From Ring of Fire

Ever since the left-wing, anti-austerity Syriza party in Greece took control of the country, Greek leaders have been putting up a fight for its economy, reported Democracy Now. Greek financial leaders will continue trying to get their country out of the eurozone in order to keep their economy from completely bottoming-out.

Greece’s problems really didn’t go full tilt until Wall Street banks got involved. One of the main culprits is Goldman Sachs, which enabled Greece to hide their debts. The bank charged them $300 million for the operation, a veritable payday for the massive bank. This transaction goes all the way back to 2001, the year that Greece became part of Europe’s monetary union.

The New York Times reported in 2010 that “Wall Street tactics akin to the ones that fostered subprime mortgages in America have worsened the financial crisis shaking Greece.” Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, and many others contributed to the growing Greek debt crisis.

Their tactic? Take advantage of an entity while its down and use the desperation of another country to line Wall Street’s pockets. The banks took interest into a high risk client, and, driven by greed, they intensified an already existing problem. Did the banks care? No. They just cared about what’s profitable.

“Politicians want to pass the ball forward, and if a banker can show them a way to pass a problem to the future, they will fall for it,” said economist Gikas Hardouvelis.

The banks worsened the problem so much that the European Union called for an investigation into Goldman Sachs and the other banks involved.

“It appears that Goldman Sachs have colluded with past Greek governments to reduce the appearance of Greece’s debt for short-term gain, while in reality making it worse than ever,” said Arlene McCarthy, vice-president of the European parliament’s economic and monetary affairs committee. “These deals have increased costs for Greek taxpayers and left a mess behind for Greece’s citizens and the eurozone.”

Today, this problem has compounded over the years and with the threat of austerity, Greece has been backed into a corner.

When Greek financial minister, Yaris Varoufakis, introduced a compromise proposal to German finance minister, Wolfgang Schauble, the proposal was swiftly rejected. A union of 19 eurozone finance ministers will meet again today in Brussels in an attempt “to resolve a standoff that has sent jitters across the continent at the prospect of a messy Greek exit from the single currency.”

Greek’s €240 billion bailout expires in exactly one week. However, austerity measures attached to the bailout are making it difficult for the country to break out and abandon the euro. Because Greece is “locked out” of international lending markets, the country could go completely broke next month if no deal is reached, reported The Guardian.

“We are working so that Greece stays in the eurozone,” said Germany’s commissioner to the European Union, Guenther Oettinger. “On this basis I think an agreement will still be possible in the next eight days – if necessary via a further meeting of government leaders.”

Austerity measures and past deals with banks have Greece in the pressure cooker. If no deal is reached, Greece’s economy will tank, only accentuating the actions of Wall Street banks that sent the Greek economy from a stall into an outright tailspin.

For more on this story go to: http://www.ringoffireradio.com/2015/02/greece-goes-to-war-with-the-worlds-most-corrupt-banks-scams-will-be-revealed/

Related story:
Greek deal, dovish Fed push US stocks to new records

AFP From Business Insider

New York (AFP) – A deal to avert a Greek default helped lift US stocks to records in a week that also featured a Walmart wage hike and dovish Federal Reserve meeting minutes.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 121.09 points (0.67 percent) to 18,140.44, finishing the week at a fresh record. The S&P 500 rose 13.31 (0.63 percent) to 2,110.30, also a record.

The biggest gains were in the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index, which put on 62.63 (1.27 percent) to 4,955.97.

Uncertainty about Greece hung over Wall Street all week as officials from Athens and other eurozone countries sparred over conditions of extending the Greek bailout.

Briefing.com analyst Patrick O’Hare said the continued threat of a default depressed trade volume as investors “showed little conviction.”

But US stocks surged late Friday after eurozone ministers agreed to extend Greece’s bailout for four months provided Athens spells out key reform commitments by Monday.

Stocks were further bolstered by Fed minutes suggesting the US central bank would wait longer before raising interest rates.

Many members of the Federal Open Market Committee were more concerned about moving too soon and stifling economic growth, especially given the troubled economies in Europe and Asia, according to minutes from the FOMC’s January 27-28 policy meeting.

“The meeting minutes were surprisingly dovish,” said IHS Global Insight in a note that said the chance of a Fed rate hike as early as June had diminished.

Scott Wren, senior equity strategist at Wells Fargo Advisors, said the Fed minutes confirmed the central bank’s caution in raising rates. At the same time, expectations of tighter monetary policy at some point in 2015 will challenge stocks, he said.

“We are in for a year that’s going to feature more volatility than last year,” Wren said.

The broad market is “pretty much at full value,” Wren said, though technology stocks have “more room to run” than other sectors.

Gregori Volokhine, president of Meeschaert Capital Markets, was also bullish on tech as the Nasdaq edged closer to 5,000.

“The Nasdaq is not too expensive,” Volokhine said. “The companies have delivered on their targets and are not overvalued.”

IMAGE: A deal to avert a Greek default helped lift US stocks to records in a week © Getty/AFP/File Spencer Platt

For more on this story go to: http://www.businessinsider.com/afp-greek-deal-dovish-fed-push-us-stocks-to-new-records-2015-2#ixzz3SOuHZM3J