Slovakia - Factors To Watch on Feb 24

                                
 BRATISLAVA, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Here are news stories, press
reports and events to watch which may affect Slovak financial
markets on Tuesday.
                                
 
                                
 CURRENT ACCOUNT
                                
 The central bank will publish preliminary January-December
current account data.
                                
 
                                
 GROSS FOREIGN DEBT
                                
 The central bank will publish end-November gross foreign
debt data.
                                
 
                                
 EMERGING EUROPE BANK WOES MANAGEABLE - ECB'S NOWOTNY
                                
 The current banking troubles in emerging Europe are
manageable and the European Union should increase the size of
its economic assistance fund for new members, European Central
Bank official Ewald Nowotny said on Monday.
                                
 [ID:nLN686893] [RTRS-ECB-INT-CEN-SK-LEN]
                                
 
                                
 SAAB OWNER MUST COVER HALF OF FINANCING-SWEDISH PM
                                
 The Swedish government can guarantee a European Investment
Bank loan to General Motors <GM.N> unit Saab if a new owner that
can cover half the necessary financing emerges, Prime Minister
Fredrik Reinfeldt said in Slovakia on Monday.
                                
 [ID:nLN5524] [RTRS-AUT-LOA-CARM-SK-LEN]
                                
 
                                
 PRESS DIGEST
                                
 ------------
                                
 ORANGE SLOVAKIA CUTS COSTS
                                
 The Slovak unit of Orange, the country's largest mobile
services provider, is relocating part of its call centre, IT
services and support services from capital Bratislava to central
Slovakia to cut costs.
                                
 Sme, page 1
                                
 
                                
 U.S. STEEL KOSICE CUTS STAFF
                                
 U.S. Steel <X.N> is expected to axe some 15 percent of its
management and administrative staff at the Slovak plant in
Kosice, the factory's unions said.
 Sme, page 6
                                
 
                                
 TATRA BANKA NET PROFIT UP 14 PCT
                                
 Tatra Banka, the Slovak unit of Austria's Raiffeisen
<RIBH.VI>, said its net profit rose by 14 percent on the year to
120.3 million euro, driven mainly by mortgages and loans to
corporates.
                                
 Pravda, page 35
                                
 
                                
 HEATING PRICES
                                
 Heating prices has fallen by up to 20 percent from December
2008, the energy regulator said. It expects prices to fall
further in spring because of favourable trends in gas prices.
                                
 Hospodarske Noviny, page 2
                                
 
                                
 For news on upcoming events in the United States and other
Group  of Seven countries, see <G7TODAY>. For a diary of
forthcoming Slovak events, double click [SK/DIARY], and a
calendar of east European economic indicators, see [CONV/DIARY].
                                
 News editor of the day: Peter Laca on +421 2 5341 8402; fax:
.+421 2 5341 8403
                                
 E-mail: editorial@reuters.sk
                                
 Reuters Messaging: peter.laca.reuters.com@reuters.net
                                
 For real-time index quotes, double click in brackets:
                                
 Warsaw WIG20 <.WIG20>  Budapest BUX <.BUX>  Prague PX50
<.PX50>
 Other related news:
 Slovak equities      [SK-E]  E.Europe equities           [.CEE]
 Slovak money         [SK-M]  Czech debt                  [CZ-D]
 Slovak Indicators  [SK-ECI]  Emerging forex          [EMRG/FRX]
 Eastern European     [EEU]   All emerging markets        [EMRG]
 Hot stocks           [HOT]   Stock markets                [STX]
 Market debt news     [DBT]   Forex news                   [FRX]
 TOP NEWS -- Emerging markets                         [TOP/EMRG]
 TOP NEWS -- Convergence watch                        [TOP/EAST]