DISQUS

AMERICAblog: The euro is the new black

  • Rab · 1 year ago
    Yeah, but can they print the euro as fast as they're printing dollars? Ask Ben B., he's busy working on the weekend printing money as fast as he can.
  • Catsandbeer.com · 1 year ago
    um, that article appears to be from 1.5 years ago
  • Indigo · 1 year ago
    If the Euro's success depends on the US dollar's decline, then we're looking at the proverbial see-saw. When the crowing starts, the Euro has peaked. Is this where the Euro decline begins . . . ? Will the EU be the next collapsing market? Let's watch . . .
  • cosanostradamus · 1 year ago
    .
    So what? You can only buy trash with those, yeah?
    .
  • Frankly_my_dear · 1 year ago
    "So what? You can only buy trash with those, yeah?"

    If by trash you mean US dollars, you're right. People who want to buy oil have to buy dollar to purchase oil because OPEC prices oil in US dollars. The weakness of the dollar both drives up oil prices and creates an artificial demand for dollars. If OPEC ever decides to price oil in euros, you can expect the US dollar to go the way of the Brazilian cruziero, the Turkish lira and the Zimbabwe dollar.
    .
  • constantcomment · 1 year ago
    worry about what you might, but not one of us is going to bed this evening unable to afford a full bowl of rice.
  • cosanostradamus · 1 year ago
    .
    That's if there is any rice.
    Stores are rationing it here in Hawaii.
    And yes, some people do have trouble affording it, now that the price has doubled in a week.
    .
  • DCinDC · 1 year ago
    The Euro is the more stable and secure currancy now. The dollar is now becoming like the Mexican pesos.
  • OlderAndWiser · 1 year ago
    This phenomenon has made me wonder why anyone in their right mind would open a "European" grocery store a mile from my residence...I mean, why would anyone pay for overpriced European imports with cheap dollars?
  • jr · 1 year ago
    "I'm a genius"-helicopter Ben
  • Gary SF · 1 year ago
    Given that the population of the EU is about 500 million and the US is 300 million, the fact that the value of the euros in circulation is greater than that of the dollar is not at all surprising.
  • Fran1 · 1 year ago
    Gary Hussein, this is not quite true, not all European countries are part of the eurozone, not even all members of the EU. So there is still a great capacity for the euro to expand.
  • Gary SF · 1 year ago
    Fran1, I am not sure what about my post 'is not quite true" - the EU population estimates are about 500 million. And yes, the EU will probably expand, further making my point: The article states that the total 'value' of the euros in circulation exceeds that of the total value of dollars in circulation, which is not surprising due to the differences in population. But the 'productivity' of EU countries continues to lag.
  • Fran1 · 1 year ago
    What I was refering to is that a big part of the EU states are not yet members of the eurozone. Meaning they are still using their own currency and not the euro, i.e. the UK. So the population of the eurozone countries is smaller.

    And that the productivity of the EU is laging is pure spin - the economy has been better than the one in the US. You might be interestet to read the following; Europe.Is.Doomed. You also find other discussions on the same topic, but more from the European point of view. :-)
  • Gary SF · 1 year ago
    You are wrong! You may want to Google these facts. The productivity facts or 'spin' as you say is based upon statistics I have been following in The Economist magazine, a European import here in the US. As I will be purchasing a house in Spain, watching the home prices fall in Spain than in the US over the last 6 months, I am very aware of the economy of the EU and its member countries. I don't wish the EU to fail. But the euro has succeeded only because of the dollar's fall.

    Again, please see these population statistics:

    The population of EUROPE is more than 728 MILLION;
    The population of the EU is about 500 million
    The population of the US is about 300 million
  • Fran1 · 1 year ago
    What I am saying is, that not every EU country is in the eurozone, thus does not have the euro as a currency. So not allof the 500 million in the EU do have the euro, at least not yet. The nomber of population for the eurozone is thus smaller than the one for the EU.

    Eurozone - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

    The Eurozone (less frequently called the Euro Area or Euroland) refers to a currency union among the European Union member states that have adopted the euro as their sole official currency. The Eurosystem, headed by the European Central Bank, is responsible for monetary policy within the Eurozone.

    The Eurozone has fifteen members, with a further nine states and territories using it as their sole currency. It circulates widely beyond that, being a contender to the United States Dollar as the world's reserve currency.

    ....

    The twelve countries of the European Union that do not use the euro are: Denmark, Sweden, the United Kingdom, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania and Slovakia. The next enlargement is expected to be Slovakia in 2009.