European leaders were scrambling for a solution to Spain’s banking crisis Wednesday, after the European Central Bank indicated that it had no immediate aid to offer.
The central bank left its main interest rate unchanged at 1 percent. In a measured response to fears of a banking crisis, the ECB did promise to continue supplying institutions with unlimited short-term, low-interest loans through the end of the year. But Mario Draghi, the ECB president, said the bank had no “silver bullets” to address what he acknowledged was a disturbing situation. Spain’s teetering banks have become the focus of eurozone anxiety. And while some reports indicated that a German-led solution might be pending, officials gave conflicting statements about how a rescue might happen.
News Tribune news services