Cyprus Business Now

The Central Bank of Cyprus on Friday announced that the reference interest rate for the purposes of usury has been set at 10.38 per cent for the period of July to September 2023.

In accordance with Article 314A of the Criminal Code Law, Chapter 154, the reference interest rate is calculated quarterly by the Central Bank of Cyprus, and its publication is made in the Official Gazette of the Republic.

As per the article, it is considered a criminal offence when an individual, in the provision of any loan, extension of the payment deadline, loan renewal, or loan prepayment, receives, charges, agrees, or obtains for oneself or for a third party financial benefits or assets that exceed the reference interest rate.

The setting of the reference interest rate aims to regulate and prevent usurious practices in the financial sector, protecting borrowers from exorbitant interest rates that could lead to abusive lending practices.

The Central Bank’s decision to set the reference interest rate at 10.38 per cent reflects the current economic conditions and lending environment in Cyprus.

The total sales of petroleum products in Cyprus during June 2023 increased by 5.4 per cent compared to June 2022, reaching 132,828 tons, according to a report released this week by the Cyprus Statistical Service.

The report revealed a specific increase in aviation fuel supplies by 8.6 per cent and significant growth in heavy fuel oil sales by 66.4 per cent, asphalt by 50.3 per cent, motor gasoline by 12.2 per cent, liquefied petroleum gas by 9.8 per cent, heating oil by 9.1 per cent, and regular gasoline by 7.6 per cent.

However, there was a decrease in marine fuel supplies by 27.3 per cent and in kerosene and light fuel oil sales by 49.5 per cent and 3.2 per cent, respectively.

In terms of retail sales of petroleum products, they showed a rise of 7.8 per cent amounting to 59,298 tons.

Compared to the previous month, the total petroleum product stocks decreased by 14 per cent at the end of June 2023.

Overall, petroleum product sales during June 2023 rose by 8.4 per cent compared to May 2023.

Notably, aviation fuel supplies increased by 13.3 per cent, while motor gasoline and regular gasoline sales saw a rise of 7.9 per cent and 5.1 per cent, respectively.

During the period from January to June 2023, total petroleum product sales witnessed a decline of 2.2 per cent compared to the same period in the previous year.

The recent data indicates a positive trend in petroleum product sales, which could be attributed to factors such as economic recovery, increased travel activities, and heightened industrial demand.

The Cyprus Stock Exchange (CSE) ended Friday, July 28 with profits.

The general Cyprus Stock Market Index was at 116.40 points at 12:34 during the day, reflecting an increase of 0.55 per cent over the previous day of trading.

The FTSE / CySE 20 Index was at 70.39 points, representing a rise of 0.54 per cent.

The total value of transactions came up to €84,411.

In terms of the sub-indexes, the main, alternative and hotel indexes rose by 0.57 per cent, 0.11 per cent and 0.63 per cent respectively. The investment firm index fell by 0.39 per cent.

The biggest investment interest was attracted by the Bank of Cyprus (-1.42 per cent), Logicom (-0.86 per cent), Lordos Hotels (+1.2 per cent), Demetra Holdings (no change), and Salamis Tours (no change).