Sixth Troika review “within weeks”

The sixth review of the 10 bln euro bailout “adjustment programme” is expected to be completed within weeks, if not as early as next week, according to Finance Minister Harris Georgiades who said that the Troika technocrats are now examining the foreclosure regulations and the framework for insolvencies that were recently approved by parliament.

Upon the departure of the last Troika team of inspectors, Georgiades had said that he was confident Cyprus would get a positive review, paving the way for the disbursement of the next loan tranche from the IMF and the EU next month, while also allowing Cyprus bonds to be included in the ECB’s quantitative easing programme.

The Troika team said Cyprus needs to complete two “prior actions” – legislation on the sale of loan and mortgage portfolios, and another that would allow property buyers to secure title deeds having repaid their mortgages but the developer would have re-mortgaged the property.

Meanwhile, the ruling DISY party said that an opposition proposal to suspend privatisations until 2017 would only serve to extend the duration of the island’s bailout programme at a time when the country was close to exiting.

Political parties have embarked on their populist election campaigns for a new parliament in May 2016 and are appealing to trade unions and public-interest groups for votes by claiming that they will oppose any sale of national assets, including the telecoms company Cyta, power generator EAC and the Ports Authority, out of which the state needs to raise some 1.4 bln euros by the end of 2018.