Primary surplus target reduction may be feasible but not just yet

The high primary surplus targets may be one of the toughest legacies passed down to the new administration by the Alexis Tsipras government. An agreement with creditors for reducing the target of 3.5 percent of gross domestic product is a key priority for Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, which analysts and economists speaking to Kathimerini say is feasible but only under specific conditions.

"The reduction of the targets for the primary surpluses will be a difficult uphill road for the Greek government, mainly because the northern European states are not so willing to accept the idea of a level below 3.5 percent for the medium term," says Mujtaba Rahman, managing director for Europe at Eurasia Group. "For the time being no such negotiation is expected, but this is possible for the targets after 2021," he predicts.

Raffaella Tenconi, an economist at Wood, appears to...