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Economics

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Lady Ursula’s plan for European rearmament is the usual German delaying tactic: each state will put up the money for itself, a little from the EIB, a little from some other fund with a fancy name, and then we’ll see who survives. Of course, even with the separation of military spending from that great idiocy called ‘Stability and Growth Pact’, the heavily indebted states won’t be able to do much more than they’ve been doing. Nobody is talking about serious matters: if we really want Europe to become a credible political subject, we have to start by changing the treaties in a framework that includes the United Kingdom

15 January 2025

China has also caught up with Europe in pharmaceuticals, where we used to boast primacy, and is ready to kick our asses: of the 90 new molecules launched in the year of China’s overtaking, 28 are “made in the US,” 25 come from China, and only 12 from Europe. Today, between 80 and 90 percent of the active ingredients in antibiotics used in Europe come from China. Whereas 25 years ago half of all new treatments were “made in the EU”, today it is only one in five. That is why the Sino-EU dialogue is resuming on cars, but late as usual, it is finally intensifying on pharmaceuticals.

14 January 2025

Yesterday we published an article explaining that one of the causes of the halving of Europe’s influence on the stock markets is the lack of a unified European defense. A message that has now been clarified and reiterated by, among others, the President of the European Council, António Costa, the Vice-President of the European Commission, Stéphane Séjourné, and the MEP and Chair of the Delegation for relations with the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, Salvatore De Meo. This nicely sums up a hypothesis that is beginning to circulate among the palaces in Brussels in order to avoid a trade war with the U.S. and to calm their anger over Germany’s and China’s structural current account surpluses at the expense of the U.S. economy. That is, common European debt for common defense

13 January 2025

In 25 years, Europe’s weight in the stock market has more than halved. One of the reasons: in the absence of a common foreign policy and a common defense, there has been no innovation driven by military spending.

10 December 2024

Ursula and Merz: make us laugh! The two Germans are convinced that they can play Trump cleverly. The first imitates the moves of Junker, who proposed buying more soybeans from the US to distract Trump, and suggests that the EU buy more US LNG to avoid tariffs. The latter lives in a parallel universe and even fantasizes about a trade agreement with the US. Poor Europe is now a continent victimized by itself. And to think that the damage caused by the tariffs could be largely covered by issuing common debt for at least 40 percent of European GDP is unbelievable.

10 December 2024

God willing, they may begin to awaken from their long hibernation. Badger Europe may begin to realize what is taken for granted elsewhere. In some frugal countries, such as Denmark, the need for a common debt is beginning to sink in. And in Germany, the taboo on debt brake reform is beginning to fall. Who knows if Merz will slowly come around. There is no hope for Ferber, for whom austerity is a religion

09 November 2024

SOS Europe, Help! Some Germans are still struggling to open their eyes. And in the hope that Trump won’t do what he says, they are still fantasizing about unrealizable things. Like CDU secretary general Carsten Linnemann, who fantasizes about free trade agreements between Europe and the U.S. instead of thinking about how to strengthen domestic demand. If they continue their obsession with austerity this time, they will not only lead Greece into the abyss, but Germany itself and the whole of Europe. Let us hope that Weber and the true Catholics in the EPP will be able to open the eyes of their compatriots

16 October 2024

The return of austerity? – 2025 will be a decisive year for the Continent’s economy. The usual suspects will have to comply with the new rules: Italy is required to improve its structural primary balance by about 1.08 per cent of GDP per year to meet the new parameters. France and Spain will have to make an annual adjustment of 0.94 and 0.89 per cent of GDP, respectively. Blood and tears again, like ten years ago

01 October 2024

What do we do with the Chinese, tax them on electric cars or not, who knows! Some yes, some no. As usual, there is a nice little theatre going on in the INTA committee of the European Parliament

27 September 2024

While many sectors of German and Frugals’ politics are obsessed with green craziness (like stopping the production of endothermic engines from 2035) and insist on obstructing a common European debt, as opposed to what would be needed to revive a real European industrial policy and stimulate domestic demand, American politics is mapping out its own industrial future at the expense of Europe. Explain that to Lindner, Merz and Ferber that are causing an economic recession and in the end give votes to AfD. Teutonic flexibility is well known, as is the damage it has already repeatedly done to Europe and its unity. ….

19 September 2024

The EPP invites Draghi to present the report on competitiveness in Parliament, pretending to support it. However, they become divided over the issue of common debt, with the hawk Ferber making it clear that it’s not up for discussion. Meanwhile, the Greens also voice their concerns about the backtracking on decarbonization efforts

Tariffs to discourage imports of electric cars from China go into effect today, albeit provisionally. Scholz’s government opposes them in order not to damage the exports of Volkswagen and BMW. It is a game that will make it more difficult for Ursula von der Leyen to become President. The Chinese strategy is to invade the Old Continent through dumping and significantly lower prices. The Germans are producing in China, so Berlin’s cars are likely to suffer the same fate. What the White House does not accept is the maximum transfer of know-how between France, Germany and the Dragon

Germany, Europe’s super-engine, is breaking down – Berlin is flagellating itself over austerity measures that hurt everyone. The ongoing dispute over increased public spending in the federal executive is preventing agreement on the 2025 budget and is emblematic of a Germany that is slowing down to defend the “debt brake”. The same dynamic is repeated in the EU. Germany wants to preserve its hegemonic role by rejecting the common debt, even if only to finance defence spending, as proposed by the European Commission

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