Economy
Athens sees faster pace of progress in review talks but no final deal yet
Following the small progress made during Monday’s talks, Greek government sources appeared more optimistic after Tuesday’s meetings noting that a “quite large agreement” has been reached on many issues.
General govt primary cash surplus improves to 1.4 bln in Jan, arrears rise to 4.8 bln
Greece’s general government (gg) primary cash surplus rose by 120 million euros to 1.42 billion in January from 1.3 billion a year ago, the Finance Ministry (MoF) gg bulletin showed on Tuesday evening.
Round of talks nearing end with limited progress, serious doubts about March 20 goal
Following a series of inconclusive meetings over the previous days, some progress was apparently recorded during discussions between Greek ministers and the institutions’ mission chiefs on Monday evening.
Q4 GDP contracts 1.2 pct QoQ, leading to recession of 0.1 pct for 2016
Greece’s seasonally adjusted (SA) GDP dropped by 1.2 percent quarter on quarter (QoQ) in the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2016, after downward revised growth of 0.6 percent in the previous quarter, the Hellenic Statistical Authority (ELSTAT) provisional estimates revealed on Monday.
Stournaras presents debt relief plan with maximum benefits for Greece, minimum cost for lenders
During a speech at the Delphi Economic Forum on Saturday, Bank of Greece (BoG) governor Yannis Stournaras presented the outcome of an exercise conducted by the central bank showing that mild debt relief in the form of smoothing interest payment for EFSF loans coupled with a primary surplus of 2 percent of GDP as of 2021 is consistent with Greece’s debt sustainability.
Greece, lenders fail to make headway on fiscal and labour issues
Despite two meetings over the weekend on fiscal and labour market issues, the Greek government and the institutions’ mission chiefs were unable to bridge their differences, creating more doubts about when an agreement may be reached.
Stocks rebound by 0.7 pct for third straight week amid light trading activity
The Greek stock market edged up 0.7 percent for the third successive week following the return of the institutions’ mission chiefs to Athens and resumption of discussions with the Greek authorities about the second programme review. However, the trading volumes remained soft.
Stable deposit rate in Jan, slight uptick in loan rate
The new time deposit rate for Greek households fell by 1 basis point (bp) for the second straight month and landed at 0.69 percent in January, Bank of Greece (BoG) figures showed on Friday.
OTE posts first revenue increase in 9 years
The Hellenic Telecommunications Organisation’s (OTE Group) full year 2016 results show that year on year growth remained stable after nine years of contraction.
Review talks focus on out-of-court workout, jobs scheme and energy market
The third day of discussions between the institutions’ mission chiefs and the Greek authorities included two meetings that focused on the out-of-court workout and active employment policies.