Τρίτη 12 Νοεμβρίου 2013
Apocalypse now, in Philippines
- The typhoon killed 10,000 or more people -
"We
had a meeting last night with the governor and the other officials. The
governor said based on their estimate, 10,000 died,", said chief
superintendent Elmer Soria, in Philippines, and he estimated that about 70-80% of the buildings
in the area in the path of Haiyan in Leyte province was destroyed.
Because
of the slow pace of recovery, the official death toll remained at 942.
On
Samar island, which faces Tacloban, Leo Dacaynos of the provincial disaster
office told Associated Press on Sunday 300 people were confirmed dead in Basey
town and another 2,000 were missing.
"I don't believe there is a single structure that is not destroyed
or severely damaged in some way — every single building, every single
house," U.S. Marine Brig. Gen. Paul Kennedy said
Between
300 and 400 bodies had been recovered, Tacloban city administrator, Tecson Lim,
said.
Τετάρτη 8 Μαΐου 2013
IMF: Kudos to Greece
Greece has made progress in resolving structural problems amid a severe and painful social recession, IMF says in its evaluation report of the Greek program. It specifically states:
Progress in fiscal consolidation compared with any international example is impressive, with a cumulative improvement of 10% of GDP at the end of 2013 amid a GDP shrinking over 20%.
The major labor market reforms have helped in adjusting nominal wages and productivity at enterprise level. IMF calculates that the competitiveness gap as measured by cost of production per unit of labor, has been closed by about two thirds since 2010, while the current account deficit has declined cumulatively by about 10% of GDP.
The banking sector stability was maintained despite significant losses associated with debt restructuring and the sharp rise in non-performing loans because of the deep recession. Inadequate structural reforms, however, have led to the adjustment being achieved mainly through recessive channels with unequal distribution of the adjustment burden.
very little progress has been made in massive tax evasion. The rich and the self-employed do not pay their share, which ultimately led to the program heavily relying on spending cuts and higher taxes for employees and retirees
although labor market reforms have caused a significant reduction in nominal wages, they have not led to lower prices for products and services, and this because of the failure to deregulate closed professions to boost competition
although the rebalancing of the economy has led to a surge in unemployment in the private sector, especially among young people, the overcrowded public sector has not suffered at all, mainly because of the taboo issue of layoffs
IMF warns that the major fiscal challenges are still ahead. "With no more room for large tax increases or spending cuts, the government has been forced to focus on difficult social cuts, from wages to funds for social policy."
According to IMF, "the 2013-14 fiscal program is a testament to the determination of the Greek government to achieve its objectives in the financial sector. European partners of Greece have also responded by agreeing to reduce the mid-term primary surplus target from 6.5% of GDP to 4.5% and prolong the adjustment period until 2016.
However, Greece will need to go through further structural fiscal adjustments to achieve these goals.
Progress in fiscal consolidation compared with any international example is impressive, with a cumulative improvement of 10% of GDP at the end of 2013 amid a GDP shrinking over 20%.
The major labor market reforms have helped in adjusting nominal wages and productivity at enterprise level. IMF calculates that the competitiveness gap as measured by cost of production per unit of labor, has been closed by about two thirds since 2010, while the current account deficit has declined cumulatively by about 10% of GDP.
The banking sector stability was maintained despite significant losses associated with debt restructuring and the sharp rise in non-performing loans because of the deep recession. Inadequate structural reforms, however, have led to the adjustment being achieved mainly through recessive channels with unequal distribution of the adjustment burden.
According to IMF there are three main problems:
very little progress has been made in massive tax evasion. The rich and the self-employed do not pay their share, which ultimately led to the program heavily relying on spending cuts and higher taxes for employees and retirees
although labor market reforms have caused a significant reduction in nominal wages, they have not led to lower prices for products and services, and this because of the failure to deregulate closed professions to boost competition
although the rebalancing of the economy has led to a surge in unemployment in the private sector, especially among young people, the overcrowded public sector has not suffered at all, mainly because of the taboo issue of layoffs
Financial challenges remain
IMF warns that the major fiscal challenges are still ahead. "With no more room for large tax increases or spending cuts, the government has been forced to focus on difficult social cuts, from wages to funds for social policy."
According to IMF, "the 2013-14 fiscal program is a testament to the determination of the Greek government to achieve its objectives in the financial sector. European partners of Greece have also responded by agreeing to reduce the mid-term primary surplus target from 6.5% of GDP to 4.5% and prolong the adjustment period until 2016.
However, Greece will need to go through further structural fiscal adjustments to achieve these goals.
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