On Thursday the Athens Stock Market Exchange plunged by a further 7.35%, with total losses since Tuesday approaching 13 billion euros. The market index closed at 827.98 points, the lowest in 27 years.
At the same time, the yield of 10-year treasury bills increased t 9.12% and that of 5-year treasury bills increased to 9.5%. Indicative of the overseas concern that Greece is unable to pay off its short-term debt is the fact that 3-year treasury bills that were issued in July with a 3.375% interest rate have seen the rate explode to 10.43%.
The Prime Minister’s decision to bring the critical Presidential elections two months forward is seen as a rather risky gamble, due to the distinct possibility of early elections being called in case a President is not elected. With New Democracy and PASOK trailing in the polls, SYRIZA is expected to assume power, although it may not have a parliamentary majority. This in turn means that the political uncertainty may be prolonged and nervousness of the markets extended.
On the other hand, some analysts argued that a second Greek crisis may be less “infectious” for the Eurozone than the first one, since the balances have somewhat changed. To this they point that in other crisis-stricken countries, such as Spain and Ireland; the yield of 3-year t-bills did not exceed that of 10-year t-bills as in Greece. The overall sense, it argued, is that the Greece can no longer derail the Eurozone.
