13 Apr 2010

Markets welcome lifeline for Greece

7:34 pm on 13 April 2010

Financial markets have welcomed a deal to throw Greece a $30 billion euro lifeline, which aims to reduce the risk of the country defaulting on its loans.

The euro rallied on the news, gaining 2 cents, or 1.5%, against the US dollar on Monday.

However, analysts say the real test for Greece comes on Wednesday when the government auctions off Treasury bills worth $US1.5 billion.

Analysts will be closely monitoring the sale to determine whether the interest rates will again be prohibitively expensive, or approaching more normal levels expected by the Eurozone's leaders.