Greece Is Eurzone’s One Of The Best Performers Says IMF

According to a recent report published by IMF Greece has entered into a new phase of economic growth that now ranks it among best performers in Eurozone. A senior IMF official stated that there have been lot of positive developments in recent years and though its economy is vulnerable and unemployment is high. Greece was hardest hit during the financial crisis of Eurozone in 2009 and it received maximum funds from IMF in the form of bailout loans. The maximum money for bailout of Greece was given by Eurozone which contributed almost a trillion euros.

The loans given to Greece had pre-conditions on the way they were to be used and the country had to take strong action on its unsustainable borrowings and was expected to reform its economy to sustain and support growth. It was asked to change its labor regulations and become more competitive in corporate world besides privatizing a sizeable part of its industry. Both these demands were met with resistance by Greek citizens and the terms of bailout led to internal strife and political crisis for the government. Though growth was erratic during initial stages it resumed in 2013 and both IMF and EU are unanimous in their opinion that Greece has made significant progress.

But experts say that last year Greece’s growth rate was just a little more than 2 % in more than a decade. But IMF says that this year the performance will be better and will help put the country in upper tier of Eurozone. The country had suffered much during the financial crisis and even now its economy is 24 % small than it was before the crisis. Even though unemployment has reduced noticeably it is high among adult population at 18.5 % and among younger generation it is at 40 %. IMF has said that this situation exists as reform work is still incomplete and its banks still have high loan levels.