ATHENS: Greece wants to regain investment grade status in early 2023, says Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, (pic) who has pledged not to deviate from fiscal targets already set.

       “I want to return to investment grade in the first months of 2023,” Mitsotakis said in an interview with Skai TV broadcast on Saturday.

       That will unlock billions in funds that can be invested back into the country, the premier added.

       Greece needs to stick to its reform agenda and address imbalances such as high debt and the banking sector’s problems in order to regain investment grade status, Martin Bijsterbosch, the European Central Bank’s mission chief for Greece, told Bloomberg News earlier this week.

       In the interview, Mitsotakis reiterated his commitment to meet the fiscal targets set in the budget despite tax relief measures he’s taking and economic support provided amid surging energy prices.

       The Greek government has so far spent some ？2bil (US$2.27bil or RM9.51bil) to help households, businesses and farmers mitigate high energy prices hike.

       The support will continue in March and April, he said. Mitsotakis also said that he intends to abolish a solidarity tax, first imposed during Greece’s bailout programmes and currently suspended for private sector workers, for everyone in 2023.

       It’s crucial to meet Greece’s fiscal targets and to be sure about budget execution, he said, adding, “there are no money trees.”

       Greece’s GDP is projected to increase by 6.7% in 2021 and just under 5% in 2022, before growth moderates in 2023. — Bloomberg