France has unveiled a multibillion euro cost cutting plan to be executed over two years in order to press down its deficit below the European Union’s cap. The Finance Ministry revealed on Wednesday that the country would be shaving €9 billion (USD 9.60 billion) off costs through the plan. Accordingly, some €4 billion (USD 4.26 billion) will be trimmed from the budget this year, including through... 

The very same people that caused the last economic crisis have created a 278 TRILLION dollar derivatives time bomb that could go off at any moment. When this absolutely colossal bubble does implode, we are going to be faced with the worst economic crash in the history of the United States. During the last financial crisis, our politicians promised us that they would make sure that “too big to fail”... 

Another economic crisis like the Great Recession is inevitable, according to JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, who heads the bank that recently imposed capital controls and limits on cash withdrawals. “Some things never change, there will be another crisis, and its impact will be felt by the financial markets,” he wrote in his annual letter to shareholders. “The trigger to the next crisis will... 

International rating agency Moody’s has downgraded the long-term issuer rating of Ukraine to the second lowest Ca grade from Caa3, leaving the outlook negative and a high possibility of the country’s imminent default. “Although negotiations over the specific details of the restructuring are only now getting underway, Moody’s believes that the likelihood of a distressed exchange, and... 

On Monday, the US reached its legal debt limit of $18 trillion, more than the country’s entire GDP. Lawmakers will either have to again lift it, or attempt to cap spending. As of March 12, the US Treasury reported federal debt at $18,114,324,000,000.00 in its daily treasury statement. This figure is above the statutory debt limit, which was extended by Congress through March 15 this year. Treasury... 

The failure of EU countries to prepare for the needs of their aging populations was debated at length during this conference in Brussels. A new report from The Wold Bank was released at the conference and it highlights how birthrates in the EU are falling, young adults are migrating from the bloc because of the economic crisis and people are living longer while still retiring at a relatively young... 

Following a governing council meeting of the European Central Bank it was announced that quantitative easing will begin in the eurozone from next Monday. In a desperate move to stimulate the euro, the currency used by 19 EU countries, the ECB will print money to buy €60bn worth of bonds each month. The bank has raised its eurozone economic growth forecast for this year from 1% to 1.5% but ECB President,... 

Earlier this week John Williams warned that hyperinflation will begin to appear in America sometime in 2015. He noted that, though the dollar is currently strong compared to other fiat money, signs that a currency collapse is coming will begin with the sell-off of the U.S. dollar. It’s a known fact that the Russians and Chinese have already begun divesting themselves of dollar dependency by implementing... 

The jobless rate in Australia reaches a 12-year high. Official figures show that the unemployment rate in Australia reached a 12-year high of 6.4 percent in the month of January. The Australian Bureau of Statistics said on Thursday that the number of full-time employment had dropped by 28,100 last month. “The decrease in employment was driven by decreased full-time employment for both males (down... 

Debt and (not much) deleveraging, McKinsey Global Institute The entire world is in debt, huge debt… a debt of 199 trillion dollars, 18 of which is own just by America alone, but the question is, to whom do we owe such a vast unimaginable sum of money? To companies? To a small 1%? Maybe communism had it right with its economic equality after all. How did the world end up in this hellhole anyway?... 

S&P on Monday downgraded Russia’s credit grade to junk status. Rating agency Standard & Poor’s downgraded Russia’s credit rating to the speculative BB+ grade from BBB-. Analysts say that the decision of the rating agency was politically motivated. The speculative level means that securities that a BB+ state issues can only be good for short-term transactions to earn on their... 

The middle class has shrunk consistently over the past half-century. The middle class has shrunk consistently over the past half-century. Until 2000, the reason was primarily because more Americans moved up the income ladder. But since then, the reason has shifted: There is a greater share of households on the lower rungs of the economic ladder. – From yesterday’s New York Times article: Middle... 

Almost 1.4 million Irish residents, or 30 percent of Ireland’s population, were forced to endure “enforced deprivation” throughout 2013, the state’s Central Statistics Office (CSO) says. New figures, published on Wednesday, offer a sobering insight into the socioeconomic impacts of Austerity Ireland. The CSO’s research analyzed Irish citizens’ income and living conditions throughout... 

Oil prices have plunged more than 50 percent since June last year. Oil prices have slumped even further to reach six-year lows, amid oversupplies by certain countries and a sluggish global economy. The US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for February delivery saw an 18-cent drop on Tuesday, selling at USD 45.89 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It was the WTI’s lowest close since... 

A US Air Force C-5B heavy lift cargo aircraft is seen at RAF Mildenhall base northeast of London, home to tanker, reconnaissance and special operations aircraft. The Pentagon has announced a plan to close down 15 military bases in Europe due to shrinking budgets. The Pentagon said on Thursday it was ending operations at an air base in Britain along with 14 other sites in Europe and handing them back...