During his visit to Serbia, President Ivan Gašparovič held talks with his Slovenian counterpart Danilo Türk. The talks were initiated by the Slovenian President who was interested in Slovakia’s experience with the economic crisis and accession to the euro area.

Given the fact that the Slovak economy is export-oriented, it was hit by the recession to a considerable extent, according to Gašparovič. “On the other hand, it was the euro currency which sheltered us from an even stronger impact of the crisis,” Gašparovič noted.

More than 70% of Slovakia’s production is destined for export, which makes the country susceptible to developments on the global market, he said. We are predominantly exporting cars and car components, and it was actually the car-making industry that is suffering the most from the crisis.

Gašparovič told his Slovenian counterpart that Slovakia had “a certain amount of room for manoeuvre also due to its relatively low debt”, which offers further options in the search for anti-crisis measures. According to the President, Slovakia hopes to revise its state budget in the Autumn – a move that is expected to result in some savings and should relieve the pressure on the economy.

The Presidents of Slovenia and Slovakia agreed that, in the time of crisis, commercial banks should be more helpful and willing to provide loans to young families and companies. They should cooperate more with the government in order to allay the impact of the recession.

Gašparovič said it was a problem that following the euro changeover Slovaks set out for shopping trips to neighbouring countries, trips which are already affecting the Slovak sellers. “It is imperative that the Slovak shops grasp the situation and reduce their prices in order to prevent an even steeper decline in their sales,” the President emphasised.

President Danilo Türk said that, in battling the crisis, the Slovenians are trying to prevent an increase in unemployment rates and lay-offs by means of reducing working hours or through introducing intermittent manufacturing processes. Unemployment in Slovenia is currently reported at 8.7 percent.