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Rynek tłumaczeń
- TP SA launches complex IT outsourcing for firms
extended its services portfolio through offering IT equipment and support outsourcing services since July 2011. The new service targets small and medium businesses (SMBs), and the operator hopes for 100,000 enterprises out of those currently being in the current TP SA's customers base will also become its users. The service has been trialed since November 2010. Its model customer is an enterprise from the SMB sector with dispersed or multidivisional organisational structure, or having many field employees. At the moment, TP SA serves about one million corporate customers, out of which 800,000 are enterprises with more than one localization that can be potentially interested in the service. In the framework of the service, clients can rent the full IT environment, including computer and peripheral equipment, software and related accessories. The basic equipment providers for the service are , , , , but TP SA does not exclude expanding its product portfolio. IT support services are provided by the company's IT department, as well as TP SA's subcontractors (i.e. the subcontracting company for network equipment support, ). In the near future, the operator also plans to start online backup services, securing data on used equipment.
- Pharmacy-based cost group model to be introduced in Slovakia in 2013?
Slovakia's Healthcare Surveillance Authority (UDZS) - which is in charge of analysing data on health insurance policyholders, taking into account the cost of provided treatment and other information leading to a more effective redistribution of obligatory health insurance premiums - is looking into introducing the pharmacy-based cost group (PCG) model into the Slovak premiums redistribution model. It is planned that in case of positive validation of the model and after tailoring it to the conditions of Slovakia's morbidity and diagnosis costs, the PCG could become part of the country's redistribution model as of January 2013, securing more money for the treatment of chronically or seriously ill patients and ensuring more solidarity within the health insurance system. The PCG is a model that uses specific types of medications prescribed to patients as markers for chronic conditions, which are then applied to adjust redistributed premium payments to the patients' sickness fund in the subsequent year. The system was first introduced in Holland in 2002. A number of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) countries plan to improve their healthcare systems by adopting medical classification models such as diagnosis-related group (DRG). Slovakia is planning to introduce DRG system, which will most probably be based on a model applied in Germany. The system will be introduced as the nation-wide mechanism of covering the costs of medical care performed in hospitals and will constitute the sole source of financing of hospital care. The final selection and acquisition of a foreign DRG system will be completed by September 2011, a step that will be followed by localisation, language translation and the preparation of relevant IT infrastructure for the implementation of the system. The pilot-test of the system is planned between July and November next year, with having it fully operational in early 2013. Another CEE country which is to introduce DRG system is Bulgaria, which plans to adopt Australia's model from 2012 and replace the current system of clinical paths. The government is in the process of preparing a licensing agreement with the Australian Health Department which will allow the model to be modified in accordance with Bulgaria's specific needs. Meanwhile, in the Czech Republic, the government's National Economic Council (NERV) propose the introduction of the diagnosis-related group (DRG) system in acute in-patient care also from 2012 onwards. As the Health Ministry points out, the DRG system is not a complete novelty for the Czech medical sector, as some hospitals have already had the opportunity to test it in previous years. Now the Czech Health Ministry seeks to permanently introduce the DRG into the Czech healthcare through the Act on Public Health Insurance and healthcare reimbursement regulations, thereby making the scheme the sole reimbursement instrument for provided inpatient acute care.
- Delayed compensation for the A2
Chinese banks were expected to pay PLN 130m (€32.2m) compensation for the COVEC consortium's failure to complete two sections of the A2 motorway by 4 August 2011. The deadline has been extended to 4 September, General Directorate for National Roads and Motorways (GDDKiA) reported. GDDKiA announced that the payment application contained translation errors, and although they have now been removed, the deadline has been extended by a month. Earlier on, the media have informed that Chinese banks refused to pay the contractual penalties, which has not been confirmed by GDDKiA. According to the GDDKiA's representatives, there is no danger that the payment will not be released, as it is guaranteed in the contract with the Chinese consortium. GDDKiA has already signed agreements with new contractors for section A - a consortium of and , and section C- a consortium of and . The cost of the construction for the two sections of the A2 is going to reach PLN 989m (€244.7m) and 756m (€187m) respectively. The construction is to be completed in October 2012, but the road is expected to be passable during the Euro 2012 tournament.
- HP unit to open service centre in Wroclaw
MphasiS, a unit of Hewlett-Packard that specialises in BPO and IT services, announced plans to open a delivery centre in Wroclaw by the end of June. The facility will provide near-shore services to the company's customers in the United Kingdom and Eastern Europe. MphasiS plans to employ over 100 staff at the Wroclaw centre in the first year and double the number in the next three years. The decision is part of the company's plan to expand its footprint in Europe and transform itself "from a cost-effective supporter to a thought leader in Continental Europe", said Gopinathan Padmanabhan, MphasiS Head Global Delivery Unit. He added that Poland was a natural choice, due to its ability to service clients in most continental European languages, good links with Western European business centres, availability of talent, language skills and established business infrastructure.
- Court upholds PLN 1m fine on NFZ for favouring established providers
The Competition and Consumer Protection Court (SOKiK) has approved a fine of just under PLN 1.15bn (€0.3m) on the National Health Fund (NFZ) for favouring existing contractors in awarding new contracts for healthcare services. The Court thus upheld an earlier decision by the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK), which concluded that the Fund's practice of giving providers extra points for a history of contract work for the NFZ was an instance of market abuse, as it restricted market access for new players. The Fund did so by interpreting in a special way the term "continuity of care" included in a relevant act of Parliament. The Office's decision was made in the summer of 2009, following a probe launched in September 2008. NFZ's spokesman Andrzej Troszynski said the Fund no longer awarded extra points to existing contractors, an approach that is subject to criticism from the latter.
Ekonomiczne
- Finn Flare to slow new store openings in 2012
Finnish retailer , operating the clothing chains and in Russia, is to launch 15 company owned and over 25 franchise stores in Russia, Kazakhstan and Ukraine in 2012. In 2011 the company opened 35 new outlets instead of 23 planned stores, 12 of them started operation in Moscow, four in St. Petersburg, two in Kiev, two in Kazakhstan, and the rest were in different Russian regions. In addition, franchisees opened 24 more outlets, including 21 Finn Flare and three AppleMoon stores. At the beginning of 2012 Ruveta OY operated over 100 outlets in Moscow and other Russian regions, as well as six shops in Kazakhstan. The franchise store count encompasses 270 outlets in Russian and 13 in Kazakhstan.
- Russian alcohol production volumes down in 2011
The production of all types of alcohol in Russia, including vodka, brandy and wine, fell by 10% on average in 2011 year on year. Among the vodka producers operating on the market, (Russian Alcohol, yearly production output in 2011 - 13.7 million dal) owned by the international group remained the market leader, overtaking its main competitor (Sinergia, 12.8 million dal) by 2.2% in production volume. These were followed by (9.1 million dal), (6 million dal) and (4.2 million dal). Despite the overall drop in production within the market, 16 alcohol producers achieved production levels of over 1 million dal in 2011. In addition, a number of small local alcohol producers closed their businesses due to the government's refusal to grant them production licenses. As Retail Update Russia reported in late October 2011, the two aforementioned leading alcohol producers in Russia swapped places in the ranking during the year, as in the first nine months of last year Synergy managed to overcome the previous market leader in this respect - Russky Alcohol. According to Russia's Federal Statistics Service (Rosstat), the production of vodka in 2011 fell 9.5% to 86.3 million dal compared with the previous year, while brandy production dropped 10.2% to 8.1 million dal in comparison to the previous year. Stavropol-based became the leading producer of brandy in 2011. Relatively good results have been reported by the champagne market, which was down only 1.5% year on year in 2011 to 22 million dal.
- Technosila offered for sale
The MDM Bank and Mikhail Kokorich have offered the consumer retail chain, which sells electronic appliances and household goods, for sale. The offer was made to other companies in this market subgroup, , and , and to smaller regional players such as , , and . During the talks, the owners of Technosila suggested that the latter four companies merge their businesses In addition, according to the same source, potential buyers are more interested in acquiring part of Technosila's business, but the owners are insisting on selling it in its entirety at a price of approximately $200m. Alternatively, the business might be offered for merger. As Retail Update Russia reported in late 2010, the company has planned to reorganise half of its 124 retail outlets since early 2011. After numerous problems, including bankruptcy cases among Technosila-related companies, the brand was acquired by Mikhail Kokorich, who owns the and DIY retail chains. The new owner has announced that the brand will be actively developed again in the future. More on this subject in the "Russian retail consumer electronics market challenges" article.
- BIEC: economic climate dips in January
The Leading Indicator (WWK), which provides information on future trends in the economy, shed 0.6 points in January, the Bureau for Investments and Economic Cycles (BIEC) reported. According to the Bureau, the year 2012 is likely to witness a stabilisation of economic growth in Poland at a somewhat lower level compared with 2011. Of the eight component indicators of the WWK, three improved in January while five deteriorated. New manufacturing orders rose for the fourth consecutive month. However, this was due solely to an increase in domestic orders, which offset a substantial deterioration in export orders. Inventories of finished goods decreased, but the decline was small and came after a significant increase in December. The other positive sign was an improvement in real money supply thanks to higher deposits in the business and household sectors. The biggest negative contributor was a slowdown in household loans. There was also a decline in labour productivity in the manufacturing sector. The WWK is a prognostic instrument. It is a measure of the current state of economic activity and provides advanced information on upturns and downturns in economic activity in relation to GDP as well as data on production, retail sales, wages and household incomes. The average prognostic timeframe of the WWK index in relation to the actual state of economic affairs ranges from 3 to 12 months, depending on the phase of the economic cycle.
- GDP growth at 4.3% in 2011
In 2011 Poland's gross domestic product grew by 4.3%, which represents an acceleration compared with the previous year, according to preliminary estimates from the Central Statistical Office (GUS). The figure is slightly ahead of market expectations, which averaged 4.2%. The main engine of economic growth was domestic demand, which increased by 3.8% in 2011 (during the analysed period private consumption rose by 3.1%, while gross fixed capital formation went up by 8.7%), but the contribution of net exports was also positive. In 2010 the Polish economy expanded by 3.9%.
