EU, IMF to judge Greece as protests swell

European Union and IMF officials are expected to deliver their verdict this week on Greece's faltering drive to bring its budget deficit under control, but ordinary Greeks have warned that their patience is running thin. Greece last year won a 110 billion euro ($157.5 billion) rescue package from the EU and International Monetary Fund, but since then has struggled to meet its deficit reduction targets, heightening the risk of a default on its 327 billion euro debt -- equivalent to 150 percent of economic output.

Tens of thousands of protesters packed a central Athens square on Sunday to denounce the nation's entire ruling class and vent their anger at the IMF and its demands for yet more belt-tightening.