Athens News Agency: News in English, 04-03-15

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

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

CONTENTS

[01] Greek FinMin to seek ''credible'' economic policy

[02] Ecumenical Patriarch Vartholomeos meets Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton

[03] PASOK party leader congratulates Spanish socialist party leader

[04] Pavlidis announces development law for the islands

[05] Oil painting of Athens in 1674 acquired by City of Athens Museum

[06] Weather Forecast: Scattered cloud on Tuesday

[07] Foreign Exchange Rates: Tuesday

[08] Athens Bourse Close: Stocks slump in sell-off

[01] Greek FinMin to seek ''credible'' economic policy

Economy and Finance Minister George Alogoskoufis on Monday said he would seek consensus in the ministry's economic policy.

Speaking to reporters, Mr Alogoskoufis said he would meet with representatives of commerce and small- and medium-sized enterprises on Tuesday, in the framework of a series of meetings to discuss industry problems ahead of presenting the government's policy statement in parliament next week. Mr Alogoskoufis met with workers' and employers' unions on Monday.

The Greek minister stressed he would follow consensus procedures and noted the value of a credible economic policy.

He stressed that the ministry would not intervene in a current round of talks between employers and trade unions over the signing of a new collective agreement, although he noted the urgency of the matter.

Mr Alogoskoufis, commenting on a large gap between workers' demands and employers' proposals over a pay increase rate, sounded optimistic saying ''there were always been divergence but also solutions''.

[02] Ecumenical Patriarch Vartholomeos meets Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton

NEW YORK (ANA/P. Panagiotou) - Ecumenical Patriarch Vartholomeos met on Monday with Democratic Party Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton who reiterated her full support to the Patriarchate's efforts for the reopening of the Halki School of Theology in Turkey.

The meeting was held at the offices of the Greek Orthodox Archbishopric of America, in the presence of Archbishop of America Demetrios.

The Ecumenical Patriarch was due to meet later on Monday with UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan at the UN headquarters and afterwards inaugurate the exhibition ''Byzantium: Faith and Strength (1261-1557)'' at New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art. The exhibition will be open to the public from March 23 to July 4. On exhibit will be 350 objects of Byzantine art, including 43 icons and relics, from 30 countries.

On Thursday, Vartholomeos will give a speech at the museum's hall on the theme:''Byzantine icons:Heritage for Humanism''.

The Patriarch is on a week-long visit to the United States since Saturday. It is his 5th visit to the Greek Orthodox Church of America.

[03] PASOK party leader congratulates Spanish socialist party leader

Main opposition PASOK party leader George Papandreou addressed a message of congratulations to Spanish Socialist Party (PSOE) Secretary General Jose Luis Rodriguez Zabatero on Monday on the occasion of his party's victory in Sunday's general elections in Spain.

''Your party's victory comes at an appropriate time in one of the most crucial and difficult moments for your country, immediately after the savage terrorist attacks in Madrid, whose target was the Spanish people and democracy,'' Papandreou said.

''We would like to express our solidarity to you, to PSOE and to the Spanish people and to commit ourselves to continuing to cooperate closely together with the other European progressive forces for a Europe in which security, social justice and the prosperity of peoples will predominate,'' he added.

[04] Pavlidis announces development law for the islands

Minister of the Aegean and Island Policy Aristotelis Pavlidis announced a special development law which will incorporate old and new proposals regarding island policies, while on the island of Rhodes on Monday.

Since last Saturday, the minister has visited several of the Dodecanese islands and met with Dodacanese Prefect G. Maheridis, and Rhodes Mayor G. Yiannopoulos, among others, who expressed their willingness to cooperate with the ministry in order to deal with the islands' problems.

Pavlidis asked for the mayors' proposals regarding island policy which will then be submitted to Parliament for review.

The minister said he would attend the upcoming conference of the Prefectural Council to be held on March 27 on the island of Kos.

[05] Oil painting of Athens in 1674 acquired by City of Athens Museum

A unique oil painting showing a panoramic view of Athens in 1674, including the Parthenon when it was still intact prior to its bombing 13 years later, has been acquired by the City of Athens Museum and will be put on show in the Museum's exhibition ''Great Travellers of Athens, 15th to 19th Centuries'' that begins on March 17.

It shows Louis IV's ambassador to Istanbul and his entourage on top of Lycabettus Hill in the foreground, with Athens as it was under Turkish occupation in the background.

The painting is the largest ever painted of Athens, measuring a monumental 250cmX520cm. It was the work of professional painter Jacques Carrey and is a permanent loan to the museum from the Athens National Gallery.

It came to the National Gallery as a permanent loan 30 years earlier but has never been put on show.

[06] Weather Forecast: Scattered cloud on Tuesday

Light cloud is forecast in all parts of the country, with showers likely in the west. Winds northerly, moderate to strong, turning very strong in the southeast Aegean. Temperatures in Athens 7C to 16C and in Thessaloniki from 4C to 13C.

[07] Foreign Exchange Rates: Tuesday

Reference buying rates per euro released by the European Central Bank

U.S. dollar 1.237

Pound sterling 0.687

Danish kroner 7.511

Swedish kroner 9.330

Japanese yen 137.1

Swiss franc 1.577

Norwegian kroner 8.557

Cyprus pound 0.590

Canadian dollar 1.648

Australian dollar 1.686

[08] Athens Bourse Close: Stocks slump in sell-off

The Athens bourse finished lower on Monday with investors dumping paper and few buyers appearing, traders said.

The general share index shed 2.33 per cent to end at 2,363.66 points. Turnover was 122.7 million euros.

The FTSE/ASE-20 index for blue chip and heavily traded stocks ended 2.44 per cent down; the FTSE/ASE-40 for medium capitalisation paper 2.31 per cent lower; and the FTSE/ASE-80 for small cap equities lost 3.17 per cent.

Of stocks traded, declines led advances at 299 to 33 with 26 issues remaining unchanged.

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