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The Regions This Week
October 5, 2018 www.intellinews.com I Page 7
Central Europe
The Visegrad Group countries decided to jointly build a high-speed railway connecting Budapest, Bratislava, Brno, and Warsaw. The decision coincides with the political interests of all four members of the group comprising the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, and Slovakia, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said.
Latvians will head to the polls in a general elec- tion on October 6. Polls show the ruling centre- right coalition is losing ground to pro-Russian and populist parties.
The European Commission approved Slovakia's €125mn investment aid to Jaguar Land Rover. The aid will contribute to the development of the region of Nitra, without unduly distorting competi- tion in the single market, the Commission said.
Lithuania banned its citizens from using phones when they cross the street. Fines of €20 to €40 can be imposed for violations of this and other new traffic rules aimed mainly at improving the safety of pedestrians.
Hungarian oil and gas company MOL laid the cornerstone of its new 120 metre high head- quarters in the south of Budapest. The 28-story building will be the tallest in Hungary and is ex- pected to be completed by 2021.
The US Department of Justice asked for informa- tion from Danske Bank in relation to a criminal investigation concerning the bank’s Estonian branch. Danske’s CEO resigned recently after revelations of around €200bn of suspect money flows via Estonia.
Czech print distributor PNS bought alternative postal operator Mediaservis. The two companies have been working together since the beginning of this year to distribute daily newspapers to sub- scribers' mailboxes.
Poland’s R22 Group became the leader on Romania’s hosting and domain market, following two acquisitions. R22 is planning new acquisitions that will strengthen its position as Romania’s market leader and boost its share to 20% by year-end from the current 15%.
A criminal court sent four people suspected
of killing Slovak investigative journalist Jan Kuciak to custody. Kuciak was killed by the
end of February alongside his fiancée in his apartment, sparking protests and a political crisis.
Poland’s Monetary Policy Council left interest rates at their current record low of 1.5%, once again hinting there is very little that could change the dovish policy and outlook this year and the next. The combination of fast economic growth with only moderate inflation – which to the bafflement of economists has been largely unaffected by fast-rising wages so far – has provided no premises for a change in monetary policy, the council said.
Fire broke out on a Lithuania-flagged ferry with 335 people on board in the Baltic sea. The engine room fire was later extinguished and the ferry was given a naval escort to Klaipeda port.
The merger of Czech Aeroholding and Prague Airport was completed. The merger simplified their internal relations and procedures, which will make Prague Airport's processes more efficient and reduce the administrative burden.
Hungarian MPs passed a law on the control of foreign investments presenting a danger to the country’s security interests. The law requires indi- viduals and legal entities from outside the European Union, the European Economic Area and Switzer- land to seek ministerial approval if they are to carry out investments and become major shareholders in certain companies registered in Hungary.