Greece said to get respite until May 6 for next IMF payment

By Nikos Chrysoloras

Greece's cash-strapped government may get a brief respite in yet another looming debt payment next week thanks to a public holiday.

As Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras's government struggles to pay pensions and salaries at the end of the month, the May 1st public holiday may give its depleted coffers a break.

Greece needs to repay about 201 million euros ($217 million) in interest due on its International Monetary Fund loans by then, according to the IMF's website. As the deadline coincides with a holiday, followed by a weekend, the payment can be delayed until May 6, a person familiar with the matter said.

The Fund will only send the payment notification on May 4, and Greece will have two days to make the payment, the person said. The deadline for a principal repayment of about 766 million euros, which is due May 12, won't change, the person said, asking not to be named, as he was not authorized to speak publicly on the matter.

Interest on IMF loans is calculated and paid quarterly, using the three-month periods corresponding to the IMF fiscal year of May 1 to April 30. A Greek official with direct knowledge of the matter confirmed that the payment is due May 6, saying that interest charges on IMF loans are being paid 4 working days after the end of the month charged. May starts with three non-working days.

Greece has lost access to capital markets and relies on emergency loans from the IMF and the euro area to stay afloat. As a review of its compliance with bailout terms remains stalled for the eighth consecutive month, the country is running out of time and money. Its liquidity position is so tight, that a missed payment on its international obligations may be a matter of weeks,...