The Chairwoman of Hellenic Bank has called for the creation of asset management vehicles or companies sothat banks can properly deal with the vast problem of non-performing loans and the glut in the property market.

The Cooperative Central Bank reported net profits of €37.1 mln in Q1 2015, down from €41.2 mln in Q4 of 2014, due to a drop in interest income and an increase in provisions by €22 mln to €3.04 bln.

Cyprus posted a €64.3m budget gap on a cash basis in the first four months of the year which accounts for 0.4% of gross domestic product compared to a 0.8% surplus in the respective 2014 period, the Finance Ministry said.

House prices rose 0.6% in the first quarter of the year island-wide as prices for other categories dropped compared to the quarter before, the Cyprus unit of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) said.

Health minister Philipos Patsalis recently said that a draft bill on the restructuring and autonomy of public hospitals in Cyprus will be tabled before parliament within June 2015.

Economic sentiment in Cyprus weakened in May 2015, a publicly funded survey said recently, as businesses forecast a worsening financial situation in the coming three months.

PwC Cyprus and the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) hosted an event on 'Building skills for success' for accountants who have completed, or are in the midst of their training with the firm, as well as all those who achieved worldwide distinctions in the ICAEW professional examinations in recent years.

The government will kick-start the 9th series of retail bonds from September 1, 2015, but will take advantage of the stabilising economy by offering the bonds at lower interest rates than before.

Cyprus received over €2bn over the past two years from the property-for-residency scheme, Interior Minister Socrates Hasikos said recently.

The relocation of strategic oil reserves from the Larnaca seafront to existing facilities in Vasilikos is expected to be completed by mid-July 2015, Energy Minister Giorgos Lakkotrypis said recently.