Stress Test for the Euro.

Stress Test for the Euro. The best news of all is that I do make good at my promises. To putting the “quality and customer services” more important than anything else. However, if I don’t make the ‘first’ move, I won’t be able to take advantage of what’s being “offered”… Timing is impeccable if I want be ahead in this occasion. If I am still waffling upon my (Charlie, Putin & EU situation), - I’ll run considerable risk to arrive at the “not expected” disappointment.

Fogo na baixa de Lisboa em faz uma vítima. Um incêndio na baixa de Lisboa deflagrou esta madrugada num prédio na Rua Nova do Almada. Os Sapadores Bombeiros de Lisboa encontraram o corpo de uma idosa vítima do incêndio que deflagrou esta madrugada na Rua do Almada, na baixa pombalina. O fogo começou no último andar do prédio, sendo que o alerta para o incêndio foi dado cerca das cinco da manhã. O comandante dos Bombeiros Sapadores de Lisboa, Joaquim Leitão, afirmou que os bombeiros foram rápidos a apagar as chamas. Nas primeiras buscas que realizaram os bombeiros não encontraram qualquer vítima, mas agora localizaram o corpo desta mulher totalmente carbonizado. A idosa, de 80 anos, habitava no quinto piso, onde começou o incêndio. No local estiveram 46 homens, apoiados por 14 veículos.

PSI 20: Bolsa sofre primeira queda na semana com banca a castigar. 11/02/10 16:43. A bolsa portuguesa fechou em queda penalizada sobretudo pelas quedas dos bancos, num dia marcado pela decepção dos investidores com a falta de pormenores sobre o plano de ajuda à Grécia. O PSI 20 desceu 0,64% para 7.583,27 pontos, a acompanhar o desempenho negativo dos principais índices europeus, com os investidores desiludidos com a falta de detalhes sobre o plano da União Europeia para ajudar a Grécia.

Five Threats to the Common Currency by Schultz’s Dices: (DER SPIEGEL) Greece isn't the only problem facing the euro zone this spring. Public debt has skyrocketed across the Continent as a result of the financial crisis. Plunging tax revenues combined with expensive economic stimulus programs have severely stretched budgets. In addition to Greece, Portugal is also facing serious difficulties. Spain, too, is under close observation. Of particular concern is the fact that, since the introduction of the euro, both countries have become less and less competitive. Instead of introducing necessary reforms, low euro-zone interest rates in recent years led them to rely heavily on borrowing. The financial crisis and concurrent economic stimulus packages magnified the problem. Greek's budget deficit ballooned last year to 12.7 percent of its gross domestic product. Spain also has a double-digit deficit -- both far away from the 3 percent mandated by the Maastricht criteria of the euro zone stability pact. Strict savings measures and deep cuts in public spending seem the only way out. The same holds partially true in Ireland. The country likewise faces a large public deficit. The government, though, took drastic action in December, thus easing fears of a national bankruptcy. Italy, too, has experts worried. The situation is, to be sure, not as bad as in Greece, but state debt has been well over 100 percent of GDP for years -- and the government has shown little interest in dealing with the problem. That makes five of 16 euro zone states where public finances are in a shambles -- enough to make the entire Continent uneasy. Investors fear that stable countries like Germany, Finland or the Netherlands could ultimately be affected; that they may be forced to pay for the financial errors of Greece and the others; that the euro will continue to drop against the dollar; and that the common currency will become a millstone around Europe's neck. The threat to the euro is in no way merely a short-term one. Even if Italy and Spain avoid bankruptcy for the time being, what happens if the governments of those countries are too weak to push through the necessary reforms? Both Greece and Portugal have already been hit by serious protests as a result of budget cuts. But without much-needed reform, the gap between the strong and weak members of the euro zone threatens to get ever wider.