Bearings Producer Kinex Earns Net Profit of SKK 134.75 Mln. in 2002

Engineering company Kinex, a.s., Bytca closed last year with a net profit of SKK 134.75 million on total output of SKK 2.13 billion. The company made an operating profit of SKK 278.74 million, while the loss from financial operations reached SKK 105.65 million. Extraordinary profit amounted to SKK 4.09 million.

Bratislava Stock Exchange Halts Open Market Trading in 120 Issues

The Bratislava Stock Exchange (BCPB) has suspended trading in 120 issues from 114 issuers on its open market from Monday, June 16. The issuers have not met their annual disclosure duty, according to data released by the BCPB The trading ban applies, for example, to shares of insurer QBE Poistovna, chemical producer Novacke Chemicke Zavody, financial company Prva Strategicka and Drukos Banska Bystrica.

Issuers now have three months to comply with the neglected duty, otherwise the BCPB will expel the securities from trading on the open market. If the issuers meet the duty in time and deliver the required documents to the BCPB, the stock exchange will resume trading in these issues.

Stredoslovenske Zriedla „Budis“ with SKK 1.89 Mln. Profit Last Year

Stredoslovenske Zriedla, a.s. Budis, producer of mineral waters Budis and Fatra, ended last year with SKK 1.89 million profit. This is an improvement of SKK 373,000 from 2001. Operating revenues decreased to 42.67 million, which is less than 25 percent of the figure the company reported a year ago. Costs of the company went down to SKK 39.39 million, according to data disclosed by the company.

ASS Becomes Regular Member of European Association FEFSI

The Slovak Asset Management Companies Association (ASS) was admitted as a full-fledged member of the Federation of European Federation of Asset Management Associations (Federation Europenne des Fonds et Societes d’Investissement – FEFSI) on Friday, June 13. Following three years of observer status, ASS became the 22nd regular member of FEFSI at its 56th annual meeting in Budapest, chairman of the ASS board of trustees Roman Vlcek informed SITA.

Dairy Milsy Banovce nad Bebravou SKK 50 Mln. in the Red in 2002

Milsy dairy in Banovce nad Bebravou closed the year of 2002 with a loss of almost SKK 50 million after taxes. The company’s performance has worsened from the previous year since in 2001 it earned a profit of SKK 7.15 million. Even though operating revenues grew by over SKK 315 million to SKK 1.094 billion, the company reported an operating loss of SKK 33.75 million. The negative performance was ascribed to growth of operating costs, which was faster growth of revenues. Operating costs totaled SKK 1.128 billion. The dairy also deepened its loss from financial operations by over SKK 12 million to SKK 15.5 million, the company announced on Monday.

SAPPO and CESMAD Disagree with Increase of Mineral Oil Excise Tax

The planned increase of the excise tax on mineral oils is, according to the Slavomir Jankovic, representative of the Slovak Association of Petroleum Industry and Trade (SAPPO), and Ondrej Chudy from road hauliers association of the Slovak Republic, CESMAD Slovakia, a non-systemic and administrative measure. They claim that the government only pursues reducing the state budget deficit. This will fully reflect in an increased tax burden of the citizens.

Trade Unions Ready to Negotiate ZSR and ZSSK Wage Proposal

At their meeting with employers in the presence of a negotiator, scheduled for Tuesday, railway trade unions are ready to negotiate this year’s wage growth, which is lower than their original demands. „We must face the current real situation on the railways,“ vice-chairman of the Railway Trade Union (OZZ), Peter Rozloznik told SITA, pointing to the economic possibilities for both railway companies. According to OZZ, representing about 80 percent of all railway employees, ten out of eleven trade union federations share a similar stance and only the Engine Drivers Federation is pushing for original demands.

Tatra Banka with SKK 2.578 Bln. Consolidated Net Profit in 2002

According to Slovak accounting standards, Tatra Banka closed last year with a consolidated net profit of SKK 2.578 billion. The group’s profit thus decreased by almost 19 percent from 2001. The balance-sheet total of Tatra Banka stood at SKK 120.117 billion in late 2002, up 7.3 percent y/y, the company informed SITA.

Gas Utility SPP Closed 2002 with Gross Profit of SKK 12.6 Bln.

Gas utility and transit company Slovensky Plynarensky Priemysel (SPP) earned a gross profit of SKK 12.6 billion in 2002. Compared with the previous year this represents an increase by SKK 6.7 billion, the company announced on Monday. Total revenues increased by SKK 2.7 billion to SKK 76.3 billion. Operating revenues were SKK 71.6 billion.

Agriculture Minister Says Some Demands of Farmers Already Fulfilled

Representatives of the petition committee of the farmers‘ associations on Monday informed Agriculture Minister Zsolt Simon about their preparedness to organize protest actions if the government does not discuss their demands. According to Mr. Simon, the ministry responded to the farmers petition on time, while some of their demands included in the petition have already been fulfilled. Among them, for example, the transfer of SKK 250 million from the Slovak Land Fund to the Agricultural Intervention Agency allocated for market regulation of farm commodities.

FOREX MARKET: Slovak Crown Stopped Firming on Monday

In trading on the FOREX market on Monday the Slovak crown was flat when it closed trading against its reference currency the euro at 41.350/390 SKK/EUR, marginally up from the opening level of 41.320/340 SKK/EUR. CSOB dealer Andrej Zeman said that the Czech currency, which weakened after the referendum on the Czech Republic’s entry into the EU, halted the Slovak currency’s firming. The lowest level reported for the Slovak crown on Monday was below 41.33 SKK/EUR. The U.S. dollar got to 1.190 USD/EUR. The Slovak crown was thus quoted at 34.860/34.900 SKK/USD. The cross rate of the Slovak and Czech crowns was 1.3190/1.3210 SKK/CZK.

MONEY MARKET: Trading on Slovakia’s Money Market Quiet on Monday

Activity was low on the money market at the beginning of the week. At the close of the session, overnights and tom/nexts moved at the morning level of 7.8/8.1 percent p.a. Tatra Banka dealer Michal Stano informed that commercial banks deposited SKK 24.388 billion in their reserve accounts in the central bank, meeting the minimum reserve requirement on a cumulative basis at 102.35 percent on Monday.

STOCK MARKET: VUB and Slovnaft Shares Weakened SAX Index

The official Slovak share index SAX weakened by 0.76 percent or 1.13 points to 147.62 points on Monday due to falling share prices of VUB bank and Slovnaft crude oil refinery. Turnover on the Bratislava Stock Exchange (BCPB) steeply decreased from SKK 1.512 billion on Friday to SKK 91.4 million on Monday with SKK 33.5 million in share trading.

Gas Utility SPP Ended Last Year with SKK 8.7 Bln. Net Profit

Slovak gas utility Slovensky Plynarensky Priemysel (SPP) last year earned an after-tax profit of SKK 8.7 billion compared with 2001 when company’s net profit was SKK 404 million after a special transfer to the state budget of SKK 4.2 billion. Company’s pre-tax profit almost doubled, when it increased by SKK 6.7 billion y/y to SKK 12.6 billion in 2002. Total revenues increased SKK 2.7 billion y/y to SKK 76.3 billion. Total costs before income taxes declined SKK 4 billion to SKK 63.7 billion, SPP director general Ivan Lapunik announced at an annual press conference on Monday. SPP will pay dividends to its shareholders totaling SKK 7.59 billion, out of this as the majority shareholder, the government will get SKK 3.9 billion.

Philip Morris Slovakia Says New Excise will not Increase Tax Revenue

Cigarette producer Philip Morris Slovakia objects to the planned excise tax rise on tobacco and tobacco products. It argues that the increase from the current excise tax of SKK 950 to SKK 1,400 per 1,000 cigarettes as of July 1, 2003 would not result in the anticipated effect of greater tax collected. „The government can only collect taxes from clients able to pay,“ writes Philip Morris Slovakia in its stance released on Monday. The company maintains that the planned hike in excise tax on cigarettes would increase consumption of imported products with a lower tax burden.

The company proposes increasing excise tax on cigarettes to SKK 1,100 per 1,000 cigarettes. The cabinet’s proposal increases the retail price of the most popular cigarettes by almost 25 percent, while Philip Morris Slovakia’s proposal increases it by only 9 percent.

Commissioner Liikanen Criticizes Veto of Telecom Law’s Revision

Erkki Liikanen, Erkki Liikanen, EU Commissioner for the Enterprise and the Information Society, criticized some practices of telecommunications operators in Slovakia at the conference Tele.com 2003 – Slovakia on the Road to Market Liberalization. He was critical of the fact that interconnection charges for calls from the fixed-line network to those of mobile operators are listed as confidential information. Simultaneously he criticized the presidential veto on the revision to the telecommunications law. „It is sad to hear that the revision, which could have improved the situation, was returned to parliament,“ said Mr. Liikanen at the conference.

Transport Minister Meets EU Commissioner for Information Society

On Monday Transport Minister Pavol Prokopovic met Erkki Liikanen, EU Commissioner for the Enterprise and the Information Society and Eric van der Linden, the European Commission’s Ambassador to Slovakia, Transport Ministry spokesman Tomas Sarluska told SITA.

Economic Ministers Recommend to Sell SAD Zilina to SIRS a.s.

On Monday, ministers with economic portfolio recommended the Slovak cabinet to sell a 49-percent stake in public bus transport company Slovenska Autobusova Doprava (SAD) Zilina to investment company and real estate dealer Slovenska Investicna a Realitna Spolocnost, a.s., Zilina (SIRS). Finance Minister Ivan Miklos informed on Monday evening. SIRS is supposed to acquire 49 percent of SAD Zilina for SKK 140 million along with an option to additional 17 percent for SKK 36.194 million.