The Bank of Cyprus has announced its decision to cancel government guaranteed bonds of a value of €1 billion, due to a drop in ELA funding to €2 billion which it intends to fully repay by the end of 2017.

The intention of the Bank of Cyprus is to approve all loan applications which fulfill the necessary requirements, said the bank in a press release, adding that since the crisis began it has provided €1 billion in fresh loans, while this year’s loans have more than doubled compared to 2015.

The Cypriot economy grew 2.7% year-on-year in the second quarter of 2016, according to a flash estimate published by the statistical service recently.

Paphos looks set to have a building boom in 2017, based on building permit figures from the Statistical Service (Cystat).

A percentage of 22.2% of young persons in Cyprus were in 2015 neither in employment nor in education or training, according to information issued by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union, on the occasion of International Youth Day.

Demand for loans by households and businesses has been on the rise since the beginning of 2015, a trend that is expected to continue in 2016.

According to the Cyprus Statistical Service, the trade deficit was up €648 million in January-May 2016 year-on-year.

The sale of luxury apartments in the Ayia Napa marina has begun, with the first buyers being from abroad.

Former Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Cyprus Development Bank, Takis Taoushanis, has been appointed as the new chairman of the Cooperative Central Bank (CCB) according to an announcement by the CCB.

Building permits were up in the first five months of the year, according to figures released recently by the Statistical Service.