
ECB Blows Hole in EU’s €140bn Ukraine Loan Plan
Brussels’ scheme to use frozen Russian assets is faltering as the ECB rejects a backstop and key EU leaders push back.

Brussels’ scheme to use frozen Russian assets is faltering as the ECB rejects a backstop and key EU leaders push back.

With global rivals racing ahead, Mario Draghi demands urgent reforms on trade, AI, and competitiveness.
As trust in fiat currencies fades, central banks return to the world’s oldest safe haven.

Nine EU states are now in a recession. The ECB can help the continent ease the downturn, but they are up against bigger forces of economic stagnation.

“The name of the game is containment now,” German MEP Markus Ferber said, referring to the fear that’s spreading faster than the actual problem.

The Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank both foresee having to continue raising interest rates significantly to roll back inflation to 2%.

Inflation is of major concern, according to the ECB.

When a currency depreciates, it can lead to a self-reinforcing outflow of capital—especially when the depreciation is unprecedented. The euro has never been this weak against the dollar.

Government officials have carefully ignored the need for more fiscal conservatism. Looking at the threat of a new debt crisis, investors and taxpayers alike expect nothing more spectacular from their current leaders than a new round of put-out-the-fire austerity packages.

When the ECB raises interest rates, all other things equal it increases demand for euros on the global foreign-exchange market.