The BNB forecasts an acceleration of annual inflation in Bulgaria to 4 percent by the end of 2026, with average annual levels expected to reach 3.7 percent this year and stabilize around 3.2 percent over the next two years. According to the baseline scenario, real GDP growth will slow down gradually from 3 percent in 2026 to 2.8 percent by the end of the forecast period in 2028. Due to the high uncertainty, the BNB is developing two adverse scenarios that illustrate possible supply and price shocks. In the event of a severe adverse development caused by the disruptions to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, headline inflation could exceed the baseline forecasts by as much as 3.4 percentage points in 2027 and by 2.3 percentage points in 2028. This would be the result of strong indirect and second-round effects from the increase in fuel prices, which was already observed on international markets in March and is expected to soon be passed on to retail prices in Bulgaria. The analysis of the past 2025 shows that economic activity was mainly supported by private consumption, while net exports had a negative contribution due to country-specific factors. The labor market remained extremely tight, with unemployment falling to a historic low of 3.5 percent and employment recording its highest growth since 2008. This systemic shortage of personnel continues to exert serious pressure on wages, which is an additional factor for inflationary processes. Although a temporary slowdown in inflation to 2.1 percent was reported in February 2026, BNB experts attribute this primarily to base effects and lower fuel prices at the beginning of the year. However, the new geopolitical reality is changing the trend. The significant increase in crude oil prices in March will lead to an increase in the prices of transport services and goods in the country in the coming months, which calls into question the achievement of lower consumer price levels in the short term.

The average fee in private high schools in Bulgaria for the 2026/2027 school year is 6,000-7,000 euros, with an average increase of about 10%. However, there are schools where the fee reaches 11,000 - 12,000 euros. When paying in installments, there is an increase in price - in some places by 200-300 euros. In some schools, the fee covers food, in others - not. Additionally, there is a payment for workshops, clubs (the former circles), seminars, theater performances, educational materials and resources, term and annual concerts and other events outside the curriculum. Transportation in both directions is also an additional cost, and there is an increase in price if it is not paid in full. Of course, there are also discounts - most often for a second child in the family. They encourage the education of a certain percentage of students with high achievements in sports and the arts. Schools certified as IB are required to provide various scholarships. IB (International Baccalaureate) is an international education system with programs valid all over the world. The DP - diploma program for students between 16-19 years old is most often applied in our country. The rest - primary and junior high school, are not developed. The concentration is in Sofia, where 6 schools issue the international diploma. 119 private schools are listed in the register of institutions in the system of preschool and school education, of which 105 are operating in the 2025/2026 academic year, and the rest are not implementing an educational process in the current academic year. Last year, one new one started operating, and two were deregistered from the register. 138 private kindergartens are also listed, of which 6 are currently not operating. 38 private ones are included in the List of Innovative Schools for 2025. Some of them are introducing new subjects and organizational solutions. They can be shared as good practices with state and municipal schools.

Fuel sales in Bulgaria increased in March, despite higher market prices. The total quantity reached 353,300,000 liters, which is an increase of 23% compared to February. The most serious growth was recorded in diesel fuel - by 25.2%. It was followed by A-95 gasoline with an increase of 23.6% and propane-butane with 17.9%. In the first 14 days of April, a reverse trend was observed. Compared to the last two weeks of March, diesel sales decreased by about 10%. The data is part of the ongoing monitoring of the fuel market, which the NRA carries out in order to track trends in consumption and revenues in the sector.

The construction of a third highly automated warehouse tower has started at JYSK’s distribution center in the Bozhurishte industrial zone. The investment is worth EUR 45 million, bringing the company’s total investment in Bulgaria to over EUR 164 million. The new facility will increase the base’s capacity by nearly 50%, and the total area of ​​the logistics center will reach 116,000 sq m. m. The distribution center in Bulgaria, opened in 2018, serves over 304 stores in the Balkan region and all physical and online deliveries to Bulgaria, Turkey, Greece and Romania, as well as franchise locations in a number of other countries. The logistics center in Bozhurishte employs over 350 people. Currently, JYSK operates 61 stores in Bulgaria and plans to open at least two more new locations by the end of 2026.

The technology company Codery ("Codery") continues to consolidate small companies in the Bulgarian software sector, with the new acquisition being Elfshock, whose specialization is automation through AI agents. This year, Codery expects three to five more acquisitions, as well as attracting a new round of venture capital. Like Codery's previous acquisition - Devision, this one is also financed with money from the Silverline fund's investment in the company in 2024. Elfshock has 20 employees, but also 400 more digital employees. For 2025, the company "Elfshock" has about 700 thousand euros in revenue, while those of the company "Codery", together with the previous acquisition "Devision", are nearly 5 million euros, with the goal of already being between 8 and 10 million euros by the end of 2026, as a result of the acquisitions and organic growth. The deal is for 80% of the shares, with the remaining 20% ​​remaining in Nikolay Hristov and Lyubomir Angelov, co-founders of Elfshock. Elfshock was founded in 2021, quickly orienting itself towards process automation in large companies from conservative industries. Thus, the company is targeting the financial sector, where there are many and long processes that have not been changed for years and are undergoing significant automation. Codery's goal is to make Elfshock part of its group of companies responsible for AI automation - Codery Automations, as the company will be renamed in the future.

The changes in the management board of Bulgarian-American Credit Bank AD (BACB) have been entered in the Commercial Register. Ilian Georgiev has been dismissed as a member of the management board and CEO of BACB and Tokuda Bank EAD. BACB and Tokuda Bank are always represented together by the executive directors Alexander Dimitrov and Loreta Grigorova. The statutes of BACB have also been updated with the amount of capital in euros, the bank said. In January, BACB finalized the acquisition of Tokuda Bank. The deal was announced in 2024, the Commission for Protection of Competition approved it in mid-2024, and the BNB – at the end of the same year.

METRO Bulgaria and the leading industrial investor CTP have signed a long-term agreement for the construction of a new modern logistics center in CTPark Sofia West. With it, the company will unite all key logistics activities in one place. The new base will have a total area of ​​24,500 sq m, of which 22,300 sq m are warehouse spaces. It includes a dry warehouse with an area of ​​13,000 sq m and temperature-controlled areas with an area of ​​9,300 sq m. The facility will operate six temperature zones, designed for different product categories such as meat, dairy products, sausages, fruits and vegetables, fresh fish, chocolate products and frozen foods. The total investment in the project for a period of ten years exceeds 25 million euros. Commissioning is planned for January 2027. The warehouse will have 30 loading ramps and modern infrastructure for handling goods, which will speed up processes and improve service to METRO stores and customers. There is also an opportunity to expand the base after the fifth year, in line with business development. The new logistics center will be located in CTPark Sofia West, one of CTP’s key industrial parks in Bulgaria. It offers modern Class A logistics and industrial areas and is strategically located with excellent connections to the main transport corridors around the capital. The buildings in the park are designed according to high standards for sustainable construction and are being developed with the aim of BREEAM Excellent certification. This ensures high energy efficiency, use of sustainable materials and reduced environmental impact. In 2024, the park was awarded the Green Building of the Year award in the industrial category.

The shoe retail chain Deichmann reported a 3% increase in turnover in Bulgaria in 2025 to 23 million euros. The company sold a total of 660 thousand pairs of shoes through its stationary stores and online store in our country, which is about 40 thousand pairs more than the previous year. The number of employees of the chain in Bulgaria continued to grow, with 188 employees working for it at the end of last year, 16 more than the previous year, the company announced. Deichmann began operations in our country in 2009. It currently has a total of 26 stores in the country, after opening three new stores last year. Another new store is planned for this year, as well as two renovations in accordance with a new layout concept. Based in Essen, Germany, the family-owned company Deichmann was founded in 1913 and is today the largest shoe retailer in Europe. For 2025, the company reports a currency-adjusted increase in turnover of 2% to 8.9 billion euros. Globally, Deichmann sold around 180 million pairs of shoes last year. The group operates approximately 4,700 stores and 40 online stores in over 30 countries. Nearly 70% of turnover comes from abroad. The number of employees remains stable at around 50,000.

Two Bulgarian companies are participating in a tender for the repair of the runway at Henri Coanda International Airport (Otopeni) in Bucharest - Avtomagistrali (Avtomagistrali EAD) and Bitumina GmbH – Bulgaria EOOD (Bitumina GmbH – Bulgaria EOOD). The National Company Bucharest Airports (CNAB) confirms that it has received 12 offers within the framework of the tender for the rehabilitation and modernization of runway No. 1, including the connections to the taxiways, the accompanying installations, the formation of the runway safety zone and the implementation of an optimal solution for the rapid clearance of the runway. The bids were submitted by FCC Construccion, Strabag, PORR Construct and consortia composed of: BOG'ART (leader), Avtomagistrali, Aduro, Bitumina GmbH – Bulgaria EOOD Leviatan Design (leader), Ubitech Construcții MAKYOL Insaat (leader), CBI Construcții and Turism & Investiții Swietelsky Construct (leader), Viarom Construct, Swietelsky Magyarorszag FAR Foundation (leader), Eurocogen Dambovița and Automagistral-Pivden Precon Transilvania (leader), Citadina 98, Lemacons and Drum Asfalt Concelex (leader), Dimex-2000 Company, Road Soil and X-Way Infrastructure Construcții Erbașu (leader), EN Electric Proiect Office and Acvatot (leader), CONI and Gott Strasse The project envisages the complete renovation and modernization of runway 08R-26L at Henri Coanda International Airport Bucharest, the construction of 5 new taxiways for aircraft, modernization of 2 existing ones, complete replacement of the runway and taxiway lighting systems, modernization of the underground cable routes that supply the lighting, reorganization of the runway safety zone, relocation of service roads, etc. The last major modernization of runway No. 1 was carried out 31 years ago - in 1994. The contract has an estimated value of 529.73 million lei excluding VAT (106 million euros) and a completion period of 85 months, of which: 9 months for design, 16 months for implementation and 60 months for the warranty period. The financing will be provided with own funds.

Green Innovation AD (Hydrogenera) announced that it has signed a contract with a thermal power plant in Bulgaria to implement an alkaline electrolyzer with a total capacity of 60 kW for turbine cooling and generator performance optimization. The contract is for just over 3% of the company’s 2025 sales revenue, i.e. approximately BGN 280,000 (EUR 143.2 thousand). The system is scheduled to be delivered this month and put into operation in May. It will produce hydrogen with a purity of 99.999% for the needs of the thermal power plant. In early April, Green Innovation announced a contract for approximately EUR 2 million with LE Power GmbH in Germany. The system will be put into operation in Ukraine and will provide hydrogen with a purity of 99.999% for industrial customers in Germany. The company ended 2025 with total revenues of over 8.6 million leva compared to nearly 7.3 million leva a year earlier, or 18% more on an annual basis. The company reported over 1.5 million leva profit compared to 745 thousand leva a year earlier, i.e. doubling it.

Blagoevgrad businessman Georgi Sandev has an investment intention to build an industrial zone in the Pokrovniki Most area near Blagoevgrad. The project envisages the creation of an industrial zone by dividing a land plot into 19 properties for production and storage activities, one property for road access and one for the construction of a substation. On 18.02.2026, a notification was submitted for amending the investment proposal with the client KIRIL INVEST AD, whose manager is Georgi Sandev. In recent years, Sandev has been developing his business in various fields, including building construction and the construction of photovoltaic power plants. He recently also implemented a padel court near the village of Pokrovnik.

"Lomsko Pivo" AD temporarily stops production due to a serious accident and repairs. The decision to stop production was made by the board of directors on April 8, 2026. In early April, the local newspaper "Lom Press" wrote that the factory was closing and workers had received layoff orders. The brewery is one of the oldest in Bulgaria. It was founded in 1884 by Czech entrepreneurs. The company ended 2025 with a more than double loss to almost 2.1 million leva compared to 923 thousand leva in 2024. Revenues decreased by over 31% to nearly 2.9 million leva from 4.2 million leva. The company has accumulated uncovered losses of almost 9.7 million leva on its balance sheet with 4.5 million leva capital and 3.6 million leva reserves. Liabilities are over 10.5 million leva with receivables worth 1.7 million leva. Cash has dwindled to just 5 thousand leva last year. The company's total assets amount to over 11.3 million leva.

According to information from the China State Railway Group, in the first quarter of this year, coordination and cooperation with all partner institutions at home and abroad has been increasing, KMG reports. With the increased development of freight train services, the efficiency and quality of cross-border courier services are improving. For the period January-March, the number of freight trains between China and Europe reached 5,460 and the volume of goods transported was 546,000 standard containers. This is an increase of 29 percent and 22 percent year-on-year, respectively. Thus, the increasing role of freight trains between China and Europe has significantly promoted the trade and socio-economic development of China and the countries along the lines.

President Donald Trump's administration plans to launch next Monday (April 20) a system that will be used to refund US importers $166 billion in so-called "reciprocal" tariffs that the US Supreme Court struck down in February as illegal, Reuters reported. US Customs and Border Protection said on Tuesday it had completed development of the initial phase of the refund system, known as CAPE. The system will consolidate refunds so that importers receive one electronic payment, with interest where applicable, rather than processing refunds based on each customs clearance of imported goods entering the US. Earlier this year, the Supreme Court ruled that Trump had exceeded his authority to impose sweeping global tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, a 1977 law designed to be used in national emergencies. As of April 9, about 56,497 importers had completed the process of receiving electronic refunds for tariffs affected by the court’s ruling, totaling $127 billion. More than 330,000 importers had paid the tariffs in question on 53 million shipments of imported goods, according to court documents. Customs and Border Protection said the CAPE system will initially process refunds for recently imported goods and direct imports.

China's gross domestic product (GDP) grew 5.0 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2026, official data showed. The growth rate accelerated from 4.5 percent in the previous quarter, helped by robust exports despite the US-Israeli war on Iran. Analysts had expected the economy to grow at a slower pace of 4.8 percent. The inflation-adjusted GDP growth of the world's second-largest economy is in line with the government's 2026 growth target of 4.5 to 5.0 percent. On a quarterly basis, China's economy expanded 1.3 percent in the January-March period from the previous quarter, after growing 1.2 percent in the October-December period. In the first quarter, China's exports rose 11.9 percent and imports rose 19.6 percent. Retail sales of consumer goods increased by 2.4 percent year-on-year, while fixed asset investment excluding rural households rose by 1.7 percent. At the same time, construction investment fell by 11.2 percent amid the ongoing crisis in the real estate sector. Industrial production increased by 6.1 percent. Earlier this week, the International Monetary Fund forecast that China's economic growth would slow to 4.4 percent in 2026 from 5.0 percent in 2025 due to the effects of the conflict in the Middle East and weak domestic consumption.