Off Topic The Politics Thread
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I don't disagree with any of that. I said she was negligent in allowing it to happen in the first place by ignoring the advice given when she decided to cut the military support.
Sometimes a simple flag isn’t quite patriotic enough.
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Global Economy
EU sets out plans to curb reliance on dollar in post-Trump era
Move to reduce vulnerability to US sanctions in wake of battles over Iran policy
© REUTERS
January 16, 2021 9:00 am by Jim Brunsden and Sam Fleming in Brussels and Philip Stafford in London
Brussels is set to warn that global markets are too reliant on the dollar as it seeks ways of curbing Europe’s vulnerability to US sanctions and other financial risks, in a challenge to the currency’s supremacy just days before Joe Biden’s inauguration as president.
A draft European Commission policy paper seen by the Financial Times reveals the depth of EU frustration after four years of the administration of Donald Trump, whose policies underscored the dominance of the US and its currency in the global financial system.
In particular, the paper highlights the EU’s difficulties in asserting its independence in the face of sanctions against Iran imposed by Mr Trump, citing them as proof of the need to “shield” the bloc from “the effects of unlawful extraterritorial application” of such measures.
“The Trump years highlighted our vulnerabilities, and we need to address those even if he’s gone,” said a commission official. “It’s about the EU’s place in the world — having the means to be an economic and financial power commensurate with our size.”
Mr Trump’s Iran strategy had a direct impact on financial infrastructure based in Europe, such as the Swift payment messaging system and the Euroclear and Clearstream securities depositories.
The Trump years highlighted our vulnerabilities, and we need to address those even if he’s gone
European Commission official
Washington’s Iran sanctions meant Brussels had to set up a special-purpose vehicle to facilitate payments for legitimate trade between the EU and the Islamic republic — a process fraught with difficulty.
“The EU should develop measures to shield EU operators in the event a third country compels EU-based financial-market infrastructures to comply with its unilaterally adopted sanctions,” the paper says.
The document underscores the EU’s ambition to bolster its self-reliance in a range of sectors, including finance, after the Trump administration ripped up transatlantic norms. But it is set to be adopted by the EU commission on the eve of Joe Biden being sworn in as US president on Wednesday, and as the EU pledges to seek a new era of co-operation with Washington after the acrimony of the Trump years.
Other plans in the paper that are aimed at boosting the bloc’s strategic autonomy include tighter policing of foreign takeovers using the EU’s new system for screening foreign direct investment.
Proposed takeovers should be vetted to see if they “would render the EU target company more prone to abide by such extraterritorial sanctions”, the document says, on the basis that the acquisitions could then be blocked on national security grounds.
According to the draft, the EU also needs to find ways of boosting the role of the euro in light of lessons learnt from the Covid-19 pandemic. The paper warns that “global financial markets are too reliant on the US dollar to cushion financial tensions and stability risks”.
Does a digital euro challenge the dollar’s global dominance?
EU officials cautioned that the draft could be revised before the text is adopted by the European Commission on Tuesday.
The bloc has long sought to promote greater use of the euro, for example in commodity contracts, to bolster its financial and economic autonomy.
Specific steps set out in the paper include using a planned review of EU regulation of financial benchmarks to encourage them to be denominated in euros. Most are based on dollars.
Policymakers want to find energy alternatives to crude oil, where the main benchmarks such as Brent and WTI are tied to the dollar. The paper cited gas, where a euro-based contract traded in Amsterdam is fast emerging, and hydrogen as markets where the euro’s role should be developed.
Brussels believes a stronger global role for the euro would “shield the economy from foreign exchange shocks and reduce reliance on other currencies”.
“It would also help achieve globally shared goals such as the resilience of the international monetary system, a more stable and diversified global currency system, and a broader choice for market operators, all making the global economy less vulnerable,” the paper says.
The commission is also concerned that the bloc has become increasingly reliant on non-EU investment banks that “in times of financial crisis . . . may choose to reduce their presence in the EU and to focus on their domestic market”.
Other parts of the paper reiterate the EU’s ambitions to be more independent of UK financial-market infrastructure after Brexit — notably UK-based clearinghouses.
EU sets out plans to curb reliance on dollar in post-Trump era
Move to reduce vulnerability to US sanctions in wake of battles over Iran policy
You must log in or register to see images
© REUTERS
January 16, 2021 9:00 am by Jim Brunsden and Sam Fleming in Brussels and Philip Stafford in London
Brussels is set to warn that global markets are too reliant on the dollar as it seeks ways of curbing Europe’s vulnerability to US sanctions and other financial risks, in a challenge to the currency’s supremacy just days before Joe Biden’s inauguration as president.
A draft European Commission policy paper seen by the Financial Times reveals the depth of EU frustration after four years of the administration of Donald Trump, whose policies underscored the dominance of the US and its currency in the global financial system.
In particular, the paper highlights the EU’s difficulties in asserting its independence in the face of sanctions against Iran imposed by Mr Trump, citing them as proof of the need to “shield” the bloc from “the effects of unlawful extraterritorial application” of such measures.
“The Trump years highlighted our vulnerabilities, and we need to address those even if he’s gone,” said a commission official. “It’s about the EU’s place in the world — having the means to be an economic and financial power commensurate with our size.”
Mr Trump’s Iran strategy had a direct impact on financial infrastructure based in Europe, such as the Swift payment messaging system and the Euroclear and Clearstream securities depositories.
The Trump years highlighted our vulnerabilities, and we need to address those even if he’s gone
European Commission official
Washington’s Iran sanctions meant Brussels had to set up a special-purpose vehicle to facilitate payments for legitimate trade between the EU and the Islamic republic — a process fraught with difficulty.
“The EU should develop measures to shield EU operators in the event a third country compels EU-based financial-market infrastructures to comply with its unilaterally adopted sanctions,” the paper says.
The document underscores the EU’s ambition to bolster its self-reliance in a range of sectors, including finance, after the Trump administration ripped up transatlantic norms. But it is set to be adopted by the EU commission on the eve of Joe Biden being sworn in as US president on Wednesday, and as the EU pledges to seek a new era of co-operation with Washington after the acrimony of the Trump years.
Other plans in the paper that are aimed at boosting the bloc’s strategic autonomy include tighter policing of foreign takeovers using the EU’s new system for screening foreign direct investment.
Proposed takeovers should be vetted to see if they “would render the EU target company more prone to abide by such extraterritorial sanctions”, the document says, on the basis that the acquisitions could then be blocked on national security grounds.
According to the draft, the EU also needs to find ways of boosting the role of the euro in light of lessons learnt from the Covid-19 pandemic. The paper warns that “global financial markets are too reliant on the US dollar to cushion financial tensions and stability risks”.
Does a digital euro challenge the dollar’s global dominance?
EU officials cautioned that the draft could be revised before the text is adopted by the European Commission on Tuesday.
The bloc has long sought to promote greater use of the euro, for example in commodity contracts, to bolster its financial and economic autonomy.
Specific steps set out in the paper include using a planned review of EU regulation of financial benchmarks to encourage them to be denominated in euros. Most are based on dollars.
Policymakers want to find energy alternatives to crude oil, where the main benchmarks such as Brent and WTI are tied to the dollar. The paper cited gas, where a euro-based contract traded in Amsterdam is fast emerging, and hydrogen as markets where the euro’s role should be developed.
Brussels believes a stronger global role for the euro would “shield the economy from foreign exchange shocks and reduce reliance on other currencies”.
“It would also help achieve globally shared goals such as the resilience of the international monetary system, a more stable and diversified global currency system, and a broader choice for market operators, all making the global economy less vulnerable,” the paper says.
The commission is also concerned that the bloc has become increasingly reliant on non-EU investment banks that “in times of financial crisis . . . may choose to reduce their presence in the EU and to focus on their domestic market”.
Other parts of the paper reiterate the EU’s ambitions to be more independent of UK financial-market infrastructure after Brexit — notably UK-based clearinghouses.
You're playing a good game on here if you are - you don't come across THAT stupid, despite what Ellers says
I don't think Watford is stupid... Just misguided. I actually know Watford can be clever at times and does come out with some real gems. I would never call him stupid... Well I would, but not in a stupid way... If that makes sense?
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I don't think Watford is stupid... Just misguided. I actually know Watford can be clever at times and does come out with some real gems. I would never call him studied... Well I would, but not in the stupid way... If that makes sense?
It doesn’t.
A lot of fuss about nothing. All the red tape is just down to teething problems and nothing to do with the inevitable consequences of leaving the Single Market.
They should dump a load of rotting fish outside Downing Street.
Don't know why they're complaining, it's what they voted for - as a not-so-wise man said, they need to "get over it"
I sympathise with that view but it’s exactly what the architects of this want.
Blame the conmen rather than the conned and all that even if you’re never going to get through to the full on religious nutters who will blame any negatives on a somehow vindictive EU just implementing the rules we signed up to.
Yeah and they are banging on about losing money yet they drove down from Scotland?
It doesn't take much of a Scottish haggis to see the SNP along with the EU are stirring up trouble. A fantastic piece in The Telegraph over the weekend explaining why the EU is doing this? They are just being tw2ts and it will backfire on them in the coming months. Watch this space.
Yeah and they are banging on about losing money yet they drove down from Scotland?
It doesn't take much of a Scottish haggis to see the SNP along with the EU are stirring up trouble. A fantastic piece in The Telegraph over the weekend explaining why the EU is doing this? They are just being tw2ts and it will backfire on them in the coming months. Watch this space.
They should just believe harder really.
Yeah and they are banging on about losing money yet they drove down from Scotland?
It doesn't take much of a Scottish haggis to see the SNP along with the EU are stirring up trouble. A fantastic piece in The Telegraph over the weekend explaining why the EU is doing this? They are just being tw2ts and it will backfire on them in the coming months. Watch this space.
Maybe you should read the news - most of them have come from Cornwall....
Mark Moore, manager of the Dartmouth Crab Company, said his business and others were protesting to "raise awareness" of the impact of new border checks.
Yeah but they spent money on diesel to get there so they can’t really be doing badly at all.
I have read enough thanks SM. I heard it on the BBC at lunchtime. The fella said he was from Aberdeen.
I support these fella's English and Scottish but I know and I think most do, that this is a cheap stunt to cause us problems. Petty cr2p because we dared leave the EU. Like the ban on Sandwiches and Chocolate for travellers only to ignore others bringing in the same stuff... utter tw2ts. Anyway as I said it will come back to haunt them.