http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/oct/30/greek-union-tv-stoppage-suspensions
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/oct/30/greece-democracy-hot-doc-lagarde-list
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2012/oct/30/eurozone-crisis-spanish-recession-bailout-greece
Photograph: LOUISA GOULIAMAKI/AFP/Getty Images
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2012-10-30/its-not-just-nyc-valencia-government-also-blacked-out-not-paying-bill
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 10/30/2012 18:35 -0400
and......
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2012-10-30/greek-ruling-coalition-collapses-days-ahead-critical-vote
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 10/30/2012 11:28 -0400
and items from Greece.....
http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_wsite1_1_30/10/2012_467919
and.....
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/debt-crisis-live/9641480/Debt-crisis-Spanish-recession-deepens-live.html
We call on the government to do its best, make use of the national forces, to seek the best possible result of this crucial eurogroup meeting.
Samaras's office said the negotiations with the troika have been concluded "successfully" and that "significant improvements were made".
What would happen if the deal isn't passed and the country is led into chaos? Such dangers must be avoided. That is the responsibility of each party and every lawmaker individually.
We still want a comprehensive solution in the month of November to put an end to the uncertainty [in the eurozone] and we will do everything in our power to succeed.
We will do everything France and Germany can to restore lasting confidence in the common European currency.
Taking into account that the bond-buying programme will have a major effect on Spain ... it would be very interesting to have Mr. Draghi, as the euro zone's top monetary authority, meet with representatives of political parties in the lower house, to exchange opinions and ideas about European Central Bank policy, and in particular, the said programme.
Proposed legislation listed on parliament's website would grant permanent residency and ultimately Hungarian citizenship to outsiders who buy at least €250,000 worth of special government bonds.
Our problem is not just budgetary. There is a consensus in the country that we need to have a general reform of the state if we want to solve the crisis.
It looks OK, they've done what they wanted to do. Yield level looks OK on the 10-year... It's still quite a reasonable level relative to where we closed yesterday and where it's been trading during the day even. So it looks good.
It's a very strong auction, they've issued at the upper end of the target and the bid/cover is better than last time and in line with averages. But, that's not surprising given the concessions over the last few days and the upcoming coupon repayments on Thursday.
Markets are taking the heightened political risk in Italy in their stride. For the time being, Mr Berlusconi's tirades against the Monti government are seen as little more than background noise. Today's auction of longer-dated paper was an important test of the new-found resilience of Italy's bond market. The Treasury will be pleased that it hit the top end of its target range and that borrowing costs fell further, with a pre-crisis sub-5% yield on the 10-year note. This was a well-received sale at a sensitive time for Italy.
Employment expectations in the manufacturing sector have entered negative territory, most open vacancies are temporary jobs and several companies have reintroduced short-time work schemes. The official vacancy index for the entire economy dropped to 160, from 161 in September. This was the fourth decline within five months and another sign of a cooling labour market.
Up to now, the euro crisis and the slowdown of the global economy have only affected the export sector but hardly the domestic economy. Companies operating in domestic sectors, as eg the construction sector and health services, still have a strong demand for labour. The lack of qualified workers and employees continues to be a pressing issue in some sectors, indicating that the labour market could enter a two-speeded period.
Greek union brings TV stoppage after suspensions of 'critical' presenters
Warnings of 24-hour strikes at state broadcaster ERT as lobbyists highlight 'attack on democracy and press freedom'
Email
Greek Communist party members in Athens, during a general strike held this September. Photograph: Dimitri Messinis/AP
A work stoppage at Greek state television interrupted broadcasts on Tuesday morning as the conflict between the government and the press about the reporting of the economic crisis spilled on to the screen.
Instead of a chat show at 6am, viewers saw only an announcement by the journalists' union about the action. The stoppage was called over the suspension of the show's two presenters for remarks seen as critical of a minister by the management at the state broadcaster, ERT.
The union warned that if the suspension was not rescinded immediately "employees will proceed with continuous 24-hour strikes and other actions to preserve the prestige of ERT … which the management is undermining".
The tension between government and journalists has been raised by the fast-track prosecution of a magazine editor for publishing a "rich-list" of 2,000 Greeks with Swiss bank accounts, whom the finance ministry has so far failed to investigate.
The editor, Kostas Vaxevanis, was arrested on Sunday and put on trial on Monday, in a highly unusual course of events in Greece's normally slow moving judiciary. He wrote on the Guardian's website on Tuesday: "In Ancient Greek mythology, justice is presented as blind. In modern Greece, it is merely winking and nodding."
He said the leaked Swiss bank account list was highly revealing. "Publishers, businessmen, shipowners, the entire system of power is shown to have transferred money abroad. And this is information from only one bank. Meanwhile in Greece people are going through dumpsters for food," he wrote.
and....
Greece gave birth to democracy. Now it has been cast out by a powerful elite
The case against me and my magazine, Hot Doc, for publishing a list of alleged tax evaders is a symptom of Greece's corruption
'The then minister of finance, George Papaconstantinou, was handed a list of Greeks who held bank accounts abroad. This list was never investigated.' Photograph: John Kolesidis/Reuters/Corbis
"The more laws a country has, the more corrupt it is," the Roman historian Tacitus used to say. Greece has quite a few laws. So many, in fact, that corruption can feel quite safe. An exclusive club of powerful people engages in illegal practices, then pushes through necessary laws to legalise these practices, granting itself an amnesty, and in the end, there are no media to uncover what really happened.
As I write, the adventures of an independent magazine in Greece, Hot Doc, which I edit, are being discussed worldwide. Our publication of a list of alleged Swiss bank account holders, and my subsequent arrest, has provoked a storm. But not in the Greek media. A few months ago, Reuters and the British press uncovered scandals involving Greek banks. The Greek media didn't write anything then either. The space that should have been granted to reports about these scandals was occupied by paid advertisements sponsored by the very people who caused the Greek banks to go under.
The "Lagarde" case in Greece is merely an extreme expression of this situation. In 2010, Lagarde handed to the then minister of finance, George Papaconstantinou, a list of Greeks who held bank accounts abroad. Some of this was "black money" – money that may not have been taxed or needed to be laundered. In a convuloted train of events, Papaconstinou admitted to losing the original data, but was able to pass another copy to his successor Evangelos Venizelos, who eventually admitted to having held it but has failed to produce it so far. The list has still never been properly investigated.
For the past two years, the issue of naming people who are assumed to hold bank accounts in Switzerland has poisoned political life in Greece, with political and financial blackmail taking place in the dark rooms of corrupt power. It's in this context that Hot Doc published 2,059 names of Greeks alleged to have Swiss bank accounts, without specifying the amount of their deposits or any other personal information.
And then, with utmost hypocrisy the powers that be remembered what they were about. The Athens prosecutor made a move ex officio and ordered my immediate arrest. The law on personal data was invoked as a basis for indictment. In reality, though, there was no personal data involved – only the fact that certain individuals held an account in a certain bank. We did not even allege that these individuals were guilty, only called for an investigation.
Dealings with banks are carried out in public, not in secrecy. The existence of a bank account is therefore not personal data. Personal data would be the amount and type of transactions. In Greece, banks send envelopes with their logos, in which they enclose transaction details; in other words, they declare their relationship with customers. Nevertheless, the publication of a plain list of names and a demand to investigate was defined as exposing personal data.
In Ancient Greek mythology, justice is presented as blind. In modern Greece, it is merely winking and nodding. A study of the Lagarde list is highly revealing. Publishers, businessmen, shipowners, the entire system of power is shown to have transferred money abroad. And this is information from only one bank. Meanwhile in Greece, people are going through dumpsters for food.
The crisis in Greece wasn't caused by everyone. And not everyone is paying for the crisis. The exclusive, corrupt club of power tries to save itself by pretending to make efforts to save Greece. In reality, it is exacerbating Greece's contradictions, while Greece is teetering on the edge of a cliff.
If in the Bible, sinners "strain out the gnat and swallow the camel", in Greece the sinful powers that be strain out pensions and swallow lists – in order, of course, to make them disappear. These are the lists of their friends, acquaintances, favourites and mess mates.
In the country that, as we like to remind ourselves, gave birth to democracy, democracy has become a strange new breed. Those in charge make sure that the right to vote come across as democracy, while negating democracy in the way they abuse the rights voters give them. And justice remains in thrall to politics.
and......
Protests in Athens
While Greek politicians spat, current and retired bank workers have been holding a rally in Athens. They are protesting against cuts to their pensions , which are part of the €13.5bn austerity package which has apparently been agreed with the Troika (according to prime minister Samaras, anyway).
Here are a couple of photos from the scene earlier this evening:
Photograph: LOUISA GOULIAMAKI/AFP/Getty Images
Updated
Venizelos criticising Samaras as coalition creaks
The situation in Greece is looking pretty worrying tonight.
Greek socialist leader Evangelos Venizelos has been making alarming statements describing Greek Prime minister's Antonis Samaras' post-deal speech today (see 13.14) as "unfortunate."
Our correspondent Helena Smith reports:
Venizelos is insisting that the "negotiations are continuing" and has told his own parliamentary group that Samaras has spoken out of hand "and undermined" Greece's negotiating stance.The conservative-led coalition is clearly under immense strain with its very cohesion now at risk....
Venizelos's Pasok party is a junior member of Samaras's coalition, but with more MPs than Democratic Left (which is vowing to oppose some of the austerity package - see 13.34)
Updated
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2012-10-30/its-not-just-nyc-valencia-government-also-blacked-out-not-paying-bill
It's Not Just NYC; Valencia Government Also Blacked Out (For Not Paying Bill)
While much of New York City and Westchester remain 'dark' thanks to Sandy; it seems across the pond, the government of Valencia has gone dark due to stupidity. AsEl Economista reports, several departments of the Generalitat Valenciana have remained without power Tuesday after a power cut ordered by Gas Natural Fenosa, trading company that supplies electricity to the regional administration. The reason, well it's not clear, but reading between the lines of the comments of one politician "disastrous [government] policy has left the box empty so there's no point to pay for electricity," suggests a combination of lack of funding and a need to 'bite one's own nose off to spite the face'. The 'incomprehensible and inconceivable' temporary cessation of power has apparently been restored - after the government 'satisfied payments to the company'.Perhaps this anecdotal snafu explains why Spanish bonds have been bleeding higher in yield when all we hear from talking heads is that all is well - and deficits will be better next year.
Several departments of the Generalitat Valenciana have remained without power Tuesday after a power cut ordered by Gas Natural Fenosa, trading company that supplies electricity to the regional administration, "according to internal procedures developed under the Procurement Act Public Administration, "according to a statement from the company, which needs no further detail about the reason for the decisionThe outage, Gas Natural Fenosa ordered and executed by the distributor, Iberdrola, has occurred around noon in units of the Departments of Agriculture and Justice and Social Welfare and the Valencia Library , all in the city of Valencia .
In the afternoon, Gas Natural Fenosa has explained in the statement that, once "resolved" the situation, which has been "in constant contact" with the regional administration, Iberdrola has asked you reset it .
Sources familiar with the situation have pointed to Europa Press that the decision was a result of the default of the Consell , but has not been encrypted much is your debt to Gas Natural Fenosa.
Gas Natural Fenosa has limited the court to "a few non-essential points of the Government", and has stated that it has been a "temporary cessation" of supply . The company says it has taken the decision to ask the outage Iberdrola "according to internal procedures prepared under the Procurement Law Public Administration" and adds that, having resolved the situation, is proceeding to ask distributor to service recovery.
As confirmed from the Generalitat, the units have run out of light have been the headquarters of Agriculture, Social Welfare and the Valencian Library, located in the Monastery of San Miguel de los Reyes, but did not specify the reasons for the suspension of Service.
In the case of the cultural institution, administration sources have pointed to Europa Press that has a backup generator to keep the storage conditions of the incunabula, able to provide service for a day and a half.
In Health no cut
The deputy Corts EUPV in Marina Albiol, in a statement, had alerted midmorning "threats" of power outages in the Department of Health andlamented that "the disastrous policy" PP "has left the empty box to the having no point to pay for electricity. "
In this case, sources consulted by Europa Press has explained that a senior member of this administration had asked officials to turn off the computer because it was proceeding to a power outage and have ensured that Iberdrola technicians have tried to access the site of the Department, but have not been allowed access . Sources of the Government have denied that these units have been affected by the cuts.
Library Service to Valencia was restored in the morning while the Government was confident that throughout the day is one hundred percent to remedy the supply in the other units. Sources have confirmed past Consell 17.00 he had recovered the service.
"Incomprehensible and inconceivable"
The Regional Minister of Finance and Public Administration, José Manuel Vela, said through a statement that "the power cuts made ??today by Gas Natural Fenosa (GNF) in some departments of the Generalitat are incomprehensible and inconceivable."
The councilor pointed out that the Government has made ??payments of amounts accrued GNF to December 31, 2011 during the month of July, through the Provider Payment Plan.
It has also indicated that "during the months of September and October, as planned, the Government has satisfied the additional payments to the company."
"Do not know the reason for thismeasure absolutely excessiveand GNF expect the Valencian Apologize , offer a coherent explanation for the Generalitat and reconsider the irreparable damage caused picture today, "said the minister.Finally, Vela has indicated that the "Consell regrets this unjust action and expected to respond to mere trade policy reasons and not to other interests now know. "
and......
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2012-10-30/greek-ruling-coalition-collapses-days-ahead-critical-vote
Greek Ruling Coalition Collapses Days Ahead Of Critical Vote
If one is curious why the EURUSD has been ramping as if no one will ever sell one more euro ever again, the reason is simple: the BIS is desperate to mask the fact that the fragile Greek coalition, whose creation sent Europe to the edge back in June during the Greek re-elections that just barely avoided a Grexit, has just crumbled. And with an illiquid market, the reflexive argument always is a simple one: if someone is buying, the news must be good, so dear momo-chasers - buy along. Only the news isn't good, and in a centrally-planned world, the only buyer left are central banks, who are now solely political, and not market, forces. What the news really is, is that with Greece poised to vote on critical labor reforms (read more layoffs) next week, which must be passed in Parliament with a majority vote in order to get the next Troika bailout tranche, the Samaras-led coalition just lost one of its three members, after the Democratic Left announced it would take its 16 votes and vote against any further austerity. In doing so it has effectively joined Syriza and any other anti-bailout powers, and has made certain that yet another Greek election is imminent, one which will finally see the rise of the "anti-memorandum" forces on top, and finally launch the 3 year overdue departure of the Greek ferryboat from the monetary landmass, with even more dire consequences for the USS EURtanic.
From Reuters:
A Greek coalition partner confirmed on Tuesday it would vote against labour reforms proposed by foreign lenders,ignoring the prime minister's appeal for a united front to push through more unpopular austerity.The Democratic Left party's refusal to back the reforms leaves the government facing an unpredictable vote when they are presented in parliament next week, making it the fragile coalition's biggest test since taking power in June."The Democratic Left has fought on the issue of labour relations, to protect workers' rights which have been already weakened," the party said in statement.
"It does not agree with the result of the negotiations. The Democratic Left sticks to its position."A party official, Dimitris Hatzisokratis, told Reuters the party would not vote in favour of the labour reforms.a
Meanwhile, the current (if not for much longer) PM Samaras, resorted to the usual trite and overused threats of global destruction if anyone dares to vote against the will of Europe:
"What would happen if the deal isn't passed and the country is led to chaos?" Samaras said in a statement. "Such dangers must be avoided. That is the responsibility of each party and every lawmaker individually
Sadly for him, nobody buys the MAD argument any more, and especially not Greece, where one can't hit more rock bottom if one already is at rock bottom.
The only good news is that the Democratic Left can't alone scuttle the majority needed for the vote to pass. It can, however, show that the coalition government has now collapsed, and get more defectors to join them across the aisle, in hopes of being on the right side during the next parliamentary elections which now appear to be imminent.
The Democratic Left party has the support of 16 deputies in the 300-seat parliament. The government -- which has a 176-seat majority - could pass the reforms without its support.But a vote against the package by the party would undermine the already fragile coalition and could encourage other lawmakers to defect and vote against unpopular measures, leaving the outcome uncertain till the end.Already some lawmakers from the other junior partner in the coalition, the Socialist PASOK, have threatened to vote against the measures, though the party's leader has hinted the group will vote in their favour to ensure stability in Greece.
Expect all this and much more to be once again in the daily headline rotation, but not before the US presidential election: can't rock the boat before that. Cause Tim Geithner said so. After that, pardon the phrase, the deluge (only this time in Europe).
and items from Greece.....
PM says negotiations with troika are over
The office of Prime Minister Antonis Samaras on Tuesday afternoon issued a statement saying that negotiations with Greece's creditors are over and a deal has been reached with inspectors from the International Monetary Fund, the European Commission and the European Central Bank -- known as the troika -- over the country's fiscal adjustment program.
Samaras's office said the negotiations with the troika have been concluded «successfully» and that «significant improvements were made."
"Today we concluded negotiations over the measures and the budget,» the statement read. «We did everything we could. We exhausted all the limits of pressure and time. We achieved significant improvements even in the final hour."
The draft budget for 2013 is due to go before Parliament on Wednesday, while the Eurogroup of eurozone finance ministers will be holding a teleconference on the same day to decide on the disbursement of a 31.5 billion-euro tranche of bailout funding for Greece as the Euro Working Group entered a second day of talks in Brussels on Tuesday over Greece.
"Provided that the deal is approved and the budget is voted through, Greece will remain in the euro,» Samaras's announcement said.
Samaras aides and key ministers have been ratcheting up their efforts to win round officials from junior coalition partner Democratic Left, which continues to object to proposed changes to labor laws and the abolition of social benefits for families. Some lawmakers in socialist PASOK also harbor objections to the measures.
Samaras’s aim has been to win round Democratic Left so that Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras could present his eurozone counterparts on Wednesday with a deal on a 13.5-billion-euro austerity package and on a package of structural reforms that include the controversial labor laws.
"The problem from this point on is not this or that measure,» Samaras's statement said. «The problem is the exact opposite: what would happen if the deal is not ratified and the country is led to chaos, and how much more painful such a development would be for the Greek people; from an economic standpoint and -- more importantly -- from a political standpoint. These dangers must be averted, and this is now the responsibility of all the parties and each individual deputy."
http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_wsite2_1_30/10/2012_467986
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http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_wsite1_1_30/10/2012_467919
FinMin says austerity package will go to Parliament next week
Greek Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras said that an austerity package that will determine whether Greece receives a 31.5-billion-euro tranche of bailout funding from its international creditors will go before Parliament for ratification next week.
Speaking after a meeting with Prime Minister Antonis Samaras, Stournaras refuted rumors that labor reforms will be included in a separate bill to other fiscal and structural measures, saying «everything will go together [to Parliament] next week; there is no other way I think."
Meanwhile, speaking at a meeting with PASOK's parliamentary committee, coalition partner Evangelos Venizelos urged the members of his party to approve the package.
"The package will be judged in its entirety and must be approved and implemented so that the climate can turn around, the tranche can be disbursed, the markets can have a positive reaction and we see some light."
The government's third coalition partner, Democratic Left, was also meeting on Tuesday to discuss its stance toward the fiscal adjustment program and whether it will continue to insist on blocking reforms that pertain to the labor market.
http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_wsite2_1_29/10/2012_467823
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and.....
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/debt-crisis-live/9641480/Debt-crisis-Spanish-recession-deepens-live.html
16.59 Greece has lowered the target for the amount of money it hopes to raise from asset sales. The chairman of Greece's privatisation agency said the country hopes to raise about €11bn by the end of 2016. It had been expecting to raise around €19bn by the end of 2015.
15.26 Greece's Socialist party has criticised Antonis Samaras for saying talks on austerity had concluded and urged him to seek further concessions from international lenders ahead of a meeting of eurozone finance ministers on November 12. Pasok party chief Evangelos Venizelos said:
We call on the government to do its best, make use of the national forces, to seek the best possible result of this crucial eurogroup meeting.
15.04 A little detail on what happens now in Greece. After Antonis Samaras agreed a new wave of austerity measures with international creditors, Greece's 2013 budget wil be tabled in Parliament tomorrow. Sources have told AFP that a vote on the first part of austerity measures involving privatisation will also be held during the day.
Earlier this month, a draft of Greece's budget for next year showed the country will make more cuts to public sector pay, pensions and welfare benefits.
14.11 Ekathimerini, the Greek news site, has this take on Samaras' agreement with the Troika:
Samaras's office said the negotiations with the troika have been concluded "successfully" and that "significant improvements were made".
"Today we concluded negotiations over the measures and the budget," the statement read. "We did everything we could. We exhausted all the limits of pressure and time. We achieved significant improvements even in the final hour."
The draft budget for 2013 is due to go before Parliament on Wednesday, while the Eurogroup of eurozone finance ministers will be holding a teleconference on the same day to decide on the disbursement of a €31.5bn tranche of bailout funding for Greece as the Euro Working Group entered a second day of talks in Brussels on Tuesday over Greece.
"Provided that the deal is approved and the budget is voted through, Greece will remain in the euro," Samaras's announcement said.
Ekathimerini continues that Samaras' aides and ministers have been stepping up efforts to win round officials from junior coalition partner, Democratic Left, which continues to object to proposed changes to labor laws and the abolition of social benefits for families.
Samaras’s aim has been to win round Democratic Left so that Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras could present his eurozone counterparts on Wednesday with a deal on a €13.5bn austerity package and on a package of structural reforms that include the controversial labor laws.
The site cites Samaras saying:
The problem from this point on is not this or that measure. The problem is the exact opposite: what would happen if the deal is not ratified and the country is led to chaos, and how much more painful such a development would be for the Greek people; from an economic standpoint and - more importantly - from a political standpoint. These dangers must be averted, and this is now the responsibility of all the parties and each individual deputy.
13.48 Ekathimerini tweets that Syrzia, the main opposition party in Greece, is also opposed to the measures:
13.45 Antonis Samaras said in a statement that: "Today we concluded the negotiation on the measures and the budget. If this deal is approved and the budget is voted, Greece will stay in the euro and exit the crisis."
Here's what a couple of observers on Twitter made of his deal with the troika:
13.36 Not everyone is happy with the measures Antonis Samaras has agreed with the troika. Greece's Democratic Left said it maintained its opposition to labour reforms proposed by the international lenders, confirming it would vote against them in parliament.
13.31 Greece has concluded its negotiations with international creditors over a clutch of austerity measures necessary to unlock the next slice of the country's aid. Antonis Samaras, the country's prime minister, appealed to coalition partners to approve the measures. He said:
What would happen if the deal isn't passed and the country is led into chaos? Such dangers must be avoided. That is the responsibility of each party and every lawmaker individually.
12.35 France and Germany's finance ministers have pledged to do everything possible to ensure a Greek rescue plan can be sealed next month. The pair had attended a conference in Berlin called 'Europe Beyond the Crisis' (a concept that is difficult to envisage right now...) and then held talks on the sidelines. After that chinwag, they were asked about the delay to paying the next tranche of Greece's aid and France's Pierre Moscovici said:
We still want a comprehensive solution in the month of November to put an end to the uncertainty [in the eurozone] and we will do everything in our power to succeed.
Germany's Wolfgang Schaeuble added:
We will do everything France and Germany can to restore lasting confidence in the common European currency.
12.12 Mario Draghi could soon be making a trip to Madrid. Spain's parliament is set to invite the European Central Bank chief to discuss his bond-buying programme. Although Spain is struggling with recession, the country's prime minister has so far refrained from seeking the precautionary credit line from the eurozone that would trigger the bond-buying scheme and curb the country's borrowing costs.
Mariano Rajoy, Spain's prime minister, has said he wants to know more about the conditions for aid and the mechanics of the bond-buying programme. Now, it seems that Draghi might have the chance to explain his scheme to Spanish politicians.
A spokeswoman for Spain's lower house said that all major parties had agreed on sending an invitation to Draghi. A letter sent by the opposition Socialist party to Jesus Posada, of the conservative ruling People's Party, read:
Taking into account that the bond-buying programme will have a major effect on Spain ... it would be very interesting to have Mr. Draghi, as the euro zone's top monetary authority, meet with representatives of political parties in the lower house, to exchange opinions and ideas about European Central Bank policy, and in particular, the said programme.
11.57 Well, this is one way to prop up your economy. Reuters reports that politicians in indebted Hungary are waving the prospect of a passport at well-heeled foreign investors. Reuters writes:
Proposed legislation listed on parliament's website would grant permanent residency and ultimately Hungarian citizenship to outsiders who buy at least €250,000 worth of special government bonds.
Hungarian passport holders are entitled to live and work throughout the European Union.
The move, backed by the ruling government party, is designed to attract new investors, especially from China.
Hungary has billions of euros worth of foreign currency debt maturing in the next few years and has explored a variety of ways to refinance.
Its plans include selling euro-denominated bonds to domestic buyers and trying to attract major new investors from Asia. Selling debt in western bond markets would happen only after tricky talks with international lenders wrap up, the government has said.
11.23 Portugal's prime minister has urged the main opposition party to collaborate in implementing reforms to heal the country's economy.
He said the country will only overcome its crisis by adding a profound reform of the state to current budget cuts and called on the main opposition party, employers and labour unions to collaborate. Pedro Passos Coelho said:
Our problem is not just budgetary. There is a consensus in the country that we need to have a general reform of the state if we want to solve the crisis.
Earlier this month, Portugal presented a tough budget, under which the average rate of income tax would rise from 9.8pc this year to 13.2pc next year. Parliament votes on the 2013 budget bill in a first reading on October 31.
10.43 Italy's five- and 10-year borrowing costs fell to their lowest level since May last year at that auction and here's what a few market-watchers had to say about the results:
Elizabeth Afseth, fixed income analyst at Investec:
It looks OK, they've done what they wanted to do. Yield level looks OK on the 10-year... It's still quite a reasonable level relative to where we closed yesterday and where it's been trading during the day even. So it looks good.
Yes, there is political uncertainty in Italy and I think it will play a role going forward but there is also the realisation that the situation is fairly serious and might have to be dealt with rather than playing internal politics too much... I think that [former Prime Minister Silvio] Berlusconi has been marginalised to some extent, so that's having less of an effect on the market.
Artis Frankovics, rate strategist at Nomura:
It's a very strong auction, they've issued at the upper end of the target and the bid/cover is better than last time and in line with averages. But, that's not surprising given the concessions over the last few days and the upcoming coupon repayments on Thursday.
Nicholas Spiro at Spiro Sovereign Strategy:
Markets are taking the heightened political risk in Italy in their stride. For the time being, Mr Berlusconi's tirades against the Monti government are seen as little more than background noise. Today's auction of longer-dated paper was an important test of the new-found resilience of Italy's bond market. The Treasury will be pleased that it hit the top end of its target range and that borrowing costs fell further, with a pre-crisis sub-5% yield on the 10-year note. This was a well-received sale at a sensitive time for Italy.
10.37 Italy has got its bond auction away, and at lower borrowing costs. The treasury placed the maximum targeted amount of €4bn of its bond maturing in November 2017. Borrowing costs for the five-year paper came in at 3.8pc, down from 4.09pc at a similar sale a month ago.
Rome also sold €3bn of a 10-year bond at a yield of 4.92pc, down from 5.24pc on a month ago.
10.26 Commenting on the German unemployment figures (see 09.30), Carsten Brzeski at ING said that looking ahead, it is doubtful whether private consumption can take over the baton as the main growth driver for the German economy.
Employment expectations in the manufacturing sector have entered negative territory, most open vacancies are temporary jobs and several companies have reintroduced short-time work schemes. The official vacancy index for the entire economy dropped to 160, from 161 in September. This was the fourth decline within five months and another sign of a cooling labour market.
But, he added that the this is not a "general cooling" in the labour market:
Up to now, the euro crisis and the slowdown of the global economy have only affected the export sector but hardly the domestic economy. Companies operating in domestic sectors, as eg the construction sector and health services, still have a strong demand for labour. The lack of qualified workers and employees continues to be a pressing issue in some sectors, indicating that the labour market could enter a two-speeded period.
Today’s numbers provide further evidence that the labour market is gradually losing steam, indicating the cushioning impact on the economy should peter out in the coming months. However, the lack of qualified employees and still strong labour demand in domestic sectors should make the current slowdown a very gentle one.
10.10 Economic sentiment across the eurozone has fallen, but the slide is - at least - smaller than expected. The European Commission's monthly business and consumer survey showed the economic sentiment indicator for the 17 countries in the bloc fell to 84.5 points this month from a revised 85.2 points in September.
Economists polled by Reuters had expected a decline to 84.0 points from the previously reported 85 points.
There were small improvements in optimism among consumers and in the retail sector, which helped limit the downward pull from industry, services and construction.
The Commission said consumer sentiment inched up to -25.7 from -25.9, marginally less than expected by forecasters, and retail sector optimism rose to -17.4 from -18.5.
But sentiment in industry declined to -18 from -15.9 against expectations of a fall to -17.0 and in services fell to -12.1 from -11.9, less than the expected decline to -12.5.
09.00 Mariano Rajoy has taken steps such as increasing taxes to try to balance Spain's books. But, this has pushed up inflation. In the year to October, consumer prices rose 3.5pc as a sharp rise in the sales tax boosted prices, official data showed this morning. In September, the top level of VAT was raised to 21pc from 18pc.
08.48 Spain's economy might have shrunk again in the most recent quarter, but at least the squeeze wasn't quite as bad as economists had expected. The Bank of Spain had expected that the economy would contract by 0.4pc; in fact, the economy contracted by 0.3pc.
08.41 Another headache for Mariano Rajoy, the Spanish prime minister, this morning. Data from Spain's National Statistics Institute shows that the country's economy contracted for a fifth straight quarter during July to September. Gross domestic product declined 0.3pc in the three months and 1.6pc from a year earlier. The chart below - in Spanish - shows how Spain's GDP has fared over the last five years.
The deepening of Spain’s five-year slump, which is prompting record loan defaults at the nation’s banks and job cuts at companies, adds to pressure on Rajoy as he resists requesting international aid. Yesterday,Rajoy ruled out an immediate request for help. "It's not essential at this moment," Rajoy said at a press conference with Italian counterpart Mario Monti. "I will do it when I think it is in Spain's best interests."
08.300 Good morning and welcome to Debt Crisis Live.
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