Cyprus this year can only anticipate welcoming 30% of the four million tourists that came last year, deputy tourism minister Savvas Perdios has told a tourism conference.

The five new economic support measures budgeted at €150 million that aim to cushion the blow of the coronavirus pandemic as Cyprus enters the stage of recovery were submitted before the cabinet on Tuesday.

The rapid spread of COVID-19 pandemic has caused an unprecedented global shock, both on a humanitarian and an economic level. As most countries are relaxing lockdown measures, uncertainty on navigating the impact of the pandemic on the economy is apparent. EY Cyprus in an effort to support the local community navigate the effects of COVID-19, has prepared a new Industry Pulse report on the Retail sector, adding to the series of Industry Pulse Reports on Banking, Tourism and Real Estate. The Retail Industry Pulse Report is the fourth and final Pulse report to be issued and it provides a sector-specific perspective on the COVID-19 impact, fiscal and monetary policy, recovery scenarios, trends and recommendations.

The European Commission has recently launched ‘Re-open EU’, a web platform to support a safe relaunch of travelling and tourism across Europe. It provides real-time information on borders and available means of transport and tourism services in EU Member States.

A rather unexpected announcement by the Russian President, on 25 March 2020 made in an effort to tackle coronavirus issue in which Vladimir Putin mentioned the necessity for the current provisions relating to withholding taxation on dividends and interest be amended in Russia’s double tax treaties.

Work is to begin on putting Cyprus potatoes on the EU list of protected geographical indications (PGI) products, Agriculture Minister Costas Kadis said on Tuesday.

More than 160 services offered by the public sector will go online as part of the civil service’s digital reform, MPs heard on Tuesday.

Hourly labour costs rose by 3.4% in the euro area, by 3.7% in the EU, by 4.4% in Cyprus and 1.5% in Greece in the 1st quarter of 2020 compared with the same quarter of the previous year, according to data released today by Eurostat, the statistical office of the EU.

CFOs in Cyprus appear more pessimistic about revenues and returning to “business as usual” in a short period of time according to PwC’s latest survey.

Cyprus was the highest climber in the 2020 IMD World Competitiveness Rankings, marking an improvement in all four categories that make up the overall ranking.