Eurogroup, 20 January 2020

Main results

Regular format 

IMF mission to the euro area

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) conducts an annual consultation on euro area policies. The IMF presented the main findings of its euro area Article IV interim mission to the euro area finance ministers.

The euro area economy is in the midst of a slowdown but continues to grow – the length of this growth period and the number of jobs created are breaking all records.

Eurogroup President, Mário Centeno

Portugal: updated draft budgetary plan

The Eurogroup discussed the updated draft budgetary plan of Portugal for 2020, on the basis of a Commission opinion, and adopted a statement.

Portugal has come a long way in recent years. It will record a fiscal surplus in 2020 –remarkable compared to crisis times. Eurogroup President, Mário Centeno

• Eurogroup statement on the updated draft budgetary plan of Portugal for 2020 (press release, 20 January 2020)

Economic policy of the euro area

The Commission presented its proposal for the draft recommendation on the economic policy of euro area for 2020.

As part of the European Semester, in spring, the Council addresses annual recommendations on economic policy to the euro area. The recommendations will now be:

• further discussed in the Eurogroup
• approved by the Economic and Financial Affairs Council (Ecofin)
• formally adopted by the Council after endorsement in the March European Council

• 2020 European Semester: euro area recommendation (European Commission)
• European Semester (background information)

Policy priorities of the new governments of Spain, Austria and Finland

Minister Calviño, Minister Blümel and Minister Kulmuni presented the policy priorities of the new Spanish, Austrian and Finnish governments. This is standard practice in the Eurogroup when new governments come into office.

Inclusive format 

Deepening of the Economic and Monetary Union

Ministers exchanged views on the organisation of the further work on the deepening of the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) in the next months, as a follow-up to the Euro Summit of 13 December 2019.

At the Euro Summit, leaders agreed that finance ministers should continue the work on the deepening of the EMU. In particular:

• the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) reforms
• solutions for the financing of the Budgetary Instrument for Convergence and Competitiveness (BICC)
• the way forward for the banking union

I am optimistic that in this semester we will change gears in the euro area reform. Eurogroup President, Mário Centeno

• Euro Summit, 13 December 2019
• Deepening Europe's Economic and Monetary Union (background information)