Greece denies return of Troika as new talks with creditors to begin March 9, 2015 Greece will begin talks with representatives of its creditors tomorrow as it tries to have reform proposals approved, allowing it access urgently needed cash. Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis yesterday denied that the it spelled a return of a the Troika – a term for its three main creditors that Varoufakis had said was “dead”. [...]
Greece accused of “wasting time” as latest proposals fail to satisfy Eurozone officials March 9, 2015 The Greek finance minister's latest outline of how he intends to secure funds from international creditors has failed to impress Eurozone officials. On Friday, Yanis Varoufakis sent a letter to ministers explaining seven planned measures, but Eurogroup chairman Jeroen Dijsselbloem has since described the proposals as “far from complete”. He said that given the way [...]
Greek banks are safe for now as deposit outflows grind to a halt March 5, 2015 The worst may be over for Greek banks, with deposit flows looking to have halted at just over €20bn (£14bn). “Based on discussions we had with Greek banks, it seems that deposit outflows have abated last week following the Eurogroup decision on 20 February,” Nondas Nicolaides, a senior credit officer at ratings agency Moody’s told City [...]
Spain’s Prime Minister hits back at Tsipras’s anti-Greece conspiracy claims March 1, 2015 Spain’s Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has hit back at the Prime Minister of Greece Alexis Tsipras, over accusations the country is part of a conspiracy against the Greek anti-austerity government. Rajoy called on Tsipras to be “serious” after accusing Spain and Portugal of being part of an “axis of powers” undermining Greece's debt negotiations with [...]
Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tspiras accuses Spain and Portugal of leading a conspiracy against his government February 28, 2015 Alexis Tspiras, Prime Minister of Greece, has accused other southern European countries of trying to topple his ant-austerity government. According to Reuters, he said Spain and Portugal took a particularly hard line during Greece’s bailout negotiations, which ended this week. The two countries are also being subjected to tough austerity measures by the Eurozone's [...]
From Greece and Natalie Bennett to the banks and London’s skyline: Here’s what got us talking this week February 27, 2015 There was a lot of talk about a dress. And quite a bit about the llama drama. But here at City A.M. Towers, we were obsessing about plenty of other things. Greece finally managed to break the stalemate over its debt, negotiating a four month extension with Germany, and ending weeks of debate about a [...]
European shares soar to seven-year high as Germany approves Greece bailout February 27, 2015 European markets soared this morning after Germany approved plans to extend Greece's bailout loan by four months – causing investors to shed concerns about a Grexit. For the time being, anyway. The German Bundestag approved Greece's bailout deal, which will prevent it from defaulting when its current programme of loans ends on Saturday. The FTSEurofirst [...]
Expert economists give their verdict on whether Greece should default February 26, 2015 Debates over Greece's finances continue to drag on with MPs from Angela Merkel's party voting to back the extension of the bailout to the beleaguered economy. The EU wants the programme, which was dues to expire on 28 February, extended until June. A host of reforms outlined by Greece was approved by Eurozone finance ministers [...]
Greeks submit reform plans: Yanis Varoufakis’ proposals to Brussels – and the points of contention February 24, 2015 The hard work of negotiating a new Greek settlement looked set to begin in earnest yesterday as the Eurogroup ministers accepted Athens’ list of proposals as a starting point for talks. Greece was supposed to send the list to officials on Sunday or Monday, but the letter was finally sent yesterday. It includes changes to tax [...]
Tumbling prices see Greece lead Eurozone into deeper deflation February 24, 2015 Deflation deepened to its most severe rate since 2009 across the euro area in January, with Greece recording the sharpest fall in prices. Annual inflation came in at minus 0.6 per cent across the bloc, according to figures published yesterday, down from 0.2 per cent in December. The rate has been dragged down by lower [...]