Some green shoots in Greece were reported yesterday. The most significant is that the Greek economy shrank by 3.8% in the second quarter of 2013 compared to the year before. This is not good, but better than the 4.6% that was initially expected.
As pointed out in the article, one of the reasons for the less-than-expected decline was an increase in tourism. Revenue from tourism increased by 39% in the first five months of 2013 compared to last year. A big factor here may not even have been Greece itself, but the unrest in Egypt. But I suspect it is as much a change in the perception of Greece.
Typically most forecasts overshoot on the way up as well as on the way down. This is prevalent in both macroeconomic as well as earnings forecasts. I don't see why Greece would not fit this general trend and I suspect we will likely have more upward economic revisions in the future.
For me another statistic I think is much more important : Greece's ranking in the World Bank's Doing Business 2013 report. This reports ranks countries on the ease of setting-up and keeping a small and medium business running. Greece moved up 11 places from a rank of 89 to 78 - the largest increase of any developed market.
As several of my readers know I'm a big fan of Greece. Especially its equity market, which despite its good performance, is still one of the least expensive in the world on some long-term valuation measures.
Please note that I'm biased. One of the best weeks of my life was spent learning about the country, its stock market, and its listed companies. The people I met in Athens last year are smart, switched-on and, from my very limited number of contacts, genuinely feel things need to change. My write-up is here.
As pointed out in the article, one of the reasons for the less-than-expected decline was an increase in tourism. Revenue from tourism increased by 39% in the first five months of 2013 compared to last year. A big factor here may not even have been Greece itself, but the unrest in Egypt. But I suspect it is as much a change in the perception of Greece.
Typically most forecasts overshoot on the way up as well as on the way down. This is prevalent in both macroeconomic as well as earnings forecasts. I don't see why Greece would not fit this general trend and I suspect we will likely have more upward economic revisions in the future.
For me another statistic I think is much more important : Greece's ranking in the World Bank's Doing Business 2013 report. This reports ranks countries on the ease of setting-up and keeping a small and medium business running. Greece moved up 11 places from a rank of 89 to 78 - the largest increase of any developed market.
As several of my readers know I'm a big fan of Greece. Especially its equity market, which despite its good performance, is still one of the least expensive in the world on some long-term valuation measures.
Please note that I'm biased. One of the best weeks of my life was spent learning about the country, its stock market, and its listed companies. The people I met in Athens last year are smart, switched-on and, from my very limited number of contacts, genuinely feel things need to change. My write-up is here.
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