New York Times
October 1, 2011
On Wednesday, the eyes of the financial world turned to Finland.
Finland?
For all its virtues, that small Nordic country hasn’t grabbed much global attention lately. But thanks to the quirky political and economic structure of Europe, last week Finland had the power to send financial markets into a tailspin.
As it turned out, the Finns didn’t throw a wrench into the financial gears. But that they were in a position to do so provided yet another reason for shaken investors to hide in the nearest bunker.
How did it come to this?
The euro zone has been a source of global instability for months. In the latest episode, Finland, which has an impeccable credit rating, was asked to approve a measure that would aid its improvident southern neighbor, Greece. The Finnish Parliament had grave reservations — it is already contemplating writing off some of its direct loans to Greece. But mindful of the possible consequences, the Finns voted to strengthen a European bailout fund, the inelegantly named European Financial Stability Facility.
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