EU finance ministers approve second tranche of Greek package

Eurozone finance ministers approved the second 9 billion-euro tranche of the 110 billion-euro EU/IMF aid package for Greece on Tuesday (September 7th). The EU will provide 6.5 billion euros of the sum, while the remaining 2.5 billion euros will be extended by the IMF. Greece received the first 20 billion-euro tranche in May. The entire amount, 110 billion euros, is expected to be received by 2012. On Wednesday, the Statistics Office announced that the economy had shrunk 1.8% in the second quarter, as consumers slashed spending.