http://soberlook.com/2012/09/bank-of-spain-providing-emergency-loans.html?utm_source=BP_recent
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 5, 2012
Bank of Spain providing emergency loans to Spanish banks; pressure mounts on the ECB
Despite the ECB's rhetoric on defending the euro that pushed up global risk asset valuations, the underlying issues of the Eurozone have not been resolved. Signs of the run on Spain's banks are once again in the press. Previously we had Der Spiegel describe the enormous euro deposit outflows from the Spanish banking system (see post). The problem has not gone away and here is an update with some explanations (in italic).
WSJ: - The latest trouble is the inability of Spanish banks to finance themselves through usual means. Capital markets remain largely shut because investors refuse to buy bank bonds at affordable prices. And customers, nervous about the banks' health, are increasingly yanking their deposits.
The banks appear to be exhausting their capacities to wring cash out of the European Central Bank, the lender of last resort for much of Southern Europe's battered financial system [see this discussion on how the National Central Banks fund this lending].
The problems have been building since last fall. But the recent intensification has sent Spanish officials scrambling to prevent their banking system's liquidity problems from escalating into an acute financial crisis. Many experts expect the ECB to ride to the rescue on Thursday by making it easier for euro-zone banks to borrow money from it. [the only way it can make it easier is by loosening the collateral requirements]
In one sign of the mounting pressures, the Bank of Spain appears to have started providing emergency loans to some of the country's banks, according to central-bank data and industry officials [this is alarming because it means that some Spanish banks have run out of eligible collateral].Emergency lending has been used by Ireland (discussed here) and by Greece (discussed here). This is the first indication that Spain's central bank is now deploying this program as well. It explains the urgency behind Rajoy's visit to Germany to expedite Spain's bailout. He wants to make sure if he asks for support, Germany isn't going to block it.
...
Now the collateral problem is rearing up again, with analysts saying some Spanish banks are running low on eligible assets. [see this discussion on how Spain has been desperately trying to come up with new forms of structured securities collateral]
UBS's Alastair Ryan reckons that the Spanish industry is holding a total of about €169 billion of government bonds that could serve as collateral for ECB loans, but that masks the fact that, individually, some lenders have a shortage of collateral. Other assets, such as mortgages, already have been deployed in covered bonds and other securities, so aren't available for future borrowings, Mr. Ryan said.
Reuters: - "The worst thing that could happen is Spain asks for aid and Germany blocks it," said a senior European diplomat.
Last week Rajoy met French President Francois Hollande who nudged him to ask for help before October to give European leaders time to consider it before an Oct. 19-19 summit.
But Rajoy told Hollande he was getting mixed messages from Germany, according to a source who was briefed on the meeting.Berlin wants more details of the problems in Spanish banks, including the results of an audit by global accounting firms due later this month, and regions, which will get 45 billion euros from Spain's central government this year, before backing a bailout.And all this needs to happen fast - before Spain's government budget trajectory (see this discussion) becomes unacceptable to the ECB and the backers of the bond-buying program (particularly in Germany). Signs of budget plans being derailed are already there.
Spain has already been promised up to 100 billion euros of European money to keep its banks afloat. A sovereign bailout could deplete the region's rescue funds, the EFSF and the new ESM that will be the euro zone's permanent rescue fund.The Guardian: - Increased unemployment benefit payments are already putting pressure on Rajoy's budget plans, with figures released on Tuesday showing a 5% increase for the first seven months of the year. The budget minister, Cristóbal Montoro, had predicted that benefit payments, which fall over time for the long-term unemployed, would actually come down by 5% this year.It's difficult to overstate the urgency of Spain's predicament. If the ECB falls short of discussing the full plan for securities purchases this Thursday (with sufficient amount of detail), periphery bonds and other risk assets will see a sharp selloff. Expectations are high and market participants could be in for a disappointment.
and....
http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/2012/09/full-sovereign-bailout-hits-300-billion.html
Wednesday, September 05, 2012 2:35 PM
Spain's Social Security Fund Runs Out of Money; Full Sovereign Bailout Hits €300 Billion; Breathtaking Implosion in Every Way; Five Things Spain Needs to Do
The Spanish implosion in breathtaking in every way: Human Flight, Capital Flight, Real Estate, Employment, and Taxes. The cost of a full bailout is now €300 billion, up from a preposterously low €30 billion projection in June.
€300 billion should not be shocking given my statements on June 9th in Bailout Lite? There's Really No Such Thing; €30 Billion Needed? It's Now €100 Billion; Contagion of Economic Idiocy.
A few days ago Spain was purportedly going to need another €30 billion to €70 billion to recapitalize Spanish banks. I suggested the amount would be at least triple that...triple the upper end of the reported amount. Bear in mind I am just guessing. However, history shows that I am more likely to be on the low end than the high end.
As with Greece, every economic number from Spain is revised to the downside, month in and month out. For now, the EU economic wizards will likely concoct a number just under that alleged "upper limit". My best guess is €90 billion. Then within six months, possibly as soon as the money is handed over, more problems will surface, more meetings will take place, and still more money will be stolen from Spanish taxpayers and handed over to the banks and bondholders.
€300 billion should not be shocking given my statements on June 9th in Bailout Lite? There's Really No Such Thing; €30 Billion Needed? It's Now €100 Billion; Contagion of Economic Idiocy.
A few days ago Spain was purportedly going to need another €30 billion to €70 billion to recapitalize Spanish banks. I suggested the amount would be at least triple that...triple the upper end of the reported amount. Bear in mind I am just guessing. However, history shows that I am more likely to be on the low end than the high end.
As with Greece, every economic number from Spain is revised to the downside, month in and month out. For now, the EU economic wizards will likely concoct a number just under that alleged "upper limit". My best guess is €90 billion. Then within six months, possibly as soon as the money is handed over, more problems will surface, more meetings will take place, and still more money will be stolen from Spanish taxpayers and handed over to the banks and bondholders.
Mish the Optimist
"Within six months" I said. It took three months, proving once again that I tend to be optimistic on such problems.
By the way, with revised sovereign bailout estimates already hitting my €300 billion target, it is best to start thinking in terms of half-a-trillion or more.
Breathtaking Implosion in Every Way
I get links from Bran who lives in Spain nearly every day. I do not have time to translate them all. Here are some links from the past few days with brief comments from Bran.
"Within six months" I said. It took three months, proving once again that I tend to be optimistic on such problems.
By the way, with revised sovereign bailout estimates already hitting my €300 billion target, it is best to start thinking in terms of half-a-trillion or more.
Breathtaking Implosion in Every Way
I get links from Bran who lives in Spain nearly every day. I do not have time to translate them all. Here are some links from the past few days with brief comments from Bran.
- Social Security Fund Runs Out of Money: Social Security pulls from its reserve fund for the first time, using it up almost entirely. Article states there is nothing to stop the government from selling the main SS fund investment to meet payments. Article also notes the fund is invested heavily in Spanish sovereign debt, to the tune of €67.948 billion.
- Cost of Unemployment Benefits Soar: Unemployment benefit cost predictions blow out. The government prediction was -5%. Reality was +5.4%
- Price of Gasoline Soars: Gasoline prices up 75% in the last 4 yrs here and was not cheap to start off with!
- Massive Mortgage Debt: Household debt is €848.222 billion, 76.9% of which is mortgage debt.
- Capital Flight: Clients pull 15.6% of deposits at Novagalicia in the first half.
I have near-endless material on Spain. Here are some additional links, this time from mainstream media.
Brinkmanship Over Bail-Out Terms
Ambrose Evans-Pritchard at The Telegraph notes Brinkmanship as Spain warns over bail-out terms
Spain has issued a veiled warning that it will not accept a full bail-out from Europe if the terms are too harsh, a move that would paralyse the European Central Bank and call the euro’s survival into question.
In an escalating game of brinkmanship, Spanish finance minister Luis de Guindos said his country is not yet willing to sign a Memorandum giving up fiscal sovereignty to EU inspectors. “First of all, one must clarify the conditions,” he told German newspaper Handelsblatt.
Mr de Guindos said the crisis engulfing the region is larger than any one country and warned north Europe not to scapegoat Spain.
The warning comes as German Chancellor Angela Merkel leaves for Madrid for talks with premier Mariano Rajoy to thrash out the conditions of a full sovereign rescue of up €300bn (£238bn), beyond the €100bn bank rescue already agreed.
It emerged today that Spain’s social security system has raided a rainy-day fund to cover state pensions for the first time as deepening recession erodes contributions.Spaniards Pull Out Their Cash and Get Out of Spain
Meanwhile, official data shows that the toxic property loans of Spain’s four nationalised banks have reached €75bn and are rising faster than feared. Bankia’s “potentially problematic” loans are €42bn. The biggest surprise is a 50pc surge in bad debts to €9bn at Cataluyna Caixa since January. Non-payments on mortgages have doubled.
Net claims on Spain through the ECB’s Target 2 payments system have reached 39pc of GDP.
“The build-up in central bank liabilities is explosive,” said Nomura’s Jens Nordvig.
The New York Times reports Fears Rising, Spaniards Pull Out Their Cash and Get Out of Spain
“The macro situation in Spain is getting worse and worse,” Mr. Vildosola, 38, said last week just hours before boarding a plane to London with his wife and two small children. “There is just too much risk. Spain is going to be next after Greece, and I just don’t want to end up holding devalued pesetas.”In July, Spaniards withdrew a record 75 billion euros, or $94 billion, from their banks — an amount equal to 7 percent of the country’s overall economic output — as doubts grew about the durability of Spain’s financial system.
The deposit outflow in Spain reflects a broader capital flight problem that is by far the most serious in the euro zone. According to a recent research note from Nomura, capital departing the country equaled a startling 50 percent of gross domestic product over the past three months — driven largely by foreigners unloading stocks and bonds but also by Spaniards transferring their savings to foreign banks.
More disturbing for Spain is that the flight is starting to include members of its educated and entrepreneurial elite who are fed up with the lack of job opportunities in a country where the unemployment rate touches 25 percent.
According to official statistics, 30,000 Spaniards registered to work in Britain in the last year, and analysts say that this figure would be many multiples higher if workers without documents were counted.
“It seems as if everyone I know in Spain is getting on an easyJet to come to London and open a bank account,” said one such banker, who spoke on condition of anonymity, citing his company’s policy.
That is what Mr. Vildosola did before he took the more drastic step of moving his family to England.Key Question
“It’s sad,” he said. “But I just don’t think there is a future for me in Spain right now.”
The key question now regarding Spain is whether human and capital flight is excessively pessimistic or simply the recognition phase that things far worse are coming.
Sadly, I believe the latter. The reason is Spain needs to do a number of things and it is on a track to do none of them.
Five Things Spain Needs to Do
- Exit the Euro
- Institute major changes in work rules
- Revamp its pension system
- Lower taxes in general, especially corporate income taxes and the VAT
- Write off bad property loans
How many of those things is Spain doing? The answer is zero. Actually, the answer is negative given Spain is foolishly hiking taxes, exactly the wrong thing to do.
The situation in Spain is hopeless. Expect more capital and human flight.
Mike "Mish" Shedlock
and...
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/spain-beginning-end-arrives-bank-spain-starts-using-ela
For Spain, The Beginning Of The End Arrives As Bank Of Spain Starts Using ELA
As we described in detail yesterday, things are going from worse to worserer as the problems in Spain - more specifically in its banking sector - are deepening as deposit flight accelerates. As the WSJnotes PIMCOs' comment: "A bank 'jog' is happening in Spain - the private sector is leaving the banking system." But the Bank of Spain isn't leaving anything to chance. The WSJ disconcertingly highlights that last month the central bank appears for the first time to have activated an emergency lending program that will enable its banks to borrow from the Bank of Spain directly, bypassing the ECB's relatively tough collateral demands.
The so-called Emergency Liquidity Assistance program is shrouded in secrecy, and the Bank of Spain won't confirm that it has been used. The Bank of Spain appears to have doled out about EUR400mm under the program, based on publicly available data. That would make Spain at least the fourth euro-zone country - following Greece, Ireland and Portugal - to use the ELA, which generally is reserved for situations when banks have exhausted all other financing options.
As we pointed out yesterday, this would appear to confirm a "full-blown bailout" is imminent, as the collateral problems mount.
and The Bank of Spain was quick to respond to this reality (with a denial):
Bank of Spain comments in e-mailed statement on WSJ report that central bank provided ELA to lenders:Sept. 5 (Bloomberg) -- Bank of Spain says“liquidity provision to banks other than ordinary monetary policy operations represents an insignificant fraction of total lending by the Bank of Spain to financial system.”Measures adopted to lift restrictions on interest rates on deposits is not aimed at helping banks attract deposits, central bank says
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/ecb-backtracks-draghi-will-not-pursue-yield-caps-will-sterilize-bond-buys-merely-smp-continuati
( If accurate , this will be a disappointment ! However , as this could be a trial balloon for market reaction , let's wait and see what is actually rolled out Thursday morning..)
No Bazooka As ECB Backtracks: Draghi Won't Pursue Yield Caps, To Sterilize Bond Buys In SMP Continuation
In what can only be interpreted as a huge disappointment for the ECB and Draghi yielding to German demands, Bloomberg has leaked what likely will be the final plan of the ECB tomorrow, which contrary to previously rumors stating that the ECB will pursue yield caps, or even just buy bonds on an unsterilized basis, appears to be a huge dud:
- ECB BOND PLAN SAID TO REFRAIN FROM SETTING PUBLIC YIELD CAPS
- DRAGHI'S BOND PLAN SAID TO PLEDGE UNLIMITED,STERILIZED BUYING
- ECB PLAN SAID TO FOCUS ON GOVT BONDS, MATURITIES UP TO 3 YEARS
- ECB SAID TO CONSIDER SELLING BONDS IF CONDITIONS NOT MET
- ECB PLAN SAID TO STRESS CONDITIONALITY OF ANY BOND PURCHASES
- ECB BOND PLAN SAID TO HAVE BROAD COUNCIL SUPPORT - but not unanimous, as Germany again objects
The keyword above is highlighted: sterilized, which simply means for those who are unaware, such as all the algos taking the EURUSD higher, that the ECB's entire overhyped plan is nothing more than a continuation of the Securities Market Program, or the SMP, which has been dormant for over 25 weeks, and which was deactivated because it did not work! Because sterilized means no new money enters the system, something which for Europe is unacceptable considering Spain alone is now seeing $100 billion in outflows each month.
It also means this is merely a flow-targeting program, and one which does nothing to actually stimulate inflation with new money creation.
Bottom line: if this is indeed the final shape of the ECB "bazooka" tomorrow the market will be hugely disappointed. And yes, it will send the steepness of PIIGS bonds to records if only for a few weeks, but all short-term bond buying will achieve is selling in long-term bonds. In other words, expect to see the Spanish 2s10s in the quadruple digits the fulcrum country of the Eurozone project quielty implodes.
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/germany-steals-draghis-bazooka-main-event-monetization-mutiny-grows
Germany Steals Draghi's Bazooka Before The Main Event As Monetization Mutiny Grows
- Bond
- European Central Bank
- Eurozone
- Finland
- France
- Germany
- Hyperinflation
- Italy
- Monetization
- Netherlands
- Sovereign Debt
With one day to go until the European soap opera hits its peak, and with the ECB doing all it can to spread disinformation and sow discord and disunity between Germany and everyone else on both the ECB governing council and everywhere else, Germany has decided to again make it clear just where it stands on the topic of hyperinflation and other printing matters:
- FUCHS WARNS THAT ECB BOND PURCHASING COULD LEAD TO INFLATION
- GERMAN LAWMAKER FUCHS, MERKEL ALLY, SPEAKS WITH BLOOMBERG TV
- CDU'S FUCHS SAYS AGAINST EXCESSIVE ECB BOND PURCHASING
- FUCHS WARNS THAT ECB BOND PURCHASING COULD LEAD TO INFLATION
- CDU'S FUCHS SAYS 'QUITE POSITIVE' SPAIN, ITALY WILL IMPROVE
- GERMAN COURT LIKELY TO BACK ESM, CDU'S FUCHS SAYS
And the punchline:
- ECB'S DRAGHI DOESN'T HAVE 'TOO MUCH' SUPPORT FROM MERKEL, MERKEL BACKS WEIDMANN
- ECB CAN ONLY BUY BONDS ATTACHED TO CONDITIONALITY
Which once again goes back to the simple argument: unless Draghi has the full explicit support of Europe's paymaster, anyone hoping for anything definitive, and bazooka-like, will be certainly disappointed.But wait, there is much more. Readers may recall that yesterday that one of the articles we pointed out came from Dutch Dagblad which suggested that it was Weidmann who was isolated on the ECB governing council, and that the Dutch member of the ECB council Klass Knot as well as all other members was "for buying government bonds of Southern European countries." Well, prepare to be shocked, because what kind of soap opera would it be if it wasn't for unexpected narrative plot lines. Today, Frankfurt-based Market News reported precisely the opposite, and not only is Knot on the same side as the Germans, but so are virtually all the other "virtuous" European countries, aka the non-beggars.From Market News:The primary divide on the Governing Council of the European Central Bank is not between Bundesbank President Jens Weidmann and ECB President Mario Draghi, as the public supposes, but rather between the heads of the Dutch National Bank and the Bank of Spain, according to an article in the Financial Times Deutschland on Wednesday.
The FTD reported that while Weidmann, in the words of unnamed sources, will vote against bond buys “in any case,” it is Klaas Knot from the Netherlands who is marshalling other skeptics to attach as many conditions as possible to the purchases.Bank of Finland Governor Erkki Liikanen and Belgian National Bank chief Luc Coene are among those in his camp, the paper said.Meanwhile, Spain’s Luis Linde leads a majority of Council members in favor of implementing a sovereign debt purchasing program quickly and with as few conditions as possible, the FTD reported.Italy is clearly on Spain’s side, while France also harbours sympathy for their position, the paper said.Draghi himself is in the middle, determined to keep the Eurozone intact at almost any price but unwilling to intervene in markets in a way that would lead to what the paper called “systematic government financing.”
How droll: when stripped of its apolitical mask, the ECB is split along the lines in the same way as Europe's politicians: the broke and the solvent, and to nobody's surprise the broke want endless bailouts from the solvent, i.e., unconditional money printing which will result in inflation hitting the solvent, while the solvent won't hear about it unless the broke subject themselves to being controlled by the solvent.
And so we are back to square one.
and.....
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/german-10-year-bond-auction-suffers-technical-failure
German 10 Year Bond Auction Suffers Technical Failure
This morning, Germany attempted to sell €5 billion in 1.5% 10 Year bonds. It sold just €3.61 billion directly to investors (who had submitted a less than auction clearing €3.91 billion in bids), forcing the German Treasury to retain 27.8% of the auction, €1.39 billion: the highest retained amount since November 2011 when it was 39%. For one reason or another: the yield was too low at 1.42% (compared to the 1.634 average), there was much more supply elsewhere, fears of what the ECB will do tomorrow, or who knows - the real bid to cover was a paltry 0.79 (all in BTC 1.09 including government retention) compared to 1.57 at the last auction and a 1.31 average at the past 4 auctions. In other words the auction was for all technical reasons, a failure, and only the second such "failure" of 2012. The immediate reaction was Bund futures down 22 ticks at 143.28 vs 143.70 before auction as the market digested the surprising disappointment, with the German 10-year government bond yield up 2.4 basis points at 1.41 percent vs 1.37 percent before auction. In summary, if the Germans needed any more reasons that funding the insolvent Eurozone at all costs up to an including debt monetizations, which may result in failed bond auctions for German itself, are not in their best interest, they just got one. The good news: in an email sent out immediately by the German Finance agency, the bond sale was "not a risk to the budget." Wouldn't want a failed bond auction to jeopardize the budget now.
From Reuters:
* * *"The figures once again show that the market environment is very volatile and is holding back on purchases given upcoming decisions," the German finance agency said, referring to a pending interest rate decision from the ECB due on Thursday.Financial markets have broadly priced in a 25 basis point cut in the ECB's key interest rates to a record low 0.5 percent on Thursday to stimulate growth and as part of its efforts to lower peripheral bond yields. Economists polled by Reuters expect a cut either on Thursday or in October.Demand was also affected by heavy supply elsewhere in the euro zone. The Netherlands is selling a three-year dollar-denominated bond on Wednesday while triple-A rated Austria also sold bonds on Tuesday.Only one other German auction has failed to draw bids to cover the amount on offer this year - that was the launch of the previous 10-year benchmark, the July 2022 bond, in April.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/debt-crisis-live/9521686/Debt-crisis-live.html
He believes the cost of the Greek tourist industry and export industry are simply too high and cannot be lowered in the traditional way - ie via prices and wages. He said:
It has to be done by devaluation.
That means a return to the drachma.
He doesn't stop there:
Now with respect to the other countries, I would say… if we are very negative… I’m an optimist, but if you [are] a pessimist, you would say possibly – over the next ten to fifteen years, the whole south has to leave.
11.27 And in Greece, hospital doctors - amongst others - are on strike today. The medics' action will continue until the end of their morning shift, when they will march on Syntagma Square. Ekathimerini writes:
In northern Greece, a group of doctors and administrators at the General University Hospital of Thessaloniki barged into the director's office demanding to be paid money owed for overtime and emergency shifts, saying that further salary cuts would push them to take more action.
Meanwhile, six unions representing different sectors of the judiciary have organized a protest rally for Wednesday at 12.30 p.m. in front of the Supreme Court on Alexandras Avenue, while police, firefighting and coast guard officers are expected to hold a rally on Thursday afternoon at the Kallimarmaro Stadium.
10.15 More economic data out of the eurozone. This time, it shows that retail sales in the bloc ended a two-month run of gains in July, falling 0.2pc month-on-month. Sales volumes fell 7pc alone in Spain year-on-year.
09.57 But, market-watchers do not seem to be too hopeful about any definitive action coming out of the ECB meeting tomorrow. With scepticism setting in, the euro is down against the dollar this morning, slipping to $1.2512.
09.41 It's going to be busy round the boardroom table at the meeting of the ECB's governing council tomorrow. Jean-Claude Juncker, the chairman of the eurozone's 17 finance ministers, is also attending, his office said this morning.
09.34 And in the eurozone as a whole, figures from Markit showed the economic downturn continued in August. At 46.3, down slightly from 46.5 in July, the Markit Eurozone PMI Composite Output Index came in below its earlier flash estimate of 46.6.
Markit said the downturn was again steeper in the manufacturing sector and service sector business activity fell for the seventh straight month in August.
Rob Dobson, senior economist at Markit, said the eurozone economy was on course to fall back into technical recession in the third quarter:
Some heart can be taken from the recent recovery in Ireland, which is providing hope to others that a return to growth is possible, and further evidence that the downturns in Italy and Spain may at least be easing. The looming concern is the increasing signs of weakness coming out of Germany, the nation others were looking to as a pillar to prop up growth in the broader currency region. With its export engine in reverse gear and domestic demand faltering this is looking less likely as the year progresses. If the core nations falter, the outlook for the periphery will surely worsen.
09.31 Germany suffered its sharpest drop in services activity since July 2009, with the business activity index falling to 48.3 in August from 50.3 the previous month.
09.05 Italy's services sector shrank for the 15th month in a row in August. The Markit/ADACI Business Index came in at 44 compared to 43 in July, well below the 50 mark that separates growth from contraction.
09.00 Spain's services sector also shrank. The Purchasing Managers' Index for the sector covering cafes to banks contracted for the 14th month in a row in August. It stood at 44, compared to 43.7 in July; anything below 50 marks a contraction rather than growth.
08.52 European services sector data is coming through this morning (as you'll no doubt recall, the UK's data was inadvertently revealed yesterday and it showed the strongest performance in five months).
France's services sector contracted in August, dropping to 49.2 from 50 in July, falling short of an earlier flash estimate of 50.2. That decline came as companies shed jobs at their fastest pace in nearly two and a half years.
and.....
http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_wsite1_1_05/09/2012_459768
Strike action heats up over salary cuts
Several sectors in the civil service that are on a so-called «special pay-scale» because of the nature of their work, are ramping up the pressure on the government to rethink slashing salaries in their sectors as part of a package of horizontal cuts across the civil service.
Hospital doctors started the action on Wednesday with a strike that began at 11 a.m. and will continue until the end of the morning shift, culminating with a protest march at Syntagma Square at noon.
In northern Greece, a group of doctors and administrators at the General University Hospital of Thessaloniki barged into the director's office demanding to be paid money owed for overtime and emergency shifts, saying that further salary cuts would push them to take more action.
Meanwhile, six unions representing different sectors of the judiciary have organized a protest rally for Wednesday at 12.30 p.m. in front of the Supreme Court on Alexandras Avenue, while police, firefighting and coast guard officers are expected to hold a rally on Thursday afternoon at the Kallimarmaro Stadium.
The issue of salary cuts is also expected to be focal point of a meeting on Wednesday between university rectors, who have said that they are ready to begin striking on Monday if average cuts of 17.5 percent are imposed on their wages.
and...
http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_wsite2_1_04/09/2012_459737
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