The Hellenic Navy (HN) (Greek: Πολεμικό Ναυτικό, Polemikó Naftikó, abbreviated ΠΝ) is the naval force of Greece, part of the Greek Armed Forces. The modern Greek navy has its roots in the naval forces of various Aegean Islands, which fought in the Greek War of Independence. During the periods of monarchy (1833–1924 and 1936–1973) it was known as the Royal Navy (Βασιλικόν Ναυτικόν, Vasilikón Naftikón, abbreviated ΒΝ).The total displacement of all the navy's vessels is approximately 150,000 tons.The motto of the Hellenic Navy is "Μέγα το της Θαλάσσης Κράτος" from Thucydides' account of Pericles' oration on the eve of the Peloponnesian War. This has been roughly translated as "Great is the country that controls the sea". The Hellenic Navy's emblem consists of an anchor in front of a crossed Christian cross and trident, with the cross symbolizing Greek Orthodoxy, and the trident symbolizing Poseidon, the god of the sea in Greek mythology. Pericles' words are written across the top of the emblem. "The navy, as it represents a necessary weapon for Greece, should only be created for war and aim to victory."...............The Hellenic Merchant Marine refers to the Merchant Marine of Greece, engaged in commerce and transportation of goods and services universally. It consists of the merchant vessels owned by Greek civilians, flying either the Greek flag or a flag of convenience. Greece is a maritime nation by tradition, as shipping is arguably the oldest form of occupation of the Greeks and a key element of Greek economic activity since the ancient times. Nowadays, Greece has the largest merchant fleet in the world, which is the second largest contributor to the national economy after tourism and forms the backbone of world shipping. The Greek fleet flies a variety of flags, however some Greek shipowners gradually return to Greece following the changes to the legislative framework governing their operations and the improvement of infrastructure.

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This is a bilingual blog in English and / or Greek and you can translate any post to any language by pressing on the appropriate flag....Note that there is provided below a scrolling text with the 30 recent posts...Αυτό είναι ένα δίγλωσσο blog στα Αγγλικά η/και στα Ελληνικά και μπορείτε να μεταφράσετε οποιοδήποτε ποστ σε οποιαδήποτε γλώσσα κάνοντας κλικ στη σχετική σημαία. Σημειωτέον ότι παρακάτω παρέχεται και ένα κινούμενο κείμενο με τα 30 πρόσφατα ποστς....This is a bilingual blog in English and / or Greek and you can translate any post to any language by pressing on the appropriate flag....Note that there is provided below a scrolling text with the 30 recent posts...Αυτό είναι ένα δίγλωσσο blog στα Αγγλικά η/και στα Ελληνικά και μπορείτε να μεταφράσετε οποιοδήποτε ποστ σε οποιαδήποτε γλώσσα κάνοντας κλικ στη σχετική σημαία. Σημειωτέον ότι παρακάτω παρέχεται και ένα κινούμενο κείμενο με τα 30 πρόσφατα ποστς.........

Wednesday, March 24, 2010

Portugal's credit ..[ 795 ]

Portugal credit rating downgraded over debt concerns

Portuguese parliament votes on budget

The government's tough budget went unopposed by other parties

BBC ,,11:31 GMT, Wednesday, 24 March 2010

Portugal's credit rating has been downgraded from AA to AA- by leading credit rating agency Fitch over concerns about its high levels of debt.

Earlier this month, Portugal passed an austerity budget aimed at cutting its budget deficit.

The downgrade heightened concerns about the health of some of Europe's heavily indebted economies, forcing the euro lower against the dollar and the pound.

The euro fell by 1.34 cents, or 1%, against the dollar, to $1.3362.

Against the pound, it fell by half a penny to 89.325p.

The downgrade also sent major European stock markets into negative territory.

European impact

"A sizeable fiscal shock against a backdrop of relative macroeconomic and structural weaknesses has reduced Portugal's creditworthiness," Douglas Renwick of Fitch's said.

Although the agency said Portugal's austerity budget was "credible", it said the government would need "to implement sizeable consolidation measures from next year", as well as reverse stimulus measures this year, in order to get its debt levels under control.

The downgrade could mean Portugal has to pay higher yields on government bonds to attract investors, making it more expensive for the country to borrow money - even though other leading ratings agencies may not necessarily follow Fitch's lead.

Analysts stressed the wider European impact the downgrade could have.

"The downgrade has more impact on the wider sovereign debt crisis, rather than on Portugal at the moment," said Peter Chatwell at Credit Agricole.

There have been widespread concerns about the high levels of debt of a number of European countries, most notably Greece.

At the end of last year, Fitch and Standard & Poor's, the second of the three major international credit ratings agencies, downgraded Greek government debt.

European leaders are currently discussing how best to deal with Greece's debt crisis.

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