In addition, since 2004 Greece, which is heavily dependent on oil imports, suffered from the rapid rise in energy prices as well as from the appreciation of the Euro, which affected especially Greece’s main manufactured export products – textiles, garments, shoes – which after the lifting of the quotas had to confront strong competition from the emerging markets in Asia and the countries in transition in South-East Europe.
The fact that Greece avoided the problems faced by other countries, such as Portugal, after a period of excessive demand growth is a sign of underlying improvements on the supply side. However, equally important is the restoration of the historical links between Greece and the countries in SouthEast Europe, around the Black Sea as well as with Egypt.