In Brief
Piraeus Bank formally ends tender for MPB Piraeus Bank said yesterday its public offer for at least 40 percent of Marfin Popular Bank (MPB) formally ended after a shareholders’ meeting that failed to meet quorum. Earlier in the month Piraeus and MPB announced a surprise deal to abstain from takeover bids against each other after Piraeus sold its stake in Bank of Cyprus to Marfin. A shareholders’ meeting had been scheduled to vote on a capital increase related to the bank’s tender for MPB. In a bourse filing, Piraeus said that procedurally the cancellation of the capital increase meant its public offer was no longer in effect. (Reuters) Cyprus Air limits 2006 loss on charter spinoff NICOSIA (Reuters) – Cyprus Airways said yesterday it posted a net loss of 7.2 million Cyprus pounds ($16.3 million) in 2006, improving on 2005 losses of 22.6 million from the sale of a charter subsidiary. The Cypriot flag carrier said revenues rose 10.6 percent to 156.9 million pounds from 141.8 million in 2005 with operating costs marginally lower following job cuts last year. Cyprus Airways, some 70 percent owned by the state, is aiming to save about 22 million pounds annually from a broad restructuring including outsourcing, redundancies and spinoffs. It reported a 10.5-million-pound gain from the sale of charter subsidiary Eurocypria to the government. Cyprus Airways has in recent years been hit by steep fleet renewal costs, soaring fuel bills and cheaper competition. In early March the European Commission approved plans to restructure the airline. Zhivkov yacht sold Wealthy tourists will soon be able to take cruises aboard the yacht of former Bulgarian communist ruler Todor Zhivkov after the vessel was sold to a private firm yesterday, the new owner said. The Bulgarian tourist company Danube Tours said it bought the once-luxurious vessel for 700,000 levs ($472,000). The yacht, built in 1981 in Italy, was rarely used by Zhivkov, Eastern Europe’s longest-serving communist leader. Bulgaria convicted Zhivkov of embezzling what was then $24 million in public money to buy the yacht, cars and apartments in 1992 but the verdict was later overturned. With high unemployment and monthly incomes at just a third of the EU average, many of the 7.8 million Bulgarians are growing more nostalgic for the communist times when their tables were full despite restricted freedoms. (Reuters) Barber in Piraeus Barber Ship Management opened new offices in Piraeus as part of its investment strategy. Its general manager in Piraeus, Iraklis Efstratiadis, said that his company had planned a series of investments to obtain a large piece of the global third-party management market. With new offices in key markets, Barber creates «departments for ship management services with a long-term obligation for quality, while seeking new clients to become one of the market’s most important players,» he added.
