ZAGREB, Sept 20 (Hina) - Croatia's Finance Minister on Wednesday said inflation in the country would remain at low rates. Minister Mato Crkvenac saw the only danger in the trends in prices of energy products but the Government would
redeem it as well, he told a news conference at the Croatian Bank for Reconstruction and Development (HBOR). Prices of producers and retail prices (which were by 6.5 percent higher this August as against the same month 1999) will further be cut, the Minister promised. He confirmed his forecasts with data on the reduction of the basic inflation (the inflation without seasonal oscillations and prices controlled by the Government). That kind of inflation came to 4.1 percent in June as against June in 1999 and in July and August was 3.8 and 3.7 percent respectively. Finance Minister warned about threats posed by trends in prices of power products. Some pressure will b
ZAGREB, Sept 20 (Hina) - Croatia's Finance Minister on Wednesday
said inflation in the country would remain at low rates.
Minister Mato Crkvenac saw the only danger in the trends in prices
of energy products but the Government would redeem it as well, he
told a news conference at the Croatian Bank for Reconstruction and
Development (HBOR).
Prices of producers and retail prices (which were by 6.5 percent
higher this August as against the same month 1999) will further be
cut, the Minister promised.
He confirmed his forecasts with data on the reduction of the basic
inflation (the inflation without seasonal oscillations and prices
controlled by the Government). That kind of inflation came to 4.1
percent in June as against June in 1999 and in July and August was
3.8 and 3.7 percent respectively.
Finance Minister warned about threats posed by trends in prices of
power products. Some pressure will be created as those trends must
affect prices to a certain extent. This is happening all over the
world, while we have managed to neutralise those influences so far,
Crkvenac explained.
We are determined to stick to the economic stability and this
implies the stability in prices, monetary policy and in other
segments, Crkvenac stressed.
He asserted that the realisation of a $400-million loan for the
state budget would produce no monetary effects. This is amount
which will not be added to this year's budget revenues owing to the
postponement of the second stage in the privatisation of Croatia's
'Hrvatski Telekom', he explained.
The use of this loan will start after amendments to the law on the
state budget execution be adopted and those changes should be
discussed by the Sabor next week. After that the first instalment of
250 million dollars will be taken and the rest should be used by the
end of this year, Crkvenac said.
A major part of the first instalment will be used for the payment of
the foreign debt.
Crkvenac together with the HBOR Management chairman Antun Kovacev
today presented three programmes of this bank for loans which will
be granted for export under favourable conditions with the annual
interest rate of seven percent.
(hina) jn ms