Cyprus' banking sector still faces one of the highest non-performing loan (NPL) ratios in Europe, while both private and public sectors have a large debt overhang, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said in a report recently.

Cyprus ranked 28 out of 149 countries in a global prosperity index conducted by London-based Legatum Institute, performing best on personal freedom and safety and security, and lowest on the natural environment and education pillars.

The European Commission signed two new agreements in support of the Turkish Cypriot community, the EU scholarship programme and the support for the committee on missing persons (CMP), amounting to €5.5 million in total.

Unemployment in Cyprus in October 2018 edged up to 8.5% from 8.4% in September, but was down from 10.0% in October 2017, Eurostat said recently.

Revenue from tourism reached €378.8 million in September 2018 compared to €371m in the corresponding month of the previous year, recording an increase of 2.1%, on the basis of the results of the Passenger Survey released by the Statistical Service of Cyprus.

€13 billion in foreign deposits were removed from Cypriot banks since 2011, according to Central Bank figures.

Economic sentiment improved in Cyprus in November 2018, mainly driven by services and retail trade, the University of Cyprus said recently.

Cyprus has been upgraded back to investment grade by DBRS Ratings Limited, following recent upgrades from Standard & Poor’s and Fitch Ratings.

The increase of Cyprus’ capacity to absorb more funds from the pool of EU competitive programmes is a top priority, as this would increase the growth prospects of the country, Minister of Finance Harris Georgiades has said.

Bank of Cyprus recently announced an after-tax loss of €37m for the first nine months of 2018 compared with an after-tax loss of €553m in the same period las year.