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Walter Münchau shows why Greece needs very substantial growth rates not to default:
EuroIntelligence: Why Greece will default, by Wolfgang Münchau, April 1, 2010
So, does last week’s agreement mean an end of the Greek crisis, as some of the optimists claim? Let us start with some simple back of the envelope analysis of Greek debt sustainability. This will show that default - under any realistic political and social assumptions - must now be the most probable outcome.
Greece currently has a primary deficit (before interest payments) of 7.9%. On the assumption of 2% nominal growth during the adjustment period, a marginal interest rate of 6% on future debt, the primary balance Greece needs to achieve debt sustainability is a surplus of almost 5%. read more