Athens News Agency: News in English, 01-03-06

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From: The Athens News Agency at <http://www.ana.gr/>

CONTENTS

[01] Athens Mayor Avramopoulos-New Party

[02] Papantoniou-Inflation-Overheating

[03] Banks-Strike

[04] Weather Forecast-Wednesday

[05] Shipping Registry-February

[06] Alpha Bank-VAT-Internet

[07] ASE-close

[01] Athens Mayor Avramopoulos-New Party

Athens Mayor Dimitris Avramopoulos on Tuesday evening announced the official creation of his party named "Movement of Free Citizens".

Avramopoulos, who was speaking at a press conference, said his party aimed at "freeing the active forces of Hellenism and being a factor of change and renewal."

The Athens mayor, who stems from the ranks of the main opposition New Democracy (ND) party, announced his intention to establish a new party late last year.

He said that the new party's emblem will consist of two yellow circles and that the party's Congress will be held next autumn in Thessaloniki.

[02] Papantoniou-Inflation-Overheating

LONDON (ANA/D.Stamboglis) - Greece is to focus on lowering inflation in order to avoid overheating of the economy, National Economy and Finance Minister Yiannos Papantoniou said on Tuesday.

The country's partners in the European Union had discounted a high rate of growth in Greece, the euro zone's latest member, sparking fears of overheating, Papantoniou told a news conference in the UK capital.

Any risk to the economy stemmed from overheating, and not recession, he emphasised.

Beyond tackling inflation, the key to a successful domestic economy lay in attaining fiscal surpluses, which, coupled with a strong rate of growth, was a condition for Greece's survival in the euro zone, Papantoniou added.

[03] Banks-Strike

Bank workers are to stage a 48-hour strike around the country on March 12-13 in a call for the creation of a unified social insurance fund for the sector, their union said on Tuesday.

The decision to go ahead with the stoppage, which had already been announced, was taken after a failure to make progress in establishment of the fund, the OTOE union said in a statement.

[04] Weather Forecast-Wednesday

Scattered cloud is forecast throughout the country on Wednesday, turning to showers in most parts of the country. The west will remain dry. Snow is expected on high ground in central and northern Greece. Winds will be north-northeasterly, moderate to very strong, turning gale force in the Aegean. In the north, temperatures will range from 1C to 12C; in the centre of the country from 4C to 14C; and in the rest of Greece 8C to 17C. Showery in Athens, with temperatures between 8C and 14C. Same in Thessaloniki, with temperatures from 6C to 11C.

[05] Shipping Registry-February

The Greek shipping registry posted a net gain of five ships and 220,671 gross registered tons in February, the merchant marine ministry said in a statement on Tuesday.

Eleven vessels totalling 329,178 GRT opted for the Greek flag in February while six ships totalling 108,507 GRT left the registry, the statement said.

The average age of the vessels that joined the Greek fleet last month is 14 years, and of those that left, 28 years, the ministry added.

Among the ships to enter the registry was the Superfast VI, a hi-tech fast ferry owned by Athens quoted Attica Enterprises.

[06] Alpha Bank-VAT-Internet

Alpha Bank, a blue chip on the Athens bourse, is launching a new service that allows customers to make their Value Added Tax (VAT) payments to the tax office through the internet.

The direct deposit to the tax department can be ordered through the new service, named Alpha Web Banking, the bank said in statement on Tuesday.

The finance ministry recently began accepting VAT payments through banks and the internet. Until now, the two-monthly statement and cash had to be deposited physically at tax offices.

[07] ASE-close

Strong buying activity in IT, textile, retail and construction shares

pushed the Athens Stock Exchange higher on Tuesday, although the general index rose only fractionally reflecting a standstill in the banks sector.

The general index ended 0.31 percent higher at 3,182.34 points, off the day's highs of 3,204.60, with turnover at 216.16 million euros, or 73.656 billion drachmas.

The FTSE/ASE 20 index for blue chip and heavy traded stocks rose 0.06 percent to 1,814.16 points, and the FTSE/ASE 40 index ended at 357.37 points, up 0.27 percent.

The parallel market index for smaller capitalisation stocks ended at 347.31 points, up 1.36 percent.

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