Cyprus Business Now

A small increase of 0.09 per cent was recorded in the price index of construction materials for the month of July 2022, compared to the previous month, according to a report by the Cyprus Statistical Service (Cystat) released on Friday.

In addition, the service said that the index reached 134.51 units (based on 2015=100) during this time.

Compared to the corresponding month of the previous year, the index, which shows the evolution of the cost of materials incurred by the contractor, recorded an increase of 17.52 per cent year-on-year.

Finally, going by main product category, increases were recorded in metal products (21.5 per cent), minerals (16.35 per cent), wood, insulating, chemical and plastic products (16.17 per cent), mineral products (15.76 per cent), as well as electromechanical items (11.9 per cent).

Non-performing loans at the end of April 2022 amounted to 11.4 per cent of all loans, according to data published by the Central Bank of Cyprus on Friday.

The total value of non-performing loans stood at €2.93 billion during this time, up from €2.92 billion in March 2022.

Moreover, Total lending increased from €25.55 billion at the end of March to €25.74 billion at the end of April.

At the end of April 2022, household loans amounted to €10.63 billion, while non-financial company loans stood at €13.07 billion.

In addition, €1.68 billion worth of loans belonged to other financial companies, while the general government’s loans amounted to €342 million.

Household non-performing loans amounted to €1.47 billion in April 2022, while that of non-financial companies amounted to €1.18 billion. €281 million in non-performing loans belonged to other financial companies.

The non-performing coverage ratio reached 45.4 per cent at the end of April 2022.

Finally, the total value of loans restructured loans by the end of April amounted to €3.32 billion, of which €1.42 billion remain classified as non-performing loans.

There was an increase in the number of building permits by 3.6 per cent year-on-year between January and May 2022, according to a report released this week by the Cyprus Statistical Service (Cystat).

The report stated that between January and May of this year, 3,272 building permits were issued, compared to 3,157 in the corresponding period of the previous year, registering an increase of 3.6 per cent.

However, the total value of these permits fell by 6.8 per cent year-on-year, while the total area also decreased by 9.4 per cent. Moreover, the total number of dwelling units fell by 9.4 per cent.

In addition, the statistical service stated that the number of building permits authorised by the municipal authorities and the district administration offices during May 2022 stood at 761.

The total value of these permits reached €248 million, while the total area amounted to 224,800 square metres, with the number of building permits corresponding to the construction of 893 dwelling units.

Total government employment experienced a marginal increase of 0.3 per cent in July 2022, when compared to the same month of the previous year.

According to a report by the Cyprus Statistical Service (Cystat) released this week, total government employment increased by 161 persons, a rise of 0.3 per cent year-on-year, and reached 53,118 persons in total.

Permanent staff declined by 697 people, a drop of 2.6 per cent, falling from 26,599 to 25,902 persons.

Casual staff increased by 824 persons, a rise of 4.6 per cent, and reached 18,722 persons in total, compared to 17,898 in July of the previous year.

Αn increase was observed in staff across all personnel categories, excluding of security forces staff, which decreased by 1.9 per cent.

The highest increase was observed in public education staff, which expanded by 2.3 per cent, something which has been primarily attributed to a 9.9 per cent increase in casual staff.

Compared to June 2022, there was a decrease across all personnel categories, again, with the exception of security forces staff, which decreased by 0.3 per cent.

The largest decline was seen in public education staff with 2.2 per cent, which has been attributed to a 5.8 per cent decrease in casual staff.

The Cyprus Stock Exchange (CSE) ended Friday, August 12 with profits.

The general Cyprus Stock Market Index was at 69.01 points at 13:09 during the day, reflecting a rise of 0.21 per cent over the previous day of trading.

The FTSE / CySE 20 Index was at 41.36 points, which represents an increase of 0.34 per cent.

The total value of transactions came up to €6,663.

In terms of the sub-indexes, the main, alternative and hotel indexes rose by 0.21 per cent, 0.38 per cent and 0.81 per cent respectively, while the investment firm index remained stable.

The biggest investment interest was attracted by the Bank of Cyprus (+1.41 per cent), Logicom (no change), Louis PLC (-5.19 per cent) and Petrolina Holdings (+1.85 per cent).