I am well aware that I refer to Martin Wolf's column in the FT quite often. I do so unapologetically: it is the best economics column I read at the moment (and I read quite a lot). Take this offering from this morning's column on Eurozone weaknesses and the role of the European Central Bank:
In brief, the recovery in confidence [in the Eurozone] is encouraging and the revival of growth welcome. But the former is too fragile and the latter too feeble. The eurozone's authorities — and above all the ECB, its only effective actor — can and must do far more.
Avoiding catastrophe is still not guaranteed. That is anyway a grossly insufficient goal. The aim must be to secure a healthy recovery. It is the ECB's job to hit its inflation target and strengthen credit markets. It must do whatever it takes. It has not yet done enough.
The message is a simple one. It is that when the state is the only effective economic actor - as is often the case - it has to deliver a confident performance. It was, of course, a case I made in The Courageous State. It remains a compelling and wholly timely argument.
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I’ve been reading the FT for about 7 years now and have observed with delight Wolf’s progression from an out-and-out neoliberal to a real analyst following the crash. This article marks an almost unbelievable further step on the road to ‘conversion’ IMO.
You must be disappointed that Owen Jones in the Grauniad, an editorial and others are now arguing that it is the left that is pushing for a smaller state.
Get real – or go and read what he actually said
“In brief, the recovery in confidence [in the Eurozone] is encouraging and the revival of growth welcome.”
I’m not sure what the people of Greece, Spain. Portugal and Ireland will say about the apparent signs of growth, apart from the fact they would be hard pressed to find any. To be fair, he ass this:
“But the former is too fragile and the latter too feeble. The eurozone’s authorities — and above all the ECB, its only effective actor — can and must do far more.”
In my opinion though, all Europe has mainly done is stick to the nasty medicine of austerity in the hope that the patient will get better, as if not providing the one thing that a economy needs to grow. that is, money, is ever going to achieve that.
In my opinion, the hopeful growth of Europe, Germany excepted, is quite illusory.
EU data shows that in much of Europe there is no growth