Euro zone ministers meeting in Brussels have agreed to give Spain until 2014 to reach a 3 per cent deficit target. They also detailed aid package for Madrid's ailing banks.
The deal, which was produced after a marathon 9-hour session, is in return for further budget savings and should prevent the need for a full state bailout. The Eurogroup's chairman Jean-Claude Juncker who was reappointed for a further term, also said 30 billion of the 100 billion euro banking package would be available by the end of July. The ministers have been meeting against the backdrop of Europe's deepening debt crisis which has been described as more acute that the 2008 turmoil which brought down the US investment back of Lehman brothers. Reporting for euronews in Brussels, Enrico Bona said: Finally the Eurogroup has reconfirmed the importance of decisions taken during the last EU summit. One of them, being that from September, the European Commission will present concrete proposals for a centralised European banking supervisor, to be set up next year."
Source: Euronews
