Ευρωβαρόμετο: Οι Ελληνες πρωταθλητές στη "μαύρη εργασία"

Ημερησία
26 Μαρτίου 2014

Περίπου τρεις στους δέκα Έλληνες (30%) παραδέχονται ότι το προηγούμενο έτος, αγόρασαν αγαθά ή υπηρεσίες που ήταν προϊόντα αδήλωτης εργασίας. Το ποσοστό αυτό είναι το υψηλότερο στην «ΕΕ των 28» και έχει αυξηθεί δραματικά σε σχέση με το 2007 (όταν ήταν μόλις 17%), σύμφωνα με στοιχεία του ευρωβαρόμετρου για την αδήλωτη εργασία που δόθηκαν σήμερα στη δημοσιότητα.

Συγκεκριμένα, στο ερώτημα «έχετε πληρώσει αγαθά και υπηρεσίες με σοβαρές υποψίες ότι περιλάμβαναν αδήλωτη εργασία (χωρίς απόδειξη και ΦΠΑ), κατά τους τελευταίους 12 μήνες;», θετικά απαντά το 30% των Ελλήνων, έναντι 11% στην ΕΕ. Τα υψηλότερα ποσοστά καταγράφονται στην Ελλάδα (30%), στην Ολλανδία (29%), στη Λετονία (28%) και στη Δανία (23%). Τα χαμηλότερα ποσοστά καταγράφονται στη Μ. Βρετανία (8%), στη Γερμανία (7%) και στην Πολωνία (5%).

Στο ερώτημα «γνωρίζετε άτομα που εργάζονται χωρίς να δηλώνουν το εισόδημα ή μέρος του εισοδήματός τους στην εφορία;» θετικά απαντά το 54% των Ελλήνων (32% στην ΕΕ). Το ποσοστό αυτό είναι το τρίτο υψηλότερο στην ΕΕ μετά τη Δανία (59%) και την Ολλανδία (55%). Τα χαμηλότερα ποσοστά καταγράφονται στην Ιρλανδία (25%), στη Μάλτα, στη Ρουμανία (20%) και στη Μ. Βρετανία (15%).

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Greece Able to Call Its Own Tune

by Simon Nixon

Wall Street Journal
March 23, 2014

The euro crisis started in Greece, and it won't be over until doubts over Greece's prospects are erased.

That this is still some way off was clear from Greece's latest bailout review, the longest and most attritional yet. After seven months of haggling, the troika of official lenders—the European Commission, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund—reached a deal last week that should be formalized by European Union finance ministers next month. It paves the way for the release of €8 billion ($11 billion) needed to repay maturing bonds.

But the striking feature of this agreement was the extent to which Athens got its way on vital issues relating to the budget, bank recapitalization and structural reform. That is a mark of how far a recovering economy, buoyant markets and increasing confidence in Prime Minister Antonis Samaras have changed the terms of engagement.

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Golden Dawn: courage of two women stems the rise of Greece's neo-Nazis

by Helena Smith

The Observer
March 23, 2014

For half a year they have sat in their seventh-floor office, probing the murky depths of Europe's most violent political force. It is not a mission that many would envy. But Ioanna Klapa and Maria Dimitropoulou, long-time friends who belong to Greece's first generation of female judges, have gone about the business of dissecting Golden Dawn with the precision of a surgeon.

After trawling though computers confiscated from the far-right party's leaders, examining witnesses and wading through thousands of videos, pictures, speeches, documents and blogs, the court officials have compiled a 15,000-page dossier outlining why they believe Golden Dawn is a criminal organisation.

Under the weight of their inquiry – spurred by the murder of a leftwing musician at the hands of a senior party operative in September last year – the extremist group has begun to crack. Last week one Golden Dawn MP resigned, citing ignorance of the party's activities. Another was expelled after indicating that he, too, was about to leave.

"The justice system is one of the few meritocratic institutions in Greece and both of these women are known to be enormously courageous, fiercely independent and non-partisan," said Aliki Mouriki, a sociologist at the National Centre of Social Research. "For a party that is so macho and militaristic, it is an irony of history that two women should now be in this role."

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For Greek Workers, a Dreaded Day Arrives

by Stelios Bouras

Wall Street Journal
March 22, 2014

Last year, soon-to-be-unemployed school guard Eleni Pappa faced an ugly dilemma: which of her two children would have to give up their studies.

Ms. Pappa, who didn't have the money to pay for both, decided her 23 year-old son should cut short his college studies in northern Greece, return home, find a job, and help pay for his younger sister's tutoring lessons.

"I was forced to make a choice between my two children. My son has another two years to complete his degree," said Ms. Pappa. "Now he is in Athens handing out fliers for a living."

The 50-year-old, who until recently worked at a school in the posh Athens suburb of Psychiko, is a casualty of the Greek government's promise to lay off and transfer tens of thousands of public-sector workers in exchange for aid. Last year, she was among the first of those thousands to be placed in a labor reserve pool where the government had eight months to find her a new job, or let her go. That deadline expires on Monday, marking the arrival of the day Ms. Pappa has dreaded for months. There is no new job waiting for her.

"The way things are going we are heading for the soup kitchen," said Ms. Pappa, whose family will rely solely on her husband's 800-euro-a-month salary.

For the first time in more than a hundred years, Greece is sacking public servants.

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Greece From Exit to Recovery?

Brookings Institution Press
June 2014

Two Greek economic analysts explain the Greek financial crisis—from beginning to end.

The first section of Greece: From Exit to Recovery? explores the lead up to to Greece’s adoption of the euro. Authors Theodore Pelagidis and Michael Mitsopoulos believe that the ensuing challenges were foreseeable. In fact, the authors posit that it was Greece’s difficultly in dealing with those challenges that sparked the euro crisis.

Section II analyzes discrete sectors of the economy, paying special attention to labor and finance—and the mistakes creditors made in focusing on reducing Greek incomes—rather than increasing competitiveness on non-labor costs.

Section III investigates why Greek companies spend relatively little on research and development. The authors’ analysis indicates that policy decisions largely determine R&D performance in the private sector, and they advance a number of specific policy proposals to improve the situation.

Statement by the European Commission, the ECB and the IMF on Greece

International Monetary Fund
Press Release No. 14/112
March 19, 2014

Staff teams from the European Commission (EC), European Central Bank (ECB), and International Monetary Fund (IMF) have concluded their review mission to Greece. The teams have reached staff-level agreement with the authorities on policies that could serve as the basis for completion of the review.

The mission and the authorities agreed that the economy is beginning to stabilize and is poised for a gradual resumption of growth, broadly in line with our previous projections. Prices are adjusting and inflation remains well below the euro area average.

Fiscal performance is on track to meet program targets. Preliminary estimates suggest the 2013 primary balance target was met with a substantial margin. While only a small portion of this over-performance will carry over into 2014, we believe that the 2014 fiscal targets will also be met, taking into account the measures being implemented and planned. The authorities reconfirmed their commitment to implement policies needed to achieve the 2015 primary surplus target of 3 percent of GDP, including as needed by extending expiring fiscal measures, such as the solidarity surcharge.

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ΕΛΣΤΑΤ: Στα 181,1 δισ. ευρώ συρρικνώθηκε το AEΠ της Ελλάδας το 2013

Τα Νέα
12 Μαρτίου 2014

Στα 181,1 δισ. ευρώ ανήλθε το Ακαθάριστο Εγχώριο Προϊόν της Ελλάδας το 2013, έναντι 193,3 δισ. ευρώ το 2012, όπως ανακοινώθηκε από την Ελληνική Στατιστική Αρχή.

Η ΕΛΣΤΑΤ ανακοίνωσε την Τετάρτη την πρώτη εκτίμηση του Ακαθάριστου Εγχώριου Προϊόντος για το έτος 2013 καθώς και την αναθεωρημένη εκτίμηση για το έτος 2012. Οι εκτιμήσεις αυτές έχουν υπολογιστεί από το άθροισμα των αντίστοιχων τριμηνιαίων αποτελεσμάτων. Σύμφωνα με τις ακολουθούμενες από την ΕΛΣΤΑΤ διαδικασίες, προβλέπεται και δεύτερη εκτίμηση του ΑΕΠ για το έτος 2013, η οποία είναι προγραμματισμένη να ανακοινωθεί στις 10 Οκτωβρίου 2014. Η δεύτερη εκτίμηση θα αντικατοπτρίζει την ολοκλήρωση των εν εξελίξει στατιστικών εργασιών αναθεώρησης των ετήσιων εθνικών λογαριασμών.

Ειδικότερα, το ΑΕΠ το 2013 ανήλθε σε 182,1 δισ. ευρώ, έναντι 193,3 δισ. ευρώ το 2012, σημειώνοντας μείωση κατά 5,8%.

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Greece 'On Course for Growth'

Wall Street Journal
March 11, 2014

Greece's economy contracted less than expected in the fourth quarter of last year, helping the country's finances get off to a good start in 2014, according to figures published Tuesday.

Fresh data from Greece's statistics service, Elstat, for the October-December period showed that gross domestic product contracted by an annual rate of 2.3% in the last quarter of 2013, less than a previous flash estimate of a 2.6% contraction.

It was the economy's best performance since the first quarter of 2010.

The latest snapshot of the Greek economy boosts hopes that it will return to growth this year after six years of contraction. According to current budget forecasts, Greece's economy is officially expected to expand by 0.6% in 2014.

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What Makes Greece Special?

by Daniel Gros

Project Syndicate
March 6, 2014

The euro crisis seems to be largely over. Risk premiums continue to fall across the board, and two countries – Ireland and Portugal – have already exited their adjustment programs. They can now finance themselves in the market, and their economies seem to have started growing again.

By contrast, Greece is still having problems fulfilling the goals of its adjustment program and is engaged in seemingly endless negotiations over yet another multilateral financing package. The problem can be summed up in one word: exports (or, rather, lack of export growth).

The news from Greece these days has been dominated by the announcement that the government achieved a primary budget surplus (the fiscal balance minus debt service) in 2013. For the first time in decades, the Greek government has been able to pay for its expenditure with its own revenues.

This is indeed a milestone. But another, much more important news item has received much less attention: Greece exported less in 2013 than in 2012.

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