News parkiet

Equity markets

WSE to change trade

cancellation policy

Warsaw Stock Exchange officials are working on a new market rule that would allow cancellation of trades executed through the bourse by mistake, reversing its long-standing policy on bad orders. According to this proposal, stockbrokers who mistakenly typed in incorrect orders would be charged with bad trade cancellation fee of at least 20.000 zloty ($ 5600). Most liquid stocks would be exempted from the new policy. WSE is also proposing a 4% no-cancellation range for stock and index futures. Most Polish stock brokers say the rule doesn?t go far enough because under WSE proposal all counter parties of each trade would have to say ?yes? to have the orders canceled.

Public finances

Tax code changes ?inadvisable?, senior official says

Polish Finance Ministry has no plans to ask for any changes in the country?s Byzantine tax code, deputy minister Jarosław Neneman said yesterday in an extensive interview with PARKIET. Neneman also said that tax laws in Poland should be drafted over a period of two to three years, instead of sudden changes made from one year to the next. Commenting on public subsidy program proposed by the Economy Minister Jerzy Hausner, Neneman said the scheme is questionable and suggested it may be unconstitutional.

Retailing

NFI Empik Media & Fashion offering

postponed until 2005

Former privatization fund NFI Empik Media & Fashion said it will postpone planned secondary offering of up to 10 million new shares until sometime next year. Formerly known as NFI Hetman, the fund switched owners earlier this year when it was acquired by Eastbridge group. It now owns stakes in several popular retail chains, including Empik media and bookstore chain, Smyk toy stores and DT Centrum department stores as well as operations in the Czech Republic.

Chief executive Maciej Dyjas says his retail holding needs more time to show earnings that will actually reflect this year?s change of business. The fund said earlier it needs up to 25 million euros for expansion and acquisitions.

Media

TVN to file for IPO

TVN, Poland?s second largest private TV stations, plans to file its IPO prospectus today, sources close to the situation told PARKIET on Wednesday. The station, which reported six-month sales of PLN 362 million ($101 million) and more than 120 million zloty EBITDA, is part of ITI Holdings media group.

TVN has 15 percent share of the Polish market by audience. It also operates a round-the-clock news channel called TVN24, as well as several smaller specialty channels.

Petrochemicals

Orlen to pick preliminary list of CEO

candidates on Friday

PKN Orlen will select a preliminary list of candidates for the new CEO this Friday, Małgorzata Okońska-Zaremba, a non-executive board member told journalists yesterday. Investment banker Paweł Gricuk from JP Morgan Chase and deputy Finance Minister Igor Chalupec are the most likely candidates to run Poland?s biggest refinery.

Transportation

Stalexport up on possible

highway contract

Shares of Stalexport S.A. steel trading group rose as much as 6 percent to close at 2.97 zloty yesterday after the announcement its subsidiary was selected by Poland?s highway construction authority for negotiations over its bid to upgrade, maintain and operate toll highway linking the cities of Wrocław and Katowice in southern Poland. Stalexport Autostrada Śląska and Autostrada Południe were both picked for initial negotiations on the contract, but GDDKiA picked SAŚ over Ferrovial subsidiary yesterday.

News of the contract leaked out in mid-session, forcing the WSE to suspend trading in Stalexport shares briefly after 1 PM. Almost 5 percent of the company?s stock changed hands during yesterday?s session.

Representatives of Ferrovial subsidiary Budimex S.A., which made its own bid for Poland?s third toll highway were surprised by the decision Nevertheless, shares of thinly traded Budimex, which is also part of WIG20 blue-chip index, rose 5.6 percent on Wednesday.

Sources at GDDKiA, a government agency that manages Poland?s highway construction program said the two bids were roughly equal. However, they pointed out that Stalexport already operates Poland?s first toll highway between Kraków and Katowice, regional capitals of Małopolska and Upper Silesia.