How is the Euro crisis like the old empires? They both have moved from Greece to Rome. While certainly Greece is far from solved the market worries today center around Italy.
For the latest see http://www.cnbc.com/id/45191575 For the record the author is one of my favorite news babes in CNBC, Michelle Caruso-Cabera-second only to Melissa Francis and Erin Burnett.
"What is clear is that investors want Berlusconi gone. It's hard to believe he is still here-he was part of Donald Rumsfeld's "Coalition of the Willing" almost 10 years ago. Two reports broke this morning at 6:00am EST (noon in Italy) that Berlusconi’s demise was imminent. The markets took the reports seriously because they came from two journalists known close to the prime minister. The Italian market, which was down more than 2%, moved into positive territory by more than 2.5% percent—an intra-session move over more than 4%."
"Italian yields, which were at Euro-era highs, fell back across the curve. Clearly, the market thinks Italy is better off without their billionaire leader."
Mind you Caruso-Cabera shows her usual preference for austerity:
"There is a growing consensus there may have to be a “technical” government in Italy, with the key characteristic being they don’t care about reelection. That way, they can pass many of the unpopular reforms: raising the retirement age, shifting more of the cost of health care to the individual, reducing the generosity of pensions and perhaps the most controversial of all: opening what are known as “closed professions.”
Maybe she oughta be the one for that job, she seems to be one who could watch such bloodless decimation without a grimace.
The part about "closed professions" is revealing: "Nearly every occupation in Italy has some kind of barrier to entry, either in terms of licensing or fee requirements, or even controls on the allowable numbers. From lawyers, to notaries, to taxi drivers, and pharmacists, the list of professions that have some kind of government control is endless—and it leads to much higher costs.
"This summer we profiled a taxi driver, Simon Galina, who faces “liberalization” of his profession, and he explained why he’s so worried about these reforms. (Click here to watch)"
Meanwhile the concerns over Italy pushed Gold up to more than $1,790 an ounce on Monday, touching a six-week high as investors continued to pile into the traditional safe haven on an intensifying European crisis.
http://www.cnbc.com/id/45193063
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