Athens News Agency: News in English, 01-04-20

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From: The Athens News Agency at <http://www.ana.gr/>

CONTENTS

[01] Modern Boat-Navy-Theodoros Angelopoulos

[02] Gov't - Grant - Goulandris Foundation

[03] New Athens airport - First figures

[04] Kazantzidis - Health

[05] Foreign Exchange Rates-Monday

[06] Weather Forecast-Saturday

[07] ASE-close

[01] Modern Boat-Navy-Theodoros Angelopoulos

The family of Theodoros and Gianna Angelopoulos has donated an ultramodern boat to the navy's Underwater Demolition Unit based at Skaramangas.

A relevant ceremony held on Friday was attended by National Defence Minister Akis Tsohatzopoulos, the couple of donors and their children, National Defence General Staff Chief Manousos Paragioudakis and Navy General Staff Chief Vice Admiral George Theodoroulakis.

[02] Gov't - Grant - Goulandris Foundation

The government on Friday announced that it was granting use of the state-owned neo-classical Stathatos Manor, in downtown Athens, to the Goulandris Foundation for 50 years.

The foundation, established by the Goulandris shipping family, created and manages the highly acclaimed Museum of Cycladic Art in the Greek capital.

The museum long-term survival was the focus on a meeting on Friday between Prime Minister Costas Simitis and the foundations president, noted philanthropist Dolly Goulandri. Culture Minister Evangelos Venizelos also attended the meeting.

Afterwards, it was announced that Goulandri, who also doubles as the museums curator, has donated $2 million and two buildings in central Athens to the foundation she heads.

[03] New Athens airport - First figures

The latest figures on the first three weeks of operation at the new ?Eleftherios Venizelos? airport were released on Friday.

Specifically, 9,450 flights were recorded at the facility, east of Athens proper near the Spata township, between the March 28 opening and April 17. Approximately 800,000 passengers passed through the airport while 640,000 pieces of luggage were handled.

The first few days of operation at the new state-of-the-art airport, built by a consortium headed by Germanys Hochtief, were plagued by problems, delays and inconveniences for travelers.

[04] Kazantzidis - Health

Noted Greek singer Stelios Kazantzidis, immensely popular in the country and with expatriate Greeks, left an Athens hospital for his home on Friday after a week of treatments.

Attending physicians at a private clinic where he was treated expressed guarded optimism over the course of the singers health.

Kazantzidis is considered by many as the most prolific and stirring singer of Greek popular music especially in its more melancholic and working-class strains. Nearing 70, he has worked with practically all of Greeces best-known composers over the past 40 years.

[05] Foreign Exchange Rates-Monday

Monday's buying rates

U.S. dollar 376.062

German mark 172.829

French franc 051.531

Pound sterling 542.138

Irish punt 429.202

Belgian franc 008.379

Luxembourg franc 008.379

Dutch guilder 153.389

Italian lira (100) 017.457

Austrian schilling 024.565

Danish kroner 45.290

Swedish kroner 37.166

Finnish mark 056.852

Spanish peseta 002.032

Portuguese escudo 001.686

Japanese yen (100) 306.788

Swiss franc 220.778

Norwegian kroner 41.613

Cyprus pound 584.376

Canadian dollar 243.340

Australian dollar 193.850

[06] Weather Forecast-Saturday

Scattered cloud is forecast throughout the country on Saturday, turning to showers in mainland Greece, the Ionian and the northern Aegean with storms in the northwest. Winds variable, very strong to gale force. Temperatures in the north will range from 9C to 20C; in the west from 14C to 24C; and in the rest of the country from 12C to 28C. Showers are likely in Athens, with temperatures between 13C and 25C. Rain in Thessaloniki with temperatures from 10C to 19C.

[07] ASE-close

Equity prices remained under mild pressure for the second consecutive session on the Athens Stock Exchange on Friday, ending the week above the technical support level of 3,250 points.

Traders said a wave of buying activity for blue chip and smaller capitalisation stocks helped the market end off its lows, although turnover fell to 150.83 million euros, or 51.4 billion drachmas.

The general index ended ata 3,271.44 points, down 0.44 percent but off the day's lows of 3,240.72 points.

The FTSE/ASE 20 index for blue chip and heavy traded stocks ended 0.59 percent lower at 1,918.66 points, and the FTSE/ASE 40 index fell 0.04 percent to 380.25 points.

The parallel market index for smaller capitalisation stocks ended at 328.01 points, off 0.09 percent.

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