EMU Archives

With an eye on Italy and Spain and the possible political and financial turmoil there, the European Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker called once again on Tuesday (5 June) for a fast and deep reform of the Economic and Monetary Union.

European Commission Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis welcomed German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s proposals to strengthen the euro area, noting the similarities between the Bundesrepublik's and EU executive’s ideas on structural reform and investment support.

A spike in unemployment numbers would give EU countries access to €30 billion of soft loans to maintain investment in times of economic turbulences, according to proposals unveiled by the European Commission on Thursday (31 May).

Populist forces in Italy are “playing with fire” and exposing the country to market pressure, vice-president of the Socialist Group in the European Parliament Maria João Rodrigues warned in an interview.

A former governor of the Bank of Spain told EURACTIV that Luis de Guindos has the right CV to become vice-president of the ECB, a post he will take up later this week. But the ex-minister’s “brutally wrong” decisions led the country to the “disaster” of the bailout, he added.

Member states have reached an agreement on a package of measures aimed at reducing risk in the banking industry. The political consensus built upon a joint proposal by the French and German Finance ministers paves the way for a deepened reform of the Economic and Monetary Union.

The European Commission on Wednesday (23 May) approved Italy’s efforts to balance its public accounts but asked the new government for a “credible response” in order to further reduce its immense public debt.

Market pressure, the strong hand of EU institutions and the limits of power will determine how far the new Italian government will go in shaking up the eurozone’s status quo.

Leading politicians from Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrat party want to pass a resolution at a meeting this week to reject any pooling of debts in Europe and any common fiscal policy without national parliamentary controls, Handelsblatt reported.

The European economy is expected to continue growing at a robust pace, but faces negative spillovers from the fiscal stimulus and trade restrictions adopted by US President Donald Trump, the European Commission warned on Thursday (3 May).

ECB President Mario Draghi said on Thursday (26 April) that all eurozone countries experienced “some moderation in growth or loss of momentum” over the past weeks, as the institution is carefully reassessing how to exit the unconventional monetary measures adopted during the crisis.

Germany's Angela Merkel called for a spirit of "compromise" on reforming the euro zone at a meeting on Thursday (19 April) with French President Emmanuel Macron, who pressed for "solidarity" among members of the currency union.

French President Emmanuel Macron heads to Berlin Thursday (19 April) for talks with Chancellor Angela Merkel, hoping to breathe fresh life into his grand vision for EU reforms in the face of growing German resistance.

Emmanuel Macron toned down his ambition of completing the Economic and Monetary Union in a speech to the European Parliament on Tuesday (17 April), as he appears to be losing Germany’s backing and faces mounting pressure at home on unpopular economic reforms.

German Finance Minister Olaf Scholz said EU reforms proposed by French President Emmanuel Macron should be addressed before European elections next year, but added that some of the proposals were not feasible.

Friday's eurozone summit ended with an agreement to finalise the banking union by June, but the future of the fiscal union remains unclear as leaders remained divided.

The European Parliament approved the appointment of Spain’s former minister of Economy Luis de Guindos as ECB vice-president but sent a warning signal to the member states to improve the nomination process.

The eurozone will never reach its full potential and may face a new crisis in the future without a fiscal capacity, Portugal's Prime Minister Antonio Costa told the European Parliament on Wednesday (14 March).

The impulse to bolster the eurozone, sparked by Emmanuel Macron’s victory in France almost one year ago, is losing its vigour as political instability persists and a group of countries have solidified their opposition to bold changes.

European Commission Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis said on Wednesday (7 March) that he does not intend to amend the regulatory treatment of sovereign debt held by banks following inconclusive discussions at international level.

The EU legislators requested from the member states on Tuesday (27 February) improvements to the selection process of the bloc's top posts before giving their blessing to the appointment of Luis de Guindos as ECB vice-president.

Designated ECB vice-president, Spain’s minister of Economy Luis de Guindos, said on Tuesday (20 February) that the existing expansionary monetary stance should be for “extraordinary times”, as he described the European recovery as solid.

Widely credited with steering Spain through its worst recession in decades, its outgoing Economy Minister Luis de Guindos will hope to bring pragmatism and tenacity to the European Central Bank when he takes over as vice president in June.

Eurozone finance ministers chose Spanish Economy Minister Luis de Guindos to become the next vice-president of the European Central Bank (ECB), marking the return of Spain to top EU posts after the country lost its chair in the bank's Executive Council.