ATHENS, Nov. 27 (Xinhua) -- Greek economy has left far behind the danger zone after exiting the 8-year bailout era in 2018, and is now heading to sustainable growth through the implementation of a right set of reforms. And investors should not miss the chance to explore opportunities in many sectors, central Bank of Greece (BoG) governor Yannis Stournaras said on Wednesday.
The positive prospects on the course of the economy are reflected in the markets lately. Private investments and private consumption are recovering, while the parliament is due to vote in December a plan which aims to reduce the load of non-performing loans held by systemic banks, he said addressing an event here.
Greek economy will grow by 1.9 percent this year and 2.4 percent in 2020, according to BoG's estimates, despite the decline in the rate of exports which is linked to the repercussions of trade frictions caused by Washington's policies, the central banker noted.
"We are already witnessing the results. Global trade growth rate has slowed down. In my view, the U.S. government's tariffs policy is entirely wrong. It is unprecedented for a country that is a pioneer in technologies to be shutting out markets. It is harmful for her interests as well," he said.
Wednesday's event was organized by the Hellenic Shipping Banking and Financial Executives Association and Stournaras commented also on the state of Greek shipping, which remains a leading actor worldwide for decades and a vital pillar of Greek economy.
Praising its resiliency even in turbulent times, he said that while global trade is slowing down, Greek merchant fleet has continued to expand in 2018 by 2.5 percent, and despite the capital controls introduced in 2015 and lifted this September, revenues from Greek shipping increased by 20 percent from 2014 until today.
Thanks to Greek shipping industry's dynamism, Greek and foreign banks continued to finance Greek shipping companies' expansion projects, he noted. (1 euro = 1.1 U.S. dollars)
