TOWARD A NEW MAGNA CARTA ALEXANDER MIRTCHEV AND NORMAN BAILEY

The world economy cannot count on growth to solve the global debt problem – and stimulus measures are not a sustainable solution. In the third installment in their series “The Search for a New Global Equilibrium,” Dr. Alexander Mirtchev and Dr. Norman Bailey argue the time is ripe for a “new Magna Carta” – a redefinition of the social contract among the government, Main Street and Wall Street. As always, the ultimate hopes of addressing the issue of debt appear to be pinned on growth as a way out of the rising waters of debt. Rightfully so. And yet, in the current economic circumstances, growth seems more likely to come from a divine miracle than from mere mortals making the difficult choices that must be made.In reality, the prospects of global economic growth in the context of prevailing indebtedness are faced, on one side, by the Scylla of austerity measures and the Charybdis of stimulus packages that invariably lead to higher states of indebtedness. Essentially, a damned-if-you-do, damned-if-you-don’t conundrum.

Top Canada economy forecaster: Lower oil to hurt till mid-year: Reuters poll

(Reuters) - Canada's resource-dependent economy will reel from the sting of a slump in oil prices until mid-2015 at least, when exporters may start to benefit from stronger U.S. growth and a weaker Canadian dollar, according to the top forecaster for the Canadian economy in Reuters polls in 2014.

Greece sees problems repaying IMF, ECB; Germans air mistrust

ATHENS/BERLIN (Reuters) - Greece admitted on Wednesday it will struggle to make debt repayments to the IMF and the European Central Bank this year as Germany's finance minister voiced open doubts about Athens' trustworthiness.

U.S. home prices rise, service sector expands but consumer sentiment dips

(Reuters) - U.S. home prices rose again in December and activity in the services sector expanded in February at its fastest pace since October, but a gauge of consumer confidence fell, according to reports published on Tuesday.

German business morale holding up, Ifo survey says

Confidence among German businesses is holding up despite problems in the eurozone and other uncertainties, a survey by the Ifo institute suggests.

U.S. Stocks Rise to Records in Week on Greek Deal, Fed Rate Bets

(Bloomberg) -- U.S. stocks rose for the week, sending the Dow Jones Industrial Average to its first record of the year, as Greece reached a deal on its bailout program and investors speculated the Federal Reserve will keep rates lower for longer.

Spain recovery drives up trade deficit 53%

Madrid (AFP) - Spain's trade deficit swelled by more than half in 2014 as economic recovery spurred businesses to import and consumers to buy cars and appliances, the government said Monday.

BOJ's Kuroda: No immediate need to ease policy again

(Reuters) - Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said on Wednesday he saw no immediate need to expand monetary stimulus again, stressing that temporary pressure from the oil price slump won't derail steady progress towards reaching his 2 percent inflation target.