Tietmeyer Says Draghi a ‘Qualified Candidate’ for ECB President
By Marta Marino and Scott Hamilton - Apr 20, 2011 4:55 PM GMT+0200 Wed Apr 20 14:55:55 GMT 2011
Bank of Italy Governor
Mario Draghi is a “qualified candidate” to replace Jean-Claude Trichet at the helm of the European Central Bank, former Bundesbank President Hans Tietmeyer said.
“I know him very well,” Tietmeyer said in a Bloomberg Television interview at an event hosted by the Official Monetary and Financial Institutions Forum in
London today. “I like him. He’s a qualified candidate.”
The resignation of Bundesbank President
Axel Weber, previously tipped by economists as the frontrunner to succeed Trichet, opened up the race for the ECB’s top job to candidates from Draghi to Luxembourg’s
Yves Mersch, Erkki Liikanen of Finland and Nout Wellink of the Netherlands.
“I will not comment on the candidates,” Tietmeyer said, when asked who he would prefer to get the position. “It’s not my decision and not my job to make a comment.”
Whether Draghi wins the ECB job depends on politicians who are struggling to persuade their electorates to back financial aid for debt-strapped nations on the euro region’s periphery. Greece has yet to convince investors it can pay its debts almost a year after it was rescued amid growing speculation the country will need to restructure.
“I don’t see a likelihood of a Greece default, but it depends very much on what the Greek policy will do in reality,” Tietmeyer said. “They have to address their problems in an appropriate way.”
(Bloomberg)