Stournaras says Greece in ‘no rush’ to return to bond markets
Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras appeared to deny reports on Monday that Greece is set to return to bond markets as early as this week.
“We will return by the summer, within the first half of the year,” he told Vima FM. “There is no rush.”
Sources have indicated that Greece will aim to raise in excess of 2 billion euros when it does issue its first sovereign bond since 2010.
“We do not need this money to cover a funding gap,” said the finance minister. “We are testing the water and trying to easy the yield curve. We have absolutely no need for the money and there is no need to rush.”
Stournaras denied that the government was considering a bond issue this week or next in order to overcome the blow of Panayiotis Baltakos having to resign from cabinet secretary over his contact with Golden Dawn.
“We are not going to take the risk of returning to markets for political reasons,” he said.
The Finance Ministry also issued a statement playing down reports that a return to international markets may take place before Chancellor Angela Merkel’s visit this Friday or next week. It referred to these claims as “prophecies.”
Sources with knowledge of the process, however, had told Kathimerini that one of these two options was likely to be adopted.
