EconomyOther Economy

FoE-CEPA Urges Radicova to Halt \"Overpriced PPP Highway Projects\"

Ponicka Huta, June 22 (TASR) - Friends of the Earth-CEPA and other civic organisations grouped within Ekoforum are urging the likely new Prime Minister Iveta Radicova to make sure that the new Government will immediately halt the squandering of public money vis-a-vis public-private partnership (PPP) highway construction projects, TASR learnt on Tuesday. According to the… read more

Average of €516,000 per Working Day Collected in E-Toll in May

Bratislava, June 22 (TASR) - An average of €516,000 per working day was collected in the electronic road toll system in May, Lenka Lendacka from SkyToll, the system's operator, told TASR on Tuesday. As far as the entire month of May is concerned, a total of €7.2 million was collected in road toll, with €4.85 million tolled on selected stretches of 1st class roads… read more

It Takes More Than A Year on Average for the Unemployed to Find a New Job

Bratislava, June 21 (TASR) - An unemployed Slovak spends more than 13 months on average finding a new job, according to a report released by the Labour, Social Affairs and the Family Centre (UPSVaR) on Monday. The period of registration with job centres has gone up by 2.67 months year-on-year. "It's a practical reflection of the fact that the slight stabilisation on the… read more

Beblavy: Slovakia Should Look to Scandinavian Model for Inspiration

Bratislava, June 21 (TASR) - The manifesto of the future government should reflect the so-called Scandinavian model, SDKU-DS MP Miroslav Beblavy said at an international anti-crisis conference held in Bratislava on Monday. "The values upheld by countries like Denmark or Sweden represent our priorities - namely, improving transparency, have a modern education system, equal… read more

NBS Magazine: Housing Prices Should Begin to Fall More Slowly

Bratislava, June 21 (TASR) - The prices of flats and houses in the 'new EU-member states' will fall more slowly year-on-year in the next few months, Mikulas Car from the Slovak central bank (NBS) has written in NBS's magazine Biatec. Car noted that Slovakia was among countries that experienced a year-on-year fall in average real-estate prices in the first quarter of 2010.… read more

Analysts: Developments in Jobless Rate Uncertain

Bratislava, June 21 (TASR) - The latest data on Slovakia's unemployment rate indicate a revival in industrial production, as the jobless rate fell from 12.52 percent in April to 12.24 percent in May, analysts told TASR on Monday. The unemployment rate is predicted to continue to drop in the months ahead. "This should be partly thanks to seasonal jobs and the continuing… read more

Reform to Levy System Should Take Place, But Not via Levy Bonus

Bratislava, June 21 (TASR) - Even though Freedom and Solidarity (SaS) chairman Richard Sulik declared a so-called levy bonus as one of SaS's main priorities, it isn't certain whether the party can push the measure through, according to information in the media on Monday. The levy bonus would represent a considerable reform to the levy system in Slovakia. Some reforms… read more

Unemployment Rate Drops to 12.24 percent in May

Bratislava, June 21 (TASR) - Unemployment in Slovakia stood at 12.24 percent in May, which represents a drop of 0.28 percentage points month-on-month, the Labour, Social Affairs and the Family Centre (UPSVaR) announced on Monday. A total of 375,161 job-seekers were registered at job centres in May. Even though their number was lower than in April, the same figure rose… read more

Slovakia Signs Agreement With Israel on Social Security Benefits

Bratislava, June 20 (TASR) - Slovakia and Israel signed an agreement on June 15 that is designed to ensure that citizens working in each other's countries will remain entitled to social-security benefits after returning home, it was announced several days later. Labour, Social Affairs and Family Minister Viera Tomanova, who signed the agreement with Israel's ambassador… read more

Only Four of Eight Social Enterprises Survive

Bratislava, June 18 (TASR) - The original eight pilot social enterprises have been reduced to only four, TASR was informed by spokesman of the Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs and the Family Michal Stuska on Friday. This is because the Labour Ministry cancelled contracts with the one called Arvik (in Bardejov, Presov region), that established in Revuca (Banska Bystrica… read more

Financial Conclusion of D1 Construction Likely to Be Postponed Again

Bratislava, June 18 (TASR) - The financial regime for the D1 highway construction via the public-private-partnership (PPP) project, postponed for the fourth time, now to June 30, is again very unlikely to be closed this time, according to information published by Hospodarske Noviny. This is because if the current Government fails to make the deadline, and the new centre-right… read more

Centre-Right Govt to Sell Cargo, Airport and Small Energy Companies

Bratislava, June 18 (TASR) - The four centre-right parties in talks to form a new Cabinet agree on the need to resume the privatisation of underperforming state companies and use the proceeds to reduce public debt and kickstart new development projects. "We intend to find strategic partners for the Slovak rail freight company ZSSK Cargo and the Bratislava airport. Halting… read more

Fico: Slovak \'No\' to Greece May Storm Financial Markets in Europe

Brussels, June 17 (TASR) – Slovak Premier Robert Fico told reporters on Thursday in Brussels that all EU leaders have been asking him if it's likely that the emerging centre-right coalition in Slovakia would say 'no' to the loan for Greece, and if the Union's financial mechanism, worth €750 billion, might be really blocked by Slovakia. Fico said that the EU leaders… read more

Kempinski Hotel River Park Opens in Bratislava

Bratislava, June 17 (TASR) - The five-star Kempinski Hotel River Park hotel opened for business Thursday on the left bank of the Danube River in Bratislava and is a key part of the multi-purpose River Park complex, which is still under construction in several areas. "Some €70 million has been invested in the building of the hotel, which involved 1,200 people," said… read more

Likely Future Gov\'t To Reevaluate PPP Projects

Bratislava, June 17 (TASR) - The likely future Slovak government made up of SDKU-DS, Freedom and Solidarity (SaS), the Christian Democratic Movement (KDH) and Most-Hid wants to re-evaluate the construction of roads financed through public-private partnership (PPP) projects, it was revealed Thursday in a joint briefing. All four parties, however, announced at the same… read more