Latest Greece Headlines

All the headlines from our Greece Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Europe’s Banks, Insurers Take Greek Debt Hit in Stride

Jul 22 2011 // Major European banks have limited their losses on Greek bonds to just over €5 billion [$7.2 billion] after negotiating a 21 percent haircut on their debt holdings as part of a rescue plan.France’s BNP Paribas is...

Pirates Release Greek Tanker; All Crew Safe Says Manager

Jul 18 2011 // Pirates released a Greek-owned, Liberia-flagged tanker they had seized on Saturday 12.5 miles [20 kms] off the coast of Benin, and all the crew were safe, the vessel’s manager said on Monday.The 11,520 deadweight...

Stress Test Puts Banks’ Euro Zone Debt in Spotlight

Jul 18 2011 // Pressure on Europe’s banks to raise more capital increased on Monday after last week’s stress tests revealed their holdings of European sovereign debt, with likely losses on Greek bonds a growing concern.A...

Allianz: Investors Should Forgive 25-30% of Greek Debt

Jul 18 2011 // German insurer Allianz , owner of the world’s largest bond investor Pimco, favors private investors writing off 25-30 percent of Greece’s debt, company managers were on Monday quoted as saying.Three weeks of...

Head of S&P Germany Rejects Euro Zone Criticism

Jul 14 2011 // Standard & Poor’s hit back at criticism over the credit rating agencies’ role in the euro zone debt crisis on Thursday, with its German operations head saying rating agencies would lose credibility if they...

Europe at Impasse on Greece, IMF Backs Investor Role

Jul 14 2011 // The International Monetary Fund joined Germany on Wednesday in pushing for private sector investors [presumably including the EU’s insurers] to help cut Greece’s debt mountain as the euro zone sought to break...

Europe Considers Greek Default Possible; Leaders to Meet

Jul 12 2011 // European Union leaders are poised to hold an emergency summit after finance ministers acknowledged for the first time that some form of Greek default may be needed to cut Athens’ debts and stop contagion to Italy and...

EU Slams Rating Agencies after Portugal Downgrade

Jul 7 2011 // European politicians accused credit rating agencies on Wednesday of anti-European bias after Moody’s downgrade of Portugal’s debt to “junk” cast new doubt on EU efforts to rescue distressed euro...

Portugal Adds to Europe Woes as Banks Meet on Greece

Jul 6 2011 // A credit rating downgrade to Portugal [by Moody’s Investors Services] added to fears Europe’s banks face heavy euro zone losses if a private sector plan to help Greece comes unstuck, piling pressure on...

Accounting Issues Could Stall France’s Greek Debt Plan

Jun 28 2011 // Accounting issues remain a formidable obstacle facing private sector investors currently considering the French banking sector’s plan for restructuring Greek government debt.The plan’s focus was initially on...

Banks, Insurers Move Closer to Deal on Greek Bailout

Jun 24 2011 // Banks and policymakers moved closer to a deal on Friday to help Athens secure funds ahead of a parliamentary vote on austerity next week that Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou must win to avert default.Despite a...

Europe Seeks to Get Insurers, Banks on Board Greek Bailout

Jun 22 2011 // European governments are trying to persuade banks and insurers to share the pain of a second Greek bailout package, in an attempt to avoid market meltdown while keeping taxpayers happy.Talks between governments and...

Bribery Widespread Across Europe’s Top Companies: Survey

May 23 2011 // More than one third of employees at large European companies are prepared to offer cash or lavish gifts and entertainment to win business as the economic downturn prompts firms to cut corners to stay ahead.In its 2011...

Somali Pirates Release Greek-owned Ship; Ransom Paid

Apr 25 2011 // Somali pirates have freed a Greek-owned, Cyprus-flagged ship they seized in January after receiving a ransom payment, the pirates and a piracy monitoring group said.The pirates said they had released MV Eagle, a 52,163...

Somali Pirates Release 1 Ship; Hijack Another

Jan 18 2011 // Somali pirates hijacked a Greek-owned bulk carrier on Monday after releasing a Greek-owned tanker the day before, the European Union Naval Force said.The cargo ship MV Eagle was hijacked early Monday by pirates who had...

European Union Faces Both a Debt and a Communication Crisis

Nov 24 2010 // The European Union has deployed billions of euros and endless words to try to contain its sovereign debt crisis this year, but poor communication and bad timing have left financial markets unconvinced.The communications...

EU Leaders Meet to Work on Ways to Prevent New Debt Crises

Jun 17 2010 // European Union leaders hope to agree on ways to strengthen budget discipline and economic policy coordination on Thursday to show financial markets they can prevent a repeat of the euro zone debt crisis.Leaders of the 27...

ECB’s Plan to Buy Bonds Risks Making it Europe’s ‘Bad Bank’

May 18 2010 // The European Central Bank’s decision to buy tarnished debt in the euro zone risks turning it into Europe’s de facto “bad bank” and putting cash-strapped governments and taxpayers on the hook for yet...

Tardy Greek Debt Bailout Spreads Financial Crisis beyond Europe

May 12 2010 // Last weekend the leaders of the European Union finally realized that their dithering over a financial aid package for Greece had imperiled the entire continent’s financial structure. They acted to stem the tide by...

Somali Pirates Seize Greek-owned Ship in Gulf of Aden

May 12 2010 // Somali pirates have seized a Liberia-flagged and Greek-owned ship with 24 people aboard in the Gulf of Aden, officials said on Wednesday.The ship, managed by Eurobulk Ltd and named Eleni P, was carrying iron and sailing...