Commission Newsletter: 1997

SUMMARY

In this article Sandro Guerrieri discusses the parliamentary proceedings in France of 9–10 July 1940, which set up the Vichy State under the leadership of Marshal Pétain. He was then head of the government of the Third Republic and the motion of 10 July authorized him to consider and promulgate a revised constitution for the French state. In August 1944, these proceedings were formally declared to have been a coup d'état, and therefore legally null and void. It is shown that some of the politicians who voted in the National Assembly against the resolution of 10 July had already asserted this interpretation of the process by which the Vichy State was established. The article reviews the arguments that have developed around this subject, and suggests that while the actual motion, voted by the two Chambers acting as a National Assembly, could be seen as in accordance with the Constitution of the Third Republic, the manner in which it was used by Pétain and his advisers, particularly Pierre Laval, is open to legal challenge, and can be regarded as a usurpation of the powers granted by the National Assembly. Hence while it could be argued that what happened was not a coup d'état, in that the element of intimidatory violence over the legislature, usually seen as one defining characteristic of a coup, was absent, the proceedings can be characterized as at least a coup de force.     

Why FDI into China Outperformed the World

WORLD foreign direct investment (FDI) fell significantly in 2012. Global data are unavailable for the second half of the year, but United Nations Conference on Trade and Development statistics show that FDI fell by eight percent worldwide in the first six months to US $668 billion. Many large economies suffered severe declines-FDI into the U.S. fell by 39 percent and into     

Behind China＇s Liquidity Crisis

IN June, China suffered its worst liquidity crisis in over a decade. Fortunately, the Central Bank reversed the situation by extending liquidity operations to responsible financial institutions.     

Time to Tolk of Slowdown

THE recent publication of America＇s second quarter GDP data, following that for China, makes it possible to accurately compare the recent performance of the world＇s two largest economies and the results are extremely striking. In the last year the slowdown in the U.S. economy has been far more serious than in China. Therefore while both economies are being adversely affected by current negative trends in the world economy, China is dealing with these much more successfully than the U.S. In light of media discussion about China＇s economic ＂slowdown＂ it is equally important that attention is paid to understanding why the U.S.＇s own economic slowdown is much worse than China＇s when confronted with similar global economic trends.     

Key Issues for Asia’s Growth

THE overall global context of Asia＇s economic growth in 20a3 remains negative, particularly in developed economies. At the end of last year Japan＇s GDP was 1.7 percent below its maxi- mmn prior to the international financial crisis, while GDP in the European Union was 9.1 percent below. U.S. GDP growth is ane- mic, having reached only 2.5 percent above its last peak five years ago. Some of the pre- viously dynamic BRICS economies are also encountering problems - India＇s annual GDP growth has fallen to 4.5 percent and Brazil＇s to 1.4 percent. World commodity prices,