ZAGREB, March 24, 2020 - Croatian Economy Minister Darko Horvat today said that the government was working intensively to address the shortage of protective equipment against coronavirus and that a "large plane" carrying such goods would arrive to Croatia from China during the day.

Other (supply) routes are being planned, primarily airline routes to transport protective equipment not only from Europe, but also from China and India, as all standard suppliers are swarmed with orders from Croatia, Europe and all over the world.

The need for specific materials makes the start of the production of such goods in Croatia harder.

"Several companies are testing how effective some materials they have managed to obtain are against viruses. If they meet the criteria, Varteks and Calzedonia will soon start the production," Horvat said.

The head of the Croatian Public Health Institute, Krunoslav Capak, said on Tuesday that healthy people did not have to wear single-layer canvas masks when entering shops and other public spaces, since those masks did not protect against the coronavirus.

The National Civil Protection Authority has not made a recommendation that healthy people should wear protective masks nor do they think that this is necessary, Capak told a press conference.

Only specialised respirators with filters that prevent the passage of the virus are effective in protecting against the spread of the coronavirus. In Croatia they are currently used by health care professionals.

The National Authority only recommended that infected persons should wear a three-ply surgical mask with a plastic layer that filters out tiny particles.

More coronavirus news can be found in the Lifestyle section.

ZAGREB, February 6, 2020 - Croatia is seeing a noticeable decline in tourist arrivals from China in the first week of February as a result of comprehensive and strict measures by Chinese authorities to contain the coronavirus outbreak, and travel demand is expected to stabilise in the coming period, the Croatian Tourist Board (HTZ) told Hina.

Some 4,400 Chinese tourists have visited Croatia since the start of the year and generated 7,600 overnight stays, which are respective increases of 49% and 19% compared with the same period in 2019, HTZ director Kristjan Staničić said.

"This growth is as planned and is the result of activities aimed at encouraging further arrivals from China. We have recorded a decline in tourist turnover from that market in February as a result of strict measures taken by the Chinese government and certain travel restrictions for the whole of February. Yet, Chinese tourists who were already in Europe during the emergency have continued their journeys," Staničić said, adding that the HTZ was in close contact with its office in Shanghai.

He expressed hope that the Chinese authorities would succeed in stabilising the situation as soon as possible so that demand from the Far East would recover. He said he did not expect any major consequences because Chinese tourists most often visited Croatia from mid-March onwards.

More news about relationship between Croatia and China can be found in the Politics section.

Croatian Post (Hrvatska posta) has stopped shipping small packages from China to Croatia, everything ordered through AliExpress will not be shipped.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Bernard Ivezic writes on the 6th of February, 2020, fortunately, the coronavirus epidemic has not yet hit the health of the population in Croatia, but its onset has already hit the domestic economy.

Fuel might well be getting cheaper, but online purchases from China, primarily via AliExpress, has now been discontinued, and Croatian retailers predict that the economic impact of coronavirus, primarily on technological products, may soon be coming in the form of higher prices. Oil prices have fallen below 50 US dollars per barrel (49.92 US dollars), the lowest level in the past year, due to falling demand in China. The world's largest economy is also the world's largest oil importer.

But to curb the epidemic, the Chinese Government is shutting down factories, slowing down domestic and foreign trade, and introducing quarantines, and as such, the demand for oil on that market is falling. Consequently, prices of gasoline and diesel are also falling in Croatia as well. Other economic effects of the coronavirus epidemic will have a bad effect on business in Croatia. For starters, the coronavirus epidemic has temporarily shut down AliExpress's domestic business. Croatian Post first announced that it had received information from KLM, Lufthansa LH and Turkish Airlines that, to prevent the spread of coronavirus, they had suspended flights to China until further notice, and that this would affect the delivery of packages from there.

At the request of Poslovni Dnevnik, Croatian Post confirmed that the delivery of small packages from China to Croatia has now ceased. Therefore, no small packages you order through AliExpress from China will be able to ship to you at this time.

"The postal items from China to Croatia come exclusively by air, and although the carriers have primarily suspended flights because of the passengers, the shipments cannot reach Croatia," Croatian Post explains.

In numbers, this means that from Saturday to Tuesday, more than 100,000 packages, which should have been delivered to customers in Croatia, remained stuck in warehouses in China. By the end of this week, that figure will climb to about 250,000 packages and will not be able to be reduced until they can fly or the Chinese merchants divert air shipping to container shipping.

"About one million shipments come from China on a monthly basis, and the total number of packages has been growing steadily in recent years, by up to 20 percent annually," they say from Croatian Post. They state that this is a direct consequence of the growth of online commerce. However, just delaying deliveries from AliExpress could have a positive effect in the short term, that is, boost the sales of local online retailers. Not in the long run, however, because China is the world's largest factory.

Sime Essert, CEO of Nabava.net, an online service that compares the prices of more than 200 stores in Croatia, says that a real slowdown in direct imports from China will boost domestic online stores in the short term.

"Anyone who works with suppliers who will not be quarantined could profit in this situation or, for example, those who have a supply of limited goods. It's worth remembering the explosion of graphics card prices when the Bitcoin mining mania started," said Essert.

He added that at the moment, they haven't noticed any significant changes in the prices of technical goods, but that this can't be excluded. Essert stated that factories and stores are closing in China, and despite announcing and when they will reopen, it remains to be seen if that will actually happen. However, he points out that prices could also fall.

"Things like this definitely affect supply, but also demand, so it's possible that prices will drop as well," explained Essert.

On the other hand, the prices of certain technological products are expected to rise globally. Informin Tech's IHS service announced that five factories of LCD and OLED screens, located in Wuhan, the epicentre of the coronavirus epidemic, have been shut down by the Chinese Government to prevent the spread of the virus. China should produce 55 percent of LCDs in the world by 2020. Informa states that, according to initial estimates in February, only a decline in the production of such displays in China could be between 10 and 20 percent, and this will first affect manufacturers of TVs, laptops and PCs.

Make sure to follow our business page for more.

Let's be completely honest, Croatian Post (Hrvatska posta) tends to have issues delivering from anywhere to anywhere, even within the borders of Croatia, let alone far beyond them. The company isn't best known for being particularly reliable.

Many people have waited weeks for a parcel or letter to be delivered from Karlovac to Dubrovnik, and many others have simply had their parcels ''go missing'' and letters vanish into thin air. That being said, it looks as if Croatian Post's services could improve and finally be dragged into the 21st century with the introduction of drones to deliver packages. But what about the worrying situation with coronavirus and China?

As Gordana Grgas/Novac writes on the 1st of February, 2020, Croatian Post informed its disgruntled users recently that there might be difficulties in delivering shipments from the People's Republic of China to the Republic of Croatia, and the reason appears to be related to the concerning coronavirus outbreak. Much has been written here in Croatia about the virus after a bus carrying 300 people from Wuhan itself, where coronavirus broke out, crossed the border at Bregana into Croatia, apparently without any issue at all.

To speak more specifically, Croatian Post stated that it received information from several airlines - KLM, Lufthansa LH and Turkish Airlines - that "to prevent the spread of coronavirus,'' flights from the People's Republic of China to the the Republic of Croatia will not continue to operate for the foreseeable future, until coronavirus is somehow brought under control.

According to a notice published on Croatian Post's website, the decision will affect normal postal services in the exchange of parcels between Croatia and China, so they ask the users of their services to understand. They will notify users of any changes in a timely manner, they state.

Make sure to follow our dedicated business and lifestyle pages for much more.

A man has been quarantined at the Split KBC hospital as a precautionary measure while he is tested for the coronavirus. "The patient is isolated at the Infectious Diseases Clinic; but the coronavirus diagnosis has not yet been confirmed," the hospital reported to Dalmatinski portal on February 2, 2020. 

*UPDATE February 3, 2020 at 19:10 CET: Further coronavirus test results have confirmed the patient does not have the coronavirus.

Split Crisis Staff Doctors for the Prevention and Control of Infections held a press conference today February 3, 2020 at 13:00 CET regarding the case.The tests finding were sent to the Clinic for Infectology Fran Mihaljevic in Zagreb. They should know today whether his symptoms are due to a coronavirus infection or if they are caused by something else.  More information here. 

*DAILY UPDATES: Total Croatia News provides LIVE daily updates on the coronavirus epidemic here. An archive of articles can be found here.

Split Patent in Quarantine Awaiting Test Results

The diagnosis is not yet known, but given that he has recently been to China, he has been isolated as a preventive measure. All necessary examinations have been performed, and he will remain separate from the other patients until the results of the findings.

He is currently in the infectious ward in Split. In the event of a positive finding, he will be transferred to the Zagreb hospital Dr. Fran Mihaljević.

Osijek Patient Does Not Have Coronavirus

Subsequent coronavirus tests showed that the 26-year-old Đakovo resident hospitalized in Osijek KBC after returning from China did not contract the coronavirus, according to Index on February 2, 2020.

Alemka Markotić, Director of the Infectious Diseases Clinic Fran Mihaljević, confirmed for the HRT Dnevnik that the tests on a patient in isolation in Osijek for suspected coronavirus showed that the patient did not suffer from the virus.

Test Findings Sent to Center in Berlin

"Yesterday and today we worked on testing blood and the upper respiratory tract. In one test, some of these samples were slightly positive and the other, which we consider to be affirmative, was completely negative both yesterday and today. We are obliged to send a sample for further confirmation to reference centers. The patient is not coughing and is in good general condition. He will probably be under some medical supervision unless the development of the disease is seen," said Markotić.

She confirmed that their clinic had received a test from Berlin three days ago. She explained that coronavirus is quite similar in behavior and molecular characteristics to SARS, but it also differs in many ways and is apparently spreading much faster. She said that it was difficult to distinguish symptoms from the flu, but that coronavirus complicates pneumonia, while that is not the case with flu.

Expects That Coronavirus Will Last Until Spring

Asked if she knew how long the epidemic would last, she replied that she did not know the answer to that question, adding that the virus was spreading by droplet and that it was expected that with the onset of spring the virus should disappear.

A 26-year-old Đakovo resident was hospitalized in Osijek KBC on Saturday on the tenth day after his return from China and he reported a temperature of 38 degrees, after which he was isolated. The rules of the profession dictate that every patient who comes from China must be treated in this manner and have respiratory problems or fever for two to ten days.

*DAILY UPDATES: Total Croatia News provides LIVE daily updates on the coronavirus epidemic here. An archive of articles can be found here.

ZAGREB, January 29, 2020 - Croatian citizens wanting to leave the Chinese city of Wuhan, the epicentre of the coronavirus epidemic, have been offered evacuation organised by partners from the European Union, the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs stated on Tuesday.

The Embassy of the Republic of Croatia in Beijing is in constant contact with local Chinese authorities and European partners, as well as with the four Croatian citizens who are in Wuhan, the ministry told HINA on Tuesday.

"Croatian citizens wanting to leave Wuhan have been offered evacuation in the organisation of EU partners, and we have stayed in contact on that matter," the ministry says.

They add from the ministry that the Croatian Embassy in Beijing continues to inform Croatian citizens in Wuhan on all measures and options for leaving the city and that the embassy will be at their disposal to ensure their return home goes well.

Given the increasing number of countries planning to evacuate their nationals from Wuhan, the ministry answered the question whether such a solution had been offered to Croatian nationals.

The embassy in Beijing is in contact with other Croatian citizens in the People's Republic of China and is available to them for any kind of consular assistance and support, the ministry adds.

The coronavirus outbreak started in Wuhan, a city of 11 million inhabitants in central China, and has spread throughout the province, which has become a sort of a quarantine.

None of the 106 deaths occurred outside of China, and all but six occurred in Wuhan, where the virus appeared last month.

Numerous countries started evacuating their nationals who will spend 14 days in quarantine upon returning home.

The total number of patients diagnosed with this infection in China has grown from 2,835 on Monday to 4,515 on Tuesday, the National Health Commission said.

The deadly novel coronavirus 2019-nCoV, which appeared in China, will infect at least tens of thousands of people and the outbreak will carry on for several months, experts estimated on Tuesday based on the first available data.

More health news can be found in the Lifestyle section.

ZAGREB, January 24, 2020 - The Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs on Thursday advised Croatian citizens to exercise caution and obtain detailed information on the novel coronavirus outbreak before travelling to China, but did not recommend delaying travel to the country for now.

The Ministry advised strict adherence to the usual measures for reducing the risk of respiratory diseases, and recommended closely following news from Chinese health authorities and the World Health Organization about the state of the virus outbreak and the preventative measures to be taken.

The number of patients in China diagnosed with the respiratory disease caused by the novel coronavirus reached 571 on Thursday, 17 of whom have died, the Chinese authorities said.

The number of afflicted people might increase in the coming days, when millions of people are expected to travel from large cities, such as Wuhan, for celebrations of the Lunar New Year starting on Saturday.

Cases of the disease have been reported in Japan, the Philippines, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, and the United States, as well as in the Chinese special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau.

More news about the relations between Croatia and China can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, November 7, 2019 - The Croatian Chamber of Commerce (HGK) and Croatian National Tourism Board (HTZ) on Thursday, presented Croatia's economy and tourism at the China international import expo, which is being held in Shanghai from November 5 to 10.

This is the 2nd edition of the China International Import Expo (CIIE) with more than 150,000 Chinese and foreign buyers and exhibitors from more than 100 countries and Croatia is participating in the expo with its "Croatia Day" exhibition which has enabled numerous contacts between Croatian companies and Chinese partners, HGK and HTZ informed on Thursday.

HGK president, Luka Burilović, said that the Chinese market is no longer reserved for only the most courageous and that the door to the Chinese market is open for the entire world.

"This is an opportunity that we must not miss and this fair is proof that China is turning to imports and reducing its trade surplus. It is important for us to be permanently present here. Our exports to China increased by 25% last year alone which is proof that we can compete on such a large market. On the wings of good indicators and good political relations it is time for even more concrete results," Burilović said.

He added that last year's expo was beyond expectations and business deals valued at 50.8 billion dollars were concluded and that he hopes that Croatian companies will manage to get a piece of that cake, too.

HTZ director Kristjan Staničić underscored that Croatia's exhibition was awarded this year and that this is the 2nd time this year for Croatia to presented its tourism on such an important market.

Staničić explained that so far this year the number of Chinese tourists to Croatia has increased by 24% in arrivals and bed nights year on year, with China being in second place in terms of the number of tourists from distant tourist markets.

According to China's national tourist board, 200 million Chinese residents are expected to travel abroad in 2020 and HTZ expects the number of tourists coming to Europe and Croatia to increase too.

He added that this year 483 Chinese tourist agents completed internet courses on Croatia's culture, nature, gastronomy and adventure tourism.

During the expo Staničić met with one of the most important Chinese partners, Shendi Group and Ctrip for talks on future cooperation.

Ctrip is the largest online tourist agency in China and the second largest in the world and the largest advertiser of hotels and accommodation in China with more than 300 million users in more than 220 countries.

More news about Croatian tourism can be found in the Travel section.

ZAGREB, November 6, 2019 - The openness of the Chinese market to imports is an opportunity which Croatia must take better advantage of, and Chinese companies are expected to increase their investment in Croatia, a Croatia-China business forum was told in Shanghai.

The forum, organised by the Croatian Chamber of Commerce (HGK), was held on the margins of the 2nd China International Import Expo. It involved 12 Croatian and 30 Chinese companies and was attended, among others by, Croatian Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković, Economy Minister Darko Horvat, Agriculture Minister Marija Vučković and HGK President Luka Burilović, the HGK said in a press release on Wednesday.

Jandroković called on Chinese companies to invest in Croatia and said that Croatia wanted to increase exports to China and balance out trade. He said that B2B talks would further contribute to business cooperation between the two countries, notably to boosting Croatian exports to China and Chinese investment in Croatia and increasing the number of Chinese tourists visiting Croatia.

Horvat said that Croatia was moving up in the global competitiveness rankings and that this was proof that it was becoming easier to do business in Croatia. He said that the Chinese economy was interesting not just because of its size but also because of its focus on investment in research and development.

"That's why they are among the global leaders in innovations, which are the foundation of and key to further growth in all countries," Horvat said, stressing that Croatia had been declared the most desirable European travel destination in China last year. "That is certainly a great recognition for our country. However, our intention and our mission is to do all we can in order for Croatia to be recognised as a desirable investment destination as well," he added.

Burilović said economic relations between Croatia and China were improving and that Croatia should take better advantage of the openness of the Chinese market to imports.

Last year Croatian-Chinese trade exceeded 1 billion dollars, which proves that Croatia can be competitive on such a large market, Burilović said.

Assistant Tourism Minister Frano Matušić highlighted the importance of the Chinese market to the Croatian tourism industry. "The potential is huge. We believe in even better results, and last year they were 20 percent better than the previous year, which was a record year," he said.

More news about relations between Croatia and China can be found in the Business section.

ZAGREB, November 5, 2019 - Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković, who held a speech in Shanghai on Tuesday, underscored the excellent China-Croatia cooperation in several areas as well as the significance of the "17+1"and the "Belt and Road" initiatives for this cooperation, the Croatian parliament said in a press release.

Addressing an economic forum within the 2nd China Import Expo, which brought together over 1,500 guests from all over the world, Jandroković spoke about regulations and a business climate conducive to opening markets and the role of governments and prospects of multinational companies.

Jandroković said that the role of governments and national parliaments was to create conditions favourable for entrepreneurs and development of economy.

In this context, he said that Croatia permanently upgraded its framework for doing business in the country.

He added that in the last four years, Croatia conducted reforms aimed at making it easier for companies to do business and at boosting Croatia's competitiveness, and some of these reforms are an overhaul of the tax system, reduction of the administrative burden, and improvement of the investment framework.

"Croatia is moving up the rankings of economic freedoms, which shows that Croatia is more and more open and attractive as a business and investment destination."

He boasted that Croatia is successful in slashing its deficit and public debt, which has resulted in the improvement of the country's credit rating and, consequently, in enabling businesses to be more profitable in the country.

As for the bilateral cooperation, Jandroković recalled the ongoing construction of Pelješac Bridge by the China Bridge and Road Corporation.

More news about relations between Croatia and China can be found in the Politics section.