In total 6 of 17 countries from Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) made the top 50 for fastest internet speeds, with an average download speed of 76.58 Mbps, placing it the 4th global region. CEE’s top performers were Slovakia, Hungary, and Romania, with average speeds of 145.19
Transport was on the agenda when Lithuanian Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte, Latvia Prime Minister Evika Silina, and Estonian Prime Minister Kristen Michal met in Klaipeda, west Lithuania, at the weekend. The Rail Baltica, a high-speed rail connection across the Baltic states, is encountering significant challenges and rising costs, drawing concern
Enlight Renewable Energy, a prominent player in the green energy sector, began production and sales at its EUR 43.29mn Tapolca solar project in west Hungary 60MW ahead of schedule on 31 July. The Tapolca project will meet the annual needs of about 30,000 Hungarian households, selling electricity at
The September 26, 2022 sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines, a major European energy conduit running from Russia to Germany, remains shrouded in controversy and suspicion nearly two years after the explosions. Investigations have so far failed to definitively pinpoint the perpetrators, but recent reports have added a new complexity
The expansion and modernisation of the NATO air base in Constanta, south-east Romania, symbolises the country’s growing strategic importance to NATO and the US, regional expert Ronald H. Linden writes in an article entitled “Romania is America’s new indispensable ally in Eastern Europe” in US politics daily The
Kosovo President Vjosa Osmani was involved in an altercation that became a diplomatic incident in Skopje, North Macedonia, where airport security demanded she hand over her mobile phone for scanning, on Thursday, 1 August. The incident began after the Kosovar head of state refused to hand her mobile phone to
Polish growth private equity firm bValue has successfully raised EUR 90mn for its third fund, significantly boosting its investment capacity. Particularly keen on exploring investment opportunities in Romania, bValue has a strategic focus on software, IT services, and e-commerce, and plans to invest between EUR 5mn and 15mn per project.
Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) is making notable strides in the e-commerce arena, driven by increasing digital adoption and a burgeoning online market, according to a recent analysis by Polish IT solutions provider Exorigo Upos. In 2023, CEE’s e-commerce penetration was 55%, lagging Western Europe’s 80%, underscoring the
The new report on rule of law and governance by the European Commission (EC) gives a mixed picture on Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) anti-corruption efforts, judicial independence, media freedom, and legislative practices. The EC’s Rule of Law Report 2024, its 5th, included assessments of developments in Bulgaria, Czechia,
Hungary has borrowed EUR 1bn (approximately USD 1.1bn) from Chinese banks earlier this year, according to the country’s debt management agency, AKK, local business website Portfolio reported, based on public data. The loan, taken on 19 April, is a 3-year, floating-rate agreement with the China Development Bank, the
Bulgaria has extended a helping hand to Hungary in managing the fallout from Ukraine’s recent ban on the transit of oil from Russia’s Lukoil, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto, announced in Bucharest, Romania, on Wednesday 24 July. Szijjarto detailed how he and Bulgarian Energy Minister Vladimir Malinov had
Despite only starting its EU rotating presidency on 1 July, Hungary has already made it one of the more memorable of these ordinarily uneventful 6-month tenures. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban spent the first week of his presidency on a self-styled “peace mission”, when he visited Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy,
Slovakia and Hungary have vehemently criticised Ukraine’s recent decision to halt the transit of Russian Lukoil oil to Hungary, with Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto describing it as “incomprehensible and unacceptable”. These sanctions prevent Lukoil from renting the Druzhba (Friendship) pipeline for transit purposes. As approximately 70% of the
Serbia would receive an annual EUR 31mn from mining rent at current prices, making the planned lithium mine project “not worth even the slightest risk” according to Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts (SANU) economist Bosko Mijatovic. Lithium is considered a critical material by the EU and the US, due
Poland has an improved investment climate and access to EU funding are expected to support this revival, according to a new cautiously optimism report by ING Bank Slqski and the European Economic Congress (EEC). The report presents a comprehensive analysis of the current state and future prospects of investment in