Financial news

Though considered one of Bulgaria’s priority industries, the role of tourism in the country’s economic growth is not expanding as yet. Despite the growing positive tourist services foreign trade balance, its share in GDP in 2003 was almost flat. According to data, included in the analysis of Bulgarian tourist industry, prepared by experts of SFB Capital Market JSC, the number of foreign tourists, who visited Bulgaria in 2003 was up 26 per cent from 2000. Most of the foreign travelers to Bulgaria came from EU member states, as well as from Macedonia, Serbia and Montenegro. The balance from tourist services is positive and is developing with an upward trend of increase. In 2003, it was 37 per cent bigger. The number of hotels is 40 per cent bigger (compared with 2000), and their bed capacity has increased with 20 per cent.

Lukoil is raising the prices of gasoline, diesel, gas oil and LPG as of May 16. From now on, gasoline A-92N will cost BGN1326.22 per ton, or 1.17 per cent premium to the previous price. The price of A-95A will be raised with 1.8 per cent up to BGN 1344.74 per ton, and that of gasoline A-98N – with 0.98 per cent to BGN 1367.32 per ton. The prices of diesel and fuel will be increased with 1.52 per cent, and that of LPG – with 3.01 per cent.

In the negotiations with EU on the chapter Agriculture, the Managing Board of Sugar Plants – Gorna Oriahovitza suggested the quote for manufacture of sugar from sugar beetroot for Bulgaria to be up to 50 000 tons per year. According to the Managers’ analyses, if this quote is approved by the European experts, the refinery is going to process entirely own raw materials. The effect will be quite favourable for the encouragement of the beetroot manufacture, providing means of living to the population in the region and for the development of the company after Bulgaria's EU accession.

Privatization

Bulgaria's State Receivables Collection Agency (SRCA) will collect 30% of the debts of Balkan Airlines, the former national flag carrier, within a month, the agency announced. The stated receivables of the company are in the amount of BGN 57 million. Since December 2003, SRCA has collected BGN 9.5 million of them, and is expected to collect another BGN 5.7 million soon. The Agency is going to sell the 51-per cent stake of Balkan in Amadeus Global Distribution Ltd. as well, which is evaluated at BGN 1.293 million, as well as 3 per cent of the stake of the insurance company Bulstrad, evaluated at BGN 151 000.

Companies

Four hotels – Ermitage, Golden Beach, Park Odessos and Zornitza, were issued directions to start freezing the construction works on them. The order was given by the mayor of Varna. However, it was attacked by the company Sunny Travel, which is investor in the hotel Ermitage. The company is ownership of the investment fund Sigma Capital Investments.

National flag-carrier Bulgaria Air has narrowly escaped the non-start of its summer charter program, The Bulgaria Air Board of Directors and Transport Minister Mr. Nikolai Vasilev put together a series of emergency meetings last week to rescue the hire of Boeing 737-300s from Germany's DSF. According to Dnevnik's sources, Vasilev refused to sign the lease contract because it featured a clause allowing the German company to reclaim the passenger jets if the financial state of the national carrier changes while incurring no default charges. The tricky clause would have made it impossible for Bulgaria Air to ensure the execution of its charter program. Bulgaria Air board chairman Andrei Breshkov confirmed for Dnevnik that the contract contained dodgy clauses but refused to give further details. It was not clear on Sunday how the clauses found their way into the lease contract when both the transport minister and the board claimed they had not approved them.Bulgaria Air currently flies three Boeing 737-300s and one Boeing 737-700, all under lease contracts. The DSF fleet reinforcement was expected to arrive here late last week but the carrier could still avoid substantial losses if the another two hired jets turn up as scheduled this week.(

Local company Dinevi&Co, which develops investment projects for the design, construction and marketing of luxury villas, hotels and residential communities, opened this weekend the new beachfront holiday village Kambanite in the St. Vlas resort. Dinevi&Co. has so far built one coastal holiday complex in Ravda and five in St. Vlas and one tourist facility in ski resort Pamporovo.

Kremikovtzi remains the biggest public company in Bulgaria with 2003 registered incomes in the amount of BGN 700 million, according to Top 50 – the second annual survey on the financial results of the companies, traded on BSE-Sofia. The second position in this top list is held by LUKoil-Neftochim with incomes of BGN 463 million, followed by Navigation Maritime Bulgare - BGN 462 million. The same companies are also included in the top rating by profit. In 2002 Kremikovtzi registered the biggest loss and in 2003 became the most profitable company.

More than 100 000 subscribers of M-Tel are using GPRS for MMS, the operator announced yesterday. 4 months after the company started offering this service, they reminded they have invested EUR 10 million in the building and maintenance of the system.

Shumen-based brewer Shumensko Pivo, majority-owned by Denmark's Carlsberg, has launched the production of Tuborg beer, Carlsberg Bulgaria executive director Alexander Grancharov said. The inaugural batch of 300 hectoliters will be sold in 330 ml glass bottles. The company will continue to import Tuborg cans. Carlsberg Bulgaria, which also operates the Pirinsko Pivo brewery of Blagoevgrad, currently imports malts from Hungary for the local Tuborg production but plans a transition to a brewing process using only Bulgarian inputs. To this end, the company is eyeing the results from experimental crops of different varieties of barley currently being grown in various locations around the country. The Tuborg brand will be offered locally as draft brew. A 500 ml bottle to be added to the packaging size options in early summer, Grancharov said. Riding high on robust business in early 2004 and a popular advertising campaign, Shumensko Pivo is on track to double its sales this year, Grancharov said. For the moment, Carlsberg ranks as the fourth biggest beer maker in Bulgaria, trailing Heineken-owned Brewinvest, Belgium's Interbrew and Bulgarian-owned Bulbrew. The locally brewed Tuborg is the latest arrival on the domestic premium beer segment where rival brands Stella Artois, Heineken and Amstel are already represented. Interbrew-owned Kamenitza has started making the Beck's beer brand in Plovdiv and intends to produce up to 50,000 hectoliters in 2004.

Eurobank's  2004 first quarter net profit reached BGN 2.012 million, the bank reported. This is 77 per cent premium to the bank's financial results in the same period of last year. As of the end of March this year, its assets were in the amount of BGN 314 million, or  52 per cent up from March 2003. The deposits of citizens and companies rose with 56 per cent, reaching BGN 245 million. The credits, extended by Eurobank to citizens and companies over the period totaled to BGN 174 million, which is  66 per cent more than in the first quarter of 2003.

A private hydro power plant and a new wrappage production unit were officially opened in Gabrovo. The two enterprises will employ 20 people, Mr. Peyo Peev, owner of the company Alfrida-Peev announced. The plant is the first private facility of its kind in the region.

International Trade Centre - Geneva, and Bulgarian industrial association organize on May 18 and 19 2004 at hotel Hilton - Sofia, a regional meeting "Challenges for Government and Business after the conference of ITC in Cancun" for central and Eastern Europe and Russian federation.

On May 27 and 28, 2004 in Brussels Bojidar Danev, the chairman of BIA, is going to take part in an international round table about communications where participants will be new joined to EU countries.

Europe

Coca Cola's Turkish unit has announced plans for an initial public offering of 30% of the company. Coca Cola Icecek which has five production plants in Turkey has not said how much it aims to raise from the issue, which is scheduled for June. It says it has invested USD 500m in the subsidiary over the last decade and that last year sales reached USD 556m. "The Coca Cola offering has been expected for a long time," said analyst at Koc Investment Fusun Bektas. Leading Turkish beer producer Anadolu Efes has a 33% stake in the firm, while the Anadolu Group has a 40% stake. 

USA

Oracle Corp. on Friday lowered its hostile cash tender offer to buy PeopleSoft Inc. by 19 percent, but the database software maker said there was no change in its commitment to acquire its closest rival. Pleasanton, California-based PeopleSoft said in a statement that its board would review the new offer, but also repeated its objection to the bid and said that the timing of the announcement appeared to represent another attempt by Oracle to undermine its business. Oracle's new bid of USD 21 per share represented a premium of 21 percent over PeopleSoft's closing price on Friday, slightly higher than the 19-percent premium represented by the previous USD 26-per-share bid. 

Asia

China handled 92.5 billion US dollars of imports and exports of hi-tech products during the first four months of this year, a rise of 50.6 percent year-on-year and accounting for 28 percent of the nation's foreign trade in the corresponding period. The total hi-tech product trade volume included 46.9 billion dollars in imports, up 39.9 percent year-on-year, and 45.6 billiondollars in exports, up 63.8 percent, according to statistics from the Commerce Ministry. In April alone, the country exported 12.6 billion dollars worth of hi-tech products, up 55.7 percent on a yearly basis, with imports growing by 40 percent to 13.4 billion dollars. 

Batak

The lands of Batak region have been inhabited since ancient times. These lands either inhabited or passed by Thracians, Romans, Slavs, Proto-Bulgarians, Ottomans and Bulgarians still preserve the heritage of their civilizations. There are 20 Thracian, Thracian-Roman, Byzantium and Slav fortresses as well as more than 10 churches and monasteries and many Thracian tumuli, Roman bridges, mines, mills and other archaeological findings registered in Batak region. Until the 1st century BC when the Romans conquered the Balkan Peninsular the Northern Thrace and Western Rhodopes were inhabited by the warlike Thracian tribe Bessae. According to the father of history – Herodotus the Bessae possessed the well-known sanctuary of God Dionysus. The holy place of the Bessae became famous when Alexander the Great and the father of the great Roman emperor Octavian Augustus – Gaius Octavianus passed by. When the Ottoman Empire strengthened its positions, the mountainous villages like Batak attracted many rebellious Bulgarians who settled here in order to preserve their Christian faith. During the Bulgarian Renaissance many prominent spiritual figures as the abbot archimandrite Yosif who restored the Rila Monastery to its present form; the abbots Kiril and Nikifor, the author of the remarkable Bulgarian ABC Book (printed in 1814), Georgi Busilin and the publisher Dragan Manchov rose here. During the April Upraising against the Ottomans in 1876 after a two-week unequal battle against the Turkish army of many thousands strong 5000 people died and the town was burned down. About two thousand people who gathered in St. Nedelya Church defended heroically their honour and faith for three days and nights and all of them died after the church was burned. The brightest intellect of mankind raised a voice of protest and indignation in answer to this outrageous occurrence - Victor Hugo, William Goldstone, Makgahan, Dostoevski, Lev Tolstoy. The world came to know about Bulgaria and its will to be free.