* Blow to government after deputy resigns in protestBy Harry Papachristou and James MackenzieATHENS, Oct 18 (Reuters) - Greek ships were harboured and
garbage rotted in the streets of Athens on Tuesday as angry
workers built momentum for “the mother of all strikes” expected
to bring the country to a halt in protest against a new package
of tax hikes and wage cuts.Unions representing around half of Greece’s 4 million-strong
workforce have called a 48 hour general strike for Wednesday and
Thursday to protest against a sweeping package of austerity
measures due to be passed in parliament this week.A wave of smaller strikes over recent days by groups ranging
from rubbish collectors to tax officials, journalists and seamen
has given a foretaste of this week’s protest which will
culminate in mass demonstrations in front of parliament, the
scene of violent clashes in June.The protest, dubbed “the mother of all strikes” by the daily
Ta Nea newspaper, is expected to be the biggest since the
financial crisis began two years ago, shutting state offices,
shops and even providers of everyday staples like bakers.Prime Minister George Papandreou, battling to satisfy
demands from international lenders for even tougher action, has
appealed for unity, saying the package, due to be passed on
Wednesday or Thursday, must pass to allow Greece to emerge from
the crisis.”The nation is at a crucial moment and we have to be united.
In this battle, we need everyone,” Papandreou told a cabinet
meeting late on Monday. “Everyone must assume their
responsibilities.”“Our main goal is to end the uncertainty over the country’s
future. Because this uncertainty undermines our efforts and
sacrifices,” he said.His struggling Socialist government, trailing badly in the
opinion polls, is being squeezed between the escalating street
protests and pressure from lenders dissatisfied with the pace of
reform.As European Union leaders race to put the foundations of a
new rescue plan in place in time for a summit on Oct. 23, there
was growing talk of more direct intervention that would restrict
Greek sovereignty in return for more aid.Some euro zone countries have been pressing for a European
Commission taskforce to be given direct powers to intervene in
areas such as overseeing the sale of state assets.The Greek government declined to comment on Tuesday but any
outside taskforce would need to be ready to counter resistance
from a society deeply disillusioned with its own political
leaders but also increasingly hostile to outside intervention.RECESSIONLate on Monday, Papandreou suffered a blow when PASOK deputy
Thomas Robopoulos resigned in protest at the cuts, although
parliamentary rules allow him to be replaced by another member
of the ruling party, leaving the government’s 4-seat majority
intact.Two other PASOK deputies have also threatened to vote
against part of the package but, with one of the smaller
opposition parties possibly offering support, the package is
still expected to pass.The bill includes tax hikes, wage cuts, public sector
layoffs and changes to collective bargaining rules.It follows a series of painful austerity measures that have
so far failed to halt a steady rise in Greece’s mountainous
public debt and have been attacked by the opposition for
stifling any prospect of growth in the stricken economy.Trapped in deep recession for the past three years, Greece
is choking on a public debt that amounts to around 162 percent
of gross domestic product and there are growing doubts that it
will be able to emerge from the crisis without defaulting.Underlining the problems facing an economy that is already
forecast to contract 5.5 percent in 2011, data on Tuesday showed
headline unemployment rising to 16.5 percent in July, a month
when summer tourism normally boosts job numbers. Youth
unemployment was running as high as 42 percent.An EU and IMF inspection team left Athens last week,
recommending approval of a vital 8 billion euro loan tranche but
said Greece was falling behind on its budget targets and should
move more quickly to cut spending and pass reforms.Parliament is due to open a three-day debate later on
Tuesday, after Papandreou meets members of the ruling PASOK
parliamentary group to rally support.He wants convincing backing for the measures in time for the
EU summit and is due to meet conservative opposition leader
Antonis Samaras in a bid to present a united front in Brussels.However government officials have dismissed rumours that
Papandreou might renew an offer for a coalition government,
which Samaras turned down in the summer.
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* EU watchdog ESMA set to get banning powers* News conference called for 1700 GMTBRUSSELS, Oct 18 (Reuters) - The European Union hopes to
finalise a law on Tuesday that could ban certain credit default
swaps (CDS) to curb what some policymakers see as hedge funds
bets on the euro zone crisis.The measure has been deadlocked for months because of a
split between the European Parliament and EU states, who have
joint say. Both sides meet on Tuesday afternoon with a news
conference scheduled for just after 1700 GMT.”The final point of negotiation relates to the ban on naked
sovereign credit default swaps (CDS), those used for a purely
speculative aim,” said Pascal Canfin, the French Green Party
member who is leading the parliamentary team.Parliament voted to ban CDS contracts, a form of insurance
against default, where the holder does not own any of the
underlying government debt being insured.EU states say this is a step too far and propose curbing
short-selling of the government debt itself, and only if the
country in question agrees.”During this final trilogue, parliament and the council (of
EU states) must reach an agreement on banning naked CDS,” Canfin
said.Policymakers accused hedge funds last year of using CDS
contracts to bet on a Greek default, a step they said made it
more expensive for the EU to rescue Greece. It prompted French
President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel to
call for the draft law.But a study for the European Parliament said a ban on naked
CDS would have “detrimental effects on liquidity and the price
discovery process of credit risk”.Hedge funds say the CDS market is too small to manipulate
the far bigger sovereign debt market and that government bond
prices have tumbled in Greece and elsewhere in the euro zone
because of investor worries over the level of public debt.DISCLOSURESThe measure aims to avoid a repeat of confusing unilateral
national curbs on short-selling in financial shares in 2008
after the collapse of U.S. bank Lehman Brothers.Italy, Spain, France, Belgium and Greece reintroduced
short-selling curbs this summer while other EU states like
Britain refused to join in.Such curbs are disputed by exchanges and some academics, and
failed this summer to stop a rout in French banking shares as
the euro zone crisis sent investors scurrying.The European Securities and Markets Authority would have
powers to override national supervisors and impose temporary
pan-EU share short-selling bans in times of market turmoil.The new law will also impose reporting requirements on short
positions in shares and sovereign debt.Shorting stocks would only be allowed if prior arrangements
have been made to borrow the stock to ensure prompt settlement
of trades or that there is reasonable certainty the stock will
be available.
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* Clears way for IMF support programme, halted last yearBy Hamid ShaliziKABUL, Oct 15 (Reuters) - The Afghan parliament, in a
critical step for the release of blocked foreign aid funds,
agreed on Saturday to start repaying the central bank for its
bailout of Kabulbank, with a first installment of $51 million.Only two lawmakers voted against the bill, which provides
for the repayment of up to $825 million in total over eight
years, according to a finance ministry statement on the vote.Parliamentary approval of the repayment was a condition for
renewal of an International Monetary Fund (IMF) support
programme, halted since last September when news of the
Kabulbank crisis began to emerge.Politically well connected Kabulbank had doled out hundreds
of millions of dollars in unsecured and undocumented loans to
Afghanistan’s elite, including sitting ministers and a former
warlord, before the dramatic discovery of the fraud last year.Western officials described the bank as a “Ponzi scheme”.An IMF programme is a critical seal of approval that most
international donors say they want to see before they pledge
aid, so the dispute has blocked millions of dollars of funds.IMF staff have reached an agreement with Afghanistan on a
three-year $129 million loan, which is expected to be considered
by the fund’s board in November.To secure the IMF money, Afghanistan still has to follow up
some commitments, and approval of the repayments to Da
Afghanistan Bank, the central bank, was among the most critical.”I want to thank Parliament for approving this very
significant step in the path of resolution of the Kabulbank,”
Finance Minister Omar Zakhilwal said in a statement.”Completing the last requirement to enter a new IMF
programme is an extremely significant milestone in transition to
increased Afghan responsibility for security and development.”Zakhilwal said recently that the country had made progress
towards re-establishing Kabulbank, the largest private lender in
the country, after hiving off the bad loans.”Fortunately, I can say now that the bank has got out of the
danger zone,” he told journalists in Kabul.The finance ministry said in its statement on Saturday that
$70 million of over $800 million in fraudulent loans issued by
Kabulbank had been recovered, assets worth $110 million had been
seized and a further $350 million of loans restructured.Officials say they could ultimately recover close to 80
percent of the total loans, the finance ministry added, which is
a more optimistic assessment than anti-corruption officials made
earlier this year.A senior anti-corruption official said earlier this year
that with interest included, Kabulbank had about $926 million in
outstanding loans, almost all of which was at risk.Azizullah Luddin, chairman of the High Office of Oversight
and Anti-corruption, said in May he was confident around $350
million would be paid back and that possibly an additional $250
million could be recovered.Charges have been filed against two shareholders and seven
bank officials and are expected to be filed against several
other people, the finance ministry said in the statement,
without giving further details.
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“A lot depends on how he recovers,” Amaro said. “The start of the season could be impacted, but I still hope he makes his first at-bat of the season.”Howard tore the tendon while making the final out during a loss to the St. Louis Cardinals in the deciding game of the National League Division Series last week.The three-time All-Star will be immobilized for about one to two weeks and could do weight bearing and strengthening in about a month depending on how his recovery goes, the team said in a statement.
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* $9 bln deal will deliver savings to customers-NYSE execBy Jonathan Spicer and Ann SaphirCHICAGO, Oct 11 (Reuters) - Merger partners Deutsche Boerse
AG and NYSE Euronext have until Nov. 8 to
formally address the European Commission’s specific concerns
over their $9 billion deal, according to a source familiar with
the time table.Officials at the exchange operators are now still reading
and analyzing the document, known as the “statement of
objections,” that European Union antitrust regulators sent to
them on Oct. 5, said the source, who wasn’t authorized to speak
publicly.The German exchange agreed to buy the Big Board parent in
February, a transaction that would create the world’s largest
market operator.The EU antitrust review got underway this summer and could
continue through the rest of the year as regulators decide
whether to allow the companies to combine their Eurex and Liffe
venues to take a strangle hold on exchange-based European
derivatives trading.Regulators are expected to look only at exchange-traded
derivatives rather than including the broader over-the-counter
derivatives market, separate sources told Reuters on Monday. A
narrow view of the market could make it more difficult for the
deal to win regulatory approval.At a Futures Industry Association conference here on
Tuesday, a top NYSE Euronext executive said the combination
will create a European “champion” that will deliver savings to
hedge funds and other market users.”We have to show value to end-users,” Garry Jones, who runs
NYSE’s global derivatives business, told the conference.The deal between the two derivatives giants will deliver as
much as $4 billion in savings on margins, he said, while also
pledging that the merged company will not use its bigger size
to raise prices.
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