In an interview with Slovenian daily newspaper Delo published this week, European Central Bank chief economist Prof. Otmar Issing said the US twin current account and budget deficits are unsustainable and the US is well aware of this. He reiterated ECB president Jean-Claude Trichet's description of the euro's recent sharp rise against the dollar as "brutal and therefore unwelcome", but didn't comment on the possibility of foreign exchange intervention.

Click here to read the interview on the ECB