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| Greece vows to present reform plan by Monday after Merkel meeting -- live updates | Greece vows to present reform plan by Monday after Merkel meeting -- live updates |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| 8.25am GMT08:25 | |
| Hopes that France’s economy was recovering have just taken a knock. | |
| Markit’s monthly healthcheck of the sector shows that growth in France’s private sector slowed this month. | |
| The French composite PMI fell to 51.7 this month, down from 52.2 in February [where any reading over 50 = growth]. Service sector expansion slowed, while factory output continued to fall. | |
| The data implies a ‘modest’ rise in GDP this quarter, Markit says. | |
| CHART: France struggling to catch euro-area recovery wave as March #PMI disappoint. Still, growth accelerated in Q1. pic.twitter.com/IF05nBkTdA | |
| 8.21am GMT08:21 | |
| Soros: 50% chance Greece will quit the euro | |
| Billionaire philanthropist George Soros has declared there’s a 50:50 chance that Greece will leave the eurozone, due to the mistakes of the past. | |
| Soros made the comments in an interview with Bloomberg, being broadcast later today. | |
| In it, he warned that: | |
| “It’s now a lose-lose game and the best that can happen is actually muddling through....Greece is a long-festering problem that was mishandled from the beginning by all parties.” | |
| The 84-year old, who famously beat the Bank of England on Black Wednesday, also said that the deadlock between Greece and its creditors is hurting its economy badly. As a result, “Greece is going down the drain.” | |
| More details here: Soros Says Greece Is Now ‘Lose-Lose Game’ After Being Mishandled | |
| 8.12am GMT08:12 | |
| Greece’s three-year government bonds are strengthening, a little, on the back of today’s comments from Athens, and from Martin Schulz: | |
| #Greece's yields drop as EU's Schulz sees deal with #eurozone likely this week. http://t.co/8m2gsl6YDh pic.twitter.com/XiXoBTvVdD | |
| Yields are still very high, around 21%, implying a high risk of default. | |
| Updated at 8.13am GMT | |
| 8.07am GMT08:07 | |
| Schulz: Deal could come this week | |
| Another optimistic sign - European Parliament chief Martin Schulz has predicted that Greece and its creditors could secure a breakthrough this week. | |
| He told Italy’s La Repubblica that: | |
| “I think by the end of this week a new deal will be reached that should be sufficient to release the most urgent financing,” | |
| Greece would then have “not more than three months” to present a “credible, detailed and definitive” plan, Schulz added. | |
| That makes sense; Greece’s current bailout extension runs until the end of June. | |
| 7.58am GMT07:58 | 7.58am GMT07:58 |
| Alexis Tsipras is still in Berlin, and due to meet with the leaders of Germany’s opposition Left and Green parties. | Alexis Tsipras is still in Berlin, and due to meet with the leaders of Germany’s opposition Left and Green parties. |
| 7.58am GMT07:58 | 7.58am GMT07:58 |
| Germany’s Deutsche Welle newspaper reports that Angela Merkel and Alexis Tsipras spoke until almost midnight about the situation in Europe, at their ‘working dinner’ | Germany’s Deutsche Welle newspaper reports that Angela Merkel and Alexis Tsipras spoke until almost midnight about the situation in Europe, at their ‘working dinner’ |
| Chancellor Merkel’s spokesman Steffen Seibert told reporters late last night that: | Chancellor Merkel’s spokesman Steffen Seibert told reporters late last night that: |
| “The chancellor and the Greek prime minister had a comprehensive discussion in a good and constructive atmosphere about the situation in Greece, the procedures of the European Union and future German-Greek cooperation,” | “The chancellor and the Greek prime minister had a comprehensive discussion in a good and constructive atmosphere about the situation in Greece, the procedures of the European Union and future German-Greek cooperation,” |
| 7.43am GMT07:43 | 7.43am GMT07:43 |
| Greece: We'll present reform package by Monday | Greece: We'll present reform package by Monday |
| News from Athens: Greece will present a new reform programme to its creditors by next Monday, potentially unlocking bailout funds and averting the risk of bankruptcy. | News from Athens: Greece will present a new reform programme to its creditors by next Monday, potentially unlocking bailout funds and averting the risk of bankruptcy. |
| The news comes less than 12 hours after prime minister Alexis Tsipras and Angela Merkel ended their talks in Berlin. | The news comes less than 12 hours after prime minister Alexis Tsipras and Angela Merkel ended their talks in Berlin. |
| Reuters has the details: | Reuters has the details: |
| Greece will present its proposed package of reforms to its euro zone partners by next Monday in hopes they will release much needed cash, its government spokesman said on Tuesday. | Greece will present its proposed package of reforms to its euro zone partners by next Monday in hopes they will release much needed cash, its government spokesman said on Tuesday. |
| “It will be done at the latest by Monday,” government spokesman Gabriel Sakellaridis told Mega TV. | “It will be done at the latest by Monday,” government spokesman Gabriel Sakellaridis told Mega TV. |
| Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras met with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Berlin on Monday but it was unclear if they had narrowed differences on economic reforms Athens must implement to win urgently to get fresh aid from its creditors. | Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras met with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Berlin on Monday but it was unclear if they had narrowed differences on economic reforms Athens must implement to win urgently to get fresh aid from its creditors. |
| Sakellaridis said the package of reforms Athens will propose will not contain recessionary measures but structural changes. | Sakellaridis said the package of reforms Athens will propose will not contain recessionary measures but structural changes. |
| He said Tsipras and Merkel on Monday discussed the outline of the reforms but did not go into depth. | He said Tsipras and Merkel on Monday discussed the outline of the reforms but did not go into depth. |
| “I believe points of convergence were found,” Sakellaridis said. | “I believe points of convergence were found,” Sakellaridis said. |
| Time is short; on April 9th , Greece must repay €467m to the International Monetary Fund. | Time is short; on April 9th , Greece must repay €467m to the International Monetary Fund. |
| If it does convince its creditors next week, then they could unlock some of the €7.2bn bailout tranche which is being withheld. | If it does convince its creditors next week, then they could unlock some of the €7.2bn bailout tranche which is being withheld. |
| This could call for another crunch meeting in Brussels..... | This could call for another crunch meeting in Brussels..... |
| Greece plans present its proposed package of reforms to the eurogroup on Monday. So, see everyone in Brussels for a late night Tuesday? Mon? | Greece plans present its proposed package of reforms to the eurogroup on Monday. So, see everyone in Brussels for a late night Tuesday? Mon? |
| 7.37am GMT07:37 | 7.37am GMT07:37 |
| The Agenda: Greek developments and UK falling inflation | The Agenda: Greek developments and UK falling inflation |
| Good morning, and welcome to our rolling coverage of the world economy, the financial markets, the eurozone and business. | Good morning, and welcome to our rolling coverage of the world economy, the financial markets, the eurozone and business. |
| Today we’ll be assessing the situation in Greece after yesterday’s visit by Alexis Tsipras to meet Angela Merkel. | Today we’ll be assessing the situation in Greece after yesterday’s visit by Alexis Tsipras to meet Angela Merkel. |
| The two leaders struck a fairly conciliatory tone during last night’s press conference [even though Tsipras mentioned the war reparations], but there’s no sign yet of a breakthrough deal to unlock fresh funds for Greece. | The two leaders struck a fairly conciliatory tone during last night’s press conference [even though Tsipras mentioned the war reparations], but there’s no sign yet of a breakthrough deal to unlock fresh funds for Greece. |
| In the UK, we get the latest inflation data at 9.30am – and economists reckon it could fall to just 0.1% as low energy costs ripple through the economy. | In the UK, we get the latest inflation data at 9.30am – and economists reckon it could fall to just 0.1% as low energy costs ripple through the economy. |
| On the economic side, the latest PMI surveys are being released this morning (from 8am to 9am GMT) They are expected to show the eurozone’s manufacturing and service sectors continuing to expand this month as the slow recovery continues. | On the economic side, the latest PMI surveys are being released this morning (from 8am to 9am GMT) They are expected to show the eurozone’s manufacturing and service sectors continuing to expand this month as the slow recovery continues. |
| We’ve already had downbeat news from China -- its factory activity has fallen to an 11-month low, suggesting its economy is slowing down. More stimulus could be needed.... | We’ve already had downbeat news from China -- its factory activity has fallen to an 11-month low, suggesting its economy is slowing down. More stimulus could be needed.... |
| China HSBC PMI 49.2 adds to jan/feb soft data. Suggests gdp below 7pct. Ditto Q2, and of course, rate and RRR cuts soon, infra sp later | China HSBC PMI 49.2 adds to jan/feb soft data. Suggests gdp below 7pct. Ditto Q2, and of course, rate and RRR cuts soon, infra sp later |
| European stock markets are expected to dip this morning. | European stock markets are expected to dip this morning. |
| Our European opening calls: $FTSE 7021 down 16 $DAX 11863 down 33 $CAC 5042 down 12 $IBEX 11446 down 7 $MIB 23049 down 8 | Our European opening calls: $FTSE 7021 down 16 $DAX 11863 down 33 $CAC 5042 down 12 $IBEX 11446 down 7 $MIB 23049 down 8 |
| I’ll be tracking all the main events through the day.... | I’ll be tracking all the main events through the day.... |
| Updated at 7.43am GMT | Updated at 7.43am GMT |