Foundation for Economic and Industrial Research

Business at Greece's two privatized ports, Piraeus and Thessaloniki, could increase the country's gross domestic product by up to 5.6 billion euros a year, a survey by the Foundation for Economic and Industrial Research (IOBE) has found. The strategic position of Greece's two main ports is seen as crucial for international trade.

The privatization of the Thessaloniki Port Authority (OLTH) may add up to 1.6 billion euros to Greece's gross domestic product in the coming decade, according to an IOBE study.

High taxes and social security contributions, Greek bureaucracy, high energy costs and unclear and dysfunctional zoning laws are the factors that have led to the contraction of the local manufacturing sector, according to a study by the Foundation for Economic and Industrial Research (IOBE).

Greeks increased spending on healthcare by 30 percent from 2010 to 2015, according to a study by the Foundation for Economic and Industrial Research (IOBE).

Households were compelled to pay for covering the vacuum from the decline in state expenditure on health, which came to 13 percent in the same period owing to austerity measures.

It appears that the domestic food industry has found in exports the ideal way to offset its losses at home. In 2015 the country's food and drink trade deficit reached its lowest point since 2010, not only because imports dropped but also due to the considerable increase in exports of fresh as well as manufactured food after 2010.

Greece is stuck between a rock and a hard place. The extended negotiations between the government and the representatives of the eurozone and the International Monetary Fund have strangled consumption in Greece, as the delays in the completion of the second review of the country's third bailout are generating uncertainty among households and enterprises.

The climate in manufacturing slumped to a new 16-month low in January, as the Purchasing Managers Index compiled by Markit showed on Wednesday a decline to 46.6 points from 49.3 points in December 2016.

The prolonged recession in the sector - a result of the strong decline in output and new orders - has led companies to reduce employee numbers.

The delay in the completion of Greece's second bailout review will inflict a blow on economic growth this year, which will underperform the government's expectations, the Foundation for Economic and Industrial Research (IOBE) argues in its quarterly report released on Thursday.

Greece's economy will accelerate at a far faster rate this year than last, ending an eight-year nightmare of recession or stagnation but still performing less well than the government and its creditors project, the IOBE think tank said on Thursday.

Economic sentiment in Greece reached its highest point in the last 15 months in December, according to the index compiled by the Foundation for Economic and Industrial Research (IOBE).

The reading of the index last month was at 94.6 points, IOBE announced on Monday, up from 92.4 percent in November, which confirms the stabilization of the economy over the course of 2016.