In The News

Asian Central Banks Consider Alternatives to Big Dollar Holdings

Phillip Day February 5, 2004
South Korea, Thailand, Taiwan, China and Japan say they plan to shift out of US treasuries. The reasons vary: for some bankers, Treasuries are not bringing the required rate of return, particularly with a depreciating dollar; for others, now is a good time to pay down debt or help finance domestic industry. But given their large holdings, Asian countries need to ensure that any sell-off does not...

A False Alarm: Overcoming Globalization's Discontents

Richard N. Cooper January 29, 2004
Jagdish Baghwati believes that globalization is unambiguously a positive phenomenon and aims to prove it in his recent book, "In Defense of Globalization." According to this review, Baghwati's book also aims to enlighten globalization's critics. Baghwati tackles two major criticisms of globalization: that it causes poverty, and that it depresses wages. He cites data that...

Schooled by Scandal

John Plender January 21, 2004
If anyone thought that the accounting scandals of Enron, WorldCom, and Global Crossing were a distinctly American phenomenon, the results of the past few weeks – Parmalat, Adecco, and Ahold – prove otherwise. On both sides of the Atlantic, dark-dealings among executives was one part of the scandal, the other was improper accounting oversight. But the case of Paramalat has highlighted an even...

Europe's Lesson, from Brussels to Baghdad

Wolfgang Schauble January 13, 2004
Europe's crisis over the ideal constitution for the EU stems from fundamental differences between contending countries, says Bundestag official Wolfgang Schauble. France and Germany's belief in the right of majority rule is their justification for insisting on having their way on certain key economic and political decisions. With large populations, they expect greater clout. Poland,...

Saddam in Custody Offers New Opportunity

Shada Islam December 17, 2003
When Saddam Hussein was in power and was defying the UN, the US and its European allies wrangled over how to bring him into compliance. Now with the Iraqi leader in American custody there is a new opportunity to repair transatlantic relations. But there is also a fresh new hurdle. Writing from Brussels, veteran EU watcher Shada Islam says that the Pentagon's announcement that only nations...

France and Germany Join U.S. in Effort to Reduce Iraq's Debt

Craig S. Smith December 17, 2003
US President George W. Bush's envoy on Iraqi debt relief, James Baker III, seems to have already proved his credentials. After talks with officials in the French and German governments, Baker received assurances that those two countries would do what they can to lessen Iraq's debt burden, which is estimated at $120 billion. $40 billion of that is owed to nations within the so-called...

The Siren Song of a Two-Speed Europe

Heather Grabbe December 16, 2003
In a caustic critique of France and Germany's proposal to form a 'core Europe', Heather Grabbe, deputy director of the Center for European Reform, argues that such a plan would only damage the dream of an integrated Europe. The economic viability of the European Union is already under threat from Berlin and Paris' refusal to pay fines for economic transgressions earlier this...