Athens News Agency: News in English, 02-07-08

Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article

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

CONTENTS

[01] Greek president welcomes Irish counterpart under rainy skies

[02] Rain causes severe flooding, traffic chaos in Athens

[03] Traffic police step up checks on motorcyclists for helmets

[04] Deputy FM comments on the terrorism issue

[05] Foreign Exchange Rates - Tuesday

[06] Tuesday weather - Sunny all over the country

[07] Greek stocks end mixed to higher on Monday

[01] Greek president welcomes Irish counterpart under rainy skies

President Kostis Stephanopoulos on Monday warmly welcomed at the Presidential Mansion visiting Irish President Mary McAleese, who heads a delegation that includes her husband Martin.

Following a meeting that lasted for about one and a half hours, the two presidents spoke to the press.

Stephanopoulos stressed that Greece appreciated Ireland's presence in the European Union, which is a model of speedy development and a beneficial example for Greece.

The Greek president also said that during their discussions it was noted that trade between the two countries can grow further along with the further development of cultural ties.

They also discussed common interest issues, such as the EU's enlargement, issues on which the opinions of the two countries converge, as the two sides desire the accession of new countries and the development of new institutions so that the EU may have more democratic and effective ones.

Stephanopoulos also said that his counterpart explained that the negative result of the first plebiscite in Ireland over the Nice Treaty was due to a lack of information provided to the citizens of Ireland and not their opposition to the EU.

He added that following a better briefing there will be a different result in the plebiscite scheduled for October.

Stephanopoulos thanked McAleese for her country's stance toward the Cyprus problem.

The Irish president, on her part, thanked Stephanopoulos and wished the Greek people success, stressing that the two countries have the ability to benefit from the advantages as members of a wider cooperation.

[02] Rain causes severe flooding, traffic chaos in Athens

Heavy rain that started falling from midday on Monday caused severe problems and flooding in many areas around Athens, particularly in the western neighbourhoods of Rendi and Moschato after the Kifissos River flooded its banks.

The water rose above the barriers near the Rendi vegetable market and up to Pireos Street, flooding the surrounding roads and carrying away dozens of cars and motorbikes.

The emergency rescue service EMAK was called out to respond to calls by anguished residents, while extensive damage was caused in basement flats and shops in the area, including the television station ''Alpha'', just 300 metres from the river bank.

[03] Traffic police step up checks on motorcyclists for helmets

Traffic police in Athens on Monday stepped up checks on motorcyclists for helmets.

A total of 17 teams of traffic cops hit the roads as of 8:00 a.m. Monday morning for intensive checks on motorcycles and mopeds throughout the Attica prefecture, serving fines on drivers and/or passengers not wearing helmets, which is required by law.

According to announcements made last week by the Traffic Police, a clamp-down on violaters has been decided in a bid to reduce the number of road accidents, and following a survey that showed a 54.55 percent increase in such violations in the first half of 2002 against the same period in 2001.

More specifically, the number of confirmed violations jumped to 53,173 in first-half 2002 from 34,404 in first-half 2001.

[04] Deputy FM comments on the terrorism issue

The government has provided the example for all others to follow in handling the terrorism issue, Deputy Foreign Minister Andreas Loberdos said on Monday, commenting on the latest developments of the issue.

Speaking at the sidelines of the meeting of the committee for the controlling of the Greek Plan for the Reconstruction of the Balkans, which took place in Thessaloniki, Loberdos said that "in regards to the operation of the police, the government has provided the example of the correct behavior."

"The police has the control of operations and the government does not comment, does not name names, not even those of organizations. It speaks of the phenomenon of terrorism, as it has the mandate of the people to combat it".

Macedonia-Thrace Minister George Paschalidis, who was also present, refused to comment.

[05] Foreign Exchange Rates - Tuesday

Indicative tourist buying rates per euro until Tuesday

U.S. dollar 0.990

Pound sterling 0.647

Danish kroner 7.487

Swedish kroner 9.232

Japanese yen 117.7

Swiss franc 1.480

Norwegian kroner 7.363

Cyprus pound 0.583

Canadian dollar 1.509

Australian dollar 1.758.

[06] Tuesday weather - Sunny all over the country

Sunny throughout Western Greece on Tuesday with a chance of scattered cloud later in the day in the rest of the country. Northerly winds, moderate to strong on the Aegean. Temperatures in northern Greece between 19C to 32C, on the rest of the mainland 21C to 34C, and on the islands 23C to 31C. Scattered cloud in Athens with a possibility of rain and temperatures ranging between 23C to 34C. The same for Thessaloniki with temperatures from 22C to 31C.

[07] Greek stocks end mixed to higher on Monday

Greek stocks ended the first trading session of the week mixed to higher reflecting strong buying for telecommunications stocks in the last hour of trading, a move that counterbalanced an early decline of prices.

The general index ended 0.18 percent higher at 2,201.84 points, with turnover a record-low for the year at 54.7 million euros.

The Insurance, Retail and Construction sectors suffered the heaviest percentage losses of the day (1.42 percent, 1.14 percent and 1.05 percent, respectively), while the Telecoms, Cement and Metal sectors scored the biggest percentage gains (1.17 percent, 1.06 percent and 0.50 percent).

The FTSE/ASE 20 index for blue chip and heavy traded stocks rose 0.22 percent, the FTSE/ASE MID 40 index fell 0.53 percent and the FTSE/ASE SmallCap 80 index eased 0.50 percent.

Broadly, decliners led advancers by 169 to 106 with another 77 issues unchanged.

Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article