Greece a 'step away' from debt deal

Greece says it is ‘‘a step away’’ from a major debt writedown as it resumes talks with private creditors to escape a looming default and stem further turmoil in the eurozone.
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‘‘We are a step away from concluding procedures on the PSI,’’ said Venizelos, just before the start of talks, adding that the negotiations ‘‘were difficult and delicate’’.

The third round of talks between Athens and private creditors, which began on Thursday, aims to reach agreement on a voluntary exchange of bonds that would wipe 100 billion euros ($124 billion) off the country’s debt of 350 billion euros.

The Private Sector Involvement (PSI) deal under discussion would see the creditors agree to a discount or ‘‘haircut’’ of at least 50 per cent on the 200 billion euros in debt they hold.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/business/world-business/greece-a-step-away-from-debt-deal-20120128-1qmq1.html

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Looks like they are finally nearing an agreement. Even so this will not end the crisis as Greece's economy is in tatters and there is no end in sight. Futhermore there are even more demands for additional austerity measures which will only add to Greece's problems. The only way for Greece to get out of this mess is for them to do this deal and then begin to rebuild their economy as fast as possible. More austerity will not do that.