Greece's rescue creditors clear new batch of loans
Greece's international creditors approve payout of new $3.3 billion batch of bailout loans
A protesting high-school teacher chants slogans in central Athens, Monday, July 22, 2013. The government is planning to put 2,000 teachers in a mobility scheme, for involuntary public sector transfers, as part of a new round of austerity cuts that have triggered fresh union protests. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)
BERLIN (AP) -- Greece's international creditors have cleared a 2.5 billion-euro ($3.3 billion) installment of bailout loans following the approval of new austerity measures by authorities in Athens.
European Commission spokesman Simon O'Connor said the decision was made by deputy finance ministers of the 17-country eurozone on Friday, pending some national approval procedures to be concluded Monday.
He added that Greece will also get a 1.5 billion-euro payout stemming from profits on bonds bought by the European Central Bank under a now-defunct bond-buying program.
Greece has approved new debt reduction measures, including thousands of public-sector job cuts, to meet the conditions that are part of its 240 billion-euro rescue package from its EU partners and the International Monetary Fund.
