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The Regions This Week
December 7, 2018 www.intellinews.com I Page 13
Southeast Europe
Nato foreign ministers activated Bosnia’s Mem- bership Action Plan (MAP) – a reform process that prepares countries for membership – after the country submitted its first Annual National Programme.
MPs will vote on a no-confidence motion against the Romanian government on December 10. The timing is dangerous for the Socialist-led ruling coalition which has recently lost its majority in
the Chamber of Deputies, although it can usually count on the support of the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania (UDMR).
Turkey’s central bank is sticking with its 5% inflation target even though the annual inflation rate remains above 20%. In a December 5 mon- etary and exchange rate policy document looking ahead to 2019, the regulator also said it would alter its monetary policy stance if exchange rate moves resulted in an enduring affect on price stability.
The Western Balkans need to diversify their energy mix, a report from the EBRD said, rec- ommending a switch to hydropower, renewable energy sources and gas from coal. Currently, coal-fired power plants account for a significant share of the region’s power generation. Moreover, several new coal-fired plants are to be built, most of them in Bosnia.
The Albanian parliament approved the draft budget for 2019, which targets a deficit of 1.9% of the country’s GDP. This will be the lowest ever budget gap.
The €24.6mn robotics plant Japan’s Yaskawa is building in the Slovenian town of Kocevje will become fully operational in the second half of next year. The company also plans to open
a research and development centre in Slovenia, which will work with local universities and research institutes.
More than 23,000 migrants have entered Bosnia this year, according to government data. Bos- nia is struggling to accommodate the constantly increasing number of migrants and in October tensions escalated at the border with Croatia.
Three quarters of Bulgarians are unhappy with the constant political scandals in the country, according to a survey by Market Links agency. Bulgarians' feelings about the current situation are similar to in 2013 when thousands of Bulgar- ians protested for months against the government of then prime minister Plamen Oresharski.
South Korean carmaker Hyundai is reportedly considering opening a plant in Croatia, unnamed government sources told Jutarnji List. Hyundai will most likely build the plant in the Varazdin area and would produce a complete product, not just parts, the daily claimed.
Serbia's economy grew by 3.8% y/y in the third quarter of the year, the Serbian Statistical Office announced. Significant annual real growth in the gross value added was recorded in the third quar- ter of the year in the sector of agriculture, forestry and fishing – 15.9%, construction – 7% and in trade and repair of motor vehicles, 6.1%.
Turkey is abandoning the symbolic tulip used in its tourism and cultural advertising campaigns. Seeking a new branding identity, slogan and logo, the country’s culture and tourism ministry will on January 8 hold an advertising tender in Berlin. The objective is to shift the country’s traditional image to a more modern one.
Romania’s public railway infrastructure company CFR SA launched an auction to pick the contrac- tor to design and build of a railway link between Romania’s main airport and the central train station in the capital Bucharest. The link must be operational for the UEFA Euro 2020 tournament, where Romania will host four matches.