When the facts change, I change my mind. What do you do? -- John Maynard Keynes

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Greece: “The situation is getting out of hand”

More on Greece today--“The situation is getting out of hand”--people aren't paying their taxes, utility bills, etc:

Greece warned of public finances collapse - FT.com: " . . . Mounting anxiety that Greece is headed for further political instability and a possible exit from the euro has prompted many Greeks to postpone making tax payments, and has also accelerated outflows of deposits from local banks. Athens bankers estimate that more than €3bn of cash withdrawn since the May 6 election has been stashed in safe-deposit boxes and under mattresses in case the country is forced to readopt the drachma. . . . “The state will face considerable difficulty covering its expenses in June”. . . The EU has held back €1bn from its latest tranche of bailout money pending formation of a stable government in Athens. . . . The struggling state electricity utility PPC has received a €250m special payment from the budget to help cover a widening deficit. The utility has been hit by a sharp rise in non-payments of household electricity bills after the finance ministry imposed an extra “solidarity tax” last year that was added to the bills. “The situation is getting out of hand,” said a private sector economist. “If a government is formed after the June election, it’s going to find that the fiscal programme agreed in March has already been derailed.” (emphasis added)

The Greek election is June 17--but at this point does it really matter who is elected?

    

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