A strike by Hellenic Petroleum workers has not affected production at its two refineries, a company spokesman said yesterday. «There's no reduction of capacity in either of the two refineries. Only after three to four days (of shutdown) there may be a drop,» the spokesman told Reuters. The workers, who went on strike on Wednesday and who will keep their tools down until July 18 at the company's loading areas, want the government to cancel a recent tender for the sale of a 23.17-percent stake in Hellenic Petroleum, claiming the group can develop on its own without a strategic partner. The management has gone to court to rule the strike as illegal; a decision is expected today. (Combined reports)

The Ministry of Finance will create an electronic database of state-owned properties. The project will begin in October 2003 and be completed in 2006. The database will help to develop state properties better, officials said. The ministry also envisages selling or leasing long-term about 20 percent of the state property portfolio.

France, the honored country at this year's Thessaloniki International Fair (TIF) will put its emphasis on high-tech products, French Ambassador Jean-Maurice Ripert told reporters yesterday. He added that France would also present products that traditionally sell well in Greece, such as luxury items, foods and beverages. The honored country at the TIF, which takes place each September, is presented at the exhibition's biggest pavilion.

The Olympic Catering workers' union said yesterday it is opposed to a government tender to sell a majority stake in the company and will decide its next moves mid-July. The government launched an international tender to sell a 51 to 68 percent stake in Olympic Catering, a subsidiary of Olympic Airways, as part of its plans to strip the ailing state carrier of non-core assets. It said it will decide at an extraordinary general assembly between July 16 and 18 on what action it will take to protest the privatization. The closing date for the submission of non-binding bids is July 11, with binding bids expected to be handed on at the start of August. (Reuters)

Trading volume on the Athens Derivatives Exchange (ADEX), Greece's futures and options market, dropped 3 percent month-on-month in June to a total of 565,412 contracts, the exchange said. The number of futures trading accounts grew 4.2 percent to a total of 11,966 with 19.8 percent being active in June. (Reuters)

OTE Telecom was awarded a license to set up a public TETRA mobile communications network, as it was the sole bidder. OTE paid 3 million euros for the license and has to set up a network by 2005. The National Telecommunications and Posts Commission had planned to award another license but decided not to, given the absence of bidders. The TETRA system is mostly designed for companies and state and local authorities.