Bè mi sembrerebbe davvero incredibile lasciare andar giù la grecia in questo modo. Assurdo, non tanto per la grecia e la sua economia (di cui cui credo che non interessi a nessuno) quanto per l'importanza simbolica del fatto e gli eventi che potrebbero scatenarsi su altri paesi deboli noi compresi. E poi sono 50 anni che la meniamo con l'europa unita e simili facezie e poi alla prima crisi c'è ne freghiamo degli stati membri?
Allora tanto valeva stare come prima, almeno potevamo fare carta e inflazionare a piacere.
Sarebbe ora che la BCE e i tedeschi imprimis si rendano conto della necessità di fare degli eurobonds...
Comuqnue l'ipotesi di salvataggio è già in circolo, si cercano i modi...
Europe Lays Plans for How to Bail Out Greece
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/29/business/global/29bailout.html?pagewanted=all
http://www.nytimes.com/adx/bin/adx_...1.25&goto=http://www.foxsearchlight.com/cyrus
By STEPHEN CASTLE and MATTHEW SALTMARSH
Published: January 28, 2010
BRUSSELS — France, Germany and other European countries have begun discussing privately how they can come to the aid of fellow euro-zone member Greece, as doubts intensify over the country’s ability to get its budget under control.
Despite public attempts to discourage such expectations, discussions are underway, although the shape or scale of a possible bailout package has yet to be determined, according to officials in several capitals, all speaking on condition of anonymity.
“Greece failing is not an option and lots of people think that we will have to intervene at some stage,” said a euro-zone finance official, who was not permitted to speak publicly because of the sensitivity of the matter. “It doesn’t have to happen, and we hope it won’t, but it would be better than seeing a default.”
As a condition of any aid package, the center-left Greek government led by the Prime Minister, George Papandreou, would be asked to provide a more detailed program to bring the country’s deficit of 12.7 percent of gross domestic product under control.
Officials insist that any bailout must not put into doubt the credibility of the euro itself.
Greece’s budget crisis poses a big new test for the single currency and has even led to speculation that the country might be forced out of the euro zone, a suggestion that has been dismissed in Athens and other capitals.
The latest moves reflect a continuing skepticism among euro-zone members over the practicality of the plans put forward so far by the Greek government.
It wants to slash the deficit to 3 percent of gross domestic product by 2012, an objective described as unrealistic by one European diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity. These plans are due to be assessed by the European Commission early next month.
A commission spokeswoman, Amelia Torres, declined to comment on Thursday.
Greece’s deficit is four times the European Union’s limit of 3 percent of G.D.P., while the country’s debt amounts to 113 percent of gross domestic product. But officials insist that, because Greece is not one of the euro-zone’s larger economies, the problems created by its dire public finances can be absorbed.
The mechanism of any bailout would be complex since there is doubt as to whether the EU’s governing treaty permits such aid.
One option, deemed unlikely, would be issuing a sovereign bond for the entire, 16-nation euro area. That would probably require complex legal changes among members, which would be time-consuming.
Nevertheless, the Socialist leader in the European Parliament, Martin Schulz, on Thursday called on the commission to bring forward proposals to introduce eurobonds. “Now is the time for us to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Greece — not to abandon the country to the mercy of world markets,” he said.
Alternatively, there would be few legal impediments to bilateral aid being offered by member states from the euro-zone. How that money would be raised and expedited has yet to be determined.
Another official said that there had been no discussion yet on “burden-sharing” — how much each member would be expected to contribute — although the assumption in the market is that Germany and France, as the largest economies, would bear the brunt of any financing.
Yet another alternative might be to speed up the payment of E.U. development aid for poor regions already due to be paid during the period 2007-13. That could help Greece bolster its public finances in the short term and give it financial breathing space.
Talks are likely to intensify ahead of an E.U. summit on Feb. 11 in Brussels. This was called to discuss longer-term plans to revitalize the European economy but risks being overwhelmed by the Greek crisis.
The spread between Greek and German bonds widened significantly on Wednesday as the markets succumbed to further doubts about the ability of the government in Athens to finance its debt.
That followed a denial from Greece that it had given a mandate to the investment bank Goldman Sachs to sell government debt to China.
Greece is seeking to raise €53 billion in funds this year to reduce a budget deficit, the biggest shortfall in the E.U.
The Greek debt management agency has not issued a calendar of its planned 2010 bond issues. But analysts expect the country to try to sell a 10-year bond by syndication next month. The success of that sale now looks like it may become an acid test of whether the country will require help from its neighbors.
This week, Greece raised €8 billion via a sale of 5-year bonds, receiving €25 billion in orders. But it priced the bond at a hefty premium of 350 basis points, or 3.5 percentage points, over the benchmark mid-swaps rate, which meant a yield of about 6.22 percent.
The crisis erupted when the new Greek government, which was elected last year, revealed that statistics provided under the previous administration were seriously flawed.
The European Commission is expected to propose during the next few weeks that the E.U.’s statistical service be granted new powers to audit figures in member states.
The Greek government faces a hugely complex task in trying to reassure the markets that it will get its finances under control, while calming public fears about potentially draconian budget cuts. It argues that measures, including reductions in allowances for civil servants, reducing their numbers and moves to cut out several tiers of government, will produce significant savings.
The question of whether the International Monetary Fund might become involved in a bailout appears to have divided euro-area governments. Some countries would prefer to see a regional resolution, while others see no problem in working with the supranational lender.
Matthew Saltmarsh reported from Paris
