Greece is set to meet its financial obligations to the IMF and pay workers’ salaries and pensions next week, a government source said on Friday, easing speculation that Athens could default on its debts with unknowable consequences for global markets.
“Everything that should be paid next week, the IMF, wages, pensions, will be,” the source said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Greece must pay the IMF 460 million euros (US$501.17 million) by Thursday next week to meet the conditions of its loan agreement, and speculation had been rife it would fail to pay if forced to choose between workers and the institution.
Another source told reporters that the payment of 250 million euros in interest due later this month and the 2.4 billion euros’ worth of government bonds due to mature on April 13 and 17 were also no longer sources of anxiety for Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras’ administration.
Reducing Greek debt — which last year reached 176 percent of national output — is among the main priorities of Tsipras’ SYRIZA party.
IMF and EU analysts are scrutinizing a list of economic reforms proposed by Athens in a bid to unlock another 7.2 billion euros in loans to stave off possible bankruptcy and a euro exit.
Two meetings of eurozone analysts are due to take place next week on the topic of Athens’ finances.
Since 2010, Athens has received two successive loans from the EU and the IMF totaling 240 billion euros in exchange for tough austerity measures.
In related news, Cyprus is to scrap its last remaining capital controls, two years after they were imposed in the heat of its banking crisis, Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades said on Friday.
In a televised news conference on the economy, Anastasiades said the last of the draconian measures — imposed to avoid a run on banks — would be lifted on Monday.
“The removal of the remaining restrictions marks the final restoration of confidence in our banking system,” Anastasiades said.
“This reinforces the positive outlook for raising investment under conditions of full trust and confidence,” he said. “It strengthens the ability of the banks to raise capital and safely finance the economy.”
After a three-year recession Cyprus expects to return to marginal growth this year.
Cypriot authorities closed the banks for two weeks in March 2013 as they put the final touches on a 10 billion euro bailout from the EU and the IMF.
They imposed a raft of measures on domestic and international capital movements when the banks reopened. All domestic capital restrictions were lifted in May last year.
TECH CLUSTER: The US company’s new office is in the Shalun Smart Green Energy Science City, a new AI industry base and cybersecurity hub in southern Taiwan US chip designer Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD) yesterday launched an office in Tainan’s Gueiren District (歸仁), marking a significant milestone in the development of southern Taiwan’s artificial intelligence (AI) industry, the Tainan City Government said in a statement. AMD Taiwan general manager Vincent Chern (陳民皓) presided over the opening ceremony for the company’s new office at the Shalun Smart Green Energy Science City (沙崙智慧綠能科學城), a new AI industry base and cybersecurity hub in southern Taiwan. Facilities in the new office include an information processing center, and a research and development (R&D) center, the Tainan Economic Development Bureau said. The Ministry
ADVERSARIES: The new list includes 11 entities in China and one in Taiwan, which is a local branch of Chinese cloud computing firm Inspur Group The US added dozens of entities to a trade blacklist on Tuesday, the US Department of Commerce said, in part to disrupt Beijing’s artificial intelligence (AI) and advanced computing capabilities. The action affects 80 entities from countries including China, the United Arab Emirates and Iran, with the commerce department citing their “activities contrary to US national security and foreign policy.” Those added to the “entity list” are restricted from obtaining US items and technologies without government authorization. “We will not allow adversaries to exploit American technology to bolster their own militaries and threaten American lives,” US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick said. The entities
Minister of Finance Chuang Tsui-yun (莊翠雲) yesterday told lawmakers that she “would not speculate,” but a “response plan” has been prepared in case Taiwan is targeted by US President Donald Trump’s reciprocal tariffs, which are to be announced on Wednesday next week. The Trump administration, including US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent, has said that much of the proposed reciprocal tariffs would focus on the 15 countries that have the highest trade surpluses with the US. Bessent has referred to those countries as the “dirty 15,” but has not named them. Last year, Taiwan’s US$73.9 billion trade surplus with the US
The Taipei International Cycle Show (Taipei Cycle) yesterday opened at the Taipei Nangang Exhibition Center, with the event’s organizer expecting a steady recovery in the industry this year following a tough last year. This year, 980 companies from 35 countries are participating in the annual bicycle trade show, showcasing technological breakthroughs and market development trends of the bicycle industry at 3,600 booths, the Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA, 外貿協會) said in a statement. Under the theme “Ride the Revolution,” the exhibition has attracted more than 3,500 international buyers from 80 countries to preregister for the four-day event, which is expected to