when the global financial crisis struck it laid bare many of greece s structural problems greece s gross domestic product gdp shrank by 4 7 in the first quarter of 2009 and the deficit ballooned to more than 12 of gdp 2 the country subsequently suffered a string of credit rating downgrades culminating in standard poor s demoting greece s debt to junk status which caused the country s bond yields to soar reflecting the severe financial instability 3 
austerity and bailoutsin exchange for receiving multiple bailouts to avoid bankruptcy greece had to agree to austerity measures the first round of austerity in 2010 cut public sector wages raised the minimum retirement age and increased fuel prices subsequent measures over the following three years reduced public sector pay further cut greece s minimum wage reduced pension payouts gutted defense spending and raised taxes as a result unemployment rose to nearly 28 in the fall of 2013 far higher than the 11 average for the euro zone as a whole 4 one criticism of the bailouts has been that little of the money has gone to help greek citizens directly rather it has mostly passed through greece and helped to repay greece s debt holders most of which are banks in other european countries germany for example has been the largest contributor to greece s bailout packages and its banks also are the largest investors in greek bonds 5 greek recoverythe economic and financial uncertainty in greece has improved markedly since the worst days of the crisis in august 2018 government officials announced the country had successfully exited the last of its bailout programs 1 ending the bailout programs allowed greece to begin selling 10 year bonds in 2019 for the first time in nine years this event marks a milestone in greece s recovery as it allows the country to raise money and continue its long journey to regain economic sovereignty 6the economy appeared to be entering a period of modest recovery from its significant economic troubles of 2010 2016 however like so many other countries greece experienced a deep recession in 2020 as a result of the global covid 19 pandemic unfortunately this led to an increase in the country s already exorbitantly high public debt experts estimate that a full recovery will only be feasible beyond 2021 7