24.08.2012
By Simon Miller
European market optimism has faded this morning as investor confidence in a renewed eurozone faded.
With poor economic data and the ongoing politics surrounding Greece, stock exchanges opened on a downward path following Far East and American falls overnight .
Hong Kong closed down 252.21 at 19,880.03, the Nikkei 225 was 107.36 down at 9,070.76 on close while the S&P 500 closed 11.41 down at 1,402.08.
The CAC 40 is down 8.36 at 3,424.20 and the EuroStoxx 50 is down 2.76 at 2,426.41. The FTSE 100 is currently rallying at 5,779.05, up 2.45 but the FTSE 250 is down 9.31 at 11,457.33 (as of 10.05 BST).
Sentiment has fallen as eurozone politicians urged Greece to stick to its austerity plans after its prime minister Antonis Samaras pleaded for more time to find the cuts necessary for the bailout plan.
Samaras is meeting German chancellor Angela Merkel today but she has warned that there would be so solutions before the Troika concludes its report on the troubled country.
Speaking after meeting French president Francois Hollande yesterday, Merkel commented: "It’s important to me that we all stand by our obligations and wait for the troika report and see what the result is. We and I will encourage Greece to pursue the path of reform that demands a lot from the people."
German appears to be accepting a 'Grexit' with reports that its government was working out scenarios and costs of a Greek exit.
A special working group, led by deputy finance minister Thomas Steffen is working on scenarios in case Greece is forced to withdraw from the euro.
"Colleagues are making calculations about the financial consequences [of an exit] and are considering how a domino effect on other euro member states might be prevented," a finance industry source told Financial Times Deutschland.
Meanwhile, the head of the European Stability Facility Klaus Regling told a Singapore audience that nobody wanted to see Greece leave the euro area as it would be the "most expensive solution for Greece and for other member states",
He added: "But it's also true that it depends on Greek action. They must implement the structural and fiscal adjustments they committed to undertake in exchange for receiving financial assistance.
"They have to deliver, otherwise financial assistance could stop, not because we want it to stop but two sides of the bargain have to be in place."
Other stories you may find of interest:
Holding out for a debt restructure
Greece stands before a default abyss but, as Simon Miller discovers, before it rushes to restructure, there are litigating risks from international trade treaties to consider
Markets fall over European uncertainty
European markets have opened down this morning despite a rally yesterday following the elections in Greece and France.
