Greek Bailout Deal Reached? Rumors Abound (NBG, GREK)

CNBC has just reported using ‘sources’ disclosing data over a Greek bailout.  The cuts are substantial if they are true and we would only call these rumor at this point.  If accurate, state oil and gas player Hellenic Petroleum would be privatized and the targeted cuts would result in a 5% GDP decline in 2012 followed by a return to growth in 2013.  How that happens is another story.  Possible other austerity measures named were large declines to the minimum wage (20% noted), thousands of public sector jobs (as many as 150,000 noted).

ADRs of the National Bank of Greece (NYSE: NBG) are down 1.2% at $3.98 and the Greek ETF called the Global X FTSE Greek 20 ETF (NYSE: GREK) is down 1.5% at $19.10.

These are not confirmed and there may be more or less than these figures have been reported as.  Until you get a confirmation and the papers actually get signed, treat any news of this sort as hearsay.  Sometimes news is noise, sometimes real.