Friday, December 31, 2010

2010 Year in Review for RSG!



In about six hours, it is 2011! Can you believe it? 2010 was the first year of a new decade for me. The first year of the decade was a stellar one. It was stellar, since it involved working again in the corporate world (and other good experiences). Moving into a new environment also helped RSG to grow as a person. Being around the right friends who supported me during my every day in 2010 also helped me. Here are some more highlights:

1. Traveling to new and old places (like Seattle, Santa Barbara, San Diego, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Bethesda, MD, and New Mexico)
2. Going to sporting events and concerts (John Mayer & Owl City)
3. Being involved in a fun, exciting relationship with a woman

These highlights are experiences that I never would have dreamed of happening. No matter what happens, these situations give me hope to move forward in 2011. Just Keep Living (aka J.K. Livin').

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

"How the G8 became the G-20 in the 21st century?"



In this post, you will learn about the G8 (The group of eight established nations from Europe, North America, and Asia). This group was formed in the late 1970s and 1980s (during the end of the 20th century), and the eight original members were the United States, Japan, United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, France, Canada, and Russia. This group of nations would send their prime minister (president, or premier) to a yearly summit meeting, in order, to discuss the current situation of the world economy.

Each calendar year, the responsibility of hosting the summit would rotate through the member states in a certain, specific order. The holder of the presidency would set the agenda, host the yearly summit, and determine the ministerial meetings which will happen. From 1993-2000, Bill Clinton (the great U.S. president) and other worldly leaders met in various cities on different continents to discuss the world economy (and how it could expand further).

With the world economy growing (in terms of gross domestic product in developing nations), the G8 grew from eight original members to twenty members (which boast some of the strongest world economies ever) in 2009. The twenty members which comprise the G-20 are the European Union & the following countries: South Africa, Canada, Mexico, United States, Argentina, Brazil, China, Japan, South Korea, India, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Turkey, France, Germany, Italy, United Kingdom, and Australia. The G-20 has countries from six of the seven continents. The G-20 is a collection of the largest, (most populous) civilized (developing economies) world powers (countries) which meet semi-annually, starting since 2008.

The goal of the G-20 is to preserve the international finance system, and to consult (plus collaborate) amongst each member nation on international policy issues. Each country sends its finance ministers, president (prime minister, or premier), plus secretary of state (or other cabinet positions) to conduct the meetings and to oversee ideas which help to improve the world economy. Finally, the future of the G-20 will continue to look bright if each member (nation) provides strong input on how the world economy can grow and prosper. The world recovery started back in the 3rd quarter of 2009, and it's up to the G-20 to assure the world that the recovery will stay for many years to come.

Thursday, December 2, 2010

What’s happening with the PIGS (Portugal, Ireland, Greece, and Spain)?



In my last post, the BRIC economies and the CIVETS were defined. This post enumerates another group of countries, PIGS, and their economies. The PIGS are Portugal, Ireland, Greece, and Spain. About two weeks ago, Ireland requested a bailout of $113 billion from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the European Union (EU). Recently, Ireland received the bailout and their banks are getting some relief. Debt-strapped Ireland was forced to accept the bailout from both organizations, as the country is mired in an economic slump thanks to its ailing banks.

Next on the radar for countries which may need another bailout, are Portugal and Spain. Spain’s unemployment rate is 20% and joblessness has increased by almost 6% this year. The long-building construction and real estate bubble in the country has made Spain (the country with) the highest unemployment rate in the 27-member European Union. In addition, there is a widespread fear that Lisbon and Madrid are also in danger of defaulting that has led investors to dump those countries' bonds plus push up their borrowing costs in recent days. Spain’s Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero is trying to reassure financial markets by granting 426 Euros/month to people, who have exhausted their 24 month unemployment benefits. Zapatero has mentioned that the country does not need a bailout, but his tone has changed in the past week. Recently, Spain reported a flat GDP (gross domestic product) number in the third quarter which is in line with their past reports of low growth for the majority of 2010.

Finally, let’s discuss Greece. Greece had implemented a program of austerity in its economic system. The country was proceeding in the direction of bankruptcy. Greece announced painful new austerity measures worth 4.8 billion Euros ($6.5 billion) to deal with a financial crisis; which has hammered the euro and unsettled financial markets. This report is from March 2010. As of December 1, 2010, Greece received an extension until 2021 to repay its 110 billion euro ($145.7 billion U.S.) EU/IMF bailout loan. Policymakers hope the move will help stop fears the overborrowed country will restructure its debt after the three-year EU/IMF funding ends. This extension will give the Greeks more time to return their economy to stable growth, and to pay off this overpowering debt. In closing, the world economy is suffering from the ongoing problems in the PIGS economies. At this time, the U.S. may get involved in helping the eurozone economies with the various bailouts.