Economy of the European Union

B0ELGRADE - The Executive Board of the National Bank of Serbia (NBS) decided on Thursday to keep the reference interest rate unchanged at 9.5 percent and stated that the inter-annual inflation rate returned to the limits of the target inflation in January 2014 as NBS had announced earlier.

The Eurozone GDP is expected to grow 1.2% in 2014, European Central Bank President Mario Draghi announced Thursday.

At his monthly press conference in Frankfurt, the ECB's chief asserted that economic recovery is under way, even though it is not at the desired pace, Businessweek has reported.

Italy and France have been placed on an economic "watch-list" by the European Commission.

High debt and deficit levels are the reason for the EC's decision to put the second and third-largest Eurozone economies among 14 nations with "imbalances", according to a report published on Wednesday and cited by EUObserver.

The troika faced an “immense challenge” in dealing with the euro crisis but the adjustment programs it helped implement in Greece and other countries lacked transparency and were not fully adapted to those states, according to a European Parliament committee, which recommended on Tuesday the International Monetary Fund’s involvement in future bailouts be “optional.”

Economic growth across Europe is expected to be slightly stronger this year as the recovery gains ground, according to the European Commission's new forecast released Tuesday.

The euro-area economy will continue to lag behind its main competitors, the U.S. and China, this year and next as high levels of unemployment and debt hinder the currency bloc’s recovery.

 Banks’ requirements will not exceed 6 bln euros; methodology will be available for scrutiny, sources say

By Yiannis Papadoyiannis

LONDON - Prime Minister of Serbia Ivica Dacic participated in a high-level regional forum organized in London on Monday by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and presented Serbia's results in the creation of favorable business and investment environment, emphasizing that no project can be implemented without stability of the region.