Editing Economy of Greece (section)

=== 2010–2018 government debt crisis ===
{{Main|Greek government-debt crisis}}
[[File:Greek debt and EU average since 1977.png|upright=1.364|290px|thumb|Greece's debt percentage since 1977, compared to the average of the [[Eurozone]]]]

==== Historical Debt ====

Greece, like other European nations, had faced [[List of sovereign debt crises|debt crises in the 19th century]], as well as a similar crisis in 1932 during the [[Great Depression]]. In general, however, during the 20th century it enjoyed one of the highest GDP growth rates on the planet
<ref name="Angus Maddison">[[Angus Maddison]], [http://www.ggdc.net/MADDISON/Monitoring.shtml "Monitoring the World Economy 1820-1992"], OECD (1995)</ref> (for a quarter century from the early 1950s to mid 1970s, [[Greek economic miracle|second in the world after Japan]]). Average Greek government debt-to-GDP for the entire century before the crisis (1909–2008) was lower than that for the UK, Canada, or France,<ref name="Debt Past"/><ref name="Historical Debt IMF"/> while for the 30-year period (1952–1981) until entrance into the [[European Economic Community]], the Greek government [[debt-to-GDP ratio]] averaged only 19.8%.<ref name="Historical Debt IMF"/>

Between 1981 and 1993 Greece's government debt-to-GDP ratio steadily rose, surpassing the average of what is today the Eurozone in the mid-1980s (see chart right).
For the next 15 years, from 1993 to 2007 (i.e., before the [[2008 financial crisis]]), Greece's government debt-to-GDP ratio remained roughly unchanged (the value was not affected by the [[2004 Summer Olympics|2004 Athens Olympics]]), averaging 102%<ref name="Historical Debt IMF"/><ref name="Debt 1980">{{cite news |url=http://www.economicsinpictures.com/2011/09/greek-debtgdp-only-22-in-1980.html|title= Greek Debt/GDP: Only 22% In 1980|work= Economics in Pictures |date=1 September 2011 |access-date=31 August 2018}}</ref> - a value lower than that for Italy (107%) and Belgium (110%) during the same 15-year period,<ref name="Historical Debt IMF"/> and comparable to that for the U.S. or the OECD average in 2017.

During the latter period, the country's annual budget deficit usually exceeded 3% of GDP, but its effect on the debt-to-GDP ratio was counterbalanced by high GDP growth rates. The debt-to-GDP values for 2006 and 2007 (about 105%) were established after [[Greek financial audits, 2009–10|audits]] resulted in corrections according to Eurostat methodology, of up to 10 percentage points for the particular years (as well as similar corrections for the years 2008 and 2009). These corrections, although altering the debt level by [[Greek financial audits, 2009–10|a maximum of about 10%]], resulted in a popular notion that "Greece was previously hiding its debt".

==== Evolution of the debt crisis ====

The Greek crisis was triggered by the turmoil of the [[Great Recession]], which led the budget deficits of several Western nations to reach or exceed 10% of GDP.<ref name="Debt Past"/> In Greece's case, the high budget deficit (which, after several corrections, was revealed that it had been allowed to reach 10.2%  and 15.1% of GDP in 2008 and 2009, respectively) was coupled with a high public debt to GDP ratio (which, until then, was relatively stable for several years, at just above 100% of GDP - as calculated after all corrections<ref name="Debt Past"/>). Thus, the country appeared to lose control of its public debt to GDP ratio, which already reached 127% of GDP in 2009.<ref name="Debt 2009 2017 Eurostat">{{cite news |url=https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/tgm/refreshTableAction.do?tab=table&plugin=1&pcode=teina225&language=en|title= Eurostat (Government debt data)|work= Eurostat |access-date=5 September 2018}}</ref> In addition, being a member of the Eurozone, the country had essentially no autonomous [[Economic and Monetary Union of the European Union#Monetary policy inflexibility|monetary policy flexibility]]. 
Finally, there was an effect of controversies about Greek statistics (due the aforementioned drastic budget deficit revisions which lead to an increase in the calculated value of the Greek public debt by [[Greek financial audits, 2009–10|about 10%]], i.e., a public debt to GDP of about 100% until 2007), while there have been arguments about a possible effect of [[Greek government-debt crisis#Criticism of the role of news media and stereotyping|media reports]]. Consequently, Greece was "punished" by the markets which increased borrowing rates, making impossible for the country to finance its debt since early 2010.

Thus, the Greek economy faced [[2010 European sovereign debt crisis|its most-severe crisis]] since the restoration of democracy in 1974 as the Greek government revised its deficit forecasts from 3.7% in early 2009 and 6% in September 2009, to 12.7% of gross domestic product (GDP) in October 2009.<ref>Lynn, Matthew (2011). ''Bust: Greece, the Euro and the Sovereign Debt Crisis''. [[Hoboken, New Jersey|Hobeken]], New Jersey: [[Bloomberg Press]].  {{ISBN|978-0-470-97611-1}}.</ref><ref>{{cite news|title = Greece's Sovereign-Debt Crunch: A Very European Crisis |newspaper=The Economist |url = http://www.economist.com/world/europe/displaystory.cfm?story_id=15452594 | date =  4 February 2010| access-date =2 May 2010 }}</ref>

The aforementioned budget deficit and debt revisions were connected with findings that, through the assistance of [[Goldman Sachs]], [[JPMorgan Chase]] and numerous other banks, financial products were developed which enabled the governments of Greece, Italy and many other European countries to hide parts of their borrowing.<ref name=Rehn>{{cite web| title = Rehn: No Other State Will Need a Bail-Out| date = 5 May 2010 | url = http://euobserver.com/19/30015 |publisher=[[EU Observer]]| access-date =6 May 2010 }}</ref><ref name=Goldman>{{cite web| title = Greece Paid Goldman $300 Million To Help It Hide Its Ballooning Debts| url =http://www.businessinsider.com/henry-blodget-greece-paid-goldman-300-million-to-help-it-hide-its-ballooning-debts-2010-2| archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20100305175636/http://www.businessinsider.com/henry-blodget-greece-paid-goldman-300-million-to-help-it-hide-its-ballooning-debts-2010-2| archive-date =5 March 2010| website=[[Business Insider]] | access-date =6 May 2010 }}</ref> Dozens of similar agreements were concluded across Europe whereby banks supplied cash in advance in exchange for future payments by the governments involved; in turn, the liabilities of the involved countries were "kept off the books".<ref name=Goldman /><ref>{{cite news|title=Global Business: Wall St. Helped to Mask Debt Fueling Europe's Crisis|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/14/business/global/14debt.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0|date=13 February 2010|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|author=LOUISE STORY|author2=LANDON THOMAS Jr|author3=NELSON D. SCHWARTZ|quote=In dozens of deals across the Continent, banks provided cash upfront in return for government payments in the future, with those liabilities then left off the books. Greece, for example, traded away the rights to airport fees and lottery proceeds in years to come.}}</ref><ref name=Bloomberg>{{cite news|title=Goldman Secret Greece Loan Shows Two Sinners as Client Unravels|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-03-06/goldman-secret-greece-loan-shows-two-sinners-as-client-unravels.html|date=5 March 2012|publisher=Bloomberg|author1=Nicholas Dunbar |author2=Elisa Martinuzzi |quote=Greece actually executed the swap transactions to reduce its debt-to-gross-domestic-product ratio because all member states were required by the Maastricht Treaty to show an improvement in their public finances," Laffan said in an e- mail. "The swaps were one of several techniques that many European governments used to meet the terms of the treaty."}}</ref><ref name="The Telegraph">{{cite news|title=Did Goldman Sachs help Britain hide its debts too?|url=http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/finance/edmundconway/100003757/did-goldman-sachs-help-britain-hide-its-debts-too/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100218105208/http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/finance/edmundconway/100003757/did-goldman-sachs-help-britain-hide-its-debts-too/|url-status=dead|archive-date=18 February 2010|date=15 February 2010|newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph]]|author=Edmund Conway Economics|quote=One of the more intriguing lines from that latter piece says: "Instruments developed by Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase and a wide range of other banks enabled politicians to mask additional borrowing in Greece, Italy and possibly elsewhere." So, the obvious question goes, what about the UK? Did Britain hide its debts? Was Goldman Sachs involved? Should we panic?|location=London}}</ref><ref name="The Guardian">{{cite news|title=Banks that inflated Greek debt should be investigated, EU urges|url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2010/feb/16/greek-debt-goldman-sachs|newspaper=[[The Guardian]]|date=16 February 2010|author=Elena Moya|quote="These instruments were not invented by Greece, nor did investment banks discover them just for Greece," said Christophoros Sardelis, who was chief of Greece's debt management agency when the contracts were conducted with Goldman Sachs.Such contracts were also used by other European countries until Eurostat, the EU's statistic agency, stopped accepting them later in the decade. Eurostat has also asked Athens to clarify the contracts.}}</ref><ref name="Der Spiegel">{{cite news|title=Greek Debt Crisis: How Goldman Sachs Helped Greece to Mask its True Debt|url=http://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/greek-debt-crisis-how-goldman-sachs-helped-greece-to-mask-its-true-debt-a-676634.html|access-date=29 October 2013|newspaper=[[Der Spiegel]]|date=8 February 2010|author=Beat Balzli|quote=This credit disguised as a swap didn't show up in the Greek debt statistics. Eurostat's reporting rules don't comprehensively record transactions involving financial derivatives. "The Maastricht rules can be circumvented quite legally through swaps," says a German derivatives dealer.  In previous years, Italy used a similar trick to mask its true debt with the help of a different US bank.}}</ref>

According to ''[[Der Spiegel]]'', credits given to European governments were disguised as "swaps" and consequently did not get registered as debt because Eurostat at the time ignored statistics involving financial derivatives. A German derivatives dealer had commented to ''Der Spiegel'' that "The Maastricht rules can be circumvented quite legally through swaps," and "In previous years, Italy used a similar trick to mask its true debt with the help of a different US bank."<ref name="Der Spiegel" /> These conditions had enabled Greek as well as many other European governments to spend beyond their means, while meeting the deficit targets of the European Union and the [[Euro convergence criteria|monetary union guidelines]].<ref name="Europe derivatives 1">{{Cite news| title =  Greece not alone in exploiting EU accounting flaws | url =  https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE61L3EB20100222 |work=Reuters  | date = 22 February 2010 |access-date=20 August 2010}}</ref><ref name="Europe derivatives 2">{{Cite news| title = Greece is far from the EU's only joker | url = http://www.newsweek.com/blogs/wealth-of-nations/2010/02/19/greece-is-far-from-the-eu-s-only-joker.html |work=Newsweek| date = 19 February 2010 |access-date=16 May 2011}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news | title = The Euro PIIGS out | url = http://librus.ca/2010/10/the-euro-piigs-out | work = Librus Magazine | date = 22 October 2010 | access-date = 17 May 2011 | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110820012838/http://librus.ca/2010/10/the-euro-piigs-out/ | archive-date = 20 August 2011}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news | title = 'Creative accounting' masks EU budget deficit problems | url = http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-133622280.html | work = Sunday Business | date = 26 June 2005 | access-date = 17 May 2011 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130515060036/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-133622280.html | archive-date = 15 May 2013 | url-status = dead }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news| title = How Europe's governments have enronized their debts 
| url = http://www.euromoney.com/Article/1000384/BackIssue/50007/How-Europes-governments-have-enronized-their-debts.html
 |work=Euromoney | date = September 2005 |access-date=1 January 2014}}</ref><ref name="Italy swaps">{{cite news |url= https://www.euromoney.com/article/b1320nbmlzzpss/how-italy-shrank-its-deficit
| title= How Italy shrank its deficit |work= Euromoney|date= 1 December 2001 |access-date= 30 August 2017 }}</ref><ref name="FT Italy derivatives">{{cite news |url= https://www.ft.com/content/440007a8-dd9a-11e2-a756-00144feab7de |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221210/https://www.ft.com/content/440007a8-dd9a-11e2-a756-00144feab7de |archive-date=10 December 2022 |url-access=subscription|title= Italy faces restructured derivatives hit
|work= Financial Times |date= 25 June 2013 |access-date= 7 January 2019}}</ref><ref name=Goldman /><ref>{{cite news| title = Wall St. Helped To Mask Debt Fueling Europe's Crisis |work=The New York Times | url =https://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/14/business/global/14debt.html?pagewanted=1&hp | date =  14 February 2010| access-date =6 May 2010 |author1=Story, Louise |author2=Thomas Jr, Landon |author3=Schwartz, Nelson D. }}</ref> In May 2010, the Greek government deficit was again revised and estimated to be 13.6%<ref>{{cite news | title = Papandreou Faces Bond Rout as Budget Worsens, Workers Strike | url = https://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aUi3XLUwIIVA |publisher=Bloomberg|date=22 April 2010|access-date =2 May 2010 }}</ref> which was among the highest relative to GDP, with [[Iceland]] in first place at 15.7% and the [[United Kingdom]] third with 12.6%.<ref>{{cite news| author=Staff | title = Britain's Deficit Third Worst in the World, Table| url =https://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financialcrisis/7269629/Britains-deficit-third-worst-in-the-world-table.html| date =  19 February 2010| access-date =5 August 2011 |work=The Daily Telegraph |location=London }}</ref>{{dubious|date=March 2018}} Public debt was forecast, according to some estimates, to hit 120% of GDP during 2010.<ref>{{cite news|author1=Melander, Ingrid |author2=Papchristou, Harry | title = Greek Debt To Reach 120.8 Pct of GDP in '10&nbsp;– Draft| url =https://www.reuters.com/article/greece-budget-debt-idUSATH00496420091105 |work=Reuters  | date =  5 November 2009| access-date =5 August 2011}}</ref>

[[File:Greek bonds.webp|thumb|300px|Greek bonds
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As a consequence, there was a crisis in international confidence in Greece's ability to repay its sovereign debt, as reflected by the rise of the country's borrowing rates (although their slow rise – the 10-year government bond yield only exceeded 7% in April 2010 – coinciding with a large number of negative articles, has led to arguments about the role of international news media in the evolution of the crisis). In order to avert a default (as high borrowing rates effectively prohibited access to the markets), in May 2010 the other Eurozone countries, and the IMF, agreed to a "rescue package" which involved giving Greece an immediate €{{Nowrap|45 billion}} in bail-out loans, with more funds to follow, totaling €{{Nowrap|110 billion}}.<ref>{{cite news|title=Greece Faces 'Unprecedented' Cuts as $159B Rescue Nears|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-05-02/greece-faces-unprecedented-cuts-as-159b-rescue-nears.html|access-date=6 March 2014|newspaper=Bloomberg|date=3 May 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|author=Kerin Hope |title= EU Puts Positive Spin on Greek Rescue |url=http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/08a87e4e-55c4-11df-b835-00144feab49a.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221210/http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/08a87e4e-55c4-11df-b835-00144feab49a.html |archive-date=10 December 2022 |url-access=subscription |work=Financial Times  |date=2 May 2010 |access-date=6 May 2010}}</ref> In order to secure the funding, Greece was required to adopt harsh austerity measures to bring its deficit under control.<ref>{{cite news|last=Newman|first=Rick|title=Lessons for Congress From the Chaos in Greece|url=https://www.usnews.com/news/blogs/rick-newman/2011/11/03/lessons-for-congress-from-the-chaos-in-greece|access-date=3 November 2011|newspaper=US News|date=3 November 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111104005053/http://www.usnews.com/news/blogs/rick-newman/2011/11/03/lessons-for-congress-from-the-chaos-in-greece|archive-date=4 November 2011|url-status=dead}}</ref> Their implementation was to be monitored and evaluated by the [[European Commission]], the [[European Central Bank]] and the IMF.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/10099143.stm "Greece's Austerity Measures"]. [[BBC News]]. Retrieved 9 May 2010.</ref><ref>[http://dealbook.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/05/07/greek-parliament-passes-austerity-measures/?src=busln "Greek Parliament Passes Austerity Measures"].  ''[[The New York Times]]''. Retrieved 9 May 2010.</ref>

The [[2008 financial crisis]] – particularly the [[austerity]] package put forth by the EU and the IMF – has been met with anger by the Greek public, leading to [[riots]] and [[social unrest]], while there have been theories about the effect of [https://www.academia.edu/6655991/Media_Coverage_of_the_2010_Greek_Debt_Crisis_Inaccuracies_and_Evidence_of_Manipulation international media]. Despite - others say because of - the long range of austerity measures, the government deficit has not been reduced accordingly, mainly, according to many economists, because of the subsequent recession.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/organizations/e/european_union/index.html| newspaper=The New York Times|title=Times Topics European Union |date= 5 December 2011 |access-date=8 December 2011 |first=Kevin |last=Drew}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/10/21/greek-austerity-budget-cuts_n_1025743.html| work=Huffington Post |title=Greek Austerity: Budget Cuts Deepen Recession, Quicken Reckoning  |date= 24 October 2011 |access-date=8 December 2011 |first=Bonnie |last=Kavoussi}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/18/greek-deficit-austerity_n_1101133.html| work=Huffington Post |title=Greece: Country's Deficit Will Fall, No New Austerity Needed |date= 24 October 2011 |access-date=8 December 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052970204903804577080402358201814| newspaper=The Wall Street Journal |title=Greek Politician Expects Recession Will Linger |date= 6 December 2011 |access-date=8 December 2011 |first1=Alkman |last1=Granitsas |first2=Costas |last2=Paris}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/12165ab6-a599-11e0-83b2-00144feabdc0.html#axzz1fwD3Obmi|newspaper=[[Financial Times]]|title=Greece to see out year in recession|date=3 July 2011|access-date=8 December 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110903071755/http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/12165ab6-a599-11e0-83b2-00144feabdc0.html#axzz1fwD3Obmi|archive-date=3 September 2011|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Public sector workers have come out on strike in order to resist job cuts and reductions to salaries as the government promises that a large scale privatisation programme will be accelerated.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-28222362|title=Greek public sector workers hold 24-hour strike|work=BBC News|date=9 July 2014}}</ref> Immigrants are sometimes treated as scapegoats for economic problems by far-right extremists.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.economist.com/node/21564261|access-date=6 October 2012|title=Greek politics: Immigrants as scapegoats|newspaper=The Economist|date=6 October 2012}}</ref>

In 2013, Greece became the first [[developed market]] to be reclassified as an [[emerging markets|emerging market]] by different financial rating companies.<ref>{{cite news|title=Greece First Developed Market Cut to Emerging at MSCI|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-06-11/greece-first-developed-market-cut-to-emerging-as-uae-upgraded.html|access-date=6 March 2014|newspaper=Bloomberg|date=12 June 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Market Classification|url=http://www.msci.com/products/indices/market_classification.html|publisher=[[MSCI]]|access-date=6 March 2014|location=New York}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=S&P Dow Jones Indices Announces Country Classification Consultation Results|url=http://www.spindices.com/documents/index-news-and-announcements/20131030-spdji-country-classification-results.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140223095738/http://www.spindices.com/documents/index-news-and-announcements/20131030-spdji-country-classification-results.pdf |archive-date=2014-02-23 |url-status=live|publisher=[[S&P Dow Jones Indices]]|access-date=6 March 2014|location=New York|date=30 October 2013}}</ref>

By July 2014 there were still anger and protests about the austerity measures, with a 24-hour strike among government workers timed to coincide with an audit by inspectors from the International Monetary Fund, the European Union and European Central Bank in advance of a decision on a second bailout of one billion euros ($1.36 billion), due in late July.<ref name="GreekStrike">{{cite news|title=State workers in Greece hold strike to protest layoffs|url=http://www.greekherald.com/index.php/sid/223650639/scat/48158b5a5afd369b/ht/State-workers-in-Greece-hold-strike-to-protest-layoffs|access-date=9 July 2014|work=Greek Herald|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140714193741/http://www.greekherald.com/index.php/sid/223650639/scat/48158b5a5afd369b/ht/State-workers-in-Greece-hold-strike-to-protest-layoffs|archive-date=14 July 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Greece exited its six-year recession in the second quarter of 2014,<ref>{{cite news |last1=Bensasson |first1=Marcus |title=Greece exited recession in second quarter, says EU Commission {{!}} eKathimerini.com |url=https://www.ekathimerini.com/economy/164391/greece-exited-recession-in-second-quarter-says-eu-commission/ |access-date=1 February 2024 |work=[[Kathimerini]] |date=4 November 2014 |location=Athens}}</ref> but the challenges of securing political stability and debt sustainability remained.<ref>{{cite news |title=PM eyes stability, says opposition proposals could undermine debt effort {{!}} eKathimerini.com |url=https://www.ekathimerini.com/news/164735/pm-eyes-stability-says-opposition-proposals-could-undermine-debt-effort/ |access-date=1 February 2024 |work=Kathimerini |date=15 November 2014 |location=Athens}}</ref>

A third bailout was agreed in July 2015, after a confrontation with the newly elected leftist government of Alexis Tsipras. In June 2017, news reports indicated that the "crushing debt burden" had not been alleviated and that Greece was at the risk of defaulting on some payments.<ref>{{Cite news | url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/jun/22/greek-debt-imf-eu-bailout |title = Greek debt: IMF and EU's quick fix isn't enough &#124; Mohamed El-Erian|newspaper = The Guardian|date = 22 June 2017|last1 = El-Erian|first1 = Mohamed}}</ref> The [[International Monetary Fund]] stated that the country should be able to borrow again "in due course". At the time, the Euro zone gave Greece another credit of $9.5-billion, $8.5 billion of loans and brief details of a possible debt relief with the assistance of the IMF.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/economy/greece-gets-credit-lifeline-imf-joins-bailout/article35325652/ |title=Greece gets credit lifeline, IMF joins bailout - the Globe and Mail |website=[[The Globe and Mail]] |access-date=13 July 2017 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170627093322/https://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/economy/greece-gets-credit-lifeline-imf-joins-bailout/article35325652/ |archive-date=27 June 2017}}</ref> On 13 July, the Greek government sent a letter of intent to the IMF with 21 commitments it promised to meet by June 2018. They included changes in labour laws, a plan to cap public sector work contracts, to transform temporary contracts into permanent agreements and to recalculate pension payments to reduce spending on social security.<ref>{{Cite web | url=http://english.capital.gr/News.asp?id=2436103 | title=Greece reiterates pledge to IMF to implement 21 prior actions by June 2018}}</ref>

Greece's bailouts successfully ended (as declared) on 20 August 2018.<ref name="Bailout exit">{{cite news |url= https://www.reuters.com/article/us-eurozone-greece-bailout/greece-exits-final-bailout-successfully-esm-idUSKCN1L40OG |title= Greece exits final bailout successfully: ESM
|work= Reuters |date=20 August 2018 |access-date=31 August 2018}}</ref>

==== Effects of the bailout programmes on the debt crisis ====
There was a 25% drop in Greece's GDP, connected with the bailout programmes.<ref name="Tsipras Bloomberg">{{cite news |url= https://www.bloomberg.com/news/videos/2018-06-27/tsipras-says-greece-won-t-go-back-to-old-spending-ways-video
|title= Tsipras says Greece won't go back to old spending ways (Bloomberg) |date=27 June 2018 |access-date=30 July 2018}}</ref><ref name="Marianne">{{cite news |url=http://www.keeptalkinggreece.com/2013/01/22/marianne-the-incredible-errors-by-imf-experts-the-wrong-multiplier/ |title= (Keeptalkinggreece) Marianne: The incredible errors by IMF experts & the wrong multiplier |date=22 January 2013 |access-date=29 May 2017}}</ref> This had a critical effect: the Debt-to-GDP ratio, the key factor defining the severity of the crisis, would jump from its 2009 level of 127%<ref name="Eurostat Debt to GDP">{{cite web|url= https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/tgm/table.do?tab=table&init=1&language=en&pcode=teina225&plugin=1|title= General government gross debt - annual data|access-date = 31 August 2018}}</ref> to about 170%, solely due to the GDP drop (i.e., for the same Debt). Such a level is considered unsustainable.<ref>{{Citation |last1=Reinhart |first1=Carmen M. |title=Growth in a Time of Debt |date=January 2010 |type=Working Paper |url=https://www.nber.org/papers/w15639 |access-date=2024-06-03 |series=Working Paper Series |doi=10.3386/w15639 |last2=Rogoff |first2=Kenneth S.}}</ref> Reports show that, for government debt, the threshold for unhealthy Debt-to-GDPT ratio is around 85%.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Cecchetti |first1=Stephen G. |last2=Mohanty |first2=Madhusudan |last3=Zampolli |first3=Fabrizio |date=2011-09-16 |title=The real effects of debt |journal=Economic Symposium Conference Proceedings, Jackson Hole, 2011 |url=https://www.bis.org/publ/work352.htm |language=en}}</ref> In a 2013 report, the IMF admitted that it had underestimated the effects of so extensive tax hikes and budget cuts on the country's GDP and issued an informal apology.<ref name="IMF Guardian">{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2013/jun/05/imf-admit-mistakes-greek-crisis-austerity |title= IMF 'to admit mistakes' in handling Greek debt crisis and bailout (The Guardian) |date=5 June 2013 |access-date=22 June 2018}}</ref><ref name="IMF Reuters">{{cite news | url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-imf-greece/for-hard-hit-greeks-imf-mea-culpa-comes-too-late-idUSBRE9550M320130606|title= For hard-hit Greeks, IMF mea culpa comes too late (Reuters)|date=6 June 2013 |access-date=22 June 2018}}</ref><ref name="IMF Telegraph">{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2016/07/28/imf-admits-disastrous-love-affair-with-euro-apologises-for-the-i/ |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2016/07/28/imf-admits-disastrous-love-affair-with-euro-apologises-for-the-i/ |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live
|title= IMF admits disastrous love affair with the euro and apologises for the immolation of Greece (The Telegraph) |date=29 July 2016 |access-date=22 June 2018}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref name="Marianne"/>