Press Review: Greece Reaffirms Rejection of Bailout Before Emergency EU Meeting

BLOOMBERG

Greece Reaffirms Rejection of Bailout Before Emergency EU Meeting

(Bloomberg) -- Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras reaffirmed his government's rejection of Greece's international bailout program before Wednesday's emergency meeting of the euro area's finance ministers to discuss the country's financing needs.

"We need an honest negotiation with our partners that does not condemn the Greek economy and society to unending recession," Tsipras, 40, said in an address to parliament on Sunday, marking the start of a three-day debate on his government's policy platform.

The leader of Greece's anti-bailout governing coalition vowed to increase the minimum wage, restore the income tax-free threshold, halt infrastructure privatizations, and ask for World War II reparations from Germany, in a speech that sets him on a collision course with the country's creditors.

Source: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-02-08/tsipras-plans

REUTERS

Oil dips after weak Chinese trade data

(Reuters) - Brent crude oil prices slipped on Monday as a slump in Chinese imports pointed to lower fuel demand in the world's biggest energy consumer, outweighing news of falling U.S. oil rig counts and healthy U.S. economic growth.

Global benchmark Brent crude oil for March was down 10 cents at $57.70 a barrel by 0748 GMT (2.48 a.m. EST) after rising as high as $59.06 earlier in the session. U.S. crude was at $51.87 a barrel, having hit a session high of $53.40.

Prices dipped as China's trade performance slumped in January, with exports falling 3.3 percent from year-ago levels while imports tumbled 19.9 percent, far worse than analysts had expected and highlighting a deepening slowdown.

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/02/09/us-markets-oil-idUSKBN0LD01P20150209

REUTERS

BoE's Carney says worried about financial reform fatigue globally

(Reuters) - Bank of England Governor Mark Carney said on Monday he was worried about financial reform fatigue globally, ahead of a meeting of G20 finance ministers and central bankers.

"I worry about reform fatigue, not surprisingly, both at the FSB (Financial Stability Board) and more generally," Carney said at an Institute of International Finance meeting.

"Many of the toughest reforms are micro reforms that can have big political coalitions against them and have payoff very far into the future," he said.

Carney said that although the financial system was less likely to amplify initial shocks than in 2008, there was no room for complacency about its resilience.

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/02/09/us-g20-carney-idUSKBN0LD0KH20150209