just get into power, is the mantra of EU leadership. Then line your own pockets. I think the Spanish Prime Minister has been following Tony Blair's example. Pity for Spain but I am sorry to say, that the Spanish goose, was cooked, some time ago.
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Andy Zarse
8,055 posts
116 months
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Steffan said: Blib said: BBC reports Spanish PM Rajoy has announced he is going back on his election promises and wiil raise taxes, including 3% on VAT.
"Conditions have changed." He said. Well there is a surprise. Within the first year of being elected to office, an EU leader has completely reneged on his promises to the electorate. Disgraceful, though this is, it is also, sadly not unexpected. I'm not sure it's anything to do with anything as prosaic as honesty or integrity. He may well have really meant it when he said it six months ago. You need to realise Senhor Ahoy! is a puffed up toad, full of bluster and his own self-importance but sadly lacking in guile. He really thought he was going to be able to put a gun the the EZ's head with a promise of mutual destruction, just like Greece hadn't been able to do... Frankly, Ahoy! was left with no choice. It was a binary decision imposed on him by the bewheelchaired German Minister: No VAT increase = no EU30BN bailout. What's a guy to do, hey?
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GBB
1,646 posts
28 months
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Steffan said: Well there is a surprise. Within the first year of being elected to office, an EU leader has completely reneged on his promises to the electorate. Disgraceful, though this is, it is also, sadly not unexpected.
Honour and honesty, left European politics, some years ago and the EU politicians have no intention of allowing it to return, to get in the way of their big pay checks.and expenses claims, tax free bonuses, Self aggrandisment and the essential accumulation of personal wealth, must continue.
Promise anything, agree anything, make any deal you can, break all the rules, do not concern yourself with consequences, just get into power, is the mantra of EU leadership. Then line your own pockets. I think the Spanish Prime Minister has been following Tony Blair's example. Pity for Spain but I am sorry to say, that the Spanish goose, was cooked, some time ago. Supposedly though he has also lowered income taxes at the same time The theory is - lower tax equals lower costs, spanish goods become cheaper. Higher VAT discourages consumption of foreign produced goods thus encouraging investment spending rather than consumption spending. That's very simplistic...BUT......the first time anyone has actually done something to actually change the true problem in their country. Frankly I hope it works, as it might just encourage similar over here.
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Steffan
6,190 posts
97 months
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GBB said: Steffan said: Well there is a surprise. Within the first year of being elected to office, an EU leader has completely reneged on his promises to the electorate. Disgraceful, though this is, it is also, sadly not unexpected.
Honour and honesty, left European politics, some years ago and the EU politicians have no intention of allowing it to return, to get in the way of their big pay checks.and expenses claims, tax free bonuses, Self aggrandisment and the essential accumulation of personal wealth, must continue.
Promise anything, agree anything, make any deal you can, break all the rules, do not concern yourself with consequences, just get into power, is the mantra of EU leadership. Then line your own pockets. I think the Spanish Prime Minister has been following Tony Blair's example. Pity for Spain but I am sorry to say, that the Spanish goose, was cooked, some time ago. Supposedly though he has also lowered income taxes at the same time The theory is - lower tax equals lower costs, spanish goods become cheaper. Higher VAT discourages consumption of foreign produced goods thus encouraging investment spending rather than consumption spending. That's very simplistic...BUT......the first time anyone has actually done something to actually change the true problem in their country. Frankly I hope it works, as it might just encourage similar over here. In the dire straights of the defaulters I hope that everything works that they try. They need all the luck they can get. And then some. Sadly I do not think recovery is at all possible whilst within the EU. If they defaulted, wrote off the debt and reinstated their old currency then the recovery could begin. It would be disastrous for the EU and EN banks but I think essential for the defaulters. At the moment they are getting weekly subsidy from the EU. When that runs out, which it will, they will be long gone and start to recover. There is no other solution for sovereign states which are totally insolvent. Which all the defaulters already are, and they are steadily becoming more so, each week that goes by.
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Steffan
6,190 posts
97 months
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GBB said: Steffan said: Well there is a surprise. Within the first year of being elected to office, an EU leader has completely reneged on his promises to the electorate. Disgraceful, though this is, it is also, sadly not unexpected.
Honour and honesty, left European politics, some years ago and the EU politicians have no intention of allowing it to return, to get in the way of their big pay checks.and expenses claims, tax free bonuses, Self aggrandisment and the essential accumulation of personal wealth, must continue.
Promise anything, agree anything, make any deal you can, break all the rules, do not concern yourself with consequences, just get into power, is the mantra of EU leadership. Then line your own pockets. I think the Spanish Prime Minister has been following Tony Blair's example. Pity for Spain but I am sorry to say, that the Spanish goose, was cooked, some time ago. Supposedly though he has also lowered income taxes at the same time The theory is - lower tax equals lower costs, spanish goods become cheaper. Higher VAT discourages consumption of foreign produced goods thus encouraging investment spending rather than consumption spending. That's very simplistic...BUT......the first time anyone has actually done something to actually change the true problem in their country. Frankly I hope it works, as it might just encourage similar over here. In the dire straights of the defaulters I hope that everything works that they try. They need all the luck they can get. And then some. Sadly I do not think recovery is at all possible whilst within the EU. If they defaulted, wrote off the debt and reinstated their old currency then the recovery could begin. It would be disastrous for the EU and EN banks but I think essential for the defaulters. At the moment they are getting weekly subsidy from the EU. When that runs out, which it will, they will be long gone and start to recover. There is no other solution for sovereign states which are totally insolvent. Which all the defaulters already are, and they are steadily becoming more so, each week that goes by.
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DJRC
19,838 posts
105 months
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Andrew[MG] said: Ozzie Osmond said: Andrew[MG] said: The £ is still at its highest level for over 3.5 years That should help exports along nicely then.... UK is in the can with everybody else. We're still sinking against all the other currencies Actually the £ has put 3 rappen on the Chuff in the last week. 1.52 is killing me!! Its 12 rappen up from Sept. last yr when the peg went in.
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Andy Zarse
8,055 posts
116 months
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DJRC said: Andrew[MG] said: Ozzie Osmond said: Andrew[MG] said: The £ is still at its highest level for over 3.5 years That should help exports along nicely then.... UK is in the can with everybody else. We're still sinking against all the other currencies Actually the £ has put 3 rappen on the Chuff in the last week. 1.52 is killing me!! Its 12 rappen up from Sept. last yr when the peg went in. I was just wondering about Switzerland, her central bank's peg and its massive foreign currency purchases. If the euro blows apart and Spain and the other HBATs leave the Euro, then the Swiss position looks profitable. But if Germany and her satellites leave, the result is they've printed billions of Francs and given them to bankers in exchange for worthless paper. I understand why they went with the initial tactic, but it has now become a full time strategy. So if you were in charge, what policy would you recommend going forward for the Swiss Central bank?
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DJRC
19,838 posts
105 months
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Obviously remove the peg so every the Chf can take back its position as the traditional reserve currency of the world and I can get the exchange rate down again!!!
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Andy Zarse
8,055 posts
116 months
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DJRC said: Obviously remove the peg so every the Chf can take back its position as the traditional reserve currency of the world and I can get the exchange rate down again!!! How did I know you suggest something like that!
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Mermaid
12,497 posts
40 months
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Andy Zarse said: DJRC said: Obviously remove the peg so every the Chf can take back its position as the traditional reserve currency of the world and I can get the exchange rate down again!!! How did I know you suggest something like that! He has been consistent - looking after No 1 is all that matters 
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DJRC
19,838 posts
105 months
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Yep Mermaid. Nobody else will look after my wife and family. If you are generously offering to I will happily retire and let you pay for them.
Ahh hold on, havent we just been talking about that on the European scale...
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Globs
11,749 posts
100 months
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GBB said: Supposedly though he has also lowered income taxes at the same time
The theory is - lower tax equals lower costs, spanish goods become cheaper. Higher VAT discourages consumption of foreign produced goods thus encouraging investment spending rather than consumption spending. A good theory too. Raising taxes for the remaining workers is a good way to break an economy completely - taking people's money before they have a chance to spend it and giving it to the corrupt and feckless.
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Steffan
6,190 posts
97 months
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Latest from the Beeb suggests 4 million jobs could go within Europe if the EU austerity measures continue. See: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-18792720Whilst the austerity measures will cut expenditure it is all too easy to create a headlong dive in an economy cutting expenditure in a recession. I think this is a real danger given the EU level of incompetence. Can the EU absorb this kind of massive increase unemployment? Not without real unrest in the countries most affected, which will be the defaulters, already grappling unsuccessfully with massive unemployment. This is already getting messy and is going to get a while lot messier.
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Blib
20,661 posts
66 months
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I saw that report this morning. Four million sounds on the low side if one considers the working population of the EURO countries.
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