GREECE: Deal reached with lenders on 2015-18 primary budget targets

The Greek government agreed with its creditors on the primary budget targets for 2015-2018, according to government sources cited by the Athens News Agency on Tuesday.

The two sides agreed on the following targets for the primary budget:
– in 2015, a primary deficit of -0.25% of GDP;
– in 2016, a primary surplus of +0.5%;
– a primary surplus of +1.75% in 2017; and,
– a primary surplus of +3.5% in 2018.
The sources underlined that there would be no new measures introduced in relation to fiscal targets for the years 2015 to 2016.
The meeting has now completed a long stretch of 17 hours since it began on Monday, with a brief break the same day to update the cabinet at a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras at the government’s Maximos Palace.
According to sources, the two sides have agreed on the majority of issues. The pending issues currently being discussed include non-performing "red" loans (which will be resolved after the banks’ stress tests in late August and their recapitalisation by end of the year), a privatisation fund (which will oversee 50 bln euros of assets and will be based in Athens), and the deregulation of the energy market.