News Parkiet

Equity markets

Stock option rules will cut corporate profits

New rules making companies expense the cost of stock options will cut into profits of Polish companies, research analysts say. Most Polish firms listing their shares on the WSE in recent months launched their own stock option plans to compensate their managers.

Some market watchers say new rules could signal an end to generous stock option plans.

Pensions

Poland may give tax breaks for owners of IKE accounts

Deputy prime minister Jerzy Hausner wants to propose a legislation that would give tax deductions to owners of IKE retirement accounts as an added incentive to kick-start the program. Polish government expected one million people to open tax-sheltered IKE accounts last year, but recent figures show only 200.000 have actually signed up.

Manufacturing

nkt cables' shareholders to vote on asset sale

Shareholders of nkt cables, a Polish cable manufacturer controlled by Denmark's nkt cables are set to vote on a proposal to sell enameled wires unit to Elektrokoppar Svenska from Sweden. Publicly traded nkt is expected to post 20 million zloty gain on the sale of Czechowice, Silesia-based subsidiary for PLN 28.5 million.

The vote will be held on January 25.

Apparel industry

Vistula reports earnings

Kraków-based maker of men's clothing Vistula SA reported preliminary earnings of 21 million zloty ($6.8 million) for fiscal 2004, the best result since the stock went public ten years ago. The company, best known for making quality suits and men's jackets, posted sales of 120 million zloty. Vistula's profits include some 6.5 million zloty in extra gains on early debt repayment and asset sales.

It suffered massive losses and almost went under during a messy shareholder dispute in 2002.and 2003.

Automatic controls

Relpol gets tax refund

Relpol SA automatic controls maker said it got back 8 million zloty ($2.58 million) tax refund in yet another development in a four-year dispute with local tax authorities.

The move came after the company won yet another appeal of UKS tax claims.

Relpol, which has market cap of just 68 million zloty, rose 1.1 percent to close at 79.9 zloty on the news.

Information Technology

IBM wins outsourcing contract with Polkomtel

IBM's Polish unit signed a five-year outsourcing contract with the country's no. 3 mobile phone company Polkomtel SA yesterday after eighteen months of negotiations. The contract has a total value of nearly 12 million US dollars and covers maintenance of SAP system used by the Polish firm. IBM Polska will hire over 30 Polkomtel employees as part of the deal.

Dariusz Fabiszewski, managing director of IBM Polska says the company plans to use former Polkomtel staff to build an IT unit that would take over SAP maintenance from other clients. He estimates that about 450 Polish firms use SAP technology.

Petrochemicals

Glimar bankruptcy hearing postponed

Troubled Rafineria Glimar oil refinery announce Tuesday it will try to stave off bankruptcy before the hearing that was to decide on company's fate was postponed for several days. 'We will keep fighting for Glimar' - chief executive Bogdan Janicki said. Glimar, which has outstanding debts of one billion zloty, was recently sold for a nominal 1 zloty to Grupa Lotos, Gdańsk-based petrochemicals group. Its biggest creditor, Bank BPH, said earlier it has already made provisions covering its exposure in the event of bankruptcy.

Automotive industry

JC Auto meets earnings guidance for 2004

JC Auto car parts distributor says its 2004 earnings rose about 40 percent to around 13.8 million zloty last year, with revenues growing at a similar rate to PLN 140 million. 'Our earnings and sales were roughly what we said it would be', founder and CEO Jerzy Grabowiecki says. The compan

Pharmaceuticals

Bioton to go public in March

Bioton SA insulin maker could list its shares on the Warsaw Stock Exchange as early as this March, company officials told PARKIET recently. It has postponed 100-million zloty IPO, initially planned late last year because of the number of new issues on the market.

Bioton has almost 10 percent market share, up from just 0.4 percent three years ago.