June 4, 2010

Strikes continue: Hungary looking like the "next Greece"

Roubini: Greece must restructure

Businessweek report by Elena Logutenkova on Nouriel Roubini's comments on the immediate Greek future:

“What we need to do to avoid having massive losses for the financial system is an orderly restructuring of the public debt of Greece,” Roubini said in an interview at the Zermatt Summit in Switzerland today. A disorderly default would lead to “much worse” damage to the European economy and risk global contagion, he said.

Greece’s public finances began rattling investors late last year, when the country more than tripled its budget deficit forecast for 2009. The European Union and International Monetary Fund cobbled together a 110 billion-euro ($134.2 billion) rescue package last month to prevent a Greek default and stem a contagion to other countries.

Greece could restructure its debt by stretching out its maturities by five to 10 years and cutting interest payments, while keeping the face value of bonds at par, said Roubini, who predicted the global financial crisis. Greece also needs to cut its debt-to-gross domestic product ratio further than the levels prescribed in the EU rescue package, he said.

“Stabilizing your public debt-to-GDP ratio at 145 percent is not stability,” Roubini said. “Calling it stability is a bit of a joke.”

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