By Marios Zachariadis via MacroPolis | At first glance, the potentially catastrophic consequences of Grexit on the rest of the Eurozone provide the Greek government with an important bargaining chip. However, the Greek government should take into consideration that Grexit is not the only possible alternative in case an agreement with the rest of the EZ cannot be reached soon.
MADRDD | Sean Duffy | Markets are likely to remain volatile in the week ahead as investors await indication on Greek standoff.
MADRID | The Corner | After the biggest banking leak in history, British bank HSBC admitted on Sunday that its Swiss subsidiary systematically helped big fortunes dodge taxes and hide millions of dollars of assets. Switzerland and the whole industry are under the spotlight: long known for its banking secrecy, the country signed a fiscal transparency agreement with Brussels in 2004 which has proved insufficient. A new, enlarged version of the accord is being debated now and expected to be ready in 2018. But will it be enough? And what until then?
MADRID | By JP Marín Arrese | By taking pre-emptive action against Greece, Draghi is behaving like the Nottingham Sheriff ruthlessly enforcing law and order according to Berlin rules. He was forced to act only by the end of this month. Taking on his own the task of imposing a 7-day ultimatum to Tsipras, he has shattered his neutral stance as a monetary policymaker. Yet, his move might backfire should Greece refuse caving in to pressure. After all, it has little to lose.
MADRID | Sean Duffy | A defiant speech on Sunday in the Greek parliament from Alexis Tsipras has heightened tensions once again. The game of brinkmanship continues apace, but is the Greek Government edging itself towards a euro exit?
BRUSSELS | By Jacobo de Regoyos | Reports several months ago claimed that smuggling and money laundering were on the rise in Gibraltar. In an exclusive interview with The Corner, Gibraltar´s Deputy Chief Minister, Joseph Garcia, makes an impassioned defence of the territory´s record, claiming that the measures in place to combat such problems are among the strongest in Europe. He also laments the deterioration of relations with the Spanish Government and calls for a reopening of diplomatic channels.
MADRID | The Corner | Spanish Industrial Production figures proved disappointing on Friday, with results revealing that the sector had fallen 0.3% month-on- month and 0.9% year-on- year. The figures will be of some concern to the Finance Ministry given that the economy has recorded seven consecutive months of negative inflation.
ATHENS | By Nick Malkoutzis via MacroPolis | If there was any doubt that the negotiations between the new Greek government and its lenders are going to be incredibly tense, there isn’t now. The European Central Bank’s decision on Wednesday night to stop accepting Greek government bonds as collateral from local lenders has minimal practical impact in the short-term but maximum effect in symbolic terms.
MADRID | By JP Marín Arrese | Tsipras rebellion was ruthlessly quelled by the ECB governing board last night. Neither Greek sovereigns, nor publicly-guaranteed bond issues, will stand as eligible collateral for funding facilities, thus plunging the financial system into a crippling credit-crunch. The emergency liquidity arrangement managed by the local central bank severely caps new public financing to a meagre €3.5 billion amount. The new government faces the unpalatable choice between surrender or bankruptcy.
MADRID | The Corner | Despite the markets’ first negative reaction to the ECB’s restricting Greece access to its direct liquidity lines, Morgan Stanley analysts reminded on Thursday that nobody should be that surprised: in 2012, one third of the Greek balance sheets were financed by the ECB, and most via ELA. Plus, Greek banks can still get ECB liquidity if they use ECB eligible collateral.