94.4% of Crisis Aid Went to the Financial Sector; Surprise? Or Not?

Inquiring minds just might be asking "Where the hell did all the fiscal stimulus, financial aid, and monetary stimulus go?"

It's a damn good question.

And I have the percentage answer for Spain (by Spain's own admission). Results would be similar for any country you look at (including the US).

For example, every penny of QE went to Wall Street and distressed banks, not the average Joe on the street. Paying interest on reserves (then jacking up money supply so that reserves soared) was pure profit to the banks.

Via translation from El Blog Salmon please consider the financial sector took 94.4% of the public aid in 2011.

As if it was not clear who were the favorites of the State in the current economic crisis, comes the National Competition Commission (CNC) and makes it clear. According to the "V Annual report on public support in Spain" , published yesterday by this institution, 94.4% of the total volume of aid granted by the State in 2011 went to the banking sector.

Official reporting shows the banking sector received €84.19 billion in aid.

At the other end of the scale, the main victims of the economic crisis, citizens and businesses, just received  €4.5 billion to mitigate the devastating effects of the crisis. This is clear evidence about who the big government protected in this country.

Surprise? Or Not?

The percentages are hardly surprising. What is surprising is the implicit admission of theft by the government, explicitly to bail out the banks, to the demise of the working-class and everyone else.

The same thing happened in the US (and everywhere else). Percentages vary somewhat, but the theme is 100% correct:

El Blog Salmon concludes (my paraphrasing as this was a difficult translation) ...

"I think that the Government erred by rescuing the financial system. However pernicious the consequences of no bailouts to the financial sector, we would all be better off had that bailout not occurred."

I certainly agree with the above sentiment.

Mike "Mish" Shedlock
http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com