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A schedule of all the main events involving Slovenia this week can be found here
This summary is provided by the STA:
SDS, SMC, NSi and DeSUS agree to form govt
LJUBLJANA - The top bodies of the Democrats (SDS), Modern Centre Party (SMC), New Slovenia (NSi) and Pensioners' Party (DeSUS) confirmed entry in a coalition led by SDS head Janez Janša. The SDS's proposal to appoint Janša prime minister was submitted to President Borut Pahor, who makes the formal nomination. Outgoing Prime Minister Marjan Šarec said he was not surprised at the prospect of a new Janša government, which he saw from the start as one of the possible outcomes of his resignation.
Serbian govt unofficially decides to sell bank to NLB
BELGRADE, Serbia - The Serbian government has decided to sell the 83% state stake in the bank Komercijalna Banka to the Slovenian market leader NLB, the local newspaper Blic reported, citing unofficial information. The paper reports that the contract to sell the bank, which has a 11% market share in Serbia, is ready and is to be signed soon. It is not clear how much NLB is to pay for Komercijalna Banka, but media reported in the past months that its bid reached up to EUR 450 million.
Former Chinese lessee of Maribor Airport to sue the state
MARIBOR - A company in Chinese ownership that used to lease the Maribor Airport plans to file a damage suit against the state after it terminated the lease in early 2019, whereupon the airport management was turned over to a state-owned consulting and engineering company. Aerodrom Maribor said it will demand EUR 2.1 million in damages plus costs and lost profits. The lawsuit will claim that the state dragged its feet on the adoption of a zoning plan that would have allowed the airport to extend the runway, and engaged in violations of the law by continuing to use real estate at the airport that the company owns. Infrastructure Minister Alenka Bratušek said the plaintiff had absolutely no chance of success.
Slovenia hopeful N Macedonia, Albania will get EU talks approval in March
BRUSSELS, Belgium - Foreign Ministry State Secretary Matej Marn, attending an EU ministerial on a recently-proposed reform of the enlargement process, said that based on the debate, it was very likely that North Macedonia and Albania will get the green light to start accession talks in March. EU member states also unanimously confirmed the guidelines for negotiations on future relations with Great Britain, with Marn listing the economic aspects of the ties at the top of the priorities highlighted by Slovenia.
Ambassadors from Sweden, South Africa present credentials
LJUBLJANA - President Borut Pahor was presented with the credentials of newly appointed Swedish Ambassador Dag Hartelius and South African Ambassador Rapulane Sydney Molekane. Hartelius has previously served as ambassador to Poland and Estonia as well as permanent representative of Sweden to the EU. Molekane's most recent posting before becoming South African ambassador to Austria, Slovenia and Slovakia was ambassador to France, Monaco and permanent delegate of South Africa to the UNESCO. Molekane will cover Slovenia from Vienna, while Hartelius will be based out of Budapest.
Banks report continued decline in fresh retail loans
LJUBLJANA - The Bank Association has observed a "marked fall" in freshly approved retail loans in the months following the central bank's brake on lending to households, both for consumer and housing loans. Data that 13 banks submitted to the association show the number of newly approved consumer loans reduced from 10,816 in September and 13,484 in October to 5,566 in November, 5,009 in December and 6,277 in January. The number of housing loans dropped from 1,154 in September, 1,701 in October, 1,160 in November, 984 in December and 1,019 in January.
Cimos profit plummets
KOPER - Car parts maker Cimos recorded EUR 180,432 in profit last year, a significant drop from EUR 4.7 million in 2018. Operating revenue dropped from EUR 211.1 million to EUR 187 million. Sales revenue reached EUR 184.9 million, down from EUR 203.9 million in 2018. Cimos said the results were in line with plans except in the part connected to the new projects for car maker Audi, where the start of a serial production was delayed because of the situation on all markets.
Public institutions taking precautionary measures to protect against coronavirus
LJUBLJANA - Public institutions started taking precautionary measures to protect staff against coronavirus infections after first cases of the virus were confirmed in neighbouring Italy, Austria and Croatia. Some schools have cancelled planned activities, including parent-teacher conferences and international exchanges. The University of Ljubljana called on all students and faculty who have been to parts of Italian affected by the coronavirus over last ten days to remain in self-imposed quarantine for two weeks. Meanwhile, retailers report increased footfall as shoppers grabbed by panic are stocking up.
Slovenia's tourism bullish in January
LJUBLJANA - Slovenian tourism figures recorded an upward trend in January. The number of tourists grew by 8% year-on-year, while the number of nights increased by some 4%, show Statistics Office data. Almost 286,000 arrivals and some 789,000 nights were recorded in January. Foreign tourists accounted for 64% of all nights. Domestic arrivals totalled some 97,000, a 8% increase compared to the same month in 2019. International arrivals grew by 8% year-on-year as well, to 189,000.
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