Today's news

[DeVilMaYcRy]

PM briefed over heatwave problems; gov't says power supply will meet surging demand

Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis was briefed by the relevant interior minister on Thursday over repercussions and state services' measures to deal with an ongoing three-day heatwave that has scorched the east Mediterranean country, although temperatures are thankfully forecast to drop slightly beginning on Thursday evening. A batch of wildfires throughout the country, including one that claimed the life of two local residents, 42 and 36, in the Agia region of Larissa prefecture in central Greece on Wednesday evening, were the top priority on Thursday. Additionally, authorities and the state-run Public Power Corp. (PPC) continued to experience record-breaking power consumption nearing the grid's maximum output.

Papandreou in Geneva for SI summit

Main opposition PASOK leader George Papandreou is in Geneva on Thursday in his capacity as president of the Socialist International (SI), as a SI summit will attract 300 representatives of political parties from around the world and some 40 heads of state and government.


1.1 bln euros from the sale of 10.7 pct in OTE

The Greek state on Thursday raised around 1.1 billion euros from the sale of a 10.7 percent equity stake in Hellenic Telecommunications Organisation (OTE) to institutional investors, Economy and Finance Minister George Alogoskoufis told reporters. The Greek minister said the private placement of Hellenic Telecommunications Organisation’s shares was successfully completed.

Dozens of fires reported across country

Firemen have been combatting dozens of forest fires raging across the country since Wednesday, causing two fatalities in Agia in central Greece, while the heatwave scorching Greece is gradually receding. In latest developments, a huge fire is laying waste the thick forest on Mount Parnis, in the Attica prefecture.



Unemployment falls to 9.1% in Q1

The unemployment rate in Greece fell to 9.1 pct in the first quarter of 2007, down from 9.7 pct in the corresponding period last year and 10.4 pct during the same period in 2005, the National Statistical Service announced on Thursday.