FXstreet.com (Barcelona) - Greek Finance Minister announced yesterday that Greece will not meet the EU, ECB and IMF deficit targets neither this nor the next year. The deficit this year is supposed to reach 8.5% GDP falling short of the 7.6% target, while next year it is suppose to decrease to 6.5% GDP, still not meeting the expected 6.5%.



The euro fell to an eight-month low against the dollar today, on the news of further Greek austerity problems. EUR/USD retreat from last week's high at 1.3690 extended on Asian session below 1.3360 to 1.3310.



Today in Luxembourg a 48-hour meeting of Eurozone finance ministers begins, during which they will discuss whether Greece should obtain the next 8 billion euro tranche of the rescue fund. The extension of the EFSF is another important topic as it is crucial to prevent contagion in the Eurozone in the case of an orderly Greek default.



The situation is becoming more and more tense however due to the fact that some countries express their reluctance to help Athens financially. In Germany, the Netherlands and Finland, people are outraged at the idea of their taxes being used to bail out the Greeks. In an interview published Saturday, German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble rejected the idea of Germany increasing its contribution to the rescue fund. Also ECB member Christian Noyer expressed his doubts on the possibility of expanding EFSF beyond the amount agreed on in July.