Capitalist crisis "The criterion of the expansion of production is capital itself, the existing level of the conditions of production and the unlimited desire of the capitalists to enrich themselves and to enlarge their capital, but by no means consumption, which from the outset is inhibited... Since the circulation process of capital is not completed in one day but extends over a fairly long period until the capital returns to its original form... and great upheavals and changes take place in the market in the course of this period, it is quite clear, that between the starting-point.. and... the end of one of these periods, great catastrophes must occur and elements of crisis must have gathered and develop...” - Marx

Capitalist crisis shaped specially by the huge “financialisation” since 1980

And in Europe further shaped by the clash between high economic integration and the division into many states

From 1980, "fictitious capital" explodes (US figures)

Big expansion in trade in tickets to future surplus value

Bubble burst Not because of profits having fallen. But they did fall after.

Banks crashed or came near crashing worldwide

Is this a tale of good capitalists (industrial) vs bad capitalists (banks)?

Noooooooooooooo! 1. Globalisation of production and distribution makes fluid and lively international financial dealings a capitalist necessity. 2. Industrial corporations' "treasury departments" are big factors in the financial markets. 3. The industrial capitalists extract the surplus value some of which the bankers then pocket.

States bailed out banks

Banks relatively bigger in Europe than USA

Irish bank bailout especially huge "Banks are international in life but national in death" Irish bank bailout especially huge

European Central Bank, unlike Federal Reserve, unwilling to intervene

Result in worst-hit countries: dance of death where banks bring down states, and states bring down banks

Since euro, "peripheral" countries had grown faster with easier credit but built up debts

EU and ECB strategy: crash wages and conditions in "periphery"

Other moves: OMT (The ECB will buy unlimited quantities of eurozone governments’ bonds... for governments which have officially requested it and agreed to submit to a programme of cuts and economic restructuring).

Talk of EU budgets to promote growth in hard-hit areas; but...

Talk of a European banking union

Talk of Eurobonds (eurozone governments being able to use collective credit of eurozone to borrow)

The answer?