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Business: International Business International Business: Business The IMF often provides financial assistance to ailing economies after a crisis to enable them return to their pre-crisis levels of income. However, whether or not these bailout programs are able to achieve this objective is dependent on a number of factors. This text reviews the recovery processes of four European countries to obtain a view of what these factors are.

Currency Conversion dollar = 102.28 Japanese Yen (¥); 0.75 Euros (€); and 0.6 British pounds (£) Converting $1,500 into: Japanese Yen =$1,500 X 102.28 = ¥153,420 Euros = $1,500 X = € 1,125 British Pounds = $1,500 X =£ 900 What is the price in U.S.

Dollars of purchasing: A computer costing ¥167,000 = ¥ 167, 000/¥102.28 = $1, 632 Euro desks/chairs costing €1, 125 = €1,125/€0.75 =$1, 500 iii) Printer costing 575 Pounds = £575/£0.6 =$958 Part Two: Effects of the Global Financial Crisis on European Economies The financial crisis that hit the American economy between 2007 and 2008 spread far and wide, and continues to have an adverse effect on other economies around the world. Most economies experienced huge slumps in incomes and significant increases in unemployment as a result of the crisis.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) moved in to prevent the major economies of the world from collapsing. Countries, however, reacted differently to these bailout programs, with some recording improved economic conditions, and others recording only very negligible change. The subsequent sections explore the recovery processes encountered by four major economies in Europe - Greece, Iceland, Ukraine, and Hungary -- as a result of the IMF's assistance. They examine how GDP, inflation, and unemployment levels in these countries changed as a result of the IMF's bailout program.

Greece The Greek economy began struggling long before the 2008 financial crisis (Podaras, 2012). Beginning way back in 1981, the economy was characterized by ineffective expenditure programs with excessive expenses that increased the public debt and budget deficit without producing any tangible effect on revenues (Podaras, 2012). The financial crisis only worsened this situation, with the economy recording a budget deficit of 12.75 of GDP -- four times the Euro Zone limit, and a public debt of $410 million in 2010 (Podaras, 2012).

This led the Euro Zone countries to approve a 110-billion rescue package from the EU and the IMF to bailout Greece and prevent it from defaulting on its debts (Podaras, 2012). Moreover, the countries speeded up efforts to have Greece implement its austerity plan, which was geared at getting budget cuts of 30 billion Euros and reducing the country's public deficit to less than 3% of GDP (Podaras, 2012).

The country was as a result forced to implement budget cuts including discarding increases in public sector salaries for the three years covered in the plan, dismissing holiday bonuses for public sector workers, and scrapping bonus payments. Moreover, it began taxing illegal constructions, and at the same time raised value added tax, sold public assets, and increased taxes on tobacco, alcohol and fuel (Podaras, 2012).

The rescue program, however, did more harm than good -- the country's growth was weakened, and government spending reduced by millions of dollars in a country whose economy was already ailing. Private businesses fired workers and some closed down, causing unemployment levels to rise significantly, hitting around 16% in 2011 (Podaras, 2012). Moreover, consumer and business spending fell, depriving the government of tax receipts (Podaras, 2012). The decrease in tax receipts and government purchases caused GDP to contract significantly (Podaras, 2012). Inflation rose above the European average (Podaras, 2012).

Iceland Iceland also experienced massive economic changes as a result of the 2008 crisis. It was bailed out by the IMF in the fourth quarter of 2008. However, differently from Greece, Iceland reported positive changes to the economy as a result of the bailout (Hammar, 2015). A recent report by the IMF indicates that Iceland was able to move from the brink of collapse in 2008 into a success story and one of the top economic performers in the continent, with one of the lowest unemployment rates (Hammar, 2015).

Unemployment rates in Iceland fell sharply, with the booming tourism industry being one of the greatest contributors to the country's financial success. The overall level of inflation also fell significantly (Hammar, 2015). The country has maintained a strong balance of payments, which has enabled it to maintain adequate foreign reserves while at the same time paying off much of its IMF loans (Hammar, 2015). The low level of inflation coupled with low unemployment levels have increased government receipts, causing GDP to rise substantially (Hammar, 2015).

The IMF suggests that Iceland's success could be as a result of the fact that the country had a low debt ratio going into the crisis, and had strong ownership of its IMF-supported program (Hammar, 2015). Hungary In the last quarter of 2008, the IMF approved a $15.7 billion loan for Hungary as part of a bailout plan to ease stress on the financial market (Dapontas, 2011). An additional $1.3 billion was forthcoming from the World Bank and $8.4 billion from the European Union (Dapontas, 2011).

The financial support was accompanied by a stabilization program aimed at bringing about fiscal consolidations by reducing the government's wage and pension bill (Dapontas, 2011). The decrease in aggregate demand resulting from reduced government spending adversely affected the level of economic activity, causing GDP to fall by 6.7% in the first quarter of 2009 (Dapontas, 2011). The forint hit an all-time low of 317 against the Euro (Dapontas, 2011). Inflation reached 3.8%, with unemployment rising 2.2% to hit 9.9% (Dapontas, 2011).

A tax system reform coupled with structural reforms on social transfers and pensions, and other accommodative macroeconomic policies in September 2009 helped to correct the situation, with IMF officers reporting at the end of that year, that the economy was finally on track (Dapontas, 2011). Since then, the Hungarian economy has grown at a strong pace, with output growing by 3.6% in 2014 and inflation falling below the National Bank's inflation Target (IMF, 2015). Unemployment also declined sharply between 2009 and 2014, reflecting job creation and the expansion of public works programs (IMF, 2015).

Ukraine In the second quarter of 2014, the IMF approved a $17.5 billion bailout plan as part of a four-year financing plan to Ukraine (Lipton, 2015). The plan was intended to serve a number of core objectives: to support Ukraine's long-overdue modernization that has lagged behind other European countries since independence; to restore growth, which has been stagnant for.