Was this recession a disaster waiting to happen?
As we see all political parties begin to fight over who should regulate the financial markets in the future there is a growing feeling that the current recession was actually a disaster waiting to happen. The worldwide economy, with the UK being fairly prominent, has mushroomed over the last few years due to cheap credit and a growth in the property market which has been unprecedented.
The ongoing belief by many consumers and investors that the good times would roll on forever saw people chase prices higher and higher and governments do little to rein back overheated markets. As ever, it was only when the investment fever reached crisis point that governments around the world began to sit up and take notice, although ultimately it was then too late. As a consequence more people than ever before have invested their money into property and the stock market and have been hit very hard by the downturn.
In a classic case of reaction rather than pro-action the regulators and governments around the world have responded in dramatic fashion. There is no doubt that the investment returns which we have seen over the last 20 years could not go on forever although unfortunately many people believed that they would.
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