Category: Cyprus News Agency

Retail trade in Cyprus recorded strong growth in August 2026, with the turnover value index for retail trade excluding motor vehicles rising by 9.3% year-on-year, while the volume index increased by 7.0%, according to data released Friday by the Statistical Service of Cyprus.

During the January-August 2026 period, the value index increased by 8.1%, while the volume index rose by 6.4% compared with the corresponding period of 2025.

The August data show broad-based growth in retail trade, with particularly strong performances recorded in information and communications equipment, clothing and footwear, as well as fuel in terms of value.

Strong growth in electronics and clothing

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The largest annual increase in the value index in August was recorded in information and communications equipment, which rose by 15.9%, while the volume index increased by 24.8%.

Clothing and footwear also recorded significant growth, with the value index rising by 8.9% and the volume index by 16.7%.

In other household equipment, including building materials, carpets, furniture, electrical appliances and lighting equipment, the value of sales increased by 10.2%, while volume rose by 12.0%.

The value index for educational and recreational goods increased by 9.7% and the volume index by 12.7%, while pharmaceutical and orthopaedic goods and cosmetics recorded increases of 7.7% and 7.1%, respectively.

Fuel value up 21.1%

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In motor fuels, the value index increased by 21.1% in August, while the volume index fell by 1.5%.

In supermarkets, the value index rose by 8.2%, while volume increased by 5.1%. In specialised stores selling food, beverages and tobacco, the value index increased by 1.9%, while volume declined by 1.0%.

Growth also recorded in January-August

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During the January-August period, most retail categories recorded increases.

The value index rose by 11.4% for motor fuels, 11.8% for other household equipment and 10.5% for information and communications equipment.

In clothing and footwear, the value index increased by 4.2%, while volume rose by 12.0%.

Overall, excluding motor fuels, the retail trade value index increased by 8.2% in August, while the volume index rose by 7.8%. During the first eight months of the year, the corresponding increases were 7.7% and 7.1%.

Social inclusion requires all of us to organise our society in a way that leaves no one on the margins and recognises every person’s right to live and participate safely and creatively within the community, said President, Nikos Christodoulides, addressing on Friday an event held at the Presidential Palace to present the results of the architectural competition for the construction of a Day centre for people with autism.

The new centre will be built on state-owned land in the parish of Agios Dimitrios in the Municipality of Strovolos, with a total gross floor area of up to approximately 740 square metres and the capacity to support up to 30 people.

The President recalled that the decision of the Council of Ministers of 19 November 2025 approved, firstly, the construction of the Centre, secondly, the acceptance of Eurobank’s donation of two million euro, and thirdly, the State undertaking responsibility for the furnishings, the equipment, operation and maintenance of the centre, whilst in December of the same year the Deputy Ministry of Social Welfare and Eurobank signed the relevant Memorandum of Understanding, establishing a clear framework for joint action.

Noting that Eurobank had undertaken to finance the study, design, construction and supervision of the project, he expressed the Government’s warm thanks to the bank and its management for this significant donation and for undertaking the supervision and management of the project’s implementation, whilst also making special mention of the members of the Selection Committee and its advisers, who, as he said, assessed 37 entries with professionalism, transparency and commitment to the terms of the competition.

He added that the Government is proceeding with the creation of a model autism centre in the district of Famagusta at a cost of 4.5 million euros, the implementation of which, he said, has already begun.

‘In our view, the quality of a society is reflected, amongst other things, in the way it cares for our fellow citizens who need greater support. The day centre currently under construction is a tangible investment in human dignity, participation and social cohesion. It is also a promise to people on the autism spectrum and their families that we do not merely see them or listen to them, but that we also respond to their needs’, he concluded.

For her part, the Deputy Minister for Social Welfare, Tina Pavlou, said that the lack of suitable facilities increases the risk of inactivity, isolation and social exclusion and places a significant burden on the family environment, adding that the new centre aims to fill this gap with an additional, modern day-care facility for people over the age of 22, which will offer specialised programmes for creative activities, empowerment, skills development and gradual social integration.

She added that Eurobank had undertaken, at its own expense, to organise the open architectural competition in collaboration with ETEK, as well as to finance the design, construction and supervision of the building infrastructure, including the necessary electrical and mechanical installations and security systems, so that the centre is handed over fully ready for operation.

She further noted that, for its part, the Deputy Ministry of Social Welfare is responsible for providing state-owned land, determining building requirements, facilitating the necessary planning permissions and accepting the infrastructure following the required inspections, whilst, upon completion of the building, it will take charge of furnishing and equipping the centre, as well as funding its operation and maintenance.

Fiscal policy in response to inflation should not aim to permanently contain prices through across-the-board tax interventions but should, where necessary, provide targeted and temporary protection to vulnerable groups, the Cyprus Fiscal Council (CFC) said in a presentation on inflation in Cyprus released on Friday.

The presentation, titled ‘Inflation in Cyprus 2025-2026: From the Energy Shock to a Fiscally Prudent Response’, analyses the evolution of inflation through August 2026, the contribution of energy, food and services, as well as fiscal options for temporary and targeted support for vulnerable groups.

According to the CFC, Cyprus saw a ‘sharp reversal’, moving from the lowest inflation rate in the EU in 2025 (0.8%) to the third-highest in the EU in August 2026 (5.2%). It notes that the speed of this shift highlights ‘Cyprus’s unusually high sensitivity to the external energy shock’.

Energy drives the increase

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According to the presentation, energy triggered the rise in inflation, while pressures also broadened to services.

According to the CFC, fuel prices were affected directly, while electricity prices followed with a lag of around two months. Nevertheless, the CFC notes that petrol in Cyprus remains among the cheapest in the EU-27, weakening the case for further tax cuts.

As regards electricity, while the charge for households is close to the EU average, businesses pay the second-highest electricity prices in the EU. ‘For businesses, the high price is a competitiveness issue, not just an inflation issue,’ the CFC stressed.

‘The root of the problem is structural,’ the CFC said, noting that Cyprus imports 88% of its energy, almost entirely petroleum products, with import dependence in 2024 standing at 88%, compared with 57% in the EU. As it notes, energy dependence increases exposure to international disruptions. Every rise in Brent prices feeds through into fuel, electricity generation and transport costs, with the impact being greater on lower-income households and energy-intensive sectors such as hotels and transport.

Furthermore, it added, without interconnection, storage and natural gas, the economy cannot quickly switch to alternative energy sources.

Across-the-board tax cuts are costly

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Across-the-board tax cuts are costly, untargeted, temporarily conceal inflation and tend to become permanent, the CFC stresses, noting that energy costs cannot be permanently addressed through tax interventions. ‘More domestic energy is needed, which can be stored. Priority should be given to storage, grids and the energy upgrading of households, which permanently reduce exposure to oil and ETS costs,’ it said.

According to the CFC, 2026 saw a repeat of ‘the 2022 recipe’, with successive extensions of across-the-board tax cuts affecting excise duty, VAT on electricity and VAT on certain products, with existing measures exceeding pound 200 million.

‘Tax cuts ‘hide’ inflation today and bring it back when they expire,’ the CFC warned, stressing that if tax cuts are used in response to an exceptional shock, they should be temporary, time-limited and reversible.

It also said that a ‘normal’ inflation reference price should be established to distinguish an extreme shock from normal fluctuations. Specifically, it proposed using the average of the previous 36 months at current prices, deflated using the underlying Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices, with a ‘tolerance band’ of ±15%.

‘The deviation from the normal price can determine when, how much and for how long support is provided,’ the CFC noted. As an example, it said that deviations of up to 15% should trigger no intervention, while deviations above 15% lasting less than 12 months should be considered a ‘temporary shock’, with support provided only to vulnerable households. A deviation of more than 15% lasting longer than 12 months could be considered a ‘potential new level’, with support withdrawn gradually over six months.

Under this methodology, according to the CFC, only the period 2022-23 constituted a ‘new level’, while in 2026 all deviations are considered a ‘temporary shock’.

Moreover, according to the CFC, permanently containing prices delays the necessary adjustment of the economy, creates misguided incentives by encouraging greater consumption of imported energy and slowing the shift towards renewables and energy efficiency, increases fiscal costs without a predetermined limit, and turns temporary measures into permanent obligations.

For this reason, it proposed the gradual withdrawal of support, announced in advance with a clear timetable, smoothing the impact only for vulnerable groups and for a limited period, and investing the fiscal space released in storage, grids and the energy upgrading of homes.

In conclusion, the CFC stressed that fiscal policy in response to inflation should not aim to permanently contain prices through across-the-board tax interventions. It should distinguish temporary shocks from permanent changes in relative prices, allow the economy to make the necessary adjustment and, where required, provide targeted and temporary protection to vulnerable groups.

President of the House of Representatives Annita Demetriou will travel to Slovakia on Sunday, October 4, for an official visit at the invitation of President of the country’s National Council Richard Rasi.

According to a House of Representatives press release, during her stay in Bratislava, Demetriou will be received by Slovak President Peter Pellegrini and will hold separate meetings with National Council President Richard Rasi and Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Robert Kalinak.

As part of her visit, Demetriou, accompanied by Slovak Health Minister Kamil Sasko, will visit the Children’s Cancer Centre of the National Institute of Children’s Diseases, which operates under the auspices of Pellegrini.

The House President will also visit sites of historical and cultural interest.

Demetriou will return to Cyprus on the afternoon of Tuesday, October 6.

Cyprus’ Minister of Health, Neophytos Charalambides, participated in the Informal Meeting of Health Ministers of the European Union (EU), which took place between September 30 and October 1, 2026, in Dublin, under the Irish Presidency of the EU Council.

The Ministry of Health said in a press release on Friday that “the discussions focused on enhancing innovation in Life Sciences, addressing challenges posed by chronic diseases and the ageing population, as well as improving access to medicines.”

“Particular emphasis was placed on the faster utilisation of innovation for the benefit of patients, in the European Health Data Space, on prevention and early diagnosis within the framework of the EU Safe Hearts Plan, as well as on strengthening the resilience of medicine supply chains,” it added.

“In his intervention, the Minister of Health emphasised the importance of timely and equitable access for patients to quality health services and innovative treatments, stressing the need for European cooperation mechanisms that take into account the specificities of smaller member states and contribute to reducing inequalities,” the press release concluded.

CYPRUS DEPARTMENT OF METEOROLOGY

FORECAST FOR THE SEA AREA OF CYPRUS (A)

FOR THE PERIOD FROM 0600 01/10/2026 UNTIL 0600 02/10/2026

Area covered is 8 kilometers seawards.

Winds are in BEAUFORT scale. Times are local times.

Atmospheric pressure at the time of issue: 1012hPa (hectopascal)

Low pressure and an unstable airmass are affecting the area. Isolated showers or thunderstorms are expected at times. IN STORMS WIND MAY BE VARIABLE STRENGTHENING to 5-6 BEAUFORT WITH STRONGER GUSTS.

Visibility: Good, but moderate to poor in showers

Sea surface temperature: 27°C

Warnings: NIL

AREA PERIOD WIND STATE OF SEA

West Coast

Morning Southwest to West 3 to 4 Slight

Afternoon Southwest to West 4, at times locally 4 to 5 Slight

Night Southwest to West 3 to 4, at times locally 4 Slight

South Coast

Morning Southwest to West 3 to 4, gradually 4 Smooth to Slight, gradually Slight

Afternoon Southwest to West 4 to 5, locally 5 Slight

Night Southwest to West 3 to 4, at times locally 4 Slight

East Coast

Morning Southwest to Northwest 3, gradually Southwest 3 to 4 Smooth to Slight

Afternoon Southwest 4, later offshore Southwest to West 4 to 5 Slight

Night Southwest to West 3 to 4, at times locally 4 Slight

North Coast

Morning Southeast to Southwest 3, soon Southwest to West 3 to 4 Slight

Afternoon Southwest to West 4, at times locally 4 to 5 Slight

Night Southwest 3 to 4, at times locally 4 Slight

Cyprus celebrates on Thursday October 1st its 66th independence anniversary with a military parade to take place at 11 a.m local time in capital Nicosia, in the presence of dignitaries from Greece, the United Kingdom, Egypt, France and the United States, as well as foreign Ambassadors.

President of the Republic, Nikos Christodoulides, will take the salute at the military parade, flanked by Defence Minister, Vasilis Palmas, Greek Defence Minister, Nikos Dendias and Chiefs of the National Guard of Cyprus and Greece.

The parade will also be attended by the Chief of the Armed Forces of the United Kingdom, Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Knighton and representatives of the armed forces from Egypt, France and the United States, as well as Prime Ministers and Defense Ministers of foreign countries and other officials.

Earlier President Nikos Christodoulides and House President, Annita Demetriou, will visit the ”?mprisoned Graves” in Nicosia, where EOKA fighters during the anti-colonial war are buried and lay wreaths.

Moreover, the President of the Republic, House President and Greek Defence Minister will lay wreaths at the statue of Archibishop Makarios, the first President of the Republic of Cyprus, at the Presidential Palace courtyard.

Greek Defence Minister will allso be received by the President. Moreover, Christodoulides and Demetriou will attend a ?risagion Service and lay wreaths at the Republic and Resistance Memorial in the park by the Presidential Palace.

President Christodoulides and his spouse will host a reception for Cyprus Independence Day at 1300 local time at the Presidential Palace.

The public today can visit military ships and frigates of the Cyprus and Hellenic army docked at Larnaka Port.

The importance of peacekeeping missions but also the need for UN peacekeeping to keep up with the times, was discussed on Wednesday at the Cyprus Forum in Nicosia.

The UN peacekeeping missions in the Eastern Mediterranean, UNIFIL, UNFICYP and UNTSO, are now considered ‘model missions’, Annika Hilding Norberg, Head of GCSP Peace Operations and Peacebuilding, Geneva Centre for Security Policy, said during a panel discussion on the future of UN Peacekeeping in the Eastern Mediterranean. The panel focused on the termination of the operations of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) next year.

Norberg said that the situation in the region was ‘dire’, noting the implications and the unpredictability about what comes next regarding the termination of peacekeeping missions. She expressed the position that the multilateral crises faced by the world today do not make peacekeeping irrelevant. On the contrary, she said, violent conflict doubled since last year.

‘Today we are exposed to a geopolitical environment that is falling apart’ and the mechanisms that used to manage this are now under pressure, Norberg said. ‘To me, this is all the more reason not to cancel peacekeeping’, she added.

What we need to do, she said, is to make every effort to strengthen the missions that are there and prepare for the future. According to Norberg, it is argued that future peacekeeping will need to have greater mobility, stronger analysis, make better use of state-of-the-art technologies.

According to Norberg, the UN peacekeeping missions in the eastern Mediterranean – UNIFIL, UNFICYP, UNTSO – are ‘model missions’ now, to be prepared for the future.

Noting that times are changing in fundamental ways, Norberg said that UN peacekeeping needs to keep up, ‘if not be ahead of times’ and utilise AI and drones and other systems and digital technologies. She said that the UN capability plan is already moving in that direction. She said that smaller, focused and trusted peacekeeping missions is something worth working towards.

Referring to new missions, she said that the question is whether we are ‘stuck with coalitions of the willing’ such as in Gaza and Haiti, stressing however that these were not UN peacekeeping missions.

On the creation of new peacekeeping missions, she said that agreement by all parties involved was needed and that this was not easy. Concerning the UN level, she said that an agreement on a new mission depends a lot on the permanent members of the Security Council that have veto power.

As regards UNIFIL, she said there needs to be political backing to peacekeeping missions and there needs to be a mechanism for their withdrawal based on a peace agreement, not suddenly, like with UNIFIL.

She also said that there will be an EU civilian-military mission in Lebanon, noting that it can have a supporting role, but that she could not see them doing the role of the UN.

Dr. Arthur Boutellis, Non-resident Senior Adviser at the International Peace Institute (IPI), noted that, still, peacekeeping budget is important to the overall UN budget. He stressed that it was important to keep in mind that the annual budget for peacekeeping was a tiny percentage if one compares a day of war. It is ‘a small investment in peace ‘, he said.

He also said that UNIFIL has around 8000 peacekeepers from almost 50 countries, noting that the mission is coming to an end not because of the success of its mandate but due to a decision of the Security Council, largely motivated by the US.

He said that the Force has been an important stabilising sector but that there are limits for the peacekeeping force as regards the current situation in the country. It is beyond what the peacekeepers can do, he added.

Boutellis also said that now there’s a broad consensus between Lebanese and international actors that once UNIFIL closes there will be a vacuum of provision on monitoring as regards de-escalation, and that lighter UN presence is being discussed, while that the EU and others have proposed assistance as regards capacity building for the Lebanese army.

A solution to the Cyprus issue will allow the country to fully take advantage of its strategic geographical location, diplomats said, during a discussion in the Cyprus Forum on Wednesday, in Nicosia.

Among other panelists, India’s High Commissioner to Cyprus, Manish, and Germany’s Chargé d’Affaires a.i., Mirko Kruppa, explained that until the Cyprus issue is resolved, more expensive workarounds must be found, and Cyprus could not fully take advantage of the benefits its geographical position potentially provides.

Manish said that the strategic and geographical value of Cyprus will depend ‘whether it can keep systems functioning under pressure, make informed and sovereign choices, reduce single point dependencies, and rely on trusted partners, without surrendering to decision making capabilities.’

Mentioning the strategic partnership developed in the last two years between India and Cyprus, the High Commissioner said that the discussions on Cyprus joining the IMEC are ongoing. ‘Cyprus is interested, and it established a focal point in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for this,’ he said. However, he added, ‘to formally admit them as original founding members, there is still way to go’, noting that for Cyprus to become valuable to the projects, some steps are needed to be taken, mentioning financial, economic or digital connectivity, infrastructure-wise.

The High Commissioner praised Cyprus for ‘punching above its weight’, noting that it is one of the fastest growing economies in the EU. He added that Cyprus brings its own value to India, being in the top investors with a lot of foreign direct investments coming from Cyprus to India.

‘The current President understands that he has to diversify his engagements,’ and he makes deliberate policies to look east, he noted. ‘We have mapped our synergies, we have a delegation in the shipping sector, we’ll have a discussion on connectivity,’ he said, adding, however, that ‘the historical territorial problem is here.’

‘For the way forward, I think more heft should come from the Guarantor states, and the EU must be more involved and find a solution for the Cyprus issue’, he said, adding that India is always there for Cyprus and ‘we support in every way possible.’ He underlined, however, that ‘more things are not happening, because of this Problem. I hope some kind of solution will be found.’

On his part, Mirko Kruppa said that ‘whoever wants to control stability of the Eastern Mediterranean has to work with this island.’

Asked on what Europe can do to assure Cyprus in energy, security, and crisis response, he said ‘not much’, noting that when the Cyprus’ Presidency to the Council of the EU discussed article 42, ‘it showed that there are no procedures in place’ and to implement them will take at least 2-3 years. ‘I don’t think Cyprus has the time to wait.’

Moreover, highlighting the urgency to resolve the Cyprus issue, he said that ‘all the energy projects in Cyprus have been stopped because of the division of the island.’ As he put it, if Cypriots want a joint security policy ‘the north and south should agree on joining NATO, accepting the Turkish presence on the island’ he said, making reference to the northern part of the island under Turkish occupation and the free areas of the Republic of Cyprus, respectively.

Finally, he noted that, for Cyprus to be in the centre and fully take advantage of its strategic location, ‘it will need to come together as a society, overcome the drama and deep divisions.’ Noting that the EU and the Guarantor states have their role in this, he stressed that the starting point ‘is within the island. Cyprus has the potential to be an asset, and everybody sees it, but it’s a matter of cost calculation’ he said, noting that as long as the security situation of the country is not resolved, more expensive workarounds will be chosen.

Cyprus Deputy Minister of Migration and International Protection, Nicholas Ioannides, will participate in the EU Justice and Home Affairs Council meeting on October 1 in Luxembourg.

According to a press release issued by the Deputy Ministry, during the Council meeting, Ministers will exchange views on increasing the returns of people who have no right to stay in the EU by further strengthening cooperation with priority third countries on readmission.

At the same time, the European Commission will brief Ministers on the implementation of the Pact on Migration and Asylum, following its entry into application on June 12, 2026.

Ministers will also discuss ways to improve the EU’s awareness of the migration situation and its early warning mechanisms, including addressing potential crisis situations.

They will also examine the overall situation in the Schengen area, with a focus on strengthening information sharing and using technological developments to enhance EU security.

The European Commission and the eu-LISA Agency will brief Ministers on the implementation of interoperability among the EU’s large-scale information systems in the area of justice and home affairs.

On the sidelines of the Council meeting, the Deputy Minister will hold bilateral meetings with Finland’s Minister of the Interior, Mari Rantanen, Austria’s Federal Minister of the Interior, Gerhard Karner, and the Netherlands’ Minister for Asylum and Migration and Deputy Prime Minister, Bart van den Brink.

The bilateral meetings will focus on issues of common interest in the area of migration, including implementation of the Pact on Migration and Asylum, returns and cooperation with third countries, as well as the Republic of Cyprus’ efforts to fully join the Schengen Area, the press release said.

Ioannides will return to Cyprus on Friday, October 2.