希腊工人举行新一轮反紧缩措施示威

New waves of Greek workers walked off their jobs Thursday in a heightened protest of the government's effort to impose austerity measures to satisfy international creditors. 

Public transportation ground to a halt in Athens, while power company workers sought to block their employer from collecting a new property tax and lawyers refused to appear in court. The electric workers said the power company should not be used as a tax collector, with customers threatened with a power cutoff if they don't pay the tax.
 
The protests in Greece came as European officials voiced new worries about the effects of the continent's governmental debt crisis. It has roiled international stock markets for weeks, with share values falling again Thursday on London, Paris and Frankfurt exchanges.
 
The French finance ministry said banks heavily exposed to Greek debt might have to take losses of more than the 21 percent that was proposed in a July agreement calling for a second bailout for the Athens government. Some officials are suggesting that the banks' losses on Greek securities could reach 50 percent.