BRUSSELS (MNI) – EU finance ministers on Monday will hold a
teleconference to discuss how much individual member states are willing
to contribute towards increasing the resources of the International
Monetary Fund, and to consider an accelerated timetable for paying into
the bloc’s future bailout facility, the European Financial Stability
Mechanism.
The teleconference is expected to start this afternoon between 1430
GMT and 1600 GMT (0930-1100 ET), a spokesman for Eurogroup President
Jean-Claude Juncker said.
EU leaders said after their summit on December 9 that they would
aim to contribute E200 towards a general increase in IMF resources via
bilateral loans. They gave themselves ten days to finalize the details.
About E150 billion was expected to come from Eurozone countries and
the rest from other EU member states. Governments, however, have so far
proved slow to make concrete pledges.
Belgium’s central bank indicated last week that it was likely to
contribute around E9.5, while non-Eurozone Denmark has pledged E5.4
billion.
The head of Germany’s central bank last week said that Germany’s
contribution, which is expected to be E45 billion, was conditional on
there being a “broad deal” that included non-European IMF members.
The UK, which EU officials had hoped might contribute over E30
billion, has hinted that it may offer only about 10 billion pounds
sterling.
At their all night summit last week, EU leaders agreed to kick
start their new permanent bailout facility, the European Stability
Mechanism, by July 2012. Unlike the current fund, the European Financial
Stability Facility, which is backed by government guarantees, the ESM is
to have direct cash contributions as collateral. Finance ministers today
are expected to discuss the timetable for governments to make their
contributions.
In exchange for collateral it secured on its share of loans to
Greece, Finland agreed to pay its share of capital into the ESM in one
go.
–Brussels bureau: +324-9522-8374; pkoh@marketnews.com
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