Greece crisis: Europe on edge over snap election

[TomandJerry]

Three days ago:

Greece has been pushed a step closer to default and potential exit from the euro after one of its main lenders, the International Monetary Fund, all but ruled out allowing the cash-strapped country to delay repaying the €1bn (£722m) due next month.

The head of the IMF, Christine Lagarde, said delaying the payments would be an unprecedented action that would only make the situation worse.


Today:

The European Central Bank has raised the prospect of Greece crashing out of the euro after it said financial buffers were sufficient to prevent contagion to other weak economies in the currency union.

ECB president Mario Draghi said funds were sufficient to cope should Athens default on its debts, but warned that Europe would be entering “uncharted waters” that made the outcome of a default uncertain.

 

[carlzeiss]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-32864068

 

[TomandJerry]

Greece cannot make debt repayments to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) next month unless it achieves a deal with creditors, its interior minister said on Sunday, the most explicit remarks yet from Athens about the likelihood of default if talks fail.

Shut out of the bond markets and with bailout aid locked, cash-strapped Athens has been scraping state coffers to meet debt obligations and to pay wages and pensions.
After four months of talks with its eurozone partners and the IMF, the country’s Syriza-led government is still scrambling for a deal that could release up to €7.2bn (£5.1bn) in remaining aid to avert bankruptcy.

 

[TomandJerry]

Live today

Tsipras: Creditors won't accept our proposals

The wheels may be coming off.....

The Greek government has just criticised the country’s lenders for not accepting its latest proposals.

Greek gov't briefing Tsipras is unhappy lenders not accepting some measures, says this is unprecedented, questions if they want deal #Greece

According to FT Brussels bureau chief Peter Spiegel, Greece’s creditors are unhappy that Athens is backtracking on parts of the deal submitted early on Monday.

Told #Greece "prior actions" list submitted y'day walked back previous commitments, angering creditors. Story soon:


http://www.theguardian.com/business/live/2015/jun/24/greek-crisis-eurogroup-meeting-tsipras-backlash-live

 

[TomandJerry]

Current stock market graph

 

[TomandJerry]

Tsipras: Creditors may be serving 'specific interests'

My colleague Helena Smith has got hold of the statement just released by the Greek government.

And it shows that prime minister Alexis Tsipras says the refusal of creditors to accept Athens’ latest proposals is not only unprecedented but has “never happened either in Italy, Portugal. Nowhere!”

Me thinks Greece will be leaving

 

[ditchy]

Tsipras: Creditors may be serving 'specific interests'

My colleague Helena Smith has got hold of the statement just released by the Greek government.

And it shows that prime minister Alexis Tsipras says the refusal of creditors to accept Athens’ latest proposals is not only unprecedented but has “never happened either in Italy, Portugal. Nowhere!”

Me thinks Greece will be leaving

Creditors rejected certain proposals from Athens-Greek official
ATHENS, JUNE 24
Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has attacked the stance of "certain" creditors as "strange" because they rejected proposals presented by Athens to bridge a budget gap, a government official said on Wednesday.

Tsipras made the comments before heading to Brussels to meet the chiefs of Greece's three creditor institutions - the European Commission, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund, the official said in a statement.

It did not say which proposals Tsipras was referring to, and which of the three institutions he was blaming for the deadlock.

"The non-acceptance of offsetting measures has never happened before. Neither in Ireland nor in Portugal. Nowhere!" the official quoted Tsipras as saying. "This strange attitude can only mean one of two things: either they do not want an agreement or they are serving specific interests in Greece."Reuters

 

[TomandJerry]

Creditors rejected certain proposals from Athens-Greek official
ATHENS, JUNE 24
Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has attacked the stance of "certain" creditors as "strange" because they rejected proposals presented by Athens to bridge a budget gap, a government official said on Wednesday.

Tsipras made the comments before heading to Brussels to meet the chiefs of Greece's three creditor institutions - the European Commission, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund, the official said in a statement.

It did not say which proposals Tsipras was referring to, and which of the three institutions he was blaming for the deadlock.

"The non-acceptance of offsetting measures has never happened before. Neither in Ireland nor in Portugal. Nowhere!" the official quoted Tsipras as saying. "This strange attitude can only mean one of two things: either they do not want an agreement or they are serving specific interests in Greece."Reuters

"In short, Greece is unhappy that the IMF won’t support its plan to raise €8bn from taxes on businesses, shoppers, income tax payers and pensioners."

 

[Simster]

"In short, Greece is unhappy that the IMF won’t support its plan to raise €8bn from taxes on businesses, shoppers, income tax payers and pensioners."

I've been baffled by the way Tsipras has gone about some of what he's done, but if that's true then I'd want reasons too.

 

[TomandJerry]

FTSE Athex Banking index drops >7% on debt talk angst. Acc to Greek official, #IMF has rejected Greek tax proposals.

 

[TomandJerry]

According to sources the IMF requires the following:
- Raise the VAT to 23% for restaurants , cafes etc.
- 100% tax deposit from legal entities
- Elimination of tax exemptions on agricultural fuels
- Reduction of defense spending by 400 million. (Instead of 200)
- A smaller increase in taxation of legal persons (from 26% to 28% and not 29% as proposed)
- Removed the e-gaming tax - VLTs (slots)
- They removed the license revenues for 4G and 5G
- They removed the tax exemptions for the inhabitants of the islands (which will reimburse the VAT increase )
- Insist on full implementation of the Law 3863/10 (mainly the calculation of pensions)
- Insist for equivalents fir the suspension of the zero deficit clause
- Seek savings 0.25 % -0.5 % of GDP in 2015 and 1% for 2016
- Full elimination of early retirement until 2022 (at 67 years regardless of years of service or 62 years with 40 years of work)
- Remove / replace the EKAS (social solidarity benefit for pensioners with low income) until December 2017
- Increase retired health contributions from 4% to 6%
- Gradual abolition of all exemptions are financed from the state budget and harmonization of insurance contributions to IKA (insurance institution) structure from July 1, 2015
- Remove all contributions to third parties (eg aggeliosimo which is a contribution for the insurance institute for journalists) until October 31, 2015
- Find equivalents that will cover the cost of any Council of State decision against any measure.


http://www.defencenet.gr/defence/item/ραγδαίες-εξελίξεις-στις-βρυξέλλες-oι-δανειστές-απορρίπτουν-τα-προαπαιτούμενα-και-ετοιμάζουν

 

[Triggaaar]

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has attacked the stance of "certain" creditors as "strange"

lol

"The non-acceptance of offsetting measures has never happened before. Neither in Ireland nor in Portugal. Nowhere!" the official quoted Tsipras as saying. "This strange attitude can only mean one of two things: either they do not want an agreement or they are serving specific interests in Greece."Reuters

Maybe it hasn't happened in Ireland or Portugal because they haven't fuc*ed up their economy as much as Greece. Maybe there's a third possible reason why your suggestion has been rejected - because it's shit.

 

[TomandJerry]

"Greece’s Enikos newspaper has confirmed that the IMF presented Greece with new counter-proposals.

And they do indeed insisting on tougher pension and VAT reforms -- to yield a full 1% of GDP, and a smaller rise in corporation tax.

The IMF also wants early retirement rules to be tightened up faster, and and end to lower VAT rates in Greek islands (a red line for Tsipras’s coalition partners, ANEL)."

Tsipras will now decline the counter-offer

 

[yxee]

Of course they are serving specific interests. The interests of whomever foots the bill of this "rescue".

Surprise surprise, if you employ brinkmanship for five months then people you are asking for money from will treat you with suspicion.

 

[Bry Nylon]

Given that Greece lied with regard to their economic position so they would meet the criteria for joining the Euro why should anyone accept what they say now?

Greeks have enjoyed ridiculously early retirement, fat pensions and a somewhat relaxed attitude to tax contributions for generations but every party has to come to an end sometime.

 

[TomandJerry]

The Athens stock market was deep in the red as Alexis Tsipras’s meeting with creditors began - down around 4.5%. Bank shares are down 10%.

 

[Commander]

I'm going to Greece in September. Will it be cheap?

 

[TomandJerry]

I'm going to Greece in September. Will it be cheap?

If Greece agrees to the IMF, tax goes up to 28% so no!

 

[beorhthelm]

Given that Greece lied with regard to their economic position so they would meet the criteria for joining the Euro why should anyone accept what they say now?

i rather think that is why the creditors are being so hard. after all, this is over a loan to pay off existing loans, and they haven't implemented what they promised earlier in the year (remember that, them insisting no agreement needed to be made, please just roll over the debt until full negotiations can be had later. these are those negotiations.)

 

[yxee]

I wouldn't say the creditors are even being "hard". They're just not stupid.