GOOD NEWS

Greece Close to Debt Deal

Bondholders willing to accept lower interest rate.

Better late than never. Greece may finally be nearing an agreement with its private-sector creditors over how great a loss they would be willing to incur on their bond holdings. Anonymous officials involved in the talks said Saturday that bondholders have changed their tune about the interest rate that new Greek bonds would carry. They had previously desired an interest rate above 4 percent, but may now accept in interest rate as low as 3.6 percent. Greece is expected to require $39 billion over the next few months from the European Commission, the International Monetary Fund, and the European Central Bank, and a private-sector debt deal is seen as necessary in order for the organizations to justify the next bailout.