Cypriot economy grows by 3.3 pct in H1, creation of investment fund approved
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E-mail Xinhua, August 22, 2019
NICOSIA, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- Cypriot Finance Minister Harris Georgiades informed the cabinet that the economy grew by 3.3 percent in the first six months of the year, the government spokesman announced on Wednesday.
He noted that despite the slowdown in comparison to previous years, when growth was over 4.0 percent, the 3.3 percent growth is a satisfactory one, as it is almost triple the growth in the euro area.
Georgiades announced that as a means of boosting economic growth, the cabinet approved the creation of an investment fund to support startups and foster business innovation.
The fund will fall under the regulation and framework of the Securities and Exchange Commission and will receive an initial sum of 20 million euros from the state.
The government spokesman said the state will have no say in the fund, which will operate on strictly business criteria and will follow international standards on management and investment.
He added that it will be possible for other interested investment funds to join in.
The spokesman further announced that unemployment rates have fallen below 7 percent during the first half of the year from 16 percent at the peak of the economic crisis in 2013, confirming government goals to reach conditions of full employment.
He also announced that there has been a marked increase in state revenue in the first six months, which helped the public debt to drop to around 96 percent after a spike to about 105 percent, following the acquisition of the bad debts of the former state-owned Cyprus Cooperative Bank last year.
In another announcement related to non-performing loans, Georgiades said the Labor Ministry will start taking in applications for the state debt relief scheme, Estia, on Sept. 2, and urged those eligible to file their applications.
Based on information from the banks, the Labor Ministry said it expected about 15,000 applications to be submitted, but added that eligible applicants would likely not more than 10,000.
The purpose of Estia is to reduce the high number of bad debts by assisting vulnerable households who have mortgaged their primary residences, to repay their loans. Banks will strike off one third of the loan amount and the state will subsidize the monthly installment by one third. Enditem
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