Greece negotiations at crucial juncture
MADRID | Sean Duffy | ECB tightens the squeeze on Syriza government ahead of today´s proposals from the Greek Goverment for a loan extension.
ECB
Greece: Another euro stitch unpicked
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.
Pressure on Greek debt: A nudge or a punch in Athens’ face?
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.
All smiles and handshakes for Tsipras’ EC visit (before ECB tightened the rope)
BRUSSELS | By Alexandre Mato | The leader of the European Commission, Jean Claude Juncker, offered a friendly welcome to the Greek Prime Minister at the Commission entrance on Wednesday. There were no speeches, nor questions from journalists. After posing in front of the cameras, Juncker took Tsipras’ hand, the two leaving the photo-call as ‘lovers’. And some hours later, in a not that surprising move, Draghi banned the use of the Greek debt as collateral for the European Central Bank’s. The euro continued falling versus the U.S. dollar after the news: it hit $1.1304 — close to its 11-year low — before stabilizing at $1.1354 around 0540 GMT.
D-Day as Varoufakis lands in Germany
MADRID | By Sean Duffy | Today is a massive day for the euro zone. The outcome of negotiations between Greek politicans and European bosses will be closely monitored by markets and euro zone partners alike. With Greek banks under pressure, a deal needs to be agreed soon.
“Austerity, not lack of liquidity, is what is causing the Eurozone depression”
MADRID | By Ana Fuentes | She believes that central banks should act coordinately, since competition between them can cause currency distortions. British economist and former banker Frances Coppola has been one of the main critics of the European Central Bank’s QE “because it supports asset prices, but that is all it does.” She spoke to The Corner about shadow banking and how financials should be accepting and managing risk on both sides of the Atlantic.
When Bundesbank did what it decries now
WASHINGTON | By Pablo Pardo | Guess which country pioneered Quantitative Easing in Europe… Exactly: Germany!
“NCB risk bearing should be traded-off against a big QE”
MADRID | By Ana Fuentes | Hours before ECB’s president Mario Draghi unveils its big easing program, we spoke to think tank Bruegel central banks’ expert Silvia Merler about an eventual national risk bearing. It could be a way to make QE more acceptable by Germany, she believes, although “it should be traded-off against a significant size” (meaning more than the €50bn purchases per month some market watchers are talking about).
ECB’s time for truth
MADRID | By Ana Fuentes | It’s been the talk of the town for months, driving up demand for government bonds in the eurozone, pushing yields to record lows and heating the debate among market makers. And yet nobody knows the scope of the European Central Bank’s next move. The much-awaited quantitative easing (QE) program is expected to be officially announced after 14.30CET today and include controversial sovereign bond purchases of €50-70billion euros per month until the end of 2016. Is the ECB late? Will the ECB manage to spur growth in the eurozone with that amount?
Draghi’s deal
MADRID | By J.P. Marín Arrese | Mario Draghi has snatched green light for launching his coveted bond-buying scheme. In exchange, he has caved in to German pressure transferring the potential losses to the national banks. The ECB may seem to have lost its independence but striking such a deal was worth the price.