The number of building permits authorised by the municipal authorities and the district administration offices during September 2016 stood at 467 according to the Cyprus Statistical Service.

The government’s planning on important issues, such as privatisations, has not been altered due to the approval of cutbacks to the 2017 state budget by the House of Representatives, said the Minister of Finance, Harris Georgiades.

Cyprus plans to be out and about in bond markets next year, Finance Minister Harris Georgiades said, after a successful first debt sale in July since its 2013 banking collapse and bailout.

The number of company registrations in November 2016 rose an annual 29% to 1,402, which is the highest figure in a single month since January 2013, the department of Company Registrar and Official Receiver said.

The value of transactions with plastic money dropped in November 2016 an annual 5% to €193.3m mainly on reduced property tax payments, paymentprocessing joint venture JCC Payments Systems Ltd said recently.

Cyprus' parliament has approved the state budget for 2017 with 28 votes in favour and 25 against.

During 2016, internet access in households continued to increase and reached 74.4% compared to 71.2% in 2015, according to a survey announced by the Statistical Service, on information and communication technologies (ICT) usage in households 2016.

President Nicos Anastasiades flies to Israel for an early morning meeting on Thursday, December 8, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu followed by the Cyprus-Greece-Israel Tripartite Summit focusing on energy and regional security.

Seasonally adjusted GDP rose by 0.7% and 2.8% in Cyprus on a quarterly and annual basis, during the third quarter of 2016.

Business woman and philanthropist Yelena Baturinam, described as Russia’s richest woman, has announced the launching of a new €40 million construction and development project in the coastal town of Limassol.