The Eurogroup of eurozone finance ministers, plus other EU finance ministers minus the UK, met yesterday on 6 November 2017 to discuss issues including the development of the EU financial framework in preparation for the Euro Summit on 4 December. Jeroen Dijsselbloem, president of the Eurogroup, addressed a press conference after the meeting to explain some of the issues that were discussed. 

Here is a summary of his key remarks:

• The banking sector is in a much better shape but there are still elements missing from the EU frameworks, specifically the bank union. There are still legacy issues currently being dealt with and non-performing loans (NPLs) remain an issue that needs to be addressed.
• A new Eurogroup president will be elected on 4 December.
• The EU continues to work on the completion of the EU Banking Union, pursuing the roadmap developed during the Dutch presidency in 2016, which introduced the connection between risk-sharing and risk-reduction. Priorities include defining the next step for the Banking Union, further work on NPLs and other issues on risk reduction.
• The Eurogroup also intends to make progress on the EU fiscal framework and to discuss whether the current rules are efficient and effective and are more fiscal instruments needed? He also acknowledged that fiscal rules remain overly complex – although this is balanced by the need for flexibility and complexity to meet a range of needs.
• There was a general agreement that reducing debt levels would become more important, as fiscal deficit in the eurozone is now less than 1.5 per cent and will continue to decrease.