Search Result for : Eurozone

The Dollar Business Bureau Wolfgang Schaeuble and Bruno Le Maire the finance ministers of Germany and France agreed on Monday to strengthen the euro zone, leasing a breath of fresh air to the stalled reforms of the currency union. This was the first meeting between the representatives of the two largest economies in Europe, after Emmanuel Macron’s election as the French President. Both the ministers have agreed to set up a joint working group that would come up with ideas by July on ‘deepening the euro zone integration’, as described by them during the joint press meet at Berlin. The French minister said that the aim of the joint working group would be to study the prospects of  a fiscal convergence, joint investment ...

The Dollar Business Bureau  Greece has made a plea to its eurozone creditors and International Monetary Fund (IMF) to refrain from further imposition of austerity on its already slowing economy. Since the country has met its budget targets, the government's spokesperson said that there is no reason for tougher conditions on the proposed bailout package, the terms for which have been in negotiation for months.  It is crucial for Greece to receive the 86 billion Euro bailout package in order to fulfill its interest obligations, which it will inevitably default on without external aid. The tug-of-war between the creditors and the Greece government has culminated in a stalemate, with neither party willing to budge from its position with respect to stringent reforms and spending cuts.  "The Greek government ...

The Dollar Business Bureau After a satisfactory year for the euro zone economy in 2016, the new year has also kicked off on a positive note, with evidence from the European Central Bank’s massive cash stimulus seeming to open up more economic growth probabilities for the region. However, the year 2017 is slated to bring its share of challenges, both economic and political; but overall the euro zone economy is doing better than what many expected. German inflation stood at 1.9% in 2016, highest since July 2013 and spot on the ECB's under 2% target for the euro zone. Spain showed a remarkable recovery once again after the 2008 euro crisis, growing at 3.2% and another 3.2% and 1.4% in the previous two years. Netherlands’s manufacturing hit the highest since 2008, ...

The Dollar Business Bureau  Finance ministers from Eurozone failed to come out on a consensus to overcome the deep divisions with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) over a bailout of Greece and reached no agreement on relief of debt to the country.  The IMF and 19-members single currency group are debating over how much debt relief Athens needs, and the economic targets required of the nation that the Fund says are too strict. “Today we will not be able to go into depth on the Greek issue. We will have to wait,” said Wolfgang Schaeuble, Finance Minister of Germany, the most influential member of the Eurozone, as he arrived for discussions on Greece with his group’s counterparts.  The months of arguing have delayed the progress of ...

The Dollar Business Bureau A European Central Bank survey said on Friday that rising crude oil prices will translate into higher inflation in the eurozone over the next two years. According to the ECB's quarterly survey, eurozone inflation is slated to rise 1.4% in 2017 and 1.5% next year, up from a previous estimate of 1.2% and 1.4%. "These upward revisions largely reflect the increase in the price of oil," the survey said. On Thursday, ECB president Mario Draghi had said it was still too early for the bank to start scaling back its easy money policies despite a recent spike in consumer prices. The forecasters predicted inflation to hit 1.6%. Meanwhile, banks have felt the urge to undertake necessary policy stimulus after the eurozone ...

The Dollar Business Bureau The euro fell to a 20-month low against the dollar, with the Italian PM Matteo Renzi’s resignation. Renzi stuck to his promise to resign if he fails in the referendum on constitutional reform. Renzi’s decision to quit just after 2 and a half year in power, dealt a severe blow to the EU as Italy is the third largest economy in the euro zone trying to keep it afloat. Markets reacted as instability in Italy could reignite a financial crisis that could be fatal to Italy’s ‘sinking’ banking sector. Early elections are a definite for Italy and chances are that an anti-euro party, possibly the rapidly gaining popularity, 5-Star Movement, could come to power. 5-Star campaigned hard for a ...

The Dollar Business Bureau  In the event of a US rate hike, global gold prices could drop and range between $900/oz to $1,050/oz and the domestic price of gold may decline and range between Rs 20,500/10gm – Rs 24,000/10gm from the current levels of Rs 27,000/10gm, said a rating agency report. However, if the US continues to delay the interest rate hike, while major economies such as Japan and the eurozone continue with their unconventional monetary policy (UMP), the price of gold could creep up and range from $1,300/oz to $1,350/oz in FY16, said India Ratings and Research (Ind-Ra). Correspondingly, domestic prices could also increase from current levels and trade in the range of Rs 29,500/10gm-Rs 30,500/10 gm. If major global ...

Naveen Kumar | The Dollar Business The FIPB (The Foreign Investment Promotion Board), under the chairmanship of Finance Secretary, Rajiv Mehrishi, will consider 32 FDI proposals in its next meeting on April 9, 2015. The companies whose proposal would be discussed for clearance by the Board include Decathlon S.A, France, Warden Petrochem Pvt. Ltd, Richemont Services B.V, Holland, Nickelodean Asia Holdings Ltd., Singapore, Blue Dart Express Limited among others. These cases include deferred decisions, appeal against earlier rejection or request for some amendment of earlier approval. In the last meeting that was held on March 28, 2015, FIPB cleared 10 Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) proposals worth Rs 2858 crores, while it differed 18 proposals due to various reasons. Currently ...