Here, in a chart, is why Britain can’t afford to be complacent about the plight of Portugal, Ireland, Italy, Greece and Spain. UK banks are exposed to these countries to the tune of 16 per cent of gross domestic product, according to this chart from Stephen Jen of BlueGold Capital Management (the figures themselves are Bank for International Settlement numbers).
[chart not included due to lack of inline images]
By my reckoning that’s just under £250bn of exposure, so if these economies topple, we can’t afford to smirk and be smug about the fact that we avoided joining the euro. We would be engulfed in a nasty, nasty financial crisis of our own.
Look, too, at Switzerland: it faces a 21pc of GDP exposure to these struggling nations. It is an important point ahead of tomorrow’s crunch European Council meeting tomorrow, at which leaders are expected to agree on some sort of bail-out package. At the moment, it looks as if the eurozone members (mainly France and Germany) will provide cash for a “firewall” bail-out designed to prevent these countries from toppling, but there are some whispers that Britain may have to make a contribution. These figures might help explain why. But in that case, one would also expect Switzerland to get involved, no?
More: http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/finance...-to-the-piigs/
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[chart not included due to lack of inline images]
By my reckoning that’s just under £250bn of exposure, so if these economies topple, we can’t afford to smirk and be smug about the fact that we avoided joining the euro. We would be engulfed in a nasty, nasty financial crisis of our own.
Look, too, at Switzerland: it faces a 21pc of GDP exposure to these struggling nations. It is an important point ahead of tomorrow’s crunch European Council meeting tomorrow, at which leaders are expected to agree on some sort of bail-out package. At the moment, it looks as if the eurozone members (mainly France and Germany) will provide cash for a “firewall” bail-out designed to prevent these countries from toppling, but there are some whispers that Britain may have to make a contribution. These figures might help explain why. But in that case, one would also expect Switzerland to get involved, no?
More: http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/finance...-to-the-piigs/
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