Greek stalemate keeps markets in ranges ahead of weekend Eurogroup

The Greek stalemate continues, which resulted in tight ranges in the currency markets. The government and its creditors have yet to come to an agreement on reforms it needs to make in order to be able to receive bailout money, worth 7.2 billion euros.

If a deal is not reached by June 30, then Greece will risk defaulting on a 1.6 billion euro payment due to the International Monetary Fund.

There have been deadlines made and broken but this Saturday appears to be the last one and finance ministers will be meeting to iron out differences on pension and tax reforms. Meanwhile, to prevent chaos in the case of a Greek default, EU leaders need to think about the consequences of Grexit. Some EU leaders spoke of having a “plan B”.

Dutch Prime Minister Rutte said on Thursday in a report to De Volkskrant : “ If the Eurogroup fails Saturday to reach a Greece deal, it’ll be time for EU leaders to think about a “plan B”.

In the currency markets, the euro was trapped within a tight $1.1235-1153 range for the third day. The single currency is on track to end the week about 1.2 percent lower.

Meanwhile, the dollar, was stuck in a 124.38-122.56 yen range this week, and was down 0.2 percent to 123.43 yen.

Despite upbeat US data on Thursday, the dollar did not move higher against the yen due to the markets being more focused on Greece and hence there was risk aversion. Figures on Thursday showed US consumer spending recorded its largest increase in nearly six years in May and this could have otherwise lifted the dollar.

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