Good morning.<\/p>\n
Another regime change took place in the eurozone with Spain\u2019s centre-right people\u2019s party led by Mariano Rajoy storming to power, crushing the ruling socialist party. After debt crippled Greece and Italy, it was Spain\u2019s turn to vote for change. Though Rajoy has promised to create new jobs \u2013 standing at over 21 per cent presently \u2013 while enforcing more austerity measures, the challenges are monumental.<\/p>\n
Pressure continued to mount on the European Central Bank to become the lender of resort, similar to the Bank of England and the Federal Reserve. With a debt-pile of nearly \u20ac2 trillion for bigger economies like Italy, the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) \u2013 Europe\u2019s lifeboat fund, is simply not big enough for bailouts. Germany is slowly waking up to the enormity of the problem. The head of European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), a German himself, said on Monday that Germany\u2019s past experience of hyper-inflation can\u2019t be an excuse for not extending the EZ\u2019s the monetary base. The ECB has refused to \u2018print money\u2019 in the past saying its statute only allows it to control inflation \u2013 an argument supported by the Germans. However, Chancellor Markel is slowly taking a more accommodating view \u2013 a party conference last week did approve bigger roles for the ECB, including playing the \u2018lender of last resort\u2019 role.<\/p>\n
GBP\/EURO \u2013 1.1654
\nGBP\/US$ \u2013 1.5698
\nGBP\/CHF \u2013 1.4439
\nGBP\/CAN$ – 1.6204
\nGBP\/AUS$ \u2013 1.5846
\nGBP\/ZAR \u2013 12.9742
\nGBP\/JPY \u2013 120.55
\nGBP\/HKD \u2013 12.9742
\nGBP\/NZD \u2013 2.0771
\nGBP\/SEK \u2013 10.6870<\/p>\n