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The Regions This Week
July 12, 2019 www.intellinews.com I Page 8
Central Europe
The Czech government approved a plan for the construction of new units of the Dukovany and Temelin nuclear power plants by subsidiaries
of the state-owned energy company CEZ Group. CEZ subsidiaries will be the investors, and the government will provide a guarantee allowing the companies to receive the best-possible interest rate for bank credit.
Lithuanian Prime Minister Saulius Skvernelis said he would remain in office, reversing on a pledge he would resign after a poor result in the presidential election in May. Skvernelis failed to make it to the run-off vote in the election and said he would step down, but the political situation in Lithuania is making the pledge difficult to carry out, Skvernelis now says.
Growth in industrial output in Hungary picked up from 6.3% in April to 8.7% in May, according to unadjusted data, the Central Statistics Office (KSH) said in a preliminary reading. Output grew by 6.1% according to workday-adjusted data and 1.4% compared to the previous month.
Poland’s unemployment rate dropped to a 28- year low of 5.3% in June, the labour ministry said in a preliminary estimate. The estimate, which draws on a survey conducted by employment offices countrywide, shows the labour market remains tight.
The Latvian parliament passed a 15% cut in the excise tax levied on strong alcohol. Reduction of the tax, which Riga announced in June, is a response to a 25% cut heralded by neighbouring Estonia in May. Latvia interpreted that as
an attempt to undercut its booming alcohol sales business and announced an easing of domestic regulations.
Czech billionaire Petr Kellner decreased his stake in Russian gold miner Polymetal, by
0.63 percentage points from previous 11.63% to 11.0%. A stake of 0.63% is worth around $36.4mn.
Currently a number of investors are interested in reducing their stakes in the company while the stock price is particularly high, bringing overhang risk.
Aqua Marina AS, the holding company of Olerex Group, agreed to buy the Oiltanking terminal in the Estonian capital Tallinn. Olerex is the leader on the Estonian fuel market, and the company’s chair said the deal would optimise fuel handling and distributing costs, and help keep prices at forecourts reasonable.
Lithuania is considering building a major new international airport, Minister of Transport and Communications Rokas Masiulis said in an interview with Delfi news agency. The idea was mooted amid an upturn in traffic at the existing Vilnius and Kaunas airports.
Six opposition parties agreed to field joint candidates in all 23 districts of Budapest for
the upcoming municipal elections in the autumn, increasing their chances considerably against
the ruling Fidesz party. For the first time ever opposition parties selected their pick for city mayoral candidate in a primary open to Budapest residents.
Poland’s international reserves declined 3.7% m/m to PLN439.82bn (€103.44bn, $117.8bn) in June, following a large purchase of monetary gold, data released by the National Bank of Poland (NBP) showed. The monthly fall in
June follows an expansion of 1.9% m/m recorded in May.
The Slovak security software producer ESET filed a suit against Smer-SD MP Lubos Blaha for statements and videos published on social networks that it claims defame the company’s reputation. Blaha has called ESET’s owners
‘true oligarchs’ and called the company out for financing a “(neo-)liberal network” of like minded politicians, NGOs and media.