Three month euribor, the interbank lending rate in Europe, is at a 21 month high in advance of next Thursday’s ECB meeting.

[credit provider=”Getty Images”] Good morning!  Here’s what you need to know:1.  After weeks of wrangling, negotiations on a possible budget agreement that would slash federal spending by as much as $33 billion appeared to be back on track. “We’re all working off the same number now,” Vice President Biden told […]

Eurozone inflation for the month of March solidly beat expectations, rising 2.6% year-over-year, according to the latest release from Eurostat.

FT Associate Editor Edward Hadas posted a short note the other day that sent his Portuguese readers into spasms of rage. 

[credit provider=”Wikimedia Commons” url=”http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:JuergenStark01.jpg”] ECB chief Jürgen Stark has denied the bank is ignoring the problems of the region’s weakest states in an editorial in the FT.His comments are in direct opposition to those who believe the ECB should be keeping rates low to protect the eurozone countries still struggling […]

Good morning!  Here’s what you need to know.

[credit provider=”AP”] Last week’s European Union summit ended without any dramatic changes to the way leaders will be able to deal with the crisis through 2013, according to Societe Generale’s James Nixon.From James Nixon:

[credit provider=”thejournal.ie” url=”http://www.thejournal.ie/blow-by-blow-how-each-party-fared-in-election-2011-2011-02/”] Ireland has threatened senior bondholders of Irish bank debt in the latest government negotiating ploy with the Eurozone’s leaders.The threat, to force some bondholders in Ireland’s banks to take a haircut as part of a restructuring, may be a negotiating tactic to get eurozone leaders to agree […]

[credit provider=”James Jordan on flickr” url=”http://www.flickr.com/photos/jamesjordan/3899011090/in/photostream/”] Ireland banks are in need of another €27.5 billion ($39 billion), and may need it as soon as two weeks next week, according to a Bloomberg survey.If the government were to supply that much cash to Ireland’s banking sector, that would mean that 80% […]

[credit provider=”AP”] German Chancellor Angela Merkel has forced another weakening in the European Union’s bailout fund, this time cutting the cash that countries will pay into the fund, according to Bloomberg.Merkel found the €40 billion first called for too big, so she forced the rest of Europe’s leader to cut […]

Portugal’s government may collapse today over parliament’s rejection of the country’s austerity budget.

European Union officials have come to an agreement on the region’s new permanent bailout mechanism ahead of the March 24-25 summit. The deal for the European Stability Mechanism is as follows:

The eurozone’s inflation situation may have just as much to do with food and fuel as it does with rising taxes, according to analysis from Societe Generale’s Klaus Baader.

[credit provider=”AP”] This being St. Patrick’s Day, Ireland’s fate is on the minds of many Americans.  At a recent meeting of EU leaders in Brussels, German Chancellor Angela Merkel (in concert with French President Nicolas Sarkozy) laid down an impossibly difficult term sheet for Ireland to sign or suffer the […]

Moody’s downgraded Portugal’s sovereign debt by two notches overnight, increasing the pressure on the country, which may soon need to go to the EU and IMF for support.

Good morning.  Here’s what you need to know right now:

Friday’s agreement by eurozone leaders has been seen as a significant beat over expectations, according to analysts at Morgan Stanley and Societe Generale.

Good morning!  Here’s what you need to know right now:1.  The NYT reports: “As the scale of Japan’s nuclear crisis begins to come to light, experts in Japan and the United States say the country is now facing a cascade of accumulating problems that suggest that radioactive releases of steam […]

[credit provider=”ap”] The world’s banks have exposures of $2.5 trillion to Portugal, Ireland, Greece, and Spain, according to the latest report from the Bank for International Settlements (via Ambrose Evans-Pritchard).Those exposures include everything, from derivatives, to other credit products, to more typical investments.

Yesterday’s Eurozone meeting ended with a weak agreement on the expansion of the region’s bailout fund, but was not without fireworks between the leaders, according to Der Spiegel.

If it’s Friday, it’s time for Weekend Reading, a regular feature for Business Insider readers who find themselves looking for a wider view of what is happening in the news. 

Update 2:41 PM ET: Herman Van Rompuy has since deleted his earlier tweet, and now says:

Good morning!  Here’s what you need to know right now:

[credit provider=”AP”] Tomorrow’s big meeting of eurozone leaders marks the beginning of 14 days of negotiation that need to come to some sort of grand conclusion for the future of the region at the March 24-25 EU summit.It’s essentially a conflict between Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel and everyone else. Merkel […]

As if you didn’t have enough to worry about, tomorrow brings a meeting in Brussels of the leaders of the European Union.  They’ll be gathering to discuss Angela Merkel’s grand bargain: succinctly described by The Economist magazine as follows: “in exchange for boosting the euro’s defences, she wants tighter economic […]

[credit provider=”AP”] German Chancellor Angela Merkel has called on both Greece to sell state owned assets and Ireland to raise its corporate tax rate in exchange for cutting the interest rate on their bailout bonds, according to Bloomberg.The comments were made during a behind closed door meeting of European leaders.

Only hours after Spain was downgraded by Moody’s, its central bank has tried to come clean over exactly how much money its banking sector needs.

Good Morning!  Here’s what you need to know right now.

Today, Moody’s downgraded Spain over concerns the government’s plan to restructure the banks won’t even come close to fulfilling its goals, because the €20 billion it plans to spend is way below what it will actually cost.

Good morning!  Here’s what’s you need to know:

When the Harris Interactive poll of a hypothetical French presidential  “primary” election was published, the reaction among insiders was: the books were cooked. 

[credit provider=”Wikimedia Commons” url=”http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2000pesetas.JPG”] The Spanish town of Mugardos has started to accept pesetas again in a bid to revive the region’s economy, according to the BBC.This isn’t a full blown currency switch, however, with shops accepting both the euro and the peseta.

After its March 3rd meeting the European Central Bank (ECB) signaled an important change in the direction of monetary policy, an intention to make a pre-emptive move against the risk of higher inflation.

[credit provider=”Ibiblio.org”] Clyde Prestowitz is a thoughtful observer of the global economy.  Fans of his work can now keep up with his thinking at his new blog at Foreign Policy. Here’s an excerpt from his first post:At present, virtually all the world’s economies are attempting to grow and create jobs […]

It’s over 20 days before the eurozone is meant to firm up its plan to save itself, but already it seems German Chancellor Merkel’s grand bargain to save the region has failed, according to Bloomberg.

[credit provider=”Alliance Oil” url=”http://www.allianceoilco.com/images/imagearchive/lowres/well125v2.jpg”] If the price of Brent crude oil surges to $150 a barrel, one eurozone country will default and the whole region will fall into recession, according to Marie Diron of Ernst and Young (via Ambrose Evans-Pritchard).The result of this rise would be particularly bad for Ireland, […]

“Europe’s banks are in far greater danger than people realise,” according to Barry Eichengreen, speaking to Der Spiegel.

[credit provider=”desrunyan via flickr” url=”http://www.flickr.com/photos/blackwatersailing/3456958344/”] Good Morning!  Here’s what you need to know:1.  Stratfor reports:  “A Shiite cleric was arrested in Saudi Arabia’s oil-rich Eastern Province on Feb. 27 after calling for a constitutional monarchy during a Friday sermon.  The arrest…could end up sparking protests among the kingdom’s Shiite minority […]

The Financial Times reports that “sentiment in some European capitals has turned against renegotiating Dublin’s €85bn bail-out package, casting into doubt the incoming Irish government’s push to ease the repayment terms.” 

Her father, Jean-Marie Le Pen, was the leader of the far right-wing National Front, but he was unable to forge a national coalition in France.  So he never won a national election. 

1. Oil prices rose sharply as turmoil in North Africa and the Middle East continued. 

[credit provider=”Wikipedia”] 1.  National, state and local debt in the United States will exceed the debt levels reached just after World War II.  The combined debt presently exceeds the size of the entire economy, according to government estimates.

Eurozone leaders have fleshed out the details and agreed to a new bailout package for the region that will double the current fund’s size, according to Der Spiegel.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel is losing her grip on her European dominance, with her own party members now openly opposing her latest plans, according to Der Spiegel.

German Chancellor Angel Merkel’s office has just announced that Axel Weber will leave his post as head of the Bundesbank by April 30, according to CNBC.

[credit provider=”AP”] 1.  The New York Stock Exchange is close to an agreement to be acquired by Deutsche Borse AG, a “merger” that would create the world’s largest financial exchange.  The sale of the NYSE to the Germans will become a political issue.2.  German Bundesbank President Axel Weber has withdrawn […]

German uber-hawk Axel Weber is now off the list of potential replacements for ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet. The euro dipped on the news, then popped back pretty quickly.

There’s a sideshow going on in Ireland.  As Bloomberg reports: “Gerry Adams, president of Irish nationalist party Sinn Fein, is selling a clear message ahead of Ireland´s election this month: burn the bank bondholders and send the International Monetary Fund home. His stance appears to be winning voters, at least […]

Yields on the Portuguese 10 year have surged higher on today’s uncertainty regarding the future of the ECB, and continued worries that changes to the eurozone’s bailout package won’t go through.

Regardless of improving growth conditions, Spain will face two more years of unemployment above 20%, according to BBVA analysts.

The political crisis erupting in Italy could bring renewed market scrutiny to the country, according to Citi analysts.

This weekend, France and Germany were rebuffed in their plan for a “pact for competitiveness” which would have seen eurozone member states adopt similar labour and tax policies to Germany.

Germany Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy have failed in their attempt to unify eurozone leaders around a “pact for competitiveness,” according to the FT.

European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet may talk tough on inflation, but there’s little reason you should believe him in the short-term, according to Societe Generale.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel launch a new “pact for competitiveness” to save the eurozone at this week’s EU summit, according to Der Spiegel.

[credit provider=”Wikimedia Commons” url=”http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lightmatter_ireland.jpg”] Eurozone inflation surged past expectations to a CPI of 2.4%, year-over-year, in January. While this isn’t too far beyond the ECB’s target rate of 2.0%, it’s certain to give ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet further inclination to continue his hawkish talk on the matter.The eurozone’s core probably […]

Bloomberg just published a really depressing poll regarding Europe.

[credit provider=”Wikimedia Commons” url=”http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:La_Tomatina_%2825.08.2010%29_-_Spain,_Bu%C3%B1ol_03.jpg”] Spain may need to tap the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) in order to bailout its troubled regional banks, or cajas, according to Barclays Capital Chief European Economist Julian Callow, who was speaking at the Bloomberg European Debt Crisis conference.The reason why, according to Callow, is […]

[credit provider=”AP”] Germany is ready to back down to the demands of fellow eurozone members and allow for the expansion of the region’s bailout fund if members agree to a certain list of conditions.Those conditions, however, may be too strong for some members now concerned that their suffering is only […]

[credit provider=”Wikimedia Commons” url=”http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Flickr_-_europeanpeoplesparty_-_EPP_Summit_%2827%29.jpg”] Jean-Claude Juncker, president of the Euro group and prime minister of Luxembourg, says he’s “angry” with some Germany leaders who are “gambling” with policy decisions that may impact their legacy, according to Der Spiegel.The comments follow a week in which European financial leadership again failed to […]

European sovereign CDS prices are lower this morning after the head of the European Financial Stability Facility said Greece’s debt will not need to be restructured.

Comments earlier this week from Jean-Claude Trichet got people thinking that the ECB was about to get hawkish on inflation, and that’s helped the euro become a major winning currency this week

While the presumption may be that southern members of the eurozone are lazy, the evidence suggests otherwise, according to Societe Generale.

Societe Generale have a map of expected outcomes for the European sovereign debt crisis, and it does a great job of explaining where we are and where we may get to.

Major members of Germany’s coalition government do not want to see the bailout package to support fringe eurozone states expanded, according to The Telegraph.

Paul Krugman’s epic walk through of the eurozone crisis, due to appear in the New York Times Magazine this weekend, has already made its way online.

Portugal is the recent flashpoint, but Spain and Belgium are on deck. Note too that sovereign spreads in Ireland and Greece are at record highs in spite of the alleged bailouts. In response to the clearly not-contained crisis, Germany is considering expanding the bailout fund from 750 billion-euro ($966 billion) […]

[credit provider=”Ivan Walsh via Flickr” url=”http://www.flickr.com/photos/ivanwalsh/4616756073/”] The world is coming together to backstop the euro, with Japan the latest major country pledging economic support for the monetary union.Bloomberg reports Japan will buy 20% of the debt associated with the bailout of Ireland.

The Portuguese are under some intense pressure to tap EU/IMF funds.

The National Treasury Management Agency has today said it will resume borrowing on the state’s behalf from international money markets as soon as conditions allow, saying Ireland may not necessarily have to draw down the bailout funds provided.

CDS prices on European Union banks are spiking as a result of continued concerns over haircuts to bondholders.

[credit provider=”Wikimedia Commons” url=”http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jacques-Louis_David_007.jpg”] A new proposal has emerged for a combined European Treasury, first built on German and French cooperation, eventually expanding to the rest of the eurozone (via CNBC).While the idea has been proposed by Constance Le Grip and Henri Plagnol, two French and European parliamentarians, French President […]

[credit provider=”Alan Levine via Flickr” url=”http://www.flickr.com/photos/cogdog/4461665810/”] The European Central Bank is about to be faced with a decision it only knows one way of answering.Today, data from Eurostat showed that inflation has accelerated in the eurozone by 2.2% year-over-year in December. This is the fastest rate of inflation growth in […]

Ambrose Evans-Pritchard has painted his nightmare outline of what 2011 will look like around the world, and there’s no comfort here for investors, beyond those focused on Norway.

[credit provider=”AP”] One of the biggest macro threats to the global economy in 2011 continues to be instability in the eurozone. And while the bailout fund, set to provide a financial backstop for fringe eurozone members, in in place, Germany and France cannot agree on what to do next.Essentially the […]

[credit provider=”Flickr” url=”http://www.flickr.com/photos/weirdcolor/3332575399/in/photostream/”] Societe Generale see 2011 full of risks, but mainly from 6 sources. The concern is that anyone of these issues could derail the global rally, and turn the equity boom around.Europe continues to dominate, with both political and economic concerns threatening developed markets. The U.S. too is […]

The euro tumbled overnight ahead of a French debt auction worth €8.5 billion.

Say what you will about the future of the eurozone, its corporate sector is surely showing some resiliency.

Societe Generale’s CEO Frédéric Oudéa says the eurozone needs no more banking stress tests, but needs to get on with the process of convergence.

As a key condition for financial rescues of these ailing sovereigns, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the European Central Bank (ECB) both demanded severe cuts in government spending.

What happens when a country faces forced austerity, a banking crisis, a risk of sovereign default, and pressure to abandon a currency peg it has has sworn to be eternal and unbreakable?

Ireland, Finland, and France may actually be losing growth because of their euro membership, according to a new report from Societe Generale.

[credit provider=”Wikimedia Commons” url=”http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:George_Soros_-_World_Economic_Forum_Annual_Meeting_Davos_2010.jpg”] George Soros throws cold water on Europe’s latest stabilisation efforts in a brand new piece on Project Syndicate.The eurobond, rejected by German Chancellor Merkel, is the key solution says Soros. The goal of this bond is to save the zone’s fringe from having to pay unusually […]

[credit provider=”Nomura”] Nomura has surveyed its clients on 2011, and the responses paint a pretty clear picture of what range of expectations investors should have for 2011.There is general bullishness around equities, positivity about U.S. growth, but pessimism around unemployment.

All seemed well after Angela Merkel got her way with a plan, set to be put into place by 2013, that would see a permanent bailout fund for the eurozone and the possibility of restructuring.

European sovereign CDS has spiked this morning after new rules on future eurozone bailouts were agreed on by the European Union’s leadership.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has pledged to defend the euro after European leaders agreed to a new set of rules on bailout.

UK Prime Minister David Cameron has spoken out against the current design of eurozone bailouts, asking for changes to their design.

Pretty speeches regarding solidarity will not solve the European debt crisis. Yet, as Greece smolders in riots and firebombs over various austerity measures, pretty speeches, untenable pledges regarding haircuts, and continual bickering remain the only action items of note coming from Europe. smouldering Politics Greece is not the only thing […]

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has outlined her plan to save the euro, and it’s pretty much the same plan eurozone leaders are currently working with.

Coverage of the sovereign debt crisis in Spain tends to oversimplify fairly complex issues. The situation of Spain – both too big to fail and too big to bail – is attributable to interlocking issues that are ill-understood and require the separation of fact from myth.

To explain the ECB’s panic over Spain, all one needs to do is look at this “exposure table” from the recently published BIS Quarterly Review. I highlighted areas of interest.

UK Independence Party Leader Nigel Farage launched another assault on the European Union, euro, and its leadership in a speech before the European Parliament today.

The eurozone sovereign debt crisis is the greatest threat to the global recovery and authorities in the region are still following the policy of “lend, pray, and hope” according to Nouriel Roubini.

Standard & Poor’s warned Dec. 14 that Belgium’s mix of high government debt, a high budget deficit and the chronic inability to form a stable government would likely force the ratings agency to downgrade the country’s credit rating (currently at AA+), possibly within six months. Such an event is not […]

The euro just dived on news the opposition Labour party in Ireland will be voting against the IMF-EU bailout.

The eurozone remains mired in worry this morning due to the ongoing inability of its leaders to come to any sort of conclusion on how to deal with the fringe state sovereign debt crisis.

Right now, eurozone officials are trying to work out a compromise agreement that would either expand the size of the region’s bailout fund, or create a new euro bond facility.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel threatened her country would leave the eurozone if a new pact to deal with troubled states was not agreed upon, according to The Guardian.