As Novosti daily learns, the state has decided to keep its majority stake in Komercijalna Banka. For that purpose, RSD 11.57 billion (EUR 102 million) will be paid from the budget as early as next month. The Managing Board of Komercijalna Banka has made a decision to issue shares at an assembly scheduled for April 4th and sell them to the state, which will keep a majority stake of 42.6% in the bank in that way. The second largest shareholder, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, will keep a 25 percent of shares in its possession.

Recapitalization of our largest bank commenced two years ago, when EBRD, IFC, Germany's DEG and the international fund Svedfond invested EUR 120 million in it and the stake retained the right to follow their lead until the end of 2012 and remain the majority owner.

According to this year's Budget Law, about EUR 100 million are earmarked for the investment in Komercijalna Banka. In the negotiations on the first review of the current arrangement with the IMF, the Fund's Mission stated that that was not good because the whole deal was based on the state's additional borrowings. On the other hand, the representatives of authorities claim it is absolutely irrational that the state leaves its majority stake in one of the most powerful local banks to someone else at the time of a crisis. However, they agree that the time to sell a majority stake in this bank will come once the financial crisis is over. Last year Komercijalna Banka turned a profit of about RSD 3.5 billion, up by nearly 40% from the previous year. Over the last three years, the profit has been exceeding EUR 100 million, and that money has been paid to the budget.

Among the state's arguments is also the fact that Komercijalna Banka approves loans under favorable terms to both economy and citizens as part of the government's measures, as well as that the biggest number of citizens save money in that bank. Therefore, it is important that the bank be stable and safe.

Sale

According to certain announcements, Komercijalna Banka should be sold until the end of 2015. Officials have not confirmed that officially yet, but, as they say, once the decision is made, the state will have larger revenues if it keeps a majority stake in the bank.

Construction of a logistics center of the Italian economy sector may soon kick off in Novi Sad, and preliminary talks about that will start Thursday (15 March 2012) in the Novi Sad Regional Chamber of Commerce (NS RCC).

As it was said at a meeting between Italian and Serbian businessmen, the plan is to build a warehouse for Italian goods, as well as production facilities where Italian semi-finished products would be additionally processed and then, as goods from Serbia, exported to Russia in line with the Free Trade Agreement between the two countries.

This is a project of the Trieste Chamber of Commerce, supported by the chambers of commerce of Milan, Florence and Udine, while partners on our side are the Ministry of Finance, the City of Novi Sad, the Serbian Chamber of Commerce (SCC), NS RCC, VIP-Fund, the Port of Novi Sad and Novi Sad Free Zone. The logistics center would be situated in the Port and the Free Zone. The plan is to finish the whole job within the next two years.

As it was specified, the project Korlog – Pan-European Corridors, Platform for Production and Logistic Services in Serbia envisages the construction of a warehouse in Serbia for Italian goods and products from other countries, primarily neighboring ones, such as Romania, Bulgaria, Macedonia... These goods would be then exported to Russian and other markets.

On the other hand, the plan is also to build production facilities where raw materials and semi-finished products imported from Italy would be additionally processed to get a product of the Serbian origin that could be exported to Russia free of duties.

Dvanaestočlana delegacija ukrajinske kompanije "Donetsk Steel" već dva dana boravi u "Železari Smederevo", potvrdio je danas Tanjugu izvor u jednom od tri reprezentativna sindikata u fabrici, zahtevajući anonimnost.

Tanjugu je rečeno da je juče održana prezentacija za članove ukrajinske delegacije i da je ovo samo jedna u nizu poseta zainteresovanih kompanija koje organizuje Vlada Srbije.

Isti izvor je rekao da će ukrajinska delegacija narednih dana posetiti i fabriku belih limova u Šapcu.

Lokalna Televizija "Smederevo sinoć" je takođe objavila da je delegacija kompanije "Donetsk Steel" u obilasku smederevske fabrike.

Kako TV "Smederevo" nezvanično saznaje "predstavnici kompanije za proizvodnju čelika "Donetsk Steel" obilaze pogone, upoznaju se sa tehničkim i proizvodnim mogućnostima fabrike, ali i sa ljudskim resursima".

Vlada Srbije je krajem januara sklopila dogovor sa kompanijom "U. S. Steel" o kupovini smederevske železare za jedan dolar. Tada je premijer Cvetković saopštio da "vlada nema nameru da u dugom roku bude vlasnik, pa ćemo se u narednom periodu koncentrisati na traženje strateškog partnera."

Rejting agencija "Standard&Poor"s" (S&P) objavila je danas da je Srbiji potvrdila rejting dugoročnog i kratkoročnog suverenog duga u stranoj i domaćoj valuti BB/B uz stabilne perspektive.

S&P navodi da veliki rizik za Srbiju predstavlja rast ekonomskih pritisaka u Evropi, s obzirom na zavisnost Srbije od spoljnog finansiranja, delom i zbog toga što je više od 75% bankarskog sektora u vlasništvu banaka iz zone evra.

Ipak S&P očekuje da status kandidata za EU, koji je Srbija nedavno dobila, ohrabri dalje direktne strane investicije, kao i srpsku vladu da sprovodi reforme usmerene na povećanje privrednog rasta, preneo je Rojters na svom sajtu.

Stabilne perspektive srpskog duga S&P bazira na očekivanju ravnoteže između monetarne i spoljne kolebljivosti Srbije i potencijala za rast.

Na rejting Srbije, kako se navodi, negativno deluju visok spoljni dug, znatan deficit tekućih plaćanja i ograničena fleksibilnost monetarne politike zbog evroizacije bankarskih depozita i potraživanja.

Istovremeno na rejting pozitivno deluju umeren javni dug, za koji S&P očekuje da će na kraju 2012. biti malo iznad 45% BDP prema 67% u 2003, kao i status kandidata za EU.

S&P očekuje da nova vlada, nakon predstojećih parlamentarnih izbora, za prioritet postavi fiskalnu konsolidaciju i strukturne reforme na koje se obavezala u okviru stend-baj aranžmana sa MMF iz 2011.