Greece's political leaders have agreed to form a national unity government after the nation's embattled Prime Minister George Papendreou agreed to step down half way through his four-year-term under pressure from a European ultimatum. An agreement in principle was reached between Papandreou and Antonis Samaras, the conservative opposition leader, after a meeting with the president on Sunday.
The Euro Zone heads of state and government had agreed at that meeting to expand the group's financial bailout fund from the present level of Euro 440 billion to around Euro 750 billion and to give new powers to the fund to buy sovereign bonds of cash-strapped member nations and to intervene much early to avert a debt crisis.
The market breadth turned negative towards the close, 1,434 stocks declined, while 1,395 stocks advanced on the BSE on Wednesday.
The two leaders hurriedly organised a meeting ahead of the G-20 summit on Tuesday amid concern that the euro zone is heading for a long period of uncertainty and if the Greek voters rejected the rescue package, it will have far-reaching consequences for the stability of the euro and the nations using the single currency.
Euro zone policymakers have openly spoken out in favour of a 'yes' vote