Greece Economy

Microsoft looks to build a new data centre in Greece as it invests in cloud services infrastructure in the country, a boon to an economy weakened by a decade-long debt crisis and the coronavirus pandemic.

The fear is that India may tread the well-worn paths of other developing countries such as Argentina and Greece who were saddled with sizable foreign borrowings after they failed to balance their budgets.

Especially in borrower countries like Greece and Argentina, the IMF still gets portrayed as an enforcer of one-size-fits-all policies based on austerity and the unimpeded flow of goods and money.

Some of the eight countries - China, India, Greece, Italy, Taiwan, Japan, Turkey and South Korea - include OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) member Iran's top customers.

Greece has successfully exited its final, three-year bailout programme, agreed in August 2015 to help it cope with the continued fallout from a debt crisis.

Greece and its international lenders remained at odds in talks to release fresh bailout loans to Athens on Wednesday as Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said a deal was needed this week and accused creditors of 'playing games' and causing delays.

Addressing the debt burden of the beleaguered nation will require "significant debt relief" from European institutions, the IMF said in its annual report on the Greek economy, which includes a debt sustainability analysis.

Greece is required by its euro zone creditors to pass wide-ranging reforms and sell state assets under an 86 billion euros ($92 billion) bailout programme.

Greece's latest austerity measures are choking off one of its few sources of local private investment, the funds management industry, thanks to massive tax hikes buried in 7,500 pages of financial reforms approved by the parliament last month.

The Eurozone economy grew by 0.6 per cent in the first quarter of 2016, the highest rate for 12 months, supported by household spending and private sector investment, data from the European statistics agency Eurostat showed on Tuesday.

The move came after the Greek parliament approved another round of spending cuts and tax increases demanded by international creditors.

International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Christine Lagarde said on Tuesday that her team was continuing to negotiate with Greece "in good faith" over its debt issues.

International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde denied on Sunday that IMF staff would push Greece closer to default as a negotiating tactic on a new Greek bailout deal, which she said was "still a good distance away".

Greece demanded an explanation from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Saturday after an apparent leaked transcript suggested the IMF may threaten to pull out of the country's bailout as a tactic to force European lenders to more offer debt relief.

Greece and its creditors on Monday began a first review of the country's new bailout amid a wave of demonstrations by farmers and professionals against a controversial pension reform that is part of the fiscal overhaul.

Microsoft looks to build a new data centre in Greece as it invests in cloud services infrastructure in the country, a boon to an economy weakened by a decade-long debt crisis and the coronavirus pandemic.

The fear is that India may tread the well-worn paths of other developing countries such as Argentina and Greece who were saddled with sizable foreign borrowings after they failed to balance their budgets.

Especially in borrower countries like Greece and Argentina, the IMF still gets portrayed as an enforcer of one-size-fits-all policies based on austerity and the unimpeded flow of goods and money.

Some of the eight countries - China, India, Greece, Italy, Taiwan, Japan, Turkey and South Korea - include OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) member Iran's top customers.

Greece has successfully exited its final, three-year bailout programme, agreed in August 2015 to help it cope with the continued fallout from a debt crisis.

Greece and its international lenders remained at odds in talks to release fresh bailout loans to Athens on Wednesday as Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said a deal was needed this week and accused creditors of 'playing games' and causing delays.

Addressing the debt burden of the beleaguered nation will require "significant debt relief" from European institutions, the IMF said in its annual report on the Greek economy, which includes a debt sustainability analysis.

Greece is required by its euro zone creditors to pass wide-ranging reforms and sell state assets under an 86 billion euros ($92 billion) bailout programme.

Greece's latest austerity measures are choking off one of its few sources of local private investment, the funds management industry, thanks to massive tax hikes buried in 7,500 pages of financial reforms approved by the parliament last month.

The Eurozone economy grew by 0.6 per cent in the first quarter of 2016, the highest rate for 12 months, supported by household spending and private sector investment, data from the European statistics agency Eurostat showed on Tuesday.

The move came after the Greek parliament approved another round of spending cuts and tax increases demanded by international creditors.

International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Christine Lagarde said on Tuesday that her team was continuing to negotiate with Greece "in good faith" over its debt issues.

International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde denied on Sunday that IMF staff would push Greece closer to default as a negotiating tactic on a new Greek bailout deal, which she said was "still a good distance away".

Greece demanded an explanation from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Saturday after an apparent leaked transcript suggested the IMF may threaten to pull out of the country's bailout as a tactic to force European lenders to more offer debt relief.

Greece and its creditors on Monday began a first review of the country's new bailout amid a wave of demonstrations by farmers and professionals against a controversial pension reform that is part of the fiscal overhaul.