News Parkiet

EU

Stock market firms applying for EU funding

Several Polish firms listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange have either applied or plan to seek EU financing to pay for their capital investments. One of them, Hydrotor SA, a small maker of parts for agricultural and construction machinery says it will ask for ?several million zloty? in EU financing to pay for a new plant. It plans to hire dozens of new workers to run the facility.

Another applicant for EU aid, Sokołów meat processing group expects EU refunds of up to 40 million zloty after building a new production line.

The deadline for applications for EU financing runs out on June 30.

EU has allocated about 500 million euros to help finance upgrades by Polish companies.

Information Technology

CSS training clients from abroad

Computer Service Support is starting to train IT staff from other parts of Central and Southern Europe as it tries to diversify from its traditional hardware repair services. Publicly traded CSS, which provides customer warranty in Poland for Dell and other hardware suppliers, started selling IT training after buying Warsaw-based Edusoft. It is now one of the largest IT firms in Poland training corporate clients. IT services, including technology training account for about two-thirds of CSS 110 million zloty annual sales.

?The vast majority of our training revenue comes from Microsoft applications?, says CSS Joanna Gawrońska. Just days ago it has signed a contract with Allied Telesyn, one of the world?s largest providers of networking solutions to train its Polish users.

Insurance

Polish insurers boost first quarter profits, GUS says

Polish insurance industry profits before surged 53 percent to as much as 1.05 billion zloty, GUS statistical authority reported yesterday. Combined net earnings were up 81.5 percent to PLN 0.83 billion ($218 million) from last year?s 458 million zloty.

Revenue at life insurance companies rose 9.1 percent to PLN 2.97 billion, outpacing compensation payouts of PLN 1.68 billion.

Politics

Belka?s no-confidence vote today

Polish prime minister Marek Belka will get one last chance to secure parliament?s approval for his cabinet today after two previous votes. Belka, who took over on May second from the now-discredited SLD leader Leszek Miller won the support of Socjaldemokracja Polska, an SLD offshoot, virtually assuring his success.

Real estate

Government real estate selling for compensation rights

Polish real estate investors have found a new way to buy government assets at bargain prices, using compensation rights to property lost after WW2. Up until recently compensation rights for private property left behind in the former Soviet Union after 1945 trading on an informal market could be purchased for as little as 10 to 15 percent of their face value. The rights would then be exchanged for real estate and other property at government auctions.