GREECE

The rating agencies must be convinced of progress in the coming period on the 4 + 1 fronts: the sustainability of public debt, the return to fiscal discipline, the further consolidation of banks and efficient operation of loan servicers, and the acceleration of structural reforms.

According to the figures, tourism gave a strong push to the Greek economy, after the deep 10% recession seen in the third quarter of 2020, as on an annual basis service exports jumped by 84.6%.

The comparison of prices in broadband services in fixed and mobile telephony, based on data at the end of 2020, is extremely unfavorable for Greece as it ranks the country among the most expensive in the EU in a number of packages and combined services.

Greece is forecast to have the third fastest growing economy rate in the European Union, with Ireland proving to be the champion as it is expected to grow at a rate of 14.6%, followed by Estonia with an expansion rate of 9%.

Based on the information available so far, the French programs cost: 3.5 billion euros for the Rafale plus 5 billion for the Belharra, making a total of 8.5 billion euros.

HRADF said that its advisors will evaluate the bids and submit their recommendation to the Fund’s Board of Directors regarding the candidates that qualify for the next phase of the tender (binding offers phase).

Moody’s avoids giving an estimate on the financial cost arising from the fires but mentions as a reference the devastating wildfires in 2007 – the worst in Greece’s recent history, which affected 270,000 hectares of land – caused estimated total damage of close to 3 billion euros (1.3% of nominal GDP).

When the pandemic took everyone by surprise 14 months ago and businesses started setting up online networks and creating sales channels without physical stores from scratch, Plaisio Computers already had such a network in place. It is no coincidence that even before the pandemic, 8 percent of its sales were online.

The hairdressers, beauty salons, and archeological sites will reopen, as announced yesterday by the Greek Ministry of Health. Citizens will also be provided with tests on a weekly basis from pharmacies by citing their health care number (AMKA).

Despite the hold up at the European level, the Greek government appears determined to implement Plan B through transnational agreements to make use of progress on vaccinations to boost tourism. According to Finance Ministry officials, the consequences of freezing tourism revenues in 2021 at very low levels would be catastrophic for the economy.