The eurozone would cope if Greece left the currency union, Germany’s finance minister said in an interview yesterday as Greek parties continued with efforts to form a coalition government.
Asked by the regional Rheinische Post whether the eurozone could withstand a Greek exit, German Minister of Finance Wolfgang Schaeuble said: “Europe won’t sink that easily.”
“We want Greece to remain in the eurozone, but it also has to want this and to fulfill its obligations. We can’t force anyone,” Schaeuble said.
“We have learned a lot these past two years and have built protection mechanisms. The danger of contamination for other countries in the eurozone have become weaker and the eurozone as a whole has become more resistant,” Schaeuble said.
“The crisis has shown that one must act quickly and that Europe can act quickly ... the notion that we would not be capable of reacting in the short term to something unforeseen is false,” he added.
Schaeuble’s comments came as Socialists in Greece tried to cobble together a government, the third party to attempt to do so since Sunday’s elections gave a razor-thin majority in parliament to anti-austerity parties.
Germany and the EU have made it clear to Greece that it must abide by its austerity pledges if it wants to receive bailout funds, money that Athens needs to avoid a default.
If no party manages to form a coalition, the president is set to call new elections that observers say are likely to hand a greater majority in parliament to anti-austerity parties.
“No one is threatening anyone here, but we must be honest ... and tell our Greek friends and partners that there is no other way than the one that we have chosen together,” Schaeuble said in the interview.
“We have already done a lot,” he said, referring to two bailouts for Greece.
“Greece must understand that in exchange, it must fulfill its obligations,” he said.
It is “dangerous to tell tales to citizens, telling them that there is another, simpler way to heal Greece, avoiding all the trials. It’s absurd,” he said.
The domestic unit of the Chinese-owned, Dutch-headquartered chipmaker Nexperia BV will soon be able to produce semiconductors locally within China, according to two company sources. Nexperia is at the center of a global tug-of-war over critical semiconductor technology, with a Dutch court in February ordering a probe into alleged mismanagement at the company. The geopolitical tussle has disrupted supply chains, with some carmakers reportedly forced to cut production due to chip shortages. Local production would allow Nexperia’s domestic arm, Nexperia Semiconductors (China) Ltd (安世半導體中國), to bypass restrictions in place since October on the supply of silicon wafers — etched with tiny components to
Taiwan is open to joining a global liquefied natural gas (LNG) program if one is created, but on the condition that countries provide delivery even in a scenario where there is a conflict with China, an energy department official said yesterday. While Taiwan’s priority is to have enough LNG at home, the nation is open to exploring potential strategic reserves in other countries such as Japan or South Korea, Energy Administration Deputy Director-General Chen Chung-hsien (陳崇憲) said. While the LNG market does not have a global reserve for emergencies like that of oil, the concept has been raised a few times —
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday received government approval to deploy its advanced 3-nanometer (3nm) process at its second fab currently under construction in Japan, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said in a news release. The ministry green-lit the plan for the facility in Kumamoto, which is scheduled to start installing equipment and come online in 2028 with a monthly production capacity of 15,000 12-inch wafers, the ministry said. The Department of Investment Review in June 2024 authorized a US$5.26 billion investment for the facility, slated to manufacture 6- to 12nm chips, significantly less advanced than 3nm process. At a meeting with
Standard Chartered Taiwan on March 26 announced that it has partnered with international fintech firm FinIQ to build an “Automated Structured Products Pricing Platform.” The bank is also introducing products from global issuers including Goldman Sachs Group Inc, Barclays PLC and BNP Paribas SA. The new platform enables an end-to-end process whereby it finds the most competitive pricing across multiple issuers in a matter of minutes, followed by automated documentation and transaction execution, which significantly shortens time-to-market and delivers a superior wealth management experience. Standard Chartered Bank Taiwan CEO Anthony Yu (游天立) said: “Standard Chartered is increasingly leveraging its wealth management
RSS