GARDINER & THEOBALD Slovakia, Bratislava

The Slovak Republic was formed on 1 January 1993 after the Czech and Slovak Federal Republic was split on 31 December 1992. Slovakia became a member of the European Union in May 2004 and NATO in March 2004.

Real GDP growth reached 6.1% in 2005, up from 5.5% in 2004 (Slovak Statistics Office figures). The International Monetary Fund has projected real GDP growth to reach 5.75% in 2006, 6.5% in 2007 and 5.25% in 2008. Addressing a high rate of structural unemployment is a continuing challenge for Slovakia.

Keeping inflation rates under control will be important as Slovakia implements its plans to enter the eurozone in 2009. National Bank of Slovakia’s inflation targets for 2006 is 2.5 % and 2% in 2007. Slovakia entered ERM2 on 25 November 2005 which is an exchange rate mechanism for EU countries not taking part in the monetary union, which helps to enable a smooth transition to euro adoption.

Under the previous Government, Slovakia implemented a broad program of macroeconomic and administrative reforms in a range of sectors, including finance, civil service and judiciary. In 2003 the Slovak Government introduced a flat-rate tax. The uniform tax rate for both individuals and companies is 19%. These measures led to an increase in foreign direct investment (FDI) over the past few years.

The Slovak building industry benefits from the economic growth and the inflow of foreign capital and is regarded as a very promising market. It is growing rapidly, and numerous projects in the field of road construction, house building and the construction of office premises are planned. Volume of building works in amount of 122,2 mld Sk in common prices was realised in 2005 what means increase of 18,8% in common prices against year 2004.

Gardiner & Theobald established its office in Bratislava in May 2004 and is providing construction consultancy services to a wide variety of developers and investors. The office combines the advantages of local market knowledge and professional expertise, with the high level of services that an organizatin operating internationaly can provide.