Konzum

Ljubljana – Dnevnik reports on Tuesday that after the Slovenian retailer Mercator had been transformed from a joint stock company into a limited liability company at the beginning of the month, the procedure has been launched in the region to merge certain business functions of Mercator and the Croatian retail chain of Konzum.

The revised financial report for the troubled Croatian retail, food and agriculture giant Agrokor, issued on Thursday, showed that the former management, led by company's owner and founder Ivica Todoric, did not show the company's full losses in its financial accounts.

Russia's Sberbank told BIRN that it believes Croatia's troubled private company Agrokor can be restored to normal activity, but wants fulfilment of its demands first.

Russian bank Sberbank has initiated proceedings before the Commercial Court in Belgrade, Serbia, to acquire two companies owned by the troubled Croatian retail giant Agrokor.

Sberbank launched the court proceedings on the basis of loans it gave to two companies, Jamnica and Konzum, which are owned by Agrokor - and which in turn own Mivela and IDEA in Serbia.

Croatia's troubled giant Agrokor will start paying out the first 18 million euros to cover its debts to its small suppliers, the state-appointed extraordinary manager, Ante Ramljak, said on Wednesday.

The extraordinary manager of Croatia's ailing food and retail concern, Agrokor, on Friday said he would now be shifting the focus to Bosnia, where the firm is battling to stabilising operations.

Agrokor's units in Bosnia and Herzegovina are experiencing difficulties with their suppliers, Ante Ramljak said, following a third meeting in Sarajevo with the Bosnian authorities.

Despite the steep loss, CEO Tomislav Čizmić remains buoyant, stressing that the company is stable and has been gaining market share, which will be crucial as the Agrokor story unfolds.

Thousands of jobs in Bosnia, where unemployment is already high, may be in jeopardy owing to continued uncertainly over the future of Croatian biggest private company, Agrokor, which is stuggling with debt and liquidity issues.

Austria's Erste Bank on Friday announced that Croatia's biggest private company Agrokor - currently embroiled in a deep financial crisis - and its creditors had reached a deal on a "standstill agreement" whereby the company will remain financially liquid while its debts are placed on "standby".

N1 media on Wednesday claimed that Croatian government officials met on Tuesday with representatives of the Russian state-owned Sberbank to discuss large loans it gave to Croatia's biggest privately-owned company, Agrokor.