Slovakia still deadlocked on EFSF revision.

Negotiations have been deferred to the last moment supposedly falling due tomorrow morning in Slovakia.

As it now seems generally accepted that the private sector involvement in the 21st July package, involving only a 21% haircut, rather than the presently touted 50% figure makes the whole package appear unworkable. Its all almost as unreal as watching French broadcast reports on the Dexia bank deal for Belgium and Luxembourg with no reference to France!

No matter, Sarkozy and Merkel have a plan to solve all this, which will be revealed by the end of the month. Italy's Foreign Minister Frattini is being reported as having little faith in this, well, well!

"Astonishing" and "ludicrous" Herman Von Rompuy

The EU leaders who fudged the appointment of a competent individual of personal authority to become the "appointed" head of the EU Council, were really repaid in full last evening, when Von Rompuy showed his almost complete financial ignorance and personal stupidity by launching into a transnational attack on the markets in the op-ed columns of various newspapers. A summary from the EU Observer is linked here. (Update see also Irish Independent here).

Selectively picking the few bright areas for hope in the Spanish and Italian economic mess as examples, he completely failed to address the main simple fact, spelt out here last evening, that with the list of countries already bailed out or on the verge of failing now approaching the same number as those expected to support them, with indebted France, for the moment, still being counted in the camp of such supporters, matters are clearly coming to a luicrous end for the Euro. That Von Rompuy, can quote the recent Euro Group outcome as a reason to halt the crisis simply beggars belief on its own!

Von Rompuy, himself, is suitable for standing alone as ample evidence, that even the EU itself, never mind the Euro, is not worthy of any further wealth destroying existence, power or authority within Europe.

Italy describes crisis EU meeting as "routine" but Italy may be discussed!

The ususal air of unreality hangs in the air across the Euro zone this morning. EurActiv, usually pretty close to the EU centralists managing co-ordinating the crisis, has its headline "Euro zone holds emergency talks as crisis stalks Italy" which opens as follows:

European Council President Herman Van Rompuy has called an emergency meeting of top officials dealing with the euro zone debt crisis for today (11 July), reflecting concern that the crisis could spread to Italy, the region's third-largest economy.

....two official sources told Reuters that the situation in Italy would be discussed. The talks were organised after a sharp sell-off in Italian assets on Friday, which has increased fears that Italy, with the highest sovereign debt ratio relative to its economy in the euro zone after Greece, could be next to suffer in the crisis. A second international bailout of Greece will also be discussed, the sources said.

On the front page of the online Corriere della Sea, from Milan, however, the official "routine meeting" line from Von Rompuy, who yesterday summoned his fellow non-elected leeches, including two of the worst culprits for the mess, the Jean-Claudes - Juncker and Trichet, to the previously unscheduled meeting.

In Tokyo the Euro only weakened slightly against the dollar and yen. This blog will cover events during the course of the day, as usual!

Update 07:40 am GMT, at least one bit of the MSM has picked up on this morning's biggest story, The Daily Mail, linked here.