September 20, 2011
Nerves over whether Greece would get more bailout loans from the EU, IMF and European Central Bank continued into a second night as Athens' finance minister Evangelos Venizelos conducted another round of emergency talks with the country's international creditors.
Under pressure to rein in a debt load of €360bn (£313bn) and a deficit that, at more than 9% of GDP, is expected to be massively off-target by December, the Greek government was desperately struggling to get the figures right before the fierce horse-trading.
"It is tough. The atmosphere is tense," said one official. "But the good news is that it's almost certain the talks will be concluded. "
If successful, the cash-strapped country will avert bankruptcy by taking a new disbursement of funds drawn from the €110bn rescue package it received in May 2010. The news will come as a relief to public sector employees whose salaries and pensions will have to be paid from the cash instalment. With coffers nearly empty, Athens had admitted that without the cash injection it would not be able to pay.
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