FRANCE – The outcome of a stress test on European banks will be published around July 23, French Economy Minister Christine Lagarde said on Sunday. Europe's banking watchdogs have been running a test to see how lenders would be affected by a sharp downturn in the economy or other shocks, aiming to boost confidence in the banking sector. "You will soon be seeing the number of banks that will be submitted to the stress test, you will have better understanding of the exact criteria we apply and of how heavily we stress the system, and then later on July 23rd, the result of the stress test will be issued" Lagarde told reporters at the sidelines of a conference here. "And you will see that banks in Europe are solid and healthy," she added. Asked about French banks, she said "I'm not worried about my banks." Simulated tests carried out by analysts showed KBC (KBC.BR), National Bank of Greece (NBGr.AT), Commerzbank (CBKG.DE), Credit Agricole (CAGR.PA) and Dexia (DEXI.BR) screen more poorly than big rivals, but without falling to danger levels. Dexia said last week that its financial situation had improved since an EU stress test in 2009.
