Euclid Tsakalotos

Greece's finance minister said on Thursday the challenge of wrestling down non performing loans at the country's commercial banks was 'totally manageable'.

Euclid Tsakalotos told lawmakers all Greek banks had reached and exceeded targets set on reducing their stockpile of bad loans. [Reuters]

Public sector workers broke into a meeting room at the Finance Ministry on Wednesday, demanding talks with Minister Euclid Tsakalotos. The raid took place during a 24-hour strike protesting cutbacks imposed by the country's creditors.

A big sell-off in Greek banking shares in the Athens Stock Exchange on Wednesday was the result of "speculative pressures" and do not reflect the fundamentals of the sector, the government said.

The banking index plunged more than 17 percent in intraday trading to end 8.78 percent lower.

About 30 members of Greece's civil servants' union (ADEDY) protesting government plans to abolish the benefits and status of arduous and unhealthy professions on Wednesday stormed the Finance Ministry in Athens demanding that they meet with Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos to discuss the issue.

Earlier on Wednesday unionists held a rally outside the State General Accounting Office.

After the claim to negotiating the prevention of pension cuts, Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos stated on Wednesday in Parliament that the government will also seek to avert the reduction of the tax-free ceiling from January 2020, in an effort to cancel the entire agreement with its creditors voted by the House just a year ago.

Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos sparked outrage on Friday after saying that the long-term viability of the social security system will not be burdened by a suspension of planned pension cuts as older pensioners will die soon.

The International Monetary Fund on Thursday issued a flat denial to the government's request to cancel the implementation of the planned pension cut in January 2019, while Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos appeared reserved about Berlin's attitude as he responded to investors' questions in London a day after meeting his German counterpart.

The government remains a long way from getting the green light to cancel the implementation planned pension cuts in January, as an informal meeting in Germany indicated on Wednesday.

Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos said on Wednesday he hoped "reason will prevail" in talks with Greece's lenders and they will agree that pensions do not need to be cut further in 2019.

"The pension cuts are not a structural measure. It doesn't affect the viability of the pension system," he was quoted as saying in an interview with news website newport.gr.

A decision on whether or not Greece will be obliged to implement fresh pension cuts in January will not be taken until a summit of eurozone finance ministers in November, it emerged yesterday as representatives of Greece's creditors met with government officials in Athens.