Greek default

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We Have Tsipras and Merkel to Thank for This Market-Crushing Profit Play

By Peter Krauth, Resource Specialist, Money Morning - July 16, 2015

Greek banks were hanging onto a cliff's edge by their fingernails when Greek and European parliaments and finance ministers debated the future of Greece within Europe.

But less than a week after the referendum that said "???!" (No!) to more austerity, Prime Minister Tsipras had already betrayed that vote, proposing considerable cuts in exchange for yet another lifeline.

That is just where our can-kicking profit opportunity lies...

Article Index

We Have Tsipras and Merkel to Thank for This Market-Crushing Profit Play

By Peter Krauth, Resource Specialist, Money Morning - July 16, 2015

Greek banks were hanging onto a cliff's edge by their fingernails when Greek and European parliaments and finance ministers debated the future of Greece within Europe.

But less than a week after the referendum that said "???!" (No!) to more austerity, Prime Minister Tsipras had already betrayed that vote, proposing considerable cuts in exchange for yet another lifeline.

That is just where our can-kicking profit opportunity lies...

What Would a Grexit Mean for Investors?

By Jim Bach, Associate Editor, Money Morning • @JimBach22 - July 14, 2015

A new bailout bill has been negotiated for Greece and a "Grexit" has been averted.

For now.

So, what would a "Grexit" mean for investors? Here's how to prepare for what may very well be inevitable...

What Will Happen to Greece Now After the New Greek Bailout?

By Jim Bach, Associate Editor, Money Morning • @JimBach22 - July 13, 2015

Markets are breathing a sigh of relief now that Greece has negotiated a new bailout plan with its Eurozone creditors.

But, what will happen to Greece now? We've seen the results of years of austerity and it's not pretty.

And with this latest bailout round, is doesn't look like it's going to get any better...

Protect Your Wealth from Greek Fears

By Money Morning Member Alert, Money Morning - July 7, 2015

The recent disquiet over Greece has been threatening the markets and dominating the headlines, but the best course of action for investors right now is to view it as more noise than signal.

The Greek situation has taken years to play out, and the levels of non-hedged global exposure to Greek debt have been drastically reduced since 2010. There has also been plenty of time to mitigate the risk of contagion that could result from a Greek default or even an exit from the euro.

Read more here...

Greek Vote Could Mean Short-Term Chaos

By Money Morning Staff Reports, Money Morning - July 7, 2015

Yesterday Keith sat down on FOX News while the markets roiled and distilled a very simple message about what's going wrong in Greece.

It's not primarily a political problem; it's a mathematical one. And until Greece - and an alarming number of Western governments, including the U.S. - realize that, the chaos will only continue.

Watch Keith here as he offers a valuable breakdown of Greece's woes and calmly summarizes the problem, just as he does regularly here at Money Morning...

Could the U.S. Government Default on Its Debt?

By Jim Bach, Associate Editor, Money Morning • @JimBach22 - July 6, 2015

With news of both a Greek default and the almost-Puerto Rican default, observers are invariably going to shift focus at some point to the U.S.’s $18.1 trillion debt.

So, will the United States go the way of Greece and Puerto Rico? Could the U.S. government default on its debt?

Yes, but it would be vastly different than in Greece or Puerto Rico. Here’s why…

Greece's Problems are the Tip of the Iceberg

By Michael E. Lewitt, Global Credit Strategist, Money Morning • @MichaelELewitt - July 5, 2015

America celebrates the July 4^th holiday under the threat of homegrown terrorism while global financial markets face a trifecta of threats from Greece, Puerto Rico and China.

And those are just the immediate threats - the world still has to deal with the longer term threat of hundreds of trillions of dollars in debts that it can never hope to pay back and the pursuit of failed central bank policies that are destined to send markets over the cliff sooner rather than later...

How the Greece Capital Controls Work

By Diane Alter, Contributing Writer, Money Morning - June 29, 2015

Greece's debt woes deepened over the weekend.

Banks are closed for a week, with capital controls in place.

We explain what the Greece capital controls are and what they mean.

What Happens When Greece Defaults?

By Jim Bach, Associate Editor, Money Morning • @JimBach22 - June 23, 2015

What happens when Greece defaults?

That's the question on the market's mind right now. It's no longer a question of "what happens if Greece defaults?"

Here's why the stakes are high, and why a default or "Grexit" is about more than just Greece...

The Greek Opportunity That's Being Missed

By Peter Krauth, Resource Specialist, Money Morning - June 23, 2015

As Greece approaches its next payment deadline, the rhetoric and the stakes are boiling over.

The IMF recently quit negotiations in Brussels, saying it had reached a stalemate.

Then Greek Prime Minister Tsipras said the IMF had "criminal responsibility" for his country's debt crisis.

With a looming deadline, now Russia has stepped to the fore, with overtures of financial aid.

It might be too late - but with a "Grexit" appearing closer than ever, the markets remain calm.

Here's why, and how to profit...

The Tactics You'll Need to Profit from the Greek Debt Crisis

By Keith Fitz-Gerald, Chief Investment Strategist, Money Map Report • @kfgtotalwealth - June 18, 2015

There's a lot being written about the Greek debt crisis. Mainstream media tells us it's scary and problematic and there's no way to profit from it.

And while we know that it's scary and problematic, we also know that there's money to be made amid the mess.

Here are the tactics you'll need to profit from the Greek debt crisis...

Why a Greek Default Is a Global $360 Billion Problem That Affects Us All

By Jim Bach, Associate Editor, Money Morning • @JimBach22 - May 11, 2015

A Greek default is inevitable. Years of piling up bailout loans without a reprieve in the Greek debt crisis prove that.

But it's not just the 300 billion or so euros in Greek debt are the problem. It's the complicated spider web of cross-collateralizations and derivative trades tied to Greek debt that are the real terror.

Here's how a Greek default could be a much bigger problem than you're being lead to believe...

What the Greek Debt Crisis Means for Markets and Your Money

By Keith Fitz-Gerald, Chief Investment Strategist, Money Map Report • @kfgtotalwealth - February 18, 2015

All eyes are on Greek debt crisis this week, and rightfully so.

The country lied to get into the European Union, managed its finances terribly during its membership, and now wants to renege on its obligations. I'm not surprised and chances are you aren't either. We've been talking about the fallacy of central banking and the dangers associated with derivatives trading for years.

Now we need to talk about what happens next and, of course, what the Greek debt crisis means for your money...

Why a Greek Default Could be Worse Than the Lehman Collapse

By Martin Hutchinson, Global Investing Specialist, Money Morning - June 1, 2011

The 2008 collapse of Lehman Bros Holdings Inc. (PINK: LEHMQ) ignited a financial meltdown that resulted in widespread bank failures and caused the Dow Jones Industrial Average to lose 18% of its value in just one week.

Yet a Greek default - which (even with a bailout) becomes increasingly likely with each passing day - would actually be much, much worse in many respects.

Sure, it's possible that European Union (EU) taxpayers will soon be dragooned into yet another rescue plan. But that would only delay the inevitable - a catastrophic collapse that will drudge up feelings of panic we haven't witnessed since the global financial crisis hit its apex nearly three years ago.

Here's why.

Dodgy Debt and a Dozing Economy

Greece's debt, at about $430 billion, is less than that of Lehman Brothers, which owed around $600 billion at the time of its bankruptcy. But Greece's finances are much less sound.

Whereas Lehman Brothers participated in the 2003-07 financial bubble with considerable enthusiasm, accumulating vast amounts of the dodgy subprime mortgage paper whose value collapsed in the 2007-08 downturn, Greece's misdeeds date back much further - to its 1981 entry into the EU.

As the poorest member of that group, Greece became eligible for a vast array of inventive subsidies, primarily related to agriculture. However, the frauds the country perpetrated to justify even larger subsidies were even more inventive. And this allowed Greece to bring its living standards close to the EU average, while still being subsidized as if it was a genuinely poor country.

Indeed, Greece produced nothing close to the level of economic output that would be needed to justify its spending and the lifestyle of its people.

The problem for Greece is thus stark: Its people need to suffer a decline in living standards of about 30% to 40%, so that the country's output is sufficient to repay its debts.

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