The National Statistics Service said yesterday that Greece’s GDP for the third quarter of 2006 expanded by 4.4 percent year-on-year, up from the 4.3 percent provisional figure announced two weeks ago. The higher figure reflects continued strong domestic consumption and investment spending, and reconfirms the underlying strength of the country’s economy. Exports also rose more strongly than previously thought, up 7.4 percent instead of 7.0 percent, while imports grew at a more moderate rate than expected. The upward GDP revision increases the likelihood that the government will raise its estimate for overall 2006 growth from its current figure of 3.8 percent. (AP)

ISTANBUL (Reuters) – Turkey’s leading mobile operator Turkcell will bid for a controlling stake in Greek mobile-phone firm TIM Hellas, the Turkish company said late on Wednesday. It gave no other details in a statement to the stock market regulator. Texas Pacific Group and Apax Partners bought a controlling stake in TIM Hellas in April 2005 for –1.1 billion ($1.41 billion).

Greece’s Public Power Corporation (PPC) said it will jointly bid with Italian energy group ENEL for a lignite field in Kosovo. “Sencap and ENEL formed a bidding consortium that has submitted the application for pre-qualification for the energy development project in Kosovo,” PPC said in a statement. Sencap is a consortium of PPC and US energy company ContourGlobal. (Reuters)

Piraeus Bank placement. Piraeus Bank, Greece’s fourth-largest lender, said it had placed 10 million of its shares with institutional investors in Greece and abroad at 22.40 euros each. Piraeus said 9 million shares were placed by Deutsche Bank and Citigroup Global Markets, while the remaining 1 million shares were taken up by private investors in Greece. (Reuters)

Dry-bulk shipping company Navios Maritime Holdings plans to sell a $300 million senior note due 2014 to refinance existing debt, the company said in a statement late on Wednesday. (Reuters)

Greece’s retail sales by revenue rose 15.8 percent year-on-year in September after a 13.1 percent rise in the previous month, data by the National Statistics Service showed. (Reuters)

Lottery systems supplier Intralot said it has launched an offering of up to 200 million euros of senior unsecured exchangeable notes to fund its expansion plans. The seven-year notes will have a coupon of 2.25 to 3.0 percent, payable semi-annually. (Reuters)

INSEAD, one of the world’s leading and largest graduate business schools will inaugurate today its 25th national council, in Greece.