Sweden's Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt was notably pleased while commenting on the GDP results. He said that 6.9 percent is a very strong number, especially considering the economic difficulties that many other European countries are experiencing at the moment. He also pointed out that Sweden has good reason to be cautious going forward as the country's economy relies
Morgunblaðið says crisis is unlikely.
On April 9, Morgunblaðið reports, "New Moody's report says crisis unlikely." At once the headline sums up a rosy conclusion of a report from an agency that has recently downgraded Iceland's banks to C- and lowered Iceland's outlook to negative. The article begins by stating Iceland's exceptional quality in being the only Aaa ranked country with C- ranked banks, as if this was almost a good thing. It goes on to say, "the state of the banks is said to be concerning, but it's unlikely that they will be the cause an economic crisis." Additionally, it reports, "Minister of Finance Árni M. Mathiesen says discussions during the last two to three weeks have been moving in a positive direction. Moody's is very well acquainted with the country and their positive report should push discussions in that direction."
Thus, it's generally a positive report.
Morgunblaðið fails to mention that the banks are nine times Iceland's GDP, and does not include Moody's warning: "The banking sector in Iceland represents the most burdensome contingent liability. Moody's considers the three large commercial banks in Iceland as "too big to fail," a concept that is not affected by the banks having been fully privatised, meaning that we would expect a very high degree of systemic support by the Icelandic authorities for the banks in the event of a stress situation. Given the scale of the banks' international operations, however, any systemic threat would prove extremely costly to the government if that eventuality were to materialize."
Of course if they had included all of this, the Minister of Finance would have appeared incompetent and they couldn't have written up such an overwhelmingly positive interpretation of the report.
Fréttablaðið says speculations are ridiculous
On the following day, April 10, Fréttablaðið covers Moody's report in an article called, "Ridiculous speculations." The article
Warm and almost snow free winters have been common in most parts of Sweden for a long time. However, the NAO phenomenon occured in Sweden last year and is due to make another appearance this coming winter.
According to
Morgunblaðið says crisis is unlikely.
On April 9, Morgunblaðið reports, "New Moody's report says crisis unlikely." At once the headline sums up a rosy conclusion of a report from an agency that has recently downgraded Iceland's banks to C- and lowered Iceland's outlook to negative. The article begins by stating Iceland's exceptional quality in being the only Aaa ranked country with C- ranked banks, as if this was almost a good thing. It goes on to say, "the state of the banks is said to be concerning, but it's unlikely that they will be the cause an economic crisis." Additionally, it reports, "Minister of Finance Árni M. Mathiesen says discussions during the last two to three weeks have been moving in a positive direction. Moody's is very well acquainted with the country and their positive report should push discussions in that direction."
Thus, it's generally a positive report.
Morgunblaðið fails to mention that the banks are nine times Iceland's GDP, and does not include Moody's warning: "The banking sector in Iceland represents the most burdensome contingent liability. Moody's considers the three large commercial banks in Iceland as "too big to fail," a concept that is not affected by the banks having been fully privatised, meaning that we would expect a very high degree of systemic support by the Icelandic authorities for the banks in the event of a stress situation. Given the scale of the banks' international operations, however, any systemic threat would prove extremely costly to the government if that eventuality were to materialize."
Of course if they had included all of this, the Minister of Finance would have appeared incompetent and they couldn't have written up such an overwhelmingly positive interpretation of the report.
Fréttablaðið says speculations are ridiculous
On the following day, April 10, Fréttablaðið covers Moody's report in an article called, "Ridiculous speculations." The article
Morgunblaðið says crisis is unlikely.
On April 9, Morgunblaðið reports, "New Moody's report says crisis unlikely." At once the headline sums up a rosy conclusion of a report from an agency that has recently downgraded Iceland's banks to C- and lowered Iceland's outlook to negative. The article begins by stating Iceland's exceptional quality in being the only Aaa ranked country with C- ranked banks, as if this was almost a good thing. It goes on to say, "the state of the banks is said to be concerning, but it's unlikely that they will be the cause an economic crisis." Additionally, it reports, "Minister of Finance Árni M. Mathiesen says discussions during the last two to three weeks have been moving in a positive direction. Moody's is very well acquainted with the country and their positive report should push discussions in that direction."
Thus, it's generally a positive report.
Morgunblaðið fails to mention that the banks are nine times Iceland's GDP, and does not include Moody's warning: "The banking sector in Iceland represents the most burdensome contingent liability. Moody's considers the three large commercial banks in Iceland as "too big to fail," a concept that is not affected by the banks having been fully privatised, meaning that we would expect a very high degree of systemic support by the Icelandic authorities for the banks in the event of a stress situation. Given the scale of the banks' international operations, however, any systemic threat would prove extremely costly to the government if that eventuality were to materialize."
Of course if they had included all of this, the Minister of Finance would have appeared incompetent and they couldn't have written up such an overwhelmingly positive interpretation of the report.
Fréttablaðið says speculations are ridiculous
On the following day, April 10, Fréttablaðið covers Moody's report in an article called, "Ridiculous speculations." The article
Morgunblaðið says crisis is unlikely.
On April 9, Morgunblaðið reports, "New Moody's report says crisis unlikely." At once the headline sums up a rosy conclusion of a report from an agency that has recently downgraded Iceland's banks to C- and lowered Iceland's outlook to negative. The article begins by stating Iceland's exceptional quality in being the only Aaa ranked country with C- ranked banks, as if this was almost a good thing. It goes on to say, "the state of the banks is said to be concerning, but it's unlikely that they will be the cause an economic crisis." Additionally, it reports, "Minister of Finance Árni M. Mathiesen says discussions during the last two to three weeks have been moving in a positive direction. Moody's is very well acquainted with the country and their positive report should push discussions in that direction."
Thus, it's generally a positive report.
Morgunblaðið fails to mention that the banks are nine times Iceland's GDP, and does not include Moody's warning: "The banking sector in Iceland represents the most burdensome contingent liability. Moody's considers the three large commercial banks in Iceland as "too big to fail," a concept that is not affected by the banks having been fully privatised, meaning that we would expect a very high degree of systemic support by the Icelandic authorities for the banks in the event of a stress situation. Given the scale of the banks' international operations, however, any systemic threat would prove extremely costly to the government if that eventuality were to materialize."
Of course if they had included all of this, the Minister of Finance would have appeared incompetent and they couldn't have written up such an overwhelmingly positive interpretation of the report.
Fréttablaðið says speculations are ridiculous
On the following day, April 10, Fréttablaðið covers Moody's report in an article called, "Ridiculous speculations." The article
Foreign visitors made up 48 percent of the total number of those who attended the festival this year and they stayed an average of five and a half nights in Iceland.
In the survey, visitors were asked to how much they spent on accommodation, food and restaurants, nightlife, transport, trade and so on. The survey concluded that
Morgunblaðið says crisis is unlikely.
On April 9, Morgunblaðið reports, "New Moody's report says crisis unlikely." At once the headline sums up a rosy conclusion of a report from an agency that has recently downgraded Iceland's banks to C- and lowered Iceland's outlook to negative. The article begins by stating Iceland's exceptional quality in being the only Aaa ranked country with C- ranked banks, as if this was almost a good thing. It goes on to say, "the state of the banks is said to be concerning, but it's unlikely that they will be the cause an economic crisis." Additionally, it reports, "Minister of Finance Árni M. Mathiesen says discussions during the last two to three weeks have been moving in a positive direction. Moody's is very well acquainted with the country and their positive report should push discussions in that direction."
Thus, it's generally a positive report.
Morgunblaðið fails to mention that the banks are nine times Iceland's GDP, and does not include Moody's warning: "The banking sector in Iceland represents the most burdensome contingent liability. Moody's considers the three large commercial banks in Iceland as "too big to fail," a concept that is not affected by the banks having been fully privatised, meaning that we would expect a very high degree of systemic support by the Icelandic authorities for the banks in the event of a stress situation. Given the scale of the banks' international operations, however, any systemic threat would prove extremely costly to the government if that eventuality were to materialize."
Of course if they had included all of this, the Minister of Finance would have appeared incompetent and they couldn't have written up such an overwhelmingly positive interpretation of the report.
Fréttablaðið says speculations are ridiculous
On the following day, April 10, Fréttablaðið covers Moody's report in an article called, "Ridiculous speculations." The article
Morgunblaðið says crisis is unlikely.
On April 9, Morgunblaðið reports, "New Moody's report says crisis unlikely." At once the headline sums up a rosy conclusion of a report from an agency that has recently downgraded Iceland's banks to C- and lowered Iceland's outlook to negative. The article begins by stating Iceland's exceptional quality in being the only Aaa ranked country with C- ranked banks, as if this was almost a good thing. It goes on to say, "the state of the banks is said to be concerning, but it's unlikely that they will be the cause an economic crisis." Additionally, it reports, "Minister of Finance Árni M. Mathiesen says discussions during the last two to three weeks have been moving in a positive direction. Moody's is very well acquainted with the country and their positive report should push discussions in that direction."
Thus, it's generally a positive report.
Morgunblaðið fails to mention that the banks are nine times Iceland's GDP, and does not include Moody's warning: "The banking sector in Iceland represents the most burdensome contingent liability. Moody's considers the three large commercial banks in Iceland as "too big to fail," a concept that is not affected by the banks having been fully privatised, meaning that we would expect a very high degree of systemic support by the Icelandic authorities for the banks in the event of a stress situation. Given the scale of the banks' international operations, however, any systemic threat would prove extremely costly to the government if that eventuality were to materialize."
Of course if they had included all of this, the Minister of Finance would have appeared incompetent and they couldn't have written up such an overwhelmingly positive interpretation of the report.
Fréttablaðið says speculations are ridiculous
On the following day, April 10, Fréttablaðið covers Moody's report in an article called, "Ridiculous speculations." The article
Morgunblaðið says crisis is unlikely.
On April 9, Morgunblaðið reports, "New Moody's report says crisis unlikely." At once the headline sums up a rosy conclusion of a report from an agency that has recently downgraded Iceland's banks to C- and lowered Iceland's outlook to negative. The article begins by stating Iceland's exceptional quality in being the only Aaa ranked country with C- ranked banks, as if this was almost a good thing. It goes on to say, "the state of the banks is said to be concerning, but it's unlikely that they will be the cause an economic crisis." Additionally, it reports, "Minister of Finance Árni M. Mathiesen says discussions during the last two to three weeks have been moving in a positive direction. Moody's is very well acquainted with the country and their positive report should push discussions in that direction."
Thus, it's generally a positive report.
Morgunblaðið fails to mention that the banks are nine times Iceland's GDP, and does not include Moody's warning: "The banking sector in Iceland represents the most burdensome contingent liability. Moody's considers the three large commercial banks in Iceland as "too big to fail," a concept that is not affected by the banks having been fully privatised, meaning that we would expect a very high degree of systemic support by the Icelandic authorities for the banks in the event of a stress situation. Given the scale of the banks' international operations, however, any systemic threat would prove extremely costly to the government if that eventuality were to materialize."
Of course if they had included all of this, the Minister of Finance would have appeared incompetent and they couldn't have written up such an overwhelmingly positive interpretation of the report.
Fréttablaðið says speculations are ridiculous
On the following day, April 10, Fréttablaðið covers Moody's report in an article called, "Ridiculous speculations." The article
Stefan Haukur Johannesson, the leader of the Icelandic accession negotiation committee, told RUV that the review process is an extremely important part of the accession process and will take up to six months to complete.
A significant part of the process is the meeting of Icelandic and EU political experts in Brussels to compare Icelandic laws to EU laws and set them against each other coherently – because different countries often use different laws to deal with the
Hreidar Arni Magnusson looks tired as he enters his home.
The Reykjavik-based hairdresser scampers about the kitchen trying to get dinner ready. It's been another long day.
Hreidar has been packing in the hours at his hair salon, Salon Veh, in the centre of Reykjavik. Despite Iceland's economic crisis people still need haircuts.
"We are still busy but we're not making any money," Hreidar says.
"We have no profit, you know?"
"The profits are getting eaten up because we cannot raise the prices endlessly."
Iceland's coalition government, led by the Social Democratic Alliance (SDA), reckons the European Union (EU) is the solution to the country's money troubles and that idea was initially supported by a majority of Icelanders. But just two years after the collapse of Iceland's banking system, Hreidar is one of a growing number of Icelanders who don't want to join the EU.
"It was a lot on the news here how the safety net of the European Union worked for Greece. The Germans they didn't want to help," points out Hreidar.
"So what does it mean?"
"Is it as great as it's supposed to be? I don't know."
The EU's traditional strength, the economy, has taken a battering this year. That makes membership a lot less inviting. A protective European brotherhood didn't seem so bad to Icelanders as their life savings disappeared late in 2008. Now the pendulum of public opinion is swinging back.
Svavar Ingi Hermannsson is another one of the 320,000 odd Icelanders trying to stay afloat. The information security specialist has just got a new job at BSI Iceland, an assessment and certification company. Svavar's previous employer survived the initial economic crash quite well and then tried to take advantage of its relative strength.
"They took various risks, which had they paid off would have made the company a
The brand new company registered on behalf of Wikileaks is called Sunshine Press Production – the same as the formal international name of Wikileaks, RUV reports. The chairman of the company is Wikileaks founder Julian Assange and he shares the board of directors with filmmaker Ingi Ragnar Ingason and journalist Kristinn Hrafnsson. The deputy
Morgunblaðið says crisis is unlikely.
On April 9, Morgunblaðið reports, "New Moody's report says crisis unlikely." At once the headline sums up a rosy conclusion of a report from an agency that has recently downgraded Iceland's banks to C- and lowered Iceland's outlook to negative. The article begins by stating Iceland's exceptional quality in being the only Aaa ranked country with C- ranked banks, as if this was almost a good thing. It goes on to say, "the state of the banks is said to be concerning, but it's unlikely that they will be the cause an economic crisis." Additionally, it reports, "Minister of Finance Árni M. Mathiesen says discussions during the last two to three weeks have been moving in a positive direction. Moody's is very well acquainted with the country and their positive report should push discussions in that direction."
Thus, it's generally a positive report.
Morgunblaðið fails to mention that the banks are nine times Iceland's GDP, and does not include Moody's warning: "The banking sector in Iceland represents the most burdensome contingent liability. Moody's considers the three large commercial banks in Iceland as "too big to fail," a concept that is not affected by the banks having been fully privatised, meaning that we would expect a very high degree of systemic support by the Icelandic authorities for the banks in the event of a stress situation. Given the scale of the banks' international operations, however, any systemic threat would prove extremely costly to the government if that eventuality were to materialize."
Of course if they had included all of this, the Minister of Finance would have appeared incompetent and they couldn't have written up such an overwhelmingly positive interpretation of the report.
Fréttablaðið says speculations are ridiculous
On the following day, April 10, Fréttablaðið covers Moody's report in an article called, "Ridiculous speculations." The article
According to Journalist Kurt Lassen, in a taped interview for his biography, Plummer disclosed the names of two external candidates who also went for the job of the DR's director general when he was appointed in 2005. The names of such people are normally kept strictly private and
The assembly, organised by a group of grassroots organisations, involves 1,000 Icelandic citizens, all of which were selected by random means from the National Population Register. An additional 4,000 citizens have also been invited to ensure that the full 1,000 attend on the day.
The selection of citizens will represent a cross-section of Icelandic society with attending participants spanning all six constituencies of Iceland. Additionally, there is an equal division between both age and gender;
Egill Axelsson, a Hydrographic specialist working at the Icelandic Met Office (Vedurstofa Islands) commented, "If this continues then we estimate that the flood will reach its peak this afternoon."
According to mbl.is, Gunnar Gudmundsson, a geophysicist at the Icelandic Met Office said, "There was an increase in turbulence in Grimsvotn at
According to the survey, taken between 30th September and 27th October, 30 percent of survey participants support the government – but last month this figure was 40 percent.
The survey identifies that both the Icelandic government parties, the Social Democrats (Samfylkingin) and Left-Green Movement (Vinstrihreyfingin – grænt framboð), have lost a large consignment. Both political parties now have the support of 18 percent of respondents, respectively. The Icelandic Social Democrats has not received such a low percentage
The media is often recognised as the fourth branch of government sitting next to the executive, legislative, and judicial branches. Recognising its importance in 1787, United States Founding Father Thomas Jefferson said, "were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter."
If fulfilling the role of the 4th branch was the goal, then Iceland's two most widely read newspapers, Fréttablaðið and Morgunblaðið, by and large failed to fulfil their duties before the crash. On the contrary, the papers often served as a mouthpiece of the government and financial institutions, through which they spewed positive propaganda to the public. Although, for example, Morgunblaðið's editor at the time, Styrmir Gunnarsson, claims the paper, "adequately evaluated external news and information [before the crash]," an examination of what the newspapers had in their hands in terms of external warnings and what they then passed on to the public reveals a serious lapse in journalism.
Before the crash, external agencies like Moody's, the OECD and Merrill Lynch, consistently issued reports warning about the enormity of the commercial banking sector and the absence of a lender of last resort. Each time, the newspapers remarkably minimised their reports and ignored or refuted any critical information about the banks.
April – Moody's is worried about Iceland's banks
On April 9, Moody's issues its annual report on Iceland, reiterating its
decision to downgrade Iceland's banks to C- and lower the government's
rating to negative in February and March, respectively.
Morgunblaðið says crisis is unlikely.
On April 9, Morgunblaðið reports, "New Moody's report says crisis unlikely." At once the headline sums up a rosy conclusion of a report from an agency that has recently downgraded Iceland's banks to C- and lowered Iceland's outlook to negative. The article begins by stating Iceland's exceptional quality in being the only Aaa ranked country with C- ranked banks, as if this was almost a good thing. It goes on to say, "the state of the banks is said to be concerning, but it's unlikely that they will be the cause an economic crisis." Additionally, it reports, "Minister of Finance Árni M. Mathiesen says discussions during the last two to three weeks have been moving in a positive direction. Moody's is very well acquainted with the country and their positive report should push discussions in that direction."
Thus, it's generally a positive report.
Morgunblaðið fails to mention that the banks are nine times Iceland's GDP, and does not include Moody's warning: "The banking sector in Iceland represents the most burdensome contingent liability. Moody's considers the three large commercial banks in Iceland as "too big to fail," a concept that is not affected by the banks having been fully privatised, meaning that we would expect a very high degree of systemic support by the Icelandic authorities for the banks in the event of a stress situation. Given the scale of the banks' international operations, however, any systemic threat would prove extremely costly to the government if that eventuality were to materialize."
Of course if they had included all of this, the Minister of Finance would have appeared incompetent and they couldn't have written up such an overwhelmingly positive interpretation of the report.
Fréttablaðið says speculations are ridiculous
On the following day, April 10, Fréttablaðið covers Moody's report in an article called, "Ridiculous speculations." The article
