Economy: A double-dip recession looks inevitable

Lurching falls in financial markets over the summer betray investor fears that begin with doubts over governments’ inability to manage their debts. But they do not end with them.

Europe has been muddling through its sovereign debt crisis since the spring of 2010. The brinkmanship of US politicians over a technical default may have been deeply unimpressive but the logic for a sovereign downgrade was well established long before Standard & Poor’s delivered it. This was all being factored in before the S&P500 and the FTSE fell by just short of 18% between early July and early August and the German Dax proceeded to lose 28% of its value.

Access this research

Enter your work email address to sign in or check whether your organisation already has access to Euromoney.