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Athens News Agency: News in English, 10-10-22Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: The Athens News Agency at <http://www.ana.gr/>CONTENTS
[01] ND leader: 'society's endurance wearing out'Main opposition New Democracy (ND) leader Antonis Samaras on Friday lashed out at the prime minister and the relief measures he announced for low-income pensioners.Speaking in the city of Larissa, central Greece, Samaras stressed that he "was unable to tell whether it was a statement of repentance or yet another attempt by the prime minister to trick the people�at a time when the society's endurance is wearing out." Samaras visited the city's commercial centre and called on the people to vote for his party's candidates in the upcoming local government elections on Nov. 7. The ND leader visited the offices of the local prefect and mayor as well as the agricultural cooperatives union in Larissa. In the afternoon, he will meet with production sector representatives and tour the towns of Elassona and Tirnavos. His tour of the region of Thessaly will be completed on Saturday after visiting the cities of Trikala and Karditsa. More details on the subscriber's page of APE-MPE | Subscription request form [02] General government deficit 14.172 bln euros in Jan-AugThe Greek general government's deficit totaled 14.172 billion euros in the January-August period, the Finance ministry said on Friday. A ministry announcement said that outstanding debt by general government's agencies totaled 7.2 billion euros, of which 5.3 billion euros were state hospital debt -a debt already rescheduled and currently under repayment. The state budget's outstanding debt totaled 376 million euros, with the ministry forecasting that this debt would be minimized by the end of the year. The ministry said the figures would be updated and published on a monthly basis in the framework of boosting transparency in the country's public finances.Local authorities' outstanding debt to third parties totaled 333.5 million euros, state hospitals' debt to suppliers was 6.0 billion euros and pension funds' debt to third parties totaled 89.8 million euros. More details on the subscriber's page of APE-MPE | Subscription request form [03] Greek CDS easing, report saysFor the first time since January, the cost of insurance against a Greek default within a year is cheaper than the cost for longer duration, a sign that the risk of default has declined, according to CMA in London.A report by Bloomberg said Greek state bonds� credit default swaps (CDS) for one year fell to 565 basis points, down 61 bps compared with 10-year CDS, a sign that markets are offering Greece time to reduce its fiscal deficit. Greek one-year CDS started the year at 143 basis points, soaring to 1,300 bps in June at the peak of the credit crisis. The two-year CDS has the highest cost from any other duration. More details on the subscriber's page of APE-MPE | Subscription request form [04] Papandreou, Erdogan agree to work together to stem migrant flowGreek Prime Minister George Papandreou and Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday agreed to step up cooperation on all levels, especially in efforts to staunch the flow of migrants from Turkey to Europe via Greece.The two prime ministers had a lengthy meeting in Athens on the sidelines of the Mediterranean Climate Change Initiative conference in the Asteras resort in Vouliagmeni, which stretched to two hours instead of the originally scheduled one. The meeting was also attended by Greek Foreign Minister Dimitris Droutsas and Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu. In statements afterward, Papandreou said that Greece desired close cooperation with its neighbouring countries, within the framework of the principles of international law, not just for the benefit of Greece and Turkey but for the benefit of the entire region. The two prime ministers announced a joint initiative that would try to tackle the issue of large-scale illegal migration through "systematic bilateral cooperation" while at the same time pressing the EU for a liberalisation of visa requirements for Turkish citizens entering the EU. Addressing the media, Papandreou referred to a "xenophobic climate" that was being cultivated in Europe and stressed that bilateral cooperation with Turkey would help alleviate this since it would seek to stem the migration wave. At the same time, it would give impetus to EU-Turkey negotiations on the signature of a migrant readmission agreement. The Greek premier also referred to "positive progress" in the two countries' cooperation on energy issues, while Erdogan pointed out that Turkey was already supplying Greece with natural gas and that the aim was to complete a natural gas pipeline linking the two countries by 2015. Questioned about the progress of exploratory talks on the issue of delineating the Aegean continental shelf, Papandreou stressed that these were continuing in a systematic way, without deadlines and with the aim to achieve positive results as soon as possible. The Turkish premier, meanwhile, noted the potential benefits for Greek tourism if the EU visa regime for Turkish citizens was relaxed. Erdogan particularly emphasised the improved 'climate of trust' in the relations of the two countries since his last visit in May, pointing out that six Turkish ministers had visited Greece and four Greek ministers had visited Turkey since that time, while the foreign ministers of the two countries had met several times. The two premiers also broached the issue of the Cyprus problem, developments in the Middle East, issues concerning the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Istanbul, energy matters and bilateral cooperation in tourism. More details on the subscriber's page of APE-MPE | Subscription request form [05] Battle of Marathon eventsEvents marking the 2,500th anniversary since the Battle of Marathon - a battle whose outcome is regarded as having changed the course of European history and the western world - will culminate with the 28th Athens Classic Marathon on October 31, in which more than 20,000 athletes from every part of the world are expected to take part."The 2,500-year anniversary of the Battle of Marathon is a great opportunity to highlight the country's comparative strengths, the values that we represent across time, the great potential that we have. It is a great opportunity to help Athens become an international destination due to this athletic event of global impact that this year also acquires and cultural and tourism side," Culture Minister Pavlos Geroulanos said on Thursday as he outlined a series of events leading up to the marathon race. These will include the opening of an exhibition entitled "Democracy and the Battle of Marathon" at the Zappion Hall from October 3 until November 1 that compares the Greek and Persian cultures, the "Callimachus's Nike" exhibition at the Acropolis Museum on October 26 and the opera "Marathon-Salamis" at the National Opera for four nights on October 29-31 and November 2. Another event is 'The Marathon Marathon Project' that will take place in Athens at the Acropolis Museum on October 31, 2010 under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. More details on the subscriber's page of APE-MPE | Subscription request form [06] Rail strike next weekRail services will come to a standstill for roughly seven days in Greece as a result of the four 24-hour rolling strikes called by the Hellenic Railways (OSE) employees for Oct. 25, 26, 27 and 29 and the cancellation of tens of scheduled train routes on Oct. 24, 28 and 30.OSE and Athens' Proastiakos suburban railway trains will not be running in protest over an infrastructure, transport and networks ministry bill on the reorganisation and development of OSE. On Oct. 25, 26, 27 and 29 access to Athens' International Airport via public transport will be possible only by bus. More details on the subscriber's page of APE-MPE | Subscription request form [07] Stocks end higherGreek stocks ended significantly higher in the last trading session of the week in the Athens Stock Exchange. The composite index rose 1.24 pct to end at 1,605.82 points, for a net gain of 3.61 pct in the week. Turnover, however, remained a low 97.299 million euros.The Big Cap index rose 1.29 pct, the Mid Cap index ended 0.41 pct higher and the Small Cap index rose 0.79 pct. Ellaktor (6.71 pct), Viohalco (5.25 pct) and OPAP (3.59 pct) were top gainers among blue chips. The Chemicals (3.91 pct) and Industrial Products (2.90 pct) sectors scored the biggest percentage gains of the day, while Financial Services (1.10 pct) and Insurance (0.47 pct) suffered losses. Broadly, advancers led decliners by 94 to 65 with another 66 issues unchanged. Dias Fund (19.05 pct), Mevaco (10 pct) and Q&R (9.52 pct) were top gainers, while Elfico (18.75 pct), Fintexport (11.76 pct) and Edrasi (9.09 pct) were top losers. More details on the subscriber's page of APE-MPE | Subscription request form Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |
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