Euro crisis, government debt and corruption. With these words, Greece was associated until a few years ago. There are currently increasing number of tourists and growth. How did it come about?
Sun, beach, blue sea and pretty little islands – this is what distinguishes Greece. In financial speech, one could say that it is the assets of the country, i.e. the assets that bring Greece money. 30 percent of gross domestic product depends on tourism, says Christian Kopf, Head of Pension Markets at the Union Investment.
“Greece is a small economy that is designed for tourism. It is a bit the Florida in Europe. Many people also move because it is just nice to live there.” Head still remembers the time as Greece – despite the wonderful location and the many sunny days a year – shortly before the state bankruptcy.
“Greece came into a great financial crisis in 2011. At that time it was the case that the state had taken up very high debts, but also had a very high budget deficit and the investors were no longer willing to finance this.”
Germany is the largest investor
A default and many emergency loans later the country is better. The state has renovated its household and can borrow money again on the capital market at cheaper conditions. With these means, Greece has invested a lot in the country’s infrastructure and thereby attracted foreign investors, says Marian Wendt, head of the Athens office of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation. “Just an example: Boehringer Ingelheim, they make one percent of the BIP. German companies a total of around five percent of GDP, so Germany has invested.”
With 20 percent, Germany is the largest investor in the country. According to Wendt. In addition to tourism, there are other interesting future markets in the small country: digitization, energy and health sector. “Something is growing,” emphasizes Wendt opposite Evidence Network.de. Just as Greece’s economy grows as a whole.
Logistics hub Between the Orient and Occident
The Greek economy increased by 2.3 percent last year. The main reason is the booming tourism – but not only. For some time now, Greece has also made a name for itself as a logistics handling area, according to Greece connoisseur Wendt. “We have a logistics hub with the port of Piraeus. We are here between the Orient and the Occident and can therefore also serve the new markets towards the Balkans,” said the expert.
Greece is the gate to Europe, says Wendt. And the Chinese in particular used that. The important Piraeus conversal port is 51 percent in Chinese hands. During the state debt crisis, Greece leased shares in China for years. “During the state debt crisis, the creditor of Greece, also the state creditors, pushed for Greece privatize the port of Piraeus,” said capital market expert.
In retrospect, it was a little short -term to give the strategically important port in Chinese hand, says Kopf. “The Chinese now use the port as a gateway to southern Europe to ship their exports.”
Criticism of the award “Golden Visa”
There is also criticism of the allocation of so -called golden visas to Chinese investors. From an investment of 400,000 euros, foreign investors from non-EU countries receive a visa for the Schengen area free of charge.
In the big cities and on populated islands, the state has raised the investment amount to 800,000 euros. That brought up to three billion euros into the country, according to Greece connoisseur Wendt.
What can we learn from Greece? Just make it!
Despite all the criticism, the trust of the investors is back and the tourists come in droves. Last year it was 40 million vacationers, a good ten times as many people live in the small country on the eastern Mediterranean. That means a tourist record.
What can Germany learn from Greece? Keyword: digitization. According to Wendt, this helped combat undeclared work and tax evasion. “Every citizen can pay everything and at any time with a card and if not, he is not obliged to pay for it. And of course that prevents fraud and leads to additional tax revenue.”
In addition, the Greeks have more confidence in the private sector than in the state and a certain openness to new things, adds Wendt. “When we see each other, we will do it,” is a popular Greek saying. “I would say there is a mentality in Greece: we start first and on the way we will already solve the problems.” The Germans always occur from the process, and if the process is not 100 percent agreed, the Germans did not start, said Wendt. Here you could learn something with the Greeks.
