Germany gives Jens Weidmann 2nd term as Bundesbank chief

BERLIN (AP) — The German government has given the green light for Jens Weidmann to head the country’s central bank, the Bundesbank, for a second eight-year term.

Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Cabinet decided Wednesday to formally propose to the country’s president that Weidmann serve a second term starting May 1.

Weidmann has been a prominent and sometimes dissenting voice on the European Central Bank’s governing council. He has been a skeptic, and at times outright opponent, of ECB stimulus programs backed by the majority of council members under ECB President Mario Draghi.

Weidmann has been mentioned as a possible successor to Draghi, whose eight-year term expires in October. Other candidates include former Finnish central bank chief Erkki Liikanen, former European monetary affairs commissioner Olli Rehn, and French central bank head Francois Villeroy de Galhau.