Polish Business Survey
Market up but base weak
The stock market on Monday showed a slight increase in value although not in turnover. This would suggest that yesterdays rise has an unstable base and does not permit any hope that this increase will continue.
Murdoch considering Poland
Zygmunt Solorz, owner of Polsat, the largest private TV station in Poland, is negotiating with News Corporation concerning the sale of Polsat Media. He is also looking for buyers for his non-media based companies which include those involved in insurance, pension funds and banking. The aim is to concentrate on his media business.
This reorganisation is clearly to make the company more attractive to a foreign buyer such as News Corporation. Rumour has it that the Dutch based Polsat Media will be sold off in its entirety which will pave the way for Rupert Murdoch to take a 33 percent share in Polsat — the maximum the law currently allows. It is possible that the radio and TV watchdog, the KRRiT, will examine this question in its meeting today.
This would make Polsat the second Polish TV channel to fall into foreign hands following the acquisition of TVN by SBS. News Corporation has so far shown little interest in Central and Eastern Europe. Last November it entered Poland buying an outdoor advertising agency Town&City, which has around six percent of the Polish market.
Retail faces restrictions
All evidence would suggest that limits on hypermarket growth may be placed by MPs even before the summer recess. This move is being backed by those MPs who represent small and medium sized businesses. Currently hypermarkets can be built on land requiring retail planning permission only. The new bill proposes to create a special class of planning permission specifically for hypermarkets. A hypermarket is defined for example as a retail area over 1,000sqm in the case of towns with up to 20,000 inhabitants. In larger towns, retail units over 2,000sqm will need this permission. Further difficulties for the major operators would include local authorities having to make studies on the effect of hypermarkets on employment and local transport.
The small trader lobby is quite powerful and is often represented by MPs with a more nationalist appeal (against foreign hypermarkets). Studies three years ago suggested that as many as one million jobs could be threatened by hypermarkets although these predictions have so far proved incorrect.
Management options
An increasing number of quoted Polish companies, particularly those working in the IT sector are using EVA (Economic Value Added) methods. This conception is based on creating wealth around shareholders and became popular in the USA in the 1980s. One of its most important elements which is increasingly popular in Poland is to offer share options to management. An example of this system working in Poland is Kraków based systems integrator ComArch.
Kopex recycles
Katowice based Kopex has founded a company called Kopex Recycling whose aim is to recycle parts from disused and dismantled real estate. Kopex has a 60 percent share in the company.
Netia quoted on stock market
Private telecoms operator Netia will entered the stock market today. Up until now shares have been traded on one of the parallel exchanges.
Skandia optimistic
The Swedish life insurer Skandia has said that it expects to take PLN20m in contributions before the end of the year and is expecting to receive USD100m in the first five years of business. Investments in this time are expected to be around PLN50m. It has been selling its products on the Polish market since last September.
Money for www firms
Two of the largest internet design companies in Poland, Łódź based AMG Net and Internet Designers from Wrocław are both hoping to sell financial institutions a minority shareholding. A similar transaction that recently took place involved Enterprise Investors taking a share in e-point for USD1.25m. Overnight, e-point became the strongest web-designer in the country. This now leaves 3dart. com as the only comparable company without a strategic investor.
Pension fund investments
Pension funds have made their second six monthly investment report. As far as the stock market is concerned, portfolios are dominated by such companies as Elektrim, KGHM, PKN Orlen and TPSA together with the banks PBK, WBK and BRE.