The recovery of the Cypriot economy, which is forecast to expand by 4% in 2017, has failed to produce the expected drop in delinquent loans, an International Monetary Fund (IMF) official said, the Cyprus News Agency (CNA) reported recently.

President Nicos Anastasiades expressed his satisfaction over the recent approval by the House plenum of the 2018 state budget.

The state budget for 2018 was approved on the night of December 13, 2017 after three days of debate in parliament.

Funds drawn by Cyprus under the European Fund for Strategic Investments (Efsi) reached €45m in November 2017, as the island was set to receive an additional €81m, the European Commission said.

The House of Representatives recently voted an amendment in the Income Tax Law regarding the capital allowances that can be claimed for certain types of assets.

Minister of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment, Nicos Kouyialis has said that people in Cyprus are turning to agricultural production, while the sector’s contribution to the country`s GDP is growing.

The reduction of delinquent loans is key for the success of the Cyprus Cooperative Bank’s planned capital increase, a Co-op executive said, as it entered preliminary talks with potential strategic and institutional investors.

The harmonised consumer price index rose an annual 0.2% in November 2017 mainly on higher prices for energy and services, the statistical service said.

Five more high rise towers are set to be built in Limassol, already home to several skyscrapers along the city’s coast road.

The 10 millionth passenger to use a Cyprus airport in 2017 left Larnaca airport on Monday morning with a special celebration to mark the milestone.