The International Monetary Fund’s chief economist Olivier Blanchard destroyed any hopes left about a potential Greek budget surplus in 2015 during his interview in the French financial newspaper Les Échos at a central bankers’ meeting in Sintra, Portugal on Monday. Although Greece was supposed to have a 3 percent budget surplus this year, this seems not to be realistic according to Olivier Blanchard, who thinks that this would lead Greece to ask for further financial assistance from its European lenders. “This will be only avoided, if Greek government decides to present a coherent program,” he stated. The chief economist also added: “Considering that the most recent estimates mention a substantial budget deficit, we need credible measures to transform this into a surplus and maintain this surplus in the future.” And he continued: “This is far from being the case at the moment.”
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