The time hasn’t come yet for Greece to open itself to markets, supports the economist Anastassios Frangulidis. “An exit path however is visible and this is something that the Greek people are also starting to realize.”
“Greece will be able to cover its debt in the open market with acceptable interest rates in at least two years,” states Frangulidis, the chief economist at the Zürcher Kantonalbank, the third largest bank in Switzerland, wholly owned by the canton of Zurich.
The Greek economist sees the optimistic statements heard in Athens during the Greek EU presidency ceremony as not so realistic and attributes the remarks about a Greek exit to the free markets during the first half of 2014 mainly to the upcoming EU elections. “I can imagine that Greece will be able in two to three years to finance itself,” argued Frangulidis in an interview on Swiss radio. “Certainly there are already investors that would contract a loan with Greece, but only at high interest rates. That is why Greece is in need of her EU and IMF creditors for a bit more.”
The Greek chief economist makes references to Ireland and Portugal, with both countries making progress in opening themselves to markets. As for Greece, time needs to pass in order for private investors to regain their trust completely.
Frangulidis believes though, that Greek people will continue to cooperate. “Greeks have made many sacrifices and are now slowly realizing that perhaps the worst is over. The risks of uncontrolled bankruptcy and exiting the eurozone have been significantly reduced.”
According to the economist, Greece has the prospect to emerge from the crisis, but should develop an attractive investment environment and become more competitive by creating better operating conditions through an efficient administration and less corruption.”
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