Minister Donohoe to chair April Eurogroup and attend the Informal ECOFIN in Warsaw
-
From: Department of Finance
- Published on: 10 April 2025
- Last updated on: 11 April 2025
The Minister for Finance and President of the Eurogroup, Paschal Donohoe, will travel to Warsaw to chair the Eurogroup and attend the Informal ECOFIN meeting taking place on 11 and 12 April.
Speaking ahead of the meetings, Minister Donohoe stated:
“These informal meetings of the ECOFIN and Eurogroup provide an opportunity for my Ministerial colleagues and I to stop and look at a range of issues and policies that are of critical importance to our citizens in an informal setting.
"The global economy is facing a particularly volatile period and I look forward to chairing a discussion at the Eurogroup on Friday morning on economic developments and euro area policy coordination. In the face of such challenging conditions, it is important that Ministers exchange views on recent fiscal developments, upcoming challenges and possible impacts on the euro area fiscal stance and the broader policy mix.
"The ECOFIN meetings on Friday and Saturday will also provide a valuable opportunity to engage with colleagues on the geopolitical challenges for Europe, focusing on trade related issues and defence financing. It will also offer Ministers the chance to bring forward ideas on enhancing the competitiveness of European financial markets and their role in supporting investment.”
At the Eurogroup, on Friday morning, Ministers will prepare for the upcoming Spring Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank Group by discussing exchange rate and inflation trends. In inclusive format, the Eurogroup will then review global economic prospects, fiscal developments, and euro area policy coordination, with input from the Chair of the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs of the European Parliament, Ms Aurore Lalucq. Finally, Minister Donohoe will debrief Ministers from the March Euro Summit.
The Informal ECOFIN starts on Friday afternoon with a working lunch where Ministers will discuss the macroeconomic consequences of trade for the EU. Following this there will be a joint working session with Minsters and Central Bank Governors on the competitiveness of European financial markets and their role in supporting investment, with particular emphasis on the Savings and Investments Union (SIU). ECOFIN will continue Saturday morning with a session on security and defence financing steered by a note from Bruegel on how to enhance Europe defence capabilities.