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Businesses in Minsk region have been affected by currency crisis, official says

Certain small and medium-sized businesses based in the Minsk region have been affected by the country's currency crisis "in some way," Barys Batura, chairman of the Minsk Regional Executive Committee, acknowledged at a news conference on May 13.

The official said that the regional authorities had stepped in to provide assistance to such companies.

In particular, he pointed to a metal-cutting tool plant in the Lahoysk district. "They had small needs of €20,000 to €30,000 a month. They get loans from Priorbank, which belongs almost completely to an Austrian bank. They had certain differences and misunderstanding with the bank, now they don't have any," he said.

He noted that a Henkel Bautechnik plant in Zaslawye "has experienced no problems, moreover they have not raised the price of their products."

Mr. Batura criticized some retailers for selling Belarusian-grown tomatoes at twice their producer price.

"I believe that if there is normal responsibility, enterprise, there will be no serious problems," the official concluded. "In the region we can settle complicated issues as we have an export surplus in foreign trade." //BelaPAN