IMF's chief economist says euro zone could cope with Grexit-media

"We have analysed what could happen if the crisis was to spread to other countries," Olivier Blanchard told German business daily Handelsblatt, according to excerpts of an interview to be published on Thursday.

"The ECB has the means to get a grip on that," he said.

Asked whether there was a risk of Greece leaving the euro zone, Blanchard said: "Let's hope that this won't happen. But if it does, I'm convinced the euro will survive this."

The IMF chief economist said that it was possible to find a solution for Greece. However, more foreign aid could be needed to keep Athens afloat, he noted.

Greece was supposed to have a 3 percent budget surplus in 2015. "That's probably too ambitious for political and economic reasons," Blanchard said.

The European Central Bank on Wednesday left the ceiling on emergency funding for Greek banks unchanged for the first time since February, maintaining pressure on Athens and its creditors to reach an aid-for-reforms deal.

(Reporting by Michael Nienaber; Editing by Janet Lawrence)