In Brief
Use of the Internet proper to remain untaxed The Finance Ministry yesterday clarified that the levy announced Wednesday on Internet cafes will actually apply to computers used only for electronic games of chance and not for access to the Web. There will be absolutely no tax on the use of the Internet, it said in a press release. The initial announcement said an annual levy ranging from 90 to 1,200 euros would be imposed on each computer in Internet cafes. Officials insist that the computers of many establishments calling themselves Internet cafes were actually unconnected to the Web and were used only for betting games, thus causing tax evasion. Kathimerini profits rise sharply on shipping subsidiary Kathimerini said yesterday consolidated nine-month pretax profit growth equaled 60 percent to 2.189 billion drachmas, compared to the same period last year and after account is taken of the already taxed profits of its subsidiary Naxos Island Maritime which was consolidated on April 6. Consolidated turnover grew 33 percent to 13.69 billion drachmas, of which 9.2 billion was accounted for by the parent company which recorded a 3.4 percent rise. The group said lower advertising revenue due to the negative business climate was offset by higher turnover from printing and newspaper sales. Bourse to look abroad. Finance Minister Nikos Christodoulakis told a Parliamentary committee yesterday that the Athens bourse will seek a cooperation agreement with other large foreign stock exchanges. Greece holds a 40.65-percent stake in Hellenic Exchanges, the holding company that owns the Athens stock and derivatives exchanges. (Reuters) Maillis profits fall… Packaging group Maillis said yesterday nine-month group pretax profit fell 10.4 percent year-on-year to 6.0 billion drachmas ($15.67 million). The company said adverse international economic conditions along with developments following the September 11 attacks on the USA weighed on third quarter results, as only 4 percent of group sales come from the Greek market. Nine-month consolidated sales rose 12 percent to 64.3 billion drachmas, it said. (Reuters) …but Delta’s rise. Delta Holdings said yesterday group pretax profit rose 17 percent year-on-year in the first nine months of the year to total 7.6 billion drachmas ($19.85 million). Delta said its results for the first time consolidate Goody’s restaurants. Delta raised its stake in Goody’s to 60 percent earlier this year. The company said consolidated EBITDA rose 47.7 percent to 27.7 billion drachmas, while sales grew 44 percent to 166.7 billion drachmas. (Reuters) Greco-Dutch agri-conference. Agriculture Minister Giorgos Drys will attend the first Greco-Dutch agricultural conference in Thessaloniki on December 6 and 7, which is sponsored by the Association of Exporters of Northern Greece (SVEE) and the Dutch Embassy in Athens. According to SVEE, the event aims to assist in the formulation of a development policy for Greek agriculture for the rest of the decade, through the use of Dutch know-how and experience. There will be presentations of EU directives and goals for boosting new trends in agriculture. -Good demand for quality tweendeckers in the Continent. Charterers are reacting quickly at rates safely above USD 6,000 daily for W. Africa destination.
