Cyprus Business Now

The interior ministry on Friday officially announced that elections for European Parliament and local government would be held on Sunday, June 9. The deadline to submit a candidacy was set for April 24. Furthermore, the announcement was published as an official decree, which also set June 9 as the date for local government elections. Additionally, Thursday, April 25 was set as the deadline for candidacies for the positions of district self-government organization presidents, mayors, deputy mayors, municipal councillors, and school board members.

In another domain, a long journey of milestones, difficult moments, and achievements for the country’s largest financial institution was how the Bank of Cyprus described its 125-year history. A vision that took root over a century ago, driven by the aspirations of the Cypriot people, was destined to evolve into the largest financial institution of the country. The anniversary was marked on Wednesday at the bank’s Nicosia headquarters in the presence of President Nikos Christodoulides, party leaders, officials, and business people.

Similarly, revenues from betting activity within Cyprus recorded an upward trend for another quarter, thereby confirming the dynamic and steady growth of the sector. According to the financial results announced by the National Betting Authority for Q4 of 2023, the gross betting revenue of Class A (land-based betting) and Class B (online betting) recipients reached €325,601,464, marking an increase of 10 per cent compared to the corresponding quarter of 2022 (€296,607,170). Moreover, total gross betting revenue for the year 2023 exceeded one billion euros, reaching €1,109,209,082. This represents a significant increase of 16 per cent, compared to 2022 (€959,557,906).

Reflecting on the real estate market, in Q4 of 2023, two-bedroom apartments were the main attraction for buyers in Cyprus, according to Ask Wire‘s findings, which emerge from continuous monitoring of the development of 421 high-end projects across Cyprus. Throughout the last quarter of that year, a total of 240 sales was completed, amounting to €154 million in value.

The Cyprus Statistical Service (Cystat) has announced the release on Friday, of its bimonthly bulletin, “Monthly Economic Indicators,” covering the period of January to February 2024.

Lastly, the Cyprus Stock Exchange (CSE) experienced a downturn on Friday, with the General Index decreasing by 0.32 per cent, closing at 145.50 points. Similarly, the FTSE/CySE 20 Index also saw a decline, dropping by 0.34 per cent to finish at 88.34 points. The daily turnover reached €936,440.50.

Despite the daily losses, it’s noteworthy that weekly, the main stock market index recorded an increase of 1.59 per cent.

Turning to individual stock market indexes, all exhibited a decline. Specifically, the Main Market index fell by 0.19 per cent, the Investment Companies index by 0.81 per cent, the Alternative Market index by 0.88 per cent, and the Hotels index by the most at 0.94 per cent.

Focusing on specific securities, DIMITRA INVESTMENT attracted the greatest investment interest, with trading worth €533,102.81. However, its stock fell by 0.83 per cent, closing at €0.96.

Following DIMITRA, The Bank of Cyprus shares drew significant attention with €142,156.96 traded, marking a slight increase of 0.27 per cent with a closing price of €3.65. Meanwhile, Hellenic Bank maintained stability with no change in its stock price, closing at €2.35. Logicom’s shares decreased by 0.69 per cent, closing at €2.88, and Petrolina experienced a notable drop of 5.79 per cent, closing at €0.89.