Greek pensioners declare an average annual income of 8,900 euros but bar and restaurant owners only 5,200 and 8,150 euros respectively, data released yesterday show. Economy and Finance Minister Giorgos Alogoskoufis urged the Special Inspections Service, whose new headquarters he opened yesterday, to give priority to checks on nightclub establishments, where “extensive illegalities” take place, and to the illegal trading in fuels. “Tax evasion is one of the biggest scourges of the past that has not been dealt with properly, resulting in losses to both the state and law-abiding citizens,” he said. He said the situation has changed, as evidenced by the 17.8 percent rise in public revenues in January. According to the data released, taxi drivers declare on average 9,100 euros and dentists 13,100 euros annually.

The total sum devoted to the promotion of Greek tourism equals travel receipts earned in just eight hours in the summer months, the president of the Association of Greek Tourism Enterprises (SETE), Stavros Andreadis said yesterday. He presented a study titled “The Challenge of Competitiveness and the Need for Relaunching the Greek Tourism Product,” which says that Greece has only one option: to plan the future of the industry with modern marketing instruments, ignoring political costs and petty interests.

EFG International, of the Latsis group, purchased this week the hedge fund management company Capital Management Advisors (CMA) of Sabby Mionis and Angelos Metaxa, aiming at expanding into the hedge fund market. CMA, headquartered in Geneva, manages assets of 2.1 billion Swiss francs (1.34 billion euros) and operates five funds of hedge funds (mutual funds that invest in hedge funds) and manages the portfolios of private and institutional investors.

The government is planning a single tax on properties, replacing the approximately 30 different property taxes and, as a transitional measure, it will not lift the tax-free ceiling on real estate after all, while large property tax will be determined based on official property rates of 2005, before the 30 percent average rise on January 1. The single tax will equal 0.1 percent of a residential property’s value, but buildings used otherwise will be subject to much lower rates.

NYSE-listed Diana Shipping Inc, a dry-bulk operator, yesterday reported net income of $65.0 million for the year ending December 31, 2005, representing an increase of $4.9 million compared to $60.1 million for 2004. Voyage and time charter revenues were $103.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2005, compared to $63.8 million for 2004.