Greece Says It Met Budget Targets in 2012

Greece's Finance Ministry has stated that the country has narrowed its public deficit to 6.6 per cent of output in 2012, meeting targets pledged to EU-IMF creditors.

"General government data confirms that the government has met its fiscal targets for 2012," Deputy Finance Minister Christos Staikouras said in a statement on Monday, as cited by international media.

The general government deficit in January through December 2012 decreased to EUR12.9 B, in line with the country's financial targets, compared with EUR19.7 B in 2011.

The primary budget surplus on a cash basis was EUR434 M in 2012, versus a EUR3.5 B deficit the year before.

"These positive developments in the implementation of the budget indicate that the fiscal consolidation, adaptation and discipline efforts are paying off, creating the necessary conditions for the stabilization and gradual restart the economy," Staikouras has noted.

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