EU announces EUR750 billion rescue package
The European Union has today confirmed a EUR750 billion rescue package which it hopes will inject confidence into the European currency. In effect this fund will protect the finances of the 16 euro-zone members who adopted the Euro. The breakdown of the funding is as follows, EUR440 billion in loans or guarantees from the Euro zone countries, EUR60 billion from the EU budget and EUR250 billion from the IMF.
Investment markets have reacted very positively to this move with the UK market itself up by over 3% in early trading. Whether or not we will see concerns surface regarding the funding of the bailout package remains to be seen because historically many EU headlines have been very positive only for them to unravel behind the scenes. If the EU gets this particular issue wrong it could have dire consequences for the Euro zone, the Euro and the EU.
In many ways the announcement from the European Union has masked political concerns within the UK with a Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition yet to be confirmed. It will be interesting to see if the ongoing rally in UK investment markets continues and whether David Cameron is in fact on the verge of announcing a stable government.
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