ATHENS, Greece (AP) — European Union officials are pressing Greece for additional austerity measures after an emergency inspection of its ailing finances before a visit by the bloc's economy chief.

A team of officials from the EU, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary fund wrapped up a three-day visit yesterday. Athens faces a March 16 deadline from the EU to show signs of fiscal improvement or take further action to boost revenues and cut spending.

A Finance Ministry official said the inspectors expressed doubts on whether Greece would be able to meet all its deficit-busting targets, and urged further belt-tightening. The centre-left government has not ruled out extra measures, but is balking at broader public sector salary cuts.

The ministry official spoke on condition of anonymity, not being authorised to comment on the Athens meetings.

EU Monetary Affairs Commissioner Olli Rehn said he would have the inspectors' report Friday, and would visit Athens on Monday "to discuss the economic and fiscal situation of Greece and the future finance and stability of the euro zone".

Greece's economic woes have affected the euro exchange rate and raised fears of contagion to other weak EU economies, such as Portugal and Spain. Facing intense pressure from EU partners and market speculation, which has sent Greek borrowing costs rocketing, the four-month-old government has frozen civil service salaries and hirings, cut bonuses, raised retirement ages and hiked consumer taxes.

Government spokesman Giorgos Petalotis said Greece "is satisfied with the implementation so far" of the austerity plan. "But we are still at the beginning," he said. "There are risks on a macroeconomic policy level, risks concerning potential lack of success or difficulty in immediately meeting some targets."

Petalotis said additional measures may be announced "if elements of (the austerity plan) don't work out."

Greece shocked EU partners and markets when it revealed last year that budget overspending would hit 12.7 percent of annual output. That is four times the EU limit and up from initial estimates of under four percent of gross domestic product, which the government admits were based on skewed statistics reporting by its conservative predecessors.