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How the world sees Greece
Monday, October 15, 2012
Greek PM says confident Athens will secure aid tranche
ATHENS (Reuters) - Greece will conclude austerity talks with its lenders to continue receiving the bailout funds it needs to exit its economic crisis, Prime Minister Antonis Samaras said on Monday. "Greece will soon get the next tranche. Its economy needs liquidity like a desert needs rain," Samaras told a conference in Athens. But Finance Minister...
TEXT-S&P affirms National Bank of Greece, Eurobank 'CCC/C' ratings
TEXT-S&P affirms National Bank of Greece, Eurobank 'CCC/C' ratings Reuters Overview -- On Oct. 5, 2012, the National Bank of Greece (NBG) launched a tender offer on the outstanding shares of Greece-based Eurobank, with the aim, upon completion, to merge the two banks. -- We believe the combined entity's financial profile ... |
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Greek ETF Shakeup: Coca-Cola Hellenic Leaving Greece
Greek ETF Shakeup: Coca-Cola Hellenic Leaving Greece - ETF News And ... NASDAQ The much-maligned Greek economy has obviously been under some serious pressure as of late. The country faces strikes, austerity, and worries over its long term health as it struggles to meet bailout terms and maintain membership in the euro zone at the ... |
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Greece admits €13.5bn in cuts unlikely to be settled by EU summit
Greek officials say friction with creditors means parliament's approval doubtful despite desperate need for cuts-dependent aid
Greek officials have admitted that friction with international creditors was such it was unlikely a package of austerity cuts that have been set as the price of further aid would be approved by the Athens parliament before mid-November.
At no other time has near-bankrupt Greece so needed the €31.5bn (£25bn) in rescue funds dependent on the measures. With public coffers set to run dry by the end of November, the country could be forced to default on its debt mountain if there are further delays in the disbursement, put on hold since July.
The setback on Monday, the latest in four often tumultuous months of tortuous negotiations with the country's "troika" of lenders – the European Union, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund – has highlighted the difficulty in drafting draconian spending cuts so fiercely opposed by unions and political forces in a country already hit by record levels of unemployment and poverty.
"They are pushing us to the absolute brink," said one high-ranking official at the labour ministry. "They don't just want our jacket but our shirt," he said, adding that Greece has already reduced its unit labour costs by a dramatic 15%.
With what the state-run TV channel NET called "open fronts" on all the main issues – including demands for up to 15,000 civil servants to be laid off immediately – it is now unlikely that the €13.5bn package of cuts will be approved by the Greek parliament before the next meeting of eurozone finance ministers on 12 November.
For the first time since assuming the post in June, Athens' technocrat finance minister, Yiannis Stournaras, looked unusually downbeat as he emerged from talks with the prime minister, Antonis Samaras, and attributed the latest hurdle to the "tremendous amount of work" that the negotiations entail.
The conservative leader, whose fragile coalition reached a "basic agreement" on the measures last month, had hoped to attend his first EU summit on Thursday with the talks behind him and the package agreed. In an interview at the weekend, he confidently predicted that "we will have fully completed the agreement on the fiscal and structural prior actions for the disbursement" by the summit.
Addressing a business conference in Athens, the socialist Pasok leader, Evangelos Venizelos, said the financial lifeline was crucial for an economy about to enter a sixth year of recession and "for a society that has reached its limits". Around €25bn of the cash injection will be used to recapitalise banks in the hope of re-energising Greece's cash-starved economy.
The endless foot-dragging has exacerbated a fiscal and structural reform programme that is already badly off track. Missed targets have produced a "financing gap" that also appears to have added to the pressure of finalising the package.
The IMF announced last week that Greece's debt looked set to increase from 170.7% of GDP to nearly 182% in 2013 – despite private sector creditors already taking a huge hit on Greek bonds.
The pessimism has added to the difficulty in making headway amid signs that lenders are reluctant to meet demands by the Samaras government for a two-year extension to the fiscal consolidation programme before the country commits to further reforms. Indicative of the frustration the stalled talks have produced, the Swedish finance minister, Anders Borg, raised the spectre of a Greek exit from the eurozone in the coming months. "It's most probable that they will leave. We shouldn't rule out this happening in the next half year," he said, adding that a "Grexit" would not alarm financial markets.
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Greek PM says confident Athens will secure aid tranche
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UAE beat favourites Greece in ice hockey opener
 gulfnews.com | UAE beat favourites Greece in ice hockey opener gulfnews.com Abu Dhabi: The UAE beat favourite Greece 2-0 (1-0, 1-0, 0-0) in the qualifiers for the Ice Hockey World Championship Division III to boost their hopes of a berth in the finals in South Africa next year. The UAE, the only Arab country to have taken part ... |
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Amid ongoing economic crisis, EU celebrates 'Single Market Week'
News reports about the European Union nowadays do not give much reason for celebration. Greece is on the brink of economic collapse, other European countries are also in severe economic troubles, and shrinking solidarity is going hand-in-hand with reviving stereotypes. Yes, the European Union won the Nobel Peace Prize last week, but this news was quickly met with cynical comments.
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Task Force sees progress in Greece
Greece is experiencing positive change despite some structural problems, a member of the EU's Task Force for Greece says.
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Banks boost FTSE 100 after Citigroup results but RBS dips on branch sale uncertainty
Barclays lifted by figures from US banks while eurozone hopes help investor sentiment
Banks helped push the market higher on hopes that a Spanish bailout could finally be implemented, reducing the cost of the country's borrowings, as well as optimism over Greece's tortuous budget talks with its international creditors. Better than expected results from Citigroup, the latest US bank to update the market, also helped sentiment.
Barclays climbed 4.65p to 236.85 as Ian Gordon at Investec issued a buy note and edged up his price target from 250p to 255p in the wake of the US figures. He said:
We have previously argued that the US banks reporting season should act as a catalyst to increase consensus expectations ahead of Barclays' third quarter [update] on 31 October. We were previously around 6% ahead; now, given positive investment bank read-across from JP Morgan/Citigroup, we believe we need to raise our own forecasts too. We move to £1.8bn adjusted profit before tax, leaving us around 10% ahead of consensus (£1.6bn) until other forecasts move up. For Barcap, we are now looking for £2.9bn revenues in the third quarter versus consensus of £2.7bn.
Lloyds Banking Group added 0.62p to 40.32p and Standard Chartered rose 34p to 1461.5p. But Royal Bank of Scotland fell 2.8p to 2681p following news late on Friday that Santander had pulled out of a deal to buy several hundred of the bank's branches.
Overall the FTSE 100 managed to hold on to its gains, finishing 12.29 points higher at 5805.61.
But mining groups fell back as Goldman Sachs cut its price targets and ratings for a number of companies in the sector to reflect falling commodity prices. These included Kazakhmys, down 25.5p at 690p, Rio Tinto, 48.5p lower at 2973.5p, and BHP Billiton, 8.5p lower at 1926.5p. Anglo American dropped 36p to 1788.5p as Goldman issued a sell rating following the industrial unrest at its platinum mines in South Africa.
Meanwhile Finland's Talvivaara Mining Company tumbled more than 7%, down 10.8p to 135.4p, after it cut its nickel production target for the second time this year. Numis said:
Third quarter production results are mixed but overall negative. The company continues to make progress in some areas and be challenged in others. However, persistent heavy rains continue to impact solution grades and Talvivaara now expects to miss downgraded guidance of 17,000 tonnes, as we forecast. Overall another disappointing update and we remain cautious. We maintain our 100p target price and sell recommendation.
Numis had expected production this year of 15,000. Until it cut its target to 17,000 in August the company had forecast output of 25,000 to 30,000 tonnes.
BT dipped 1.7p to 217p after analysts at Barclays moved from overweight to equal weight and cut their price target from 260p to 230p. The bank warned the poor economic environment was likely to have an effect on BT's corporate business, and its recent move into sports broadcasting as it won a package of Premier league matches would increase its cost base.
Kingfisher climbed 7.3p to 275.8p following a positive response to an analysts trip on Friday, while Kentz Corporation closed 15.7p higher at 424.7p as Oriel Securities repeated its buy recommendation on the engineering and construction group. On Friday UBS began coverage with a 500p target price, saying:
We believe Kentz offers attractive near-term earnings growth and is a low-risk play on increased capital spend, with the flexibility of the business model a buffer against the inherent cyclicality of the resources industry. Fears over mining capex and the performance of UK peers (both overdone, in our view) have left the shares at attractive levels.
Rentokil Initial rose 1.7p to 86.9p following weekend reports that a disposal of its troubled City Link parcels business could on the horizon. Mike Allen of Panmure Gordon said:
We would view this as good news for investors, especially if exit costs could be minimised. However, we think this scenario is being factored into the share price and maintain a neutral stance on the shares for now ahead of its third quarter trading update on 9 November.
In addition, if an exit for City Link can be achieved, then the takeover/break up scenario would also have greater creditability given the strategic fit with the rest of its portfolio.
But software and service group SDL slid 72p to 568p despite saying trading was broadly in line with expectations, although it also noted a legal dispute with a former shareholder of Trados, which SDL bought in 2005. It said the case was likely to come to court in 2013 but believed it was "completely without merit." Analyst George O'Connor at Panmure Gordon said:
Not for the first time a "broadly in line" [update] results in downgrades. We reduce our estimates once again, de-rate the shares and highlight that sentiment will remain 'iffy'. But nonetheless, this a good buying opportunity.
We reduce our 2012 earnings per share estimate from 38.2p to 35.2p (let's call it the 'warts and all' approach). We reduce our target price from 667p to 599p. Conscious that 'tech' company buying opportunities are often defined by the 'speed bump' moments, and that the mid–term investment case has not been derailed, we move from hold to buy.
Julian Yates at Investec moved from buy to hold:
We continue to see SDL as an appealing investment proposition due to its position of strength in multiple growth markets. However to justify a premium rating we believe the company will need to deliver on its growth potential within the technology business as well as the services business. We believe this will likely come through during 2013 as operational execution improves and we will look to revisit our target price and recommendation on evidence of this delivery. For now we move to hold with a target price of 670p.
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Zeus’ fury
Lightning strikes by the Parthenon, on the Acropolis overlooking Athens during a thunderstorm that broke over the Greek capital on Sunday.
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EURO GOVT-Greek bonds rally as euro exit risks diminish
 Business Recorder | EURO GOVT-Greek bonds rally as euro exit risks diminish Reuters LONDON, Oct 15 (Reuters) - Greek bond yields fell to their lowest since August 2011 on Monday, accelerating a decline seen since late July as investors scale back bets the country will leave the euro zone. The yield on Greek bonds maturing in February ... Euro Rallies as the Greek 10-Year Yield Sets New Lows World stocks flat despite upbeat data, oil down GLOBAL MARKETS: European Stocks Up On Hopes China Is On The Mend |
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Greece's Samaras Expects To Secure Austerity Deal By Oct. 18
Greece's Samaras Expects To Secure Austerity Deal By Oct. 18 RTT News He also warned that if Greece fails to secure the money, the consequences will be "dramatic." by RTT Staff Writer. For comments and feedback: editorial@rttnews.com. More Economic News. Czech Current Account Gap Widens More Than Expected · Norway ... |
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Karagounis: Greece can beat anybody
 Fifa.com | Karagounis: Greece can beat anybody Fifa.com Greece midfielder Giorgos Karagounis is confident his team will deliver a much improved performance on their previous 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil™ qualifier when they take on Slovakia in Bratislava. Fernando Santos' men dropped their first points in ... |
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Softening stance on Greece, Merkel rules out default
 Gather.com | Softening stance on Greece, Merkel rules out default Reuters BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel has ruled out letting Greece default on its debt, in the latest sign Berlin is softening its stance towards Athens ahead of an eagerly awaited report on its reform progress from the "troika" of international ... Greece says austerity talks to overshoot EU summit Germany Says Stance on Greece Unchanged Greece and Troika deal after EU summit |
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Romans used Greek myths in their mosaics as symbols of civilization
Romans used Greek myths in their mosaics as symbols of civilization Phys.Org Research that was coordinated at Carlos III University of Madrid (UC3M, Spain) analyzes the mythological images in Roman mosaics and shows that members of the most powerful elite selected Greek gods and heroes as symbols of universal values that ... |
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Expert Opinion On Greece's Illusions And Euro Prospects
 Scrape TV | Expert Opinion On Greece's Illusions And Euro Prospects «Market Leader» - news and previews making you rich. It should be noted that Greece has been unable to service its gigantic public debt (€300bn) since 2010 because of the financial crisis. Hundreds of billions of euro have been pumped into the Greek economy on condition that Greece will follow the path ... Malaysia, Which Refused IMF Aid, Says Greece Needs Time IMF backs request for more time from Greece despite it not actually being ... Friction at IMF meeting as global economic outlook worsens |
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Debt Crisis: Signs of progress over Spain and Greece problems lift shares
 Irish Independent | Debt Crisis: Signs of progress over Spain and Greece problems lift shares Irish Independent SIGNS of progress in tackling Spain and Greece's economic problems lifted European shares and the euro marginally on Monday, but commodities were largely steady due to data giving mixed signals on China's economy. Stock index futures pointed to a ... EU summit to examine Spain, Greece and banking union The dual problems of Spain and Greece continue to dampen risk assets World stocks flat despite upbeat data, oil down |
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Greek Yields Fall to Lowest Since Debt Swap; German Bonds Drop
 San Francisco Chronicle | Greek Yields Fall to Lowest Since Debt Swap; German Bonds Drop Businessweek Greek government bonds rose, pushing 10-year yields to the lowest level since the nation's debt was restructured in March, after German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said a Greek default “will not happen.” Germany's bonds declined before a report ... EURO GOVT-Greek bonds rally as euro exit risks diminish Euro zone waiting game Euro Rallies as the Greek 10-Year Yield Sets New Lows |
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US, China economic figures shore up markets
LONDON (AP) — Upbeat signs from the world's two largest economies propped up markets Monday, at the start of a week that could offer greater clarity on the economic fates of Greece and Spain.
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A Swedish canary in the Greek coal mine?
 Telegraph.co.uk | A Swedish canary in the Greek coal mine? MarketWatch A Swedish canary in the Greek coal mine? Does the Swedish finance minister know something the rest of the world doesn't? At the latest International Monetary Fund gathering, Sweden's Anders Borg warned that Greece could be out of the single currency ... Borg Sees Little Alternative to Greek Euro Exit: Radio Sweden |
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Euro falls against the dollar in mid-morning NY trade
 Sky News Australia | Euro falls against the dollar in mid-morning NY trade Reuters NEW YORK Oct 15 (Reuters) - The euro fell against the dollar in mid-morning New York trade on Monday, as investors waited for more clarity on a potential Spanish bailout before pushing the common currency higher. Euro zone officials said Spain could ask ... Euro Gains in Tight Range on Spain Uncertainty Expert Opinion On Greece's Illusions And Euro Prospects China economic figures shore up global markets |
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Zeti: Greece Needs Time To Implement Reforms
 Wall Street Journal | Zeti: Greece Needs Time To Implement Reforms Bernama KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 15 (Bernama) -- Debt-crippled Greece should be given more time to implement reforms and clean up its finances, otherwise, an overly-stringent austerity drive could push the country into a prolonged recession and make recovery even ... Germany holds firm on Greece as IMF pressure mounts IMF Says Greece Needs More Time In Greece, 'Hello Pragmatism, Goodbye Austerity' |
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