Euro

Mario Monti arrives to unveil his new government at the Quirinale Palace in Rome. Photo: Alberto Pizzoli/AFP/Getty Images 

Mario Monti arrives to unveil his new government at the Quirinale Palace in Rome. Photo: Alberto Pizzoli/AFP/Getty Images

 

Welcome back to the FT’s rolling coverage of the eurozone crisis. By Esther Bintliff and John Aglionby on the world news desk, with contributions from correspondents around the world. All times are GMT.

This post will update automatically every few minutes but could take longer on mobile devices.

Europe’s two new technocratic prime ministers should consolidate their respective grips on power today. Lucas Papademos, in Greece, is expected to win a confidence vote in parliament, while Mario Monti, his Italian counterpart, announces his new cabinet. Eyes will not be far from the markets either, following yesterday’s bruising ride.

 

12.52: Here’s the full list of the new Italian cabinet, courtesy of our reporter Giulia Segreti who is at the Quirinale palace in Rome:

 

Mario Monti, Italian prime minister designate – Image Getty

Welcome back to the FT’s live coverage of the eurozone crisis and the global fallout. By John Aglionby and Esther Bintliff in London with contributions from correspondents around the world. All times are GMT.

This post should update every few minutes but might take longer on mobile devices.

Are calm waters finally visible on the horizon of the eurozone? Perhaps – for now. Mario Monti’s first full day as Italian prime minister designate will be marked by a bond auction and his efforts to form a government. A confidence debate starts in Greece on Lucas Papademos’s government. And German chancellor Angela Merkel holds her Christian Democratic Union party annual conference in Leipzig.

Euro drachma

Josh Chaffin’s piece from the FT’s analysis page: Christos Chanos sits in a conference room at his family’s sun umbrella business in Athens and ponders one of the most pressing questions confronting his crisis-hit nation: should Greece leave the euro?

The head of a company founded by his grandfather in the ancient market stalls of the Monastiraki neighbourhood, he has first-hand experience weathering the destabilising effects of a debt crisis that has held Greece in its grip for nearly two years.

He understands the argument that reintroducing the drachma – which Greece swapped for the euro in 2001 – would enable the country to lower its costs and regain competitiveness. But, like many others, he is reluctant to go down that road. “If you ask me if we never should have entered, I could have a long discussion,” says Mr Chanos. “But at this point, I think it would be a huge distraction. What would happen the day after?”

 

A screen in Hong Kong displaying the Hang Seng index’s turbulent day today. Image AP

Welcome back to the FT’s coverage of the eurozone crisis and its global fallout. Curated by John Aglionby, Tom Burgis and Orla Ryan on the news desk in London and with contributions from correspondents around the world. All times are GMT.

This post should update every few minutes, but could take longer on mobile devices.

Market reaction to events in Italy shows that the crisis is now truly global. Markets are looking for more clarity from Rome on timings, particularly of the austerity vote. Meanwhile the saga of finding a new Greek prime minister rumbles on.

 

Silvio Berlusconi – shutting one’s eyes won’t make the problems go away. Image AFP/Getty

Welcome back to the FT’s coverage of the eurozone crisis. Curated by John Aglionby, Tom Burgis and David Crouch on the news desk in London, with contributions from correspondents around the world. All times are GMT.

Greece really is expected to get a new prime minister today – 48 hours later than expected. Italy, well who knows what’s going to happen there as the EU inspectors arrive to comb through the nation’s finances and bond yields surge … And policymakers and financiers are becoming increasingly concerned about the impact of the crisis on global liquidity levels.

The posts will update automatically every few minutes but could take longer on mobile devices.

 

11.31: Dinmore of the FT, his ear to the ground in Rome, says Italy’s out-of-control bond yields are focusing minds.

Welcome back to the FT’s live coverage of the eurozone crisis. Run by John Aglionby, Tom Burgis and Orla Ryan on the news desk in London, with contributions from correspondents around the world. All times are GMT.

This post should update every few minutes, although it could take longer on mobile devices.

How high will Italian bond yields have to go before Silvio Berlusconi decides he can no longer survive as prime minister? Or for his immensely loyal supporters to finally desert him? Will Greece get a new prime minister today? If so, who will accept the Herculean challenge of running the country?

Silvio Berlusconi, the Italian prime minister, at last week's G20 summit in Cannes

At the European Commission’s regular mid-day press briefing today, Amadeu Altafaj-Tardio, the spokesman for economic issues, said the Commission’s Italian monitoring team is expected to arrive this week. After agreement Friday in Cannes, the International Monetary Fund will be sending its own team at the end of the month.

But just what will they be monitoring? According to Christine Lagarde, the IMF chief, they will be reporting on the Berlusconi government’s progress in implementing promised economic reforms contained in a 14-page letter the Italian government sent to the European Union two weeks ago. It contains a laundry list of reforms Silvio Berlusconi is vowing to implement.

So that Brussels Blog readers can follow along, we wanted to post a copy of the Berlusconi letter which we obtained. Readers can access it here. Altafaj-Tardio made clear that even if Berlusconi were to step down, the monitoring would continue.

Silvio Berlusconi

Welcome to the FT’s live blog on the eurozone crisis. Curated by Orla Ryan and John Aglionby on the world news desk with contributions from correspondents around the world. In Italy, doubts have emerged that Silvio Berlusconi can remain in power as the country’s borrowing costs continues to rise. Greece is expected to name a new leader after its two largest political parties late on Sunday decided to form a government of national unity. George Papandreou will stand down as prime minister.

This post should update automatically every few minutes, although it may take longer on mobile devices.

 

George Papandreou Photo: AFP/Getty

Welcome to the FT’s live blog on the eurozone crisis.

Curated by John Aglionby and Orla Ryan on the world news desk with contributions from correspondents around the world. This post will update every few minutes though it may take longer on a mobile device.

George Papandreou, the Greek prime minister, caused a major surprise on Monday night and re-opened the eurozone sovereign debt crisis when he announced a public referendum to approve the second bail-out thrashed out last week by European leaders. Public opinion polls show a majority of Greeks oppose the bail-out. The PM will hold an emergency cabinet meeting at 4pm UK time on Tuesday. Parliamentary debate on the proposal starts in Athens on Wednesday.

Anti-austerity protesters in Athens hold up a Greek flag that says "not for sale" on Friday.

Thanks to some help from the European Commission, we have a bit more clarity on where European leaders will be spending the new €130bn in Greek bail-out aid. But the new data we received makes all the more clear that a huge amount is dependant on the still-to-be negotiated details of the 50 per cent Greek bondholder haircut deal, which may not be completed until the end of the year.

Just to remind readers where the confusion lies, of the €130bn in new funding, only €30bn was officially earmarked in last week’s summit communiqué – and that money will go for “sweeteners” to current bondholders so they’ll participate in a bond-swap programme. If they are going to take a 50 per cent cut in the face value of their bonds, they insisted on getting something else in return, and this was the price.

Of the remaining €100bn, fully €30bn will go to bank recapitalisations, not then €20bn we assumed last week. Although EU banking authorities have called for €30bn in new capital for Greek banks, officials tell us this is in addition to the €10bn provided in the first €110bn Greek bail-out.

Which leaves us with only €70bn to actually run the Greek government for the next three years. How did European authorities come to this number? That requires even more detective work, after the jump.

Brussels blog

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Contact the Brussels blog team: Peter Spiegel, Joshua Chaffin, Alex Barker and Stanley Pignal.

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Peter Spiegel is the FT's Brussels bureau chief. He returned to the FT in August 2010 after spending five years covering foreign policy and national security issues from Washington for the Wall Street Journal and the Los Angeles Times, focusing on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. He first joined the FT in 1999 covering business regulation and corporate crime in its Washington bureau, before spending four years covering military affairs and the defence industry in London and Washington.

Joshua Chaffin is one of the FT's EU correspondents, covering areas including policies on trade, the environment and energy. He has worked in the FT's Brussels bureau since late 2008 and before that was an FT correspondent in New York and Washington DC.

Alex Barker is EU correspondent, covering the single market, financial regulation and competition. He was formerly an FT political correspondent in the UK and joined the FT in 2005.

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