Is Germany about to cut Greece adrift?
Amid signs that the German economy is coming under intense pressure with zero growth in the final quarter of 2009, against growth of 0.7% in the third quarter, there are concerns that the German authorities are unwilling or unable to commit to a rescue package for the Greek government. After apparently doing all they could to calm nerves in the region the German authorities led Euro leaders in issuing a general pledge to take "determined and co-ordinated action if needed" with regards to the euro.
The lack of specific comment regarding the Greek problem has spooked many investors and indeed the euro is coming under pressure again today. It is also interesting to see that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) was also fairly vague in its support of the Greek government with managing director John Lipsky commenting that "We stand willing and able to support Greece in ways that the Greek authorities think is appropriate". This lack of planning and detail is a major blow to those who had automatically assumed that fellow Eurozone members would do everything they could to help the Greek authorities.
This is an issue which, after seemingly appearing under control only days ago, has now taken on a life of its own and could cause significant damage to the euro and the Eurozone.
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