Business and Economics
According to
COUNTRYAAH, the country has for a long time had a weak economy. When
entering EMU in 2001, the country reported a budget deficit
for 1998 and 1999 of 2.5 percent and 1.6 percent of GDP,
respectively, which later turned out to be inaccurate
figures. The correct deficits were 4.1 and 3.4 percent,
respectively, which would have meant that the country did
not meet the limit value of a maximum of 3 percent of GDP in
budget deficits that EMU has for entry. In 2004, the deficit
fell to 7.9 per cent, thanks largely to high costs for the
summer Olympics. In the following years, the deficit
declined until the international financial crisis hit the
country in 2009, when the budget deficit reached 13.6 per
cent of GDP. The high deficit, together with the country's
large indebtedness, caused an acute economic crisis in 2010,
and the country received emergency loans of EUR 110 million.
In 2011, the situation worsened further and EU leaders
decided on a new support package of just over EUR 100
billion. The economic downturn has continued and in 2015 GDP
had decreased by about a quarter compared to 2009.
Like many other countries, the Greek economy has gone
from being agricultural-based to being dominated by the
service sector, mainly trade, tourism and shipping. In
comparison with other EU countries, the industry has quite a
small impact on the country's economy. Tourism has for a
long time been an important factor in Greek business.
Traditionally, almost half of all economic activity has
taken place in the state sector, but in order to rectify a
long-term budget deficit, an extensive privatization program
was launched in 1998 and state ownership has been halved
since then.
Agriculture
Agriculture still plays an important role in Greece's
business. About 64 percent of the country's area is usable
land, of which 17 percent is irrigated. About 25 percent of
exports consist of food. However, topography, climate and
soil constitute obstacles to efficient agriculture; just
under a third of the country's area is cultivated.
Agriculture is mostly conducted in Thessaly and Macedonia
but is also spread throughout the rest of the country. The
cultivation units are small (80 percent is less than 4 ha)
and the egg splitting is large. Added to this are
old-fashioned farming methods, inadequate infrastructure and
a significant water shortage. Some imports of agricultural
products occur. Among the export products are tobacco,
cotton, maize, olives, grapes, raisins, currants and citrus
fruits. Other things include sugar beets, rice and figs.
Forestry
In ancient times, Greece was largely wooded. As a result
of multi-hundred-year-old chopping and overgrazing, the
forest covers only about 30 per cent of the area (mainly the
high-lying parts), and a certain import of wood takes place.
Since 1950, extensive forest planting programs have been
implemented.
Fishing
Greek fishing occurs both along the coasts and off the
islands as well as in the South Atlantic and at Cape Verde.
During the early 2000s, the fishing industry has declined as
many fishermen have used EU grants to take old and small
fishing boats out of use. The majority of the catch goes to
domestic consumption. The previously important collection of
laundry sponge has largely lost its importance.
Commodity Funds
The mining sector has only a marginal significance for
the Greek economy. Company ownership is almost exclusively
private. The most economically important mineral is bauxite
(for aluminum production) and lignite, which is mainly mined
in the southern part of the mainland and Macedonia
respectively. In terms of volume, Greece is one of the
leading world producers of perlite, pumice and bentonite.
Iron, nickel and magnesite are also extracted. In addition,
cement is produced.
Energy supply
Compared to most other European countries, energy
consumption in Greece is relatively low. Of its own
production, which accounts for a quarter of the total
supply, lignite dominates, which is mainly mined in
Ptolemais in Macedonia. Oil and natural gas are extracted
from indigenous fields in the Aegean Sea. Of imported energy
types, oil dominates, followed by a smaller amount of
natural gas. An oil pipeline from Turkey was completed in
2007. The refineries are located in Athens and Corinth.
The contribution from renewable energy types, mainly
biofuels, is about 6 percent (2009). The goal is to meet
energy requirements of 40 per cent by renewable sources in
2020. Water energy is extracted from the Acheloos and Pinios
rivers, which open into the Ionian Sea. The industry uses
about 15 percent of the available energy, while transport
and other sectors account for the rest to about equal parts.
Industry
About a quarter of the country's labor force is employed
in industry. We have invested in the industrial sectors that
are based partly on traditional craftsmanship and partly on
domestic raw materials (however, import of industrial goods
is necessary). These include the textile and clothing
industry (with factories all over the country), the chemical
industry (primarily the northern parts of the country with a
large industrial complex in Thessaloniki), the metal
industry (with extraction and processing plants in the
Athens area in particular) and the food industry (in the
Thessaloniki area, among others).). The formerly dominant
small industry structure has been partially replaced by a
concentration to larger units.
Severe environmental problems as a result of refineries,
petrochemical plants and steelworks can be found today in
the Athens area (with industries in particular Athens,
Piraeus and Eleusis) and in the Gulf of Thermaikos at
Thessaloniki.
Foreign trade
Due to its energy-difficult situation, Greece has for a
long time had a negative trade balance, with twice as much
imports as exports. The most important export goods are
food, industrial products, chemical products, ores and
metals. Imports are dominated by workshop products, oil and
transport. The most important trading partners are Germany,
Italy and the Russian Federation. Trade with the Balkan
countries has increased in recent years. The deficit in
foreign trade is partly offset by extensive tourism and
revenue from the merchant fleet, which, despite cuts, is
still one of the largest in the world.
Tourism and gastronomy
Greece is one of the larger countries where tourism plays
a particularly important role for the economy and society.
As a steward of an important part of the classical heritage
of art and architecture, Greece has attracted tourists
interested in ancient beauty and picturesque folk culture
from the end of the 19th century. Since the 1970s, tourism
has increasingly taken the form of mass tourism with growing
elements of sun and bathing. This has consequences for good
(many hotels and good communications) and evil (hard
pressure on certain monuments and environments). The number
of foreign tourists in 2010 was 15 million. Most come from
Germany, the United Kingdom, Italy, France, the Netherlands
and Albania. Tourism is estimated to contribute one fifth of
GDP and employ an equal share of the labor force.
Among the country's many tourist destinations, the
Acropolis in Athens is marked by the Parthenon, the
Propylene, the Erechteion and in 2009 the museum, like
Agora, with its excellent museum, and the tomb of Kerameikos
at Dipylon opened. Also worth seeing is the stadium, which
dates back to the Olympics in 1896. Byzantine Athens, with
its fine medieval churches in the center and in some suburbs
(especially the Dafni monastery), deserves attention as does
the Byzantine Museum. The National Museum, with gold plaques
from Mycenae and perhaps the world's foremost collection of
Greek sculpture and Greek vases, is also a great museum
experience. Likewise, the Benaki Museum, which shows
cultural connections from the long Ottoman period. The old
town, Plaka, is characterized by boutiques, restaurants and
entertainment venues.
The Greek island world with islands such as Corfu, Hydra,
Samos, Kos, Mykonos, Rhodes and Crete is the center of pure
recreational travel. Each island has its own character and
often interesting sights at excursion distances (Delos next
to Mykonos, the city of John the Knights in Rhodes, Knossos
and Heraklion in Crete). World famous ancient sites such as
Delphi, Mycenae and Olympia are part of many organized
tours. In addition, slightly less touristy places such as
Tiryn's (near Argos), Sparta with the well-preserved
Byzantine ruin town of Mistra, the Afaya Temple of Aegina,
the Monastery of Hosios Lukas (with frescoes) are
recommended. A special trip deserves Thessaloniki, with
interesting churches and the gold treasure museum from the
Macedonian ruling family's gravesite in Vergina.
The food in Greece is characterized by pure flavors.
Lamb, seafood, olive oil, lemon, fresh herbs, cheese and
yogurt are some of the cornerstones of Greek food. The meal
is often started with meze, small pieces of flavor
consisting of e.g. olives, feta cheese, dolmades,
(lamb tenderloin in wine leaves with lemon sauce),
keftethakia (small meatballs), tarama salad
(sauce with fish milk, milk, egg yolk, bread crumbs and
lemon), melizanes salata (eggplant puree),
tzatziki (yoghurt) and yoghurt marinated vegetables.
Soup is common, preferably of fish, but also of
intestines or lamb's feet (patsas), or the
refreshing mashed potatoes, egg and lemon soup with
rice.
The main course can consist of grilled fish (psari),
flavored with oregano and lemon. Seafood or octopus are
other options. Grilled lamb and lamb stew provide pleasant
by-products in the form of kokoretsi, sausages on
the liver, spleen and lungs, also a common sight on the mez
table. Moussaka, lamb and eggplant gratin in
béchamel sauce, is one of many dishes that show the Turkish
influence in Greek cuisine. Most notably, however, is the
dessert, which often consists of honey-dripping pastries,
often filled with nuts or raisins. Halva and
baklava are well-known examples, more traditionally
Greek is mizithropitta me meli, a cake with soft
cheese and honey.
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