SLOVENIA
NLB intention to float to be published
The Slovenian Sovereign Holding (SSH) and NLB bank are expected to release on Monday an intention to float, a key step in the impending privatisation of the country's largest bank.
Source: STA
Slovenia's Mercator sells 10 shopping centres for 116.6 mln euro
Slovenian retailer Mercator [LJE:MELR] said on Friday it has signed a deal on the sale of 10 shopping centres in Slovenia to Austria’s Supernova group for 116.6 million euro ($134.9 million). Under the sale contract, Mercator will rent parts of the centres where it performs its principal activity, the company said in a filing to the Ljubljana Stock Exchange. According to Mercator, the monetisation project began with the sale of the shopping centre in Belgrade at the end of last year.
Source: SeeNews
Juteks reports higher revenue, lower profit for 2017
The Žalec-based floorings maker Juteks increased net sales revenue by 3.9% last year to EUR 42.6m, but net profit fell by 12% to EUR 5.1m, according to a filing with the AJPES agency for public legal records.
Source: STA
Tosama reports higher 2017 profit
Tosama, a supplier of sanitary pads, tampons, baby nappies and wipes, bandages and medical supplies, increased net sales revenue by 5.6% to EUR 35.94m last year, upping net profit by 36.8% to EUR 1.4m.
Source: STA
Frutarom Etol looks back at most successful year yet
Frutarom Etol, the Israeli-owned Slovenian flavourings maker, saw its net profit increase by 7% to EUR 12.2m last year as sales revenue rose 9.5% to EUR 79.5m in what the company labelled as its most successful year yet.
Source: STA
LTH Castings reports solid growth
LTH Castings, the Škofja Loka-based supplier of aluminium die-cast components for the car industry, plans further growth this year after generating a net profit of EUR 33.5m and EUR 257m in sales in 2017.
Source: STA
INTERNATIONAL MARKETS
Dow bounces back 287 points Friday, but still loses 4% on the week; European stocks close flat after global rout
Stocks rose in volatile trading on Friday, but still posted sharp losses for the week as investors fretted over rising interest rates, high technology valuations and worries about a possible economic slowdown. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 287.16 points to 25,339.99, led by a 4.7 percent surge in Visa. The S&P 500 jumped 1.4 percent to 2,767.13, snapping a six-day losing streak, as the tech sector surged 3.2 percent. The Nasdaq Composite outperformed, surging more than 2 percent to 7,496.89. Wells Fargo and Citigroup both reported better-than-expected earnings, along with J.P. Morgan Chase, to kick off the third quarter earnings season. Wells and Citigroup both rose 1.3 percent and 2.1 percent, respectively. J.P. Morgan Chase slipped 1.1 percent, however. European stocks closed flat on Friday afternoon, as global markets continued to recover from a days-long sell-off. The pan-European Stoxx 600 index closed down 0.14 percent, despite good gains for the basic resources and autos sectors. Anglo-Dutch oil major Royal Dutch Shell is in talks to sell its stake in a Venezuelan joint venture with French firm Maurel & Prom, Reuters reported Thursday, citing three sources. Shares of the firm were slightly lower at the open Friday. On the data front, German September inflation numbers showed a 2 percent rise for the month, boosted by energy and food prices.
Source: CNBC
SREBIA
NBS: Annual inflation in September at 2.1%
According to the data of the Serbian Statistical Office, consumer prices fell by 0.3% in September. The monthly drop in prices reflects the seasonal decline in the prices of travel packages and unprocessed food. Working in the opposite direction were the seasonally higher prices of fresh vegetables and increases in the prices of petroleum products. Y-o-y inflation continued to move within the target tolerance band (3±1.5%) and reached 2.1% in September. Core inflation (CPI excluding the prices of food, energy, alcohol and cigarettes) remained low and stable, at 1.1% in September, unchanged from the previous month. Under the NBS central projection, y-o-y inflation will remain low and stable in the coming period, continuing to move within the target tolerance band.
Source: NBS
New arrangement with the IMF to accelerate sustainable growth
The Serbian delegation led by NBS Governor Jorgovanka Tabaković met with IMF Deputy Managing Director Tao Zhang within the framework of the Annual Meetings of the IMF and World Bank Group in Indonesia. The meeting with Mr Zhang focused on the results Serbia has achieved, current macroeconomic developments and the implementation of the new economic programme supported by the Policy Coordination Instrument. The Serbian delegation highlighted that the prior period was marked by strengthened macroeconomic stability and improved outlook, in an environment of structural reforms and full coordination between monetary and fiscal policies. This is reflected in GDP growth of 4.9% y-o-y in the first half of the year.
Source: NBS
WORLD BANK: Serbia higher than average for its region by new Human Capital Index
The Human Capital Index (HCI) for 2017 puts Serbia higher than the average for its region and income group, the World Bank announced. The new Human Capital Index, developed by the World Bank Group and launched today at the World Bank-IMF Annual Meetings, in Bali, measures how much countries lose in economic productivity by underinvesting in their people. Serbia has an index of 0.76, Croatia 0.72, Slovenia 0.79, Albania, B&H and Montenegro 0.62 each, Macedonia 0.53, Greece and Bulgaria 0.68 each, Romania 0.60, and Hungary has an index of 0.70.
Source: NBS
