Athens News Agency: News in English, 09-07-15

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

CONTENTS

[01] Summer sales period opens in Greece

[02] New car registrations up

[03] Contraband cigarettes bust

[04] Samos fire partially contained

[05] Athens Newspaper Headlines

[01] Summer sales period opens in Greece

In a bid to rekindle movement on the market, following a slump in turnover in the last two months, retail shopowners are offering discounts of up to 70 percent.

Merchant and consumer organisations said the sales period was an opportunity for purchasing top-rate items at bargain prices, but advised shoppers to buy wisely, focusing on their real needs and comparing quality and prices, and to not be carried away by flashy advertisements.

[02] New car registrations up

Toyota remained at the top of the list in the nine-month period with 22,816 sales and a market share of 10 percent in the Greek car market, followed by Opel (19,722 sales), VW (18,295), Ford (15,820) and Hyundai (14,430).

[03] Contraband cigarettes bust

More specifically, a Greek transport company was smuggling large quantities of cigarettes into the country via the port of Piraeus and Astakos port in Aetoloakarnania prefecture, declaring them as sundry merchandise imports destined for bogus companies, and would then ship them to Malta with forged documents.

The headquarters and telephone numbers of the bogus companies appearing on the invoices were the same as those of the real company that was smuggling the cigarettes, according to police.

Following the completion of the investigation by police and the Financial Crimes Squad, the case file and evidence have been forwarded to the public prosecutor and Customs authorities.

The fine for the contraband cigarettes is estimated to be some 4 million euros, of which 2.5 million euros are the calculated import duties not paid while the remaining 1.5 million euros are in evaded taxes.

[04] Samos fire partially contained

The fire, which broke out at 9:45 a.m. in a forest expanse near the island's Heraion sanctuary, dating to the Late Archaic period and the first of the gigantic Ionic temples order, was being combated by land and air, with a massive fire brigade force, volunteer firefighters, conscripts and local residents, aided by two firefighting planes.

No occupied areas were at risk from the fire, while initial strong winds that had fanned the blaze receded later in the day.

[05] Athens Newspaper Headlines

The unemployment rate, which jumped to 9.4 percent, Turkey's stance in the Aegean, planned changes in Education, concern over the new flu pandemic, and the Greece-Bulgaria-Romania agreement on a natural gas pipeline were the main front-page items in Wednesday's dailies.

ADESMEFTOS TYPOS: "Government advancing 'Smart School', aimed at educational reform".

APOGEVMATINI: "Greece, Bulgaria, Romania agree on construction of pipeline that will ensure flow of natural gas in the Balkans".

AVGHI: "The government a spectator of the drama - New wave of uneployed creates explosive situation in the Greek society".

AVRIANI: "Many nightclubs are mafia headquarters and money laundering facilities".

ELEFTHEROTYPIA: "Burning unemployment - 85 percent of businesses predict that the worst is still ahead".

ESTIA: "Revolution in taxation, with introduction if single coefficient".

ETHNOS: "Virtual attack on Farmakonissi - The Turks exceeded all limits in the Aegean".

KATHIMERINI: "Unemployment jumps to 9.4 percent - Further deterioration on the job market predicted in IOBE study".

LOGOS: "Unemployment jumps to 9.4 percent - Big rise in relation to last year".

RIZOSPASTIS: "Vigilance and action against the state terrorism - Package of measures for surveillance and keeping files on the people".

TA NEA: "The new law on Education to be tabled end September".

TO VIMA: "The new flu getting tougher - It could cause severe pneumonia".

VRADYNI: "Social security guide for women".

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