Economy of Greece

Athens Stock Exchange saw a small rise in equity prices at 11.00 am on Friday, with the basic share price index up 0.13%, standing at 858.68 points and turnover at 8.55 million euros.

The FTSE/ASE Large Cap index for blue chip and heavily traded stocks rose by 0.20% and the FTSE/ASE Mid Cap index rose by 0.07%.

It could be a scene from a thriller: a ghost ship abandoned in the crystal-clear bay of a Greek island, its hold crammed with millions of illegal cigarettes, the crew nowhere to be seen.

And no one knows where the freighter Amaranthus or its cargo were bound for when it beached on the island of Zanthe off the Ionian coast of western Greece in December.

The former head of the Financial Crime Squad (SDOE), Yiannis Diotis, on Wednesday denied any wrongdoing in the handling of the Lagarde list and insisted that the memory stick he was given containing the names of Greeks with deposits in Switzerland had been tampered with before he got his hands on it.

Barely a year after emerging from a savage recession comparable in its intensity to the Great Depression in the U.S., Greece's economy is shrinking again.

Greece's government sought to assure its creditors and investors on Monday that it can cover its funding needs this month, including repaying a 1.5 billion euro loan to the International Monetary Fund.

The Athens Stock Exchange saw a drop in equity prices at 11 a.m. on Thursday with the basic share price index down 2.37%, standing at 859.61 points and turnover at 9.985 million euros.

The FTSE/ASE Large Cap index for blue chip and heavily traded stocks decreased by 2.70% and the FTSE/ASE Mid Cap index was down by 2.69%.

German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble urged the new Greek government on Sunday to use a four-month extension it obtained for its financial rescue to implement its reform plan if it wanted to secure future help from abroad.

The Greek stock market fell for a third day in a row on Friday as concerns about the state?s cash flow rose due to statements by ministers.

The Athens Exchange (ATHEX) general index closed at 880.48 points, shedding 2.67 percent from Thursday?s 904.59 points. On a weekly basis the benchmark added 3.08 percent, but February posted a 21.96 percent rise.

Equity prices fell on Friday on the Athens Stock Exchange (ASE) with the basic share price index down 2.51% at 881.87 points at 11.00 and turnover at 11.50 million euros.

The FTSE/ASE Large Cap index for blue chip and heavily traded stocks was down 2.83%, and the FTSE/ASE Mid Cap index was down 1.36%.

The impressive gains in Tuesday?s bourse session were followed on Wednesday by a significant decline for banks and a mixed day for other stocks, on reduced turnover.