Italy’s debt alone is greater than the combined debt of Ireland, Greece, Portugal and Spain. Germany cannot pay off the PIIGS’ debt, and the other economies still afloat (namely France, Belgium, Austria, etc.) have their hands full simply trying to feign a solvency that is deteriorating more and more with each passing day. The only way to repay the market (institutional and private investors and speculators) the money owed by Italy and the other PIGS is to print it in the purest banana republic style. (more…)
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These days we are seeing how the moment of truth is slapping Eurozone politicians in the face. The risk premium, i.e. the market's disdain for Italian debt is throwing the country, and therefore the rest of the Eurozone, into bankruptcy. Watching the Italian giant teetering on debt feet worth more than 120% of its vast GDP, Greece's bankruptcy may seem like child's play. 
If I were a Greek and a businessman, it would be clear to me. My business would have a very dark future in the Eurozone with a wildly recessionary economy. With rising taxes aiming at desperate tax collection and consumption collapsing, my sales and chances of survival would be nil. And if my business had the capacity to export, I would also not be able to support it with a euro as expensive as the current one, as my competitiveness would be and will be at rock bottom in a foreign exchange environment that only German productivity will withstand. 
Some predict that this is a crucial week for the future of the Eurozone. These are the days when it will be decided how and in what way the 
‘Preserving in turbulent times’ is not the title of this summer’s soap opera, but rather the pressing need for all those who manage their own wealth. It is also one of the guiding principles for some wealth managers working on behalf of others, though unfortunately the latter tend to be more concerned with retaining their long-suffering clients commercially by reducing their volatility, rather than preserving their assets and ensuring their sound long-term growth. Unfortunately, many managers of other people’s money are more interested in today’s bread (their own) and, in their short-sightedness, ignore tomorrow’s hunger (that of their clients and also their own). This brings us back to the old debate as to whether one should only entrust one’s money to advisers who have built up their own wealth and who co-invest with their clients, or whether any independent broker with sufficient technical training would suffice. But that is a discussion worthy of another article. 
Today we’re bringing you a real gem in the form of an interview. It is none other than the one given by the best fund manager of the first decade of the 21st century, Bruce Berkowitz, to the prestigious financial journalist Consuelo Mack just seven days ago. It is fascinating to read Berkowitz’s arguments and convictions today, right in the midst of the financial storm, when his flagship fund, Fairholme, has lost almost a third of its value since the start of the year. A slump that many see as a sign of his decline as a fund manager, but which some view as a huge opportunity. His interviewer, Mack, is regarded by *Money Magazine* as «the best money TV host», and her programmes attract a huge audience. Enjoy Berkowitz’s reflections whilst the financial world crumbles around us (we’ll be posting the full Spanish translation shortly): 
Yes, but no. This seems to be the direction the EU is taking with its existential doubts. An uncertain course with the pretence of treading water, buying time, hoping that the Eurozone will still be able to breathe, when the sun wants to rise over a horizon that today is still black, very black.