The end of the Greek bailout program on Aug 20 bears both virtues and risks. While the country is regaining some fiscal room of manoeuvre, there is no longer any additional precautionary funding scheme in place, which means Greece is now reliant on financial market funding only.
Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras won a resounding mandate to reject the package of austerity measures on the table in Greece's referendum yesterday. This is but the latest twist in a road that increasingly seems to be leading towards Greece's departure from the eurozone.
According to Mark Burgess, Chief Investment Officer EMOA and Head of Equity market at Columbia Threadneedle Investments, the European earnings outlook does not look immediately compromised by events in Greece, although this will depend upon the impact on consumer and business confidence and the credit channel remaining open for creditworthy borrowers in Southern Europe...
According to Rory Bateman,head of european equities at Schroders, volatility in markets is likely to continue for an extended period until the ramifications of a potential Greek exit from the euro are fully understood. QE and current valuations could provide some downside protection for European equities...
The Greek financial crisis deteriorated last weekend after talks between the Greek government and the institutions providing financial aid to the Greek government – the EC, the IMF and the ECB – failed to come to any agreement.