Economic news released by SITA on Friday, December 15
Slovakia`s Harmonized Inflation Up to 3.7 Percent in November
The year-on-year inflation rate in Slovakia measured by the European Union's harmonized index of consumer prices (HICP) reached 3.7 percent in November. Compared with October, inflation accelerated by 0.6 percentage points. Measured by EU methodology consumer prices in Slovakia grew by 0.5 percentage points in November compared to the previous month, while they remained unchanged in October compared to September, reported the Slovak Statistics Office on Friday. Slovak methodology shows inflation rate of 4.3 percent in November, up by 0.6 percentage points from the previous month.
Sarisske Pekarne a Cukrarne Bakery Slips into the Red in 2005
Bakery company Sarisske Pekarne a Cukrarne, a.s., Presov closed 2005 with total sales of SKK 337.2 million. Of this sales of its products and services accounted for SKK 280.2 million. Compared to the previous year this means a drop by 6.7 percent. Output of the company decreased as well, down 5.4 percent y/y to SKK 318.1 million. The bakery generated added value of SKK 121.5 million, down from SKK 124.9 million in 2004. Production costs were SKK 204.3 million last year. Sales of goods amounted to SKK 43 million when costs of sales stood at SKK 35.4 million. The gross margin was SKK 7.6 million.
Wertheim Safes Ltd. Reported Fifty Percent Sales Rise in 2005
Wertheim Safes Ltd. s.r.o. Modra, a producer of safes and bank equipment, reported sales of its products and services of almost SKK 939 million last year, up 50.2 percent y/y. Production costs rose 51.1 percent to SKK 783.3 million. Added value soared 56.6 percent y/y to SKK 196.9 million. The company reported positive development also in its economic performance. While it closed 2004 with a loss of SKK 6.1 million, it reported a taxed profit of SKK 10.5 million in 2005.
Motor Fuel Prices Ease only Moderately as of December 8
As of December 8, the average retail price of 95-octane petrol decreased SKK 0.16 to SKK 36.19 per liter compared with December 1, the Slovak Statistics Office reported on Friday. Other motor fuel prices decreased only moderately. The average retail price of 98-octane petrol shrank by 2 hallers to SKK 38.90 per liter. The average retail price of one liter of diesel was SKK 37.67, down by only one haller. The average retail price of LPG dropped SKK 0.03 to SKK 21.64.
Slovakia's Jobless Rate Dropped to 9.12 % in November
Registered jobless rate in Slovakia reached 9.12 percent at the end of November, down 0.15 percentage points compared with the previous month, announced the National Labor, Social Affairs and Family Office on Friday. Compared with November 2005, the jobless rate went down by 1.74 points.
Slovak Construction Companies Report Ten-month Sales at SKK 179 Bln.
For the first ten months of this year, construction companies in Slovakia reported sales of their products and services of SKK 179 billion, which is a 15.4-percent y/y increase. The ten-month construction output was SKK 117.2 billion, which is 14.9 percent more compared with the previous year's period. According to the Construction Ministry's data, local construction output contributed with SKK 113.6 billion to the total results, and grew 16.5 percent y/y. New construction, modernization and reconstruction made up 82.1 percent of the total construction output, up 20.4 percent to SKK 93.2 billion. The volume of construction output in maintenance and repair works reached SKK 19.8 billion in ten months of 2006, up 1.6 percent. Construction output abroad by Slovak firms dropped 19.2 percent y/y to SKK 3.7 billion.
Matador Automotive Estimates its 2006 Sales at SKK 3.8 Bln.
The group Matador Automotive estimates its 2006 sales at SKK 3.747 billion. Matador vice-president for the automotive sector Rudolf Rusnak added that this would be an annual increase of 9.4 percent. He expects a moderate drop in the pre-tax profit of SKK 5 million to SKK 187 million, but added value is expected to raise 9.8 percent to SKK 573 million.
Profit of Geoconsult Bratislava Dropped 44% in 2005
The Bratislava-based company Geoconsult netted SKK 3.4 million last year, down 44 percent y/y. Sales of its products and services went up 3.2 percent y/y to SKK 109.7 million. Last year the company won a tender to deliver documentation for the D3 highway section Brodno-Kysucke Nove Mesto. In the middle of the year it become a member of a consortium to elaborate documentation for the D1 highway section Jarovce-Jablonov. Geoconsult generated added value of SKK 50 million.
Public Contest for Board of Directors in ZSSK Cargo Announced
The Transport Ministry announced public contest to fill all posts on the board of directors in railway cargo company Zeleznicna Spolocnost Cargo Slovakia, a.s. (ZSSK Cargo). Those interested in these posts have seven days to send their applications, ZSSK Cargo spokesman Ladislav Jandosek told SITA. New board members should be known in late January 2007.
Stavokov Reports Highest ever Sales Last Year
Last year, the Trencin-based company Stavokov, s.r.o. achieved the highest sales since its foundation in 1994. They went up 19 percent to SKK 373 million. In the production structure output and assembly of steel constructions dominated making up 85 percent of the firm's total output, said the company. It supplied and assembled steel constructions for Arcelor Senica, Tramico Senec, Hornex Bratislava, Mar SK Martin, VS-Gruber Nitra, Scherdel Myjava. It also built for several investors. Stavokov evaluates last year as extremely successful.
Slovakia's FOREX Reserves Down USD 98.9 Mln. This Week
Slovakia's foreign exchange (FOREX) reserves declined USD 98.9 million over the past week to USD 16.48 billion as of December 13. Behind the drop was a decrease in the reserve assets of the central bank by USD 65.7 million to USD 13.4745 billion. The reserve assets of Slovakia's commercial banks dropped USD 33.2 million w/w to USD 3.0055 billion, the NBS informed.
ZSR Picks Firm to Create Project for Railway Connection to Airport
Companies Dopravoprojekt, a.s., Bratislava, and its subsidiary Infraprojekt, s.r.o., Bratislava, will elaborate documentation on the project to connect the TEN-T network rail corridor with the Bratislava airport and the railway network in Bratislava. Contractors founded the company DI Koridor, s.r.o., and railway company Zeleznice Slovenskej Republiky (ZSR) signed with it a framework contract on November 30, 2006. The contract includes also engineering activities and the conduct of author construction supervision. "The project is worth SKK 940.45 million without value-added tax. Fifty percent of the project will be covered from European Union (EU) funds and fifty percent from the national budget," ZSR spokesperson Martina Pavlikova informed SITA.
November Harmonized Inflation Meets Central Bank's Expectations
The year-on-year harmonized inflation in November, which achieved 3.7 percent and accelerated 0.6 percentage points m/m, developed according to the central bank's expectations.Core inflation accelerated 0.2 percentage points compared with October to 2.5 percent. Consumer prices grew 0.5 percent m/m in November while core inflation was 0.2 percent. Within the basic inflation structure in November, prices of goods rose quicker y/y while the y/y dynamics of prices for services stagnated. In prices of goods, prices of industrial goods grew at quicker pace, which is also the case of foods, said the central bank. Behind the acceleration of the y/y growth of food prices were prices of energies as the result of a more than 7-percent increase in prices of gas for households. In contrast, the y/y dynamics of the prices of industrial goods without energies moderately slowed down.
Telefonica O2 Slovakia Starts Customer Registration
Slovakia's third mobile operator, Telefonica O2 Slovakia, launched the registration of its first customers on December 15, 2006, before the official start of providing mobile telecommunications services. Customers interested in the special offer can register until January 31, 2007. "We launched the on-line registration form at midnight, and more than 1,000 people used the opportunity of pre-registration during the first hour," Telefonica O2 Slovakia's director general Juraj Sedivy said.
Finance New Europe Magazine Awards Tatra Banka
Tatra Banka has received an Achievement Award from the Finance New Europe magazine. The magazine announced Tatra banka as "Best Bank of the Year 2006 in Slovakia." The magazine awards Achievement Price to banks and other companies in various categories. The winners are selected by magazine editors, industry analysts, corporate executives and technology experts. Tatra banka won the title for the first time, informed bank's spokeswoman Terezia Coplakova.
Labor Office: Economy Creates Permanent Jobs
Registered jobless rate in Slovakia reached 9.12 percent at the end of November, down 0.15 percentage points m/m. The National Labor, Social Affairs and Family Office (UPSVR) said that compared with November 2005, the jobless rate went down by 1.74 points. According to UPSVR head Jan Sihelsky a drop by 0.15 percent shows that that the Slovak economy has created permanent jobs during the whole year 2006. The office expected that in November unemployment rate will grow m/m. However unemployment last month posted a drop instead, due to the factors that positively influenced the labor market. Mr. Sihelsky named very good climatic conditions and foreign mobility. According to UPSVR jobless rate in Slovakia should increase in December. They have signals from labor offices that in 28 districts unemployment should moderately decrease while 31 districts expect the jobless rate to grow. The remaining 20 districts expect stagnation. Next year jobless rate should continue decreasing. "However we will not speak about rapid lowering of the jobless rate," said Mr. Sihelsky.
Money Market Closes Week in Deep Liquidity Deficit
The money market closed the week in a deep liquidity deficit. VUB dealer Andrej Ungvarsky stated that the central bank bill auction on Thursday was behind the deficit because the banks expressed extraordinary high demand in the auction. Bank bids were as high as SKK 36.613 billion and the central bank accepted them all. The banks were probably concerned that the National Bank of Slovakia (NBS) might intervene against continued strengthening of the Slovak currency. NBS Governor Ivan Sramko commented on Wednesday that the gains of the Slovak crown were too steep. Because the NBS-bill auction held almost three months ago failed owing to expected tightening of Slovakia's monetary policy, no funds from maturing NBS bills entered the market at the end of the week. Next week's NBS sterilization repo tender may change the liquidity in the sector. On Wednesday SKK 159.978 billion from the maturing sterilization will return to the market.
STOCK MARKET: SAX Index Strengthens 0.22 Points at End of Week
The Bratislava Stock Exchange (BCPB) slightly improved at the end of the week. As on Thursday, shares of the power-engineering company SES Tlmace pushed up Slovakia's official SAX share index 0.05 percent or 0.22 points to 414.75 points on Friday. Turnover on the BCPB rose from SKK 517.849 million on Thursday to SKK 4.713 billion on Friday with SKK 106,400 in share trading.
FOREX MARKET: Slovak Crown at 34.82/34.86 SKK/EUR at End of Week
The exchange rate of the Slovak currency against the euro moved at 34.82/34.86 SKK/EUR before the close of trading on Friday. Tatra Banka dealer Boris Somorovsky stated that the crown opened at 34.68 /34.72 SKK/EUR. The local currency weakened up to 34.90/34.94 SKK/EUR after the NBS Governor Ivan Sramko repeated the verbal intervention that the central bank considers the crown's gains to be too steep. "Later the demand for the crown once again started to prevail on the FOREX market," Mr. Somorovsky added. The exchange rate slightly reduced its previous losses. The crown may fluctuate in the band between 34.65 SKK/EUR and 34.90 SKK/EUR over the next few days, he assumes.