Business

The 2016 Sochi International Investment Forum begins on Friday. This year among the topics discussed will be export potential, reforms of regulatory bodies, management practices, project approach, the integrated development of territories, and the implementation and impact of technologies. The forum in Sochi focuses on regional development with “simpler investors and a lower cost of participation,” according to Vedomosti daily. The Sochi forum will be a great platform for the Russian regions to sign contracts with investors, it said.

Greece has forecast 2.7 percent economic growth next year, its first rebound after seven years of crippling recession, as investment picks up and tourism surges, a government official familiar with the draft budget said on Thursday. The recipient of three international bailouts, Greece’s economy has shrunk by a quarter since a debt crisis exploded in 2010, forcing it to adopt harsh austerity and driving the jobless rate to a record 28 percent. The 2017 budget is due to be tabled in parliament on Monday. The economic growth forecast compares with a 0.3 percent contraction in 2016 anticipated by the lenders. The most indebted country in the euro zone would see its debt pile falling to 175.8 percent of output next year, compared to about 180 percent of GDP this year. (Reuters)

The European Commission is taking Germany to court over its road toll system for private vehicles, claiming that the scheme is discriminatory. The EU’s executive arm says German law allows owners of cars registered in the country to have the toll deducted from their annual vehicle tax bill, making the system unfair to other road users. It also notes that prices for an annual toll sticker for cars registered outside Germany are too high in some cases. The Commission said Thursday that the toll system does not comply with the EU’s governing treaties on “non-discrimination based on nationality and the free movement of goods and services.” It said that despite numerous exchanges with German authorities since 2014 its concerns have not been addressed. (AP)

Spain’s central bank is warning that the political impasse in the country could have negative economic effects. The warning came Thursday as the bank revised up its 2016 economic growth forecast for Spain to 3.2 percent from 2.8 percent, and maintained estimates for the subsequent two years at 2.3 percent and 2.1 percent. The bank said a prolonged period of interim government would delay necessary reforms. The bank also said Spain’s budget deficits this year and next would be 4.9 percent and 3.6 percent of annual GDP - above levels agreed with the EU. If there is no government by October 31, a third election will be called. (AP)

German annual inflation accelerated in September, hitting its highest level in 16 months, preliminary data showed on Thursday, in an encouraging sign for the European Central Bank that its ultra-loose monetary policy is working. German consumer prices, harmonized to compare with other European countries (HICP), rose by 0.5 percent on the year after an increase of 0.3 percent in August, the Federal Statistics Office said. This was the highest rate since May 2015. On a non-harmonized basis, German annual inflation picked up to 0.7 percent after 0.4 percent in August. This was also the highest level since May 2015. Energy prices remained the main drag on the headline figure, but they fell less sharply than in the previous months. (Reuters)

Yemen’s newly appointed central bank governor said on Thursday he had inherited a bank with no money, a dysfunctional monetary cycle and no working database but salaries would be paid nevertheless. Monasser Saleh al-Quaiti told the Saudi-owned Asharq al-Awsat that his appointment had come in time to prevent the rial currency from collapsing after mishandling had led to a depletion of reserves. He pledged to keep the bank independent. President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi appointed Quaiti on September 18 and ordered the bank’s headquarters be moved from the capital Sanaa, controlled by Houthi rebels from the north, to the southern port city of Aden, where his government is based. (Reuters)