EconomyOther Economy

Most Slovaks Reluctant to Pay for Access to Internet Sites

Bratislava, July 12 (TASR) - Most internet users in Slovakia wouldn't use internet sites if they were made subject to payment, according to an opinion poll carried out by Mediaresearch on 519 respondents in the latter half of June. Nearly 90 percent expect news portals such as hnonline.sk and sme.sk to begin charging for news items on their websites and especially for… read more

Slovakia\'s Foreign Trade Posted Surplus of €83.4 million in May

Bratislava, July 12 (TASR) - Slovakia's foreign trade balance showed a surplus of €83.4 million in May 2010, compared with €137 million in the same month of 2009 and €340.5 million a month earlier, the Statistics Office said on Monday. The country's exports in May grew by 29.7 percent year-on-year to €3.91 billion, while imports rose by a third to €3.83 billion.… read more

Foreign Trade Posted Surplus of €536.4 mn Between January-April

Bratislava, July 12 (TASR) - Slovakia's foreign trade posted a surplus of €536.4 million between January-April 2010, which is €454.6 million more than the surplus in the same period in 2009, the Statistics Office reported on Monday. The total value of goods exported from Slovakia over the period reached €14.47 billion, which is a 17.8-percent increase year-on-year.… read more

Inflation Down to 1 percent Y-o-Y in June, Alcohol and Tobacco Prices Up

Bratislava, July 12 (TASR) - Inflation in Slovakia decelerated from 1.2 percent year-on-year in May to 1 percent in June, the Statistics Office announced on Monday. Core inflation reached 1 percent while net inflation stood at 0.9 percent y-o-y in June. Prices in June didn't change month-on-month. In the first half of 2010, meanwhile, prices rose by 0.8 percent… read more

Economy Minister Miskov: Reform of Business Environment Is Priority

Bratislava, July 11 (TASR) - Newly appointed Economy Minister Juraj Miskov (Freedom and Solidarity/SaS) told TASR on Sunday that comprehensive reform of the business environment will be his priority. "More freedom for entrepreneurs and the removal of barriers in business will be the priorities of the ministry," said the former entrepreneur and general director of the… read more

Kollar: Economic Programmes of SaS and SDKU Almost Identical

Bratislava, July 11 (TASR) - The adoption of the most important economic laws will depend heavily on co-operation between the two strongest parties of the new governing Coalition - SDKU-DS and Freedom and Solidarity (SaS), as the Finance Ministry is headed by Ivan Miklos (SDKU) while the parliamentary finance and budget committee is chaired by SaS's Jozef Kollar. "The… read more

Dragun: Oil Pipeline Alternative Routes Not Available

Bratislava, July 7 (TASR) - The Economy and Construction Ministry officially confirmed that it does not have any alternative routes for the projected Bratislava-Schwechat pipeline prepared, TASR learned from chairman of civil association 'No to the Pipeline through Zitny Ostrov' Miroslav Dragun on Wednesday. According to Dragun, the members of the association came to… read more

Pociatek: Next Government Has €300 mn to Squeeze Deficit to 5.5 percent

Bratislava, July 7 (TASR) - Maintaining the originally envisaged 5.5-percent public-finance deficit is still a realistic plan for this year, even though the Finance Ministry's latest prognosis speaks about 6.98 percent, said outgoing Finance Minister Jan Pociatek (Smer-SD nominee) on Wednesday. Pociatek stated that the next government will be able to use a reserve fund… read more

Many Slovaks Can\'t Distinguish Between Debit and Credit Cards

Bratislava, July 6 (TASR) - A significant number of bank clients in Slovakia doesn't know whether they own a debit or a credit card, according to a survey recently carried out by the Social Research Centre - Infostat. One third of the respondents claim that they withdraw cash with a credit card, while only 17 percent said they used their debit card. The information is… read more

Social Enterprises Have Received More Than €2 million in EU Subsidies

Bratislava, July 6 (TASR) - Slovakia's social enterprises, set up with the stated aim of employing socially disadvantaged and disabled people, have to date received €2.08 million in European Social Fund (ESF) subsidies with government approval, the Labour, Social Affairs and the Family Ministry said on Tuesday. The subsidies were suspended pending investigations into… read more

Tourism to Come Under Transport Ministry, Not Culture

Bratislava, July 6 (TASR) - The outgoing and incoming governments have differing views on which ministry should have responsibility for tourism. The outgoing Government transferred the remit for tourism from the Economy Ministry to the newly-formed Ministry of Culture and Tourism as of July 1. However, the incoming rightist government wants to move responsibility… read more

SACR Promoted Slovakia at 26 Fairs in 1H10

Bratislava, July 6 (TASR) - The Slovak Tourism Agency (SACR) promoted Slovakia as a tourist destination at 26 expos and fairs in the first half of 2010, organising 50 presentations and workshops, as well as 23 info-trips for international journalists. "At the beginning of the year, the agency presented Slovakia at the Winter Olympics at Vancouver in Canada, addressing… read more

Survey: Fewer Tax Inspections But Higher Taxes Imposed

Bratislava, July 5 (TASR) - In spite of an ongoing year-on-year drop in tax inspections, the amount of taxes imposed after such inspections has been on the rise in the past few years, according to a survey by Deloitte Slovensko. According to the survey, which included more than 100 companies from across Slovakia, more than 70 of them recorded no or at most one inspection… read more

Most Companies Don\'t Appeal Additional Taxation, Even Though They Can

Bratislava, July 4 (TASR) - The majority (77 percent) of large-size companies in Slovakia don't appeal against rulings of tax inspectors, even if they have doubts as to whether tax officials imposed additional taxes correctly. This is according to a survey on tax inspections recently carried out by a business-consultancy company Deloitte Slovensko. "Even if the relations… read more

PAS: Elimination of Corruption Is Top Priority for Business Environment

Bratislava, July 2 (TASR) - According to the Slovak Business Alliance (PAS), the elimination of corruption is the absolute priority as far as improving the business environment is concerned, PAS executive director Robert Kicina said at a press conference in Bratislava on Friday. According to Kicina, speaking during the presentation of 'A Report on The Business Environment… read more