Weekly Eurozone Watch

Key Data Points
German 10-year Bund 8 bps lower;
France 20 bps tighter to the Bund;
Belgium 18 bps tighter;
Ireland 10 bps tighter;
Italy 30 bps tighter;
Spain 23 bps tighter;
Portugal 7 bps wider;
Greece 21 bps tighter;

Large Eurozone banks weekly change, 1.41 to -2.49 percent;
Euro$ up,  1.41 percent.

Comments

• The yield on the German bund closed at its lowest level of the year and is now just 8 bps from the all-time low yield of 1.13 percent set last July;
• The rally in Euro bonds and decline in yields coincides with the announcement of the Bank of Japan’s massive quantitative easing;
• France’s spread to the bund came in 20 bps,  its lowest weekly close of the year;  
• Cyprus finance minister, Michael Sarris, resigned and was replaced by Harris Georgiades, an economist and former labor minister.
• Italy’s parliament will start voting for a new president to replace Giorgio Napolitano on April 18, the speaker of the lower house said on Wednesday.
• On Wednesday, the Portuguese government survived a vote of no-confidence in parliament.
• The European Central Bank kept its key interest rate unchanged Thursday.

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Poll boost for Germany’s Merkel as she gears up for third term bid

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…let me stress that Cyprus is not a template!

- Mario Draghi,  ECB President

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