Greece Submits New List of Reforms to Creditors

Athens drafted a new list of structural reforms which is submitted to creditors yesterday even as the Greek government said it will ceases fulfilling debt commitments if negotiations faltered and no assistance is given to the hard-pressed nation.

Minister for International Economic Affairs Euclid Tsakalotos stated his country was seeking an accord and could exit the Union in case of negative outcome. However, they are always amenable to a compromise.

Representatives of the European Union, ECB and IMF are expected to study the proposed reforms closely.

Greece has come up with 18 items in its revised package of transformation that will hopefully release £7.2billion worth of financial assistance.

The minister said Athens will not give up its anti-austerity stance and instead focus on payment of wages and pensions.

An unidentified Greek official insisted the reform-for-cash arrangement does not contain recessionary measures.

On the other hand, lenders were adamant that such measures are inevitable if Greece wants its economy to recover.

The proposal projected a GDP growth of 1.4 percent for 2015 and reduction of primary surplus which is anticipated to reach 1.5 percent this year.

The Euro working group will be responding to this new package on Monday.

Meanwhile, Fitch Ratings relegated long-term foreign as well as domestic currency default ratings of Greece from “B” to "CCC". Likewise, ratings on primary unsecured overseas and local currency bonds were also reduced to "CCC". Temporary FOREX IDR was downgraded from “B” to "C"

The next schedule for review (Fitch sovereign rating on Greece) is on May 15.