It's worth noting, as I've done in the past, that Italy's economy thanks in part to highly restrictive labor laws is in extreme duress.
From Market Watch:
"When Italy reports its first-quarter gross-domestic-product figures Friday, economists are expecting just 0.3% growth from the previous quarter. That would be just half the rate of the eurozone as a whole, according to Eurostat.
Italy's economy grew 0.8% last year, the first positive result in four years. But by the fourth quarter, that growth had largely petered out, amid worsening global conditions.
However Italy's troubles -- related to family ownership, little forward planning and low productivity -- reflect long-standing structural problems."
"...Mr. Masuelli considered firing some of his five employees, but the rigid labor laws meant the cost of dismissing them was too high. At the same time, new health and safety regulations have eaten into profit."
Such an economic landscape is bound to have a negative impact on the entrepreneurial spirit and for a place like Italy - where inventions and innovations are as part of the landscape as earth, wind, water and fire - this can have a major negative impact.
Kill the red tape. It's corroding Italy's spirit.
High taxes don't help either. At the moment, Italy has more parasites than producers and that gap is widening as more as the country is experiencing a net outflow of 'high net-worth individuals.
This is a cautionary tale for Americans who don't see much to worry about with populists like Sanders. But they should. Europe is an example in real time telling us left-wing policies are a disaster.
From Market Watch:
"When Italy reports its first-quarter gross-domestic-product figures Friday, economists are expecting just 0.3% growth from the previous quarter. That would be just half the rate of the eurozone as a whole, according to Eurostat.
Italy's economy grew 0.8% last year, the first positive result in four years. But by the fourth quarter, that growth had largely petered out, amid worsening global conditions.
However Italy's troubles -- related to family ownership, little forward planning and low productivity -- reflect long-standing structural problems."
"...Mr. Masuelli considered firing some of his five employees, but the rigid labor laws meant the cost of dismissing them was too high. At the same time, new health and safety regulations have eaten into profit."
Such an economic landscape is bound to have a negative impact on the entrepreneurial spirit and for a place like Italy - where inventions and innovations are as part of the landscape as earth, wind, water and fire - this can have a major negative impact.
Kill the red tape. It's corroding Italy's spirit.
High taxes don't help either. At the moment, Italy has more parasites than producers and that gap is widening as more as the country is experiencing a net outflow of 'high net-worth individuals.
This is a cautionary tale for Americans who don't see much to worry about with populists like Sanders. But they should. Europe is an example in real time telling us left-wing policies are a disaster.
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