The Bulgarian National Bank (BNB) anticipates a gradual slowdown in annual inflation during the second half of the year, as outlined in Issue 2 of its quarterly publication, “Ikonomicheski pregled” (Economic Review), available on the central bank’s website. According to the report, private consumption and rising unit labor costs, particularly in the context of labor…
Finance Minister Serhii Marchenko called on Western allies to speed up the allocation to Ukraine of a $50-billion loan, arguing that delays in arms deliveries had led to a rising budget deficit. The minister spoke in a comment to the Financial Times. According to him, the slow supply of weapons, especially from the United States,…
According to Associate Dr. Rumen Draganov, director of the Institute for Analyzes and Forecasts of the Information Environment in Tourism, Bulgaria is poised for a strong tourist season this year. Draganov forecasts that the number of foreign tourists will surpass 13 million, marking a 5% to 7% increase from 12.5 million in 2019, the last…
The Bulgarian Parliament has approved the regulations for replacing the lev with the euro, even though Bulgaria has not yet met the criteria for joining the Eurozone. The process for the currency transition is now outlined, despite the country’s current political challenges. Preslav Kitipov, chairman of the Association “Institute of Certified Financial Consultants”, and financial…
Fifty-nine Ukrainian tech companies will receive grants worth EUR 2 million from Seeds of Bravery, the press service of the Ukrainian Ministry of Digital Transformation has announced this on Telegram. As noted, 59 Ukrainian tech companies have attracted funds from the European Innovation Council’s Seeds of Bravery grant program to scale innovations. Startups in the…
Burgas is increasingly being recognized as a top city to live in Bulgaria, according to Alexander Bochev, chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Real Estate Association (NREA). Sofia, Varna and Plovdiv in real estate activity, showing nearly a 40% growth in transactions and a rising trend in the purchase of second vacation…
Political instability is hindering Bulgaria’s progress toward joining the Eurozone, according to an analysis by the rating agency Scope Ratings. The Berlin-based agency has maintained Bulgaria’s credit rating at BBB+ with a positive outlook in both local and foreign currency. Scope Ratings, an EU and European Central Bank (ECB) recognized external credit rating agency, first…