Greek stocks plunge on political concerns as anti-bailout party takes lead
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Version 0 of 1. Uncertainty over the Greek government's future and Greece's bailout program spurred a second day of heavy selling on the Athens Stock Exchange, with the main index down a massive 9.4 per cent. Today's plunge follows a loss of 5.7 per cent the previous day. Yields on Greece's 10-year bonds also rose sharply, to above 7 per cent in a volatile session reminiscent of the Greek debt crisis. The losses come amid a wider drop in markets, but were exacerbated by a survey on Monday showing the opposition and anti-bailout Syriza party is leading the polls, fuelling concerns that the country could call a snap election. However, Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras insisted that his administration is determined to maintain stability and implement reforms, blaming Syriza for stoking market concerns. Samaras also reiterated Greece's plan to exit its bailout programme a year earlier. "The markets for some time now have been saying that Greece is doing very well, with their only concern being political risk. In the last 24 hours, the opposition's attitude has worsened this risk. They are directly undermining stability," he told his cabinet. Additional reporting PA |