TIMELINE-Greece's debt crisis Reuters - 27/09/2011 18:50:37 Sept 27 (Reuters) -
Greece votes on a deeply unpopular property tax on Tuesday and a 'yes' would allow international lending inspectors to return to Athens and the release of vital aid. (
news)
Here is a timeline of economic events since Prime Minister George Papandreou first sealed a bailout deal in May 2010:
May 2, 2010 - Papandreou says Greece has sealed deal with EU and IMF, opening door to bailout in return for extra budget cuts of 30 billion euros ($43 billion) over three years.
-- Three-year package amounts to 110 billion euros and represents first rescue of a euro zone member.
May 4/5 - Public sector workers stage 48-hour nationwide strike. Three people are killed when a bank is set on fire.
May 6 - Greek parliament approves austerity bill.
May 9 - IMF unanimously approves its part of rescue loans, with 5.5 billion euros being provided immediately.
May 10 - Global policymakers install emergency safety net worth about $1 trillion to bolster international financial markets and prevent Greek crisis from damaging the euro.
-- consists of 440 billion euros in guarantees from euro zone states, plus 60 billion euros in European debt instruments. EU finance ministers say IMF will contribute a further 250 billion euros.
May 18 - Greece receives 14.5 billion euro ($18.7 billion) loan from EU and can repay immediate debt.
July 7 - Greek parliament passes pension reform, key requirement of the EU/IMF deal, which includes raising women's retirement age from 60 to match men at 65.
Aug. 5 - EU and IMF inspectors give Greece green light for fresh 9 billion euro tranche from bailout.
September - IMF says Greece is ahead of schedule in economic reform.
Jan. 2011 - Fitch becomes third ratings agency to cut Greek debt to "junk" status after S&P and Moody's.
Feb. 11 - EU and IMF inspectors approve a fresh tranche of 15 billion euros of bailout funds.
May 11 - EU and IMF inspectors arrive in Athens to press Greece to shore up finances and determine if country will get fifth aid tranche of 12 billion euros.
May 23 - Greece unveils series of privatisations, part of goal to raise 50 billion euros by 2015 to pay down debt.
June 1 - Moody's slashes Greece's credit rating by three notches to move it deeper into junk territory.
June 8 - Greece agrees to 6.48 billion euros of extra austerity measures for 2011 and savings up to 2015 to cut deficits and keep getting aid.
June 13 - Greece becomes country with lowest credit rating in the world after S&P downgrades it by three notches, to CCC from B.
June 17 - Papandreou reshuffles cabinet, firing finance minister. Evangelos Venizelos, Papandreou's main party rival, becomes finance minister. The new cabinet wins confidence vote on June 22.
June 28 - Main labour unions launch 48-hour strike.
June 29 - Papandreou wins parliamentary majority in favour of five-year austerity plan by 155 votes to 138, clearing major hurdle to winning acdcess to new international funding.
-- Euro zone finance ministers approve release of next tranche of emergency loans to Greece on July 2, saying 12 billion euros would be paid by July 15.
-- Greek police clash with protesters outside parliament. About 100 people are injured.
July 8 - IMF approves disbursement of about 3.2 billion euros to help Greece pay debts due this month. This tranche brings IMF disbursements to about 17.4 billion euros.
July 21 - Euro zone leaders agree on second rescue package for Greece with extra 109 billion euros ($157 billion) of government money, plus contribution by private sector bondholders estimated to total as much as 50 billion euros by mid-2014.
Sept. 14 - Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy tell Papandreou it is vital to implement reforms and meet fiscal goals set under July bailout plan.
Sept. 21 - Greece adopts more austerity measures, including cutting high pensions by 20 percent. Puts 30,000 civil servants in "labour reserve" on road to redundancy and extends real estate tax.
-- IMF says crisis increased European banks' exposure by 300 billion euros, and they need to recapitalize to ensure they can weather potential losses.
Sept. 22 - Greek workers stage 24-hour strike forcing transport system to standstill.
Sept. 27 - Greece votes on unpopular property tax to persuade IMF and EU it deserves 8-billion-euro loan it needs to pay October salaries and avoid bankruptcy.
((For an Interactive timeline on Eurozone debt crisis please click on
Latest News Timeline | Reuters.co.uk ))
((Euro zone debt crisis in graphics (package)
Reuters - Euro zone debt crisis in graphics ))
(Reporting by David Cutler, London Editorial Reference Unit and Renee Maltezou, Athens bureau
