Greece raised possibility of euro exit: report

Source: Reuters

Greece has raised the possibility of exiting the euro zone in discussions with the European Commission and other member states in recent days, Germany's Spiegel Online reported on Friday.

The magazine said euro zone finance ministers were meeting in Luxembourg on Friday evening to discuss the Greek crisis and that a possible restructuring of its debt would be on the agenda of the meeting.

"The government has raised the possibility of leaving the euro zone and reintroducing its own currency," the report said, without citing its sources.

Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/05/06/businesspro-us-greece-eurozone-exit-idUSTRE74546320110506

---

Ireland should do the same thing thing as Greece is possibly going to do (if it is indeed "possible"). The euro screwed them badly needless to say. Will Portugal and Spain follow suit and do the same?

If countries start fleeing the EU, change will be a coming, and it might not be exactly what Germany had planned!

:dem:

:think:

I'm surprised that Der Spiegel reporters/editors didn't verify such a significant meeting before reporting it.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/05/06/eurogroup-meeting-denial-idUSBRU01147320110506

May 6 (Reuters) - Reports of a possible meeting of euro zone finance ministers in Luxembourg on Friday to discuss the threat of Greece leaving the euro zone are "totally wrong", the spokesman for Eurogroup Chairman Jean-Claude Juncker said.

German magazine Der Spiegel reported online that Greece had raised the possibility of leaving the euro zone and introducing its own currency, and said that a crisis meeting of euro zone finance ministers and the European Commission would be held on Friday evening in Luxembourg, Juncker's hometown.

"I totally deny that there is a meeting, these reports are totally wrong," Juncker's spokesman Guy Schuller told Reuters by telephone.

They got to kill this story quick. It could cause the Euro to go belly up if many of the countries under its rule dump it.

:P

:kick:

Because it would mainly consist of franc + deutschmark, a pretty strong pair.

You'd be amazed my friend. They practically own Ireland, I know that much. Their big businessmen were to be found in abundance in Ireland not too long ago cooking up deals from Tipperary to Donegal.

It makes me sick what has happened to Ireland in particular; the others aren't far behind in my level of general sickness over what the ugly Euro has done. :(

:dem:

So? Property rights aren't in question, only the currency. Without capital controls, Germany will get to buy more Greek assets on the cheap.

The Germans were treating the Irish like servants last time I was there. They own the damn breweries in Tipperary much to my surprise. They have massive investments in the other countries as well, including Greece I am sure.

It makes me sick to see what the damn EU has done to these countries.

They are remnants of what they once were thanks to the EU. Ancient archaeological sites no longer exist thanks the the EU.

FUCK THEM is how I feel about it. Enough already! :grr:

:kick:

The European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF), is a temporary, €750-billion euro-zone backstop. It's head, Klaus Regling, accused those predicting a debt restructuring of greed. "In the 1980s and 90s, banks received very high fees for the restructuring of sovereign debt in Latin America and Asia," Regling told the financial daily Handelsblatt. "They would love to do it again in Europe."

So it seems perhaps banking interests were behind the lie that there was a meeting today to consider Greek restructuring its debt.

http://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/0,1518,760383,00.html

Many financial analysts believe that Greece, despite over 100 billion euros in euro-zone aid, will ultimately have to restructure its debts. But Greece warned on Tuesday that such a move would be disastrous. The European Commission too has said a haircut is not in the cards.

By now, it has almost become consensus among financial analysts. At some point, an increasing number say, Greece will have to reorganize its debt. Otherwise, they say, the country's economy will be pinned beneath its €340 billion mountain of debt for years to come. A haircut, it would seem, is the only way out.

On Tuesday, though, Greek Finance Minister George Papaconstantinou told the state television broadcaster that a restructuring of his country's debt, which represents 150 percent of gross domestic product, would be disastrous for his country. "A restructuring, a bond haircut, would be a huge mistake for the country," he said. "It would carry a big cost and no benefit, and it would keep us out of the markets for 10-15 years."

His comments echoed those of European Monetary and Economic Affairs Commissioner Olli Rehn on Monday. Rehn said that debt restructuring "is not part of our strategy and will not be." He said that such a move would be a big risk to European financial stability -- alluding to warnings from other EU officials that a Greek bankruptcy could trigger the kind of turbulence set off by the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy in 2008.

The Der Spiegel report suggesting Greece was considering leaving the euro emanates from a German government source, and that may explain everything.

For weeks, German officials have been hinting that they want a Greek restructuring to happen. German economic advisor Lars Feld recently said that the restructuring should happen "sooner than later." He's previously also said "restructuring is the only road to take."

Greece is now rumored to be requesting an extension on the interest payments of its IMF-EU bailout loan.

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/german-government-leak-greece-2011-5#ixzz1Las3vvWH

#################

The very last thing Germany wants is for countries dumping the Euro. They are doing very well with this arrangement!

Ask German Chancellor Angela Merkel!

Because others will follow them out the door.

the euro doesn't benefit the southern european countries. england doesn't have the euro. each country should still have its own currency. just my opinion.

if they leave?
or take the hit(euro led restructure)?