PUBLIC COMPANIES OPERATE WITH DEFICIT OF 758 MIL. KUNAS IN 1995

ZAGREB, July 9 (Hina) - Public companies and joint stock companies operated in 1995 with a net deficit of 758 million kunas (about 216.5 million German marks), head of the Office for Economics and Restructuring of Public companies, Dunja Vidosevic, told reporters on Tuesday. Financial reports from 16 companies and joint stock companies conveyed a decrease in productivity in relation to the year 1994. The Croatian Railways, Croatian Forests and Croatian Oil Company (INA) had a deficit, while other companies worked with a profit, but only the Official Gazette, Croatian Radio and Television and Croatia Insurance had realized a greater profit in relation to 1994, Vidosevic said. Non-business expenditures, as were representations of cars and so on, rose to 386 million kunas (about 110 million German marks), which was 28 percent more than in 1994, Vidosevic said. The government would establish an internal financial and administrative control in public companies, Vidosevic said, adding that the government would be assisted by experts with the World Bank. Because the value of assets in these 16 companies was some 131 billion kunas (37 billion German marks), and their average profits were only 0.82 percent it was necessary to reorganize the public sector which could be done only after the first assessment of the situation, Vidosevic said. The government would in the future analyze the situation in every company separately and the first one in the line would be the Croatian Electric Power Company, she added. (hina) lm jn 091617 MET jul 96