Greek roadshow in the US to ease investor concerns
The political leadership of Greece’s Finance Ministry traveled to the US for a two-day visit on Monday, where it is holding meetings with US funds and banks in New York and Boston to present the Eurogroup’s decision on the Greek debt.
Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos and his Alternate Minister Giorgos Houliarakis aim to convince investors about Greece’s growth prospects in a bid to enhance the country’s investment base with long-term investors, as well as to get a feeling of the conditions regarding the best possible timing for its next foray into the capital markets.
Although they are armed with positive reports and comments by international analysts on the decision by the eurozone finance ministers, combined with the credit rating upgrades by S&P and DBRS and the slight improvement of bond yields, they realize that there is a general climate of reservation toward Greece. That was also the feeling that Houliarakis got from the meetings with 25 funds in London late last month.
As several international firms (Citi, Barclays, HSBC etc) have noted, the Eurogroup decision may contribute toward improving the climate for Greece and gross financing needs appear sustainable in the short term, but in the long term the course of the national debt is not clear and depends to a great extent on the continuation of fiscal efforts and the quite optimistic macroeconomic assumptions.
Therefore, the fears of the international investors that Tsakalotos and Houliarakis will meet in the US concern the stabilization and strengthening of the country’s growth prospects, regarding which they express uncertainty for now. While the issue of a 10-year bond would be positive for the government’s image, analysts have repeated to Kathimerini that Athens should not rush into it before the international environment reverts to stability.
Tsakalotos and Houliarakis will be trageting such concerns when they stage another roadshow in September, when they will be heading to the Far East.
