Investment Program supported by European Finance Officials
A three-year, €300 billion program to spur the European economy won broad support from finance ministers.
Finance ministers of the European Union have endorsed plans to leverage hundreds of billions of euros in order to finance new infrastructure projects and enforce demand to avoid a period of Japanese-style economic stagnation across the region.
The European Commission and the European Investment Bank are to present initial plans for this program according to the Italian minister of the economy and finance. The meeting Saturday was attended by finance and economy ministry officials from all 28 members of the union.
The focus should be on “practical measures” for “profitable investment projects, which are justifiable,” Mr. Padoan said at a news conference on Saturday.
The European Union has always tried to impose weighty investment plans. The European Union authorities have frequently discussed marshaling public and private sources of financing to overcome the devastating impact the sovereign debt crisis has had on many economies.
Jean-Claude Juncker, president of the European Commission told that it is his priority to marshal up to 300 billion euros, or $389 billion, in additional public and private investment over three years.
He called for “a reversal in the behavior of investment,” and said he broadly supported Mr. Juncker’s investment plan.
Source: NYT
