Czechia's CTP takes €1.9bn loan to close CEE's largest ever real estate transaction

E.ON offer its assets in Czechia, Hungary and Germany sale to overcome EC concerns over Innogy

German energy company E.ON offered to sell several assets to overcome the concerns of the European Commission (EC) over its bid for competitor Innogy’s network and retail assets

Disgraced daughter of late Uzbek dictator pleads for clemency

Gulnara Karimova makes move after $1.2bn of her assets are reclaimed by Uzbekistan. Once known as the country’s “most hated person” and accused of massive telecoms and other corruption, she is languishing in jail with health problems.

Poland’s Supreme Court reform breaches EU law, the bloc’s top court rules

Poland dropped the contested changes in December, but the European Commission pressed on with the case to enshrine in the EU’s legal order that any member state’s tinkering with the independence of the judiciary must be contained.

Albania’s top election body decides local vote will go ahead

Electoral College weighs in on constitutional crisis after Albania's President Ilir Meta cancelled the local election, while Prime Minister Edi Rama insists it will go ahead.

Russian online media major Rambler considers IPO

Russian online media major Rambler controlled by Alexander Mamut is considering holding an IPO, RBC business daily reported citing the head of the company Raphael Abramyan, who sees the company listed in two-three years.

Russia's X5 retailer to launch online pharmaceutical marketplace

Russia's leading retailer X5 Group and Santens Service Group will set up an online pharmaceutical marketplace on the basis of Perekrestok.ru online store, the companies announced.

Romanian smartphone producer iHunt announces IPO plans

The company will use the money attracted to develop its electronic product range under the iHunt brand. It is also preparing to enter foreign markets this year.

Russian mobile major MTS eyes Gett taxi service

One of Russia's "big four" mobile operators Mobile TeleSystems (MTS) is in talk to acquire a stake in mobile taxi ordering service Gett in Russia, Kommersant daily reported cited unnamed sources.

Russia's internet major Mail.ru launches own voice assistant

Russian internet major Mail.ru launched its voice assistant Marusya in test mode, Vedomosti daily reported citing unnamed sources.

ING THINK: Russian household and corporate activity remain sluggish

May data on household income and consumption is slightly better than expected although this could be down to one-off factors. Corporate activity is clearly subdued but may see some support from the scheduled pick up in state spending in the second ha

EU enlargement debate: Waiting for a differentiated “North Macedonia breakthrough”

A move away from the “package solution” of a simultaneous start to accession negotiations with Albania and North Macedonia is needed. North Macedonia is the less politically controversial candidate and is in a better position economically.

COMMENT: Romania reaches new historical levels of foreign debt

Amid the recent drama on Romania's political scene, nobody has paid any attention to a much more concerning trend: the fast increase of the Romanian foreign debt.

ING: Romania's current account looks bad

ALACO DISPATCHES: The roots of Moldova’s standoff

Why bitter political enemies have combined forces to precipitate the most serious political crisis ever faced by the country.

Polish retail sales ease y/y growth in May after Easter surge

The slowdown was expected after sales spiked the previous month because of Easter but still is in line with Polish households’ general inclination towards increased consumption.

Belarus reports 1% y/y GDP growth in January-May

The Belarusian economy grew by 1% year-on-year in January-May following a 1.4% y/y growth in January-April, according to national statistics agency Belstat.

Polish industrial production eases growth rate to still solid 7.7% y/y in May

The headline figure is 1.5pp below the unadjusted figure recorded the preceding month but still attests to the Polish industrial sector’s stubbornness to give in to negative trends in the external environment.

Ukraine’s retail trade grows 8% in May

The advance in retail trade was driven by personal income growth, and is expected to continue.

Russia demand expands in May, albeit slowly, labour force shrinks

Russia’s economy is growing, albeit slow, VTB Capital (VTBC) said in a note following the release of May’s statistics by Rosstat.

Russia's dividend season open and investors prepared for record payouts

The percentage of profits that companies are sharing with their shareholders is at an all time high both in terms of the dividend yield and the amount of cash they are handing over.

Belarus' deadline to join Clearstream missed as agreement delayed

Minsk hopes to open the local market to foreign investors but there have been problems linking Belarus' depository system to the international system, Finance Minister Maksim Yermolovich tells bne IntelliNews.

VOX: The nationalisation of PrivatBank

The independence of the National Bank of Ukraine is under attack says its former governor Valaria Gontareva, who was responsible for carrying out sweeping reforms and nationalising PrivatBank.

Belarus' Plan B to avoid economic crisis

The IMF warned Minsk last November that it better have a “Plan B” ready if it could not persuade Moscow to pay it compensation for a change in the way oil exports are taxed. It's got one.

WEEKEND WHAMMY: Moody’s cuts Turkey deeper into junk

Ratings agency says risk of another balance of payments crisis is rising, meaning the risk of a government default down the line is also increasing.

ISTANBUL BLOG: Erdogan pours more lira into wretched economy

Good news for credit card holders as officials devise more ‘sugar highs’ ahead of the revote Turkey’s strongman simply must win.

CAUCASUS BLOG: Mkhitaryan hoo-ha a reminder that few people usually give a damn about sportswashing

Absence of Armenian midfield star hangs over tonight’s Europa League final in Azerbaijan but the outrage will quickly fizzle out.

KYIV BLOG: Zelenskiy is fashioning a cudgel of authority from the wisps of legitimacy

After only minutes on the job and with no formal party structure behind him, nor any representation in either the parliament or state organs, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's first act was to dismiss the Verkhovna Rada.

ISTANBUL BLOG: Talk of a Turkey default grows as spooked investors ask ‘What comes next?’

Ankara is running out of options in its fight to defend the lira and raise capital.

MOSCOW BLOG: Can Russia halve its poverty level?

President Putin unveiled a very ambitious reform plan during his state of the nation speech on March 1 last year. Among the ambitious goals — some say unattainable goals — the president called for a drastic reduction in poverty.