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Police in Athens have clashed with groups of demonstrators as thousands marched through the city in protest at government austerity measures.

Dozens of hooded youths hurled stones and petrol bombs at police, who responded with rounds of tear gas.

The march, called by Greek unions, is part of a 24-hour strike that has brought most public services to a halt and paralysed transport networks.

Police said there were several arrests and two police officers were hurt.

Correspondents said at least 10,000 people took part in the march, which was largely peaceful.

Thousands also took part in protests in the northern city of Thessaloniki.

The strike was called after the Greek government proposed a new austerity package to try to reduce the budget deficit and ease the country's crippling debt crisis.

Unions say the policies are making Greece's problems worse.

The violent clashes happened near to where Finance Minister George Papaconstantinou was meeting senior EU and International Monetary Fund (IMF) inspectors.
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Most Greeks I spoke to don't want the country to default on its obligations, and the average person there probably has a better idea of what a default would mean for the country in the short-term than some of the outsiders who blithely recommend it”

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Stephanie Flanders Economics editor

* BBC - Stephanomics - Greek lessons

Many Greeks are angry over job losses, tax rises and pension and wage cuts, enforced by the government to meet the terms of an international bail-out.

But there is concern that the bail-out has not worked.

Wednesday's one-day strike was called by the private sector union GSEE and the public sector union ADEDY.

A four-hour strike by air traffic controllers badly disrupted flights in a country heavily dependent on tourism.

The BBC's Nigel Cassidy in Athens noted that a large number of private sector workers had joined the strike.

"We strongly protest against the unfair and harsh policies that have pushed up unemployment, widen false employment and trample on worker rights," said the GSEE.

Unions said hospitals would be operating with skeleton staff only, schools would be closed, and all train and ferry services were being suspended.

Some banks were shut, while others were open but kept their shutters half-rolled down, fearing violence that might erupt during the day.

Last May, three bank workers died in a petrol bomb attack during anti-austerity demonstrations.
Gaping deficit

Despite its spending cuts, the government is failing to close its budget deficit as quickly as hoped - partly because the fiscal restructuring programme has compounded a recession, while unemployment has reached about 15%.

That has sapped market confidence that Greece will be able to avoid defaulting on its debts.

There is speculation that the government may need a further international loan, so that it does not need to raise capital on the markets, where it would face punishingly high interest rates.

The European Union's Economic Affairs Commissioner Olli Rehn said on Tuesday that talk of a new rescue package was "premature".

An EU mission is in Athens this week to review Greece's progress on meeting the terms of the 110bn euros ($158bn; £97bn) joint EU-IMF emergency bail-out agreed last year.

It has another two years to run and the mission's assessment will be key to deciding whether Athens will be offered better terms on the loans.