Eurogroup and Ecofin Council to discuss the new President of the Eurogroup and the German Presidency of the EU Council

Minister of Finance Matti Vanhanen will represent Finland at the video conferences of the Eurogroup and the Ecofin Council on 9 – 10 July 2020.

At its meeting on 9 July, the Eurogroup is to elect a new President of the Eurogroup. Other items on the agenda include the Commission’s summer interim forecast and budgetary situation and fiscal stance in the euro area.

Response to the COVID-19 crisis a priority for the German Presidency

At the meeting of ministers for economic and financial affairs (Ecofin) on 10 July, the German Presidency will outline its priorities in the area of economic and financial affairs. Response to and recovery from the COVID-19 crisis will be the priority of the German Presidency.
Ministers will exchange views on measures to bring the capital markets union (CMU) forward, in particular with a view to overcoming the economic consequences of the COVID-19 crisis. The Chair of the High Level Forum on the capital markets union will present the forum’s final report, which contains proposals on how to develop the European capital markets. The Commission will make use of the findings of the report it its assessment of the regulatory measures to promote the CMU in the next Commission Action Plan in the autumn. Finland supports the deepening of the CMU towards a single market.

At the meeting, the convergence reports published by the European Commission and the European Central Bank, and the update on the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic will also be discussed.

Inquiries:

Marketta Henriksson, Head of Secretariat for EU Affairs, tel. +358 2955 30441, marketta.henriksson(at)vm.fi

The Economic and Financial Affairs Council (Ecofin) is one of the configurations of the Council of the European Union. Ecofin makes decisions on EU legislative proposals within its remit, usually in cooperation with the European Parliament. It is also responsible for coordinating the economic policies of EU member states. Ecofin is composed of the member states’ economic and financial affairs ministers.

The Eurogroup is an informal body tasked with coordinating economic policies among the euro area member states and promoting economic growth. The Eurogroup consists of the economic and financial affairs ministers of the euro area member states. Although the Eurogroup has no legislative function, it does set out policy guidelines.