SLOVENIA
S&P upgrades Slovenia outlook to positive
The rating agency Standard & Poor's (S&P) has reaffirmed the A+ rating for Slovenia, but revised the outlook from stable to positive on the back of the country's continuous economic growth.
Source: STA
Ekolat doubles revenue the first year with new owner
Ekolat, a Vipava-based dairy focusing solely on mozzarella, has been doing well after it was acquired by Italian dairy Sabelli last year. Revenue doubled in 2017 over the year before to EUR 11m. Moreover, 2018 business plans project a further 30-50% increase in revenue.
Source: STA
INTERNATIONAL MARKETS
Stocks cut losses as Wall Street shrugs off trade-war fears; European markets close lower after ECB-fueled rally; Rolls-Royce ends nearly up 8%
Stocks slashed losses on Friday as investor worries about a U.S.-China trade war decreased. The S&P 500 turned positive around 2:35 p.m. ET, while the Dow Jones industrial average was down about 70 points after dropping as much as 280 points. The Nasdaq composite, meanwhile, was down just 0.1 percent. The major indexes fell sharply earlier after the Trump administration said it will impose a 25 percent charge on up to $50 billion in Chinese goods, raising fears of a trade war looming between the U.S. and China. China promptly responded to the Trump administration's announcement, with the Chinese Commerce Ministry saying it will implement tariffs on the same scale as the U.S. Shares of Boeing and Caterpillar fell 0.7 percent and 1.9 percent, respectively.
European shares closed lower Friday afternoon as investors paused for breath after a rally in the previous session fueled by the European Central Bank (ECB). The pan-European Euro Stoxx 600 closed down by 0.8 percent, with all major bourses and most sectors in negative territory.
Looking across Europe, Rolls Royce led the gains, closing up by 7.6 percent though it had been trading higher earlier in the day. The British aircraft-engine maker raised its cash flow forecast.
Shares of H&M were under pressure, closing down by over 4.3 percent after reporting second-quarter sales slightly below expectations. Meanwhile, Tesco closed near the top of the European benchmark, despite paring back some of the day's gains to close 2 percent higher. The British supermarket reported first-quarter sales that met forecasts and confirmed its outlook.
Source: CNBC
SERBIA
Chinese group mulls 1 bln euro Serbia-focused investment fund - report
Sino-China Investment Group is considering incorporating a fund that will invest about 1 billion euro ($1.2 billion) in Serbia, Belgrade-based media has reported. The Chinese group is interested in transport, energy, telecommunications, agriculture and construction projects in Serbia, news agency Tanjug quoted on Thursday the president of Sino-China Investment Group, Jin Frank Li, as saying. The main focus is on transport, airports, ports, bridges, communications, water supply and drainage in urban and rural areas, electricity supply, agriculture and basic assets necessary for the provision of non-material goods or services - for science, education, culture and healthcare.
Source: SeeNews
Serbian parliament confirms Tabakovic as central bank chief
The Serbian parliament re-appointed Jorgovanka Tabakovic as head of the country’s central bank on Friday. Tabakovic will serve a second six year term as Governor of the National Bank of Serbia (NBS) after a majority of MPs voted to support her nomination and that of Vice-Governor Zeljko Jovic. Tabakovic, who took over as NBS Governor in August 2012, was nominated for a second term by Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic.
Source: N1
Serbia’s top 15 report 1.9 billion Euro in exports
Serbia’s 15 biggest companies, exported goods and services worth 1.9 billion Euro in the first five months of 2018, the Serbian Finance Ministry said on Friday. According to the data for the first five months of the year, the biggest exporters are FIAT Chrysler Automobiles Serbia with exports of 388.9 million Euro and the HBIS Group which owns the Smederevo Steel Plant with exports worth 334.9 million Euro and Tigar Tires Pirot with exports worth 162.1 million Euro. The only other companies which had exports worth more than 100 million Euro are the Serbian Oil Industry (NIS) with 154.7 million Euro and Robert Bosch Belgrade with 103.9 million Euro. The other companies on the list had exports ranging between 88.1 and 50.5 million Euro.
Source: N1
