Current and former European Central Bank officials are warning about the consequences for Italian bonds of ending the institution’s asset-purchase program. Speaking in Vienna on Tuesday, Governing Council member Ewald Nowotny noted that the central bank, under the ECB’s guidance, is the largest buyer of the country’s debt. He said that raises the question of who will purchase the roughly 275 billion euros ($310 billion) of government securities Italy is expected to issue next year. Former Irish central bank governor Patrick Honohan also said that the ECB’s plan to stop expanding its balance sheet after this year ... (full story)