All Eyes on Greece: Is the IMF Asking for More than PM Tsipras Can Deliver?
Financial markets around the world slipped today on growing fears that Greece may be unable to reach an agreement with her international creditors and thereby default on a $1.6 billion loan repayment due this month. Failure to repay could result in Grexit – the withdrawal of the country from the euro zone.
Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has reportedly rejected IMF counters to the economic reform proposals he laid out at the beginning of the week. These proposals were welcomed by European ministers and the financial markets but it is now clear that what Greece felt it could offer at that time would only represent a starting-point for presumably rather heated discussions.
Before entering talks aimed at securing agreement, Mr Tsipras criticised Greece’s creditors for not accepting the suggestions he had made and for treating Greece differently from other states that had negotiated bailouts. He suggested that this might mean that the creditors did not want to do a deal.
The initial proposals from Greece included higher taxes on corporations and the wealthy, selective VAT increases and a cutting of deficits in the pension system. But right now creditors seem to be insisting on far stronger measures than a left-wing government in Athens could reasonably be expected to stomach.
You may have an interest in also reading…
CORDET Capital: Unlocking the Potential of Northern Europe’s Lower Mid-Market
With a sharp focus on delivering compelling risk-adjusted returns, CORDET Capital has positioned itself as a distinctive force in private
Patient Capital for Industrial Growth: Inside Aurora Growth Capital’s Investment Approach
Aurora Growth Capital, formerly known as NB Aurora, has built a reputation for offering patient capital to Italian SMEs, taking
Net Zero: OECD Report Sets the Record Straight on Economic Benefits
For years, a persistent argument has loomed over the push for net zero: that transitioning to a low-carbon economy costs