SLOVENIA
SBITOP up 0.11%
SBITOP index gained additional 0.85% yesterday, with Gorenje again as the most traded name. The stock delivered EUR 4.3m in volume, and it was a top gainer as well since it added 3.0%. Daily looser was Intereuropa as it lost 0.95%.
Source: LJSE, Ilirika
EU funds for railways project unfrozen, official says
The EUR 109m in EU funds Slovenia has secured for the construction of a new Koper port railway track have virtually been released, Infrastructure Ministry State Secretary Jure Leben said after meeting European Commission representatives on Wednesday. He was in Brussels three days after the law on the investment survived a second referendum.
Source: STA
Slovenian economy added 6,400 jobs in March
The Slovenian economy added about 6,400 jobs in March, as the number of persons in employment rose 0.7% to 863,200. This marks a year-on-year increase of 3.5%, the Statistics Office data show.
Unaudited Report of Triglav Group and Zavarovalnica Triglav for the first three months of 2018
PROFITABLE OPERATIONS. In Q1 2018, Triglav Group posted a consolidated profit before tax of EUR 27.5 million or 8% more than in the same period last year. Net profit totalled EUR 23.3 million, up by 5%. The achieved results are mostly the reflection of solid performance of the insurance business. Compared to the respective period of 2017, Triglav Group recorded a 4% premium growth, which was higher than the growth in net claims incurred (index 102), while operating expenses of the insurance business grew by 4%.
PREMIUM GROWTH IN ALL MARKETS OF THE GROUP. Triglav Group posted a total of EUR 293 million in consolidated gross written premium, up by 4% compared to the same period last year. Premium growth was recorded in all markets of the Group. The average growth on the Slovene market was 4% and on the markets outside of Slovenia it stood at 6%. In terms of insurance segments, premium growth was seen in non-life insurance and health insurance (index 106 in both segments). In the life insurance segment, premium decreased by 3%, primarily as the result of positive one-off events in Q1 2017.
NO MAJOR CAT EVENTS. Major CAT events had no impact on the Group's performance in Q1 2018. Gross claims paid totalled EUR 171.0 million and were 12% higher compared to the corresponding period last year. This increase was predominantly the result of the non-life insurance claims that incurred and were reported in 2017, for which adequate provisions were made and which were appropriately reinsured. The growth in gross claims paid was also affected by the increase in the health insurance portfolio and claim frequency, which resulted from the changed age structure of insured persons. The combined ratio of Triglav Group was 88.5% as at the end of Q1 2018.
INTERNATIONAL MARKETS
Stocks close higher, Macy's surges more than 10% as retail rallies; Europe markets close mainly higher but Italian stocks slide on political concerns
Stocks rose on Wednesday as retail shares jumped on the back of strong quarterly earnings from retailer Macy's. The Dow Jones industrial average closed 62.52 points higher at 24,768.93, with Nike as the best-performing stock in the index. The S&P 500 gained 0.4 percent to 2,722.46 as the consumer discretionary sector climbed 0.8 percent. The Nasdaq composite advanced 0.6 percent to 7,398.30.
Macy's shares rallied 10.8 percent on stronger-than-expected quarterly earnings. The company's same-store sales, a key metric for retailers, rose 4.2 percent last quarter versus an estimate of 1.4 percent.
Elsewhere in corporate news, Teva Pharmaceutical rose nearly 3 percent after Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway revealed it increased its stake in the company.
Shares in Europe closed higher on average Wednesday despite surging interest rates for Italian debt in the bond markets. The pan-European Stoxx 600 closed provisionally up by 0.29 percent with the various sectors moving in different directions. More notably, the main Italian index fell 2.4 percent on concerns over its future government.
Across the European index, Saipem bucked the struggle of fellow Italian companies to finish up by almost 12 percent. This followed a rating upgrade. Alstom also rose across the day, up by 3.8 percent. The company reported that net profit rose by around 60 percent for its fiscal year.
On the other hand, French firm Elior recorded its worst one-day percentage fall since November 2017, according to Reuters. The shares fell near 14 percent after the firm issued a profit warning.
Source: CNBC, Ilirika
SERBIA
AERO: Aerodrom Beograd objavio neto profit za prvi kvartal od 444 miliona RSD
Aerodrom Beograd (AERO) objavio je neto profit za prvi kvartal tekuće godine u iznosu od 444 miliona RSD što je za 13% g/g, usled manjeg poslovnog dobitka, finansijskog gubitka i negativnog ostalog rezultata. Poslovna dobit kompanije pala je za 6,3%, zbog većih troškova za plate u posmatranom periodu a poslovni prihod povećan je 11% g/g, zbog povećanog obima saobraćaja i broja putnika.
Izvor: Belex, Ilirika
EBRD: High growth rates around the world, including Serbia
A favourable macroeconomic environment will be noticeable in the Central and Eastern Europe countries which will record a growth of over 3.5% in 2018, for the ninth consecutive year. Also, these countries will experience a credit growth, especially Serbia and Croatia. These are just some of the conclusions from the annual EBRD Assembly. After the past growth slowdown in Serbia, a strong momentum is expected in 2018 and next year. All macroeconomic indicators are above expectations. Imports are growing slightly faster than exports, but this because Serbia is importing equipment to facilitate investments which is good”, says Artur Radziwill is EBRD’s Director for Country Economics and Policy.
Source: Serbiamonitor
Japan interested in investing in infrastructure projects in Serbia
Deputy PM and Minister of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure Zorana Mihajlovic met on Monday in Belgrade with the new Japanese Ambassador to Serbia, Junichi Maruyama. Maruyama “pointed out that Japan is interested in taking part in important projects implemented by the Ministry of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure and suggested that a meeting be held soon between delegations of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the Serbian Ministry of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure,” the government said.
Izvor: Serbiamonitor
