Greek Economy Stagnated In 2016: Official Data

ATHENS, March 8, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 08th Mar, 2017 ) - Greece's debt-ridden economy stagnated in 2016, the national statistics agency said in a first estimate on Wednesday, two days after quarterly data pointed to a small contraction.

"GDP in volume terms recorded 0.0 percent annual rate of change in 2016," Elstat said, adding that the figure was derived from non-seasonally adjusted quarterly levels plus updated data. On Monday, Elstat had released fourth-quarter figures for 2016 that indicated an annual contraction of 0.

05 percent.

This is in sharp contrast with the European Commission's estimates that the Greek economy would actually register slim growth of 0.3 percent in 2016. The new figures come at a time when Athens is locked in crucial bailout talks with the IMF and the European Union for its crisis-battered economy.

There are already deep divisions between Brussels and the Washington-based lender, which believes that the Europeans' expectations of Greece's economic performance are too ambitious.