Financial Times
May 24, 2011
Form an orderly queue for the great Greek fire-sale. Athens has given some detail on its intention to raise €50bn by 2015 from the sale of state assets. If the stakes were not so high, this privatisation programme would be cause for admiration. In the context of the crisis Greece finds itself in, however, the plan borders on the improbable. If investors are shunning Greek debt (its 2-year bonds yield 24.5 per cent), it is hard to see why they would suddenly develop an appetite for Greek equities.
Sure, the share prices of already-listed entities such as telecoms group OTE and Hellenic Postbank rose on Tuesday – by 6 per cent and 8.5 per cent, respectively. But these are small companies. The 16 per cent stake for sale in OTE is worth only €528m, and Deutsche Telekom already owns 30 per cent, so the sale is unlikely to attract rivals. And even if the government can squeeze the best possible prices for the assets, Athens will raise no more than about €16bn up to 2013. The headline figure of €50bn will not fool anybody.
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