Bulgaria's finance minister, who was initially targeting rapid accession to the euro zone, has confirmed the country is in no hurry to adopt the single currency.
"We will not make any move toward the switchover in the next two years," Simeon Djankov told reporters in Vienna on Thursday.
The statement is in line with the opinion of local analysts, who have tried to tone down the cabinet's enthusiasm for adopting rapidly the common European currency, saying it makes more sense for the...
Bulgaria has registered an increase in its foreign direct investment in January-May 2012 year-on-year, according to the latest data of the Bulgarian National Bank released on Monday.
According to the Bulgarian National Bank's preliminary data, the foreign direct investment in Bulgaria for January - May 2012 increased by EUR 473.8 M (1.2% of GDP), compared to an increase of EUR 72.2 million (0.2% of GDP) for January – May 2011.
Bulgaria's attracted Equity Capital (acquisition/disposal of...
Bulgaria's Currency Board Is Super Stable
(Sofia, Jan 12) - "The currency board functioning in Bulgaria is super-stable," the monthly analysis of Raiffeissen Bank Bulgaria reads.
The experts have calculated that at the end of November 2012 the currency board's reserves amount to 15.1 billion euro, which is an increase by 2.2 million euro from a month ago.
The board's reserves have increased by 1.9 billion euro (14.4%) year-on-year, which is a surplus of about 89% to the minimum...
Wall Street legend and highly successful international investor, author and commodities expert, Jim Rogers has said he is considering investing in Bulgaria.
Bulgaria is among the few countries, in which he is considering investing right now, since they have made the most improvement since his latest trip around the world, the billionaire, currently based in Singapore, said in an interview for Gold Radio Cafй.
He joined the broadcast for a brief discussion on his new book "Street Smarts:...
Italian companies may be attracted in privatization projects, including for tourist sites, as well as concessions agreements and modernization schemes for airports, and construction and reconstruction of road and railway infrastructure in Bulgaria, according to Minister Bozhidar Lukarski.
Speaking Tuesday at the opening of an economic forum titled “Bulgaria and Italy: Together for Achieving Growth”, Lukarski pointed out that the trade and economic cooperation between Bulgaria and Italy...
“The opportunities OP Environment provides in the previous and the new programme periods establish prerequisites for a huge volume of work on designing and construction of ecological infrastructure as well as possibilities for the state to tackle challenges,“ said Ivelina Vasileva, Bulgarian Minister of Environment and Water, speaking at an annual conference themed “Strategic infrastructure and investments – Bulgaria and the Western Balkans“, FOCUS News Agency reported.
“In the...
Bulgaria can attract French business partners with its capacities in the production of rose products, wines and cheeses, according to Bulgarian Minister of Agriculture Miroslav Naydenov.
Saturday Naydenov is in Paris to open Bulgaria's first-time booth at the International Agricultural Show (Salon International de l'Agriculture 2011).
Bulgaria's booth includes the country's strongest companies in the fields of meat and dairy production, winery, apiary and cosmetics, in particular rose...
Irish company Ryanair announced that it will open a new twice-weekly service from Milan Bergano to Plovdiv in Bulgaria which will commence on 7 May.
The flights will be serviced on Tuesdays and Saturdays.
The company recently dropped plans for a line from the Bulgarian city of Plovdiv to Barcelona, Spain, which was supposed to be launched on March 27. Tickets for the flights were on sale since December 2010. The flights to Milan Bergano is the alternative destination the company offers to...
Europa Capital, member of the US real estate company Rockefeller Group, announced it has entered into an agreement to acquire Retail Park Plovdiv, Plovdiv, Bulgaria, from Landmark Property Management.
This investment represents the first asset to be acquired by Europa Capital in Bulgaria. The transaction volume for the investment is EUR 20 M.
Retail Park Plovdiv is a 25,000 sq m retail warehouse park located in Plovdiv, the second largest city in Bulgaria approximately 150 km south east...
Bulgarian Minister on Economy, Energy and Tourism, Traicho Traikov, has stated the expected growth in tourism sector for the 2010/2011 winter season is 5-10%.
"Tourism is one of Bulgaria's economy sectors, which handled the recession the best," Traikov said Thursday at the opening of "Vacation & Spa Expo" in Sofia.
He said that the growth in the tourism sector in the country last year was 5%, while expectations for this year's winter season are for 5-10% increase.
In his words,...
The World Bank will continue to support the development of Bulgaria's infrastructure, its Director for Central Europe and the Baltic countries, Peter Harrold, stated in Sofia Wednesday.
Harrold, who met with Bulgaria's Prime Minister Boyko Borisov, has guaranteed that the International Financial Corporation, the member of the World Bank Group that finances and provides advice for private sector ventures and projects, will continue to support the country's green investments, as well as the...
Cleves, the luxury apartment rentals company, opened on Tuesday Sofia's most expensive rentals project – Cleves Este, a sumptuous 34-apartment building in the Iztok quarter costing over EUR 10 M.
The development was nominated for Bulgaria's "Building of the Year" competition last year. Sofia airport is 10 minutes away by car, and the Interpred Metro station (Joliot Curie) is only 200m away for fast access to Sofia city centre.
EUR 2 M has been spent on the fit-out, furnishing and...
EU's Economic and Financial Affairs Council (ECOFIN) has confirmed the decision of the European Commission to terminate the excessive deficit procedure against Bulgaria.
European Union Finance Ministers met in Brussels on February 14 and 15, 2011, confirming the recent position of the EC that Bulgaria needs take no further steps to curb its budget deficit under the bloc's rules on government finances.
The European Union's executive said on January 27 that four countries, including...
The economic slowdown aside, the high share of unoccupied office space in Bulgaria's capital Sofia – 25.4% - is the result of the deficiencies of 20 office buildings, according to a survey of Colliers International Bulgaria.
Colliers' analysis shows that a high percentage of the unoccupied office space in Sofia is concentrated in several new buildings and in specific locations in the Bulgarian capital. Thus, 63% of the unoccupied office space in Sofia is focused in 20 buildings, which have...
Bulgaria's Prime Minister, Boyko Borisov, officially opened Tuesday a factory for the production of light-emitting diodes (LED) in the western town of Godech.
Borisov said during his address the State must encourage energy saving technologies instead of creating new energy production plants, adding the capital Sofia would spend BGN 10 to 15 M less if LED use is introduced.
The PM voiced hope the new factory will have a large market for its production.
Interior Minister, Tsvetan...
Bulgaria's year on year January inflation has been 4.5%, according to the National Statistical Institute's preliminary data.
The inflation in Bulgaria has grown with 0.6% in comparison with December 2010, shows the consumer price index, the country's official measure of inflation. The annual average inflation, measured by this index, in the last 12 months (February 2010 - January 2011) compared to the previous 12 months (February 2009 - January 2010) has been 2.8%.
The harmonized index of...
Bulgaria's GDP growth rate in the fourth quarter of 2010 is 2,1%, year on year and 1,7% compared to the previous quarter, according to the National Statistical Institute's flash estimates.
In the fourth quarter of 2010, the GDP at current prices amounted to BGN 19 924 B. The GDP for 2010 in monetary terms amounted to BGN 70 568 B.
Compared to the third quarter of 2010, gross value added of the total economy increased by 0.4%. According to flash estimates of GDP by final expenditure, in...
Bulgaria's industrial production grew by 5.2% year on year in December 2010 according to Eurostat, EU's statistical office.
The country's industry registered its highest year on year increase in September 2010 – with 8.8%
According to the annual comparison, the industrial production rose in all Member States for which data are available, except Greece (-5.2%), Malta (-3.1%) and Spain (-0.1%). The highest increases were registered in Estonia (+38.4%), Ireland (+16.9%), Latvia (+15.7%),...
Bulgaria's wine exports have increased with 10% year on year in 2010, reaching 57.6 million liters, the country's Agriculture Minister, Miroslav Naydenov, has announced.
Naydenov spoke on the professional holiday of vine-growers and wine-makers, celebrated on Monday. On this day, a special ritual - the first pruning of the vines for the season is done across the country. The celebrations are rooted in the ancient Dionysus festivities, celebrating Dionysus - the God of Wine, who was known to...
Bulgaria raised 24% more state revenues from gambling in 2010 than it did in 2009, according to the State Commission on Gambling.
In 2010, Bulgaria's total tax revenue from gambling was BGN 123.3 M, a growth of one fourth compared with the 2009 gambling revenues for the state of BGN 99.4 M, official date of the National Revenue Agency shows.
The bets on sports games brought the state budged BGN 47.8 M in 2010, a 10% y/y growth.
The revenues from tax on gambling establishments were BGN...
After it collapsed by some 50% y/y in 2009 and by 25% in 2010, Bulgaria's market of new vehicles has started to show more tangible signs of recovery.
A total of 1 464 new cars were bought in Bulgaria in January 2011, a growth of 18% year-on-year when the sales were 1160. Thus, the new car sales in Bulgaria increased for a third month in a row.
19 motorbikes and 79 new trucks were sold in Bulgaria in January but not a single new bus, according to data of the Association of Car...
The British company Zero Carbon 2020 plans to begin, during the second quarter of 2011, putting together electric cars in a plant in Bulgaria's southern city of Stara Zagora.
The information is reported Saturday by the Economy News site, citing Jamie Robertson, the company's director, and comes on the heels of the "Electric Cars – Challenges to New Mobility" conference held Thursday and Friday in Sofia.
The initial investment is estimated at BGN 6.5 M, and if the market reacts well, it...
Bulgaria will participate for the third time in World Travel Fair 2011, one of the biggest tourism exhibitions in Asia, which opens Friday in Shanghai.
The Bulgarian pavilion has been provided by the Ministry of Economy, Energy and Tourism (MEET).
Minister Traycho Traykov has highlighted China as a high-priority country in which MEET actively presents tourist and investment opportunities.
The eleventh edition of the tourism exhibition will bring together more than 500 participants from...
Bulgarian company REnergY has announced plans to construct 15-20 charging stations for electric vehicles in the capital Sofia.
REnergY's pilot project entitled "Electromobility" was presented at the two-day high-level conference in Sofia dedicated to the development, introduction, and use of electric cars called "Electric Cars – Challenges for New Mobility."
The company presented a prototype of an electric charging point that it has developed.
REnergY will built the electric charging...
During the fourth quarter of 2010, the average monthly salary in Bulgaria went up by 4.9% compared to the third quarter, to reach BGN 669.
The data was released Friday by the National Statistics Institute (NSI).
The average salary in October, November and December was BGN 650, 667 and 691 respectively.
The highest increases were registered in Education (13%), Financial Services (10%) while the salaries went down the most in Administration (1%) and the Mining Sector (0.1%).
During...
Japanese corporation Toshiba will open a regional representation in Bulgaria that will handle its operations in Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa.
Thus, Bulgaria will become the second European country after the UK with an EMEA operations office of Toshiba, according to the Bulgarian Ministry of Economy, Energy, and Tourism.
Bulgaria's Economy Minister Traicho Traikov met Friday in Sofia with senior Toshiba executives Osamu Tomita and Keizo Honda as part of a...
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