Athens News Agency: News in English, 03-04-22

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

CONTENTS

[01] Bank of Greece presents annual economic report

[02] Greek PM discusses EU issues with Finland's leadership

[03] EU troika of justice ministers meet with Balkan counterparts in

[04] French national charged with antiquities smuggling

[05] Foreign Exchange Rates - Wednesday

[06] Weather Forecast: Cloudy on Wednesday

[07] Greek stocks move cautiously higher on Tuesday

[01] Bank of Greece presents annual economic report

Bank of Greece's governor Nikos Garganas on Tuesday made a very significant intervention in the social security system saying, in an indirect although clear way, that a government-sponsored reform of the system was incomplete and ineffective.

Presenting the central bank's annual economic report for 2002, Garganas urged for an expansion of the reform programme to include all other pension funds in the country and stressed that changes were needed in the social security system's parameters.

''Greeks should work more,'' Garganas noted and warned that if the reform programme was not completed ''taxpayers will called to pay higher taxes in the future.'' The central banker stressed that high social security contributions were already significantly raising non-payroll labour cost in the country.

Garganas noted, however, that a further reforming of the system should be promoted with the consensus of social partners.

In its annual report, the central bank noted that Greece's economic prospects for 2003 were largely connected with the demand that foreign capital inflows were creating (Third Community Support Framework, Athens 2004 Olympic Games). The report said that economic growth would remain at high levels this year (3.7 percent), although it warned that foreign capital inflows could fall in the future (possible after 2008), a prospect likely to negatively affect economic growth rates.

The central bank said that persistent high inflation rates in the country was one of the more serious problems facing the Greek economy, reflecting its structural weaknesses. The report forecasts that the average consumer price index would be higher this year, compared with 2002. Garganas expressed his concern over a diverging trend between the domestic and the EU's average inflation rates in the last few years and stressed that the Greek government should find ways to ensure price stability in the country.

[02] Greek PM discusses EU issues with Finland's leadership

HELSINKI (ANA - V. Patouhas) - Immigration policy, relations between the European Union and the United States and ongoing efforts to reform EU institutions and draft a new constitutional treaty occupied talks on Tuesday between Prime Minister Costas Simitis and Finland's political leadership in Helsinki.

Finland is the first stop in Simitis' tour of Scandinavian countries in his capacity as head of the rotating EU presidency, currently held by Greece. The Greek premier plans to tour a number of European capitals before June in order to pave the way for the Greek EU presidency's final summit in Thessaloniki, where EU leaders hope to have reached some consensus on the thorny issue of institutional reforms that are necessary for the enlarged Community to function effectively.

Finland is among the member-states who view the draft constitutional treaty prepared by the Convention for the Future of Europe and its leader Valery Giscard d'Estaing with a degree of scepticism. It is also among the smaller EU member-states that wants the European Commission and EU institutional bodies to be strengthened as a counterweight to the EU presidency.

During his visit to the country, Simitis held talks with Finnish President Tarja Halonen and newly elected Finnish Prime Minister Anneli Jaatteenmaki, during which the Finnish side raised the issue of its request for an EU food control agency based in Helsinki.

Also vying for the specific agency is Italy, which has proposed that it be based in Parma.

Simitis said the issue would be resolved at the Thessaloniki summit based on the proposals submitted by the two member-states.

The Greek premier's next stop after Helsinki was Stockholm, where he arrived on Tuesday afternoon for talks with Swedish Premier Goran Persson.

Next on his itinerary is a visit to Copenhagen on Wednesday, while he is due back in Athens on the same day.

[03] EU troika of justice ministers meet with Balkan counterparts in Thessaloniki

The EU Troika of Justice and Home Affairs Ministers, including Greeces Public Order Minister Mihalis Chrisohoidis and Justice Minister Filippos Petsalnikos, met in Thessaloniki on Tuesday with their counterparts from Bulgaria, Romania, Turkey and western Balkan states.

The meeting resolved to strengthening judicial cooperation to fight organised crime especially in the region of the Balkans, and to offer on-going training in European law to Balkan judges at the Thessaloniki School of Judges.

Chrisohoidis and Petsalnikos discussed with their counterparts the need to develop mutual cooperation between the EU and the Balkans on issues pertaining to freedom, security and justice.

?Greece, in its capacity as EU Presidency and as a Balkans state, tries to offer support to these (Balkan) countries in various ways to help them achieve their objectives and so we can live peacefully and in cooperation in the region of the Balkans,? Chrisohoidis told reporters after the end of the meeting.

[04] French national charged with antiquities smuggling

A 65-year-old French man was led before an Athens public prosecutor on Tuesday and charged with attempting to smuggle antiquities out of the country.

The man was arrested at Athens airport on Monday while preparing to board a flight to Milan after customs officials found ancient artifacts in his luggage.

These included a carved marble stele, 11 shards of a ceramic amphora and the handle of a ceramic amphora. The artifacts were confiscated and have been sent for assessment and storage to the National Archaeological Museum.

[05] Foreign Exchange Rates - Wednesday

Reference buying rates per euro released by the European Central Bank

U.S. dollar 1.105

Pound sterling 0.701

Danish kroner 7.484

Swedish kroner 9.214

Japanese yen 132.4

Swiss franc 1.517

Norwegian kroner 7.910

Cyprus pound 0.592

Canadian dollar 1.603

Australian dollar 1.780

[06] Weather Forecast: Cloudy on Wednesday

Cloud is forecast in all parts of the country, with showers or short-lived storms in Epirus, Macedonia and Thrace. Winds variable, light to strong. In the north, temperatures will range from 7C to 17C; in the centre from 9C to 19C; and in the south from 11C to 21C. Temperatures in Athens between 11C and 19C; and in Thessaloniki from 9C to 17C.

[07] Greek stocks move cautiously higher on Tuesday

Greek stocks moved cautiously higher on Tuesday with domestic investors remaining sidelined ahead of the Orthodox Church's Easter holidays.

The Athens Stock Exchange reopened after a four-day holiday.

The general index ended 0.49 percent higher at 1,641.09 points reflecting buying interest for small and medium capitalisation stocks, while blue chips showed signs of weakness.

Turnover was a low 76.2 million euros.

The Investment sector was the only one to end lower (-0.14 percent), while the Textile, Food-Beverage and IT Solution sectors scored the biggest percentage gains of the day (6.13 percent, 3.43 percent and 2.74 percent, respectively).

The FTSE/ASE 20 index for blue chip and heavy traded stocks rose 0.33 percent, the FTSE/ASE MID 40 index jumped 1.21 percent and the FTSE/ASE SmallCap 80 index ended 2.80 percent highger.

Broadly, advancers led decliners by 245 to 64 with another 49 issues unchanged.

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