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Emir of Qatar Struggling for Survival Visited Vienna
The 38 year old Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, who 5 years ago ascended the throne as successor of his father Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani and is now fighting under pressure of his neighbours, especially Saudi Arabia, for the survival of his monarchy, came to an official visit to Austria to talk about business.
March 7, 2019
Austria's Dependence on Russian Gas Increased by 33 Percent
The effects of the amendment to the contract on gas supplies from Russia to Austria signed last year become visible. A meeting in Moscow between Rainer Seele, Chairman of the Executive Board of OMV, and Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee, revealed that gas deliveries between January 1 and March 5, 2019 increased by 32.9 per cent compared to the same period last year.
March 6, 2019
Vienna in Airport Ranking only in Midfield
According to a comparative study entitled "Airport Worldwide Rankings 2018" with 141 airports surveyed worldwide, Vienna International Airport occupies only 49th place.
March 5, 2019
Barnier Meets the Austrian Government - What's the Point of a Brexit Postponement?
The Brussels chief negotiator for the Brexit, Michel Barnier, visited Vienna for talks with Foreign Minister Kneissl, Chancellor Kurz and Chancellery Minister Blümel. The agenda of the meeting included an exchange on the current state of the Brexit negotiations and the future relationship between the European Union and the United Kingdom.
March 1, 2019
InvestInAustria - Business Location Initiative Creates Jobs and Prosperity
At "InvestInAustria" 100 international companies from 16 countries were represented. Three new investments (Heitec , Port Energy Logistic, Lasertec ) with a total investment volume of 30 million Euro could be secured and will create jobs and added value in Austria. As an output of the previous event, investments amounting to around 380 million euros were made in Austria and more than 450 jobs were created.
March 1, 2019
Benko-Hyatt Project - New Luxury Lifestyle Hotel Opens in Vienna in April 2019
The first Andaz Hotel in Austria, the boutique hotel "Andaz Vienna Am Belvedere" at the new Vienna Central Station, opposite the 21er Haus and the Schweizergarten, next to the park apartments at the Belvedere, is to be opened on 17 April 2019. It is the second project and a 50:50 joint venture between René Benko's Signa Group and Andaz Hotels, an affiliate of Hyatt Hotels Corporation.
March 1, 2019 · Sponsored Content
Austria is Booming with Chinese Tourists - Number of Overnight Stays Six Times Higher
In tourism, China is currently one of the most dynamically growing foreign markets of origin. In the 2018 calendar year, the number of overnight stays by Chinese guests in Austria increased almost sixfold (+491%) compared to 2008, reaching around 1.4 million overnight stays.
February 28, 2019
Burger King Austria Acquires Rosenberger Motorway Restaurants
The Austrian franchisee TQSR of the US fast food chain Burger King has purchased 100% of the shares in Rosenberger Restaurant GmbH, which is currently undergoing restructuring, and is financing the 20% quota offered to creditors in the restructuring plan. The transaction value for the 14 Rosenberger Restaurant locations, including the net financial liabilities assumed, amounts to approximately EUR 9 million.
February 27, 2019
Huawei Austria Sponsors Austrian Chinese Business Association
The Chinese technology group Huawei and the ACBA Austrian Chinese Business Association have sealed their cooperation at an evening event entitled "Huawei - Inside & Outside" at the Grand Hotel Vienna. Huawei is disputed internationally because of its 5G wireless network technology and its close connection to the Chinese government. Huawei maintains good business relations with the largest carriers in Austria, A1 Telekom Austria (America Movil), Hutchison Whampoa (Drei Austria) and T-Mobile Austria and supplies them with expensive 5G network equipment. In addition, Huawei will open its first flagship store outside China in downtown Vienna in the summer of 2019.
February 27, 2019
Chancellor Kurz in Washington, D.C. - Trump Demands Higher Military Expenditures
US President Donald Trump and Chancellor Sebastian Kurz met in the White House for a working meeting. The trade relations, the demand for higher military expenditures for Austria, the Nord Stream 2 pipeline project and the Serbia-Kosovo conflict were addressed.
February 21, 2019
Meeting with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo - Focus on Middle East Conflict
The meeting between US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Austrian Federal Chancellor Sebastian Kurz focused on the Middle East conflict. According to Kurz, the USA is currently working on "a solution to the situation in the Middle East". The US will therefore "probably present a proposal" before the end of this year.
February 21, 2019
Austria's Population Growth - Lowest Rise in Years
At the beginning of 2019, 8,859,992 people were living in Austria, +0.43% more than one year earlier. Thus, in 2018 Austria recorded the lowest population increase in the last seven years.
February 21, 2019
Foreign Citizens Make up More Than 30% of the Viennese Population
At the beginning of 2019, 30.2% of people living in Vienna had foreign citizenship. Nationwide this figure is 1,439,401 or 16.2% of the total population.
February 19, 2019
USA Visit by Federal Chancellor Kurz - Focus on Economic Relations
Chancellor Sebastian Kurz travels to the USA on an official working visit. During the trip, Kurz will meet US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, National Security Advisor John Bolton, Ivanka Trump, and Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner. The one-on-one meeting with Donald Trump in Washington will last only about 15 minutes.
February 19, 2019
What Does No-Deal Brexit Really Mean for British-Austrian Travel Behaviour?
As of March 29, 2019 at 11.00 p.m. (UTC Universal Time Coordinated) or March 30, 2019 at 00:00 (CET Central European Time) the United Kingdom is no longer an EU member and is to be treated as such by Austria. In order to close the legal gaps in the course of a disorderly Brexit, a comprehensive law is in preparation. This law will be subject to numerous amendments in several Austrian ministries. The main areas affected are civil rights (in particular right of residence, social security), transport and customs. In following we look at the effects of the No-Deal-Brexit on travel behaviour.
February 13, 2019
Austrian State Visit to the Mutually Hostile Countries Japan and South Korea
The two East Asian states, South Korea and Japan, which have been enemies for more than 100 years, are visited by Chancellor Kurz as part of the trip to East Asia. The trip is focusing on the economy, digitisation, education and transport. Meetings with South Korean President Moon Jae-in and Prime Minister Lee Nak-yeon are held in Seoul and with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Tokyo.
February 11, 2019
Kazakh-Austrian Economic Relations - Digitization, Housing and the New Silk Road
After the oil price collapse and the significant currency devaluation thereafter, the economic downturn has bottomed out and the Kazakh economy is experiencing a moderate upswing. For 2018, the Kazakh government again expects growth of +4%. The country's priority economic tasks include digitization, housing construction and the New Silk Road Project.
February 11, 2019
Astana and Vienna Celebrate 27 Years of Diplomatic Relationships
Kazakhstan marks the 27th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Republic of Austria, the Federal Republic of Germany and the Kingdom of Spain. According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Austria generated a trade surplus of 156.3 million US dollars last year.
February 11, 2019
OMV Doubles Net Profit and Achieves 2018 Most Profitable Result in Company History
Austria's largest and listed industrial company, the oil and gas group OMV, achieved its most profitable result in the company's history in 2018 with a net profit of almost two billion euros.
February 7, 2019
Israel and Austria Sign Agreement on Continued Business Cooperation
On the sidelines of the state visit to Israel and the Austrian-Israeli Business Forum at the Hotel Intercontinental in Tel Aviv, the Economy ministers from Israel and Austria signed an agreement to accelerate business and entrepreneurial cooperation.
February 6, 2019
Founder of Global Peter Drucker Forum Honored as Excellent Management-Ambassador
Dr. Richard Straub, who resides in Paris for more than two decades, received the Grand Decoration of Honour for Services to the Republic of Austria (Große Ehrenzeichen für Verdienste um die Republik Österreich) at the Austrian Embassy in Paris.
February 5, 2019
Visit to the Palestinian Territories: Austria's Van der Bellen for a Two-State Solution
Federal President Alexander Van der Bellen met Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah: "We are friends of Israel AND of the Palestinians. We want to deepen relations with both sides". Mahmoud Abbas thanked Austria for the "historical relationships" cultivated since Bruno Kreisky.
February 5, 2019
What Does the EU-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement Mean for Austria?
The Federal Ministry for Digital and Economic Affairs has calculated that the savings potential through the elimination of customs duties amounts to around one billion euros across the EU and to around EUR 34 million for Austria. For Austria this means a rather modest growth effect of 0.011 percent of GDP.
February 4, 2019
EU-Japan Agreement Secures EUR 34 Million in Jobs and Prosperity in Austria
The EU's Economic Partnership Agreement with Japan entered into force on 1 February 2019. For Austria, Japan is by far the second most important market in Asia and the third most important overseas trading partner. About 1000 Austrian exporters are active in Japan, 80 companies have local branches. In 2017 the trade volume reached an all-time high of 3.5 billion euros.
February 4, 2019
Business Mission and "Future Trip" to Tel Aviv as Part of the State Visit of Van der Bellen
On the occasion of the official state visit of Federal President Alexander Van der Bellen, the Austrian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (WKO) is organising an economic mission entitled "Infrastructure" as well as the "Open Innovation for Corporates" future trip to Tel Aviv.
February 4, 2019
Austrian-Israeli Economic Relations - 20% Increase in Exports
On the occasion of the official state visit of Federal President Alexander Van der Bellen and the accompanying business delegation of the Austrian Chamber of Commerce, the issue of the actual state of economic relations has arisen. The Austrian-Israeli foreign trade volume amounted to 568 million euros in 2017, with a trade balance surplus for Austria of 229 million euros. The Chamber of Commerce reports that Austrian exports to Israel increased by 20.3% in 2017. The trend seems to have continued in 2018. More than 600,000 overnight stays by Israeli tourists make Israel one of the top nations in Austrian tourism statistics.
February 4, 2019
Economic Relations Between France and Austria on the Rise
France is Austria's fourth most important export market worldwide. At more than EUR 3 bn, the trade surplus with France is the second highest in the world after the USA. Last year, France grew particularly strongly as a destination for Austrian products with an increase of 32% or EUR 7 bn in Austrian exports.
January 30, 2019
Vienna is Europe's Greenest Capital City
A new study has ranked 25 of Europe’s capitals on 10 green factors to reveal the continent’s most eco-friendly capital cities. Vienna - how else could it be expected - has once again emerged as the number one.
January 30, 2019
Irish Ryanair Acquires Austrian Laudamotion Completely
The Austrian Niki-Airline successor Laudamotion has now been taken over 100% by Ryanair. Ryanair last held three quarters of the shares of Laudamotion. No information was given about the price for the remaining 25 percent.
January 29, 2019
Hallstatt App 2.0 - Protective Measures against Chinese Tourists
The Upper Austrian community defends itself against too many tourists, especially from China and South Korea. Since the Chinese built an exact copy of the city in Guangdong Province, and the South Koreans partly shot a soap opera in Hallstatt, the popularity of the Dachstein community has increased enormously. As a result, more and more tourists come to Hallstatt as part of a bus tour classic with 4 destinations including Hallstatt. In the previous year there were exactly 19,344 coaches. For the first time in the history of Austria, a town is now defending its friendly visitors by implementing the new "Traffic Concept Hallstatt 2018" and by strictly controlling the entrance to the town centre.
January 29, 2019
OMV Acquires 2.2 Billion Euro Share in United Arab Emirates Refinery
Austrian OMV and the state-owned oil company of the United Arab Emirates, Adnoc, announced that OMV has acquired a 15 percent stake in Abu Dhabi Oil Refining Company. Thereby OMV establishes a major downstream Oil position. In addition, OMV will acquire a 15 percent stake in a trade joint venture with export volumes equivalent to around 70% of production.
January 28, 2019
Vienna Airport Surpasses 27 Million Passengers for the First Time
Vienna International Airport was able to handle 27 million passengers for the first time last year, a year-on-year increase of 10.8%. The top destinations were London, Moscow and Bangkok. 74 airlines serve 205 destinations in 71 countries. In the ranking of airlines as measured by their share of overall passenger volume, Austrian Airlines was followed by Eurowings (incl. Germanwings), the easyJet Group, Lufthansa and Laudamotion. The increase in the number of passengers in 2019 is estimated at 10%.
January 28, 2019
Austrian Tourism: 45 Mio. Arrivals and 150 Mio. Overnight Stays in 2018 - Germans Return
With 149.75 million overnight stays in Austrian accommodation establishments, a new record was reached in 2018. Compared to the previous year, overnight stays increased by 5.25 million (+3.6%). At +5.0% (56.26 million), the number of overnight stays by Germans rose disproportionately strongly.
January 24, 2019
Economic Relations Brazil - Austria
Brazil experienced the worst recession in its history with GDP declining by 3.8 % (2015) and 3.5 % (2016) respectively. By 2017, the recession had bottomed out and GDP had risen slightly by 1 %. After sharp declines in the recession years, Austrian export figures to Brazil have now been recovering for two years. In 2017 Austria was able to increase its exports by 26.4 % year-on-year to EUR 725 million, and in the first three quarters of 2018 there was a further increase of 19.3 %.
January 23, 2019
Population Development - City of Vienna at 1.9 Million Inhabitants
Last year Vienna grew by 11,000 inhabitants. The birth surplus was 4,000, the migration gain 7,000. Immigration from Great Britain was disproportionately high due to Brexit fears. Serbia is the strongest group of immigrants. The influx of refugees has fallen back to the level before the wave of refugees. In 2027 about 2 million people will live in Vienna.
January 22, 2019
Vienna Stock Exchange - New Start for the Third Market with 8 SME Quotations
As already announced by Vindobona.org in conjunction with the corresponding amendment to the Austrian Stock Corporation Act (Aktiengesetz), the VSE Vienna Stock Exchange is now offering two additional and easier options (direct market, direct market plus) for an initial public offering for SMEs as part of the new Third Market.
January 20, 2019
Inflation in Austria falls to 2.0% in 2018
According to calculations by Statistik Austria, the average inflation rate of the consumer price index (CPI 2015) was 2.0% in 2018, slightly below the level of 2017 (+2.1%) and well above the levels of 2016 and 2015 (+0.9% each).
January 18, 2019
Hollywood in Austria's Mountains - Avalanche Drama Film Follows Current Avalanche Danger
In Tyrol, a Hollywood drama about a married couple whose perfectly believed family life gets completely out of balance when they barely escape an avalanche is currently in the making. Austrian film funding supports the production of "Downhill" with Will Farell and Julia Louis-Dreyfus. With a shooting time of 8 weeks, an added value of 7 million Euros and 10,000 overnight stays is expected.
January 18, 2019
Austria Signed Memorandum with Economic Chambers of Western Balkan States
The representatives of the Economic Chamber and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Harald Mahrer and Karin Kneissl, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Economic Chambers of the Western Balkan states Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Kosovo, Macedonia and Montenegro. The aim is to strengthen regional cooperation at the economic level, particularly in the area of dual vocational training.
January 18, 2019
New Austrian Foreign Trade Strategy: Growth, Jobs, Prosperity
In a joint event in the Aula of Sciences, the Federal Government's new foreign trade strategy was presented by Economics Minister Margarete Schramböck, Foreign Minister Karin Kneissl and President of the Chamber of Commerce Harald Mahrer. The key points of the strategy are the following: Perspective, value orientation, location effect, focal points, future orientation, communication, efficient coordination.
December 20, 2018
Reform of the Red-White-Red Card - Important Step Against Lack of Skilled Personnel
The Austrian National Council passes a resolution on the reform of the Red-White-Red-Card including the regionalisation of the list of lacking occupations with the aim to strengthen Austria as a business location.
December 19, 2018
EU-Africa Forum - Heads of State Share Vision on Cooperation Between Africa and Europe
The High-Level Forum Africa-Europe met at the ACV-Austria Center Vienna to focus on "Taking cooperation to the digital age". The debates focused on the cooperation between the European Union and African countries in the areas of innovation and digitisation, in particular the question of how the benefits of digital change can benefit everyone.
December 19, 2018
High-Level Forum Africa-Europe - EIB Signs 3 Africa Projects Totalling Half a Billion Euros
At the Africa‑Europe High‑Level Forum in Vienna the European Investment Bank formally agreed a total of EUR 495 million of new financing for three projects in ten countries to support sustainable transport, clean energy and internet access projects in North, West and East Africa.
December 19, 2018
Expansion and Modernization of Hilton Vienna am Stadtpark
The Hilton Vienna Parkview, the third-largest Hilton Hotel in Europe with a total usable space of around 50,000 square metres on a total of fifteen floors, is being developed and comprehensively modernised by the Vienna Invester Group as a developer and Hilton International while it continues to operate. The modernisation work will start at the beginning of 2019 and completion is scheduled for the end of 2020. With the completion of the expansion, the current capacity of 579 rooms is to be expanded to 660 rooms. So far, no information has been provided on the investment sum.
December 14, 2018
Afghanistan - Reopening of Austrian Embassy in Kabul in Discussion
At about the same time as the drama about the 16-year-old girl killed by a 17-year-old Afghan in her childrens' room in Steyr took its course in Austria, H.E. Idrees Zaman Deputy Foreign Minister of Afghanistan and Austria's Foreign Minister Karin Kneissl met to discuss the reopening of the Austrian Embassy in Kabul, visa issues and other issues of mutual interest.
December 14, 2018
Austria's Foreign Trade on the Upswing
According to preliminary statistics, the total nominal value of imports of goods in the period January to September 2018 was 5.2% higher than in the previous year at 115.23 billion euros, while exports of goods rose by 6.0% to 111.55 billion euros. The trade balance deficit amounted to 3.68 billion euros after 4.27 billion euros in the same period of the previous year.
December 14, 2018
Austria to Open Embassy in Oman in 2019
Next year, the Austrian Foreign Ministry plans to reopen the Embassy in Muscat, the capital and largest city of Oman, which was closed for budget reasons in 2012.
December 13, 2018
Financial Times Ranking - Business School "WU Vienna" Remains Midfield Only
In the latest overall ranking of all European business schools published by renowned newspaper "Financial Times", WU (Vienna University of Economics and Business) ranked only 41st out of a total of 95 European business schools in the overall ranking. Although the university improved by three places compared to the previous year, it fell short of expectations. Much better results were achieved in the two partial competitions "Masters in Management 2018" (12th place out of 84 programmes) and "Executive MBA 2018" (22nd place out of 51 programmes).
December 7, 2018
What Does Austria Have to Do with the Silk Road Project?
The Chinese "One Belt One Road Initiative", also known as the New Silk Road, is China's strategic measure of the century to make the entire Euro-Asian region including Africa even more dependent on its products and investments. Now the Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB), the Vienna Chamber of Commerce and the ambassadors from China and Kazakhstan have joined forces to convince the Austrian population and politicians that the connection of Austria via broad-gauge railway to the Silk Road is an opportunity of the century.
November 30, 2018
What Brexit Means for Austrian Federal Provinces
The economic links between the Austrian provinces and the United Kingdom show that the withdrawal will not only be disadvantageous for the UK, but will also leave its mark on Austria's economy. According to a chart of the Thinktank Agenda Austria, the Austrian federal states whose exports will be hardest hit by the UK's departure are Upper Austria and Styria.
November 29, 2018
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