Economics
Croat Parties Start Coalition Talks After Inconclusive Elections
- Consultations begin after top two parties declare victory
- Kingmaker party eschews coalition, may back minority cabinet
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Croatia’s biggest political parties began wrangling over the right to lead coalition talks following inconclusive elections, risking a protracted battle as they woo a kingmaker that said it may support a minority administration.
Tomislav Karamarko’s Croatian Democratic Union, known as HDZ, and Prime Minister Zoran Milanovic’s Social Democrats started informal discussions on Monday with the third-placed Most, whose name means “bridge” in Croatian. Officials from both the opposition and the ruling coalition claimed victory but, with neither commanding a majority, the threat of political instability sent the yield on the country’s euro-denominated bond maturing in 2025 to a four-month high.