V4 leaders agree on energy, immigration, but Russia remains elephant in room
The prime ministers of the Visegrad Four (V4) countries met in Prague, Czechia, for the first time in eight months, on...
Economy
Poland unlocks over EUR 100bn in EU funds
As of next week Poland can begin to access the around EUR 60bn of previously suspended COVID:19 pandemic and green funding and...
Polish FM floats new reparations solution
Poland will drop the USD 1.3tn (EUR 12.08) reparation demand made by the right-wing nationalist PiS government, which Polish Prime Minister...
CEE trade with Germany slumped in 2023
Germany’s business with Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) fell last year as the value of goods traded with the region’s 29...
Romania has overtaken Greece, Hungary – Economy minister underlines EU benefits
Romania has economically surpassed Greece, Hungary and is closing in on Poland, Romanian Economy Minister Stefan Radu Oprea underlined in a...
Hungarians increasingly displaced by guest workers – report
Foreign workers are increasingly replacing Hungarians across various sectors due to structural issues within the country’s economy. Government backing of lower-wage...
Hungary inflation to dip, GDP to rise this year – independent think tank
From Hungary's economic perspective, last year extended the trends observed in 2022, according to independent Hungarian think-tank Policy Solutions's annual report....
Czech inflation second highest ever in 2023
Czechia's rate of inflation was 10.7% last year, down from 15.1% in 2022, but still representing the country's second-highest annual inflation...
Belgian rope trick – EU presidency plan for Europe: ‘Protect, Strengthen, Prepare’
As Belgium assumed the EU presidency on 1 January, with a rallying cry of "Protect, Strengthen, Prepare", Belgian Prime Minister Alexander...
Poland applies to join EPPO as Tusk returns
Donald Tusk was elected as Poland’s prime minister as his government won a vote of confidence in the parliament on Tuesday,...
Fico calls Ukraine ‘frozen conflict’
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has reiterated his stance that Russia's war with Ukraine is insoluble, stoking fears that he could...
Czechia upped to stable rating, after delinking from Russian gas
US rating agency Moody's Investors Service has increased its outlook for Czechia from negative to stable, meaning a rating deterioration is...
Hungary may receive billion euros from EU
The European Commission (EC) proposed a shortcut for Hungary to nearly EUR 1bn from its revised national recovery plan on Thursday...
Bosnian leader hopeful on EU step by year end
Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) intends to fulfil the conditions set by the European Commission (EC) to open accession negotiations before the...
‘No new taxes’ as Romania cracks down on evasion
Romania will not levy new taxes next year, Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu pledged on Thursday 16 November, with parliamentary elections...
CEE inflation eases, but V4 still EU outliers
Hungary remained the EU's most inflationary economy with an annual rate of 9.6% in October, an EU statistics office Eurostat report released Friday...
Auto sector slides down large company list – Coface CEE Top 500 study
Automotive and Transport has dropped to third place amongst large companies in CEE, as business sectors of Central and Eastern European...
Moment of truth for Orban – ING’s report on Poland, Czechia, Romania, Hungary
Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) is becoming increasingly diversified, ING Bank writes in a new report on Poland, Czechia, Romania and...
Hungary MOU with Huawei angers US
A memorandum of understanding (MOU) signing between Hungary's 4iG and China’s Huawei, both controversial companies close to their respective governments, has...
Von der Leyen vows to double WB economies in decade
The EU will finance Western Balkans (WB) integration reforms to the tune of EUR 6bn, European Commission President Ursula von der...