Lagarde in Athens: the economy and people of Greece – an example of resilience

European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde praised the Greek economy’s return to health after the economic crisis and the resilience of the Greek people.

The former head of the International Monetary Fund, who ruined the lives of thousands of people by demanding their last cents, is currently in Athens, where the ECB board of directors is meeting on Wednesday and Thursday. She also acknowledged the efforts of the Greek people during an official dinner hosted in her honor by Bank of Greece Governor Yiannis Stournaras, who is holding a meeting at the bank’s premises.

According to Lagarde, the Greek economy can serve as an inspiring example in very uncertain times in terms of sustainability, as well as an example of the importance of being part of a common European destiny.

From 2008 to 2016, the ECB head noted, Greece’s GDP shrank by more than a quarter, unemployment rose 20 percentage points at its peak, and disaster was repeated with the coronavirus pandemic just as the economy began to recover and reforms began to bear fruit. Greece has been at the forefront of global challenges facing Europe, including the climate and migration crises, she added.

However, the country’s resilience should be noted, as GDP per capita is now 10% higher than pre-pandemic levels, much higher than the Eurozone overall, and the unemployment rate has also dropped significantly, to 10.9% in August. which is the lowest level since the end of 2009. According to her, it is not only the resilience of the Greek economy that deserves attention, but also the resilience of the Greek people, who have remained committed to Europe in difficult times.

The heads of the eurozone’s national central banks and the six members of the ECB’s executive committee meet at the Bank of England’s headquarters in central Athens to make decisions on monetary policy. Following the meeting, the ECB will publish interest rates and other ECB tools, after which Lagarde, along with ECB Vice President Luis de Guindos and Stournaras, will give a detailed explanation of the reasons for the latest monetary policy decisions at a press conference on Thursday afternoon.

Indeed, the resilience (and most importantly patience) of the Greek people, given the sharp drop in living standards, is simply amazing. But Ms. Laggard chose to remain silent about the latter.

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