Tag: Eurozone

• Thursday, June 12th 2014 - 07:18 UTC

  World Bank lowers global economy growth forecast; developing countries face major challenge

  

  World Bank lowered its 2014 growth forecasts for the global economy but said advanced economies' rebound from a rough start would help offset stagnation in developing countries. Most of the pick-up in growth this year will come from high-income countries, particularly the United States and the 18-nation Euro zone, the World Bank said in its twice-yearly Global Economic Prospects report.

• Friday, June 6th 2014 - 08:38 UTC

  Europe appeals to negative interest rates to stimulate the economy and inflation

  

  The European Central Bank has introduced a raft of measures aimed at stimulating the Euro zone economy, including negative interest rates and cheap long-term loans to banks. It cut its deposit rate for banks from zero to -0.1%, to encourage banks to lend to businesses rather than hold on to money. The ECB also cut its benchmark interest rate to 0.15% from 0.25%.

• Wednesday, June 4th 2014 - 08:51 UTC

  Euro zone entering 'deflation' zone; ECB expected to boost growth

  

  Euro-zone inflation fell to 0.5% in May, down from 0.7% in April and well below the European Central Bank's 2% target. The fall means the ECB will be expected to take steps to boost growth and counter the threat of deflation when it meets on Thursday.

• Saturday, May 10th 2014 - 00:21 UTC

  German exporters say they can cope with a strong Euro

  

  German exporters are well-positioned to cope with the strong Euro, Germany's leading trade organization said on Friday, even after data showed exports posted their biggest fall in nearly a year in March.

• Friday, April 11th 2014 - 22:06 UTC

  Greece returns strongly to the bond market with a 3-billion Euro issue at 4.95%

  

  Two years after it nearly crashed out of the Euro zone, Greece returned to the bond market this week with yield-hungry investors rushing to buy its debt in a 3-billion Euro deal that could mark the beginning of the end of its bailout. Athens offered a yield of just 4.95% to sell five-year bonds, the second lowest borrowing costs for a bailed-out Euro zone state returning to market.

• Thursday, March 6th 2014 - 21:07 UTC

  Fearing deflation Euro bank leaves interest rate unchanged at record low

  

  The European Central Bank (ECB) kept on Thursday its benchmark interest rate at its record low of 0.25%, despite fears inflation could get stuck in a “danger zone” below 1%. The bank slightly raised its forecast for growth to 1.2% in 2014, but dropped its inflation estimate.

• Monday, February 17th 2014 - 09:23 UTC

  Euro-zone growth still fragile but stronger than expected at the end of 2013

  

  Economic growth across the Euro-zone was stronger than expected at the end of 2013, according to official figures, raising hopes the recovery is gaining a foothold. Gross domestic product grew by 0.3% in the October-December period from the previous quarter, said Eurostat, the European Union’s statistics office. That amounts to an annualized rate of about 1.2 %.

• Tuesday, January 7th 2014 - 06:09 UTC

  Main threat to world economy in 2014 is not the Euro-zone but China, says Soros

  

  George Soros says stop worrying about the Euro-zone and look at the slower growth in China. The hedge fund boss, who built his fortune betting on the world’s money markets, is concerned that twenty years of rapid growth is about to run out of steam.

• Friday, January 3rd 2014 - 05:46 UTC

  Latvia becomes the 18th member of the Euro club: not all Latvians convinced

  

  Latvia woke up to both a New Year and a new currency Wednesday after the ex-Soviet Baltic state swapped its cherished 'lats' for the euro at midnight, becoming the 18th member of the troubled Euro-zone. The entry of the country of two million people capped another turbulent year for the Euro zone, recovering gradually from a crippling debt crisis and ensuing recession.

• Thursday, December 19th 2013 - 05:41 UTC

  Euro-zone agrees on banking reform, another step towards banking union

  

  Euro-zone finance ministers have agreed on a long-awaited pact on how to deal with failing banks in the region. It aims to create a 55bn euro fund - financed by the banking industry, over the next 10 years. The fund would be backed by a new agency, which will decide on how to deal with failing banks.