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'No' vote could send shockwaves through markets in Italy

CCTV.com

12-04-2016 15:17 BJT

A "no" vote could send financial markets in Europe into another tailspin and trigger a fresh banking crisis in Italy. Financial market traders are showing signs of nerves, with some analysts even suggesting that a defeat for Prime Minister Matteo Renzi could ultimately lead to the destruction of the entire eurozone.  CCTV business reporter Martina Fuchs spoke to investors in Beijing to hear their expectations.

The uncertainty from Italy’s constitutional referendum is even felt in far away Beijing.

At a financial conference on Sunday, global investors were worried about the financial repercussions of the vote on the country's battered banks, which could plunge the entire euro zone into another crisis. 

In the aftermath of Brexit and the US presidential election, some worried a "no" vote could even mean the end for Europe’s monetary union.

Yet, this doesn’t seem to be an imminent threat because it would require cross-party political backing as well as a tortuous legislative process. 

The third-largest euro zone economy has been weakened by a deep recession which left behind 356 billion euros in gross problem loans.

And Italian banks need at least 20 billion euros in capital in the coming months to cover losses from fresh loan write-downs and planned bad debt disposals.

Some say the Italian referendum could provoke another banking crisis in Europe. 

Italy - faced with one of the world's largest public debt piles has an unemployment rate of 11%, and 9 years after the onset of the financial crisis in 2007, output remains 8% down on its pre-crash level.

Meanwhile, the European Central Bank is likely to step in to contain any credit spread widening.

The ECB's Governing Council is due to meet this Thursday, and is widely expected to extend its bond-buying program. The bank is also highly likely to step up the purchases of Italian debt.

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