Euro lower with Greek vote on further reforms in focus; EC's Moscovici anticipates 'swift' progress
Greece parliament was set to vote later today on a second package of reforms needed to secure the country's bailout deal.
European commissioner Pierre Moscovici has told reporters in Brussels that rapid progress is now being made towards a third Greek bailout, with all sides delivering on their commitments.
If lawmakers in Greece approve the financial and judicial reforms tonight, the country will be able to press ahead with negotiations for an €86 billion bailout from its creditors.
Today’s early debate in Athens began with finance minister Euclid Tsakalotos urging MPs to support the government. Tsakalotos said it is vital to sign off the measures demanded by creditors, so that talks over a third Greek bailout can begin later this week.
Pierre Moscovici commented he isn’t expecting any hiccups in the Athens parliament tonight, adding that the new Greek bailout deal (the memorandum of understanding) should be completed in about a month, The Guardian reports.
Analysts still point out that if Greece’s bailout isn’t agreed within a month, the country will struggle to repay €3.2bn to the European Central Bank (due on 20 August).
Bloomberg eurozone economist Maxim Sbaihi posted in his twitter what may await Greece in the near future:
As local Skai TV reports, Greek MPs unlikely to start debating tonight's bill in plenary until around 8pm.
Connor Campbell of SpreadEx commented that tonight's vote will show how much power Alexis Tsipras still holds in the parliament.
"Each week appears to bring with it another post-threatening obstacle for the Greek PM, and with talks circulating that Tsipras might call a snap-election in the next few months, this vote is another chance for the global public to see how stable his position actually is."
Meanwhile, the euro turned lower against the dollar ahead of the vote and as investors anticipated fresh economic data from the U.S. EUR/USD dropped 0.26% to trade at 1.0905.
Market players now anticipate the release of U.S. existing home sales data later in the day.
