Brussels says Greek loan extension ‘media invention'

The European Commission has said there are no ongoing discussions to permit an extension to paying back Greece's €110 billion loan after the Greek finance minister had earlier mooted the idea.

A spokesman for the EU executive on Tuesday dismissed the reports as media flutter, although one Greek economist suggests that the debate is in reality about Brussels, the IMF and Athens preparing the ground - via a debate in the press - for debt restructuring.

"There is no discussion as suc...