CROATIAN NATIONAL BANK COUNCIL SESSION ENDS

ZAGREB, Dec 6 (Hina) - The Croatian National Bank (HNB) Council at Wednesday's session asserted industrial production, after having grown for three consecutive months, has in October, for two months in a row, decreased by 1.1 per cent in relation to the same month last year. The Council issued a statement after the session, chaired by HNB governor, Zeljko Rohatinski, saying the change in the trend of industrial production was the result primarily of a decrease in energy supply, not the fall of production in the manufacturing industry. Indicators of trends of industrial production show that the achieved growth of economy was not yet strong enough, and the started structural reforms should be implemented more intensively with the aim of its consolidation. In November a slight depreciation of the kuna was announced in relation to the euro, which began in mid-October -- the average exchange rate of the kuna in relation to the euro last month nominally weakened by 0.4 per cent (0.5 per cent in relation to the dollar), when compared to October. The value of total export in the first ten months of this year had grown by 2.31 per cent, and the value of the total import by 1.65 per cent in relation to the same period last year. The result of the above mentioned trends is an increase in the deficit of trade for the first ten months by 0.82 per cent in comparison to the same period last year. Following a lengthy stagnation, bank loans to the private sector indicate of slight growth, which is still not levelled with the high liquidity of the banking system. This fact is evidence of a restricted reach of monetary policy measures in the field. In contrast to the above mentioned, foreign exchange and kuna deposit in banks have registered a solid increase. The growing trend of registered unemployment which increased in October by 2.7 per cent continues to cause concern. (hina) lml jn