No final decision on Greek bailout Thursday, Juncker says

Feb 9, 2012, 16:44 GMT

Brussels - No 'final decision' on a new bailout for Greece will be taken Thursday, the head of the Eurogroup said before a meeting in Brussels of the panel of eurozone finance ministers.

'I don't think that we will have a final decision today, this is not a disaster, the debate has to be continued,' Jean-Claude Juncker, who is also Luxembourg Prime Minister, told reporters.

The EU and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) are expected to approve a 130-billion-euro (173-billion-dollar) rescue package after Athens convinced banks to take a 100-billion-euro hit on their Greek debt holdings and agreed to implement new austerity measures.

'There is clearly some very encouraging news coming out of Athens,' IMF chief Christine Lagarde said before entering the Brussels talks. 'It is a positive start to the evening, there are still things to do,' she added.