The International Monetary Fund’s acting head Monday said the new program being developed by the Greek government doesn’t involve a restructuring of its debts.
The European Union and the IMF are preparing a fresh financing package for the Greek government to reflect the fact it is unlikely to be able to sell new bonds for some time to come.
“Right now the program that we are supporting…does not contemplate a debt restructuring,” said John Lipsky, the IMF’s acting managing director.
Speaking at a press conference, Lipsky said the exact amount of external funding needed by the Greek government has yet to be decided. Some European Union governments want Greece to limit the amount of money it will have to borrow from the bloc and the IMF by completing a debt exchange with bond investors that would extend maturities on its debts.
Others favor an effort to persuade the bloc’s banks to voluntarily roll over their holdings of Greek government bonds as they mature.
(source: Dow Jones)
IMF's Lipsky Says No Debt Restructure in Greek Plan
Greek Banks' ECB Dependence Declines
The Greek banks’ borrowing from the European Central Bank decreased further in April, according to figures released by the Bank of Greece on Monday.
The Greek banks’ total debt to the ECB was 86.8 billion euros in April, down from 87.9 on March 2011.
ECB has set as a condition for the new 30 billion euros package of state guarantee to the banks; the establishment of programmes for the gradual reduction of their dependence on liquidity from the ECB.
(source: ana-mpa)
A Sense of Déjà Vu in Greece as History Repeats Itself
Many of us can remember the Greek Communist banners bearing the slogan, ‘Peoples of Europe Rise Up’, hanging for all to see in broad daylight and in angry protest over the country’s austerity measures. These banners were fluttering in the wind on the walls of the ancient Acropolis, Greece’s most famous monument. The date? Tuesday, May, 4, 2010.
Just over a year later, nothing seems to have really changed. There is still no sign of a conclusive economic recovery and despite public protests all around the country, some of its citizens have resigned themselves to “Que Sera, Sera” (Whatever Will be, Will be). Why? Probably because Greece has a history of defaulting on its debt and people sometimes check out facts and history.
The first time Greece issued debt was February 21, 1824, when it sold bonds yielding 5%. Those 1824 bonds paid just 5 installments before the nation defaulted in July, 1827. Since then, Greece has made a habit of applying for loans and taking on even more debt. Political leaders often throw around the word “unprecedented” and play down the country’s debt issues. However in reality, history is indeed repeating itself.
Putting things into perspective, Greece has been in default approximately 150 of the last 200 years, with sovereign debt being the biggie. Can Greece eventually overcome its debt-ridden troubles? Can its people stay optimistic or will more banners be strung across buildings in another year’s time?
To be fair and to not completely give up all hope. National defaults, while rare, are not completely unheard of. Other European nations have also defaulted throughout history and on more than one occasion. Those include Austria, Bulgaria, Germany(1932), Hungary (1931), Italy (1940), Poland, Romania, Russia, Serbia/Yugoslavia, Spain and Turkey.
Greece may not be out of the woods yet…that’s why most of the country remains unnerved by the idea of default. However, it’s still not time to hear matter-of-fact voices echoing “Que Sera, Sera“
Germany Awaits Troika Report Before Deciding On Greece
Germany hasn’t decide on fresh aid for Greece until a review of the current rescue program from the European Commission, the European Central Bank and International Monetary Fund –known as the troika- is published, according to Dow Jones Newswires.
“We currently aren΄t in a phase where we can talk about a clear program with the support of the government”, Steffen Seibert, spokesman for Chancellor Angela Merkel, said at a regular press conference on Monday. “That yet has to be worked out”, he added, according to the news agency.
At the same press conference, German finance ministry spokesman Martin Kreienbaum stated that it is still unclear whether there will be a fresh rescue program for Greece, and under which conditions.
The German government expects the detailed report from the so-called troika on Wednesday, although that isn΄t absolutely certain either, Seibert said.
Asked whether Merkel supports calls by German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble for a participation of private lenders in further Greek rescue efforts, Seibert said the government continues to reject an “obligatory participation of private lenders”, Dow Jones Newswires reports.
Greek National Tourism Organisation & Google Promote Tourism
The Greek Ministry of Culture and Tourism have taken advantage of the web tools to promote tourism in Greece, and as Ministry officials stated ”the in house advertising campaign is in use since May 27th”, to attract more tourists to the country, via Google.
This initiative will be ‘on air’ until the end of 2011, and the Ministy’s goal is to have short-term effective results. Indicative of web advertising’s potential is the fact that the current rise in the departures from Russia’s market is due to the advertising of our country via ‘You in Greece’. Russian travel agents use this website, in order to sell touristic offer packages for Greece.
Stevie Wonder to Open Special Olympics in Greece!
The American artist Stevie Wonder will appear for the very first time in Greece, playing the piano and singing some of his most successful songs, in the opening ceremony of the Special Olympics on June 25th.
Phocas Evangelinos is the art director of the event. The famous choreographer revealed that ”Odysseus’ trip” will be the topic of the opening ceremony and ”The story of the child from the Antiquity to today” the topic of the ending ceremony.
Alkistis Protopsalti and tenor Vittorio Grigolo will perform the anthem of for the event in composition and lyrics by Stephen Korkolis.
Germans are Largest Foreign Owners of Greek Bonds
The German credit institutions are the largest foreign owners of Greek government bonds, possessing 22.7 billion dollars last year, according to the Bank for International Settlements (BIS).
Although the French banks were the largest creditor of Greece with a total exposure 56.7 billion dollars, they are now in second place regarding government bonds, amounting to 15 billion dollars, according the report of the BIS in June.
Germany and France, which account for 69% of the exposure of European banks may be asked to undertake part of the debt, when the European Union apply its plans for the roll-over debt with creditors on a plan type Vienna.
6 Cretan Students Among Brightest People in the World
Fifteen people from Crete belong to the 2% of the human population with the highest IQ, according to the results of the first MENSA contest held in Chania and Heraklio the previous weekend. These gifted people are now eligible to become members of MENSA, a society that registers the brightest people worldwide.
Six students from Heraklio have an IQ over 131 and they are all 16 and 17 years old. Mr. Apostolidis, president of the Greek MENSA said that ”young people with such a high IQ should be given special attention at school, from primary school, because the fact that their opportunities are beyond those of the average child makes it difficult to get integrated into the school environment. So, if these gifted children are not being perceived by their parents or by the teachers as remarkably intelligent, they might not get the attention they deserve and thus not be able to offer society what they could.”
Car Sales Decline by 43.7% this Year
Hundreds of imported cars remain unsold in Greece as sales dipped considerably in the first five months of the year, as daily Kathimerini reports.
Hellenic Statistical Authority data indicate that the annual decline in sales in the January-May period came to 43.7%, as just 59,604 new cars have been registered this year against 105,911 in the same period in 2010.
Despite government measures to provide incentives for drivers to withdraw older vehicles from circulation, the market remains particularly quiet.
Tourist Arrivals Mount on Rhodes
An increase of over 16 percent has been recorded in tourist arrivals at the Rhodes airport in May, compared to the corresponding period last year, according to data publicised on Friday.
According to the figures, a total of 210,273 tourists arrived on the island last month, with charter flights and with scheduled flights by foreign airlines, while during the same month last year 180,263 tourists had visited the island.
Tourists from Germany continue to be in first place, followed by English, Swedish, Russian, French, Italian, Finnish, Dutch and Belgian tourists.
(source: ana-mpa)