http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/debt-crisis-live/9298932/Debt-crisis-live.html
http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_wsite1_2_30/05/2012_444464
( Whoa , this is the item to ponder for the day - what are the subjects of discussion between the Greek President and the Military today ? )
http://hat4uk.wordpress.com/2012/05/30/euroblown-breaking-greece-heading-for-second-stalemate-as-prisons-run-out-of-food-18/
Obese man’s lift stuck
http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_wsite2_1578_29/05/2012_444429
It says reverting to the drachma would see per capita income fall 55 pct
A National Bank of Greece report painted on Tuesday a dramatic picture of the country should it decide to exit the eurozone, less than three weeks before the new general election, while on Wednesday the European Commission is set to recommend the full and uninterrupted implementation of the bailout agreement during the presentation of its reports for individual member states.
The NBG report suggests that the average annual income of each Greek citizen would shrink by no less than 55 percent, with a similar decline in the value of real estate and bank deposits. Per capita income would shrink from 19,400 euros per annum today to just 8,700 euros, which would be lower than that in Croatia, Poland or Latvia.
The country’s gross domestic product would drop by at least 22 percent and the jobless rate would soar to 34 percent, mostly hurting young people, women and low-skilled workers.
Moreover, inflation would jump to 32 percent, with lending rates reaching up to 37 percent while the new national currency would be devalued by up to 65 percent.
The report stresses that an exit from the common currency “does not constitute a case study anymore or a development with a minimal possibility.”
It adds that the atmosphere is so “flammable” that dropping out of the eurozone could even happen due to “improper handling.” In this context the analysts of the country’s biggest bank say that “a stop in funding amounts to immediate default.”
They also suggest that in such a case Greece would require another debt restructuring by 80 percent, with its debt being then in a foreign currency (mostly in euros). The ratio of nonperforming loans to deposits would exceed 33.3 percent.
Finally, the report says, there would be extreme phenomena of uncertainty, social unrest and panic in the economy during the transition to the national currency, while most Greek companies -- especially outward-looking ones -- would face serious problems in the process.
14.04 Euler Hermes, the world's biggest trade insurer, has suspended cover for exporters shipping to Greece amid fears the debt-laden nation could be forced out of the euro, hindering Greek importers' ability to pay their bills.
and did former PM Papademos pour fuel on the Greece fire of fearmongering .......
| Papademos denies Barroso statement pressure | ||||||||||||||||
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Former prime minister Lucas Papademos on Wednesday denied the contents of a recent dispatch by Reuters, according to which European Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso's statement that Greece must abide by its commitments or leave the euro had come at the request of Papademos himself.
"I did not ask of anyone to make any statement, nor did I speak with anyone based upon my own initiative during those days. Some sides want to create a problem," Papademos said to Vima radio station.
According to the Reuters dispatch, Barroso, during an interview on Italian television on May 11 and asked about Syriza leader Alexis Tsipras' plans to annul the bailout agreement, replied that if a member of the club does not follow the rules, it is better for that member to leave the club.
The markets panicked, the Greeks were livid and Barroso drew criticism. According to the dispatch however, which cited an unnamed Commission official, Barroso is said to have had no intention of making such a tough statement, but did so because he received a phone call from then-prime minister Lucas Papademos asking him to do so.
According to Reuters, Papademos was disappointed by the failure to form a coalition government after the May 6 elections in Greece and wanted Barroso to "address a strong message" in the hope that this would awaken the Greek political leaders.
"It was not a Barroso initiative, but a direct request" that did not work, the dispatch cited an unnamed Commission official as saying. (AMNA/AthensNews)
and Democratic Left looks toward Coalition Gov involving ND , Pasok and Dem Left....
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http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_wsite1_2_30/05/2012_444464
( Whoa , this is the item to ponder for the day - what are the subjects of discussion between the Greek President and the Military today ? )
President to meet defense minister, military chiefs
President Karolos Papoulias is to receive the caretaker government's Defense Minister Frangos Frangoulis and the leadership of the country's armed forces for talks at 2.30 p.m. on Wednesday for talks, the president's office said earlier in the day.
No details were released about the reason for the visit nor the contents of the scheduled talks.
On Tuesday, the leader of the ascendant leftist party SYRIZA, Alexis Tsipras, visited the Defense Ministry headquarters, where he condemned previous governments for spending excessively on arms and expressed solidarity with armed forces employeees who have seen their salaries and pensions cut due to austerity measures imposed as part of a debt deal with Greece's foreign creditors.
and while Samaras and Venizelos swear they will seek renegotiation of the debt slavery measures , note the Troika position on that.....
http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_wsite1_1_30/05/2012_444454
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http://hat4uk.wordpress.com/2012/05/30/euroblown-breaking-greece-heading-for-second-stalemate-as-prisons-run-out-of-food-18/
EUROBLOWN BREAKING….Greece heading for second stalemate as prisons run out of food
Obese man’s lift stuck
New opinion polls in this morning’s Greek press have New Democracy and Syriza still way ahead, and Pasok stuck at slightly above its vote last time.
The figures look like this:
5 ND 23,4%, SYRIZA 22,1%, PASOK 13,5%, INDGR 7,4%, ΚΚΕ 5,9%, DEMLEFT 5,1%, Neo Nazis 4,2%.
Still, Berlin-am-Brussels can take some cold comfort in that 54,2% of respondents say the country should ‘accept implementation of the bailout schedules’ as a precondition in order to stay in the eurozone. This does, however, give the lie to German tabloid hysterics insisting that the Greeks want it every which way.
But the obvious news in bold black type is that Athens will be without any clear sight of a ruling Coalition on June 18th. Although the way things are going, by then the whole exercise might by academic anyway: I’m not usually a great supporter of non-political prisoners’ rights, but amidst the deepening Greek crisis, the State budget for many prisons has shrunk to a bare minimum. Hundreds of detainees are malnourished, the Greek newspaper Proto Thema reveals this morning.
At the prison in Corinth, food supplies have stopped completely, so their charges are about to starve say prison staff,…who themselves haven’t received any state funds for the last three months. The response of some Corinth citizens has been a food collection for the prison inmates to support the prisoners, since all protests to the Justice Ministry have proved fruitless.
So, apart from the health service collapsing, pharmacies having no medication, the University budgets having been robbed, the economy shrinking at a record rate and tax intake falling off a cliff, the Berlin-am-Brussels austerity strategy is going really well.
Well Gods, we’ve reached the mad stage. Could we have a little destroying now please?
and....
http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_wsite2_1578_29/05/2012_444429
NBG report warns of euro exit chaos
It says reverting to the drachma would see per capita income fall 55 pct
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The NBG report suggests that the average annual income of each Greek citizen would shrink by no less than 55 percent, with a similar decline in the value of real estate and bank deposits. Per capita income would shrink from 19,400 euros per annum today to just 8,700 euros, which would be lower than that in Croatia, Poland or Latvia.
The country’s gross domestic product would drop by at least 22 percent and the jobless rate would soar to 34 percent, mostly hurting young people, women and low-skilled workers.
Moreover, inflation would jump to 32 percent, with lending rates reaching up to 37 percent while the new national currency would be devalued by up to 65 percent.
The report stresses that an exit from the common currency “does not constitute a case study anymore or a development with a minimal possibility.”
It adds that the atmosphere is so “flammable” that dropping out of the eurozone could even happen due to “improper handling.” In this context the analysts of the country’s biggest bank say that “a stop in funding amounts to immediate default.”
They also suggest that in such a case Greece would require another debt restructuring by 80 percent, with its debt being then in a foreign currency (mostly in euros). The ratio of nonperforming loans to deposits would exceed 33.3 percent.
Finally, the report says, there would be extreme phenomena of uncertainty, social unrest and panic in the economy during the transition to the national currency, while most Greek companies -- especially outward-looking ones -- would face serious problems in the process.
Meanwhile, Brussels is set to confirm on Wednesday that it is freezing Greece’s fiscal adjustment program until a new government to apply it is formed in Athens.
and Greece gets oil but consider the risk premium they are forced to pay Glencore and Vitol ....
http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_wsite2_1_30/05/2012_444518
Glencore, Vitol keep oil flowing to Greece
Trading houses have stepped in as suppliers of last resort ahead of Iran embargo
Debt-stricken Greece is surviving on oil priced at a premium from trading houses Vitol and Glencore, who have stepped in as suppliers of last resort after sanctions forced Greece to halt imports from its main supplier Iran. Greece has been forced to halt Iranian oil purchases because of EU financial sanctions ahead of an oil embargo in effect from July 1. The timing could hardly have been worse for Athens, which had become dependent on Iranian oil because most oil firms and banks would not extend it credit for fear it would default on its debts. Trading sources told Reuters that Vitol and Glencore, the world's No.1 and 2 oil traders, have been supplying the bulk of the needs of Greece's top refiner Hellenic in the last two months. Between them, the two firms have given Greece about 300 million euros ($375 million) in open credit financing, trading sources estimate, allowing Athens to keep buying oil without payment guarantees from banks. Glencore has given credit for about 200 million euros, Vitol about 100 million, the trade sources said. That has allowed Greece to avoid a steep slump in oil refining and escape fuel shortages. But the rescue has come at a price because the trading houses are said by traders at rival companies to be charging a hefty risk premium. Vitol and Glencore declined to comment on their roles in supplying Greece. Hellenic also declined to comment. "It is all very complicated with Greece. Every deal is separate from the other, for every cargo you have different terms,» a trader at one of the two trading houses said. Because of their deep pockets and their willingness to take risk, Vitol and Glencore are the only firms that have been able to keep large quantities of oil flowing to Greece.
"If I had to deliver to Greece now, I would be feeling very uncomfortable,» said a dealer at a Russian trading house who does not supply Greece.
Referring to the risk that the two firms are taking, he added: «An operational hole of $100 million would have killed me. But I guess Glencore or Vitol can afford having it. After all, the Greeks will manage to repay somehow in the future."
State Iraqi and Saudi oil companies continue to supply small amounts of crude to Greece and some companies, including Shell, continue sporadic shipments.
Iran had been offering generous credit terms to sell its oil amid tightening sanctions, and was willing to overlook Greece's debt problems and sell oil via «open credit» - an industry term meaning payments for oil can be delayed for 60-180 days.
The open credit system is risky as neither party has the support of a bank's
letter of credit in case of non-payment.
Last year, Greece turned to Iran as its main supplier despite pressure from Washington and Brussels to end such trade as part of a campaign against Tehran's nuclear program.
Other European Union countries, including Spain and Italy, are phasing out Iranian imports because of sanctions, but none became as reliant on Iran as Greece.
Greek refiners relied on Iran for more than half of its oil imports during some months last year. Hellenic accounts for around 70 percent of the country's refining capacity with three refineries processing around 310,000 barrels per day.
The Iranian flows to Greece dried up in March when EU banks refused to facilitate payments as a result of financial sanctions.
Then, Vitol and Glencore emerged as willing to enter open credit deals with Hellenic. Other firms shied away from making prolonged links, occasionally selling on a spot basis.
The trading houses are sourcing oil from Russia, Kazakhstan and Libya with Glencore supplying two tankers of Russian Urals crude, two Kazakh Caspian blend cargoes and one with Libyan crude a month.
Vitol is supplying one or two cargoes of Urals taking total monthly volumes of supplies by the two traders to about 150,000 barrels per day valued at about $500 million monthly covering over a half of Hellenic's crude needs.
Traders estimated the potential premium Glencore and Vitol is likely to be charging at 50 cents a barrel or more, which would result in an additional payment of at least $2.2 million per month.
"It's not for the faint-hearted, given that European banks cancelled letters of credit a while ago,» said a trader at another Swiss-based trading house. His firm tried to supply Hellenic but found it impossible to take out insurance on these deliveries.
Both Vitol and Glencore declined to say whether they would continue supplies if Greece defaults and leaves the euro zone.
Both traders have a long history of taking on risk in exchange for hefty premiums when supplying crisis and even war-stricken countries - including Libya last year. Both Glencore and Vitol have been buying hard assets including refineries and some traders speculate they might be interested in acquiring Hellenic, partly state-owned and slated for privatization. The companies declined comment on that prospect. Hellenic generates profits despite falling fuel demand in austerity-hit Greece. That may not last indefinitely. With European leaders now openly speaking of the possibility that Greece might be forced out of the euro after an inconclusive election on May 6, the risk involved in extending credit lines to Athens is growing. "Highly indebted deficit nations in the Eurozone are burning oil and gas they cannot afford,» Merrill Lynch said last week noting that Greece's oil demand has fallen 21 percent or 91,000 bpd from 2008 compared to a GDP contraction of 13 percent. "We believe that a Greek euro exit will likely reduce domestic oil demand sharply, as it simply would become unaffordable in a new currency,» it said.
and.....
http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_wsite2_1_29/05/2012_444433
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