Jamaica is planning its second debt swap in three years in an attempt to reduce the staggering debt which is crippling the government.
The country’s debt is currently 140% of the nation’s gross domestic product. The ratio is one of the highest debt to GDP ratios in the world. The debt swap is being done in an attempt to appease demands of the International Monetary Fund. Continue reading
Venezuelan Vice-President Nicolas Maduro returned from visiting cancer-stricken President Hugo Chavez in Cuba and announced the nation would be devaluing it’s currency against the U.S. dollar by 32 percent.
The move raises the official exchange rate of their currency, the bolivar, from 4.3 to 6.3 for every U.S. dollar. Continue reading
Egypt’s foreign currency reserves took a major hit in January falling 10%.
Egypt’s central bank said that reserves fell $1.4 billion during the month as political unrest and violent protests start to have a major impact on the government’s ability to collect funds. The dip raises significant concerns about the stability of the Muslim Brotherhood-led government. Continue reading
Almost 157,000 jobs were added to the U.S. economy last month while the unemployment rate continued to climb.
The unemployment rate climbed to 7.9% in January, up .1% from the previous month’s total. The data from the Labor Department said that an average of 181,000 jobs were created each month in 2012. However, the data did not break down to say if those were low paying, minimum wage jobs or jobs with livable wages. Continue reading
The latest Markit Purchasing Manager’s Index shows that the manufacturing market contraction that has been plaguing the eurozone is beginning to ease.
The latest level shows 47.9, an increase of 1.8 from December. Still below 50, it shows there is contraction in the manufacturing market, just at a much lesser pace than the previous month. Continue reading
Zimbabwe’s public account for paying government bills hit $217 last week.
Not $217 million. $217.
Payments by the government to civil servants left the entire government so poor that they couldn’t afford to buy an iPhone. Continue reading
Official estimates show the U.S. economy shrinking by .1% in the fourth quarter of 2012, shocking economists who believed they would see growth of at least 1%. It’s the first time the economy has contracted during a quarter since the 2009 global recession. Continue reading
Protesters stormed government offices in Athens breaking doors and overturning chairs as they tried to get to Employment Minister, Yiannis Vroutsis. The minister, who was in the office at the time of the assault, escaped the conflict unharmed.
Police made 33 arrests and used batons to disperse the crowd that managed to surge into the waiting rooms outside the main offices. Continue reading
Catalonia, a region of Spain that has expressed a desire to become an independent country, has asked the Spanish government for a $9 billion euro bailout. The Catalonian regional government said the funds would pay down debt and meet targets for deficit reduction.
The region initially requested a $5 billion bailout in August, 2012.
The bailout request comes as the newly elected Catalonian leaders pledged a referendum on the region’s independence. Continue reading
French politicians have been rushing to the country’s media outlets to rebut a statement made by the country’s Labour Minister that France is “totally bankrupt.”
Labour Minister Michel Sapin replied to a question during a radio interview by saying France “is a state totally in bankruptcy.” He later tried to claim his comments were only made in jest but economists outside the nation believe he could have been revealing information the French government has been trying to suppress. Continue reading
