Athens News Agency: News in English, 03-06-03

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

CONTENTS

[01] Cultural Olympiad exhibition on Mediterranean cultures at Cycladic

[02] Thessaloniki presents bid to host EXPO 2008

[03] Weather Forecast: Mostly sunny on Wednesday

[04] 3rd World Press Operations Briefing focuses on 2004 preparations

[05] Gov't: EL.PE-Petrola merger in state's 'best interests'

[06] Foreign Exchange Rates - Wednesday

[07] Greek stocks end higher on Tuesday

[01] Cultural Olympiad exhibition on Mediterranean cultures at Cycladic Museum

An archaeological exhibition tracking the cultures of the Mediterranean from the 16th to the 6th century B.C. opened at the Museum of Cycladic Art in Athens on Tuesday evening.

Entitled ''Sea Routes: from Sidon to Huelva'', the exhibition is sponsored by the Cultural Olympiad and features over 1200 artifacts in a variety of materials dating from the later Bronze to the early Iron ages, contributed by 91 museums in 10 Mediterranean countries.

These included Cyprus, Lebanon, Syria, Italy, Sicily, Sardinia, the Vatican City, Malta, Spain, Turkey and Greece.

According to Cycladic Museum curator Nikos Stambolidis, visiting the exhibition is like taking a journey throughout the Mediterranean, from the coast of Syria and Palestine to the Atlantic and getting a ''condensed glimpse'' of the past.

Visitors will be able to see items in gold, silver, clay, glass, ivory - even some more exotic materials, such as hippo teeth, ostrich eggs or sea-shells from the Red Sea.

It will be open to the public daily except on Tuesday and Sunday.

[02] Thessaloniki presents bid to host EXPO 2008

PARIS (ANA) - A Greek delegation headed by Macedonia-Thrace Minister George Paschalidis presented at the General Assembly of the International Bureau of Exhibitions (BIE) here on Tuesday the bid by Thessaloniki to host EXPO 2008.

The candidacies of Zaragoza and Trieste were also presented at the event.

The minister said that ''Thessaloniki, with a strong Balkan, European and Mediterranean dimension, is seeking through EXPO 2008 to fully express the region of south-east Europe and the Mediterranean.''

[03] Weather Forecast: Mostly sunny on Wednesday

Most parts of the country will be sunny, with scattered showers and storms mainly from late afternoon on the mainland. Winds variable, light to moderate. On the mainland, temperatures will range from 14C to 32C; and in the islands from 15C to 29C. Temperatures in Athens between 17C and 32C; and in Thessaloniki from 16C to 29C.

[04] 3rd World Press Operations Briefing focuses on 2004 preparations

Almost 200 media representatives from the world's top news organizations are in Athens this week for the 3rd World Press Operations Briefing, which began on Monday at a coastal resort.

In opening the conferences session, Athens 2004 Olympic Games Organising Committee (ATHOC) President Gianna Angelopoulos-Daskalaki said both ATHOC and the Greek government are optimistic about the Games prospects, before stressing that all deadlines must absolutely be met.

?Were confident, but not over-confident. Theres a great deal of hard work before us...? she said.

International Olympic Committee (IOC) Vice-President Denis Oswald, who also chairs the IOCs Coordination Commission for the 2004 Games, told media representatives that the Athens Games will be ?different? than past Games.

Oswald praised the facilities as ?excellent?, noting that the Athens Games will mark the first time media representatives and staff will be hosted in ?press villages?, while he said the main press centre is the finest of any constructed at Olympic Games so far.

[05] Gov't: EL.PE-Petrola merger in state's 'best interests'

The government again stated on Tuesday that last weeks sudden announcement of a merger between state-run Hellenic Petroleum (EL.PE) and Petrola refineries, controlled by the Latsis group, was ?absolutely? in the states best interests.

Speaking at his daily press briefing, government spokesman Christos Protopapas said the government believes the deal, between the two listed companies, will boost competitiveness in the economy and rake in millions of euros for public coffers.

[06] Foreign Exchange Rates - Wednesday

Reference buying rates per euro released by the European Central Bank

U.S. dollar 1.181

Pound sterling 0.723

Danish kroner 7.484

Swedish kroner 9.198

Japanese yen 140.5

Swiss franc 1.548

Norwegian kroner 8.028

Cyprus pound 0.591

Canadian dollar 1.616

Australian dollar 1.794

[07] Greek stocks end higher on Tuesday

Greek stocks ended higher on Tuesday helped by a wave of renewed buying activity in the last hour of trading in the Athens Stock Exchange.

The general index rose 0.63 percent to end at 1,779.98 points, with turnover an improved 126 million euros.

The Cement index ended unchanged from Monday's closing, while the Food-Beverage, Textile, Retail, Wholesale, Insurance and IT sectors scored the biggest percentage gains of the day (2.06 percent, 1.79 percent, 1.72 percent, 1.70 percent, 1.55 percent and 1.43 percent, respectively).

The FTSE/ASE 20 index for blue chip and heavy traded stocks rose 0.40 percent, the FTSE/ASE MID 40 index ended 1.56 percent higher, the FTSE/ASE SmallCap 80 index rose 1.21 percent and the FTSE/ASE 140 index rose 0.68 percent.

Broadly, advancers led decliners by 204 to 93 with another 67 issues unchanged.

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