Fiscal targets set by the Greek government were achieved for the third consecutive year with an additional significant primary surplus for the third time, while the country entered a period of positive economic growth, said today Alternate Finance Minister Christos Staikouras during a debate in a Parliament committee on the 2015 budget. Staikouras underlined that the country presents positive growth rates for the first time after six years of recession, while GDP growth rate, consumption and employment are expected to rise further in 2015. “These results were achieved with a high social and economic cost, paid basically by households and enterprises, and we have to ensure that these sacrifices will not go wasted and that this positive development will become sustainable,” the Minister said. Taking into account the international climate and the “tough and complex” negotiations with the country’s creditors, Staikouras noted that “we have to approach the country’s basic political issues, and of course the 2015 budget issue, with realism, a spirit of unity and national cohesion, away from dangerous acrobatisms.” Continuing, Staikouras said that the government has proven that it achieves the targets it sets, highlighting that “based on current data, an estimate for a 2.9% growth rate was realistic, although not conservative,” as the Greek economy is expected to grow by this percentage next year, mostly based on the recovery of private consumption, investments and exports. At the same time, according to government data, the unemployment rate is expected to drop by 1.9% and employment is expected to increase by 2.6%. Finally, inflation is projected to remain the lowest among the 27 European Union members.
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