Data
Russia registers $13.1bn current account surplus in 2m21
Russia's current account surplus in 2m21 amounted to $13.1bn (it was $6.8bn in January), down from $17.7bn in 2m20.
Turkey collecting privatisation bids for 253MW Gebze natural gas plant
Bids also wanted for tender to privatise 26MW Tortum hydro-dam plant.
Lower oil and gas prices dragged down Albania’s PPI in 4Q20
Albania's Producer Price Index was down by 3.4% y/y in the final quarter of 2020, despite rising compared to Q3.
Bulgaria's retail sales fell 3.9% y/y during January lockdown
Food and beverage sales rose in January but failed to offset the drop in sales of non-food products and motor fuel.
Russia's Watcom shopping index recovering in March but still down by a quarter y/y
Russia’s Watcom shopping index continued to recover slowly in March, but the index that measures foot traffic in real time was still down by 24.6% year-on-year.
Romania was the fastest growing EU economy in 4Q20
Romania’s GDP up 4.8% q/q in Q4 amid milder second COVID-19 wave.
Russian inflation peaks in February at 5.7% y/y
CPI rate reached 5.7% y/y in February, the Central Bank of Russia (CBR) reported on March 5. This marks the highest level since November 2016.
Bucharest Stock Exchange starts 2021 with strong growth
BVB officials expect 20 more bond and share issues this year after a surge in interest in the alternative AeRO market.
Ukraine's international reserves down 1% to $28.5bn in February
Ukraine’s gross international reserves (GIR) fell by 1% to $28.5bn due to redemption of debt obligations, the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) reported on March 5 as cited by Unian.
Bulgaria has EU's poorest regions
GDP per capita in the North-West region of Bulgaria is just 32% of the EU average.
Romania’s January retail sales point to more cautious household sentiment
Romania's retail sales volume index increased by 1.6% y/y in January amid expectations of an austerity budget for 2021.
NBU raises key policy rate 50bp to 6.5%
The National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) reversed its easing policy and hiked rates for the first time since June 2020 by 50bp to 6.5% at its monetary policy meeting on March 4.
Russia’s services PMI positive at 52.2, but down slightly from January
The seasonally adjusted IHS Markit Russia Services Business Activity Index registered 52.2 in February, down slightly from 52.7 in January. The latest reading signalled a modest rate of expansion that was slower than the long-run series average.
North Macedonia’s GDP posts slim contraction of 0.7% y/y in 4Q20
Better performance in Q4 left North Macedonia with a 4.5% GDP contraction for 2020.
Hungarian Q4 growth in GDP revised up to 1.4%
Services dragged the economy down, contributing a 3.2pp decline in Q4.
Kazakh manufacturing PMI shows continued deterioration in operating conditions in February
Kazakhstan manufacturing PMI posted 48.5 in February, as the rate of decline eased thanks to an increase in new orders.
Polish PMI rises to the highest point in nearly three years in February
The index’s expansion strengthens the outlook for recovery in Poland’s manufacturing sector in 2021.
Serbia's economy contracted by 1.1% y/y in 4Q20
Serbia had one of the smallest GDP contractions across the emerging Europe region in 2020.
Slovenia reports smaller GDP decline during second wave of pandemic
Fourth quarter slowdown was significantly lower than during the first wave of the pandemic, despite worse epidemiological data.
Russia’s manufacturing PMI shows the strongest improvement in operating conditions since April 2019
The headline seasonally adjusted IHS Markit Russia Manufacturing PMI put in its strongest growth since April 2019 after registering 51.5 in February, up from 50.9 in January, signalling a marginal improvement in the health of Russian manufacturing.
