Debt Management
Greece programme not working: IMF
IMF mission to Greece urges sovereign to undertake further budgetary measures; European official hints at soft restructuring
Fitch ups Iceland default rating outlook to stable
Rating agency Fitch affirms Iceland rating; revises outlooks to stable from negative
Egypt asks IMF for loan
IMF announces Egypt has requested a loan of $10 billion-12 billion
Eurozone sovereign bailouts likely to stop at Portugal, say investors
The Eurozone crisis has already forced three members of the currency union to take EU/IMF bailouts but Spain, the next potential target of investors, is unlikely to follow
Finland supports Portuguese bailout; calls for international banking tax
National Coalition Party and Social Democratic Party agree to support bailout; want to see EU-wide banking tax “to collect funds from banks in advance in view of a possible future financial crisis”
IMF makes strong call for strengthened policy response in Europe
International Monetary Fund wants stronger financial integration to bolster Europe’s recovery; comes as officials gather in Greece to see progress
Greece will default, panellists say
Panellists at Fathom Consulting’s Monetary Policy Forum say Greece will default on debt; only a matter of by how much
Bailout package offers hope for Portugal
Lisbon accepts €78 billion bailout as part of deal to reduce deficit to 3% of GDP by 2013; analysts say preliminary terms of deal positive for sovereign
S&P puts Japan on negative outlook
Standard and Poor’s places Japan’s long-term credit rating on negative outlook; Bank of Japan governor Masaaki Shirakawa forecasts economy will contract in first two quarters
Greece deficit revision sparks default concerns from analysts
Eurostat revises Greece’s deficit to GDP upwards by almost a percentage point; analysts reiterate need for Greece to restructure debt
Standard & Poor’s changes US outlook to negative
Rating agency cites growing deficit and debt as rationale behind the change
Greek budget cuts raise default concerns
Markets prepare for the worst as Athens unveils new tougher austerity measures; IMF managing director Dominique Strauss-Kahn says cuts are necessary
Stress tests motivate Moody’s Ireland downgrade
Moody’s downgrades Ireland two notches to Baa3 after stress tests force Irish government to allocate additional funds to banks
Iceland in talks to avoid downgrade following 'no' vote
Governor Már Guðmundsson talks to rating agencies after Icelanders reject second Icesave deal
Greek debt still the most risky: CMA survey
CMA labels Greek sovereign debt as most risky in the world, second quarter in a row; countries elsewhere in Western Europe performed the best
New York Fed auctions off first AIG-related mortgage bonds
New York Federal Reserve sells $1.3 billion of American International Group (AIG) mortgage securities in the first round of auctions
Ireland’s Elderfield: we’ll not haircut senior debt
Matthew Elderfield, Ireland’s head regulator, assures senior bondholders in four banks they will not face “action”
Risk Europe: S&P slammed for linking Greece, Portugal downgrades to ESM
Eurozone bail-out vehicle doesn't hurt existing bondholders, EC official argues
Moody’s downgrades Portugal again
Moody’s cuts Portugal’s credit rating by one notch to Baa1 as political uncertainty continues to cloud medium-term financing
RBNZ paper on global bond yields
Reserve Bank of New Zealand study finds close correlation between domestic and global bond yields
IMF paper urges policymakers to address sovereign rating spillovers
Policymakers must account for risks posed by spillover effects of sovereign rating downgrades; contingency plan recommended to deal with possible instability
Irish minister makes fresh bondholder threat
ECB executive board member critical of Ireland’s plans to impose losses on senior bondholders in Irish lenders; new stress test results on Thursday to develop the governments’ plans
Portuguese CDS spreads climb after austerity measures voted down
The EU prepares itself for another sovereign bail-out after Portuguese parliament rejects tax rises and budget cuts
S&P downgrades Bahrain
Standard and Poor’s downgrades Bahrain’s credit rating two notches to BBB amid continued political unrest