From 1941 to 1944, Greece endured the devastating effects of
World War II, including
military invasion,
occupation, and fierce fighting with
Greek Resistance groups, which all caused unprecedented damage to the country's already-underdeveloped
infrastructure and economy. Forced loans demanded by the occupying regime severely devalued the
Greek drachma, while the end of the war gave way to
a bitter civil war that lasted until 1949. By 1950, the relative position of the Greek economy had dramatically deteriorated: the
income per capita in
purchasing power terms fell from 62% of
France's in 1938 to about 40% in 1949, less than a decade later.[2]
Economic growth
Greece's recovery began almost immediately after the end of the
Greek Civil War and is attributed to several factors, including economic and foreign policy[8] and social and cultural changes.[9] As in other European countries, a chief catalyst were the grants and loans of the
Marshall Plan.[10][11] Other factors include a drastic
devaluation of the drachma, attraction of foreign investments,[12] significant development of the chemical industry, development of the services industry (especially tourism), and massive construction activity related to large infrastructure projects and the rebuilding of Greek cities.[13][14][15] Greek political leaders such as prime minister
Konstantinos Karamanlis and parliamentarians
Georgios Kartalis and
Spyros Markezinis are also credited with having stewarded increased investment.[16]
Greek growth rates were highest during the 1950s, often exceeding 10%, close to those of a modern
tiger economy.[17][18] Industrial production also grew annually by 10% for several years, mostly in the 1960s.
Growth however greatly widened the
economic gap between rich and poor, intensifying political divisions.[14][failed verification]. Karamanlis resigned in 1963, George Papandreou's center-left party won the elections in 1964 by a landslide and initiated a program of social reforms. In the summer of 1965 king Constantine forced Papandreou to resign and the country entered a long period of political turmoil which finally lead to a US backed military dictatorship in 1967. In 1974 the junta collapsed following Turkey's invasion in Cyprus.
In total, the Greek
GDP grew for 54 of the 60 years following World War II and the Greek Civil War.[19]
Aftermath
Marginal GDP contractions were recorded in the 1980s, although these were partly counterbalanced by the evolution of the Greek economy during that time. Between the early 1970s and 1990s, double-digit inflation, often closer to 20% than 10%, was normal until
monetary policies were changed to comply with the criteria for joining the
Eurozone.[20]
^Graham T. Allison; Kalypso Nicolaïdis (January 1997).
The Greek Paradox: Promise Vs. Performance. MIT Press. p. 43.
ISBN978-0-262-51092-9. phase of 1960 to 1973 (the period hailed by many as the "Greek economic miracle"), gross domestic product grew at an average annual rate of 7.7 percent[when?], but exports of goods and services grew at the much higher average rate of 12.6
^Greek-American Review. Vol. 51–52. Hellenic Heritage. 1999. p. 20. He writes on the origins of the "Greek Economic Miracle" and provides the longest and one of the most important papers.
^Stathis Kalyvas (3 April 2015).
Modern Greece: What Everyone Needs to KnowRG. Oxford University Press. p. 88.
ISBN978-0-19-997346-0. The efficiency with which the Greek nuclear family could pursue gain," concludes McNeill, "by combination of hard work, shrewd exploitation of market opportunities, and rigorous saving for the future, lay behind the Greek economic miracle.
^David H. Close (25 September 2014).
Greece Since 1945: Politics, Economy and Society. Routledge. p. 56.
ISBN978-1-317-88001-1. 'Origins of the "Greek economic miracle": the Truman Doctrine and Marshall Plan development and stabilisation programs', in
Eugene Rossides (ed.), The Truman Doctrine for Aid to Greece. A Fiftieth Anniversary ...
^Constantine Arvanitopoulos; Konstantina E. Botsiou (19 May 2010).
The Constantinos Karamanlis Institute for Democracy Yearbook 2010. Springer Science & Business Media. p. 110.
ISBN978-3-642-12374-0. The flats-for-land exchange programme changed the architecture in urban centres, and towards the end of the so-called Greek economic 'miracle' in the mid '70s, agriculture accounted for 18% of GDP, while industry accounted for about 30%.
^
abJoanna Bens, Nikolaos Karagiannis, Abdelaziz Testas. EU Regional and Industrial Policies. In "Europe in Crisis: Problems, Challenges, and Alternative Perspectives", Palgrave Macmillan (2015) p. 174
^Elaine Thomopoulos, "The History of Greece", ABC-CLIO (2011) p. 152
^Dimitris Keridis (1 July 2009).
Historical Dictionary of Modern Greece. Scarecrow Press. p. 57.
ISBN978-0-8108-6312-5. What followed, however, has been described as the Greek "economic miracle." Through the stewardship of Prime Minister Konstantinos Karamanlis and of other Greek politicians, such as Georgios Kartalis and Spyros Markezinis, foreign aid ...
^Richard C. Frucht (2004).
Eastern Europe: an introduction to the people, lands, and culture. Vol. 2. ABC-CLIO. p. 877.
ISBN978-1-57607-800-6. ... called Greek economic miracle. During these years, Greece's GDP grew at the fastest rate in Western Europe, averaging almost 8 percent annually. Meanwhile, industrial production grew at an average annual rate of 10 percent,ex- ceeded ...