Is your financial future in the hands of George Bush?
As the $700 billion US bail out gets ever nearer it has been suggested that the financial well being of the world is in the hands of the US authorities. If this is the case, what will the US government expect back from governments around the world? Surely they would not take this risk without something 'in it for them'?
First and foremost it has to be said that not only did the credit crunch begin in the US but it has caused more damage in the country than anywhere else in the world. We are in at a situation where literally millions of Americans are at serious risk of losing their homes unless action is taken now. The Fed was involved in a joint multi-billion dollar liquidity program with both the Bank of England and the ECB last week to ensure that funding in the money markets continued to flow. But the $700 billion bail out is the big call and while it will assist the worldwide economy the American authorities are looking after their own economy first.
No doubt they will expect some kind of assistance from overseas trading partners at some stage - once the fine print of the bail out is released - but the vast majority of the risk will be taken on by the Fed with the US sure to be the biggest winner if it is successful.
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