Public Debt

The economic and financial history of Greece offers interesting in- sights into the current worldwide economic crisis. In the nineteenth, twentieth and twenty-first centuries, Greece went through a series of financial disasters due to external factors and to policies that failed to take fiscal stability into account, insofar as they relied heavily on foreign loans. These, in many cases, led to real bankruptcies. This article compares the attempted bailout by a British bank in 1893 with the salvage operation of 2010 that avoided the technical bank- ruptcy of Greece. Although the outcomes differed, owing to sharply different geopolitical and geo-economic contexts and to the amount of money committed to these financial operations, in both cases Greece relied on Europe to avoid impending financial disaster.

This paper looks into fiscal consolidation in India's heartland states of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh following their separation from 2001 to 2019. The study examines the trends in states' budget deficits, public spending, debt, and revenue collection to meet FRBMA, 2003 fiscal targets. According to the analysis, both states achieved fiscal consolidation after an initial hiccup during the period. The states adhered to the fiscal targets established by the FRBM Act of 2003 and various finance commissions. In Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, the gap between revenue receipts and revenue expenditure has narrowed. The percentage of interest payments deducted from revenue has also been reduced. Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh are backward states, despite their above-average economic growth. The deficit and debt levels and the states' interest payments have increased later in the study period. The States must generate revenue through legislative non-GST taxes and other non-tax sources.

Abstract. In this paper we study the relationship of fiscal policy and economic performance of some core countries in the EU. Our aim is to find out whether public deficit and public debt have consequences for real variables in the economies we consider. The background of our ...

Government debt is one of the most important variables monitored in the European economies of 21th century. Due to Euro Convergence Criteria, it is most often calculated as a ratio of government debt-to-Gross Domestic Product (D/GDP). However, this ratio does not have clear economic interpretation and is difficult to understand for the common voter. In this paper, we suggest a new, more appropriate indicator – Government debt-to-Net Wealth of Households (D/NWH), which is inspired by the one-off wealth tax. Using high quality data from the Czech Statistical Office, Eurostat and Wiener Institut für Internationale Wirtschaftsvergleiche the debt burden imposed on the every Czech household was computed. While in 1995 the D/NWH was less than 7%, it has more than tripled by the end of 2012. If the Czech Republic was to repay its government debt immediately, it would have to impose a one-off tax of a quarter of the every household’s wealth. While it has been argued that the 60% threshold of D/GDP is an artificial ratio introduced by Maastricht Treaty, D/GDP reaching 182% (which is roughly the recent government debt of Greece) would be the critical insolvency level for the Czech Republic.

The Italian economy is characterized by a considerable amount of public debt and low growth for over a decade. This is a key issue both at a theoretical and policy level. The relationship between public debt and economic growth is widely discussed in the economic literature, since in many countries spending is rising faster than income, leading to widening budget deficits and higher levels of debt. However, the empirical literature generally highlighted the heterogeneity of the debt-growth nexus. This paper summarizes four working papers written by the author in the period from 2007 to 2014, where the structural problems of the Italian economy are identified, and the critical aspects related to Italy high debt and its low growth is emphasized. The contribution aims at discussing possible policy actions to address the Italian structural problems in the current situation. In particular, the paper underlines the importance of a long-term strategy for growth, to boost productivity and the potential growth of the Italian economy. In addition, it focuses on fiscal policy emphasizing the strategic role both of spending optimization and of tax collections through, for instance, digitizing the tax collection process in order to contribute to the long-term sustainability of sovereign Italian debt.

This chapter critically questions the ‘naturalisation’ of recourse to the market, namely, the process by which market devices and financial techniques were established and became unchallenged and uncontroversial technical issues. The management of public debt in financial markets was initially one among many strate- gies, and market devices became a naturalised way of financing the state only after long ideological struggles and administrative change.
Drawing on sociological studies of the long-term effects that the development and legitimisation of technical instruments have on public policy,4 I analyse state financing techniques as the products of a histori- cal process, which varies across countries and institutional contexts. The apprehension of the sovereign debt problem cannot be reduced to measures such as debt-to-GDP ratios ; for political and institutional constellations do matter. Throughout history, there have been multiple, non-market, professional tools and administrative apparatuses, which financed public spending and deficits.

Depuis 2015 Jean-Michel Servet voit dans le “partage au sens de bien
commun” une forme du principe de réciprocité dont il conteste l ’assimilation au don.
Il rejette aussi la conception de la monnaie qui la rapporte au concept de dette de vie,
car elle occulterait l ’existence du partage. Le chapitre discute ce point de vue en en
récusant avec minutie l ’argumentation. Il montre que le partage ne saurait être assimilé
à la réciprocité telle que la définissent R. Thurnwald, B. Malinowski, M. Mauss et K.
Polanyi.

Pegando no comentário de Marx a Shakespeare em The Power of Money (1844), encontramos um quadro teórico do materialismo histórico/económico onde se percebe qual é a materialidade de um objecto, no sentido estrito; porém, não se percebe tão bem qual é a materialidade de uma abstracção transformada em objecto, como é o caso dos conceitos de dinheiro ou de dívida, já que não se sabe ao certo onde encontrar o princípio e o fim de tais abstracções. No presente ensaio, pretendendo ultrapassar este espectro de Marx, e salientar também como alguns modelos de análise económica contemporâneos (David Shelll e Mark Graeber, p.ex)  são mais adequados à interpretação de Shakespeare, sempre com Timão de Atenas como corpo principal da análise textual a que recorro, irei demonstrar que (1) a relação económica é uma relação humana (2) Shakespeare comenta relações humanas e não atribui significativo juízo de valor ao dinheiro e (3) dinheiro é meio, não é fim.

ABSTRACT The sovereign debt crisis in the euro area is a symptom of policy failures and deficiencies in – among other things – fiscal policy coordination. The first nine years of the euro were not used effectively in order to improve public finances, while the Stability and Growth Pact was watered down. Spillovers from the financial and economic crisis compounded fiscal difficulties in the euro area, especially in certain member countries. This paper looks back at the history of fiscal policies and rules in Economic and Monetary Union (EMU). It makes proposals to strengthen fiscal policy governance that go well beyond the legislation set to be adopted in autumn 2011. The authors consider these additional governance measures to be essential for effective policy coordination and sound public finances in the future.

El canje de deuda de 2005 fue la primera etapa de un largo proceso de normalización de pasivos públicos en default que culminó en 2016. Además de sentar las bases de las etapas que le siguieron, la estrategia de manejo de la deuda implementada por el gobierno de Néstor Kirchner inauguró una orientación que se continuaría hasta 2015 y sentó un precedente novedoso respecto a la política con la que los estados pueden impulsar procesos de reestructuración de deuda en el actual estadio de la globalización financiera. En este escrito presentaremos el caso, analizaremos la estrategia desarrollada por el gobierno argentino y los principales resultados de su política de manejo de la deuda en la etapa, para finalmente analizar sus particularidades y reflexionar sobre las posibilidades abiertas por el mismo para la resolución de crisis de deuda en países en desarrollo en el marco de la arquitectura financiera internacional existente.

L’analyse de la dette publique repose sur un certain nombre de conventions qui semblent ne rien devoir à la recherche, mais plutôt reposer sur des consensus parfois difficiles à défendre sur le plan scientifique. Parmi elles, la convention principale est que la dette publique doit être comprise comme une forme particulière de dette privée. Cette approche implique un certain traitement et commande par la suite le regard des observateurs. Pourtant, elle ne repose sur aucune analyse rigoureuse et contredit autant les recherches historiques qui nous apprennent que le système de la dette publique se caractérise par l’unité d’intérêt qui existe entre les débiteurs et les créanciers que les analyses juridiques et politiques qui permettent de souligner que la dette publique n’a jamais été qu’une seule dette financière. En fin de compte, le cadre libéral imposé depuis le XIXe siècle masque les enjeux plus qu’il ne permet de les comprendre et empêche de traiter des questions brûlantes comme celle des effets distribution et redistribution de richesses impliqués par le système.

Africa's growing public debt has sparked a renewed global debate about debt sustainability on the continent. This is largely owing to the emergence of China as a major financier of African infrastructure, resulting in a narrative that China is using debt to gain geopolitical leverage by trapping poor countries in unsustainable loans. This policy insight uses data on African debt to interrogate this notion. It explains why African debt is rising and why Chinese loans are particularly attractive from the viewpoint of African governments. It concludes that the debt trap narrative underestimates the decision-making power of African governments. However, there are important caveats for African governments. These include the impact of China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) on African development agendas, the possible impact of spiralling debt on African sovereignty, and the complex impact of corruption.

What is money? What is an economy? Why is money so addictive?  What is accumulation? What is capitalism? What are the problems caused by capitalist accumulation. These are all question examined in this introductory overview of money, the economy, and the global financial system.

This work is suitable for introductory and even advanced courses where clarity and precision vis a vis the economic realities of this planet are a pedagogical goal.

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Nel corso della sua breve storia nazionale, l'Italia ha affrontato diverse crisi della finanza pubblica, che ne hanno messo in pericolo la stabilità, come forse nessun altro paese europeo. Il libro analizza una delle fasi più complicate della storia dell'Italia contemporanea: la difficile fase economica intercorsa a seguito dell'unificazione italiana. Come è riuscita l'Italia a riordinare le proprie finanze evitando il tracollo finanziario, sociale e politico? Attraverso un approccio interdisciplinare, che colloca il problema del debito all'interno delle dinamiche del mondo finanziario europeo, la ricerca vuole mettere in evidenza i successi e i fallimenti delle politiche adottate dai governi appartenenti alla Destra Storica. Politici, diplomatici e tecnici, ma anche banchieri e capitalisti vari, sono gli uomini che hanno reso possibile questo ‘miracolo economico’ non tanto in termini di crescita, ma di salvezza e consolidamento del progetto di unificazione nazionale.

This paper assesses the impact of total external debt, short term external debt, long term external debt and
total reserve on economic growth by using time series data from 1980 to 2012 in case of India. According to ordinary
least square method there is positive and significant impact of total external debt, short term external debt, long term external
debt and total reserve on economic growth in India.

This brief paper provides an example of the use of Altman's Z-Score in evaluating the probability of municipal default. It includes a short discussion of hedge fund strategy with regard to municipal default and advances an argument that political and institutional factors should be taken into account in addition to quantitative metrics when evaluating the investment risk of municipal debt.

India is an agrarian country with around 70% of its people depending directly or indirectly upon agriculture,  with  82%  of  farmers being  small  and  marginal.  Farmer  suicides  account  for  11.2% of all suicides in India. Activists and scholars have offered several conflicting reasons for farmer suicides, such as monsoon failure, high debt burdens, government policies, public mental health, personal issues, and family problems. There are also accusations of states manipulating the data on farmer suicides.  Majority of farmers  shifted  from  food  grain  crops  to  commercial crops. Nearly 60 percent of farmers are still depending on bull plough in case of cotton cultivation. In the case of rice, 95 percent of farmers are depending on machines.

La deuda pública es aquel mecanismo por el cual un gobierno contrae deudas (a partir de bonos o prestamos concisos) pactados con determinado nivel de interés y plazo, para que se pueda subsanar la brecha entre el exceso de gasto con respecto al ingreso fiscal. Entre los factores que afectan la sostenibilidad de la deuda pública se pueden mencionar: la comparación con el PIB a largo plazo y la fijación de un porcentaje máximo en el cual la deuda pueda encontrarse. El presente trabajo tiene como objetivo explicar el indicador de brecha primaria de corto plazo señalado por Blanchard (1990) con base en el trabajo de López y Castañeda (2008). Haciendo énfasis en la obtención de los valores que deberían tomar las tasas de crecimiento y el porcentaje de aumento del PIB en el largo plazo, partiendo del contexto macroeconómico de los años 2002 a 2007. Una vez analizada la información del documento y reconociendo las variables que aparecen en el mismo, con sus correspondientes resultados, se entraría a comparar con un trabajo de Mateus (2014) cuyo estudio abarca un periodo desde el 2002 hasta el 2012. En otras palabras se busca dar respuesta a la efectividad de la política para el sostenimiento de la deuda pública, con base a los indicadores y los datos para el 2015 del cierre proyectado para el 2016 según el ministerio de hacienda y crédito público. Teniendo como ruta de inicio: los datos que arroja el trabajo de López y Castañeda (2008) equiparado con el artículo de la revista CEPAL el cual maneja un periodo de tiempo similar al del trabajo inicial. La investigación será de suma importancia para entender el fenómeno de las políticas cíclicas y contracíclicas. Como a pesar de los años se siguen fomentando regulaciones que hagan que la inversión sea de baja calidad e influya en la baja productividad marginal del capital, haciendo que la tasa de crecimiento de la economía se reduzca o no alcance el nivel esperado. Por lo tanto se incrementa el déficit fiscal, dejando plazos excesivamente amplios para al menos cubrir parte de la deuda.

The year 2002 would be remembered in the European Union as the year the ‘Euro’ officially became the common legal tender of the ‘Eurozone’ comprising presently of 19 member states. Exactly seven years after, a full blown banking and sovereign debt crisis was evident in the monetary union which raised fresh financial concerns the world over after that of the 2007-2008 global financial crisis. The Eurozone debt crisis that caught the international community by surprise, began with the shocking revelation on the humongous external debt hovering over Greece. Afterwards, the ballooning debt-to-GDP ratio of other peripheral states in the Euro Area - Italy, Ireland, Portugal and Spain surfaced thus giving rise to the acronym G.I.I.P.S in reference to the five indebted countries in the Eurozone. This paper therefore examines the sovereign debt crisis of E.U member states belonging to the Eurozone and the effect it has had on their economic growth. With Greece as the case study, the nature, causes and rescue packages so far adopted at salvaging the Eurozone debt crisis since 2009 till date were duly accounted for via an historical and empirical approach which was heavily dependent on secondary sources of quantitative data.

Introductory chapter of PhD thesis: 'Why Not Default? The Structural Power of Finance in Sovereign Debt Crises.' Defended (without corrections) at the European University Institute in Florence on May 19, 2016.

This thesis aims to answer a simple question with far-reaching implications: why do heavily indebted peripheral states not default on their external debts more often? Building on case studies of sovereign debt crises in Mexico (1982-’89), Argentina (1999-’05) and Greece (2010-’15), the findings of this research demonstrate that the traditional explanations of debtor compliance proposed in the economics literature — centering on reputation, sanctions and democratic institutions — hold limited explanatory power.

Instead, the thesis spells out a political economy approach to sovereign debt that recognizes the importance of social conflicts and power struggles over the distribution of adjustment costs. In these conflicts, it is argued that finance possesses a unique advantage over indebted states: through their capacity to withhold the short-term credit lines on which the latter depend for their reproduction, lenders can inflict debilitating spillover costs that greatly limit the debtor’s room for maneuver. This structural power of finance has increased markedly as a result of globalization and financialization, and the main objective of this project is to identify the exact mechanisms through which it operates and the conditions under which it is effective and under which it breaks down.

The findings highlight the importance of debt concentration in the lending structure (which eases the formation of creditors’ cartels, strengthening market discipline); the exposure of big banks and institutional lenders in core countries (which compels creditor states and international financial institutions to intervene as lenders of last resort and provide emergency loans under strict policy conditionality); and the bridging role fulfilled by bankers and elites inside the borrowing country (which endows them with a privileged position in financial policymaking and internalizes fiscal discipline into the debtors’ state apparatus). The thesis concludes by spelling out the implications of these findings for the quality of democracy and the study of political economy more generally.

"Capitalism is in a profound state of crisis. Beyond the mere dispassionate cruelty of 'ordinary' structural violence, it appears today as a global system bent on reckless economic revenge; its expression found in mass incarceration, climate chaos, unpayable debt, pharmaceutical violence and the relentless degradation of common life. In Revenge Capitalism, Max Haiven argues that this economic vengeance helps us explain the culture and politics of revenge we see in society more broadly. Moving from the history of colonialism and its continuing effects today, he examines the opioid crisis in the US, the growth of 'surplus populations' worldwide and unpacks the central paradigm of unpayable debts - both as reparations owed, and as a methodology of oppression. Revenge Capitalism offers no easy answers, but is a powerful call to the radical imagination."

The UK, US, EU response to the catastrophic economic impact of COVID on Africa, Asia & Latin America is A KICK IN THE TEETH—and this is to put it mildly! The poorest countries, who account <3% of private and public debt owed by so-called developing countries, can request postponement (!!!) of interest payments on debt owed to G7 governments until June 2021 - the so-called 'Debt Service Suspension Initiative'. And that’s it!!! Private lenders, i.e. the super-rich loan-sharks, are refusing to participate, demanding every penny be paid on time, whatever the cost to public health.
The biggest scandal of all is that there’s no scandal!

Public debt of the United Provinces 1560-1795. A reconstruction of the growth of the public debt of the province of Holland and the Generality. The accumulated wealth of the Dutch Republic was tapped by the government in the 17th century to sustain high levels of expenditure especially for warfare. After 1715 however servicing the debt took nearly all of the public revenue and meant high taxes, high prices and relatively high wages. It was very difficult to agree on corrective actions. The Republic's political institutions were dominated by private interest groups opposed to modifications and reforms.The deficit in the public finances was rooted in the deficit in its society: its inability to adapt to changing circumstances.

In the 19th century, the Hudâvendigâr province was one the most important centers of sericulture and silk industry in The Ottoman Empire territories. Depending on the technological developments and demands taking place in Europe, a significant revival in silk industry was observed in this century. However, when the silk-worms diseases put the activities of the sector to a standstill after the year 1860, the Ottoman government entered into an intensive effort to solve the crisis. After a while, when Ottoman Public Debt Administration was founded to collect the debts belong to the Ottoman Empire by foreign payees, this administration got the right to collect the revenues from silk tithe. In this context, the efforts to increase the revenues initiated a new process that would guide the sericulture sector and revitalize the sector.