Deputy Prime Minister Kostis Hatzidakis on Thursday announced the reform of the institutional framework for attracting foreign direct investment, speaking at an event of the Hellenic-Italian Chamber in Athens.
Against the backdrop of Donald Trump’s announcements on the imposition of tariffs and the disruption they are causing in the global market, Hatzidakis analyzed seven axes of interventions to shield the Greek economy from international instability.
He stressed that although only 5% of Greece’s exports are directed to the US, it would be a mistake to assume that Greece will not be affected. It is noted that on Friday Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis announced that he is convening, together with Hatzidakis, the Government Economic Policy Council on Monday, “in order to assess the effects on our country of the imposition of Trump’s tariffs and to decide on our own initiatives to protect the Greek economy.”
Hatzidakis, in his speech at the Hellenic-Italian Chamber, stressed that there will certainly be secondary effects on the European economy, and therefore on Greece’s as well.
“A major, global economic and trade war has begun,” he said. “I want to hope that it will end as quickly as possible, but let us have no doubt: In economic wars there are no winners – just losers.”
In this context, he stressed the need to strengthen the competitiveness and resilience of the economy and indicated the following moves for shielding the Greek economy: Attracting even more investments, including by reforming the institutional framework for attracting foreign direct investments; strengthening the financing of the real economy, with a new capital market bill recently presented, and the use of EU funds; strengthening exports, focusing now on India and China; upgrading infrastructure, including energy, metro, ports and airports; expanding the productive base of the economy; using human resources, with unemployment in decline; and sound fiscal policy and taxation.