Greek exit 'would not kill the euro'

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A GREEK exit from the eurozone would not kill the euro because Germany has invested too much in the single currency's survival, the head of Fitch ratings agency said today.

"If the deutschemark were reintroduced, it would appreciate considerably against other currencies. Export industries, which are the motor of the German economy, would suffer," Fitch boss Paul Taylor explained in an interview with Spiegel Online published today.

"Germany isn't going to tolerate that, even if one or more countries leave the eurozone."

His comments came as Greece upset world markets with a political impasse unleashed by elections that punished mainstream parties for accepting an EU-IMF bailout package that included harsh austerity measures.

After the conservative New Democracy party failed to form a government Monday, the task has fallen to radical left-wing party Syriza -- whose leader, Alexis Tsipras, said today the vote had "clearly nullified" Greece's loan agreement.