The Euro: to be or not to be

  None of the experts at the Russian Forum 2012 are in doubt. Even if the ‘end of the world’ scenario for the Euro doesn’t play out, the economic recovery will be painful and long lasting. So will it be farewell to the Euro Paul Krugman, renowned economists and a Nobel laureate is all but pessimistic about the future of Greece. “They (Greece) will default on their debt. In fact they already have. The question is whether they will also leave the Euro, which I think at this point is more likely than not,” he said. Charles Wyplosz, Professor of International Economics, shares the doom and gloom scenario. A major crisis is most likely to…

Armed Terrorist Groups Burglarize the Agricultural Bank, Abduct a Colonel in Homs

HOMS, (SANA) - An armed terrorist group on Sunday burglarized the Agricultural Bank in al-Qseir city in Homs Countryside. An official source told SANA reporter that the terrorist group wreaked havoc on the furniture and other contents and stole SYP 1 million, 4 computers and a television. In al-Qarabees neighborhood in Homs, another armed terrorist group abducted Colonel Issam Fayyad al-Numan from a bus while he was on way to his workplace at al-Assad Academy of Military Engineering. SANA reporter added that the terrorists got on the bus, searched the passengers and kidnapped Colonel al-Numan.

President al-Assad Issues Law Imposing 30% Fee on All Turkish Goods and Materials

DAMASCUS,(SANA)- President Bashar al-Assad on Wednesday issued the law No. 28 stipulating for imposing a 30% fee on all the goods and materials imported from Turkey to Syria for supporting the reconstruction of the developing villages

Cabinet Approves Local Administration Ministry Plan on Random Housing

DAMASCUS, (SANA) – During a session chaired by Prime Minister Dr. Adel Safar, the Cabinet on Tuesday approved a memo from the Local Administration Ministry on its plan and suggestions for rehabilitating random housing areas. In this regard, the Cabinet approved establishing a general establishment for improving the state of random housing areas and founding a national fund for rehabilitating these areas and providing alternatives for their occupants, with the plan being that rehabilitation projects would be launched across Syria, beginning with two projects in 2012 in Damascus and Aleppo. To this end, SYP 10 billion were allocated from the Local Administration Ministry’s budget to fund these project. The Cabinet also approved a memo from the…

Ministry of Electricity Launches Media Campaign for Rationing Energy

DAMASCUS,(SANA)- Ministry of Electricity on Wednesday launched a media campaign for rationing energy under the title “Together Towards Rationing Energy”. The campaign aims at raising social awareness on the importance of energy and at upgrading its efficiency, in addition to rationing its use as a national treasure. The program includes TV symposia, posters and other varied media materials with the aim of allowing the citizens to participate in the process of developing the important and vital sector of energy. The campaign also aims at finding effective ways for facing the increased demand on the energy and the high costs of producing it.

Economy and Trade Ministry Forms Team for Promoting and Marketing Syrian Products, Protecting National Industry

  DAMASCUS, (SANA) – The Ministry of Economy and Trade on Tuesday announced the formation of a national team for promoting and marketing Syrian products and protecting national industry. The team, headed by the Minister of Economy and Trade, is tasked with holding promotional activities, seeking target markets in addition to specifying products which are exportable to these markets and establishing storage and retail centers in them. The team will also evaluate promising national industries that merit government support and specify the methods and standards of providing this support.

Syrian Government suspends the Free trade Zone agreement with Turkey

(Sana) – In response to the measures announced by the Turkish Foreign Minister at his press conference regarding Syria Wednesday, the Syrian government decided to suspend the Free Trade Zone agreement between Syria and Turkey, official Spokesman of the Syrian Foreign and Expatriate Ministry stated on Thursday. The Syrian Government studies taking other procedures that match with what has been declared by the Turkish Minster. Turkey’s Foreign Minister announced yesterday halting a loan by the Turkish Import & Export Bank to finance Syrian infrastructure projects, suspending relations between the central banks in both countries, freezing the financial assets of the Syrian government and halting deals of financial credits in Syria in addition to suspending the Higher…