Concerns over sovereign debt both in Europe and the United States continued to buffet financial markets over the past month. Early in July, concerns about debt in smaller countries in the euro area spread to Italy and Spain, causing government bond yields in those countries to rise to their highest levels since the inception of the euro in 1999. Concerns also spread to Belgium and, to a lesser extent, France. It was against this backdrop that the European Union agreed on a new rescue package for Greece. While all the details were not yet apparent, it involved additional funding from the EU and the IMF, a lengthening ... (full story)