BERLIN (MNI) – The German Finance Ministry said Wednesday that
risks could arise if the German Constitutional Court did not issue a
swift ruling on the constitutionality of the European Stability
Mechanism, Europe’s planned permanent bailout fund.
“We hope that a [court] decision will come a soon as possible,”
ministry spokesman Martin Kotthaus said at a regular government press
conference here. “We assume that markets are closely watching this and a
swift decision would surely ease uncertainties,” he explained.
“Momentarily, nobody can say with certainty which risks go along”
with a late ruling by the court, Kotthaus acknowledged.
The parliamentary budget speaker of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s
CDU/CSU bloc, Norbert Barthle, told national radio DLR today if it would
really take three to four months before the court delivers a ruling,
then countries like Spain or Italy might not even have access to capital
markets anymore. “Situations would arise then which would be only hard
to control,” he warned.
–Berlin bureau: +49-30-22 62 05 80; email: twidder@marketnews.com
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