Greece: Largest firms to be hit with tax surcharge


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tightening up—not good.

NEWS FROM GREECE: LARGEST FIRMS TO BE HIT WITH TAX SURCHARGE
*GREECE ONE-TIME COMPANY CHARGE ON 2008 PROFITS
*GREECE TO IMPOSE 10% CHARGE ON COMPANIES WITH OVER 25 MLN PRFIT
*GREECE PLANS TO RAISE EU870 MLN FROM COMPANY ONE-TIME CHARGE
*GREECE TO IMPOSE 7% CHARGE ON COMPANIES WITH PROFIT 10-25MLN
*GREECE TO IMPOSE 5% CHARGE ON COMPANIES WITH PROFIT 5MLN -10MLN
*GREECE TO FINANCE SOLIDARITY PAYMENT WITH ONE-OFF MEASURES
*GREECE’S PAPACONSTANTINOU SPEAKS IN ATHENS
*GREECE TO IMPOSE ONE-OFF CHARGE ON 300 BIGGEST COMPANIES
*GREEK FINANCE MINISTER SPEAKS TO REPORTERS IN ATHENS
*GREECE PLANS TO PAY EU1BLN IN SOLIDARITY PAYMENT TO 2.5 MLN
*GREECE PLANS ONE-OFF MEASURES TO RAISE FUNDS


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Moody’s Lowers Outlook on Portugal,Greece On Downgrade Review


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The Euro zone remains at risk of a liquidity crisis for the national govts.

This doesn’t help.

On Thu, Oct 29, 2009 at 5:37 AM, wrote:

5:02 *MOODY’S CHANGES THE OUTLOOK ON PORTUGAL’S Aa2 RATING TO NEG (From
Stable)
5:01 *MOODY’S PLACES GREECE’S RATINGS ON REVIEW FOR POSSIBLE DOWNGRAD

MOODY’S SAYS REVISION IN GREECE’S PROJECTED 2009 DEFICIT ADDS TO
CONCERNS ABOUT RELIABILITY OF COUNTRY’S OFFICIAL STATISTIC

to be clear Moody’s has Greece on A1 while S&P already has them on A-
and for Portugal Moody’s still has it on Aa2 and S&P is very penalizing
on A+

Peripherals cheaper after the news (Portugal +2bps, Greece +3bps, Italy
+ 1.5bps)


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greece downgrade


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If markets turn on any Euro national govt this one is a prime candidate

Subject: initial thoughts on greece downgrade: CDS maybe a couple of bp

Initial thoughts on greece downgrade: CDS maybe a couple of bp wider and bonds more or less a non event.
The deficit numbers aren’t really new news – central bank governor Provopoulos said that he expected a 12% deficit this year in the week after the Oct 4th elections, and the press was speculating 14%.
The new government are busy dragging all the skeletons out of the cupboard, trying to make a clean break.
Depending on the level of cash balances, additional issuance this year could be around 10bn.


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Re: More talk of prepherals trouble and euro break-up


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(email exchange)

Yes, as well as this:

Pros Say: German Stimulus ‘Irrelevant’

Jan 13 (CNBC) — The euro remained under pressure Tuesday despite the German government approving a second stimulus package worth $64 billion to help Europe’s largest economy.

Experts tell CNBC the rescue package is “irrelevant” and that the euro will remain under pressure ahead of the European Central Bank rate decision on Thursday.

It’s irrelevant regarding economic recovery, but can accelerate the rate of credit deterioration of the German state.

And the falling euro once again distorts USD exposure as a percentage of capital that is expressed in euros.

>   
>   On Tue, Jan 13, 2009 at 8:01 AM, Dave wrote:
>   
>   France and Italy under performing Germany 5
>   bps today and Greece under performing 12 bps
>   in 10yrs
>   
>   DV
>   

Greeks Bearing Gifts

by John Authers

Jan 12 (FT) – The market fears the Greeks, even when bearing gifts. It is also scared about the Irish and the Spanish.

Greece has always been treated as a peripheral eurozone member, not only in geography. Even before last year’s civil unrest, its bonds traded at a significantly higher yield than those of Germany – showing a higher perceived default risk.

A eurozone country defaulting and leaving the euro is close to an
unthinkable event. But Friday’s news from Standard & Poor’s that Greece and Ireland were on review for a possible downgrade, followed on Monday by Spain, left many thinking the unthinkable.

The spread of Greek bonds over German bunds is 2.32 percentage points, almost 10 times its level of two years ago. Spanish spreads on Monday rose above 90 for the first time. An Intrade prediction market future puts the odds on a current eurozone member leaving the euro by the end of next year at about 30 per cent.

And German default swaps cost nearly 10 times as much as they did not long ago as well.

The euro dropped more than 1 per cent against the dollar within minutes of the Spanish news, and is down 9.8 per cent in the last few weeks.

A crisis over Greece might be the euro’s ultimate “stress test” (to
borrow a phrase from Daniel Katzive of Credit Suisse). If the eurozone
could find a way to deal with a default, that might confirm the euro’s
status as the world’s next reserve currency.


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