Moody's kept Slovakia's rating unchanged at A3, the 7th-highest level, with a stable outlook. Slovakia held the same rating when it joined the EU in 2004. The agency last changed Slovakia's rating in December 2024, downgrading it by one notch over government interference in the judiciary and media. It now says the rating could improve if the coalition strengthens institutions. Risks include the country's dependence on the automotive industry and on export markets in Western E

Mobile operator 4ka (Ondriš brothers) is approaching the end of its national‑roaming agreement with Orange covering 2G and 4G networks. Both companies are interested in continuing the partnership and are also negotiating potential network sharing. A complicating factor is that 4ka runs on technology from Chinese vendor ZTE, while Orange uses Nokia. Over the years of national roaming, 4ka has paid Orange tens of millions of euros. Rivals O2 and Slovak Telekom have been sharing

Robert Fico sa stal premiérom prvýkrát pred 20 rokmi. Životná úroveň najskôr dynamicky rástla vďaka reformám vlád Mikuláša Dzurindu, poslednú dekádu je už ale tempo dobiehania životnej úrovne západnej Európy na Slovensku najnižšie v regióne. Zadlženie vlády aj domácností za 20 rokov stúplo najviac, napriek masívnemu zvýšeniu daňového zaťaženia. Vláda ale nevyužila peniaze na investície do zlepšovania konkurencieschopnosti, ale na zvyšovanie sociálnych dávok. Okolité krajiny n

Robert Fico first became PM 20 years ago. Living standards initially grew fast thanks to Mikuláš Dzurinda cabinet's reforms, but Slovakia's catch-up pace with Western Europe has been the region's slowest over the past decade. National and household debt rose the most in the region over those 20 years, despite a massive hike in tax burden. The government spent the money on higher social benefits, not competitiveness investments. Neighboring countries now pay higher wages, and

Slovakia Advanced Material, a subsidiary of Chinese company Guizhou Aviation Technical Development, plans to invest €105m in building a new plant in the Valaliky industrial park near Košice. The plant will produce superalloy and other metal components for aircraft and gas turbines. Once completed in 2028, it will create 335 jobs. (sme.sk)

Slovakia Advanced Material, dcérska spoločnosť čínskej firmy Guizhou Aviation Technical Development, plánuje investovať 105 mil. € do výstavby nového závodu v priemyselnom parku Valaliky pri Košiciach. Vyrábať bude komponenty zo superzliatin a iných kovov do lietadiel a plynových turbín. Závod po dokončení v roku 2028 vytvorí 335 pracovných miest. (sme.sk)

Anti-trust authority PMÚ is reviewing the acquisition of laboratory operator synlab by competitor Unilabs. (antimon.gov.sk) Unilabs, with Danish capital, tripled its Slovak loss to €15.8m in 2024 while revenue grew 2% to €81.5m. synlab, under German ownership, saw its Slovak profit fall 49% to €0.5m in 2024 after revenue rose 2% to €16.5m.

Protimonopolný úrad skúma transakciu, v rámci ktorej prevádzkovateľ zdravotníckych laboratórií Unilabs kupuje konkurenta synlab. (antimon.gov.sk) Unilabs dánskych majiteľov na Slovensku v roku 2024 strojnásobil stratu na 15,8 mil. € a tržby mu narástli o 2% na 81,5 mil. €. synlab s nemeckými vlastníkmi tu v roku 2024 znížil zisk o 49% na 0,5 mil. € po 2% raste tržieb na 16,5 mil. €.

PM Robert Fico believes the Slovalco aluminum smelter will begin restarting production within a few weeks. He did not disclose details of the state aid package. The smelter, 55%-owned by Norsk Hydro and 45% by Penta, halted production at end-2022 due to high electricity prices and low aluminum prices. Electricity prices have since fallen and aluminum prices have risen 50%. (tnlive.sk)

The share of self-employed borrowers in new mortgages has doubled over the past five years to 28%, and the non-performing loan rate in this segment is nearly three times that of employee borrowers, the central bank NBS warned. Self-employed borrowers have lower rates of university education, as well as less stable and harder to verify income. At the same time, they purchase more expensive properties, yet their higher risk profile is not offset by higher interest rates. (trend