Athens Stocks Rise Post Reshuffle Of Greek Bailout Team

The Athens stock exchange rose 4 percent Monday after Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras moved to ring fence Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis' role in bailout negotiations with European creditors.



Greek Deputy Foreign Minister Euclid Tsakalotos was appointed coordinator of the Greek team negotiating with the Eurogroup of 19 member states, the government announced to the parliament in Athens Monday.



Tsakalotos is reportedly a close ally of Tsipras. He is expected to announce an increased cooperation with the technical team which represents the European Central Bank, the International Monetary Fund, and the European Union. Varoufakis' refusal to provide information to this team has been at the heart of the failure of negotiations.



Varoufakis still held a supervisory role in the negotiations, the government said Monday, but his role would now be limited, according to the government announcement.



Negotiations continue as the Greek government must submit a list of economic reform proposals that the Eurogroup finance ministers find acceptable.



Greece is expected to run out of funds to operate its banks and public services by mid-May, unless an agreement is reached and bailout funds are released by the Eurogroup and the institutional creditors, the IMF, the ECB, and the EU.



www.aa.com.tr/en - Ankara