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Re: Eurozone failure?
Some financial "experts" say it is because the UK's interest rate is lower than the eurozone. UK needs sterling to be low right now. Agree about the housing benefit though, not much incentive to get a low paid job!
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Re: Eurozone failure?
Originally Posted by megmet
(Post 9630313)
Well so far I've survived my local government pension being reduced for life by 23% simply because I dared to retire at sixty instead of sixty five.
We have also seen our joint pensions fall by a large amount due to the falling exchange rate, we've also seen the interest on our savings and investments all but disappear...but we are still doing OK. If push comes to shove and things go really down the pan for us... we would still rather be here in Spain poor than rich in the UK. I know I'm in for more flak for saying that, but it happens to be true!
Originally Posted by megmet
(Post 9630337)
I didn't actually mean I would be rich, though obviously we wouldn't lose out with the exchange rate. I simply mean if I had the choice of being rich there or poor here I would without doubt chose here.
Why would I get flak for that statement....you tell me.:unsure: I can't understand it myself, but some people on this forum think it's wrong to love this country more than the one of your birth. I don't think the Germans or French will allow the grand plan to come unravelled that far, but they must now regret letting in Greece on what everyone said were dodgy figures. But like the executive board of a major company they wanted to go for that further expansion. Any organisation that only grows by acquisition and not organically is not going anywhere. look on the bright side of life, the Greece problem is keeping the Turks out of Europe and the eu - they would be a bigger problem than Greece. |
Re: Eurozone failure?
Originally Posted by jackytoo
(Post 9630468)
Some financial "experts" say it is because the UK's interest rate is lower than the eurozone. UK needs sterling to be low right now. Agree about the housing benefit though, not much incentive to get a low paid job!
countries and people will go where they can get the best interest rate, even if it is for a day or less.Thats why the UBS dealer got caught out. |
Re: Eurozone failure?
Originally Posted by HBG
(Post 9630466)
That's what I'm afraid of. In the past four to five years my Sterling income has gone down by around 30% and the value of my house in Spain has fallen by the same amount. I'm not too bothered about the house value because I bought when Spain still had the Peseta, but, looking around, I probably couldn't sell at any price.
I want to stay, of course I do, but every once in a while I sit down with my calculator and a piece of paper, not rose-coloured. There is a certain point below parity between the pound and the Euro, when the figures no longer work. And there's no point in taking your eyes off the far-away horizon, Spanish unemployment figures and other woes have so far only produced peaceful Indignados, that could change in more desperate times. there is plenty of underground unrest that could easily lead to a "night of the long knives" and\or Powell's "Rivers of Blood". |
Re: Eurozone failure?
Originally Posted by Domino
(Post 9630497)
that could also apply to the uk as well, alot of people agree with much of what BNP and EDL are saying, its just the way they are saying it and their means of delivery that is stopping them from getting more votes.
there is plenty of underground unrest that could easily lead to a "night of the long knives" and\or Powell's "Rivers of Blood". |
Re: Eurozone failure?
Originally Posted by HBG
(Post 9630508)
You miss the point, any extreme national movement goes after the foreigners. and I'm a foreigner in Spain, but I wouldn't be in the UK.
Spain probably has one of the most peace loving populations in the world. 95% of people were against the Iraq war, from the beginning. It will take people dying of hunger for there to be serious violent protests and I dont think that will happen as Spain grows half of Europe's food. If Spain really goes down, then it will be the banks. People will lose the legal rights to their homes, but will continue to live in them. Thats already happening, people who havent paid their mortgage for 3 years still havent been evicted because the banks dont want the properties on their books. What the jobless will do is another matter, but we'll probably see a lot more self-sufficiency and growing off the land that used to happen 50 years ago |
Re: Eurozone failure?
Britain has some big advantages over the likes of Greece and Spain. The main one is that thankfully it is not in the the euro and so is able to manipulate the pound to try to boost the economy via interest rates. Britain can actually devalue the pound which makes borrowing cheaper. Greece and Spain can't do that because they belong to the euro.
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Re: Eurozone failure?
Originally Posted by jackytoo
(Post 9630432)
I wonder how you would feel if you were the one of 60,000 people in malaga who have absolutely no income due to long term unemployment.!
http://www.diariosur.es/v/20110919/m...-20110919.html Tengo un primo que se ha ido a alemania hace unos meses y se queja del frio, de la lluvia, de la falta de sol etc. pero gana 1500€ al mes. |
Re: Eurozone failure?
Originally Posted by megmet
(Post 9630337)
I didn't actually mean I would be rich, though obviously we wouldn't lose out with the exchange rate. I simply mean if I had the choice of being rich there or poor here I would without doubt chose here.
Why would I get flak for that statement....you tell me.:unsure: I can't understand it myself, but some people on this forum think it's wrong to love this country more than the one of your birth. |
Re: Eurozone failure?
Originally Posted by agoreira
(Post 9630601)
Faced with the same dilemma, thousands of Spanish are voting with their feet and leaving Spain, the forums are full of them fed up with no jobs or prospects. I think one of the posts in that article sums it up, someone telling of their cousin that went to Germany to work, complains of the cold, the rain and lack of sun, but he's earning €1,500 a month!
Last time I saw the matter spoken about, the newsreader used the words "thousands of young people are thinking about leaving Spain to help their career prospects". So thousands (not many), thinking about it (not acting). The same kind of language says that "one in three Brits thinking about emigrating to improve their quality of life" The employment situation in Spain for young people is very difficult at the moment, but Spanish young people are pretty conservative and love their mums' cooking and their friends and family. And those that do leave do so with the aim of coming back after they have a few years experience. Almost all the Spanish people I met in London 7 years ago are now back in Spain and with a job here. |
Re: Eurozone failure?
Originally Posted by Perthbum
(Post 9630550)
Britain has some big advantages over the likes of Greece and Spain. The main one is that thankfully it is not in the the euro and so is able to manipulate the pound to try to boost the economy via interest rates. Britain can actually devalue the pound which makes borrowing cheaper. Greece and Spain can't do that because they belong to the euro.
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Re: Eurozone failure?
Originally Posted by cricketman
(Post 9630533)
The last time Spain expelled any foreigners was a very long time ago. Even Franco used the Moroccans to do his dirty work for him in the Civil War.
Spain probably has one of the most peace loving populations in the world. 95% of people were against the Iraq war, from the beginning. It will take people dying of hunger for there to be serious violent protests and I dont think that will happen as Spain grows half of Europe's food. If Spain really goes down, then it will be the banks. People will lose the legal rights to their homes, but will continue to live in them. Thats already happening, people who havent paid their mortgage for 3 years still havent been evicted because the banks dont want the properties on their books. What the jobless will do is another matter, but we'll probably see a lot more self-sufficiency and growing off the land that used to happen 50 years ago When I mentioned in an earlier post that expats could be made to feel uncomfortable by internal Spanish strife, I wasn't referring to them being pelted with stones in the street (tomatoes maybe), but they might feel uncomfortable on witnessing the suffering of their neighbours. I feel terrible when I see people checking the basura bins and even worse when I see perfectly respectable looking people shoplifting in Mercadona, none of that happened before the crisis. My local Spanish cafe serves me with coffee and tostados for three Euros, the locals don't even pay half that and it embarrasses both of us. |
Re: Eurozone failure?
Originally Posted by cricketman
(Post 9630533)
The last time Spain expelled any foreigners was a very long time ago. Even Franco used the Moroccans to do his dirty work for him in the Civil War.
Spain probably has one of the most peace loving populations in the world. 95% of people were against the Iraq war, from the beginning. It will take people dying of hunger for there to be serious violent protests and I dont think that will happen as Spain grows half of Europe's food. If Spain really goes down, then it will be the banks. People will lose the legal rights to their homes, but will continue to live in them. Thats already happening, people who havent paid their mortgage for 3 years still havent been evicted because the banks dont want the properties on their books. What the jobless will do is another matter, but we'll probably see a lot more self-sufficiency and growing off the land that used to happen 50 years ago There are already indications of this taking place: http://www.winesfromspain.com/icex/c...519532,00.html According to the OeMv report, Spain occupied fourth place in the ranking of export countries by value, registering one of the highest growth rates of the first semester of 2011 in contrast to the same period last year. In total, China imported Spanish wine for the value of 276 million CNY (€30 million), representing a 155 per cent increase. In terms of volume, Spain came second on the list of wine suppliers to China, registering 33 million litres, an increase of 192.8 per cent over the first semester of 2010. However, 75 per cent of the 33 million litres corresponded to bulk wine, confirming Spain’s lead in China’s bulk wine imports by volume. Having released on July 15, "Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara" has boosted Spanish tourism from India by 32 percent this year -- especially at its on-shoot locations. Directed by Zoya Akhtar, and starring Hrithik Roshan and Katrina Kaif, the movie -- called "You Only Live Once" in English -- depicts three friends on a bachelor road trip. The scenery includes popular spots in Costa Brava, Valencia and Seville in Spain. "During the first six months of 2011, we have seen a growth of 32 per cent in traffic, and after the release of the movie we are hopeful that we will see further growth," said Madhu Saliankar, market analyst, Spain Tourism in Mumbai. |
Re: Eurozone failure?
Originally Posted by steviedeluxe
(Post 9630642)
The strength of Spain's agricultural sector may prove to be another lifeboat. The world's population is still growing in millions every year, and every person who becomes middle-class in the likes of India or China has a strong possibility of wanting to consume products we take for granted here in the west (good news for Scottish whisky producers too!)
There are already indications of this taking place: http://www.winesfromspain.com/icex/c...519532,00.html http://www.cnngo.com/mumbai/life/ind...#ixzz1YNeSZ3Az I do a lot of work with Chinese clients and their middle class have a big demand for Spanish wine and sherry. Already the Japanese are big consumers of jamon and flamenco. A Galician wine recently won one of the most prestigious wine awards in the USA. It is wine that sells for 99c in Spain and is meant for cooking. It sells for $10 in the USA and even more in restaurants :D This is where Spain has a huge advantage (and something many Brits are ignorant of). Spain has a worldwide image of having fun loving people who live an envious lifestyle of great food and wine, relaxed attitudes and lots of fiestas. The new middle class want to buy into this image, especially those in Asia who dont have historical links to Spain. It's something I really see taking off |
Re: Eurozone failure?
Originally Posted by cricketman
(Post 9630656)
Yes I agree completely
I do a lot of work with Chinese clients and their middle class have a big demand for Spanish wine and sherry. Already the Japanese are big consumers of jamon and flamenco. A Galician wine recently won one of the most prestigious wine awards in the USA. It is wine that sells for 99c in Spain and is meant for cooking. It sells for $10 in the USA and even more in restaurants :D This is where Spain has a huge advantage (and something many Brits are ignorant of). Spain has a worldwide image of having fun loving people who live an envious lifestyle of great food and wine, relaxed attitudes and lots of fiestas. The new middle class want to buy into this image, especially those in Asia who dont have historical links to Spain. It's something I really see taking off http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000...WSJ_GoogleNews That quintessential European villa—with a pool and maybe a lemon tree and a tennis court out back—is getting a lot cheaper. Spain, Portugal, Greece and, to a lesser extent, Italy, all immersed in the European debt crisis, are experiencing second-home property price declines. The countries' housing markets have been battered by escalating debts, recent austerity measures and deep uncertainty in the financial markets. A glut of new homes built in boom times in many popular vacation areas is making matters worse, as rental demand falls and financing requirements become stiffer. As a result, asking prices for second homes have fallen 15% to 30% in recent months. In less fashionable areas, prices for some properties are as much as half off what they were two years ago. ... Historically Americans haven't been big buyers in Europe. Mike Braunholtz, managing director of the Prestige Property Group agency in Britain, says inquiries by Americans over the past few months are up more than a third from the usual level. "These prices are just crazy," he says. "The only question is whether to jump now or wait until the next bailout." |
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