Greece plays down fears of debt default

Greece and its Europeans creditors yesterday sought to play down fears that Athens would default on a payment to the IMF next week.

Running short of cash to pay salaries, pensions and debt obligations, senior members of Alexis Tsipras’s government have said openly that Greece does not have the money to pay €300m to the IMF on June 5. The threats have spooked financial markets, which fear a default could force Greece out of the single currency, pushing the European and global economies into uncharted territory.

Still, the government on Monday reiterated that it would try to make the payment and finance minister Yanis Varoufakis expressed confidence a deal with lenders would be struck in time to avoid default.