ZAGREB, 4 January, 2021 - It is estimated that the earthquake insurance premium at the end of 2020 will total around HRK 110 million, up 28% on the year, the Croatian Chamber of Commerce (HGK) said on Monday.

The devastating earthquakes which hit Croatia last year have caused over HRK 100 billion worth of damage and many people have lost their properties, so it is not surprising that after the tremor which struck Zagreb and its environs in March there was an increase in earthquake insurance, the HGK said, adding that the tremors which struck Sisak-Moslavina County last week will certainly further raise people's awareness of the need for earthquake insurance.

It is estimated that the number of insurance policies by the end of last year will have risen to 140,000, up 30% from 2019, the HGK said, adding that the average earthquake insurance premium was HRK 800.

The HGK said that although the property insurance premium was rising, it amounted to €48 per capita, far below the EU average of €168.

The big disproportion of investing in property insurance in Croatia is especially worrying considering that besides Greece, Turkey, North Macedonia and Italy, Croatia is in tectonically the riskiest part of Europe, the HGK said.

After the March 2020 earthquake, insurance companies paid HRK 237.5 million and processed 7,269 damages claims by the end of November, the HGK said, adding that the Zagreb quake showed that an extremely low percentage of apartment buildings had earthquake insurance.

(€1 = HRK 7.5)

ZAGREB, July 27, 2020 - Despite lower prices, tourist accommodation for families in Croatia is seeing a steep decline in bookings and most providers of such accommodation are facing financial losses of up to HRK 50,000, a survey on the coronacrisis impact on the business operations of family accommodation providers shows.

The survey, conducted by the Croatian Chamber of Commerce (HGK) on a sample of 2,100 people, revealed that as many as 95 percent of respondents reported a decline in the number of bookings compared with last year, despite the fact that three-quarters of them had cut prices, mostly by up to 30 percent.

Nearly a third of those interviewed, or 31 percent, recorded a drop in bookings of more than 80 percent, while 90 percent also reported cancellations of bookings. The share of cancelled bookings for July and August was mostly up to 60 percent.

"The financial damage suffered by most of the accommodation providers, 77 percent, reached up to HRK 50,000 in the first six months of the year, while the estimate for the next three months climbs to HRK 100,000," the HGK said on Monday, noting that only six percent of the respondents said they did not have any significant financial losses.

A third of those interviewed were pensioners, with 75 percent of them saying that their livelihood would be threatened without this income.

ZAGREB, June 8, 2020 - Last year was one of the best years for investment funds with the value of their assets exceeding HRK 26 billion and this year despite the obvious fall due to the COVID-19 pandemic. the sector has been significantly maturing, it was said at the Top of the Funds award ceremony on Monday.

President of the association of companies for the management of investment funds within the Croatian Chamber of Commerce, (HGK) Hrvoje Krstulovic underlined that 2019 was one of the best years for investment funds and capital market with Undertaking for Collective Investment in Transferable Securities (UCITS) funds increasing by 18.5% to HRK 22.5 billion and a jump in alternative investment funds of 14.5%  to HRK 4.2 billion.

Those two figures, combined together, give the number of HRK 26.8 billion which is almost equal to the value of assets at the end of 2007, said Krstulovic.

Despite the crisis in 2020, 95% of physical entities retained their investments in funds, he explained and the decrease that has been recorded mostly relates to institutional investors, he said.

He underlined that a significant maturity has occurred in the entire sector from clients, to sales processes and on to regulators.

The strongest effect of the coronavirus epidemic was recorded in March when the value of assets of investment funds fell by 30% however in April an increase of 1.4% was recorded and the total value of UCITS funds at the end of April amounted to HRK 15.9 billion.

Top of the Funds awards in five categories

The Top of the Funds awards for the best management of investment funds in 2019 was conferred to Intercapital Bond for the best equity open-end investment fund (UCITS) while the best mixed open-end investment fund award went to Allianz Portfolio. The best open-ended investment fund was awarded to PBZ Equity while the particular open-ended investment fund award went to Intercapital Income Plus.

There are currently 23 companies managing investment funds in Croatia.

As Morski writes on the 15th of April, 2019, the Mediterranean Festival of Books, a book fair with a sales and festival nature will be organised by the Association of Publishers and Bookstores of the Croatian Chamber of Commerce (HGK) and under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture, Split-Dalmatia County and the City of Split, will be held from the 8th to the 12th of May, 2019.

A record 100 exhibitors will be offering discounted books with up to seventy percent off, with around 10,000 titles to choose from.

As always, entrance is free and during the five days of the festival, you will be able to see the latest publications covering a space of more than two thousand square metres in the large hall of ŠC (Arena) Gripe, and there are also three other stages where the Mediterranean Festival of Books program will take place.

In addition to the well-known Bookvarij and Mali Bookvarij locations where children's workshops, panel discussions and a professional program will be held, the evening part of this event related to all things books will also be located at the "Cukarin" hospitality facility in Gripe.

Fifty program activities have been prepared, and the expectation is for as many as 35 promotions of the latest works of some award-winning and acclaimed authors to take place.

Among other things, this year's Mediterranean Festival of Books program will include panels consisting of prominent lecturers who will talk about important local topics, and there will of course be a multitude of workshops for the youngest among the festival's visitors on offer. Numerous promotions for new children's editions are also being planned.

All information and a detailed oveview of the Mediterranean Festival of Books 2019 program with its workshop schedule is available here, as well as having been published on the event's official Facebook page and on Instagram.

The Mediterranean Book Festival is being organised with the support of numerous partners such as the Split Tourist Board, Split University, Split Student Centre, the Split Sports Facilities public institution, Hotel Zagreb - Split, Cukarin Gripe, Slobodna Dalmacija, Europlakat, Mandis, CineStar, Barcaffè, CedevitaGo, and Kala.

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