Greece stated on Monday that it expects to see growth in its economy in 2014, a change that could signal the end of the country’s six-year long recession.
According to The New York Times, Christos Staikouras, deputy finance minister, said, “This year, the sacrifices have begun to bear fruit, giving the first signs of an exit from the crisis.”
Others, like Haralambos Gotsis, economics professor at the University of Piraeus, are not optimistic about the report that Greece’s economic crisis may come to an end. Gotsis said any economic growth would be “very difficult” because there have been no increase in investments in the country.
Greece has previously been bailed out twice, but still has a whole slew of problems—among these, a high rate of unemployment, and a great deal of budget cuts and tax hikes (which are often met with public opposition), Reuters writes.
While the budget is expected to grow by 0.6 percent in 2014, Greece will likely still need to receive aid in order to bring down their level of debt.