CROATIA EXPECTS INCREASE OF ITALIAN INVESTMENTS

ZAGREB, Jan 16 (Hina) - Croatia expected an increase of Italian investments into Croatian economy in the future, Croatian Prime Minister Zlatko Matesa told Italian business people in Zagreb on Monday. #L# Italy had become Croatia's first foreign trade partner with a US$ 2.5 million exchange both ways, Matesa said. He stressed that now was the time for establishing deeper and long-term economic connections between the two countries, and the condition for that was an increase of Italian investments. Matesa said that Croatia already unilaterally fulfilled Maastricht conditions envisaged for the European Monetary Unit (EMU). Italian Prime Minister Prodi stressed that Italy fully supported investments into Croatia's economy, which was shown by the fact that an Italian institution for the protection of investments had set aside 200 billion lira for investments into Croatia. Recommending Croatia as a country for investments, Croatian Finance Minister Bozo Prka said that Croatia had advanced from the 150th position to the 40th of the overall economic situation. Speaking about concrete possibilities for investment of Italian companies into Croatian economy, Croatian Economy Minister Davor Stern pointed out the free trade zones in Krapina, Osijek, Rijeka and Sibenik. Director of the Croatian Agency for promoting Croatian economy, Vanja Kalogjera, said that Italian companies showed exceptional interest for investing into Croatian economy. Italian company "Costanza" signed a preliminary agreement on the construction of three building materials factories in Sibenik and oil companies Agip and INA are in the process of negotiating about the establishment of a terminal for transforming natural gas into liquid gas. Kalogjera and director of the Italian Institute for foreign trade, Giuseppe Daquano, signed a cooperation agreement in Zagreb on Thursday. (hina) lm mm 162124 MET jan 97