Ten years after sinking into its worst economic crisis in living memory, Greece once again faces the spectre of a grave recession in the midst of a global coronavirus lockdown.
"We know with certainty that will be deep... we don't know how long the health crisis will last, we don't yet know if we'll have tourism."The Greek state alone could lose 8-10 billion euros in income this year, the prime minister said.Greece has already adopted measures worth 17.5 billion euros, or 10 percent of national output, to support businesses and employees, Mitsotakis said.
But with most of its economy in virus quarantine since March and global lockdowns expected to wreak havoc on tourism, Greece is expected to sink into a 10 percent recession this year, according to the International Monetary Fund.Panagiotis Petrakis, professor of finance at the University of Athens, argued that the economic blow will be less severe.
The Greek finance ministry says the downturn could be limited to 4.7 percent through support measures, followed by a 5.1 percent rebound. The jobless rate will approach 20 percent, it said Friday. "Many will not even reopen, they won't manage with so few tables," added a neighbouring restaurant owner.It was on May 2, 2010, when the socialist government of George Papandreou signed the first of three eventual bailouts with the European Commission, the European Central Bank and the IMF that would total 350 billion euros.