στον πυρετό της λιτότητας

MARK WEISBROT

The Real Crisis in the Eurozone

The reason that Greece cannot meet its budget targets is that the policies imposed by the Troika have succeeded in shrinking the Greek economy and therefore its tax base. The IMF has repeatedly had to adjust downward its forecast for the Greek economy; it is now projecting a decline in GDP of five percent this year, as compared with a forecast of -3 percent just six months ago. When the first “bailout” package for Greece was negotiated in May of 2010, the country’s debt was about 115 percent of GDP; it is now projected to hit 189 percent of GDP next year. Clearly the Troika’s policies have had the opposite effect of their stated intention.