Mario Draghi’s promise of cheap cash for banks betting on the euro-area revival is losing its allure.
Economists in the Bloomberg Monthly Survey cut their estimate of the take-up of funds under a program designed to boost bank lending. The reduction signals concern that the outlook for the currency bloc may be too weak to drive demand for loans, undermining a policy the European Central Bank president says is key to restoring the region’s health.
An escalating standoff with Russia threatens to worsen the prospects for the 18-nation euro area, where growth has already ground to a halt and inflation is running at the weakest pace in almost five years. That’s increasing pressure on the ECB to step up stimulus with radical tools such as quantitative easing to avert the risk of deflation and renewed recession.
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GBP/USD declines below 1.2500 as USD rebounds
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XRP extends its decline, crypto experts comment on Ripple stablecoin and benefits for XRP Ledger
Ripple extends decline to $0.52 on Thursday, wipes out weekly gains. Crypto expert asks Ripple CTO how the stablecoin will benefit the XRP Ledger and native token XRP.
After the US close, it’s the Tokyo CPI
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