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This summary is provided by the STA:
Slovenia reportedly sending tanks to Ukraine in a weapon swap
BERLIN, Germany - The German news agency dpa reported that Germany had concluded agreements to send heavy weapons to Ukraine with several other European countries, including Slovenia, which would send its tanks to Ukraine in return for tanks and armoured personnel carriers from Germany's own stock. The Slovenian Defence Ministry initially said it could not comment, but then told the STA that Defence Minister Matej Tonin and his German counterpart Christine Lambrecht discussed via video call on Wednesday "how allied countries can help Ukraine to defend itself against Russian aggression, and from this aspect, various ways in which Slovenia and Germany can jointly help Ukraine".
Janša and Blinken discuss support for Ukraine
LJUBLJANA - PM Janez Janša and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken underlined in a phone call the need to continue supporting Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity with strong security support. Blinken thanked Slovenia for its clear support for Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity, and Janša expressed gratitude for the US's strategically important role in providing security of the European NATO members and for its diplomatic, humanitarian and defence efforts to help Ukraine. The pair also condemned the atrocities of the Russian forces in the war against Ukraine and stressed that Moscow should be held accountable, Janša's office said.
Turnout reaches almost 5% in first two days of early voting
LJUBLJANA - A total of 84,209 people or 4.97% of all eligible voters cast their ballots in the first two days of the three-day early voting for the 24 April general election, a significant increase over what was already a record turnout in early voting for the waters act referendum last July. The figure also exceeds the overall turnout for the 2018 early voting, which was at 3.1%.
Valicon expects tough battle for election victory, high turnout
LJUBLJANA - Pollster Valicon expects a tough battle for election victory this Sunday. The Freedom Movement is just slightly ahead of the Democrats (SDS) and the Social Democrats (SD), New Slovenia (NSi) and the Left will most probably get into parliament. The fate of three parties - Alenka Bratušek Party (SAB), Marjan Šarec List (LMŠ) and Connecting Slovenia - is to be decided by tactical voters. Resni.ca and the Pirates may also become parliamentary parties, but the actual turnout will be decisive. Valicon estimates the turnout will be at around 68%, at least 62% but possibly even at 73%.
SD says it will be cornerstone of stability in next govt
LJUBLJANA - The Social Democrats (SD) will continue defending the fundamental values of social justice and democracy, SD leader Tanja Fajon said as she addressed the party's last major event before the general election. She is convinced that the SD will be the cornerstone of stability in the new government. "We'll protect the social justice of Slovenia, we will guarantee that we have democracy in the country, that all people live in freedom." Judging by the high turnout in early voting, Fajon believes that voters want change, a new start.
Parliamentary speaker urges votes to go to the polls
LJUBLJANA - National Assembly Speaker Igor Zorčič urged voters to go to the polls this Sunday, as he termed the general election "a holiday of democracy" in a statement. Zorčič, who is not standing for election, called on voters to take a decision on their future and vote for those whom them trust. Some 1.7 voters will head to the polls on Sunday in what will be the ninth election for a new, 90-seat parliament. The newly-elected MPs are expected to hold their maiden session on 13 May.
Slovenian pavilion opens at 59th Venice Biennale (adds)
VENICE, Italy - The Slovenian pavilion at the 59th Venice Biennale opened with the exhibition of paintings by Marko Jakše, one of Slovenia's most acclaimed painters, known for his surrealist Daliesque canvases. Jakše represents Slovenia at the prestigious visual art exhibition with the Without a Master display, which brings 13 canvases the 62-year-old artist has made in this century. The pavilion was inaugurated by Culture Minister Vasko Simoniti, but Jakše could not attend the opening.
Illegal crossings of border up almost 80% in first quarter
LJUBLJANA - Slovenian police recorded 2,023 attempts at illegal crossing of the border in the first three months of the year, an increase of 77.5% over the same period last year. Afghanis accounted for over a third of all those intercepted, the latest police statistics show. A total of 664 migrants were returned to foreign law enforcement, a 60% increase over the year before, with the vast majority returned to Croatia.
Poll shows Slovenians increasingly distrustful of media
LJUBLJANA - Slovenians are increasingly distrustful of the education system and teachers and the media and journalists with the public broadcaster RTV Slovenija sinking most in their regard, a Velicon poll suggests. The Covid-19 epidemic caused major shifts in public trust in institutions and professions, but as the police and healthcare and doctors have since regained some trust in the eyes of the public, media and education keep loosing it. Slovenian small businesses continue to top the ranking of trustworthy institutions, the level of trust in which has increased further since the last poll in October 2021 to 65 on the scale of -100 to +100.
Heating oil price regulation extended by a month
LJUBLJANA - The government extended the regulation of heating oil prices under which retailers' margin is capped at six cents per litre. The decree entered into force today and is valid for 30 days. The base price to which the margin is added is calculated as a 14-day average price that takes into account prices on Mediterranean markets, the euro-dollar exchange rate and several other variables.
Telekom Slovenije net profit up 52% to EUR 38m last year, revenue flat
LJUBLJANA - Telekom Slovenije posted a group net profit of EUR 37.9 million for 2021, an increase of 52% over the year before, on sales revenue that was broadly flat at EUR 648.2 million. Earnings before interest, taxes, amortisation and depreciation (EBITDA) totalled EUR 220.8 million, an increase of 5%, with earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) reaching EUR 51.7 million in 2021, up 21%, the company said. The group earmarked a total of EUR 208.2 million for investments in 2021.
Petrol shareholders to get EUR 30 dividend
LJUBLJANA - The shareholders of energy company Petrol decided to distribute practically the entire distributable profit from last year, or EUR 61.8 million, meaning that they will receive EUR 30 gross per share, which is EUR 8 more than in 2021. The shareholders also confirmed the management's proposal to split one Petrol share into 20 shares in order to improve liquidity and attract new investors. The revevant procedures will get under way on 19 August to no cost or inconvenience to the shareholders.
Bad bank ups pre-tax profit by 57% to EUR 63m last year
LJUBLJANA - The Bank Assets Management Company finished 2021 with EUR 178.4 million in revenue from asset management and a pre-tax profit of EUR 63.2 million, up by 57% year-on-year. The average annual return on equity, whose target value under law is set at 8%, reached 25%, the annual report shows. From its inception in March 2013 until the end of last year, the bad bank generated over EUR 2.083 billion in revenue, which is 100.2% of the cumulative transferred value of assets it got from commercial banks.
SID Bank reports profit surge as lending up by 10%
LJUBLJANA - SID Banka, the state-owned development bank, nearly trebled net profit in 2021 to EUR 24 million while keeping up high-level of crediting to help the economy recover from the Covid-19 pandemic. The volume of lending was up by about 10%. The bank's total assets declined by 2.5% in a year to EUR 2.83 billion as of the end of 2021, which is still 18% above the figure in 2019 before the Covid-19 crisis. In the introduction to the annual report, SID Banka CEO Damijan Dolinar said 2021 was a period of the economy's adjustment in the wake contraction caused by Covid-19 where the bank helped by retaining a high level of financing.
Mutual fund managers call for favourable taxation to encourage investment
LJUBLJANA - Mutual fund management companies, looking for ways to popularise investments in funds as deposits in banks are reaching record levels, addressed a call ahead of the general election for a more favourable taxation in order to encourage investments. "We expect from the new government equal treatment in terms of regulation of tax incentives for all players on the capital market," said Mira Koporčić Veljić of the Slovenian Investment Fund Association.
Nova KBM shareholders allocate almost EUR 109m for dividends
MARIBOR - The shareholders of Nova KBM bank decided that almost EUR 109 million of last year's distributable profit will be allocated for dividends, or EUR 10.89 gross per share, according to the minutes of last week's shareholder meeting. The bank's distributable profit stood at EUR 446.52 million, with EUR 337.59 remaining undistributed.
Public health institute proposes priority vaccination for Ukrainian children
LJUBLJANA - The National Institute of Public Health proposed that Ukrainian child refugees be vaccinated in line with the vaccination schedule in place for Slovenian children, arguing it was of paramount importance for public health in the country that refugees be vaccinated. Jabs against measles and polio have been singled out as a top priority for children in the event they do not have written documentation or it cannot be reliably proven otherwise that they have been inoculated against the two viruses.
Coronavirus cases down by fifth on week before
LJUBLJANA - Slovenia confirmed 1,255 new cases of coronavirus on Wednesday, a week-on-week decrease of almost 20%. Hospital numbers declined, Health Ministry data show. Three patients with Covid-19 died. The overall number of patients with Covid stood at 245 this morning, down by 14, of whom 99 were in hospital with Covid as their primary diagnosis, down by six.
New gene bank for Šentjernej rooster opens
ŠENTJERNEJ - A new gene bank with some 100 specimens of the Šentjernej rooster breed opened in Šentjernej, south-east, today. The project is a collaboration of the cultural and ethnological association Gallus Bartholomaeus, the Agriculture Ministry and the Department of Natural Sciences at Ljubljana's Biotehnical Faculty. Some EUR 20,000 were annually invested in the the project by 2010, with the ministry and the faculty funding experts, while breeders helped cover the remaining costs.
Translator Koncut conferred French Arts and Letters Order
LJUBLJANA - The French Institute in Slovenia decorated translator Suzana Koncut with the rank of Officer of the Order of Arts and Letters for her work in literary translation, notably in the past six years. The second-rank cross was conferred on Koncut on Wednesday for her numerous translations of French plays, works on humanities and social sciences, as well as comics.
Maribor launches bike share system
MARIBOR - The city of Maribor launched a bicycle sharing system called Mbajk that currently comprises 21 docking stations and 210 bicycles spread across the broader area of the city centre. The first hour of rental is free of charge. The system is scheduled to officially open after the May Day holidays. The bikes are for single-ride hire, not for multi-hour or full-day hire.
