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The Greek government is seeking to conclude talks on a rescue programme by Tuesday, leaving enough time for national parliaments to assess the deal so funds can be disbursed for an August 20 payment to the European Central Bank.
The four institutions representing Greece's creditors - the ECB, the International Monetary Fund, the European Commission and the European Stability Mechanism - made progress over the weekend on the details of a plan that would make as much as Euro 86 billion ($93 billion) available to Greece, according to three people with knowledge of the discussions.
Read more from our special coverage on "GREECE CRISIS"
Officials are optimistic an agreement will be reached, allowing Greece's parliament to pass any new required reforms in the middle of the week and paving the way for a meeting of euro- area finance ministers at the end of the week, said two of the people, who asked not to be identified because the talks are private.
The indebted nation needs a quick release of about Euro 20 billion to create a buffer for its banks and to make loan payments.
"We are trying to make swift progress in order to have a deal preferably before the 20th of August so the disbursement can be made under the new ESM programme," European Commission spokeswoman Mina Andreeva told reporters on August 7 in Brussels.
Stocks Plunge
Greece and its creditors still need to decide exactly how much money will be required for the bailout, which will be the nation's third in five years, as well as what reforms will have to be concluded before any money is released, one of the people said.
The headway comes as some members of the 19-nation common currency express skepticism that a deal can work. Finnish Foreign Minister Timo Soini said over the weekend that his government is ready to discuss a new aid plan for Greece but that "we should admit that this isn't going to work."
Last week, Hans Michelbach, a Bavarian lawmaker who has argued against a deal with Greece, said he didn't believe a rescue program could be reached in time and other financing arrangements would be needed.
The Athens Stock Index, which reopened Aug. 3 after being shuttered for five weeks, fell 15.2 percent for the five days ended Aug. 7 to 676.33, just shy of its lowest closing level in three years. A measure of Greek banks fell 58 percent last week, reaching the lowest closing level since 1995 on Aug. 5.
Even as the European governments are racing to cinch an agreement before Greece needs to pay 3.2 billion euros to the ECB on Aug. 20, the situation isn't as dire as it was earlier this summer; if the leaders fail to disburse the funds in time, Greece could still request a short-term loan from a European fund that has about 5 billion euros available.
