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Czech Republic: New Government Facing Bumpy Road
The first obstacles for forming a new government seem to have been surmounted – for the time being.
January 21, 2014
Erste Group: Moderate Economic Recovery in Eurozone
Euro area sentiment indicators point to a continuation of the moderate recovery, according to Erste Bank.
January 20, 2014
Audit Court Criticizes Austrian Government Sharply
Josef Moser, president of the Austrian Audit Court, has sharply criticized the government’s resolution.
January 17, 2014
Citizens from CEE Major Benefit for EU
A current paper published by the OECD shows that the European Union benefits from migration of Eastern European citizens as they compensate imbalances in the labor markets.
January 15, 2014
CESEE: Lack in FDI Causes Modest Economic Growth
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is cautiously optimistic about economic growth in CESEE.
January 14, 2014
Polish Government to Focus on Social Security
According to Poland´s Prime Minister Donald Tusk, the reduction of unemployment and the improvement of social security will be priority issues in 2014.
January 13, 2014
Czech Economy: Good Prospects for Sustainable Recovery
The Czech economy is expected to return to growth already in the first half of 2014. Growth will not be only based on exports.
January 10, 2014
Serbia: One of Fastest Growing Economies
Last year Serbia was among the ten fastest growing economies in Europe, as pointed out by Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic.
January 8, 2014
Hungary Amending Figures of Budget Deficit
Hungarian Finance and Economy Minister Mihaly Varga announced that the budget deficit of 2013 will be below the target after it was lowered dramatically.
January 8, 2014
Austria: Unemployment Rate at Record High
Last year the unemployment rate in Austria recorded its highest level in 60 years.
January 2, 2014
Serbia: Moderate Economic Growth in 2013
According to the release of the Serbian Statistical Office, GDP is estimated to have grown 2.4% in 2013.
January 2, 2014
„Such Growth Rates Will not Return“
In an interview with the Austrian daily “Presse”, economist Karl Aiginger explains that the worst should be over. The reform pressure on the Austrian government is enormous.
December 30, 2013
Austria: Kapsch Delivers Warning to Policy-Makers
Georg Kapsch, President of the Federation of Austrian Industries (IV), is very cautious about economic growth in Austria and warns the policy-makers of a budget consolidation on the basis of expectations of growth.
December 27, 2013
Austria: Industrial Output Shrinks
In October the industrial production in Austria declined.
December 23, 2013
Austria: Options of Bad Bank for Hypo under Examination
Finance Minister Spindelegger intends to meet with experts to discuss options of a bad bank for Hypo Group Alpe Adria.
December 20, 2013
Wifo: Sluggish Growth Because of Weak Consumption
According to Wifo’s (Austrian Institute of Economic Research) prognosis for the coming years, economic upturn in Austria will remain flat because of weak consumption.
December 19, 2013
Labor Costs: No Clear Trend in CESEE
In the Baltic countries and in Romania, unit labor costs rose most. In Slovenia and in the Czech Republic, by contrast, unit labor costs were down.
December 18, 2013
Bulgaria: S&P Downgrade Criticized Sharply
Bulgarian Minister of Economy Dragomir Stynev does not agree with S&P´s view on Bulgaria´s creditworthiness.
December 16, 2013
Leitl: No Alternative to Budget Consolidation
Christoph Leitl, President of the Austrian Chamber of Commerce (WKO), regards the coalition agreement between the Social Democrats (SPÖ) and the People’s Party (ÖVP) acceptable.
December 13, 2013
Croatia: Major Investments to Boost Economic Growth
The Croatian government on Thursday adopted an investment plan for 2014 which includes large-scale investments, amounting to as much as HRK 73.1 billion.
December 13, 2013
Poland: Unemployment Grows Further
In November, the unemployment rate came at 13.2%. The labor market has the worst behind, the government says.
December 11, 2013
Leitl: Government Plans “Complete Nonsense“
According to Christoph Leitl, President of the Austrian Chamber of Commerce, the “great” suggestions planned by his working group are not realized by the government.
December 10, 2013
Wifo: Austrian Economic Growth Still Sluggish
Seasonally adjusted and corrected for working day effects, GDP increased by 0.2 percent compared to the second quarter. The upturn becomes evident only in a very moderate pace.
December 9, 2013
Austria: Slight Increase in Exports
In spite of a continuing difficult international environment domestic exports increased by 0.7 percent. According to Economy Minister Mitterlehner the Austrian exports are on a record high.
December 6, 2013
Poland: Benchmark Rate Remains Unchanged
The Polish National Bank (NBP) holds the reference rate at its record low of 2.5%.
December 4, 2013
RZB Faces Severe Restructuring Measures
The Raiffeisen Zentralbank (RZB) is facing severe restructuring and downsizing measures as it has to cut the number of employees.
December 4, 2013
Bank of Albania Presses for Agreement with IMF
The Albanian economy from short-term adjustment toward long-term sustainable growth. Why Albania needs an agreement with the IMF.
December 4, 2013
UniCredit Bank Ukraine and Ukrsotsbank to be Merged
CEE Division completes additional steps in business refocusing.
December 3, 2013
Austria: Tax Losses Amount to € 2bn in 2014
The Austrian People’s Party estimates tax losses in the amount of € 2bn for the coming fiscal year as announced by State Secretary for Foreign Affairs Reinhold Lopatka in an interview with radio station Ö1.
November 29, 2013
Leitl: Growth Stimulating Measures for Budget Consolidation
Leitl calls for growth stimulating measures which are the basis for the consolidation of the Austrian budget.
November 28, 2013
RBI Faces Austerity Measures.
Raiffeisen Bank International (RBI) does not take into consideration capital increase.
November 27, 2013
Czech Republic: CNB Aquires Foreign Currencies
During monetary interventions CNB has purchased foreign currencies in the amoung of CZK 200bn.
November 26, 2013
Austria: “Budget on Target“
State Secretary for Finance Andreas Schieder points out that “the figures from the Finance Ministry for the budget performance until October show that the budget 2013 is on target.” Social Minister Hundstorfer calls for reforms.
November 25, 2013
Austria: Decent Economic Outlook
Despite an economic acceleration, the macro-economic frame conditions remain difficult in 2014. A major risk factor is the fiscal situation.
November 24, 2013
Czech Republic: CNB Facing Investigations
Czech Senator Dryml ordered the head of counter-intelligence service (BIS) Jiri Lang to initiate investigations against the Czech National Bank (CNB).
November 22, 2013
Austria: High Tax Country
According to the new tax report of PrinceWaterhouseCoopers (PwC), the tax burden in Austria is ten percent higher than the average tax rate in the European Union and even beats Sweden.
November 19, 2013
RBI Examines Sale Offers in Hungary
Apart from the withdrawal from Ukraine, Raiffeisen Bank International (RBI) considers an exit from Hungary.
November 19, 2013
OECD: Restructuring of Banks Required
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) calls for a fast progress in the establishing of a banking union in the Eurozone and restructuring of the banking sector to boost economic growth.
November 19, 2013
Bank Austria: Economic Recovery Continues
The Bank Austria Business Indicator provides an overview of the current economic situation in Austria.
November 18, 2013
Nowotny: Economic Recovery not as Strong as Expected
According to Ewald Nowotny, governor of the Austrian National Bank (OeNB), indicators point toward a slow recovery in the next quarters.
November 18, 2013
Slovenia Issues New Eurobonds
The issuance of a new bond in the amount of € 1.5bn on Friday came as surprise as Prime Minister Alenka Bratusek has annouced earlier no such measures will be made until the beginning of the new year.
November 18, 2013
Slovenian Government Wins Vote of Confidence
As expected, on Friday the Slovenian center-left government of Prime Minister Alenka Bratusek has won a vote of confidence.
November 15, 2013
Romania: UniCredit Tiriac Bank’s Profits Exceeding Expectations
On an annual comparison basis, Unicredit Tiriac Bank posted an increase of profits of 48 percent to € 48.5m since the beginning of this year exceeding all expectations.
November 13, 2013
Austria: Bawag to Pay Off Further State Capital
Today CEO Byron Haynes announced that Bawag will pay back a further tranche of the bank state aid injected in 2009.
November 13, 2013
Half of Austrians Consider the Country Stuck in Recession
According to an online survey, the Austrians are confident and not concerned by the most recent recession in the Eurozone. With a total of 87 index points consumer’s confidence remained stable in the third quarter of 2013.
November 12, 2013
Czech President Sceptical about CNB’s Forex Intervention
Czech President Zeman expressed his reservations about the Central Bank’s latest forex interventions.
November 12, 2013
Albania: Domestic Banks Struggling to Keep Up
According to a report by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), the Albanian financial sector is dominated by foreign banks. Domestic banks are struggling to keep up with the internationally operating competition.
November 8, 2013
Stable Outlook for Recovery of Austrian Economy
The outlook for economic improvement has stabilized. Both Wifo’s economy test and Wifo’s early indicator point to an upward trend.
November 8, 2013
Leitl Rejects Further Bank Taxes
Christoph Leitl, president of the Austrian Chamber of Commerce (WKO), rejects the Finance Ministry’s plan to impose further taxes on Austrian banks in order to decrease public debts.
November 6, 2013
Romania: Growth Rates to Exceed Forecasts
According to the autumn forecast published by the EU Commission on Tuesday, Romania will exceed the previous estimates.
November 6, 2013