Business groups from Greece, Turkey and the Turkish- and Greek-Cypriot communities of divided Cyprus will meet in May to discuss cooperation and voice support for renewed efforts to reunify the island, organizers said yesterday. The meeting, scheduled for May 23 in the Turkish-occupied sector of Nicosia, “will be a manifestation of our support for the negotiations between the leaders of Cyprus,” said Hasan Kutlu Ince, head of the Turkish Cypriot Chamber of Trade, which will host the gathering. “We will discuss ways of improving cooperation between our chambers and developing joint projects,” he said in a statement. (AFP)

Athens International Airport, Greece’s busiest, said pretax profit surged 33 percent last year as its terminals handled record traffic. Pretax profit rose to 125.7 million euros from 94.6 million euros a year earlier, the company said in a faxed statement today. Passenger numbers rose 10 percent to 16.5 million travelers as airlines added flights and more people took vacations in Greece. The airport, majority-owned by the Greek state and managed by German construction company Hochtief AG, may sell shares to the public under a government asset-disposal plan. (Bloomberg)

Importer and retailer Cyprus Trading Corporation (CTC) said yesterday that it owns fully Cyprus-based OTEnet Telecommunications after it bought a 12.75 percent stake from Brightmind Enterprises. The agreed price for the transaction was 1 million euros, CTC said in a statement. In February, CTC acquired from Greece’s telecom OTE its shareholding in Cyprus’s OTEnet for 3.99 million euros, which gave it 87.25 percent ownership of OTEnet Telecommunications. (Reuters)

Michaniki, Greece’s fifth-largest builder, reported 2007 profit rose 86 percent as sales advanced. Net income climbed to 47.1 million euros ($74 million) from 25.3 million euros in 2006, the company said in a press release. Sales rose 36 percent to 226 million euros. Michaniki proposed a dividend of 16 cents a share, 14 percent more than the year before. (Bloomberg)

Titan Cement. Titan Cement Co, Greece’s biggest maker of the building material, said it’s in preliminary discussions regarding its Ionia porcelain unit with Yalco SA, a trader of glassware products. Titan will make a further announcement should a final agreement be signed, it said in a statement. (Bloomberg)

Aquaculture company Nireus reported a 15 percent rise in 2007 group earnings after taxes and minority interests to 10.4 million euros on continued expansion in Greece and abroad. Sales for the year rose 32.7 percent on an annual basis to 214.3 million euros.

Giorgos Koronias, CEO of Vodafone’s Greek unit, is relinquishing the post on March 31 after almost 17 consecutive years.