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ECONOMY
-Industrial production in Greece rose by 10.3% year-on-year in January 2024, data from Greece’s statistical authority (ELSTAT) showed.
-Greece’s trade deficit rose slightly to EUR 2.5 billion in January 2024 from EUR 2.4 billion in the corresponding month from the previous year. Exports slumped by 11.2% to EUR 4 billion, while imports fell by 6.3% to EUR 6.6 billion, according to ELSTAT.
-DBRS Morningstar confirmed Greece’s Long-Term Foreign and Local Currency – Issuer Ratings at BBB (low). At the same time, the Canada-based agency confirmed Greece’s Short-Term Foreign and Local Currency – Issuer Ratings at R-2 (middle). The trends on all ratings remain Stable.
-The annual inflation rate in Greece edged lower to a five-month low of 2.9% in February 2024 from 3.1% in the previous month. However, the inflationary pressure on food continues to mount, with a significant uptick of 6.7%, according to ELSTAT data.
SHIPPING
In 2023, in 49 Greek ports, total cruise ship arrivals amounted to 5,230, and the number of passengers reached 7,003,150, according to data from the Hellenic Ports Association (ELIME). The leader in relation to the number of cruise passengers is once again the port of Piraeus with approximately 1,500,000 passengers, followed by the South Aegean islands of Santorini with 1,298,968 and Mykonos with 1,192,822.
AGRICULTURE
The Agricultural Cooperative “Union of Messinia” in Peloponnese registered the “Kalamata Olive” into the International Register of the Geneva Act, after the Lisbon Agreement of the protected designation of origin (PDO). According to the European Commission, a Protected Designation of Origin or PDO “covers agricultural products and foodstuffs which are produced, processed and prepared in a given geographical area using recognised know-how.” So far, more than 100 Greek products have been registered as PDO, including olive oil varieties, wines, types of honey, cheeses, mastic from Chios island, Crocus (saffron) from Kozani, avgotaracho (striped grey mullet fish roe) produced in Mesolongi.
