No surprise behind euro zone credit downgrades

I can not understand what has take the rating agencies so long to down grade France from AAA to AA.  The French have been on a ratings time bomb for some time and have probably the greatest exposure to toxic euro debt.

Comments by Standard and Poors focus on the insufficient initiatives taken by policy makers to address the systemic issues.  S&P also note tightening  credit conditions, increased risk premiums and weakening economic growth as contributing factors.

The oulook forAustria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovenia and Spain are all negative indicating a one in three chance of a further ratings down grade in the next 12 to 24 months.

The outlook for Germany and Slovakia are stable S&P stated.

The Fed asleep at the wheel

The New York Times published the following article which clearly shows that in 2006 the Fed Governers had no idea what they were doing and were clearly asleep at the wheel.  Could the whole GFC have been avoided if the US was controlled by sensible and rationale Fed Reserve staff - maybe not as the problem was too systemic.   In recent days Obama has asked for a further rise in the US debt ceiling, a further indication that all is not beer and skittles in the US Government, despite corporate America showing signs of growth and profitability.

The NY Times article can be found using the following link
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/13/business/transcripts-show-an-unfazed-fed-in-2006.html?_r=1

What really caused the eurozone crisis?

This article was first posted on the bbc website (bbc.co.uk) and is an easy to follow summary of the cause of the eurozone crisis of 2011.

World leaders probably spent more time worrying about the eurozone crisis than anything else in 2011.

And that was in the year that featured the Arab Spring, the Japanese tsunami and the death of Osama Bin Laden. What's more, 2012 looks set to be not much different. But as eurozone governments hammer out new rules to limit their borrowing, are they missing the point of the crisis?

to read the full article click on the link below
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-16290598

The Fed to publish predictions

The Federal Reserve will begin later this month to publish the predictions of its senior officials about their own decisions, hoping to increase its influence over economic activity by guiding investor expectations.

To read the full article from the New York Times use the link below.
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/04/business/economy/fed-to-start-publicly-forecasting-its-rate-actions.html?_r=1