Pressure builds as Alexis Tsipras says IMF has “criminal responsibility” for the damage caused by Greece’s austerity programmesLatest: Jack Lew phones TsiprasJuncker attacks GreeksTsipras: IMF has criminal responsibilityGreek PM gives defiant speechGreece won’t repay IMF if no deal 10.41pm BST And finally, Alexis Tsipras’s defiant and confrontational speech this afternoon makes the front page of The Guardian:Wednesday's Guardian: Greece accuses ‘criminal’ creditors as default nears #tomorrowspaperstoday #bbcpapers pic.twitter.com/E0K6FBgYl0Fears that the five-year Greek financial crisis will culminate in debt default and exit from the euro have intensified as Athens hardened its rhetoric against its creditors and insisted it would miss a payment to the International Monetary Fund unless it received debt relief.With just 48 hours to go before a meeting of eurozone finance ministers, seen as the last realistic chance to reach a deal before Greece has to pay the IMF at the end of June, Alexis Tsipras, showed no sign of bowing to demands for cuts in pensions and increases in VAT. Instead, the Greek prime minister accused the Fund of “criminal responsibility” for the situation and said lenders were seeking to “humiliate” his country. 10.12pm BST JP Morgan analysts have predicted tonight that restrictions on Greek banks could be brought in this weekend, if eurozone finance ministers fail to make progress in 48 hours time.JPM: "We think Greece may impose capital controls as soon as this weekend if it fails to achieve a breakthrough at Thu Eurogroup meeting." 9.46pm BST Look who’s sitting on the front page of the FT tonight....Financial Times: just published, US front page, Wednesday June 17, 2015 pic.twitter.com/ZA6FDyFGVb 9.26pm BST Even though the Dow Jones index rose today, investors are still jittery about the eurozone.Scott Brown, chief economist at Raymond James in St. Petersburg, Florida, says: “The market is still anxious about Greece and would like the situation to be dealt with one way or another. The week-after-week uncertainty isn’t good for the market.” 9.06pm BST Wall Street remains optimistic too. The New York stock index has closed for the night, with shares in the green:The Dow ended up by 112 points, or 0.6%. More info on today's market movement: http://t.co/zDcuH8nTBq pic.twitter.com/dr7DFEdXYJ 9.03pm BST Over 40% of City investors are hopeful that this crisis will result in a deal, according to Bank of America Merrill Lynch:The latest @BofAML Global Fund Manager Survey on Greece pic.twitter.com/AYLIBIgciK 9.00pm BST City analysts are catching up with events today. BNP Paribas, the French bank, reckons there’s a roughly even chance of Greece defaulting (so let’s just flip a coin....).Perhaps more usefully, BNPP also point out that Greece might not lose its eurozone membership; after all, there’s no obvious way to expel a euro member.BNPP: Probability of a Greek default has risen to around 50%. Default would not automatically herald #Grexit. pic.twitter.com/ha0s0kYtoN 8.57pm BST Graffiti in #Greece only gets better. Spotted tonight: "Europe without Greece is like a party without drugs!" 8.09pm BST America has just made a new intervention in the crisis tonight.“Lew underscored the urgency of Greece making a serious move to reach a pragmatic compromise with its creditors.”In call to PM Tsipras, Treasury Sec Lew "underscored urgency of Greece making a serious move to reach a pragmatic compromise with creditors" 7.59pm BST Over in Athens the government’s spokesman has just released a statement attempting to douse tensions with EU commission president Jean-Claude Juncker, reports Helena Smith . Responding to the EU commission chief’s thinly disguised fury today, the Greek government - acutely aware that the Luxembourger is among Greece’s greatest supporters - has moved fast to kiss and make up. “[We laid the blame] with the entire proposal made by the three institutions.” [Greece’s lenders].“The Greek government has submitted proposals with measures that fully cover the fiscal gap, transferring the burden from the weakest social classes as well as suggesting a reduction in defense spending.” 7.44pm BST Jean-Claude Juncker’s statement that he’s had ‘no contact’ with the Greek government since Sunday doesn’t tell the full story.Our Europe editor, Ian Traynor, points out that the European Commission president has been in contact with Greek politicians and officials this week, so it would be wrong to think he’s frozen off all contact with Greece.... 6.57pm BST And here’s a clearly disgruntled Jean-Claude Juncker today, as he he tore into the Greek government.“I don’t care about the Greek government, I do care about the Greek people,” he said noting that many “are suffering more than others in the European Union” from efforts to reduce debts.“The debate in Greece and outside Greece would be easier if the Greek government would tell exactly what the Commission ... is really proposing. I am blaming the Greeks (for telling) things to the Greek public which are not consistent with what I’ve told the Greek prime minister.” 6.42pm BST Greece’s president has waded in declaring that he will do everything in his power to ensure the debt-strcken country remains in the eurozone. “I know that my role, not least because of my election by the majority of the parliament who chose me, is to ensure the course of the country in Europe and the euro zone.”“In front of this aim there has to be a solid internal front of all democratic forces. Petty party views and friction can’t come before the achievement of such a goal.” 6.34pm BST Over in Washington, the White House has given all parties in the Greek bailout saga a nudge to sort this crisis out, soon, without rattling the financial markets. 5.40pm BST Latest on #Greece is the potential for a summit on Sat post Eurogroup meeting on Thurs... sounds like they're planning for the worst! 5.29pm BST The early signs that Greece was moving closer to the brink sent investors heading for the doors. But despite the rhetoric from Greek president Alexis Tsipras in parliament, there were growing hopes a deal of some sort could perhaps be done after all. With Wall Street moving higher in early trading - ahead of Wednesday’s US Federal Reserve comments on interest rates - most markets managed to regain some ground. Greece was an exception, with the Athens market falling again to record a 14.59% decline in the past three sessions. Overall the scores showed: 5.16pm BST European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker has come out fighting: 4.46pm BST And there we have it:[BREAKING] ECB’s Knot: Business As Usual On ELA Until Greece Defaults - BBG $EURUSD $MACRO 4.33pm BST European Central Bank board member Yves Mersch has tried to pour cold water on the idea of a Grexit:ECB MERSCH: EXIT FROM EURO NOT FORESEEN BY TREATY; WE CONSIDER PARTICIPATION IN EURO IRREVOCABLE 4.10pm BST Speaking of Varoufakis, Germany’s Spiegel Online has some quotes from today. He told them the proposals for spending cuts and reforms were already so harsh and brutal, the Germans themselves would never accept them. He said:Greece will only commit to them if Europe agrees to a debt restructuring, investments and an end to the liquidity crisis. 3.47pm BST In case anyone was wondering where Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis was during the fiery speech in parliament from prime minister Alexis Tspiras, here he is listening, combining casual with intensity: 3.25pm BST More talks, but this time it is Cyprus president Nicos Anastasiades getting in on the act. According to China’s Xinhua News Agency, he will be speaking with EU officials some time today about the Greek crisis:His spokesman said that Anastasiades earlier in the day had a telephone conversation with the president of Greece, Prokopis Pavlopoulos, “in connection with Greece’s effort to reach a deal with (European) institutions”.When asked whether finance minister Harris Georgiades will take up any mediatory role in Greece’s effort to close a deal with its international lenders, the spokesman said the question should be what the president will do following his conversation with the Greek President.He did not say either whom Anastasiades will talk to or what line he will take on the Greek issue.But sources said that he will probably call German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Francois Hollande, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and European Central Bank president Mario Draghi. 3.03pm BST And here’s a thought to put things in perspective:Greece adopted € cash Jan 1 '02. Putting the start of the crisis at Oct 1 08 it will have spent half its membership in crisis by end Aug '15 2.59pm BST US markets are in positive territory in early trading, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up around 50 points.The latest US Federal Reserve meeting starts today with the central bank’s latest thinking on interest rates due to be announced tomorrow. Investors believe there will be no increase in borrowing costs until later in the year at the earliest.The pattern since Syriza's election: (i) The rhetoric from both Greece & the creditors has increased. (ii) The actual gap has narrowed.@SpiegelPeter This feels a very long way from the starting point back in January: http://t.co/iJ0mlhQcQC@Birdyword I think a deal is do-able and I think it'll happen. But, I've been wrong about this quite a lot over the last few weeks... 2.39pm BST Pimco, the asset manager which is part of insurer Allianz, has increased its holding of Greek debt and is second only to the ECB, according to Bloomberg:Allianz SE, Europe’s biggest insurer and asset manager, increased its holdings of Greek sovereign debt to more than €1.2bn from about €1bn reported in May.Allianz, through its asset manager Pimco Investment Management Co., had the largest holdings of Greek bonds of any investor after the European Central Bank, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Pimco invests capital on behalf of clients. Allianz’s direct exposure to Greece is €2m, according to its first-quarter earnings. 2.16pm BST The AFP newswire have just published the details of Alexis Tsipras’s attack on the International Monetary Fund in the Greek parliament today.“The IMF has criminal responsibility for today’s situation.”. “The fixation on cuts... is most likely part of a political plan... to humiliate an entire people that has suffered in the past five years through no fault of its own,” 2.13pm BST “They are asking us to accept an agreement which will drag us into a vortex of recession and uncertainty. We submitted a proposal for a viable deal and got back a 5-page text that ignored the negotiations that had already taken place.” 1.53pm BST While Alexis Tsipras was speaking, Angela Merkel was telling reporters in Berlin that “unfortunately” she has little new to report on Greece.The German chancellor said she hope the deadlock can be broken at Thursday’s eurozone finance ministers meeting.“I’m concentrating all of my energy on helping the three institutions find a solution with Greece,” Merkel told reporters. “That’s what I see as my task. I want to do everything possible to keep Greece in the euro zone.”Tsipras brands IMF "criminal" as Merkel admits no Greece deal in sight http://t.co/CUsAQcGM03 pic.twitter.com/eyYfXdeImp 1.46pm BST That was quite a defiant speech by Alexis Tsipras, in which he insisted he won’t bow to the demands of Greece’s lenders, despite the growing risk of default.The Greek PM told his MPs:“The mandate we have got from the Greek people is to end austerity policy.“In order to achieve that, we have to seek a deal which will spread the burden evenly and which will not hurt wage earners and pensioners.”#Tsipras says ECB insists on tactics that strangle Greece; IMF has “criminal responsibility” for what happened in Greece during crisisTSIPRAS: IMF has "criminal responsibility" for mistakes left uncorrected in Greek program #GreeceWhy do [European leaders] accept [the IMF’s] harsh measures but not its proposals for debt restructuring?”Too much focus on Tsipras's language. Main point is challenge to EU over adopting IMF's measures & not its call for debt relief #GreeceIf lenders looking for a msg from #Tsipras speech, it's: If you want me to consider pension cuts, give me something on debt relief #Greece 1.21pm BST 1.18pm BST In conclusion, Tsipras tells his MPs that he will keep working towards a deal; one that is in line with his mandate to end austerity in Greece.tsipras: we're entering the home stretch. i'd say the real negotiations are starting now.#Greece Tsipras: "The mandate we've taken by the GR people is *not* a mandate of creative ambiguity; it is clear mandate to stop austerity."* Greek PM says we want a deal that ends talk of grexit once and for all - RTRS#Greece Tsipras: "This bet is not only ours; it is a bet of the GR people; but also a bet of Europe's people; for a Europe of democracy." 1.10pm BST We’ll get the key quotes from Alexis Tsipras’s speech soon (livefeed here). In the meantime, here are Reuters early news flashes, showing that the Greek PM is sticking to his guns:PM #Tsipras remains defiant, blames #ECB, institutions; says no deal in place unless creditors change course #Greece 1.06pm BST Tsipras does not appear to be caving in. At all. Instead, the Greek PM is questioning whether creditors are actually serious about getting a deal.GreekPM @atsipras says the obsession of the Institutions on such measures means that they want the humiliation of the greek people #Greece#Greece PM #Tsipras questions true will of creditors to find solution 1.03pm BST Alexis Tsipras is insisting that Greece has done its best, and once again attacks the recent proposals from its creditors.Three weeks ago we produced a “comprehensive plan that could be viable”, but lenders failed to also compromise. Instead, they insisted on unacceptable measures, such as wage cuts and higher taxes.#Greece Tsipras calls the last doc sent the institutions to the govt as "absurd, unrealistic and unacceptable."#Tsipras says lenders propose 'horizontal measures' with cuts in wages, hikes in electricity bills 12.59pm BST #Tsipras says certain if we take advantage of this opportunity these 4 years could prove to be a 'spring time of democracy' for Greece 12.57pm BST Tsipras says that in order for the gov't to continue with its 4-year plan it needs an agrment that will provide adequate financing. #Greece 12.55pm BST Tsipras is arguing against early elections, saying Syriza can achieve a lot in the next four years. Bigger challenges lie ahead....#Tsipras says 'it's our responsibility and duty to bear this burden + we'll do it as long as people support us'#Greece Tsipras: "The big fights are in front of us, and we must be ready to fight them." 12.54pm BST Alexis Tsipras is addressing his Syriza MPs in the Athens parliament now! Here’s the livefeedTsipras trying to justify why Syriza pressed for early elections. "We saw that MoU measures were becoming irreversible"#Greece PM #Tsipras: we knew the problems but made a bold choice: to take on the responsibility of governance#Greece Tsipras: "We managed to stand in our meet, &with our focus always on the front of negotiations, we managed to take relief measures." 12.48pm BST European Commission vice-president Valdis Dombrovskis has revealed that there has been been “some discussion within the eurozone” of the implications of “less favourable scenarios” for Greece.That’s via Reuters. 12.38pm BST Alexis Tsipras will begin addressing his Syriza party’s MPs in Athens shortly. It should be streamed live here.Σε λίγο, στη συνεδρίαση της Κ.Ο του #syriza. Παρακολουθήστε ζωντανά http://t.co/Y471PpOFy2 pic.twitter.com/DXgHCmD5FN 12.30pm BST German tabloid Bild just gave the financial markets a jolt, by reporting that Greece wants to delay its €1.6bn IMF repayment until the end of this year.It says:According to information obtained by Bild, Greece doesn’t want to pay back any of the June debt instalments to the IMF. It wants to postpone the repayments of the €1.55bn repayment due in June by six months.@OpenEurope FYI it's now been quickly denied by a Greek official 11.53am BST Finland’s prime minister has declared that it would take a “miracle” to get a deal before Greece’s bailout expires at the end of June.It would need a miracle to reach a deal between Greece and its creditors by the end-of-June deadline, the Finnish prime minister said on Tuesday.“The situation is tough and the timetable is tight. One could say that it needs a miracle to have this issue solved next week... But that is still the aim for everybody,” Prime Minister Juha Sipila told reporters."Finnish PM Says Greece Deal for Next Week Needs a Miracle" by REUTERS via NYT http://t.co/FcNltwpMDM 11.40am BST The Greek stock market has slumped close to its lowest level since the summer of 2012 today, as the deadlock between Athens and its creditors continues to spook the markets.Bank shares are being routed again, as alarm spreads across trading floors. National Bank of Greece is down 7.8%, pulling the ATG index down another 3.8% to 709 points.Borrowing rates thru the roof! 2-yr yield near 30% #Greece HT @Investingcom pic.twitter.com/UwAENr5x5XWhy agree to a program that has manifestly failed on pretty much every level irrespective of the amount of blame to spread around, and it would be a massive climb-down at this late stage if they were to suddenly pull back?This suggests irrespective of what happens in the coming days, and despite the dire warnings of non-compliance by German and EU officials, Greece will not be left to fend for itself, and Varoufakis and Tsipras must surely know this.With the IMF already uneasy about the sustainability of the current debt load it could be reasoned that Varoufakis surmises that the only way to open up a discussion on any form of debt renegotiation is for Greece to force the creditors hand, given they currently won’t entertain the idea. 11.11am BST Has the Greek prime minister Alexis Tsipras made up his mind not to honour the €1.6bn debt repayment Athens must make to the IMF this month? Our correspondent Helena Smith reports that it has emerged the leader made clear in talks with opposition leader Stavros Theodorakis today that: “the government will not pay the IMF, if by the end of the month an agreement hasn’t been achieved with lenders.” #Greek PM @atsipras to @toPotami leader: Without an agreement we are not paying the IMF. reports @kzoulas http://t.co/LNibDiaE4Z 11.04am BST Fofi Gennimata, the new leader of Greece’s left-wing Pasok party, has warned that it would be a “disaster” if the country fails to reach a deal with creditors.Gennimata was speaking following her meeting with Alexis Tsipras this lunchtime (as previewed earlier)The newly elected leader of Pasok said that Greece is going through a critical time and what is required is “frank dialogue and consultation”.She reintroduced an earlier Pasok proposal for a national negotiating team and stressed that the country “needs an agreement as soon as possible.”Rupture with creditors a disaster, says Pasok's leader - http://t.co/29CVJ9opTs pic.twitter.com/wu1B1ZFIfk 10.59am BST Bruno Waterfield, The Times’s man in Brussels, has heard that EU leaders are unlikely to hold an emergency summit on Sunday (as was rumoured earlier).He reckons there’s still enough time to get any deal ratified by European parliaments, if needed (Germany’s Bundestag may require a vote, if there is any new aid for Greece).I'm told emergency Sun #EUCO 'is unlikely when there's a summit next Thurs anyway'. Urgent timing of nat parli ratifications 'overstated' 10.54am BST Several analysts fear that capital controls could soon be implemented in Greece to stem the outflow of liquidity from its banks.Guy Foster, head of research at City firm Brewin Dolphin, suggests they could compromise three elements:Capital controls would essentially buy time for a more serious resolution to the Greek crisis - namely a new government which can deliver reforms which might placate the creditors - so more talks and elections would follow.Alternatively these would have to be the circumstances under which a parallel currency would be introduced or a full exit could be planned. 10.33am BST Stavros Theodorakis, the leader of Greece’s centrist party, To Potami, has urged prime minister Alexis Tsipras to reach a deal soon.“I called on the prime minister to consider that the Greek economy is desperately close to its limits....Greek society is suffering from the constant postponement of a deal.”“We will stay at our red lines, we will not go back on our pre-electoral agenda. We are not bluffing, this is not a poker game, we do not belong to the past we belong to the future and we are not going to go back on our promises.” “That is the strategy being pushed by Greek oligarchs who are in control of most of the private media and are in complete agreement with lenders.” 10.15am BST This might send shivers through Berlin. German investor sentiment has fallen this month, as the Greek crisis hurts Europe’s largest economy.The forward-looking Economic Conditions index, tracked by the ZEW Institute, fell to 31.5, down from 41.9.“External factors are reducing the scope for further improvement of Germany’s good economic situation.These include, in particular, the ongoing uncertainty over Greece’s future and the restrained dynamic of the global economy.”ZEW German Current Conditions Index falls to 62.7 in June (May:65.7).Econ sentiment at 7-month low of 31.5 (May:41.9) http://t.co/jdWdkrT4EY 9.50am BST There is chatter in Brussels today that EU leaders could hold an emergency summit this weekend, if there is no progress at Thursday’s eurogroup meeting of finance chiefs.However, it’s not clear that they would actually have much to get their teeth into -- as the FT’s Peter Speigel reports:Eurozone officials are discussing holding an emergency summit on Sunday for leaders to tackle the crisis in Greece amid mounting fears a deal to break an ongoing impasse between Athens and its bailout creditors will not be reached at a high-stakes finance ministers meeting on Thursday.According to two senior officials, the idea of holding a summit of eurozone heads of government was mooted in meetings among representatives of Greece’s creditors on Monday, a day after last-ditch negotiations to reach a deal to release €7.2bn in much-needed bailout aid collapsed.#EU leaders weighing summit on Sunday to deal w/#Greece if Thurs #eurogroup fails. But some think it's a bad idea http://t.co/iFljBsyz76#EU gov sources: emergency summit on #Greece likely on Sunday or Monday. #grexit #tsipras #merkel #IMF @welt @WELT_Economy @OlafGersemann 9.41am BST Over in Athens officials appear to have drawn a line in the sand, saying it is now in the court of lenders to resume talks. 9.33am BST Britain’s brief flirtation with negative inflation is over.The Consumer Prices Index rose by 0.1% year-on-year in May, having dipped to -0.1% in April. 9.20am BST Despite pressure from Europe, there’s no sign this morning that Greece is prepared to capitulate and agree to tougher austerity measures demanded by lenders. “No, because the Eurogroup (of euro zone finance ministers) is not the right place to present proposals which haven’t been discussed and negotiated on a lower level before.” 9.04am BST The cost of insuring Spanish and Italian debt has risen this morning, in a further sign of jitteriness.Spanish and Italian CDS spreads jump 10bps on #Grexit fears http://t.co/wb91mQtrUk pic.twitter.com/MSuQCRba81 8.57am BST The Greek stock market is feeling the pain too. The main ATG index fell by 1.5% at the start of trading, adding to yesterday’s side of nearly 5%. 8.49am BST Greek government bonds are weakening again this morning, driving up the yield (or interest rate) on its two-year bonds over 30%.That’s a stomach-clenchingly high yield -- suggesting that the debt is rather unlikely to be repaid in full (yields rise when prices fall).Bang! #Greece's 2yr yields just crossed the 30% mark. pic.twitter.com/tkB7ls7KI0 8.43am BST Breaking news: The European Court of Justice has ruled that the ECB’s bond-buying programme is legal.#ECB wins EU top court backing for 2012 OMT bond-buying planBasic thrust of #ECJ ruling is that even if #ECB #OMT has indirect economic effects, primary objective makes it monetary not econ policy 8.30am BST Fears that Greece is on the verge of default have hit Europe’s stock markets in early trading, driving them down to their lowest levels since February.The main indices are all in the red, for the third day running, as concern grows that there will not be a breakthrough in time.Signs of progress are few and far between, leaving the markets to continue the negative performance that has been a regular feature of trading in the past month. Each side is firmly entrenched in their belief that their proposal is the only feasible option’ not the kind of atmosphere that is going to yield a solution, especially with the Eurogroup meeting only days away. 8.19am BST Could Austria’s chancellor, Werner Faymann, help break the deadlock?“Greece constitutes a warning on what happens when one applies only austerity.” 8.07am BST The interest rates on Spanish and Italian government debt is jumping this morning, as the Greek crisis continues to spook the markets.The yield on 10-year Spanish bonds has popped by another 12 basis points to 2.5%, up from 2.38% last night. #Spanish 10-Year Yield Rises Above 2.5%, First Time Since Aug. 14; Spanish 30-Year Bond Yield Rises Above 3.5% pic.twitter.com/UIlXvXZu4F#Eurozone contagion in one slide: Risk spreads of Italian, Spanish or Greek bonds over Bunds widen up to 19bps. pic.twitter.com/BfXqOGLiz5 7.57am BST Another important news story to watch out for this morning – the European Court of Justice will rule whether one of the eurozone’s financial crisis weapons is legal. 7.44am BST After yesterday’s plunges, the European stock markets are likely to fall again this morning as investors nervously await developments.With 20 minutes to go, IG are predicting that the FTSE 100 and German DAX will both dip into the red again:“Negotiations have hit rough patches on numerous occasions throughout this process but this is the first time that they appear to have totally collapsed,”“At this stage it is difficult to see how this will be resolved without significant compromises being made, something both sides have absolutely no interest in.” 7.37am BST Good morning, and welcome to our rolling coverage of the Greek bailout crisis and other key events across the world economy, the financial markets, the eurozone and business. Related: Greece talks must yield imminent agreement, says European Central Bank Capital controls for Greece as early as this weekend if no deal on Thurs, reports @SZ @CerstinGammelin http://t.co/xeo2EDaSCb Continue reading...
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