SERBIA:

NBS: Annual inflation expected at 3% for one year ahead period
According to January survey results, short- and medium-term inflation expectations of the financial and corporate sectors continued moving within the target tolerance band (3±1,5%). The financial and corporate sectors expect that one-year ahead inflation will stand at 3.0%, i.e. at the NBS midpoint in January 2019. Medium-term inflation expectations (for January 2020) are also within the target band, at 3.0% with respect to the corporate sector and 3.5% with respect to the financial sector.
Source: NBS

CCNB: Halkbank increases capital by EUR 20 million – Turks own 99.94% share
Halkbank Belgrade (CCNB) has increased its capital by EUR 20 million by issuing shares to a qualified investor, the bank announced. The majority owner, T.Halk Bankasi, was the only purchaser of the shares and it bought 98.505% of the total volume, that is, 236,412 shares. The Turkish bank thereby continued the process of investments in Serbia, which started with the purchase of 76.75% of the shares from the EBRD, the IFC and the Republic of Serbia in May 2015 and continued with an increase in capital by EUR 10 million in November 2015.
Source: Ekapija

AERO: Belgrade Airport reported nearly flat FY 2017 net profit at RSD 3.2bn
Belgrade Airport (AERO) reported RSD 3.2bn in its FY 2017 net profit, which is nearly flat y/y or more precisely up only 2.3% y/y. The result is in line with the company’s announcement we saw earlier in late 2017. The company’s operating sales came in at RSD 9.3bn, up 10.1% y/y, in line with hike in number of serviced passengers and supported by expansion in volume of traffic. Operating profit was up 12.2% y/y to RSD 4bn, in line with jump in sales, while operating profitability was only slightly improved (EBIT margin was up from 42.1% in 2016 to current 42.9%). The company’s other result was slightly negative at RSD 155m, due to FX loss and this prevented higher expansion at net profit line.
Source: Belex, Ilirika

REGION:

SBITOP gained 0.14 percent
SBITOP index closed at 810.62 points yesterday, gaining 0.14 percent. Stocks of Gorenje (+1.49%), Telekom Slovenija (+1.44%) and SavaRe (1.18%) gained the most. Due the second week of holidaay season the levels of trade remain low.
Source: Ilirika

MF grants primary dealerships to four banks to issue additional bonds
The Ministry of Finance granted Barclays, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs International, HSBC and JP Morgan a mandate to organize additional bond issues that are due in 2028, 2035, and 2045 for the purposes of turnover of dollar nominated bonds.
Source: STA

INO:

Dow falls 299 points after Powell signals Fed will keep raising rates to contain inflation, European stocks close in the red amid earnings, Powell testimony, Sky surges 20.5%
U.S. stocks fell for the first time in four days Tuesday after comments from new Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell sent rates higher. The new chair signaled the central bank could hike rates more than three times this year in an effort to keep the economy from overheating, sparking anxiety among equity traders. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 299.24 points Tuesday to close at 25,410.03, with Disney and Home Depot weighing down the 30-stock index. The S&P 500 fell 1.27 percent to finish at 2,744.28 as real estate, consumer discretionaries and telecommunications pulled the broader market lower.
In corporate news, Macy's stock surged nearly 3.5 percent after the company reported better-than-expected earnings results. In an interview with CNBC, CEO Jeff Gennette said same-store sales were up 3 percent in January.
From the macro side, U.S. home prices increased 6.3 percent compared to December of 2016, according to the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller national home prices index. U.S. consumer confidencetopped 130.8 in February, a 17-year high, while the volume of orders for durable goods declined by 3.7 percent in January compared to December, according to the US Department of Commerce.
European equities finished Tuesday in the red, as investors waded through the latest corporate news, while keeping an eye on a testimony by Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell. The pan-European STOXX 600 ended the session down 0.18 percent provisionally, following a choppy session. Major European sectors pointed in different directions by the close.
Media stocks outperformed fellow sectors Tuesday, following news that U.S. media giant Comcast was making a proposed cash offer to buy Sky for 22.1 billion pounds ($31 billion). Sky shares jumped on the news and hit the top of the European benchmark, finishing up 20.5 percent.
Chemicals on the other hand were among the worst performers on earnings results. Germany's BASF slipped over 2 percent after publishing its latest results. The household goods sector also underperformed, closing down 1.25 percent.
The German central bank, the Bundesbank, reported that it doubled its surplus at the annual level, to two billion euros. Additional funds mean that the Bundesbank will pay 1.9 billion euros to the state budget, which is well over 399 million euros, contributed in 2016, reports the German press agency dpa.
Source: CNBC, Ilirika