OeNB ups economic outlook

Categories
Business

The Austrian National Bank (OeNB) said today (Fri) it expected the Austrian economy to grow by 2.1 per cent year on year.OeNB announced only in June that the country’s economy could improve by 1.8 per cent in 2011 compared to this year.The bank’s latest estimation is also more optimistic than recent predictions by Austria’s leading […]

Men exposed as Xmas shopaholics in poll

Categories
Business

Men will spend around 100 Euros more on Christmas presents than women, a new survey has revealed.GfK Austria found that male Austrians planned to invest 455 on Christmas gifts for their loved ones, while women were expected to spend an average 356 Euros this year.The agency, which interviewed 500 Austrians aged 15 and older, also […]

Half of killed drivers are foreigners, study shows

Categories
General News

Almost one in two drivers killed on Austrian motorways are foreigners, new research has revealed.Traffic Club Austria (VCÖ) said today (Thurs) that 49 per cent of motorists who died on the country’s motorways during the past five years were foreigners. The independent traffic and transportation watchdog added that 44 per cent of people involved in […]

Betbull losses in decline

Categories
Business

Sports betting provider Betbull has managed to reduce its losses.The company, which is based in Malta and listed on the Vienna Stock Exchange (WBAG), said today (Weds) it lost 1.9 million Euros in the first three quarters of this year after a loss of three million Euros during the same time span of 2009.Betbull, which […]

Schlumberger set to sparkle as Xmas nears

Categories
Business

Champagne and wine maker Schlumberger has said it is bracing for “millions of sales” as Christmas approaches.The company explained today (Tues) it sells “a few million bottles between October and December” compared to “a few hundred thousands” in other months.Austrian retail trade representatives said recently that they expected to take in three to four per […]

Austrians splash out €154mn on hair

Categories
Business

Austrians spent more than 150 million Euros on their hair last year, a survey has shown.GfK Austria found that the 8.5 million people living in the country invested 154 million Euros on hair care products and visits to the hairdressers in 2009.The agency said today (Tues) that its research has also shown five per cent […]

European building sector not out of recession yet, claims Swietelsky

Categories
Business

The recession still has the European construction sector in its grip, a leading building company has warned.Linz-based Swietelsky, Austria’s fifth-biggest construction firm, said today (Tues) that it would give a “careful” outlook due to the “insecure situation” in the Eurozone. The term describes the 16 European Union (EU) members which use the Euro as their […]

NGOs shocked by ‘deadly’ development aid cutbacks

Categories
Politics

Federal President Heinz Fischer has claimed he is “deeply hurt” by the government’s decision to slash its development aid spending from next year.However Fischer, who attended the 2011 budget speech by People’s Party (ÖVP) Finance Minister Josef Pröll in the federal parliament in Vienna today (Tues), also stressed that he had understanding for the planned […]

Porr scores Libyan stadium order

Categories
Business

A leading Austrian construction company has been assigned to build a 10-000-seat football stadium in Libya.Vienna-based Porr, Austria’s third-biggest building firm, its Turkish cooperation partner Renaissance Group and Libyan Investment Development Company, were contracted to build the venue in the city of Tripoli, it was announced today (Mon).The assigned companies will rake in an overall […]

Error rate pledge as Vienna public transport gets more digital timetables

Categories
General News

Viennese public transport agency Wiener Linien has vowed to eradicate errors on its automatic timetable information system.The company said today (Tues) it planned to increase the number of digital information boards at bus and tram stations from the current 500 to around twice this number by 2015.Critics point out that the digitalised devices’ operations have […]