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After the growth of 0.9% from July 2016 to September 2016, the Greek GDP decreased by 0.4% in the last three months of 2016. The fall of the GDP was steep and unforeseen. There are ongoing differences between the EU and International Monetary Fund. Greece owed a €7bn debt repayment to the European Central Bank in July. The Dutch finance minister warned that it was unlikely a solution would be found before the next meeting of finance ministers representing countries in the currency bloc on 20 February. Greek officials have repeatedly voiced optimism that the review will soon be concluded.
The reason why there was a decrease in GDP for Greece is due to the additional austerity set by the government. The government came up with difficult economic measures like a national monthly pension of €384, to reduce public expenditure as they owed a huge amount of money to the European Central Bank. There was also a rate of over 25% of unemployment, which could have resulted in the decreasing GDP.

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The standoff between Greece and its creditors has escalated, with the embattled Athens government vowing it will not give in to demands for further cuts as data showed the country's economy unexpectedly contracting.

As thousands of protesting farmers rallied in Athens over spiralling costs and unpopular reforms, the Hellenic statistical authority revealed that Greek GDP shrank by 0.4% in the last three months of 2016.

After growth of 0.9% in the previous three-month period the fall was steep and unforeseen. On Monday the European commission announced that the eurozone's weakest member was on course to achieving a surplus on its budget of 2.3% after exceeding its 2016 fiscal targets "significantly".

The setback came as prime minister Alexis Tsipras' lefist-led coalition said it would not consent to additional austerity beyond the cuts the country had already agreed to administer under its third, EU-led bailout programme.

Speaking on state TV, the digital policy minister Nikos Pappas, Tsipras' closest confidant, insisted that ongoing differences between the EU and International Monetary Fund over how to put the debt-stricken state back on the road to recovery were squarely to blame for the failure to conclude a compliance review at the heart of the standoff. The IMF has argued vigorously that extra measures worth 2% of GDP will have to be enforced with immediate effect if Greece is to achieve a high post-programme primary surplus of more than 1.5%.

"The negotiations should have ended. Greece has done everything that it was asked to do," he said and added there would be "no more measures".

The future of the €86bn financial aid programme is contingent on Athens implementing agreed economic reforms. The IMF has repeatedly said it will not sign up to the programme unless the crisis-plagued country is given more generous debt relief in the form of a substantial write-down.

With Greece facing a €7bn debt repayment to the European Central Bank in July, fears of a Greek default have once again hit markets with shares falling and interest rates on Greek debt rising.

But Tsipras is also under pressure from back-benchers in his fragile two-party administration. After seven years of adopting grueling austerity in return for emergency bailout aid many are openly questioning the wisdom of applying yet more measures that have already put Greece in a permanent debt deflationary cycle.

All eyes are now on a flying visit Europe's economics chief Pierre Moscovici will make to Athens on Wednesday. Government sources said they were hoping the EU commissioner would come with an "honourable compromise" acceptable to all so that stalled negotiations could resume with the return of auditors as soon as possible.

But the eurozone chief, Dutch finance minister Jeroen Dijsselbloem, warned it was unlikely a solution would be found before the next meeting of finance ministers representing countries in the currency bloc on 20 February - raising the spectre that Greece could be headed for a rerun of 2015 when it teetered towards euro exit.

On Monday, Christine Lagarde, the IMF's managing director, raised the stakes further saying Greece could not be singled out for special treatment. "We have been asked to help, but can only help at terms and conditions that are even-handed," she told Reuters. "In other words we cannot cut a special sweet deal for a particular country because it is that county."

Despite the delay, Greek officials have repeatedly voiced optimism that the review will soon be concluded. Amidst the uncertainty the real economy has been put on hold with non-performing bank loans and private debt ballooning. This week the head of the Greek public power corporation, DEH, said lack of liquidity was such that the body was on the verge of bankruptcy.

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Greece defies creditors over more cuts as economy shrinks unexpectedly

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The standoff between Greece and its creditors has escalated, with the embattled Athens government vowing it will not give in to demands for further cuts as data showed the country's economy unexpectedly contracting. As thousands of protesting farmers rallied in Athens over spiralling costs and unpopular reforms, the Hellenic statistical authority revealed that Greek GDP shrank by 0.4% in the last three months of 2016.

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https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/business/international/greece-debt-crisis-euro.html

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Greece"s crisis started because of profligacy. In the beginning, when Greece first joined the European Community, its economy was in good shape. But in October 1981, when the Panhellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK) came into power, to keep voters happy, they automatically rose salaries every year not based not performance and productivity. Pensions were generous and they were entitled to additional pay during the holiday. The government fell into huge debt due to low productivity, eroding competitiveness and rampant tax evasion. They are not producing enough goods and services and they have a high unemployment rate but need to pay back their debts. Hence, the economy is not growing.
Sources: http://www.investopedia.com/articles/personal-finance/061115/origins-greeces-debt-crisis.asp

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Good choice of a country. You may to read and research more to find out the underlying reasons for the current state of Greece's economy.

Warm Regards

Joshua Nath

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Unemployment rate decreased from 23.3% to 23.2% in February 2017. This is a good sign as it means that the number of people unemployed is decreasing. Unemployment causes loss of income which affects self-esteem. It also contributes
to loss of output which affects the nation's GDP. Based on the article, employment rose by 0.2% to 3.7million. Even though the employment rate is increasing, the unemployment rate of Greece is still double that of the Eurozone average. The number of employed persons is 3627.20 thousand and the number of unemployed persons is 1141.50 thousand, 23.2% of the adult population in Greece. Referencing from Bloomberg news, "A 3 percent to 4 percent unemployment rate is a reasonable goal for policymakers to embrace." Hence, 23.3% unemployment rate is dangerously high for a country. Unemployment continued to affect those aged 15-24 years old as 47.9% of young active population is unemployed. Based on research, Greece's high unemployment rate is due to the lack of jobs during a recession. When GDP falls, companies close down and has to retrench its workers and hence contributing to the unemployment rate.

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Compared with December 2017, the number of unemployed declined by 1 percent to 977 thousand and the number of employed went down by 0.3 percent to 3.76 million.

A year earlier, the unemployment rate was higher at 23.2 percent. The number of unemployed persons fell by 11.5 percent while employment rose by 2.7 percent.

Unemployment continued to hit mainly people aged 15 to 24, as 42.3 percent of young active population was unemployed, despite easing from 47.1 percent in the same month of 2017. Additionaly, lower jobless rates were also recorded in the majority of age groups: the 25-34 age group (26 percent from 29.4 percent); the 35-44 age group (19 percent from 20.1 percent); the 45-54 age group (16.5 percent from 18.1 percent), the 55-64 age group (16.5 percent from 19.9 percent) and the 65-74 age group (7.1 percent from 13.9 percent).

The jobless rate among males declined to 16.7 percent in January from 19.6 percent a year ago and for females it went down to 25.6 percent from 27.6 percent.

Among the country's regions, the highest unemployment rates were reported for Epirus-Western Macedonia (26.2 percent), followed by Peloponnese, Western Greece and Ionian Islands (21.7 percent), Attica (21 percent), Macedonia-Thrace (20.2 percent) and Aegean Islands (19.8 percent); while Crete recorded the lowest rate (16.4 percent).

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Greece Unemployment Rate | 1998-2018 | Data | Chart | Calendar | Forecast

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The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in Greece fell to 20.6 percent in January of 2018, from 20.8 percent in December and reaching the lowest since November 2011. The number of unemployed decreased by 1 percent to 977 thousand and employment fell by 0.3 percent to 3.76 million.

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Group Members: Bernice, Pei Qi, Jesslyn, Andrea and Joey
Country Chosen : Greece

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Statistics analyzed that Greece's inflation rate rise above market expectations, reaching almost a five-year high. Consumer price index rose to 1.2 percent yearly from 0 percent in January, emerging from a protracted deflation trend and thus many Greek household incomes were adversely affected by it- wage and pension cuts and multi-year recession.
The sudden jump in inflation was caused by the surge in energy prices as economic growth prosper and unemployment rate fell to its lowest in seven years.
The surge in energy prices could be due to green levies and taxes to support renewable energy. By increasing energy prices, consumers will have a smaller purchasing power

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ATHENS Greece's annual EU-harmonised inflation rate picked up in January, statistics service data showed on Wednesday, with the reading coming in above market expectations, hitting almost a five-year high.

The reading in January was 1.5 percent from 0.3 percent in December. Consumer prices were led higher by transport, housing, telecoms, alcoholic beverages and tobacco costs.

Economists polled by Reuters were forecasting a 0.4 percent print in January.

The data also showed the headline consumer price index rose to 1.2 percent year-on-year from zero percent in the previous month, emerging from a protracted deflation trend.

For years an inflation outlier in the euro zone, Greece had been in a protracted deflation mode since March 2013 based on its headline index, as wage and pension cuts and a multi-year recession took a heavy toll on Greek household incomes.

Deflation in Greece, which signed up to its first international bailout in 2010, hit its highest level in November 2013, when consumer prices registered a 2.9 percent year-on-year decline.

Euro zone inflation jumped more than expected in January on a surge in energy prices as economic growth accelerated and unemployment fell to its lowest level in more than seven years.

Inflation in the 19 countries sharing the euro accelerated to 1.8 percent year-on-year in January from 1.1 percent in December, reaching the European Central Bank's medium-term target of below, but close to 2 percent.

(Reporting by George Georgiopoulos)

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Greek consumer prices rise in January, led by transport, housing costs

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ATHENS Greece's annual EU-harmonised inflation rate picked up in January, statistics service data showed on Wednesday, with the reading coming in above market expectations, hitting almost a five-year high. The reading in January was 1.5 percent from 0.3 percent in December. Consumer prices were led higher by transport, housing, telecoms, alcoholic beverages and tobacco costs.