Washington

GREECE'S public debt and financing needs will prove "explosive" in decades to come unless Europe overhauls its bailout programme to ease the load, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) says in a draft report as the country seeks a fresh loan payout.

In the IMF's baseline scenario, Greece's government debt will reach 275 per cent of its gross domestic product (GDP) by 2060, when its financing needs will represent 62 per cent of GDP, the report obtained by Bloomberg says. The government estimates public debt around 180 per cent of GDP at present.