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Monday, August 3, 2015

GREEK MARKETS IMPLODE — stocks plunge 22.87% after five weeks of closure

The Greek stock market has just reopened for the first time in five weeks. It's been closed since the beginning of the country's capital controls and the announcement of the bailout referendum. Greece's banks went through the floor, tumbling 30%, reflecting the huge damage that's been done to the country's economy in recent weeks. The overall Athens Stock Exchange (ASE) index plunged by 22.87% as it opened according to Bloomberg's Jonathan Ferro. Though Greece has agreed a bailout deal with its European creditors there's still a huge amount of uncertainty.  Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras is having to drag parts of his own party, Syriza, kicking and screaming through the agreement. The country must now make painful economic reforms, and has agreed to privatise ten times as many state assets as the country had already. What's more, last week the International Monetary Fund (IMF) made it clear that there'd be no involvement from them without up-front debt reduction being on the table — Greece's European creditors want debt reductions to be contingent on the country's success in those incredibly difficult reforms. Before it opened, the BBC spoke to one fund manager who was bracing for a 20% plunge in Athens stock prices.   Here's how the Athens stock market performed up until late June, when it was paused. We'll update you as the market opens this morning: Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: 50 Cent testifies his lifestyle is an illusion


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