Slovenian Economic Mirror

03/09/2004
Slovenian Economic Mirror

Slovenian Economic Mirror - February 2004

Contents

In the Spotlight	2003 saw modest export growth, relatively high imports, roughly balanced current account, moderate wage growth, deteriorated conditions in the labour market, and increased borrowing from banks.
Balance of Payments	The structure of the capital and financial account changed in 2003.
Trade in Services	Transport services were a notable exception on the export side in 2003.
Price Trends	Relatively moderate price rises were sustained from the last few months of 2003.
Monetary Developments	The Bank of Slovenia continued to cut its interest rates in early 2004.
The Money Market -Savings	The volume of assets of mutual funds first exceeded SIT 100 billion.
The Money Market - Loans	The lending activity of banks strengthened in 2003.
Labour Market	December's employment dropped and January's unemployment rose as a result of the seasonal termination of fixed-term employment.
Earnings	December marked by '13th month's' pay and Christmas bonuses given the private sector.
General Government Revenue	Revenue fell in January in line with the trend usually seen at the turn of years.
Manufacturing	Strong growth in production activity seen in the last quarter of 2003.
Construction	Construction activity slowed down in the last quarter of 2003.
Transport & Communications	2003 saw the biggest fall in coach passenger transport and the biggest rise in harbour freight transport.
Selected topics
Report on Economic and Social Cohesion	Cohesion policy will continue to be one of the three priorities of the enlarged EU.
Public Health Services	In 2002, about two-thirds of total expenditure on health appropriated for public health services provided by public health institutes.
Collective Bargaining Coverage and Extension Procedures	The extension procedure of collective agreements needs to be changed in the draft Collective Agreements Act.

	Data, Main Indicators, International Comparisons, Graphs