Athens News Agency: News in English, 08-07-18

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

CONTENTS

[01] PASOK leader address party's national council

[02] ASE extends trading hours

[03] Parl't delegation in Cyprus

[01] PASOK leader address party's national council

Opening the sessions of a national council meeting of his party in Thessaloniki, Macedonia, he said there was "only one issue" separating Greece and FYROM, that of the "name issue" of the landlocked republic, "whose resolution will be to the benefit of all, especially of our northern neighbours."

"Only through a resolution can the doors of NATO and the European Union can open for the neighbouring country," Papandreou underlined.

Regarding the Greek stance on the issue, the main opposition leader reiterated that "the red line proposed by PASOK should be maintained, that is one name for all uses and rejection of every idea for a double name" for FYROM.

Papandreou also charged the government was "responsible for Greece's absence from the international scene," adding that it did not eleborate a strategy "after a painless veto" regarding FYROM's NATO entry, which Athens tabled during the Alliance's Bucharest summit last April.

Turning to internal policy affairs, the PASOK leader said that "at present a responsible and courageous government is needed, which will unite Greeks, as the country is experiencing a great economic, political and moral crisis."

Papandreou criticised at length the government on the entire spectrum of its policies, while referring also to internal PASOK issues such as transparency in its finances.

Reiterating his party's proposals on the economy and proposing a development plan for norhtern Greece, Papandreou said that socialists should send "a message that we can all, together with the citizens, take Greece out of mud and crisis, leading it to a road where the black money will not guide politics and where financial agents will not rule."

[02] ASE extends trading hours

The decisions were taken in cooperation with the Greek Market Commission, the market watchdog, in an effort to improve the determination of the stock closing prices.

Specifically, for the large capitalization market and for ETFs, the board decided that:

-The modification of the parameters of the algorithm used to activate the price volatility interrupter

-The reduction of the random time price determination period from 6 minutes in effect today, to 2 minutes.

-The increase to the weighted average of the last 30% of the daily transactions that are used to calculate the closing price in case the criteria for using the auction price are not fulfilled, from 10 percent in effect today.

For the Small & Mid Capitalization Market and the Alternative Market:

-The closing price will be determined by the weighted average of the last 30 percent of the daily transactions, from 10 percent in effect today.

The will be put into effect on Aug. 4, 2008. Correspondingly, in the derivatives market, the market trading hours are extended from 5 p.m., in effect on Friday, to 5:20 p.m. The changes, which are described in detail on the website of Athens Exchange, will be put into effect on Sept. 29, 2008.

[03] Parl't delegation in Cyprus

The Greek delegation will represent Parliament at memorials and other events to be held during the weekend in the government-controlled areas of the Republic of Cyprus, to pay tribute to those killed during the Turkish invasion of the island in 1974.

In statements to the press, the Greek MPs denounced the illegal visit of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to Cyprus's occupied areas, to participate in the celebrations to be held there on the occasion of the anniversary of the Turkish invasion, and expressed hope that a new effort to reach a Cyprus settlement, on the basis of a bicommunal, bizonal federation, will bear fruit.

The Greek government will be represented by National Education and Religious Affairs Minister Evripidis Stylianidis, who will arrive on the island early on Sunday.

During his visit, Stylianides will be received by Cyprus President Christofias.

Turkey, a country which aspires to become an EU member still occupies 37% of the territory of Cyprus, an EU member since May 2004.

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