Finance Minister reacts to rumours of candidacy for Eurogroup President

Jeroen Dijsselbloem is carrying out the job of Eurogroup president in an excellent manner, so his successor will have a tough act to follow, Slovak Finance Minister Peter Kažimír stated on Monday in response to speculation that he could replace Dijsselbloem in his post. "I personally believe that Jeroen should see out his second 2.5-year mandate regardless of whether he becomes finance minister in the Netherlands after the March general election or not. Let's not count our chickens before they hatch. Perhaps there's a right time to revive a debate on having a permanent president of the group of eurozone countries' finance ministers," said Kažimír in a statement. Dijsselbloem's term is due to end in January 2018. Meanwhile, as speculation grows about the results of the Dutch general election two names are being talked about as candidates to replace Dijsselbloem at the helm of the Eurogroup - Kažimír and Spain's Finance Minister Luis de Guindos.