Greece: will get loans in time to avoid default

BERLIN (AP) — Greece will receive its next batch of bailout loans in time to avoid a disastrous default, the finance minister said Tuesday, as stock markets rallied on hopes that the prime minister will discuss new ways of solving the crisis with Germany's leader later in the day.

Reports that European leaders are considering bolder moves to relieve Greece and other countries of their debt burden have buoyed spirits in financial markets, though officials in Chancellor Angela Merkel's government have downplayed such speculation.

The current plan is to have Greece implement painful debt-reduction measures in exchange for rescue loans.

Greece's international creditors are holding up payment of the next batch of those loans until a review of the reforms is completed in the coming days. Without the money, Greece faces bankruptcy in mid-October, potentially sending shock waves through the financial sector in Europe and abroad.