Greece - the Piigs That Won't Fly

The PIIGS that won't fly

A guide to the euro-zone's most troubled economies

Mar 31st 2010 | From The Economist online

AT A summit in Brussels on March 25-26th, leaders of the 16 member countries of the euro area finally agreed on a last-resort financial rescue mechanism for Greece, whose massive stock of public debt and yawning budget deficit have fuelled fears that it may default. The markets’ reaction to the deal was lukewarm, suggesting that investors have yet to be convinced that Greece will be able to continue to service its debts. Yet beyond Greece there are questions over several other euro-area countries: the five so-called PIIGS, which face many of the same economic challenges as well as the ability to cause headaches in Brussels (and Berlin). The interactive graphic below tells the story; click on the map for country-specific information and charts.

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Greece's deepening debt crisis

The wax melts

Worries about Greece’s ability to roll over its maturing debt are giving way to bigger fears

Apr 8th 2010 | ATHENS AND LONDON | From The Economist print edition

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GEORGE PAPANDREOU may have spoken too soon. On April 6th, just three days after the Greek prime minister claimed “the worst is over,” the yield on Greek ten-year government bonds leapt from 6.5% to above 7%. Yields remain at alarming levels. On April 7th the spread over their German equivalents stood at more than four percentage points, the highest since Greece joined the euro in 2001. The D-word (default) is increasingly on the lips of analysts. The cost of insuring Greece’s bonds surpassed that of Iceland’s this week; Greek banks have asked to tap a government liquidity scheme. Far from coming to an end, the Greek debt crisis seems scarcely to have begun.

On the face of it, this week’s renewed bond-market jitters were caused by growing doubts that an emergency-aid package patched together by...