Greece

European governments' plan for private-sector creditors to help Greece's next bailout without triggering a default were thrown into doubt Wednesday, as senior German officials resurrected a once-rejected proposal that would cost investors more, The Wall Street Journal reported. The German proposal—calling for investors to be encouraged to swap Greek government bonds for new bonds—had been ditched a month ago after strong opposition from the European Central Bank and governments including France, because it would lead to Greece being called in default by rating agencies.

Europe's hopes for a significant contribution by private bondholders to a new bailout for Greece are fading, as it becomes clear that banks have sold off a substantial proportion of their Greek government-bond holdings despite pledges by some of the institutions not to do so, The Wall Street Journal reported. Greece has about €64 billion ($93 billion) of benchmark bonds coming due in the next three years, among other liabilities, and euro-zone leaders had hoped that private lenders would voluntarily take on longer maturities in order to improve the country's battered finances.

International banks and insurers will meet on Wednesday to thrash out a plan for the private sector to contribute to Greece's bailout effort as fears grow that the proposal will be derailed, Reuters reported. The Institute of International Finance (IIF) lobby group said it will chair the meeting of private-sector creditors. It needs to resolve how a deal can get past credit rating agencies without it being termed a default, and how accountants will deal with it. A lot of work remains to be done and Wednesday's meeting will not be decisive, several sources said.

German and French proposals to restructure up to €30bn (£28bn) of Greek government debts were thrown into disarray after ratings agency Standard & Poor's said they amounted to a "selective default", The Guardian reported. The decision placed Germany and France on a potentially disastrous collision course with the European Central Bank (ECB). The proposals would have seen investors inject billions of euros into Greece by rolling over maturing Greek debt into new 30-year bonds. They are part of a broader €110bn rescue package, the details of which have yet to be finalised.

Greek lawmakers passed legislation implementing a crucial five-year, €28.4 billion ($40.99 billion) austerity plan, paving the way for the country to receive fresh aid from its international creditors, The Wall Street Journal reported. Voting mostly along party lines, the measure was approved by a vote of 155 in favor and 136 against, and comes one day after a separate, closely fought parliamentary vote approving the overall outlines of the plan.

Greek lawmakers voted on Wednesday to sharply reduce government spending and sell off an array of national assets, staving off default on the country’s debt and easing, for the moment, a crisis among countries that use the euro, the International Herald Tribune reported. Markets rallied globally, and European leaders welcomed the passage of one of the most radical overhauls of the Greek economy since democracy was restored in 1974. But the changes are deeply unpopular in Greece, where street protests continued, and the Socialist government of Prime Minister George A.

It is too early to say what will finally emerge as a deal between European financial groups and governments. But there is a growing consensus that the proposal circulated by the French banking sector on Monday was a credible blueprint, the Financial Times reported. “The French proposals have catalysed the debate,” said Charles Dallara, managing director of the Institute of International Finance, which represents most global banks and helped organise the Rome talks.

Debt-strapped Greece is about to hold an epic yard sale, The Wall Street Journal reported. For the taking: four wide-body Airbus jets, a state lottery, a state horse-racing concession and sports book, stakes in a casino, several ports, a national post office, two water companies, a nickel miner and smelter, a munitions maker, electricity and gas monopolies, a telecommunications operator, shares in a half dozen banks, hundreds of miles of roads, a defunct airport, old Olympic venues and thousands of acres of land, including magnificent stretches of Greece's famed coast.

The French government and banks have agreed on a proposal to make a Greek debt rollover more palatable to creditors, a banking source said on Sunday, confirming a report in Le Figaro newspaper, Reuters reported. Under the plan, creditors would reinvest 70 percent of the proceeds reimbursed when Greek debt falls due, with 50 percent going into new Greek bonds with a maturity of 30 years instead of five, the newspaper said on its Web site.

European Union leaders fended off an effort by Greece to water down an austerity and privatization package that is the price for new aid, and EU President Herman Van Rompuy said they were nearing approval on a new rescue program to take Athens until the end of 2014, The Wall Street Journal reported. "Very important decisions have been taken," Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou said in a statement at the end of the first day of a two-day summit.