Greece urges EU to agree on aid mechanism
19/03/2010
BRUSSELS, Belgium -- Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou is urging EU leaders to agree on a financial mechanism for his country when they meet next week. The EU summit begins in Brussels on Thursday, with Greece's debt crisis topping the agenda. "I'm not seeking funds, but I want to see an instrument on the table... a loan that would be enough to ensure that spreads and speculators both retreat," Papandreou told a European Parliament committee Thursday (March 18th). On Wednesday, he did not rule out the possibility of seeking IMF assistance if necessary.
In Greece, taxi drivers and gas station owners staged a 24-hour strike Thursday against planned reforms that will oblige them to issue VAT receipts to customers. New jobless figures released Thursday showed the unemployment rate in the fourth quarter of 2009 climbed to 10.3%, compared to 7.9% a year earlier. (AFP, Bloomberg, AP, Financial Times - 18/03/10)
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