Athens News Agency: News in English, 03-08-11

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

CONTENTS

[01] Merchant marine minister announces series of measures for Thessaloniki

[02] Gov't denies it acknowledges British 'ownership' of Marbles

[03] Historic Marathon township opens Olympics info bureau

[04] Weather Forecast: Sunny on Tuesday

[05] Foreign Exchange Rates - Tuesday

[06] Greek stocks end lower on Monday

[01] Merchant marine minister announces series of measures for Thessaloniki Port

Merchant Marine Minister George Paschalidis on Monday announced measures for the development of the Thessaloniki Port S.A., which includes the expansion of the 6th Pier over the 2003-2007 period, at a cost of 20.5 million euros.

According to the plans announced by the minister, Pier 6 will be extended an extra 500 meters to achieve a 15-meter depth capability, so as to serve larger vessels, while on August 22, a meeting will take place between officials of the finance and merchant marine ministries to discuss proposals for the best possible development of Piers 1 and 2.

[02] Gov't denies it acknowledges British 'ownership' of Marbles

The Greek government on Monday reiterated its position regarding the return of the Parthenon marbles from ?British exile?, denying that it has acknowledged the British Museums proper legal title to them.

''Greece's position is simple and clear. We are not raising the legal issue regarding ownership of the Marbles because we are seeking a friendly and consensual solution'', Culture Minister Evangelos Venizelos said in a press release circulated on Monday.

He said Athens sought the uniform display of the Marbles inside an envisioned new Acropolis Museum on land across from the Parthenon --and in direct visual contact with the ancient temple, either in the form of a long-term loan or in the form of a British Museum section within the new museum.

Venizelos' statement was made in reply to a letter from the Director of the British Museum, Neil McGregor, published a day earlier in Londons ''Sunday Times'' newspaper, which claimed that the Greek government had acknowledged that the British Museum has proper legal titles to the Marbles and ''no longer disputes ownership''.

[03] Historic Marathon township opens Olympics info bureau

The historic township of Marathon, in north-eastern Attica prefecture, opened an Olympic Games information bureau on Monday during a ceremony attended by some 1,500 local residents, municipal officials and even Athens 2004 (ATHOC) executives.

Modern-day Marathon township includes the area where the historic ancient battle between Athens citizen army and an invading Persian force took place, as well as two 2004 Olympics venues, the Schinias Rowing and Canoeing Centre and an outdoor stadium where the Marathon race will begin.

In a brief address, ATHOC Managing Director Ioannis Spanudakis emphasised that organisers remain steadfastly optimistic over the success of next years Games due to the fact that ongoing preparations are at the same level or even ahead of other host-cities preparations a year before the Olympics.

[04] Weather Forecast: Sunny on Tuesday

Sunny weather is forecast in all parts of the country on Tuesday, with scattered cloud only on the mainland in the afternoon. Winds northerly, northeasterly, light to strong, turning very strong in the Aegean. In the north, temperatures will range from 18C to 32C; on the mainland from 20C to 35C; and in the islands from 22C to 33C. Temperatures in Athens between 22C and 34C; and in Thessaloniki from 20C to 31C.

[05] Foreign Exchange Rates - Tuesday

Reference buying rates per euro released by the European Central Bank

U.S. dollar 1.138

Pound sterling 0.711

Danish kroner 7.492

Swedish kroner 9.309

Japanese yen 134.9

Swiss franc 1.550

Norwegian kroner 8.267

Cyprus pound 0.591

Canadian dollar 1.584

Australian dollar 1.735

[06] Greek stocks end lower on Monday

Greek stocks ended the first trading session of the week near their intra-day lows in the Athens Stock Exchange on Monday, reflecting a wave of profit-taking during the last 15 minutes of trading in the market.

The general index fell 0.69 percent to end at 2,132.22 points with turnover an improved 132.7 million euros.

The retail sector was the only one to score gains (up 0.15 percent), while the Textile, Insurance and Publication sectors suffered the heaviest percentage losses of the day (2.39 percent, 2.33 percent and 1.57 percent, respectively).

The FTSE/ASE 20 index for blue chip and heavy traded stocks fell 0.79 percent, the FTSE/ASE MID 40 index eased 0.56 percent and the FTSE/ASE SmallCap 80 index dropped 1.34 percent.

Broadly, decliners led advancers by 248 to 84 with another 35 issues unchanged.

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