CROATIAN INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION ON THE RISE - FINANCE MINISTER

( Editorial: --> 7119 ) ZAGREB, Aug 31 (Hina) - For 34 months now, Croatian industrial production has been on an average 6.8 per cent annual rise, Croatian Finance Minister Borislav Skegro told reporters on Monday. Industrial production in the first seven months of this year has increased by 6.1 per cent since last year. If the increase rate remains at the same level, industrial production will reach an increase of at least six, probably more than seven per cent by the end of the year, Skegro said. Total exports this July were 12.7 per cent larger than last July. while imports increased by 5.1 per cent. The greatest increase was registered in agricultural exports - 36.5 per cent, while their imports decreased by ten per cent. Ţhe government budget has realised 66 per cent of the total planned revenues by August 27. The budget is also fulfilling all its commitments, Skegro said. Those in debt are mainly in the private sector, he added. Skegro also said that the short-term foreign debt has been decreased, and is now negligible. Since the beginning of this year, the foreign exchange reserves of the Croatian National Bank have increased by US$200 million. Speaking about events relating to the collapse of the Russian economy, Skegro said Croatia had exported US$129 million worth of goods to Russia, or five per cent of the total exports. At the sae time, it imported US$223 million, or 4.6 per cent of the total imports. These are not large amounts, and if more upset occurred in Russian economy, it cannot jeopardise our foreign trade transactions, Skegro said. He added that countries of central and eastern Europe were grouping on international capital markets, and certain countries are unjustly being connected to the market in Russia. The best example for this is the Croatian pharmaceutical company Pliva whose stock dropped from $86.6 to $34.8 on the international capital market. However, Skegro assessed the price of stock would improve, and appealed to international financial circles not to place Croatia into the same circle with those whose economies are in bad shape. (hina) lml 311553 MET aug 98