Athens News Agency: News in English, 03-02-10

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

CONTENTS

[01] PM confirms that EU summit will go ahead on Monday

[02] ND Political Analysis Group discusses developments in Iraq

[03] Appeal to citizens of Athens to take part in anti-war rally

[04] Athens Hilton reopens after refurbishing

[05] Hellenic Post Office to issue Athens Olympics stamps Tuesday

[06] Foreign Exchange Rates - Tuesday

[07] Weather Forecast: Cloud, cold and sleet on Tuesday

[08] Greek stocks ease in record-low turnover

[01] PM confirms that EU summit will go ahead on Monday

Prime Minister Costas Simitis on Monday confirmed that an emergency European Union summit to discuss the Iraq crisis would be held in Brussels the following week, soon after a meeting of the United Nations Security Council on Friday where U.N. weapons inspector Hans Blix would present his report on Iraq's disarmament.

Apart from the situation in Iraq, the summit would also discuss developments in the Middle East, he added.

Simitis said there were a number of viewpoints on how to proceed and that the Greek presidency considered it necessary to call a meeting of EU leaders to examine the situation on the evening of Monday, February 17.

He said an informal council of EU foreign ministers would be held in Brussels during the morning to prepare for the summit.

''We will make an effort for Europe to speak with one voice because it is necessary for there to be a single line. I hope that this will happen on Monday,'' he said.

Asked to confirm the existence of a Franco-German proposal for Iraq, Simitis said he had contacted German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder on Monday morning over the issue. According to Schroeder, it was not certain whether a Franco-German plan would be presented on Friday, Simitis said.

The predominant view was that time would be needed to appraise Blix's report and decisions would be made afterwards, he added.

''This is, in any case, why we are calling the summit,'' he noted.

[02] ND Political Analysis Group discusses developments in Iraq

Main opposition New Democracy party leader Costas Karamanlis chaired a meeting of the party's Political Analysis Group on Monday, during which a discussion was held on all scenarios concerning developments in Iraq.

The meeting reconfirmed ND's position that the European Union should have a common policy on a possible attack against Iraq and UN Security Council resolutions should be honoured.

It was stressed that ND will also await the outcome of searches conducted by the weapons inspectors and the decisions to be taken on Friday.

On the question of whether ND will participate in anti-war demonstrations scheduled for Saturday, it was decided that the deputies will decide themselves whether or not they will participate.

[03] Appeal to citizens of Athens to take part in anti-war rally

An anti-war rally will be held at Syntagma Square in Athens at 12:30 p.m. on Saturday.

The rally will be organised by the General Confederation of Workers of Greece (GSEE), the Civil Servants' Supreme Administrative Council (ADEDY), the Athens Labour Centre, the Greek Social Forum and many other movements.

Speaking at an event held at Athens University on Monday, GSEE President Christos Polyzogopoulos, in the presence of academics and trade unionists, called on the citizens of Athens to attend the rally and shout ''no to war, yes to peace''.

Polyzogopoulos expressed the concern of the working people of Greece over the possible attack by the United States against Iraq, noting that people were fully aware of the consequences of such a ''barbaric unilateral attack'' which is being orchestrated by ''vested interests which project the alibi of a dictatorial regime.''

[04] Athens Hilton reopens after refurbishing

The Athens Hilton has reopened for business following an extensive refurbishing and modernisation programme.

Ionian Enterprises, the hotel's owner, said in a statement on Monday that the refurbishing, which is in its final phase, includes the building's interior and exterior, along with construction of a new wing with 74 new rooms.

[05] Hellenic Post Office to issue Athens Olympics stamps Tuesday

Hellenic Post Office is to issue commemorative stamps for the Athens 2004 Olympics on Tuesday, which are designed by painter Kostas Tsoklis.

On sale in the collectible series will be stamps with denominations of 0.02, 0.05, 0.47, and 0.65 cents; and 2.17 and 2.85 euros, the post office said in a statement on Monday.

Hellenic Post Office is a sponsor of the Athens games.

[06] Foreign Exchange Rates - Tuesday

Reference buying rates per euro released by the European Central Bank

U.S. dollar 1.089

Pound sterling 0.666

Danish kroner 7.491

Swedish kroner 9.232

Japanese yen 131.2

Swiss franc 1.477

Norwegian kroner 7.522

Cyprus pound 0.584

Canadian dollar 1.659

Australian dollar 1.837

[07] Weather Forecast: Cloud, cold and sleet on Tuesday

Cloud is forecast in all parts of the country, with snowfall likely in Macedonia and Thrace; and storms at sea in the south. Temperatures will be low, with ice forming overnight. Winds northeasterly, strong to very strong, turning gale force at sea. In the north, temperatures will range from -8 to 5C; on the rest of the mainland from -4C to 8C; and in the islands from 0C to 10C. Temperatures in Athens between 2C and 7C; and in Thessaloniki from -2C to 4C.It may snow on mountains around the capital from late afternoon, with sleet in the capital.

[08] Greek stocks ease in record-low turnover

Greek stocks ended slightly lower the first trading session of the week in the Athens Stock Exchange, reflecting lack of buying interest and a negative climate in international markets.

The general index fell 0.10 percent to end at 1,672.58 points, in record-low turnover of 36.7 million euros.

The Cement, IT and Holding sectors suffered the heaviest percentage losses of the day (1.47 percent, 1.45 percent and 0.99 percent, respectively), while the Textile (0.89 percent), Publications (0.73 percent and IT Solutions (0.56 percent) scored the biggest percentage gains.

The FTSE/ASE 20 index for blue chip and heavy traded stocks eased 0.33 percent, the FTSE/ASE MID 40 index ended 0.53 percent lower, and the FTSE/ASE SmallCap 80 index eased 0.05 percent. The wider FTSE/ASE 140 index fell 0.34 percent.

Broadly, decliners led advancers by 170 to 121 with another 67 issues unchanged.

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