“This Time is Different” by Carmen M. Reinhart and Kenneth S. Rogoff

  • Defaults are a regular part of the cycle
  • Over time, currency has been moving away from assets to fiat
  • Those more likely to default also tend to borrow more
  • Governments can choose how to restructure their debt where companies cannot
  • Additionally, there is no real way to force a government to repay
  • Serial defaults are common in every region
  • A lost war is the surest indicator of a pending default
  • Modern defaults are shorter and don’t usually involve challenges to sovereignty
  • Internal defaults are nearly as common as external defaults
  • Internal and external defaults are associated with very different recovery behaviors
  • Banking crisis strikes all countries, including advanced ones
  • The Great Recession was the epitome of “This time is different”
  • Crisis debt is more related to lower revenue and higher interest payments than recapitalizing the system
  • “The stock market has predicted 9 of the last 5 recessions.”

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