EU wreckers and incompetents again warned by the IMF

If Europe quickly follows IMF recommendations, the fund expects the euro area to face a 0.5% contraction this year. The fund shaved off 1.6 percentage points from its last forecast for 2012 in September—reflecting its worst-case scenario—after risks escalated sharply in the last quarter of the year, when the debt crisis "entered a perilous new phase." Under its optimistic scenario, the IMF expects growth to return to the region next year.

Economists increasingly expect Greece to default within weeks. Even more worryingly, Spain and Italy are now in the market's targets, pushing up the cost for Madrid and Rome to borrow to cover the risk of default. The IMF slashed its 2012 forecasts for both countries, saying Italy faces a 2.2% contraction and Spain, a 1.7% fall. Both are expected to continue to be in recession through 2013.

The above is taken from a WSJ report on the latest IMF warnings about the consequences for the world of the ongoing disregard of all prudent financial management and prudent government by those who run the disaster that is the European Union, read it in full from here.

Britain's 2012 growth forecast, due to the gross incompetence of those in charge on the Continent of Europe and its own politician's subservience to their commands and objectives, was cut by a full 1% from 1.6% to 0.6%.

Update 2049 GMT - The WSJ also now has a report on the full Ecofin meeting held today which has previously been strangely unreported, read here.