Greece and Its International Financiers Have a Deal
But the big obstacle--a parliamentary vote--lies ahead
Greece's new five-year, $40 billion austerity package of tax hikes, spending cuts, and privatizations has won the approval of a team of European Union and International Monetary Fund inspectors meeting in Brussels, Reuters reports, only shortly after Greece's finance minister announced that the government would begin taxing minimum-wage earners as part of the plan. The E.U. and IMF are threatening to not give Greece the next installment of the bailout money it needs to avert default if an austerity package isn't in place.
But Business Insider's Joe Weisenthal would like you to take this development with a grain of salt. Yes, he concedes, the market rose a bit on the news. But "the challenge is not the Greek government agreeing to an austerity deal. The challenge is getting the Greek parliament to agree to a deal." The parliament votes on the package on Tuesday, and lawmakers are confronting furious citizens who are poised to see their average earnings cut by three to four percent after they already experienced a 10 to 15 percent reduction in pensions and salaries, Reuters notes.