Piraeus Port Authority

Construction company Tekal SA has provisionally won the tender to build the extension of the Piraeus Port Authority (OLP) passenger terminal.

Cosco, the operator of Piraeus port, plans to build a fourth cargo pier, expanding its total investment in the port by 200 million euros to a total of 800 million, well-informed sources say.

Greece can only achieve a high economic growth rate if direct investments increase, Bank of Greece Governor Yannis Stournaras said in an interview with US magazine Fortune.

The Greek bourse appears to be betting on an imminent credit rating upgrade, with Fitch and Moody's expected to deliver their verdicts next month. As the benchmark headed higher for a fourth day in a row, on Friday it recorded respectable gains for the week, having risen by over 45 percent since the start of the year.

Lackluster buying interest on the bourse and the sudden drop in action in the last three hours of the session, after the Athens earthquake, resulted in minor losses for the majority of stocks at Athinon Avenue, but the week still closed with gains.

The approval process for Cosco's investments in Piraeus has been passed on to the next government, as the Port Planning and Development Commission (ESAL) has conditionally accepted but not approved the master plan for Piraeus Port Authority (OLP).

If the Greek civil administration had always operated at the pace it has been over the last couple of weeks, Greece would rival Denmark in state efficiency.

The Chinese ownership of Piraeus Port Authority (OLP) pledged to seek the progress and prosperity of its asset, during Friday's annual general meeting.

The absorption of some market liquidity by the Piraeus Bank bond issue and anticipation of the Fed's decision on US interest rate policy weighed on the Greek bourse on Wednesday, with the benchmark easing and trading volume shrinking in comparison with previous days.

The plenary of the Council of State has approved a contract for the expansion of a passenger terminal in Piraeus for the docking of cruise liners as well as the sale of a 67 percent stake of Piraeus Port Authority (OLP) to Cosco.
The country's top constitutional court has ruled in favor of those contracts, rejecting the appeals by construction company Terna SA.