Bulgaria has resumed discussions with Russian state energy company Gazprom regarding the country’s natural gas supplies, interim Energy Minister Rossen Hristov announced at a press conference late last week. Hristov, who is serving in Prime Minister’s Galab Donev’s caretaker government ahead of an election in the Balkan
Slovakia, Hungary, Romania and Moldova were among the European countries most affected by low rainfall rates in the three months up to 10 August, according to the latest report from the European Commission (EC) research body Global Drought Observatory (GDO). Other badly hit regions in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE)
Vodafone Group has agreed to sell its Hungarian subsidiary to the Hungarian state and government-affiliated systems integrator 4iG for HUF 715bn (EUR 1.75bn) in a cash purchase, the parties announced on Monday. According to the preliminary, non-binding agreement, 4iG would own 51% of Vodafone Magyarorszag, and the cash-strapped Hungarian
EU economy greenhouse gas emissions were up year-on-year in the first quarter of 2022, at 1.029 billion tonnes, but were still slightly lower than before the global pandemic, according to data from the EU statistics office Eurostat. In Q1 of 2019, greenhouse gases (mainly carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide
Estonia has repelled its most severe hacking attack in 15 years, the government announced on Thursday. The hack of the previous day targeted 207 Estonian institutions, including its main online payment platform, according to the country’s digital communications officials. The country’s main banks, health, home, public and education
The French prosecutor’s office has opened a money laundering investigation into Andrej Babis’s purchase of luxury property in France through a number of offshore companies, Le Monde reported. The Slovak-born oligarch became prime minister of Czechia in 2017 but was voted out of office last October after his
The world’s largest battery maker, China’s Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL), has agreed to build a three trillion forint (EUR 7.6bn) production plant in Debrecen, east Hungary. Hungarian Foreign Ministry state secretary Levente Magyar said the deal represents the largest ever greenfield investment in the history of the
After months of deliberation, Estonia banned Russian citizens with tourist visas from entering its territory on Thursday, effective as of next week. In a move that Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas described as “necessary”, over 50,000 visas will be rescinded, according to Russian state news agency TASS. Estonia Foreign
Crude oil flows to Hungary, Slovakia and Czechia will recommence after Hungarian energy firm MOL paid the August transit fee for usage of the southern, Ukrainian section of the Druzhba pipeline on Wednesday. Ukraine suspended Russian oil flows through the pipeline on Thursday 4 August, Russian pipeline operator Transneft said
Corruption is considered a very serious problem by 59% of business leaders in Romania, the highest percentage in the EU, according to a recent survey from Ipsos European Public Affairs. Perceptions of graft vary greatly across the continent and business sectors, according to the pollster, which was commissioned to carry
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has recommended that European governments let consumers bear the brunt of rocketing domestic energy bills, in part to encourage power saving. In the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, energy consumer prices are rising 40% year-on-year in the euro zone, drastically reducing disposable incomes,
Estonia is top in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) and seventh in the EU as a whole in the new European Commission (EC) Digital Economy and Society Index (DESI) rankings for 2022. The Baltic country, often nicknamed e-Estonia, was also placed first in the EU for its digital public services.
Hungary’s currency, the forint, has in recent weeks plumbed all-time lows against the euro. Although currencies are dropping across Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) due to the war in Ukraine and its resultant sanctions, the forint’s fall has been the region’s most precipitous. The fall of the
Bulgarian voters are set to go to the polls for the fourth time in two years after President Rumen Radev called an election for 2 October and then appointed a caretaker government on Tuesday. Galab Donev, a former employment minister began his two-month stint as interim prime minister on Tuesday,
The Hungarian government unveiled a number of energy-related measures at the weekend, in response to soaring prices and an impending autumn fuel crisis in Europe. In a decree announced Saturday, Hungary hiked from 25% to 40% its windfall tax on oil companies’ “surplus profits”. The cabinet is increasing its levy
South Korean defence manufacturers will sign contracts worth EUR 7.53bn with Poland before the end of the month, The Korea Economic Daily (KED) reported. Polish Defence Minister Mariusz Blaszczak confirmed the news on Friday afternoon. The companies involved in what may become a long-term bilateral relationship include Korean Hyundai
The EU annual inflation rate rose from 8.8% to 9.6% in June, the bloc’s official statistics agency Eurostat reports. The inflation rate in June last year was 2.2%. Inflation was highest in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), and in the three Baltic countries in particular, with
North Macedonia and Albania nominally began their EU accession negotiations in Brussels on Tuesday, with detailed discussions slated to begin in the autumn. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said “right after the Intergovernmental Conference today, the Commission and the negotiation teams from Albania and North Macedonia will start
Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto announced Monday that he is in negotiations with Russia’s Gazprom regarding a long-term gas supply deal that would redirect all of Hungary’s shipments through the TurkStream pipeline. Fears that Russia will cut off energy supplies to Europe have been growing in recent weeks,
Austrian Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg said it is extremely important that the EU provide support to Africa, when he and his opposite numbers from Slovakia, Czechia, Hungary and Slovenia gathered in Budapest on Thursday. Russian President Vladimir Putin is taking advantage of the famine caused by his war in Ukraine,
Lithuanian Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte reacted to criticism on Thursday over her country’s acceptance of the transport of civilian-use goods from Russia to Kalingrad across its territory. “It would be irrational to continue to argue with EU partners” Simonyte said, after the European Commission (EC) on Wednesday clarified its
The Hungarian government declared a state of emergency and ditched its flagship policy of subsidising domestic utility bills on Wednesday, as fears of a looming European energy crisis rise across the continent. The crisis meeting of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s energy cabinet on Wednesday was prompted, according to
The EU formally approved on Tuesday Croatia joining the Eurozone on New Year’s Day 2023, and proclaimed the development as the end of an “amazing journey” for the Balkan country. Croatian Finance Minister Zdravko Maric declared Tuesday an “historic day” for the nation of 3.9 million people, which
The Hungarian government said on Monday that it will pass a parliamentary resolution condemning EU criticism of its refusal to participate in the plan to introduce a global minimum tax rate of 15%. The measure, which aims to create a global tax floor for multinational corporations, is backed both by
The Czech, Polish and Hungarian currencies all weakened against the major global currencies this week, as recession fears intensified globally, impacting emerging markets. As investor sentiment became more risk averse, investors have turned to the dollar, and the Polish zloty and the Czech crown both weakened against the greenback. However