Greek Daily News 25/06/2024

ECONOMY

-A new UNCTAD report shows FDI flows to Greece dropped to $5.43 billion in 2023 against $8.45 billion in 2022, down 36% on an annual basis. Almost half of foreign direct investments went to the real estate sector, according to relevant data from the Bank of Greece.

-The European Commission recommended that Greece curb the rise of net expenditures in 2025, in its individual member country recommendations in social-economic policy, in the context of the European Semester.

-The new Taxis online platform of the tax administration which will start to be built in the coming months, will maintain taxpayer data for more than three generations, Kathimerini reported.

BUSINESS

-UAE’s renewables energy leader Masdar is looking for more European acquisitions following this month’s $3.4 billion deal with the Greece-listed Terna Energy, the Financial Times reported. “We are going to be pumping more capital into Greece and into Europe,” Masdar Chief Executive Mohamed Jameel Al Ramahi told the FT. “This is a strategic deal for us where we reinforce our presence in Greece but, more importantly, in eastern Europe.”

-AEGEAN has been named the “Best Regional Airline in Europe” at the prestigious World Airline Awards 2024, for the 13th consecutive year and the 14th overall in its 25 years of operation. At the same time, it ranks among the best airlines, taking the 2nd place in “The World’s Best Regional Airline 2024” and the 3rd place in the ranking for “The Best Airlines in Southern Europe 2024”.

CULTURE

Greece will once again be present at the Beijing International Book Fair (BIBF), participating this year with modern and interesting publications, as well as a rich programme of parallel activities, AMNA reported.

TOURISM

-The Greek Tourism Ministry reached an agreement with the Greek Orthodox Church to promote religious and pilgrimage tourism.

-Alimos Marina in Athens got the green light by the Ministries of Environment, Energy and Tourism for its construction, Naftemporiki reported. The marina will have the possibility of 979 berths for pleasure boats. The total permitted construction for the building developments is 18,500 sq.m. The project is expected to start in 2025.

-Certified tourist guides in Greece are calling on Tourism Minister Olga Kefalogianni to withdraw a tourism bill currently up for discussion. Under the new law, certified guides would see their role limited to specific sites such as monuments and museums, thus opening the door to “unqualified individuals from anywhere in the world” according to The Panhellenic Tourist Guide Federation (POXEN), which also has the support of the European Federation of Tourist Guide Associations (FEG).

-Gulf Air, the national carrier of the Kingdom of Bahrain, launched its newest seasonal flights to Rhodes, Greece.