Rockwell Automation, an American manufacturer of industrial automation solutions, intends to build its own plant, software engineering centre and customer service unit in Katowice. The investment should create 500 new jobs over the next three years.
The company has already bought a site for its investment in an industrial estate in Szopienice and intends to begin construction work as soon as the site is incorporated into the Katowice Special Economic Zone (KSSE). The first stage of the undertaking is to be carried out midway through next year.
The main purpose of the Katowice plant will be to produce switches and commutators as well as low and medium-voltage drives for industrial machines. It will employ around 200 people.
A software engineering centre staffed by close to 100 engineers will be set up right next to the facility and another 200 staff are to find work in a neighbouring accounting centre that will support the company’s operations throughout Europe.
Bulgarian property prices unlikely to soar after EU accession
Bulgarian newspaper Dnevnik has predicted that EU accession is unlikely to have a drastic affect on property prices and that the average increase in 2007 will be around 20%, followed by 15% in 2008. It forecasts that price differentials will deepen, with well constructed, luxurious properties that are surrounded by good infrastructure, likely to rise the most in price.
Offices would be the most popular property for investors in 2007 it predicted, with those located in business centres likely to be in highest demand.
Baltic Logistic City being built in Lithuania
The construction of the biggest logistic city in the Baltic region will be constructed near the highway ‘Via Baltica’ in Kaunas, Lithuania. JSC ‘Via Baltica Logistic’ is planning to invest €24m building 56,000sqm of modern warehousing and offices that will create 400 new jobs.
Construction of Baltic Logistic City began in Kaunas in early September and the first buildings are expected to be completed by July 2007, with full completion a year later.
According to the director of JSC Via Baltica Logistic, Arunas Tamauskas, the extremely convenient location of the logistics centre will ensure the best development of both Lithuania’s and other Baltic states’ small, medium-sized and big entrepreneurs.
Spanish property rental prices increase
Average property rental prices in Spain rose by 4.4% over 12 months to the end of August 2006, according to the National Institute of Statistics (INE). However, due to the fact that annual inflation in Spain up to the end of August stood at 3.7%, this equates to a rental increase of just 0.7% over the past 12 months.
Strictly business London dominates Europe
London has increased its margin over Paris as Europe's leading city to locate a business according to European Cities Monitor (ECM), the annual location survey of Europe's leading companies carried out by global real estate consultant Cushman & Wakefield.
The UK capital is now the top-rated city for seven out of the 12 factors that are ranked to then give the overall league table. This year, London has improved its scores, among other factors, for availability of office space (rising to number one slot having overtaken Berlin and Madrid) and moved slightly ahead of Paris to be the best city in Europe for internal transport, (evidence, if any were needed, that directors and managers of Europe’s largest companies have never used the northern line during the rush hour!)
European Cities Monitor is based on interviews with senior managers and board directors in charge of 507 top European companies. It looks at factors regarded as important by companies when deciding where to locate, and then compares the performance of 33 of Europe's leading business cities on each factor. Communication factors are seen as the most important, followed by cost and then quality of life.
James Young, head of the City of London office of Cushman & Wakefield, comments: "With the current trend towards globalisation, London has consolidated its position as part of the elite group of global cities, together with New York and Tokyo, and in all likelihood Shanghai in the near future. This puts London in a league apart when comparing it with other European cities."
In last year's ECM, London achieved a weighted score of 0.87, which has now increased to 0.91, while Paris' has gone from 0.60 to 0.59. Paris comes second for five of the factors. This year it falls in the rankings for quality of life (down two to 4th) and freedom from pollution (down three to 29th). Last year Barcelona overtook Amsterdam to take 5th position in the overall ranking, which was the first time that the top five had changed since Cushman & Wakefield had first carried out the survey in 1990, when Barcelona was in 11th position. This year, Barcelona takes one more upward step to leapfrog Brussels and take 4th position, with Frankfurt retaining third place.
Oil spill in Serbia polluting Danube in Bulgaria
An oil spill that has polluted Bulgaria's Danube River actually originated from a refinery in Prahovo, Serbia. The spill entered the Bulgarian part of the Danube on 2 October. The total length of the spill was 140km and consisted of petroleum and fuel oil.
Serbia 's state water inspectorate said that it did not receive a signal concerning the spill until the evening of 2 October. The spill passed just 200m away from a nuclear power plant in Kozlodui, Bulgaria, but fortunately it failed to pollute the riverbank near the plant.
Bulgarian authorities are now setting up fences to stop further oil spills and a ship will enter the Danube River to collect the oil spill.
Valuable Polish land sold for just a few hundred zloty
In the near future a million allotment holders in Poland will be able to buy ownership rights to their gardens for just a few hundred zloty, government representatives have announced. A draft statute is to be announced after the upcoming local government elections, to be approved before the end of this year. The idea has also received the backing of the parliamentary opposition.
Most of the country’s million allotment holders are people with modest incomes hence a rebate will be made available of 5% for each year that the plot has been owned. Pensioners and allotment holders on disability allowance will be entitled to a discount of up to 95%. Payments for the land can be made in instalments spread out over 10 years.
A purchased plot of land could be used, for example, as collateral for a bank loan and may help to fuel the mortgage market, (which is currently growing by 35%/year), further.
Owners also have the option of combining with others in the surrounding plot of land and making a joint application to their local municipalities to construct residential units.
Cost of land in the Pyrenees is escalating
The cost of land in the Pyrenees of Aragon, Spain has soared as a result of strong building activity in the region, according to local newspaper El Periódico de Aragón.
The publication reports that developers are currently signing option contracts for rustic land without planning permission at more than €240,000 per hectare. This is 100 times more expensive than rustic land without planning permission. Furthermore, land prices in certain localities are now eight times higher than they were just 20 months ago, when a hectare cost €30,000.
ECB set to increase interest rates
The European Central Bank (ECB) is expected to increase interest rates later (Thursday) today, up to 3.25%, up from just 2% in early December 2005.
Nick Matthews, an economist at Barclays Capital in London, said: "We're looking at two more rate increases by the end of the year."
Worldwide News
Major development to be delivered in Sudan
The Sudanese government in conjunction with Diar Real Estate Investment Company will develop a major tourist and residential resort on the banks of the Blue Nile in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum.
Nasser Hassan Al Ansari, chief executive officer of Qatari Diar, said: "This is a vote of confidence by Qatari Diar in the future of Sudan and a signal to the world that this country can attract major overseas investment.
"This will be a mixed-use development with a five-star hotel, restaurants, cafes, retail and commercial facilities and a sports club. The resort will be surrounded by residential villas and offices for which there is currently high demand in Khartoum."
Housing affordability in Canada declining
Housing affordability in Canada has deteriorated for a third consecutive quarter, according to the latest Housing Affordability Index compiled by RBC Economics.
Derek Holt, assistant chief economist, RBC, said: "Faster growth in house prices, the weakest annual growth in household incomes since the first quarter of 2005 and slightly higher interest rates have all combined to erode housing affordability in Canada."
Direct flight to Cape Verde set to 'take off'
Direct flights from the UK to the Cape Verde islands are set to get under way in November 2006, which is expected to help boost the country's emerging property market.
Astraeus Airlines launches its weekly direct flight from Gatwick and Manchester to Sal Island on 2 nd November, with TAVC Airlines offering an alternative route between Birmingham and the capital Praia on Santiago Island, also in November. Until now, travellers to Cape Verde have had to fly via Amsterdam or Lisbon.
Paul Akwei of Cape Verde estate agent Noscasa said: “This is what we have been waiting for… the potential of Cape Verde as a desirable destination for the UK holiday market is about to sky rocket now that travel time and costs have been slashed.
"Cape Verde is now as accessible as the Canaries. But property prices are much lower and the islands will be protected from over-development."
US market continues to slow
The level of pending home sales (exchanged contracts but not completed) in the USA rose by 4.3% in , but has fallen annually by 14.1%, compared to this time last year, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR).
David Lereah, chief economist for the NAR, said: "Our sense is that home sales may have reached a low in August. With fewer new listings coming on the market, we should be able to draw down the inventory supply early next year to the point where home prices will rise, but at a slower pace than historic norms."
The NAR reported last week that sales of existing homes in the US fell for the fifth month in a row during August with the number of unsold homes on the market continuing to rise.
Professor Peter Morici of the Robert H. Smith School of Business at the University of Maryland said: “Frustrated home owners, under no pressure to sell or relocate for new jobs or retirement, are likely holding houses off the market and waiting for conditions to improve. Those would-be-sellers may have to wait until 2008 or 2009 to see a robust market again.
“Over the last five years, housing values have risen more than 50 percent nationally, outpacing the pay checks of buyers. The housing market is ripe for an adjustment - a year or two of flat or falling prices followed by a period of only modest price gains appears likely.”
