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Business News Promotion of Domestic Products It was stated by the Montenegro Business Alliance that there should be a focus on the stimulation of the development of the food sector. The Alliance stated that this should be achieved by supporting domestic production and by stimulating chains of shops to increase their export of domestic products. Ultimately this is necessary in order to increase the competitivety of Montenegrin food companies. In addition to the above, it is also improtant to encourage consumers to develop the habit of purchasing domestic products in Montenegro. The managerial and marketing services of companies in the food sector are the most responsible for achieveing this, but the awareness of Montenegrin consumers could also help to develop the domestic economy by purchasing domestic products.
Montenegro Dedicated to the Open Market Montenegro is dedicated to the open market and the private sector as the drivers of economic growth and development. When opening the 2nd Forum of Mediterranean countries, it was stated that Montenegro is going in the direction of reducing taxes and customs tariffs, proportional tax, the free flow of goods and capital. The title of this year’s forum was “The Development of International Networks”. This highlighted the fact that Montenegro has already changed a part of its legislation by achieving its goal of removing certain provisions that could have been seen as business barriers.
Prices in Montenegro are Slightly Lower The average prices of goods and services for personal consumption in Montenegro were 0.1 percent lower in May than they were in April. Consumer prices increased by 3.6 % in comparison with May 2010, and by 3.1 % in comparison with December 2010. In the main groups of products and services, an increase was recorded in the price of clothes and shoes (0.2 %), alcoholic beverages and tobacco products (0.1 %), restaurants and hotels (0.1 %), while a decrease was recorded in healthcare (1.2 %), transport (0.7 %), culture (0.4 %), furniture and housing equipment (0.3 %) and education (0.1 %).
Increase in Foreign Trade by 19% Total foreign trade in Montenegro, during the period from the beginning of 2011 to May of the same year, amounted to €837.6 million, which was an increase of 19% in comparison with the same period last year. The total value of exported goods was €180.5 million, which was 53.2 percent more than it had been in 2010, while the value of imported goods was €657.1 million, an increase of 12.2 % compared with the first five months of last year.
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The export-import ratio amounted to 27.5% and was bigger than the ratio that had been recorded during the same period last year, which amounted to 20.1 %.
Terna Publishes the Details of the Contract on Underwater Cable The Italian company, Terna, gave its approval to publish the details of a contract concerning the construction project of an underwater cable from Montenegro to Italy. Terna expressed that it was ready to give its approval to publish parts of the contract, emphasizing that the legislation and practices required by the European Union ensured, in the main, the confidentiality of these types of contracts and their content. The contract regarding the construction of the underwater cable from Tivat to Pescara was signed in November 2010 and is worth around €720 million.
Employers are worried about the state in Montenegrin economy
It was assessed by the Employers Federation of Montenegro that the situation is concerning in economy. The business environment is bad and planned investments should be realized in due course. The unemployment rate in Montenegro is 11 percent, and employers were very active in 2011 and employed 2.5 percent more workers than last year. The odd thing is that there are 30.000 unemployed in the records of Montenegrin Employment Office, while there are 12.000 foreigners who are working in the country.
World Bank Agrees on €59.1 million for 20 year Loan to Montenegro The World Bank agreed a €59.1 million loan to Montenegro for budget support and banking system reform. The World Bank’s board of directors is expected to give final approval for the loan at the end of August or at the beginning of September.