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Really? Funny that, seeing as our Chancellor anounced in his pre-budget report that Growth in the Uk was 3.5% and growing.
We have the lowest unemployment figures ever recorded in the UK. End of.
We have a nice, healthy growing economy....so, no of course we can compete.
Besides, each of the EU's members main trading partners are each other.
We do? Check again...... UK: Lowest Unemployment for donkeys, High growth (3.5% and climbing
We shall wait and see shall we.......
The raw numbers are meaningless since the U.S.'s economy is so much bigger than these other nations. As Disturbed Deliverer said, you have to compare as a percentage of GDP not raw debt totals.
I don't know if you took a look at the rest of Europe, but its not in the same boat.
Once again, have you looked outside of the UK? Germany and France have crumbling economies. Their social programs have surpassed the amount they take in with taxes.
I don't know...Did the world learn anything from the Soviet Union? That's what the EU seems like. Another attempt at a socialist utopia. It won't work.
I actually thought you were from Germany the way you were talking before.
I've given the facts. We can already see.
The US is banking on the rest of the world supporting them in this. Do you think the masses of the world will allow us to look down upon them while we rape them for the next 20 years?
This situation is akin to the Rent-A-Center scams run on poor people in US cities who think by renting furniture and appliances, they will improve their lives. Addicting the ignorant to debt is the American way, but how long will they remain ignorant?
The formation of the Euro is the single largest currency unification in the civilized's world's history. Why do you think this happened if not to remove the US dollar as the world's oil/energy trading medium?
Hmmm, they aren't as healthy, but are not quite crumbling either. Besides, with the new intake of members, that should give a nice little boost to the central econmoies with the relaxing of trade barriers.
They are doing something about it, and I admit the French econmoy is not too good, but then it never has been amazing. They are lazy buggers those French!
And you say our welfare system is failing?
It has to be said that in the short term, the US will benefit from a weak dollar whilst the rest of the world (EU, China) will suffer.
However, in the long term, and especially if the Chinese unpeg and OPEC goes Euro, the dollar could slide a bit too far and that would spell a nasty end to the US dominance.
OPEC will NEVER screw America over because they know what will happen if they do. It's that simple.
Why would anyone buy a product made in Europe when its way more expensive then something in China?
The problem is that in Europe nations seem unwilling to reform the social programs (certainly not get rid of them), they just keep boosting. The governments tax people more, and they have less money to invest in the economy. The businesses will keep firing people. The people will have less money to give to the government but still get the same benefits. They end up having to increase taxes more...
Plus, the social security problems won't really hit for 40 years. There has been talk about reforms for over a decade now. It WILL happen soon. With the EU, its doubtful all the nations will agree on the reform. In a nation like France, the social programs are valued too much. This could bring about a split in the EU.
OPEC will NEVER screw America over because they know what will happen if they do. It's that simple.
China, being a developing country, isn't going to be able to grow and compete like they do. America wants the Chinese to lose their low currency.
Isn't this the lynchpin of the whole US policy toward OPEC? That if they switch to the Euro, we'll kill them all?
Plenty of things come from Europe. Cars, electronics, ships, coal, oil, luxury goods such as wine, computer software (games alone in the uk are worth £2billion/annum)
Can't think the last time I bought an American product..... oooh, no wait, i bought an AMD chip last year, are they American
There is a willingness to do something about it, and our potential welfare problems are as far off as yours, so I think we have a match there. If ours is doomed to fail, then by that logic so will yours.
Really? Why is it that over the past few months i have read countless ecomic reports to the contrary.
And what exactly will America do? Invade? Lol, watch how quickly you get screwed by everyone then........
If China unpegs its currency, then the dollar will begin to lose value further. This will not only hurt imports (Chinese goods will cost more, which will help balance out the huge disparity in the Global economy), but it will increase the value of you debt, as China holds vast sums of your treasury bonds...
Saudi Arabia is really the big dog in OPEC. Their economy is closely tied with America's. If we go down, they go down.
Europe isn't a consumer society like America. Europe relies on exports, something China does far better.
It's already screwed the two largest economies in the EU. It's not something in the future, its happening right now. Social security really isn't something that would destroy the American economy, either.
What can anyone really do to America? Europe won't go to arms. Russia and China can't go to arms. Economically you can't survive without America. The trade with America is the only thing that keeps China and Europe alive.
A lower valued dollar means a lower debt. It's easier to pay back.
In addition, there are large Muslim minorities in Saudi Arabia that have suffered unspeakable repression under the Wahhabis, chiefly the Shi'as of the Eastern Province and the southern border zone, who are subjected to extraordinary discrimination. The oil deposits are mainly in the eastern province, and Shi'as are over-represented in the oil industry technical and management class. Shi'as may account for up to a quarter of the Saudi population.
U.S. bonds are denominated in dollars, if there is inflation the U.S. government will have more dollars from tax from inflated salaries but still owe the same amount of dollars in debt. It's not a difficult concept to grasp.
Every economy relies on exports. I'd like to see the US economy do so well if no-one bought anything. Besides, the EU's biggest trades are done internally.
I would hardly call them screwed, and i wouldn't pin the flagging economies reasons on Welfare alone. The reasons are multi-fold, and are the most part due to the Global recession of a few years back, or don't you remember?
Who said anything about war? Is that the first thing you US chaps think of? We would do the most damaging thing you could imagine.
Sanctions.
You don't sell anything we either need/or can't make ourselves, and you don't buy enough to warrant us to let you take control of the Oil Fields
Outside of trade with itself, the EU's next biggest trading partner is the Far east countries of China and Japan
Erm....not much logic there chap. A lower dollar value would mean a lower value debt for the country that you owe money too. However, if all you have is dollars, then the value of the debt will not decrease will it, as you have to pay back the debt with those dollars.
Secondly, the imperialistic policies of the Bush administration are expensive and must be financed, which means borrowing in international capital markets. The US is currently running a $600 billion current-account deficit (trade deficit adjusted by unilateral transfers such as interest earned abroad). This means the US must borrow more than $1.5 billion per day on a net basis from international lenders. For borrowers such as the US, it is generally easier to pay back loans in a depreciating currency rather than an appreciating one. Due to the large sums involved and a weak domestic economy, a strong dollar would make it more difficult for the US to finance its self-appointed role as the “world’s policeman”.
40% of the EU's trade is with America.
The European economies have been suffereing since the 70's...Right around the time they started adopting socialist outlooks.
I clearly mentioned why sanctions were impossible You trade too much with America. It would harm your economies as much as America's.
The US’s increasingly desperate financial condition is not good news for the world. With short-term interest rates near zero, there is little additional economic benefit to be gained from lowering them further. This leaves a cheaper dollar as one of the last levers to stimulate the US economy. As long as lenders are willing to invest in dollar assets, the US can continue to borrow to maintain its current lifestyle. However, if foreign lenders begin to shun US markets because of a falling dollar, it could cause serious problems for the US Government, economy and people.
Now the US itself is in trouble. If the US attempts to fight the rapidly gaining forces of deflation by encouraging a depreciating dollar, it will export deflation to the rest of the world because foreign currencies will rise relative to the dollar. This will damage foreign economies and inhibit their ability to buy goods and services, including those from the US. Since the short-term benefit of a weak dollar to US corporations’ earnings will show up quickly, while the long-term damage to the global economy will become apparent only with the passage of time, it is a fair assumption that the US will take the easy route and worry about the global fallout later.
If confidence in the dollar or dollar assets, such as Treasury bonds, declines, the world may, at some point, reconsider its involvement with US assets. The results of such a reappraisal could be anything from mildly damaging to catastrophic. Seventy-five per cent of the world’s central-bank assets are held in US dollars (as Treasury bonds). These bankers do not want their primary asset to suffer a significant decline
The EU (or their pre EU equivalents) have had "socialist" policies since long before the 70's. In the 90's, Germany was the strongest EU economy by far, and grew massively.
Blaming it on social welfare is inaccurate, and it is pleasing that the Governments are not willing to throw away looking after the people for the sake of money.
If OPEC switched, and the US took "measures" against the ME countries to secure Oil, I don't think it would be just the EU that would not be willing to let one country (especially the beligerent US) take control of the worlds Oil supply.
Onto your link you posted, i have taken these snippets to support what I was saying: