Austrian Economic News - Week 24-30 Sep

Monday

As of Monday office furniture maker Bene will switch to the mid market segment of the Vienna Stock Exchange. So far the company has traded on the prime market.
Real estate firm Immofinanz opted for a share repurchase programme with a value of 50m euro. The programme will be implemented by investing 0.05 euro per share from the planned dividend of 0.20 per share.
Telekom Austria announced on Monday a cut in its planned dividend for 2012 to 0.05 euro per share from the envisaged 0.38 euro. The decision was explained with the worsening competition situation in Austria. The company, however, confirmed its outlook for 2012.

Tuesday

Immofinanz said on Tuesday that its EBIT rose by 31.1% to 188.5m euro in the first quarter of fiscal 2012/13. Thanks to the buyout of Moscow's Golden Babylon Rostokino shopping centre, the rental income went up 14.2% to 162.3m euro. Due to negative effects from currency and derivative valuations, the company registered a fall in net profit of above 60%. CEO Eduard Zehetner projects the stable development to continue until the end of the year.
Austrian investor Ronny Pecik has divested his last stake of 16% in Telekom Austria to America Movil, a company of billionaire Carlos Slim.
Vienna's commercial court ordered brewery Ottakringer to pay a cash compensation of 8.60 euro per share for all its shares before the merger with mineral water company Vöslauer in 2009. The ruling comes after minority shareholders complained that Vöslauer was overvalued during the transaction.

Wednesday

The current stock repurchasing programme of Frauenthal Holding will run between September 26 and October 10, the company said. The move concerns some 7.1% of the share capital.
Steel group Voestalpine plans to issue a bond worth 500m euro and bearing maturity of six years. The bond will have a coupon of 4%.
UK-Austrian online betting company bwin.party may be a target for a possible takeover, Guardian reported on Wednesday. A possible price may stand at 180 pence per share.

Thursday

Oil and gas group OMV has issued two bonds worth a total of 1.5bn euro. The bonds are already trading on the Vienna Stock Exchange.
Austria's top utility Verbund has no plans to withdraw from its Turkish business, CEO Wolfgang Anzengruber told Kurier. The manager referred to the firm's plans to build together with local partner Sabanci further 12 hydropower plants in the country.
Construction company Strabag said it was awarded a 112m euro contract to build a waste treatment plant in Ljubljana.

Friday

Economic institutes Wifo and IHS have reduced their forecasts for Austria's economic growth for 2013 to 1% and 1.3%, respectively. Previously Wifo projected 1.3% and IHS 1.7%. For 2012 Wifo continues to expect 0.6% and IHS 0.8% in growth.
The merger of Österreichische Volksbanken-AG (ÖVAG) and Investkredit Bank AG was officially registered on Friday. The transaction will have a retroactive effect as of December 31, 2011.
Verbund and Energie Steiermark opened on Friday a new 18.5 MW hydropower plant on the Mur river. The plant near Graz is the first from a group of five facilities along the river. The utilities invested 90m euro in the plant.
The sale of 12.85% in Austrian regional power utility Kelag to German RWE was completed on Friday. The province of Carinthia has earned 100m euro from the divestment.