The deficit in Cyprus' external trade balance rose to €781 mn compared to 2015, due to the increase of imports and the small number of exports, according to provisional data for foreign trade released by the Statistic Service of the Republic of Cyprus.

The government generated in 2016 a fiscal surplus of €9.1m on a cash basis, compared to a €196.4m deficit in 2015, mainly on increased revenue, the statistical service said.

The number of tourists from Britain visiting Cyprus is increasing, according to the British High Commissioner Matthew Kidd.

Cyprus must take advantage of Brexit to develop as a maritime and financial centre, Andreas Hadjiyiannis, president of the executive committee of the Cyprus Union of Shipowners said recently, following a meeting with President Nicos Anastasiades, at the Presidential Palace.

The Bank of Cyprus (BoC) has been named as the Best Bank for Private Banking in Cyprus by the international magazine Euromoney, for the second consecutive year.

The Cyprus Minister of Finance issued a Decree on 30 December 2016, introducing a mandatory Country by Country (CBC) reporting requirement for multinational enterprise groups generating consolidated annual turnover exceeding €750m (MNE Group). The Decree is compliant with the EU Directive 2016/881 amending Directive 2011/16 relating to mandatory automatic exchange of information in the field of taxation and the OECD BEPS Action 13 on transfer pricing documentation and country by country reporting.

After almost 4 years of deflationary pressures, prices for many basic goods in Cyprus have dropped a significant amount.

A new undersea electricity cable—the Euro-African Interconnector– will link Cyprus to Egypt and Greece, through Crete, following the signing of a relevant agreement in Cairo.

The Finance Ministry is set to acquire new tools to better effectively monitor public debt, CNA reported recently.

State-owned energy giant Qatar Petroleum (QP) is exploring oil and gas in Morocco and Cyprus as it aims to expand its liquefied natural gas (LNG) assets abroad while trimming costs at home.