Even though the troika was originally expected to return to Athens around the 15th of January in order to resume talks with the Minister of Finances, it now appears that the trip to Athens has been postponed until the troika is certain that it will strike a deal for the disbursement of the IMF and EU’s 6.7 billion euro loan installment.
While the Minister of Finances Yannis Stournaras is preparing for the troika’s trip and polishing his proposal of structural measures worth 1.2 billion euros for 2014, among other outstanding commitments, he is not particularly in a rush. The Minister is particularly pleased by how the collectability of real estate taxes has exceeded troika estimates.
Mr. Stournaras is confident that Greek finances have improved significantly in recent months and would like to have the latest data possible at his disposal for when the troika heads return to Athens.
As such, it seems that the troika visit will take place in time for the Eurogroup scheduled for the 17th of February, when the EU will formally approve the 3.1 billion euro loan installment to Greece. Likewise, the IMF’s 3.6 billion installment loan will not be approved before the end of February or early March.
Regarding the other unresolved matters, while the troika and the Greek government are unable to come to an agreement on mass dismissals, they have agreed to a gradual 3.9% reduction of insurance contributions by 2016. The Greek side wants the first reduction to be small as possible, in order to restrict the loss of revenue to 300 million euros.
Furthermore, the Greek side is skeptical about the troika’s insistence on an immediate abolition of collecting taxes for third parties, as this will cause cash flow and revenue problems for certain insurance funds. In the meantime, the Minister of Growth Kostis Hatzidakis will submit his proposals for supporting entrepreneurship in Greece.
