Athens News Agency: News in English, 00-12-21

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From: The Athens News Agency at <http://www.ana.gr/>

CONTENTS

[01] SUPER PUMA-Helicopters-Contract

[02] National Bank of Greece-New Ventures

[03] President-Athens Mayor-Meeting

[04] Credit Expansion-September

[05] Foreign Exchange Rates-Friday

[06] Weather Forecast-Friday

[07] Kostunica-Greece-Visit

[08] ASE-close

[09] Athens airport arrest - weapons

[01] SUPER PUMA-Helicopters-Contract

The contract for the procurement of four SUPER PUMA research and rescue helicopters totalling 61,741,925 euro was signed in Athens on Thursday.

The contract also provides for the training of the helicopter crews.

The Harbour Corps already has four similar helicopters.

The training of the crews will be completed before the delivery of the new helicopters which will start 21 months after the activation of the contract.

The offset benefits amount to 100 per cent of the main procurement. Their nominal value is 4.2 billion drachmas, that is, 20 per cent of the amount of the main procurement.

The Greek companies participating in the materialisation of the offset benefit programmes are EAB, ELFON and DEFINET.

The contract was signed in the presence of National Defence Minister Akis Tsohatzopoulos by the ministry's general director for armaments Giorgos Kolliris and the representative of the company Werner Weiss.

[02] National Bank of Greece-New Ventures

State-run National Bank of Greece, a blue chip on the Athens bourse and the country's largest commercial bank, plans to retain its leading position in the market and launch new ventures, its governor, Theodoros Karatzas said on Thursday.

Karatzas told a news conference that among the ventures were a deal forged with Microsoft under which the US sofware giant would become the bank's adviser on venture capital investments in new technology companies.

National was setting up a venture capital fund with partners from abroad that planned to invest more than 70 million euros in Greek hi-tech firms, Karatzas said.

He repeated that the strategy of the bank aimed to keep it at the forefront of the market following Greece's entry into the euro zone on January 1, and expand its market share abroad.

[03] President-Athens Mayor-Meeting

President of the Republic Kostis Stephanopoulos on Thursday received Athens Mayor Dimitris Avramopoulos who briefed him on his decision to proceed in forming a new political party.

Following his 40-minute meeting with the president, Avramopoulos stated that his aim was to renew the country's political life and to open new horizons of optimism for Greek society.

The mayor said he briefed Stephanopoulos on the issue of the establishment of the new party and discussed with him matters concerning the country.

Replying to questions, Avramopoulos said the party would be founded in the middle of next year. He added that his political office would start operating early next year and that his associates would start preparing organisational matters and the founding declaration.

[04] Credit Expansion-September

Credit expansion in September grew by 18.6 percent year on year against 16.5 percent a month earlier, the Bank of Greece, or central bank, said in a statement on Thursday.

The rise was due mainly to a higher rate of increase in credit to the private sector at 27.6 percent year on year from 24.1 percent in August; followed by a rise in loans to the public sector at 14.3 percent from 12.9 percent a month earlier, the central bank said.

[05] Foreign Exchange Rates-Friday

Indicative rates released by the central bank for the next working day.

Friday's rates (buying)

Euro 338.024

U.S. dollar 369.818

German mark 172.829

French franc 051.531

Pound sterling 543.656

Irish punt 429.202

Belgian franc 008.379

Luxembourg franc 008.379

Dutch guilder 153.389

Italian lira (100) 017.457

Austrian schilling 024.565

Danish kroner 045.299

Swedish kroner 038.706

Finnish mark 056.852

Spanish peseta 002.032

Portuguese escudo 001.686

Japanese yen (100) 329.572

Swiss franc 221.801

Norwegian kroner 041.366

Cyprus pound 589.248

Canadian dollar 242.941

Australian dollar 204.193

[06] Weather Forecast-Friday

Cold weather, cloud, showers and storms are forecast in most parts of Greece on Friday, with snow on high ground. Temperatures will drop further. Winds variable, strong to gale force. In the north, temperatures will range from -4C to 4C; on the rest of the mainland from -1C to 8C; and in the islands from 3C to 10C. Showers in Athens, with snow on high ground outside the capital that will spread to the northern suburbs after nightfall, and possibly the city centre. Temperatures between 2C and 3C. Cloud and then snow in Thessaloniki with temperatures from 0C to 4C.

[07] Kostunica-Greece-Visit

Yugoslav President Vojislav Kostunica will visit Greece on January 16, 2001, government spokesman Dimitris Reppas said on Thursday.

Kostunica, who will visit Athens at the invitation of President Kostis Stephanopoulos, will hold talks on bilateral issues and the situation in the Balkans with his Greek counterpart and the country's political leadership.

[08] ASE-close

The Athens Stock Exchange's general index finished 1.54 percent lower on Thursday to close at 3,401.01 points, with turnover at approximately 99 billion drachmas.

(detailed report to come)

[09] Athens airport arrest - weapons

A 21-year-old Greek student at the Rethymno Pre-school Teachers College, Nikoletta Kosmadaki, was arrested at Athens Airport on Thursday when she was found to be carrying a novelty firearm in the form of a pen, 18 22-calibre bullets, an anaesthetic spray and two flick-knives.

During interrogation, Kosmadaki said she had been given the weapons by her aunt Styliani Kosmadaki to deliver to her father in Munich. Police are now seeking Styliani Kosmadaki.

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