- Fitch
German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schauble urged lawmakers to back the third bailout for debt-stricken Greece, highlighting that it offers a "sustainable path" even though the IMF remains hesitant on whether to join the aid programme. Yet, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said that she expects the lender of last resort to sign on in the fall, after the first progress report.
Meanwhile, Fitch Ratings upgraded Greece's credit rating to "CCC" from "CC", saying the agreement between Athens and the European Institutions reached last week on the framework for a third bailout programme has lowered "the risk for Greece defaulting on its private sector debt obligations". Yet, these ratings are both well below investment grade. Fitch also added that "the risks to the programme success remain high. It will take some time for trust to be restored between Greece and its creditors, which increases the risk of delayed programme reviews. Meanwhile, the political situation in Greece remains unpredictable." At the same time, the ECB reportedly lowered the ceiling on its emergency lifeline for Greek banks, signalling that the nation's lenders are building cash reserves. The central bank reduced the ELA by around 1.3 billion euros to 89.7 billion euros, increasing confidence in the country's banking sector after Athens sealed a bailout deal with its European creditors.
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