By Daniel R. Amerman, CFA
A
confidential internal International Monetary Fund report was recently
leaked to the Wall Street Journal, with the contents later being made
public by the IMF. The contents of this report have major implications
for Europe, but even greater implications for the United States.
Most
of the press attention is being paid to the legalities associated with
the report, and revolve around what the International Monetary Fund
knew, when it knew it, and whether it properly acted within its charter
at various points. However, what is being overlooked is the truly
explosive information that comes in the form of what the IMF admitted
(in this internal report to itself) when it came to miscalculations
about "austerity", and closing budget deficits.
Briefly,
the International Monetary Fund and European Union did not force
balanced budgets upon Greece, but only a reduction in the level of
deficits. (more)
Please share this article
Due largely to the widespread use of hydraulic fracturing and the resulting boom in shale oil operations, oil production in Texas has exploded in recent years.
In March, production in the lone star state reached a staggering 74 million barrels of crude, the highest level since 1984. Output has doubled in less than three years, from a low of 31 million barrels in 2010. If Texas were a country it would be one of the top 15 largest oil producers in the world, on a par with the likes of OPEC members Venezuela, Kuwait, and Nigeria.
The oil boom has brought without huge expansion in the local economy, with wages soaring, and a population boom as people flock to the area to occupy the growing number of jobs offered by the oil industry.
Read More @ OilPrice.com
Yields
on 10-year Portuguese bonds jumped more than 100 basis points to 7.85pc
in a day of turmoil, kicked off by a government request to delay the
next review of the country’s EU-IMF Troika bail-out until August.