All the latest economic and financial news, as the Greek government struggles to persuade its lenders to release much-needed funds before the eurozone crisis erupts againLatest: Tsipras in parliament nowTsipras: Greece needs debt reliefGreek proposals emergeBrussels officials see little progress 7.48pm BST No need to summarise Samaras’s speech - Diane has done it for us samaras had only 2 points--one, we'll support you if you follow our policies and, two, tsipras's problems are his opposition w/in syriza 7.48pm BST Antonis Samaras also tried to prise open the fractures within the Syriza party, saying is is divided over the route forward.#Greece ND Samaras: "LOOK at your party, Mr. Tsipras, they do NOT even want us to help where we can." 7.42pm BST Samaras has urged the Greek government to meet the 450m euro repayment owed to the IMF on April 9th. Failure to do so would be extremely serious, he warns.....#Greece | ND's Samaras: Don't even think abt not paying back the IMF. It wld constitute a credit event & would be the 1st step toward Grexit 7.41pm BST Samaras is piling into Tsipras with some tasty one-liners.Samaras says Tsipras imagined he'd get money without terms but ended up getting terms without money #Greecesamaras: when i was abroad i liked making friends for greece. you like making enemies, sometimes artificially. 7.38pm BST Samaras says his party are prepared to offer Tsipras support, but only on measures that they would choose to implement themselves.And he criticises the PM for demanding support, without revealing exactly what his reform plans will be.ND's Samaras tells Greek govt: 'We will support you, but not on anything. If you push the country back to recession and deficits, we won’t' 7.35pm BST Former prime minister Antonis Samaras is now responding to Alexis Tsipras.Samaras defends his own track record, saying Greece was on course to exit its bailout under his leadership.Samaras responds to Tsipras by stressing his gov't also adopted policies not in MoU, such as handing out part of primary surplus #Greece#Samaras to #Tsipras : As you keep going with the virtual negotiation, the bill will keep increasing.samaras: if you wanted people to know what is happening, you would've brought the bailout extension to parliamnet. 7.31pm BST Here’s some instant reaction to Tsipras’s address to parliament:Those hoping @atsipras would seek to broaden support to @pasok & @ToPotami likely to be disappointed in speech mainly attacking opposition#Greece PM Tsipras ends speech. No attacks on creditors. That's a first.#Greece PM Tsipras ended his speech, didn’t say much abt the negotiations with the partners though, which was the reason for this session 7.30pm BST Not the most rousing speech in Alexis Tsipras’s career. And not the most informative either. I don’t think we actually learned anything about the state of the negotiations over Greece’s reform programme.The speech did avoid any direct attacks on Greece’s lenders, but the PM made up for that with a swathe of attacks on opposition parties, particularly Antonis Samaras’s New Democracy party. No olive branch for them! 7.27pm BST Tsipras ended his speech by urging citizens to continue to stand by his government, and calling on other parties to speak the truth too. 7.17pm BST More applause, as Tsipras vows not to deceive the Greek people.#Greece PM Tsipras: We only know how to speak the language of truth. We have chosen sides a long time now. 7.16pm BST #tsipras: the pillaging of the middle class and salaried workers must end. that is our plan. 7.16pm BST Tsipras then takes a pop at his predecessor, Antonis Samaras, for failing to tackle tax evasion even after the government received a list of Greeks with Swiss bank accounts.#tsipras openly challenges samaras over inaction on broadcast licences and lagarde list 7.14pm BST Tsipras says he wants to reach a fair compromise with Greece’s lenders, but not a full-scale surrender to their demands.He’s received a couple of rounds of applause, and one ripple of dissent, but MPs are being generally quiet (so far). 7.13pm BST Tsipras in brief: You’re either with us, or you’re with the Institutions (the former Troika)Tsipras reveals 1 of his goals from tonight's speech: To try to put opposition parties in tight spot over whether to back gov't #Greece 7.10pm BST Tsipras then asks the opposition parties if they will support his efforts, or simply be a mouthpiece for Greece’s creditors. 7.09pm BST Greece faces a straight choice, says Alexis Tsipras, between unconditional surrender, and reversing the disastrous policies that have caused such damage to the Greek economy. 7.08pm BST *TSIPRAS: GREEK DEBT NEEDS RESTRUCTURING, IN ORDER TO BE REPAID 7.08pm BST The four-month bailout extension agreed last month is an opportunity to reshape Greece’s future, Tsipras says.And he then declares that Greece needs debt restructuring if it is ever to repay its debts.#tsipras describes feb20 agreement as a landmark deal#Greece PM Tsipras says that w the #Eurogroup agreement of 20th Feb, the issue of debt restructuring opens up. 7.05pm BST Our strategy is bearing fruit, Tsipras insists, and denies that Syriza is dragging Greece deeper into trouble:Greek PM Tsipras tells Parl't: We inherited a country not the edge of the abyss, but deep in the abyss already 7.04pm BST PM Tsipras: The country has stopped being a debt colony #Greece pic.twitter.com/1vsfjjH3PG 7.04pm BST It is time to face the truth, Tsipras says. And he accuses the previous government of misleading the people about the health of the public finances.The brilliant Diane Shugart is tweeting the details:#tsipras: the last govt spoke of a primary surplus of abt 3.3 bn euros but reality was it was 2.7bn less than what it said in campaign#tsipras says public coffers had nothing and cash deficit of about 2.5bn euros 7.01pm BST Alexis Tsipras begins his speech by telling MPs that his government has been delivering on its pledge to ‘turn the page’, and end Greece’s existing as a country governed by memorandums imposed by its creditors.We are delivering on our election pledges every day, and support for our plans have grown since January’s election, he says.#tsipras says this choice is a choice to return to democracy. people support us and consistently ask us not to take a step backwards 6.59pm BST Alexis Tsipras is speaking to MPs now -- there is a live feed here (no translation from Greek, though). 6.46pm BST Is Greece’s unpopular property tax (an annual levy of real estate) going to be abolished or not? Efi Efthimiou of financial news website Capital GR hears that it is definitely being ditched, as Syriza promised in the past. There have been persistent rumours, though, that it would be included in the reforms being drawn up in Brussels......#Greece Remember these FinMin sources saying ENFIA (property tax) will remain? Forget them. Govt sources say it will be replaced 6.12pm BST The debate on Greece’s reform plan, and the laborious route towards a deal, is now expected to start in 20 minutes.parliament on short break; tsipras to open party leaders' debate at 8:30 pm. 6.02pm BST Tension is building in Athens ahead of Alexis Tsipras’s speech in parliament, which should start shortly....Lots of speculation on what Tsipras may say (or announce) in his parl speech. I'll just hear what he has to say & take it w a pinch of salt. 5.57pm BST Despite the continuing worries about Greece’s financial predicament, leading shares were on the rise, helped by positive comments from China suggesting it will implement measures to boost its economy if necessary, and a number of takeover deals in the US. The final scores showed: 5.54pm BST The FT’s Brussels bureau chief, Peter Spiegel, has a good take on the talks around Greece’s reform plans, as negotiations drag on tonight.People on both sides of the talks say that despite three days of talks, the list is not comprehensive as yet. “There was no such thing as an original list,” insists an official from one of the bailout monitoring institutions. “There were contributions, tables, pieces of paper.”Indeed, on the Greek side, some involved in the discussions say a fuller, longer, and more detailed document is in the works. They argue the issue is not, as many among the bailout monitors claim, a lack of detail. The issue is getting all the details – some 72 reforms, according to one person in the Athens camp – into a well-organised document, in English, without mistakes in substance or politics.EU officials said they don’t expect to be back and in full force from the Easter holiday until next Tuesday, leaving very little time for any decision to release bailout funding before Greece must make a €450m payment to the International Monetary Fund next Thursday, April 9. All eyes are on whether Athens has enough cash on hand to make that payment. It could be a nerve-fraying week.Is yet another #Greece reform list in the works? It would appear so. An @FTBrussels blog post on latest developments: http://t.co/R9EKqaLtI2 5.34pm BST Riot police have been deployed outside Athens University after a group of protesters occupied the main building today.They are supporting a hunger strike being conducted by prisoners; calling for maximum security prisons to be closed, and anarchist campaigners to be released from custody. 4.20pm BST Here’s a summary of the leaked Greek reform proposals:Details of #Greece govt's reform & fiscal proposals [via @toxrima]: - 2015 privatizations to bring in €1.5bn (€7… http://t.co/LKwEbdxjo7 4.01pm BST Government officials are refusing to confirm the details of the Bloomberg story, says Helena Smith in Athens:If true, the report would suggest that prime minister Alexis Tsipras’ leftist-led administration has put the emphasis on shifting reform onus to wealthier Greeks, starting with a crackdown on deposits held abroad.That would fit perfectly with the government’s mission. 3.23pm BST Bloomberg is reporting more details of the proposed Greek reforms:Greece’s bid to bolster its finances relies on taxing capital transfers and fighting tax evasion, according to a list of reforms submitted to European negotiators. Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras’s coalition targets revenue of as much as €875m from the “intensification of audits on lists of bank transfers and offshore entities,” according to a 15-page draft document detailing reform proposals in exchange for more emergency loans from the euro area and the International Monetary Fund. 3.06pm BST Back with the US, and more signs of an improving housing market.Pending home sales rose 3.1% in February, according to the National Association of Realtors, compared to expectations of a 0.4% increase. This was the highest level in around 18 months. 2.59pm BST An update on the European Central Bank’s quantitive easing programme:ECB Announce EUR41.016 Bln Settled In QE Purchases As Of March 27 (Prev EUR26.3 Bln) 2.52pm BST US stock markets have opened strongly after a series of deals gave investors a lift.The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up more than 250 points in early trading, while the S&P 500 has jumped by 1%, following news that insurer UnitedHealth was paying $12.8bn for pharmacy benefit firm Catamaran, Israeli pharmaceuticals group Teva would buy drug developer Auspex Pharmaceuticals for $3.5bn and Ireland’s Horizon agreed to buy US drugmaker Hyperion Therapeutics for $1.1bn. 2.42pm BST Late on Friday, Fitch downgraded Greece’s default ratings and unsecured currency bonds from B to CCC, ahead of its next scheduled review on 15 May. It said:Fitch believes that developments in Greece warrant such a deviation from the calendar and our rationale for this is laid out below.Lack of market access, uncertain prospects of timely disbursement from official institutions, and tight liquidity conditions in the domestic banking sector have put extreme pressure on Greek government funding. We expect that the government will survive the current liquidity squeeze without running arrears on debt obligations, but the heightened risks have led us to downgrade the ratings.The damage to investor, consumer, and depositor confidence has almost certainly derailed Greece’s incipient economic recovery. The damage will take time to repair even if prospects for a successful programme completion improve over the coming days or weeks. We have revised down our growth forecast significantly to 0.5% this year from 1.5% in January 2015 and 2.5% in December 2014, with risks to growth on the downside. Liquidity conditions faced by firms will have worsened substantially, in our view, due to increased government arrears to suppliers and bank funding strains. 2.00pm BST Over in Helsinki, Angela Merkel has warned that Greece’s reform programme must “add up”, while insisting that Germany wants to avoid Grexit. “The question is can and will Greece fulfil the expectations that we all have...“There can be variation as far as which measures a government opts for but in the end the overall framework must add up.”“We saw this in Ireland when a new government changed parts of the programme. But in the end the financial stability of the country must be restored. Greece is talking with the institutions now. We are waiting on these talks. And we will wait for the evaluation of the institution.” 1.29pm BST A quick recap.Greek officials are sitting down with their creditors in Brussels for another round of talks over the country’s reform plans, as time continues to run short.“Investors fear that if external funding is not secured, a cash crunch and subsequent default may lead to the country’s exit from the Eurozone. Such an outcome would be unprecedented, carrying with as-yet unknown implications for the financial markets at large. 1.12pm BST German’s inflation rate has inched back into positive territory, in the latest sign that the eurozone is not sinking into a deflationary slump.The German consumer prices index rose by 0.1% annually on a harmonised basis, with prices up by 0.5% month-on-month. 1.00pm BST Alexis Tsipras has reminded us that sixty-three years ago today, Greek communist and resistance hero Nikos Beloyannis was executed.We honor the memory of the Greek resistance fighter, Nikos Beloyannis, who was executed on March 30, 1952 #Greece pic.twitter.com/ATNoFFJzQi 12.53pm BST Heads-up. Angela Merkel is visiting Finland today, for talks with prime minister Alex Stubb.He’s just given her a warm welcome to a rather chilly Helsinki. Kanzlerin #Merkel besucht finn. MP @alexstubb in Helsinki. Pressekonf ca 14 Uhr dt. Zeit live: http://t.co/KI8y6ZD9iW pic.twitter.com/iG39WszyOSPrime Minister @alexstubb and Chancellor #Merkel will discuss situation in Ukraine and matters relating to Russia and the euro area economy. 12.45pm BST Greece’s new president, Prokopis Pavlopoulos, is visiting Cyprus for his first official visit since taking office -- as is traditional for all new Greek presidents.“We expressed our determination for the unwavering support of the Greek government in its effort to deal with the economic and humanitarian crisis.” 12.00pm BST Over in Athens, heated debate over the government’s proposed reforms has prompted frantic negotiations within the ruling Syriza party. “The Chinese have been here for some time – and it is accepted that their activities have worked positively for the wider region.” 11.25am BST The European Commission’s top spokesman, Margaritis Schinas, is briefing Brussels journalists on the situation in Greece now."We're not there yet," says @EU_Commission spox @MargSchinas on #Greece talks. #UnderstatementEuroworking Group will have a teleconference on Wednesday to take stock of negotiations @MargSchinas #Greece 11.00am BST Over in Berlin, the German government is warning that Greece has not yet submitted a firm list of proposals to its creditors.The finance ministry spokesman also cautioned that bailout funds will not be released until some measures have actually been approved by Greek MPs in Athens.German FinMin spokesperson: #Greece hasn't submitted proposals to Euro area. Talks on reforms continuing. (BBG) 10.47am BST Britain’s banks are to be tested on their ability to cope with a dramatic slowdown in China, a eurozone recession, the worse deflation since the 1930s and UK interest rates being cut to zero.BoE to stress banks for contraction the eurozone, slowdown in China along with deflation and zero interest rates in the UKCooperative Bank is not included in BoE stress tests this year as too small, seven others financial firms to be tested 10.45am BST European Commissioner Pierre Moscovici has welcomed the jump in economic confidence:Encouraging news: @ecfin #eurozone economic sentiment indicator at highest level since June 2011.Confidence returning http://t.co/L0G0gNe3vF 10.36am BST This morning’s rise in economic sentiment means confidence is now at its highest since July 2011, points out Howard Archer of IHS Global Insight.He adds: A third successive, and markedly, increased rise in overall Eurozone economic sentiment to a 44-month high in March indicates that a more favourable growth environment in the Eurozone is increasingly being fostered by the much more competitive euro, low oil prices and major ECB stimulus. Consumer confidence across the Eurozone rose to a near eight-year high in March while sentiment improved in most business sectors. 10.28am BST Italy has also reported an increase in economic confidence, suggesting that Europe’s economy is, finally, strengthening after several tough years. #Euroboom2015 has now reached Italy. Only France and Greece left acc to economic sentiment indicator pic.twitter.com/VNwTSaDwEd 10.13am BST European companies are increasingly confident about their economic prospects, the EC’s latest survey has found.The Commission’s economic sentiment index jumped to 103.9 this month, beating expectations. Eurozone consumer sentiment improves from -6.7 in February to -3.7 in March. Economic sentiment rises from 102.3 to 103.9 10.00am BST Britain’s housing market is picking up pace, according to new data from the Bank of England.Mortgage approvals hit a six-month high of 61,760 in February, up from 60,707 in January, and beating analyst expectations. 9.46am BST China’s main stock market has hit a seven-year high, driven by stimulus hopes. 9.36am BST The uncertainty over Greece’s financial situation is weighing on its bonds this morning.The yield (or interest rate) on 10-year Greek debt has inched up to 11.11%, from 11.04% on Friday night“Greece did not submit a reform list on Friday. They just showed some ideas over the weekend. The discussions from Friday to Sunday were meant to help the Greeks prepare a list for tomorrow.....We still look forward to receiving something on Monday.” #Greece's delegation at #BrusselsGroup presented reform proposals only in e-form for mobile devices and in Greek ~EU official to @tagesschau 9.15am BST Greece’s stock market isn’t sharing in this morning’s rally. The main ATG index has dropped by 1.4% in early trading, with bank shares among the fallers.But....shares in Piraeus Port Authority have jumped by 8.5%, following reports that the government will press on with plans to privatise it. Such a move will not please members of the Syriza party, though. 9.08am BST Greece’s deputy finance minister Dimitris Mardas has insisted that the government hasn’t given up its demand for debt relief.He told financial daily Naftemporiki that:“The government has not abandoned any claim regarding its aim to make the country’s debt viable..... either there will be a haircut or it will be extended, or ....linked to an increase in output or exports, or there will be a lower interest rate. 8.58am BST Talks between Greece and its creditors over its economic reform plans are due to start at 1pm in Brussels (or noon BST), according to the FT’s bureau chief Peter Spiegel:"Brussels Group" talks on #Greece bailout to resume here at 1pm. 8.54am BST European stock markets are rallying in early trading, following Asia’s lead, on hopes of more stimulus measures in China. 8.46am BST Across the eurozone in Spain, prices are still falling, but at a slower rate.Spain’s harmonised consumer prices index dropped by 0.7% this month, data released this morning showed, compared with -1.2% in February. 8.44am BST Greece’s MPs will get an update on the situation this evening, when prime minister Alexis Tsipras addresses parliament. 8.30am BST Greece had hoped that eurozone finance ministers might meet this week to agree to hand over some aid funds.But that now looks unlikely, as Europe heads towards the Easter break. 8.25am BST Good morning, and welcome to our rolling coverage of the world economy, the financial markets, the eurozone and business.Greek govt is still working on a plan to meet terms for further bailout; it may well miss its 450m euro IMF payment, says #SocGenNegotiations between Greece and troika not going well. This is not going to be settled soon. http://t.co/5k79LAUuoqGreek officials said Alexis Tsipras, the prime minister, had given ground on two key demands made by creditors: increasing value added taxes for Greek islands, a measure previously repudiated by Yanis Varoufakis, the Greek finance minister, and retaining an unpopular property tax that Mr Tsipras had vowed to abolish.The property tax concession appeared to be the centrepiece of the new plan. It would raise an estimated €2.5bn of a predicted €3bn in new revenues, which Greek authorities estimated would put their primary budget surplus — the amount of revenue taken in, minus spending, not counting interest on debt — at almost €3.5bn for 2015. Continue reading...
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