Cyprus’ institutions are in desperate need of modernisation
By Loukis Skaliotis
In a previous article I commented on the need for the world community to restructure the UN if it is to play a more effective role in ...
Is Germany the sick man of the EU?
In a previous article, we referred to the economic challenges faced by the EU. Some analysts and reputable media express the view that Germany is currently the “sick man of ...
Self-serving Cyprus budgets yet again
The Cyprus government’s budgets for 2025 to 2027 presented to the House of Representatives in October 2024 constitute business as usual with just a mechanical updating of the government finance estimates for 2024.
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Our View: The Cyprus housing problem: Crisis or hyperbole?
Cyprus is the “champion in the housing crisis”, reported Akel mouthpiece Haravghi last Monday. The party has been very critical of the government’s housing policy because it has been ...
Our View: Government’s economic policy driven by public pressure, not prudence
The way the government is carrying out economic policy should worry everyone. Although it claims that fiscal discipline and prudent spending are its priorities its erratic decisions do not really ...
Management of Cyprus economy impoverishing many households
In managing the Cyprus economy, decision-makers focus on real GDP growth and whether the government is generating surpluses. Indeed, government officials backed by the European Commission, the IMF and numerous ...
The EU’s latest proposal to save its economy aims to avoid a ‘slow agony’ – but it lacks bold ideas
In Brussels, the talk of the town is a report on the future of European competitiveness, calling for fundamental economic reforms to avoid a “slow agony” for the European economy. ...
Cyprus needs public investment system overhaul
The role of the state in the field of investments is becoming increasingly important, as, over the coming decades, additional funds will be required for the purposes of: (a) tackling ...
Cyprus government’s failure to support general well-being of its citizens
Article 9 of the Constitution of the Cyprus Republic states that “Every person has a right to a decent existence and to social security”. The aim of this article is in ...
A brief history of economic theory
Economic theory has its roots in antiquity. As early as the 18th century BC, the Babylonian King Hammurabi’s Code includes references to property rights, contracts, credit and economic justice.
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Our View: Government risks fiscal stability amid public payroll surge
The Cyprus economy recorded a rate of growth of 3.7 per cent in the second quarter of this year in comparison to the corresponding period of 2023, according to Eurostat. It was ...
‘Government seeking to have 2024 Cyprus growth rate to exceed 4 per cent’
The government now aims for the 2024 growth rate to exceed 4 per cent, government spokesman Konstantinos Letymbiotis said, following a flash estimate by the Statistical Service for a growth rate of 3.6 ...
Expanded role of central banks necessitates reforms
By Andreas Charalambous and Omiros Pissarides
Over the last 15 years, particularly after the financial crisis of 2008, the role of central banks (CBs) in developed economies has expanded and become even ...
Huge failings in public projects in Cyprus
Decision-making regarding appraisal, risk assessment and management of public investment projects as well as possible partnership agreements with the private sector are taken with increasingly little consideration of the potential ...
EU economy: security aspects becoming increasingly important
By Andreas Charalambous and Omiros Pissarides
The world economy is currently performing better than expected. The recession, which many analysts had predicted as an inevitable result of the pandemic and ...
Cyprus banks falling far short in social responsibility
Cyprus banks are failing in giving decent interest rates on customer deposits and in providing sufficient credit at reasonable interest rates to businesses and households to support balanced economic growth ...
Government policies benefit the few and neglect the many
Under the current Cyprus government its policies are increasingly serving the interests of the few rather than the needs of the many.
This is particularly the case in the management ...
DBRS adjusts Cyprus growth forecast for two years
Global credit rating agency, Morningstar DBRS, has upgraded its growth forecast of the Cypriot economy by 0.3 per cent in 2024 and by 0.1 per cent in 2025, compared to its forecast last March.
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Cyprus economy facing challenges despite positive assessments
The evaluations of international organisations, most recently the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and Fitch rating agency, confirm the satisfactory performance of the Cypriot economy. The growth rate reached 2.5 per cent ...
Cyprus lauds S&P ratings upgrade
Cyprus on Saturday welcomed an upgrade to the economy by ratings agency Standard & Poor’s, who updated long-term ratings to ‘BBB+’ from ‘BBB’.
The agency also assigned a positive ...
A bank windfall tax is not the answer in Cyprus
By Erol Riza
Last week the two major opposition parties locked swords with Akel calling for a windfall tax on the “unexpected” earnings of the banks while Disy accused Akel ...
Wealth concentration leads to wealth extraction
The depletion of equity through a dysfunctional banking system leads to a separation of ownership from entrepreneurship and by the relentless pursuit of the wealthy of a return without the ...
EU Recovery and Resilience Plans – an initial implementation assessment
By Andreas Charalambous and Omiros Pissarides
The EU has evolved relatively slowly and gradually over time, from a trade agreement between a small number of states in the 1950s, to ...
Immigration and economy: biggest concerns for Cypriots
Immigration and the economy are the biggest worries for around 40 per cent of Cypriots going into the EU elections while climate action, gender equality and diversity, and digitisation of the ...