Trade with Greece
1
T
he positive side includes developments
such as the achievement of the 2012
deficit target, the improvement of inter-
national sentiment towards Greece and the
reduction of uncertainty.
But there is also another side to this coin: That of
the price that society and the market are still pay-
ing; the side of the recession, which is bound to
persevere for a fifth year in a row; the side of
company shutdowns and a jobless rate that
approaches 27%.
Which of the two sides will prevail shall be, to a
great extent, decided during 2013. This is the
year when the sacrifices must start paying off,
bringing tangible benefits to the real economy: to
employment, households and businesses.
Greece’s three-party coalition government must
try even harder to achieve this goal. Under the
current circumstances, this is a very demanding
and challenging undertaking. Even so, there is no
room for failure.
The country is in urgent need of a growth boost,
which can only come from the mobilization of the
private sector’s forces.
In this context, the Athens Chamber of
Commerce and Industry has made specific pro-
posals in regard to policies, reforms and actions
that must be implemented or, at least, expedited:
Liquidity:
● Acceleration and completion of the banking
system’s recapitalization.
● Fast and effective completion, within the year,
of the procedure regarding the repayment of
the state’s obligations to the private sector.
● Expediting of all actions realized through EIB
resources.
● Faster steps for the release of ETEAN
(Hellenic Fund for Entrepreneurship and
Development) funds.
● Implementation of the plans regarding the cre-
ation of the Hellenic Investment Fund.
● Utilization of Greece’s Chambers of
Commerce and Industry, for the more effective
implementation of liquidity-boosting initiatives
on the local level.
NSRF
● Intensification of the effort to ensure faster
Although tough,
2013 brings the
hope of Greece’s
return to growth
We are in the first months of a new year, a year that will be
crucial as far as Greece’s effort to exit the crisis is
concerned. The current reality is twofold.
Constantine Michalos,
President of the ACCI
editorial
