Food industry

The European Central Bank’s decision to cut its main interest rate and positive local unemployment data gave the bourse benchmark the push required to clear the 1,280-point mark on increased turnover on Thursday, in what is evolving into one of the best weeks of the year for stock prices.

By Dimitra Manifava

Food retail in Greece is starting to show the first signs of recovery this year, as turnover data for the sector’s chains indicate that the slowdown in the decline of sales volume, which started last fall, continued into the first quarter of 2014.

Flood relief accounts receive nearly EUR 6 million

BELGRADE -- Donors have so far paid nearly EUR 6 million to the dinar (RSD), hard currency, and PayPal accounts of the Serbian government set up to help flood victims.

Coca-Cola HBC, the world’s No 2 bottler of Coca-Cola Co drinks, posted a bigger-than-expected quarterly loss, hurt by currency losses mainly in its Ukrainian operations.

BELGRADE - Victoria Group, one of the largest companies in Serbia's agro-industry, has supported the measures of the Serbian government aimed at economic recovery and creation of stable business conditions for all investors and companies in the country.

SUBOTICA - US Ambassador Michael Kirby presented the Public Health Institute in Subotica, northern Serbia, on Tuesday with new laboratory equipment that will allow testing and certification of local agricultural produce according to European standards.

Alpha and Coca-Cola HBC kept the bourse benchmark above the psychologically significant level of 1,220 points on Friday following an earlier decline that had brought daily losses close to 1 percent.

By Dimitra Manifava

Supermarket chains in Greece fear that the worst is yet to come for the sector, expecting the price war to escalate to such an extent in the next few months that some will be forced to shut down completely or be bought out cheaply by their competitors.

SIMANOVCI - Serbian First Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic said Wednesday at the ceremony marking the beginning of construction of a Dr Oetker production facility in Simanovci that this is the most significant event for him today and that Serbia has great respect for Germany and its investors.