Greece to hike taxes again-FinMin

Greece will raise taxes on real estate to plug a 2011 budget hole, Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos said on Sunday. The move comes just before inspectors from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund arrive in Athens to hear how the government plans to overcome missed fiscal targets before approving an 8 billion euro tranche from the country's 110 billion euro bailout, Greece's only hope to refinance its 350 billion debt. Greek cabinet agreed the measure to raise some 2 billion euros and to meet the 2011 budget deficit target of around 8.1 percent. The tax will amount to some 4 euros per square meter, Venizelos said. The inspectors interrupted a visit on September 2 after a row over the cause of Greece's budget shortfall. Athens said it is due to a bigger than expected recession, while inspectors argued that was only a small part of the reason and asked for urgent measures to cut public spendings and privatise state companies.