Mário Centeno

The finance ministers of the 19-member Eurozone have decided to postpone disbursing 1 billion euros ($1.12 billion) to Greece.

The reason for postponing the payment is that Greece has not yet changed the provisions of a law protecting debtors' main housing property from creditors to the EU's satisfaction.

The state has ceased paying off its debts to its suppliers after the country exited the bailout program in the summer. Instead of diminishing, the state's dues increased slightly in October, as the government's is obviously prioritizing the payment of social dividends and covering the ruling party's promises.

Eurogroup head Mario Centeno said Greece is on the right path in achieving the country's fiscal commitments but warned over lagging reforms, following a meeting of eurozone's finance ministers on Tuesday.

Greece is likely to beat its fiscal targets, including the primary surplus, for the third year in a row, but needs to continue the reforms it promised as part of the last bailout program, the chairman of eurozone finance ministers said.

Speaking at a hearing in the European Parliament's economic committee, Mario Centeno said the outlook for the Greek economy was positive.

The Eurogroup indicated on Monday that it will be green-lighting the Greek budget, though a final decision is not expected until early next month.

The Greek budget is under scrutiny in order to estimate whether the country can achieve the budget surplus target for 2019, Eurogroup head Mario Centeno has said.

Eurogroup head Mario Centeno reiterated on Monday that Athens must continue to implement its commitments to its creditors but noted that the pension cuts debated with the government are considered a fiscal rather than a structural measure - an argument supported by the Greek government.

Greece has successfully exited its final, three-year bailout program, agreed in August 2015 to help it cope with the continued fallout from a debt crisis, the eurozone's European Stability Mechanism rescue fund said on Monday.

Any changes in reforms that are being implemented in Greece as part of its adjustment program and any future reforms to be implemented after the program's completion will have to be agreed with its creditors, Eurogroup President Mario Centeno told Ta Nea newspaper's weekend edition.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Friday that the effects of Greece's bailout package would not end on the day that the program itself ends.

Eurogroup President Mario Centeno said last week that eurozone countries were set to disburse a final 15-billion-euro bailout loan to Greece in August.