Europe Intelligence Wire articles from April 2004

Europe Intelligence Wire archives from April 2004

Czech press survey.
April 1, 2004... (From Czech News Agency) PRAGUE, April 1 (CTK) - The law has increased the fees for public broadcaster Czech Television (CT) and Czech Radio, which will yield several billion crowns for the institutions -- why not? Karel Steigerwald...

US calls for immediate release of "Tiananmen Mothers".
April 1, 2004... (From Agence France Presse) The United States urged the Chinese authorities to immediately release three women linked to victims of the 1989 brutal crackdown on Tiananmen Square and arrested by police at the weekend. Ding Zilin, Zhang...

Japan, US, SKorea to discuss NKorea next week: reports.
April 1, 2004... (From Agence France Presse) Senior diplomats from Japan, the United States and South Korea will hold unofficial talks on the North Korean nuclear issue on April 7 and 8 in San Francisco, news reports said. They would discuss the agenda...

Cypriots to vote on UN plan to reunify the island.
April 1, 2004... (From Agence France Presse) The United Nations will put its revised plan to reunify Cyprus to separate referenda on the Mediterranean island next month, UN chief Kofi Annan announced after the rival communities failed to hammer out a deal....

Duma Bill Sharply Restricts Rallies.
April 1, 2004... (From The Moscow Times) As the United Russia majority in the State Duma gave preliminary approval to a bill outlawing protests near government buildings Wednesday, pro-democracy activists staged a rally outside the Duma's main entrance to...

Transvaal Architect Blames Terrorism.
April 1, 2004... (From The Moscow Times) The collapse of the roof of Transvaal water park, which left 28 people dead and over 100 injured, was possibly the work of terrorists, the structure's designer said Wednesday. Nodar Kancheli, whose roof design...

Luzhkov Plans to Take a Stab at Pisa.
April 1, 2004... (From The Moscow Times) Moscow Mayor Yury Luzhkov presented startling plans Wednesday to restore the Italian city of Pisa after receiving what he called a heartfelt plea from its mayor. Giovanni di Simone, mayor of the northern Italian...

Putin, Khodorkovsky and an American Judge.
April 1, 2004... (From The Moscow Times) To Our ReadersHas something you've read here startled you? Are you angry, excited, puzzled or pleased? Do you have ideas to improve our coverage? Then please write to us. All we ask is that you include your...

Marketeer Finds Russia Not Just a Pipe Dream.
April 1, 2004... (From The Moscow Times) Ian Schier's first clue of what he was getting himself into came on the highway from Sheremetyevo to downtown Moscow during his first trip to Russia in 1992. Or, rather, he thinks it did. "I was very tired, but...

Appointments.
April 1, 2004... (From The Moscow Times) Rostik Group Boris Nemtsov, former leader of the liberal Union of Right Forces, or SPS, has joined the Rostik Group as a consultant to its president, Rostislav Blanko. Nemtsov has also joined the company's...

Companies Wake Up to AIDS Threat.
April 1, 2004... (From The Moscow Times) By the time the mining conglomerate Anglo American decided to provide AIDS drugs to its work force in southern Africa in 2002, the company estimated that up to 50,000 would need treatment at a cost $4.5 million in...

Corporate Reports Not Just Financial.
April 1, 2004... (From The Moscow Times) When British American Tobacco Russia released its first social responsibility report in 2002, it got some unexpected feedback: Stakeholders wanted more. They not only wanted more details on how the company...

Duty Takes On New Meaning for Businesses.
April 1, 2004... (From The Moscow Times) Metals and oil magnate Viktor Vekselberg surprised the country in February when he dropped over $90 million to return the Faberge egg collection to Russia. Just last month Roman Abramovich's Sibneft assumed a $54...

Corporations Flaunt Their Social Conscience.
April 1, 2004... (From The Moscow Times) At his first meeting with top executives following the arrest of former Yukos chief Mikhail Khodorkovsky, President Vladimir Putin minced no words. In the future, Putin lectured business leaders last November,...

Unsuccessful Parties Turn on Leaders.
April 1, 2004... (From The Moscow Times) The political fallout among the losers in last December's State Duma elections continues to claim new victims, with one party ditching its leader and another longtime party leader facing his ouster. The People's...

Report: Qatar Has Solid Proof in Killing.
April 1, 2004... (From The Moscow Times) Qatar is refusing to release two Russian security agents suspected of assassinating former Chechen President Zelimkhan Yandarbiyev because the evidence implicating them is very substantial and includes the testimony...

OPEC Agrees to Push Prices Higher.
April 1, 2004... (From The Moscow Times) Dismissing Russia's call for lower oil prices, OPEC members on Wednesday agreed to reduce their collective crude output by 1 million barrels per day from Thursday, putting further pressure on a commodity already...

After Vote, Investors Hope for a Spring of Reform.
April 1, 2004... (From The Moscow Times) Business confidence was on the way back up in March as market players looked forward to a spring of reform after President Vladimir Putin's resounding re-election. The Moscow Times Business Confidence Index,...

British Embassy Suspends Visas for Bulgarians.
April 1, 2004... (From PARI Daily) THE BRITISH embassy in Sofia is suspending temporarily all visa applications from Bulgarians. This is a short-term measure prompted by the pending review of the visa issue procedures. No visa applications will be accepted...

IMF Calls for Balanced Budget in 2004.
April 1, 2004... (From PARI Daily) Byline: Viktoria LAZOVA and Valentina ILIEVA Current account gap widens to 1.2% of GDP in January THE INTERNATIONAL Monetary Fund (IMF) mission will demand a balanced budget this year, as a measure against the...

FDI Down in January.
April 1, 2004... (From PARI Daily) Byline: Valentina ILIEVA FOREIGN Direct Investments (FDI) in January, 2004 have gone down as compared to January, 2003, the central bank's balance of payments showed. According to preliminary data this year's January...

Tserovsky Keen to Render Public Companies to British Entities.
April 1, 2004... (From PARI Daily) BRITISH water corporations and construction companies, as well as consulting firms are willing to acquire Bulgarian public entities. The news was announced by minister of regional development Valentin Tserovsky upon...

Tserovsky Keen to Render Public Companies to.
April 1, 2004... (From PARI Daily) British Entities BRITISH water corporations and construction companies, as well as consulting firms are willing to acquire Bulgarian public entities. The news was announced by minister of regional development Valentin...

EU Disapproves of Offshore Zones.
April 1, 2004... (From PARI Daily) Byline: Viktoria LAZOVA THERE cannot be offshore zones in Bulgaria, because there are no such zones in the European Union (EU), a finance ministry expert said, commenting on the idea promoted by Institute for Market...

Bulgaria Air Invaded from Inside.
April 1, 2004... (From PARI Daily) Byline: Iliana TONCHEVA A CONFLICT is bubbling in the national carrier Bulgaria Air between the staff on one hand and the board of directors on the other. The conflict can potentially terminate the airline company...

Dikme Concedes Rakov Dol Dam.
April 1, 2004... (From PARI Daily) AGRICULTURE minister Mehmed Dikme signed a 35-year concession contract with the private Rakov Dol Project AD on the future Rakov Dol dam to be constructed by the company in the Bourgas region. The investment is estimated...

Procredit Bank Raises Interests on Deposits.
April 1, 2004... (From PARI Daily) Byline: Valentina ILIEVA PROCREDIT Bank Bulgaria raises its interests on standard deposits from April 1, the bank said. Interest on lev deposits will increase 0.25% on the current rate, euro and US dollar deposit...

Bulgarian Military Invited as Advisers in Afghanistan.
April 1, 2004... (From PARI Daily) Byline: Ivo MARKOV THE ALLIED forces in Afghanistan have invited Bulgarian military instructors to remain as permanent advisers to the new local army, chief of general staff Gen. Nikola Kolev said after a video...

23 Bid for Medicine Supply Contracts.
April 1, 2004... (From PARI Daily) Byline: Valentin GEORGIEV A TOTAL OF 23 wholesalers have taken part in the 2004 procurement procedure for expensive medicines, which finished Wednesday, Bulgaria's health ministry said. The procedure was organised...

Stomana Industry Pledges to Invest EUR 30m in 2 Years.
April 1, 2004... (From PARI Daily) Byline: Zlatina GEORGIEVA BETWEEN EUR 30 and 40 million will be invested in the next two years in new equipment, said Atanas Atanosopulous, presiding over the company board. A new scrapping installation is to be...

Kovachev Wants EUR 2bn in Loans to Repair Power Generation Facilities, Build New Ones.
April 1, 2004... (From PARI Daily) ENERGY minister Milko Kovachev will submit a project to the parliamentary energy committee, proposing that power generation facilities in Bulgaria are merged in a single company to mitigate the next electricity price...

IN A NUTSHELL.
April 1, 2004... (From PARI Daily) THE COMMISSION for Protection of Competition imposed a BGN 50,000 property sanction on Deroni OOD of Haskovo for unfair competition. The anti-trust body was approached by Konservinvest, also a tomato canned foods...

Day Listed on Main Board of SWX Swiss Exchange.
April 1, 2004... (From Hugin) New Structure of SWX Equity Market Basel, Switzerland - April 1, 2004 - Day Software Holding AG (SWX: DAYN), a leading provider of global content management software, today announced its listing on the main board of the...

Barry Callebaut AG - Resultate des zweiten Quartals 2003/04.
April 1, 2004... (From Hugin) Solides Umsatz- und Ertragswachstum * Steigerung des Verkaufserloses um 15% auf CHF 2,2 Milliarden * Zunahme des Betriebsgewinns (EBIT) um 15% auf CHF 149,8 Millionen * Wachstum des Konzerngewinns (PAT) um 10% auf CHF 83,6...

Barry Callebaut annonce les resultats du premier semestre de l'exercice 2003/04:.
April 1, 2004... (From Hugin) Croissance soutenue des ventes et du resultat * Le produit des ventes a augmente de 15% a CHF 2,2 milliards * Le resultat d'exploitation (EBIT) a progresse de 15% pour atteindre CHF 149,8 millions * Le resultat net (PAT) a cru...

Barry Callebaut AG: Barry Callebaut reports results for first six months of fiscal year 2003/04.
April 1, 2004... (From Hugin) Solid sales and earnings growth * Sales revenue increased by 15% to CHF 2.2 billion * Operating profit (EBIT) grew 15% to reach CHF 149.8 million * Net profit (PAT) up 10% to CHF 83.6 million * Barry Callebaut confident of...

Ad hoc: Veranderung im Vorstand der HORNBACH HOLDING AG - Starkung der Geschaftsfuhrung der HORNBACH Baustoff Union GmbH.
April 1, 2004... (From Hugin) Ad hoc - Mitteilung verarbeitet und ubermittelt durch Hugin. Fur den Inhalt der Mitteilung ist der Emittent verantwortlich. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ NEUSTADT /...

Ad hoc: Change in the Board of Management at HORNBACH HOLDING AG - Reinforcement of Management at HORNBACH Baustoff Union GmbH.
April 1, 2004... (From Hugin) Ad-hoc announcement processed and transmitted by Hugin ASA. The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ NEUSTADT /...

Muutos Orion Pharman johdossa.
April 1, 2004... (From Hugin) - Orion-yhtyma Oyj:n toimitusjohtajan sijainen ja varatoimitusjohtaja, Orion Pharman toimitusjohtaja Risto Miettunen eroaa. - Orion-konsernin johtamismallia muutetaan niin, etta konsernin paajohtaja Jukka Viinanen toimii myos...

Management change in Orion Pharma.
April 1, 2004... (From Hugin) - Dr. Risto Miettunen, Deputy CEO and Executive Vice President of Orion Corporation, and President of Orion Pharma, will resign. - The management structure of the Orion Group will be amended in such a way that Mr. Jukka...

News In Brief.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) CRH chief's [euro]1.64m package CRH chief executive Liam O'Mahony received a remuneration package worth [euro]1.64m for 2003, a 12pc increase on the previous year. His basic salary was[euro]975,000. Tim...

Markets.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) IRELAND'S index of leading shares nudged forward 3.31 points, or 0.06pc, yesterday to 5,177.18. Hotel group Gresham dropped 1c to [euro]1.22. In a statement, Gresham said a consortium ofinvestors in talks with...

Home buyers never had it so cheap for something so dear.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) Houses have never been dearer, but home loans and attendant costs likeconveyancing and commissions have never been cheaper. However, there are still pitfalls for the unwary, writes JIM AUGHNEY THERE has been a...

UK insurers block entrance to British form of PRSA pension.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) PRSA providers watch out - the UK version of the scheme is in serioustrouble. It has emerged that insurance companies are denying thousands of companies access toBritain's PRSA counterpart, called stakeholder...

HAVING A PUNT : Aintree beckoning.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) THE National Hunt game enjoys its last major event of the season in Britainwith the three-day Aintree meeting starting today. While we still have Easter at Fairyhouse and the Punchestown festival to look...

EURO NOTES : Confusion on illness cover.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) OVER four out of five people (81pc) questioned in a recent survey by Royal Liver stated that it was necessary to have serious illness cover to protect their income. Yet figures from the Irish Insurance...

How [euro]156,000 goes up in smoke for 20-a-day puffer.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) SMOKING can cost a couple half as much as their mortgage because theycough up twice as much for financial products Now that smokers will have to hang around in freezing streets to escape the smoke-free zones,...

EURO NOTES : Forestry investment plan aims to raise [euro]3.75m.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) DETAILS of a new Forestry Investment Plan (FIP) have been announced by Irish Forestry Services. The 9th FIP was launched with the aim of raising [euro]3.75m to purchase and invest in newand semi-mature...

YOUR MONEY : IFSRA investigating the availability of bank accounts.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) SHOULD everyone be entitled to a bank account? That's an increasingly important question as financial products and the manner in whichwe pay for them become increasingly sophisticated. People who don't have an...

AIB cools on [euro]500m plan for Eagle Star Life.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) AIB's [euro]500m plan to acquire Eagle Star Life has run into bother, leaving its revised strategy for the life and pensions market possibly in tatters. Bankcentre has not commented at any stage during the...

Bank reports enhanced packages.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) AIB shareholders will hardly baulk at their board's thrifty decision to ditch thetraditional glossy annual report. A no-frills, no pics, no colour book giving all the relevantfinancial details and a separate...

Signs of a new consuming passion emerge at European Central Bank.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) Suddenly, the consumer is king with members of the ECB and there's talk of an early interest rate cut. But a faltering eurozone growth rate also requires other types of remedial action HEARING eurobankers talk...

Standard to raise cash in 2006 flotation.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) LIFE assurance giant Standard Life will end its status as Europe's largest mutual for a stock market listing to cope with tough new funding rules which will force it to raise fresh capital, the firm said...

Supreme Court rules against Aer Rianta charges.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) THE Supreme Court yesterday made a declaration that increased ground handling charges by Aer Rianta were unlawful on the basis that the company had notsecured approval from the Minister for Public Enterprise. ...

Gresham bidders cut offer to [euro]1.35 for hotels.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) THE consortium of businessmen eyeing up the Gresham Hotel Group has revised down aprevious offer for the group by 10c to [euro]1.35 per share, valuing the firm at just over [euro]107.3m. Property developer...

AIB details improved packages for chiefs.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) two executive directors - Gary Doherty, head of Capital Markets, and Aidan McKeon,who runs the UK operations - is not shown as they were only appointed to the boardlast year. In the case of Messrs Buckley and...

Londis spurns [euro]35m bid for group from Spar supplier.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) CONVENIENCE store chain Londis in Ireland yesterday rebuffed a [euro]35m bidfor the group by BWG, the company behind the Spar outlets. Londis made the announcement after a meeting of directors unanimously...

Dublin office rents world's tenth most expensive.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) DUBLIN has jumped up three places to tenth position in the league of the world's most expensive office locations. The top office occupancy cost being paid in Dublin city centre and Dublin 4 has hit [euro]506...

Windfall tax sought for bloated insurers.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) INSURANCE companies should have a windfall tax imposed on them because of their failure to reduce premiums despite a return to healthy insurance profits,an Oireachtas committee will be told today. The Alliance...

Acquisitor dismisses Baltimore role change.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) THE battle for control of Baltimore Technologies intensified yesterday after the former internet security provider said it was turning itself into an energy solutions supplier. The company, to be given an as...

Tullow is banking on the oil rush in forgotten West African prospects.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) TULLOW Oil surprised the market last week with news of a proposed bid forEnergy Africa, a Johannesburg-based oil explorer. Not only will the deal bolster Tullow's portfolio of assets in Africa, by virtually...

Davidson keeps Oracle one step ahead of the hackers.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) Such is her knowledge and experience of the web that Oracle's security chief Mary Davidson refuses to buy anything online. "Security is not anyone else's problem, it is everyone's," she says MARY Davidson is...

Cullen sets out stall to spot-check local government's value for money.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) INTERVIEW OF THE WEEK Minister Martin Cullen is taking a hard line on many issues these days - underachieving local authorities and the necessity to integrate green energy into the national grid, to name just...

Image overhaul puts a very contemporary spin on Baileys bottle.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) The liqueur is set for a new ad campaign, a new bottle, and a new image, writes SAMANTHA McCAUGHREN ONE of Ireland's most successful brands, Baileys, is getting an overhaul asthe drink aims to increase global...

Rational decision sees ad agencies Grey and The Helme merge.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) DUBLIN advertising agencies Grey Advertising and The Helme Partnership are to merge their businesses, with Grey Worldwide acquiring The Helme for an undisclosed sum. The merged entity will be called Grey Helme,...

News In Brief.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) Irish Life has the right Chemistry IRISH Life has appointed Chemistry as its advertising agency following a strategic and creative pitch, also involving five other agencies - Leo Burnett, McCannErickson,...

SHARESCOPE : Qualceram can tap into better prospects.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) QUALCERAM Shires, the Arklow-based maker of bathroom products for theIrish and UK markets, turned in slightly better-than-expected results earlier this week.Turnover was down by [euro]5m to [euro]95m, primarily...

Merrion sees $200m Elan loss.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) LOSSES at Elan for this year could be as high as $200m following the announcement in the past two days that the company has sold two more products. The sale of the North American marketing rights for migraine...

Revamped EPA plan for emissions backed.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) MAJOR producers of greenhouse gases yesterday breathed a sigh of reliefas the Environmental Protection Agency granted a significant change to the controversialemissions trading scheme. The organisation said it...

Rate cut case boosted as inflation hits four-year low.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) THE case for a cut in interest rates strengthened further yesterday as figures showed eurozone inflation at a four-year low amid stagnant business and consumerconfidence. The Governing Council of the European...

Please help our working widows.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) Sir - The nation has been appalled at the treatment of working widows, ashas been highlighted. The same treatment is applicable to deserted wives, lone parentsand lollipop ladies. Heretofore, a working widow...

Housing market continues to soar as economy picks up.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) THE amazing, gravity-defying housing market continues to soar. With freshevidence that the economy is improving, and every prospect of another fall in mortgagerates, it seem certain to soar further, into...

Truth forum a better option for victims.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) THE Oireachtas Joint Committee has passed the problem created by the Barron Report smartly out of the jurisdiction (or perhaps not so smartly) and to theauthorities in Britain and Northern Ireland. It might...

Betting the house.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) Betting the houseTHE world economic downturn which began three years ago was exceptionally short-lived, especially in Ireland. By the beginning of2004 the good times were rolling again, not at the same pace as in...

Someone's rained on our parade.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) Frankly, the Irish tend to go slightly overboard with public celebration. Whether it's those awful events in Phoenix Park every decade or so to celebrate the fact that our national soccer team didn't get...

When a little education is a dangerous thing.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) 'Psst, wanna buy a good degree . . . going cheap?" If you want a "prosperous future, increased earning power, more money and the respect of all" it's only a phone call and a small outlay away. You don't have...

McCartney sings for his supper on ski holiday.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) PAUL McCartney capped a Nevada skiing holiday with an impromptuperformance at the same restaurant where he entertained surprised diners last year. "Unfortunately, you have an unscheduled guest here at...

Families swamped by a [euro]70bn tide of debt.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) WE are more in debt than ever, according to figures from the Central Bankpublished yesterday. It is estimated we now owe more than [euro]70bn in mortgage debt, car loans, personal loans and overdrafts as we...

O'Reilly: Lowry did make that comment.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) SIR Anthony O'Reilly insisted at the Moriarty Tribunal yesterday he wasabsolutely certain former minister Michael Lowry told him the consortium he was involvedin had not done well at a presentation for the second...

The human toll of the rise in deaths on our roads.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) Seven men were killed in car crashes last weekend, leading many to question the effectiveness of recent measures to tackle dangerous driving. With the number of road fatalities up 30% on the same period last year,...

I love Ireland but there's sun-thing special about Oz.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) Australia is by now so familiar to me that it is hard to remember what struckme most about it when I first arrived there in 1986. Often Irish people don't noticefeatures about their own country that strike a...

ARE WE FAILING TO GET THE POINT?
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) Sixteen months after the introduction of the penalty points system for motoring offences, the first motorist to reach the maximum number of 12 points wasdisqualified from driving for six months last week. The...

How you can get on the road to millionaire's row.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) The average Irish worker would have to grind for 30,000 years to make it into the top 10 richlist in this country but don't despair. Financial journalist Charlie Weston gives us nine simple tips to save up a little...

At least in the panto you get crisps and ice cream.
April 1, 2004... (From Irish Independent) DAY 469 in a nutshell. -Oh, yes you did. -Oh, no I didn't. That's it. At least in the panto you get crisps and ice cream, and laughter is actively encouraged.They put up the words of songs on a...