With the Greek-troika talks set to drag on further and Spain reluctant to request a bailout, the Eurogroup meeting on Monday is set to conclude without any major announcements even as European leaders continued to stress on the 'urgency' to contain the crisis.
The Eurogroup, an informal gathering of the Finance Ministers of Eurozone, is set to meet in Luxembourg on October 8 before the full meeting of the ECOFIN Council on the next day.
Greece is racing against time to secure a deal with the troika, comprising the International Monetary Fund, the European Union and the European Central Bank, on the 13.5 billion euros of austerity measures.
Meanwhile, EU Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner Olli Rehn said on Saturday that the talks between Greece and its creditors have been progressing well and he expects the Eurogroup to make an upbeat statement on the situation at the meeting.
Rehn told Finnish broadcaster YLE that he believed international inspectors would soon publish their report on Greek finances.
An agreement over the reform plan seems unlikely by Monday, and even if the deal is struck with the troika, the Eurozone ministers may not take a final decision on loan payment worth 31.5 billion euros due to the embattled euro member.
Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras has admitted that Greece is in dire need of the next loan tranche, which will be disbursed only if the troika finds the country's debt is sustainable. In an interview last week, Samaras said that Greece may run out of cash by November-end.
German chancellor Angela Merkel will visit Athens on Tuesday in support of Greece's reform efforts.
Hopes that Spain will officially ask for a financial rescue at this meeting have faded with Prime Minister Mariyano Rajoy denying the bailout rumors. He has signaled that the decision will not come so soon.
In a speech in London on last Thursday, Spanish Economy Minister Luis de Guindos insisted that his country does not need a bailout.
However, Spain and the reform efforts by the government so far will likely be among the main topics coming up for discussion, apart from deliberations on an EU-wide banking union.
Meanwhile, Eurogroup chief Jean Claude Juncker will hold the first meeting of the European Stability Mechanism, or ESM, Board of Governors on Monday. The Eurozone Finance Ministers will formally launch the 500-billion euros bailout fund, strengthening the single-currency bloc's war chest against the crisis.
European leaders are expected to meet on October 18 and 19 in Brussels.
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