The USD reached record lows against the EUR as the Greek bailout was finalized and crisis was if not adverted at least postponed. US Housing fell in January, but revisions to previous months’ data was better than originally reported.
This weekend the G20 meets in Mexico City to discuss the group’s role in a new round of IMF contributions that are very likely to end up being used to contain the Eurozone debt crisis. U.S., Chinese and Japanese official have questioned the role of the IMF and want more assurances that European individual governments and the economic zone as a whole are doing their part to prevent sovereign debt from reaching default status.
The IMF is looking for a 500 billion dollar commitment from the group in order to face the current European crisis. China, Japan and Mexico are willing to help if Europe leadership acts in line with their rhetoric. The U.S. is not seeking to add additional funds until they see “additional steps†are taken to prevent contagion.
WEEK AHEAD
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- G20 Meetings
- US Pending Home Sales
- US Durable Goods Orders and CB Consumer Confidence
- US Preliminary GDP
- Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke Testifies
- US Unemployment Claims
- German Retail Sales
