1. Global Currency Tensions Rise
Abe says Japan must defend “itself against attempts by other governments to devalue their currencies by ensuring the yen weakens as well.” I’m curious to see if the combination of these pressures in the US, UK, Japan, etc and the anti-inflationary bias of the ECB will result in an overpriced Euro and even tougher conditions for Eurozone countries.
President François Hollande has come up with a plan to ease the problem: give €4,000 ($5,276) a year for three years to small companies that hire a young person on a permanent contract while committing to keep an employee age 57 or over.
I’m not sure why they didn’t provide incentives for net new hires of young people, which does a better job of encouraging new hiring rather than paying companies that would hire young people anyway. The former reduces the cost per new job.
