SERBIA:

5 bln euros more to be invested in infrastructure
After decades without investments in infrastructure, Serbia now has a stable budget, factories are being built, the economy is growing and, through a new investment cycle for infrastructure projects in road and rail transport, we will invest 5 bln euros, Serbian Deputy PM and Minister of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure Zorana Mihajlovic said Monday. "It is important for Serbia's future, for connecting the region and for stability in the Western Balkans," Mihajlovic told Happy TV. According to a statement from her office, she said construction of a Morava Corridor would start this year to connect central Serbia and Sumadija with Corridor 10 and Corridor 11. Negotiations about this with the US company Bechtel are underway.
Izvor: Tanjug

Erste Bank dinar-denominated bonds in high demand
Investor demand for a second emission of Erste Bank long-term dinar-denominated bonds has exceeded supply by 10 pct after 3.87 bln dinars worth of bonds have been subscribed and paid in during a public offer, with the offered emission totalling 3.5 bln dinars. As part of the emission, aimed at professional investors, 350,000 bonds with a nominal individual value of 10,000 dinars, a maturity of two years and one day and a variable interest rate of three-month BELIBOR plus 1.0 pct were issued, the bank said in a statement. The investors include domestic banks, insurance companies and pension funds and a leading international development bank - the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the bank said.
Source: Tanjug

Germany's EOS Matrix submits best bid for NPLs
Germany's EOS Matrix has submitted the best bid for a first package of doubtful and non-performing loans in a portfolio managed by Serbia's Deposit Insurance Agency on behalf of the government and bankrupt banks, a tender commission decided on Tuesday. With two bids received before the expiry of a deadline, an 11.29 mln euro EOS Matrix bid was accepted as the most favourable one, the Serbian Finance Ministry said in a statement. The subject of the cession are claims by Agrobanka, Nova Agrobanka, Univerzal banka, Privredna banka Beograd and Razvojna banka Vojvodine, as well as claims managed by the Agency in the name and on behalf of the Republic of Serbia and the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina.
Source: Tanjug, NBS

REGION:

IMF: Maintaining stability key challenge for economic policy in Serbia
Macroeconomic conditions in Serbia have seen a major improvement over the past three years and, from now on, maintaining the macroeconomic stability and fully implementing the reforms required to tackle the basic structural deficiencies of the Serbian economy will be the main challenge for the economic policy, says Sebastian Sosa, head of the IMF Office in Serbia. Full implementation of the structural reform plan will be crucial for ensuring higher, more sustainable and more inclusive growth in the country, Sosa said ahead of the 26th Kopaonik Business Forum
Source: Tanjug

INO:

Stocks rise after Trump signals flexibility on March trade deadline, Walmart leads, European markets close lower, HSBC shares slide 4%
Stocks rose slightly on Tuesday after President Donald Trump hinted once again he may push back a key trade deadline. Equities also got a boost following strong quarterly numbers from Walmart. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed as much as 78.19 points before ending the day up 9 points. The S&P 500 gained 0.15 percent as the materials sector outperformed. The Nasdaq Composite closed 0.2 percent higher as Amazon and Netflix both rose more than 1 percent.
Walmart shares rose more than 2 percent after the company reported better-than-expected earnings. The retailer also said e-commerce sales grew by 43 percent in the previous quarter.
European stocks closed lower on Tuesday as market participants anxiously waited for details from the latest round of U.S.-China trade talks. The pan-European Stoxx 600 was down 0.2 percent at the closing bell, with most major bourses in negative territory.
Europe's banking index led the losses, down almost 0.9 percent amid earnings news. HSBC was the worst sectoral performer, after reporting disappointing annual profit figures on Tuesday. Europe's largest bank also warned an economic slowdown in China, as well as Brexit uncertainty, would most likely throw up further hurdles in 2019. Shares of the London-listed stock were 4 percent lower at the end of the session.
Source: CNBC