SERBIA:

NBS: Key policy rate lowered to 3.25%
At its meeting yesterday, the NBS Executive Board decided to trim the key policy rate to 3.25%. In making that decision, the Executive Board was primarily guided by the inflation projection and inflation factors in the coming period. In accordance with the NBS’s expectations, inflation in February was lowered to 1.5% year-on-year, primarily on account of the high base from the prices of products that underwent one-off hikes early in 2017. Another confirmation of low inflationary pressures is core inflation, which measured 1.3% year-on-year in February.
Source: NBS

Serbia to prepare to open another 5 chapters in EU negotiations by the end of March
By the end of March, Serbia will be ready to open another five chapters in the accession negotiations with the European Union, the head of the negotiation team of Serbia, Tanja Miscevic, said. At the conference on the opening of Chapter 30, she specified that one of the chapters would be Chapter 17, Economic & Monetary Policy, which will be prepared by the end of the month.
Source: Ekapija

AERO: Six weekly flights from Tehran to Belgrade soon – Air lines from other Iranian cities planned as well
Iran Air expects to expand its operations in Serbia in the coming period after launching services between Tehran and Belgrade last Saturday, EX-YU Aviation News reports. Iran Air established two weekly flights to Belgrade with its Airbus A320 aircraft last week. This will be followed up by a new two weekly service between the two capitals operated by Qeshm Air, as well as a two weekly operation by Mahan Air, which will commence in April.
Source: Ekapija, , EX-YU aviation news

REGION:

SBITOP gained minor 0.07%
SBITOP gained 0.07 percent yesterday, reaching 823.2pts. Biggest gainers of the day were of KD and Petrol which soared 4.2% and 0.85% respectively. On the other side, top losers were Intereuropa and Luka Koper with 2% and 0.995 drop respectively.
Source: Ilirika

Cinkarna Celje with strong revenue growth and cost reduction in 2017
Cinkarna Celje continues its path of profitability. In 2017, Cinkarna Celje managed to reduce the costs of goods, materials and services by 6 percent (from EUR 111.61 million in 2016 to EUR 90.74 million last year). Labor costs increased by 8% (from EUR 28.19 million in 2016 to EUR 30.32 million in 2017). Net revenues of the company climbed 11% last year, from EUR 169.76 million to EUR 188.70, largely due to growth in sales on the non-domestic market. The latter grew from EUR 148.32 million in 2016 to EUR 164.24 million last year and thus increased by 11%. All of the above contributed to the fact that Cinkarna Celje had more than tripled its operating profit last year, as this was 338% higher than last year. The operating profit rose to EUR 35.72 million last year from EUR 10.58 million in 2016. While the bottom line was almost tripled, from EUR 9.76 million in 2016 to EUR 28.766 million last year.
Source: Ilirika

INO:

Dow closes more than 200 points lower, as Boeing slides on fears of a China trade war, European stocks close slightly lower as trade war fears weigh on Wall Street
The Dow Jones industrial average fell Wednesday as Boeing shares pulled back on worries the U.S. could engage China in a trade war. The index was down 1%, while Boeing dropped 2.5 percent, contributing the most to the Dow's decline. Boeing's decline comes after a report said President Donald Trump wishes to slap $60 billion of tariffs on Chinese goods. Investors feared China could target the aerospace giant in retaliation. The S&P 500 closed 0.6 percent lower at 2,749.48, while Nasdaq lost 0.19%.
In corporate news, Ford Motor Company's stock gained 2.2 percent after Morgan Stanley upgraded the company to overweight from underweight. The bank sees more potential in the American motor vehicle company following "significant changes" to senior management at the company and its efforts to improve its global portfolio.
In economic news, the Commerce Department said retail sales declined for a third straight month as households curbed purchases of cars and other expensive items. Economists had been expecting sales to rise 0.3 percent. Meanwhile, U.S. producer prices increased slightly more than expected in February. The Department of Labor said on Wednesday that its producer price index rose 0.2 percent last month, economists polled by Reuters had expected PPI gaining 0.1 percent.
Equities in Europe finished Wednesday's session slightly lower, as concerns surrounding a potential trade war resurfaced. The pan-European Stoxx 600 provisionally fell 0.15 percent by the close, in what was a choppy trading session. The region's sectors, however, pointed in different directions by the close.
Looking across the European benchmark, Adidas hit to the top of the index, finishing up over 11 percent. Adidas reported lower sales and profit growth expectations for this year but announced a large share buyback on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said Wednesday morning that monetary policy will remain prudent despite stronger confidence that inflation is moving towards the central bank's target. In terms of data, industrial production numbers in the euro zone dropped in January by 1 percent month-on-month — more than markets were expecting, mainly due to a lower energy output.
Source: CNBC, Ilirka