After a seven-year crisis that took a heavy toll on the Greek economy, today there is a burst of optimism, in stark contrast to the experience of recent years.
A series of painful reforms and the efforts of the hard-working Greek people led to a slow but steady recovery, evident not solely in the economic figures but in the markets, in the streets, in everyday life.
By all accounts, Greece is now enjoying the full trust of the international investors, demonstrating a very healthy growing rate, recovering fast from the losses of previous years.
Sovereign yields are now lower in Greece than in the US, a remarkable accomplishment and Greece is pushing to repay its IMF loans early. International credit rating agencies such as Fitch, recently upgraded Greece by one notch to BB from BB-, citing the country’s improved economic growth and fiscal policies. Following this latest upgrade, Greece is now two notches away from regaining its investment grade status.
Big investors in Greek debt, which include asset managers such as Capital Group, Carmignac and Prudential Financial, have done very well, with holders of the 10-year benchmark receiving a 23-percent total return for the year, according to the Financial Times.
In light of all these positive developments and the country’s improved economic performance in 2019, the European Commission raised its forecasts for Greek GDP growth this year to 2.4% – twice the Eurozone average – from 2.3% previously.
Moreover, the Mitsotakis administration, elected in July 2019, brought forward an impressive array of new rules to attract foreign investors, among which lower corporate taxes, flat rate taxes for non-domicile residents.
