Cyprus needs stronger coordination and closer, continuous monitoring of public projects to avoid delays and cost overruns by 2028, Fiscal Council president Michalis Persianis has warned, pointing to structural weaknesses in oversight and accountability.

Speaking to the Cyprus News Agency (CNA), Persianis said that while there may be logical explanations for some projects continuing to carry” funds in subsequent budgets despite appearing completed, the broader concern is the absence of “close monitoring and a continuous, clear picture of public projects in general”.

In his view, the problem is most acute in projects involving more than one ministry or department, where coordination often breaks down.

That lack of coordination, he said, is precisely what risks turning into delays or cost overruns.

Comparing public-sector practices with the private sector, Persianis noted that private projects operate with clear timetables and monthly progress assessments, allowing early warnings to be triggered when problems arise.

It is with great sadness that the Schulte Group announced the death of Hamburg shipowner and entrepreneur Heinrich Schulte, its long-standing chairman and shareholder, who died this week in Hamburg, aged 90, according to a company statement.

Ian Beveridge, chief executive of the Schulte Group, expressed condolences to the family, saying that Dr Schulte had shaped the group for more than six decades and played a key role in the global shipping industry.

“We feel immense gratitude for Dr. Schulte’s visionary leadership, and we mourn the loss of a wise and deeply impressive person,” Beveridge said.

According to the statement, Schulte was guided by Hanseatic values of honesty, integrity and courage, combining entrepreneurial flair with a long-term strategic approach.

After handing over day-to-day management to Beveridge in 2001, he continued to serve as a managing director and chairman of the advisory board, providing strategic guidance to the group.

Research and innovation are now central to Cyprus’ economic model, with the country’s ecosystem markedly strengthened over the past two years, according to the Chief Scientist and chairman of the Research and Innovation Foundation (RIF), Demetris Skourides.

Speaking during a briefing with media representatives in Nicosia this week, Skourides said the progress reflected “measurable excellence” and a more outward-looking innovation policy, as Cyprus prepares for its Presidency of the Council of the European Union in 2026.

Reviewing his activities since assuming office in September 2023, Skourides said he had held around 1,700 meetings, both domestically and abroad, aimed at positioning Cyprus as a credible partner for advanced research and innovation.

In this context, he explained that these efforts focused on building structured cooperation with countries such as the US, Japan, Australia, India and Israel, alongside other technologically advanced economies, creating opportunities for Cyprus’ research base and its innovation-driven businesses.

OPAP Cyprus on Thursday announced that it will rebrand as Allwyn from January 2026, a move aimed at strengthening its connection with customers and aligning the company more closely with its international parent group.

The change of commercial name and identity was officially presented to the company’s retail network partners and employees during a recent dedicated event.

The strategy and planning behind the rebranding were outlined by OPAP Cyprus chief executive Alexandros Davos, alongside senior company executives, who also spoke about the opportunities and prospects opening up in what they described as a new era for the organisation.

The rebranding to Allwyn was described as a strategic decision taken after an in-depth assessment of market data, with a particular focus on engaging younger generations of customers.

The company said that it will draw on the international, modern and distinctive identity of Allwyn, which is the parent company of the OPAP Group, to refresh its presence in Cyprus while building on its established market position.

Deputy Minister of Tourism Kostas Koumis and Nicosia mayor Charalambos Prountzos met at the premises of the Nicosia municipality to discuss an action plan aimed at promoting the capital as a sustainable, alternative urban tourism destination.

According to an announcement from the ministry, the meeting, part of its engagement efforts with local authorities, brought together officials from the Deputy Ministry, the Municipality of Nicosia and the Nicosia regional tourism board (Etap).

Participants agreed that, with targeted planning, Nicosia could develop into a tourism offering unique within Cyprus, built around its cultural identity and historical character.

Koumis said it was not in the country’s interest that the capital had remained outside the tourism growth seen in coastal areas, adding that “it is the responsibility of all of us to upgrade the capital’s tourism.”

He noted that a number of developments were now moving in the right direction, creating a basis for strengthening Nicosia’s profile as an urban destination.

Cypriot citizens earned more on average than EU nationals working on the island during 2022, according to an earning report released on Thursday by the state statistical service (Cystat).

In addition, the report highlighted persistent salary gaps based on gender, occupation and citizenship.

Specifically, the mean hourly earnings of full-time employees in Cyprus stood at €12.23, representing an increase of 13.4 per cent compared with 2018, when the figure was €10.78, and continuing a steady upward trend from €10.46 in 2014 and €11.32 in 2010.

Mean earnings, often described as the average, are calculated by adding up all hourly earnings and dividing the total by the number of employees, which can be influenced by very high or very low salaries.

By contrast, the median hourly earnings, which represent the midpoint where half of employees earn more and half earn less, stood at €8.98 in 2022, underlining that many workers earned well below the overall average.

The Cyprus Borrower Protection Association (Syprodat) this week announced that a new European Commission initiative on affordable housing highlights the urgent need for substantive housing policies in Cyprus.

Syprodat explained that young people and first-time borrowers are struggling to access home ownership amid rising prices, rents and tighter lending conditions.

The association said the European proposal underlines how “the housing crisis in Cyprus has reached particularly worrying levels”.

It added that it “directly affects young workers and young families seeking to purchase their first home in an environment marked by escalating property prices, high rental costs and strict banking criteria”.

Cyprus saw hourly wage costs rise by 3.5 per cent in the third quarter of 2025, according to Eurostat figures, reflecting continued labour cost pressures in line with broader trends across the euro area and the European Union.

Eurostat said hourly labour costs increased by 3.3 per cent in the euro area and by 3.7 per cent in the EU during the third quarter of 2025, compared with the same period a year earlier.

The data, published by the EU’s statistical office, show that labour costs continue to rise across Europe as employers face higher wage and non-wage expenses.

Labour costs are made up of two main components, wages and salaries and non-wage costs, which include employers’ social contributions and other related expenses.

Cyprus recorded the lowest annual inflation rate in the European Union in November 2025, according to figures published by Eurostat, highlighting easing price pressures on the island at a time when inflation across the euro area remained broadly stable.

Eurostat said the euro area’s annual inflation rate stood at 2.1 per cent in November 2025, unchanged from October and slightly lower than the 2.2 per cent recorded a year earlier.

Across the European Union, annual inflation slowed to 2.4 per cent in November 2025, down from 2.5 per cent in October and matching the rate recorded in the same month of 2024.

Cyprus registered an annual inflation rate of just 0.1 per cent, the lowest among all EU member states, underscoring a sharp moderation in consumer price growth compared with the bloc as a whole.

France followed with an annual inflation rate of 0.8 per cent, while Italy recorded a rate of 1.1 per cent, placing both countries well below the EU average.

Larnaca is having a moment. New projects are announced, cranes appear on the skyline, and investor interest — particularly from overseas — is visibly rising. Yet beneath the optimism sits an uncomfortable truth: Larnaca is increasingly a city people use, but few truly commit to.

This is not a critique of growth. It is a critique of the type of growth.

On paper, Larnaca has enviable assets. It has strong road connectivity across the island. It hosts Cyprus’s main international airport. It has a port and marina that, if finally executed properly, could elevate its regional role. Add to this a pipeline of large, well-publicised developments — Land of Tomorrow, Horizon and others — and the narrative of a city “on the rise” seems compelling.

Final decisions on two proposed shopping centre developments in eastern Limassol are expected to be taken early in the new year, once the Council for Deviation Studies (SYMEPA) completes its assessment and submits its recommendations to the Council of Ministers.

SYMEPA chairman Sotiris Ktoridis told Entrepreneurial Limassol, a periodical published by the Limassol Chamber of Commerce (Evel), that the body is in the final stages of examining the two applications.

He noted that SYMEPA’s reasoned recommendations will be forwarded to the cabinet, which holds the final decision-making authority, while only cabinet decisions are made public.

Ktoridis said that at its session beginning of December, SYMEPA reviewed and approved the minutes of two public hearings, the October 10 hearing concerning the application by The Mall of Limassol Ltd, and the October 24 hearing for the application submitted by C.A.C. Papantoniou Ltd, Souzana and Yiannakis Christodoulou, and Jumbo Trading Ltd.

Eurobank on Thursday announced that its newly issued shares will begin trading on the Cyprus Stock Exchange (CSE) on December 19, 2025, marking a further step in the bank’s post-merger integration and strengthening its presence in the Cypriot capital market.

The bank said the move follows the previously announced start of trading on December 15, 2025, on the Main Market of the Athens Stock Exchange for the shares issued as part of the merger by absorption of Eurobank Ergasias Services and Holdings S.A. by Eurobank.

Eurobank explained that approval for the listing of the new shares on the Cyprus Stock Exchange was granted on December 18, 2025.

Genikes Insurance was named the best general sector insurance company in Cyprus for the fifth consecutive year in 2025, after being recognised by two international awards bodies for its performance, customer focus and digital transformation, underscoring its position in the Cypriot insurance market.

“Genikes Insurance has a strong reputation as the most trusted insurance company in Cyprus and by adding to this their dynamic digital transformation strategy, they are building a strong value insurance offer to their customers,” World Finance said in announcing the company as the winner of the 2025 World Finance Insurance Awards.

The international magazine added that this assessment is supported by an integrated customer experience that strengthens the insurer’s proactive and holistic understanding of clients’ insurance goals and needs.

Lordos Hotels expects an improvement in its financial performance in 2025 compared with the previous year, according to the Cyprus stock exchange (CSE) announcement on Thursday.

The group reported profit attributable to shareholders of €3.5 million in 2024, down from €3.9 million a year earlier.

However, results strengthened in the first half of 2025, with net profit of €605,800 compared with a loss of €236,800 in the same period last year.

Profit attributable to shareholders rose to €438,300 from €73,900.

The Alfa Reisen travel agent network recently held a tourism conference in Cyprus, drawing strong participation from the German tourism industry and reinforcing the island’s efforts to deepen its presence in one of its most important source markets.

The conference, held at a hotel in Paphos, brought together around 250 tourism partners from Germany, including representatives of airlines, travel agencies and tour operators.

Hosting an event of this scale in Cyprus is seen as part of a broader strategy to strengthen the country’s visibility in the German market and support demand beyond the peak summer months.

According to the statement, such initiatives are considered particularly important for boosting arrivals from key markets like Germany, which can also contribute to sustaining tourist flows during the winter season.

Cyprus and the United States have strengthened cooperation on the oversight of the auditing profession, according to an announcement released on Thursday.

This involves the signing of a protocol and a supplementary data agreement aimed at enhancing supervision and investor confidence, the Cyprus public audit oversight board said in a statement.

The agreement entails the transfer of specific personal data between the Cyprus public audit oversight board and its US counterpart, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board.

The agreement marks a significant step in deepening bilateral cooperation in the supervision of the auditing profession between Cyprus and the United States.