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Southeast Europe
September 28, 2018 www.intellinews.com I Page 13
revenues jumped 77% in the first half of the year, as visitor numbers were up 41%, an unnamed official revealed to Reuters. Previously, tourists had been staying away after the uprising against former president Hosni Mubarak back in 2011 and the downing of a Metrojet charter flight from Sharm el Sheik to St Petersburg. Direct flights between Russia and Egypt resumed this year.
The poor data for Croatia this summer also runs counter to the figures for fellow Western Balkans countries, which saw an increase in visitor num- bers across the board.
July data shows the most dramatic hike in tourist
Turkey’s Akbank concludes long- awaited syndicated loan renewal but costs more than double
Akin Nazli in Belgrade
Turkish private lender Akbank has secured a seemingly delayed multi-currency syndicated loan facility from international markets equivalent to $980mn, comprised of $285mn and €591mn with a maturity of 367 days, the lender said on Septem- ber 27 in a bourse filing.
The all-in annual costs for the tranches are Li- bor+2.75% and Euribor+2.65%, more than double the costs Akbank experienced when agreeing its last such loan.
Banks are under heightened pressure in Turkey when it comes to raising funding given that the country is in the midst of a currency crisis that some analysts fear could spark a banking crisis.
numbers in the region was in Slovenia, which saw a stunning 29.6% increase in arrivals in July, following an 18.5% rise in June. Aside from the small country’s Adriatic coast and spectacular mountain scenery, Slovenia has benefited from its raise profile as the home country of US first lady Melania Trump.
Tourist arrivals in Albania also experienced in- creases of 13.3% and 19.1% respectively in June and July. Elsewhere in the region, there was also an increase in arrivals in July in Serbia (15.1%), Macedonia (12%), Montenegro (7%), Bosnia (5.8%) and Bulgaria (3.1%), shows data from each coun- try’s statistics office.
Akbank is modelling its way forward with stress on the fundraising market mounting on all sides.
Turkish banks traditionally agree two loans per year, one in spring and one in autumn. Akbank’s refinancing typically closes in August, setting a pricing benchmark for other lenders to follow. But this year, the refinancing round appeared to get held up as international lenders assessed the consequences of the severe currency sell-off, bankers have told news agencies.
A week ago markets were unhappy Turkish Fi- nance Minister Berat Albayrak did not introduce a ‘bad bank’ to address non-performing loans in the country’s new three-year medium term eco- nomic programme. There is pressure on the gov- ernment to work with the banks to help clear up their balance sheets in order to help encourage