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For a long time, I thought of France as one of the richest countries in the world, in the same league as countries like America, Switzerland, Norway, UAE etc. until just sometime back I read a report stating they may need an IMF bailout.
Apparently since then, the bond yields rose (signaling investor distrust), their people caught rioting in Paris and they have been changing prime minister faster than Britney Spears changed husbands when she was still sexy.
So does this political instability have anything to do with the economy? Is the economy the root cause, and will further political instability have any tangible economic impact (such as France being kicked off the list of developed countries, demoted to the levels of like Mexico or Malaysia)? Or is it just politics and nothing to do with the economy?
Governments are a major factor in determining the wealth of nations. France has allowed significant Muslim immigration diluting its culture and creating internal societal conflicts. A divided populace creates political tensions and imposes economic costs. The same could be said for the USA. As part of the EU France is monetarily and militarily subservient to the US global hegemony. The crony capitalist west where capital directs governments is in decline. China has won the trade war with its focused mercantile mixed economy and relative cultural unity. USA and Europe are being challenged on economic and military fronts for global hegemony by China and its proxies Venezuela, Iran and Russia.
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They aren't separable things. If the French economy sucks, it's probably because of distortions introduced by their political system.
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The wealth of nations is highly derivative of the quality of their governments. There has never been a wealthy and enduring nation without a government that provisioned the security, property rights and rule of law required for capital and enterprise to thrive and prosper.
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