Merkel suggests Greek bailout deal may change

German Chancellor Angela Merkel suggested on Tuesday that Greece's international lenders could reopen parts of a July bailout deal for the debt-laden country, according to Reuters. But any changes on the 109 billion euro ($148,6 bln) rescue would depend on the outcome of an ongoing audit of Greece's finances by EU, IMF and ECB inspectors, also known as the "troika", Merkel said in an interview on Greek state television NET. She did not elaborate. Asked to comment if the deal will be implemented as agreed by EU leaders on July 21 or whether there would have to be a renegotiation, Merkel said: "We have to wait and see what the troika ... finds and what it will tell us (whether) we will have to renegotiate or not". The German government has repeatedly said negotiations about the details of a second aid program for Greece can only begin when the troika says Greece has qualified to receive a fresh, sixth tranche under the country's ongoing, first bailout agreed back in 2010. Talks between Greece and the troika on the sixth tranche are set to resume on Wednesday or Thursday. The second bailout deal, agreed in principle by EU leaders in July, aims to ease Greece's debt burden by imposing a 21 percent loss on private Greek bondholders. But many economists believe that a 50 percent loss is necessary to make the country's debt viable. On Saturday, German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said changes were possible to the participation of private banks in the second bailout but declined to comment further.