Why is the yield falling sharply in Greek debt today - can't be because poor Greeks now will get the opportunity to buy expired food ? France facing revolt from businesses - Hollande has lost confidence in record speed , Spain seek a sovereign bailout in November and if so , will that bailout be part of a package deal including Cyprus and Greece ? Risk on , risk off , at the end of the deal what is real anymore ? Political results in Lithuania ( austerity government out ) and Belgium ( Socialist voted out in Northern Belgium )

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financialcrisis/9610717/French-business-erupts-in-fury-against-disastrous-Hollande.html

By Ambrose Evans-Pritchard

9:52PM BST 15 Oct 2012

63 Comments

“The situation is very serious. Some business leaders are in a state of quasi-panic,” said Laurence Parisot, head of employers’ group MEDEF.

“The pace of bankruptcies has accelerated over the summer. We are seeing a general loss of confidence by investors. Large foreign investors are shunning France altogether. It’s becoming really dramatic.”

MEDEF, France’s equivalent of the CBI, said the threat has risen from “a storm warning to a hurricane warning”, adding that the Socialist government of François Hollande has yet to understand the “extreme gravity” of the crisis.

The immediate bone of contention is Article 6 of the new tax law, which raises the top rate of capital gains tax from 34.5pc to 62.2pc. This compares with 21pc in Spain, 26.4pc in Germany and 28pc in Britain.

“Let’s be clear, Article 6 is not acceptable, even if modified. We will not be complicit in a disastrous economic mistake,” Mrs Parisot told Le Figaro.

An alliance of private organisations in France has issued a protest entitled “State of Emergency for Business”, warning that confiscatory tax rates threaten lasting damage to the French economy.

Mrs Parisot said the policies border on economic illiteracy: “The idea of aligning taxes on capital with those on wages is a profound economic error. It is scandalous that the French have been left in such economic ignorance for years.”

French business has called for “competiveness shock” of business tax cuts to claw back lost ground against Germany. Instead, it faces an extra €10bn (£8.1bn) of business costs from the budget unveiled in September.

Mr Hollande is tightening fiscal policy by 2pc of GDP next year to meet EU deficit targets, with two-thirds coming from higher taxes. The budget does little to shrink the French state. Spending has risen to 55pc of GDP, similar to Sweden but without Nordic labour flexibility.

French economic growth has been near zero for the past five quarters. It may have tipped into recession over the summer as the malaise spread from Italy and Spain, according to Banque de France.

New car registrations were down 7.7pc in the third quarter from a year earlier. Unemployment has been creeeping up, reaching a post-euro high of 10.6pc.

The fear is that a fiscal shock in 2013 will tip the economy into a sharp downward slide. “France needs more fiscal austerity right now like a hole in the head,” said sovereign debt strategist Nicholas Spiro.

“They don’t have any chance of meeting their growth target of 0.8pc next year, but that does not in itself put French debt at risk.

“The real danger is contagion if things turn ugly in Spain.”

Finance minister Pierre Moscovici has hinted at a shift in policy, saying there may have to be a “reorientation” of the eurozone’s fiscal strategy. “The people are not going to like Europe if it can’t offer growth,” he said.

Mr Hollande has promised reforms to the labour market next year but MEDEF remains sceptical.

Mrs Parisot said business feels deeply unloved and is “in revolt across the country ."

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2012-10-15/fight-hyperstagflation-greece-will-allow-sale-expired-food-products

( Euphoria does not extend to eating fresh food apparently... )

To Fight Hyperstagflation, Greece Will Allow Sale Of Expired Food Products

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 10/15/2012 11:43 -0400

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Against a deflationary environment of austerity-driven wage and pension cuts combined with rising unemployment; food, commodity, and fuel prices continue to surge in Greece. The government has taken an unusual step - allowing the sale of expired food at lower prices. As Voz Populi reports, this act means the government has 'virtually admitted their inability to control prices" as the worst aspects of stagflation crush the Hellenic Republic. The regulation (allowing from one-week to one-month extensions of foods for sale post their eat-before-this-day-or-you'll-get-Salmonella date) has existed for many years, according to a ministerial decree and this action merely states that these foods must be sold at a lower price. Meat and dairy is excluded but this move is described as "an immoral act" as few believe prices will actually be reduced - since that is at the discretion of the merchant. As the National Food Agency notes: "This is also a moral dilemma, to divide consumers into two groups: those who can afford basic food and those who, because of poverty, are forced to resort to dubious quality food." We presume this will also reduce the drag on pension and healthcare costs as death rates will rise?

Via Voz Populi: (Google Translated)

Greece will allow the sale of expired food at a price lower than the original, in a move that the government has not been able to justify but consumer groups have interpreted as evidence of their inability to stop the escalating cost of commodities. A ministerial decree just reviving an old regulation that authorizes supermarkets and grocery stores to sell food once the expiration date, Efe reported. "This regulation has existed for many years. And it is something that is allowed in the rest Europe. All I did was point out that these products must be sold at low prices. do not understand what is causing so much noise, "said Yorgos Moraitakis Efe, advisor to the Ministry of Development, Competition and Merchant Marine.

The regulations exclude meat and dairy from the list of perishables that can be sold and sets a ceiling dates you can continue marketing. Thus, foods in which the expiration date is indicated by the day and the month, may continue on the shelf for another week. In the event that the "best before" only month and year point, the sale may be extended for one month, and in the event that the date indicated year alone, the sale date may be extended by one quarter.

Though Moraitakis Efe declined to specify the reasons for this decision and merely noted that the legislation already existed, consumer groups and even government agencies have criticized the measure. "Virtually admit their inability to control prices," Efe reported Tsiafutis Victor Consumers Association 'Quality of Life', one of the oldest in Greece.

FOOD INFLATION 

In the Greece of the crisis, the wage and pension cuts and rising unemployment, food prices and commodities has not stopped rising. Between August 2011 and August 2012, the price of sugar shot up 15%, the eggs, 6.8% for butter by 3.2% and that of coffee, 5.9%, according to data from the Statistics Authority. "It is an immoral act," criticized Tsiafutis. "Instead of taking initiatives to control prices, allow the sale of food past the expiration date."

Moreover, from the National Food Agency gets even concerned that the measure serves to something. "It isdoubtful that these foods are to be sold at low prices, because the price control mechanisms have failed," said Yannis Mijas, president of this organization linked to the government. Indeed, the measure of how much states must be the initial price reduction, which is at the discretion of the merchant.

To Mijas, selling expired food is also a moral dilemma, to divide consumers into two groups: those who can afford basic food and those who, because of poverty, "are forced to resort to dubious quality food."

and what a shocker......

No troika deal before EU summit  European Commission envoy Matthias Mors (left) arrives at the Greek Finance ministry in Athens on Monday Efforts to conclude an agreement between Athens and the troika ahead of the European Union leaders’ summit on Thursday are unlikely to succeed as the two sides remained some distance apart on the austerity measures and structural reforms needed to seal the deal. This means that a decision on the disbursement of Greece’s next loan tranche will have have to be taken at an extraordinary Eurogroup meeting toward the end of this month or at the beginning of November. Eurozone finance ministers are due to meet on November 12 but should there be an agreement in Athens over the next few days, another meeting to decide on the Greek installment is likely to be called before then. The troika’s latest demands, particularly with respect to the labor market, where Greece’s lenders want the notice period and compensation for workers facing dismissal to be reduced substantially, have created friction in the coalition. PASOK and Democratic Left have expressed their concerns to Samaras, who is due to meet with his coalition partners, Evangelos Venizelos and Fotis Kouvelis, on Tuesday afternoon. The troika is due to resume talks with Labor Minister Yiannis Vroutsis on Tuesday. Greece’s lenders want the notice period to be reduced from six months to three and for the compensation to be a maximum of 12 months’ pay rather than 24. Another sticking point is the troika’s demand for immediate sackings in the public sector. A meeting between visiting officials and Administrative Reform Minister Antonis Manitakis on Monday failed to yield results, although the latter said he was hopeful that there would be an agreement. The troika has rejected a plan for 15,000 civil servants to be dismissed with reduced wages for a year, demanding instead that bureaucrats from state organizations that are closed or merged be made redundant straight away.

ekathimerini.com , Monday October 15, 2012 (22:43)

and.....

http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_wsite2_1_15/10/2012_466135

IMF's Lagarde sees deal with creditors soon

By Tom Ellis
Greece has a reliable government that is determined to put the country back on the path to stability and growth, International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde told Kathimerini over the weekend, adding that she believes the government is close to a deal with its creditors over the new austerity program on which the disbursement of a 31.5 billion tranche of funding depends.
“It is clearly a country that has faced some very dramatic changes on the political scene with one election after another, but now there is a coalition government that is reliable and committed to reforms and bringing the economy back to a path of growth and stability,” Lagarde said on the sidelines of the annual IMF meeting in Tokyo.
Lagarde also made references to ongoing negotiations between the Greek government and representatives from the IMF, the European Commission and the European Central Bank -- collectively known as the troika -- in Athens over spending cuts worth 13.5 billion euros.
“They are getting much closer to settling on the list of expenditure cuts and the list of additional revenues in order to close this fiscal deficit for that part of the program,” Lagarde said. “There is still plenty of work to be done before this exercise is completed, but there are also good things happening.”
The progress of reforms so far has brought the debt-wracked country closer to achieving its fiscal targets, the IMF managing director said, though she stressed that Greece is still not out of the woods.
“The fiscal adjustment that has taken place is getting Greece closer to a primary surplus, and the country is gaining some competitiveness, not enough yet, but there is significant improvement under way,” Lagarde said.
“A lot of work needs to be done,” she added.
In talks in Tokyo, Lagarde noted that creditors need to take a broader approach, which would not be limited to fiscal adjustment and structural reforms, but would also ensure the sustainability of the public debt and further funding for Greece.
She outlined four policy areas for indebted countries: completion of financial sector reform; credible, medium-term strategies to bring down debt; creating the conditions for growth that are more inclusive and that are, more importantly, likely to create jobs; and facing up to the fundamental issue of global imbalances.

“From our perspective, all four chapters have to be looked at and we will spare no time or effort to actually do as much as we can in order to help Greece,” Lagarde told the IMF meeting. Lagarde said that she is in favor of Greece being granted an extension to meet the fiscal targets set by its creditors, saying that an additional two years is “necessary for the country to actually face the fiscal consolidation program that is considered” and putting tacit pressure on Germany and other members of the eurozone who have challenged the idea. Over the past few weeks Lagarde has become more vocally in favor of an extension to the Greek program, with her statement coming in the wake of the IMF report on Greece which suggests that the internal devaluation will have multiple negative consequences. “Instead of frontloading heavily, it is sometimes better -- given circumstances and the fact that many countries at the same time go through that same set of policies with a view to reducing their deficit -- to have a bit more time,” Lagarde said, also referring to Portugal and Spain. The IMF has repeatedly called for policies that enjoy a certain degree of social acceptance so that their implementation is politically viable, arguing that the aim is to gradually regain competitiveness rather than to aim for impossible targets in numbers alone. “Our purpose is to make sure that Greece is back on its feet, that it can one day return to markets, that it does not have the need for constant support, and that is what we are completely targeted for. We want to help the country and to help it stand on its own,” Lagarde said. and.....

Strict timetable for energy sector By Chryssa Liaggou The government will have to privatize the electrical energy transmission networks immediately and promote the sale of the thermal and hydroelectric units of Public Power Corporation (PPC) next year, according to demands imposed on Athens by its creditors. The new memorandum of understanding that the so-called troika of inspectors from the European Commission, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund is discussing with Athens includes structural changes in the energy sector that are considered “prior actions” for the disbursement of the next bailout tranche. The new agreement provides for the transfer of a 51 percent stake in grid operator ADMHE to the state privatization fund (TAIPED) and its sale to a company that is not involved in electricity production within October. It also demands a specific timetable for the preparation of selling hydroelectric plants by the end of October and their actual sale by September 2013. The sale of lignite units must be prepared by next September. Government sources said it is discussing those issues in the context of the PPC privatization. ekathimerini.com , Monday October 15, 2012 (22:46)   and.....

 

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2012-10-15/overnight-sentiment-greek-euphoria

Overnight Sentiment: Greek Euphoria

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 10/15/2012 07:14 -0400

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After starting the overnight trading at its lows, the EURUSD has once again seen the now traditional overnight levitation, this time with absolutely no economic news, in the process raising equity futures across the Atlantic, even as unfounded Chinese optimism for more liquidity has waned leading to the SHCOMP closing down 0.3%. Perhaps the most notable event in the quiet trading session so far has been the surge in 10 year Greek debt whose yield has tumbled to post-restructuring lows, driven by more and more hedge funds piling in to piggyback on Dan Loeb's recent public GGB purchase announcement (strength into which he has long since sold), and hopes that Greece will somehow see an Official Sector Initiative (OSI) to make recovery prospects for Private Investors more attractive: a capital impairment the ECB has said would happen only over its dead body. But in the new normal, facts and rules are for chumps, and only exist to be broken. More on this amusing stupidity here. Amusingly, this comes just as Greece’s Staikouras says the economy’s downward spiral is not over yet. But, again, who cares about fundamentals.

In other news, U.K. house prices rose 3.5 percent in October on average from the previous month to 243,168 pounds ($390,431), said Rightmove. Asking prices for homes in London surged 4.8 percent to a record 478,071 pounds, as values in the borough of Kensington and Chelsea rose 9.1 percent to an average 2.2 million pounds, all driven entirely by continuing money laundering of other European and petrodollar money in UK real estate, as is the case in NY. Elsewhere, Czech producer prices increased 1.7
percent annually in September, after gaining 1.9 percent the prior month. Economists forecast a 2 percent increase.  Turkey’s unemployment rate rose to 8.4 percent in July from 8 percent in June: perhaps it is time to hire more reservists for that inevitable confrontation with the southern neighbor.

Some FX technicals from SocGen:

EUR/USD 1.2891-1.2962 overnight range. Minor setback in Asia as spot reverses three days of gains. US retail sales and Empire survey will be key for sentiment today. Key support level unchanged from last week around 1.2825, the 200d ma.
USD/JPY 78.27-78.62 overnight range. Rally continues for a fifth successive day as spot rises above 78.60. Last week's statement by Maehara leaves an impression even though the UST/JGB 2y spread has not moved (15bp). Resistance 78.76.
GBP/USD 1.6021-1.6083 overnight range. Still flirting with 1.60 as bullish momentum faded on Friday close to 1.61. Support 1.60 and 1.5957/77 below. Rightmove house prices up 3.5% in Oct. PPI/CPI data due tomorrow, employment Wednesday.
AUD/USD 1.0202-1.0270 overnight range. Struggling to recovere after dovish RBA's Stevens comments at the end of last week. A close above 1.0272 is required to stem selling pressure short-term. Watch US stocks, retail sales today.

What to look forward to:

Friday's report of a five-year high for the Michigan consumer confidence survey hardly registered in currencies, but caused volatility to slip back towards the September lows. EUR/USD vol is flirting with all-time lows and USD/JPY has hardly budged, following the jawboning by government officials to weaken the yen. Conviction levels on the whole are low, and though positioning favours a small risk-on move, it is unclear what will break the deadlock. It was pointed out to us that the Dow has not had a down day of 1% (or more) since late June, a sequence that will lead the Fed to draw some comfort that its policies are working. High frequency data are flashing a decent end to Q3 and one must hope that confidence will spill over to Q4. The stronger consumer barometer will hopefully also be translated into solid retail sales data this afternoon. For the EU, the Council summit later this week will be key, but as is usually the case with these summits, it is doubtful that significant progress will be made. Topics ranging from deeper fiscal integration to a banking union will be discussed, but one must hope that the talks will not be hijacked by the situation in Greece or Spain. The IMF pressed the EU last week to give Greece more time to meet its deficit goals, but with the hostility towards more lenient terms high in AAA member countries, there could be some controversy if no common position is found to keep Greece from running out of cash. There was talk of progress on Friday, which is encouraging, but there is a history of talks breaking off. How discussions over Spain and Greece evolve will be particularly relevant for the EUR, in a week that sees heavy debt supply from Spain on Thursday, but also Germany and France. Italy will make roughly EUR18.3bn in bond payments starting today.

And a comprehensive summary from Deutsche Bank:

Turning to markets Asian equities are generally lower overnight as we type. Sentiment is seemingly affected by further drop in Chinese producer prices but in reality the negative US lead from Friday is also not helping. Chinese PPI came largely in line with expectations (-3.6% v -3.5% yoy) but also marked the seventh consecutive month of declines. Chinese CPI (-1.9% yoy) came in line with market consensus. All eyes will be on the China’s Q3 GDP report on Thursday along with the rest of the monthly data dump (FAI, IP and retail sales). Markets wise, the Shanghai Composite (-0.5%) is also not helped by some weaker earnings report overnight. Elsewhere in the region the Hang Seng and the KOSPI are down -0.1% and -0.4$ respectively. Credit spreads are little changed with new issues still the main theme in Asia. Copper (-0.3%) and Brent (-0.5%) are softer overnight.

Despite the weaker market sentiment overnight, China’s latest trade figures over the weekend were actually better-than-expected. Export growth (+9.9% yoy) in September was twice as much as market estimates (+5.5%) and also up sharply from August (+2.7%). By destination, exports to EU were down -11% yoy, but exports to the US and ASEAN were up 5.5% and 25% yoy, respectively. Imports growth (+2.4% yoy) in September were in line with market. All in all this leaves trade surplus for the month at $27.67bn versus the $20.54bn expected by the market. Jun Ma notes that the export recovery has helped limit the downside risk to the IP report on Thursday. New RMB loans in September were weak and moderately below consensus (RMB623bn vs RMB700bn) though. Jun Ma sees the current pace of new loans to be consistent with a modest recovery in GDP growth to 7.7%yoy in Q4, up from an expected 7.4% in Q3.

Briefly recapping Friday’s market, the S&P 500 (-0.30%) closed at the session’s lows to post its worst weekly performance (-2.1%) since mid-May 2012. US data flow was largely supportive as we saw the highest UofM confidence sentiment since Q3 2007 (83.1  after a +4.8pt rise) as well as a lower than expected core PPI print. JPMorgan and Wells Fargo reported better than expected headline earnings for Q3 but these were overshadowed by net interest margin pressure across both banks and sluggish loan  growth. JPM’s and Wells’ shares finished the -1.14% and -2.64% lower on Friday. Bank results aside there was an IFR headline stating that the “ESM lacks cash for Spanish bailout”. The article suggested that the ESM may not be able to fund a Spanish request for aid before the end of 2012 as it only has EUR32bn in paid-up capital and may not visit bond markets this year. EU officials played down the report noting that the ESM could tap markets this year if it wanted to.

Previewing the list of key US results this week we have a total of 84 S&P 500 firms lined up for Q3 reporting. Financials will remain a key focus but we will also start to see some important industrial names. Citigroup reports today (1pm London) followed by  Goldman Sachs (Tuesday), BofA and American Express (Wednesday) and Morgan Stanley (Thursday). Away from Financials, IBM, Intel, Coca-Cola, Johnson & Johnson, eBay, Google and Microsoft are expected to report sometime this week ahead of bell-weather  General Electric’s results on Friday.

In terms of data, we have a relatively eventful week in the US with key consumer, manufacturing activity, housing and inflation data due over the next 5 days. Empire manufacturing, retail sales and business inventories will be out later today. Tomorrow’s focus will be CPI, Industrial Production and the NAHB Housing Market Index. We then get Housing Starts and Building Permits on Wednesday; the Philly Fed index on Thursday followed by Existing Home Sales on Friday. In Europe, trade data for the region will be released throughout the week. The immediate focus will probably be the German ZEW survey tomorrow. We also get Euroland and UK CPI tomorrow and Italian industrial orders on Friday.

Bond auction wise Spain will tap 2015, 2016 and 2022 maturities on Thursday following a bills auction tomorrow. There is also a Portugal bills auction on Wednesday. On the political calendar, we have the second of the three US Presidential debates tomorrow with a focus being on foreign policy. In Europe all eyes will be on the EU summit as mentioned above and the regional elections in Spain's Basque Country and Rajoy's home region of Galicia this coming Sunday (21st).

and.......

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financialcrisis/9608557/Spain-to-ask-for-bailout-next-month.html

By Reuters

8:30AM BST 15 Oct 2012

6 Comments

Spain replaced Greece, Ireland and Portugal as the main focus in the euro zone debt crisis earlier this year after its crippled banks, highly-indebted regions, a second recession in three years and soaring debt unnerved investors.

Since then, the country's borrowing costs have reached levels deemed unsustainable in the long run, raising the prospect of a second aid programme for Madrid following the €100bn lifeline it obtained for its banks in June.

"We're moving, we're taking steps, we're preparing it, things will crystallise in November," said a senior official who is directly involved in talks about a potential Spanish aid.

The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the discussions.

Asked to clarify if this meant an aid request was expected in November, he said : "I am confident this will happen then, in November."

A second senior source also pointed to November as the most likely time for a move from Madrid.

"If I had to bet, it would rather be in November than in October, if ever. Then it would be a package - you would have Greece and Cyprus and Spain. I think not Slovenia," one senior eurozone official said.

"The is because the Germans and others do not want to go many times to national parliaments and have painful, tortuous debates there," he said.

Public opinion in Germany, as well as in Finland and the Netherlands has grown increasingly opposed to bailouts of eurozone governments. A sovereign bailout for Madrid would need to get parliamentary approval in Germany and Finland.

A third senior eurozone official, who discussed the matter with German lawmakers, said they would not be convinced to vote in favour of a rescue "unless it was a matter of life and death."

He also said German chancellor Angela Merkel and her finance minister Wolfgang Schauble believed they had only "one more shot" with their parliament to shore up the eurozone.

Spain has enough money to survive a redemption peak towards the end of October when it would need to pay back €29.5bn (£23.7bn) worth of debt.

But, eventually, it would need to borrow at more sustainable rates than the current level near 5.8pc-6pc at which the benchmark 10-year paper trades.

A Spanish government official said the Treasury was fully funded until the end of the year. "We could even stop issuing debt," the official said.

But January looks challenging with Spain's deficit targets likely missed, additional funding needs created by falling tax revenues and support to indebted regions and a refinancing hump of €19bn that month.

The situation will not get better through the year with Spain's gross debt needs reaching €207bn in 2013 compared to €186bn in 2012.

Pressure is growing on Spain to apply for financial help from the eurozone's permanent bailout fund, the European Stability Mechanism (ESM), because this would allow the European Central Bank to step in with massive Spanish bond purchases on the secondary market, that would lower Madrid's borrowing costs.

Italy's Prime Minister Mario Monti, whose country could be the next candidate for a bailout if Spain unsettles investors, said on Friday that a Spanish request for support would calm financial markets.

Privately other senior officials agreed a request from Madrid was probably inevitable.

"It is not helpful that Spain is waiting. We have a framework and they would be better off, safer, if they would use that framework. It is a bit of a loss of time," a third senior eurozone policy-maker said.

While Spanish policies were generally on the right track, it was dangerous to defy market expectations that the ECB would be able to buy Spanish bonds.

"I would expect them to ask. It is not a question of policy-making in Spain. It is a question of market dynamics. Now that the framework has been announced, it has to be used," the official said.

He said Spain was delaying the request because it had engaged into a game of chicken with Germany and other countries.

Behind the scenes, however, talks continue about the form a programme would take.

****

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/europe/2012/10/2012101552146558244.html

Lithuanians vote out austerity government

Government's efficient action of tackling financial crisis fails to win over voters weighed down by austerity measures. Last Modified: 15 Oct 2012 06:14 inShare Email Print Share Feedback

Voters usher in new government to be led by labour party 'Darbo Partija', Victor Uspaskich [GALLO/GETTY]

Opposition populists and leftists in crisis-worn Lithuania have hinted they are prepared to form a government coalition after an exit poll late on Sunday indicated their parties would take first and second place in the country's parliamentary elections. The exit poll conducted by RAIT/BNS gave the biggest share of the vote, 19.8 per cent, to the Labour Party. And Labour’s most likely coalition partner, the centre-left Social Democrats, were second with 17.8 per cent with the prime minister's Homeland Union in third place on 16.7 per cent. The ex-Soviet state, with a population of nealy three million, drastically suffered when the crisis hit four years ago. It was swift to slash spending in response and is now on course to return to economic health - but the belt-tightening failed to win over dispirited voters. Lithuanian voters threw out centre-right Prime Minister Andrius Kubilius, in favour of a coalition of left-leaning opposition parties who promise to alleviate austerity measures, according to the exit poll following Sunday’s parliamentary election. The Baltic nations government failed to maintain its seats despite being applauded by big European powers and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for its disciplined financial planning. Kestutis Girnius, from the Institute for International Relations and Political Science in Vilnius said: "If the IMF was voting then he (the prime minister) would be re-elected," adding, "But the IMF does not live in Lithuania, and they could not live on a Lithuanian salary." The country was one of the most severely hit European Union states by the financial crisis, and one of the quickest to react by instantly implementing austerity. It is a bellwether for the governments of Greece, Spain, Ireland and elsewhere, who are being forced to make similar stinging cuts. and.... Sunday, October 14, 2012 3:59 PM Secessionist Wave Sweeps Belgium Ending 90 Years of Socialist Rule in Antwerp In a vote on Sunday that is likely to have serious repercussion down the road for the eurozone, a Secessionist wave sweeps Belgium   Flemish nationalists made sweeping gains across northern Belgium in local elections on Sunday, a success that will bolster separatists’ hopes for a break-up of the country. Bart De Wever, leader of the New Flemish Alliance (NVA), is set to become mayor of the northern city of Antwerp, Belgium’s economic heartland, after his party emerged as the largest one ending about 90 years of socialist rule. Soon after the ballot results emerged, Mr De Wever, who had turned the tough mayoral race into a referendum on Flander’s independence for Belgium, demanded that the country’s prime minister give greater independence to the Dutch-speaking north. Flanders, which is the most economically prosperous region of Belgium, has long resented financing the ailing economy of French-speaking Wallonia, and Sunday’s victory will strengthen their demand for self-rule. “De Wever sent a strong signal to Brussels and he has put his party on course to send an even clearer one in 2014 ... they will try to go for an even bigger win in the federal elections,” said Lex Moolenaar, a veteran political analyst for the Gazet Van Antwerpen, the city’s daily. Question of the Day Here is the question of the day, even though the answer is easily discernible: If the New Flemish Alliance resents bailing out the rest of Belgium, how will they feel about bailing out Greece, Spain, and Italy? Mike "Mish" Shedlock