Athens News Agency: News in English, 01-01-10

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From: The Athens News Agency at <http://www.ana.gr/>

CONTENTS

[01] Soccer-Ioannina-Panionios

[02] Greek-Soccer Cup-Results

[03] Weather Forecast-Thursday

[04] Foreign Exchange Rates-Thursday

[05] Greece - Kosovo - DU contamination

[06] Enalios-Akvaforsk-deal

[07] Greece-investment firms

[08] Athenian Holdings-acquisition

[09] ASE-close

[10] Greece-economic crime

[11] Reppas - DU bombs - test results

[01] Soccer-Ioannina-Panionios

The Greek national soccer division match between PAS Ioannina and Panionios Athens, abandoned in the 27th minute last Wednesday due to a power blackout, was continued for another 18 minutes on Wednesday but was abandoned again when thick mist covered the Ioannina stadium.

According to regulations, the match will be played at 5 p.m. on Thursday and will start from the beginning and not from the minute the match had been abandoned on Wednesday.

This development is favourable for Panionios who was losing 1-0 at the time the match was abandoned and was also playing with 10 players after "losing" Prezes with a red card.

[02] Greek-Soccer Cup-Results

A first leg, second round Greek Soccer Cup match between AEK Athens and Olympiakos Piraeus was abandoned in the 72th minute after AEK fans invaded the pitch because two AEK players were sent off. The match was level 1-1 at the time.

In Wednesday's other two, first leg, second round matches, Paniliakos beat Proodeftiki 1-0 at home and Panahaiki beat Panseraikos1-0 away.

The other five, first leg matches will be played on Monday and Tuesday.

Apollon Athens will face Aegaleo on Monday. Tuesday's matches are as follows: Iraklis Thessaloniki-PAS Ioannina, Xanthi-Ionikos Piraeus, Panionios Athens-Panathinaikos Athens and Aris Thessaloniki-PAOK Thessaloniki.

[03] Weather Forecast-Thursday

Fair weather is forecast throughout the country on Thursday with scattered cloud in the west and north. Winds westerly, light to moderate. In the north, temperatures will range from 1C to 16C; on the rest of the mainland from 4C to 19C; and in the islands from 8C to 18C. Mostly sunny in Athens with temperatures between 6C and 18C. Same in Thessaloniki, with temperatures from 4C to 16C.

[04] Foreign Exchange Rates-Thursday

Thursday's buying rates

U.S. dollar 359.137

German mark 172.829

French franc 051.531

Pound sterling 535.863

Irish punt 429.202

Belgian franc 008.379

Luxembourg franc 008.379

Dutch guilder 153.389

Italian lira (100) 017.457

Austrian schilling 024.565

Danish kroner 045.278

Swedish kroner 037.880

Finnish mark 056.852

Spanish peseta 002.032

Portuguese escudo 001.686

Japanese yen (100) 309.182

Swiss franc 221.755

Norwegian kroner 041.197

Cyprus pound 586.065

Canadian dollar 240.032

Australian dollar 200.641

[05] Greece - Kosovo - DU contamination

The government on Wednesday announced that the latest tests conducted by Greek nuclear scientists and the armys health service in the vicinity of the Kosovo Polie township are 'encouraging'.

Government spokesman Dimitris Reppas said results taken from air and ground samples as well as tests on military personnel were negative as far as radioactivity was concerned. He added, however, that tests are only preliminary, as final results will be unveiled when the samples are tested in a specialised laboratory in Athens.

Furthermore, in reply to a press question, the government spokesman conceded that a segment of Greeces military personnel does not want to serve in Kosovo as part of NATOs peacekeeping force (KFOR), while other servicemen and women that wish so may renew their tour of duty. Greek soldiers serving in Bosnia and Kosovo are volunteers.

Asked by reporters on the exact locations were measurements were taken and on the precise elements tested for, Reppas said both parametres were selected by the scientists on the field.

[06] Enalios-Akvaforsk-deal

Enalios SA, a subsidiary of Kego SA, on Wednesday announced it has signed a cooperation agreement with Akvaforsk, a university acquaculture research institute in Norway.

The agreement, for exclusive cooperation for all eastern Mediterranean countries, envisages the development of joint programmes to genetically improve fish such as sea bream and sea bass.

Kego said Greece, a leader in the acquaculture sector in Europe, should invest in the genetically improvement sector.

A company statement said these programmes have nothing to do with genetically modified products.

[07] Greece-investment firms

Greece's investment firms' sector has significant growth potential despite its significant growth in the last few years, an ICAP report on the sector said on Wednesday.

The report expects a widening of the sector's profitability, based on a prediction that the Athens Stock Exchange could move upward in the medium- and long-term, although it acknowledges the possibility of strong fluctuations.

A total of 39 investment firms are currently operating in Greece, with 17 listed on the Athens Stock Exchange. The remaining 22 firms were founded after 1998 and are currently on a waiting list to enter the market, while another seven firms are under creation.

Listed investment firms' accumulated capital totalled 896 billion drachmas last November, or 2.1 percent of the market's capitalisation and almost a third of equity mutual funds' total value.

The report said that four out of the 17 listed firms, which were bank subsidiaries, accounted for 70 percent of the sector's total assets, turnover and profits.

[08] Athenian Holdings-acquisition

Athenian Holdings scrapped a plan to acquire a remaining 75 percent equity stake in UK bank Union Discount Company Limited, a subsidiary of UK listed holding company Union Plc.

In a letter to the Athens Stock Exchange, Athenian Holdings said it has decided to change its expansion strategy due to the long duration of procedures to approve the acquisition, alternative investment opportunities in Greece and abroad, and changes in the international and domestic capital markets leading to a review of strategy and plans.

The deal to raise its equity stake from 25 to 100 percent in the UK bank, with a strong presence in the private banking sector, was announced last August in the framework of a plan to expand activities in the financial services sector.

[09] ASE-close

A wave of coordinated intervention during the last half hour of trading offered support to plunging share prices on the Athens Stock Exchange on Wednesday, although the move was unable to halt the general index from suffering losses for the sixth consecutive session to end at its lowest levels since January 1999.

The general index ended 0.06 percent off at 3,095.84 points, off the day's lows of 3,048.43 points, with turnover a low 144.02 million euros, or 49.07 billion drachmas.

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The FTSE/ASE 20 index ended 0.10 percent lower at 1,797.33 points, and the FTSE/ASE 40 index eased 0.49 percent to 347.55 points.

The parallel market index for smaller capitalisation stocks ended 0.23 percent higher at 270.84 points.

[10] Greece-economic crime

Greece's economic crime squad will launch an attack on tax evasion, smuggling and economic crime in the first months of 2001, National Economy and Finance Minister Yiannos Papantoniou on Wednesday.

He said that the economic crime squad was one of the biggest success stories of the country's public administration in the last 25 years with a significant contribution in containing tax evasion in the last few years.

The comments were made during a ceremony to present the squad's new special secretary, Dimitris Batzelis, after the resignation of his predecessor George Kanellopoulos.

[11] Reppas - DU bombs - test results

The initial results of tests carried out in Kosovo by a team of Greek nuclear scientists were encouraging, government spokesman Dimitris Reppas said on Wednesday.

According to the spokesman, the scientific team led by Prof. Kamarinopoulos and doctors from the army health service tested air and earth samples and men serving in Greek units in the area, all of which had been negative. Levels of pollution in the areas where Greek troops were stationed were also within normal levels.

He pointed out, however, that the results were only preliminary and that more extensive tests would have to be carried out on the samples using special machinery in Athens.

Reppas added that the scientists sent by the Greek government would continue testing in Urosevac and other areas of Kosovo and Bosnia.

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