Dave Wrixon

North America Takes a Backseat to Europe in Prosperity

Some indications of gross wealth would have been interesting, even if it were only a statement of population base, which in Europe of course is a hell of a lot bigger.

IMF: European Economies to Contract Sharply This Year

Yes, but I just find it all funny.

Germany is contracting mainly due to a drop of exports to the US. But the US is much less severely affected than Germany. Give me a break!

Also, just returned from Czech Republic which is fairly dependent on Germany. Job to tell what all the fuss is about. Have one friend who was very concerned about his job, but his company has just got a whole new set of orders. Of course it is not booming like China and yes it is a lot weaker than before, but in our street alone two houses are having their external facades insulated. Not really the meltdown you keep hearing about, but you can just about hire tradesmen these days which in a way is something of a relief. I did notice that there were a lot of electronic goods deals, but then you must expect that if the production that intended to the US has to be dumped somewhere else.