Athens News Agency: News in English, 02-03-20

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

CONTENTS

[01] Inter-ministerial meeting on 2004 Games held prior to April IOC visit

[02] Journalists to stage 48-hour nationwide strike on March 27-28

[03] Study shows 25 per cent of Greeks suffer from insomnia

[04] Deputy FM to visit Canada, U.S. in light of March 25 independence day

[05] Greek Parliament ratifies Nice Treaty

[06] Weather Forecast: Mostly sunny on Thursday

[07] Foreign Exchange Rates - Thursday

[08] Afghan gov't vice-chairwoman to hold conference in Athens

[09] Greek stocks continue moving lower

[01] Inter-ministerial meeting on 2004 Games held prior to April IOC visit

The latest inter-ministerial meeting focusing on preparations for the 2004 Olympics concluded here on Wednesday, roughly two weeks before another high-ranking International Olympic Committee (IOC) delegation arrives in Athens to gauge progress.

The meeting chaired by Prime Minister Costas Simitis -- focused on relevant ministries responsibility vis-a-vis a variety of on-going 2004-related projects as well as the all-important issue of security for the Games.

According to reports, Public Works Minister Vasso Papandreou expressed concern over certain projects overseen by her ministry, particularly delayed road works leading to Olympic venues. Sources said Papandreou also called for necessary funding for projects in order for them to be completed on time. Conversely, she noted that work on the venue sites is proceeding as planned, cautioning however, that no delays are possible.

[02] Journalists to stage 48-hour nationwide strike on March 27-28

All the journalist unions in the press and electronic media have declared a joint 48-hour strike next Wednesday and Thursday, demanding salary increases and institutional changes.

The strike was decided on Wednesday by the Panhellenic Federation of Greek Journalists (POESY) following a meeting it had with the coordinating committees of unions in the press and electronic media.

The state owned ERT and the small private channel Alter will not be participating in the strike.

[03] Study shows 25 per cent of Greeks suffer from insomnia

A Europopean study has shown that 25 per cent of the Greek population suffers from insomnia and that only one out of three of these individuals have attempted to find a solution to their problem.

Those who suffer from insomnia either downplay the problem or are unaware that insomnia can quite easily be dealt with either through medicine or other treatment.

The above findings were announced at a press conference on Wednesday by professor of psychiatry and president of the Greek Society on Sleep, Costas Soldatos. He noted that recognising the dimensions of the problem, the World Health Organisation has dedicated the first day of Spring, March 21, as World Day of Sleep.

Soldatos noted that 25 per cent of accidents are due to sleepiness which can be linked to lack of sleep.

[04] Deputy FM to visit Canada, U.S. in light of March 25 independence day events

Deputy Foreign Minister Yiannis Magriotis will depart for Canada and the United States of America on Thursday to participate in celebrations of Greece's March 25 independence day, organized by Greek expatriate communities.

During his stay in North America, Magriotis will deliver a lecture entitled ''Modern Greece in International Context'' at the University of York.

He will also hold talks at the U.S. State Department, during his visit to Washington D.C., while in Canada he will meet with government officials.

[05] Greek Parliament ratifies Nice Treaty

Greeces 300-member Parliament on Wednesday overwhelmingly ratified the Nice Treaty, which among others, outlines conditions for the European Unions upcoming expansion.

Two hundred and fifty-three deputies from ruling PASOK and the main opposition New Democracy party voted in favour of the treaty, whereas the Communist Party of Greeces MPs voted against. Deputies belonging to the Coalition of the Left simply voted present.

[06] Weather Forecast: Mostly sunny on Thursday

Mostly sunny weather is forecast in Greece on Thursday with scattered cloud in northern parts of the country. Winds north-northwesterly, light, turning strong in the Aegean from the evening. In the north, temperatures will range from 5C to 18C; on the rest of the mainland from 8C to 21C; and in the islands from 11C to 19C. Sunshine in Athens with temperatures between 10C and 20C. Scattered cloud in Thessaloniki with temperatures from 8C to 17C.

[07] Foreign Exchange Rates - Thursday

Indicative tourist buying rates per euro until Thursday

U.S. dollar 0.881

Pound sterling 0.618

Danish kroner 7.433

Swedish kroner 9.028

Japanese yen 115.7

Swiss franc 1.464

Norwegian kroner 7.715

Cyprus pound 0.575

Canadian dollar 1.390

Australian dollar 1.663

[08] Afghan gov't vice-chairwoman to hold conference in Athens

The Vice-Chairwoman of the Afghan government and Minister of Women's Affairs Sima Samar will hold a press conference in Athens' Zappeion Hall on Friday, where she will be presenting political and social developments in Afghanistan.

The event is organized by Greece's General Secretary on Gender Equality Issues Efi Bekou, WINPEACE Greek-Turkish peace initiative coordinator Margaret Papandreou, U.N. High Commission on Refugees representative in Greece Flor Rojas Rodriguez and Greek Eurodeputy Anna Karamanou, who currently presides over the European Parliament's women's rights and equal opportunities committee and the Women's Political Association.

The conference is scheduled for 11:30.

[09] Greek stocks continue moving lower

Equity prices ended Wednesday's session lower hit by a persistent lack of fresh incentives and very low liquidity in the Athens Stock Exchange.

The general index fell 0.65 percent to 2,342.64 points, with turnover an extremely low 81.5 million euros.

The Insurance, IT Solutions, Investment and Retail sectors suffered the heaviest percentage losses (2.87 percent, 1.52 percent, 1.35 percent and 1.28 percent, respectively).

The FTSE/ASE 20 index for blue chip and heavy traded stocks ended 0.74 percent lower, the FTSE/ASE MID 40 index eased 1.16 percent and the FTSE/ASE SmallCap 80 index ended 1.0 percent lower.

Broadly, decliners led advancers by 280 to 48 with another 30 issues unchanged.

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