Extensive publication on the completion of enhanced oversight Greek economy organized by the German economic newspaper Handelsblatt. “With the lifting of strict fiscal controls (increased oversight), the Greek government will have more room to maneuver starting next week. Economic and fiscal policy will no longer be in Brussels, but in Athens – within the prerequisites for stability within the EU. (…) No one else speaks Grexit (…) However, the consequences of the crisis have not passed,” the report says, which contains an analytical review over the years of enhanced supervision and its significance.

In practice, this meant regular quarterly reviews of the country’s financial position and reform program. From the Commission’s point of view, the process was a success. Now he is praising the result of Greece’s reform efforts, the newspaper notes.

As the newspaper notes, “Greece is showing the biggest improvement in its consolidation budget – even if the pandemic and the energy crisis have thrown the country back financially, like almost all EU countries. (…) Thus, this year the primary budget balance, excluding loans and interest, will close with minus 2% of GDP. But next year Greece wants to return to the path of fiscal virtue with a surplus of 1% (…) Even if Greece has the highest debt ratio in the EU, the risk of falling back into the debt whirlpool is considered low. OUR Klaus Regling, the head of ESM, Greece’s largest lender, says the debt is acceptable even if key interest rates rise. The reason lies in the structure of the debt: three-quarters of the debt is owed to public creditors such as ESM.”

“However, the end of enhanced surveillance does not mean the end of control. Supervision will continue until three-quarters of the aid loans provided have been repaid. According to the current plan, this will not happen before 2059,” concludes Handelsblatt.