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Friday, 19 April 2024
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Athens News Agency: News in English, 11-05-27Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: The Athens News Agency at <http://www.ana.gr/>CONTENTS
[01] BoG: Greece can pay debt without restructuring(ANA-MPA) -- Greece must surpass its fiscal targets and reduce the size of its public sector, George Provopoulos, Bank of Greeceâs governor said on Friday. In an interview with Market News, the central banker said that if Greece managed to achieve commitments included in the memorandum, then the EU and the IMF will approve the release of the next tranche of a loan from a support mechanism.Commenting on the governmentâs privatisation programme, Provopoulos said it was ambitious and a large-scale privatization programme was very significant for the country, in its effort to exit the current crisis. He said that if such a programme was effectively implemented it could drastically cut public debt and release the countryâs growth potential, convincing markets that Greece (ANA-MPA) can make it. The implementation of a 50-bln-euro programme could reduce the debt by 22 pct of GDP and even more, as it could support growth and attract significant foreign investments. With this programme we will sent a strong message to markets that Greece is changing, Provopoulos noted. He underlined that Greece must surpass its fiscal targets, reduce the size of the public sector, boost competitiveness and combat tax evasion. He reiterated that talk over a debt restructuring was harming the country and stressed that Greece can repay its debt without any restructuring if it adheres to its consolidation programme. (ANA-MPA) More details on the subscriber's page of ANA-MPA | Subscription request form [02] Bid for consensus fails; PM rules out elections(ANA-MPA) -- Consensus proved elusive for Greece's political leaders on Friday despite urgent pressure from the country's European partners. Despite talks lasting well over three hours, they failed to agree on the measures for exiting the dire crisis, following a closely watched council chaired by President of the Republic Karolos Papoulias.A 20-minute private meeting between Papoulias and Prime Minister George Papandreou followed, after which the prime minister indicated that he would not call snap elections but "proceed alone" according to ANA-MPA sources. The 3.5-hour meeting between the PM and the opposition leaders ended just after 4 p.m. and the atmosphere was visibly subdued and grim as they emerged. According to sources within New Democracy party, Samaras declined to offer his party's support of the Memorandum reiterating that it is "incorrect", while again calling for a renegotiation of the bailout package. Moreover, he reportedly also rejected a proposal by Popular Orthodox Rally (LA.O.S) leader George Karatzaferis for the creation of an "ecumenical government". Samaras said the latter would be unconstitutional. All refused to make public statements after the meeting, except Karatzaferis, who commented bitterly that «unfortunately, some people's 'seat' is above Greece". "The people did not understand that if Evrybiades hadn't come to an agreement with Themistocles in 480 B.C. that history would have written neither about them nor the date," he added. (ANA-MPA) More details on the subscriber's page of ANA-MPA | Subscription request form [03] Stocks end sharply lowerStocks ended sharply lower in the Athens Stock Exchange on Friday, hit by market disappointment after a fruitless political leadersâ meeting. The index dropped 1.71 pct to end at 1,264.92 points, after rising as much as 2.84 pct during the day. The index recorded a net loss of 2.5 pct in the week. Turnover was an improved 117.970 million euros. The Big Cap index fell 2.05 pct, the Mid Cap index ended 1.0 pct down and the Small Cap index fell 1.67 pct. Hellenic Petroleum (0.15 pct) was the only blue chip stock to end higher, while ATEbank (9.30 pct), MIG (7.14 pct), Cyprus Bank (5.19 pct) and Hellenic Postbank (4.51 pc) were major losers.The Commerce (1.69 pct) and Oil (0.05 pct) sectors scored gains, while Insurance (3.44 pct), Technology (3.35 pct) and Health (3.73 pct) suffered the heaviest percentage losses of the day. Broadly, decliners led advancers by 92 to 43 with another 54 issues unchanged. Lambrakis Press (9.09 pct), Akritas (8.89 pct) and Maillis (8.33 pct) were top gainers, while Ideal (10 pct), Athens Electronic (10 pct) and ATEbank (9.3 pct) were top losers. More details on the subscriber's page of ANA-MPA | Subscription request form Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |
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