Archive of articles - March 2012, page 10
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Statistics Office: Inflation was 3.8 percent in February
Consumer prices rose by 3.8 percent year-on-year last month, while core inflation stood at 2.4 percent and net inflation amounted to 2.6 percent, the Statistics Office (ŠÚ) announced on Monday, March 12. The month-on-month increase amounted to 0.2 percent.
ELECTION 2012: Only 24 out of 150 MPs are women, Most-Híd has no female deputies
The number of women elected to parliament on Saturday, March 10, was 24 – only one more than the 23 female MPs elected in 2010. Women will constitute 16 percent of the new parliament.
Dzurinda to stand down as SDKÚ leader
Slovak Democratic and Christian Union (SDKÚ) leader Mikuláš Dzurinda announced at a press conference on Monday, March 12, that he would not run for the post of chairman at the party's next congress. Dzurinda said that he would support party vice-chair Lucia Žitňanská's candidacy for the post, the TASR newswire reported.
Dzurinda to give up SDKÚ chairmanship
THE LONG-serving leader of the Slovak Democratic and Christian Union (SDKÚ), Mikuláš Dzurinda, is to quit the chairmanship of the party he founded. His decision comes after the SDKÚ suffered a severe setback in the March 10 general election, which saw its support plunge to 6.1 percent, only just above the 5-percent threshold required to win seats in parliament. The SDKÚ won 15.4 percent of the vote and 28 seats in the June 2010 election; it will now have just 11 seats.
ELECTION 2012: Žitňanská: Voters voiced need for change within SDKÚ
The centre-right parties did not manage to convince voters that they can govern without spats and that they are able to form a centre-right alternative and this needs to stop, Justice Minister and SDKÚ deputy chair Lucia Žitňanská said following the election results announcement on March 11 when her party gained the support of just 6.09 percent (compared with 15.1 percent in 2002, 18.4 percent in 2006 and 15.4 percent in 2010).
ELECTION 2012: Sulík: It is time for change of generations on the right
The rightist parties should now utilise an ideal opportunity to deal with a changeover of political generations and to stabilise themselves so that they can offer a stronger alternative to Smer in four years, said Freedom and Solidarity (SaS) chairman Richard Sulík on private television Markíza's political talk show on March 11.
ELECTION 2012: SNS has eyes set on making comeback in 2014
The Slovak National Party (SNS) is taking on board the fact that it is staying outside of Parliament following the 2012 election but has its eyes set on making a comeback during the 2014 super-election year, party vice-chairs Andrej Danko and Rafael Rafaj told a press conference, TASR newswire reported on March 11.
Police investigation of 99 Percent petition signatures not completed
The police did not manage to complete their investigation into the authenticity of the signatures on the registration petition for the 99 Percent – Civic Voice party, Police Corps President Jaroslav Spišiak announced on March 9, one day before the general election. He said they had not been able to contact all the people on the petition, the Sme daily reported. Doubts were raised about the authenticity of the signatures after one of the people paid to collect them complained about malpractice.
Slovakia reports €229-million trade surplus for January
Slovakia's exports exceeded its imports by €229.3 million in January 2012. The trade surplus was €10.3 million less then in January 2011, according to preliminary data released by the Statistics Office. The January surplus is the thirteenth successive surplus that Slovakia has reported, the SITA newswire reported.
Cigarette may have started fire at Krásna Hôrka Castle
Two adolescent boys are believed to have started a fire which led to the destruction of the roof and several museum exhibits at Krásna Hôrka Castle in eastern Slovakia on Saturday, March 10. It is thought that were trying to light a cigarette, but accidentally set fire to dry grass in a nearby meadow from which fire spread, via wind-borne embers, to the castle’s wooden roof, the SITA newswire reported.
Pre-election Gorilla Protest attracted around 1,000 people
Around 1,000 people attended the latest Gorilla Protest against corruption on March 9, one day before Slovakia's parliamentary elections. As well as the main protest in Bratislava, rallies were also held in other towns around Slovakia. Police arrested 19 people after the Bratislava protest had officially ended, the TASR newswire reported.
STU among top 500 global schools
THE SLOVAK University of Technology (STU) in Bratislava in now among the top 500 universities in the world, according to the Webometrics Ranking of World Universities. It put STU in 468th place, a dramatic rise from its position of 830 in the last ranking, the TASR newswire reported.
Quote of the week
“I had a secret dream of one million voters, which we have achieved.”
Analyst: Smer mobilised its voters
SMER, which won a sweeping victory in Slovakia’s March 10 parliamentary elections by gaining 83 seats in the 150-seat parliament, successfully mobilised left-leaning voters to achieve a 44.4-percent result on an election turnout of 59 percent, according to Martin Slosiarik, director of the Focus polling agency. Slosiarik was seeking to explain how turnout came to exceed that in 2010, despite forecasts that it would hit a record low.
US outperforms EU
THE CREATION of the single European currency was accompanied with high hopes of many Europeans for a brighter economic future. This might have caused an illusion in Europe, especially among countries sharing the common European currency, that they would replace the US as the top economic global powerhouse. But structural differences among regions in the eurozone have remained unchanged and looser fiscal discipline meant that prosperity and the advantages of low interest rates turned out to be short-lived.
Stability is scarce in 2nd pension pillar
STABILITY is one of the first words which jump into people’s minds when speaking about old-age pension schemes. But paradoxically this is what the Slovak scheme, and in particular its second – or capitalisation – pillar, has lacked the most. Since its launch in 2004 it has been changed more than 20 times and because of the change in government widely expected after the March 10 general election, it may change yet again. But as the rest of the world is changing too Slovakia's system needs to respond flexibly as well.
Late payments still pose a threat to businesses
SECONDARY insolvency is a well-known phenomenon in Slovakia: its effects can bring even otherwise healthy companies to their knees. Businesses report worsening payment discipline, but some have learned a lesson from the crisis-hit year of 2009 and adopted precautionary measures. Nevertheless, there is still room for improvement – or at least for more caution.
Miners pardoned 160 years ago
A REBELLION of dissatisfied miners broke out in Banská Štiavnica in February 1852 after the miners’ bosses decided to pay salaries only once a month instead of fortnightly. The miners wanted to be paid fortnightly because that coincided with regular markets where prices were cheaper.
Fortunes of European bankers
THE RESULTS of Lloyds TSB and the Royal Bank of Scotland were eagerly anticipated even though the only question was how big their respective losses would be. Both banks are partially state-owned, having been bailed out by the British government in 2008. The RBS reported a loss of GBP2 billion and Lloyds TSB fared even worse, reporting GBP3.5 billion in the red at the end of 2011.
European sovereign ratings lowered
AS LEADERS of the eurozone were looking to hammer out a bailout deal for Greece, credit rating agencies lowered their ratings for several European nations.
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