Latest Updates

MEDUZA: Ukrainian strikes on targets inside Russia could mark a new phase in the war

Two days in a row this week, the Ukrainian Armed Forces used drones to strike targets deep within Russia. Satellite images from December 5 show that Ukraine hit the Engels air base near Saratov and the Dyagilevo air base near Ryazan.

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Russian coal exports hit fresh highs after EU shipping sanctions were softened

Russian exports of coal have soared to fresh highs after the EU softened sanctions on European shipping companies, allowing them to carry goods worldwide shortly after a ban was imposed in August as part of the fifth package of sanctions.

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bneGREEN: Vertical farms to feed the cities of the future

Indoor vertical farms in Emerging European cities are replacing costly and polluting air imports to supply leafy vegetables for the region’s urban populations.

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PM’s attempt to quell Mongolia’s ‘coal mafia’ protests drowned out by livid crowds

Amid the demonstrations on Ulaanbaatar’s streets, Mongolians young and old tell bne IntelliNews of their disillusionment and economic hardship.

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Hungary blocks joint EU aid to Ukraine at Ecofin meeting

Budapest has been holding up aid for Ukraine as well as EU approval of a minimum corporate tax as part of an attempt to unfreeze €7.5bn of Cohesion Fund money and €5.8bn of Recovery and Resilience Fund cash.

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Can Russia sneak gas into the EU via a Turkish gas hub?

Russia has been eagerly pushing for the further development of Turkey as a “gas hub” for its gas supplies to Europe. Analysts are asking if this simply a ruse to dodge sanctions and surreptitiously continue to export gas to EU members.

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Oil tanker jam forms off Turkey as Russian oil price cap disrupts markets

An oil tanker traffic jam has formed off the Turkish coast after the EU’s introduction of a price cap on global Russian crude supplies, the Financial Times reported on December 5. Turkish authorities are demanding new proof of full insurance cover.

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Roddy Scott Foundation providing education to the children of war-torn Pankisi Gorge

Twenty years ago the young freelance photojournalist Roddy Scott was killed by Russian forces in the Pankisi gorge in Georgia, a refuge for terrorists and a transit point into neighbouring Chechnya during the war there.

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Mongolians attempt to storm Government Palace as protests over coal profits scandal swell

Majority strived to keep the youth-led demonstrations peaceful, but the bitterness now held towards top officials runs deep and was clear for all to see.

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US ambassador warns of security risks at north Kosovo’s upcoming elections

Czech president reported to be planning pre-emptive appointment of head of Constitutional Court

China has won water dispute with Kazakhstan

US ambassador warns of security risks at north Kosovo’s upcoming elections

Jeffrey Hovenier says conditions are not in place for elections to be held safely after explosions in ethnically divided region.

Czech president reported to be planning pre-emptive appointment of head of Constitutional Court

Appointing the Constitutional Court head before he ends his term would be a dangerous precedent for the Czech justice system, and could plunge the country into the same kind of constitutional crisis over the judiciary as currently rages in Poland.

China has won water dispute with Kazakhstan

Astana accepts that it cannot force China to use less water upstream. But the BRI may help it reduce its own water waste, a new paper argues.

News

Khamenei’s sister speaks out against her brother’s ‘despotic caliphate’

It has brought nothing but suffering, she says, condemning the Iranian regime’s bloody crackdown on anti-government protesters.

Russian paramilitary group Wagner reportedly opens 'cultural centre' in Belgrade

Telegram announcement by group dubbed 'Putin's private army' comes at time of heightened tensions between Serbia and Kosovo.

CESEE banks expect credit conditions to tighten and NPLs to rise

With most COVID-19-related support measures having been phased out, borrowers are now being put under pressure by surging inflation and sharply rising interest rates.

No confidence motion in Slovakia to be decided by independent MPs

The political crisis comes at a time when unrest is growing at the political chaos and the botched response to the worsening cost of living crisis.

Hungary scraps fuel price cap after panic buying leaves pumps dry

The chaos and the hike in prices are a huge embarrassment to Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who introduced the cap in November last year to ease rising inflation before the election.

Khamenei’s sister speaks out against her brother’s ‘despotic caliphate’

21 hours ago

Russian paramilitary group Wagner reportedly opens 'cultural centre' in Belgrade

22 hours ago

CESEE banks expect credit conditions to tighten and NPLs to rise

1 day ago

No confidence motion in Slovakia to be decided by independent MPs

1 day ago

Hungary scraps fuel price cap after panic buying leaves pumps dry

1 day ago

More News

Tech

Slovenia’s ruling Freedom Movement quits Twitter after Elon Musk takeover

Party fears Twitter will "open the door to indecent communication and hate speech".

More than 80 Ukrainian Web3 startups raise $1bn over the past four years

While Ukraine ranks third worldwide in the 2022 Global Crypto Adoption Index, Web3 startups with roots in this country have raised nearly $1bn in investments over the past four years

Slush revokes €1mn tech prize for UK start-up Immigram because founders are Russians

The Slush 100 programme is a pitching competition for tech startups in their early stages of development but this year's winners of a €1mn prize, UK registered Immigram, was stripped of its award simply because its founders are Russian.

Turkmen women issued ‘Botox bans’ on flying by airport officers running facial recognition software

Move follows criticism authorities have adopted ‘Taliban-style’ restrictions on tight-fitting clothes, dyed hair and beauty accessories such as false nails or eyelashes.

Hitachi's GlobalLogic acquires Romanian IT firm Fortech

Acquiring Fortech, one of Romania’s largest independent digital engineering firms, is part of GlobalLogic’s strategy to establish a wider European footprint.

Slovenia’s ruling Freedom Movement quits Twitter after Elon Musk takeover

11 days ago

More than 80 Ukrainian Web3 startups raise $1bn over the past four years

14 days ago

Slush revokes €1mn tech prize for UK start-up Immigram because founders are Russians

14 days ago

Turkmen women issued ‘Botox bans’ on flying by airport officers running facial recognition software

14 days ago

Hitachi's GlobalLogic acquires Romanian IT firm Fortech

16 days ago

More Tech

Opinion

ING: Hungary starts fourth quarter on a bad footing

The many economic challenges have begun to surface and become measurable. The performance of industry and retail sales was subpar in October, suggesting a tough fourth quarter.

ING: Europe faces stiff competition for natural gas

The collapse in European natural gas prices in recent months has created a false sense of security. While the current winter appears to be more manageable, the region will find it more difficult to build adequate storage for the 2023/24 winter.

PANNIER: Might Tokayev be the real deal?

Kazakhstan’s re-elected president has seven years to show he really does understand the meaning of the word he mouths so often, “reform”.

OPINION: Bosnia economic salvage supplants breakup mood

The main message of Bosnia’s October elections was a decisive rebuke for hardliners, with voters seeking practical economic cooperation to raise living standards and counteract mass emigration.

ASH: Turkey is heading to “incumbent democracy”

The vision for me of the weekend opening of the World Cup in Qatar was of Turkish President Erdogan warmly welcoming his Egyptian counterpart, Sisi. The two have long been rivals and have very different visions of democracy in the region.

ING: Hungary starts fourth quarter on a bad footing

11 hours ago

ING: Europe faces stiff competition for natural gas

6 days ago

PANNIER: Might Tokayev be the real deal?

10 days ago

OPINION: Bosnia economic salvage supplants breakup mood

16 days ago

ASH: Turkey is heading to “incumbent democracy”

16 days ago

More Opinion

Data

Serbian central bank raises key rate to 5%

National Bank of Serbia seeks to limit the spillover effects of import price growth on domestic prices as inflation reached 15% in October.

Analysts remain bullish on Hungarian industry’s outlook despite monthly contraction in October

Industrial production declines 3.5% m/m in October, the first contraction in five months and the first since the pandemic.

North Macedonia’s annual inflation stands at 19.5% in November

Inflation slowed down slightly from the 19.8% recorded a month earlier.

The world's biggest oil producers

The United States is by far the world’s biggest producer of oil, having produced around 16.6mn barrels of oil on average per day in 2021, Statista reports.

Drop in Russia’s car sales continues in November with 62% slump

Sales of passenger cars and light commercial vehicles (LCVs) declined by 62% year on year in November to 46,403 vehicles, according to the Association of European Businesses that oversees the industry.

Serbian central bank raises key rate to 5%

5 hours ago

Analysts remain bullish on Hungarian industry’s outlook despite monthly contraction in October

14 hours ago

North Macedonia’s annual inflation stands at 19.5% in November

23 hours ago

The world's biggest oil producers

1 day ago

Drop in Russia’s car sales continues in November with 62% slump

1 day ago

More Data

Features

Turkmenistan: A shining city in a book of records

Russia is proposing a major reconfiguration of the Central Asian gas market. Eurasianet’s weekly Turkmenistan briefing.

Is Russia putting additional pressure on Belarus to join the war?

Lukashenko's and Shoigu's latest meeting in Minsk has spurred new fears that Russia may be putting increased pressure on Belarus to join the war by putting boots on the ground.

Belarus Corruption Watch: living the high life with Dimitry and Anna Lukashenko

The Lukashenko family members hold very favourable positions in Belarus’ SOEs. The family often invite their business partners on expensive trips, the costs for which wildly exceed the family members’ official earnings.

New START missile treaty suspended as tensions escalate between Russia and US

Russia has called off what were supposed to be routine talks on implementing the new START missile treaty, signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Joe Biden in the first week after he took office in 2021.

The legendary Silk Road city of Samarkand gets a tourism upgrade

“Samarkand is as old as time” but the Uzbek government has invested heavily in the hospitality infrastructure to improve the appeal of this legendary Silk Road city to the international traveller.

Turkmenistan: A shining city in a book of records

1 day ago

Is Russia putting additional pressure on Belarus to join the war?

1 day ago

Belarus Corruption Watch: living the high life with Dimitry and Anna Lukashenko

3 days ago

New START missile treaty suspended as tensions escalate between Russia and US

4 days ago

The legendary Silk Road city of Samarkand gets a tourism upgrade

4 days ago

More Features

Blogs

MOSCOW BLOG: Oil embargo day

The EU’s oil embargo on importing Russian oil comes into effect today. The blanket ban on seaborne oil deliveries is softened by the oil price cap scheme, so that the EU can import oil from Russia provided it costs less than $60.

MOSCOW BLOG: Geography of diplomacy

Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev was on the road this week making his first diplomatic trips following his re-election and symbolically chose to meet Russia's Putin first, but just as symbolically chose to meet France's Macron the next day.

MOSCOW BLOG: Symbolic sanctions

The European Commission announced the price for the mooted gas price cap at €275/MWh (€2,974/kcm). That is high as is the anticipated oil price cap of $60-$70. The result is neither caps will make much difference to Russia.

ISTANBUL BLOG: IR crowd await next chapter of Erdogan and Bibi

While old foe Netanyahu was out of office, Turkey’s president restored relations with Israel. But Netanyahu is back.

BALKAN BLOG: Moldova’s beleaguered pro-EU authorities opt for radical and risky steps

Weekly mass protests and the ‘Moldova Leaks’ scandal have put the government under pressure. Its response risks undermining its reformist credentials.

MOSCOW BLOG: Oil embargo day

3 days ago

MOSCOW BLOG: Geography of diplomacy

7 days ago

MOSCOW BLOG: Symbolic sanctions

15 days ago

ISTANBUL BLOG: IR crowd await next chapter of Erdogan and Bibi

19 days ago

BALKAN BLOG: Moldova’s beleaguered pro-EU authorities opt for radical and risky steps

20 days ago

More Blogs

bneGREEN

bneGREEN: War in Ukraine speeds up global transition to renewable energy

The global energy crisis caused by Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine has sped up the green transition, Ukraine Business news reported on December 7.

bneGREEN: Energy efficiency investment turns the corner in 2022, but more is needed

Global investment in energy efficiency could rise by 16% to $560bn in 2022, the International Energy Agency said, as governments and consumers respond to fuel supply disruptions and record-high energy prices.

bneGREEN: EU energy ministers agree to speed up permitting and deployment of renewables temporarily

A final decision – formal approval – on the new regulation may occur at another emergency meeting on December 13.

bneGREEN: ING: Euro sustainable bond supply set to stagnate in 2023

Euro sustainable bond issuance in 2023 is not likely to repeat the growth rates seen in the last few years. While governments and agencies could slightly accelerate ESG issuance in 2023, financial institutions' ESG bond supply will lose some steam.

Bulgarian PV equipment company AmonRa Energy to hold IPO

AmonRa wants to raise funds to finance its expansion in Romania and in other Southeast European countries.

bneGREEN: War in Ukraine speeds up global transition to renewable energy

23 hours ago

bneGREEN: Energy efficiency investment turns the corner in 2022, but more is needed

6 days ago

bneGREEN: EU energy ministers agree to speed up permitting and deployment of renewables temporarily

9 days ago

bneGREEN: ING: Euro sustainable bond supply set to stagnate in 2023

15 days ago

Bulgarian PV equipment company AmonRa Energy to hold IPO

17 days ago

More bneGREEN

Latest Updates

News

It has brought nothing but suffering, she says, condemning the Iranian regime’s bloody crackdown on anti-government protesters.

Telegram announcement by group dubbed 'Putin's private army' comes at time of heightened tensions between Serbia and Kosovo.

With most COVID-19-related support measures having been phased out, borrowers are now being put under pressure by surging inflation and sharply rising interest rates.

The political crisis comes at a time when unrest is growing at the political chaos and the botched response to the worsening cost of living crisis.

The chaos and the hike in prices are a huge embarrassment to Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who introduced the cap in November last year to ease rising inflation before the election.

Tech

Party fears Twitter will "open the door to indecent communication and hate speech".

While Ukraine ranks third worldwide in the 2022 Global Crypto Adoption Index, Web3 startups with roots in this country have raised nearly $1bn in investments over the past four years

The Slush 100 programme is a pitching competition for tech startups in their early stages of development but this year's winners of a €1mn prize, UK registered Immigram, was stripped of its award simply because its founders are Russian.

Move follows criticism authorities have adopted ‘Taliban-style’ restrictions on tight-fitting clothes, dyed hair and beauty accessories such as false nails or eyelashes.

Acquiring Fortech, one of Romania’s largest independent digital engineering firms, is part of GlobalLogic’s strategy to establish a wider European footprint.

Opinion

The many economic challenges have begun to surface and become measurable. The performance of industry and retail sales was subpar in October, suggesting a tough fourth quarter.

The collapse in European natural gas prices in recent months has created a false sense of security. While the current winter appears to be more manageable, the region will find it more difficult to build adequate storage for the 2023/24 winter.

Kazakhstan’s re-elected president has seven years to show he really does understand the meaning of the word he mouths so often, “reform”.

The main message of Bosnia’s October elections was a decisive rebuke for hardliners, with voters seeking practical economic cooperation to raise living standards and counteract mass emigration.

The vision for me of the weekend opening of the World Cup in Qatar was of Turkish President Erdogan warmly welcoming his Egyptian counterpart, Sisi. The two have long been rivals and have very different visions of democracy in the region.

Data

National Bank of Serbia seeks to limit the spillover effects of import price growth on domestic prices as inflation reached 15% in October.

Industrial production declines 3.5% m/m in October, the first contraction in five months and the first since the pandemic.

Inflation slowed down slightly from the 19.8% recorded a month earlier.

The United States is by far the world’s biggest producer of oil, having produced around 16.6mn barrels of oil on average per day in 2021, Statista reports.

Sales of passenger cars and light commercial vehicles (LCVs) declined by 62% year on year in November to 46,403 vehicles, according to the Association of European Businesses that oversees the industry.

Features

Russia is proposing a major reconfiguration of the Central Asian gas market. Eurasianet’s weekly Turkmenistan briefing.

Lukashenko's and Shoigu's latest meeting in Minsk has spurred new fears that Russia may be putting increased pressure on Belarus to join the war by putting boots on the ground.

The Lukashenko family members hold very favourable positions in Belarus’ SOEs. The family often invite their business partners on expensive trips, the costs for which wildly exceed the family members’ official earnings.

Russia has called off what were supposed to be routine talks on implementing the new START missile treaty, signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Joe Biden in the first week after he took office in 2021.

“Samarkand is as old as time” but the Uzbek government has invested heavily in the hospitality infrastructure to improve the appeal of this legendary Silk Road city to the international traveller.

Blogs

The EU’s oil embargo on importing Russian oil comes into effect today. The blanket ban on seaborne oil deliveries is softened by the oil price cap scheme, so that the EU can import oil from Russia provided it costs less than $60.

Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev was on the road this week making his first diplomatic trips following his re-election and symbolically chose to meet Russia's Putin first, but just as symbolically chose to meet France's Macron the next day.

The European Commission announced the price for the mooted gas price cap at €275/MWh (€2,974/kcm). That is high as is the anticipated oil price cap of $60-$70. The result is neither caps will make much difference to Russia.

While old foe Netanyahu was out of office, Turkey’s president restored relations with Israel. But Netanyahu is back.

Weekly mass protests and the ‘Moldova Leaks’ scandal have put the government under pressure. Its response risks undermining its reformist credentials.

bneGREEN

The global energy crisis caused by Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine has sped up the green transition, Ukraine Business news reported on December 7.

Global investment in energy efficiency could rise by 16% to $560bn in 2022, the International Energy Agency said, as governments and consumers respond to fuel supply disruptions and record-high energy prices.

A final decision – formal approval – on the new regulation may occur at another emergency meeting on December 13.

Euro sustainable bond issuance in 2023 is not likely to repeat the growth rates seen in the last few years. While governments and agencies could slightly accelerate ESG issuance in 2023, financial institutions' ESG bond supply will lose some steam.

AmonRa wants to raise funds to finance its expansion in Romania and in other Southeast European countries.

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Uzbekistan is will hold its first three “People’s IPOs” before the end of the year where the first stakes in three major ent....

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