Athens News Agency: News in English, 03-05-29

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

CONTENTS

[01] Visiting Canadian premier praises Athens for EU integration policy

[02] Greek PM arrives in St. Petersburg for historic EU-Russia summit

[03] More than 370 Greek beaches and marinas receive 'blue flag'

[04] SE European marketing conference begins in Thessaloniki

[05] IASON environmental conference opens in the presence of Ecumenical

[06] Foreign Exchange Rates - Friday

[07] Weather Forecast: Showers forecast for Friday

[08] Greek stocks end moderately higher on Thursday

[01] Visiting Canadian premier praises Athens for EU integration policy

Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien, speaking during a press conference on Thursday that followed talks with Greek Prime Minister Costas Simitis the day before, praised his Greek counterpart and the Greek government for the economic policy the country had followed in connection with European Union integration.

Chretien has been in Athens since Tuesday for summit talks with the European Union.

The Canadian premier said his visit to Athens had been very productive and had provided him with an opportunity to renew Greek-Canadian relations and hold discussions on the entire spectrum of developments in the Balkans and the Middle East.

Chretien praised Simitis' domestic policy for its ''common economic European perspective'', and stressed that the Greek prime minister had taken over a problematic economy which he had prudently led toward the single European monetary policy.

[02] Greek PM arrives in St. Petersburg for historic EU-Russia summit

ST. PETERSBURG (ANA V. Mourtis) -- Greek Prime Minister Costas Simitis arrived here on Thursday to participate in a historic EU-Russia summit held amid events commemorating the 300-year anniversary since the citys founding by Peter the Great.

Simitis, who will co-chair the summit as the European Unions president-in-office, addressed a ceremony later in the afternoon where a statue of modern Greeces first governor, Ioannis Capodistrias, was unveiled in the citys ?Greteskaya Plosad? (Greek Square), a contribution by the ethnic Greek communities of Russia.

In a brief address, Simitis referred to Capodistrias personality and importance as a link between the two peoples, Greece and Russia, as the latter served as a leading politician and diplomat for the czarist court prior to arriving as the newly liberated Greek nations first governor (1830-31).

Several high-ranking Russian officials, including Valentina Matvienko, the authorised representative of the Russian Federation's president in the north-western federal district and a former ambassador to Greece, attended and spoke at the event.

[03] More than 370 Greek beaches and marinas receive 'blue flag'

'Blue flags' were awarded to 373 Greek beaches and five Greek marinas in 2003, the Greek Society for the Protection of Nature announced on Thursday, up from 354 beaches and seven marinas the previous year.

The 'blue flag' designation is an international symbol used in 36 countries and denotes that organised beaches and marinas meet certain high standards for cleanliness, organisation and environmental protection.

The Society raised the alarm over the state of Greek marinas, however, noting that standards had dropped relative to last year. It also pointed out that more than 12 marinas had received blue flags in neighbouring Turkey.

Areas in Greece that received the highest number of blue flags included Crete, with 32 in Lasithi prefecture alone, the southern Aegean, Central Macedonia and the Ionian islands.

Attica beaches received two more blue flags in 2003, up from eight in 2002, while the island of Corfu gained three to reach a total of 29. The highest number of blue flags by prefecture were in the Dodecanese islands, with a total of 46, while Halkidiki lost two relative to last year, dropping to 28, and Magnesia gained six to reach a total of 28.

[04] SE European marketing conference begins in Thessaloniki

The Greek Marketing Institute in cooperation with the European Marketing Confederation organized in Thessaloniki the first Marketing Forum of Southeastern Europe with the participation of 11 countries of the region.

The Greek Marketing Institute belongs to the Greek Society of Business Management. Greece, Turkey, Albania, Bulgaria, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), Serbia, Bosnia, Romania, Croatia, Hungary and Slovenia participated via representations in the conference.

According to the results of the conference, Greece, Slovenia, Croatia and Turkey are the only ones of the group in which most companies posses independent organized marketing sections.

[05] IASON environmental conference opens in the presence of Ecumenical Patriarch

The IASON environmental conference opened in Thessaloniki, northern Greece, on Thursday in the presence of Ecumenical Patriarch Vartholomeos.

Patriarch Vartholomeos blessed the sessions of the conference, which was inaugurated by Development Minister Akis Tsohatzopoulos.

In his speech, Vartholomeos, who is particularly sensitive on environmental issues, given that the Patriarchate organises conferences of ecolocigal interest, stressed that all the environmental problems concern humananity and the conditions of survival and expressed his satifaction that over the last few years all the more people are dealing with environmental problems.

In his address, Tsohatzopoulos stressed that the solution of the environmental problem should be the first political priority, at the same time noting that the aim of the countries of the European Union is for specific reference for viable development to be included in the new 2004 treaty.

[06] Foreign Exchange Rates - Friday

Reference buying rates per euro released by the European Central Bank

U.S. dollar 1.185

Pound sterling 0.721

Danish kroner 7.483

Swedish kroner 9.235

Japanese yen 140.6

Swiss franc 1.541

Norwegian kroner 7.942

Cyprus pound 0.591

Canadian dollar 1.642

Australian dollar 1.840

[07] Weather Forecast: Showers forecast for Friday

Cloudy with a chance for showers is forecast for Thursday throughout the country, with highest possibility in the south, southeast . Winds variable, moderate to strong. In the north, temperatures will range from 13C to 25C in the north; from 14C to 27C in the west and from 16C to 26C in the rest of the country. Temperatures in Athens between 17C and 25C; and in Thessaloniki from 16C to 23C.

[08] Greek stocks end moderately higher on Thursday

Greek stocks ended higher on Thursday reflecting increased buying activity for blue chip stocks, particularly banks and telecommunications, in the Athens Stock Exchange.

The general index rose 0.24 percent to end at 1,712.26 points, with turnover a moderate 103.1 million euros.

The Telecommunications, Banks and Food-Beverage sectors scored the biggest percentage gains of the day (0.90 percent, 0.89 percent and 0.71 percent, respectively), while the Publication, Metals and Holding sector suffered the heaviest percentage losses (2.32 percent, 1.83 percent and 1.78 percent, respectively).

The FTSE/ASE 20 index for blue chip and heavy traded stocks rose 0.58 percent, the FTSE/ASE MID 40 index ended 0.23 percent higher and the FTSE/ASE SmallCap 80 index eased 0.63 percent.

Broadly, decliners led advancers by 196 to 111 with another 54 issues unchanged.

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