The European Central Bank should launch an "unlimited" bond buying programme as part of vital efforts to stem the debt crisis, the secretary-general of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development has warned.Read the rest here.
Angel Gurria's warning came as Spanish leader Mariano Rajoy said he would consider asking for extra aid on top of the country's €100bn (£79bn) bank bail-out but would wait to see what conditions were attached to any rescue package. "If I believe it is good for Europe as a whole, for the euro, and for Spain, I will do it, and if not, not," he told Spanish daily ABC.
The bond buying plan – which would see the ECB buy up the short-term debt of embattled countries such as Spain and Italy – has come under attack in parts of the ECB and from Bundesbank chief Jens Weidmann. Mr Weidmann reportedly considered resigning over the issue last week.
I can't imagine why Germans would be uncomfortable with massive money printing.
The problem isn't Spanish debt as such, but the debt that Spain takes on to aid her ailing banks. The ECB's directly fortifying the Spanish banks' reserves would obviate the need for the Spanish government's intermediation. Naturally, this points to a Eurozone-wide bank regulatory scheme, which happens to be one of the proposals under discussion.
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