Subscribe

Edmund Conway

The Economic Consequences of Greece

“I wish I could tell you every evening the twists and turns of the day, for you’d really be amused by the amazing complications of psychology and personality and intrigue which make such magnificent sport of the impending catastrophe of Europe.” The words are John Maynard Keynes’s, in

Chart: The enormous Greek bail-out

[https://i1.wp.com/www.edmundconway.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/quotaBIG.jpg?ssl=1] Love this chart from the IMF’s “mea culpa” on Greece [http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/scr/2013/cr13156.pdf] [pdf], showing just how massive its loan was for the country in comparison

Chart: The Bank of England and the Government debt market

[https://i0.wp.com/www.edmundconway.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/gilts.jpg?ssl=1] Striking chart showing how the Bank of England has taken possession of almost every extra bit of debt the Government has issued during the crisis. Figures are from the Debt Management Office. Left hand scale

Spot the odd one out

[https://i2.wp.com/www.edmundconway.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/ULCsinhistory.jpg?ssl=1] Unit labour costs (a good measure of inefficiency) in various European countries since 1970. The higher your number, the more inefficient you are (eg it costs more to produce a given unit of GDP). Helps

Chart: the changing face of retail

[https://i0.wp.com/www.edmundconway.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/nonstore.jpg?ssl=1] Striking chart from the Office for National Statistics [http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/elmr/economic-review/june-2013/art-economic-review--june-2013.html] showing how non-store retailing (eg internet shopping) is fast coming to dominate our shopping habits.

UK house prices "significantly overvalued"

[https://i0.wp.com/www.edmundconway.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/OECDhouses.jpg?ssl=1] According to OECD research, house prices in Britain are still significantly overvalued. Indeed – that’s both on a price-to-rent basis and on a price-to-income basis. It’s extremely hard to reconcile that with the Chancellor’

OECD: Britain to enjoy strong growth for generations! Honestly!

We're so used to hearing bad news from international institutions like the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development that it might come as a surprise to hear that there's a whopping slab of good news for Britain buried away in its latest Economic Outlook. Admittedly, the