Page 6 - bne_np_May_19_2017

The Regions This Week
May 19, 2017 www.intellinews.com I Page 6
Central Europe
The supervisory board of Czech state-owned energy group CEZ rejected an improved offer from privately-held Czech Coal to buy the ageing coal-fired Pocerady power plant, despite having previously said that the offer had been approved. Outgoing finance minister but likely next premier Andrej Babis had opposed the sale, which he said was too advantageous to Czech Coal.
Czech GDP growth accelerated above expecta- tions to 2.9% y/y in the first quarter. Seasonally adjusted, quarterly growth rose to 1.3%.
The Czech current account recorded yet another large surplus in March, to add to the results in January and February. At CZK31.2bn (€1.18bn) the surplus is the largest in the first quarter by around CZK2bn.
Czech producer prices accelerated by 0.2pp to 3.2% y/y in April after slowing 0.1pp in March. The index gained 0.3% m/m.
Slovakian President Andrej Kiska vetoed legis- lation that would allow the state to start work on infrastructure projects on land before it is expropriated. The bill, designed to accelerate much-needed infrastructure works and prevent price gouging by landowners, represents signifi- cant interference in property rights, the president insisted.
Slovakia’s GDP expanded 3.1% in the first quar- ter. Seasonally-adjusted data showed the econ- omy grew 0.8% in quarterly terms. The growth
of new orders in Slovak industry accelerated in March, pushing to 8.6% y/y growth, the Statistics Office announced separately.
Slovakia’s EU-harmonised index of consumer prices (HICP) dropped to 0.8% y/y in April. The reading is in line with April CPI, with both results sitting 0.2pp below their March equivalents.
The EU’s General Affairs Council urged Poland to talk with the European Commission about its moves to curb the independence of the judici- ary and the media, as Brussels continued to hold back from imposing sanctions.
The Polish economy saw growth accelerate to 4% y/y in constant prices in the first quarter. But while the Polish economy is in an upswing and near-term risks are limited, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said in a statement conclud- ing its most recent mission to Poland that without reforms – some needed urgently – growth will become more subdued.
Poland’s current account recorded a deficit of nearly PLN3.2bn (€738mn) in March, narrowing slightly from the shortage of over PLN3.5bn the previous month but widening significantly from a deficit of PLN920mn in annual terms.
Polish core inflation gained 0.9% y/y in April.
The reading is 0.2pp above market expectations and 0.3pp higher compared to March.
Employment in the Polish corporate sector grew 4.6% in annual terms to total 5.99mn in April. Meanwhile, the average monthly gross wage ex- panded 4.1% y/y to just over PLN4,489 (€1,062).
The Polish banking sector posted net profit of just over PLN2.8bn (€660mn) in the first quar- ter, representing a drop of 11.4% on the year
Firms controlled by a close ally of Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Lorinc Meszaros, have purchased
a 51% stake in the Hungarian subsidiary of Czech nuclear engineering firm Kralovopolska RIA. The move comes as Russian state nuclear agency Rosatom gets ready to announce the first tenders for the €12bn project to expand Hungary's Paks nuclear power plant.