The Irish Examiner View: ECB conflict a blow to the Eurozone

Germany's constitutional court has given the European Central Bank three months to justify bond purchases under its stimulus programme or lose the Bundesbank as a participant, threatening the scheme and the euro’s future.

The verdict has dealt a blow to the €2trn purchase scheme that has kept the eurozone intact since the debt crisis. It now threatens plans for a Eurozone €750bn Coronavirus aid programme. The court decision is being watched closely by financial markets. After the announcement, the euro fell to $1.0889 and Eurozone debt ratings also fell.