* EuroAsia Interconnector gets go-ahead from Cyprus-Greece regulators, Israel to follow *     EuroAsia Interconnector, the ambitious 1500km long subsea cable that will link the electricity grids of Israel, Cyprus and Greece, has received the go-ahead from the regulators of both Cyprus and Greece, with construction expected to begin in the first quarter of

 * Limassol hub, market forecasting and energy prospects *   The “Maritime Cyprus 2017” Conference (October 8-11) concluded Limassol with the third and final day focusing on Limassol developing as a maritime hub, analysis of market forecasting and the impact oil and natural gas exploration in the region could have on shipping. Limassol Mayor Nicos

Some 230,000 people in Cyprus were at risk of poverty in 2016, representing 27.7% of the population, three years after the country’s near bankruptcy, financial meltdown and record unemployment. According to Eurostat, this figure is up 23.3% from the 180,000 who were near the poverty line in 2008, a year of relative prosperity. The European

Cyprus had a trade deficit of EUR 2.8 bln in the first eight months of the year, with exports rising 10% to 2.0 bln in the January-August period, while imports were up 5% at 4.8 bln, according to Eurostat figures. Exports to the EU were worth EUR 0.7 bln (a drop of -24% compared to

Finance Minister Harris Georgiades presented the 2018 state budget to the House Finance Committee, which expected to be approved in the first half of December. The budget, accompanied by the medium-term fiscal framework, provides for a 3.0% growth rate, while 2017 economic growth will exceed 3.5% of GDP. Speaking before the Committee, Georgiades said that

The coverage ratio of non-performing loans or ‘non-performing facilities’ (NPFs) rose to 46.7% at end-June, compared with 42.6% at the end of March, the Central Bank of Cyprus reported. The data showed that during the second quarter of 2017 there was a further decrease of EUR 750 mln or 3.2% in aggregate NPFs compared with

Euro area annual inflation was 1.5% in September, stable compared with August, according to Eurostat, with the monthly rate for September at 0.4%. Inflation in Cyprus dropped to 0.1% in September, from 0.5% in August and -0.4 in September 2016. Cyprus had the lowest annual rate followed by Ireland (0.2%) and Finland (0.8%). The highest

September saw a new monthly record in tourist arrivals, up 14.8% year-on-year, to 483,716, according to the Passengers Survey of the Statistical Service Cystat. For the nine-month period of January to September, total arrivals reached 3,001,603, up from 2,617,218 this time last year, an increase of 14.7%. Arrivals from the United Kingdom were up 10.8%