Survey: Half of Greeks unable to pay their bills

Economy February 07, 2013

Survey: Half of Greeks unable to pay their bills

Photo: AP People reach out for fresh produce handouts from fruit and vegetable street market stall holders during a peaceful protest outside the Ministry of Agriculture in Athens, on Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2013. Farmers complain that their production costs are too high, and want Greece's conservative-led coalition government to reduce the price of fuel, scrap plans to increase taxation on agriculture and cut sales tax on their goods.

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ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Half of Greek households were unable to pay their bills in 2012, forcing them to borrow money from relatives or run up their debts, according to a new survey.

The study commissioned by the small and medium sized business association GSEVEE and published Thursday found 49.8 percent of households fell behind on bills and expenses last year, 48.3 percent managed to cover costs, and just 1.8 percent saved money.

The study found 93.1 percent said they had suffered a loss in income since Greece's financial crisis began in late 2009, while 33.1 percent borrowed money from relatives or friends in 2012. Debt-strapped Greece has been surviving on rescue loans from the Eurozone and International Monetary Fund since 2010.

The survey of 1,207 households was carried out Dec. 10-19.

Subjects
- Business,
- General news,
- Financial crisis,
- Economy
Locations
- Greece,
- Western Europe,
- Europe

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