BRUSSELS (ANA-MPA/M. Aroni) - "In the unstable global environment, Greece has succeeded", said Finance Minister Christos Staikouras at the Eurogroup meeting on Monday, pointing out the strong resilience and positive prospects of the Greek economy.
"In today's first Eurogroup for 2023, we had the opportunity to discuss the course of European economies in the previous year, but also the challenges ahead for this year," he noted.
Greece has "achieved a high rate of economic growth, twice the European average, and it is estimated that this year we will have a rate of economic growth three times higher. We had record investments and exports in 2022, while the rate of investment growth is estimated to be the highest among all European countries until 2024. We had a significant reduction in unemployment and bad loans in bank books. We had significant fiscal stability and a huge reduction, unprecedented in European levels, of the debt-to-GDP ratio," Staikouras added.
"We are working to achieve even higher sustainable growth, create even more jobs and strengthen social cohesion," he added.
Staikouras will also be attending the Ecofin meeting in Brussels on Tuesday, where ministers will exchange views on the economic and financial impact of Russia's war against Ukraine; this has been a regular agenda item for Economic and Financial Affairs Council meetings since the war began.
The Council will adopt an amending implementing decision as regards the recovery and resilience plan of Luxembourg, taking into account the updated reduced maximum financial contribution (82.7 million euros instead of 93.3 million euros).
In addition, the Council will approve conclusions on the alert mechanism report 2023 and the annual sustainable growth survey 2023. It is also expected to approve the 2023 recommendation on the economic policy of the euro area, which will then be submitted to the European Council for endorsement at its meeting in March.