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This summary is provided by the STA:
Bosnia's coronavirus tests recognised by Slovenia
LJUBLJANA - The list of countries whose PCR and rapid antigen tests for coronavirus are recognised by Slovenia has been expanded to include Bosnia-Herzegovina under a decision taken by the government on Wednesday. Under certain conditions tests from countries not on the list will be also accepted, that is if they are of the standard compatible with tests in EU and Schengen countries and if they carry a QR code that can be verified the same way as the EU Digital Covid Certificate.
Nearly 100 new coronavirus cases on high positivity rate
LJUBLJANA - A total of 99 people tested positive for coronavirus in Slovenia on Wednesday as the test positivity rate hit 6.7%, data from the National Institute of Public Health (NIJZ) shows. The rolling 7-day average of new cases rose to 68 and the 14-day incidence per 100,000 residents to 43. There are an estimated 916 active cases in the country.
Janez Mravljak appointed head of recovery office
LJUBLJANA - The government on Wednesday appointed Finance Ministry official Janez Mravljak to head the newly founded Recovery and Resilience Office as acting director starting from 2 August. The office was founded on 3 June under the Finance Ministry to coordinate and manage the implementation of the national recovery and resilience plan, which was formally endorsed by the Council of the EU earlier this week. The whole plan is valued at EUR 2.5 billion.
Krka's H1 net profit up 11% to EUR 177m
NOVO MESTO - Pharma group Krka Group saw its net profit rise by 11% to EUR 177.4 million in the first six months on record sales revenue of EUR 808.6 million, according to unaudited data. Sales revenue was up by 1% compared with the same period last year and up 6% from the first half of 2019. The group generated 95% of the sales in markets outside Slovenia. Sales revenue in East Europe, its biggest region, was up 2% to EUR 276.5 million, and Western Europe was the only to see a drop, of 12% to EUR 159.6 million.
Telekom Slovenije reports 44% higher H1 net profit
LJUBLJANA - The group Telekom Slovenije generated EUR 317.6 million in sales revenue in the first half of the year, down 1% from the same period in 2020. Net profit was up by 44% to EUR 21.3 million. "The Covid-19 pandemic had an impact on revenue in 2021, through lower revenues from our users roaming in foreign operators' networks, and foreign users roaming in our mobile networks, along with lower revenue from IT licenses," the group said in a press release.
Upgraded Jesenice rail tunnel opens, improving link with Austria
JESENICE - Infrastructure Minister Jernej Vrtovec and his Austrian counterpart Leonore Gewessler took part in a ceremony marking the reopening of the Karavanke railway tunnel following a safety and technical upgrade. Vrtovec noted the upgrade was a major step in securing greater traffic flow capacity between Slovenia and Austria. The ministers said railways represented the backbone of the future of mobility.
Survey unemployment down to 4.8% in June
LJUBLJANA - Slovenia's ILO-compatible survey unemployment rate fell to 4.8% in June, down 0.2 percentage points from May and half a point down from June a year ago, show data released by the Statistics Office. The office estimates about 47,000 people aged 15 to 74 were out of a job in June. Women represented 57% of the unemployed and men 43%. This puts the joblessness rate among women at 6%, compared to 3.8% for men. The monthly estimates are experimental statistics and thus less reliable.
Slovenian, Montenegrin police talk efforts to strengthen cooperation
LJUBLJANA - Montenegrin Police Commissioner Zoran Brđanin visited Slovenia as part of a Montenegrin delegation to meet Interior Ministry State Secretary Božo Predalič and Police Commissioner Anton Olaj. Lauding cooperation between the countries' interior ministries and police forces, the officials discussed efforts to strengthen cooperation in various areas, including criminal police, specialised units and training.
SD calls for independent forensic investigation of mobile devices
LJUBLJANA - The opposition Social Democrats (SD) president and vice-president Tanja Fajon and Matjaž Nemec, respectively, called on PM Janez Janša to initiate an independent, voluntary forensic investigation of mobile devices of political leaders, journalists and civil society representatives in the face of the Pegasus scandal. Fajon said Janša should explain what he was doing and talking about during his visit to a company selling the spyware Pegasus in Europe while in Israel in December 2020.
President Pahor holds talks on ways to revive social dialogue
LJUBLJANA - President Borut Pahor received chair of the Economic and Social Council Mitja Gorenšček to talk about reviving social dialogue. On the latter's initiative, Pahor will host in the second half of August an informal talk with representatives of the government, employers and trade unions to look for ways to resume dialogue. Social dialogue as part of the country's main industrial relations forum has been suspended for three months, with more than 40 items waiting to be discussed, the president's office said after the meeting.
Slovenian subsidiary of Unicredit gets new leadership
LJUBLJANA - The Slovenian subsidiary of the Italian banking group Unicredit announced it has new leadership as Lorenzo Ramajola recently took over as the chairman and Mojca Kovač and Tsvetelin Minchev as board members. The management board of UniCredit Banka Slovenija now features six members and the chairman. Ramajola was appointed chairman in April, but needed approval of the national regulatory body.
Slovenia through to Q/F of Olympic basketball tournament
TOKYO, Japan - Slovenia made it to the quarter-finals of the basketball tournament at the Tokyo Olympics after defeating the hosts Japan 116:81 for what is their second win in as many matches. Led by the NBA All-Star Luka Dončić, Slovenia were in the lead throughout the game. With plenty of motivated players in action, they were effective on the offensive and solid in defence. All 12 players scored points; Dončić contributed 25 and Zoran Dragić 24. They will face Spain in the final game of the group phase on Sunday.
Mura out of UEFA Champions League qualifying
RAZGRAD, Bulgaria - Slovenian football champions Mura were knocked out of further qualifying for the UEFA Champions League after losing 1:3 to Bulgaria's Ludogorets in the away leg of the 2nd round on Wednesday. After a goalless draw in the first leg, Mura have been relegated to the Europa League where they will face Lithuania's Zalgiris in the 3rd round.
