A government official told Reuters that Athens had asked for an extension to its "Master Financial Assistance Facility Agreement" with the euro zone. However, he insisted the government was proposing different terms from its current bailout obligations.
German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble has poured scorn on suggestions that Athens could negotiate an extension of euro zone funding without making any promises to push on with budget cuts and economic reforms. But, it seems that Germany could give Greece some slack at the moment.
"If countries are in trouble, we show solidarity," German Chancellor Angela Merkel said in a speech to conservative supporters on Wednesday, naming Greece and other euro zone countries that had to take bailouts during the debt crisis. But she added, "Solidarity is not a one-way street. Solidarity and efforts by the countries themselves are two sides of the same coin. And this won't change."
Euro is affected by the news and is currently being traded slightly below 1.14 handle as markets are awaiting for further development of Greek bailout crisis as well as ECB Meeting Minutes.
