Greek Companies May Leave Macedonia due to pressure by Athens

[Risto the Great]

http://macedoniaonline.eu/content/view/17405/45/

Several General Managers of Greek companies present on the Macedonian Market met for several hours with Greek ambassador in Macedonia, Alexandra Padapoulos, on the latest economic measures introduced by Athens for Greek firms in Macedonia. Details of the meeting were not made public. It is thus unclear if cutting subsidies on behalf of the Greeks will complicate business situation in Macedonia and even prompt Greek companies to leave Macedonia.

Two months ago the Greek Government adopted a series of economic measures, which abolished tax benefits for Greek companies in Macedonia. It is worth adding that Macedonia is the only country in the region with a different set of rules for Greek investors. Athens has increased pressure on Greek enterprises to stop investing in Macedonia.

In a bizarre way, it was the Greek Government who helped the National Bank of Greece purchase Stopanska banka with bailed out money given by the EU! Zito Luks, is another large enterprises purchased by Greek businessmen that have been operational on the Macedonian market for several years.

Whether Greek business will be forced to sell and abandon the Macedonian market remains to be seen.

Does anyone know specifically what subsidies were being offered to Greek companies to invest in Macedonia?

This is news to me and makes statements from some of our Greek posters about improved Macedonian/Greek business relations look really stupid.

[Stojacanec]

I don't know about the subsidies but (according to my father), my cousin lost his job because of this type of situation a couple of months ago.

He has worked for years in a company that made clothes in Bogdantsi. The business owner being from Aeg Mkd. Apparently the Greek government wanted to tax her profits again after she pays the taxes in ROM. She found this to be unsustainable and had to close the doors.

[George S.]

Good point stojanec i fully agree with you.I know heaps of people who work for greek owned companies who are not paying people & ripping them off.I have a relative working for six months with no pay.The grks can fuck off out of macedonia as far as i'm concerned.

[Stojacanec]

Not being paid for months is an all too familiar schene for people in Macedonia. The Gvt should get tough and make business owners shape up or get the f#%k out.

[Prolet]

Stojacanec, Thats why they have to sign a double taxation declaration, when we go to Stari Kraj we have to pay tax twice too.

Its done under the table thats why, Greece doesnt want to sign the agreement.

[Risto the Great]

If this is merely about double taxation agreements, then the Greek government will have single handedly destroyed Greek owned businesses in Macedonia. Which hardly endears Greek businesspeople to Greece. Looks like more people will be leaving Greece real soon.

[Daskalot]

Greeks themselves are putting an end to their investments in Macedonia. In my view this is for the good.

[fyrOM]

In a bizarre way, it was the Greek Government who helped the National Bank of Greece purchase Stopanska banka with bailed out money given by the EU!

Translation…get a housing loan or business loan and be my economic bitch for years if not forever.

Good riddance. From what I have heard its to exploit low wages...if they get any...and corner key industries and it has nothing to do with good relations. Any idiot who thinks the Greeks are there to benefit Macedonian is delusional or on the take.

[Prolet]

Greeks themselves are putting an end to their investments in Macedonia. In my view this is for the good.

Daskale, The Owner of the Veropolous Market brand was once interviewed by Sitel Television and he said he is much happier investing in Macedonia rather then in Greece where he's had constant arguments with the Greek Authorities. He just recently spent 70 million euros on a large shopping mall in the center of Skopje, Greece is doing a huge disservice to themselves by not signing this agreement because it means that our countries are not working together on the taxation front and the Greek Government doesnt have information about the Greek Companies who are investing in Macedonia.

[Akzion]

Greece is doing a huge disservice to themselves by not signing this agreement because it means that our countries are not working together on the taxation front and the Greek Government doesnt have information about the Greek Companies who are investing in Macedonia.

Who's not signing which agreement? As far as I know, since 2011 you were classified in a list of "non-cooperative countries in taxation issues" along with countries like Singapore, Chile and Hong-Kong. I'm not sure what you did, it generally means you're a "tax heaven" country, or you probably refuse to dispose some data to Greece.
This decision was partly recalled or corrected yesterday. As far as I understand Greece is pursuiting businesses that may be actually located in Greece (e.g. in Florina or Kilkis) and present themselves as being in Bitola or Skopje to avoid taxes.
Generally, mina news is not to be trusted.

[Makedonska_Kafana]

The sooner the Grecian investors depart the better for Turkey $$$

[Onur]

In a bizarre way, it was the Greek Government who helped the National Bank of Greece purchase Stopanska banka with bailed out money given by the EU!

Translation…get a housing loan or business loan and be my economic bitch for years if not forever.

I`ve read similar stuff today from a western Thrace Turkish website. There is a small branch of a Turkish bank in Gumulcine(Komotini), western Thrace. It`s just a small branch but some Greeks keeps stoning it`s windows from time to time and it`s opening day was like a circus last year with journalists, tv cameras, protestations and some huge bearded priest was saying that western Thrace became a part of Turkey again!!!

Anyway, Greeks now says that this branch of a Turkish bank gave loans to ~300 Greek business man and they will seize their property if they cant pay back because of economical crisis. They call Greek government to close this branch of Turkish bank!!!

Proto Thema newspaper of Greece, 02 January 2011;


Rest of the news in Greek;

http://www.birlikgazetesi.info/?pid=3&id_news=2303

P.S: Btw, National Bank of Greece purchased a banking company here few years ago and they nearly have 500 branches in Turkey but no one even cares about that and people still uses this bank. Greek authorities was saying that their banking operations in Turkey saved them from a bad situation of economic crisis in Greece.

[Risto the Great]

Who's not signing which agreement? As far as I know, since 2011 you were classified in a list of "non-cooperative countries in taxation issues" along with countries like Singapore, Chile and Hong-Kong. I'm not sure what you did, it generally means you're a "tax heaven" country, or you probably refuse to dispose some data to Greece.
This decision was partly recalled or corrected yesterday. As far as I understand Greece is pursuiting businesses that may be actually located in Greece (e.g. in Florina or Kilkis) and present themselves as being in Bitola or Skopje to avoid taxes.
Generally, mina news is not to be trusted.

I wish Macedonia was a lot more like Singapore!
Macedonia imposes less tax on its citizens and businesses. So what? It also has less per capita debt than Greece by tens of thousands of dollars. Why paint this as such a bad thing?

Akzion, can tell me precisely anything more about the series of economic measures, which abolished tax benefits for Greek companies in Macedonia?

[Frank]

Being in the same company as Singapore and Hong-Kong Macedonia must be doing the right thing

[makedonche]

Who's not signing which agreement? As far as I know, since 2011 you were classified in a list of "non-cooperative countries in taxation issues" along with countries like Singapore, Chile and Hong-Kong. I'm not sure what you did, it generally means you're a "tax heaven" country, or you probably refuse to dispose some data to Greece.
This decision was partly recalled or corrected yesterday. As far as I understand Greece is pursuiting businesses that may be actually located in Greece (e.g. in Florina or Kilkis) and present themselves as being in Bitola or Skopje to avoid taxes.
Generally, mina news is not to be trusted.

Akzion
Show me one article from MINA that has been false, and show me the proof of it's falseness, or go and troll somewhere else!