Rapid Debt Reduction
Greece's Economic Miracle: Some Get Rich, Many Stay Poor
Greece is shining again on the markets. But behind debt reduction, stock market boom, and record tourism lie a housing shortage and shrinking purchasing power.
Greece is once again considered Europe's model student. The crisis-ridden state of the euro debt years has become a country that impresses rating agencies, investors, and EU economists. The figures read like a macroeconomic rehabilitation: in 2025, Athens achieved a primary surplus of 4.9 percent of economic output, according to the International Monetary Fund. The European Commission also expects budget surpluses in the coming years, while the debt ratio continues to fall. According to IMF data, it is likely to drop to around 137 percent in 2026 and to 134 percent by 2027. Greece is thus even losing the stigma of being the most indebted euro country to Italy.
Growth also fits the new success story. The European Commission expects 1.8 percent growth in 2026, still above the EU average. This renaissance has long been priced in on the Athens Stock Exchange: the leading index rose by about 180 percent in the five years to the end of June 2026. It has now reached a level not seen since before the debt crisis.
But behind these shiny facades of the international financial markets lies a completely different reality for the Greek population. Because the Greek miracle is primarily a miracle of the state treasury, the banks, and the investors. For many citizens, the upswing does not feel like liberation, but like a continuation of the crisis by other means.
In terms of purchasing power, Greece in 2025 ranks at the bottom of the EU together with Bulgaria. Per capita GDP reaches only 68 percent of the EU average. At the same time, 27 percent of the population is considered at risk of poverty, e.g., because income is insufficient to cover basic expenses or there is very little gainful employment in the household. This is one of the highest values in the Union.
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Employees and the middle class are hit particularly hard. Although the minimum wage was raised to 920 euros gross in April 2026, rising prices are eating up many improvements. The European Commission expects inflation of 3.7 percent in 2026. Many Greeks still earn significantly less than workers in Western and Northern Europe, but have long been paying European prices in supermarkets, for energy, and for housing.
The social imbalance is most visible in the housing market. While the economy grows, housing becomes a luxury for average earners. In Athens, rents rose by more than 50 percent between 2019 and 2024. Reuters reports a deficit of 180,000 apartments in major cities. Construction activity collapsed during the crisis, then investors focused primarily on more lucrative short-term rentals, and ultimately 150,000 apartments were converted into tourist accommodations.
Thus, the tourism boom, which helps one part of the economy and the people, becomes a burden for other parts. Hotels, landlords, platform providers, and restaurateurs benefit from record visitor numbers. But in Athens, Thessaloniki, and on the islands, success is pushing locals out of their neighborhoods. The state celebrates revenue, while families spend ever larger portions of their income on rent, electricity, and food.
The government is trying to counteract this with digital price comparisons and interventions against excessive margins. In June 2026, a new platform for real-time supermarket prices launched. As early as March, Athens announced profit caps for fuel dealers and potential multi-million euro fines for supermarkets whose margins exceed the 2025 level. Even the government sees that the market is no longer perceived as fair.
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The winners of the new Greek normalcy are therefore elsewhere: in tourism, the banking sector, the stock market, and parts of the real estate industry. Greek banks have largely shed their legacy burdens, are growing again, and are attracting investors with dividends. For international investors, Greece is a comeback story. For many citizens, it is a country where the rise passes them by.
Author: Ingo Kolf, wallstreetONLINE editorial team
