Where have I heard that before?
10,000,000 Mark Banknote 1923
All right. It isn't that bad but. .
The Saudi action must be a big slap in the face. . .
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| Arabia | |
| Saudis desert the euro | |
| 2004-05-17 | |
Saudi Arabia has abandoned its policy of diversifying foreign reserves into euros, deeming the eurozone unfit to manage a major world reserve currency.
Muhammad Al-Jasser, the deputy chief of Saudi Arabia's monetary agency, said the dollar remained the safest bet for central banks in the Middle East, despite America's trade and budget deficits. "The euro has not yet gained a competitive status against the dollar as a major reserve currency. People are not going to switch to euros until European financial markets become more competitive, deeper, more liquid and diversified," he said. A spokesman for Frits Bolkestein, the European single market commissioner, said the criticism is harsh but true. Mr Bolkestein has devoted much of the last five years trying to break down barriers to free capital movement, but has met with implacable resistance from vested interests. | |
| Posted by:Steve |
| #11 In defence of the euro - it has moeny in the bank and the member countries are at least NETT making more money than they are spending. US fiscal policy has for years been short termist and you cannot keep spending more money than you make, eventually you'll run out. Whilst the US has so much coming in this is putting off the problem, once this stops then the problems start. This is why the US recessions are so much deeper and longer than most of the rest of the worlds because the cash coming in slows. Ultimately there will be a reckoning, and US debt. will plunge the US in a hole similar to 1929 and (Long Haired Republican) there was no socialist president then! The global reserve currency will then be the next biggest which will be either oil, gold or Euro's. The rather cynical move by The House of Saud must have been on the back of white house pressure. Arguably in real terms the 35bn in cash that Saud had in Dollars is now worth 27bn - If we agree that the USD has hit rock bottom then shifting USD into EUR now would just exaggerate that loss so of course Saud is not going to move it. Mark your cards, the next time that the USD is at a high you'll see this entire issue start up again and the USD will once again plunge. |
| Posted by: Brit: Tourist 2004-05-19 6:36:16 AM |
| #10 Nothing would make me more happy to see the Euro collapse and the complete hysteria of 450 million Socialist going ape pooo. Personally one of the saddest days of my life was when Eurabia Union made the Lira go bye-by. The next day Italy was 15 to 20% more expensive. I hate Eurabia! A group of people who trust government more than themselves deserves a vile and painful demise! |
| Posted by: Long Hair Republican 2004-05-17 11:37:53 PM |
| #9 Let's hope this is true. I've thought for a while that the Saudis were playing the money markets against us by investing heavily in the EUro. (Now they're playing the OPEC card instead.) They're conflicted: they want to hurt the USA, but then they're greedy enough to realize that the EUro is no better than Monopoly money and that if they want some profits, they have to go with the dollar. BWAHAHAHAHAHA is right! |
| Posted by: Jen 2004-05-17 10:30:16 PM |
| #8 Hate us, love our dollars. I wonder if any of these loonies have considered what will happen to them if we go down. Or do they even care. We're not going down. But Eurostan sure is. The Saudis are running from the Euro primarily they do not see them as a strong repository for their investments because the Eurostani economies are moribund with regulations and a bloated state welfare system. "I'm not saying it is a certainty, just that it is a strong possibility". He suggests that the euro could be replaced with the old national currencies. And guess who will get the blame if that happens? |
| Posted by: badanov 2004-05-17 10:11:50 PM |
| #7 Via Insty: Friedman: 'Strong possibility' of euro zone collapse Milton Friedman, the Nobel-Prize winning US economist and one of the most influential economists of the 20th Century believes there is a "strong possibility" that the 12 member euro zone could collapse "in the next few years"... |
| Posted by: Old Grouch 2004-05-17 9:36:16 PM |
| #6 Michael - They can't think that far ahead. They're also too stupid to realize that, if we go down, it's Sharia law worldwide in the not-too-distant future. And everyone can be equally poor. Of course, before that happens I think there will be a glass parking lot in Mecca.... |
| Posted by: Barbara Skolaut 2004-05-17 6:09:01 PM |
| #5 Hate us, love our dollars. I wonder if any of these loonies have considered what will happen to them if we go down. Or do they even care. |
| Posted by: Michael 2004-05-17 5:33:45 PM |
| #4 as long as the world buys in dollars the euro's are just blowing smoke and will not create a viable pole. and until the euro's can make concessions within thier own eu this will stay as is, and having the french in the midst we can confidently say this will not happen. we should watch the russians with concern, thier policy is in direct confrontation to us since they are trying to help facicilate a pole to balance the US. i do think Bush is misstaken in his belief we can supplemnet middle eastern oil with middle russian oil. all that would do is solve one problem and create a much more complex problem. just imagine russian nationalist with the money reserves of some of these shieks in the middle east..not a pretty picture. |
| Posted by: Dan 2004-05-17 4:57:46 PM |
| #3 More proof that you can't polish a turd. |
| Posted by: JerseyMike 2004-05-17 3:24:03 PM |
| #2 You mean the Euro isn't worth the paper it's printed on? Where have I heard that before?
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| Posted by: BigEd 2004-05-17 2:39:56 PM |
| #1 I guess the Soddies are looking to get the most bang for their buck. |
| Posted by: BH 2004-05-17 2:20:13 PM |