Economy
Related: About this forumEU prepares growth-stimulating investment "Marshall Plan"
Brussels is preparing a kind of Marshall Plan, a disturbing historical reference that in recent months appears even in official EU documents, and gives an idea of the state of health of the continent's economy. The EU is readying a project to stimulate growth in the hardest hit countries. But on one condition very characteristic of the times: without it costing money, or at least not too much money. Brussels has developed a grand plan for investment in infrastructure, green energy and advanced technologies with the participation of the private sector, EU sources told El Pais, to achieve a squaring of the circle: policies for growth which will not further increase the debt burden of eurozone members.
The revolt against German austerity has a name, Alliance for Growth, or Agenda for Growth, as it was called yesterday by Chancellor Angela Merkel, who has now taken on board one of the socialist candidate for president of France, François Hollande's ideas: use the European Investment Bank (EIB) as a lever to make investments to create jobs and growth. In the next summit, after the French elections, the Commission will present a menu of options ranging from capitalizing the EIB to employing financial guarantees, Eurobonds for investment finance or any of a range of sophisticated financial vehicles, or even the creation of a European infrastructure agency, for undertaking projects to the value of about 200 billion.
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The above is my translation of the first two paragraphs of an article appearing in the economy pages of yesterday's El País:
La rebelión contra la austeridad alemana ya tiene nombre, Pacto por el Crecimiento, o incluso Agenda por el Crecimiento, como la llamó ayer la canciller Angela Merkel, que abraza ahora una de las ideas del candidato socialista a las presidenciales francesas, François Hollande: usar el Banco Europeo de Inversiones (BEI) como palanca para acometer inversiones, crear empleo, crecer. En la próxima cumbre, tras las elecciones francesas, la Comisión presentará un menú de opciones que pasa por capitalizar el BEI o recurrir a la ingeniería financiera para acometer proyectos por importe de unos 200.000 millones a través de avales, eurobonos para financiar inversiones o todo tipo de vehículos financieros sofisticados, o incluso con la creación de una agencia europea de infraestructuras.
- Full article in Spanish: Europa programa su resurrección: http://economia.elpais.com/economia/2012/04/28/actualidad/1335647294_256117.html