Greece snubbed European pleas to submit a proposal to avert a default, dimming chances of a compromise at a key meeting this week.
Greek stocks fell for a third day on Tuesday on concern time is running out. The country needs to seal an accord or get an extension before the euro area’s bailout expires on June 30, or risk missing payments on its debt of about 313 billion ($354 billion) euros.
"The overwhelming sense of Greece’s creditors is that the government does not fully understand the institutional constraints it faces, the level of reform detail necessary for a deal and that is massively underestimating the risk and impact of capital controls,” Eurasia Group analysts Mujtaba Rahman and Federico Santi wrote in a note on Tuesday. "Even if a Euro summit is called, it may prove too late.”
Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras is scheduled to address lawmakers from his party in Parliament at 2 p.m. in Athens.
Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis told Bild newspaper that any new proposals would need to be thrashed out at a lower level before they could be presented to the finance ministers set to meet June 18 in Luxembourg. A Greek government official, who asked not to be named in line with policy, said the government hasn’t submitted a new plan.
Stocks Drop
Stocks declined as the extent of the remaining policy divide was laid bare after weekend talks billed by European officials as a last attempt to end the standoff crumbled.
The Athens Stock Exchange Index fell 2.6 percent on Tuesday, while the Athex Banks Index dropped 4.3 percent at 12:55 p.m. local time. Concern is also starting to spread to other markets. Spanish government bonds dropped, pushing the 10-year yield above 2.5 percent for the first time since August, while Italian and Portuguese bonds also declined.
Finance Ministry officials from the 19-nation euro zone are due to hold a Greece call on Tuesday afternoon.
(Bloomberg)
